I´m so excited! So much has happened since my last letter. I had dinner
with the Duke of Tonn-- but more about that later. How´s Mom and the boys? I
bet they´re eating a lot, growing so big. Say hi to them for me.
So the woman I told you about earlier, who said she had a job for me
helping out her daughter and some friends, invited me to dinner. (By the way,
she paid half up front, which you should be receiving soon. I´m making good
money teaching here and don´t need it.) She lived in one of the funny narrow
houses they have so much around here, and everything was very done up all fancy.
I´m glad I didn´t break anything-- what they would have thought of me then!
One of the friends answered the door-- I don´t think he expected me, but
he was very polite and even took my cloak. I don´t think I ever saw a warrior
that handsome-- most usually have broken noses or teeth missing or scars or
things like that, but he almost GLOWED.
The meal was really tasty and elegant-like, everything made up really
pretty. I met the people I´ll be travelling with-- BOY. The man I met was a
paladin of Estereal, and then there was Miss Fraiser´s daughter-- a mage. Miss
Fraiser was all flustered, but in a high class way, to make sure everyone was
comfortable and had enough food, just like Mom when we have company. Her
daughter kept telling Miss Fraiser to sit down, but Miss Fraiser kept bustling
back from the table to the kitchen. There was a beutiful woman, Nikita, who was
a priest, and another mage who looked awfully clever and who could change his
shape just as neat as you please. Travelling with such interesting people is
going to give me a lot of stories, I can just tell.
Anyway. So, the next day, the paladin, Rhavin, gets a letter from the
duke, asking us (me too!) to dinner. I was nervous, but Nikita took me under her
arm and made me look really nice-- made me take a bath and did my hair. She did
Miss Fraiser´s daughter-- Karea -- up so pretty that I hardly recognized her and
herself up so nice that it was like a fairy tale, looking at her. Rhavin was
really impressed, I could tell. I think he´s holding a torch for her-- they got
together in the bathroom, talking. what some people do for privacy.
So, the mage, Canliss, was missing and Rhavin and Nikita had to look for
him so he wouldn´t miss the Duke´s dinner. I guess they found him in time
because he met us in time to be picked up.
There was a DRAGON waiting for us, to take us to the duke. I´d heard
stories, but to see it was something else. Riding on something that could fly
was wonderful and exciting and a little scary all at once. I´ll never forget it.
I always thought a Duke would be really formal and stuffy, but this guy
was all right. It was a really fancy dinner. There was music to dance to, just
like at the inn, so we ate and drank and danced together. Just like a graduation
party, but fancier clothes and no fights.
There was a little business, too, but the Duke got it out of the way
pretty quick-- I guess he just wanted to relax after a long day. It seems like
the people I´m traveling with are in some kind of trouble (although I can´t
imagine how they got there, but you always hear about bad things happening to
good people) and they are on this journey to a very dangerous place. What they
are going to be doing there isn´t very
clear to me-- there´s a comet and a prophecy and a window and it´s all very
important. Rhavin says they´re going to be saving the world, which sounds pretty
serious.
So, the Duke pulls out this contract, which everybody got very excited
about even though all the beer hadn´t been drunk yet and the band was still
there. I think this job is bigger than I thought it was going to be, but since a
Paladin is involved, what could possibly go wrong?
Anyway. I´ll write again as soon as I can and let you know how we´re
doing. Love and a big squeeze--
--Ester