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THE TRIO CONTINUED walking through the gorgeous buildings, admiring the landscape of each and every turn, the brick placed perfectly on each building. Dinara was completely awestruck by the way that everything was put together and managed to be kept in such a clean state, seeing as there was always another student no matter which direction they turned. Everyone was polite, saying hi and greeting anyone they saw, bright smiles plastered into their faces. They entered the courtyard, Dinara immediately catching sight of a man who had some resemblance to Jesper, looking to confirm her suspicions, seeing the boy lifeless as he stared at the man.
"Da," Jesper croaked, worried about the way his father would react to him being with a group of misfits.
Colm looked up with a relieved grin, happy that his boy was safe and sound. "Jes!" he cried, crossing the courtyard to wrap his boy in his arms and hold him tight. "All Saints, I thought you were dead. They said you weren't a student here anymore, that you'd just vanished and — I was sure you'd been stuck through by bandits or the like in this Saints-forsaken place."
"I'm alive, Da," Jesper said. "But if you keep squeezing me like that, I won't be for long." Jesper let out a cautious laugh, worried about what he would be telling his father about his past and what really happened.
"I swear you're a foot taller," "Half a foot. This is Wylan and Dinara." "Nice to meet you. Do you speak Kerch?" "Da, he speaks Kerch just fine." "Nice to meet you, Mister Fahey." "And you too, lad. Are you students as well." "Saints no." "I...have studied. Are you hungry, Mister Fahey." "Starving." "Maybe we could take him to lunch." "Perfect. Who doesn't like lunch?"
They started walking, but Colm was more interested in knowing what was going on with his son. "But Jesper, what has been happening? I received a notice from the Gemensbank. The loan is coming due, and you'd have me believe it was temporary. And your studies—"
"Da, I...the thing is—" Jesper wasn't able to finish his sentence, a bullet being fired through the courtyard, landing at their feet and sending up a cloud of dust.
"What in the name that of all is holy—" Colm began, but he was unable to finish as Jesper had shoved his father behind him, pulling him towards a doorway. "Saints! This city is worse than the guidebooks said!"
Dinara was trying to figure out where the shots had been coming from and prayed that Matthias and Kaz had been returning fire. "Da, it isn't the city. They're after me. Or after us. Hard to say."
"Who's after you?" Colm asked, the thought of his only son being in danger was too much to bear and the fact that he could lose him was doing things to his mind. "Brigands?"
