Winter was not yet half gone when she soared once more over the patchwork countryside. The landmarks were all much changed by their deep blanket of snow, but she eventually found the right farm. She noticed Jonathan out in the yard, and was unable to resist the impish urge to land right next to him. He jumped at the sound of her wings, and then jumped again to see her.

"Hi! Hope it's all right that I'm a little early," she said. "Thankfully this little adventure didn't take me long."

"I, uh... no, that's fine! It's good to see you!" said Jonathan. He was nearly as stunned as he'd been on the day she left. Even though she'd said she would return, he hadn't really expected her to. What could there possibly be to draw somebody like her to a place like his farm, to a person like him? He had gotten used to the idea that a warrior might want to learn farming, but one of the Queen's Own? She could be living in the royal castle right now, in comfort and splendor, why would she want to come back here? But she had, and he found himself very glad to see her again.

She took her attic room again, and once more leaned her sword in the corner and folded her mail shirt next to it.

Winter was a slower time on the farm. There was still work to be done, but there were no plantings, no harvests, no crops to tend, and so there was more time for leisure. There were snowball fights, in which Ariana cheated outrageously by taking to the air to bombard Jonathan from above, and trips into the village, and even the occasional party or gathering at one of the other farmhouses in the area. Ariana enjoyed herself thoroughly. The winter here was mild indeed compared to the weather she was used to, and the company was very enjoyable. She had admitted to herself some time ago that as much as the work filled some strange inner desire, the real attraction of the farm was the young man who owned it. And so during those winter months she made the first few tentative advances in that direction. They got no further than occasionally holding hands while the snow still lay on the ground, but Ariana was content to take it slow.

Jonathan was still more than a little shocked. It seemed obvious that she liked him, but he knew it was very much impossible. Still... he wasn't going to stop holding her hand and enjoying her company until she told him to!

The budding romance, however, was pushed aside when the snow began to melt. Planting was not quite as frenetic as harvest, but it was still a very busy time, and they were both often too tired at the end of the day for anything other than dinner and bed.

Ariana loved planting. Putting the seeds in the soil and contemplating the miracle that turned little hard specks into green plants gave her endless pleasure. So she worked happily through the spring and into the summer. And one day she was helping plant late vegetables in the garden, and realized that it had been a whole year since she had first landed at the farm. She thought then of her family. She had sent word to them, not long after she first arrived here, so they wouldn't be worried. And she was long since old enough to not have them fret over her being away. She did miss them, just a little. But she still wasn't ready to leave here. She was starting to have thoughts of never leaving, in fact. All the same, I should probably write again, and reassure them, she thought. Well, the village isn't that far away, by wing. I could go today, and be back by sundown.

"Jonathan!" She just yelled, no point wandering the farm looking for him, he could be anywhere.

His head poked out of the hay barn. "What is it?"

"I'm done here, and I just thought of an errand I need to run. I'd like to take off and head into town this afternoon. I'll probably be back by sundown, though I might stay there overnight if it takes too long."

"Sure, go ahead. I'll manage."

"Thanks!" She took wing immediately, no point hanging around, and soared off over the green fields. She never tired of looking down at that patchwork of a thousands shades of green.