<div style="text-align: center"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'"><span style="font-size: 22px">Annie, The Hero</span></span>​</div><br/>It had taken some convincing, but Annie had managed to convince her mother to at least let her go and visit with Val and his father. For the second time that day, Annie was riding back into Ashburn. By now, it had began to rain. Rain was always Annie's least favorite weather here. The water turned the snow that blanketed the countryside to an ugly, gray slush that was even more difficult to travel in. Not to mention, rain had a way of soaking through her winter clothes that snow took much longer to do.  With a sigh, Annie flipped up her hood an nudged her horse to pick up the pace.<br/><br/>A pair of Asterrio's students stood on the corner of the street, speaking to each other in hushed tones. They stopped and watched as Annie rode past them, glaring at the farmgirl. Feeling their eyes on her, Annie looked over to the pair before smiling and waving to them. The second student waved back, before being smacked upside the head and dragged away by the first student. Annie watched them before shrugging and continuing onward.<br/><br/>As the snow turned to slush in the rain, Annie made it to Val's family home. Tying Onyx's reins to a nearby tree, Annie walked onto the porch and knocked on the front door.