About two days before the festival gets truly underway, despite a fairly carnival atmosphere already in the air, as Ulden and Draiss are making their way across the city, a parade of city guards interrupts traffic for a few minutes, with Tasoa at the lead of the column, a sight which very nearly drives Ulden to madness; likely, only Draiss' presence keeps him from lashing out and smashing them all with magic. That, and the sight of a young woman, riding just behind Tasoa in the column, a tall, raven-haired, attractive young woman, riding on a high-stepping, noble-woman's horse, wearing loose, almost ill-fitting clothes, making her at a sharp contrast with the silver-and-white perfection of the guards. That, and the large-dog sized black dragon, his forelegs on her shoulders and his head hovering a few inches above and to the right, his back legs resting on the saddle. At the sight of her, Ulden looks stunned, and stops dead in his tracks, staring, until they pass.