This is the second Tamora Pierce story I've written... and it was initially supposed to be a one-shot but... things got a bit out of hand, especially when I decided to add in characters... It's easy to manipulate Thom's character seeing as he only said one line in Trickster's Choice, and when he was a kid.. well...

I know that ThomxKel is not a very popular pairing (it's next to completely non-existent) compared to the others, but I just found it... interesting. So I decided to try it out. And although this might be a romance story, you don't see much of Kel until later on. It's more for the comedy, really...

But no matter what, this story is not going to go anywhere beyond ten chapters! I was supposed to have finished writing this a long time ago then post it up bit by bit, but now I just want it done before my summer holidays end!

Hope you enjoy it! Will appreciate all reviews!

A Brilliant Idea

Prologue

Operation 000: To Initiate

Mid-September, 460 H.E.

Fort Steadfast

"Come on Thom! Aly didn't drag you all the way here just so you could indulge in your mobile library." Keith of Amerath argued to his red-haired friend, who simply referred to another scroll.

"Just because she didn't doesn't mean I won't." Thom replied absently, taking out his small notebook and jotting down an interesting note. Keith had to stop and think in order to absorb Thom's words. When he managed to understand it, he scowled at his best friend. He had half a mind to snatch his scrolls and books away until the wedding, but flashes of Thom's hidden, hereditary temper flashed in his mind. Another one of their friends had tried once, and the result had not been pretty.

"I can't believe you're still at it!" a voice exclaimed before them. Keith turned around to see Estrel, who had been the unfortunate victim of Thom's rage for the first and final time (You see, being University students, they had a brain to use and knew not to repeat mistakes if there was a possibility of their heads being ripped off by the spawn of the Lioness). However, it seemed more often than not that Estrel pushed Thom's boundaries right until they reached the edge, just for the fun of it.

"Neither can I," he heard Thom mumble discreetly. Keith's mouth twitched at the edges – Thom did have his own sullen sense of humour. Estrel, however, had not heard him and pushed the couple conversing opposite Thom apart, scrambled over the table, shoved away all his reading material, dumped his butt beside Thom and forced Thom to look around them. Thom's look of annoyance did not skip Keith's scrutiny, and he took a cautious step back.

"Thom of Pirate's Swoop, may I ask you what you can see around you right now?" Estrel asked, slinging his arm freely around Thom's shoulders, and gestured wildly and freely at the scene before them. The couple he had pushed apart before shot them hostile looks, which all three simply ignored.

"What's the point of asking for permission to a question if you ask the question you requested permission for in the first place anyway?" Thom answered, and while Estrel tried to absorb Thom's wordy reply, Thom took the chance to take in his surroundings properly for the first time.

The mess hall in Fort Steadfast had been converted into a socializing area after dinner. There were several tables that still carried that night's leftover's from dinner, and people either sat on the benches (a select few drunken ones were cart wheeling on the tables) or were walking around, conversing with others. A noble, the King's Own, the Queen's Riders, soldiers, mages, servants…. All sorts of people milled about and mixed. There were even some people from the Yamani Islands – the women wore the kimono while the men used their hakama and haori. The air was filled with lively chatter and laughter. He could hear the boasts of a King's Own soldier who was around forty feet away, retelling his brave (and most probably exaggerated) story to any female ear willing to listen.

The hall itself had been redecorated in accordance to the wedding that would take place in around three days. At least, it had been redecorated as much as the bachelor men of Third Company were capable of. It was pretty obvious that the more creative ones had been reserved for the courtyard.

"…Seriously Thom, I don't know why you must always make your words so complicated." Estrel whined.

"I see people." Thom said.

"… What?" Estrel replied. Thom heaved a sigh and waved one arm in a pathetic attempt to imitate Estrel from earlier. The corner of Keith's mouth twitched upwards again. Estrel just looked at him as if he was crazy before the gesture registered in his mind. His mouth went into a round 'o' as he finally comprehended it, but quickly turned downward into a scowl as he realized that he was being made fun of.

"…Seriously Thom, can't you get more descriptive than that? The air is vibrant with life, and all you can say is that 'you see people'?" He all but screamed the last sentence. "For somebody who reads so much, you have a rather mono outlook on the world!"

"I see a lot of people." Thom continued dully, thinking that Estrel should be introduced to a certain ex-squire of his mother's. They both had a tendency to over exaggerate, be overly dramatic and tug at the patience of mother and son. Estrel let out a huff of indignation, before a seemingly bright idea entered his head, and he let out a maniacal grin. Thom chose to ignore it and withdrew an extra large tome from below the table. Keith looked between the two, amazed that Thom actually managed to sneak the gargantuan book together with all his other scrolls and books into the mess hall, and was also slightly intimidated by the look on Estrel's face.

"I have a brilliant idea!" Estrel proclaimed, jumping from his seat.

"No you don't!" Keith immediately protested, dragging Estrel down. No good had ever come out from Estrel's so-called 'brilliant' ideas. Thom, on the other hand, didn't even blink – used to their behavior as he was - and opened his book to a marked page. His fingers nearly broke when Estrel slammed it close – he had barely withdrawn his hands in time. He glared at Estrel, but he should have saved his strength. Estrel shoved his ecstatic face into Thom's.

"You, Thom of Pirate's Swoop, are going to get laid." He declared with earth-shattering confidence.

Thom only raised an eyebrow. Keith stared.

That was how it began.