The first time Kahlan Amnell saw Richard Rahl was during the first year assembly in the great hall. She noticed him immediately even though he was surrounded by a large crowd of freshmen boys. He was a good looking guy, tall, with broad shoulders and brown hair, but the thing that struck her about him the most was his eyes.

Despite the fact that she was all the way across the room, she could still see a spark of intelligence and kindness in those beautiful grey eyes. This was something she hadn't expected. The Rahl's were not known for their kindness and in fact, among all the leaders of the known world, they were considered the cruelest the most difficult to handle. Kahlan gave herself a mental shake at the thought and reminded herself that currently there was peace treaty between D'hara and the Midlands and that prejudice wasn't going to get her anywhere, especially not on the first day of college.

The palace of the prophets in tanimura was the most prestige's school in both the new and old world. Kings, queens and other rulers sent their kids there to help them prepare for their future responsibilities. The school also trained the gifted, helping them to better understand and control their gift. Confessors, like Kahlan were considered a special case: being both gifted and the rulers of the Midlands council meant that they were to be trained in both fields. None of the other students had to learn both, apart from Richard Rahl. The Rahl bloodline was the only ruling family that also had the gift and being his father's heir, there was no doubt in kahlan's mind that Richard was gifted. Only gifted males could become the leaders of D'hara, and Lord Rahl always made sure he had only one gifted boy. Therefore, a male Rahl attending the school was rare occasion that only happened once a generation or so. Being a Rahl in college had its advantages: The Rahl family was rich, very rich, and the land of D'hara was very influential and wealthy. Rahl boys who attended the school were surrounded with admiring girls, hoping to be the next lady Rahl, and with smooth talking guys wanting to get on the good side of the future D'haran leader.

Being a confessor, on the other hand, did not win you any popularity points. Confessors lived by the strict code of the confessors council which was presided by the Mother confessor. The rules were elaborated and fully known only to confessors, but for outsiders, confessors seemed stiff and uninteresting. Avoiding the other sex also didn't give them any points and so they mostly kept to themselves throughout their time in tanimura, and only befriended other confessors.

Kahlan missed her home terribly and wished that her sister could be here; Unfortunately, Denee was a few years younger than her and wasn't ready yet to go to college. Sighing, kahlan took a deep breath and turned around, looking at the girls around her. There were no confessors her age, meaning she was the only confessor among the freshmen. Since people usually avoided confessors, she assumed that those girls would do the same. Kahlan prepared herself for a long day before she could go and visit some of the other confessors. At least then she would have someone to talk to and share her day with. Strangely enough, she found herself thinking that Richard might be a good person to talk to, but before she could even reprimand herself for the thought, someone bumped into her. Kahlan looked around and found herself face to face with a red haired girl.

"Hi, sorry for that, I'm just so clumsy today, well always actually, but never mind you don't know that yet, and… I'm Jennsen ".

The girl took a breath and smiled apologetically. Kahlan smiled back.

"Hi Jennsen, it's nice to meet you. I'm Kahlan, and don't worry about it."

"Thanks Kahlan, you seem nicer than the few princesses I met earlier…what kingdom are you from?"

Kahlan's smile faded. Of course, the only person who talked to her didn't know who she was. For a minute kahlan thought of not telling her, but her sense of truthfulness was stronger. "I'm not a princess, Jennsen, I'm a confessor."

Much to her surprise, Jennsen's smile grew.

"Really? I've always wanted to meet a confessor, you sound really cool!"

Kahlan's jaw dropped. Never in her life did she know anyone who referred to confessors as cool, but Jennsen's honest smile told her she was telling the truth.

Kahlan looked at the shorter girl and smiled brightly feeling that her day just got way better; maybe she won't be as lonely as she thought after all.

XXX

The first time Richard Rahl saw Kahlan Amnell was at his Midlands history class.

He was sitting in the middle of the class, surrounded by friends and a few "followers".

Richard sigh mentally, thinking about the amount of people befriending him just because he was a Rahl. He could always tell the difference between true friends and people who only liked him for his status. His father always warned him about people land their intentions, and before he left for school, he promised him to be responsible and choose his friends wisely. Richard knew that any decision he makes now could affect his future, and since he was the future lord Rahl, those decisions will also affect the future of D'hara. In spite of his young age, Richard didn't take responsibility lightly. He wanted to make the right choices, so he could be the kind of leader people look up too and make his father proud. Thinking about the burdens that came with being a Rahl, Richard couldn't understand why people seemed to be jealous of him. He assumed it was because they couldn't see what it really meant, but still he wished to have someone who truly understood what it feels like to have so much responsibility at a young age. A friendly shove drove him from his thoughts. Richard looked up and saw the smiling face of his sister.

"Hi, brother. Are you brooding again? You should stop that you know. You'll drive all the pretty girls away."

Richard chuckled. Jennsen always knew how to cheer him up.

"Jennsen, I'm pretty sure I don't need girl advice from you" he said, his gaze focusing on a group of girls who stood close by, giggling and looking at him. Richard frowned "in fact, I think I'd like if they went away for a while" he murmured.

Jennsen giggled, and the girls who figured the conversation between brother and sister involved them, blushed. Richard looked away and decided on a change of topic.

"Where are your friends, Jenn? Did you manage to scare them all away already? What about that girl you said was nice? Is she not taking this class?"

"Tired of girl talk big brother?" Jennsen liked teasing him; Richard always had a good sense of humor and teasing him now made her feel more at home. However, seeing the look on his face, she decided to drop the subject and answer his question.

"Actually, I'm waiting for Kahlan. She's supposed to be here by now…" Jennsen gaze turned toward the door. Kahlan wasn't the late type, maybe something happened…the minute the thought crossed her mind, she saw Kahlan rushing in, her long hair waving behind her and her cheeks flushed. Richard, who followed his sister's gaze, froze. There was no doubt in his mind that this girl was the prettiest girl he's ever seen in his life. She was tall, with alabaster skin and long dark hair. When she scanned the room, looking for Jennsen no doubt, he noticed her eyes. She had the most beautiful piercing blue eyes he ever saw. He could see strength and wisdom in those eyes, and he knew right away that she was probably the strongest person he ever knew. There was nothing he wanted to do more than go and talk to the girl, but professor warren's voice singled the beginning of class. Unaware of her brother's reaction, Jennsen said a quick goodbye and rushed over to Kahlan, ushering her to their seats. For the rest of the class Richard tried to focus on warrens voice, but the only one thing he could think about: he had to talk to Kahlan.