Violet eyes looked up at the place that brought memories. Bad memories. The owner of those eyes sighed and remembered the last time she left that place.
She was 12 and had just begun her second year in page training. The king had somehow found out that she was masquerading as a boy. She was tried for it and sentenced to banishment from the city for three years. She didn't think that wasn't so bad at the time. She had to leave her friends and comrades. She had to leave the very place that she called home. That didn't bother her. The thing that made her angry and very sad at the same time was that she wasn't aloud to become what she dreamed. A Knight.
She left without saying good-bye and left a note saying:
Dear my friends,
I hope you don't hate me because I'm a girl. But my real name is Alanna, not Alan. I persuaded my brother Thom to trade places because I didn't want to become a lady and Thom didn't want to become a knight. I did so we traded and I went to the palace to become a knight and Thom went to The City of the Gods to study magic. I am so sorry for lying to you. I NEVER wanted to lie to you. Please forgive me. I hope one day we will meet again and I promise that I will come back one day. Just not within three years. I will come back but I WON'T be a lady. I will never wear a dress (how can you fight) and I will show the whole kingdom that women can fight!
Remember me because ill remember you!
From Alanna (Alan)
Now she was back. Five years have passed since she has last seen the city of Corus, and it looked the same. The same castle overlooking the city. The same busy everyday market. The same people doing their jobs. It was the same.
Alanna on the other hand was not the same. She still had her violet eyes but they were brighter and shone with an inner fire that could not be extinguished. Her fiery red hair that matched her personality was longer, now down to her waist and tied in a French braid on one side of her head. She wore used leather armor and you could see her well-toned muscles underneath. She still had the fiery temper that everyone had come across at least once. She still had a strong determination and she had a good heart. Though she didn't know it.
"Come on stop daydreaming and hurry up I want to get some rest. We have been on the road for five weeks." Alanna's teacher and companion Liam Ironarm wined. He had blue eyes that glimmered, brown hair and had well toned muscles underneath leather armor.
"Okay, okay, stop whining." She teased.
"I'm not whining!!" he wined
"Sure your not" she said sarcastically.
"Fine!" He glared at her. " Do you know any inn's we can stay at tonight. I don't want to be at the palace until we have too. Which means we can stay there until tomorrow afternoon."
"Yea I know one. Its called the Dancing Dove." She said. And led her horse, Moonlight, through the town followed by Liam on top of his horse, nightquake. They silently made there way through the city gates and towards the center of the city.
A couple of minuets later they found themselves in front of the Dancing Dove. They brought their horses around back and paid the hostler to look after them. Then they walked into the dark and smoky inn.
It appeared to be a popular in with some shady folk but since it was only just after lunch there wasn't many people there. They got two rooms and started to unpack.
When Liam was done he walked over to Alanna's room and knocked on her door. He could here a faint "its open" from inside and walked in. "How do you know this place?" he asked her sitting on her bed.
"Oh I just went here a lot when I was a page. I knew some people here that I want to say hello to before I die with the court." Alanna said with an annoyed look.
"And who, may I ask is some of those people?"
"Umm…some friends Cough-thief's-Cough that helped me with some things!" she coughed.
"Oh yea friends. I have friends too." He said.
"W w well I have to go replace my dagger that broke last week now so bye!" she practically sprinted out. He shook his head and closed the door. I think ill go take a nap. I have a feeling this is going to be one long night. And he walked to his room and shut the door.
Alanna walked around looking at all the different shops and stalls and ended up at the raven armory store and started to look at the daggers. She noticed one that looked okay but when she picked it up she could tell that it was a fake and that it was way off on balance and it looked as if it could break with the first sign of pressure. She sighed and walked out of the store. She decided to head back to the Dancing Dove for a little quiet or maybe some training. She took a short cut down an alley when someone blocked her path.
"Well, well, well! What do we have here? A lady in a dark alley?" he said with a sneer. He had a look on him that made you want to spit on his face.
"I'm just walking so leave me alone and ill leave you alone!" Alanna spat.
"Ooh little lady has an attitude! We know how to handle lady's with an attitude don't we boy's?" then Alanna noticed there were three men behind the man and four more behind her. She smiled a little." What are you smiling about woman? If you haven't noticed your outnumbered!!"
"Yea I noticed." She said looking forward to the fight. She needed to burn off some steam and these gentlemen were here to help her.
"Aren't we a little confidant. How about you give us your money and we will go easy on yea?"
"No!" she said slowly getting into a fighting stance. Them suddenly she felt one of the men behind her move to grab her. She quickly turned and grabbed him by the arm and flipped him over her hip. Then all you could see was men flying away from a determined Alanna. Alanna was moving so fast all you could see was a blur.
When she finally stopped all eight men were lying on the ground either unconscious or moaning in pain. Alanna felt good. She did burn off some stem all she needed now was a change of cloths and a little bout with an invisible enemy. With a satisfied smile she strode off. What she didn't notice was six young men watching from another alley.
"Wow that was brilliant do you think she was from Shang?" said a very handsome dark haired man with blue eyes asked.
"Probably, look at the way she fought. Does she look familiar to you guys? Or is it jut me?" asked a very tall man with black hair and green eyes.
"Yea now that you mention it she does have hair like mine." Said a man who looked a lot like Alanna.
"And that is very different!" laughed a dark brown haired man with dark green eyes.
"No it's not! But anyway she's headed to the Dancing Dove so maybe we can find out who this mysterious woman is." Said a brown haired man with brown eyes.
"Yea lets go! If she's as good with a sword as she is with fists then I want to meet her." Said the last man who had black hair and cold blue eyes. So the young men headed towards the Dancing Dove.
Alanna changed into a light white shirt and brown pants grabbed her sword, lightning and went to the yard in the back of the inn and started to warm up.
"Hey Walt, is there any new visitors to the in today?" asked the brown haired, brown eyed man.
"Why yes George, I believe there are two Shang who booked two rooms until tomorrow. I believe they are headed to the palace tomorrow afternoon for the ball." Said Walt, the owner of the Dancing Dove.
"Really, do you know where they are?" George asked.
"Why, yes! I do. The man is in his room sleeping. And the young lady just came back from the market and is now out side with her sword." He answered.
"Thanks Walt! That will be all for now" George said and the six of them headed for to backyard. When they walked out the immediately saw the same young woman who they saw just minuets ago. She was completing some very difficult moves with her sward and didn't notice the young men stare at her in awe.
Alanna turned around and suddenly saw the young men and dropped her sward. There were the very last people on the entire earth that she wanted to see that moment, staring at her with awe.
"Why did you drop your sward?" asked a very familiar voice. When she looked at the owner of the voice she immediately knew that she didn't want to be there.
"Thom?" she whispered looking at the read haired violet-eyed man.
"Hey how did you know my squire's name?" asked another familiar voice.
"John?" she whispered looking at the dark haired blue eyed man.
"Hey he asked you a question!" said the very tall man with black hair and green eyes.
"Raoul?" she whispered again.
"How is it that this young woman knows all your names?" Asked the man with dark brown hair and dark green eyes.
"Yes id like to know too" said the man with black hair and cold blue eyes.
"Gary? Alex?" she whispered.
" Snap out of it woman, and tell us why you know all their names!" said George.
"George?" she whispered. And then the men noticed that she had tears in her eyes. "Why?" She cried to the astonishment of the men. "Why do I have to deal with this now!" she cried to the heavens.
"I'm sorry lady, but we have no idea to who you are and why you know our names." Thom said. She looked at them surprised.
"You don't recognize me?" she asked them. And then they noticed her eyes. They were violet, just like Thom's.
"Alanna?" Thom whispered.
To the astonishment of the rest of the group Alanna nodded. Thom ran to his twin and engulfed her in a huge hug. John and the rest were in shock. Alanna! The girl who pretended to be a boy! The girl who befriended them all! The girl who made them laugh! The girl who wanted with all her life to be a knight! The girl whose dream was shattered! The girl who was sentenced to three years banishment from the city! The girl who asked for their forgiveness! She was here! She was back just like she promised!
Raoul was the first to snap out of it and ran up to her and gave her a big bear hug. Then Gary and Alex. Finally George and John who gave a big whoop of excitement and ran over to her.
"So what happened to you?" asked John after all the excitement was over. They were all sitting on the grass looking at Alanna.
"Its kind of a long story. You wouldn't be interested."
"Why wouldn't we be?" Gary asked.
"I actually thought you would be mad at me. That's why." She sadly said.
"Why would we be mad at you for doing what you believe in and trying to achieve the almost impossible?" Raoul asked.
"Yea! I knew before that you were a girl and I knew you could do it!" encouraged George.
"Yea, come on! I'm your brother and I don't know what you've been up too!" Thom cried. Alanna looked up to her friends and smiled.
"Fine! Ill tell you!" she cried in mock exasperation. "Well first I had to sort out some things for myself. You know like what I was to do. And what should I do. I was never going to the Convent! I HATE dresses! And I still wanted to be a fighter! So I kind of found a Shang. It was the Shang Viper and I asked him to teach me. He said that I should go to his elders and they should decide if I was capablee to join the Shang. They didn't like the idea and I kind of got mad!" all the guys were chuckling at this because they all had seen Alanna mad and they actually pitied the Shang at that moment. "I challenged them. I said that if I could beat one of them I would be able to join. I was up against the Shang Lion. And I won. So I spent four years studying the Shang. And last year I took the Ordeal of the Shang."
"And…did you get in to the Shang?" Alex asked.
"What do you think? If you don't your dead!" Alanna snapped.
"So what are you? What's your tittle in the Shang?" Thom asked.
Alanna smiled mysteriously. "That you will have to wait until tomorrow night at the ball!"