A/N: Hey guys! Welcome to my first fanfiction! Before I start, there are a few things I'd like to say. First off, The Protector of the Small belongs to Tamora Pierce, as do all the characters, apart from Storm the sparrow, Larsen of Pirate's Swoop, Doran of Queenscove, Niralo of Anak's Eyrie, Tamsin of Cavall, Sarara of Malorie's Peak, Lord Argen of Pirate's Swoop, Lady Leda of Pirate's Swoop and Sondran of Jesslaw, which I made up. This story follows on from Lady Knight, the last of the series. Please feel free to review, but if you are going to review negatively, could you please make it constructive, because then I can build on your suggestions. If you're younger than about fifteen, please don't read any further, because there are some mature themes within this story. It's rated M, guys. Lastly, I won't be updating regularly, homework and school do come first (year 11, sigh) and I don't have any pre-written chapters, so if there's anything you'd like to happen, drop me a line and I may include it if it fits in with my planned plot. Thanks for reading it!

Chapter 1

She nudged Hoshi into a trot, and glanced around at her companions behind her.

"Lady Kel, is anything the matter?" asked Neal.

"No, no, just wondering how everything is going back at New Hope. And it's just Kel, Neal, you know that," replied Kel. They were off to Fort Mastiff to report to Lord Wyldon about New Hope's progress.

"Kel, you know they'll be fine without you. Stop worrying, Mother," teased Neal. Jump whuffed softly in response.

Lady Knight Keladry of Mindelan was a tall 18 year old, with earlobe-length mousy brown hair, and sparse freckles. Despite her youth and relative inexperience as a knight, she was the commander of New Hope, the refugee camp for those ousted from their homes due to the war in Scanra. A few months ago, Kel, along with others, had defeated Blayce the Nothing Man and his lackey Stenmun, who had been kidnapping children, murdering them, and using their spirits to fuel the killing devices, seven-foot tall metal giants.

Kel's sparrows darted out of the woods, crying the alarm, which tore Kel out of her reverie.

"Who is it, Nari?" asked Kel. Nari and her fellow sparrows flew in the formation signaling 'enemy'. "How many?" Nari landed on Kel's palm and tapped 3 times.

"Alright, listen," she addressed her companions, "We have a Scanran raiding party ahead, numbering 3 dozen. Prepare to attack." Kel unhooked her Yamani naginata, or glaive, from behind Hoshi's saddle. Kel's glaive was a 5 foot long wooden staff, capped with iron, cored with lead and topped with a wickedly curved, razor sharp, 18 inch steel blade. This was the weapon Kel was best with, having been trained with it from a young age when her family lived in the Yamani Islands. Others in her squad unsheathed swords, and her servant Tobe, or Tobeis Boon, pulled a short, light sword from under his cloak.

"Ok, let's go!" Kel motioned them forward. As one, Kel, Neal, Seaver, Tobe, Jump, Dom and his squad and Nari and her flock charged forward into the midst of the Scanrans.

"High, middle, low! High, middle, low!" called Padraig haMinch, the training master of the pages and squires. The two lines of pages were learning to use staffs in combat.

"Lift that staff higher, Page Larsen! High, middle, low!" called Padraig again, over the clacking of staffs. Larsen adjusted his stance and tried again.

Larsen of Pirate's Swoop was an extremely tall 13 year old boy in his first year of page training. He had deep blue eyes, longish dark brown hair which fell elegantly into his eyes and a broad, muscled chest. He was older than his year mates, who were all 10 or 11, as his parents, Lord Argen and Lady Leda of Pirate's Swoop, were rather overprotective of him and his siblings, and insisted that he wait a few years before beginning his training.

"Last time! High, middle, low! Good work, pages. You may have free time until the dinner bell rings," Padraig told the pages. Relieved, and sweat soaked, Larsen headed back to the page quarters in the castle for a bath, then a study session with his friends, Doran of Queenscove who was Neal's brother, Niralo of Anak's Eyrie, Tamsin of Cavall who was Lord Wyldon's niece, and Sarara of Malorie's Peak, who was Lord Raoul's niece.

Kel swung her glaive at a Scanran, who blocked it with his sword, so she rammed an iron-capped end into his ribs, freeing her glaive, and sliced through his neck. She then swung Hoshi around, stabbing another raider who had been sneaking up behind her, then brought the iron-capped end down onto the skull of a Scanran who was about to impale Jump, who went for his neck.

Meanwhile, Neal ran another Scanran through with his sword, Tobe held off another who was thrusting a pike at him, Dom dueled with 2 raiders at once and Seaver, who had climbed a tree, shot one bearing down on Nari cleanly through the chest. Kel rammed a third Scanran sneaking up on Dom against a tree and jump leaped onto him, biting through his throat. She looked around for the next one, but they were gone.

"They retreated?" she asked Jump, who looked up at her, jaws dripping with blood, "Who's injured?" she asked her companions at wide.

"One of my men got a Scanran sword through his kneecap, and I think one of your sparrows, Kel, but otherwise everyone's alright," replied Dom, looking at her. Kel's heart caught for a minute as he looked at her.

"R-ri-right. Neal, could you please see to Dom's soldier? Nari, who's hurt?" Kel asked. Arrow cheeped feebly. Kel picked up Arrow and took stock of the damage. His wing was bloodstained. She thought for a moment, then said, "Nari, could one of the flock take Arrow ahead to Mastiff to see Daine? She may be able to do something for him." Nari cheeped at her flock, and Arrow and Storm, so named for the dark grey patches on his wings, flew off together. Neal looked up at her. "All done, Kel," he said, the green glow of his Gift flowing back into his hands.

"Onwards then, team!" Kel announced, turning Hoshi back onto the path.

"…and then, if you divide that by 20, you get your answer of 398. Do you understand, Larsen?" asked Tamsin.

"Uh, I think so," replied Larsen, writing 398 down on his parchment. Tamsin sighed in exasperation.

"Larsen, when are you going to learn?" she asked, half annoyed.

"Uh oh, someone's in trouble!" teased Doran. Sarara giggled at Doran's teasing, and fluttered her eyelashes at him. Doran sat a little straighter, and brushed his jet black hair out of his face. Tamsin noticed this, and nudged Niralo, gesturing towards them while Larsen bent over his book and scrutinized the next question. Sondran of Jesslaw, Owen's younger brother, entered the library where they were studying, or in Tamsin and Niralo's case, mucking around.

"Hey Queenscove, can you go to my room and get my Immortals book? I left in on my desk by accident," said Sondran, in a slightly superior tone. Sondran was in his third year as a page, and his request of Doran was perfectly normal, as a part of the hazing of the pages. Grumpily, Doran stood and left, and Sondran wandered over to rummage amongst the shelves.

"I saw that, Sarara," said Tamsin, "Someone's got a crush on Doran!"

Blushing, Sarara replied, a little defensively, "So what if I have?"

"So he likes you too, silly. Go and talk to him!" said Niralo.

"No, no, I couldn't!"

"Yes, you – Oh, hey, Doran!" Doran turned to look at them, having just returned, "Sarara has – mmph!" Sarara clapped a hand over Niralo's mouth, and gave Doran her most innocent smile. Doran looked strangely at them, then went to give Sondran his book.

"Subtle as a sledgehammer, that's you Niralo," said Tamsin, repressing a laugh.

"What? What did I do?" asked Niralo.

"Sorry about that," came Doran's voice from behind Sarara, who jumped and blushed, "Hey Sarara, can I have…er…a private word with you?" asked Doran, awkwardly.

"Su – sure!" she replied. She stood and left the library, Doran close behind her.

Kel led her companions onwards, as the sun set slowly over the horizon.

"Time to set up camp, I think. We'll probably make it to Mastiff by this time tomorrow. Seaver, take a few soldiers from Dom's squad and hunt us down some dinner. Nari, you and your flock please keep a look out for enemies. Everyone else, we need to set up camp," instructed Kel. She picketed Hoshi with the other horses and went searching for some wood for a fire.

Seaver returned triumphantly, half an hour later, with a deer and a few rabbits. They roasted them over the fire, and after they had eaten, with hands stretched towards the flickering flames, told stories, of the war, myths, previous kings and queens of Tortall and Carthak and, from Kel, the Yamani Islands. And as the sun dipped slowly below the horizon, Kel thought, This is the life for a knight. Adventure, battle, friendship and, as she edged closer to Dom, romance.