Happy Canada Day! My second celebration of this holiday as a Canadian!

NOTE: Changed Margaret's name to Catherine in this chapter, Margaret just doesn't fit, I'll change it in the prologue later...

Dedicated to Fallen, by ConfusedKnight, who has made my concepts so much clearer.

To TamoraPierceJunior, I owe you, for your devotion, may you never stop reading. May you never stop writing.

To Kate of Carlay, Who has helped me more than she will ever admt to herself. Thank you.

To Lady Kale, who has brightened my aspects of life with her humor and sarcasm. And evil genius-ness.

And of course, this is to my reviewers, for all my stories.

Here you go:


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The door creaked open, it was time.

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IMPORTANT: This story officially has a decent plot. There are seven magical stones and a journey through all of Tamora Pierce's universe to find them. The world is on the brink of disaster as powerful water sorcerers wish to take over. The stones are hidden and locked away, their time is limited, follow the journey of the children of our favorite heroes as they learn to fight, hate and to love. As they learn to bond and to share and are forced into the unknown reality without a clue. They are forced to watch friends die and family disappear, are they strong enough to face the enemy of the shadows? Can they make it back in time to save Tortall? And everything else for that matter?...

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Chapter 1

by: Trey of Masbolle

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Trevyan of Masbolle is my name. I keep this as a recording of my time and my adventures. It is not a journal, more of a book. I love to write, I have not told Catherine about this book I am writing, she will play a big role in it too. No, I have not told her nor will I ever, this is my secret. My best guarded secret. This is my book, and it has already started.

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The first chapter, that is what I write now, it is the first chapter of my real life, here, at the palace. I have been here before, not very many times, only once truth tell. I marveled at the marble entrances and the beauty of it all. It's ombrophobous plants that littered the grand arches. The massive pilasters that served for decorations while the sturdy granite walls spiraled upwards and kept the building upright.

It was a colourful place but the walls themselves were eburnean in colour, the colours came from the tapestries that displayed fights and battles of the past. They spun tales of things hundreds of years ago and things more recent still. Mother's was hung somewhere in the western wing of the palace, she avoids it like the plague, she doesn't like the attention.

I can still remember the first day--

We passed by the Menagerie where the Kookaburra sang it's cry. It was not native of this land but had been caught and put into the cage, I saw Catherine turn the other way, she cared deeply for animals, my heart panged for her, we were really close.

My father, Domitan of Masbolle led the group talking with an old friend, they talked drivel, useless things, mother hardly listened, she had half an ear onto their conversation and the other half onto our uncle Neal's pejorative slander of the palace's doings.

Catherine was quiet and withdrawn as was I, we were walking straight towards our new fates. The man in charge of the pages, Padraig haMinch had been very clear about everything. We knew our rules and we knew our duties, that didn't make us any more scared. Mother, father, uncle and father's friend all stopped, they looked at us and smiled encouragingly.

Catherine and I looked at each other and gulped, this was it. We took our first steps into the page's corridor while the rest of our escort stayed into the other corridor. Their eyes wished us luck and we turned to stare at our new home.

There were other inhabitants of the hallway, they had all stopped and stared at us. I gulped and set my chin straight, I was not going to back down. I walked down the hall, Catherine at my heels.

I stopped at my door while my sister continued down to her's. We looked at each other and had smiled before pushing open our respective doors.

It was a plain circular room. There was a bed and a nice desk in a corner. There was a place to put my clothing and a privy to my left. I sighed contentedly, this would be an interesting five years. I was actually twelve. I had waited for my sister to start, she was two years my junior. I didn't mind, it had been my decision. I loved her and knew this was going to be hard on her, I wanted to be there all five page years, not just three.

I dropped my bags onto my bed and closed my door behind me to go find my sister.

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That day we also met some different people, people who we already new, people we had never seen before in our lives. People who would later become either friends or enemies.

Leaving the room there were people milling about, one face stood out clearest of all though...

..

"Jasson!" I ran towards my old time friend.

"Masbolle!" He braced forearms and he patted my back like the old friends which we were.

We were cousins, strange huh? He was my height, my age too, though he was a year into his training, he started at eleven. Surprisingly, the son of two famous commanders hasn't left his fief all that much... I visited Queenscove often with my sister, but other than that, we didn't really go anywhere. We know the Queenscove clan very well.

Catherine stood off to my side, she greeted Jasson as well but she burst into giggles, I asked her what for and then I saw Kim coming towards me, oh gods...

"Hello Kim." Kimiko of Queenscove was one out of two twins, the duo that was more dangerous than some men from Third Company, put together. Trouble makers to the bone.

"Hello Trey." She said warmly, she moved towards me arms wide, s if to hug me in greeting.

She placed her hands on my shoulders and unexpectedly shoved me back.

I tripped over something behind me and crashed to the floor.

I rubbed my sore head and saw Tavis stand up from his crouched position on the ground from behind me. He smacked fist with his twin, a move they made up when they were little to celebrate a job well done.

They burst out laughing. As I said, the dangerous duo.

I glared at Jasson and my sister who looked away innocently.

"Why didn't you tell me he was behind me?" I asked, slightly angry from hitting my head on the cold marble.

"Thought it was funnier to watch you fall." Jasson said, smirking.

"You do fall very well brother." Catherine supplied, I glared at her. She grinned back, gods those two!

"Cheer up Trey!" Kim said, actually hugging me, Tavis hugged me around the shoulders; "Yes, do cheer up Trey, besides, you do fall very well." I glared and he laughed into the air, what ever did I do to deserve them as year mates? Or in Tavis' case, roommates?

After the Scanran war, noble couples old and new decided there was need for more fighters and decided to... let's put it this way, there was a massive amount of new noble children, years later --now-- they were all this age, and there were many new pages than usual.

The palace was big but they were running out of space.

My parents said I could share a room and set it up that I would be sharing with Tavis and Catherine with Kim, I honestly felt bad for my sister, there was no telling what Kim would do when she was in the mood.

Jason led us around and showed us the places of the palace, we all prayed for a good sponsor, but Jasson was the only one who could actually sponsor being the one who had been at the palace for a year and being the only one who knew the way around. He had a duty to his siblings, he would sponsor one of them no doubt.

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I already knew the three Queenscove siblings, but being somewhere new by yourselves brings you closer to your friends. This was the beginning of a deep friendship, a friendship that would go places. That first day, I had no clue just how many places that would actually turn out to be. They were not the only ones, they were just the first we met. There were more that joined our roving band of friends, people who saved our lives and people we saved in return, people that became more family than true family.

Many years and things and people passed since that day, yet it still shines clear as a beacon in my memory. Battles and hurt, comfort and love, all things that that day I didn't know the meaning of. We were so young, so innocent, so ignorant of everything that happened to us after.

But like a great story this one has a beginning, a middle and an end. And like any story, it must start from the beginning.


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Hope you like it, please, just give it a chance.

Review!! But I won't force you to.

Keep Reading,

xxTunstall Chickxx

1/07/08

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P.S. Historical meanings of names:

Trey: Boy-Irish-Three.

Catherine-Girl-Anglo-Saxon-Innocent

Trevyan derives from: Trevian-Boy-English-Fair town.

Jasson-Boy-Greek-Healer

Kimiko-Girl-Japanese-Child without equal

Tavis -Boy-English-Twin