Thanks to those who reviewed! On with chapter 2...

For a while, Ranna just stared at them. Then, she closed the door behind her, locked it, and whispered, 'What are you doing here? I sincerely hope no-one has seen you.'

'No-one has seen us,' Dyrim assured her. 'As for why we are here, I would have thought it was obvious: we came to find you. We have been looking for you for ages. Mosrael was trying to See where you had gone, but she didn't See anything useful until this morning.'

'And, since you are staying here for now, we will stay with you,' Mosrael announced with complete certainty. Dyrim, Kibeth and Belgaer nodded in agreement, but Astarael looked more than a little anxious, and she refused to look Ranna in the eye.

'You can't just decide to stay,' Ranna explained. 'King Anstyr decides that. Anyway, I don't think you would like it here. You would have to act like a human all the time.'

'Why?' asked Kibeth.

'The people here are afraid of Free Magic beings.'

'You have been living like a human all this time?' Belgaer exclaimed incredulously.

Ranna nodded, and Dyrim grinned. 'So, when are you going to introduce us to the King?' she asked eagerly. 'I am sure he will love us as soon as he meets us, and then he will let us stay with you.'

'I suppose you could come to the Mid-Winter dance tomorrow afternoon,' Ranna sighed, although she was already dreading this meeting. At least one of them was sure to do something that gave away their true nature, and Ranna was currently betting on either Dyrim or Kibeth. 'Although that is potentially problematic. None of you know how to act like a human.'

'You can teach us,' Kibeth said, also grinning.

Ranna sighed heavily. She knew it was pointless to argue, and so she resigned herself to the fact that she would soon be instructing her friends on the arts of eating, dancing, and acceptable conversation. She could already tell that it was not going to be an easy task.

* * * * * *

The next afternoon, after instructing the others on what to wear, Ranna led the way to the main courtyard. They were a little late, and the dancing was already in full swing when they arrived. Merenne was not there – she was still resting in her birthing room – but Anstyr was busy dancing with an elegant-looking blonde woman. He spotted Ranna quickly and smiled at her, and when the dance ended he came straight over to talk to her.

'Mistress Ranna, I was beginning to wonder where you were!' he said cheerily.

Ranna curtseyed. 'I was greeting my sisters, your Majesty,' she answered, indicating the group behind her. 'They have... impulsively... decided to visit me here. I hope you do not mind.'

'Of course not! You must introduce me to them,' Anstyr replied. 'I hope they have not come to tell you to go back to your home. You are much needed here. If they wish, they can stay here with you.'

'I told you we would be staying,' Mosrael muttered to the others, so quietly that Ranna only just heard and Anstyr didn't hear at all.

Ignoring Mosrael's comment, and hoping that none of them would do or say anything inappropriate, Ranna led Anstyr to them. They all curtseyed in front of him, as Ranna had told them to, but Dyrim seemed set on keeping a slightly flirtatious smile on her face.

'So, I have the pleasure of meeting Ranna's sisters,' Anstyr said, nodding in greeting. 'I welcome you to Belisaere. How do you like my city so far?'

'Truly, Sire,' Dyrim answered smoothly, 'we have never seen a more beautiful place. It is everything we had heard, and more.'

Anstyr smiled in satisfaction. 'Might I ask you for your names?'

'I am Dyrim,' Dyrim replied, 'and this is Belgaer, Kibeth, Mosrael and Astarael.'

'I am delighted to meet you all,' Anstyr said, nodding. 'Would you care to sit with us at the feast this evening?'

'We would be honoured, Sire,' Dyrim answered, curtseying again and giving Anstyr a dazzling smile.

'Good,' the king replied. He smiled appreciatively at Dyrim and offered her his arm. 'May I have the next dance?'

Dyrim agreed a little too eagerly, and Anstyr led her to the centre of the courtyard. Ranna watched them closely, but Dyrim didn't put a foot wrong – neither in the dance nor in terms of her manners.

'Are we actually meant to eat this evening, then?' Kibeth whispered to Ranna. 'I mean, we don't need to, so is there any point in having anything cooked for us?'

'If you want to stay here, yes,' Ranna whispered back. 'You will probably enjoy eating, anyway.' She looked around and noticed something. 'Where has Astarael gone?'

Kibeth lowered her voice so that only Ranna could hear. 'She can't speak a word to anyone here, so she decided it would be safer if she left for a while.'

'Why?' Ranna asked suspiciously. 'Might she still have another one of those supposedly uncontrollable outbursts?'

'It is possible,' Kibeth answered. She hesitated a little, then sighed and explained. 'While we were searching for you, Astarael asked a group of humans we met if they had seen you and they all died, just like that. We don't know why, but it looks like it is just her voice that has that effect. When the rest of us speak to humans, nothing odd happens unless we want it to.'

Ranna stared at Kibeth as though she had gone mad. 'And you thought it would be a good idea to bring her here?'

'I didn't think it was fair to just leave her behind. After all, she is still one of us.'

'Are you sure she will be able to keep quiet all the time?' Ranna asked, choosing not to comment directly on what Kibeth had said.

'I think she can,' Kibeth replied, 'though I don't think any of the others do. She told me she probably won't be here much anyway. Apparently there are still some Free Magic creatures to sort out.'

Ranna nodded. 'I see.'

Their conversation stopped when the dance finished and Dyrim practically skipped back to them. 'That was fun!' she exclaimed. 'I want to do it again!'

'You have to wait for someone else to ask you,' Ranna explained. She looked at the rather flattering magenta gown Dyrim had dressed herself in and added: 'Someone should ask you shortly, especially now that you have danced with the king.'

'Those two men seem rather interested in you,' Mosrael said, indicating a couple of well-dressed men.

Dyrim glanced at the men who were, very obviously, staring. Seeing her looking back, one of the men started talking very loudly about how wonderful his estate was back in some city, and the other man countered by mentioning how much money he had amassed over the years. Their argument stopped briefly when another man asked Dyrim to be his next dance partner, and then they started accusing each other of spoiling their chances of dancing with her.

Anstyr asked Ranna to be his partner for the next dance – although Ranna had seen him fight the temptation to ask Dyrim for a second time – and as they took their places Ranna glanced over her shoulder. Mosrael was just walking away from the group, escorted by one of the men who had previously been interested in Dyrim, and Kibeth and Belgaer had both been approached by other men. Ranna tried to watch them all and dance at the same time, but after almost tripping over, she decided to just trust them all to behave properly.

* * * * * *

That evening, once the dancing was over, everyone filed into the Great Hall for the final – and largest – Mid-Winter feast. Astarael reappeared discreetly beside Kibeth just as Ranna quietly reminded them of how to behave during a meal, and then led them to the long, raised table at one end of the hall where Anstyr was already sitting with two other people.

'May I introduce my sister, Lady Nehima, and her daughter, Miss Aveline,' Anstyr said, indicating the two other people already sat at the table – the blonde woman he had danced with earlier, and a young blonde girl. 'I took the liberty of telling them your names already.'

'It's good to finally meet you all,' Nehima said, smiling warmly. 'I hope you enjoyed the dance.'

'We did,' Dyrim replied, seating herself beside Ranna. 'It was certainly a new experience – we didn't do much dancing at home.'

'You didn't?' Nehima asked, mildly surprised. 'Well, from what I saw, you are all talented dancers.'

Dyrim smiled. 'We are quick to pick up new things.'

'Most new things,' Ranna muttered to herself, noticing that Dyrim had already forgotten how to address members of the royal family properly.

Nehima was about to say something else when a dark-haired young woman hurried up to the table and sat down on Anstyr's other side, grinning apologetically.

'This is my other sister, Lady Arael,' Anstyr explained, trying his best not to look annoyed. 'Please excuse her lateness.'

'Sorry,' Arael said, without any trace of sincerity. 'I lost track of the time.'

'Again,' Nehima said irritably. 'You could have made some effort to arrive on time tonight.' She eyed her sister's unruly hair and added, 'And you could have at least tried to look presentable.'

'Ladies,' Anstyr said sternly. 'Please try and be pleasant in front of our guests. Arael, let me introduce Ranna's sisters: Dyrim, Belgaer, Mosrael, Kibeth, and Astarael.'

Arael stopped making a half-hearted attempt at tidying her hair, and smiled cheerily at them. 'Pleased to meet you.' She looked at the empty plates on the table. 'When is the food going to be served?'

'Be patient, Arael!' Nehima sighed. 'The servants will be bringing it to us shortly.'

'Good,' Arael replied. 'I'm starving.'

'Where have you been all afternoon?' Nehima decided to ask. 'I noticed that you were not at the dance.'

Arael looked at her innocently. 'I was at the stables, keeping the horses company.'

'I hope you did not go out riding again, without any guards accompanying you.'

'Of course I didn't,' Arael assured her. 'I'm not allowed. You keep reminding me.'

Nehima sighed. 'That has never stopped you before.'

'Do you two mind not having a petty argument in front of our guests?' Anstyr cut in. 'They cannot be enjoying listening to it.'

'I think they are, actually,' Arael commented, noticing that Anstyr and Nehima were the only ones who were not smiling. 'Even Aveline looks amused.'

Nehima gave her daughter a look that immediately removed the smirk from the young girl's face.

'Our food is arriving,' Anstyr announced, changing the subject as several servants came into the dining hall, carrying large platters of various foods, which they placed down the centre of the raised table. At the same time, another servant came to pour the wine, and then more servants delivered platters to every other table in the Hall. Soon, all the plates were full and the Hall was filled with the buzz of conversation.

'I could get used to eating,' Dyrim remarked, finishing her mouthful of food and drinking a rather large amount of her wine. Ranna gave her a pointed look. 'Like this,' she added quickly.

'We have the best cooks in the kingdom here,' Anstyr told her proudly. 'We always eat well, especially at feasts.'

'Mmm,' Arael agreed through a mouthful of food, which she quickly swallowed before speaking. 'It's just as well, really. I'm always hungry in the evenings.'

'Although no-one knows why,' Nehima added. 'Anyone would think you were doing something a little more active during the day than just practicing your music and tending to your horse – which, may I point out, does not take priority over helping to organise the Festival, like it apparently did yesterday. If his mane really did need to be urgently combed, you could have got one of the stable-hands to do it for you.'

'I thought I told you not to argue,' Anstyr sighed, and then turned to Dyrim, who was having her wine glass refilled for the third time already. 'Am I right in assuming that you would all prefer to have your rooms close to Ranna's?' Anstyr asked.

'Yes, if that is not too much trouble,' Belgaer answered, after it became apparent that Dyrim was far more interested in drinking her wine than in answering the question.

'It will be no trouble at all,' Anstyr replied. 'I will arrange for the servants to prepare your rooms once we have finished eating.'

* * * * * *

'I can see why you wanted to stay here, Ranna,' Kibeth remarked, throwing herself down on the bed in Dyrim's new room.

'So can I,' added Belgaer. 'Although these candles don't light the room up very much.' She stood on the bed and placed a Charter light in the ceiling. 'That is much better.'

'No!' Ranna exclaimed, removing the light just as easily as Belgaer had conjured it. 'You have to act like a human, remember? No magic!'

Belgaer sighed and muttered something under her breath. Ranna thought she caught the words 'stupid humans.'

'I think they like you, fortunately,' Ranna continued. 'Although, Dyrim: don't drink so much wine next time. Humans don't tend to be particularly sensible after eight glasses.'

'Sorry,' Dyrim grinned sheepishly. 'It tastes nice, though.'

'So does the food!' exclaimed Kibeth. 'I could eat all day!'

'Knowing you, you probably will,' teased Belgaer, and she and Kibeth laughed.

'Anyway, I think we should go to sleep soon,' Ranna decided. 'Humans tend to get irritable when they're kept awake all night, and we are talking rather loudly. We are not the only guests staying here, remember.'

'Fine,' Dyrim sighed, pushing Kibeth off the bed and settling herself down on top of the covers. 'Humans are so strange.'

'We slept when we were in the mountains,' Ranna pointed out, as Kibeth left Dyrim's room. 'Why is it so different now?'

'It's not,' Dyrim answered. 'I just think that humans are strange.'

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