Fighting for Approval
Chapter 4: Just the Beginning
552-553 H.E.
Keladry rose with the dawn. Actually, she had been awake for a few hours before then, trying to obtain as much sleep as possible. However, when dawn approached and the only rest she had attained was that of a few hours' restless sleep, she had decided nothing more could be done. This was the first time Kel wished her glaive was in her possession. She knew, had she had the glaive with her, she would have been able to tire herself into sleep.
Tired, but fully awake, Kel sat up on her bed. The convent's inhabitants would not awake for another two or three bells. Sighing, Kel stood and began to stretch, hoping to remove the cricks that settled in her neck and the soreness her muscles attained in her sleep.
She spent a quarter of a bell touching her hands to the floor next to her feet while bent at the waist, standing on the tips of her toes as she reached for the forever unreachable, and arching her back until her hands touched the floorboards behind her. She felt much more relaxed and energized now that she had completed a familiar routine. Keladry thought of going through the motions of one of her glaive sequences but quickly negated the thought. She wouldn't want to wake Lia. And she had promised her father to refrain from practicing any arts of fighting while at the convent. "From the time you set foot in the City of Gods until the time you leave it for the last time," he had said.
She regretted agreeing to the convent. She wanted to do something. She needed to be proactive. She'd rather days of continuous punishment that she would have received had she continued on as a page than the dullness of the convent she was experiencing now.
Breathing quietly, Kel needed to distract herself. She looked around her side of the room. She needed to find a spot to hide the intricate jewelry box Vorinna had given to her upon her departure from Mindelan. Simply looking around the room, she noticed there was not much she could use in her favor. The drawers, closet, and desk that made up her room would be very obvious places to check. For a moment, Kel thought that maybe she was reading too much into Mistress Daphne's warning. Maybe it was an exaggeration. Nonetheless, she thought to herself, better careful than sorry.
Conscious of the girl sleeping across the room, Kel quietly lowered herself to the floor. She was hoping that maybe there was a hollow space underneath one of the floorboards. On her hands and knees, crawling forward slowly after each knock, Kel, straining her ears, was losing hope. The task was a time-consuming one. And she was time constrained. She kept knocking against the floorboards, watching the numbers decrease. Once she reached the end, she was disappointed. Keladry only wished to hide the box because of the obvious meaning it had to Vorinna. She didn't want any of the other girls at the convent to get their hands on her sister-in-law's possessions. She would never forgive herself if anything happened to it.
And secretly, Kel hoped the box would help her in the same way Vorinna had said it helped her.
Keladry pulled the box from the last drawer underneath the clothes she covered it with. She pulled the silver chain over her head, fitting the key into the lock. She turned the key in the lock. Lifting the cover, she placed it beside the box on her nightstand. What did Vorinna leave for her here? She picked through the jewelry and ribbons she had. All of it was hers. It was all there before. Keladry sat on her bed, contemplating the question at hand. She turned the box, looking at the sides and the bottom of the box. There was nothing unusual.
Kel was frustrated. She wanted to release her frustrations. And the only way she had ever done that was through the weapons and fighting practice she completed. Quickly closing and locking the box, Kel slid it back into it's spot in her drawer. There was nothing she could do about the box right now. Hopefully, there would be no way for which the girls would be able to enter her room uninvited.
Lying on the floor, Kel began to exercise her arms. She rested her palms flat on the ground, fingers pointing forward and rested on her toes. Bending her arms, she lowered herself until she barely grazed the floor before pushing herself back up by straightening her arms. Silently, Kel counted under her breath. One...Two...Three...After twenty, she turned onto her back and began a set of sit-ups. She only completed twenty before she stopped. Feeling the slight stiffness of her muscles, she stretched once more, completing the same steps as she had after arising.
As Kel bent backward, she heard the bell toll six. Almost immediately, she heard the door open. Quickly, she pushed herself into an upright position. There were four maids. Two, she assumed, for herself, and two for Amelia.
"Good morning, m'Lady."
"Morning," Kel responded. She watched as they each walked about the room. Two carried buckets of water in their hands. One was setting up room dividers around the bath tub. There was only one in the room, Kel noticed. The last maid opened Keladry's closet before pulling out one of her new gray dresses. Standing by her bed, Kel didn't know what to do with herself. When she was a page, she practiced some of her glaive sequences while Gower readied her bath. And she'd never been so pampered in her life. She had always liked doing things for herself. And she'd been taught to work hard to achieve the things she wanted in life. That was why she accepted the probationary year as a page. That is why she did not concede coming to the convent easily. That is why she wished to train as a nurse. She wanted to be active and help people. The life of a married Lady, she thought, was not for her. She wished to do more than simply overlook the keeping of the household.
After having laid the gown of Keladry's bed, the maid pulled Kel behind the screen. Asking Kel to lift her arms, the maid, taller than the others, pulled her night gown over her head. Keladry felt very childish having people undress and dress her. She was so used to taking care of herself, especially in the past year, that the actions felt alien.
By the time Kel had undressed, the tub had been filled with water. Lifting her leg, Kel stuck her foot into the water slowly, testing it's warmth with her toes. Once she realized it was warm, she entered it faster. Soon, she was sitting in the tub, head leaning against the edge. Keladry was slightly shocked when a bucket of water was dumped on her head. She sat upright and instinctively wiped at her face, getting the water out of her eyes. She felt hands grab each of her legs and one of her arms before three maids began to scrub the dirt and grime of her journey off of her skin. A cool substance was lathered into her hair by the last maid's gentle hands. Kel tilted her head back as a result, reminded of her childhood baths. The aroma and scents of the soaps calmed Keladry. Her body relaxed. It had been a long time since she was able to enjoy strongly scented soaps. She'd thought them unnecessary when she was at the palace. The hands in her hair were gentle. They reminded her of her mother. Keladry smiled slightly.
More water was spilled into her hair, cleaning it. Her eyes remained clear of the soapy substance this time. She had tilted her head and the maid was careful to keep the water from her face. Kel's was grateful to the maid.
A soft voice reached her ears. "Lean forward, if you would, m'Lady." Her voice was pleasant. Leaning forward, Kel wished to ask of her name.
"What are your names?" she asked as she felt her back being scrubbed. Her hair, longer now that it was wet, stuck to her cheeks and neck. She moved it away so the maid would be able to scrub her shoulders.
"Faryal, m'Lady." This one had a straight nose and a pursed mouth as she scrubbed Kel's foot. Her hair was pulled tightly into a small gray bun at the back of her head.
"Sereera," the pleasant voice muttered from behind her. It was the younger, taller maid who cleaned her hair.
The last two muttered their names too quickly for Keladry to catch. "Stand, please, m'Lady," came the pleasant voice once more. A last bucket of water of water was dumped over her as she was rinsed clean. A thick cloth came around her shoulders as she was dried. Sereera, standing infront of her, covered Kel's head with a smaller towel as she dried Kel's hair. Sereera lead Keladry behind another screen away from the bath as the other maids set to work in emptying and refilling the tub before Lia awoke. The screen was arranged so that Kel could reach the garments of clothing on her bed without revealing more than her arm. Sereera held the larger cloth up as Keladry dressed into her loincloth. As she reached for the underdress, Sereera caught her hand. She pulled a breast band from the pile and handed it to Keladry.
Kel struggled with the band. She had never needed to wear one. Flat-chested, she didn't think it was necessary. She supposed it was a part of being in the convent. Or maybe they thought that is was time she started wearing them. She heard a sigh behind her. Gentle hands took the band from her hands and placed one end on her side. Holding it in place, Sereera wrapped the band around Keladry's chest three times, covering the fingers that held the end in it's place before she removed her fingers and pinned the loose end to keep it from moving. Keladry noticed that the way Sereera wrapped the band made her breasts more noticeable. She hadn't even realized that she had them, but they were there. The size of peaches. Keladry blushed and fought to regain her calm. Sereera pulled the underdress over Kel's head. Kel pushed her arms through the sleeves. She repeated the process with the gray gown. The neckline was square and exposed her collar bones. That was all. Kel was glad. These were the dresses she was used to wearing.
"There you are," Sereera muttered. "Very pretty." A smile adorned her face. Kel felt belittled. She felt like she was a little girl again. The whole bathing ordeal had made her seem more of a child.
After Kel was dressed, Sereera disappeared behind the screen to repeat the procedure with Lia who was more accustomed to the tasks. Kel quickly ran a brush through her slightly damp hair. Kel settled on the edge of her bed as she waited. She entertained herself by listening to Lia as the maids washed her. Lia did not enjoy waking, it seemed. She whined throughout her entire bath. Kel heard the light huffs and sighs that escaped the maids as they dealt with a grumpy Lia.
Kel had yet to see Amelia. She had been changing when the maids woke her. It seemed, to Kel, that this was a normal occurrence. The maids patiently dealt with the whining. Kel saw shadows move through the curtains. She barely contained her laughter when Sereera pulled Lia up and dumped the last bucket of water over her head. Lia let out a small whimper as the water and cool air hit her body. It wasn't funny. And Kel knew that. But she couldn't resist her laughter when she thought of how she thought she was acting childish when she was in Lia's place.
It wasn't long before Lia was ready. She and Kel left the room together and headed to the dining hall for the morning meal. The maids, last Kel saw of them, were mopping up the spilled water and tidying up the room, making each of the girls' beds.
The walk was familiar to Kel now. She knew how to get to the dining hall and would be able to find the dining hall on her own. At least if she was coming from her room. She had yet to get accustomed to the layout of the rest of the convent. She knew it was big from what she saw when she first came. The building extended on both sides of her when she first approached the building after having stepped out of the carriage.
They sat at the same table as the day before. The girls were chatting together already as people arrived and found their seats. Keladry sat besides the dark haired girl from Port Legann and Lia. Amelia joined in a conversation with Aria of Pearlmouth and another girl whose name Kel forgot.
"Keladry?" Sarai of Port Legann's voice called.
"Yes?"
"How was it?" She lowered her voice and leaned closer to Kel. "The palace I mean."
"It's very beautiful. It's so big I cannot fathom how much of it I still haven't seen. It's—"
"No. I meant your year. As a page. What did you do when you were there?"
"Training, really. We studied. We learned of history, mathematics, reading and writing, etiquette. We trained, built our muscles. As first year pages, it was the basics mostly. We trained with Lord Wyldon and the Shangs. Hand to hand fighting, sword, staff. We rode. Things of that sort...but I can't help wonder why you would ask me this?"
"I was simply wondering. Truly. It sounded daring, to me, for a girl to try out as a page. I could never understand why you had done it. It simply isn't a girls place to be."
"The Lioness is a knight. The first Lady Knight. And she holds great power. She is well respected. Are you saying that she does not belong as a knight. Or that she should not be one?" Kel asked calmly.
Sarai remained silent. "I do not know," she whispered.
Kel did not know what else to say to her. It was obvious that Sarai was simply interested. She was trying to get true information from Keladry in order to make her own decision that was not based on the rumor's she had heard. Kel was afraid that she may have spoken too brashly and that Sarai thought Kel was accusing her of speaking against the Lioness.
"I know that it seems strange, what I have attempted to do and what the Lioness has accomplished," stated Kel, "but the Lioness does as good a job as any other knight if not better. And if she can do it, why can't other girls. If it is their decision to become a knight, I believe the crown should allow it. That is the way I perceive it." The dining hall doors opened and the priestesses entered, each joining a table. "That is a reason why I wished to become a knight."
The high priestess stood at the front of the dining hall. Everyone rose and the hall became silent. And together the prayers were recited before the food was served. Keladry noticed that a different priestess sat among them today. As Keladry ate the warm oatmeal and fruits before her, she noticed that this priestess was rather silent and that her eyes observed the girls actions. It unnerved her slightly, how attentive she was. It seemed unusual, but none of the other girls seemed to pay attention to the priestesses. Rather, they let her be. Kel let it go. She turned to one of the girls as they asked her a question, smiling at how simple it was for them to make friends with her. Maybe the convent wouldn't be as torturous as she had originally thought.
Keladry had been following different girls as she went to her classes. She learned quickly that she and Lia did not share a schedule. She had followed Lia to her embroidery class. They had shared that class. Kel abhorred it. She didn't know how many times she had stabbed her fingers with the needle. There was no blood, but the sting was hurt enough. The priestess had told her to start with something simple before handing her a small white handkerchief and an apparatus that would make embroidery easier for her as she was 'just beginning to learn of that in which every woman finds comfort.' That was what the priestess had said as she left her to her task.
Before she left the room at the bell's toll, the priestess called her back and asked for a girl, Maria, to wait as she ushered Lia off to her next class. The priestess had explained that Maria should take Keladry to her reading and writing class so that the priestess could test Keladry's skills. So, Kel had followed Maria through the halls and stairways to another room. Maria had explained to the priestess that she had been held back before she took her seat. The priestess quickly assigned the girls some work before she turned her gaze on Kel.
"Keladry of Mindelan, I presume."
"Yes, Mistress."
"Hmm. Alright then. I assume you know how to read and write. Is this correct?"
"Yes, Mistress."
She pulled a book from her desk and flipped through the pages, her eyes squinting slightly as she read. She handed the book to me, opened to a certain page. "Read, then. Out loud."
Kel did as she asked. She read the story. Kel had gotten further than some of the other pages in our reading and writing classes. She didn't have a problem reading and writing wasn't any harder. She didn't know everything, but she knew a lot of words and how to spell and pronounce them.
The priestess then had Keladry write on a piece of parchment as she, the priestess read out of another book. Keladry struggled to right as quickly as she read. As a result, her penmanship wasn't as neat and elegant as it would have been otherwise. The priestess quickly looked over her work. As she was doing so, Kel looked around the room. She noticed some familiar faces. She would get used to this soon enough, she thought as she looked at the girls reading and writing at long tables. It reminded her so much of the classes she took with the boys at the palace. She found comfort in the similarity.
The priestess told her to go to another room. That class would be more advanced and would challenge Kel as needed. Kel thanked the priestess and followed the servant the priestess had called. She payed attention to the halls she passed through, the staircases she ascended, and noticed a drastic change in the décor of the building. Once the servant had found it, she knocked on the closed door. Keladry was surprised by the person who open the door.
It was a man. A professor or a priest. Not a priestess. She did not think classes were taught by men in the convent.
"What can I do for you, young lady?" he asked. His deep voice was gruff. His hair sprinkled with stray white hairs. But he stood tall and looked otherwise young. No older than twenty-five, Keladry thought.
"Mistress Courtney sent me here. My name is Keladry. Keladry of Mindelan, my Lord."
"Did she send any message?"
"No, my Lord."
"Very well. Welcome to the University at the City of Gods, Keladry. Come in and take a seat."
Stepping into the room, Keladry was once again surprised by the fact that she was the only girl. However, she was not met with hostile glares. Rather the boys, now whispering, either smiled or simply looked at her curiously. It seemed that what had happened to Kel wasn't too unusual. Keladry's eyes widened when one of the boys stood and offered for her to sit in the empty seat next to him. Keladry complied and joined their lesson. The professor, whose name, she had found, was Alex, quickly explained to her what he expected of her before handing her some parchment and a pen. He continued his lesson on grammar. Before Kel realized, the class had ended. The professor sent her to the dining hall, as it was now time for the midday meal.
Keladry was deep in thought as she walked slowly back to the convent and it's dining hall. It wasn't at all as bad as I thought it would be, she mused. A light smile adorned her face as she continued on her path.
Hope you liked it. =)
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