Disclaimer: I am not Mary Hoffman; I don't own Lucia, Guido, Talia or any of the Stravaganza books.
April 1580, Fortezza
Guido Parola
He could not do anything but watch her. The way she attentively listened to the lecturer and effortlessly scribbled down her notes like nothing was bothering her. How could she act so unknowing?
The news of the sea battle of Classe had reached Fortezza the day before. Guido had not believed it when Alice had told him. If something such important had happened, the stravaganti would let him know, would they not? Stunned, Guido had counted the time in his head since the last time he had talked to the stravaganti. It was not weeks or days, but months. Actually, he could not recall speaking to any stravagante since he arrived in Fortezza. With the whole town bustling with the news of the battle and no one to declare it false, Guido had come to accept it as the truth. He was delighted with the victory of Classe while troubled with so much else. And now her.
She had not been talking to the other students much, preferring the company of the older woman accompanying her. Most of the class had come as accept her as a mystery, not knowing who she is. But Guido knew. Lucia di Chimici. Even though she tried to play down her looks had Guido never had any trouble recognizing her. He had not tried to talk to her, of course not. What should he say? What could he say? And how could she act so unknowing?
Lucia di Chimici
Focus, take notes, focus, take notes... Her thoughts raged within her. Classe. Fabrizio. Beatrice. Bellezza. Her family had tried to keep her in oblivion of the situation. She had seen their faces; she knew they were hiding something from her. Her father's expression when she told him that she knew – even though she did not – was haunting. She had conned them into telling her and the truth had exceeded her imaginations. A battle!? And they had lost?! And Beatrice... What would happen now to her family?
Lucia almost jumped in her chair when their teacher coughed to catch the attention of the class before changing the subject.
"Before the class will be dismissed today you will be divided into pairs" their teacher began. "You will together write a speech during the next two organised study hours based on today's lecture."
Lucia sighed on the inside. She had up until now managed to avoid study hour and had instead worked at home, only attending lectures. Oblivious to her irritation, the professor began dividing them into pairs.
"You", he said holding his pointer in the direction of a tall black haired young man on the first row. "And you", he continued, pointing at the similar looking man beside the first one. "You and you, you and you, you and you, you and... you", he continued on, dividing the rest of them.
Lucia sighed even deeper on the inside. Perfect. They were not even allowed to divide themselves. Suddenly the professor raised his pointer in her direction.
"You and..." he seemed to consider it for a moment since no one was sitting anywhere near her except for Paoletta. Finally he settled on a tall redheaded man who was also sitting alone. "You."
He divided up the final few persons while Lucia looked up to see who she would have to work with. She instantly shied back. His features, his face... She recognised him from somewhere she could not place. He was not Fortezzian nobility and he was obviously not a servant since he was studying here. Her memory of him seemed hidden somewhere deep inside her and connected to darkness. She was suddenly terrified.
The redheaded man looked up and met her gaze. His body language seemed relaxed while his eyes showed quite the opposite. Lucia could easily tell that the prospect of them studying together startled him as much as her, another sign of them having met before.
"...You and you...and that was everyone! This lecture is over. Remember to write your speeches and learn them until next lecture when you will read them out for the class. A failure of this assignment will deeply affect your grades. Dismissed!" The professor expressed clearly that the class was over and most of the students got up and began to collect their notes. Lucia remained in her seat, unmoving. Paoletta gave her a concerned look before she organised Lucia's notes in a neat pile and put them in her bag. From the corner of her eye Lucia noticed that the redheaded man already had left. Oh well, she would remember his appearance until tomorrow.
"Signorita, are you ready to go?" Paoletta interrupted her thoughts. Lucia looked up at the older woman and nodded. She would remember him until tomorrow.
Guido Parola
That did not just happen. No, that could not just have happened.
A/N: I'm back! A few chapters more are finished, and I'll probably release those once a week. I'm currently working on August (hello exam studying procrastination), but I will not promise anything after the July chapter. But who knows? Maybe this is the time I'll finally finish Fortezza :) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and will read the next guaranteed three chapters, soon it'll get exciting!