One of Kind
Disclaimer: Honestly what is the point in this? If you don't know that this all belongs to the great Tamora Pierce, then WHY ARE YOU READING IT? Shame on you. Anyway, don't sue, 'cause the only thing that belongs to me so far is Toffee the pony.
Chapter Two: The Convent
The five-day journey to the convent was almost over. They would reach it in time for the evening meal if they continued the way they were going now. Above, thunder cracked ominously. Great, I have to go to the convent, Thom gets to live my dream, and now, on top of it all, it starts to storm!
The last of the late afternoon sun disappeared behind dark-grey storm clouds, shrouding the ugly landscape in shadow. And to think I have to spend the next six years here.
Alanna grimaced in distaste. She might not have been the sort of girl to spend all here time worrying about whether something looked pretty or not, but the barren, desolate mountain landscape was enough to hurt the eyes of the most unaesthetically inclined person in the world.
They rounded a corner just as lightning cracked overhead, giving Alanna a clear view of what was to be her home for the next six years. The convent was built of solid grey stone, surrounded by a high stone wall that would give an army pause. No doubt meant to keep unruly 'ladies' from escaping. Alanna thought, as they made their way down the road towards it.
A servant greeted them at the gate, guiding them to the stables, looking over Alanna as he did so. She pointedly ignored him, removing Toffee's tack herself, and reached for a curry brush to start removing the mud from Toffee's once honey-coloured, now mud-splattered coat, only to have her hand slapped away by Maude.
"The servant's will take care of the horses, Alanna. It's time for you to meet the First Daughter of the convent." Alanna glared mutinously at Maude but allowed herself to be led through away from the stables through the labyrinth of stone corridors that lead to the First Daughters office.
The young priestess that led them there knocked on the door. A deep feminine voice answered. "Come in."
The young woman opened the door, bowing to the tall, calm looking woman that sat behind the desk in the robes of the First Daughter. "A new young noble lady to receive training, First Daughter."
She nodded. "Come here child."
There was something about her voice that made Alanna feel she couldn't refuse that command whether she wanted to or not. She walked forward, lifting her chin defiantly as she did so, retrieving her father's letter from the pocket of her now very dirty riding skirts. The priestess look the silently offered letter, broke the wax bearing the Trebond coat of arms, and read it in silence.
When she finished reading, she looked up at Alanna, her piercing gaze seeming to go right through Alanna, laying bare her deepest, most secret thoughts and feelings. Alanna squirmed uncomfortably, not liking the feeling, then straightened and returned the stare, not realising that for most people, that bold purple stare would have felt as soul-baring as the First Daughter's. The older woman reached out for her hand, and, without thinking, Alanna gave it. The priestess's eyes widened. "You have the hand of the Goddess upon you, lady Alanna. Welcome to her convent."
With that, she realised Alanna's hand. Alanna sagged, suddenly feeling like a puppet whose strings have been cut. "Sophia, please everything appears to be in order. Would you please take lady Alanna to her new rooms and then to the dining hall after that, so she may retire. I'm sure she is very tired after her trip.
Suddenly, Alanna did feel very tired. She barely made it through a late dinner before stumbling back to her rooms and into her bed, stopping only to remove her boots before falling asleep.
As she slept, she dreamed.
~ The Head Daughter and Daughter Sophia were standing in her office. "We will need to keep an eye on that one. She's not a bad child, but, as I said, she has been touched by the hand of the Goddess, and will need guidance. She has a strong spirit, to all appearances, and a powerful gift. I feel she will be very important in some way as an adult, and perhaps before that. The Goddess sent her to us for a reason."
Sophia nodded. "Did you place a sleeping spell on her?"
"I did. If she had time to think about it, she no doubt would have had many questions, which I could not have answered. We must look to the Goddess for guidance." ~
***
Thom glared at his father's retreating back, thinking that there was no sight he could have hated more at that moment. He had left Thom at the palace after a few words with the training master and the king, and had given Thom no more than a short "Goodbye," before leaving. Of course, if he actually cared about you enough to say a proper goodbye then you wouldn't be in this mess right now.
In truth, Thom didn't care one way or the other whether his father said goodbye properly or not. He was just finding fault with his father because he hated him so much right then.
A servant showed Thom and Coram the way to his rooms in the pages wing, and Thom after a quick glance in the mirror, decided to quickly change into his new uniform to go down to the mess hall.
Thom walked nervously down the hall, relying on the sound of talk and laughter to guide him. "Hey you! Where d'you think you're going?" The voice belonged to a brutish looking ugly blond boy. "Down to the mess hall." Thom tried to keep his voice calm. The brute sneered. "Only pages and squires eat in the mess hall."
"I am a page." The blond snorted. "A country boy trying to pass himself off as a noble?"
Thom scowled. "I'll have you know that I'm the son of the lord of Trebond. I hardly see how you could be called a noble though, I thought stupidity had been bred out of our ranks by now."
With a howl of fury, the blond boy launched himself at Thom, who dodged out of the way, but not quickly enough to avoid a glancing blow to his cheek. He dodged under the boy's arm, and kicked at the back of his knees, one of the few fighting movements Alanna had managed to teach him. The boy spun around, grabbing at Thom's foot and pulling him down. He pulled back his fist to punch him, and in desperation Thom threw a spell at him to solidify the air around him, scrambling away from him as he did so.
"What's going on?"
Thom started at the young but commanding male voice, letting go of the half completed spell. Released, the boy threw himself at Thom, but was stopped by an enormous, curly haired boy. Thom turned to face the speaker, a tall, black haired, blue-eyed boy about four years older than Thom.
"Your Highness," spat the blond boy, shaking free of the other boy's grasp to bow stiffly towards the black haired boy. "This boy tried to cast a spell on m-"
"I seem to recall asking you not to speak to me, Malven. I think we can tell without your help what has happened here."
"But - "
"Your presence is no longer required, Malven."
The boy who the prince called Malven stalked away, muttering and throwing black looks in Thom's direction. Thom stared after him for a moment before turning back to the group in front of him. He bowed. "I take it you are Prince Jonathan?"
"I am. That was Ralon of Malven. This is Raoul of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak," He gestured to the big, curly haired boy, "my cousin Gareth of Naxen," a boy almost as big as Raoul, "Gary," the boy corrected, "and Alex of Tirragen." Alex was almost as small as Thom, with dark hair and eyes.
"Who are you?"
"Thom of Trebond, your Highness."
The prince nodded. "Have you been to court before? I don't recall seeing you here before."
"No, your Highness, I've never been here before."
"Then you'll need a sponsor to show you around. I'd do it myself, but I'm too often with my parents to do it properly."
"I'll do it, Jon." Said Gary, grinning at Thom as he did so. "Shall we go down to the hall and introduce our newest member to our ranks?"
By the end of the evening, as well as being introduced to several other pages and squires, Thom had met three boys of his own age, pages named Geoffrey, Douglass and Francis.
It was late before Thom slipped into bed, thinking, well, at least I didn't have to try and fight in training today. Alanna would've loved this.
