Gah!! I'm back, with a new chappie (crappie) and everything…..Anyways, I'm very disappointed *sniff sniff* with the pathetic amount of reviews I got. I'm not calling all you pathetic, just my story. Jez, I'm pathetic now. Enough with the pathetics, here's my very NON-pathetic reviewers!!!!

White-wolf

mae15

Thanks a lot, guys (that wasn't sarcastic)!!!! And everyone else, REVIEW….By the way, 2 more reviews and I break 20!!!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Tortall, Neal (who comes up in this chappie!! Yay!!!!), Kel, Dom, or Masbolle. I own Cenzi, Teah, Rohesia (NC [new character]), Elsie and Green Wood. I also don't own the Sims, any Dixie Chicks CDs or any rooms with baby blue wallpaper. On with the story!!!

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Cenzi had her head buried in the fluffy bed for a long time. She thought more and more about how her life had been changing so fast, first for the good, than the bad. She was still sniffing, too proud to let tears fall, when Kel came in. Cenzi's head didn't lift.
"Hey," Kel said, sitting down on the bed. She paused. "Dom and I have been talking."
"And?" Cenzi muttered, still somewhere between mad, annoyed and sad.
"We decided you could come with us."
Cenzi's head came off the bed with a shocked look. "I can?? I can?!?!? YES!!!!" She threw herself at Kel. "Thank you thank you thank you!!!!!!!!" Kel stood up, startled, with Cenzi hanging off her. "Thank you thank you thank you THANK YOU!!!!!!!!"
Kel laughed and untangled herself. "We have to go now, though, so pack up quick!!"

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When Cenzi reached the stables, she was greeted by Dom, Kel and a girl. The girl was leading three horses. Cenzi stopped dead. She was going to have to ride a horse. Oh no.

"Hello," said Dom with a smile. "Ready to go?"

"Do I have to ride a horse?"

"Yes," Kel said. "How else are you going to get to Corus?"

"I-I-"

"It's not that hard," interrupted the girl. She was about 12 years old, and had dark hair that was bound back with a leather thong. She was short, and her eyes were a deep brown.

"You have Wild Magic and grew up around horses," retorted Dom. "It should be easy for you, Rohesia."

"Well, here are the horses," said Rohesia, tossing her bound hair over her shoulder. "Come back soon, and have fun."

"We will," said Kel, giving Rohesia a hug. "Take care or yourself, Hesia."  

Dom gave Rohesia a pat on the back and mounted his horse, a fierce looking black mare. "Let's go."

Kel helped Cenzi climb onto another horse, who she called Rei. After falling off several times, Cenzi shakily clutched Rei's back and slowly patted the patient mare's neck. Kel mounted a prickly looking reddish brown mare, and they set off.

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It took Kel, Dom and Cenzi only a few minutes going the opposite way than to Green Wood to reach the Great Road North. Waiting for them there was a tall handsome man with green eyes and brown hair, sitting on a yellow horse.

He dismounted. "What took you so long?!?!"

Kel and Dom dismounted too. Kel ran up to give him a hug. Dom stood nearby. "Hello, Meathead. Has Yuki committed suicide yet?" he asked in his usual dry humor.

Before the man could retort, Kel quickly said, "Cenzi, this is Sir Nealan of Queenscove. Neal, this is Cenziline of Green Wood."

"Call me Cenzi," she said, just as Nealan said "Call me Neal."  They all laughed.

"Cenzi, Dom, Kel," Neal said, "I do believe the King awaits us."

Cenzi just about fell off her horse. "The KING?!?!?! Do I have to meet him????"

"Well, you don't have to," said Kel. "You could. You'll be meeting all sorts of people, though. This is just about the biggest meeting of important people ever called. And His Majesty won't tell us what it's about, but it sounds like it's just about the biggest thing that's happened in Tortall's history. That's why we've got to move. Now."

"Sounds important enough," remarked Neal, and they set off. (A/n: that sounded really crappy. Please don't count that horrible sentence end against me *people throw eggs and rotted tomatoes* *cringes* Sorry!!)

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They stopped at the side of the road about an hour before sunset to set up camp. It was decided that the girls would sleep in a tent together and the boys in another, and that while Cenzi and Neal made the food, Dom and Kel would set up the tents.

"I'm hopeless at tents," said Neal to Cenzi as Cenzi cut vegetables and Neal boiled a ball of dried noodles with spices that Dom had given him. Neal had protested against the veggies, but Kel had insisted. "The last time I tried to set one up it collapsed on me and I couldn't get out. Quite embarrassing, as it was my first night with Alanna as my knight master."

Cenzi stopped. "You had Alanna as your knight master???"

"Yes," Neal said, still looking at the soup. "I'll regret it the rest of my life. Her temper was sharper than splinters."

Cenzi stopped asking about Alanna. *Maybe I'll get to MEET her when I got to Corus!! Wow….Forget what I said about my life being ruined….* Then Cenzi remembered something she wanted to ask Neal about. "Neal, who is Yuki?? The one Dom was asking about before??"

"Oh, Yuki's my wife."

"Wife??" Cenzi asked, startled. Neal didn't seem like the kind of person to settle down. But then again, neither did Kel.

"Yup. Just gave birth to our 2nd daughter, Emi."

"Congratulations!"

Neal grinned. "Thank you. Veggies ready?"

"Yeah." Cenzi dumped them into the soup and Neal shut the pot with a bang.

"Done," he called. "Soup'll be ready soon."

"All right," they heard Dom call back. "Tent's are up."

Dinner was just short of amazing, considering it had come from a little ball and some carrots and potatoes. After dinner they headed to the tents, Kel reminding them to go to sleep soon, as they had to get up early to ride the next morning.

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Cenzi was woken up the next morning rolled tightly in her blanket. "Get up," said Kel's voice. She groaned as she rolled over, stiff from riding so much yesterday. Then she smelled something good cooking.

"So early?"

"Come on, I've got breakfast ready." Cenzi heard Kel step out of the tent. Cenzi dressed in brown breeches and a dark green tunic and stumbled out of the tent. Neal was seated by a small fire, groggily eating a roll with butter melted on it.

Cenzi staggered over to the fire and picked up one of the rolls with butter smeared on it. "'S too early," she told Neal.

Neal nodded sleepily and yawned. He took a sip from the mug next to him and shook his head. "Whoo, that's strong." He offered another mug to Cenzi.

"What is it," she asked.

"Coffee," he replied. "Black. It'll wake you up faster then a bucket of cold water."

Cenzi gingerly took the mug and sipped it. She made a bad face. "Uck."

She heard footsteps behind her. "Poisoning little Cenzi, are we, Meathead?" Dom sat next to Cenzi and ruffled her hair. "I wouldn't drink that, if I were you," he advised.

"I wouldn't either," said Cenzi as she put the mug down. "How can you drink this stuff?" she asked Neal.
"It's my secret to performance," said Neal, pretending to look hurt.

"Right," said Kel dryly. "Let's go."

The morning passed quickly, and Cenzi later suspected she fell asleep several times on her horse. When they got to Corus, it was just past midday, and Cenzi, Dom, and Kel were tired. Neal, though, seemed more awake than ever, and even made them sandwiches while on his horse, a feat he seemed very proud of. Kel, Dom and Cenzi told him to shut up and eat his sandwich, which he gladly did.

They all became more serious, though, as they reached Corus and saw the vast amounts of people coming into the city. After they fought their way thought the crowds and reached the palace, a line of pages awaited them, along with a stern looking man, and a concerned looking woman and man. The adults were directing pages to lead the people into the palace. Dom, Cenzi, Kel, and Neal got into a long looking line and gave their horses to some frenzied looking hostlers.

Neal pointed out different people in the crowd while Kel and Dom chatted nervously. Eventually the line became shorter and shorter and people stopped coming and started disappearing into the palace. Cenzi, Neal, Dom and Kel were a few of the only ones left in the courtyard, and some of the last in line.

As they came up to the beginning of the line, Cenzi got a better look at the line of pages. Standing out were three girls, standing next to each other. They each looked like they were about a year apart from each other. The youngest one was obviously Kel and Dom's daughter, Anara. She was whispering to the others. One looked almost exactly like Neal. "You have a daughter who's a page?" hissed Cenzi to Neal. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Neal grinned. "And guess who she's named after?"

"I don't know!!"

"Me," said Kel with a grimace. "I tried to talk them out of it, but-"

"We insisted," said Neal with another toothy grin.

Cenzi smiled. *Just like Kel…* she thought.

Now they were at the beginning of the line. A boy and Kel (the younger) ran to Neal, and Anara broke for Kel and Dom. Cenzi stood aquardly to the side as they hugged.

"Pages Queenscove and Masbolle," said the sour-faced man. "Fall back into line."

The children backed into line again. Neal blew a kiss to his kids, and Dom and Kel waved. The other pages were staring at the newcomers. Cenzi focused back on Kel again. She was exchanging hugs with the other man and woman commanding the pages.

"Hakuin and Eda!!" she exclaimed. "Fit as ever!!"

"Kel," said the woman warmly. "And Nealan too!" She hugged Neal. The man smiled and patted Neal and Kel on the shoulder each.

Cenzi took a look at the other man. He was looking dangerously annoyed. The woman, Eda, noticed too. "Page Sea Cliff, take this group to the meeting hall."

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There ya' go!!! Thanks to Anastazia Silverwind right now, for IMing me!!! That's all for now…

-ladyknight

PS. Don't forget to review!!!!!!! Please!!!!!!!!