Disclaimer- I own nothing but the plot, most of the characters and the actual writing itself. And I'm going to quit putting these at the beginning of the chappies because it's stupid to put them at the beginning of each chapter of the same story.

~Chapter 7: Training~

When Lia had finished and her score was added up she did moderately well. Not wonderful, but she was satisfied because all of her arrows hit the target.

         The next test was in wrestling Lia was pretty good, surprising because of her size some said, but Lia had always thought it was easier because she was smaller. You could move faster and hit harder. Those who were bigger had a harder time flipping around and jumping

         She had to wait for a group of people to show up so she would have people to wrestle with. Erikk and Alex had plopped on a fence and were looking like they were going to enjoy the show. Lia shook her head while noticing that all of the people showing up were ten-year-old boys, the boy part had been expected, but all of them ten or eleven, and she was almost thirteen. This is going to be a long eight years she thought to herself.

         "Alright, this is how this works, pick a partner and you square off, then whomever wins squares off against another person who won, and on and on again until there are two people left and then we will see who is the best among the first years. The first one to hit the ground looses. Go." All of the boys paired up with each other. Leaving Lia alone. That had been expected also.

"Queenscove, I guess that you get a free go ahead, we'll get you a partner in the next round." Lia nodded and moved off to the side to watch these boys try to wrestle. Their attempts at wrestling were, pitiful. They didn't know how to wrestle. Basically they threw themselves at each other and swung their fists back and forth like a windmill. In the end they knocked each other over and they both lost. It was quite amusing. Lia tried very hard not to laugh at their stupidity.

"Queenscove, you and Jasson of Pikes Villa pair off."

"Yes, sir." Lia shifted her stance and waited for the signal, when it came Jasson ran at her, Lia merely stepped aside and kicked him in the back of the leg so he fell flat on his face. She did basically the same thing to all of her opponents, some she threw of her hip, and some she flung over her back. It made life easy, these boys didn't know how to fight.

"Very good Queenscove, you have proven yourself against ten year old boys." Lia allowed herself a wry grin.

"It's just a matter of me actually having training sir.  If they had training sir, they may have beaten me." Lia said trying not to sound sardonic.

"Are you implying that they may still not be able to beat you, even after training."

"In all honesty sir, I have been training since I was little, not many people can beat me. I wish there were, then I would have someone to practice with."

"Mindelan, wrestle with Queenscove, I want to see how good she is." Lia grimaced; the gossips in breakfast had said they had brought in a special trainer for him. Erikk hadn't mentioned anything about it though.

Erikk stepped into the ring, which was now very blurry. Lia watched his actions, she looked at his chest the most, and the muscles moving could betray his movements. She heard the signal to start; Lia and Erikk circled each other. He had very good balance she had to admit it. He faked a lunge and Lia moved to block it, realizing he had faked it Lia was soon sliding over his hip, Lia quickly hooked her foot around his ankle and when he threw her she pulled on his ankle and he came down on top of her.

"Oomph." Erikk grunted before both of them heard clapping, Lia looked up. There were people everywhere. Lia noticed Kel and Dom, Dom looked like his gut was going to split he was laughing so hard. A couple of Erikk's friends found it highly amusing, Alex was sitting on the ground tears streaming down his face laughing.

"Very well done Queenscove, but I don't believe I've seen that move used in wrestling before, it's Shang is it not?" The training master asked with a grin.

"Actually sir, it was more of a reflex."

"Ah, I see. Mindelan, I haven't seen you take a fall in a while; don't make a habit of it. Queenscove, I believe your due in the sword range."

"Yes sir." She said taking Erikk's offered had. "Sorry about making you loose." She whispered

"I didn't loose, I landed on top."

         "You just keep telling yourself that. Do they let you use two swords here?'" Lia asked quickly.

         "How can you use two swords?" Erikk looked incredulous.

         "It's easy. You use a long sword, and then a shorter sword." He still looked lost. "I'll show you when we get back." He nodded. Lia mumbled something about 'stupid boys'. Erikk just grinned.

         "Have fun." He said plopping on a fence. Lia looked at the swords master. He was a grumpy looking old man. He must have been the oldest teacher there.

         "Here's how this works ladies, no offense miss." Lia bit her lip. She was not going to yell at a sexist old man. "You each will pick a sword and pair off, like what you did in wrestling. Go." Lia was closest to the barrel pulled the two she had been eyeing out and held them together so that unless you looked closely you couldn't tell she had two.

         One of the boys who had glared at her in the mess hall offered to be her partner. Lia accepted even though Erikk was vividly shaking his head no. She figured that if she proved herself here and now that they would leave her alone.

         The training master gave the signal to start. The boy began a series of rapid attacks, which Lia blocked with ease. Lia brought out the second sword and attacked.

         "She's got two swords!" He yelled outraged and received a look from Lia. "Captain!"

         "Queenscove! What do you think your doing?" He said, his face was motley red and when he yelled spit flew from his mouth.

         "Attacking." Lia said simply.

         "With two swords?" The boy asked with scorn. Lia sighed, with her luck neither of these men had ever heard of Ateche, the Carthaki word for attacking with two swords.

         "It's a very old technique. People stopped using it when I was a boy. The Carthaki's expert swords men are taught it. Is that where you learned it?" The training master asked. Lia was smiling within; this man may actually respect her.

         "Yes, when we spent those two years in Carthak." Lia was a little surprised. She had thought that it was a commonly used skill.

         "We do not use the double sword. We have never known anyone to teach it to Tortallen's. If you could continue sparring with Jasson." Lia nodded. Jasson was already attacking. Lia growled, she was tiered of his stupidity, she whipped her sword in a crescent moon strike, she then wrapped her other sword around his, pulling his sword out of his hand. Letting her sword come to rest at the base of his throat, she dropped his sword on the ground and walked away.

         "Am I done?" Erikk nodded. "Then lets go, I'm tired."

         "Your arms bleeding again." Lia looked at it.

         "Only a little." Erikk just rolled his eyes and kept walking. "Can you show me how to fight with two swords?" He asked eye's eager.

         "Yes, it's not easy though. You'll have to practice every day." Lia said looking at him.

         "Thats fine. I know you have to work for everything you get. Even stinking nobles." He said with scorn. Lia grinned.

         "Then I'll teach you, come by tonight and we'll start lessons."

         Lia decided she needed a bath, somehow in the process of the day she had gotten diry.

         "I need a bath." Erikk looked her over smirking.

         "Only a little." Lia glared at him.

"Don't be late for dinner." He said as he walked away.

"Boys." Lia muttered under her breath.

~~:~~

As it happened she was almost late for dinner. She had had to run down all of the halls to be last in line. Her hair was still slightly damp when she entered the mess hall,

"You're late." Erikk observed smirking.

"Only a little."

~~:~~

         That became their thing. One of them would say something, and the other would say 'Only a little'.

The first few weeks of Lia's life at the palace went smoothly. Only a few times was she elbowed in the gut when she achieved something that Jasson and his crowd couldn't. Lia didn't really care, she didn't have time.

She had taken to training a group of pages in her year that had been falling behind. After a few weeks of her training them they were at the top of their year. But they still insisted they needed her help.

Midwinter came and went with the exchange of little gifts. For John, this one had been hard, what could you give to one in line for the throne? In the end she had given him a small Yamani throwing star. He had liked it immensely. He had been intent upon throwing it at walls for about three weeks.

For Alex, she had given a book of practical jokes and immensely amusing spells. That had been a bad idea. He was still playing jokes on people. The other day John had pink hair for a day, the day of his father's birthday ball. That had gone over well.

For Erikk she had given him a set of double swords so that he could practice with his own and quit borrowing hers.

She had received a book on Carthaki history from John. A sheath of knives from Alex. And a small but intricate statue of the goddess from Erikk, he said it reminded him of her. From the pages she trained she had received chocolates and flowers and cupid statues. Cupid's were the supposed minions of the goddess of love. Lia threw the cupids away; she kept the chocolates for when a certain monthly visitor came around.

One of the afternoons they had off Alex, Erikk, John and a few others that Lia had made friends with were all sitting in one of the lesser libraries trying to catch up on all their late homework.

         "Maybe they like you." Gerry said.

         "What?"

         "Those boys you train."

         "That doesn't make sense."

         "Yes it does." Arron said. "Now that I think about it. They always talk about you. They sit there and rant about how wonderful you are. How they want you to respect them. And how they don't know what they would do with out you. It's quite entertaining."

         "He's got a point you know." John said teasing.

         "Your all horrible. I'm going to study." Lia said getting up and exiting. She didn't feel like studying so she wandered. In a few minuets she was completely lost. She knew where very few places in the castle where she was realizing.  If I'm going to live here I ought to know where things are she thought. The castle seemed never ending. The lunch bell had rung a long time ago but Lia could care less, she was obviously in a lesser-used area of the castle. There was a light film of dust on everything.

         She opened another door, the room was small. A large stained glass window stood at the far end of the room. In front of that stood a pedestal. Lia walked up to it. A book lay open on the pedestal. Lia looked down at the page.

Two shall go,

One to save the other,

One to save them all.

Let the champions die,

the land be torn open,

The end of the world is surely betokened.

An old priest was suddenly standing on the opposite side of the pedestal looking at her curiously.

"You are a champion, yes, yes you are. Let no one stop you my dear. This prophecy is about you, It was prophesied it long ago by some one very wise. Only the chosen may enter this room. Do not fail." Then he disappeared. Lia was very confused. She stood there for a while before leaving.

Passing by a window she saw the moon high in the sky. Sighing she broke into a run. She wasn't sure how but she made it back to her room. She opened the door and fell onto her bed, she landed on something large and bony, human from the noise it made when she landed on it. Rolling off the bed she pulled her knife out from her boot. No one knew she wore a dagger, none of the other pages knew how to successfully use one.

"Lia, don't kill me with that thing. It's me, Erikk." Groan, she was not in the mood to talk; she was in the mood to sleep.

"What are you doing here? And in my bed. The one I want to sleep in." She was crabby. She waned him to go away.

         "Well when one of my friends leaves in the middle of a conversation maybe slightly mad at me and then doesn't show up for lunch or dinner I get a tinsy bit worried." He said looking at her Lia glared. She was not in the mood for a heart-to-heart. "You know what, I'm leaving. See you in the morning Lady Yazlia.' He turned to go. Li didn't know what to say.

         "Erikk, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I've had a long day. I'm tired and I just want to go to bed. I really appreciate that you were worried about me. I'll try not to disappear any time soon." Lia looked at him desperately, he was looking at the floor. He looked up at her.

         "Lia we looked for you all day." He said sadly. 

"I'm sorry, truly." She said earnestly. Needing him to believe her. She didn't want to loose one of her best friends,

"Where were you?" Lia smiled.

"Actually, I haven't a clue. I was in a library." He got a very odd look on his face.

"You're all dirty."

"Only a little." She pulled off her boots. She was dirty, dusty really.  Lia curled up under her covers. "Coming?" She asked holding open the covers.

"Excuse me?" The look on his face was classic. His jaw dropped and his eye's bugged out his mouth was opening and closing at an alarming rate.

         "Well, you could sleep on the floor. Because about, hmm, two minuets ago the door locking spell went into affect. Ya know, the one they set up so they can get us in trouble if we leave or enter after midnight. So you can't get out. I was going to let you sleep in my bed, but if you don't-"

         "Move over and shut up Lia" He said moving into the bed. Lia was already asleep. "The Sleep of the Dead." he murmured quoting a common ballad before falling asleep.

~~:~~

Soo watcha think? Better than the last one. Yes I know they don't have trials. But it was just so the trainers knew where the kids were. And that's just one of the little things that changed. Not really that big of a deal. I am going to change things, cuz we all know that they didn't have weights in Alanna's books and they did in Keladry's. Don't worry about it it! J Enjoy my sense of creativity and Originality!

Review!

~Ana~