~Chapter 10:The Ambassadors Ball~

'Put your feet like this. It'll be easier to balance.' Lia told Freddy, one of the street kids later the next day.

            'Okay, for tomorrow I want you to work on your stance if you get time. You're dismissed.' Lia told the group of kids. She wiped the sweat off her brow, it was now late august and the sun brutally hot. It was hard to believe that in a few weeks she would be leaving for Corus again.

            Slowly she began walking towards the mess hall, thinking of all the things she'd done here, and all the people she'd met Lia realized that she didn't really want to leave.

~~:~~

            'You know Lia, I don't think we've ever seen you in a dress.' Alex said at lunch that day.

            'Really? Thats interesting.' Lia said trying to avoid the situation as much.

            'Well, I was thinking about it, and that, oh what was it called, I remember the Ambassadors Ball, where all of the most important people of the realm will be there.' Lia winced; she knew what they were up to. 'So I was thinking you should put on a dress.'

            'No.' Lia didn't even consider it.

            'I'll make you a deal. If you can best me in a footrace I'll do something for you. If I win you wear a dress to the ball.'

            'If I win, you kiss Lady Germanium on the lips.' John winced; Lady Germanium was the oldest ugliest crone around. Even though the chances of Lia winning where next to none that made him stop and think.

            'Fine, we go right now.' Lia sighed and followed him she hated running. She was going to loose. That was indefinite. But what was not yet decided was by how much.

            Lia ran faster than she ever had in her life, but not fast enough to win. She was a foot behind John the entire way.

            'Geeze Lia, you really didn't want to wear a dress huh?' He asked, hands on his knees, Lia smiled he was breathing hard.

            'I guess, I got to go, class to teach.' Lia said.

            Class went very well that day. Most of the kids were using real swords and those that were not would be in a few days. Near the end of practice Tayniate came and sat on a fence rail. 

            'Your students are very good.' Tayniate commented after the students had been dismissed.

            'Thank you.'

            'How long have you been working with them?'

            'About two and a half months.'

            'Thats impressive, most people can't learn the sword that fast.'

            'I like to think I have a special talent.' Both girls laughed at that.

            'You ready?' Tayniate asked still laughing.

            'I think so.'

            Tayniate was good. Very good. Lia noticed as they traded blows. The dulled metal knives used in practice bouts made a metallic ring as they came together. Lia's mind wandered as her movements became robotic. She wondered what she was going to wear to the ball she was being forced to attend. She hadn't brought any dresses to Haven with her. She had the gypsy clothes that had been given to her, but they weren't appropriate for an ambassador's ball. Lia realized what was happening too late. Tayniate had gone in a complex knife movement; Lia was hardly blocking the blows that came her way. Tayniate's blade came to rest at the base of Lia's throat.

            'Your good, you may not have lost had you been paying attention.' Tayniate said with a wry smile. Lia smiled.

            'Just a lot on my mind I suppose.'

            'Like?' Lia sighed, she wasn't worming her way out of this one.'

            'Like, my evil friends daring me to go to the ambassadors ball as a lady.' Lia blurted out in a rather blurrish blur. Lia watched as Tayniate grinned.

            'That I can work with. Follow me. I thought maybe it was something important.'

            'But it is important. I don't have any dresses.'

            'Thats why your following me. See, when you're dared to wear a dress, you have to look exceptionally pretty. Radiant. Which is why we're having a dress made for you by the most talented dress markets in Carthak. Oh, and call me Nia.' She said with a grand smile. Lia smiled back.

            'Well here we are.' Nia quickly explained to her dressmakers what was going on. They all smiled and put Lia on a stool and started sketching out patterns and deposited them in Lia's face. Lia looked through them and handed them to Nia. Who paged through them and handed two back to Lia.

            The first one was a long floor length skirt slashed in the front to reveal voluminous petticoats. The bodice was tight at the waist and then light and flowing with sleeves that were loose and would fall an inch or two below her hands.

            The second dress pattern showed a floor length under dress with an over coat richly embroidered. When the overcoat was put over the under dress the sleeves came in rich bells that hung down to the floor. Lia picked the second one, she liked the sleeves.

            The seamstresses nodded and while some took her measurements the others draped fabrics in front of her. They told her to come back the morning of the ball.

            The next week seemed to fly by. Her friends kept pestering her about what she was wearing to the ball. Lia put them off with a mischievous smile and told them she had picked something up at a dressmaker. The kids in her classes had heard about what was supposed to happen and teased her endlessly. They all wanted to know if she was going to wear a dress. Renna said she should wear a really fancy dress just to prove she could. Thats what Kanti said to. Lia had just smiled.

            So when she woke up the morning of the ball she soaked in the bathtub and scrubbed every inch of herself twice. When she was done she ran all the way to the empresses suite of rooms. One of the servants opened the door.

            'Finally! You'd think we had all day.' Which in truth they did, but Lia wasn't about to tell that to such a crotchety servant.

            Lia was thrust into a large bathing pool where she was thouraly scrubbed and they put something on her bruises that made them disappear. Lia was impressed; it wasn't every day someone else made her bruises disappear. Lia would do it herself, but for some reason healing herself made her dead tired.

            After she was scrubbed and dried she was perfumed and put in a robe and plopped on a cushion next to Nia and Erica. Erica started laughing at the look on Lia's face.

            'Feeling good?' Nia asked her laughing. Lia managed a half shake half nod head movement.

            'So Lia, I saw your dress this morning. Very nice. I really like the pattern, I might have to borrow the pattern one day.'

            'It was your servants that made it Lady, you can do whatever you like with it.'

            'Call me Erica please. And you're the first one to wear it. That means you start the trend, which means all the other ladies will follow your example.'

            'I thought that this was just an ambassadors ball.' Lia said slightly confused.

            'Oh, no. This is the ball where they announce the grand progress in four years and the noble people get assign the dates of when they get to have me live in their palaces. Aren't they lucky? Any way, all the important fief masters and their daughters will be there. 'Lia's mouth dropped.

            'Don't worry about it, you'll be perfect. And you'll look gorgeous. And we've paid the herald to introduce you after us as the Lady Yazlia of Queenscove.' Nia said dramatically. Lia smiled, it seemed that Nia had a flair for the dramatical.

            Servants showed up and started pulling on the girl's hair and all of them shut up for the pain of their scalp. Lia was a page, she shouldn't have been in so much pain, but for some reason there was no pain she'd felt like this little tiny woman pulling on her scalp.

            It seemed like forever before she was done, but in reality it was only a matter on minuets. She had a mirror shoved in her face and gasped her hair had been piled up on top of her head and some of it had been trimmed and curled to frame her face. Tendrils fell out of the bun and where curled in spirals.

            Lunch was served in the late afternoon, it was mainly just vegetables. That was okay, Lia was positive anything else would have her puking.

            After lunch a maid doing her makeup, and another doing her nails attacked her. The one doing her nails was filing them and had bottles of god knows what sitting next to her. The one doing her make up was putting tons of gunks on her face. Lia was positive it would never come off.

            Then they whisked her away and started to put her dress on. First came a light gauzy layer. A bodice came next, almost a see through fabric, drawn tight against her skin. Then the under dress, it was a light green color. And last the over dress.  Dark green trimmed and embroidered in silver thread. The embroidery made nonsensical patterns around her body, accenting her waist and flowing down within the folds of her dress. The servants placed silver chains accented with tiny emeralds in her hair, they spiraled with her curls. The servants pushed her out into the entryway where Erica and Nia were waiting for her.

            'Oh, Lia, wow.' Was the first thing out of Nia's mouth. Erica just nodded.

*Already @ the ball, Erikk's P.O.V*

            'A gold noble says she doesn't show.' Alex said.

            'She'll show.' John said wringing his hands and looking worried. Erikk just leaned against the wall and looked at them sardonically.

            'Introducing for the first time in court, Lady Tayniate la Fermonti du Geratude, Empress Erica du Noteva le Torecel.' The crowd gasped as two very lovely ladies stepped out of the grand doors and into the ballroom of Haven, it wasn't as nice as the ballroom of the castle Conté but it worked for these ladies.

            'And,' the herald continued. 'Please welcome, Lady and Page Yazlia of Queenscove.' The crowd gasped and applauded as she stepped through the doors. She looked like the goddess. Completely stunning. The green made her eyes blaze. The silver highlighted her stubbornly pale skin. And her dark hair made her look dangerous and unearthly.

            Alex was catcalling. John, for once in his life was stunned to silence. And Erikk was smiling; I knew my girl could do it. He had always thought of her as his girl and he probably always would. He'd never thought of it as odd, and if he ever would, he probably wouldn't care.

*Back to Lia's P.O.V*

            Lia watched as Erica and Nia stepped through oak doors. She was sweating, her head hurt, and she felt like she was going to throw up. She wiped her hands on her dress.

            'Don't worry Milady. It's a progressions crowd. They'll be proud of ye.' One of the doormen said. 'And if you don't mind me saying Lady, you look beautiful.' Lia smiled as the doors opened and stepped through them. Slowly she walked down the stairs, as she did the people started clapping. At first it was just a few, but soon it had become a dull roar. Without thinking Lia dropped into a deep curtsy. The people clapped louder. Lia smiled and moved to stand by Nia and Erica.

            'That was brilliant.' Nia gushed.

            'I don't remember the last time I made an entrance like that.' Erica said.

            'Lets find those boys. I want to see their faces.' Nia said dragging Lia towards the back of the room.

            Between heads of the crowd Lia saw a laughing Erikk and a red faced Alex who was looking like he was going to split a rib. John was pale faced Lia grinned as Nia pulled her towards them.

            'Hello boys, have you met the Lady Yazlia?' Erica asked face serious.

            'Why no I don't believe I have, Milady, I am Squire Alex.' He said bowing low.

            'And I Milady, am Squire Erikk.' He said bowing. John just stood there mouth wagging.

            'Since my good friend John has forgotten his manners, would you care to dance Milady?'

            'I would love to Squire Alex.' Lia said accepting his arm. Erikk asked Nia to dance. And Erica dragged a still gaping John out on the dance floor.

~~:~~

Two weeks later Lia was on a horse back to Corus. It was hard to believe.  It had seemed like her time in Haven would last forever and it hadn't. Before she had left Kel had told her that she had asked ha Minchi to transfer her training to Haven and hadn't received an answer. That had bummed her out entirely. The boys knew that and left her well enough alone.

            Lia heard it first; someone was coming toward them, fast. She was up with a knife in hand and pulling more out before the others where even off the ground.  A man in the uniform of royal messenger galloped into the clearing.

            'I have an official command for Yazlia of Queenscove to turn around and go back to Haven, and a word of advice. There is a large group of spindrens headed this way so you all might want to go back with her. That's where I'm headed. G'day to ya.' He said before galloping out of the clearing towards Haven. No one said anything, just began packing as quietly as possible.

            Spindrens where the worst, worse than stormwings. Half human half spider. The spoke all human languages and would taunt their prey before killing it. They spun giant glowing webs that lit up forests with an eerie light. It made Lia's skin crawl just thinking about it. She shuddered as she and her friends mounted up and rode back to Haven as fast as they could.

            They had made it back to Haven in half the time it took them to leave it. Of course the spindrens where a mile behind them the entire time. And a few of the more feisty female spindrens had been shooting out their webbing that left burns when it touched your skin. John and Alex both had burns when they got back to Haven and where moved to the infirmary, Erikk and Lia where put on a wall with bows to shoot the spindrens so they wouldn't overtake the city. It was hard work, spindrens moved fast and jumped around, some swung on their thread.

            In the end many people had spindren burns. An abnormal ammount. Only female spindren webbing left burn marks so having so many people with burns meant this spindren herd had many females. Which meant the herd would be more aggressive. And having them live so near Haven would mean Havens residents would be dealing with them for a very long time. Spindrens weren't known for their hospitality.

            Extra healers where brought in from the surrounding fiefs to help with the burn patients. Her father was one of them. While he was in residence at Haven he asked Erikk to be his squire. He was a healer, and offered to finish Erikk's medical teaching.

            'Lia, can we talk?' Erikk had said early one morning.

            'Yeah, come in.' Lia was washing Jaelik. It was Carri's birthday today and she was turning four so Lia was planning to give him to her. He practically lived with them anyway.

'So, what's up?' Lia said still playing with Jaelik.

            'Lia, your father asked me to be his squire.' Lia looked up suddenly, surprised.

            'Really?' She asked, eyes wide. The green shining out at him.

            'He can finish teaching me to heal Lia. I won't go with him if it bothers you.' He looked nervous.

            'You thought it would bother me? You're weird. I don't mind at all. Actually, I'm glad you're with someone I know. That way I know how much trouble you're getting into.' She said with a smile. 'Want to come with me?' She said lifting Jaelik up to face him.

            'Sure.' He said closing her door behind her as they walked to the edge of the city limits together, talking about anything that came to mind.

            A few days after receiving the news that her father was Erikk's knight master there was another knock on her door.

            'What?' she asked groggily.

            'Let me in Lia.' Erikk's voice came through her door.

            'It's open.' Lia groaned. Rolling over to glare at this horrible person who had woken her up in the middle of the night and was now daring to enter her room.

            'Lia, one of the villages nearby got attacked by those spindrens and your father and I are going to help with the wounded. So I won't see you for awhile.' He said kneeling by her bed.

            'Oh, okay.' she wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him. 'G'bye then.' She yawned. Try not to get to beat up.' She said leaning back.

            'I think I could manage that.' He said grinning. 'Bye.'

            'Bye.' She said, leaning back onto her pillows he thought she'd fallen asleep. He leaned over, kissed her forehead and then left. In the morning she would think his kissing her was dream.