A/N I hope you like this chapter. Who are those three men? What will happen to Thom? And what the heck is happening to Alanna? Read and find out.

Chapter III: Close to the King

George gestured to the seats across the table as he sat down. The three strange men sat, Merek stood watching them warily. They had hoods shading their faces. His eyes moved down their bodies, taking in everything.

"So what are three nobles like you doing in the lower city," George said appraisingly. The men laughed and pulled back their hoods. George looked at them a second, shocked, then returned to his nonchalant air. Raoul of Goldenlake, Alexander of Tirragen, and in their shadows was Gareth of Naxen, son of the late Duke Gareth of Naxen, sat across from him. George had been keeping quite close tabs on these three since his dreams had started. Raoul was the one to speak first.

"You are head of an underground resistance" George broke in.

"So are you I believe, Raoul of Goldenlake. But we have different goals, yours is to place the honorable Gareth of Naxen," George said gesturing towards the man on Raoul's right, "on the throne, mine is to clear out all the nobles, and get someone who will be fair to my people."

"Which would be you I presume," Raoul replied arching his eyebrow. George shrugged and leaned back in his chair.

"Me or one of my people."

"But our initial goal is the same, to remove Roger from the throne." Raoul said earnestly to George.

"Once that is completed we can muddle through the politics," Gareth said. George looked over at the baffled Merek.

"Agreements like this are things that invite civil war. I can't accept it." Raoul sighed looking at George's impassive face.

"What if we rearranged the nobles, and created a consul of every station surrounding the king, but we must have Gary as our king. He is a good man, and has strains of the royal blood."

"But that is the point," George said, "We cannot have a monarchy based on blood in this world."

"Roger must be brought down, that is vital."

"But how are we to know that we are just putting another Roger on the throne," George countered. Raoul stood pounding his fist against the table.

"Gary would not be another Roger, he is a good man," he shouted, his voice vibrated through the room.

"Ah, you know that, but how do I know that," George said calmly. "You see how hard these arrangements are."

"Sit down Raoul," Gary turned toward George. "I appreciate your dilemma. But sometimes you have to trust people. We are trusting you, the King of the Rogue. What reasons do we have, from all accounts you are a thief and a scoundrel? Yet we also know that you have no love for the King and so we stand before you, trusting ourselves to your whim," George looked at Gary, then reached out a hand.

"Gareth of Naxen, I know you are a good man, don't ask me how but I know that in another life we would be good friends. So I will carry that life into this." Gary took George firmly by the hand and shook it. The meeting took on more of an air of allies than enemies, more relaxed and friendly.

"My people have been cutting down the nightly patrols. We know at what time each of the patrols march and at what time," George grinned, "We have friends in the armies. We also have and underground for those in the lower city with the Gift. We have spies posted all over. Merek!" Merek started. George turned towards him. "How many people do we have in the servants of the palace?"

"Twenty three," was the quick response. George nodded.

"The closest one to Roger, I'm afraid," George said apologetically, "is, a friend of Roger's laundry mistress' sister. We haven't had much luck in getting close to him I'm afraid." Alex smiled, his dark mouth curved up into a grin.

"We have," he said.

*~*~*

Esanta summed Thom up, it had to be a quick choice. She decided. Her body toppled down in a faint. Roger looked over at his mistress, and horror passed across his handsome features. He ran down from the bench, down to Esanta's side. He pulled a vial of Wakeflower from his pocket. Esanta winced, inhaling the noisome scent, it was bad enough when one had actually fainted, but when one was pretending it was enough to make your head explode, she coughed.

"Esanta," Roger's voice was painfully loud, he laid a cold hand on her cheek. She felt like recoiling from his touch, but instead she caressed his hand with hers.

"Roger," she said, tears forming in her eyes. "Darling, I couldn't bear the thought of you putting that poor young boy to death." She closed her large blue eyes as she whispered the word death.

"Esanta, don't worry. I won't kill him," Roger's worried face hovered above hers. She opened her eyes.

"You will let him go?" she asked. "He is so young, Roger. He can't do anything harmful." For a slight moment Roger's eyes were full of suspicion, but as a tear rolled down her cheek, it was replaced by tenderness.

"Of course, Esanta. Don't worry your pretty eyes over it. He will be free to go." Roger turned towards Thom, who was drinking the whole scene in eagerly. "Boy, you are free to go, but if there are anymore indications of a Gift in you, you will be severely punished."

Thom left, almost in a daze.

"I think I am the only one who has every been acquitted under this system," he thought. He wended his way through the empty hallways to his room. It was in the page's quarters, still. He had never been considered fit to be a squire, and even when he had, barely, passed the examinations none of the knights wanted him. He didn't care. He didn't care about anyone, well maybe two people, himself and his sister, Alanna. He picked up her latest letter. It was written in an impatient hand, and told of the horrors of the convent. He sighed, and threw it in the fire.

*~*~*

"Gary," Esanta said quickly. "I think I have a new person for the resistance." Gary started.

"How do you do that, Essy?" he said looking down at the letter he had been writing. It now had a think black line across the page.

"I know all of the secret passages," she said calmly. "But Gary, this is important, so important that I got someone acquitted. I can't do that a lot or Roger will suspect. It is that important." Gary sighed.

"Who is it?"

"Thom of Trebond," she stated.

"Thom?!" Gary said. "That self centered idiot. Whatever made you think he would join. All he cares about is himself."

"He stood up to Roger, Gary," Esanta replied coolly.

"Yes, that was because it was the way that served him best. He is selfish, and power hungry. There is no way that he would join. There is a reason he doesn't have a knight master. He was bad at everything, and I don't just mean the military part of it either. He failed every class he was in. He doesn't have any friends, all he does is spend all day in the library reading, I don't know what because he never had his homework done." Gary shook his head. "Thom is a loner, and not the loyal type." Esanta shrugged.

"I read him differently," Gary began to sputter, but she cut him off, "Oh I don't mean I saw him as a loyal or pleasant type, but he has no love for Roger either. Gary I think he has the Gift. I can't be sure, but either he had one more powerful than Roger, or he doesn't have one at all. Still can you imagine, having a powerful mage on our side?"

"He's only fifteen."

"I know, but consider it, Gary," she said and slipped back into the secret passage.

A/T

Temptress: I hope you liked what happened

White-Wolf: Don't worry Thom will be in it a lot.

Google Puss: I'm glad you like the way I'm writing from the different points of view.

Babooshka: I'm glad you like it. That makes me very happy.

Kel4ever: Thanks for the review.

Magix Pawn: Hehe, I don't think I'll have Alanna raise Jon from the dead, interesting question, Would someone who had already died still be the heir?

Pen Mage: Yep dear ole Roger is king.

ME: I'm glad you like the story. It makes me so happy when people like my stories. And yes GEORGE RULES!

Blue Eyes: Thanks for the review.