AN. Hey. you're in luck. I've got time for another chapter before I go. so
here it is. hope you like it!!
DISCLAIMER: Tortall belongs to TP so do most of the places & people in it. I only own Yali!
~*~Chapter Seven~*~
Yali had the rest of the day free because the Page's were not due back to the Palace until the next day. She decided to unpack first - she hated having the servants do it - and then she would go and spend the afternoon with her mother, she was hoping she could convince her to go some glaive practice with her.
So Yali began to unpack her clothes. She unpacked her dresses, her practice clothes, her sleeping kimono and her underclothes. She also hung up her new formal uniform, which turned out to be a dress with a red bodice and gold skirts and sleeves. Yali thought she now saw why they found dress wearing horrifying.
She then moved on to unpacking the few personal items that she had brought with her. She unwrapped the Yamani Lucky Cats Aunty Kel had given her for Midwinter one year when she was little. She placed her hairbrush with the hand carved handle Baird had made her for her birthday near the wash basin. Then she hung the wall hanging of a forest clearing she and her mother had made when she was little and had been sick and confined in doors for a week above her bed. Yali remembered how proud she had been that she had done the river all by herself and how she'd shown her mother. She remembered her mother smiling and saying, truthfully, that she thought it was beautiful. Yali looked closely at the river and laughed - the stitches were uneven and all over the place. She smiled sadly. Her mother really had thought it was beautiful. That was what her mother was like; if she knew you had tried your hardest she loved what you had done, no matter what.
She finished unpacking her personal things and went to work unpacking her weapons. These too had lots of memories attached and as she finished unpacking she felt very sad. She was leaving all this behind; she was alone now, with no mother or father or Baird or anyone from Queenscove. She remembered all the maids and servants and stableboys and smiths and guards and cooks at Queenscove. She had known everyone in Queenscove by name and had been friends with most of them. And now she was some where new, some where she hardly knew anyone and she probably wouldn't see anyone from Queenscove for quite a while.
She was interrupted in her thoughts by a knock on the door. "Come in!" she called, wiping away the single tear which had appeared in her cheek. The door opened as she looked up. "Aunty Kel!" she shrieked and threw herself at her visitor.
"Hello Yali." Kel replied hugging her.
"What are you doing here?" Yali asked but before Kel could reply she said, "You know, it doesn't matter; all that matters is you're here. Because if you tell me why you're here you'll also tell me when you're leaving and no doubt that'll be soon. So I don't want to know. Ok?"
"Ok." Kel said, laughing. It was only then that Kel got a closer look at Yali's face. "Yali," she said, concerned. "What's wrong?" Yali avoided Kel's eyes. The problem with Kel was that she knew her too well, Kel knew her almost as well as her mother did so she could tell she had been upset. She tried to fool her anyway. "Wrong? Nothing's wrong." She said in an overly cheerful voice.
'Yali?" Kel said in a warning voice, "What's wrong?"
Yali gave in, she'd get it out of her eventually and they both knew it. "I know I really wanted to be a Page, and don't get me wrong I still do." She added as she saw the shocked look on Kel's face. "It's just when I was unpacking I started to remember everyone back at Queenscove and I realised how much I miss them already and I've only been gone less than a week." Kel made as if to speak but Yali wasn't finished yet. "And then I thought about all the work I have to do and I thought 'Is it really worth it?' and of course the answer was 'Yes, of course it's worth it, it doesn't matter if I have to leave Queenscove behind and that it's lots of work. Of course it's worth it!' But fro a moment there I doubted and I'm still not absolutely sure.I mean I feel so lonely already." Yali finished and realised that despite her Yamani training she was crying.
For a while Kel didn't say anything, she just hugged her and held her until she stopped crying. Only then did she say anything. "That's why I came." Yali looked at her, confused. " I didn't come to the Palace to speak to the King or anything. I came for you. To make sure you're all right. Because you're my godsdaughter and you're very important to me. I knew you would need some help. No matter how brave you are you still have doubts. Having doubts doesn't make you any less brave. I had doubts, especially when I got put on probation. And I wished I had some one to share my doubts with. And I know how Neal can be. a bit preoccupied sometimes. Know, Yali, that it's perfectly natural to have doubts. As long as more than half of you says 'Yes, it is worth it.' then you should stick with it."
Yali sniffed but didn't say anything for a while. At last she said "Thanks." then she let go of Kel and stepped back. She walked into her washroom, poured water from the jug and splashed her face. When she came back out she looked back to normal although her eyes were still slightly red. Kel didn't say anything about it, she just said, "So what were you going to do after you finished packing?"
"I was going to hassle Ma into glaive practice with me." Yali replied, then she grinned, "But now you're here I don't have to. You can practice with me. Can't you?"
Kel grinned too and picked up her glaive, which she had propped beside the door when she came in. "That's what I was hoping you'd say."
~*~
AN. There! Done! Hope you enjoyed that. Anywayz. please review and tell me what you think! I'm not too sure about the whole second thoughts thing but aw well. already done it now!
DISCLAIMER: Tortall belongs to TP so do most of the places & people in it. I only own Yali!
~*~Chapter Seven~*~
Yali had the rest of the day free because the Page's were not due back to the Palace until the next day. She decided to unpack first - she hated having the servants do it - and then she would go and spend the afternoon with her mother, she was hoping she could convince her to go some glaive practice with her.
So Yali began to unpack her clothes. She unpacked her dresses, her practice clothes, her sleeping kimono and her underclothes. She also hung up her new formal uniform, which turned out to be a dress with a red bodice and gold skirts and sleeves. Yali thought she now saw why they found dress wearing horrifying.
She then moved on to unpacking the few personal items that she had brought with her. She unwrapped the Yamani Lucky Cats Aunty Kel had given her for Midwinter one year when she was little. She placed her hairbrush with the hand carved handle Baird had made her for her birthday near the wash basin. Then she hung the wall hanging of a forest clearing she and her mother had made when she was little and had been sick and confined in doors for a week above her bed. Yali remembered how proud she had been that she had done the river all by herself and how she'd shown her mother. She remembered her mother smiling and saying, truthfully, that she thought it was beautiful. Yali looked closely at the river and laughed - the stitches were uneven and all over the place. She smiled sadly. Her mother really had thought it was beautiful. That was what her mother was like; if she knew you had tried your hardest she loved what you had done, no matter what.
She finished unpacking her personal things and went to work unpacking her weapons. These too had lots of memories attached and as she finished unpacking she felt very sad. She was leaving all this behind; she was alone now, with no mother or father or Baird or anyone from Queenscove. She remembered all the maids and servants and stableboys and smiths and guards and cooks at Queenscove. She had known everyone in Queenscove by name and had been friends with most of them. And now she was some where new, some where she hardly knew anyone and she probably wouldn't see anyone from Queenscove for quite a while.
She was interrupted in her thoughts by a knock on the door. "Come in!" she called, wiping away the single tear which had appeared in her cheek. The door opened as she looked up. "Aunty Kel!" she shrieked and threw herself at her visitor.
"Hello Yali." Kel replied hugging her.
"What are you doing here?" Yali asked but before Kel could reply she said, "You know, it doesn't matter; all that matters is you're here. Because if you tell me why you're here you'll also tell me when you're leaving and no doubt that'll be soon. So I don't want to know. Ok?"
"Ok." Kel said, laughing. It was only then that Kel got a closer look at Yali's face. "Yali," she said, concerned. "What's wrong?" Yali avoided Kel's eyes. The problem with Kel was that she knew her too well, Kel knew her almost as well as her mother did so she could tell she had been upset. She tried to fool her anyway. "Wrong? Nothing's wrong." She said in an overly cheerful voice.
'Yali?" Kel said in a warning voice, "What's wrong?"
Yali gave in, she'd get it out of her eventually and they both knew it. "I know I really wanted to be a Page, and don't get me wrong I still do." She added as she saw the shocked look on Kel's face. "It's just when I was unpacking I started to remember everyone back at Queenscove and I realised how much I miss them already and I've only been gone less than a week." Kel made as if to speak but Yali wasn't finished yet. "And then I thought about all the work I have to do and I thought 'Is it really worth it?' and of course the answer was 'Yes, of course it's worth it, it doesn't matter if I have to leave Queenscove behind and that it's lots of work. Of course it's worth it!' But fro a moment there I doubted and I'm still not absolutely sure.I mean I feel so lonely already." Yali finished and realised that despite her Yamani training she was crying.
For a while Kel didn't say anything, she just hugged her and held her until she stopped crying. Only then did she say anything. "That's why I came." Yali looked at her, confused. " I didn't come to the Palace to speak to the King or anything. I came for you. To make sure you're all right. Because you're my godsdaughter and you're very important to me. I knew you would need some help. No matter how brave you are you still have doubts. Having doubts doesn't make you any less brave. I had doubts, especially when I got put on probation. And I wished I had some one to share my doubts with. And I know how Neal can be. a bit preoccupied sometimes. Know, Yali, that it's perfectly natural to have doubts. As long as more than half of you says 'Yes, it is worth it.' then you should stick with it."
Yali sniffed but didn't say anything for a while. At last she said "Thanks." then she let go of Kel and stepped back. She walked into her washroom, poured water from the jug and splashed her face. When she came back out she looked back to normal although her eyes were still slightly red. Kel didn't say anything about it, she just said, "So what were you going to do after you finished packing?"
"I was going to hassle Ma into glaive practice with me." Yali replied, then she grinned, "But now you're here I don't have to. You can practice with me. Can't you?"
Kel grinned too and picked up her glaive, which she had propped beside the door when she came in. "That's what I was hoping you'd say."
~*~
AN. There! Done! Hope you enjoyed that. Anywayz. please review and tell me what you think! I'm not too sure about the whole second thoughts thing but aw well. already done it now!
