A/N: ooh! I got me some reviews! Exciting! Vielen dank!
Scroll down to see my replies.
I've been so excited writing this, got myself a new computer and it's so cool!
Got some comments on my writing style. Yes, my first two chapters are both very different, one's funny, one's serious. To tell the truth, I got bored with the second chapter as I was writing it, I mean nothing interesting was happening! So yeah I kinda finished it quickly. So sorry if that annoyed you :) now she's at the palace, things should be a lot more interesting...
ANYWAY, sorry to waste your time by making you read a paragraph of nonsense, on with the story...
(I had a lot of fun writing this chapter!)
Warning – this chap contains a bit of violence and gruesome stuff... (excellent)
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Thrilled with the room arrangements, Alanna went inside her quarters to see her new home'. Finally she thought, some peace and quiet! She was about to collapse on the bed, but was surprised to find that someone else had gotten there first....
"What are you doing here?," exclaimed Alanna, putting her hands on her hips. There, sitting snugly between her pillows was a sleek, gorgeous looking black cat. "How on Earth did you get in?" wondered Alanna, searching the room for any open windows or holes. "No matter," she said, sitting down beside the small cat, "You can stay, if you like".
As if the cat had only just then realised she was there, it opened its small beady eyes and toppled across the pillows to land in Alanna's lap. "Mithros!," gasped Alanna, as she stared down into it's bright amethyst eyes. She had never seen anyone or any creature with the same purple eyes as her and Thom. Alanna wondered where this curious cat had come from.
Suddenly she remembered the rustling in the bushes and the shadow behind the tree. Perhaps this cat was her stalker. Grinning, she picked the cat up and said, "You're not such a bad looking stalker, I might just keep you". Much to the cat's annoyance, she lifted it's tail and checked it's sex. It was a definite little boy.
Before she had the chance to give him a name though, Lydia walked through Alanna's open door. "Alanna, how big are the rooms! I swear they're three times the size of the convent rooms... what is that?" said Lydia, kneeling down beside Alanna to stare into the cat's eyes. "Goodness, it has purple eyes!" she said, shocked. "Mm, it's strange isn't it?" said Alanna, transfixed on her newfound friend.
"Well anyway," said Lydia, distracting Alanna, "We've only got one more hour of daylight, let's go explore the gardens, or somewhere else..." she said, keen to get out of the room.
Sighing, Alanna agreed and followed her friend out the door, leaving the cat behind. He should be all right to look after himself for one hour anyway.
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Just as they were about to enter the maze of gardens surrounding the Palace, Alanna noticed two men fencing out of the corner of her eye. Taking a closer look, she noticed that one of them was rather short with flaming red hair. There was no doubt that this would be her brother, Thom.
Excitedly, Alanna yanked Lydia's arm and dragged her off in the direction of the fencing courts. Thom and the bigger man were fencing on the smallest of the outside courts. Once they had reached the small fence around the court, Alanna could see that Thom was fencing a full-grown knight.
The two men hadn't seemed to realise the girls were there, and continued fencing. The knight had perfect technique and was moving in on Thom. Attack after attack, he made Thom dodge backwards and block his blows. Eventually the knight seemed to loose his interest and decided to end the fight by cleanly sweeping Thom's sword from his hand.
"Not so bad Thom, you're getting better," commented the knight smugly, as Thom went to fetch his sword, which had flown some distance away. The knight then noticed the girls at the fence and smiled politely at them. Reluctantly, Alanna smiled back as sweetly as she could possibly manage before he turned and her smile grew sour. What a snob, she thought, He knows he's good, yet he still finds pleasure in defeating small squires. What kind of a knight is that? Thankfully, Alanna didn't have to talk to him as he had left the courts and was walking back up to the Palace.
"Thom!" she yelled at Thom's back, annoyed that he hadn't noticed her yet. He turned around at smiled at her. Alanna jumped the fence and ran towards him. Just as she was about to envelop him in a big hug though, he disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke.
Confused, Alanna walked back to the fence where Lydia was standing. Lydia giggled at her friend and pointed behind Alanna. "Alanna, you're here!" said Thom as he walked towards his sister. "Thom, you are such an evil cretin! I swear I thought that was you fighting that knight," she screamed at him, poking him hard in the stomach. "Ouch! Alanna, you know I can't fight, I hate it! I have to conjure up illusions to fight for me!" he squealed, as Alanna poked him more, "Nobody can tell the difference between my illusions and me now, I've perfected them over the years. They can even use real swords now!"
Remembering Lydia was there, she stopped poking Thom and introduced him to her friend. "Pleased to meet you Lydia, I'm sure you have much better manners than my sister here," he said, winking at Alanna. Lydia curtsied, and replied, "why yes, I'm sure I do Squire Thom," ignoring the scowls she was getting from Alanna, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you".
Impatient with all the formal greetings, Alanna butted in, "Thom, what have you been up to these days?". "Nothing much," replied Thom in his absent-minded sort of way. Changing the topic he asked, "Will I be seeing you at the ball tomorrow night? It's the prince's nineteenth tomorrow, should be a good night!," he said grinning evilly at Alanna.
Lydia gasped suddenly and replied, "Of course, the ball! Alanna we'd better go, we need to get some rest for tomorrow. Besides it's been a long day". Alanna was about to protest, but Thom got in first, "yes you're right, I'd better not keep you. See you tomorrow Alanna, Lydia," he said and turned to walk away. Alanna was making a move to follow him but Lydia grabbed her first and started hauling her back up to her room.
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(A/N: Bit of icky stuff here. Recommend you skip it if you're squeamish)
In her dream, Alanna was sitting under a tree, reading a book on the old ones and the wars they fought. Suddenly the book disappeared, along with the tree and the gardens she was sitting in. All that was left was darkness.
Alanna tried to stand up but found herself sinking forever downwards. Finally, she fell onto the floor of a large, dull round room. Three thrones stood opposite her on a large platform. Unable to see them clearly, Alanna stood up and tried to make her way to them. Half way there, she saw the people seated in them. The king, the queen and the prince, Jonathan. Looking closely, she noticed that they didn't seem to be moving. Infact they looked ghostly pale.
Gasping in horror, she came to the realisation that they were slumping dead in their thrones. Suddenly a light appeared in the room and she could see more clearly. The room was filled with bodies. She saw the bodies of everyone she'd ever cared for. Her father, her mother, the nice maid at the convent, a few rogues...
She ran over to the nearest corner where the bodies of Lydia, Thom and George lay. She knelt over their bodies and felt their skin. They were as cold as ice.
She heard someone behind her. She turned around, but nobody was there. Suddenly her throat tightened and she couldn't breath. Invisible hands clutched at her throat, squeezing the life out of her. She tried clawing at the hands, trying to pull them off her. It was no use....
"Meeeeooooooow!" screeched the black cat, jumping hysterically around Alanna, waking her up. Alanna jerked up out of bed, shaking and sweating profusely. Her throat was screaming in agony and she had to gasp for breath.
Someone tried to kill you, mewed the cat as it jumped onto Alanna's lap, you stupid girl, no wonder she' sent me here to protect you!
She? Thought Alanna? Who's she? The cat had talked! "You talk!," whispered Alanna hoarsely as she tried to regain her breath. Yes I talk, no matter though, someone just tried to kill you, You're lucky I was here to save you! whined the cat.
Yes, someone had tried to kill her. What would have happened if the cat hadn't been there? She shuddered just thinking about it. Who would want to kill her anyway?
The cat snuggled up next to her and mewed soothingly, just try and get some sleep, you can think about it in the morning.
Yet sleep was the last thing Alanna wanted. She saw those visions in her head. The royal family, all the people she cared for... She spent half the night lying awake in fear, before she eventually fell asleep again.
(A/N: Sorry about those images, *grins evilly*)
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The next morning, Alanna remembered the dream all too well. But that was all it was, wasn't it? A dream? At least that was what she tried to convince herself.
She was sitting in a corner of the library, reading a book on Shang warriors. She hid the book behind another book of course though. To anybody else it looked as though she was reading about the latest fashions in Tortall.
She was all alone for Lydia had gone to Corus in search of a new dress. She had no idea where Thom was. She was content with hiding away in the library though.
She was half way through an interesting chapter when Thom rudely interrupted her. "There you are Alanna! I was wondering what had happened to you!" he said. Alanna slammed her book shut and stood up to face him directly, "I was looking all over for you Thom! Lydia's gone into Corus so I've nothing to do!," she complained. "Sorry," Thom shrugged, "I have classes now. History, mathematics... Just thought I'd let you know, incase you were looking for me. See you later!," he said and started walking away.
"Wait!," called Alanna after him, "Can I come with you?" she asked, history was bound to be exciting! Thom grinned and allowed her to follow him to class.
As she walked into the classroom, every head turned. A lady' had never joined any of their classes before. Ignoring their stares, Alanna walked past all the pages and squires and approached the teacher. "Excuse me sir," she said politely, whilst curtsying clumsily, "May I please sit in on your class?" . The man just smiled, nodding in approval. Although it was very different, there were no rules against ladies joining classes.
"We were just reading about the second Grull war," said sir Myles of Olau, "If you'd like to share a book with someone... yes thank you Thom," he said as Thom pulled up a chair next to Alanna. "Shall we begin..."
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Thom and Alanna attended three different classes that day. Thom loved it, those classes were much better then the fighting classes! Alanna disagreed, yet she had still enjoyed herself. She had understood everything the teachers had said and was quite good at writing, reading, and arithmetic problems.
All the pages and squires had shaken their heads in disgust at her though. None of them thought it was appropriate for a lady to learn about ancient battles and other things of the sort. After Thom and Alanna left each class, she could hear them whispering behind her back.
Alanna didn't mind though, she'd rather be doing something than nothing at all! Thom was quite enjoying himself, he found it rather humorous seeing the expressions on all the other boys faces as she walked into a classroom.
Eventually, Thom and Alanna retired to the library. They went to a particularly quiet corner and gossiped about the amazing adventures they'd had in the past few years.
"I once put a frog in priestess Malena's work drawer. It was so funny, you could hear her screaming all throughout the convent! She knew it was me though and made me stand in a corner with four books on my head for an hour. If I moved even the slightest inch, the books fell on the ground. Everytime a book fell, I had an extra hour added to my punishment. I ended up staying in that corner the entire day!" said Alanna, sending Thom into fits of laughter.
"I can just imagine you terrorising the convent!," he said once he'd composed himself again. "Say, are you ready for the ball tonight?" he queried, knowing all too well that she wouldn't be. Alanna frowned, "No I'm not, ok? I don't plan on going either..." she started saying, before remembering that priestess Malena would hear about it if she didn't go. "Ok, I'll go, but I'm not going to enjoy it!" she finally said.
Socialising with nobles and knights wasn't her type of thing. Neither was dancing. She was definitely not going to enjoy herself.
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It was an hour before the ball was expected to start and Alanna was in her room, chatting with the cat. He was quite good company, as she found out.
When are you going to get dressed? He asked, You'll need to be there in an hour! "Yes, well I'll do that later..." argued Alanna, determined to put it off for as long as possible.
Coincidentally, Lydia chose that time to barge into Alanna's room. "Alanna, you should see some of the dresses they have in Corus, they're absolutely beautiful! Unfortunately none of them were in my size, but I did manage to find a nice enough dress in the end".
Lydia placed the dress on Alanna's bed and asked her opinion. It was a beautiful long, flowing dress in a midnight blue. It had a low, V-shaped neckline and glittered with sapphires.
"It's gorgeous Lydia," said Alanna truthfully. Lydia grinned broadly and placed another dress beside it. "I picked one for you too Alanna, I knew you had nothing planned," said Lydia.
Glaring evilly at Lydia, Alanna looked over the dress. It was just her size. It was a deep red colour sewn with gold thread. It too had a low-neckline (to Alanna's disgust), and flared out at the bottom and at the arms. A big ruby was the centre of attention, placed just below the neckline.
"Let's get dressed, and I'll do your hair ok?," said Lydia eagerly, shooing the cat out of the room, "I'll make you look even as beautiful as Delia or Ebony!" .
Alanna sighed. It was going to be a very long night.
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Although Alanna was no beauty, she was definitely no hag. Infact, when she wore a nice dress and some make-up, she looked quite attractive. Her red dress matched her hair and the red lipstick she wore. Lydia had put a bit of rouge on her cheeks and a little gold eye shadow. Her long hair was bundled up high in a horsetail, with a single braid woven with gold thread wound around it.
Lydia was not looking so bad herself. Although she was quite overweight, she looked gorgeous in blue. She had braided her hair with beads, and wore blue eye shadow and bright pink lipstick.
They were just about to enter the ballroom. Alanna had never been more nervous in her life. They had been trained how to act at social occasions many times, yet she felt she had no idea of what she was getting herself into. Taking deep breaths, Lydia and Alanna walked through the open doors and into the huge room.
The first thing she noticed was that there was nowhere to hide, it was just one big open room. The tables were all along the side of one wall so the rest of the room could be used for dancing.
To Alanna's disappointment, most people were dancing. Only four people were sitting down, everyone else was either dancing, or socialising. Frantically, Alanna glanced over the room, desperately looking for Thom. Eventually she spotted him in the center of the room with a large crowd of ladies.
Alanna felt extremely uncomfortable in her dress and the tall shoes she was wearing. She almost felt thankful for all those extra punishments she'd received over the years, at least she had learnt how to stand straight, and walk without tripping over.
Thom caught Alanna's eye and beckoned for her and Lydia to come and join them. As they made their way across the room, Alanna could see that Thom was chatting with three tall men, presumably knights. As soon as they approached, one of the men (who had chestnut hair and eyes) came up to Lydia. "Hello. My name is Gary, Gareth of Naxen," he said, introducing himself, "and you are..." "Lydia, of Selentia" she said quite shyly. "Do you dance then Lydia..." he asked, taking her hand delicately. Nervously, she accepted and made a puzzled look in Alanna's direction. Alanna just grinned and winked back. It looked Lydia would enjoy herself tonight.
"Hello," said the man opposite Alanna, snapping her out of her daze, "and who might you be?," he queried. Hesitantly, Alanna curtsied and replied, "My name is Alanna, Alanna of Trebond". The men gasped in shock, obviously they hadn't realised that she was related to Thom. "Didn't you realise she was my sister?," said Thom, amazed at how stupid his friends could be, "You thought it was just coincidence a girl at court had the same red hair and purple eyes as I do?".
The men chuckled at him, then the same one piped up, "Thom! Why didn't you ever tell us you had such a beautiful sister?". Alanna rolled her eyes at him and gave him a fake smile. Curious to know who her brother's friends were, she said, "Well don't keep me waiting Thom, aren't you going to introduce me to these friends of yours". She cringed at the sound of her own voice; she'd never sounded like such a snob in her life!
"Honestly sister dear, I thought you could do that much for yourself, it's not too hard to ask somebody their name is it?" asked Thom smugly, trying hard to get on Alanna's nerves. It was working; Alanna gave him a cold glare. She would pay him back later, perhaps with another frog...
Shocked by Thom's rudeness, the men stepped forward to introduce themselves. "I'm Raoul of Goldenlake," said the big man who had called her beautiful. He was big with curled brown hair and coal black eyes. Alanna liked him straight away. "Alex of Tirragen," said the slim, dark man on his left. Alanna recognised him as the knight who had beaten the Thom-illusion'. There was something strange about him that Alanna couldn't put her finger on. She wasn't sure whether she disliked him or not.
"Oi, Jon!" called Thom into the group of giggling girls behind him. Another man emerged from the huddle of girls. He had coal black hair and blue eyes that shone like sapphires. She had never met him in person before, yet Alanna instantly realised that he was without a doubt the prince, heir to the throne of Tortall. Alanna had to admit that he was actually quite attractive, no wonder girls were swooning over him. "This is Jonathan of Conté," said Thom, once the ring of girls circling him had moved elsewhere. "Jon, this is my sister, Alanna".
Jonathan smiled at Alanna, "I can definitely see a family resemblance, it's a pleasure to meet you Lady Alanna" he said formally, kissing her hand. Feeling quite sick in the stomach, Alanna smiled back and curtsied to the Prince. "It's an honour to meet you your highness," she said between gritted teeth. All the other girls were glaring at her now, right she wished more than anything to be invisible.
"May I have this dance?," asked Jonathan politely, leading her onto the dance floor. Without a choice, Alanna followed and took her stance opposite him. "I needed some breathing space," he said as a slow Waltz started up, "those ladies were swarming me!". Alanna sighed, "I thought you'd enjoy that sort of attention," she said sarcastically, not liking the Prince's attitude at all.
Jonathan was quite taken aback by Alanna's pertness and replied, "No, I don't enjoy it actually, and I don't quite like your forwardness either!". Alanna had a sudden urge to kick the prince hard in the nuts, yet somehow she managed to restrain herself. It wouldn't do for her to go around injuring royalty.
The entire waltz, Alanna listened to the Prince drone on and on about Tortall's social occasions and festivals, whilst Alanna danced with him keeping silent. When the song finally ended, Alanna couldn't wait to excuse herself and leave the room. She would never ever attend another stupid ball or dance with another snob again!
The prince was confused by Alanna's strange behaviour. Most ladies swooned over him and hung on to his every word. Lady Alanna had seemed bored by him though. Such beautiful looks wasted, he sighed as he turned back to his fan group. Delia and Ebony pounced on him at once. "Are you available for the next dance?" asked Ebony sweetly, fluttering her eyelashes at him. Jonathan grinned down at her and accepted. There were many other girls at court to dance with other than Alanna of Trebond, and Ebony was definitely a beauty. He would enjoy dancing with her.
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"Priestess Malena had better not make me attend anymore of those stupid balls!," whined Alanna to the only person who would listen, "why does everyone love them so much! So many formalities, and all the nobles think so highly of themselves and the prince, he is such a snob! Flirting with all those girls, Delia and Ebony were throwing themselves at him!". The cat rolled his eyes. She just wouldn't shut up!
You've been talking non-stop about this prince, perhaps you fancy him yourself, he said, settling himself down on her pillow. "I do NOT!," screeched Alanna, the idea was absurd. "I just don't like him, or Alex. They're both scum. That Gary fellow seemed nice though. He and Lydia were getting along quite well.
Whatever, he said, bored. I'm tired now, go to sleep. "Have you got a name?" asked Alanna, changing the subject. No, and if you are going to name me, make it good. I've always felt sorry for those cats named Fluffy' and Blackie'. "Alright then, how about Faithful?" said Alanna, she quite liked the name, "Faithful, as you protected me and saved my life last night." Fine, now go to sleep, said Faithful impatiently. He needed a good nap.
"Yes Faithful's a nice name. It suits you too, as you've been following me around for days!" said Alanna, settling down into her sheets. She still didn't know why Faithful had been stalking her. "Yes, why were you stalking me anyway," asked Alanna curiously.
Puzzled, Faithful sat up and stared at her. I haven't been following you. I was told to come and protect you so I waited in your rooms for you to arrive. I hadn't seen you before then. I don't know what on Earth you're talking about. Just get some sleep. With that, he rolled over grumpily and dozed off.
Faithful hadn't been following her? Then who had been in the bushes? Who had been watching their carriage? Did she really have a stalker? She felt a sudden chill down her spine. Someone or something was watching her...
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Thanks to...
Cascara – thankyou! Looking forward to your story, hope u upload it soon!
Arianla – might be A/J, actually I'll probably write alternate endings. Read your griffin story and am loving it so far! Keep writing!
Limegreenlion – glad u like it, I'll keep trying to update it as often as I can, but I'm in my last years of school now and have heaps of homework (which I really should be doing now :S). I will update though as much as I can, I swear!
The invisible writer – don't worry, I don't write heaps of fluff! Got a plot started, hope it works. Thanks for your review!!!
Darking Queen – hehe, how could you tell it was Faithful? Lol, I just needed to add Faithful somehow, I luv cats.
Rosie, haha, Alanna-of-Olau – thank you all for your reviews! Am definitely thinking about an A/J ending, you'll just have to wait and see though.
Thank you also to emlillaa, xjelliepotatoex, xxvioletfirexx – I luv getting reviews!
Anyone I've forgotten to mention, I'll mention in my next chapter. My computer's playing up. I'm only just receiving the first few reviews after I've already received the newer ones... :S weird...
So thanks for all your reviews guys, I can't stop grinning :D
Will update soon...
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Now think...
You've forgotten to do something...
It was something very important...
But you can't think what it is...
It's nagging at you, eating away at you...
You're pulling at your hair, screaming, desperate to remember what you've forgotten to do...
Then it hits you!
You forgot to review!
Better do it now then, before you forget again...
