The boys emerged from their history lesson with Sir Myles, arguing happily. Douglass was adamant that the last Tortallan female warrior had died two hundred years ago; Geoffrey was positive it was at least one-hundred-and- fifty. Nicholas was wavering between the two, while Sacherell disagreed with both. Sir Myles had urged them to find it out on their own, after the whole lesson had been spent in conflict with each other. He knew, of course he knew. He taught history; he'd know something like that even when he was at his drunkest. However, he encouraged debates, thought that they were healthy. It also made his classes more interesting, a definite contrast to the ones taught by Mithran priests.

"Hey, Jon," Geoffrey called out to his passing knight master, who stopped to help. "How long ago was the last female warrior from Tortall?"

"Is this homework?" Gary asked his own squire suspiciously. Douglass gave a wide grin, full of innocence.

Francis slipped to the front of the group. "You should try the library. I'll help," he offered. Jon nodded in agreement, and the nine (Raoul, Gary, Alex, Jon and Francis plus the four squires) made their way to the palace library.

"I swear that the last Tortallan warrior maiden died in 320, Human Era," Sacherell decided, flinging open the library doors while he spoke.

"Actually, I believe you'll find that it was in the year 339, Human Era." The cool voice belonged to a curtsying redhead. The Prince elbowed his squire, who appeared to be enjoying the view his position afforded him a little too much. "Your Highness. Sirs. I am looking for Squire Thom of Trebond. Could you tell me where in this maze they call a palace I could find him?"

Thom pushed past the gawping party with disgust. "Is that really you?"

She nodded; copper hair bouncing as she did so. Then she stopped, a grin spreading over her face. "Well, no, as it happens, I'm actually someone else, who has taken over my body."

"That doesn't make sense," Thom pointed out, raising a reddish eyebrow.

She shrugged. "Fine; it's really me." The other boys were shocked by the happy expression on the usually sullen Thom's face as the two redheads hugged fiercely.

"Now, Thom," Raoul said, half-reprovingly, to his squire after the two had broken apart. "It's rude not to introduce new ladies."

Thom smirked sardonically. "Yes, after all, the Prince requires the name of all the women he sleeps with."

Raoul and Gary lunged at the mocking Thom, but the girl stepped into the way, smiling with apparent oblivion. Both knights straightened their tunics and turned away. She winked one violet eye at Thom.

"I don't remember seeing you around before. Why didn't you come with the other ladies of your age?" Jon asked to cover his furious blush.

"Slept with them all already, have you? That's quick work. I'm impressed." She glanced at Gary and Raoul, fully confident that they would not hit her, a female, but still ready to duck if they proved otherwise. "I had a prior engagement."

"And what might that by?" Gary demanded; after the last remark, although not allowed to strike her, due to the Code of Chivalry, he was not about to let her be evasive.

"My own." She flashed a ring.

Thom grinned; although the news shocked him as much as it did the other boys, he knew his sister. And he knew how happy she would be about it. There would be time for arguing over it, and the scanty contents of letters, later. "Is he dead yet?"

"No, unfortunately. Give me some time. I'm working on it. Now, enough about me, what about you young men? Are you eating enough? Do they give you a balanced diet? Do you get enough sleep at night? Are the beds comfortable? Is the training master working you too hard? Is he horrible? Would you like me to hurt him for you?" Her overanxious, mother-like tone made them all grin.

"So, what do you call yourself?"

"Well, I rather like 'All-powerful great one', but the Daughters insisted on calling me Alanna. If you'll excuse me." She grinned, and began chatting to Thom, drawing him away from the group.

"Unusual eyes," Jon commented.

"Bet that's not all you noticed," Geoffrey smirked. Jon towered over his squire.

"Sorry? I didn't quite catch that," he said, meaningfully.

"Ah, now, that would be because you were too busy thinking about Alanna's-" Geoffrey had to stop there, since Alanna herself and Thom had removed themselves from wherever they had been talking and walked out of the library, obviously in search of a more private place where they could talk more easily.

"Can't believe she's married," Raoul mused. "Doesn't seem like the type to enjoy being tied down early."

"Won't stop Jon, though," Geoffrey teased, testing how far he could go on this particular subject. "It never has before, after all."

"Gary's just as bad," Jon protested, holding his hands up in defence of himself.

His cousin shook his head, a grin on his face. "I keep my breeches on most evenings."

Jon chose to ignore that remark. "Strange she's so lively, when her brother's so..." He snapped his fingers, looking for the right word.

"Strange," Gary supplied.

"Withdrawn," Francis finished for Jon, with a stern glance at the grinning Gary.

Alanna left the door of Thom's room open, so she could bolt when the conversation turned too personal for her liking, as she knew it eventually would. It was inevitable; after all, he had just learned that she had a husband.

"Nice friends," she commented lightly.

"Well, I didn't see the point in making any. Nice ring."

"Well, I didn't see the point in taking it off. Nice... this could go on for a while."

"I know," he agreed, a little too easily for her liking. She shifted uncomfortably, wanting him to get to the point.

"So tell me the reason we're here, instead of in the library with His Most Stuck-Up Highness, and his sheep. I beg your pardon; I meant faithful followers."

"You just said it." She fixed him with a look, which said quite plainly 'Tell me now, or else', and he gave in. "I wanted to talk where we wouldn't be disturbed. Alanna, who's your husband?" Being direct with her was the only way to get any straight answers.

Alanna opened her mouth to reply, changed her mind, and left the room through the open door, thanking the Goddess that she had the presence of mind to leave it ajar when entering before.