Hi, yes, I'm alive.

Everything you recognize belongs to our lovely Queen, Tamora Pierce.

Turning Season

The morning after the longest night of the year dawned cold and clear. Kellie, lying in her bed after dawn for once since the pages had all been given the morning off from classes, stretched luxuriously. Tessa, who had moved her belongings into Kellie's dressing room now that she worked for the page, had left a few minutes ago, and a key turning in the lock alerted Kellie to her maid's return.

"Good morning, Miss Kellie," Tessa greeted her cheerfully. Her voice was somewhat muffled by the tottering pile of gifts she carried. Kellie jumped out of bed to help, but Tessa had set them down on the desk before she could get there. "I went to pick up your Midwinter gifts from Bria first thing today. Your friends certainly were generous."

"They're good friends," Kellie replied absently. She was wondering if she should dress for the day, then dismissed the thought. The training master had given the pages permission to forgo their uniforms for this one day, as long as they were properly dressed in time to serve at table for supper. "I hope everybody likes the gifts I got them!" she continued, opening her shutters. The courtyard crow was nowhere to be seen for once.

She had gotten a book of Tortallan maps for Ulasu, who had mentioned that she was a bit vague on the specifics of the kingdom's geography; a light crystal she'd magicked herself for Rowan, who liked to study under his blankets after lights-out whenever he thought he could get away with it; a polishing cloth and a whetstone for Pathom; a small brooch for Astara, with a gray stone set into it that matched her eyes; a small volume of simple Yamani poetry for Jameson; and assorted sweets for Erynne, Clarine, and Mae.

Finding the right gift for Cassius had given her difficulty, but she had found a book that detailed the life of his great-grandfather Breckon of Tirragen, one of Tortall's heroes from a century ago, and decided it was a good gift. She'd find out soon what her friends thought of her choices. "This one is for you, Tessa," she added, holding out a small package wrapped in brown paper.

"Oh?" Tessa looked up from the fire she'd just finished starting in the grate, and taking the proffered parcel. With a twist of her hands the paper fell away, revealing a number of golden candies. Her face lit up. "Honey drops? How did you know they were my favorite?"

"I asked Bria. She said either these or candied cherries," Kellie replied, beaming, and was stunned speechless when Tessa pulled her into a warm hug.

The maid pulled back a moment later, eyes sparkling. "I think it's time you opened the rest of those, don't you?"

Kellie agreed, grinning in reply at the young woman, and began to open her gifts. From Ulasu, there was a beautifully bound and illustrated book written in Kyprish. The attached note explained that it was a collection of children's stories from the Copper Isles, and that they could use it in their language lessons. Rowan had given her a pair of warm, quilted mittens that were black with green trim, and Pathom had gotten her a matching scarf. The emerald tassels on its ends would add a cheerful bit of color to her otherwise drab winter outfit.

Astara and Mae had both chipped in to give her a small selection of ribbons to braid into her hair. Underneath the soft leather they were wrapped in was a long, flat package. Kellie read the note first—it was from her parents. She picked it up and began unwrapping it, and gasped in surprised delight at what lay within.

It was a dress, and not just any dress—it was a beautiful kimono set. The outer layer was a deep royal blue, covered in dove gray stars; the inner layer a pale cream. The color would look striking against her skin and hair.

"That's a beautiful kimono, Miss Kellie," Tessa remarked. "When will you have a chance to wear it? You'll look stunning in it, I'm sure."

Kellie considered. With no morning classes… and no uniform required… "I'll wear it today," she told Tessa decisively, and slipped into her dressing room to do just that. The silk felt creamy smooth against her skin. Kellie was able to slip into and secure both of the layers, but she couldn't tie the obi in the back herself. Emerging from the dressing room, she held the wide sash out to Tessa. "Could you tie this for me, please?"

Tessa gave the obi a dubious look, but agreed. "I can try, at least," she told Kellie, who obediently turned around. "Would you like me to do your hair too?"

Kellie nodded. She was already imagining walking around the palace, attending her afternoon classes, and seeing the shocked looks on the other pages' faces at her attire. I might as well do it all, if I'm going to shock them anyway, she thought to herself, unable to keep a tiny smirk from forming on her lips at the idea.

"There!" Tessa proclaimed, stepping back with a flourish. Kellie glanced behind her, but was unable to see much. "Now onto your hair. Some of these ribbons would look nice."

Kellie selected a pair of ribbons in blue and cream, to match her kimono, and passed them to Tessa. The maid was gentle but efficient, and soon Kellie was looking into her mirror, admiring the coronet style with the pretty ribbons threaded through. Tessa knew exactly what she was doing—not a single strand of hair would escape from the coiled braid.

"Time for you to get on to breakfast now, Miss Kellie," Tessa remarked, setting down the brush she'd been using. "And I have good news for you—Mareth of Aili passed her Ordeal last night. She is to be knighted at sunset. I thought you'd like to know."

"Another lady knight to add to the ranks," Kellie agreed. "Do you think that will stop the conservatives' whining?"

"I doubt it, sadly," Tessa answered, holding the door open so Kellie could slip into the hallway. "Conservatives will always find something or other to complain about."

Slipping her shukusen into her obi, Kellie emerged from her chambers to find that she wasn't the only page to have chosen different attire than usual today. Mae and Clarine were both wearing dresses, though theirs were Eastern-style gowns rather than kimono. Rowan was wearing what had to be his best outfit, though his wrists hung out of the sleeves a bit farther than was fashionable. He caught her looking.

"I suppose I've grown a bit since I last wore this," he remarked with a grin. "Didn't have the time to take it to Bria to get it lengthened."

"And here I thought you'd finally embraced your calling as a fool," Kellie joked. "You only need one of those silly hats to be a perfect court jester."

Rowan offered her his arm with an exaggerated bow. Kellie took it, only partially succeeding in keeping a straight face at his antics, and allowed her friend to lead her to the dining hall as though they were a lord and lady rather than two pages who frequently tussled with each other.

"How in the Four Realms did you end up trying for your shield, instead of running off with the Players?" Ulasu questioned. From her teasing tone and ever-present grin, she expected no answer, but Rowan offered one anyway.

"I am capable of being serious, you know," he informed her in a lofty voice. "Every so often."

Ulasu cuffed him in the shoulder, grinning; Kellie could only shake her head at the familiar teasing. "You'll be a good knight," she told her sponsor. "And there will be people who are grateful you became a knight instead of a Player."

"I know," Rowan murmured, his usual teasing gone from his tone. "That's why I chose to try for my shield. I joke around a lot, but I didn't make the decision lightly."

Breakfast was a festive affair, with thick slices of ham that Kellie piled onto her plate, sweet brown bread studded with dates and nuts, and several other treats. She ate her fill happily. Sir Merric gave the prayer and wished them all a Happy Midwinter, and then reminded the pages that they were to report to their usual classes after lunch.

"I expect you all to stay out of trouble this morning," he continued, his eyes skimming over the room. The pages mumbled their assent through full mouths.

Despite having the morning off from classes, Kellie did not laze about like some of the others took the chance to do. She had finished her assigned work for her classes, and made the decision to read ahead in her etiquette textbook. While she would have enjoyed reading for Sir Myles' class far more, she was already two chapters ahead in the assigned text for his class, and knew her time would be better spent at this.

When the noon bell rang she set the tome down and left for the dining hall. She sat with Jameson and Rowan, who were caught up in a sort of contest to see who could tell the tallest tale.

"I swear it, Rowan," Jameson insisted. "Nond is in northern Tortall, so you wouldn't have seen one before, but it's true!"

Rowan eyed him skeptically. "I refuse to believe it. If cactuses are animals, why are they green? Plants are green—I've never seen a green animal."

Kellie hid her grin behind a slice of bread. She knew perfectly well that cactuses were, in fact, plants—Queenscove wasn't in the Great Southern Desert proper, but it was close enough. The occasional cactus had caught her attention as a child. She'd hurt herself touching one, once—her papa had healed her injured hand with his magic and cautioned her not to touch a cactus again, but then he'd patiently answered every one of her questions that he could about the strange plants.

"Frogs," Jameson countered. "Frogs are green. Turtles are green. Some lizards are green, and birds too!"

"I'm meant to believe that cactuses are odd green animals that don't ever move from their sand?" Rowan jibed. "You didn't believe me when I told you I fell through the ice on the pond when I was six."

"Because surely even you aren't foolish enough to walk on thin ice!" Jameson retorted. "Even when you were six. Besides, cactuses do move. At night, they lift their little legs from the sand, and go for a walk through the dunes—"

Kellie couldn't hold in her laughter anymore. Rowan gestured to her with a flourish. "You see? She knows you're telling a tale."

The bell sounded before Jameson could defend his claim. Kellie was a little disappointed—she wanted to know what sort of embellishment her cousin could think up—but she dutifully cleared her tray and went off to the classroom for the afternoon.

Reading and writing class passed in a trice. Kellie had initially been surprised to learn that only first years took this class. "It's because of the queen's schools," Rowan had explained over lunch one day back in October. "Back in King Roald's day, there were a number of pages that arrived at the palace unable to read and write. Not a lot, mind you, but enough that the class was necessary. That's different now. Almost every member of the nobility is literate these days, so Sir Merric decided it was worth more for our training to study something else."

This time, Kellie had been asked to give her thoughts on a piece written by Sir Calden of King's Reach sixty years before, a recounting of the siege of Barzun's capital by Tortallans. Sir Calden had been a first-year knight during the siege, but had not written this work until much later in his life. While it was a nice change from the Book of Mithros, Kellie privately wished that Master Marsden had also assigned one of the accounts of the people under siege, in addition to one of those doing the besieging—somehow she doubted that the conquest had looked so glorious from the other side.

Ulasu had checked over her mathematics work and pronounced her answers correct, so it was with no small amount of relief that Kellie handed in the sheet of problems she'd copied out. Master Valorian nodded approvingly as he gave it back to her at the end of class. "You have shown significant improvement over the last months, Page Kelanna."

Etiquette class was even more grueling than usual. Kellie was nervous to hand over her summary of the reading Master Oakbridge had assigned her, but the old man thanked her and proceeded to drill the pages in formal bows.

"Didn't we practice these enough last year?" grumbled Toras of Rosemark.

Cassius hurriedly shushed him. "Quiet! There's nothing wrong with Master Oakbridge's hearing!"

"I asked you to practice bowing, not formal conversation!" the master blustered, proving Cassius correct on that count. His eyes lit on Kellie. "Page Kelanna, it seems to me that you have afforded us all an opportunity."

Me? Kellie wondered. And an opportunity for what?

"Perhaps you would be willing to demonstrate how one would give a proper Yamani bow in proper Yamani dress?"

Kellie suppressed a sigh. Now every eye was on her. "Yes, Master Oakbridge," she responded, not seeing much choice in the matter.

There were only a few minutes left in the class, so Kellie was only able to go through the different bows twice before they were dismissed.

"You look lovely, Kellie," Cassius shyly told her in the corridor. "I meant to say so earlier." His ears were red. He entered Sir Myles' classroom at a half run before Kellie could say anything, even thank you.

History class passed in a blink. Sir Myles wished the pages a Festive Midwinter just before the bell rang.

When Kellie reached Master Irial's classroom, it was to find that the mage had cleared most of his books off the desk. "I want to know, have you learned from my class?" he asked her.

"I know how to call light to a crystal now," Kellie answered. She'd been especially proud of herself for mastering that bit of magic—it wasn't difficult now that she knew the trick to it. "I can do some thread magic. I can make a fire now, not just sparks. The visualization you showed me has helped me with all my magic." It was true. Kellie had never considered herself much of a mage before, despite having the Gift, but now she could do a few all-purpose magics in addition to her rather specialized healing skills. "I'm going to miss this class," she told the master shyly, feeling a bit like she had the day her papa had brought her to the palace. Her affection for the instructor had grown more than she'd realized.

Master Irial gave her a smile, his eyes twinkling. "I'm glad to hear it, Page Kelanna. Priests don't marry, as I'm sure you know, but I always did love children, and I am always grateful for the chance to spend time with them. I was an instructor at the village school in Trebond for a time, after I received my mastery. My old home." He cleared his throat. "For the remainder of the year, your final hour class will be the study of immortals, with Tkaa as your instructor. You have met him, I believe?"

Kellie nodded quickly.

"Basilisks are travelers and gossips, a bit like wandering human mages," Master Irial went on. "We are very lucky to have Tkaa here to instruct the pages in the ways of immortals. There are a few other basilisks in Tortall, but only he seems content to stay in one place and teach."

The hour went by quickly, less an academic lecture than master and student simply having a conversation. When the bell rang, Kellie had just enough time to change out of her kimono and into her uniform before supper. Tonight, she was assigned to work the kitchens for a change, handing each course to the pages who were serving at table. After a few minutes, she decided that this was slightly less chaotic work than serving out in the main hall. As she passed each dish, she was able to scan the grand hall for people she knew.

King Jonathan and Queen Thayet were seated at the head table, along with some of the princes and princesses. Crown Prince Roald and his wife Shinkokami were deep in conversation with Princess Vania, who was dressed in the simple habit that marked her as a novitiate of the Great Mother Goddess. While she had dedicated her life to serving the gods, she was still a member of the royal family, and appeared in that role when she was required to. Prince Liam was asking a few questions of Mae, who was serving them—only the oldest pages waited on the royal family.

Sadly, Kellie knew her parents wouldn't be here themselves. The note that had been sent with her kimono, written in her mother's elegant script, had said that they were very sorry to have missed the Court season, but that Queenscove had been hit by a late autumn storm and caused a significant amount of damage to several buildings, which needed to be repaired before the rainy season set in.

But there were a handful of people she recognized. The training master was seated next to his wife, a dark-haired woman that Kellie vaguely recalled meeting a few years ago—Aveline of Hollyrose, born a Kendrach. And she recognized a large redheaded man and the tiny blonde lady next to him as Cleon and Ermelian of Kennan, who were also friends of her parents

Kel wasn't there, though as Knight Commander of the King's Own she was entitled to attend. Kellie wondered what her godsmother was up to with the Own. Were they planning on returning to Corus at all this year?

There were a few more people she knew only vaguely. Baron Anders of Mindelan, Kel's oldest brother, and the dowager baroness, Lady Ilane. Duke Gareth and Duchess Cythera of Naxen, seated just below the royal family. Sir Seaver of Tasride, another friend of her parents, but she had only met him once, six years ago, and she doubted he'd recognize her now.

Sir Myles was seated next to someone she didn't know, but they were speaking to each other in a friendly way. Kellie nudged Cassius, who gave her a wide-eyed look in response. "Who's that, talking to Sir Myles?" she whispered to him.

Cassius squinted at the man. "Master Reiner of Elden, dean of the Royal University," he murmured back. "He's a good sort. My father admires him greatly. If he's next to Sir Myles, it's no wonder they've barely touched their meals—they're too busy discussing scholarly things, I'd wager."

"I'm not fool enough to take that wager," Kellie informed her friend, and was rewarded with his shy smile. A pot of soup was thrust into her hands before she could say anything further, and she was forced to lug it over to where the serving pages waited.

It was on her way back to the serving line to refill the meat platter that Kellie felt a hand pinch her arm, hard. The pain caused her to stumble to her knees and lose her grip on the large dish. She could only watch, dismayed, as it sailed through the air, knowing she wasn't fast enough to catch it before it shattered on the flagstones.

An instant before the platter hit the ground, it halted. Kellie stared at it hovering shakily in midair, until a pair of hands reached out and grasped its handles. Toras of Rosemark let out a breath. "Nearly didn't have it," he remarked in an undertone.

Kellie glanced around—nobody but Toras seemed to have witnessed her fumble. She pulled herself to her feet. "Thank you for catching it; I wouldn't have been able to call up my Gift so fast."

"What happened?" Toras wanted to know, transferring the platter back to her hands and busying himself with a rag.

"I tripped," Kellie muttered, careful to keep her voice low.

"I noticed," Toras replied in a dry voice, swiping the rag back and forth. "And I wondered why. You're the most graceful of all of us—don't think I believe for a moment that you simply tripped on a crack in the stones. So, I ask you again: what happened?"

Telling a fellow page, even an older one, wasn't the same as telling the training master. Kellie glanced around again to ensure nobody was listening, before murmuring, "Somebody pinched my arm, and it startled me."

Toras' gray eyes swept over her face. "And by 'someone,' you mean Avan." He held up a hand to silence her protest that she hadn't seen who it was. "No, don't bother, I know it was him. He was the only one close enough to you, and you aren't the only one he torments." He looked thoughtful. "The older pages are getting very tired of dealing with him, and Sydrian. The more I hear, the more I think we need to do something about them."

"I can handle them myself," Kellie muttered, feeling a stab of annoyance that one of the other pages, one she wasn't even good friends with, was sticking his nose in.

"They're bullies," Toras refuted. "You shouldn't have to deal with them. I have some ideas—maybe I can see about serving those two what they deserve."

He dashed away before Kellie could tell him not to get into trouble on her account. With a sigh, she brought her platter to the serving line to fill it back up. Maybe Toras would turn out to be all talk.

xxxxx

Kellie tried not to be too surprised when Avan showed up to breakfast the next morning with a black eye, and a bruised jaw.

"He told the training master he tripped," Rowan informed her at the table, slathering a generous amount of honey onto a thick slab of bread. "I don't believe it for a moment, but since none of the servants saw what happened, there's no way to be sure he's lying. None of us are in trouble, anyway, so that's all right."

"Was he always like this?" Kellie asked.

Rowan chewed thoughtfully for a minute before answering. "As unlikely as it sounds, yes. He was a bully even as a first-year. Of course, he's only gotten worse since then."

"Are we talking about Sydrian?" Pathom inquired, sounding as though he already knew the answer. He didn't wait for a response, plowing ahead instead. "He'll be an awful knight if he doesn't stop that sort of behavior. I hope whoever takes him as a squire manages to pound some sense into him."

"Avan, actually," Rowan corrected his friend. "But they're both like that. Awful boys."

"Let's not spend all day talking about bullies," Kellie near begged the boys. "I don't want to think about them, all right? Tell me—what can I expect from immortals study?"

Rowan and Pathom were only too happy to oblige. Grateful for both their support and the knowledge they shared with her, Kellie felt remarkably at ease that afternoon as she entered Tkaa the basilisk's classroom to find the immortal with several charts spread out on desks.

"I will not be teaching you by myself," he informed her in his whispery voice. "My assistant is learning more and more, and she has become a rather competent instructor herself."

She? Kellie wondered. Tkaa's assistant was a woman?

—Hello.—

Kellie glanced wildly around the room, trying to find the source of the polite greeting.

—Up here,— the voice came again.

Another wild glance around, but this time Kellie saw a small dragon perched on a shelf. She'd thought it was a sculpture of some sort, but seeing as it was waving a forepaw at her… "Hello," she greeted it, deciding that bowing to the pale blue creature was safest. "How is it you can talk to me in my head?" For she'd realized that she was hearing the dragon's voice not with her ears, but with her mind. "I don't have wild magic."

The small dragon rose onto its—her—haunches, preening. —That is one of many things you will learn about in this class.— she informed Kellie imperiously. —My name is Skysong, but most people call me Kit or Kitten. My ma is Daine, the one you call the Wildmage. I've learned much from her about immortals, two-leggers, and mortal creatures, despite my young age.—

"Aren't you older than me?" Kellie queried, still fascinated by the creature. She knew Skysong had been born in the Mortal Realm, a few years before the Immortals' War.

—Yes.— Skysong agreed, nodding her head. —But dragon lives are measured in centuries, not years—we are called "immortals" for good reason. However, as dragons are scholars and mages, we have knowledge to rival that of many humans, even as infants.—

"Today's lesson, as you have no doubt deduced, will be on dragons," Tkaa interjected. "Skysong will be taking the instructor role for most of the time you are here. Please make use of the charts I have provided you."

Skysong sat up straighter. Kellie imagined she was doing the dragon equivalent of squaring her shoulders. —Shall we begin?—

By the time Kellie left the classroom, she had learned more about dragons than she had imagined possible in a single hour. By the way dragons reckoned age, Skysong was indeed very young, but the wealth of knowledge contained in her mind was astounding. Kellie grinned to herself, wondering if her papa had ever gotten the chance to meet a dragon. They would get on wonderfully.

She had a feeling she was going to like her classes on immortals.

xxxxx

As the winter went on, her suspicions were proven correct. Kellie liked Tkaa and Skysong enormously, and since she was the only person in the class, she was able to ask as many questions as she needed. "But how do griffins prevent anyone from lying?" she wondered, two weeks into the switch in classes. "They aren't mages—are they? I thought only humans and dragons could be mages."

"How can basilisks turn things to stone?" Tkaa replied gently. "How can the Wildmage speak to hurroks but not centaurs? All creatures, mortal or immortal, have different abilities, and a being can have its own magic without necessarily being a mage. You need not understand why a thing is so, as long as you understand that it is so."

"In other words, you don't know either," Kellie grumbled, then clapped both hands over her mouth, shocked that she had just said such a thing to her instructor.

Tkaa made a sound like pebbles being shaken, a sound Kellie had come to recognize as basilisk laughter. "I am not ashamed to admit to my ignorance," he informed her. "It is refreshing to know that you are thinking about the subject matter, and not simply repeating my own words back to me. But should you encounter a griffin, I suspect you will be more focused on surviving than on the specifics of its unique magic."

He was right, Kellie admitted to herself a bit grumpily. She had seen the images that indicated the sizes of various immortals when compared to a two-legger, and griffins were certainly one of the larger beings. Larger than basilisks, or Stormwings—though, not anywhere close to the size of a fully grown dragon. Skysong had shown her a mental image of a huge blue-black dragon, with scales that glittered like chips of twilight sky. —My grandsire, Diamondflame,— the little dragon had informed her. —He lives with the rest of dragonkind in the Divine Realms, but he visits me now and then. Dragons aren't bound by the magic that separates the Mortal Realms from the Divine.—

Kellie shuddered at the idea of a fully grown dragon like Diamondflame appearing in the palace unannounced. Would he even fit in the courtyard?

"There is only one other dragon living in the Mortal Realm," Tkaa added. "She slept for centuries in the hills of Carthak, but she awakened several years ago and journeyed to Tortall with Veralidaine Salmalín. Her name is Kawit, and she is an opal dragon, somewhat different from my young friend. Would you like to meet her?"

And so the sinking sun had watched as Kellie bundled up in her warmest cloak, set Skysong on her shoulder, and tromped outside to a building that was rather removed from the rest of the palace. There, she met Kawit, who was many times larger than Skysong, and whose scales did indeed resemble shimmering opals. The great stone dragon had no wings like Skysong, and Kellie had been unable to resist asking why. Kawit had seemed to smile at her before answering. It had been one of the most unusual experiences of Kellie's life. Thankfully, Kawit had seemed more amused than annoyed at the intrusion, and had allowed Skysong to perch on top of her head for the entirety of their time with her. She hadn't seemed to mind Kellie's torrent of questions, either.

"The great stone dragons have different magics than our winged cousins," Kawit added as Kellie was slipping her cloak back on. "Come back if you can—I don't get much company out here."

"I wasn't rude, was I?" Kellie anxiously asked Skysong as she tromped back toward the main training areas. The small dragon was once again sitting on her shoulder, long tail draping down her chest. "I asked her so many questions."

—No,— Skysong answered, shaking her head emphatically. —Kawit was delighted to have a curious two-legger like you visit her. She meant it when she said she doesn't get much company. And, while the stone dragons are different from the winged dragons, they are still dragons, and they love a good debate.—

It was a rather mild winter, with snow being frequently followed by rain, which turned the paths into icy slides. The pages trained indoors many days, as Sir Merric had informed them that he had no wish for the pages to injure themselves on the slick surface on their way to the training yards. Instead, the indoor practice courts were used heavily, for archery, fencing, staff work, and Shang combat.

"This isn't a bad winter," Rowan cheerfully informed Kellie, who was shivering despite being wrapped in a cloak. "Why do you insist on wearing all your warm clothes? All three of you do it." The last sentence was accompanied by a gesture toward Ulasu and Farouk.

"I'm from the jungle, and Kellie and Farouk are from the desert," Ulasu pointed out. "D'you think I'd ever seen snow in my life before moving away from Rajmuat? Some parts of the Isles get cold enough for it, but those are all up in the mountains."

Farouk nodded fiercely. "The desert gets cold at night, but it's a dry sort of cold. I've never seen snow before, either."

Kellie found she missed Blaze, and every chance she got, went down to the stables to exercise and groom him. "I hope we can go back to outdoor classes before spring," she informed him one day toward the end of January. "Training inside is fine and good, but what if there are spidrens attacking a village in the winter, and nobody goes to fight them off because we don't know how to move on ice? Spidrens prey on humans and mortal creatures," she recited, thinking back to what Tkaa and Skysong had talked about in her lesson yesterday. "They spin webs to trap prey like ordinary spiders, but much larger, and the webbing is sort of a greenish color. Most immortals have trouble reproducing—which makes sense, I suppose; if creatures that don't get old or sick went around having young as often as us two-leggers, they'd run out of food and space awfully quickly—but spidrens seem to be the exception."

She brushed a bit of hay out of Blaze's mane. "If you kill a spidren," she continued, "don't let any of its blood get on you. It can burn your skin, and it eats through cloth and leather. Even metal or stone, though that takes longer, and if you clean the blood off right away, you can save them. Spidrens like to lair in caves or clifftops." She racked her brain, trying to think if she'd missed something. Blaze nickered and nudged her with his nose. She patted him absently.

Over in the next stall, Cinnamon leaned over and blew at her. Kellie gave the mare a stern look, and the mare stared back with an innocent "who, me?" sort of expression. Kellie shook her head, grinning to herself. Ulasu had chosen a mount as mischievous as she herself was. "Do you want to know what Ulasu did yesterday?" she asked Cinnamon, who pricked her ears up at the sound of her rider's name. "She decided to use a tiny bit of whatever spice it is she puts on her food, on Rowan's plate, and I thought he was going to start smoking at his ears, his face went so red!"

Kellie had tried a bit of Ulasu's red spice herself, and had nearly shrieked from the fire that had bloomed on her tongue. Cackling wildly at her reaction, Ulasu had explained that Isles cooking had far more heat than Tortallan, and she missed it. Rowan, once his face had gone back to its normal shade, had informed her that he'd thank her to keep whatever poison that passed for flavor in the Copper Isles to her own plate from now on, as he'd like to keep his tongue intact. Ulasu had only stuck her own tongue out in response.

"You and she are perfect for each other," Kellie informed Cinnamon. The mare only gave her a horsey grin in reply.

xxxxx

With the spring examinations looming ever closer, Kellie found herself attacking her mathematics assignments with renewed vigor. She had no interest in failing the exams because of her one academic weakness.

"You're doing much better at it now," Ulasu told her continually.

"Only because you look over all my work before I turn it in," Kellie responded gloomily. She was stuck on one of the new problems Master Valorian had assigned her.

"I mean it," Ulasu answered, glaring. "You couldn't have done all of these—" She indicated the six problems Kellie had already completed. "—without asking me for help, at the beginning of the year, and now look! You only asked about this one!"

Kellie was not concerned about passing her combat subjects—she was a good rider and archer; her sword work, while not the best among the first years, was not the worst either. Tilting still eluded her, but Rowan assured her that lance work was not something the first years were tested on.

It was a brilliant day in late March when Kellie dragged herself to the baths after morning lessons, which had only been outside again for a week now. She'd excused herself to use the privy before her bath, and so did not see the young-sounding speaker who asked, "Pardon me, but may I join you?"

After a long pause, a voice Kellie recognized as Astara's replied imperiously, "This is the pages' bathing hour."

"Oh, good," the unfamiliar girl replied. "I was afraid we'd arrived too late."

"But you're not a page," Astara answered.

"But I am," the other voice insisted. "I am doing my training with a knight in the field, rather than in the palace, but I'm a first-year page."

Kellie hauled her breeches back up and left the privy, heading for the main pool, as Mae asked, "You're a page? What's your name?"

The unfamiliar voice replied, in a voice that was only the slightest bit hesitant, "Lianokami of Conté."

Kellie picked up her pace, as the same voice continued, sounding a bit frantic, "No, please don't bother bowing! Right now, I'm a page first, and a princess second." A pause. "Besides, we're in the baths. It's hardly proper."

Barreling out into the main bathing area, Kellie caught sight of the newcomer, calling, "Liano!" excitedly.

Lianokami turned at hearing her name, and her face lit up. "Kellie!"

It wasn't clear which hugged the other first, but both girls embraced each other tightly, uncaring that they were both covered in mud from the wet ground. They separated, and Kellie looked the princess over critically.

While her ink-black hair could have come from either of her parents, it was clear that Lianokami took after her father in coloring, with fair skin and eyes of Conté sapphire. She had the almond-shaped eyes of her Yamani mother, and the strong nose of her K'miri grandmother—she was going to be a beauty one day, but right now, with gangly arms and legs, and dressed in worn, dirty travel clothes, she hardly looked the part of a noble, let alone a princess.

Kellie and Liano both finished undressing and slipped into the water, and Astara eyed them both. "Kellie, how do you know the princess?"

"My mama came to Tortall as one of Princess Shinkokami's ladies," Kellie explained. "Liano and I grew up together."

"But we haven't seen each other in a year," Liano added. "Not since I set out with my knight-mistress last April."

"Knight-mistress?" Erynne asked, sounding intrigued. "But you said you're a first-year page, not a squire."

"Yes, I'm a first-year. I'm here for the exams." Liano scrubbed at her arms as she spoke. "It used to be, the way knights were trained, they would serve as page and squire to an older knight. Some still choose this way, usually those from smaller fiefs whose training at the palace would be too expensive, but my papa regrets that he didn't see enough of the realm during his page and squire years, and gave me the choice. So, this is the path I chose."

"Who is your knight-mistress?" Clarine asked, the beautiful girl leaning forward with interest.

"I serve Lady Knight Fianola of Macayhill," Liano answered. "She's young, but she has the Gift and can teach me to use mine, and she travels all over the realm. I've learned so much from her!"

Mae spoke up, sounding a bit sly. "And of course, being page to a lady knight means that the gossipmongers are less likely to start rumors about your virtue."

Liano turned red. "That was not part of my decision." She frowned. "Though Papa probably considered it. Oka-san may have had something to do with it too."

"Oka-san?" questioned Astara, raising an eyebrow.

"It means 'mama' in Yamani," Ulasu volunteered.

Liano looked at Ulasu with interest. "You speak Yamani?"

Ulasu shook her head. "Not well. Kellie has been teaching me, but I'm not very good."

"Your Yamani is much better than my Kyprish," Kellie insisted.

"You're being too modest," Ulasu chided. "You've picked up Kyprish very fast, and you can even read and write in it, a little. Ma said I had a knack for languages, but I don't know how to read more than a handful of Yamani words."

"Yamani uses different lettering than Common or Kyprish," Liano remarked. "Learning to speak a new language is one thing; learning an entirely new system of writing, quite another. And perhaps we should speak in Common, so everyone can understand?"

With a start, Kellie realized that the three of them had slipped into Yamani, which rather proved her point about Ulasu's skill with the language. The older girls were watching the spectacle with varying expressions of amusement. None of them seemed offended to have been left out of the conversation briefly, but Kellie still felt her cheeks go red.

The talk soon turned to the upcoming examinations. Lady Fianola had returned to the palace so that Liano could take the tests alongside the other first-years. Eventually, the topic of knight-masters was brought up.

"I don't know who might take me as squire," Astara confessed, her usual confidence wavering. "My family is in disgrace with my grandfather right now, for letting me try for my shield. I suppose one of my two oldest brothers might take me on."

"I have a few possibilities," Mae mused. "There are still Scanran raids across the border; it's not so unusual for women to have some training at arms, in order to defend their homes and families if they must. Aili, Trebond, Mindelan… all northern border fiefs, and all progressive houses. Surely at least one knight will take a girl squire."

"Say, what about you, Erynne?" Astara inquired, drawing the girls' attention over the face that was, as usual, hidden behind a book. "You'll be in this same position a year from now."

Erynne lowered the history tome, a calculating look in her eye. "There are many nobles who owe my parents favors. I'm sure they could call in at least one of those to get me a decent knight-master."

Shifting her focus to the blonde sitting next to Erynne, Astara opened her mouth again. Clarine cut her off before she could ask. "I still have two years before I need to worry about finding a knight-master, so I'm not going to waste time worrying about it now."

Astara shrugged, turning her attention to the three first-years. "I suppose none of you have given much thought to your future knight-masters, either?" She arched one blonde eyebrow questioningly.

"Oh, I'll continue serving Lady Fianola once I'm a squire," Liano replied. "That's how it works."

"I will have to be Papa's squire," Kellie added. "There's no other active knight who can teach me to be both a knight and a healer. Perhaps if the Lioness was still active—" She nodded at Ulasu. "—she was Papa's knight-mistress, after all—but she's been retired for years."

"It sounds like you've got everything figured out," Mae commented, resting her chin on one hand. "Lucky you. What about you, Ulasu?" Heads turned toward the only girl present who hadn't yet spoken on the subject.

Ulasu frowned down at the water. "I don't know," she admitted. "Most of the conservative knights despise female warriors, and even those that tolerate us probably wouldn't take on a girl squire. And more progressive knights have tried to distance themselves from my family, because of our connection to the Copper Isles." She raised her head. "I'm certain my uncle would take me, if nobody else—he's Ma's twin, and he resents her a bit for staying in the Isles for so long, but he's never held that against us."

"Uncle Alan a good man," Liano agreed. "Perhaps I could have Aunt Lianne weigh in on his decision?"

"No need for that yet," Ulasu answered, shaking her head. "I still have three years before I'll need a knight-master; there's plenty of time."

So uh… I've been severely neglecting my writing lately. Part of that is due to my Real World responsibilities—writing fanfiction is something I do in my free time, after all, and lately I haven't had much of that. I want you all to know, though—I will never abandon this story. I have pretty much all of Part 1 plotted out, and Parts 2 and 3 have pretty detailed outlines even though it's gonna be a while until I get there. I'm so excited to share it with you. A review I got recently actually made me realize just how long it's been since I last updated, and forced me to get my butt in gear in finish this chapter.

There are a couple notes about character names that I wanted to address here—probably should have done that sooner… oops. First off, Cassius of Tirragen's name is pronounced KASS-ee-us, not KASH-us like a friend asked me recently. When I first encountered the name, that's how I thought it was said, and even after finding out I was wrong, I still liked the pronunciation. Second, I named Mae of Carmine Tower after one of my favorite voice actors, Mae Whitman—she played Katara in Avatar: The Last Airbender, and more recently, Amity in The Owl House, which a friend on this site recommended to me and which I've become thoroughly obsessed with.

Okay, random author musings over. Carry on. Please review!