Kel sighed sitting in a corner as far away from everyone as she could. The celebration had started long ago and she was beginning to grow weary. This was to be a time of happiness for the Yamanis, whom celebrated the bodies returning to the elements and the souls returning to the spirit world. Normally the event would be a sad one for Tortallians, but the King had said this should be treated as a normal banquet as dictated to him by the Emperor.

Kel had watched as lords and ladies were announced. She'd also watched her friends serve her and the other Yamanis whom had participated in the ceremony. She'd just wanted to go back to her room and sleep, but she had known she had to be present at the banquet, especially since she was to be seated at the Emperor's table. Now a few hours later she was trying to be inconspicuous as her eyes followed the movements of the dancers on the floor. Kel brushed some lint off her squire outfit. It wasn't even Sir. Raoul's colors. It was Mindelan's colors. She'd been required to wear her family's colors to the celebration.

Kel stood slowly so as not to draw attention to herself and slipped behind a tapestry to a servants' door and found herself in the main hall. She allowed herself a sigh of relief as she felt some of the tension slip from her shoulders. She was sure Raoul wouldn't mind if she left the celebration, he hated all the fuss and frippery just as much as she did.

She turned a corner and ran straight into someone.

"Oh How disgraceful!" a high pitched voice cried out.

Kel looked down at the girl who couldn't have been more than thirteen. 'Great,' she thought, ' a noble snot.' She put on a pleasant smile and reached down to pick up the scarf the girl had dropped, "My humblest apologies m'lady," Kel said as nicely as possible.

"Don't you dare touch that Francine," another snotty voice ordered, "You might be infected with her freakishness. She's the 'girl' squire," she spat in a condescending voice as if speaking about Kel were a curse, "the one who frips about with all those males."

Kel looked at the two girls whom could only be Francine's friends. All of them were frilled and ruffled to the max. Anymore would have drowned them.

"Yeah not to mention she participates in barbarian customs," the other one piped up to add her two coppers in.

Francine stuck her nose up and brushed past Kel, "You're right. Come along Madaline and Maree we needn't waste our time anymore on this slut."

Kel just watched them with a passive look on her face as they turned the corner and flounced away. Inside she was boiling with anger. 'Why can't people just accept me for who I am,' she thought angrily, balling the scarf up in her fist, 'Just for once why can't they be fa-'

Kel stopped that train of thought. Life wasn't fair and if she couldn't deal with that she shouldn't have become a squire. Still, their words had hurt.

"Looks like that dog of yours is going to get a new scarf," a dry voice commented from behind her.

Kel spun around and found herself facing Joren.

"What do you want?" she asked him in a wary voice.

He merely raised a brow and she wanted to squirm under the gaze he was giving her.

When she got no answer she walked past him heading, well, she didn't know where until she found herself in the doorway to an indoor practice court.

"You can't be seriously thinking of practicing?" his voice came from behind her. Kel, not knowing he'd followed her, grit her teeth and took a step into the room not deigning him with a reply. Truthfully she really hadn't been thinking of practicing she'd just wanted to go someplace where no one could find her but that plan didn't seem to be panning out. She was afraid she'd end up snapping at him as he was telling her what she should and shouldn't be doing. Kel was getting rather tired of people telling her how she should be acting and what she should be doing.

"Aren't people going to miss you at you're lovely celebration?" he asked with a hint of a sneer.

She ignored him with a sigh and walked to the center of the room trying to clear her mind and forget that Joren was there, hoping he would go away when she didn't respond to his bait.

Unfortunately he strode past her and pulled his sword, "Guard," he said softly, fixing his cold blue eyes on her hazel ones.

Kel automatically drew her sword and blocked his down sweep just in time. She barely had time to block his next three attacks, much less get over her astonishment of his challenge.

'Is he crazy?!' she thought to herself spinning away from a stomach shot. She grinned, a genuine grin then at the thought, 'of course he is. I should know that by now.'

"Quit grinning like a cat, Mindelan. All you've been doing is blocking," he taunted her.

Eventually her body took over and she managed to get in some attacks. After his original insult failed to get her riled up, they continued on in silence, the only sound coming from the soft sweep of their boots and the ping of the swords.

The body can only do so much though. As Kel parried and guarded Joren's strikes, she felt the rest of the tension leave her body taking her momentum with it. Unfortunately her body didn't have any energy to use after that. During the banquet Kel had moved the food around on her plate only taking a few bites. She hadn't had the will to eat and combining that with her lack of sleep from the day before and the dreams that interrupted her normal rest, her exhausted body could take no more. Kel swung her sword in a downward cut towards his shoulder when she felt her step falter. Dizziness over took her and her knees gave out as she fell to the floor her sword clattering from her hand.

"Mindelan! What in the black god's name are you doing? You almost impaled yourself on my sword!" he yelled at her.

Kel just shook her head, having no energy to speak. She felt herself pulled up gruffly, "Mindelan! Answer me," Joren demanded. She looked up into his ice eyes expecting to see anger, but what she saw confused her. There was an overwhelming amount of anger blazing in his eyes but it was an anger born of fear.