Another chapter! sorry it's not as long as the others i wanted to get it posted.

Thanks to pinky, therogueauthor, angel-on-earth and Kara Adar ur reveiws were really encouraging. i couldn't work out how to double space on the net so advice on that would be welcome.

if anyone else wants to review....(i'll leave the next words to ur imagination)

Chapter Three

Asa had had it. If her brother and the prince had to argue they could do it elsewhere. And she was pretty sure she knew what had made Aranias angry enough to fall out with a friend, since it had happened before and she didn't like it. Admittedly he had been nine at the time, but she wasn't sure he would have changed that much. Spotting an open doorway, she formulated her plan.

Striding out in front of the two bickering boys and their friends, she whirled to face them. "That's enough!" All noise ceased, suddenly. Her shawl had fallen back, and anyone who cared to look and had half a brain cell, could see she was angry. Uh oh, Aranias thought weakly, recalling other times his sister had lost her temper.

"I don't care what's the matter with you, only that it's not right and it's grating on my nerves!" She grabbed hold of each prince's arm and practically threw them into the room. Too stunned to object and in Aranias' case, knowing it would be useless, they stared at her from inside the room. She glared at them, one hand on the door, and said in a sweet, patronising voice, "Now, are you two going to sort it out, then? I'm sure you can manage that." She abandoned the sweetness, returning to anger, "Because I'm not letting you out until you do!" The door slammed. There was silence, except for the sound of her skirt moving as she sat down on a convenient row of chairs close by.

Eremin and Lachran gaped at her. She glared at them, before realising that she wasn't angry with them but with their friends and settled with an innocent stare. "I'm sure they'll sort it out eventually. Just needed a kick in the behind to get on with it!" The two nodded, slightly awed, and sat down on the chairs beside her.

Liam stared at the door in shock. Aranias simply sat down, resignedly. There was a silence. Finally, Aranias groaned, leaning back in the arm chair. It was strangely comfortable. Looking around, he realised that they were in what were formally called entertaining rooms, and what Lachran called cosy-chats-with-people-you'd-rather-not-know rooms. He raised his eyebrows slightly. Well that's appropriate.

Liam glanced at him. "You're not going to ask her to open it?" Aranias gave him a Look. "Are you? It won't work. She keeps her word." He realised that this was slightly untrue. "Well, when she wants to anyway," he amended. Liam looked at the door, calculating.

"And even if we both used royal command it wouldn't work. I've tried it, my brothers and sisters have tried it. And it only works for my parents because they can cause punishments quickly." Aranias added, correctly guessing what Liam was contemplating. Liam groaned, also sinking down into a chair. "So basically we're stuck in here." An idea blossomed.

Aranias clipped it at the bud. "Lying won't work either. It's not just getting out of here, it's living with her when she finds out. Because she will." Silence descended once again.

"What was—" "Why were—" Aranias sighed. "You go first." "No you." He glared at Liam. Liam glared back. Aranias was the first to give in. "I was going to say; what was the point in drawing out our argument, because I think that's what you're supposed to say when you make up right?" He shrugged, "Now that I think of it, I can think of the reason but I thought I might as well say it anyway."

Liam raised his eyebrows. "I was going to say about the same thing, except differently. Not a completely stupid question. Maybe."

"Seeing as you made me speak first, you have to answer first." Liam glared at him. "I don't see how that's fair." Aranias grinned. "Perfectly fair. Now answer."

"Um…it was because of her wasn't it?" Aranias gave a quick nod. "And you were—"

"It wasn't my fault! You're the one who started it!"

Liam spluttered. "No I didn't! I said something, and you lost your temper! I don't see how that's my fault!"

"Don't remember what you said? Well you called my sister a freak! I think that justifies me loosing my temper! And besides, you'd already lost yours!"

"Well, you didn't exactly help! Rambling on about the person I have to live with for the rest of my life! It was bad enough already! And then you started yelling at me about—"

"Fine!" Aranias snapped, calm, royal side kicking in. "We both lost our temper! But—"

"It shouldn't have lasted for that long," Liam cut in, having also calmed down thanks to royal blood. The two boys nodded. "Peace?" Aranias said without much question. "Peace," Liam replied, sealing the deal.

It was something their friends would never understand. The working of minds of kings. Brought up so as to be ready to take the throne if the heir had an accident, both understood some of the intricate workings of alliances and deals. And besides, quarrels get boring after a while.

They grinned at each other. "Who would have thought that the cause of our argument would end it?" Liam said, with amusement. Aranias nodded. "Unfortunately, now we have to get Asa to open the door."

Asa noted with amusement, that neither boy tried to bang on the door, or ask her to open it. So Aranias does still have a brain! That's a surprise. Hope this doesn't take too long though. Sitting around can be rather boring, especially when your companions don't seem inclined to talk to you. In fact, Eremin and Lachran were unsure of what to say, something Asa was oblivious to. Her supply of social intelligence was used up for the day.

Finally there was a knock on the door. "Possible for you to unlock this now, Asa? Much as we enjoy sitting in here, the view is becoming a bit boring." Asa smiled slightly. "You couldn't mean the room, surely, Aranias?"

"Well I was trying to find a polite way to object to the company, but didn't have any ideas!" He replied jokingly. "And what does de company say about this?" "I'm afraid the company will have to say straight out that Aranias isn't what I most want to look at right now!" Liam objected.

The door opened. "Finally!" Lachran mock groaned. "Took you long enough!" Liam looked offended. "Do not mock the meetings of Kings, for you cannot understand!" "You're not Kings, you're not even heirs," Eremin scoffed. Asa felt slightly faint at this statement as if she was drifting, and unbidden, words came, no trace of accent apparent.

"Yet they will remain Kings of themselves in all things but one." Aranias immediately grabbed his sister's arm. Her face was slightly pale, eyes unseeing. He waited, but when she said nothing more, waved a hand across her face. She blinked, all feeling of distance gone, and stumbled slightly, one leg giving way. Aranias steadied her, concerned, "Are you alright?" Asa stared at him, getting her bearings, before replying, "Yes, I'm fine. Nothing wrong."

Aranias expression turned to excitement, which was totally different from the confusion of his friends. "Do you know what it is? The one thing?" Asa sighed slightly at the inadequacy of her words. "Nai, I'm sorry, I don't."

Aranias shrugged her apology away, "Did you hear Liam! We're going to rule ourselves except for in one thing!" Asa touched his arm. "I didn't quite say dat. A King rules, but not always the way he want to. You got to think about that too." Her brother glared at her, "I was having happy images. What do you think it means then?"

"You mean you don't understand what you said? Or you didn't say it on purpose? I don't get it," Eremin interrupted, voicing the thoughts of them all. Asa looked at him with thinly veiled sadness, "I say many things I don't understand. Do we going to the gardens?"

"Are we going not do," Liam corrected automatically as he had corrected Aranias years ago. She nodded her thanks.

"It's dark outside, what time is it?" Eremin asked. A bell rang. "Suppertime," he answered himself. "Where do you want to eat?" Liam asked Asa. "You could eat in your chambers, or with my parents or—"

Aranias carried on, "—in the mess with the squires and pages – and us obviously – or with the Own, 'cos my Knightmaster and Liam's eat there—" He stopped, realising that Asa had started to tap her foot.

She smiled, "Knew you would catch on eventually. Where do you normally eat?" They shrugged. "There aren't many squires still at the palace so we could go there, cos then you won't have to talk to a whole load of random people at your first meal." Lachran suggested. She smiled gratefully at him and they five walked down the hall.

After a loud and confusing supper, that consisted of lots of food she had never seen before, the revelation that in Tortall watered down ale was often drunk instead of water or juice (something she thoroughly disagreed with since it tasted disgusting), and a lot of boys staring at her, Asa found herself being led down a series corridors.

Her room was in three rooms – a dressing room and privy, a bedroom and a study. After explaining that they had a key to the study because it had been loaned to them for classwork a few years before and that they had business with their knightmasters the next day so she would be woken and taken around by 'some random person' as Lachran put it, they finally left her to try and work out what exactly they had said.

Well, that was interesting, at least, she thought tumbling into bed, Shadow at her feet. Thankfully her room was on the ground floor so things hadn't been as complicated as expected. Perhaps Tortall won't be so bad after all. But a tiny voice at the back of her mind still whispered, they don't understand about the 'Seeing' yet. And unfortunately, that one thought spoilt her last thoughts on the day.

i didn't really like some of that chapter, the bit where Liam and Aranias made up seemeed wrong and advice on changing it is welcome.

shadow will appear in the next chapter i think and hopefully some more vision stuff not sure about that right now.

and thre will be a proper plot eventually, im working up to it.

oh and theres a button.....