The Five-Minute Bell was seconds from ringing. Where was she? He had already gathered her a fair breakfast, but he worried anyway. If she didn't cross that door in under three seconds, the Weed was going to assign her more work with those stupid armor collections and with the load of work she still had to do, which would mean more work as punishment. She couldn't afford that. She was behind in counts already.

A group of third-year pages approached. Kehel tried not to stare and failed miserably. Why were they coming over here? No matter to them, obviously. They took up chairs on either side of him, one on his right, and another on his left, and then a third and fourth across from him. For some reason they left the seat directly in front of him empty.

Just as the bell started to ring, Ty walked calmly into the Mess and sat down opposite him. The Weed growled but said nothing. As the third swing of the bell ceased to sound, all rose for the Morning Prayer. Ty's eyes flicked left and right silently, looking at the four boys who had joined them, then moved her head in the way that asked a question Kehel didn't know how to answer. He shook his head slightly, then said, "so mote it be" along with the rest of the Mess. Ty said nothing. The boys turned to look at her, then sat down.

Of the entire Mess, Ty was the last to sit. Taking her tray from Kehel, she turned to look at the boys on her right and left. They were busily eating and seemed unaware of how strange it was for Ty and Kehel to have breakfast accompanied by others. When one of the boys caught her gaze, he hurriedly glanced back at his food. Ty, annoyed, decided she'd had enough.

Slam!

Had the Mess not been quite so noisy, everyone would have heard the slamming of Ty's cutlery. She had banged it on the wooden table hard enough to make everyone around her jump. This jumping off their stools counted in everyone, which included not only the boys around her, but also Kehel, who looked most afraid as he met her eyes.

The boy on the right of Kehel sighed and put his cutlery calmly beside his plate before addressing Ty.

"Was that really necessary?" he asked quietly. He looked about four inches shorter than Kehel, with curly, blond hair cut short and neat. Hazel eyes looked back at her without even the merest hint of annoyance. His skin was slightly tanned, and the muscles in his face looked very tight. He was scared. Fabulous.

"Yes, it was, though I wouldn't leave it up to your judgment," Ty said dangerously. "Are you here to mock or to eat, lads, for I have better things to do than converse with boneheads."

The boy sighed. "Ty, I presume?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Who asks?"

The boy's mood seemed to lighten slightly. "My name is Merel of Blue Mountain, but you may call me Mel if you so wish to. On the other side of Kehel—oh, don't look so surprised, you're tall enough everyone knows who you are—is Otian of Keletiel."

Ty's eyes flicked for a second to Otian before going back to Merel. Otian was a pale-skinned, copper-haired boy with the air of generosity about him. He was covered in freckles and his hair in curls. He looked about half-a-foot shorter than Kehel, making him about three inches taller than Ty.

"On the right—no, child, your right—is Terit, commonly called Terry, of Goldmuer. He's a trained Shang, so try not to get him in a mood if you can."

Ty's eyes locked on Terry immediately. His skin was tanned, his eyes shining black. He looked like a steady, formidable opponent. His hair was mainly a crown of black spikes, but then again, Shang hardly lost time combing their hair. "I am the child of the Wildcat," he said, answering the unasked question. "The Stallion, according to her."

Ty had to agree. He had the body build of a herd-master. She nodded, and then looked back at Mel.

"Last but not least," he continued, "Is Leej. He's Bazhir. He's mostly traditional, but more open-minded than a great many of his clan."

Like all Bazhir, Leej had dark skin and even darker eyes. His hair was jet-black and cropped short. He looked about the same height as Mel. Another formidable opponent, she registered.

Ty sighed and drank a sip of her water. She wasn't in a good mood until she had had it, and was famous for it. Lowering her glass. She looked them all over. "And you are sitting here because…?"

Mel chuckled softly. Ty growled and he stopped. Clearing his throat, he said, "Because we think that there is something you want which we seek as well. Working together, we may be able to put a stop to it."

Ty thought she knew, but asked anyway. "The bullying?"

They all nodded. "Exactly. Though it is quite a bit more than bullying, because several people have been severely injured. Ty, this has gone on before you arrived. When we saw what you did that first morning, we understood what it was that was happening. You want to stop them. We have been trying for three years. We want to help."

Ty smiled. "Good," she said, making everyone sigh in relief. "But I warn you, if were going to do this, we will do it my way."

Leej froze in the act of taking a sip of orange juice and placed his cup wearily down. "Meaning?"

"Meaning," she said, eyes flashing, "That we are going to work under someone who has been fighting bullies all his life. We are going to play cat and mouse with these morons, and they are going to bleed. This is my game board. If you wish to join me, you work at my pace, with my rules."

Mel and the others nodded. As the leader, Mel looked her directly in the eye, fierce agreement in his voice. "You're on."

One by one, they placed their arms at the center of the table, over Mel's. Ty placed her arm in last, baring her teeth. "We will prepare for the Hunt."