An Interesting Day

(Subtitled: Set in Stone)

By Saphron

A/n:i I luuuurve all you fab reviewers! So glad you like this old revamped thing :)

Chapter 5 - Kel's "Stalker"

Kel collapsed on her bed, totally exhausted. It took half her energy to go to class, still with a slight headache, which was fortunately gone by now, and the other half to ward off fun-loving boys who had waaaaay to much free time to spend. If Kel had to listen to another day of "ohh-Kel! Lookie, there's Jaaaaaaasson, your boyfriend!" she'd go nuts! Only the older boys didn't tease the life out of her, they were more mature than that. Although Faleron and Roald cracked a few jokes, nothing like the little boys, i.e. the 'brats.' Neal didn't say much about it, and Cleon…well; Cleon was switching from one to the other every five seconds. One moment he was one of the little ones, cracking the worst and most…creative, shall we say, jokes possible, and the next he was serious and looking like he was constipated at the mere mention of the word 'Jasson.' Kel didn't know what to think.

But she didn't have much more time to ponder it, for the next thing she heard was a small tapping at her window.

"Wha-?"

Could it be Crown? She thought she had already fed her, but maybe she had forgotten.

But it wasn't a bird, it was a boy.

"Pss--Kel, it's me!"

"Jasson!"

"Keep it down, would'ja?" he asked her hurriedly, putting a finger to his lip.

She lowered her voice to a whisper, "What's up? Why are you here?"

He smirked, "If you think I'm leaving you alone Lady Keladry, you're nuts."

"Great," she muttered, "now I have a stalker. Just what I need."

He grinned at her, "Yup! Now come on Kel!"

She sighed, she was tired, she wanted to go to sleep, it had been a hard day, and nothing seemed more appealing than a nice, soft bed…except maybe an open window and the promise of adventure.

"Coming," She replied against better judgment, climbing through the hole from her bedroom and into the chilly night air. "Oh Goddess…what will it be tonight?"

The two crept through the streets; Jasson couldn't stop smiling, and Kel had no idea why. She was getting more and more anxious as they went along…maybe she should've just stayed nice and safe in her own bed…then there was no way she could get in trouble. While she was mulling over the possibilities of turning back, Jasson had stopped walking. She bumped right into him, this time rubbing her nose, as he turned around to help her up.

"Over here Kel," he said as slid open a back door and entered the dark interior. Kel gulped and followed, frowning worriedly. Inside there was a small man sitting at a wooden workbench; he was old, with snow-white hair and yellow teeth. When he smiled at Kel she felt like bolting, but she knew he meant well. The man handed Jasson two large boxes; Jasson handed him something in return, presumably money, and the two left.

They went back onto the street, Jasson scanning the area for something. Kel had a bad feeling about this; Jasson had offered no explanation. What was in the mysterious box?

Soon he found what he was looking for, a small wooden bench. He grinned and hurried over, plopping down and taking out of the box what looked like two pairs of shoes, except bigger, and on the bottom there were…wheels?

He strapped them on, very quickly; he obviously had done this before, and handed the other box to Kel, explaining as he went along.

"They're called roller-skates Kel. I got 'em specially made by that guy back there."

"Oh." She said, having no clue what he was talking about.

"Yea, and they're really fun!"

"Uh-huh."

He finished lacing up the boots and reached over to help Kel with hers, who had been fumbling with the straps and muttering under her breath.

She could smell his hair as he leaned over; it was a rich scent of something, not quite flowers, but it smelled just as nice.

"There!" he said excitedly, sitting up and snapping Kel out of her shampoo fantasy. "Let's go!"

Kel got up and wobbled around for a bit, and then began to roll away, but Jasson caught her deftly and showed her how to move her feet so she wouldn't slide onto her butt. He was circling around her lightly, chattering about how to keep your balance and not fall flat on your face, while Kel was testing the brakes. Again. And again. And again. Just to be sure they worked.

"Ready? Let's go!"

He took off down the street at a moderately fast pace, Kel followed behind screaming in her head, "Ahhhhhh! I shoulda stuck with jousting! Who needs other hobbys!"

The rest of the night contained a lot of laughter and fun, as they skidded past curious people out for midnight strolls, and scrawny cats out yowling for some cream.

By the end of the night Kel had more or less gotten the hang of it; Jasson, who was an expert at this, he could do backwards and jumps like there was no tomorrow, was a terrific teacher.

And there really weren't any major mishaps…just a few small ones. Well who cares if a water trough or two ended up on its side, and come on, what's a tiny old flower garden anyway? Psh--it's not like any harm was done when the pile of trashcans fell over. A street sign? Ha! Kablamo. But that's ok, travelers were gunna get lost anyway, with or without street signs to misguide them.

Anyhow, by the time the clock struck eleven they were playing tag in the park, and an hour later they were being chased by some wild dogs…and, er, half an hour after that the royal guard…but um, anyhow, at 1:00 they called it quits and Kel skated back to the palace, more exhausted then ever, but exhilarated at the fun she had just had.

She snuck back in through the window, slid her skates under her bed, and plopped down so she could salvage the last remaining hours of the night (or morning as they case was) in sleep.

…Saphron…