A/N: Chapter thirteen. . . lucky number to my dear sister. Yet to the rest of the world considered unlucky so I found it fitting Arra have an odd combination of both. So, sorry to say, this goes kinda fast, okay a lied a bit. It goes extremely fast.

Haha. I'm so weird. So I was looking at how many hits I had and for chapter 12 I had 48 right? So I thought to myself. Hey, why not just wait till I have fifty? That should be fun. So here you are! lol. Sorry, I just do random things like that sometimes.

Disclaimer: This is sooooo annoying. The almighty Tamora Pierce owns this. I do not. And if I did, I'd probably run it right into the ground. haha. But there are certain things/people that do belong to me so be kind and don't steal.

x..:..x

The weeks dragged on and the more Arra tried to keep up with daily comings the more tired she found herself to be. Suddenly, showing far too much facial expression became more work than needed. The days, Arra was sure, grew longer only to torture her. Eventually, those torturous weeks spun into months and the pages came back. Though by then the palace healers had nearly resorted to restraints to keep Arra in bed where she needed to be. After a while however, she no longer had the strength to fight them and stayed in bed not only because they wished it but because she could no longer get up if she tried.

Arra slept most of the day, everyday, and when she woke a membrane of drowsiness still draped her. At Damien's return he wasn't pleased to find his former pupil in no better state than he left her. Still throughout her obviously declining health the healers could find nothing wrong. In her moments of wake, they tried to make her eat as she had consumed very little and they hoped perhaps that could add to some of the lack of energy.

She didn't know the prince visited her often. Though at one point she'd seen him. Waiting beside her bed. "Liam?"

He smiled. "Yes. How are you feeling?" His tones were gentle.

Arra thought serisously for a moment. Dead. I feel dead. Tears stung as she realized what exactly it was she felt, as if pieces of her were floating away, out of her reach. Life itself was slipping through her fingers like water in a fruitless cuphold of the hands. My very life force feels like it is slowly being taken from me.

One tear fell. "Liam, I think I'm dying."

The tears fell away in her mind and once again sleep claimed her. She hadn't the chance to see the sadness in Liam's face at the thought of her death.

XxX

Still Arra somehow kept up with her daily spells of concealment. They'd notice something if I didn't. That would be too much for them to handle while I am ill I'm sure. Until one day she awoke to a shock. Her Gift, whittled down to nothing more than a candle flame of crystal blue light. "M-my Gift!" she croaked.

Not a day passed when there was not a healer in her rooms and, more often than not, a visitor. It seemed more a challenge, Arra thought irritably, to find a healer who might have some inkling as to what ailed her. She'd seen most in Tortall, or rather they had seen her for she hadn't been awake for a number of them.

Today their was a fairly young healer taking vigil beside her. "Here have some water."

Arra was about ready to throw the water across the room with her mounting frustration that he didn't treat this as more of a crisis. As far as she'd known, her Gift had never been so diminished. Though she drank deeply knowing she needed it.

"Now, what is it?" The woman healer asked.

"My Gift . . . there's nothing left."

The healer was silent for a moment before saying. "I don't think that's normal. I'll alert Duke Baird."

When the Duke himself appeared Arra was sitting up in bed, an unusual sight that had not been seen within the last few weeks. Her eyes, previously downcast, shifted upward towards the Chief healer.

"Arra, you should be resting."

"I've had enough resting!" She exlcaimed. Inwardly Baird found this to be a good sign. She'd barely shown feeling since she'd been the closest to healthy. "I've noticed my Gift becoming smaller for a while now. But was too exhausted to say anything before now."

Arra could feel herself becoming more awake. The fog that seemed constantly around her dispersed only a bit.

"Arra, we are not going to jump to conclusions. Rest, and we'll see how you are feeling when you wake."

She reluctantly agreed and slipped into the first restful sleep.

xXx

King Jonathan had been asked to be kept updated on the odd occurances of Arra's illness so that's exactly where Duke Baird was headed. He knocked and was admitted into the king's study. There he found Numair speaking with the him.

"What news do you bring me today?" Jonathan said not looking up from his work.

"I've already told you about Arra's Life force growing smaller. And today she tells us her Gift is all but gone."

Numair chose this point to cut in. "That is peculiar. Do you think perhaps I could take a look at her?"

"But you aren't a healer mage," Duke Baird said.

"Perhaps you are having the wrong mages look at her." The war mage's voice held the slightest hint of grimness.

xXx

"What have you gotten yourself into this time?" A familiar old voice asked Arra.

"What do you mean?" Arra asked.

Though she could see nothing she could feel Fate shake her head. "Be yourself and nothing more." The presence started to fade.

"What about the handprint?"

"No one can see it but you."

"W-will I recover?" Arra asked. But it was too late Fate was gone.

Arra cracked her eyes open, not because of any shock, but because she could not longer sleep. Her energies had been restored like any other sleep should be. She sat up in bed.

"Good morning Arra, or rather, good afternoon."

She turned to face him. "Master Numair?"

He nodded. She'd seen him few times before now and noticed not much had changed. He still owned black eyes and hair pulled into a horsetail.

"Where's one of the healer mages that's always beside me?"

"Duke Baird is over there if need be but right now I'd like to take a look at you." Numair explained. Arra looked and indeed the Duke was waiting on the opposite side of the room.

"What exactly to you mean, 'take a look at me' ?" Arra asked.

"I want to look at your Gift and such. All of this seems to odd for me to believe it to be normal." Arra agreed to let him 'look' into her.

It was an unusual feeling. Like someone literally snaking through your mind reminding Arra of an earthworm through dirt. She wasn't sure how long it lasted but when it was finally done she was glad.

His face held a look of thoughtfulness and even a bit of surprise. Numair formed a question. "Does your Gift usually have a dark streak?"

She shook her head. "No, crystal blue. That's it."

"I figured. It didn't read the same as yours. Though it was hard to tell much at all. Your Gift, it's different." he said. "But if this is what I think it is someone is putting a spell on you. Though I can't tell where it is coming from. The other magic seems to be losing its hold though. To further prevent something like this I'd like to give you protection against this particular Gift."

Arra was shocked. Someone had been doing this to her? Why? "S-sure."

Numair said words Arra could not understand and he made a hand motion then said he was done. "So how do you feel now?"

Arra thought for a moment. "Hungry." That wasn't all. She also felt a little empy without the abundance of her Gift. But she figured that was to be expected. It feels too odd. To be up and awake only a day after I was bedridden and too tired to do anything.

They set her up with food in bed and left. Probably going to talk about me. She took her first bite just as Damien walked in with a grin on his face.

"What?" She asked thickly through food.

"Don't 'what' me! Your up and awake!" He hugged her tightly.

"Get off me, I'm trying to eat!" She said but once again he just beamed. Arra scrunched her nose. "You make it sound like I returned from the grave."

He sat down in a chair that had been placed next to her bed. "For a while, that's where everyone thought you were headed, Arra." He glanced up at her seeing her only slightly shocked face. "I'm sorry I shouldn't have said that."

"No, no. I thought I'd . . . die, too. I just wasn't expecting you to say it," She said. Arra found her food again and quickly changed the subject. "I can't believe there was a time when I didn't want to eat."

The Pheonix laughed when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in."

A male healer stuck his head in the door. "Lady Arra--"

"I'm no lady." She cut in.

"M--"

"Or Miss. Just Arra." Damien was laughing.

The healer nodded. "Duke Baird says for you to rest."

"I think I've rested enough!"

He smiled. "He said you would say that so Master Numair said that your Gift needs time. Perhaps tomorrow you should be well enough to try and walk."

Arra rolled her eyes. "Alright."

XxX

The next few days went by well in Arra's opinion, well except for people constantly coming in and out of her room to see if she was well, to give her a check up. Eventually, she started walking though she had to have help in the beginning. First only walking around her room then moving for small excursions through the palace. She'd get such comments as "Nice to see you out again." and "hope your health returns in full."

But one thing troubled her. In all of this where was Liam? She hadn't seen him once. What am I thinking? I should be happy. Right?

The next day Arra decided to start a regimin to get back into shape. Duke Baird said she could do with a little more rest but she waved it away saying the sooner she got back to exercising the better she'd feel. She woke up early and got badages to wrap around her hands extending up her forearm and then wrapped her feet up her calves even bound her breasts tighter to hold them. She was going down to the practice courts barefoot. She slid the the breeches over the wrappings an donned an undyed cotton shirt. Finishing by putting her hair into a bun she opened the door.

Arra was thrown off and completely surprised when someone pulled her into an embrace.

"Arra I'm glad you're okay." Came the breathy voice of Liam. "I had to leave with my knightmaster for a while and I come back to find you healthy again."

She pushed out of his arms. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. And I'm going down to practice."

She walked past him but he followed. "You don't have your spells on anymore." It was true. After everything had happened she gave up on putting them on. People noticed but most thought she had just healed from whatever she had very nicely. Arra nodded to confirm his accusation.

Liam seemed torn between staying and questioning her on everything and leaving. "I really need to get back to my knightmaster." He waved and left.

She found Damien on the fields stretching; she followed his lead and also stretched.

"So are you ready to once again become my student?" Damien asked good humoredly.

"However much I wish I could say no and walk away. . ." She grinned. Damien shook his head and they began. He started her out with simple kicks and punches. After he moved on to more complex combinations of ducking, punching and rolls. He had her practice them over and over again, shouting them out and she would do them. He picked up the pace; anyone listening might've just heard rambling but Arra could understand and worked herself to continue.

"Okay, Arra, that's enough for now we'll continue if your feeling up to it after we eat." Damien said pulling everything into a halt.

"I can keep going!" Came Arra's indignant reply.

"You've never known when to stop pushing yourself. You just got back from a long time off of all of this, whether you feel you can go on you shouldn't. You can't under exercise and then over exercise. That's what most people have problems with. They think if they over exercise they'll get back into shape better, but that's hardly ever the case." Damien waited only a few seconds before continuing. "Enough reasons for you?"

Arra shrugged. "Even if it wasn't, you'd probably knock me out just to get me to stop."

"Probably? I thought you knew me better than that. Of course I would." He grinned and they left to eat. Arra didn't talk much and was happy with her new found appetite. But while her mouth was filled with food that didn't stop her thoughts from wandering back to problems that have long bothered her.

I had been under a spell? That was my 'sickness'? But how did they pinpoint me? They couldn't have locked onto my Gift. I know that much. A- are these the same people as before?

xXx

"Jon, I don't understand it. Both Gifts were connected in some way."

"You mean like a leeching spell?" The king asked, genuinly interested in the topic.

"No, it had some of the characteristics of a leeching spell but it was different. More complex. It was from a very long distance away. This kind of spell is very difficult. It not only stole away her Gift but was --"

"I know, I know, Numair. Seeping away her life also."

"You don't find that at all odd?" He asked. "She would have died had the spell stayed in tact for a few more days or so. I'm surprised she's recovered so fast after such a close brush with death."

"Of course I find it odd, but important people are often put under spells like that." He asnwered calling upon his own memories of attempts at his life.

"My point exactly. Who would go to such extents to kill her? And why her?"

But the question remained unanswered for neither of the great minds could come up with a plausible reason why someone with such obvious power would want this one small Shang girl dead.

x..:..x

A/N: Wow, can you say rushed much? Sorry bout that guys. But it was either that or give you a couple of short chapters that tell you close to nothing and drag on . . . blah blah blah. I figured you guys didn't need that. And as for the combination of good and bad. She got worse but she also got better. Things will also go fast in the next chapter too I think. . .

Once again if the pace is too much to handle I apologize! I don't think I can stress enough how much I am dissapointed in myself and the next like three chapters. HOLY CRAP. I think I might have writers block is it when you know what you want to happen you just don't know how to get there? Like how to get from point A to point B? Well, know what? I'm just gonna fast forward to point B . . .

As I've said before, I didn't like this chapter. But it had to be done. By the way, I do believe the next chapter is a few weeks possibly a month after this point.

Alright, home skillets, I gotta go. Homework to do. Peace out!