Hmmm…lets see…well…thank you to all my beautiful reviewers! You guys are awesome! Just to clear some things up: health class is for 3rd and 4th years. Kel, Neal, and the gang are in their fourth year, while Owen is in his 3rd year. Is that better? I hope so…a lot of people seem to have missed the last time I mentioned this in chapter two. I don't blame you…I hardly ever read the notes at the begging of stories…and yet, here I am…mindlessly rambling…

Disclaimer: how do you say, "I don't own this" in Spanish?

"You should wear your shirt unlaced more often." He then disappeared into his room before Kel could reply.

Oh my! Kel thought to herself. He did not just say that! She was smiling hugely, her eyes wide, and a mixture of happiness and shock could be seen on her face. It was the most emotion she had shown in like forever. And it all happened at one time. And no one was there to see it. She retreated into the safety of her rooms to replay Neal's comment over and over in her head. She was still giddy when she fell asleep. Maybe he kissed her because he had wanted to? Or maybe the kiss was on a dare…but then why would he say something that clearly said that he thought she looked good? Another dare? She didn't know. Kel decided to stop thinking about it and go to sleep. She was giving herself a headache.

(((Morning)))

Kel woke with a yawn, still extremely giddy about the events of last night. She did her morning routine, picking the most complicated and most vigorous practice dance to wear off some of the excess energy her body held. She then heard the bell, and raced off to breakfast. She was the first one in there, and as she quickly figured out, the porridge wasn't ready yet.

"Why aren't we bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning!" one of the cooks exclaimed as Kel came up to the line.

"I was just up early," Kel replied, blushing a little. Hearing the conversation, the other cooks came over.

"You're right Ed!" another cook exclaimed, "She's actually smiling this morning!"

"And her face isn't all stony!" added another. Kel couldn't say anything; she just blushed deeper and tried to change the subject. By the time the other boys had come in, Kel was already seated at the usual table, waiting happily. Most of the boys that knew her raised an eyebrow or two at her happiness. She had never shown this much emotion in front of them. And they all wondered what had made her so happy. Merric especially.

(((Merric's POV)))

Merric hadn't given up his investigation on what was going on with Kel…and Neal…he had just put it aside. He decided to resume it after what he saw the night before. He had seen Neal slip off after dinner and follow Kel to her rooms. He didn't know what he had done there, and he was bummed. It was all Owen's fault that he couldn't follow Neal to Kel's room. Owen just had to have Merric see his newly feng shui-ed room. But now Merric would stop at nothing to figure out Mission Kel as he called it.

(((Kel's POV)))

Only until all the boys were seated did Kel notice that someone was missing. It was Neal. Just then Wyldon burst into the mess hall and signaled for everyone to rise, he than started the prayer, and there was a confused "so mote it be" at the end for Neal wasn't there, and it was custom to wait for everyone before they started eating. Kel slowly stood and walked over to Wyldon's table. She stood there, waiting for him to notice, her hands locked behind her back to hide the shaking.

"Yes?" Wyldon asked her, his brow rising slightly. This was the first time someone had approached him during a meal.

"Begging your pardon my lord, but Nealan of Queenscove hasn't arrived yet," Kel replied hesitantly.

"Ah," Wyldon began, "Nealan had a family matter to see too at Queenscove, and was transported there for the time being. You may take your seat." He finished. Kel quickly thanked him and bowed, then returned to her seat. Her friends bombarded her first with questions about Neal, then with questions about why she was so happy.

"Hey Kel," Merric asked, "how come you're so happy?" Kel blushed and tried to think of an intelligent response that wouldn't give away anything.

"Um, well, I—I'm an aunt." Kel said, hoping they would buy it. They did. They were boys after all. They congratulated her, and slapped her on the back, nearly choking her. Kel hated lying to them, but she couldn't tell them the truth. She wished they were girls. They would understand. But alas, she was stuck with a bunch of immature boys. But they were alright once you got to know them.

Poor Neal though. She felt bad for her best friend. But, maybe he wasn't here because of her! Or maybe he faked it, and was hiding in his room…Kel left the mess hall with these puzzling thoughts, making a quick stop at the infirmary. Duke Baird wasn't there, so that meant that Neal wasn't there. She hurried along to her room to collect her things for classes.

The week went by slowly without Neal there to cheer them up, and make them feel dumb and smart at the same time. But on the morning of the next health class, Neal showed up in the mess hall. He didn't look like his normal still asleep self. He looked like he was asleep. In his porridge to be exact. Wyldon came in, and Kel had to shake Neal awake to get him to stand up. Once the prayer was over, Neal seemed to wake up a little. Just enough to realize Kel was sitting next to him, a stiff warmth at his side. He sighed in his porridge and made a decision. They needed to fix this. Soon.

(((Later)))

Before the pages knew it, it was dinner time, then the pages were trudging off to health class.

"So, my ducklings," Neal began, using his old nickname for them, "has anything new and exciting happened whilst I've been away?" he asked. Most of the boys made grunting noises. Since Neal spoke boy, he understood what they meant. But then Merric spoke up, the enthusiastic investigator.

"Well, the only thing you missed was Kel," Merric began. Neal raised a brow, Kel's eyes widened, and most of the boys looked confused, not remembering what Kel had done. "Well, one morning, Kel was all happy."

"But Kel is happy a lot of the time," Neal said, confused as well. Kel just blushed a little and walked a little faster.

"But not like this," Merric replied, "her mask was completely off and she was actually smiling. A nice big smile. It was really…um…different."

"Hmmm…" Neal mused. They all waited for him to continue but apparently Neal had other plans. They reached health class and sat at their usual tables, Kel and Neal, Owen and Merric, and Seaver and Esmond. Kel and Neal sat in silence while all the other pages talked loudly. Kel was stealing glances at Neal, and Neal was sneaking glances at Kel. Sir Broderick came in and asked for their assignments. They all handed them in, and resumed loud talking while Broderick graded them. Once he was done, he handed the papers back and started the class.

This time he talked about how babies are made, how long it was in the womb, and the process a mother has to go through to deliver a baby. He then said that as men, they should be prepared to run errands such as getting bizarre foods, helping the mother get around, and helping her deliver the baby. Then he turned to Kel.

"And you," He began, speaking to Kel, "You must be prepared for nausea, intense pain when the baby is being delivered, and you must be prepared to carry what will feel like hundreds of pounds on your stomach." Kel just nodded, concealing the blush that was boiling its way to the top. "Now for the second part of our lesson. Taking care of a baby."

Broderick then pulled out what looked like a live baby. He explained to them that it was made by Numair, and it was magicked to do exactly what a real baby would do. He demonstrated this by shaking the baby, causing it to cry. It took some time for him to get it to quiet. First he tried rocking it, but that only caused it to cry even more and spit up on him. Then he tried giving it some milk out of a skin with a special attachment on the opening. He explained that these were designed to resemble a mother's breast. But the "baby" didn't like that either, and started crying even louder. Then as a last resort, he checked the diaper. That was the problem. So Broderick showed them how to change a diaper, step by step.

"Any questions?" Broderick asked the disgusted class. Quinden raised his hand.

"How come you are teaching us all this?" He asked, a sneer on his face. "I mean its not like were going to go get girls pregnant."

"This is why," Sir Broderick replied, pulling out a wooden box full of babies. "Your new assignment is to pair up, and take care of a baby for six days. Starting tonight, and ending next week on the next health class. For most of you, you will switch roles about halfway through the assignment, one being the father, and one being the mother, then switching, so you both have the chance to be the father." Most of the pages groaned. "But only Keladry and her partner will not switch, since she is a girl." Kel was so embarrassed. She just hoped she wasn't paired with Quinden. "Now for the partners," Sir Broderick began. "The person you are seated next to shall be your partner." "No switching!" He barked after several pages got up.

Kel and Neal looked at each other and stared. Roughly the same thoughts going on in both of their heads. Oh Mithros! I'm going to have a baby with my best friend! While the others were also having the same thoughts…Oh Mithros! I'm going to have a baby with a man! As you can see, no one was particularly happy with this assignment.

"You must treat this baby as if it were alive. It will die of you don't take care of it properly, and it will stink of you don't change it's diaper. You must go to the kitchens to fetch milk for it, you must go to infirmary if it is sick, the healers have a special spell to cure it, and you must take care of it. Or you fail this class. If you fail, you must take it again until you pass." None of the pages spoke. "I have arranged rooms for you all with two beds. In Keladry and Nealan's case, with a screen. They are in the Squires wing, and will have your names written on slates. Come up as pairs and select your children. I expect no funny business or you may answer to Lord Wyldon.

So two by two, they trudged up to the box full of babies and selected one. When it was Kel and Neal's turn, they went up and stared into he box.

"You can pick," Neal murmured. Kel smiled at him and moved closer. There were only four left. Two had brown eyes, one had hazel, but the last one was the one she was drawn to. She had startling green eyes. Just like Neal. And that was the one Kel chose. Once all the pages had chosen children, Sir Broderick cleared his throat.

"You must name your children," He said to the class, "then you must tell the class what the name is, and I shall record it. This will test your compromising skills." So Kel and Neal started brainstorming, and decided on a name faster than any of the others. "I will call your names, and you will tell me the name of your child."

"Owen and Merric?"

"Ferdinando," Owen replied. Most of the class snickered, and Merric pointed to Owen.

"Esmond and Seaver?"

"Bellatrix."

"Keladry and Nealan?"

"Avelina."

Kel didn't hear the rest, she was too preoccupied. But she did remember one name that was particularly unique. It was a baby boy named Potato. The class was dismissed and the pages were given directions to gather all they would need and take it to their new rooms. So off the pages went. Neal had offered to take the baby until they got to their new room, and Kel had accepted after much protesting. So she headed off to her room, and Lalasa helped her pack her clothes, weapons, bathing supplies, stuff for classes, and two lucky cats. She then said goodbye to Lalasa, Jump, and the sparrows, telling them of her assignment. Lalasa laughed outright at this.

"Milady, that's torture!" She cried in between fits of laughter. Kel nodded miserably and was out the door. When she finally found her and Neal's room, Neal was already there. He was holding a squalling baby in his arms trying to make it stop. His hair looked like it had been yanked, his clothed showed a little spit up, and he looked exhausted. Kel tried not to laugh at his appearance. She quickly set her stuff down on her side of the room and rushed over to help him. She pried the baby from his grasp and set it on the desk. She then checked the diaper, just like with Sir Broderick, that was the problem. She told Neal to get a fresh diaper. She quickly changed it and turned to Neal.

"Did you pay any attention to Sir Broderick today?" She demanded, her eyes narrowing.

"Um…well…I…" was all Neal could say.

"I thought so," Kel said. She then thought up a plan. "Here's what were going to do," Kel began. "I want you to go to the kitchens and get some milk, a skin, and beg some fruit from the cooks. I'm going to take the baby, and go to the infirmary for some diapers. If they have any." They split up, ran their errands and were back in their room fifteen minutes later.

"What is the fruit for?" Neal asked as he was walking into the room. "It's getting really heavy."

"Us" Kel replied and smiled. Neal smiled back. Just then Kel remembered something. The baby had no bed. She turned to Neal. "Will you go to the carpenters and see if they can make a crib?" she asked Neal. "While I stay with the baby?" Neal nodded and left the room.

(((Neal's POV)))

Neal reached the carpenters and made his request. The head carpenter smiled and went into the backroom, coming out with a ready-made crib.

"I was a wonderin' when the first of ya would be comin' around," the carpenter said when he gave Neal the crib. "Sir Broderick wanted a couple o these made for ya." He added when Neal raised a brow.

"Ah," Neal said. "It makes sense." He left the carpenters with a smile on his face. He was almost to his and Kel's room when he met up with Merric. Merric was red-faced and frustrated.

"We can't get the dang thing to shut up!" He told Neal in frustration.

"Did you try the diaper?" Neal asked wickedly. Merric cursed and marched into his and Owen's room. Neal finished the walk to his room and had difficulty opening the door. He walked into the room completely forgetting that Kel was in there. She nearly scared him to death. She had been behind the screen separating half of the room, and had come out when she heard the door open. The sight of her had made Neal drop the crib. Kel scowled at him and went over to the crib. She handed Neal the baby and turned the crib inspecting it for damage. It appeared to be alright so she told Neal to put the baby in it. He obliged. The baby was asleep almost instantly. Neal heaved a sigh if relief. Then yawned hugely.

"I think that baby's got the right idea," Neal said through another yawn.

"I think you're right," Kel agreed. There was an awkward moment before Neal broke the silence.

"Goodnight Kel."

"Goodnight."

Kel went behind her screen and started readying herself for bed. She had her shirt and breastband off when Neal came around the screen. Kel jumped and tried to cover herself up.

"NEAL!" Kel screeched. Neal startled, looked over at Kel and blushed ferociously, his eyes wide. He then ran back to the other side of the screen.

"I'm sorry Kel," Neal began, "I forgot you were over there." Kel didn't say anything. "And I had to use the privy."

"It's okay," Kel said quietly. "You didn't mean too." She hurried and put her nightshirt on and crawled in bed. "You can go to the privy now," She told him.

"Thanks," he replied. He quickly went to the bathroom and rushed back to his side, calling himself fifteen kinds of idiot. How could he do such a thing? And to his crush! But it had been a good view…BAD Neal! Neal shook his head at his own stupidity and fell asleep. Thinking about Kel.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the ORIGINAL idea of this story. What did you think? It's not as funny as some of the other chapters…but I try…I hope you liked it anyways. Please review.