sorry the spacing is all wierd but i had to email this to myself to post it on the library computer, because my computer hates me, not sure why, really... and i'm sorry this took so long to post, but i've been sick, and lazy, and busy, i'm sure you all can relate to at least one of those. and then it took me a half an hour of battling with this computer before it would let me upload this. yep, deffinitely a thechnophobe...

xoxo to all my reveiwers, love you all. especially thanks to the one whose name i can't remember who reviewed while logged in as someone else, sorry i never replied to you...

disclaimer: i own no one and nothing except for Lydia, but i don't even

really own her since she is a sort of mixture of Illona from Traitor's

Sun, that

fire witch from Patricia Wrede's Dragon books, and Joy In The Dance

from The

Arkadians.

warning: here's an idea, if you don't like slash, pretend that Lysander

is a

girl. Wait, that wouldn't work, that might imply femmeslash... Okay! if

you

don't like slash, pretend Tancred is a girl, that would work... or

here's a

better idea, if you don't like slash, don't read fics with slash

warnings!

"Tancred, I'd like you to meet your cousin Lydia." The girl called

Lydia

stood looking very small next to Tancred's large father.

She was short and skinny and looked a bit younger than Tancred, though

they

were both nearly fifteen. She had very red hair that was cut so messily

around

her shoulders it looked as though she might have cut it herself, and it

stood

out around her head in a very wiry, wavy way. Her eyes were big and

bright

and golden, her nose was long and straight, her mouth was small, set

above a

small, demanding chin.

Tancred stepped forward and held out his hand. "It's great to meet

you." He

forced himself to continue to smile after she raised her eyes to his

with a

definitely hostile glare. She ignored the offered hand. "my pleasure,

I'm sure."

she murmured before returning her angry glare to her shoes.

"Tancred," his father said, "I want you to show your cousin around the

neighborhood."

"Dad," he reminded his father, "I'm going over to Lysander's, I'm late

already."

"Oh, that's perfect, it will be good for her to meet some other endowed

kids."

A wind began to blow gently around the room, sifting dust back and

forth over

the floor, but Tancred spoke calmly.

"Dad, maybe Lydia wants to settle in now, and get unpacked. There'll be

plenty of time for her to meet Sander tomorrow."

The look on his face begged her to agree with his statement. Suddenly

she

smiled for the first time since she had boarded her plane that morning.

"Oh, cousin Tancred, I would love to meet your friend!" she gushed.

Tancred

could have throttled her.

All I wanted he thought was an afternoon with my best friend, it might

have

something to do with the fact that I just might love him, but even if

it

didn't, he reassured himself I would have every right to be upset.

He nodded and left the room without looking back to see if she would

follow.

Lydia was feeling vindictive.

She didn't want to be here, with these people she didn't know, and she

was

going to make this disgustingly polite cousin suffer for it.

It was obvious that he didn't want her along on this little outing.

Tancred

didn't really want her to meet this friend, and so, she decided, she

would

flirt outrageously with him, no matter what he looked like.

It didn't seem too awful of a prospect, flirting with him she

decided. He

did seem like the kind of calm, confident, responsible person she

usually

avoided at all costs, but there was no denying he was cute.

I bet my cousin Tancred would agree with me too she thought,

remembering the

slightly far away expression on his face when Lysander opened the door.

She

had noticed the expression, and it's possible implications, but it was

painfully obvious that Lysander had not.

Tancred walked out of Lysader's house practically dragging Lydia. He

was

fuming, and some people would have said that the hail coming down

violently was a

natural phenomenon, but the forecast had only called for a light

drizzle.

He had been near to strangling this newly met cousin several times in

the

last hour and a half. She was practically in his lap! he thought, and

thunder

roared overhead. He was not looking forward to showing her around

Bloors

tomorrow.

sooooooooo, whaddaya think? please reveiw, it makes me so happy...