As usual, Everett got his way. A few well thought-out comments about how Le Grand surely didn't want the whole school to know that he visited the local brothels while the students were sleeping soothed the Frenchman's anger a bit, but of course punishment could not be avoided.

At least their parents weren't notified; they had to stay at the school for the summer half term and perform church duties and service, though. These duties included a lot of really boring tasks, like cleaning the large cathedral, helping out with the services, fetching whatever the Bishop asked for, cooking for the workers, and a great many other things. The vacation was barely one, but they weren't kicked out of the school, and that in itself was very fortunate. Daniel had thought the worst when they got caught by Monsieur Le Grand. Everett really was a sneaky lad.

Somehow, even through the most boring of tasks, the boys managed to have fun anyway. When they were cleaning the church floors, it turned into a water fight – until the Bishop set them straight. It seemed that the most important thing was that they were together, then it didn't matter how they spent the vacation.

The weather got warmer all over England. Due to their good behaviour – most of the time, at least – they were spared off of some duties near the end of the half term, and the boys decided to go for a horseback ride down the Great Stour. Daniel saddled Charlie. He didn't have his own horse like most of the other boys at the school, but he had grown quite fond of the gelding. It had been very patient with him, and Daniel appreciated that greatly.

The boys reminisced about the incident with laughter. It had been a great experience. "I'll never forget the look on Le Grand's face! It was hilarious!" Timmy said, clapping his horse's neck. They had stopped by the river on the meadow right outside of town to give their horses a break and let them graze.

"'It sure is a surprise to see you boys here!'" Christopher parodied Monsieur Le Grand, and they all laughed even harder. Even Daniel, who hadn't been able to see anything funny about this earlier, couldn't contain his laughter.

"But the girls," Owen sighed, leaning against his golden mare, "Oh, the girls were completely worth it. I regret nothing."

"Even Danny got some action, didn't you, Daniel?" Everett chuckled as he settled down in the lush grass.

Daniel's smile disappeared. He didn't know what to say, but apparently he didn't have to say anything at all, for he didn't get a chance to answer. They all just laughed and congratulated him. "I honestly didn't think you had it in you! Respect, man!" He didn't tell them. He just forced a smile and nodded. There was no reason to ruin the good mood when they were all so impressed with him.

Timmy also sat down in the grass, raking up a few straws from the ground. "So, what are your plans for the summer vacation?"

"My parents are going to the cottage in Northamptonshire," Everett said, "You should all come along. We've got lots of space."

"It's true!" Christopher laughed, "The cottage is almost the size of the school! I was there last summer, we had a lot of fun. There were many fine ladies, I must say." He and Everett shared a knowing look.

The others' eyes widened in excitement. "Really? That sounds great!" Owen exclaimed, looking at the others.

"We should do it!" Harvey added.

"I can't."

The other boys fell silent and stared at their friend. "But... Why not?" Timmy asked, looking like a puppy that had just been kicked.

Daniel tried to think of an explanation fast. "Uh… My parents would never allow it," he said.

"That's unfair! We should talk to them!" Harvey insisted, and the others nodded with outraged but determined expressions on their faces.

"NO! No, no, no..." Daniel shook his head frantically, "No, that won't work. I'm sorry, it can't be helped." His friends stared at him, not uttering a word. He swallowed hard, then continued, "Besides, I have a lot of duties at home. We have plans. We'll be travelling. I need to look after my sister. I just ... can't."

They looked at each other, confusion apparent in their faces. "Well... If that's the case..." Owen muttered at last, looking disappointed.

"We'll tell you all about how it went! Promise!" Timmy said, nodding eagerly.

Christopher sent Daniel an encouraging smile, "It's all right. We'll have fun on your behalf, Daniel."

"Yes. We'll just pretend that you're there with us," Everett nodded, and the others agreed.

Daniel smiled. "Thanks, all of you." Their efforts were endearing. He would have liked to go with them to Everett's cottage, but as it was now, he couldn't. He wanted to stay in Canterbury with Serena.

The half term came to an end. The punishment really hadn't been that bad; it was already over. Daniel had expected something a lot worse. Hazel asked him why he didn't come home for the half term in a letter, but he didn't have the heart to tell her about his trips to town – and especially not his meetings with the indecent ladies – so he just told her that his friends wanted him to stay.

Everyone wanted to know about their adventure, that of course had been revealed by now, and no one was better at telling about it than Everett. He made it sound as if they were champions who brought down every lady they encountered. But as he had promised Headmaster Wallace, he did not mention Monsieur Le Grand's visits to the brothel.

Everything went back to normal. Daniel found himself concentrating a lot on his homework now that the school year was soon coming to an end. There would be some end-of-the-year exams, and the whole school was preparing for them. In one of the weekends, Daniel wanted to ask Professor Allen about his history assignment. He went to the teachers' quarters in hopes of finding the history teacher, but he found more than he bargained for.

As he entered the building and went down the hallway, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. The door to one of the professors' room was open, and he had been certain he had seen a person in there – someone who was not an educated adult.

He went back to the open door, only to be faced with a bewildered boy. They stared at each other for a short while, then the other breathed out in relief. "Oh, thank God! It's just you," he said.

"Everett!" Daniel exclaimed, looking distraught, "What are you doing here? Are you even allowed to be in Professor Lockhart's room?"

"Keep it down!" Everett hissed, "Of course not! Keep guard for me!" He turned around to continue what he was doing, opening another drawer in the chest of drawers he was standing by.

Daniel noticed that he had a bag in his hands. "What are you doing?" he whispered frantically. Everett chuckled, taking a piece of cloth out of the drawers. It was a pair of underpants. Daniel grimaced, "What are you going to do with that?! Put it back!"

"Don't be such a mood killer, Daniel!" Everett rolled his eyes, then opened the bag and tilted it over the briefs. The contents of the bag were some kind of white powder.

Daniel frowned. "What is that?"

"You sure ask a lot of questions," Everett said as he folded the piece of undergarments and put them back in the drawer again. He was about to pick up another pair, but apparently lost his patience and just decided on pouring the rest of the powder in the whole drawer. When he finished, he looked at Daniel again with a big grin. "I can't wait to see the look on Professor Lockhart's face! It's going to be genius!"

"What was that powder?" Daniel asked, feeling uneasy.

Everett bit his lip in excitement as he made sure that he had left no trace of his presence behind. He then turned towards his friend again and pulled him with him out of the room, locking the door behind them. "Let's just say that soon, he won't only have an itch for mathematics," he said and laughed.

Daniel's eyes widened. "You didn't!" he gasped, "What will you do when the Headmaster finds out? You'll be expelled!"

"But he won't find out," Everett said and stopped laughing. He looked at Daniel with a dead serious look and placed a hand on his shoulder, "You're my friend. I can trust you, right, Daniel?"

He stood for a moment and stared at the blond, unable to process what he had just witnessed. "B-but you broke the rules!" he blurted.

"It's just a harmless gag, Dan," Everett said, "No one will get hurt! It's just for fun."

Daniel looked down at his hands, not knowing what to say. This was dangerous. If anyone found out that Everett did this, he would be kicked out for sure. He had gotten caught in a brothel just a month ago! What was he thinking?

But maybe he was right. It was all just fun and games. Owen had mentioned that Everett and Christopher had an inside thing going on where they challenged each other, pulling off pranks on other students – even professors sometimes – so perhaps this was not as bad as it seemed.

"I-I guess," he mumbled at last.

"Great! I knew I could count on you, my friend!"

The incident was just as hilarious as Everett had said it would be. Professor Lockhart was a grumpy old man, the kind that genuinely hated children, yet was surrounded by them all day, every day. His furious shouts could be heard all over Canterbury.

"WHO DID THIS? WHO PUT ITCHING POWDER IN MY PANTS?"

Even the professors laughed about it. But of course, the culprit had to be found and punished, and so the interrogation of all the school boys began.

When Daniel and some of the other boys were brought into Headmaster Wallace's office, he was certain that they had already figured him out. Even though he hadn't been the one to commit the crime, he had still witnessed it, so he was just as guilty. Everett was also brought in with him, along with Timmy and Benjamin. Christopher and Harvey had been interrogated already. He looked so calm. If Daniel hadn't actually seen Everett pour the powder in the drawer, he would never have suspected anything.

Professor Lockhart was in the office with Wallace, his face still as flushed as it had been when the furious itching began. He was as unpredictable as a volcano, ready to erupt at any second. He looked like he wanted to tear the heads off the young men in the office. "Do you boys know anything?" Wallace said, looking intently at each one of them, "I hope you all know that it will be a better option to speak up. If you're a witness but don't tell, you're just as bad as the culprit."

Daniel stole a glance at Everett; he didn't flinch one bit. He almost looked bored. Daniel himself started to feel an itch, an itching need to tell that he knew and that he and Everett were sorry, but his tongue didn't cooperate. He kept silent.

Later that week, Daniel heard that one boy from a class below him had been expelled, as Lockhart had insisted that he was guilty. The boy wasn't allowed to participate in the mathematics exam and would have to repeat the subject class a year. Daniel felt horrible about it. The boy had been punished for a crime he didn't commit, and it was all because he didn't have the guts to face the consequences of his actions.

Everett didn't feel quite the same way. When Daniel was walking across the courtyard from the main building to the living quarters of the students, Everett caught him with an arm around his shoulder. Daniel looked up in a start. "Thanks, friend," he grinned, "We got away with it! It was genius! I couldn't have done it without you, Daniel."

Daniel forced a smile. Honestly, he would have preferred if he had never known anything about it in the first place. He knew that it was all just fun and games, but Everett had promised that no one would get hurt.

The examinations went well. Daniel had studied hard because he figured that the tests would be a lot more difficult than anything he had experienced at the village school, but it turned out that it was easier than expected. He had been stressing over nothing.

The others did well, too. Everett relied mostly on his own intelligence during the actual exam, not bothering to study. With his wits and charm, Daniel guessed he really didn't need to – he did fine without even working for it. Christopher did study, not because he was worried that he was going to fail, but because he knew that the exams were important, and he wanted to make his parents proud; he ended the school year with excellent grades. Harvey studied even harder than Daniel, but that was due to his tendency to be an achiever. Of course, he completed the exams with straight A's.

Timmy didn't have it as easy as the others. He had never been very bright, but he worked hard with Harvey, so he managed to achieve a respectable grade. He was so happy with the grades that he couldn't wait for his parents to hear about it, completely certain that they would be overwhelmed and proud of his efforts.

Owen studied with Daniel, but he did not take it as seriously. He kept telling Daniel that these exams wouldn't be important before their last year, and it wasn't going to be as hard as he thought. It turned out that he was right. He also did good in the exams. Daniel didn't know if Benjamin even studied, but it seemed like he did fine, too. He figured that he would have to, if his dream about becoming a physician was going to come true.

Returning home to the mansion, he almost regretted that he didn't go with the others to Everett's cottage in Northamptonshire, but at the same time he was excited about seeing Serena again. He knew that she had arrived in Canterbury nearly a month ago, and he was only returning just a few days before his birthday. He wanted to go find her as soon as he returned home, but something came up – as the carriage thundered into the courtyard, Daniel was met with an unexpected sight.

He didn't even wait for Charles to open the door for him; he immediately jumped out of the carriage and ran across the courtyard, past the mansion and towards the stables. "Mr. Philips!" he waved, "What are you doing here?"

Mr. Philips turned around. When he recognised the boy running towards him, he smiled and waved back, "Hello Daniel! Coming back for the summer vacation, aye?"

Daniel finally caught up with him, laughing. The beautiful colt, Mr. Philips had in a lead, neighed softly and nodded his head to get Daniel's attention. "Hello, Pride. I missed you, too," Daniel said and patted the horse's cheek.

"I tell you, Pride has not been the same since you left," Mr. Philips chuckled, "He hasn't been as cooperative with my other rider since he got to know you!"

Daniel couldn't keep a smile from forming on his lips. He remembered his first try on Pride back in Easter, and it had been perfect. It was as if him and Pride were meant to be rider and horse. "I must admit that I've felt the same way. The horses on the school just don't quite match the smoothness and grace of Pride's gait," Daniel said, fondling Pride's forehead. Then he turned to look at Mr. Philips with a raised eyebrow and a hand placed on his hip, "But just what are you two doing here? It's a bit of a long way from the farm, isn't it?"

Mr. Philips shook his sturdy head with a smile, "Pride is yours now, Daniel."

It took a while before the meaning of his words settled in. Daniel dropped his jaw, his eyes wide. "M-mine?" he blurted.

"Indeed," Mr. Philips said, amused by the look on the young man's face, "I'm only here to deliver him!"

Daniel stared at the farmer, trying to process what he was telling him. Pride nudged his shoulder, his ears turning back and forth. "B-but," he said, "I can't pay for him! I mean, I can't afford it!"

Mr. Philips placed a large hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry about it, Daniel. It's all already been taken care of. Your stepmother arranged it."

An alarm started wailing in Daniel's head. Suddenly he understood; he knew right from the start that it was too good to be true. The near look of pleasant surprise on Daniel's face was replaced with anxiety, "No! I can't accept him! He's your Pride, and you were going to make him your champion! A young inexperienced boy like me should not have such an excellent horse…"

But Mr. Philips had turned his attention away from Daniel, "Good day, Mrs. Wilkinson." Daniel turned around. The sight of the woman made him clench his teeth and fist his hands.

"And good day to you, Mr. Philips," Henrietta said. She was wearing a dress that looked far too posh to be going near the horse stables. Daniel wondered why she even had such a building, but he guessed it must have been built back when the lot belonged to the late Mr. Evans.

"Maybe you should explain to the young man here that the horse belongs to him now," Mr. Philips chuckled, "It seems that he won't take my word for it."

Henrietta eyed the young horse with those cold, calculating eyes of hers. Daniel cringed, wanting to remove it from her sight immediately. His loving Pride should not be the object of that woman's judgement!

She clapped Pride's flank, "This horse is a real jewel; he will be the perfect partner for you, Daniel. I bought him so that you can bring him to the school." Henrietta turned towards Daniel, "Consider it your birthday gift and a reward for the excellent grades of your exams. We received a note from the school about it. Your father and I are very impressed."

Daniel didn't look at her. The compliments did not affect him. The only thing, he could think of, was how he had to accept the beautiful horse now, knowing that he owed it all to Henrietta; that devious lady.

Mr. Philips smiled and patted Pride's neck. "I hope you'll take good care of him and keep up his training," he said, eyeing the horse with a look of melancholy, "If you ever need help, you know I'm not too far away."

"But Mr. Philips," Daniel said, feeling an immense amount of guilt, "I'm not sure if I'm cut out for training Pride... I thought you wanted to make him a race horse and get him to the Royal Ascot?"

"I did, but I've got other promising horses, and I'm going on an auction next week," Mr. Philips said with a reassuring smile, "Besides, if you wanted to, you would make an excellent jockey. But it would require you to start the training at once. Pride's bones need to be adjusted to the work while they are still developing."

Daniel was about to answer, but Henrietta cut him short, "Mr. Philips has agreed to help you with the training and you are allowed to use his training field. It's all up to you what you will do with your horse now."

He swallowed, feeling incredibly frustrated. He didn't know much about horse racing. He had talked about it with the other boys, and the class had even gone to see a few smaller racecourses. It had been amazing and definitely piqued Daniel's interest. But it was tough business training such a horse, he was sure.

"You'll do fine," Mr. Philips said, patting Daniel's shoulder, "I've already taken care of the worst part. He's a pleasure to work with now. You don't have to make him a race horse, there's no pressure."

How ironic that telling someone there's no pressure made someone feel even more pressured. Daniel forced a smile.

Mr. Philips turned towards Henrietta, "Oh well, I'll put this beautiful boy in his box now."

"Thank you, Mr. Philips," Henrietta nodded, and Mr. Philips continued his walk towards the stables, taking Pride with him.

Daniel watched him and Pride, refusing to look at Henrietta. She had done this on purpose. He was placed in a very difficult position now, and it was all thanks to her.

They remained silent for a while. Henrietta eyed her stepson, noticing how tense he was. "I feel sorry that you didn't tell me about your birthday last year," she said.

He didn't answer.

"I think that it should be celebrated. I have arranged for a family dinner, and I expect you to be cleaned up for it," Henrietta continued, "We'll be having guests."

She turned around and began walking back towards the mansion. The servants had finished carrying Daniel's luggage to his room, and the carriage had been put away. "Congratulations on your new horse, Daniel."

Daniel still didn't answer. He did not appreciate this one bit.

Only a few days after, it was Daniel's birthday. Sixteen years old, but less independent than ever, he thought bitterly.

The servants were going at it in the kitchen, cooking up some grand dinner for a whole lot of people that Daniel didn't know, but apparently were coming to celebrate Daniel's birthday. He did not have any plans of participating, though.

Hazel had promised to cover for him for as long as she could. After showering and putting on the nice clothes the maid had put out for him, he looked in the mirror one last time. Finally he could see it; he had grown. His shoulders were broader, he was taller. The white straightened shirt fitted nicely around his hardened chest and arms. His trousers did not hang loose like earlier. He stood firm and straight, not looking so skinny any more.

Daniel studied himself in the mirror, running a hand through his long, brown locks. Slowly, a smile formed on his lips. He looked handsome. Serena was going to be impressed, he just knew. Grinning to himself, he went out of the door and made his way down the hallway.

Reaching the end of the corridor, he peeked around the corner by the large staircase leading down to the entrance hall, making sure that no one was in sight. The hall was completely empty. It was almost too easy.

He ran down the stairs, successfully sprinting across the hall to the door, and locking himself out without anyone seeing him. As he had expected, everyone would be too busy getting ready for the dinner to notice him sneaking out.

Daniel didn't tell Serena that he was supposed to be attending a dinner in his honour at home. She was glad to see him, obviously having feared that he wouldn't return in time for his birthday. "Oh my, Daniel!" she cooed when they settled down out on the meadow by the Blean; their usual spot. "You… You…"

"What?" Daniel chuckled as he sat down beside her in the grass. The sun was shining brightly, reflecting sparkles in the Stour. It was beautiful.

Serena blushed, straightening out Daniel's shirt, "You look so trimmed… Your clothes are nice, and you have really grown! You are so tall now, I barely reach your chin!"

Daniel smiled smugly. "Thank you. I've also been training, have you noticed?"

"Oh, I couldn't tell." He nudged her shoulder so hard that she almost fell sideways into the grass. "Come on, Daniel, it was just a joke," she laughed.

"Well, it wasn't very funny," he mumbled, feeling slightly irritated. He found that he couldn't stay angry with his best friend for too long, though, and soon he was laughing along with Serena.

She sat up again, still smiling brightly at him. She looked different as well. When he first saw her, Daniel nearly dropped his jaw. The first thing, he had noticed, was her bust. Her chest area had grown a great deal, making her tiny waist look even smaller. Her face had matured, her hair gotten longer. She looked more like a woman than ever before.

Daniel smiled, feeling a warm sensation in his stomach. "You look very pretty, too."

Serena's eyes widened and she blushed, obviously not having expected anything like that coming from Daniel. A small smile formed on her lips as she averted her gaze from the young man by her side, mumbling, "You know... Even though I meet so many fine gentlemen in London, I can't help but feel that none of them can compare to you."

A tingle started right where the ball of warmth in his stomach had formed. Daniel held his breath, "Why not?"

"Why, because you're my friend, of course!" Serena said, laughing – though still without looking at him.

Daniel breathed out. He wasn't sure if that was what he had hoped to hear her say. Either way, at least he had succeeded in impressing her.

"Oh, by the way!" Serena said and started digging into her pocket, "I'm sorry that I didn't bring you any cupcakes this year... But I do have a gift for you." He sat up straight, eyeing her curiously. Serena took something small out and handed it to him, "I know it's not much, but... I want this to remind you of me when we are apart."

Daniel took the object. It was a locket. A silver heart hung on a delicate long chain. The design was simple, yet beautiful. The surface was flat, with the exception of a single curved line sprinkled with small silver jewels that followed along the right side of the heart.

"Open it!"

He glanced at her. She looked eager, but also a bit nervous. He focused his attention on the locket once again and clicked it open, revealing what was inside.

The insides were more intricate than the outside, with a lot of intertwining lines making out an abstract pattern. On the left side of the locket was an inscription. It said, Always be together. On the right side, there was a small image. He looked closer at it. It was a miniature painting.

"The whole family got their portraits done," Serena said, blushing, "I asked if I could have just a small painting. The artist was very talented, and also kind. He made this small portrait on my request."

A small signature of the artist, a Mr. Lionel Darcy, was visible in the right corner of the beautiful portrait, as well as the date of creation. Daniel looked at Serena; the painting resembled her, capturing a perfect moment of beauty. He couldn't think of anything better to remember her by. He put his arms around her, pulling her into a warm embrace. "Thank you so much. With this, I'll always have you close to me."

Serena hugged him back, a warmth filling her deep within. "Happy birthday, Daniel."

Daniel did not head home until it had become very late. The sun was almost down.

He had spent the whole day with Serena, feeling more happy than ever to be with her again. Even though he had met so many other beautiful young girls when he had gone out with his friends, they did not make him feel like he did when he was together with his best friend. He told her all about his new friends and the school – the good things, that was. He did not feel like telling her that he got caught in a brothel not too long ago; that certainly wouldn't make him very popular with the high class girl.

Seeing her having grown so much and having talked with the other boys about their experiences, he was starting to feel curious. She felt different when she leaned into his chest, and he suddenly became very conscious about where he placed his hands on her small frame. When he walked home, he felt so light that he thought he might be lifted off the ground any second. It wasn't until he stepped inside the mansion, he remembered that he had been supposed to attend his own birthday dinner.

"Where in heavens have you been?"

Daniel turned around. Henrietta stood by the entrance to the living room, her arms crossed and her brows furrowed together. Even though she appeared calm on the surface, there was no mistaking that she was furious.

The young man buried his hands in his pockets, looking at her expressionlessly. "Out."

"You were supposed to attend the dinner," Henrietta snapped, narrowing her eyes, "The great dinner that I planned for you. Important people of Canterbury – our friends – came to celebrate you. Do you know how long they waited? Three hours. Three hours they waited for you, and all the food became cold."

"I apologise," Daniel said, offering her nothing but a defiant look, "I forgot."

He turned around and went up the staircase, going to his room. Henrietta was left standing, fuming with anger.

Unappreciative, selfish brat.