Disclaimer: All characters and places that you recognize are not owned by me.

Chapter 2

Kel walked slowly in the direction of Lord Wyldon's office trying to think of what she had done wrong. Try as hard as she could and she still couldn't think of anything that was bad enough to be called to his office for. Had he seen the way she had acted with Roald at dinner? But she had only been playing! Did he want to remind her that she wasn't allowed to have a relationship with any of the boys but they were allowed to do what their hearts desired with the court ladies?

She knew that all of her friends had had at least one relationship since she had come off probation. She had been deeply hurt when she had found out all this stuff from her sisters, and their friends from court that had visited a few holidays back, instead of her friends.

She had been even more deeply hurt when she had found out that Neal had courted one of her sisters without even telling her. She had of course heard poetry about most of them but her friends had never told her that they were actually courting them. She sighed.

She could remember one poem that Neal had written that she had thought had sounded a bit like her sister Oranie, but Neal had refused to tell her who the poem was about no matter how much she had pleaded and pleaded.

Kel was surprised to find herself in front of Lord Wyldon's office. She had been lost in her thoughts. She took a deep breath to calm herself and quickly schooled any emotions from her face. She nodded to the servant outside the door and she opened the door and announced her.

I haven't done anything wrong, Kel reasoned, so I shouldn't be worried. He might just want to tell me that he's pleased with my progress in the past year... yeah right, she thought.

"Come in," called Lord Wyldon.

Kel opened the door and stepped inside the office.

"You wanted to see me My Lord?"

"Ahh yes, Keladry, please shut the door behind you, we have much to discuss."

Kel shut the door as thoughts raced through her head. Since when am I Keladry? I thought he called me Mindelan? What could we have to discuss? Has something happened? To my family? To Mindelan?

Lord Wyldon interrupted her thoughts by sighing and saying, "Keladry please have a seat, as I said before we have much to discuss."

Kel hesitated, she felt uncomfortable sitting in Lord Wyldon's presence and she was worried about her family, what could have happen to them? A flicker of uncertainty showed through her Yamani mask.

Seeing this Lord Wyldon sighed again, before pointing to the chair opposite his desk and barking, "Keladry! Sit!"

Kel sat without thinking. Her body was used to obeying orders like that.

Lord Wyldon hid a smile behind his hand.

Kel with a hint of desperation in her voice said, "What's wrong? Has something happened to my family?"

Lord Wyldon shook his head and Kel breathed a sigh of relief. "Noble thing that is, thinking about others before oneself," Wyldon grunted.

Kel looked at her feet, "T-thank you my lord."

Wyldon clapped his hands together and said in a brisk tone, "Now onto business…" he put his hands on the desk in front of him and continued, "I speak to you like I would my own daughter…"

Kel inwardly frowned, where had she heard that before? Ah yes now I remember, I think he said something like that when he told me I could stay after my probationary year…

Kel took light from that and tuned back into what he was saying. "…you're going to grow into a young woman soon…"

Kel instantly tuned out again, she had had so many talks with her mother, father, sisters and brothers over the last few months that they were starting to get repetitive.

Her brothers warned her about abuse, what to do and who to tell, her sisters had talked about love, first love, true love, first kiss, those 'special moments' when you stare deep into your true loves eyes and…her mother had been much more straight forward, telling her all about her monthlies and pregnancy charms and how to deal with them.

Finally, her father had just basically told her not to get distracted by love during her training, and that she should wait until she got her shield before she really got serious about having a relationship with anyone.

For the next few minutes Kel sat half-listening to Lord Wyldon drone on and on about everything that had absolutely nothing to do with anything. Ten minutes later when he was still going Kel felt that she had to disrupt.

"Excuse me? My Lord?"

He looked surprised at being interrupted; he obviously wasn't used to it, "Yes Keladry?"

"I don't really see where your going with this," she hesitated, "You see, I've already had talks like this with every member of my intermediate family," she smiled dryly, "and, not meaning to be pert my lord, but that's seven people and with all of them talking with me within six months of each other I don't think I'm likely to forget it anytime soon."

"Ah. I see."

Lord Wyldon sighed.

"I guess I'm going to have to tell you the real reason I brought you here now."

He reluctantly opened the top drawer in his desk and brought out a letter. Kel looked at it curiously. He handed it over to her and she was surprised to see that it was addressed to both of them.

"D-do you want me to read it my lord?" she asked.

He answered with a curt nod. Kel took a deep breath and opened the letter.

She drew in a sharp breath as she read the letter. After she had re-read the letter several times she shakily handed it back to Lord Wyldon.

She lent back in her seat and closed her eyes taking deep breaths trying to calm the thoughts racing around in her head. Outwardly she looked calm but inside she was in turmoil.

Oh why Oh why did this have to happen to me? Why mother? Why do I have to take these silly lady lessons? I don't want to learn to be a stupid fluttery court lady! I mean I might like pretty stuff but that doesn't mean I want to be a lady! If I wanted to be a lady then I would have gone to the convent. The whole purpose of court is to find a husband and I don't want a husband! I'm not allowed to court anyone my age and that means that if I end up courting someone they have to be a bloody Knight or a Lord or a Shang and as if any of them would want to court someone like me. I mean, look at me! I have bulging muscles…

Kel subconsciously looked down and to her horror she saw that leaning back in her chair had caused her pages uniform to become extremely tight. Showing off her newly acquired chest, hips and slimmed down waistline.

Kel sat bolt upright. "Sorry my lord, I-I dazed off."

"So I saw," said Wyldon in an amused voice.

Then in a more serious tone he said, "Are you OK with this Keladry? Because if you aren't I can write to your mother and say that I would prefer that you didn't take the lessons…" he trailed off looking expectantly at Kel.

Kel sighed deeply and replied in more or less a monotone, "No my lord, I could not ask you to do that. Clearly my mother wishes me to take these lessons."

She then said in a more hopeful voice, "besides the letter didn't say anything about court, maybe I'm just to take the lessons."

"So this is your final decision?" Lord Wyldon asked in a doubtful tone.

Kel hesitated for a second. This was her last chance to get out of the lessons forever. Her mother's disappointed face swam before her eyes.