Author Note:
Ok, so I was bad and didn't get this finished in time. Sowwie! Chapter 10 hasn't been started yet, but I will attempt to get it done in time for Monday. If I fail, it will be posted the following Monday so that posting can resume it's usually weekly schedule. However, I'm almost 100 percent sure that there are only 12 to 13 chapters in "Gift" so the story's almost over. Don't fear, there are 3 more after "Gift", but I just thought you could use a heads up. Anyway, onto chapter 9; this has not been proofed! I will go back and check over all the chapters as soon as the story is done, so bare with me.

Addendum:
Officially revised chapters 1-9

Review Replies:
Me: I don't mind. Just don't bother listing them for this chapter. It hasn't been proofed even once, so I'm positive there are a whole lot of mistakes. I just wanted to get it up since its two days late. Glad you're enjoying it though.

Starry: Aww… You're very welcome. Glad you love it, and the boys. I love them too.

-9-
Unexpected Changes

Asten didn't mention the match to anyone. Inara knew his pride had been hurt, so she didn't either. No one needed to know she was better with a sword than he was. Sir Zahir didn't appear to have informed Lord Padraig either, as the training master still continued to focus his attentions on the third year. Inara had known he wouldn't say anything. He'd have to admit she was good. Part of her wanted everyone to know, but it was a tiny part. She was more concerned with remaining friends with Asten. Friendships meant more to her than anything.

Instead of dwelling on their match, Inara found other things to occupy her mind, most specifically all the strange occurrences that had begun to happen over the past year and a half.

The first was the opal lighting up. She'd barely touched the pendent, but it had sparked and singed her fingers. She could still remember the biting pain she'd felt, but managed to conceal.

Not long after, she remembered warmth returning to the dangerously cold body of her enemy. She remembered shaking with fear and cold, unsure exactly what had really occurred during those moments.

The strange exhaustion that had filled her body during the ride south still remained unexplained. She knew it hadn't been exactly natural, but it hadn't been unnatural either. It was just strange.

Not having any broken bones when Gilyith jammed his hilt into her chest was surprising enough. The addition of the massive pain suddenly disappearing added to the mystery.

And lastly there was Thorville fainting during Midwinter service.

None of it made any sense to her, but she knew it all had to be connected. But how could such odd things happen around someone who was giftless; someone who'd been tested time after time, always with the same results. She spent hours in the library trying to figure out what was going on, but she found no answers. It was as if nothing like what she was experiencing had ever occurred before.

Finally Inara resigned herself to giving up her search. If the gods meant for her to be different, then she was to be different. If they meant for her to know what was going on, then she would learn what was going on. Until then, she would have to be content with what she had.

Lord Padraig switched up their training again in March. This time he decided they would practice with various weapons in groups. The group numbers varied in sizes, year make up, commanders, and weapons. Sometimes one group would be completely unarmed against a group that carried weapons. There were always different results.

Towards the middle of the month, Inara was assigned as an archer in a group commanded by Lorrence. They were supposed to be defending a small group of buildings that was their "town". Inara lay belly down on the roof, watching as Yancy's opposing force tried to break through Lorrence's first line of defense – pike and spear men. Lorrence had ordered the archers not to fire unless the enemy managed to break the line. They had limited resources, and even if they managed to fend off one attack, wasting arrows could mean ultimate defeat unless they killed every one of the enemy. However, it wouldn't do them much good if their first line all ended up "dead".

Inara kept her eyes on the area directly in front of her despite hearing the sounds of bows releasing behind her. Obviously Yancy's men had broken the line on the other side of the town. Still, Inara obeyed her orders. She was to protect the ground that was in front of her, and let her group mates assigned to watch the rear do their jobs. She eventually heard the sound of wooden practice swords clashing. There was fighting going on in the streets below her.

Inara finally looked up when she heard something thud against the roof just below her foot. She whirled around to see a first year standing up on a rooftop behind her. He was fitting another arrow in his bow, while making a drastic target of himself. She sighed and swung around fully as he released. His second shot was better aimed and he hit her in the thigh. She winced as the blunt shaft struck her, releasing red chalk. She immediate shot him, hiting him square in the chest. Lord Padraig who'd watched the exchange called out that the boy was dead. He'd get yelled at for standing later. Inara looked at Lord Padraig who shook his head. She would live, if she bandaged her wound and the battle didn't go much longer. She immediately pulled some of the bandaging they'd been supplied with out of her tunic and bound her leg as her father had taught her, before turning back to the battle. The first line below her had been forced to retreat. She was now allowed to choose her targets at will. Anyone who saw her was immediately taken out, and none of the ground troops allowed anyone to scale the roofs again and pick off the archers. Yancy's men were forced to surrender. Despite the weak first line, Lorrence had placed his best men as the "towns" second and third line of defenders. As Yancy's archers laid down their weapons, one of Lorrence's sword men got cocky and turned around, his back to the enemy. It wasn't over until their instructors told them so, and one more loss could be enough to tip the scales. Hakim who was on Yancy's side knew this and aimed his sword at the boy and closed in. Inara cursed because she was forced to raise up to get a clear shot at her year mate. As her arrow hit Hakim directly in the belly, another arrow struck her own, once again, showering her with red chalk. She muttered curses as she saw Sam mouth the words "sorry". She shook her head and began to descend. She was forced to stop as pain gripped her stomach. It didn't make sense. Sam's arrow had been just as blunt as all the others. She brushed it off as the pain disappeared as quickly as it had arrived. She joined the other dead, which included the Arwin. His chest was covered in chalk. He'd been the idiot who'd stood straight up on the roof and shot at her.

Lord Padraig awarded Lorrence the victory, although he told him he needed to work on his defense a little more, before looking over the victims to make sure no one was seriously hurt. He paused when his eyes fell on Inara, one of the last casualties.

"Queenscove, are you alright?"

She frowned and nodded. "I'm perfectly fine, my lord. Why do you ask?"

"You're bleeding, page," he told her matter-of-factly, his eyes darting to the fake bandage on her leg. Inara frowned again and looked down at her leg. Sure enough the white bandage was soaked through with blood. Frightened, she untied it. Her clothing was dark with blood, but not only on the side where the arrow had struck her, but on both. Realization dawned on her as she heard Arwin argue that he'd used the same arrows everyone else had. There was no way he could have wounded her so badly. Inara's cheeks flushed bright red.

"My lord; may- may I be excused?" she asked, mustering all her strength, but nothing could make her meet his eyes. The man's eyes went wide and he nodded immediately.

"Go. Return when you can."

Inara took off at a run before any of her friends could question her or ask if she was alright. She knew what had happened, but there was absolutely no way she was alright. She was completely and totally mortified. She didn't stop running until she reached the pages' wing, and she only paused to momentarily knock on Salma's door and request Lidia come to her rooms as soon as possible. The maid was to let herself in.

Inara slammed the door shut behind her as soon as she entered the room and let the tears fall that had been threatening since she left the practice courts. She pulled off her clothing, and threw it onto the floor, and stood in her room wearing only her loin cloth with was crimson red. She cried even harder, falling to the floor. She was incredibly embarrassed. The boys would have questions; ones that she couldn't or wouldn't answer.

"Lady?" Lidia called as she let herself into the page's room. Inara looked up through tears. Lidia saw her sitting there, practice clothes strew across the room. Only when she picked up her mistresses pants did she realize what was wrong. "Oh my; in front of all the boys?" Inara nodded in response. "My poor lady; come now, stand up. It'll do no good getting the floor dirty."

"What am I going to do?" Inara asked through her sobs as she obeyed. Lidia looked over the floor. No damage done, she turned to Inara.

"First I'm going to get your bath water heated," Lidia told her pointing to the bucket she'd brought with her. "Then while you scrub, and I mean everywhere, I'm going to get you the pads women use. You know what this is?"

Inara nodded again. "Mama told me. But she was fourteen when she got hers."

"Everyone's different, Lady," Lidia replied, as she set the water to heat on the fire. Inara brushed her tears away. "It's the mark of the goddess upon all us womenfolk. We can't change that any more than we can pick when it happens. My ma got hers when she was eleven. I didn't get mine till I was thirteen."

"But what do I tell the boys? They all saw that I was bleeding."

"You tell them that this one is none of their business. Most of them will understand. Those that don't you have to ignore. Your friends who do will probably explain it in terms the other boys can understand."

"But I don't want them discussing me, or this," Inara argued. "I don't want this."

"I know you don't; but I already told you. You can't change it. Would you rather explain it to them yourself? Trust me, better the older boys explain it to the younger ones than you trying to do it. I tried explaining to my younger brother. He started asking all sorts of questions and embarrassing me more. He didn't stop till my Da came and told him something in his ear. He shut up immediately."

Inara nodded and finally started to quiet. Lidia hugged her and went to fill the tub with the water. She came back and ushered Inara into the room. "Remember to bathe everywhere and toss your dirty loin cloth out here. I'll see that it's washed with the rest of your soiled clothes."

"Thanks Lidia," Inara replied and did as she was told. Lidia just nodded and went to do as she promised.

Inara joined the rest of the pages at lunch. She'd missed tilting while she'd bathed and had stayed in her room until the lunch bell rang. Nervous about the questions she'd receive, Inara watched her shoes as she entered the mess and got her lunch. She sat at her regular table with all of her friends. They were there when she sat down.

"Is everything alright Queenscove?" Evan asked when she was settled beside him. She nodded without looking up at her food. "You didn't need a healer?"

"No," she muttered.

"What happened?" Corin asked her, shoveling food into her mouth. She knew that question was coming. She didn't know if she should be relieved or not that it was from her cousin. She looked up at all her friends and sighed.

"I'd rather not say. It's personal," she told them, code for "my business; not yours."

"But if you're hurt," Nick started to say, before he winced. Yancy had kicked him.

"Then it's forgotten," he assured her, smiling. Inara smiled back. Lidia was right. The older boys all understood, and they would explain it to the younger ones without causing Inara any unnecessary embarrassment.

"So, what else did Lord Padraig say?" she asked her friends.

"He said you all got lucky. Yancy should have won, but Lorrence choose the best archers. He also scolded Arwin big time for standing and giving you such an easy target for no reason," Sam told her. "First years," he added, shaking his head.

"Hey!" Nick exclaimed, causing all the others to laugh.

They ate their lunch and cleaned up together, and just as Yancy promised, the earlier incident was forgotten. Inara followed her friends to her classes as usual. It wasn't until she walked into her class on magic that she noticed that something else had changed. The room that was usually set up like all her other classrooms was empty. It glowed eerily white; power radiating all around. Only when the glow began to hurt her eyes did Inara look down and realize that the floor looked like everything else. She couldn't see if she was really standing on anything. It was just one big white void. She squeaked in dismay. None of the boys seemed particularly happy about it either.

"Alright boys; today we're going to study illusions," Master Numair told them, coming into the room. He was grinning from ear to ear and didn't seem the least bit bothered about the lack of a floor.

"I'm not sure I'm going to like this," Benton muttered to her. Inara nodded. Master Numair moved into the center of the room and began quizzing the pages on what they knew about illusions and how they worked. Inara and Corin both did well; their parents had drilled illusion information into their heads from day one. Only after he was certain the pages knew how to recognize illusions did he begin to demonstrate.

Almost immediately the space around Inara began to shift until all the pages in the room were standing in the middle of an open field. Inara took a few deep breaths, smelling the air. It felt real enough, but she knew it was only because Master Numair's power was so strong. Sounds of horses approaching reached her ears and an army bore down on the pages, who suddenly realized they were weaponless. Everyone looked around frantically for the practice swords they were supposed to be carrying. Only when the army was mere feet away from them, did the illusion shatter, leaving several pages cowering on their knees. Some were stark white, while other appeared sick to their stomachs. Inara realized her hands were shaking and sweat was rolling down her face.

"You all did as well as can be expected. Even though you knew it was going to be an illusion, you couldn't help but fear. A well trained mage can destroy an entire army with a single illusion, as you just saw. We'll be practicing this until you all can remain calm in the midst of a seemingly dangerous situation," the mage told them. "You're all dismissed," he added.

"That was fun," Asten remarked as they walked out. He was still white from the experience. "You would think that these people would be tired of trying to kill us before we get our shields."

"Practice makes perfect," Corin told him, laughing a bit. "It wasn't that bad."

"Then how come you started praying to Mithros?" Yancy asked him. Evan and Sam caught up to them in the hall.

"Everyone's all stired up. What happened?" Evan asked.

"Master Numair demonstrated the power of illusions and nearly gave us all heart attacks," Benton informed them.

"Aren't you over reacting?" Sam asked him. Benton just shook his head as the whole group laughed.

The rest of the afternoon went smoothly and Inara returned to her room before they were supposed to be at supper. She entered her room to see a stack of linen pads on her bed, as well as a bucket of compresses sitting over the fire, and a note from Lidia.

Lady Inara,

I hope everything went alright for you. If you need to talk, send for me; I'd be happy to. The linen pads on your bed are for you, and there are warm compresses by the fire. They should help with the pains. Use bandages to tie them in place on your lower stomach. Just leave your soiled pads on the privy floor and I'll be sure to have them washed. If you need anything else, just send for me.

Lidia.

Not for the first time was Inara thrilled to have at least one female friend at the palace. She took one of the pads and retreated into the privy to change, just after making sure her door was safely latched shut.

Lord Padraig was there when she arrived at supper but he just looked at her instead of giving her punishment work. She wished he had when some of the boys started murmuring about special treatment. Granted, most of them thought she'd been injured, so at least she wasn't embarrassed by it. She took her usual place between Sam and Evan at the table, and began chattering with her friends as usual. As far as Inara was concerned, there had been enough changes for one day. Too bad for her, the training master felt differently. As supper ended, he stood up on the dais and looked all of them over – their signal that he was not yet through with them and they would have to wait a bit longer before being allowed to leave.

"A few announcements for you boys; then I will let you get to all your work that I know you're undoubtedly dieing to do. First of all, against my better wishes, His majesty has decided to hold a ball in two weeks time to celebrate his highness's birthday from this past Midwinter since Prince Jasson was unable to be here then. Normally this would not concern us, but His majesty has decreed that the ball will be for the young nobles of the kingdom, not the court. He has invited the daughters of the convent to escort the young ladies to the palace, as well as inviting the students of the royal university and some of the young mages at the city of the gods. And, he has invited all of you. You will be having an extra hour of etiquette lessons with Master Oakbridge starting tomorrow until the ball to make sure you do not shame your teachers."

When he finished speaking for a moment, the pages stared at him blankly. This was most certainly news for them. As much as most of the boys would rather not spend more time in etiquette lessons, the prospect of a party that they could attend was worth it. Murmurs immediately went up through the pages and the few squires who were in the hall.

"Calm down," Lord Padraig told them. "Anyone who gets punishment work will not be allowed to attend," he added. The boys and Inara didn't really seem to care.

"Second, fourth years are going to start getting less extra work for the next month and a half or so that is left in the year. This is because every night after supper, they will be required to spend an extra hour of training with myself and several of your other instructors. Anyone else is welcome to these lessons as long as they stay on top of their other work."

Once more, the pages were surprised, unused to so many changes at once. And Lord Padraig didn't appear to be done. "Lastly, Monday and Wednesday evenings starting two bells after supper for a full hour, I will be having additional sword lessons for several select pages. You will receive a letter in your post tomorrow if you're to be included. These lessons are not optional," he told them. "You're dismissed. Your new schedules will start tomorrow. Do not be late for anything." The training master didn't wait for them to bow or even acknowledge that he was finished. Instead, he left the dais, leaving behind some very stunned pages.

"Well, that was certainly different," Benton told them, as they headed back to Yancy's room for studying that night.

"You're gonna have to study in someone else's rooms if Evan and I are going to be attending these training sessions," Yancy replied, simply nodding to the younger boy's statement.

"I wonder what they're going to involve," Evan mused. He definitely appeared lost in thought. Inara remained silent as the other boys discussed Lord Padraig's announcements. Asten's mind was on the sword lessons. Would they be for the boys who actually needed more practice? Or would they be for the advanced students? He was hoping it was the latter. He wanted to learn more. Corin, Sam, and Benton were all discussing the possibilities that might arise for the fourth years, while Nick, with boundless energy was already debating how he might get all his work done and attend the lessons himself. "What about you, pup? What do you think about the new schedules?"

"I can't help but wonder if they'll let me go as a girl, or if I'll have to escort some giggling young lady like the rest of you."

"What?" Asten asked her confused.

"The ball."

"Everything that was announced, and the one thing you concentrate on is the ball?" Sam asked in disbelief. He thought for sure she'd be wondering about the sword lessons. "You really are a girl."

"Naturally," she replied, with a laugh. "But can you imagine? I'm not sure which would be better: going as a lady or a page."

"Lady," Evan, Yancy, Sam, Corin, and Asten told her.

"Page," Benton and Nick exclaimed at the same time. Inara looked at them. "Ok, so I just thought the idea of you dancing with another girl would be funny," Benton added.

"I didn't. But you wouldn't be the puppy if you went as a lady. Besides, we might have to dance with you, and I saw how you step on Asten's feet when Master Oakbridge pairs you up," Nick laughed. Inara cuffed him in the head. Nick dodged her fists and sprinted down the hall, Inara chasing after him, laughter echoing from her friends.

"Fetch puppy!" Yancy called after her.

"If you catch him, we'll help you bury him," Corin added.

The next day after morning practice, Inara returned to her room to bathe before supper. Lidia had her bath water warming on the fire, and a stack of post on her desk. There was a letter from Emry telling her that he wasn't sure if he and Kennith would be able to attend the ball for Prince Jasson's birthday. They both were at crucial points in their studies, and time off could prove detrimental to their progress. Inara understood. Her brothers were all as determined about their futures as she was. A second letter proved to be from Baird. He was absolutely sure he would unable to attend, but he wished her luck on her upcoming examinations. As much as she understood, she missed Baird the most. They'd always been close and it hurt that she hadn't seen him since the summer before she started her page training. At this rate, she probably wouldn't see him for a long time. Another letter had arrived from her parents, also concerning the ball to be held. Her father had sent a small sum of money to her account at the palace so she could purchase a new gown. Inara had to laugh; that settled it. If she were allowed to attend as a young lady, she would. After all, her mother had gone to the trouble of securing money from her father for her.

The last letter in the stack was more like a note. Written in her training master's familiar hand was a request that she begin attending the additional sword practices the following evening. She wasn't sure if the request was a good thing or a bad thing, but she would wait and see who else was present before she panicked. It did no good dwelling on things that she couldn't change, just like the strange instances that surrounded her.

That evening Inara brought her extra work to supper, and ignored most of her friends' conversations in favor of doing mathematics. Twice she got up to ask Seth, who sat with the squires that night, for help. After her second trip, Evan finally interrupted her, placing his hand on her book.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing?" he asked her with one eye brow raised. "It's unhealthy to be so interested in school work. You're not ill are you?"

"Haha," Inara replied, closing her books. "I want to find out what your new lessons are about so I'm trying to get a head start on my work."

"You want extra lessons?" Asten asked her, unbelieving. "She really must be ill," he added to the rest of their group. Inara just slugged him in the arm.

"I'm not sick. I'm curious."

"Curiousity killed the cat," Yancy told her, taking a sip of his juice.

"Good thing I'm a puppy, then," she replied simply. "Besides, everyone always forgets the last part – 'and satisfaction brought it back'."

"Hate to burst your bubble, but I highly doubt any extra lessons will be all that satisfying," Corin remarked.

"Oh, I don't know. I'm thrilled to swap extra work for more lessons," Yancy told them.

"Only you and Evan get that luxury," Asten answered. "Lucky me, I get extra sword lessons but the same amount of work. How is that fair?"

"You've got extra sword lessons, too?" Inara completely disregarded his question. Asten nodded. "Good. That means I'm not atrocious."

"I should say not," Asten laughed. "You're dangerous with a blade," he added. "You thought you were horrible?"

"Well," Inara muttered, looking down.

"Awww, she's pretending to be humble," Sam laughed, poking her in the side.

"I'm not pretending," she protested, squirming away from Sam.

"Right," Evan told her sarcastically. "Come off it. You know how good you are with the sword. So, anyone else besides our two prodigies get an invite to Lord Padraig's little sword party?" Sam nodded (he was the second best in his year), but the rest of the group shook their heads. "Well, that settles it. Lord Padraig wants to teach you all some advanced stuff."

Inara just grinned in response. She was glad Lord Padraig thought highly of her skills and she was even happier that Asten and Sam would be joining her as well. She would have hated it if she were the only one.

She finished eating, inputting into the conversation every so often while she continued to do her work. As supper ended, she and Nick stayed behind with Evan and Yancy, even though Nick was already behind on his own work. He swore he wouldn't stay for more than the first night if he continued to lag in his work, but he really wanted to know what the lessons would be about.

Lord Padraig stood on the dais and looked over the five fourth years and the others who'd stayed: Inara, Nick, Martin of Tameran, and Edmond of Disart. He appeared to be contemplating letting the younger pages stay, before finally sighing, as Master Numair entered the room.

"I suppose you all want to know what we'll be studying over the next month an a half. Part of it will be strategy and tactics," he told them. "The other part will be something more pressing. We're going to study ways to successfully fight and destroy Odocoileus. As squires, you will inevitably encounter these immortals. Alone, they are not difficult enemies, but in groups, you lives can be in danger. We want to make you as prepared as we can for what waits for you outside the castle walls."

The boys all nodded their understanding, realizing that these lessons would be important and much more serious than any of their other lessons. Inara took note of the fear that showed on Evan and Yancy's faces as well as those of Gilyith, Lorrence, and Thorville; all who would become squires if they passed their big examinations in April.

"Tonight I've asked Master Numair to review what is already known as fact about these immortals. If there is time at the end, we'll touch on some of the strategies used in the immortals war."

The next hour went by faster than Inara realized. They never got to the immortals war, as Master Numair and Lord Padraig spent the hour sorting through what the pages knew, instructing them on what was fact, and what was fiction. Finally they heard the loud bells calling the hour. Most of the pages, save Nick and Edmond, were disappointed to find out that they would have to leave. Only when Lord Padraig reminded them that they actually had work to get done, did they all reluctantly leave the mess hall.

Inara reported to Corin's room where their friends were already deep into their extra work. Yancy, Evan, and Nick joined them shortly after. It took Inara nearly to lights out to get through at least a good majority of her work. It was rare that anyone ever finished, but Inara set her standards to at least eighty-five percent finished to be acceptable. She knew that meant that Monday and Wednesday nights she would be unable to attend the fourth years extra training if she was to report to her own sword lessons right after. She would have to resign herself to Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays with the older pages, and she would have to work on her school work during supper. However, judging by their first lesson, it would be worth it. She crawled into her bed that night, ignoring the dull ache in her abdomen, as she snuggled beneath the blankets and thought about her new schedule.

The following day was Wednesday, meaning her first extra fencing lesson with Lord Padraig and the advanced pages. She could barely sit still through most of the day. By the time supper came, Inara was bouncing off the walls in excitement. Evan had to remind her twice that she actually needed to finish her supper or she wouldn't have the strength to survive sword lessons. She stuck her tongue out in response, but settled down to actually eat something, while also working on some of her course work. Her friends had given up on persuading her from working so hard as none of them could get through to her.

She barely concentrated while they were working in Corin's room. Finally Asten stood up and stretched. The clock in Corin's room showed that it was almost ten to the hour. If they weren't to be late, the three would have to leave then. Inara followed him, and Sam agreed to meet them there; he'd forgotten to grab his practice sword from his room, and now had to go get it. Inara waved him off and fell into step beside Asten. They were half way to the practice court when Asten started talking.

"Inara," he began.

"Hmm?" she replied, not looking up. She hadn't been alone with him since the awkward ending of their duel.

"I wanted to apologize. I shouldn't have been angry," he told her. "I wasn't angry really."

"It's alright," she muttered. She still had no idea why he'd reacted that way. She wasn't entirely sure she wanted to.

"No, it's not," Asten continued. "I acted like a jerk, and well, that's not right. That's not how a gentleman is supposed to treat a lady." Inara opened his mouth to argue, but Asten shook his head and cut her off. "You are too a lady; just because you wear pants and know how to use a sword doesn't make you not a lady."

"Thanks."

"Listen, I… well, I have way too much pride. I wasn't mad. My pride was just hurt that day, and well, I acted like a wounded four-year-old. Can you forgive me?"

"Of course," Inara replied, glancing up at him. "Does this mean you'll do another free style duel with me?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I may be able to admit my pride was hurt, and that I was stupid, but there's no way I'd put myself through it again," he laughed. "I still have some pride left."

"You're incredible," she laughed back as they entered the practice court.

Sam joined them only a few moments later, sword in hand. He began to clip it to his waist as Lord Padraig walked in. There were only two other pages in the room: Gilyith and Martin. Together, the five of them made up the best of the pages fencers. And apparently they were going to be taught more than they ever had before, from Lord Padraig.

"Hollyrose, you'll pair with me," Lord Padraig began, singling Asten out. "Marti's Hill, you're with Tameran. Queenscove and Tirragen, pair up."

The pages did as they were told. Lord Padraig spent the first fifteen minutes warming them up. He had then do repetitive simple drills until each move was executed perfectly and their blades moving in unison. By the time they were done, all five pages were sweat soaked.

"Now, we start the difficult stuff," the training master smiled at all of them. Inara groaned inwardly, her muscles aching from the effort they'd already put in. However, just like the boys, she put on a brave face and listened carefully. Lord Padraig explained that they were to work on the warm up routine on their own, in their spare time. They were to stretch when the arrived at the lessons, not wait for him. Each time they had lessons, Lord Padraig would pair with a different page so they could all learn from him first hand. As soon as he finished explaining the rules, he began teaching them the starts of more complex patterns.

Inara thought she was going to die by the end of the hour. Her muscles were screaming for relief, and her abdomen was aching severely. More than anything she wanted to curl up in a ball and fall asleep, but she still had work to do. Lord Padraig complimented them all on their effort, and reminded them to practice before dismissing them as the bell called the next hour.

"Anyone else wonder if he was trying to kill us?" Asten complained.

"Asten, you always think Lord Padraig wants to kill us," Sam replied.

"Because he does!"

"Kill us, no," Inara broke in. "Destroy any ability to use our arms, yes. Mine feel like pudding."

"Lucky. I'm pretty sure mine are made of lead," Sam replied.

"Lets go tell our friends how lucky they are not to have to go through this torture," Asten added. Inara and Sam barely nodded agreement as they followed the older boy down the corridor.

By the time she finally got to bed that night, Inara had decided that despite aching arms, the lessons would be worth it. She knew with the right training, she would actually be worthy of Asten believing she'd hurt his pride. Had he not tired himself out, he would have won. In her eyes, he was the better swordsman.

By Sunday, Inara's cycle had finally finished, and she could stand up without wincing in pain. She'd gotten a letter on Thursday from Lord Padraig explaining that she was allowed to wear a gown to the Prince's party, so long as she acted like the rest of the pages. Just because she wasn't going to be wearing the royal uniform like the rest of her friends, didn't mean she was excused from service. If anyone requested something of her, she was to perform the action. Inara had thanked him kindly and rushed to tell Lidia. She wanted her maid's help deciding what dress she was to wear.

Now, Lidia had picked up her mistress's dress from Miss Lalasa's dress shop, and was doing a final fitting to make sure the dress would be perfectly for Saturday evening. Inara stood in front of the mirror looking at her reflection. The gown was a soft light blue silk with a sheer lavender over robe, similar to the gown the lady knights had bought for her at the start of the year. She would have loved to wear it, but it was at Lalasa's being altered to fit her new height. As beautiful as the new dress was, something seemed wrong. It wasn't sitting right.

"I don't get it. It fit nearly perfectly at Lalasa's on Friday," she told her maid who was fixing the gown's hem. Lidia stood up and looked at her mistress's reflection, and then at the actual girl.

"Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh what?" Inara replied. She turned her eyes to the young woman.

"Promise you won't go crazy?" Lidia asked her. Inara sighed and nodded. Lidia pointed at her chest. Inara frowned and gazed in the mirror to figure out what she was supposed to be seeing. Finally her eyes bulged and her mouth went dry. "Lady?"

"The Goddess is playing games with me!" Inara exclaimed throwing her arms up. Lidia grabbed her and pressed them back down, not wanting the annoyed page to rip the dress.

"It's an easy enough problem to fix. I'll take your measurements and bring the dress to Miss Lalasa. I'm sure she'll be able to alter it in time. After all, you're the only young lady at the palace who needs a gown."

"But why now?"

"Why now what?"

"Why these?" Inara groaned. She had already pulled the dress off her head and was now staring at her figure in the mirror. Two prominent bumps stood out on her chest, and she was almost positive they hadn't been there the day before. "First I get my cycle, and now this?"

"You were bound to turn into a lady at some point, Lady. Surely you didn't believe you'd become a man?"

"Of course not," Inara retorted. Lidia could see that she was close to tears and sighed, wrapping her arms around her.

"Then this is a good thing," Lidia told her. "It's much less of a nuisance than your monthlies were. And now you really are a woman."

"I'm twelve."

"Yes, a twelve-year-old woman. And all young woman get to wear face paint to balls," Lidia told her, trying to appeal to every young lady, page or otherwise. Inara looked up, and brushed her eyes.

"Really?"

"Just a little. Maybe some eye and lip color. I wouldn't want your papa mad at me," Lidia told her younger mistress. Inara laughed a little at that. "I'm going to pick you up some breast bands and bring this dress to Lalasa. Stand up," Lidia ordered. Inara obeyed, and her maid briskly took her new measurements and fled the room.

Inara sighed and pulled on a shirt and breeches. She walked back over to the mirror and gazed in. She frowned for a moment and then pulled the shirt tighter so that it exposed the shape of her chest. She also noticed her waist was a bit thinner, giving a bit more curve. She turned to see her reflection from the back, just as someone knocked.

"Come in," Inara called, still examining herself. She wondered how Lidia had finished so quickly.

"Hey, pup… I came to see if… oh."

Inara's eyes shot open at the sound of Evan's voice. She quickly released her shirt and turned to face him, a beat red blush across her face. How on earth could she have been dumb enough to let one of her friends see her in such a girly situation?

Evan had already averted his eyes, obviously just as embarrassed as she was. Not for the first time, Inara had to wonder how interested in girls Evan was. After all, he was fourteen years old. Even Yancy who was a few months younger seemed interested in the fairer sex, or at least he claimed to be.

"I didn't mean to… um."

"It's alright. I should have locked the door," Inara broke off. She started pulling on her harness and struggled with a bit. Evan moved to help her. As soon as it was settled, she groaned. She'd need Lidia to take it to get the leather straps loosened, as well as the rest of her clothes. "You needed me for something?" she asked him, pulling on a tunic, and trying desperately to alter the subject.

"Yeah… um, we were all headed out to one of the ponds for a little. We wanted to know if you were up to coming along."

"Definitely; I'll meet you in the stables in five minutes?"

"Yeah," Evan replied, still a bit flustered. He nodded and left, closing the door behind him. Inara locked it and leaned against it and let a few embarrassed tear drops fall as she fought to compose herself. She was getting just a little tired of all these changes. It just wasn't fair – none of the other pages had to deal with this.

Inara stood in her room a week later once again in front of the mirror. This time her dress fit perfectly. Evan hadn't mentioned the awkward moment and neither had she. They had a very clear, unspoken agreement that it didn't happen, which was one of the reasons Inara loved her friends so much. They respected her enough that they understood one another perfectly. Inara had requested that none of them see her gown until the night of the dance, so Lidia had gone to Yancy's room to help all the boys make sure their uniforms looked perfect. She'd already finished Inara's facepaint, and Inara was just finishing her own hair when someone knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" she called, having learned her lesson.

"Its Sam," the page on the other side of the door called. Inara let a small smile pull across her lips as she went to the door and unbolted it, opening it wide. She would be happy to have her year mate's opinion. For his part, Sam just sort of stared at her.

"So, what do you think?"

"Wow… you look amazing."

"Thank you," she laughed, letting him inside and slipping her feet into her silk slippers. She glanced in the mirror one last time before turning back to him. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"Well, um… ok, so we were all thinking that well… if you're going to this thing as a lady, you need an escort."

"I need an escort?" She laughed, sitting down on the bed, careful not to wrinkle her dress.

"Yeah; None of the other ladies at this ball will be there alone. It's not proper, even if you are a page," he added before she could jump in that she was an equal to them. "We want you to be a page and a proper lady. And we won't have it any other way."

"Who's we?"

"Everybody. Well, me, Evan, Asten, and Corin. But the others agreed."

"So you're going to be my escort?" She giggled.

"Didn't think you'd mind; we figured it'd be the most proper since we're the same age. Nick volunteered."

"How very gallant of him," Inara agreed. She stood up and nodded. "Shall we go then," she added with a smile. She was actually really flattered that her friends wanted to protect her honor, even to the point of escorting her to a ball. She had been slightly worried about the fact that she'd have been the only girl without an escort.

"Of course," Sam agreed and offered her his arm with a bow. Inara laughed and curtsied, taking his arm. Together they left the room and wandered down the hall to the ball room, talking about their lack of extra work from Friday so they would all be able to attend. The only other bit of news was that even though the ball was in honor of Prince Jasson's fifteenth birthday, the prince himself would not be in attendance. At the last minute, a mixed group of immortals, led by a few Odocoileus had attacked several villages in the royal forest, and Third Company who was on their way back for the ball, had been the closest group to rescue the people. Jasson had written to his grandfather that he had begged Lord Raoul not to make him turn his back on his people when the knight commander suggested leaving his second in command in charge and escorting the prince to the palace for the party.

Still, the party was to go on as too many of young nobility were invited for it to be canceled. Inara and her friends were a little upset that they wouldn't be seeing Jasson, but Seth was still there, although he and Sir Seaver were planning on leaving the following day for the border once again.

Sam led Inara into the ball room towards a table where the rest of their friends were standing. Many of the other young ladies and gentlemen not wearing the uniform of a royal page muttered when they saw her. But no one seemed to realize Inara was female page. The remarks were mainly about how her gown looked, or her hair, or how handsome her escort was, or even how easily she seemed to get along with the young pages that seemed to flock to her.

Inara just muffled laughter throughout most of the evening whenever she heard these comments. She danced just as much as the other ladies did, although most of the time it was with one of her friends. Occasionally, one of the university students, or even some of the young mages would request a dance. She usually accepted, but she started to become aware of the looks of malice her friends gave these young men. Part of her was amused by it, but the other part was worried. Did any of her friends view her as something other than just a friend?

Half way through the evening, Benton returned to the group, his cheeks flushed red with anger.

"What's wrong?" Nick asked him, handing his friend a drink.

"I hate mages! What's more, I hate mages who know I'm a page!" Benton groaned, falling into a chair. Lord Padraig had instructed the pages that if they were asked for anything, if it was a usual request, the pages were to comply, even Inara. Just because they weren't in service that night, didn't mean they were excused from their usual expectations. "This one mage asked me for a glass of punch. He was standing by the fountain. Well, I went and got his drink, but when I got back he wasn't there. Instead he's on the very opposite end of the room."

"Well, that doesn't sound too horrible," Yancy informed him, leaning against the wall.

"No, but that's not the end of it. I started walking toward him. He disappeared behind a lady, and the next thing I know, he's behind me, back by the fountain. I don't know how he did it, but I started back to the fountain, and once again, he's on the other end of the room. He did this like four times."

"You mean, like teleportation?" Evan asked him. Benton nodded, still scowling.

"He started laughing at me, so I gave up on bringing him the punch. I'd rather be in trouble with Lord Padraig."

"I don't blame you," Asten agreed. "He sounds like a jerk."

"Yeah, but teleportation is really advanced," Sam put in. "I don't think even Master Numair can do it. Not even for a short distance."

"It could just be an illusion," Corin reminded them. Benton just grumbled in response.

"I don't know what it was, accept annoying," he told his friends. Inara patted his shoulder, and leaned her head against his. Benton suddenly jerked up and pointed into the distance. "That's him over there."

"Well, I say we go have a chat with him," Yancy and Asten both said at the same time. Seth nodded agreement.

"Don't bother," Inara commanded them. She ignored the strange looks all her friends save Corin were wearing. Her cousin was smirking, arms crossed over his chest. He shook his head as Inara approached the young man with almond shaped green eyes. The boy's dark brown hair was long and pulled into a horse tail. He wore grey breeches, a cream silk shirt and a forest green tunic. He looked to be about fourteen years old and he was grinning sheepishly now that he'd realized that there was a lady stalking towards him. She reached him and glared up at the taller boy. "Why did you do that?"

"Do what?" the boy asked her. Inara's friends could just barely hear them.

"Don't give me that, you know exactly what you did. Where is he?"

"Miss, I have no idea what you speak of. Who is he?" He wore a wide grin, and stood relaxed as if he wasn't being confronted.

Inara intensified her glare and put her hands on her waist. "I'll scream," she told him.

"You wouldn't!"

"Try me, Emry!" she told the boy. Emry laughed and shook his head. He turned and whistled toward a long drape. A boy, identical to him in every way, stepped out, slightly confused. Only when he spotted his twin standing beside Inara did he let a small smile cross his lips. He walked over, the picture of innocence.

"One of her friends, huh?" the new comer asked his brother. Emry nodded. "It was all his idea," the boy told Inara who laughed and shook her head.

"Trust me, Kennith, I don't doubt it," she replied and pulled both older boys into a hug before grabbing their hands and dragging them over to the group of pages. Both boys greeted Corin with a nod. Corin couldn't keep himself from let out a snort of laughter. "Apologize to Benton."

"Oh, alright. We're sorry," Kennith told the boy, who along with the others was speechless. He just nodded.

"Are you happy now?" Emry asked Inara. She nodded and hugged his arm. Emry sighed and hugged her back around the shoulders. "Want to introduce us then, Narie?"

"Oh yeah," she giggled. "Everyone, these are my brothers Emry and Kennith of Queenscove. Emry, Kennith, this is Seth of Goldenlake, Evan of Jesslaw, Yancy of Nond, Asten of Hollyrose, Benton of Naxen, Samuel of Tirragen, and Nicholas of King's Reach. You already know cousin Corin."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Emry told them. "We really are sorry. We were…"

"Bored," Kennith replied. "We had no idea Benton was a friend of Narie. We wouldn't have done it."

"Yeah, she'll probably tell dad."

"Maybe," she told them.

"Well, no harm done," Benton replied, laughing. "I have to admit, it was kind of funny. Wish I had a twin."

"Oh, it's highly amusing," Kennith agreed.

"Unless you're on the butt end of one of their little games," a new voice drawled from nearby. Inara, Emry, and Kennith turned automatically. "What have they been up to now?" the new comer added.

"Nothing Donalin, we've been perfect angels," Kennith told his older brother, grinning.

"I'm sure you have been," Sixteen year old Donalin acknowledged his brother. Emry rolled his eyes, while Kennith continued to smile. Donalin finally looked away and sighed. "I believe I know you sponsor, Inara. Evan of Jesslaw, wasn't it?"

Evan nodded to the older boy. "It's a pleasure to see you again, Donalin."

"When is it ever a pleasure to see Don?" Emry whispered in Corin's ear a bit too loudly, causing his cousin to snort laughter again. Inara just sighed and did introductions yet again.

By the end of the evening, Inara had danced with all of her friends (even Nick who nearly crushed her foot) and each of her brothers at least once. Donalin and Seth had entered a pretty intense conversation, while Yancy, Asten, and Nick were getting prank ideas from the twins. Inara was falling asleep leaning on Evan who had taken out a book, while Sam, Corin, and Benton chatted on her other side.

"Sleepy?" Evan finally acknowledged Inara. She nodded without opening her eyes. "Well, it's almost midnight. Perhaps you ought to turn in.

"Brothers," she muttered. Donalin and the twins must have heard her.

"Would you all mind if we took her back to her rooms?" Emry asked. "You've all done a wonderful job of taking care of our Narie, but…"

"We'd like to see her to bed," Kennith finished for him.

"No problem," Evan told them, moving aside so Donalin could lift the sleeping twelve year old into his arms and carry her back to her rooms. She barely acknowledged him except to wrap her arms around his neck and cuddle up against his chest.

"We don't have her keys," Emry finally stated when they reached her room. "I hadn't wanted to wake her."

"What are you three doing?" a female voice asked from behind them. Two women stood in the hallway both in night clothes talking quietly. The older of the two was the one who had spoken and was now glaring at the boys. "Unhand Page Inara."

"Forgive us. Page Evan of Jesslaw instructed us that we were allowed to escort the lady to her rooms."

"Not without her permission," Salma replied, still glaring. Lidia beside her wore an angry and worried expression.

"Donalin, you could explain we're her brothers," Emry told his older sibling. "Forgive him, he thinks everything is easily fixed with a few words," he added to the maids. "I believe you must be Lidia," he addressed to the younger woman. "I'm Emry of Queenscove. These are my brothers Donalin and Kennith. Inara's told us so much about you," he added.

"I can't tell if he's telling the truth. He's definitely got the gift," Salma told Lidia, slipping a truth ball from her pocket. The color showed inconclusive."

"Those cheap things rarely work," Donalin muttered. "And she's getting heavy."

"Shut up," Kennith told him. "We just want to put our sister to bed," he added. "You can ask Duke Baird or even our father. He may be here," he added. Salma and Lidia exchanged looks, and the older woman nodded. Lidia turned and ran down the hallway in the direction that would take her to the head healers, although they may have been asleep. Salma unlocked Inara's door, and let the boys in. Emry and Kennith thanked her, but Donalin only moved around her and laid his sister on the bed. He only took her slippers off, pulled the blankets down, and covered her, then took a seat at the desk. Emry sat beside Inara on the bed, while Kennith sat in the window seat. It was obvious from the fact that Salma remained in the doorway that she wasn't letting the boys leave until their identities were confirmed.

Lidia returned fifteen minutes later with Sir Nealan on her heals. He was in his night shirt and looked like he'd just been awakened. He took one look in the page's room at the three young men, and shook his head. "They're mine, unfortunately. Thanks for looking after her, Lidia, Salma."

"Not to worry, Lord Nealan," Salma replied, smiling at him. "No one gets near our pages. Especially not our girls," she added with a wink. Neal nodded as they walked away and entered the room.

"You made them wake me?" he asked the boys.

"Sorry Da," Kennith told him. Emry grinned, while Donalin snorted. Neal raised an eyebrow at them.

"You couldn't let her friends bring her back from the party?"

"I don't trust them," Donalin stated flatly. "She's surrounded by too many boys," he added.

"I hate to agree with Don," Emry put in.

"Me too," Kennith agreed. Neal smirked and shook his head.

"Just something you'll have to get over, lads," he told them. "Say goodnight to your sister," he added. Each of the older Queenscoves gave Inara a small kiss on her forehead. Neal did as well, and pulled the blankets tighter around his daughter, before following his middle children out of her room and shutting the door behind them.

"I don't like it, Da," Donalin told him. "At least one of those boys has something for Narie."

"More than one," Emry agreed. Kennith just nodded.

"I know," Neal told them, a small smile on his face. "But she's growing up. At least they're good lads. She wouldn't do badly with any of them."

"She'd be safer at the convent," Donalin informed him.

"I dare you to tell her that, Don," Kennith told him with a snort of laughter. "Bet she tries to cut off your head."

"Ooo… you should tell her," Emry joked. Donalin glared at him.

"Listen you three," Neal told them as they walked down to the guest wing where all the visitors were staying. Donalin would get a coach ride back to the university, but Emry and Kennith would be staying. "Leave your sister alone. She's chosen her life, and we've got to trust that she knows what to do and what not to. When Inara's ready to start being courted, she'll let everyone know. For now, no matter how much those boys like her, they respect her too much to do anything, especially now that they know about you three."

"And they haven't even met Baird," Kennith added, seeing his father's point. Donalin and Emry paled as they thought about what their eldest brother would do if anyone were to touch Inara.

"Fine," Donalin sighed. "But I don't have to be happy about it."

"No, you don't," Neal told him. He hugged the teen around the shoulders. "You should get back. And you two should get some sleep. I'm sure you're to be heading back tomorrow? I didn't think you would be coming."

"We really wanted to see Inara," Emry told him.

"And Donalin," Kennith added, and Emry reluctantly nodded. "We'll get our work done, we promise, Da."

"Alright; Good night boys."

"Night," they all called after him as he headed back to his own quarters. None of them remember to ask if their mother was in as well, but they were all too tired to call after him. They said quick goodnights to one another and headed to their rooms.

Inara awoke the next morning more comfortable than she had in days. She'd been tucked tightly into her bed sheets. Confused, she managed to sleepily make it to breakfast.

"You made it to your room alright, pup?" Evan asked as she fell into a seat beside him, yawning. Inara nodded.

"You didn't bring me?"

"No," Sam told her. "Your brothers took you."

"Oh," she said, frowning slightly. She shrugged and began to eat, feeling really warm. Not only did she have the best luck with friends, but apparently, she had the best luck with brothers as well.

Author Note:
Again, so sorry it was late. Like I said, look for chapter 10 next week, but if not, the following Monday, Jan 20. It will definitely be up then. Hope you enjoyed. I look forward to your reviews.