Chapter 2!!!!!! Yay, kind of. Ok, so let me clear up some things. Cecile is a Changer, or some people refer to it as Shifters. She can change any part of her body she wants to, including her voice. That's basically it. Yay.

Trying hard to reach out,

But when I try to speak out,

Feel like no one can hear me.

That night the ball was held. Everyone that was in Pirate's Swoop attended, with merchants and farmers in a separate room then the soldiers and Nobles. I was to serve in the kitchens, for the last time I served out in the hall I got into a "heated discussion" as Mistress called it, or argument, with one of Nobles and-err-it wasn't good.

"Pass me the water bowl Ceci." Sarah said impatiently.

"Sorry." I said rudely. Of all of the younger Maids, the on I liked least was Sarah. Rea was next, then came little Amily and lastly Lara. A few moments later they were back for the first of the food courses, which were just light cracker and salad appetizers. Along with us five maids, there were six boys who helped out. One of them was Alan, Alanna's youngest son. His twin sister was playing with her baby, Allison. Though he was a full blood knight, he was light hearted and loved to flirt with some of the Cook's younger helpers. They enjoyed his company, though when ever he did flirt I stuck out me tongue and gagged. Boys were so over rated.

One of the boys who helped, Phillip, was coming now to get his appetizers. I passed them over to him, and the other four boys as they came. I counted off heads. Tall, shy Elie, small Erik, annoying Earl, and fidgety Ryan. Each was a small help, but us girls liked it anyway. The less jobs we had to do, the longer we could take doing our business.

"Erik, who is the new noble you be serving?" I asked him as he came for the second meat coarse, wild boar with a lemony dressing.

"I don't know, figured you would know him. He is exceptionally quite." Out of all the boys, Erik was by far the kindest, though Elie could be if he would talk once in a while.

"Nope, not the slightest idea. How 'bout you ask?" I asked him with a smile.

"Nah, he'll be gone by tomorrow anyway. He's too quite to stay long." Erik then left, to be replaced by Amily. I was kept busy with the 10 servers (including Alan.) I was amused to find that there were 10 servers for the Nobles, yet only nine tables. Across the kitchen was another door, blocked as this one was with a thin wall of wood, so none of the guests could see the kitchen staff who handed food over (me) to the servers. On the other side was the other kitchen staff who was handing over food, a tall youth named Pete, who happened to be two years older than me, yet six inches taller. Well, in this form he was.

After the real courses, the deserts were laid out, including sweet cakes and sugar decorations that ranged from small crowns to a lioness, rearing on it's hind legs. The Lioness laughed when she saw it, and so did almost everyone else.

After the Nobles left to the dancing room (again) and the merchants and farmers mostly went home, we got to eat. The kitchen staff, servers, helpers, and guards all ate together, talking and laughing. Some fell asleep in there chairs, among them including Erik and Amily. I carried Amily up the stairs early and washed myself quickly before going to bed. I was exhausted, after barely getting sleep the other night and the excitement of today, I barely could keep my eyes open long enough to hit the pillow before falling into a deep slumber.

The next day donned bright and dry, with a slight breeze. I stayed outside most of the day, trimming the bushes and mending the many gardens that surrounded the small palace. Once again I felt as if I didn't belong as one of the elder maids came out to hang up laundry and snorted with laughter at my dirt stained pants and my hand, which held a flower.

"Maids do inside work. Leave outside work to gardeners and other people. Come help me with the laundry." The maid said.

"Yes'm." I replied. The older maids usually left us younger ones a lone, and were usually very strict. Some weren't, but I didn't like to mess with any of them if I could help it. "Do you ever feel like, like you don' belong?" I asked her in a soft voice.

"No what's this? You feel you deserve better? Ceci. Look at me. We were born into this mess, and we belong in it. We wouldn't do for Noble's, would we? Now, you stop that silliness. You got your heads high up in the clouds far enough as it is." She barely stopped to look at me, and quickly went back to hanging up dresses and linens. When we finished My back was sore and all I felt like doing was sitting on a stool and mending. Which I did, for a whole two hours before I got bored nearly to tears.

I went in search of Rea, who I found in the kitchens, as usual. She was carving one of the many chickens for tonight's supper, and I started to help.

"Rea, do you ever feel like you don' belong? Like someone as put you here, but you just ain't…you belong somewhere else?" I asked my older friend.

"Ceci, what's that supposed to mean? I hate when you talk in riddles." Rea wasn't paying me much attention, so I poked her and re asked my question.

"Do ya?"

"No, Ceci. This is all my life is cut out to be. It's all your life is cut out to be. Why would you want something else? Slaves up in Carthack have very bad lives, and Nobles never stop fussing. Kind of like you. I don't know if you do or don't belong Ceci, but right now just get your head out of the clouds. We have work to do."

Wanted to belong here,

But something felt so wrong here,

So I prayed I could breakaway…

What ever was going on up at Corus, it had to be important. Alanna, Daine, Numair, Alan, and George were called away, so there was no high authority in the palace. This had happened before, of course. George was sometimes called away by the King to attend something or other, and Alanna was barely here any, now that her babes were all grown up. My schedule didn't change much, though I was sent onto the mission of cleaning George's rooms for him, something he didn't let any of us do until he was away. It was a chore and a half, so I enlisted Rea to help me.

Afterwards, Rea went down to the kitchens, and I went to the scribes rooms. I had been having lessons with one of the older scribes, and was slowly learning to read and write. No one knew but us two, and we planned to keep it that way. That day I learned about vowels, and about how to properly say "ings" because he hated how I said "in's."

Then it was time for a rest and lunch. Lunch was the only meal I never skipped, for I never had breakfast and dinner was unimportant. Except to Nobles, that is. After lunch I helped to clean out the stables and to mend tack. I wasn't very good at leather work, but I could stitch together pieces of bridle or saddle, and I like horses well enough.

While I stitched bridles, I dreamt of the days when I could travel, to distant lands and see sights. Meet people I had never heard of, and be any one I wanted to be. I would sail on the sea to the Copper Isles and see Aly's home, or take a ship down to Carthak, where Princess Kalisin now lives with her husband, Emperor Kaddar.

Some one poked me and I looked up to see Amily trying to grab the bridle I was mending.

"What?" I asked.

"You are to report to the Grand Hall, now. Give me this, I'll fix it. Just go!" Little Amily had worry in her eyes and her nose was red, something I had never seen before. I stood horridly and raced to the Grand Hall. There George stood, still in his traveling gear.

"Oh, thank Mithros you're here. I can't stay long, but listen to me. Listen careful, here me Cecile?" He asked, looking deep into my golden eyes.

"Yes, sir."

"I will be leaving for quite a few weeks, and I may even be gone for a month or more. I promise I won't leave you here, Ceci. Understand me?"

"What do you mean leave me here?' Where are you going? Wait!" But he was already walking away, and just before he reached the door to the outside he turned and bowed and said

"I promise."

In my haste to ask him, I had forgotten to use the lilt in my voice that was one of my most important disguises. I cursed myself in a whisper before going back outside to help finish with the tack. Now, more than ever, I knew I didn't belong with the others. Though they were nice company.

YAY. End of chapter two, wow. It took me forever to type because I had to shower, and my dad is making this family video of me and my sister when we were really little, so I had to keep getting up to watch funny little scenes. Like me doing ballet. HAHA, funny times!!!