Recap: Elestra just found out from Alaraec that Flauvic is coming back. Picks up just after dawn. (Will somebody please explain to me this first gold, first green, etc? I can't seem to get this timing straight. Thanks)

Elestra sat on her bed attempting to distract herself with a book. It was one of her favorites about a girl who goes on many risky adventures with disguises and mystery and suspense. Normally Elestra could always lose herself in this book, but with the news of Flauvic arriving today, nothing could take her mind off of her confusion. She heard a voice at her window. No, I thought I heard a voice. Nobody's here. But it came again, a little clearer. Elestra made her way over to her window and looked down and saw one of her best friends down there. It was Andrew, son of Lady Tamara and the Duke of Savona.

"ELESTRA!" he hissed up to her window while picking up a rock and weighing it to see how far it would go. He was just about to hurl it before Elestra stuck her head out the window and looked down at him.

"ANDREW! You had better not even think about throwing that rock and shattering my window!" she said angrily. Andrew dropped the rock and looked up at her innocently as if to say what rock?

Instead, he said "Will you come down? Actually, don't. You seem moody." He began to walk away slowly. Elestra growled at him and turned around and was retreating into her room when she heard Andrew's voice again. "Elestra," he said, his voice sounding hurt, "Did you really think I would leave you to be moody all by yourself?" He sounded genuinely wounded. "What kind of a friend would I be if I wasn't there for you when you needed me?"

Elestra leaned back out of her window and retorted, "Not a very good one, that's what kind." She folded her arms across her chest and turned around. Andrew said mischievously, "I know something that would make you feel better…" Elestra snorted, very unladylike, and said "Of course you do. You always do. I can remember the last time you said that to me. Let's see, what had ended up happening last time… oh yes, we got quite drunk and in quite a lot of trouble with out parents! And why? Because you had the idea that it would make me feel better!"

Andrew grimaced, but held his ground and said, "But El, you were sulking because everybody had gone riding with Kitten for her Name Day and left you all by yourself! I didn't even mean for it to go as far as it did…" He stifled a laugh. "However, it was very hilarious, you must admit." Elestra busied herself by trying to find something to hurl at his head. "I mean the things you wanted to do… You wanted to go have adventures in some foreign land and made us play dress up!" He then got a little shy, which was strange, even for him… "And then when we rode to that inn…Elestra, you never told me you could dance as well as that. Why don't you ever dance at any ball?"

"Well, firstly, I don't like to dance. It's like flirting with every boy that I dance with just by doing that with him. Secondly, it's not as if there are ever many balls to dance with people, even if I wanted to. Thirdly, I'm never drunk at any ball so I wouldn't even dream of dancing with anybody there. Besides, I probably dance better drunk than sober, so I would end up stepping on everybody's feet." She paused for a breath and then went on, "So what do you think is the matter with me that you need to make me 'feel better'?"

"Well, your father told my father told me that he received a note from Flauvic. I figured that you would be excited, considering you'd get the chance to see him again." Andrew grinned, but then turned it into a frown. "But then I saw you looking grumpy—"Elestra stuck out her tongue childishly "—and thought that you could use a bit of cheering up. So meet me down here and we'll go racing or we can go practice our skills with a sword."

Elestra nodded and said, "Expect me down there within ten minutes." She disappeared into her room, changed and began making her way to Andrew, determined to get her mind away from the impending arrival of Flauvic.

A/N: It's short, I know. I think I'll try harder to make the next one longer. I'm not completely sure how that will work out, though.