A/N: It's summer so I'll be writing more and more, my friend may upload the chapters for me as I've taken a scholarship quite far from home. I'm very very happy about passing the audition let alone receiving a Full scholarship albeit a full B scholarship rather than an A scholarship, it's still very amazing to me... I was also offered a full scholarship in jazz and modern. So yeah i'm so so so happy. To my fellow balletomanes and bunheads, is RAD really hard? Okay enough about me more of the story... I'll try to update more often but do try to comment? Please? I'd love to improve on my writing okay? Please give me character ideas okay? PLEASE RNR :D love shirbee

PS:
just to give you guys a heads up, new characters will be turning heads not only in this chapter but also in the following ones :D

Recap:

Kel sat on the bed and said "Neal, I have to go back to the palace."

Neal went to her saying "Why would-" he realized then, that Kel's letter was due today. "Well, of course. I'll see to it we get their after our morning meal."

Kel looked at him with pleading eyes.

"in half an hour?" Neal asked.

Kel looked at him with even more pleading in her eyes, it hurt him a little but it made her happy. Just live with it Neal. said a voice in his head.

"soon as we get a means of transportation?"

"Neal. We can walk." she whined. She acted very un-yamani in his presence.

on with the story:

Neal and Kel walked hand in hand through the cobble stoned streets of Corus. Neal whistled an up beat jig and Kel looked politely at the town's folk.

"Love?" Neal grasped her hand and swung it as they walked.

"Yes,Neal?"

"Are you feeling ill?"

"No, I'm fine Neal." she looked at a small house.

"Neal! Neal!" a child called from behind the couple.

They turned around to see a beautiful little girl.

She had curly golden locks tumbling down to her shoulders, half of it was tied up in a hose tail and the other half cascaded beautifully like gold lace around her shoulders. She had big round orbs of emerald green. She had a pink pout and creamy skin with rosy pink cheeks.

"Who's this?" Kel asked Neal.

"Cornelia, my sister." he said to her and turned to face his little sister.

"Why haven't you mentioned her? Or your father for that matter?" Kel asked.

"Her birth was, is, and forever will be a dark imprint on our family history." he grinned at Kel.

Cornelia punched him in the gut. And Kel laughed.

"I'm Cornelia of Queens Cove." she held out a small hand. "You can call me Nela." she beamed at Kel.

Kel, unaccustomed to children with such flawless manners, that of a court child i may need to mention, was speechless.

Nela, surprised that Kel hadn't shook her hand, bowed Yamani style instead.

"Nela, is it?" the little girl nodded. "You need not bow to me. You are ducal, my parents only have a barony."

"You are my superior, lady squire, older, and wiser other than your choice in my brother."

"That works as well."

Neal cut in saying, "Nela, why are you in Corus? And didn't father tell you, you should have a maid, a defense mage, a healer, four guards on horseback, two foot men, four swordsmen and four arrow men?"

"Neal, we both know I can protect myself."

Kel watched the two converse (is my way of saying when i say she it means Neal :D)

"It's different here Nel. There are pick pockets and kid nappers and rogues and-"

"Neal." she said quietly."I'm no longer a child."

"Nel, you can't just put a shield spell here, alright?" Neal ran his hand trough his hair and picked up the little girl. They started walking again."Nela, you're only 8. And you know why we keep you from Corus."

"I know Neal, but-"

"Speaking of which, how did you get here?"

"Erm.." she said squirming in his arms.

"Nela..." he warned.

"I teleported alright?"

"Does father know you're here?"

"Well..."

"We told you. STAY AT HOME!!! It isn't very hard to comprehend such an elementary instruction!"

"It was getting terribly boring up there, Neal you know what I mean. It's all black and white and all the masters told me off. They're only jealous of my Gift."

"Nela," he said quietly.

"Neal," Kel cut in looking into his eyes. "Don't be too hard on her. She's but a child."

"She may only be eight but she can do things beyond Thom and Numair and Alanna and Jon put together."

"Be that as it may, she is still an eight year old girl. She still wants what a normal child wants,adventure and excitement."

When none of them said a word Kel continued. "For me, it was handling a glaive and running in the dirt."

"For her it must be teleporting to Tortall's capital city, bumping into her brother and his fiancé and giving said brother a migraine."

They all laughed at that. Their stomachs grumbled.

"So," Kel said decisively. "Let's go to the palace and see if they have anything remaining from breakfast."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In Kel's room:
Knock knock knock
"It must be Lord Raoul." Kel hurried to the door and let her knight master in.

"God day, Kel, Neal." He greeted them merrily. His gave fell on Nela who was sitting on Kel's bed." And who's this little beauty?" Raoul asked the couple.

"My sister, sir." Neal answered quietly.

"Nela? Cornelia of Queens Cove?" Raoul asked in disbelief. "Nela, my have you grown! C'mere and give your favorite uncle a hug." Raoul grinned picking up the small girl.

"Hello uncle Raoul." she said beaming at him.

"Now, what did your father tell you?" Raoul asked reminding the child she needed accompaniment.

"He said." she huffed as if it she hard a hard time talking. "I should have a maid, a defense mage, a healer, four guards on horseback, two foot men, four swordsmen and four arrow men." she said slowly in a child's voice using her charm on her father's friend.

"Oh please Nela, do speak properly. We all know you can." Neal said annoyed.

"Oh, fine." she shrugged. "It was worth a try." she jumped from Raoul's hold and landed on the ground softly and skillfully as an assassin.

"Have George and Aly been visiting Queens Cove again?" Raoul asked laughing.

"Just Aly." Cornelia said proudly.

"Can you wield a sword?" Kel wondered eagerly.

"There will be no sword wielding for Nela." Neal said.

"Why is that?" Kel asked not very happily.

"Let's go to my work table." Raoul whispered, leading them to his rooms.

They all settled at the a small wooden table. Raoul sat behind it Kel and Neal sat on the two seats in front of the table and Neala was hoisted onto Neal's lap

"Nela, listening spell please." Raoul said to Nela.

She jumped ff her brother's lap and walked around the table and people sitting around it. A fine line trailed behind her shoulder. From the line small glittery specks fell to the floor forming a small wall of gift around them all. She spoke a foreign word and the wall became invisible.

"You may speak now." she said quietly to Raoul. She sat back on Neal's lap.

"Alright." Raoul said releasing a long breath.

'Let's get this straight to the point." Neal said. "Nela is very very powerful."

"In other words, they have to make up a new color of robes to match my power as black is not sufficient." Nela said swinging her legs. Her right boot hit Neal's shin.

"Nela, be careful. I need my shins." he told her looking into her angelic eyes.

Any way, Nela's birth was kept from the public eye because we were afraid she might get attacked.

"That might explain the guards and the mages and the footmen and the arrow men and the swords men." Kel finally understanding.

"That's not all of it."Nela told Kel in her adult voice.

"Oh, don't be a show off. We don't need to list down everything you can do." Neal told her off.

"Not that. " the little girl rolled her eyes.

"OH." the two men said. "that..."

"There's this pro-" Raoul didn't finish his sentence.

"We're not sure yet." Neal reprimanded the knight.

"Kel has a right to know." Raoul said.

"Oh, don't speak as if I weren't here next to you two." Kel was very unhappy about the way the two were acting.

"I'm sorry Kel." Neal scratched his head. "She's my sister. Other than my father, and you, she's all I've got."

"I understand." Kel said. "Now, this prophecy. Is it the prophecy of the emerald?"

"Yes." Neal replied. "Yes it is. Have you heard it?"
"Yes, I have." Kel confirmed. "It said something of a war being nearly lost and a child was left their only hope. And there was somethings about a cat."

"Ha ha! That always cracks me up! They keep saying Pounce is some kind of special cat! He does nothing much but wash himself and kill rats, both very unsightly rituals, if I may add." Nela laughed.

"You heard Alanna, it's true." Raoul told the group. "Pounce is a reincarnation of Faithful, who was a reincarnation of Beka's Pounce."

"That sounds twisted. " Kel mentioned.

"It is isn't it?"