The feedback from this story has been wonderful. As always, please let me know if there are any parts that could be more clear. For this chapter, I would also love your suggestions about names that are appropriate to Tortall and the surrounding areas. I have a few ideas, but I have several original characters with minor parts that haven't found fitting names yet.
Chapter Three
Alanna's first party at a noble's town home was an unmitigated disaster.
Her hair had behaved itself, which seemed to be of great importance at all social occasions, and she hadn't been gauche enough to spill any of her dinner onto her dress. Her ember pendant was frequently admired, and two married women had commended her for modesty in not disclosing who had given her such a present. Alanna had even held onto her temper when seated at a table with Sir Gareth. His actual title was Duke Gareth, but it seemed that everyone was still too cautious to make some mention of the late Duke Gareth. Gary (as his friends called him) ignored her entirely, but Raoul was rather nice. He apologized for not speaking up at her debut, she readily accepted the unnecessary followup to his sincere apology letter, and the two of them danced after dinner. She had been dwarfed next to Raoul, of course, but the two of them had bantered about height instead of exchanging useless comments about the flowers or the dessert. It was an accomplishment to dance with Sir Raoul at all, let alone twice, so that should have been enough to make an uncontested success of her night.
Really, it might be more fair to say that most of the evening had been lovely, but that's not what any of the gossips would say. They wouldn't remember that her second-best black dress had drawn several compliments, or that quite a few young knights had been pleasantly surprised by Squire Thom's sister. (She politely ignored the large numbers of people that seemed shocked to find that she had a basic grasp of etiquette, and resolved again to have a word with her twin.) The gossip would omit that Alanna had charmed the hostess, and would forget entirely that Duke Baird had introduced her to several other nobles whose Gift was suited to healing. All the Court would hear was that Alanna's knight-escort to the party, Sir Alex of Tirragen, had vanished from the party after just half an hour of dancing, and that Lady Delia of Eldorne was similarly nowhere to be found.
It would have been a scandal for Lady Delia, perhaps, but it seemed that the Court was tired of gossip that centered on Lady Delia. The story would be that Lady Alanna's escort found her company so dull that he left the party with Delia in his arms.
Sir Myles saved her yet again. She was in no mood to stay for an entire night of hearing people re-tell the story with increasing variations, and he was the very embodiment of courtesy when he helped with her wrap and walked through the correct series of goodbyes with her. There would be no further reason for gossip, with Myles to quietly coach her in a few changes in the usual etiquette, and it might even turn sympathy to her side more quickly than usual. She was openly leaving the party in the company of a well-respected man, and the gossips had quickly noted that Sir Myles had finished only one glass of wine with dinner.
"With any luck, you'll be deemed a good influence on an old reprobate, and Sir Alex a cad for leaving you," Myles said when they were on the street, and safely away from the party. He was openly wearing a sword, as was a knight's privilege, but he was quite at ease as they passed through the streets, paying more attention to her than their surroundings.
"It did sound that Lady Delia has had too many stories to be all that interesting," Alanna agreed. She hadn't allowed Alex the privilege earlier, when he obviously hadn't wanted anything to do with her, but she had taken Myles' arm without a moment's thought. She trusted him and liked him, and to her relief he didn't seem interested in a marriage. He wanted a friend. "Thank you, Myles, I really didn't want to stay."
Myles waved off the thanks, but she thought that he appreciated hearing it regardless. "I do wish that I could offer some defense for Sir Alex, but all I can say is that everyone thought he would be Roger's squire. Instead, Duke Roger waited until your brother was available, and very quickly made an enemy in Alex."
"You don't need to defend all of the court, Myles. I know that my brother has made quite a few enemies, and I have noticed that all of them seem to think that I should be involved." Alanna paused, looking to her right. "I think I heard something. Perhaps we should talk when we reach the palace?"
Myles looked around them, checking up on the rooftops as well as the openings to all visible alleys. His voice was very quiet when he replied. "A reasonable precaution. I rarely have problems with thieves when I walk this route, but it's best to not invite trouble."
Despite his words, a thief besieged them just two blocks later, with a loud cry that could hardly be what thieves would usually say. "Alright, Myles, stand and deliver!"
Myles glared at the thief, which seemed even less usual, and the man looked extremely confused to notice her on Myles' arm. It would have been comical if the thief wasn't bearing two long knives that showed signs of long use.
"Well, this isn't the usual circumstance," the thief said. If Alanna wasn't mistaken, the man sounded sheepish, which seemed even more at odds with how a thief would go about his work. "Hand the sword over to the lady, then, let her hold it."
Myles complied, and Alanna tried not to smile as she held a sword in her hands for the first time in a year. She had coaxed one of the apprentice mages into letting her keep his practice sword in exchange for several lessons on how to impress the ladies of the convent. Both of them had been extremely pleased with that deal: the charming young mage had been invited into a lady's bedroom three weeks later, and Alanna had managed to keep that sword for four whole months. Its balance had been much better than the sword she found lying in the hall after the boys used the ladies' ballroom for a fencing exhibition.
Myles was reasoning with the thief, explaining that he didn't have any cash or valuables at hand, but Alanna was watching the man's knives. They were the oddest knives she'd ever seen before, looking more like small swords with blades the length of her forearm than any kind of cooking knife, and they moved the same way as a sword. Alanna was only watching the swords and the motions of the thief, and perhaps that was why she missed the teasing tone of the exchange. Had she listened to the words, she would have known that the thief had already agreed to Myles' proposition. Myles would allow the thief to put a gold noble toward his tab at Old Solom's, if the thief would let them go about their way, but Alanna only saw the thief's reaction. Laughing, the man reached an arm toward Myles' shoulder. It would have registered as a much friendlier gesture if he had sheathed the knife first, and Alanna only saw a fast-moving hand moving a knife toward her friend's chest.
Alanna's sword struck fast in the pattern she had memorized, twisting around the man's knife like her sword was a snake grabbing at its prey. She had seen one of the great constricting snakes, once, when they toured the mage's workrooms for an outing. Only two of the ladies had stayed to watch the great nine-foot snake lunge at a large hare, wrapping it around in coils before the hare had time to scream.
The knife flew off to the left, and Alanna's sword stayed at the thief's throat with little conscious effort as some part of her mind analyzed the situation. She had run herself through drills in her room almost every morning to alleviate the boredom of learning protocol and etiquette, and she had used her own version of fencing lessons to improve her balance, poise, and stamina. She knew from the dozens and dozens of fights she had read that she had done the right thing. The stories were rather dry, perhaps, but the kind librarian in the convent had never thought it odd that Alanna read the blow-by-blow battle books meant to train young mages in how to use their swords.
The thief gaped at her, and dropped his jaw so quickly that it nearly collided with the tip of Myles' sword. When his second knife hit the ground, dropping from his flax hand, Alanna came back from the thrill of a fight enough to realize that Myles was laughing so hard that he could barely draw breath. That was enough to startle Alanna into blinking and stepping back four paces, giving herself room to think.
Myles recovered first, though he had been bent double with mirth, and collected the knife near his feet with a flourish. "Marek, forget the tab at Old Solom's, you'll never steal enough to bribe me out of sharing this story. Lady Alanna of Trebond, may I present Marek Swiftknife, who generally has the sense to be sure I do not have company before harassing his old friend for drinking money."
Alanna was mortified to have been caught at swordplay by someone so respectable, but Myles hadn't said a word about proper ladies never touching a sword or the wrongness of a woman defending herself against a brigand.
That might have been all of it, as the thief looked ready to vanish into the shadows and Myles was reaching to reclaim his sword, when a voice came out of an alleyway just ahead of them. "Well now, I've heard the strangest account t'night." The words were very deliberate, and if the accent was that of a commoner, the precision was something that some nobles never learned. When the speaker emerged from the shadows into the dim lights of the street lanterns, Alanna was shocked to recognize him.
"Mr. Cooper?"
The man looked far less menacing when he broke into a grin, and the light in his hazel eyes made him look rather friendly, for a tall, armed man coming out of a dark alley well after sunset. "Indeed, milady, George Cooper at your service. I didn't think you'd remember the introduction when there were so many coming all at once."
"It was just four days ago," Alanna said, relinquishing the sword to Myles before yet another person had the chance to realize how far from a proper lady she was. "Besides, Coram seemed quite upset that we had met at all."
Myles cleared his throat. "Well, perhaps I'll do introductions properly, if George doesn't mind." When the tall man shook his head, Myles continued. "Lady Alanna, may I present George Cooper, King of the Rogue. Colloquially, he is also known as the king of thieves. The gentleman with the spirited attempt at robbing us is Marek, the second-best knifeman in Corus. George here is the first."
"Marek, what've I told you about double-checkin' before you move in on a mark? Let alone a mark traveling with Sir Myles," George scolded lightly, flicking Marek's ear as he passed. Alanna hadn't thought the blow was all that hard, but Marek winced as if the small flick had truly hurt him. "For all you know, Myles had made himself friendly with a Shang, and then where would we be?"
"I think he's learned his lesson, George," Alanna's friend said mildly. The glint in Myles' eye was much more telling than the scholarly tone. "Marek had me give the lady my sword, so that she would be less afraid. I believe that Lady Alanna spent more time watching the body language than listening to the words, which is quite good for what I believe to be a first fight, and when Marek moved to tap me on the shoulder, he hadn't put away his knife. Alanna disarmed him."
Both of George's brows rose. "Well now, Myles, you do have the fortune of meetin' fascinating people. Lady Alanna, if I may be so bold, would you take tea with me? It seems you're a woman t'know, and I can promise the surroundings are appropriate. My mother won't be abed yet, she still keeps the hours from when she watched evenings at the Goddess's temple."
Myles would have vouched for the man, but Alanna had already made her decision. The man was certainly friendly, Myles liked him, and there was something about Mr. Cooper that made her feel like she didn't have to worry so much about protocol and rules and manners. "Very well, Mr. Cooper, I accept."
It was a very odd procession that reached Eleni Cooper's house just one bell before midnight. Marek saw them safely to the door, then left with a muttered apology to Alanna. Myles and George had talked of inconsequential matters for the whole of the walk, like recent new merchants coming into the markets, but both were quiet as George made a complicated series of raps on the door.
Alanna hadn't known what at all to expect, when meeting the mother of the king of thieves, but the practical-looking woman who opened the door immediately looked to be someone that Alanna cared to know. She had the same hazel eyes as her son, and if her hair was touched with grey at the temples, it only emphasized the wisdom in her expression.
"Hello, mother," George said, sweeping the woman into a hug. "Just like you asked, see? I came by, nobody's cut up, and I even brought guests. You've met Sir Myles, and this is Lady Alanna of Trebond. Lady Alanna, my mother, Eleni Cooper."
Alanna started. "The healer?" she asked.
Eleni frowned, peering at Alanna closely. She spent a long moment looking at the ember, and Alanna remembered that Eleni had taken the evening watch at the Goddess' temple. The woman might know exactly what the pendant meant. "We haven't met before, or I'd recognize you for certain with those eyes," was all Eleni said. "Where did you hear my name, milady?"
Alanna blushed, embarrassed to have put her hostess ill at ease. "Duke Baird recommended you as a potential teacher. I've a Gift for healing, but I've never had training in it."
"Well then! George, you have done quite well for the night," Eleni said, welcoming all of them in and bustling Alanna out of her wrap and into the pride-of-place seat. Alanna thought it really should have gone to Myles, but the tea was put on hold while Eleni asked several questions about magic and healing both. Alanna hardly knew what to answer, let alone with Myles and George listening on, but Myles cleared his throat when Eleni had finished her questions.
"Duke Baird has a report from Maude Tanner, also of Trebond," Myles said quietly. "Lady Alanna has had no formal training in healing, past scattered lessons with Maude before leaving for the convent, but she returned home last summer when her mother was badly taken with the swelling sickness. Alanna brought Lady Marinie out of the pain, and kept her lucid and comfortable for an entire week."
Eleni smiled at Alanna, brushing away a tear that had fallen when Alanna remembered seeing her mother fading at the end. "There now, milady, I couldn't have done nearly so much. You are a very rare combination, and I would be delighted to take you on as a student. You have a lot of potential, and even better you have a wonderful instinct about how to use it."
"I would be honored, Mistress Cooper."
"There, now, business done," Eleni said, standing to fetch the kettle off the fire. "I think all of us can be on friendly terms, if it suits the nobility." Alanna and Myles agreed instantly to that proposition, and the second dinner party of the night was dozens of times more entertaining than the first. They only had light snacks, a roll of soft bread spread in cheese each, but even the most elaborate meals wouldn't have made the stuffy town dinner any kind of comparison.
George said very little of thievery, except to promise Alanna that she should have been completely safe walking with Myles. Mostly, they talked about the palace and the city. George seemed to know about everything into the palace, even including Sir Gary's insults toward Alanna and her family, and Eleni knew all that there was to learn about the different charity clinics that would welcome Alanna's work as she learned her craft.
When Alanna left that impromptu party, she didn't get back to the palace until two bells past midnight. Myles would have walked her to her room, but Coram had been waiting at the gate leading out to the city. By the stiffness in his knees, he must have been standing out in the damp evening chill for two hours.
Sir Myles nodded to Coram, but took the unspoken message that Coram wanted to speak to his lady. Myles made his excuse that the other gate was closer to his rooms, heading back out into the city. Coram had already looked Alanna over, perhaps trying to find any signs of a scuffle, but only relaxed when both of them were inside the palace.
"I didn't mean to worry you, Coram," Alanna said. "I really didn't intend to stay out so late, but Mistress Cooper had so many useful things to say."
"Last I heard, you were at Lady Helena's and Sir Myles was walking you back after Sir Alex took up with that woman." Coram had heard enough of Alanna's convent troubles with Delia, and had been rather set against the woman even before Delia had created a game of batting her eyelashes at the youngest members of the Palace Guard to win favors. "I'm glad that you're well, though." He had visibly relaxed after hearing about 'Mistress Cooper,' but Alanna thought that might end very quickly when he learned that Mr. Cooper had also been present.
Alanna didn't want to lie to her friend, but her bed was just two hallways away. "I'll tell you the details tomorrow," Alanna promised, making a compromise with herself. "I was planning on taking lunch in my rooms, anyway, to stay away from the gossips, and it would only make sense. Maude misses you, too, and we could make a whole afternoon of it." That would also let her get away with telling the story once. Coram definitely wouldn't approve of thieves, especially after he knew that Alanna had met George Cooper again, but he would be very pleased that she could defend herself and that Mistress Cooper had agreed to take her on as a student.
Coram had taught her the basics of fighting when she was little, at least, and he had been the one that showed her how to draw a bow and ride 'properly.' Alanna hadn't touched a sidesaddle until she went to the convent, and still wished that ladies could ride astride without causing an instant scandal. Coram might be proud that she had taught herself how to fight with a sword, or to at least catch an unwitting opponent by surprise.
Alanna was still worrying when they reached her door. Coram didn't ask, but he did hug her when there was no one around to gossip and possibly do harm to his lady's reputation. "Your mother would be very proud of you, lass, and your father will be very pleased to know that you and Sir Myles are friends. Lord Alan only had good things to say about Sir Myles, said there aren't any other knights that understand their books properly."
Alanna hugged him back, feeling like she was ten all over again. Coram had been the one to raise her. Her father had taught her letters, and had been very pleased when Alanna could solve all of the logic puzzles that he found for her, but he had only seemed to pay attention to her when she was in the library, in his office, or making too much noise at the dining room table. Coram had showed her how to track animals in the woods, find her way without a map, keep her balance while ice-skating, and how to find the flowers that her mother liked best.
Coram kissed her forehead before rapping on the door and letting Maude start the fuss all over again, asking if Alanna was alright and if she should ask the servants to take subtle revenge against Delia. Any reserve against telling her friends drained as Maude efficiently stripped Alanna of everything but her shift and tucked her into bed. It wasn't at all usual for a lady to know how to fight, maybe, but Maude had taught Alanna a few quick spells that would help her defend herself. Knowing how to use a sword wasn't all that different, and would probably suit Maude's practical approach to solving problems.
She would be very sad to lose Maude, but someone had to look after her father. Maybe Alanna would ask for Coram's advice tomorrow, as well as Maude's. Alanna needed to find a maid, but she also needed to find someone that wouldn't mind the occasional behavior that wasn't at all typical or proper. She needed someone that wouldn't carry tales to interested parties, especially as Alanna spent more time with that circle of nobles and commoners that seemed to be running the palace. Most of all, Alanna could use more than just another ally in the palace's perpetual conflicts. She wanted a friend her own age.