"Down that staircase is the worst detour in the entire palace. Do not, under any circumstances, allow anyone to fool you into believing it's a shortcut to the dining hall."
"Fine, but where does it lead to?"
"The crypts below. I've been there, there's nothing too special, just a bunch of tombs." Alex was pulling her chain, but she didn't care. She'd already been warned about teasing from the older pages. They'd bother, but they wouldn't try to harm her. "Well, there was this one room that had some really interesting symbols on the floor. They looked like they were scorched into the stone."
"Really?" Eleni was, to say the least, intrigued. The idea that there were secret crypts to explore, got her imagination going. "I've never even seen a dungeon or anything like it. The Islands flood easily so everything was built on higher ground." She really wanted to explore, and there was an adventure waiting to happen right below here feet. "Would you take me down there? Pretty please?"
She froze. That was definitely not something boys did. Alex stopped walking and turned to face her. It was an elegant movement, and just as elegantly, he raised one perfect eyebrow. "I suggest that you keep quiet about any little quirks you might have. The older boys will tease you about them. Pretty please, is not something a page says."
He continued on with his tour, but Eleni stayed a few feet back. Great. One hour with a boy and they think I'm going to do something babyish. Great. They won't think I'm a girl, they'll just think I'm a sissy.
"Are you coming," Alex shouted from up ahead. "Or am I giving a tour to the ghosts?"
That got her attention. All of Eleni's worries were forgotten. Alex would be her friend, he wouldn't let the others pick on her. He's already saved her once. "Are there really ghosts here," she asked when she caught up to him. "Real gones? I've never seen one. I can't believe there are so many new things for me to learn about!"
Alex laughed and threw an arm around her small shoulders. "I was joking, Myles. There aren't any really ghosts. Are you always this gullible? Because, you know, the older boys will tease you about that too." Eleni forced a smile, but on the inside, she was berating herself over her slip ups.
After another fifteen minutes of touring the first floor of the palace, Alex declared it almost time for dinner. "Lord Paidrag won't let anyone eat until we're all assembled." He let out a small chuckle, earning her a strange look from Eleni. "You do not," he explained, "Want to be the one to keep these boys from their dinner."
Upon entering the dining hall, Eleni followed Alex's lead and filled her plate with food, albeit she was apparently eating more than him. Like a shy puppy, she could feel the eyes of the others on her, Eleni followed him to a table and sat as close to him as decorum would allow.
Pages were still filing in, and one of these sat down across from Alex. Eleni, had never taken an interest in boys before, but even she could appreciate how attractive this boy was. At least until she spoke.
"Alexander," she said in the most beautiful voice Eleni had ever heard. "Just what, I if may inquire, possessed you to take on a first year page?" She was staring Eleni down, staring into the purple eyes that also graced the face of the Lioness. "And why did it have to be this one?"
Now her gender was obvious, if one looked close enough. The face was too feminine, accented by high cheekbones, delicate eyebrows, and pretty pink lips. She was absolutely stunning, as a girl or boy, and she had chosen to be a page.
This girl page intimidated Eleni. Here was a girl who faced everything that Eleni was trying to avoid. She wasn't afraid of fighting back, of facing obstacles and the ever criticising conservatives. How could she even bear to look at her and not see her cowardice staring right back?
"Pier, don't be rude. The little one is right here, as I'm sure you know." Having jokingly rebuked her, Alexander turned to Eleni. "You'll have to excuse her," he said in a loud whisper. "You'll have to excuse her, because she has the personality of a rock." He laughed again. Eleni was getting used to his laugh, it didn't scare her anymore. "Pier, dear, would you care to introduce yourself?"
"What do you think?" She may have been beautiful, but Alex wasn't lying. She had all the charm of a boulder.
"I think many things, but I won't play games any longer." Once more his arm came around Eleni's shoulders. "Myles, this young lady is the lovely Pierina of Stone Mountain and Fallen Wall, the woman for which all of out hearts beat. She is beauty incarnate and the flower we must all strive to protect and honor." The boy had the charm to be a professional player, if knighthood didn't work out. "You'll get to know her very well, I assure you."
Pier had turned progressively more red with every word the Alex said. Just as she was going to lash out, Lord Paidrag entered the dining hall. All of the pages rose from their seats and waited for the traditional prayer.
"To Mithros, god of warriors and of truth, and to the Great Mother Goddess, we give thanks for their bounty. Great Mithros, may you guide these young men in your care. Guide them to be the best they can possibly be, to be men who honor their sovereign. We ask this of Mithros, god of the sun."
"So mote it be," rang from the hall.
That bastard! There is a girl here, two in fact! How dare he pretend that Pierina isn't as important as the boys!Eleni was, to say the least, furious. To hear the Royal Training Master so callously emphasize the importance of male warriors in front of a girl page, and the grandchild of the famous Lioness, was clearly insulting.
She had been eating out of habit, she realized. Eleni's body had sat down, as obediently as any other in the room, including the nonchalant Pier, and gone through the process of eating. Having come back to herself, she waited for Alex to pause between spoonfuls.
"Why," she asked in a quiet whisper. "Did he say that? Was it necessary to insult Pierina like that?"
Alexander put his silverware and turned to fully face Eleni. Holding her gaze, he spoke loudly, "Pier, what is the purpose of women?"
The girl stopped dead. She slowly lifted her eyes to see what Alex was doing. "The purpose of a woman is to marry properly and advantageously for her family." There was no smile, nothing to suggest she was joking. The girl was serious.
Satisfied, Alex continued on, despite having attracted some attention to the conversation. "Do you understand now, Myles?" Eleni's eyes were still wide with shock. Alex merely sighed and turned back to his dinner. After a bite of bread, he noticed that Eleni wasn't eating. "Myles, eat. We'll all have a little talk about the proper place of womenfolk, after dinner."
She didn't like the sound of that. He was using that voice again, the silky one that made the hair on the back of her neck stand upright. He's dangerous, she thought. Fighting the knots that had formed in her lower abdomen, Eleni forced herself to eat half of her meal, before the bell chimed and signaled the end of dinner.
The end of her fascination with Alexander of Tirragen and Pierina of Stone Mountain and Fallen Wall.
As she walked out of the mess hall with them, a large boy, as large as a bear, fell into step behind Pier. The odds were bleak to begin with, now they were dismal.
"Make sure ring the chapel bells at my funeral, Myles. I want to go with grandeur."
"Only you would, Eli. Don't worry, I'm sure there'll be bells ringing at your funeral."
Eleni followed Pier and Alex into one of the many libraries on the first floor. The large boy walked in behind her and blocked the door. She was trapped and she knew it.
Alex walked toward her, stalking her, like a starved cat, into an armchair in the farthest corner. The back of her legs hit the chair and the combined forces of fear and gravity forced her into the chair. Content with his prey's position, Alex walked around to the back of the chair and placed one firm hand on each of her shoulders.
So only Pier was left. She was the ringleader. She was her jailer.
Oh, if only you knew how right you'd be, Myles.
Once again, thank you to everyone who reviewed. Some are really inspiring. Than you!