This chapter is dedicated to my grandad, who lost his battle with cancer earlier this week. Obviously, I wasn't feeling like writing while he was undergoing treatment, but that's honestly only part of the reason this chapter took so long. I'll go into more detail on that at the end.

Miss you already, Grandad.

Evaluating

Kellie set down her chalk, the mathematics problems in front of her completed. She let out an inaudible sigh of relief as she stepped away from the large slate.

All around her, the page examinations were occurring. Only the first-years were being tested right now, the older pages looking on from the side of the room along with the families and well-wishers come to observe.

One of the examiners—from Fief Lisafer? Kellie couldn't remember—stepped up to her newly-vacated spot at the slate and began marking her answers. He hesitated over one and Kellie felt her stomach drop, but he marked each with the sign that indicated they were correct, and notated her name with the word "pass."

Mathematics still didn't come easily to Kellie, but a passing score was a passing score. Ulasu, who had been the first to finish with her own problems, raised a fist partway and grinned at Kellie. Grinning back at her best friend, Kellie glanced around the hall. She knew her parents were here somewhere, but she hadn't found them yet.

"I'm so hungry," grumbled Marius, keeping his voice low. "Why do we have to wait to eat until they finish checking our answers? All these exams work up an appetite, you know."

"We're all hungry," Jarrod remarked softly, offering an apologetic smile to Kellie. He was good at mathematics and had finished only a minute after Ulasu, both of them standing to the side for some time. "But it's not even noon yet—you can wait a bit longer, can't you?"

"Quiet!" hissed Everett. "Kellie was the last one finished, so they'll have to feed us soon—now hush before we get in trouble!"

The training master leveled the knot of first-years a stern look, and Marius, who had opened his mouth to protest—or perhaps to complain of hunger once again—closed it with an audible pop. At that moment, the lead examiner, introduced earlier as Darrel of Teresian, cleared his throat.

"The examiners have determined that all seven of the pages in their first year have demonstrated sufficient knowledge of the academic arts," he announced in his reedy voice. "All present are dismissed for the midday meal. We will reconvene at the second afternoon bell in the practice yards to continue the examinations in the combat areas."

The gathered crowd let out a cheer. Or perhaps that was just the pages' stomachs growling, Kellie thought, amused—she was suddenly ravenous. Marius was right: taking the exams did work up an appetite.

"I believe we had a wager," Ulasu murmured to Kellie as they stood in line with their trays.

Kellie sighed dramatically—Rowan would be proud of her—and balanced her tray on her knee so she could reach for her purse. "There, two silver nobles," she informed her friend, slipping the coins into Ulasu's hand. "So you were right, all right? I didn't miss any after all."

Ulasu beamed at her. "Say that again—the part about me being right."

"No. You don't get to gloat," Kellie mumbled.

"Congratulations, all!" Pathom remarked. He'd just joined the line behind the famished first-years. "The hard part is over now, it's just riding, archery, staff work, and Shang combat left."

"That didn't stop you fretting about it two years ago," Rowan murmured slyly from behind Pathom. He dodged the elbow his taller friend aimed at his ribs.

Kellie looked longingly toward the doors. "When do we get to see our families?" She still hadn't found her parents in the crowd of spectators.

"Not until after the practice yards," Rowan answered. "That's one of the sillier rules, but you can fail the exams for talking to anyone other than the people you've been training with. It's ridiculous—ooh, is that cherry pie? Wherever did they get cherries at this time of year?"

Kellie rolled her eyes at him.

The pages had spent the entire morning performing for the examiners, and it was a relief, Kellie though, to be given a short break. She'd been assigned a battle to describe and explain why it was significant, write a short paragraph on a magic or immortal of her choice, and demonstrate the proper way to greet ambassadors. The mathematics problems, wheeled into the room on several large slates, had been their last test of the morning.

"Looking forward to the outdoor exams?" Rowan cheekily asked the three first-year girls sat at the table with him.

Kellie kicked him under the table. From the way he winced, she guessed Ulasu had done the same from his other side. "Whoever said girls aren't fit for combat has never been attacked so brutally by one!" he gasped, holding his heart dramatically.

Liano was doing her best to hide her feelings behind a blank expression as the Yamanis did, but Kellie, used to it from her mother and godsmother, could tell her friend was nervous. She gave Liano a gentle nudge in the ribs. "You've been riding for the last year, haven't you? And I know you can shoot well—three different kinds of bows, in fact! Lady Fianola has taken her duty to train you seriously."

"Three different kinds of bows?" Rowan repeated, wide-eyed. "You never said that before! Even Mae can only use two."

"I can shoot longbow, short, and recurve," Liano confirmed. "And I know how to use a Yamani longbow too." An expression of slight embarrassment crossed her face. "Though I'm not very good at it. And Mae is still better than me with the longbow. She hits the target every time—I only hit it two times out of three."

"Yes, I'm sure that her skill has nothing to do with the fact that she's three years older," Pathom remarked dryly. "Your Highness, if you want my advice, see if you can discuss shooting with Mae before she rides out as a squire. She'd be ecstatic to do so, it's one of her favorite topics."

Rowan nodded in agreement, and Kellie couldn't argue—Mae did love talking about archery, almost as much as she enjoyed shooting. One of the older pages had mentioned to the first-years that at last year's summer training camp, the Shang Eagle had asked for Mae's assistance in a fletching demonstration. Kellie was sorry that she wouldn't be able to see her friend do the same this year, with Mae soon to be a squire serving a knight-master.

Once the meal was finished, the pages filed down to the practice courts. While the upper-years took seats among the audience, the first-years were instructed to saddle and mount their horses before directing them to follow a course outlined with small posts. Blaze, cooperative as always, responded to Kellie's nudges and completed the course easily.

Archery, unarmed combat and staff work, were a blur to Kellie. She managed to hit the target with every one of her arrows, although only two hit dead center out of her quiver of ten. Shang combat was, as usual, directed by the Horse; the pages were required to face him in a one-on-one bout to demonstrate their ability to both attack and defend. Staffs were straightforward enough, and so were swords. When Kellie took her seat once more, she breathed out and sat on her hands, afraid that they would tremble if she left them on her lap.

"Congratulations, first-years," one of the officials spoke in a rumbling voice. Cassius had named him a few days earlier as Lord Thurston of Darroch, a noble who had conservative leanings but kept his opinions to himself. He looked over the line of first-years, his gaze tightening a bit as it landed on the three females, continuing, "You have all met the standards required of first-year pages. Continue to accomplish your studies in such a manner, and I will see you for your exams next year."

The applause from the audience began in a slow, muted fashion, but soon grew in enthusiasm until the sound of cheers rang in Kellie's ears.

None of the pages left the yard right away. Stable hands had taken care of their horses, cleaning saddles and tack, but Kellie wanted to give Blaze a good brushing. He deserved it, after this afternoon.

"Here, boy," Kellie whispered, holding out the apple she'd brought him. Blaze leaned forward, inspecting the treat, before gently taking it from her, making Kellie giggle as his velvety lips tickled her palm.

She went over his coat thoroughly with the brush, murmuring softly to him as she went. She was sure he understood her when she spoke to him as would to one of her friends, telling him about her day and complaining about mathematics. Dong so didn't even strike her as odd anymore.

Clouds had covered the sun when she emerged from the stable, and the assembled crowd had mostly dispersed. Kellie set off at a run up the hill, wanting to see her parents before they left.

She arrived to find her father in the entrance hall, deep in conversation with an older man. Neal turned at her approach, his eyes lighting up. Kellie threw herself into his arms, not caring who saw.

"Here now," her father murmured into her hair. "You don't show this kind of affection to everybody at the palace, do you?"

"Neal, don't tease her," Yuki scolded him, as Kellie separated from her papa. "Kellie dear, we've missed you so much."

Kellie looked up into her mama's face, seeing the hint of a smile in her brown eyes. It was wonderful to see her parents again; she'd missed them at Midwinter.

"How have you been this year?" Neal inquired, his eyebrows lifting mischievously. "I do hope you haven't been causing poor Merric too much trouble."

"Papa," Kellie complained, rolling her eyes at him. "I'd never talk back to the training master—I'm not you."

Neal gave a theatrical-sounding gasp. "Talking back to the training master? I would never! You wound me, to accuse me of such treachery!"

There was an extremely amused chuckle from the man Kellie had seen her parents speaking with earlier. "Making such a scene out here, Nealan? And here I thought my wife had beaten that out of you years ago."

Kellie looked the man over. He was rather ordinary-looking, with mostly-gray hair and a pleasant smile. His eyes, she realized with a start, were a green-hazel shade identical to Ulasu's…

"Grandda!" came a shout from across the hall. Kellie looked up in time to step aside as her best friend came barreling down the hall, throwing herself into the man's arms with such force Kellie half expected both of them to go sprawling onto the floor. To his credit, the man seemed to have expected such a greeting and spun her around in a half circle, before setting her gently back down on her feet.

Ulasu was babbling at him cheerfully. "Grandda, I'm so glad to see you! Is Grandmama here? And Ma and Da? How long are you staying? Did you watch me take my exams?"

"Slow down, youngster," the man chuckled, gently setting Ulasu back onto her feet. "I can't answer your questions when you throw them all at me that fast! Hmm…" He rubbed his chin for a moment. "No, your grandmother isn't here, and neither are your parents—you know why. Your brother and sister are, though," he added, motioning behind him.

Kellie looked over in the direction Baron George—for this man was surely the baron of Pirate's Swoop—had indicated, finding two children who were both dressed in plain shirts and breeches very similar to the practice clothes worn by the pages. Startled by a tug on her arm, she found Ulasu pulling her over toward the two.

"Kellie, this is my sister Ochobai," Ulasu said, indicating the two, "and my brother Junim. Ocho, Jun, this is my friend Kellie—Kelanna of Queenscove."

Kellie looked them over quickly. Both Ochobai and Junim shared Ulasu's complexion, hair color, and facial features, enough for anybody to see they were siblings, but they were hardly identical. Junim was half a head taller than Ulasu, with close-cropped hair and dark brown eyes; Ochobai was several inches shorter than Kellie, making her nearly a foot shorter than her sister. Her eyes were not brown or green, but instead a brilliant violet like her famed grandmother's. A long, neat braid hung down her back.

"It's nice to meet you both," Kellie told them politely. "Ulasu's told me so much about you."

"She's written of you as well," Ochobai answered. The shorter girl placed her hands on her hips as she studied Kellie. "You have the Gift, don't you? We'll have to talk magic sometime."

"I'd like that," Kellie answered, meaning it. She liked being able to talk to new mages.

"Grandda, you said Ma didn't come?" Ulasu questioned.

Kellie turned around to see the disappointed look her friend was wearing.

The baron shook his head. "I told you she wasn't comin', didn't I? And you know why," he repeated, giving his granddaughter a stern look. So that's where Ulasu had learned it, Kellie thought, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling.

Ulasu's disappointment didn't fade. "I thought she'd ask the king for permission to attend my exams," she mumbled.

"I'm sure she will, lass, in three years when you become a squire," Baron George assured her. "But she won't be able to make requests like that often, you understand? She did ask me, before I left, to pass along her love and congratulations to you. I know she's proud of you, even though she couldn't come herself."

Ulasu nodded, still looking uncharacteristically sullen. "Oh, Kellie, this my grandfather George, the baron of Pirate's Swoop."

"Just George, if you please," the baron told Kellie. "It's good to meet you, lass. I hear you've taken it upon yourself to make sure Ulasu stays out of trouble." His eyes crinkled with mirth. Kellie immediately liked him.

Neal and Yuki shared the news from home, with Kellie hanging on every word. Hanako had mastered a particularly challenging bit of illusion magic and was performing it every chance she got. Nana had begun learning about all the bits of knowledge that were contained in books. Neal remarked with amusement that it had been hard to drag her away from them recently.

"I think we'll have to start teaching her how to ride," he added with a chuckle, "just to get her to put down her books every once in a while. Not that I'm complaining about having a scholarly daughter, mind you—"

"Yes, yes," Yuki chided. "We all know you're proud of her for following in your footsteps."

"Have you reserved a place for her at the university yet?" Ulasu asked wickedly. "There's only six years left until she can enroll—you don't want to wait too long."

Neal peered at Ulasu for several moments, then declared, "I like you."

George let out a hearty laugh. "Small wonder you do! Ulasu has her mother's sense of humor, for certain."

"How has Aly been?" Neal inquired. "I know how disappointed she was about having to move back to Tortall. Has she found something useful to occupy her time?"

"Aly has been in Legann for a time now," George answered. "She's been workin' with the Provost's Guard to try and solve some old cases—those smugglers from a few years back, remember? I suspected there was a splinter group we missed, and the activity down there has continued. Lord Emeric, of course, is only too happy to have Aly around. They've been friends since they were children."

"I recall," Neal remarked, running one hand through his hair. "Perhaps I need to venture up to Legann, then."

George nodded. "Aly would like to see you, I'm sure." He quirked an eyebrow. "Unless, of course, you still haven't forgiven her for knocking you into that mud puddle, all those years ago?"

Kellie couldn't help but lean in eagerly. "Lady Alianne knocked you into a mud puddle?"

"And here I was hoping you would refrain from sullying my daughter's ears with such stories," Neal sighed dramatically. "Can't a man keep some secrets? Preferably to take to the grave, if you don't mind."

Yuki waved off her husband's objections. "I should like to hear this story myself," she said, her eyes sparkling merrily. "I don't believe I know it."

George grinned, ignoring Neal's pained groan. "When Neal here was a squire, servin' my lady wife, there came a day she sent him to pick up some goods from one of the village healin' women. Now, he made it there with no trouble, but seems Aly saw him go, and decided to rig a little string across the road for when he returned."

Kellie giggled, already sensing where the story was going.

"To be fair to my tricksy-minded daughter," George went on, "she swore up and down, afterward, she only intended to trip Neal and send him tumblin'. But there was a small muddy patch just off the road, and Neal not only dropped the bandages and herbs in the water, he landed in it himself." He chuckled good-naturedly. "You were such a sight when you made it back to the manor, lad. Covered in mud and lookin' so forlorn, Alanna didn't even have the heart to scold you for losin' the things she'd sent you for."

Ulasu was snickering unabashedly. Yuki had bitten her lip to try and hide her smile, but the amusement in her eyes was plain to see. Kellie tried to imagine her father, all of twenty years old and dressed in Pirate's Swoop colors, dripping muddy water on the flagstones as the result of a young girl's prank, and broke into a wide grin herself.

"Maybe I should have Aunt Kel tell me some more stories of your time as pages," she suggested wickedly, and took great pleasure in the reactions to Neal's wounded yelp.

Kellie stared at her reflection for a long moment. She wasn't normally one to admire herself, but with her first year of page training now completed, she wanted to examine herself closely and see if she'd changed at all over the last year.

She'd gained about an inch in height since her last birthday. "I suppose it was too much to hope I'd be as tall as Aunt Kel," she informed her reflection. Her papa stood over six feet tall, but her mama was much shorter—after much calculation, Kellie had figured that she might reach five feet seven inches or so, but not more than that.

There were other changes in her appearance, though. Her normally peach-golden complexion had darkened a bit after all the time spent in the sun, and her muscles had gained a sort of wiry toughness that hadn't been there a year ago. Tessa had let down the hems of all her uniforms last week, still the same set that Kellie had received at the beginning of the year.

Her progress was showing itself in other ways, Kellie decided as she sat down at her desk and began sorting through the papers strewn there. The pile of mostly-correct mathematics assignments attested to that—she'd gone from missing four questions out of every ten in September, to only missing one or two by February. There were even a few, dated within the last two months, that she hadn't missed any at all.

Shuffling the papers into some semblance of order, Kellie slid a small hairpin onto the stack, before moving on to her reading and writing assignments. These, she knew, were nearly all correct. Master Marsden was a strict teacher, but Nealan of Queenscove was very serious about his daughters' book learning. Kellie had had little trouble with any of the assignments from that class.

A key sounded in the lock, and Tessa entered, brushing some dust off her skirt. "Good morning, Miss Kellie," she greeted. "You'll be here all day, won't you? No classes."

"The fourth-year examinations are tomorrow," Kellie answered absently, still looking over the papers. "Astara and Mae are going to be squires. I'll have to be there to watch, but today—yes, today is a free day. I'm sorting through all my assignments from the year."

Tessa peered over at the pile of papers. "You're a very intelligent young lady, miss," she remarked. "What's this, here?"

Kellie took a look at the page Tessa was pointing to. "That's a Yamani legend," she answered, touching the elaborate characters. "It talks about the history of the Islands—how the goddess Yama's favored mortals created the empire. I can translate it for you, if you like." Her ability to read the characters was somewhat rusty, but Kellie had had this legend memorized nearly her entire life.

But Tessa was shaking her head. "Don't put yourself to the trouble, miss. Really. You've done enough for me, and in addition to your own work, and your language lessons with Miss Ulasu besides. How are those coming along?"

Kellie made a face. She could hold a simple conversation in Kyprish, but her accent was atrocious. Tessa chuckled in response. "Never mind, then. I came to ask, miss—may I have some time to go into the city this week? The Thirteenth Rider group are in Corus for a few days, and I would dearly love to see Val before he leaves again."

"Of course." Kellie didn't need to think twice about it. She waved a hand. "I can manage on my own for a week, especially now that the days are warmer. Go spend some time with your sweetheart. Although—" She considered a moment. "Would you be able to cut my hair before you go? I've decided long hair is too impractical, especially since we'll be leaving for summer training camp soon."

Tessa frowned. "I'm afraid I've never cut hair before, miss," she replied, sounding apologetic. "I can find one of the other servants who can, but I think I'd make a mess of it if I tried."

"That's all right, then." Kellie returned to sorting through her assignments. "I can find someone myself. You go see Val, and I'll see if I can put these papers in order."

Tessa curtsied and the room, and Kellie pulled a stray etiquette paper from the pile of immortals reports. She skimmed her eyes over it—this one detailed the proper way to greet various nobles from Maren, and included a short list of things that Marenites found offensive and were to be avoided at any cost. She slid that into a separate pile.

Her classes would be changing again in the fall. No more immortals study, and no more reading and writing class. She was sorry to be leaving Tkaa and Skysong. The basilisk and the young dragon had been wonderful to learn from, and on the last day of her class with them, Kellie had expressed as much. Tkaa had made the pebbles-being-shaken laughter sound, and Skysong had been quick to assure Kellie that they would certainly see each other again, especially as the magic class Kellie would be taking in the fall was the one on wild magic and tribal magic, taught by Numair and Daine Salmalín, Skysong's mortal foster parents.

Her papers finally in order, Kellie bound each stack with a hairpin. There, that looked neat enough. She was proud of her accomplishments for the year. Her performances in combat classes were thoroughly middling—she was not the best in any of them, but neither was she the worst. Except perhaps at lance work. "I'll have to work on that next year," she quietly vowed to herself.

The bell sounded, jarring Kellie from her thoughts. It was still early, but she decided to walk down to the bathhouse—she'd been wanting to wash her hair, and there was more time today than usual.

Only Astara was in the pool when Kellie entered, and nodded a greeting. Kellie quickly stripped off her clothes and slid into the water, dunking her head under to wet her hair, and attacking it with a cake of grainy yellow soap.

"You did well on the exams," Astara commented unexpectedly, in a tone that was uncharacteristically soft.

Kellie, still working the lather through her dark locks, looked over at her blonde friend. "I was nervous, but… you think so?"

Astara nodded, a corner of her lip twisting in a wry smile. "The exams aren't difficult, you know. Even the big exams for the fourth-years. They only seem that way because there are so many people watching. You certainly didn't let on you were nervous."

Kellie's hands stilled for a moment. "The fourth-year exams aren't difficult?"

"Just long." Astara held her hand out. "Could you pass me some of that soap? Thank you. No, the exams are less to judge our abilities than to ensure that none of the pages are cheating. Only six people have failed them since they were implemented, and rumor has it half of those pages failed because they tried to bribe the officials or take notes into the exam hall. You're smart enough to know not to do that; you'll do fine."

"You aren't nervous at all?" Kellie returned to scrubbing her hair, leaning back to splash some more water on her head.

Astara tilted her head, thinking about it. "No," she said at last, flicking a stray fly away from her cheek. "I've watched the fourth-years take the exams three times now, and even though the questions they ask change from year to year, they still test the same skills. So last year, while I was there to support my friends, I took note of the questions they were asked and whether I knew the answers." Pride gleamed from her eyes as she continued, "There were only a few that I didn't get, and I think I could have gotten them if I'd been able to work them out on the slate."

Kellie tucked that knowledge away in her mind. "Any thoughts on who might take you as squire?" she asked.

"My brother Payton hinted at something," Astara replied. "I don't know what he's planning, but he could have called in a favor from somebody. I don't think he intends to take me himself."

Kellie hunkered down in the water, running her hands through her hair to get the soap out. "Astara… what can you tell me about the plants and animals class?"

Astara slid her spectacles onto her nose before answering. "It's taught by Master Lindhall Reed. He used to be an instructor at the University in Carthak, but returned to Tortall after Kaddar was crowned emperor. He's good friends with Master Numair, and just as easily distracted if you offer him the right sort of plant. I liked my classes with him. You're scholarly-minded—I'm sure you'll get on with him. Oh, he likes if you bring a plant sample from your home fief to class." She paused to haul herself out of the pool, wrapping herself in one of the fluffy towels supplied by the palace. "I need to be getting back to my room now—I want to review the main assignments one last time before tomorrow."

"I'll be there to watch you become a squire," Kellie promised.

Astara shot her a grin and dressed quickly before bidding her farewell.

Kellie worked her fingers through her hair, picking apart the worst snarls. "How does Mae do it?" she mumbled to herself. "I've never seen her dealing with knots like this."

"If you want your hair cut short," Ulasu's cheerful voice sounded from behind, "I know someone who can take care of that for you."

"Do you now?" Kellie replied dryly. "Is that your way of offering to cut my hair yourself?"

There was a rustling of cloth as Ulasu undressed, then a splash. "No," she answered, snatching up another cake of soap. "Kyrria, my maid, cuts my hair for me, and I'm certain she won't mind doing the same for you if you ask."

Kellie set her own soap aside. "You're sure?" she wanted to know. With a grunt of effort, she pulled herself from the pool and began to dry off.

"She won't mind at all," Ulasu assured her. "I usually give her a few coppers each time, seeing as hair care isn't exactly one of her assigned duties. Do you know how short you want it?"

Kellie pulled her tunic on over her head before picking up her comb. She began working it through her still-wet hair, examining the ends as she did so. "I suppose about as long as yours is," she replied, brushing her chin with her free hand for emphasis. "Short enough that it's easy to care for and won't get in the way, but still long enough that I can wear those pretty ribbons Astara and Mae gave me for Midwinter. Say, do you ever wear things like that in your hair?" Now that she thought about it, she couldn't remember ever seeing Ulasu with any sort of hair ornamentation.

Ulasu worked the soap around in her hands. "Not often. I don't have many, and I usually forget to wear the ones I do have. My favorite is a set of jeweled hair sticks from my godsmother, but they're much too impractical for page training." She set the soap down. "Let's go back up to our rooms, and I can get Kyrria to do your hair right now."

"All right," Kellie answered, running her hands through her hair and calling up her magic. She hadn't entirely mastered Erynne's drying spell yet, and focused carefully on her intention.

Ulasu got out of the water with a loud splash and started to dry herself. "Still having trouble with that spell?" she asked kindly.

"Yes," Kellie grumbled. "I told you, the Queenscove Gift is mostly good for healing—I have to really work to do anything else with it. It took me weeks to be able to call light to a crystal every time, and I still can't move things more than a few paces without touching them."

"There's nothing wrong with that," Ulasu asserted stoutly. "Healing is useful magic, truly. When will you ever need to be able to use your magic to move something that you can't just pick up and carry?"

Kellie sighed loudly. "Master Irial says it's to do with strengthening my power. That practicing all my talents, even the ones I'm not very good at, will increase my magic level and my control. And I'm sure he's right, but I nearly drained myself trying to do some of the simplest spells. It's frustrating—I know I have the ability to do these things with my magic, but the power it costs me to actually do them is enough that it just doesn't feel worth it."

Her hair was as dry as it was going to get. Kellie pulled the locks into a messy braid and tied off the end, flicking it over her shoulder.

Ulasu, now dressed, elbowed her lightly. "Well, at least you know your own limits, That's good, you'll be less likely to overtax yourself. Come on—I'll race you to my rooms!"

Kellie gave a surprised shout as Ulasu suddenly began running, charging up the hill. She immediately picked up speed and raced after her friend. Ulasu's laughter could be heard throughout the courtyard.

"You're certain about this, Miss Kelanna?"

Kellie met the plump woman's dark eyes in the mirror and nodded. "Yes, Kyrria, I'm sure. And if I change my mind later, well, it's hair. It'll grow back."

Kyrria Townshend, Ulasu's maid, seemed to consider that for a moment, then smiled, revealing a gap between her front teeth. "It certainly will. Well, I suppose I'll get on with it then. To your chin, you said? Like Miss Ulasu?"

"Yes," Kellie answered, as the maid took the tie from her braid and finger combed through her still-damp hair.

"All right, then. Won't take long, half a bell at most. You're from Fief Queenscove, yes? What it like there?"

Kellie glanced back up to meet Kyrria's gaze. "You've never been?" That surprised her, a little. Queenscove boasted a large market that frequently attracted vendors from Carthak and the Copper Isles as well as Tortallans, and it was very popular.

The maid shook her head. "I lived my entire life in Rajmuat until two years ago. All I've seen of Tortall has been Pirate's Swoop, Corus, and the road in between. I was ten when Queen Dovasary took the throne, and I've been in service nearly since then."

Ten when the Queen had been crowned… Kellie worked through the numbers and found that Kyrria was about twenty-two. That had been more or less what she'd guessed the woman's age to be. "If you don't mind my asking, how did you come to be in service to Ulasu?" she asked, curious as to how a maid from Rajmuat had ended up in Corus.

"Look down for me, will you? There's a girl. I don't mind you asking at all," Kyrria answered. Bringing the scissors up. "I'm about to start cutting, now. Last chance to change your mind."

"I'm not changing my mind," Kellie told her.

The snip sounded as the scissors closed on a strand of her hair. "How did I come to be in service…" Kyrria mused. "Well, my older sister, Vitorcine, worked for Lady Aly, and she got me the post. I decided to accompany the family when they came to Tortall, though they gave me the choice to stay in the Isles to be near my own family, but I did want to see more of the world. Still do, really. That's why I offered to serve Miss Ulasu when she decided to try for her shield."

Kyrria's soft Kyprish lilt became a bit more pronounced as she spoke of her homeland, and her words were interspersed with the snipping sounds of the scissors. "My parents owned a bakery in Rajmuat. I suppose they still own it, though they've passed the running of it to my oldest brother and his wife. They have four little ones of their own—the youngest was born the summer before I came to Tortall with the family. I have another sister in service with House Fonfala, and two other brothers who work in the palace, one as a hostler and one in the Queen's Guard. Look to your left, please."

Kellie did as Kyrria asked, looking into the small painting that was hung on the wall. It was a pretty thing, depicting a simple fishing boat with colorful sails. The barest hint of a mountain could be seen behind it.

"I suppose once Miss Ulasu is a squire," Kyrria went on, "Perhaps I'll return to the Isles."

Kyrria's cheerful chatter continued while she went on snipping Kellie's black locks. She was efficient yet gentle with her treatment. Ulasu peered in at one point. "Oh, you look good with shorter hair, Kellie."

"Do you think so?" Kellie had been more concerned with her hair's practicality than its appearance, but Ulasu nodded.

"Yes, it frames your face in a very pretty way." Ulasu ducked back out of the room before Kellie could come up with a proper response to that.

Kyrria set down her scissors just after the fourth bell sounded. "There!" she said, sounding pleased with herself. "Have a look, then, miss. I think you'll like this.

Kellie stared into the mirror, reaching one hand up to finger the ends of her hair. It fell to her chin, now, not even brushing the tops of her shoulders. Ulasu was right, it did look pretty framing her face like this. More importantly, it would no longer take Kellie extra time in the mornings to braid, and it would dry faster after she bathed now. Kellie nodded solemnly to her reflection.

She felt like this was the beginning of something good.

So! Like I said up top, I lost my grandad recently. This is after I got a new job, moved to a new state for said job, and signed my first lease for a rental place. I'm also currently questioning both my sexuality AND my gender identity (zero stars, do NOT recommend having both a sexuality and gender crisis at the same time) so… yeah. Lots of major life events happening recently. I love my new job though! I also have complete and total Arcane brainrot after a real-world friend recommended I watch it several months ago. Coincides with my last update, funnily enough… don't be surprised if you see an Arcane one-shot or two from me at some point.

If you've made it this far and you're still reading, I applaud you. Thanks so much for all of your patience with my nonexistent update schedule!