(Continued from Ch 60, Baladus) The Chronicles of Rapina Chapter 61, The Fallen Angel Charles Norwit marveled at the mosaics and objects of art adorning the walls of the grand foyer of Jordell Manor. Every few minutes another couple arrived at the post-tournament ball and a herald announced them amidst a fanfare of trumpets. Charles had arrived alone because his date, Bernadine Belgado, was helping Lord Jordell with the preparations for the ball. Often Belgado came to these affairs with Jordell, but this time he knew Lord Jordell was inviting someone else, thus it had been Charles' chance to invite Belgado. No sane man would pass up that kind of opportunity. Belgado was one of the three beauties of Vargrend's. The trumpet fanfare once again interrupted conversation in the room. "Announcing Lord George Gransward and Lady Bianca Bristol," The Harold shouted. Charles smiled suavely in spite of the way Gransward practically glared at him from across the room. Charles could hear Lord Jordell greeting the new arrivals. "Lady Bristol, Lord Gransward, Welcome to Jordell Manor. It is so marvelous to see you tonight. The banquet will begin in a quarter hour. We have just a few more arrivals and then the servants will open the dining hall and we will begin the first course." "Thank you Lord Jordell. I apologize for being short with you at breakfast this morning," Gransward said. "There is no need to worry about that, Lord Gransward, nor should Lady Bristol worry about that slight at the rankings ball. Tonight is about fun. We must all wipe the slate clean of petty slights. Our king needs all of his vassals to work together like a well-oiled team, otherwise what good would we be to him in times of war?" Jordell smiled gaily. "You are right Lord Jordell and thank you for being so magnanimous," Gransward said. "It is nothing. Please enjoy the ball." Jamie Jordell smiled sweetly. About fifteen minutes later Jordell strolled to the foot of the richly carpeted stairs that led to the balcony overlooking the crowded foyer. Suddenly the music of harps filled the air as musicians positioned above on the balcony began to play. An elaborate horn fanfare was added to the music of the harps and a small chorus sang a hymn about angels, the servants and messengers of the gods. Bellany appeared at the top of the staircase from a second floor hallway and slowly walked down the steps clad in a gown of sumptuous autumn red brocade with angelic silver accents. The sparkle of diamonds and rubies set in platinum added fire to her breathtaking ensemble. The flattering lines and sumptuous décolletage marked the dress as something Jordell had a designer create for her rather than anything her mother would have approved of. Bellany blushed and held back a sneeze as a score of delicious tingling waves of sensation permeated her body. It had been far too long since she had felt so much lust. It caressed her like a long lost lover. Her body responded, resonating in its element and accentuating the gawks and robust inhalations of the assembled guests. At first, Bianca Bristol stared at Bellany in utter shock and then after a brief moment of jealousy she turned to Lord Jordell. Her face was the image of rage. Jordell met her anger with a gay smile. A smile that told her she had got exactly what she deserved for slighting him. Bellany was not sure if Jordell's primary reason for helping her was to curry her favor or if he was just using her to get back at Bianca Bristol for deciding that it was her job to determine with whom Lord Jordell could speak at the ratings ball. He might also be getting back at George Gransward for his slight at breakfast. Yet Jordell had certainly planned the ball long before this morning. He might simply have given Gransward enough rope to hang himself with because Jordell had already known what was going to be happening at the ball. There were quite a number of people Jamie Jordell might have talked to who wished to see the snub broken; practically all of them were men. He could have made each of them feel that he was doing them a personal favor. Bellany smiled. She knew Jordell fancied her brother and Charles would be one of the major social debtors. After all, he was a member of her family who had earlier solicited Carnarvon's aid in helping Bellany reenter society. Perhaps Carnarvon had talked to Jordell because he wanted to be able to see Bellany socially and only a man who outranked Bristol could remedy the social situation. That probably also went for some of the other emerald men since Bellany could not seem to resist tugging at their lusts. Jamie also secretly fancied women as he did men and had curried favor with her. If Bernadine wished to see Bellany socially then perhaps he was doing her a favor as well. Thus most of the young noblemen at Bristol's Academy and two of the most beautiful women at Vargrend's Academy now owed Lord Jordell a favor. The cost to Jordell would be little since Bristol and Gransward could not afford strong retaliation when it was obvious that Jordell was punishing them for social slights that everyone knew about. Jordell could also easily take the high ground and admonish them that the king's vassals must work together and at all times set aside their differences for the common good. Jordell did stand to lose favor with the Bristols, but since Red Jack was already attacking the Avengenes, the Bristols could make no serious claim that the Jordells were against them. Bellany smirked. It stood to reason that Red Jack was an estranged Jordell. Cunning seemed to run in the family. After stepping off the final stair, Bellany took Lord Jordell's proffered arm. "Does it not astonish how stunning she looks in a real dress?" Jordel asked loudly enough for everyone to hear. There was a hum of assent from the other guests and then someone started to applaud. It proved infectious. Soon most of the people in the room were clapping. In a hushed voice Jamie whispered, "This dress makes Bristol's garment look like a burlap sack." Without missing a beat he continued in a loud conversational volume as the applause died down, "By the way, I am impounding that eyesore of a dress you arrived in, Lady Norwit. It was a crime against fashion." Bellany giggled. Lord Jordell led Bellany to the dining hall to begin the banquet. As they walked, Jordell whispered in Bellany's ear. "The look on Bristol's face is priceless. If the cloud above her head gets any darker, we will have rain. Bianca is a beautiful woman but she does not have the sort of figure that turns men into drooling idiots. You do." Jordell smiled. "Way to go, Lord Jordell," Carnarvon whispered into the future count's ear as he passed. Saint Varlans added, "Great fashion sense Lord Jordell." It was surprising how many claps on the shoulder and whispered words of praise or gratitude Jordell got about Bellany as the young men filed by. With the exception of Bernadine Belgado, the women did not seem very pleased with Lord Jordell and many gave him stony expressions or turned up their noses as if he were a sell-out. Jordell seemed to think this was funny. "Isn't it delicious when scorn becomes tainted with envy?" Jordell said breathlessly and quietly enough that the nearest chaperone did not hear it. "Perhaps you can turn them all into bad girls." Bellany was seated near the head of the table on Jordell's right. Bernadine Belgado sat on his left with Charles on her left. Bristol sat close to the foot of the table next to Mayor Eagan's wife who was acting as the chief chaperone. Most of the other chaperones were eating at a separate table while Mrs. Eagan and a chosen few monitored the conversations of the many young ladies, lords and athletes who sat between her and Lord Jordell. Bellany noticed that the seating arrangements were such that they kept the various allies of Avengene and Bristol apart so that divisive politics would not be discussed. Once everyone was seated, Jordell stood with his glass of wine in hand. "Welcome Ladies, Lords and Gentlemen. I would like to propose a toast to the king and to the unity and solidarity of his vassals." "To the King and to the unity and solidarity of his vassals," the assembled ladies and gentlemen intoned before drinking from their cups. Bellany noticed a scowl on Bristol's face, but she drank the toast just the same. It stood to reason that a future Count such as Lord Jordell would be interested in keeping the barons from bickering. Yet Bellany doubted that Jordell would have raised a finger had she not proved interesting to him and had the young emerald men not wished her free for social interaction. "Lady Bellany, I do not think you have met my sister, Lady Larissa Jordell. Lady Jordell, Lady Norwit." "Pleased to meet you Lady Jordell," Bellany said. "It is good to see you, Lady Norwit. James says you are not at all like a vindicator girl is supposed to be. It was not right for Bristol to keep you away from the other peers. This feud between Avengene and Bristol is not your fault." "Thank you Lady Jordell. I used to be a walking vindicator stereotype, but I was forced to grow up. Grrsh rrr G'ugflieche!" "Grrsh rrr G'ugflieche?" Lady Jordell asked. "It is orcish. The literal translation is, 'work or stew meat.' Those are your two options as a slave of the orcs. If your value as meat exceeds your value as a worker then you become dinner." "How barbaric," Lady Jordell said. "They have a certain brutal efficiency. Orcs eat prim, proper, chaste, and naïve vindicator girls stewed with potatoes," Bellany said. "That sounds like a tolerable dish," Saint Varlans broke in in a hushed voice. The smile Bellany gave him should have brought the entire table full of chaperones to their feet, but the comment was spoken too softly and the chaperones missed Bellany's reaction. Saint Varlans feigned wiping sweat from his brow and chuckled. Dinner conversation centered on the events of the tournaments. The peers of the realm had done well as usual, but there were many nuances to discuss including Steefl's saving performance at the jousts and "Bulls- eye Norwit's" come from behind victories in the crossbow events. After several delicious courses the meal ended and the diners retired upstairs to the ballroom. The ballroom was elegant and had a smooth hardwood dance floor. Lord Jordell started the dancing off with Bellany in the center of the room. Thanks to her training with Guardian Thane, her concurrent enrollment in ballroom dancing and ballet, and a rehearsal with Lord Jordell earlier in the evening, Bellany danced with the grace and strength of an athlete. The lust directed at her was more than a little distracting especially considering the memories it brought back from Red Jack's camp. Bellany was relieved to be out of the spotlight once the other couples joined the dance in the middle of the number. The first part of the evening coursed to its finish on the wings of lust. The emerald men asked her to dance with a vengeance. She did not need to make any excuses in order to drink sparingly so as to preserve her secrets and it was a lucky thing. Being in such close proximity to so many young men was more difficult for her than she would have imagined possible. Her body was mad for them and she had to attend what she was doing every second or she might have focused the power of her flaming lust and caused something the chaperones would not approve of. She had to keep everything subtle. Thankfully she was getting a lot of exercise and the looks of scorn and envy directed at her by many of the ladies kept her on the defensive. There seemed to be a conspiracy afoot to keep her on the dance floor for the entire evening. Jordell was a brilliant dancer but he and Bradley Bostwick were also the most voracious drinkers of the group. Thus Jordell did not keep her all to himself. If he had, there would have been no time for him to drink. It felt good to be a part of the dance rather than just a spectator as she had been at the ratings ball. Mary waved or gave her the eye every time she danced by on the arm of Abraham Steefl or one of the other men. Bellany smiled as she felt the caress of Mary's lust and remembered what Mary had said after the last ball. When the orchestra took its break most of the dancing couples went to the tables that held refreshments. Charles came over with Bernadine, and Abraham Steefl with Mary. "Ladies, there are a number of suites open for you to freshen up in downstairs on the north side of the second floor. The men have a similar area on the south side of the manor," Lord Jordell announced. Bellany could tell that Lord Jordell was a little tipsy. Charles and Lawrence Eagan were not entirely sober either but they were still acting fairly straight. "Bellany it seems like you have not left the dance floor all evening," Mary said. "Aren't you exhausted?" "No, it has been wonderful. Instead of no one asking me to dance, everyone but George Gransward, Bart Blaxton and a few others have asked me out on the floor. Maxwell and the visiting athletes from the academy of the Rose alone could keep me busy." "Oh believe me honey; they all want to do more than dance," Jamie said. "I have been watching you." "That dress is rather flattering. It must be worth a fortune," Mary said. "If you want something done right, you pay whatever it costs," Jordell said. "That's easy for you to say, Lord Jordell," Mary said. "Yes, it is." Jordell smiled. "I could not possibly have stood seeing Lady Norwit in one of those vindicator rags all evening. If all the young men are going to be staring at my date, the least I can do is get her a dress that flatters her figure rather than trying to hide it. It is all in the cut. It is no more risqué than what Bristol is wearing, yet it looks so much better, don't you agree?" "It is not just the dress, Lord Jordell, it is the jewelry. How are the other ladies supposed to compete with that?" Gransward piped in as she took refreshment. Jordell smiled. "Lady Norwit is my date, Glenda. Isn't the whole point that none of the other ladies can possibly compete?" "But it's not fair she is..." Glenda Gransward stammered. "A fallen angel?" Jordell asked. "Well yes but that was not the word I would have used," Gransward scoffed. "I happen to be partial to naughty people; after all, I do have a certain reputation myself," Jordell said. "That orc whore has no business being at this ball," Bianca Bristol cut in. "You think she is a whore but you really have no idea what makes a woman a whore, do you Bianca?" Jordell said. "I do so," Bristol said. "You think naughty girls are whores but the truth is that greedy girls are," Jordell said. "Just because she is the child of Evangeline's little sister does not mean she set his church against yours. You already know she had nothing to do with that. Lady Norwit is a victim of war with orcs that would be on your doorstep was it not for Lord Avengene. No one says you have to invite her over for tea, but starting now you and your friends will mind your manners in her presence." "I will not include that... _person_ in my social group," Bianca Bristol sneered. "Just be civil. I am not so arrogant as to presume to decide with whom you may socialize," Jamie said sweetly as he made an oblique yet cutting reference to Bianca's tantrum at the ratings ball. Bianca flinched. She had overstepped her bounds and she knew it. "Excuse me, I must freshen up," Bristol said as she left. "That sounds like a good idea. I will see you later Glenda, Bellany, Bernadine, Charles, Mary and everyone," Jordell said as he too left the ballroom. Mary took Bellany's hand. "Shall we freshen up?" "This way, ladies," Bernadine Belgado said as Charles left her to follow Jordell. A few minutes later, the ladies passed the chaperones that blocked the second floor hallway so that no men could pass. "Mary, we will use one of the suites at this end of the hall. Bellany, as Jamie's date you have use of the Princess suite down here at the end of the hallway." Belgado led the way to the end of the hall and then took a key from a pocket in her dress and opened the door for Bellany. As Bellany went in, Belgado handed her the key. Bellany locked the door behind her and went through the sitting room and into the bathroom. The fixtures were amazing. Bellany imagined that the entire mansion must have plumbing. After freshening up she left the bathroom to look at the rest of the suite. James Jordell winked at Bellany as she peeked into the bedroom. Bellany's mouth opened in surprise. "Jamie, how did you get in here?" She asked, as she curbed the lust that was threatening to engulf Jordell. "Oh those chaperones are only human. A bit of misdirection and you can fool them all," Jordell said, raising his glass. "I can disappear if you like." Bellany smiled as she caressed Jordell's lust. "Disappear? Where is the fun in that?" Bellany asked coming to the bed to sit down next to the young lord. "You cannot possibly be this bad," Jordell said in disbelief. "You are right. It is not possible that I could go insane for men after having been locked up in Vargrend's." Bellany smiled. "What about Mary? Doesn't she keep you happy?" Jordell asked. "Mary is too much the vindicator girl to have succumbed to her desires," Bellany said. "Oh how unfortunate. I see how she looks at you. She practically swoons," Jordell said. Bellany giggled. "She tries to play the good vindicator girl even though she is entirely wrong for the part. I have not pushed things because she is not naturally naughty and I am afraid the guilt would get to her and soon I might as well be sleeping with reverend Leland." "I propositioned reverend Leland once last year. Even in private he is so obnoxious with his sermonizing," Lord Jordell said wrinkling his nose. Bellany vibrated with laughter picturing Lord Jordell propositioning reverend Leland. "Do you get the feeling that his soul was yanked out and replaced by a sheaf of sermons?" "I know what you mean. I am not sure where the man in that man went. If you ask me it is just not natural," Jordell said. "Anyhow I am on a mission from the other side of the house. If I am to believe certain young lords you have expressed interest in accompanying the men on weekend rides, fireside gatherings and all manner of other forbidden outings without benefit of a chaperone. They seldom invite me to such things but I have noticed that has changed lately. I think they have ulterior motives. This year I seem to be the only one who has both a sister and a lady friend that I can get to bend the rules. Is there any truth to what I have been told concerning the outings?" Jordell asked. "Yes, both of the things you mentioned are true." Bellany nodded. "Heavens where is your pride?" Jordell squealed. "It would be silly for me to take pride in my virtue with men. That is a lost cause if ever there was one," Bellany rolled her eyes. "My pride has flown from such girlish fancies. I take pride in real things now." "Real things, how novel," Jordell said. "What sort of real things?" Bellany thought for a moment. She could not talk about magic. She would just have to name her lesser interests. "I enjoy my art enrichment class, especially now that we are finally starting to draw people. Like you I take pride in my skill with the rapier. I also miss practicing with the longbow. Oh gods but most of all I miss my pony. He is so sweet," Bellany said as many fond memories of Starstruck filled her mind. "Your pony?" Jordell asked. "Well he is not really mine. I wish he were. He is my father's best horse and our only stallion, a black Andalusian. He is so beautiful." "Gods Lady Norwit, it sounds as if you are describing a long lost lover," Jordell accused. Bellany tried not to look like the cat that had swallowed the canary. "I am very attached to him. He was the key motivator for my recovery from my wounds. I spent all spring exercising madly so that I would be strong enough to ride him and then I spent practically the whole summer on his back." "Oh how sweet. I guess you can ride well enough then. Can you really handle a rapier?" Jordell asked. "Not like you can, but I am as good as Charles. He taught me over the summer." "I have my doubts one summer would make you the equal of Charles, but it would be easy enough to test your skills. You know I have a rapier trainer here at the house. No one wanted to be on the rapier team with me this year so he trains only me. Most of the time he hasn't a thing to do," Jordell said. Bellany practically salivated. "Oh come now he would be wasted on you," Jordell taunted. "He would not! I bet he is magnificent. I could learn so much from him," Bellany said. "Of course you could. He is a half elf and the finest trainer money and influence can buy," Jamie said smiling. "Stop drooling dear," Jordell giggled. "Oh sorry." Bellany blushed. "After lunch tomorrow why don't you come by? I would like to find out if you really are as good as Charles. I will get my sister, Larissa, to invite you to tour the house so that you can discuss our art collection. Make sure you ask her about as many artworks as you can this evening, especially near chaperones." Jordell smiled. Bellany nodded. "I will." "There, enough of business. What do you think of Maxwell, my opponent today at the tournament? I noticed you have danced with him three times," Jordell asked. Bellany smiled. "He's dashing. It is a shame he will not be here for long." "Oh it is. If only I had more time to work on him," Jordell said. Bellany giggled. "You are so bad, Jamie." "Oh yes I am. I suppose we should get back to the party. You go first. I cannot reveal my chaperone- evading secrets," Jordell said. "Alright, I will see you back at the party. Thank you Jamie," Bellany embraced Jordell and kissed him on the cheek. The act itself was innocent enough, but behind it the ambient power of Bellany's lust was not. Bellany smiled as she excused herself to return to the party. Jordell squealed and fanned himself as she left. The rest of the evening flew by on the dance floor. It seemed everyone wanted to dance with her. She danced with Lord Jordell whenever he had a mind to and she made a point to accept whenever Abraham Steefl asked. He had shown a great deal of honorable kindness to her in less socially auspicious times and whether it was just out of duty or not, the fact of the matter was that Steefl had been there when she needed him most. By the end of the evening, all of Charles' friends had danced with her as had most of the opponents they had faced in the day's tournament. Periodically Bellany feigned fatigue and took a break to question Larissa Jordell about objects of art. Miss Jordell was a knowledgeable hostess and Bellany realized Jamie must already have asked her to help since she had many of their conversations about art near chaperones. By the end of the evening, Larissa and her surrogate parent, the steward of Jordell manor had signed an invitation for Bellany to come to Jordell manor after church the following morning for lunch and an art tour. The chaperones allowed only a kiss on the hand as ladies parted from their dates to return to The Vargrend Academy for Girls, but the squeeze Lord Jordell gave her hand and the smile she gave him in return promised that they would see one another again. -------- There was something about pulling up to The Vargrend Academy for Girls in the Jordell coach that made Bellany feel powerful. The size, speed and luxury of the carriage certainly had an effect on one's perspective. Yet as Bellany stepped out into the chilly night from the heated carriage, she wondered if the looks of envious scorn were any better than the looks of ordinary scorn she had previously suffered from the other ladies. Somehow the looks she used to get seemed a little less venomous. Formerly she was despised only as an impotent icon of despoiled virtue, whereas now she seemed to be despised as an unfair competitor who might make it more difficult for politically motivated ladies to maneuver their gentleman of choice into marriage. The allure of a woman of The Vargrend Academy was largely just a pedigree, a pretty face and the promise of what might come after marriage. Bellany's allure was not a promise but a fact that manifested in her demeanor. It was a deceptively powerful undercurrent to which the young men reacted. She had sexual knowledge and volition that the other girls lacked and she was comfortable with what she was even if they were not. She decided to smile at the scornful looks just as her brother seemed to be able to smile when George Gransward was glaring at him. Bellany walked down the steps that folded down to the ground from the luxurious Jordell coach. Her warm breath was visible in the chill night air as she spoke, "Thank you Coachman. I did not catch your name." "It is Coachman Stevens, milady Norwit." "Thank you Coachman Stevens, it was quite a treat to ride in such luxury." "It was my pleasure to bear you hither, milady." "My roommate and her date should be along shortly. I see they have already come through the outer gate of the courtyard. I will linger here in front of the inner gate to meet them." "Very good Milady, I hope you had a pleasant evening." "I surely did. Thank you again Coachman Stevens. Farewell." "Farewell Milady." The coachman tipped his hat and smiled broadly before climbing back into the driver's seat, pulling a lever to retract the steps and setting the eight matched horses into motion. After a minute Charles arrived in the Patel Coach with Mary Duffy, Abraham Steefl, Deborah Hartmoor and Paul Patel. Charles was riding with the driver. When the coach stopped he jumped to the ground a little unsteadily and held Bellany's hand aloft. "Belle of the Ball!" he shouted. Bellany giggled. She could tell Charles was definitely feeling no pain. "Shhh, there are girls inside sleeping, but thank you so much Charles." "No really Belle you were the Belle, Jordell really did it up brown," Charles said. Bellany smirked. "Gods grant me the wisdom to sneak just one past her for old time's sake!" Charles begged as he tilted his head back to speak to the heavens. Bellany giggled. "I know they were complimenting you Belle, because practically every man there came and complimented me on your beauty. I think I got more compliments on your beauty than I did on my victory with the crossbow and I am not even you." Bellany giggled. "Even though you are not me?" Bellany asked. "Yes even though I am not you, they were kissing up," Charles chuckled. "Do you get to keep that dress?" "Yes, Jamie had it made specifically for me. I doubt it would fit anyone else." "Gods, mom would die. But you know the great thing about it is she could not throw that dress out because she would be looking the gift horse of a count in the teeth and she knows better." Charles grinned a bit drunkenly. "I see you have lost your jewels. It is a pity James did not let you keep them," Charles said. "Diamonds and rubies set in platinum? Yes I think if I had been allowed to keep them I would have been able to buy myself a nice little barony to settle down in," Bellany said. "Hah! No kidding," Charles said. At that point Abraham Steefl and Mary Duffy came to stand with Bellany and Charles. Deborah Heartmoor and Paul Patel came out of the coach to say goodbye. "Deb, come here and meet my sister." Charles grabbed Deborah Heartmoor's hand and towed her over to Bellany. "Now I know you put a great deal of stock in virtue but there is nothing Belle can do about the orcs. It's war! The pussycat is out of the bag. Deb, you are an important member of the Avengene -Li'Yieraun - Hartmoor alliance. Belle is a granddaughter of Avengene. You two have to get along better. Now make up," Charles said. Bellany whispered in Deborah's ear as she briefly embraced the young noblewoman, "Please forgive Charles; he has had too much to drink. I understand that you need to distance yourself from me socially because of my conspicuous lack of virtue. I will be there to watch your back if the weather turns rough," Bellany said. She could not resist tingling the poor girl's ambient lust just a bit. Hartmoor nodded, "It is a pleasure to meet you Lady Norwit. You really are very beautiful and that dress was the envy of every lady at the ball." "Thank you Lady Hartmoor," Bellany said. "Very good! That is much better! It is very important that you two get along!" His first task completed, Charles turned "Goodnight Abe and Mary. I will see you at Church in a few hours. Goodnight Bellany." Charles raised his sister's hand once again. "Belle of the Ball!" He shouted and then climbed back up next to the driver of the Patel carriage. Bellany shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Good night Charles." "G'night Belle," Charles said. Paul Patel took Bellany's hand and kissed it. "Lady Hartmoor was quite right. James truly outdid himself and the combination of his fashion sense and your figure was devastating. Goodnight Lady Norwit." "Thank you Paul. Goodnight." Abraham Steefl stepped forward and kissed Bellany's hand. "It is good to see you have broken out of Bristol's social prison, milady Norwit." "Thank you Sir Knight, you honor me with your presence." Bellany briefly embraced the knight. "Goodnight Abraham," She whispered in his ear before stepping back. Abraham bowed, "Goodnight milady Bellany." ------- Mary led the way through the inner gate and into The Vargrend Academy for girls. The hall monitor was on hand to greet them. "Quiet ladies," the hall monitor said. Bellany nodded, slipped her shoes off and ran up the stairs after Mary. The hall monitor shook her head as she watched Bellany running without shoes in a dress that surely must have cost what the monitor made in a year. Mary opened the door and the two girls went in. "You look so beautiful, Bellany. I am so happy Lord Jordell let you come to his ball," Mary whispered, beaming with happiness as she closed the door behind them. "Thank you Mary," Bellany whispered. "Let me help you out of your dress. We have to hang it carefully. It is much too valuable just to toss in the closet," Mary whispered. In spite of the chill air, Mary's hands were quite warm. Her face was flushed. "Oh gods it is nippy," Bellany whispered as she jumped into her nightgown and robe as Mary put her dress away. "This is nothing," Mary whispered. "Wait until winter. It will be this bad in spite of a fire in the stove." Bellany helped Mary get out of her dress. It was another of Bellany's dresses that Bellany had given Mary permission to alter. The vindicator fashions suited Mary much better. Mary smiled and whispered, "Honestly Bellany you are a lady, you should not be helping me with my dress." "Why not, you helped me with mine," Bellany said. Mary took Bellany in her arms and kissed her. "What was that for?" Bellany asked, blushing. "Just for being so sweet," Mary said. "You are never high and haughty like some of the other noble ladies. I cannot tell you how fond I have grown of you. I have had friends before but you are so..." "Distracting?" Bellany giggled softly "Yes, distracting. Yet even though you know how you affect me you have never tried to seduce me. You have always respected my faith," Mary said. Bellany nodded. "Your faith is not mine to abridge, Mary. I would gladly do more than snuggle you, but the bed would get a little crowded with reverend Leland and Headmistress Vargrend in it. Besides, neither one of them is my type," Bellany whispered. Mary giggled softly. "Even if you started something they would surely blame me for seducing you," Bellany said. "That's just another reason why I cannot be the one to start anything. If I am going to be blamed anyway at least I can retain some shred of self-respect by knowing they are wrong. I am sorry I am so tempting. I know entirely too much," Bellany said. "I can tell, and seeing you at the ball I realized that every man could tell the same. I overheard Charles at breakfast yesterday saying you were tired from those late nights contemplating purity and chastity with me. Some of the young men I danced with knew I was your roommate and said that they envied me. Does everyone think we... um," Mary's whisper trailed off. "I guess many of them do. Jamie said he saw the way you looked at me and I could tell he assumed things until I set him straight as to your innocence. He certainly knew better than to believe I had any in that area." Bellany smiled. "Have you ah... with Jordell? I thought he only liked men." "I haven't, and I could not tell you even if I had since you are obliged to report to Headmistress Vargrend. For your own sanity you should just assume I have been with every man you see. I have explained my nature to you before and the last thing I want is for you to get jealous even though you are not doing anything naughty with me. That would be the worst of both worlds," Bellany whispered. "Oh gods, Bellany, after seeing the longing in the eyes so many men as they danced with you tonight I could not stop thinking how unlikely it was that any of them would ever sleep with you even once and I sleep with you whenever it is cold. How can I feel nothing? When I look at you I am like every one of those men." Bellany rolled her eyes. "I wish I could help you Mary," She whispered. "I am sure reverend Leland would talk to Headmistress Vargrend on your behalf if it is too much torture for you to be around me. I would miss you if you decided to move to a room with less tempting roommates but I do not wish to torture you." Bellany slipped into bed. Mary slipped in beside Bellany and snuggled against her. She whispered in Bellany's ear, "Living away from you would be an even greater torture. Every time I saw you there would be such regret. To have let you go after having been this close... I could not bear it." Mary kissed Bellany deeply, her hands exploring her roommate's curves. Bellany was nearly overcome with desire. Although she responded she tried not to initiate. Eventually she decided it was okay to do whatever Mary had already started. After perhaps an hour of kissing and touching Mary entwined herself with Bellany and fell asleep. _Only a virgin could go that far but no further._ Bellany sighed. She tried to sleep but she could not. Instead she reached for the book she had told Mary was a book of poems and philosophical thoughts. It was really full of spells and casting notes copied from Baladus' spellbook but she certainly could not have told Mary that. Since it was in her own personal code, Bellany could easily pretend it was something other than a spellbook. She needed light but she did not want to use her bluelight spell for fear Mary might wake up and see. She checked Mary's breathing before easing her extra pillow over her roommate's eyes. Bellany decided it was time to get her Firefinger Cantrip to work. It was a minor spell that Baladus did not have. She had once been able to cast it, much to Guardian Thane's delight since he had never been able to get it to work. It might have been better if she could have done more than speak the words of the spell in a breathy whisper but she reasoned that developing quiet casting techniques would be quite useful to her. Now was as good a time as any to begin to develop them. She knew she could cast the Firefinger Cantrip. She just needed to work out a few details. It was maddening and took more than two hours but at last she recalled the casting correctly. With the first successful casting she lit the candle by her nightstand. After getting the spell to work she untangled herself from Mary and went to the desk where she carefully coded the verbal and somatic components along with the casting notes into her spellbook. Satisfied, she returned to her bed and fell asleep with Mary beside her. ------- The next morning at church, Bellany worried her way through a boring sermon on duty and family. She was to make an appearance at Jordell Manor after noon but she had little time to nap before having to make her appearance. There was no question that she was tired from the ball. She had a plan she hoped would help with that. She slipped out just after the service and raced across the courtyard to the stables. In the back corner stall she attempted to cast her drain spell on the stalwart old gelding that was housed there. The first four castings failed but she found success on the fifth casting. The horse would surely have kicked her had she not been beside him. His ears laid back and he snorted loudly as she used the drain. She was confused that he did not have the usual reaction that males had to her drain spell but then realized that he had been emasculated. She apologized softly and gave him an apple that she had saved from breakfast. This seemed to satisfy him somewhat but she made a mental note that geldings were not the best subjects for the Draining Touch spell. ------- "Your basics are very good, Bellany, don't you think, Trinidar?" Lord James Jordell said as he sparred with Bellany. "Yes Milord, the lady has harmony." "Break! Next I'll try some moves of intermediate skill," Jordel said saluting Bellany with his rapier before crossing blades with her once again. This time it was all she could do to hold her own, but she was not yet overwhelmed. She knew the more skill she exhibited, the more likely Jordell might spar with her in the future and there was so much she could learn from him. "Very good! I defeated Charles with that last move. I am beginning to believe that wild tale Charles told us about the highwaymen," Jordell said as he continued to engage Bellany. She could tell she was outmatched but she relished sparring with an expert. Already she had seen Jamie do a few things she had not witnessed in the two matches she had seen him compete in. "There, now on-guard for more advanced swordsmanship, I will no longer hold back," Jordell admonished. As they crossed blades, Bellany released the paltry amount of reserves she had to enhance her alertness and used every ounce of concentration and speed she could muster just to keep ahead of Jordell's blade. Her techniques for fighting an overwhelming foe helped her endure but she lasted scarcely three minutes before he had scored thrice and finished the match. Jordell looked at his trainer who checked his clock. "Her time was three minutes, seven seconds, milord." "Oh that was so impressive Sir Bellany. I have fought a few poor souls in tournaments who lasted under three minutes even though they were the champions of their schools. It is so novel to see a lady who can truly handle a blade, how marvelously gritty. And I love that sparring outfit the Jordell seamstress whipped up for you too. It makes you look so boyish, yet you cannot possibly look boyish. Did Charles say that your father had you trained a bit more in the art of swordsmanship after you were caught training under your brother?" "Yes, Daddy thought that since I already knew enough to get in trouble I ought to know enough to get out of it." "How astute, I cannot imagine Lord Avengene being so charitable with one of his daughters. Your father must be an extraordinary man." "Daddy is a fair and honorable man and he has the common sense that my mother utterly lacks. I can see why Lord Avengene made him a baronet." "He was a commoner at birth that proved himself in battle. The knight whose command he saved sponsored him as a squire, did he not?" Jordell asked. "Did he?" Bellany asked. "I am sorry my memory was destroyed at the same time as I was nearly killed by an orc shaman's magic. I usually do not remember anything that happened before I was rescued this spring unless someone refreshed my memory. I guess Daddy's lineage never came up," Bellany said. "Charles said so and since he was honest about your swordsmanship I see no reason why he would lie in order to deflate his father's pedigree," Jordell said. "Besides, even if he hadn't said, I am to be a count. I am taught everyone's pedigree in order to know before whom I must bow and scrape and before whom I may stick my nose in the air." Bellany giggled. "Then it must be true. No wonder father has common sense and such a measure of humility," Bellany said. "Do you imagine Avengene gave Norwit his daughter's hand as a reward for his heroism in battle?" Jordell asked. "I hope it was more romantic than that; but I see your point. It is odd that she would marry a self-made knight and general," Bellany said. "Sometimes a lady marries a promising commoner when she is besmirched and can do no better. You have said yourself that no nobleman would have you. Why do you suppose your mother married below her station?" Jordell asked. "Goodness I have never thought about it and if I ever knew the answer I lost the recollection to the hostile magic that wrecked my memory," Bellany said. "Perhaps your parents did not wish you to know, but it is common knowledge among the peers that Lord Norwit is not of noble birth. Yet his children are grandchildren of Lord Avengene by virtue of their mother. Any curious soul would wonder why Avengene allowed his daughter Eleanor to marry Darl Norwit, who by birth is nothing more than a gifted general." "Now you have got me curious, Jamie. Perhaps Charles knows," Bellany said. "Perhaps, but I have not asked him. It just dawned on me that you might be more like your mother than you thought. Do you think your father would give you permission to train under Trinidar Leafwhisper?" Jordell asked. "Oh gods I wish. Perhaps if I put it to him right he would lend his endorsement," Bellany said. "If you can secure his endorsement, you shall receive instruction from my tutor as long as you do not mind me butting in if I have a mind to. I practice in the morning until lunch. I dine here or at school and then take all of my classes in the afternoon. That way I can take advantage of the after-school hours for socializing. In the late afternoon after you finish your last class, Trinidar would be free to see you." Bellany nodded. "I am afraid many of the boys who might have some interest in the rapier are afraid of me and simply don't apply themselves. It's comical, they are more afraid I will ravish them than you are." Jordell giggled. Bellany gave Jordell a lustful smile. "Gods I should be afraid you will ravish me," Jordell squealed. Bellany smiled innocently but her smile soon turned into a lusty smirk. "My suspicion is that all the young men will want to come over and watch you practice and that will enhance my social life." Jordell smiled impishly. "And mine," Bellany smiled. "You hussy!" Jamie squealed. ------- In a way Bellany was glad Jamie and the other athletes were going away to a tournament in The Barony of Carnarvon and after that to one in the Barony of Jordell. Otherwise she would have regretted not being able to train under Leafwhisper. Since he would be out of town with Jamie she would not fret about it. It was Monday evening and she was catching up with her correspondence to her parents. After she finished a letter to her mother and father about the last tournament and the wonderful ball afterwards, Bellany wrote a letter to her father alone. Monday, October 11, 724 Dear Daddy, As you know from the other letter I went to my very first real Ball last night at Jordell Manor, thanks to Lord James Jordell. I think Charles may have asked Lord Jordell to help since Charles now knows all of the top athletes at The Bristol Academy for Boys but I cannot be certain. I do know that only a future count would have the social rank to reverse Bianca Bristol's social stranglehold and reverse it he did. As you probably know, the Jordells are extremely wealthy and their manor on Emerald Lake is filled with artwork. Larissa Jordell invited me over for lunch and an art tour after the ball since I had spent most of my time on the dance floor during the ball and had been able to view only a smattering of the works in Jordell Manor. It was quite a switch from the rankings ball when no one would dance with me but noble Abraham Steefl for fear of Bianca Bristol's wrath. While the steward was hosting lunch for the Jordells and me, the topic of swordsmanship arose because they had heard about my part in the battle with the highwaymen. This tale has been the topic of persistent rumor and Lord Jordell wanted to get to the bottom of it. I agreed to spar with him for a few minutes so that he could put the rumor to rest. Although I was no match for him, he was impressed with my skill. James Jordell is the head of The Bristol Academy's rapier team. He employs Trinidar Leafwhisper, one of the finest rapier instructors in Clairmont. Lord Jordell has his lessons first thing in the morning and then attends school during the afternoons. Since there are no other boys on the rapier team, he offered Trinidar's services to me after school. I practically swooned at the chance and told him that I would love to train under Leafwhisper but that I would have to get your permission to do so. To make matters even better, Leafwhisper is a half elf who speaks elfish. I recently finished all of the books on orcish in the library and have started on elfish. If I were to learn the art of the rapier under Leafwhisper I am sure I could also learn to speak the language of his mother's people. I hope you will allow me to take advantage of this opportunity to train under a true master of the rapier. I would love the training and I have no wish to affront the Jordells by refusing their offer when Lord Jordell has just been gracious enough to risk himself in order to break Bianca Bristol's unfair stranglehold on my social life. If you have any misgivings about the Jordells, I am sure Charles can tell you more about them. I realize Lord Avengene has his differences with the Jordells but Larissa Jordell and Bernadine Belgado of Rosehaven have been the only women of station to treat me with kindness here at school. I would love to train under Leafwhisper. It seems as if the opportunity came right out of a fairytale, but I must have your consent before I can take the Jordells up on their incredible offer. Please send correspondence to Jordell Manor letting them know if you would allow me to take advantage of Leafwhisper's expertise. School is actually getting a little boring. Thus far Headmaster Bristol has not got back to me about mathematics. I continue to dabble in it on my own. The Trivium is still my most difficult course. Headmistress Vargrend likes my command of grammar but she still thinks my logic is narrow-minded. My history course is primarily an exercise in remembering the books I read at the beginning of the term. It is quite easy for me. My lessons playing the mandolin and the Lyre are going along smoothly. I remember the music easily enough and do not practice as much as I should but my instructor says I am one of the best sight-readers he has ever worked with. I know from you and mother that I knew how to play both instruments before running afoul of the orc shaman's spell. I think it is probably easy for me because I am actually just re-learning what he is teaching me. The ballet and ballroom dancing courses are a lot of fun. Headmistress Vargrend does not normally allow girls to take two physically demanding electives but most of the girls here at Vargrends do not exercise and have no conception of endurance. I find the amount of exertion these courses demand to be trivial. My art enrichment course in the evening is progressing well even though I do not always attend. We are still learning to draw but it is not too difficult. We are finally starting to work on drawing real faces instead of bowls of fruit. I know mother is probably wondering why I wrote this letter only to you, but I am all too aware that she does not approve of my being able to handle a rapier even though the skill has already saved my life and the lives of others. I have no desire to argue with her over what a woman's place is supposed to be and how that relates to being able to defend myself. I am far more aware of what happens when a woman cannot defend herself than mother is. I hope you, mother, and Darren are well. Love, Bellany ------- What she had not said in the letter would have filled at least as much space as what she had said. During her midday breaks she often read books about various gods other than the vindicator. Nimbus, the Raven she enjoyed feeding after lunch now took food directly from her hand and to a certain extent would come when called. Her vindiatorish mother would die if she knew that Bellany was a witch who was studying magic under the tutelage of a ghost. She could already conjure a small ball of blue light or ignite a candle from a brief flash of flame that she could cause to spring up from her finger. She was about to begin work on other feats of magic as well, and she had found a journal and a book of poems written by the real Bellany Norwit of the past. Soon she would have them all read so that she had better insight into the way the real Bellany had thought. Mary proved a greater distraction than Bellany could have imagined. She loved to grab Bellany and kiss her but Mary did not seem to go beyond a certain point of intimacy. To a creature of lust there could be no greater tribulation. Mary seemed to have a knack at arousing her and then leaving her unsatisfied. On Sunday night, Mary repeated her performance of Saturday night but this time Bellany was too tired to care. Sleep claimed Bellany as soon as Mary settled down. Monday night was a different story. Bellany had been able to get a little sleep earlier in the day and was wide-awake and aroused when Mary fell asleep. She really needed to get her magic going in order to get herself out of Vargrend's prison to fulfill her needs. Bellany carefully got out of bed so that she could steal away. She filched Mary's key to the library from the drawer and made her way down to the crypts. She had more work to do. She wanted to finish transcribing the last of the telekinesis spells from Baladus' spellbook into her own. There were also a number of cantrips and lesser spells she thought she might take a stab at. She had thought about trying her drain and bestow spells on Mary while she lay asleep but had decided against it. There was too much danger that her roommate might wake up. Instead she had used her drain spell on a horse just after church yesterday. She felt a prickling on her palm as she went though the crypts. "Hello Lady Elaine if that is you?" Bellany paused and cast Gostly Whispers. "Good Evening Lady Bellany," Lady Elaine said. Bellany rode the elevator down into Baladus' chambers with Lady Elaine. The two of them walked into the ancient classroom and Bellany lit the candles on the candelabrum and then extinguished the candle she had brought from her room. "Have you been studying your magic?" Lady Elaine asked. "A little bit. I would like to do more but I wanted to get the last of the telekinesis spells. I actually got to go to the ball on Saturday night thanks to Lord Jordell," Bellany said as she arranged her writing implements and carefully moved Baladus' spellbook to the desk. "Yes, I have heard the young ladies talking about it. They are not pleased that lady lust is out of her prison," Lady Elaine said. Bellany grinned. "I am getting jealousy and scorn now, whereas before it was just scorn. Perhaps a few will actually get to know me as a person rather than passing judgment without so much as talking to me." Bellany sighed. "Morteabius has chosen a difficult role for you to play but one that will doubtlessly give you greater understanding of those that stand against him," Lady Elaine said. Bellany nodded. "I had promised to tell you something about what was going on in the outside world. I might as well do that now. Avengene, the relatively new territory to the northeast has developed a religion based on a god of justice called the vindicator. I realize that there probably was no barony of Avengene when you were alive. Avengene did not stop at being a baron, however. He has expanded his holdings and was also indispensable in helping the King during a war that I am too young to remember. The King was so impressed that he made Avengene a Marquis. "Lord Avengene has been steadily expanding his territory and at some point his son Evangeline developed the faith of the vindicator and it spread to his family and throughout Avengene. The vindicator's church has started persecuting other faiths and the easiest faith to persecute is that of Mortaebius because death is creepy. Avengene has used soldiers disguised as bandits to destroy the temples of Mortaebius in his marquisate. Once they were destroyed he made laws against the temples being rebuilt and against those who believed in Mortaebius. Since then he has used soldiers disguised as bandits to make forays into Bristol to sack temples of Mortaebius. Avengene is a powerful warlord. The Shroud is taking him seriously." "What you are saying is that we have a Brickner to the northeast," Lady Elaine said. "Oh that's right, in your day it was Warlord Brickner with his god, Rom the Righteous. After the battle in this keep and Bron Bristol's heroic death the posturing ended and the war between Bristol and Brickner began," Bellany said. Lady Elaine shook her head. "Bron was not the hero history paints him to be. Try as I might to educate him, he was his father's son. He soon learned that he could escape the lessons Alistair Vargrend had to offer him in reading and logic by opting for swordplay and brigandry with his father's collection of miscreants. Unfortunately he learned the same thing about escaping discipline from me, his mother. He was a very difficult child. Terrance, my second child, took to culture much more readily but I suspect that was by blood." Elaine smiled. "By blood?" Bellany asked. "I am almost certain that Terrance was the child of Alistair Vargrend, my fellow slave and my true love," Lady Elaine said. Bellany put her hand over her mouth. "You mean?" Bellany asked. "Bron Bristol was not fit to be anything more than a rampaging bandit," Baladus Vargrend said as he passed through a door and appeared on the far side of the room. "By the time he was ten he had already realized his mother was a slave in her own house. He was a hateful boy in spite of having a loving mother. I know; I grew up with him. I was the son of Alistair Vargrend by the wife that Bristol assigned him to marry. It was meant as a slight. My mother was not a handsome woman but she was one of the most intelligent servants Bristol had. My parents were not in love but both of them loved me as much as they secretly hated Warlord Bristol. Father was in love with Lady Elaine and my mother was smart enough to have realized that long before Bristol forced her to marry my father. Thankfully she was not fond enough of Warlord Bristol to let him in on that secret." "Guardian Baladus, it is so good to see you," Bellany said. "You have an errant boy to thank for the restoration of my wits," Baladus smiled. "Headmaster Bristol paddled an angry boy?" Bellany asked. Baladus nodded. "Thankfully, it is not such an uncommon occurrence, although in this case it was a peer. Apparently George Gransward felt that he did not need to lie in order to cover up what he had done to you. He is a hotheaded fool, and I have him to thank for restoring my vitality." Bellany giggled, "Then taking that dive into the mud was quite worth while." "Why thank you milady. I should caution you; do not believe everything you have read in your history books," Baladus said. "I was trained as a priest of Mortaebius so that when my father became old and useless I could replace him as Warlord Bristol's resident scribe. Bristol actually encouraged me to join the order of Death's Peace because he thought that it would toughen me up and that he could then send me out with his boorish men. Not one of them could read and Bristol realized that if he had my father write a message to his soldiers in the field, there would have to be someone accompanying his men who could read it," Baladus said. "Oh is that why you spent so much time on the battlefield?" Bellany asked. "Yes and when we captured a book, only I could tell what it was. I learned some things about magic as a priest, but as the years of my youth passed, I acquired certain books in battles and skirmishes. I was not fond of Bristol any more than my parents were. If it were not for Bristol I would never have had the motivation to become a sorcerer, but because of him I did it with a vengeance. By the time Brickner attacked the keep, I had advanced to the point that I had attained power unknown to Bristol's boorish rabble. "The first time I showed my true strength was in repelling Brickner. My undead minions terrified the soldiers of Brickner and Bristol alike. Bron's 'heroic' charge from the upper floors did help, as it obliged our terrified enemies to fight on two fronts. He fought hard but bit off more enemies than he could chew. In spite of Lady Elaine's best efforts he was a hateful boy who heaped disrespect on his mother and my father and I. I realized that if I rescued Bron I would be sentencing every man, woman and child in his father's miserable realm to a ruler just like Warlord Bristol. Keeping Bron alive was not a priority and I did not commit my magic or minions to it, thus Bron fell in the battle. With Bron dead, Terrance, my unknowing half brother whom Bristol believed was his second son stood to inherit Bristol's domain. I played it as if I were entertaining the idea of taking over entirely but then allowed Terrance to talk sense into me." Baladus smiled. "Goodness, you mean Warlord Bristol saw value in Terrance as a diplomat because you allowed Terrance to convince you to stand down?" Bellany asked. "Precisely, I suspected Terrance was really my half brother and I knew I did not have time both to run a domain and to study magic. Terrance was a good man who took after my father Alistair Vargrend and Terrance's mother, Lady Elaine. He was not arrogant like his half- brother Bron. Terrance treated me as if I were his brother even though he had no idea that Alistair Vargrend had probably sired us both. I had no doubt that Terrance would be a good ruler who would be fair and popular with the people whereas a necromancer could never have such popularity. Terrance assigned me a few troops to help manage my minions and I became the captain of a Special Forces group. My power and troops were used covertly to break the morale and sometimes the backs of the enemy. "Terrance became the only Bristol who could rule because he was the only Bristol I would listen to and it was my power that held sway in this keep. I was through being a slave, and I was through letting those boors treat my father and Lady Elaine as slaves. Since they were already terrified of me after the battle, it took very little effort on my part to convince them that they ought to behave. I was Terrance Bristol's ally not Warlord Bristol's ally. There was a coup that night but it was not Brickner who reaped the fruits of his labor, it was I. I essentially retook the keep for the Crabetts. I was simply a subtler ruler than Warlord Bristol. In addition, Terrance gained allies such as Mayor Rose and others through negotiation and good sense; thus he built power of his own among the living. With my ascension, Warlord Bristol's reign ended but we kept him around for show. Brickner merely succeeded in trading an aging enemy warlord for a young, vital diplomat and a necromancer. It was Terrance who later earned the favor of the King and became the first Baron Bristol," Baladus said. "It is odd how history distorts things," Bellany said shaking her head. "Part of the spoils of victory is writing the history of the conflict." Baladus smiled. "Lady Elaine and I strongly believed that Terrance was the son of Alistair and my magic confirmed our suspicions at a much later date. However, we were never absolutely certain Terrance was not Bristol's second son. It was much safer to allow Terrance and Warlord Bristol to believe that Terrance was the heir of Bristol. The soldiers were happy that way and everything went much more smoothly," Baladus said. Bellany looked up from copying the last of the telekinesis spells into her coded spell. "I see the sense to it yet it is more intricate than what is written in the history books. It makes me wonder how much of history is a fictional story," Bellany said. "I will wager the accuracy of much of history is dubious. Too many details and motives are left out," Baladus said. "I did not come out to discuss history, however. How is your magic coming?" Baladus asked. Bellany extinguished one of the five candles she had burning in the candelabrum and then did her Firefinger Cantrip to relight it. "That was a cantrip I used to know. I thought I had better recall it before starting on others since my damaged memory seems to be coming along," Bellany said. Balladas nodded. "Your cantrip is a very handy bit of magic and probably the foundation of the elementalist's arsenal. I was never good at elemental magic. Few necromancers are. You informed me that my spellbook is in delicate condition. Would you like to be the one to create the version for this current century?" "I would be honored," Bellany said. "I only ask this of my best students as I expect you to master each spell you scribe in the book before transcribing it. Unless you have learned the spell you cannot add to the casting notes and it is the casting notes that separate a good spellbook from a poor one." Bellany nodded. "Are you sure I will be a good student at this early date?" Baladus chuckled. "You are The Life of Death and you just demonstrated the ability to do elementary elemental magic. Your memory is impeccable and you can slowly transcribe a spell into code and write it in a small book while carrying on a coherent conversation. It did not require a great deal of time or intelligence to judge that you would be a good student. "I am normally rigid and stuffy with my students and I would scoff at your doing two things at once if one of them was talking to me, but efficiency is of great importance if the Shroud is calling. You are the handmaiden of Moraebius and it is I who must serve you as best I can. That means you are going to be learning as much as you can as quickly as you can. I already know that your pace will be faster than one I would choose based on past students, and Lady Elaine has explained to me your discussion with her concerning priorities. I agree that practical spells must be learned first, yet background is also important, and I see you came here for cantrips before I even stressed that point. I am here to help you when you need me, not to impede your progress." Bellany smiled. "Thank you Guardian Baladus. There will be some spells like the Bumblebee Cantrip that I will probably not be able to do until the bees come out in the spring but I will work hard," Bellany said. "Simply leave ample space for such spells and you can fill them in later. You will need to have a large book created. The quality should be high." Baladus said. Bellany nodded. "It might draw suspicion if I were to buy such a book." "Deal directly with a bookbinder and make him believe you wish to transcribe verses of great religious significance to make a lasting heirloom for the family of a close friend. Stress that it is to be a gift a few years hence and he must not speak of it lest he ruin the surprise. It is an old ruse but a good one." Baladus smiled. "Religion is so useful," Bellany giggled. "I suppose I should continue transcribing all of the cantrips into my coded book. I was developing quite a repertoire of them before Mortaebius' touch. I need to catch up with where I was so that I can move forward. There seems to be at least one cantrip for every type of spell. They will serve as a good foundation." Baladus nodded. "That is why I have accumulated so many. They are also easy to make up once one has mastered a range of similar but more difficult spells." Bellany nodded. "Perhaps I can improve my bluelight spell. It has proven very useful." "You might attempt to conjure more than one of the tiny globes at the same time. I have heard of casters who summon a multitude of such globes and weave patterns of dancing lights with them," Baladus said. "That is a good idea and it will make a good game to see how many lights I can keep going at once." Bellany smiled. "You may find that controlling the movement of conjured lights is somewhat similar to telekinesis," Baladus said. "Oh good, I would like to work on telekinesis first. As you know, Lady Elaine suggested it would be a practical thing to know since I could use it to open locks in the event I am discovered with a key." Guardian Baladus nodded. "Your situation is unique among my students. Normally either the headmaster, the headmistress or the priest of Mortaebius were aware that I had taken on a student, but I have given way to long periods of rest and have not made myself known to anyone during this generation. There was no need and I lacked the energy to want to bother." "I hope I am able to take you out to the tournaments one of these days, Guardian. I think you would find sustenance there," Bellany said. Baladus nodded. "I will leave you now so that you may concentrate on your transcriptions. You will not be taking me out of the keep without mastering much more magic than you currently have. Be careful not to look at the first three pages or the marked page or the last two pages. Your introduction to curses should be less abrupt." Bellany smiled. "Thank you Guardian Baladus. I will keep that in mind. I have no wish to catch an arcane plague or be poisoned. Thank you for the enlightening bit about the true history of Bristol." Baladus bowed. "It was my pleasure and a practical lesson for one who may, as I did, become involved in the secret truth behind history. Farewell milady." "Farewell Guardian Baladus, and thank you." Bellany waved as the apparition passed through the door into his quarters. "I guess I had better get to work. I nearly got caught last time I returned from the crypts. I will have to make sure to leave a little earlier than I did before," Bellany said. "We ghosts can sense the dawn as it approaches. I will warn you as early as I am able," Lady Elaine said. "Thank you Lady Elaine," Bellany said. "You and Baladus have been so helpful. I have so much to learn." Lady Elaine nodded. "I will leave you for the moment so that you can concentrate fully on your studies. If The Order of the Shroud is taking this Lord Avengene seriously then they will need you to grow in power as quickly as possible." Bellany nodded. "Yes, I really should try to work harder. If only I could find a few good men to help me with life force I could do much better. Lord Jordell has invited me to use his rapier instructor after school. I am hoping that being away from Vargrend's will help with that but I must work on being able to come and go as I will. To do that I will need to be able to open locks." "Yes, of course. I will return later." "Farewell Lady Elaine," Bellany said. Bellany spent the remainder of the night working as rapidly as she could. When she was finished she read the cantrips she had transcribed to work on. She already had Ash Kinetics, the foundation of future telekinesis spells. She added Ice Sickle. Ice Sickle seemed to be part curse and part telekinesis. Its purpose was to break an ice sickle loose in the hopes that it would hit someone who stood below it. She also had the Drain and Bestow Vitality Cantrips. Although she was pretty sure she could already do a drain spell that was more advanced than the cantrip, she felt that the cantrip would be minor enough to practice on Mary as she slept. In addition she had transcribed several other cantrips. She scribed Mental Image, a precursor to mental illusions along with Chill of Fear, essentially a mental illusion that generated an emotion rather than an image. She penned four physical illusion cantrips. These included Sphere of Darkness and Finger of Shadow, a pair of visual illusions, Tuz, a ridiculous little audible illusion and Fleeting Stench, an olfactory illusion. The last two illusions were apparently designed to allow the caster to make it sound and then smell as if her victim had gas. Finally she had transcribed Twitch and Slip, two little curse cantrips and Touch Empathy, a cantrip for feeling the predominant emotion given off by another person. Before she had finished reading the last of the cantrips that she had transcribed Lady Elaine appeared. Bellany hastily recast her Ghostly Whispers spell. "I feel the approach of dawn, Lady Lust," Lady Elaine said. "Oh goodness I had better get going then. Thank you for having me. I hope to have learned at least a few of these by the time I return for pointers with those that have proven difficult. Farewell Lady Elaine," Bellany said. "Farewell," Lady Elaine said waving her ghostly hand. Bellany returned to her room without mishap and slept for a few hours before going to her first class. ------- Bellany tried Ash Kinetics the evening after she had been down to see the ghosts but she could not get it to work. She had been so hopeful and felt so stilted when she could not get the ash to move. She tried off and on for hours, attempting to cast the cantrip over and over again as she worked on a self-portrait for her art enrichment class. Mary slipped into the room and closed the door behind her. She put her arm around Bellany's shoulders and looked at Bellany's portrait. "Hello, no more fruit, I see. It really is starting to look like someone." "I wish it looked more like me." Bellany smiled up from her chair. Mary shamelessly kissed her. "Is it a self portrait?" Mary asked. Bellany nodded. "It is supposed to be. I am obviously still learning though." Mary nodded, "You will be a fine artist in no time. You pick things up quickly." "Thank you Mary, I hope you are right. Sometimes I feel like such a dolt." "That is such nonsense, Bellany. The first time I saw you write out the answers to your history homework without opening the book I thought you were quick and sloppy but after reading some of your answers and seeing your perfect scores, now I know better. No one but you gets perfect grammar scores from Headmistress Vargrend either." "Sometimes I miss a few," Bellany said. "Missing only one or two is still impossible," Mary said. "It is just that I have a very good memory. It makes everything easier." Bellany tossed her charcoal pencil down. I have had enough of that portrait. It has been so frustrating. I need to unwind," Bellany said attributing her frustration with the Ash Kinetics spell to the portrait. "Let's get ready for bed," Mary grinned. "But we still have nearly an hour before lights out and it was fairly warm out today," Bellany said. "Bellany, aren't you supposed to be the bad girl?" Mary asked as she began to undress. Bellany blushed. "You drive me out of my mind with all your kissing and snuggling but you will only go so far," Bellany whispered as she got up to get ready for bed. "I must remain a virgin or I will never get a decent husband," Mary whispered. "You must have been a very good girl never to have stroked yourself, Mary. Otherwise you would know you needn't bother your maidenhead to get release," Bellany whispered. "Really?" Mary asked open mouthed. Bellany smiled. "I probably should not have said, but you have been wearing me down by driving me mad these past few nights." Bellany swatted Mary's rump. "I thought you were going to stay out of my bed if you felt lust." Bellany giggled. "That was before I succumbed to temptation," Mary said as she stroked Bellany's red hair and looked into her eyes. Bellany smiled softly. "I will show you what I mean a little later. I do not want your attentions to become a source of frustration. I know that is not what you mean your affection to be." "Of course not," Mary whispered. "I will try to give you a few memories to cherish while you are taking care of your husband and twenty children in a few years." "I am counting on it," Mary smiled. The two young women climbed into Bellany's bed and began to stroke and snuggle one another, kissing and caressing much more liberally than they had a few days before. When she felt wetness as she stroked her hand up Mary's inner thigh she took a breath from her latest kiss and whispered to Mary. "Just relax and try to arrange your throat so that you will not moan with pleasure, otherwise the monitors will be on us in a flash." Bellany pressed her index finger against Mary's lips to underscore the need for quiet and then slid down Mary's torso beneath the covers and began to lick her roommate where her nether lips joined at her clit, using her lust senses to feel the flow of the energy. Bellany could nearly taste Mary's lust. Bellany kept her tongue working to increase the flow, the lust that tingled through her nose nearly made her sneeze before she got used to it. She was so hungry for the energy of lust yet she did not know how to absorb a woman's lust as she did a man's. Mary breathed hard and squirmed as Bellany drove her mad with her clever tongue. Bellany could feel the modulating pattern of flow in Mary's lust; it was fascinating. She built it higher and higher but Mary seemed to reach a point that she could not pass. It was all Bellany could do to keep Mary's lust from declining. Bellany begin to pull her roommate's lust, trying to draw Mary's recalcitrant virgin body into the full flower of sexuality, yet reverend Leland and his ilk had left their cruel yet invisible mark. Bellany fought hard but she soon realized that Mary would not attain release unless Bellany found a way to overcome the workings of the vindicator in her roommate's mind and body. Although she knew it was probably nothing more than inhibition and neglect, it was as if Mary were cursed never to climax by her religious brainwashing. Bellany remembered that her casting of the Draining Touch spell had produced a climax in those she had done it on. A lesser spell might do the same without robbing too much energy. Bellany had gone over the Drain Vitality Cantrip. It was a simple little spell compared to the drain spell that she had previously mastered. In an imperceptibly soft voice Bellany whispered the syllables to the Drain Vitality Cantrip, letting her tongue and lips dance over Mary's nub as she whispered the arcane syllables and shaped the magic with her hands. Bellany completed the spell, placed her right index finger on Mary's nub and drew. Mary stiffened and gasped as a brief but intense orgasm exploded through her psyche. Bellany could sense that Mary's arousal had diminished after the orgasm the magic had induced but the energy had been delicious. It was a pity she would not be able to cast the spell over and over without tiring Mary too much. Nevertheless Bellany began to build Mary back up. This she did with a vengeance using her lust sense to school her tongue in the strokes that aroused Mary most. When Mary again neared her peak the restriction to the flow was slightly less since Mary's body already had experience at producing an orgasm. Bellany had to stimulate Mary almost to the point of cruelty. The poor girl was writhing under Bellany's tongue before orgasm finally burst through her inhibitions and made her quake with pleasure. Mary's energy was so fascinating that Bellany could not stop. She had lost herself in Mary's lust, like a cat delving for a delicious mouse she played. Each of Mary's orgasms merely whet Bellany's appetite and yielded perhaps the lightest taste of the energy that Bellany craved. Bellany lacked a way to claim the energy released as her own. The monitor called lights out from the hallway but Bellany hardly heard her. Thankfully their lights had already been out for sometime. Perhaps an hour later she released her roommate having brought her to orgasm many times. The bedding was wet and Mary was limp with exhaustion. Bellany slid back up Mary's body and held her. Mary's eyelids were only half open and she was smiling with a daze of euphoria. "Gods Bellany what did you do to me?" Mary whispered breathlessly. Bellany snuggled Mary and whispered in her ear, "All that lack of touching oneself can leave you crippled to the point that you hardly enjoy sex at all. I was just trying to catch you up." "I had no idea you could do that just by touching," Mary said. "The first time was pleasure and pain. I was going to stop you but I was so excited and you seemed so into it. After the first time it just got better and better." Mary grinned with satisfied exhaustion. "Gods I will sleep like the dead tonight." Bellany smiled enigmatically. "You look exhausted, Mary. We had better go to sleep." Mary nodded. "Good night Bellany." "Goodnight Mary," Bellany said. After Mary had drifted off into the dreamless sleep of exhaustion, Bellany carefully covered her roommate's eyes with her pillow and got up. She took the Candelabrum into the empty end of the closet along with her spellbook and studied the Ash Kinetics Cantrip. After attempting to cast the spell ten or fifteen times she resigned herself to failure and instead began trying to conjure multiple globes of blue light. She found this much easier and soon was able to keep two globes lit at once without much trouble. Perhaps two hours later she had her two tiny globes rolling over her body, bouncing from hand to hand and from head to hand and finally dancing through the air in the closet like a fairy couple at a ball. She felt some measure of satisfaction since she had never maintained two globes of light before yet she also realized that she had once had quite a repertoire of cantrips and was still essentially catching up with herself. As she slipped into bed with Mary and drifted off to sleep she vowed that she would catch up quickly so that she could build on what she knew. ------- On Wednesday Bellany sat with Cleopatra reading a book from the temple of Amorra, the goddess of love. "Do you get the feeling that they watered Amorra down so that she would not be too sexy for the girls here at Vargrend's?" Bellany asked. "I am not the person to ask, but it would not surprise me," Cleopatra said. "I had the impression that she was about more than just the spiritual form of love that this book is touting." "The headmistress would never allow anything too sexual. She is such a champion of virtue," Cleopatra said. "True, she seems awfully stuffy, but I suppose that is what the peers expect of her," Bellany said as she held a fatty piece of mutton up while Nimbus the raven tore pieces from it. "He sure is hungry," Cleopatra said. "I think he is fattening himself up. Most ravens do not fly south for the winter. He will need a little something to fall back on." "It is getting colder. Soon our thicket will not be so comfortable and we will not be taking our walks," Cleopatra said. "Perhaps we will not be sitting, but we must take our walks. I will be sure to come out and bring Nimbus scraps. When the snows cover the ground it will be harder for him to find food. I am sure he would do fine without me but I enjoy having a pet even though he will not let me pet him yet." "He is a wary thing, but he is a wild bird. It's a miracle he takes food from your hand," Cleopatra said. "He knows he has captured my heart with his funny croaks and mannerisms." Bellany smiled as Nimbus finished his meal. "Pruuck tock, tock, tock" Nimbus said as he took a moment to preen before flying off. "Thank you for bringing the book, Cleopatra. I love knowing a little bit about the other gods. I do not know how I am expected to understand others if I am not allowed to read about their faiths," Bellany said. "You're welcome, Lady Bellany. I enjoy our lunches. If the noble ladies realized how interesting you were they would stop all of their nonsense." "Thank you Cleopatra," Bellany said. "I really need to come up with some other naughty thing we can do at lunch. How about fortuneteller games? Good vindicator girls are supposed to shun the supernatural." "That sounds fun, what sort of fortuneteller games?" Cleopatra asked. "How about seeing mental pictures? I'll concentrate and do some impromptu mummery and you see if you can see what I am picturing." "I guess we could try it," Cleopatra said dubiously. "Do you promise you won't tell on me if you happen to get a few. Vindicatory sorts are very paranoid about the supernatural. I am sure they would lock me up and throw away the key if they thought I was conjuring images." "Of course I promise," Cleopatra said. Okay, just sit right there and I'll stand behind you so my face does not give anything away. Close your eyes and when I touch them with my palm try to imagine what I am picturing." Bellany attempted to cast her Mental Picture Cantrip and then reached around and touched Cleopatra's closed eyes with her palm. "I see a slice of apple pie, yum," Cleopatra said. Bellany giggled. "Well, at least you saw something. I was seeing something else. Let me try again." Bellany recast. "Peach Cobler," Cleopatra said. Bellany giggled. "That is zero for two but don't give up your career as a medium yet." Bellany cast once again. "Oh my goodness, it's Headmistress Vargrend with a cross expression on her face!" Cleopatra blurted. "That's it! One for three," Bellany said. "Let me try again." "A platter of raisin muffins," Cleopatra said. Bellany cleared her throat. "Let me try again." Cleopatra giggled. "A horse?" Cleopatra asked. "What color?" Bellany asked. "He is Black with a white spot on his forehead," Cleopatra said. "That's right, a black horse," Bellany said. "Let me try another." "Strawberry Shortcake?" Cleopatra asked. "Ahh, not exactly, I will try again." "It's a man... your brother, Charles Norwit?" "A man is correct, although I was thinking of Lord Jordell," Bellany lied. "That is Bianca Bristol with an insufferably haughty expression on her face." "That's right!" Bellany squealed. "Now let's try this." "Pecan pie, yum," Cleopatra said. Bellany giggled. "Er, no but I'll have to do some food ones just so you don't think food is always wrong." "A fruit bowl?" Cleopatra asked. "Yes, Madame Gleton, your powers grow. I have another for you." "That's Glenda Gransward looking confused." Bellany giggled. "One more, then we should go. I have some homework to finish." "Ah that is a carriage, a grand carriage." "Right! Wow you are psychic, Cleopatra. You got at least half of them." "I was just lucky. Usually I haven't the slightest idea what people are thinking," Cleopatra said. ------- When Bellany returned she sat down with her spellbook and studied for about half an hour before attempting more casting. She dipped her hand into a basin of water and then attempted her Globe of Fog Cantrip. By the time she had to go to her Ballroom Dancing course she had still not successfully conjured any fog. After Ballroom Dancing and history she attended her ballet class and then returned to her room. She was feeling good from the exercise and began to work on her Globe of Fog Cantrip again to no avail. She reviewed the Twitch Cantrip. It was a minor curse and seemed very straightforward. Unfortunately it required a victim. Next she studied the Fleeting Stench Cantrip but was unable to get a smell out of it before she had to go to dinner. After dinner she attended her art class where she finished her portrait and started on another. When she returned she went over the Ash Kinetics Cantrip and tried to cast it once again. She did not seem to be able to get it to work. It was worrisome since telekinesis was a very important venue to freedom. She heard the library assistant lock the door to the library and walk down the hall. Bellany grabbed Mary's key and snuck into the library. Mary had not been at her vindicator study group last night. Either it had been postponed or she had skipped it and was simply elsewhere for the current moment. Timothy was smiling from ear to ear when she arrived at the library bars. She kissed him through the bars and then turned and hiked up her dress. He was in her in a flash and thrusting briskly. She felt a little guilty about essentially training him to be quick but it could not be avoided. He massaged her nub as she had always shown him but he was too fast even for her to build to an orgasm. When he climaxed after only a few minutes she drank of his power just a little more liberally than she had planned and left the library grinning as broadly as he had been when he first saw her. Mary got back just an instant after she had stowed the key. Thankfully Mary was in the habit of knocking before she entered to prevent interrupting Bellany's swordsmanship exercises. "You look happy," Mary said. I wish I were not feeling a bit tired tonight," Mary said, yawning. "Its all those late nights you spend contemplating purity and chastity with me." Bellany giggled. "I guess Charles was right after all," Mary whispered. Mary flopped onto her bed. "Isn't your vindicator meeting on Tuesdays?" Bellany asked. Mary shrugged. "It got postponed this week because that paper for the Trivium was due yesterday. We had the group today instead. It was good, although I am feeling a little bit hypocritical." "You won't be the first or the last worshipper of the vindicator to feel that way." Bellany grinned. "You could give me up." "After last night I could not," Mary said stroking Bellany's red hair. "Technically I may still be a virgin but you made a woman of me last night. Would a man have made that happen?" "A man has to reach his peak in order to release his seed so you can bet sex will not be over until he does, but men are often quite quick to spend. They usually have to rest after they peak, too, so if you have not already reached your peak by the time he spends then you may be out of luck. If your lover is naïve, or inconsiderate then there is a good chance that you will be little more than a broodmare who gives satisfaction but never receives it. Some women think that is their duty. Some just don't know any better because I was never their roommate." Bellany smiled. "I probably would have been one of those women," Mary shook her head. Bellany nodded. "That doesn't seem fair," Mary said. "Now you are talking like me." Bellany grinned. "Goodness, I had better watch out." Mary smiled. "Being a slave and being a broodmare are about the same thing, and I have had enough of slavery," Bellany said. "But what of a woman's duty?" Mary asked. "Duty is fine, but being something someone else wants you to be on a continuous basis rather than being yourself is living a lie." Mary yawned as she nodded. Bellany smiled. "It looks like you need sleep. I wore you out last night and I imagine your job and school have given you no time to rest." Mary nodded. "I had better get to bed." Mary got up and began to undress. "At least I am attending Vargrend's. With my credentials I could teach school or do a dozen other things if I decide not to go the typical wife and mother route." "True, you will be much freer than most women because you will have an education and you will not be tied to a title," Bellany said. "I used to envy you your family so much but now I realize their expectations might be a problem for you," Mary said. "Yes, father seems to grasp that I am barren and would like to do something besides the typical vindicator wife and mother thing. Unfortunately Mother is stuck in vindicator mode and she thinks I have to do as she has done. I sometimes worry about it. Daddy is a very gifted commoner who is married to a daughter of Avengene. He is obliged to listen to mother. She has a great deal of political power because of her lineage and because she is very active in the church," Bellany said. Mary nodded and yawned. "I am sure you'll work it out, Bellany. You are going to Vargrend's too. You will have credentials." Bellany nodded, as she too got ready for bed. When they were finished Mary slid in beside Bellany snuggled her and fell asleep almost instantly. Bellany looked a little sheepish. Mary was on a very tight schedule. Draining her of vitality when she had so little slack in her day was not a very nice thing to do. It had served a good purpose, however. As she looked at Mary she realized that her roommate's eyes were darting back and forth under her lids. She was dreaming. Bellany reached to the nightstand for her spellbook and quickly studied the Touch Empathy Cantrip. She cast it several times before she had a vivid flash of lust in her mind that had not come in via her lust sense. Bellany giggled softly. She stroked her sleeping roommate's hair. "You are too tired to do anything but you can dream about it," Bellany whispered soundlessly. Bellany snuck out of bed and wrote a few casting notes for the Touch Empathy Cantrip. Afterwards she returned to review the Twitch Cantrip that she had studied earlier in the day. It was a minor curse and it seemed simple enough. She tried it on Mary. It took twenty minutes and about nine attempts before she got Mary's hand to twitch. After that she tried it on Mary's toes and then Mary's nose. She had a lot of fun making her sleeping roommate twitch before she settled down to pen the casting notes. She had only a few cantrips left before she would have one learned for each of the kinds of spells that she wanted to work on. She would have to successfully produce a chill of fear and conjure a globe of fog. She would also need to work on the three illusion spells, Finger of Shadow, Tuz, and Fleeting Stench plus she still needed to do Globe of Darkness. Bellany shrugged. She supposed Tuz and Stench could be useful for putting the high and mighty Bianca Bristol in her place, but using them would be stooping pretty low. Ash kinetics was another cantrip that was still a problem. She had tried it several times and would have to try it again; however she did not want to end her evening on a note of frustration. Instead she covered Mary's eyes with her pillow and began conjuring tiny globes of light. This evening she conjured three balls and then laid back and tried to get them moving. At first it was difficult just keeping three balls lit. She had to conjure them all several times because they blinked out when she failed to keep her concentration up. Once she got the hang of keeping them going, she began to make them dance around the bed, and finally she was able to get them all into the air above the bed where she made them move around above her. She wove intricate patterns of light with her three tiny globes. It was a lot of fun. She did not recall exactly when she fell asleep but the balls undoubtedly winked out of existence as she did. The next morning after her swordsmanship exercises, Bellany studied the three illusions and then went over Chill of Fear and the Globe of Fog Cantrip. She then started attempting to cast Globe of Fog. Just before the Trivium she smiled as a pea-sized puff of fog materialized just above her palm. She had no time to jot down the casting notes until she was listening to Headmistress Vargrend speak about persuasive styles of writing. She made it appear as if she were taking notes on the lecture while she was writing the casting notes for Globe of Fog. Afterwards she had to hurriedly catch up with copying the items Headmistress Vargrend had written on the blackboard. While Bellany was occupied copying the board, one of her fellow students, Miss Hadrian, raised her hand. "Excuse me Headmistress Vargrend if you look out the windows on the right side of the room the man in rags is heading around the building. He should reach this corner shortly." Headmistress Vargrend stepped back and walked along the wall, then clandestinely peered out the window. She watched the man in rags round the corner of the building and then switched windows and watched him make his way into one of the hedges and disappear. "Take a few moments to reflect on what we have been talking about, ladies. I must see that the constable is alerted. Thank you Miss Hadrian. Miss Griffin assured me that the man in rags was real, but there is nothing like seeing something with one's own eyes." Headmistress Vargrend briskly left the room. "If this is a prank, the prankster is very crafty. Boys who make it onto the grounds are almost always caught," Bianca Bristol said. Bellany was trying to catch up with what was on the board and did not realize it as Elloisa Elliston came up behind her desk and picked at one of her books as if pulling a folded paper from it. "Oh my, look what Baconetess Norwit had folded in her book!" Bellany looked up as the piece of paper Elliston had produced made its rounds to a chorus of squeals and degrading comments about Bellany's morality. "Gods Norwit, this leaves little to the imagination. What's the matter did you miss getting porked?" Bianca Bristol asked. At first Bellany did not respond. She was finishing her notes and she knew she had, had nothing in the book. Unfortunately, headmistress Vargrend returned to the classroom shortly after Bellany got up to try to find out what was on the paper. As soon as the headmistress returned, the girls scurried back to their seats and she was obliged to do likewise. Headmistress Vargrend quickly sized the situation up and took the paper from the girl who had it. "Where did this come from Miss Morgan?" Headmistress Vargrend asked. "Someone snatched it out of Lady Norwit's book, Headmistress." "Lady Norwit, you will come to my office after class." "Yes Headmistress." The Trivium seemed to last longer than usual and when it was finally over Bellany went to the office. She was shown to a small room hardly bigger than a closet. "Miss Norwit, just what is the meaning of that image that was circulating in class?" Headmistress Vargrend said. "I am sorry Headmistress, I did not get a chance to see it." "Nonsense, the girls agreed it had been folded in your book." "That is because Elloisa Elliston seemed to have pulled it out of my history book, but I am pretty sure there was nothing in my history book. Whatever it was it seemed to set the girls off. I was behind on my notes and did not try to find out what it was until shortly before you came in. They kept passing it from girl to girl and I was unable to see it," Bellany said. "Does this look familiar?" Headmistress Vargrend unfolded the piece of parchment and briefly held it before Bellany's eyes. Bellany blinked. "Headmistress Vargrend, whoever drew that had no idea what they were doing. I know the anatomy of male orcs all too well and that picture shows the anatomy of a bore stuck on a man's torso. I would never draw such a thing for the sake of the girls' virtue, but if I drew a male orc, I would draw him accurately. That is not even close." "Are you saying Elloisa Elliston perpetrated a falsehood against you?" Headmistress Vargrend asked. "Yes, Headmistress Vargrend. It is no secret that a number of the young ladies do not like me. Bianca Bristol has gone out of her way to snub me. I am sure Miss Elliston will reap great social rewards for this prank, especially if she successfully manipulates you into punishing me." "This is unconscionable!" Headmistress Vargrend snapped. Bellany shrugged. "They will get their laughs either way. If I am found innocent then they will know that they forced you to research orc anatomy and if you refuse to investigate and simply punish me, then they will get exactly what they wanted." Headmistress Vargrend set her jaw and then smiled. "This is not an investigation that should be conducted by a lady. I will turn it over to Constable Herrington. He has been round about searching for the man in rags anyway. If he finds that you are lying, you will serve detention. If not, I shall see that Miss Elliston pays for her perfidy. You may leave now, Lady Norwit." "Thank you for being so thorough, Headmistress," Bellany said. She saved her smile until she was out of the room. Whatever Headmistress Vargrend's deficits might be, lack of intelligence certainly was not among them. ------- "What are you reading, Bellany. It looks like nonsense," Cleopatra asked as they sat eating lunch. Bellany smiled. "It is my journal of thoughts, poems, and naughty things that I have done. A simple book lock would not be safe from the prying hands and eyes of my mother. This gibberish is a code I developed." "How clever," Cleopatra said. "Vindicator girls have to be either good or smart. I used to be good, but now I'm smart." Bellany smiled. "You are naughty but in a good way," Cleopatra said. "You have learned many things vindicator girls are not supposed to know, but they are things a real lady should know in order to be able to understand people from other religions and cultures." "Thank you Cleo. At least you understand. I wish my mother would but I know her too well to give it a second thought. She makes it a point not to understand. No one said I had to be exactly like her, however," Bellany said. After they had finished the two young women made their way to the thicket. Leaves were rapidly falling from the trees and bushes. Soon their privacy would be no more. "I enjoyed this thicket. It is starting to look a bit threadbare up high. Even the man in rags is going to have a harder time hiding soon." "He will have to stick with the evergreen hedges. Luckily our hedge is evergreen but the young trees will soon lose their leaves and we will not be able to stand up and still remain hidden," Cleopatra said. Bellany nodded. "Have you got a game for us today?" Cleopatra asked. "Yesterday was fun." "Yes you were quite amazing yesterday. I don't think I will be able to top that. Do you want to try a few more, Madame Cleopatra?" Bellany asked. "Hehe sure." "Okay, today I might throw you a curve ball since you were doing so well yesterday, but it will not be something you cannot name," Bellany said. "Okay." Bellany cast the Mental Picture Cantrip once again and placed her palm over Cleopatra's eyes. "Strawberry pie!" Cleopatra slurped. Bellany giggled. Well, cherry but they are both red. I guess that counts. Let me try again." "Hmm, I didn't get that one." "Okay, I will try again. How about now?" "Headmistress Vargrend smiling deviously!" "That's right, Cleo! How about this?" "Strawberry shortcake?" "No, it must not have worked. Let me try again." "Aaaiii! Oh gods I had a chill down my spine." "Cleo you are miraculous, that was the curve ball, an emotion rather than a proper picture. It was fear but a chill is about the same thing if it was a fear kind of chill," Bellany said. "It was," Cleopatra said. "Let me try another." "Eeek a nasty looking orc charging towards me at full speed," Cleopatra said. "That's right Madame Cleopatra. You are uncanny." "It is not just me, Bellany. I tried the game with my roommate and hardly got a thing," Cleopatra said. "Oh dear, my mother would string me up if she thought I had any supernatural gifts. That is a big taboo for vindicator girls." "Don't worry, I did not mention your name. No one is going to string you up for witchery," Cleopatra said. "Oh good, thank you. Try this." Cleopatra squealed. "You sure do that fear one well." "I guess I must have a good sense of it from being terrified by orcs," Bellany grinned. Bellany did it again. "Ack! Bellany you have to try that while telling a ghost story. It will be a big hit," Cleopatra said. "If it was not for being strung up as a witch I might try it, if it is working so well," Bellany said. "It is wild. I got quite a chill that time. Where fear is concerned you are truly gifted," Cleopatra giggled. "At least I am good at something," Bellany said. "I guess my life experiences have helped out on that one." "I do not think I would want to pay the price you have paid in order to get people to have chills of fear more easily." Cleopatra giggled. Just then there was a flurry of black feathers and Nimbus landed on a tree limb near Bellany's head. "Nimbus, It is so good of you to drop in. I have some pork for you today and a biscuit. "Woorrk, tock-tock-tock," Nimbus said bobbing his head. "You are such a cute raven, Nimus," Bellany cooed as she held up a fatty scrap of pork. The raven tore great bits of it off while being surprisingly careful not to hook Bellany's fingers with his beak. After he had finished his meal, Bellany and Cleopatra returned to the dormitory. ------- Guardian Thane had always put great stock in illusion and darkness spells. For some reason the last few cantrips on her list, other than the recalcitrant Ash Kinetics Cantrip, were all illusions. Bellany studied each one of them. There were definite similarities. Oddly, the darkness spell was sort of a hybrid drain and illusion. Bellany now understood why necromancers were so good at darkness spells. Whereas most illusions added images to a scene, necromantic darkness actually drained away the light in the area as well as adding illusionary blackness to produce powerful darkness. Bellany now realized why all but the most elementary necromantic darkness spells were proof against light sources that were not exceptionally bright. The necromantic darkness literally consumed the light. Bellany first tried Finger of Shadow but had no luck with it and switched to the more necromantic cantrip, Sphere of Darkness. The Sphere spell was supposed to produce a sphere of inky darkness about the size of a silver piece. Bellany attempted to cast it. After getting the somatic and verbal components down she managed to produce a sphere of darkness as large as her hand. It was a little unsettling to be that successful at a cantrip on the first real attempt at casting it. She rationalized that it had probably been one of the cantrips she had learned while with Guardian Thane since he frequently used darkness spells. Once she had done the Sphere of Darkness Cantrip a few times it was time to attend her afternoon courses. When she returned from her afternoon courses she penned the casting notes for the darkness cantrip. After that it only took her another hour and a half to get Finger of Shadow working. Finger of Shadow was strictly an illusion without light-draining characteristics. Once she could do both the visual illusion cantrip and the necromantic darkness cantrip, her Sphere of Darkness was enhanced to a size nearly as large as a person's head. It was obvious that her original casting was poor on the illusion component but excellent on the light-draining component. She looked at her ghost hand and wondered if it was partly responsible for the ease with which she cast darkness spells. It did, after all, black out her tiny globe of blue light when she dropped it into her left palm. After dinner and her art class Bellany finished up some homework and began to get ready for bed as Mary arrived looking less exhausted and much happier than she had the night before. As soon as she closed the door her virtuous vindicator façade fell away and she embraced Bellany and kissed her. Delicious lust tickled up Bellany's spine. Once they got into bed, Mary was all over her kissing and caressing. "Gods you are so beautiful Bellany. I knew I would not be able to keep my hands off you the first time I saw you," Mary whispered. "Yes, I remember you were so cute the way your voice went all breathless when you saw me," Bellany giggled. Mary slapped Bellany on the rump and then squeezed her round rear. "You are such a bad girl," Mary whispered. "I have always enjoyed the way you look too, Mary. You're a little more willowy than I am although we are about the same height. You have such nice slender hands and fine wrists. Lately I have been fantasizing about having one of them inside me." "Me too," Mary said as she began to caress Bellany's already wet labia. Bellany's first orgasm at Mary's hand served to reinforce Mary's loyalty to her. Bellany had no desire to see Mary to spill their private business to reverend Leland. Bellany found her roommate's powerful lust quite arousing. Yet Bellany could not help but miss the power she absorbed from the lust of men. Mary was rife with the power of lust and Bellany was fascinated with making her roommate quiver with orgasmic ecstasy, but the energy always got away from her like a clever mouse evading the paws of a hungry cat. Bellany needed a spell to channel the power, but it was going to be more difficult than the channeling spell she had developed for men. The energy of Mary's orgasm was more internalized. It was going to be harder to reach than that of a man. When Mary settled in to sleep, Bellany was still yearning for what her roommate could not provide, at least not without some assistance. She covered Mary's eyes and conjured three balls of light. She wove patterns with them and made them fly around at greater and greater distances from her. She practiced trying to think about other things without allowing the lights to lapse. Before long she fell asleep. Bellany awakened just in time to bid Mary adieu as her roommate left for work. Bellany got up and did her swordsmanship exercises and then cast every cantrip she knew that did not require a victim. This included Bluelight, Firefinger, Globe of Fog, Finger of Shadow and Sphere of Darkness. She did a few mental exercises as well but she felt that nothing beat actually casting to keep in practice. She fetched some breakfast and brought it back to her room. Over breakfast she made a few attempts at her Tuz Cantrip but did not manage to produce any sounds. After breakfast she switched to trying to cast her Fleeting Stench Cantrip. About twenty minutes before the Trivium was to begin she got the hang of it. She penned the casting notes and then rushed off to class. At lunch she practiced the Mental Image and Chill of Fear Cantrips with Cleopatra, making sure to pretend that about half of Cleopatra's images were wrong when in fact she was getting all of them right. Too much uncanny accuracy would not do if her friend failed to hold her tongue about their doings. When Cleopatra wanted to try sending images, Bellany was unable to get them, but she soon talked Cleopatra around to sending emotions. This gave Bellany a chance to practice her Touch Empathy Cantrip. Bellany worried that there would be many spells that she needed a subject's cooperation in order to practice. She had a good relationship with Cleopatra but she did not want to push it too far by doing magic that could not be passed off as the girlish intuition. After lunch Bellany reread the Ash Kinetics Cantrip and attempted to make it easier by using a truly tiny bit of ash on a clean piece of parchment that was set on a book propped on a steep incline. All she had to do was drag the ash down a steep hill. What could be easier? She must have cast the cantrip thirty times before she finally got the ash to budge. It was very difficult as if she were trying to drag a carriage up a hill without the benefit of horses. The ash was too sticky. She got a bit of down that had escaped her pillow and cut a minute bit of it off. She hoped it would work better than the ash had. It was actually just as difficult to move if not more so, but it did not disintegrate like the ash tended to. After pulling it down the incline she would let the spell lapse and set it back at the top. After several successful castings she penned the casting notes with a great smile of satisfaction. If she could conquer the audible illusion spell, she would be ready to move on to real spells. Following her afternoon classes Bellany returned to her room to do a little homework. Afterward she made a few unsuccessful attempts on her Tuz Cantrip. After her art class she tried again but had no luck. Instead she cast the Ash Kinetics spell and practiced with it. This time she moved a bit of down over the flat surface of the portrait she was currently working on. Mary arrived and began doing homework shortly after Bellany started. Bellany found that she could keep the spell going while working on her portrait. If she drew slowly she could move a tiny bit of down around on her drawing. It was actually rather fun, especially considering how much she wanted to develop her telekinetic skills. Telekinesis took a great deal of concentration and that made it a bit taxing but she knew she must practice. There were far too many more advanced telekinesis spells to go before she could do anything practical. Bellany spent the weekend practicing her cantrips. Little was happening at school since the athletes were away at a tournament in Carnarvon. The high point of her weekend was Saturday after lunch when she finally got sound out of the Tuz Cantrip. Finally she could do a minor audible illusion to go along with her visual and olfactory illusions, Finger of Shadow and Fleeting Stench. After Mary went to sleep each night, Bellany tended to stay up for an hour or so to improve her ability to deal with conjured lights. She also often cast Twitch and Touch Empathy on Mary while she was dreaming. If she did not get a chance to practice with her lights at night, she could get up when Mary did while it was still dark and practiced her lights just after Mary left and before she did her swordsmanship exercises. Sat On Sunday Reverend Leland's sermon was nothing more than thinly veiled propaganda about the justice of the vindicator that seemed to be preparing people for war and sacrifice in the name of their god. The good thing about Sunday was that Bellany had a great deal of time to practice magic after church. Since Sunday was often the only day she could get into the courtyard and the stables, she made a point to practice her Draining Touch spell on a huge stallion in the stables. He seemed to appreciate it much more than the gelding had the week before. Bellany got a sort of perverse satisfaction watching his eyes bulge and his enormous draft cock blast cum as she used the Draining Touch Spell on him. He seemed to get the same sort of satisfaction himself. After draining him thrice she found she was too tired to continue. She promised herself that she would find an additional stallion next week as three drains was a bit much for one even if he was huge. She still missed Starstruck but there was nothing for it. Most of the horses kept at the school were huge chargers used for jousting. She much preferred light horses. She got more energy if she took it the good old-fashioned way and did not waste any magical power. Yet she realized that casting the Draining Touch Spell was good practice. Bellany found that she could only do so much magic before she became fatigued. The life force she could store in her reserves was not exactly the same thing as the power used for magic, although she knew from memory that she regenerated her magical power more rapidly if she released healing energy from her reserves into her mind. Thane had said that a caster should cast to the limit of her endurance each day in order to build strength and skill. On Sunday Bellany decided that she would follow his advice from here on out and cast whenever she could. During times she was magically exhausted she studied more advanced spells, did homework, art, or practiced her music. For a couple of days she had been nervous about how well she had done with the Sphere of Darkness Cantrip. On Saturday night she had decided that if she had an aptitude in that particular branch of necromancy then she ought to see how far she could take it. Towards that end she had stole down to the crypts to copy some additional spells from Baladus' book. Among them were Darkness I, Darkness II and Life vision, a spell one could use to see through magical darkness. Sunday afternoon she began work on casting Darkness I. In a matter of a couple of hours she had the verbal and somatic components for Darkness I, down cold. In the course of practicing them she cast the spell and found that a deep indelible shadow took up residence in one corner of the room for the better part of an hour. It was a little frightening; especially considering Mary might have come into the room at any moment. After casting the darkness spell once and letting it wear out, she cast it again and then cancelled it, just to make sure she got the hang of canceling her spell. It took her twenty minutes to learn to undo what she had done even though it was supposed to be far simpler than casting. Darkness II was the next step up from the spell she had cast. It was a similar spell but one that created a patch of darkness that could not be penetrated by the amount of light given off by most normal light sources. It was the first spell that produced the same sort of effect as the spells Thane had been fond of. Darkness III was special. It was really a version of Darkness II that clung to the caster or her victim as she moved, effectively blinding her or her victim unless she had a vision in darkness spell cast on her. Bellany decided to continue to press her advantage with darkness spells since they would be very useful for sneaking around at night. She also realized that, although light was fun to play with, light spells were blatantly obvious. There were two spells that allowed a person to see in the dark. Night Vision was an illusion-based light amplification spell and Life Vision was a necromantic spell that allowed one to see gradations of life force and did not depend on light at all. An added advantage to the necromantic spell was that it allowed a person to see ghosts. She felt the best course of action would be to work on the darkness spells and the necromantic vision spell. She had an aptitude with darkness spells and she had the experience of receiving Thane's Vision In Darkness spell. She suspected his spell was the same as the spell Baladus called Life Vision. In spite of her progress with the many cantrips at her disposal, Bellany regretted that she had no charm type of cantrip to cast. Bumblebee and Firefly both involved insects that could not be found this late in the year. The best she could do was study them as a prelude for the Gentle Beast spell. She could use Nimbus as the subject for the Gentle Beast spell. She knew it would be more difficult starting with the more difficult spell, yet Thane had started her on the Draining Touch spell without benefit of the Drain Vitality Cantrip that Baladus had. Thus she knew it must be possible to master a spell without a similar cantrip that had already been learned. After the weekend, Bellany settled into a routine of sorts. She practiced every cantrip she knew that did not require a victim each morning after a few warm-up exercises to wake her mind and body. After casting she completed her usual swordsmanship exercises and then cleaned up for class. If she had any extra time during the daylight hours she practiced the Ash Kinetics Cantrip and if she had any extra time at night while Mary slept she practiced with her globes of light. By midweek she began working on variations in the color of the lights she conjured. On Wednesday she had also successfully cast Darkness II in the closet one night. Starting the morning after she had first brought Mary to her peak, Bellany had studied the first drain at range spell and began to construct a channeling spell she could use to capture the energy of Mary's orgasms. Although she could not complain about how sexual Mary had become, Mary merely whet her appetite because she could sense the energy of Mary's release, but she could not pull it into herself. Bellany delighted in bringing her roommate to one mind-bending orgasm after another each night using her lust senses to guide her, but the exposure to so much sexual energy that was just out of reach made her maddeningly hungry. It was hard to believe that just a week before, it had been all Bellany could do to get her roommate to come at all. Now she was getting quite good at it, and she delighted in pleasuring Bellany as well, but that just deepened the hunger. Thus it was no surprise that one week after introducing Mary to sex, Bellany had already formulated and tried numerous variations of a spell she called Amorra's Channel, after the goddess of love and lust. The spell had to be timed such that casting concluded at the moment Mary came to climax. Having lust senses certainly made this possible, but it was not easy, especially since Bellany could not stop pleasuring Mary so that she could cast the spell. The spell had to be designed so that the somatic components were caresses and the verbal components would slide off the end of a busy tongue. The spell was similar in principal to the channeling spells that she had developed for directing a man's energy into her reserves when it was spent somewhere other than her vagina. Yet this spell had to reach deeper into Mary's body than the channels she had developed for men. In theory the spell took no more power than the Drain Vitality Cantrip, but in practice the design had to be much more astute and unconventional. On Wednesday Bellany had her first success. She was able to direct a trickle of Mary's orgasmic energy into her reserves. Having the principal down was a milestone, but learning to shape the magic gradually and subtly as she shaped Mary's arousal was Bellany's long-term goal. She devoted a section of her spellbook to notes on the development of Amorra's Channel and vowed that she would practice and refine it whenever possible. The following Monday, Constable Herrington came to class at the end of The Trivium and spoke. "Since it involved an unladylike topic, I was charged with the investigation of a certain drawing, alleged by Miss Elloisa Elliston to have come from Lady Norwit's book. Lady Norwit maintained that she had not created the drawing because if she had created it, it would have been accurate which she maintained it was not. In due time I discovered from Mrs. Sedell the art teacher here at Vargrend's that the style and strokes of the drawing were not in Lady Norwit's style but the style was commensurate with Miss Elliston's style. I was also able to locate an individual who confirmed that the drawing was anatomically inaccurate." Headmistress Vargrend stood and took the floor. "Thank you Constable Herrington. Creating such a drawing would be an offense in itself, but attempting to make a fool of the Headmistress of this academy is simply unconscionable. Miss Elliston, you will report to my office after class." Miss Elliston swallowed noticeably, as though the sword of Damocles had just been hung over her head. Bellany stared at the wall and managed, at least temporarily, to overcome her urge to grin. Perhaps Elliston would be providing Baladus or Alistair with sustenance in the very near future. ------- This ends, The Fallen Angel, chapter 61 of The Chronicles of Rapina. The story continues in chapter 62, A Breath of Autumn Air. Copyright 2004 by Rapina