(Continued from Ch 61, The Fallen Angel) The Chronicles of Rapina Chapter 62, A Breath of Autumn Air After Monday's Ballroom Dancing course, Bellany was still smiling about Elliston being caught by her own trap. At the beginning of her midday break Bellany stopped at the library to check mail and was surprised to be handed a letter bearing Baronet Norwit's seal. She grabbed it, thanked the librarian and rushed off to her room to read it. After a silent prayer to Mortaebius, she broke the seal and began to read. ------- Friday October 25, 724 I talked to your mother about the Jordells. I made her aware that Trinadar Leafwhisper is not just a rapier trainer; he is a living legend, a priceless treasure that outshines her finest jewelry. A few hours training with Leafwhisper at a tournament would be worth the same money as a week's worth of labor from most craftsmen. She is not comfortable with a Lady studying swordsmanship. She reminded me that Red Jack has been terrorizing Eastern Avengene and since he is a disowned Jordell, she has misgivings about the family. Red Jack has had a profound effect on river commerce for years. My investments in business in Hartmoor have been doing better since Red Jack went north to terrorize Eastern Avengene but I feel badly for the families there along the river. Red Jack also appears to be traveling at night and there are rumors that he is sometimes using undead monsters as troops or that his men are cursed and part undead. Thus far he has evaded or destroyed every trap Lord Avengene has set for him and has made living along the river extremely hazardous for the people of Avengene. He has also slowed our repair efforts on our forts since moving supplies up the river from Li'Yieraun is now very difficult. Bristol will no longer allow large groups of travelers from Avengene, thus I have organized an overland convoy to move supplies from Turnmoor through the elfin forest of Liaern for the Baronety of Norwit. Red Jack's actions no longer make sense for a man who is terrorizing commerce in order to give the Jordells a monopoly over river trade. Most commerce goes on west of the elfin forest but Red Jack has been found exclusively in Avengene north of the forest. We believe he has gone mercenary and is now working for the Church of Mortaebius. This could mean that the Jordells are Mortabius sympathizers; however it may mean that they do not control Red Jack, which is what they have been saying for years. Your mother agrees that we may never know the truth about the Jordells; however your mother is a daughter of Avengene and knows her manners. Without her by my side I would never have survived my early years as a peer. We cannot afford to snub the family of a count that has done you a favor. It would be unmannerly. Therefore your mother and I have agreed to allow you to train under mister Leafwhisper. I have sent a formal letter to the Jordells accepting their offer and thanking them for their gracious hospitality. Good luck, Lord Darl Norwit Lady Eleanor Norwit P.S. To be able to train under mister Leafwhisper is a dream that few students of the rapier would even consider possible. Although your mother would surely slap me for it, I encourage you to spend as much time with him as possible. Most swordsmen will never see an opportunity like this in spite of an entire lifetime spent as a student of the sword. -Daddy ------- Bellany screamed with joy and jumped up and down. Wednesday afternoon, the athletes returned to the Bristol Academy. Bellany was surprised to find a Jordell herald waiting outside her history class on Wednesday afternoon. She could not recall ever having seen a male other than Constable Herrington in the girls' building. "Lady Norwit?" "Yes?" Bellany asked. "Lord Jordell has sent me to deliver this message. Lord Jordell says that if you wish to supplant your ballet class with a longer swordsmanship class under Trinadar Leafwhisper, Headmistress Vargrend will grant you permission. You may come with me to Jordell Manor or we will wait until after your ballet class is over if you prefer." Bellany raised her eyebrows. She had been led to believe that Headmistress Vargrend seldom changed class schedules once they had been set up during the summer. To change one in the middle of a semester with an hour's notice seemed impossible. It was obvious that the Jordells wielded considerable power. "I will miss ballet, but I would like to switch to swordsmanship," Bellany said without hesitation. "Come with me. I will get my cloak and we will be off." The herald followed Bellany upstairs. She gave a Charles Norwit smile to each of the many girls who gave her a venomous look. Before she knew it she was getting out of the Jordell coach at Jordell Manor. "Welcome Bellany," James Jordell said as she came through the door. "Thank you Jamie, it is so good to see you. How did the tournaments go?" "The man I faced in Caranarvon was not half bad. He was a lackluster swordsman but he was such a hunk." Bellany giggled. "At least he had something going for him." "Oh he did," Jordell breathlessly assured her. "I hoped you would bring me over tomorrow, I never dreamed it would be today, and that instant schedule change. It was amazing," Bellany beamed. "Headmaster Bristol knows his manners and his school budget." Jordell smiled. "I have had another training outfit created for you. Go right in there and the servants will help you dress. Your father was much more enthusiastic than I had predicted. He must be a student of the sword," Jordell said. Bellany nodded. "Yes he is, even if mother is not. I'll be right out." After she got dressed she was brought to what must have been the large chamber Jordell trained in. There were rows of pillars along either side of the room and markings on the stone floor. "Just how serious would you like to be about this course?" Jordell asked. "I was inclined to be serious, but daddy added a postscript to the letter he wrote. I think mother saw the first part but not the postscript. He suggested I spend as much time under Leafwhisper as I could, which means I am allowed to be extremely serious. Could we do three very long lessons each week, perhaps on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays? Maybe on the other days we could just do a shorter session just until dinner." Bellany said. "I will need Sundays and tournament days off. " "Milady, I had no idea you were that serious. A team mate would do no more than that," Jordell said. "Do you think you have the stamina?" Bellany nodded. "I'll never be any good if I do not do the work." Jordell nodded. "Can she do it?" Jordell asked his instructor. "Most human Ladies would be hard pressed, milord, as they get limited exercise but there are elfin women who could keep up with such a regimen and I noticed when you sparred with Lady Norwit weeks ago that she lasted well. It is possible. I will assess her with a test of strength and stamina." "Very good, it would not do if her physique could not support her enthusiasm. I will check in later to see what you have found out." Jordell turned to Bellany, "Good luck Bellany." "Thank you Jamie," Bellany said. In spite of the luxurious surroundings, Leafwhisper did not offer a sedate lesson. First he had her stretch in every imaginable way to see how flexible she was. Then he had her perform calisthenics and lift weights to determine her strength. He was not a stern teacher but he was inexorable. He said little but Bellany noticed that he did smile at times such as when she pushed up from a headstand. When he was finished with the exercises he took her on an hour long run through the beautiful big trees that stood on the grounds north of Jordell Manor. It reminded her of the run she had taken with the pirate recruits but she had been in pitiful shape back then. She wished she had more power in her reserves, but at least she was doing better in that regard. Mary provided her with a tiny bit of energy most nights and was capable of giving her more if she could just get Amorra's Channel to work better. Timothy was an occasional help, and using her drain spell on stallions in the stables also helped her out on Sundays. Since she was in much better physical condition than she had been at the start of her pirate career, she did not bother with magic; she simply kept up Leafwhisper's brisk pace and was happy that she could do so. When they returned from the run, Bellany sat down to a brief dinner with Lord Jordell and then began training with Leafwhisper until about eight. She bathed and dressed with the help of several servants and was ready to leave at half past eight. It had been grueling but wonderful. Lord Jordell and Trinadar Leafwhisper escorted her to the coach beneath a full moon. "Trinadar said you are worthy of the rapier team even if they are too stuffy at the academy to let a woman join," Jamie said. "Thank you Trinadar and thank you for having me, Jamie. It was a lot of fun tonight. The Jordell grounds are beautiful this time of year, even if it is getting dark early. Towards the end of the run I just had to follow Trinadar. I knew he would be able to see even when I could not." "I am so glad you still live after that first lesson," Jordell daintily wiped his brow with the back of his wrist for emphasis. "Trinadar tests the mettle of his students rigorously before he designs their programs. I was so worried when you decided to take the serious road. I was all set for a boost to my social life but when you went all serious on me I was sure you would wash right out." Bellany giggled. "No need to worry Jamie, I exercise religiously. I am also trying to learn elfish. Thank you again for having me over Jamie, and thank you for assessing me Master Leafwhisper, it was grueling but it was fun too." Leafwhisper bowed. The coachman pulled a lever and the steps lowered. He then jumped down from the driver's seat and opened the door as Jordell spoke. "The pleasure was mine and Trinadar's, Bellany. It was so delightful to watch you squish those girlish stereotypes. Trinadar will see you again tomorrow. A coach will be waiting after your history course." "Thank you Jaime, few men would enjoy my squishing stereotypes, but I am glad someone does". Bellany winked at Jamie. "Farewell." "Farewell," Jordell said. Bellany took a couple of the steps and turned back to Trinadar who stood slightly behind Jordell. She deliberately glanced up at the moon and then back at Trinadar "Theau Lunea, Trinadar," she said. Trinadar smiled and bowed. Bellany smiled as she sat down. Coachman Stevens closed the door. She could barely see Lord Jordell and Trinadar Leafwhisper conversing in the moonlight as the coach clattered down the road. When she got back to the dormitory she ran up the stairs beaming and went into her room. "Bellany, I have not seen you all day; Where were you?" Mary asked. Bellany smiled and hugged Mary. "I was over at Jordell Manor. I am getting rapier lessons from Trinadar Leafwhisper! It is like a dream come true. I can hardly believe daddy gave his permission, but I am beginning to see that the Jordells have an extraordinary amount of clout. Things they want to happen just happen. Headmistress Vargrend cancelled my ballet class in the middle of the term and is allowing me to take swordsmanship instead. I can hardly believe it! It is entirely out of character for her." "That is extraordinary, Headmistress Vargrend never changes schedules in the middle of the term." Mary thought for a minute. "Perhaps it is because the Jordells are big contributors to The Bristol Academy. Headmaster Bristol might be afraid that the Jodells would pull their funding if they felt the academy had snubbed them." Bellany nodded. "It does not hurt that Lord Jordell is to be a count, either. He could ask Baron Bristol to tell the academy to mind their betters, and Baron Bristol would do just that. Count Jordell is the prince of the shipping industry and Barons along the river are dependent on trade." Mary nodded. "I am happy for you." "That is sweet of you Mary. I don't know how you put up with me. I am out doing gods knows what all evening and you are still glad to see me. Tonight it was tame, but you know you can never count on that," Bellany said. Mary nodded. "I know you like men, Bellany. You gave me plenty of warning about that. Plus I was with you at the Jordell ball when there was practically a line to dance with you. I will not always be a carefree school girl but at least with you as my roommate I will have memories to smile about when I am older." Bellany kissed Mary. "Thank you, Mary. I am glad you understand. My schedule is going to be a little rough with all the swordsmanship time I will be spending, but I should always be home for bed. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I shall be arriving about the same time as I did tonight. I need about a half hour to finish up an assignment for the Trivium, but I should be ready for bed by lights out. I certainly would not want to miss contemplating purity and chastity with you." Bellany giggled. Mary smiled meaningfully. It was the kind of smile she would have been incapable of just a couple of weeks ago. ------- There was no question that the new schedule was grueling. Bellany was only able to attend her art class twice a week at most and that was assuming she always managed to stay caught up with her homework. To do this she was forced to spend much less time with Cleopatra after lunch. This did not bother Cleo too much because it was turning colder and the thicket was less hospitable for conversation. Bellany's biggest worry was that she did not know when she would find time to work on her magic. Somehow she needed to expand her days. She needed men, and she was not able to avail herself of them. Although she was getting some energy from Mary, Timothy and from draining stallions on Sundays, she would probably need that just to assist in healing sore muscles from her hours of workout and swordsmanship practice each day. Until she could fix her problem by finding a way to see men on a more regular basis, she would just have to do what she could to practice her magic. She streamlined her workouts so that she would have a little time for homework or additional magical study in the morning. She also continued casting every cantrip and spell that she could just after the start of her morning workouts. Refining her Amorra's Channel spell became her first magical priority and telekinesis was her second priority. She made sure she always had a number of prospective improvements to Amora's Channel ready to try on Mary most every night. She had been practicing the Ash Kinetics Cantrip for less than a week but made sure to begin training herself to do the verbal and somatic components for the next more difficult telekinesis spell, Telekinesis I or Floating Feather. On Friday she had her second long swordsmanship lesson. Her brother Charles and Vernon Saint Varlans had come over to Jordell manor about an hour before dinner to watch her train. When she was done with the first half of her lesson they had all dined together. "It is great to see you again, Belle," Charles said. "James says you are essentially the second member of the rapier team since no one tried out for it this year. I have been watching. Is it possible you could already be better with a sword than you were this summer?" Bellany smiled and shrugged. "You are right, Lord Charles. I have known many students but Lady Bellany has an extraordinary memory," Leafwhisper said softly. "She enjoys the melodies of the elfin system of swordsmanship. The harmony within improves daily". "Vindicator's skull, no wonder you are doing so well Belle. I remember when I thought all that musical swordsmanship was a little crazy, but that's the way you liked it. Now you've got a real trainer who knows all that musical stuff and you are in your element," Charles said. Trinadar nodded. "Trinadar is a great teacher. I love that he is teaching me mostly in elfish too," Bellany said between mouthfuls. "That's a relief. I thought that was all swordsmanship jargon and that I was seriously ignorant," Charles said. Bellany laughed, "Not at all, many of the words and concepts would have made sense in the common tongue. Sometimes I have trouble following but Trinadar repeats things in different ways and I was able to read more about elfish in between dinner and art class last night and after Mary went to sleep for about a half an hour. I have a lot more to learn. This new schedule is crazy; I have so much to do and so little time to do it in." "You are living like an athlete, Belle. I'll see if I can get dad to spring for a research assistant for you. Mary is here on scholarship. I think she has done some assisting for noble ladies in the past. If dad will provide the silver she would be perfect for you because you room with her." Bellany nodded. "That would be nice." "It is odd to watch a woman at the sword. A dress sure makes a woman look different," Saint Varlans said. "Oh it is all in the undergarments, Vernon," Jordell said. "For a dress you have a lower neckline and undergarments that push the bosom up from below, but for an exercise outfit it is best if a woman binds her breasts tightly to her chest, especially if she has a generous figure as Bellany does. Constant jostling takes an untoward toll on women's breasts. Her training garments are designed to prevent her from losing her youthful figure." "Oh, I am glad you know all about ladies' undergarments, James, otherwise who would protect Bellany's ... uh assets." Saint Varlans smiled. Bellany blushed. "A host who knows nothing about fashion is hardly a host," Jordell scoffed. The clock struck half past six and Bellany stood up. "It was good of you to stop over Charles and Vern. I am so glad you are back at the academy after those tournaments at other schools. I will talk to you at the tourney breakfast tomorrow. I have to get back at it. Thank you Jamie," Bellany kissed Jordell on the cheek. "Oh it is my pleasure," Jordell said. Charles got up as well. "Thank you James. I promised myself I would practice tonight since I threw that match in the county of Jordell while we were away. I will catch up with you guys tomorrow at school." "You are always welcome Charles. Farewell until tomorrow then," Jordell said. "See you at breakfast, Charles," Vernon said. Charles gave Bellany a hug, nodded to Vernon and Jordell and left. When she resumed her lesson, Vernon and Jordell watched her practice from the sidelines and talked softly. Vernon bid her farewell shortly before the end of her lesson. When she was finished she thanked Trinadar and retired to take a bath within the princess suite. A chamber orchestra was playing in the sitting room as she came in. Servants helped her undress and let her into the room with the large sunken bath. She knew she could have had servants to wash her, but she had told Jamie that she preferred to wash herself. In truth she did not, but she knew that it would be difficult for her not to seduce anyone who was washing her naked body. "Choo!" Bellany sneezed as the door closed behind her. The bath was scented but that was not what had made her sneeze. She lifted her head but smiled and kept it moving as if looking around. There was a decorative grille in the upper corner of the room. Because of the cunning construction of the grille and the placement of the candelabra in the room, she could not see anything untoward. She did not need to. Her lust senses told her that Vernon Saint Varlans and Lord Jamie were watching her. She walked over to the tub, her full breasts quivering as she moved. She stepped down the steps into the deep bath and washed her hair, face and neck. Then she stepped back up the steps and began to lather her body with scented soap. She started with her feet and legs, rubbing the soap in with long sensuous strokes. She then took the back brush and scrubbed her back. Afterwards she turned towards the grille and lathered her shoulders, underarms and breasts. She swirled her soapy index fingers around her areoles and lightly pinched her nipples once they had perked up. Bellany smiled to herself as she sensed a continuous increase of lust from behind the grille. After her breasts she soaped up her midriff and then she turned and washed the high cheeks of her rump. She finished by lingering on her labia, pleasuring herself for the benefit of her secret audience. When she sensed a peak in the output of lust from Vernon, she walked back down the steps into the bath and rinsed off all of the soap. The servants told her that Jamie had accompanied Vernon on his ride back to the school and had bid her farewell if he was not present when she departed. Yet when she got into the Jordell coach, she found that Jamie was already in it. He placed his finger over his lips and she remained silent until they were on Emerald Lane. "How was your bath," Jordell whispered. Bellany smiled. "It was wonderful, but you knew that." James put his hand over his mouth, "I did?" Jamie grinned. "Remember how I broke the ambush of the highwaymen?" Bellany asked "You felt them looking at you from the bushes?" Jamie asked. Bellany nodded. "Your little bath drove Vernon mad with lust," Jamie said. "I would have liked to have taken care of that, but I am guessing you did. I had a little fun improving our social lives, but I think you had more fun." Bellany grinned. "You are so bad," Jamie squealed. "Birds of a feather..." Bellany said. "Me bad? That's just a vicious rumor," Jamie giggled. "I would have preferred having someone in the bath washing me," Bellany said. "But you told me you preferred to wash yourself," Jamie said. "Well yes but that was just because I did not think you would appreciate me seducing your servants. There is no sense in having someone wash me if that is all they are going to do." Bellany smiled lustfully. Jamie clutched his chest. "Goodness milady where is your virtue?" "I prefer virtuosity to virtue. It is a lot more fulfilling," Bellany said tickling Jamie's lust. "He may need a little practice but I believe Vernon has the right assets to make a good lover," Bellany said. "He is a delicious young man." Jordell slurped. "You aren't just being bad to get on my good side are you?" "Oh so I can convince you to marry me?" Bellany rolled her eyes. "Goodness be realistic, Jamie. I hold no illusions about marriage. I am a barren and besmirched granddaughter of Avengene. Your parents would have to be beyond desperate to contemplate allowing such a thing even if both of us for some reason wanted it. I do not know you well enough to want it and I do not hold out any hope that such a thing could happen. Even if your parents lost their minds, I doubt Lord Avengene would bless such a union considering your Uncle Red Jack's recent activities. I spend time with you because I enjoy your company. You are intelligent, naughty and sometimes outrageous. Besides, I think there are much more immediate and practical reasons for us to be seen together," Bellany said. "Oh really?" Jamie said. "Yes, you set them up yourself, You have said I would improve your social life and it is easy to see that you have improved mine since you broke the Bristol snub, but the arrangement could have longer term benefits for both of us beyond just using me as bait," Bellany smiled. "If the other young men think that I am your girlfriend then they can only borrow me. No single one of them can feel like he owns me because you outrank all of them. Yet everyone knows you seem to prefer men, so they would probably figure they could get away with borrowing me without getting you angry." "Oh but they would owe me one," Jamie said smiling. Bellany laughed. "Yes, I suppose they might think they would owe you one, especially if you put on the right attitude. That is just their perception, however. I don't mind letting them believe that for your advantage, but if this arrangement is to work, I need you to see that I am my own woman. You seem too naughty to be satisfied with only one man and I am the same way. I like to have fun with men for much the same reasons you do." "Lust?" Jamie asked. "Yes," Bellany nodded succinctly. "You are far too honest to be a Vargrend's girl. Perhaps you inherited a measure of common sense from your father. Does he like men?" Bellany giggled. "I've never really thought about daddy having at it with the soldiers. If he ever has he certainly has not let me in on it. Maybe you could ask Charles." "Oh your brother is such a handsome morsel," Jamie smiled. Bellany nodded. "We have an arrangement. Neither of us is to know if the other is naughty. As long as we do not know, mother and daddy can never get it out of us. That is why if you wind up having fun with Charles, I would like you to keep it a secret from me. He seems to be doing well enough lately. He is able to get dates with emerald ladies in spite of me." "Very well, mum's the word on Charles then. He is charming and confident. Were it not for his ability to take insults and setbacks in stride he could not possibly succeed, but he can and therefore he will. It does not hurt that all of the men are infatuated with his sister either. You have no idea how often they talk about the Fallen Angel," Jamie said. It used to be the three B's of Vargrends. Now it seems to be an "A" and two B's." "Is that why you decided to invite me to train with Leafwhisper?" Bellany asked. "Gods no, that was just an ulterior motive. If you had no talent I would never have wasted Trinadar's time. He is the best of the best. Even I cannot afford to insult him. However he thinks the world of you. How could he help himself? You are an excellent student and as reserved as he is, he is still a man." Bellany smiled, "I have a weakness for elves. They are often so sweet." "They are, but Trinadar is very professional and attempting to seduce him is not worth the risk of losing him as a sword master." Bellany nodded. "I will not make any moves on him." The Jordell coach came to a halt. "I guess we are here. Thank you for another fine lesson, Jamie." Bellany kissed Jamie on the cheek. "You are quite welcome. Thank you for being such heavenly bait tonight. You had poor Vernon shaking with desire," Jamie giggled. "He was not the only one. I must get back to my room so that I can contemplate purity and chastity with Mary," Bellany smiled. "Goodness have you been working on miss innocent?" Jamie asked. "Mary would not want me to say, but you are welcome to guess the next time you see her." Bellany grinned. "I will see you tomorrow morning at breakfast if you are there or at the rapier event if you miss it." Jordell nodded. "Farewell Belle." "Goodbye Jamie." Bellany hopped down the stairs of the coach. "Thank you Coachman Stevens," she called out waving to the coachman. The gate monitor opened the inner gate to Vargrend's for her as she approached and within a few minutes she had made her way up the stairs to the third floor and her room. Bellany shut the door to her room and walked over to Mary who was sitting at her desk working on an assignment. Mary looked up from her chair. "You always smell so good when you return from Jordell Manor," Mary said as she reached up and pulled Bellany down to her for a brief kiss. "Jamie always has the servants draw a bath for me. That way I can wash up at the end of my lesson. I feel much cleaner than before I started swordsmanship under master Leafwhisper." "You smell great. I have always loved your natural scent, but the scent Lord Jordell put in the bath is complementary." "Thank you Mary. I had better get to work so that I will be ready by lights out." Mary nodded. Bellany sat down at her desk and began writing the answers for her history assignment. She finished and then began writing an essay for the Trivium. She finished the essay about five minutes after the hall monitor came by announcing that lights out was in fifteen minutes. She might have been late for bed but after getting undressed she just shoved her nightgown under her pillow and climbed into bed naked. Mary did not even bother to get into her own bed. She preferred to sleep with Bellany. The hall monitor knocked twice and then opened the door to peek in. "Sleeping together?" She asked. As the door opened, Mary turned over so that she had her belly to the bed and was looking away from her roommate. Bellany raised her knees slightly and clutched at the blankets as she felt her roommate's hand slide up over her hip. "Yes, I get cold easily. Mary has very considerately volunteered to keep me warm," Bellany said. Beneath the covers Mary clamped her hand over Bellany's mound and slid a finger in. "That is sweet of you Mary. You girls have a good night," the monitor said. "Good night," the girls said in unison as the hall monitor closed the door. Mary moved closer to Bellany and snuggled her, still working her fingers over Belle's mound and her middle finger inside. Bellany squeezed Mary's finger within her. "You are so considerate to keep me warm and wet, Mary," Bellany whispered as she nuzzled her roommate's earlobe. "It's my pleasure, Mary whispered. ------- Mary got up early the next morning to help with the tournament breakfast. For the first time in days, Bellany had time to work on her magic. She had made some good progress on Amorra's Channel the night before and was confident that she could continue to hone the spell to a fine edge. Her priority this morning was Telekinesis I, Floating Feather. She abbreviated her workout and cast only Finger of Shadow, Fleeting Stench, Tuz and Globe of fog, her illusion and conjuration spells. She had confidence in her ability to cast darkness spells and she could not practice many of her other spells because they required a subject. She worried about her lack of a trustworthy subject to practice magic on, but as yet she had no practical plan to remedy the situation. After working on the spell for a couple of hours she found that she could get a tiny piece of down to move. It was not exactly a feather, but it was a start. She practiced casting the spell several more times until she had learned it well. The casting notes said that telekinesis required a great deal of usage practice to get the maximum power that a given spell was capable of. She thought that she might use the spell to slowly move the hair of people who sat in front of her in classes. This would allow her to practice all day. All she had to do was learn to maintain the spell while taking notes. She knew it would be tricky but she felt that she could get the hang of it. When she was finished she penned some additional casting notes in her coded spellbook and rushed off to breakfast. When she arrived at breakfast Charles left the table with his friends and came to get her. As he left she could see that the emerald boys clustered around Vernon and Jamie and began whispering among themselves. Bellany would ask Jamie what they had been talking about later. "Oh come now, you should all be happy," Jamie said. "You know I prefer men for light-hearted fun. If she had decided to settle with one of you men then the rest of you would be entirely out of luck, but she is a free spirit, that is why I think she likes me. We naughty people have to stick together, you know." "But if you have her then none of us will get a chance," Carnarvon whispered. "Nonsense, I cannot blame men for being men. She is a beautiful woman. Since I haven't the inclination to please her in the way you men seem to want to, there is no reason my good friends cannot. There is not a problem so long as you are discreet and are not presumptuous enough to steal rather than borrow her." "How do you know she will go for that?" Vernon asked. "She takes rapier lessons at my house several hours every day. I am getting to know her rather well. She and I mostly agree on which of you men are the hot ones." Lord Jordell smiled. "What about Belgado? Aren't you two an item?" Brad Bostwick asked. "Bernadine and I are drinking buddies. She is not naughty in the bedroom like I am. Were it not for alcohol, I might guess she was going to spend half her life as a virgin. She is a beautiful woman to have on your arm. You are welcome to pursue her if you like, but mind your manners and do not take advantage of her while she is drunk. She is not a naughty girl. Bellany, on the other hand is no girl. She is a woman and it oozes from her every pore in spite of those ridiculous dresses her mother puts her in, don't you think?" "Gods yes," Saint Varlans whispered. "You can say that again," Carnarvon said. "Anyhow you have nothing to worry about. She is too much woman for one man anyway. You may catch as catch can, just do not presume to make the Angel your exclusive property. She has done her time as a slave and comes to us now as a free spirit, something that Vargrend's has a severe lack of. Also you mustn't breathe any of this to Charles. He and Belle have an arrangement of ignorance concerning the indiscretions of one another so that no matter how much their insufferably conservative parents might grill them, neither will know the naughty secrets of the other." The young men nodded. "If you would like to come by and watch her train, just let me know. Even in a training outfit with her breasts bound tight I am sure you will still find her delicious to look at." "How often does she train?" Carnarvon asked. "She trains until just before bedtime on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and just until dinner the other days of the week. She is off on, Sundays, holidays, and tourney Saturdays, of course," Jordell said. "Wow, is she any good?" Lawrence Eagan asked. "She is astonishing. She is more skilled than most of you and my swordmaster is very impressed with how rapidly she picks things up. He believes her to be a formidable student." As the boys talked, Bellany filled her tray and then went with Charles to their table. Their conversation changed suddenly as she arrived. After she greeted all of the emerald boys and sat down, the conversation turned to various opponents to be faced in the day's events. The consensus was that the academy they opposed had few exceptional athletes. Bellany was busy deciding which events she would actually go to and how much time she might have to practice her magic between events. She always went to the rapier event, the joust and the crossbow event. She decided that perhaps she should also go to the broadsword event since that was the one that Vernon competed in. The rapier and broadsword event were being held indoors in the morning. The crossbow event was to be held outdoors just before lunch and the joust was to take place in the afternoon. After breakfast, servants converted the cafeteria into an arena of sorts for the rapier event. People packed into the building to watch James Jordell compete against Dracken Dunstable from The Academy of Spring Dell on the northeast side of the Barony of Jordell. Dunstable was not a handsome man. The match between Jordell and Dunstable was noiseless save for the sound of the clashing blades. Jordell did not taunt or play with his opponent yet he won easily, scoring three hits in less than three minutes. Bellany smiled. She imagined she might be able to hold her own against Dunstable since she had lasted about the same amount of time against Jordell before she had started training under Leafwhisper. Vernon Saint Varlans had to work much harder to defeat his opponent at the broadsword. Saint Varlans' opponent scored the first hit and it seemed Vernon was playing catch-up thereafter until the very end. By the time his match with Brandon Springer was over, Saint Varlans was sweating profusely. A well-timed feint narrowly won him the match. Mindful of the strain recovering from her rapier training put on her reserves, Bellany snuck into the stables during the two-handed sword event and used up nearly all of her magical energy doing drain spells on the stallions. There were more to choose from with so many visitors to the tournament. The result of the drain spells was a bit messy but put a grin across the fullness of her lips. She missed Starstruck. The drain spell was neither as efficient nor as overwhelming as the rush she got from soaking up his energy using the traditional method. Starstruck also did not require the expenditure of precious magical energy in exchange for the life force she used to rebuild her aching muscles more rapidly than was humanly possible. She knew Leafwhisper would be glad to move her training along at a slower pace but she realized that training under him was a once in a lifetime opportunity. She did not have the luxury of learning at a leisurely pace. She was moving as rapidly as was humanly, or perhaps a bit superhumanly possible. It was a little dangerous since she was sure Leafwhisper would notice how unusual she was, but he seemed to like her and she felt the learning would be worth the risk. She hoped she could find a way to glean more power and accelerate her pace beyond its current limit. Without Mary's contribution and her improvements to the Amorra's Channel spell, she could not have hoped even to move as quickly as she currently was. Subsequent to leaving the stables, Bellany snuck to the thicket with Timothy Evin. After getting roundly thumped by Timothy, she rushed off to see her brother compete. When she arrived at the site of the crossbow events, Peter Patel was there. He ushered Bellany to a seat in the stands. Bellany countered the glare of Bianca Bristol with her best rendition of the Charles Norwit grin. She witnessed Charles narrowly outscore Erol Fobs. Both Charles and Erol did consistently better than their opponents and solidly won the day. Mister Patel invited Bellany, Lord Carnarvon and Erol Fobs to lunch knowing that the boys would stay behind until the end of the longbow event. He told the chaperones that he was taking Bellany to the luncheon at his manor and that he would send the coach back for his son Paul and several young men who would be attending. They were agreeable since this meant Bellany would not be riding in a coach full of young men. Bellany took a moment to freshen up in her room and then boarded the Patel coach in front of Vargrend's. She sneezed as she entered the coach. Although he was sitting across from her, Peter's lust was a powerful tingle in her nose. She grinned and nearly laughed as she watched the middle-aged man's face gain color as the coach moved out of the courtyard. The way she tugged and caressed on the poor man's lust did nothing to improve his composure. He was trembling by the time they got past the constable's checkpoint at the beginning of Emerald Lane. Once they were past this point he bolted to her seat and began kissing her madly. She giggled as she squeezed his rump and began to kiss him affectionately. Patel could not wait. When she pulled his erection from his breeches he eagerly pulled her dress up and drove it into her wanton cleft, pumping and panting like a winded stallion. Bellany eagerly took what he had to give, and after a brief moment where they had to recompose themselves to rush through the manor to the secret bedroom, she made love to him again. She was not sure how he was going to hide the stupid grin he was wearing at lunch, but she hoped he would make an effort. For her part she put on her gracious yet enigmatic smile. She hoped Charles would not suspect, or at least that he would keep it to himself if he did. After lunch she returned to Vargrend's. Bellany cast Floating Feather and practiced maintaining it and moving a bit of goose down while she transcribed pages from her spellbook into the backup copy she was preparing. She planned to leave one copy with Baladus in case the other was ever lost or destroyed. When a fanfare sounded outside, Bellany knew the jousts would soon start. She put away her books and ran outside. She joined Peter Patel in the stands in time to see Sir Steefl unhorse his opponent. Lord Carnarvon did the same shortly after she sat down. It was obvious that the opposing team was outmatched. When Steefl thundered down the lists to meet his second opponent, the poor man's armor buckled badly and he landed hard, bleeding profusely where some of his sundered armor had lacerated his chest. The leech had him hauled off the field to his office. From a seat near Bellany's, Charles pointed at the injured man as he was hauled away. "That is why I am happy to be a crossbowman. The jousters get plenty of glory but every year there are injuries. Broken limbs, buckled armor and lance splinters through the eyes are injuries commonly seen at the jousting event." "Yes, you warned me about that this summer. I am glad that was not you or Abraham that they just hauled off the field," Bellany said. "I worry about Abe and Loyd every time they take a bad fall. Even the best jouster is not immune to injuries. Skill helps but there is still more than a little luck involved. I have seen men break their necks or backs when they fell wrong after being unhorsed. The unlucky ones live for a while. They usually cannot move anything below the break," Charles said. Bellany grimaced. "I hope nothing like that happens to them. Who are you bringing to the ball at Gransward's tonight?" Bellany asked in order to change the subject. "I will be taking Larissa Jordell, your date's sister. That way I can keep an eye on mister naughty," Charles said. "He's more likely to be naughty with you than he is with me," Bellany grinned. "You are probably right, but you cannot be too careful. He spends a lot of time around you. I know he would not be allowed to marry you, but I would not put it past him to try to make you into a mistress," Charles said. "Mother would never go for that," Bellany said. "Mom would have you locked in a convent faster than you could say 'Praise the Vindicator.'" Charles said. "I am sure." Bellany nodded. ------- The ball at Gransward's was a masked costume ball on account of Halloween. In spite of the preponderance of masks, somehow everyone still recognized her. Her dress did nothing to hide her figure even if she was wearing a mask. She could usually recognize people she knew from their tones of voice or the look of their bodies. If those methods failed she could usually identify people she knew from the character of their lust using her lust senses. James Jordell was dressed as a rather effete devil while Bellany was clad in angelic white gossamer with winged shoes and wings upon her back. She was an angel, a messenger of the gods. She was not sure when she was supposed to fall but she guessed since her date was a devil, her fall was implied. Jordell was in high spirits. Every time one of the emerald ladies looked at Bellany with a mixture of envy and scorn, he knew the dress he had created for Bellany was another coup. It seemed he could hardly wait until he could begin dressing her in the colors of winter. She was not sure what to make of Lord Jordell. He loved to dress her up and she could feel his lust, but he acted so convincingly as though it did not exist that he almost fooled her. There was no question that he lusted for men, but he was more complex than he let on. The dinner at Gransward Manor was delicious and after the last course people got up to mingle in the foyer, to freshen up or to head for the dance floor. Bellany made a beeline for the dance floor. There were quite a few men from the opposing tournament teams and not all of the emerald ladies would dance with them because so many of them were commoners. Bellany was inundated with requests when she was not dancing with Lord Jordell. Although she did not realize it, her skill on the dance floor had improved because of the sheer number of hours she had spent dancing during the ball at the Jordells. She told the men she could only dance with one at a time but that she would be happy to dance with each one of them by the end of the ball. She hardly took a break save to return to Lord Jordell so that he would not think she was deliberately ignoring him. He, Brad and Charles seemed to be consuming liberal quantities of alcohol, but as usual Bellany had far too many secrets to drink as liberally as her brother. During one of her breaks checking on Charles and James, Lady Gransward and Lady Daelrath came by. "This is a marvelous ball Lady Gransward. Thank you for having me. I know you would have preferred not to allow me here, but I do appreciate being allowed to come." "Lord Jordell was right, when he said it would be unmannerly not to invite you, Lady Norwit. You are the granddaughter of Lord Avengene, after all. I am glad you are enjoying the ball. All the commoners seem to want to dance with you." "The peers frequently cheat the commoners of their prize, if you have been watching, milady Gransward." Bostwick said with satisfaction as he had recently stolen Bellany for a dance. "Yes, I suppose all of the men are swayed by Lord Jordell's command of fashion." "That is a magnificent dress, Lady Norwit," Daelrath said. "Thank you Lady Daelrath. Jamie was the mastermind behind its design," Bellany said. "You look wonderful as a Valkyrie, Lady Daelrath. It is becoming of a worshipper of Virtusar. " "Thank you Lady Norwit," Bruhnhilda said. "I know you ladies probably do not approve of Bellany in white, but her fallen angel title gave me the perfect excuse. I will take credit for the lines of the dress, but I have noticed that the men drool over her even when she is wearing those horrid vindicator fashions. To put a woman with a body like Lady Norwit's in such sacks is a crime against fashion and nature. I had this dress created to rebuff the lines of her horrid vindicator garments and to tastefully reveal just how heavenly her body really is. That hack Eleanor Norwit has designing her daughter's dresses should be severely punished," Jamie said. "You are having fun designing for Lady Norwit, aren't you Lord Jordell," Glenda Gransward asked. "Oh I am. I enjoy watching the men salivate. It is such fun even when I am not the object of their desires," Jordell said. "Has anyone shown you to the freshening up room, Lady Norwit?" Daelrath asked. "No, I haven't any idea where it is. I have been practically imprisoned on the dance floor." "Your endurance is positively unsettling," Gransward said. "Let me show you where it is. Lady Gransward and I have noticed that you have been dancing for going on three hours now with hardly a break," Daelrath said. "Thank you Lady Daelrath," Bellany said. Bellany followed Bruhnhilda Daelrath through Gransward Manor. Bellany was tempted to tell Bruhnhilda who she really was but it was much too dangerous. It was a shame that the one person Bellany actually knew at Vargrend's could not know her true identity. "Right through there," Daelrath said. Bellany entered a suite only to hear the door being locked behind her. She was about to spin and check the door when she saw two young men emerging from a closet across the room. One bore a passable resemblance to the man in rags, while the other looked like a masked scarecrow. Their presence had to be part of a trap set up by Bianca Bristol and if Daelrath had pushed Bellany into it then that meant that Daelrath was allied with Bristol. She knew Thane would be happy, but Bellany's small smile faded as the young men advanced. Either the men were going to do bodily harm to her or they were just here for her to get caught with when the chaperones came looking for her. If the young men insisted that she had lured them into the room then she was a loose woman and the chaperones would stick to her like glue for the rest of the year. If the young men actually raped her they would get in big trouble. In either case her name would be blackened and Bristol would have more ammunition to fuel the scorn of the other young women. Bellany needed to get out of here before the chaperones missed her. She raced across the room to the windows but found that there was a decorative wrought iron grille over them just as there was over her windows at Vargrend's. The men were rapidly closing on her. Bellany turned, smiled and sharply kicked the window behind her, shattering the glass. The young men hesitated for just an instant because of the sound of breaking glass as they went to grab her. That was all she needed. She jumped to the side, pulling the mask down and scratching the face of the scarecrow as she did so. She had never really been the kind of woman who scratched, but it was a means of marking the man. The man costumed as a ghoul caught up with her, grabbed her from behind and pushed her towards the bed. She managed to grab the bed canopy and pull as he pushed her down. The ripping sound was very satisfying. A few seconds later, He turned her so that she was pinned to the bed on her back but in the process she unmasked him. "Damn you're a hellion!" The man who had caught her said. Bellany thought about trying to seduce the young men but there was not time; besides their lust was strangely curbed as if they were afraid to actually bed her. No doubt Bianca had filled their heads with lies. In spite of not making an effort at seduction, she could feel the hardness against her loins as the young man on top of her drank in her scent. "Bianca and Glenda are just using you. They chose handsome young men, but they must have known I would fight. Isn't it obvious they don't really care what sort of punishment their tools wind up enduring?" Bellany asked. "All we have to do is keep you here until the chaperones arrive and claim you lured us into the room," the man pinning her said. He kissed her roughly and wiped her lips against his cheek to make it appear as if they had been kissing at length. "The window is broken, the canopy ripped and his face is scratched. If the chaperones come in you will be charged with raping the daughter of a peer. Are you forgetting that Constable Herrington is from Avengene?" The young man who was pinning her grimaced. He tried to pin both of her hands above her head with one hand so that he could cover her mouth with the other but she was simply too strong for him to manage the feat. "This is Bristol and you are an Avengene. A slap on the wrist is all we are in for even if they decide you were raped," said the scratched man who was now standing next to the bed where his friend had pinned her. "If they spring you from jail with but a slap on the wrist then you will face Abraham Steefl and Charles Norwit with the backing of all of the emerald boys who will be miffed that you've taken The Fallen Angel out of circulation by making the chaperones stick to her like glue." "...We're not afraid of them," the man pinning Bellany said but she could tell he was starting to regret doing Bianca Bristol's bidding. "You are attacking the date of Lord Jordell. I am under his protection. If you do not get us out of this room immediately so that we can pretend nothing has happened you can look forward to having your families ruined for the insult. You will be reduced to begging for coppers in the gutter before the end of the year." The young man who had been pinning her suddenly stood bolt upright and reeled as if stunned. "She's right." "Shit!" The other young man said. "Are you sure, Heath?" "Slighting the Jordells is not done. All it would take is a word or two from them to the right people and the businesses of our families would be finished." Bellany stood up. "I am not sure why Bianca hates me so much, but there is no sense in you men becoming pariahs at the Bristol Academy, let alone being stripped of your fortunes just to give her another thing to insult me about." The men hustled her to the door. One of them fumbled in his pocket and brought out a key. "Bianca said you were a diseased whore and that we would be doing the other men a favor," The man who had pinned her said. "She says anything she can to turn people against me. Obviously she needed a little truth to bolster her lies and that was why she requisitioned your aid even though it would have ruined you. You needn't worry about the other men. I am barren but that is something the orcs revealed rather than caused. Otherwise I am perfectly healthy. Bianca is a spoiled child that needs to grow up and see that people have value independent of their usefulness to her." The young men nodded dumbly. A flash of realization and disappointment crossed the face of the young man who had pinned her as he realized she might not be diseased after all. The other man spoke, "I am going to slip out the side door. I do not want to have to explain the scratches my mask does not entirely cover," The young man with the key said. Bellany nodded. "I am sorry about the scratches even if you did earn them. I need to find the real room for freshening up and this man needs to get that lip tint off his face." "The room the ladies are using is that way. I am going to get going too." After trotting down the hall, Bellany saw a woman coming out of the appropriate room. Bellany did not really need makeup. She fixed dark circles under her eyes and imperfections in her complexion by healing them with life force gleaned from others but for these formal occasions Jamie had insisted that she should use some color. After she fixed her makeup she rushed back to the dance. "Why Lady Norwit, you have decided to return to us," James Jordell said. "We need to dance," Bellany said. "We do?" Jordell asked as Bellany pulled him out on the dance floor where she whispered in his ear as they danced. "Sorry for being gone so long. Daelrath took me to a false freshening up room, sent me in and locked the door behind me. There were two men inside." "Gracious, I see Bristol has her allies doing her bidding and has not changed her tune. Did they..." "I realized it was a trap, scratched one of the men's faces, kicked the window out and tore the bed canopy before one of them pinned me on the bed." Jordell pulled Bellany closer. "Ooo, you tigress! Did you beat them senseless?" "No, I am not sure I would have won and even if I had I am sure they would have compromised my appearance had we had a bad fight. I did not want anyone to know about the incident or Bianca would have won so I threatened them. Having wrecked the room, my first threat was that they would surely be charged with rape." "Yes, signs of struggle do lead do make it rather obvious. Did they let you go?" Jamie asked. "Not right away. They figured that since this was Bristol and I am an Avengene that they would only get a slap on the wrist. That's when I told them they would be facing Abraham and Charles." "Hah, Abraham alone could take down most any two men at the academy. Your brother is not nearly the bruiser that Abraham is but he is so handsome and charming." Jamie feigned a swoon. Bellany turned and curtsied as the dance continued and then returned to Jamie's arms. "Yes, but even Abraham only made them hesitate. I was getting a little desperate at that point. Then I told them that since I was your date I was under the protection of the Jordells and unless they wanted their families lowered to begging for coppers from the gutter for the insult they had better let me go immediately." "That was a bit licentious of you, but certainly justified under the circumstances. What did they do then?" Bellany smiled. "The one pinning me stood bolt upright as if struck by lightning and they let me go." Jordell squealed so loudly that half of the people on the dance floor looked at him. He covered his mouth and then gaily waved their gazes away. "Who were the men Bianca selected for her little ploy?" "I was able to unmask both of them so that I could recognize them but they both said they were leaving the ball when we left. I think I have seen them before at tournaments, but we were never formally introduced. One was dressed as a scarecrow and the other as a ghoul. The scratched one called the unmarked one Heath. I remember because the scratched young man said the name while reeling from the Jordell threat just after the one who had pinned me stood up," Bellany said. "Ghouls are frightfully popular at this ball but I am sure my friends and I can find out who Bianca used as her tools. I would not be surprised if they were some of George Gransward's friends. He makes no attempt to hide his distaste for you," Jordell said. "I am just glad the guys came to their senses. I am sorry I dropped your name." Bellany blushed. "That's no matter. What you said to them was essentially true. You are my date. I would have been offended had they contrived an event that would have made the chaperones cover you more copiously than vindicator fashion and those young men would surely have been ruined if they had hurt you. Your power with men enhances my social life. Obviously Bristol wants to neutralize it and that is why she contrived this little scene. It is fortunate that you are such a tigress, otherwise Bristol might have ruined my fun." Jamie's face took on a mock pouting expression. Bellany smiled. "I was not about to let her ruin my chances at naughtiness without a fight." Jordell smiled. "You remind me of Daelrath, you are such a war lady. It is a shame that she has joined Bianca's team. You might have had a lot in common." "After the priest of the vindicator raped her, I am glad she has fallen in with Bristol. It would have been so pitiful if she and her father had continued in his alliance with Avengene." "Oooo, you say that as if you are glad she left the fold," Jordell said. "I am just glad she stuck up for herself. You know I am not exactly the model vindicator girl. I play the part as much as I have to in order to avoid the dire consequences of being myself." "Oh you poor dear you cannot be yourself," Jamie crooned. Bellany giggled, "I expect no pity from the prince of social actors whose true face is at all times hidden." "And you shall receive none. Now, shush, you mustn't reveal my game." Jordell smiled impishly. "I am amazed you are so cool after that little incident." "I have endured far worse," Bellany said. Jordell put his hand over his mouth. "Yes of course, please excuse me." "You are excused, even though you knew exactly what you were up to with that remark. You test my temper as you would test the temper of one of your rapiers," Bellany said. Jordell completed spinning Bellany for the dance and pulled her back to him to continue. "A good swordsman must always know the quality of his blades," Jamie said. Bellany nodded. "I would expect no less from a master swordsman. You know what is really scary is that before the orcs, the act was not an act. I really believed I was the model vindicator girl. I swallowed it all without a clue." Bellany rolled her eyes. Jordell smiled. "Becoming such a besmirched woman of the world has given you more character than all of the colorful fluff around us. That is such a delicious irony." "Thank you Jamie. If I paid too much attention to the faces of the women I would get the impression that my character was that of rotting garbage." Bellany agreed. "Nonsense, that perfume smells even more magnificent on you now than it did when we arrived. I hope you do not mind that I picked it out for you," Jamie said. "Not at all, I smelled the other choices and this one goes much better with my natural scent. I trust your taste. I know some women would be incensed thinking that you were dressing them like the latest doll in your doll house but Mother never taught me about fashion beyond the trends set by the Avengene Ladies. Now that the vindicator girl role is just a role I am happy to have a friend who enjoys sharing his knowledge of fashion. The other ladies are not exactly eager to spend time with me." "Their loss is my gain," Jordell smiled. Bellany smiled. "If they did accept me, I suppose I would be obliged to put away my rapier and act 'ladylike.'" Bellany wrinkled her nose. Jamie squealed. "You act perfectly ladylike at formal occasions. I have not once caught you with your elbows on the table." "Well yes, I mind my manners for formal occasions, but I would resent giving up things that they would consider too masculine just to fit in. I would never fit in after the orcs anyway. I think you and Leafwhisper are far more interesting than endless talk about faith, virtue and marriage." "Don't look where I am not looking. Bristol and Gransward are looking at us as they speak," Jamie said Bellany peeked and caught Gransward's look of consternation and Bristol's look of intense scorn from across the dance floor. She smiled back at them with her best Charles Norwit grin. When his back was to Bristol Jamie spoke. "Several of the young men will be going on a horseback ride tomorrow after church. Would you enjoy going?" "Yes, I would love to. I miss being outdoors," Bellany said. "I will have my sister invite you over to view the fall colors," Jamie said. ------- Reverend Leeland's sermon on the righteous wrath of the vindicator was only made bearable because Bellany knew she would be going on a horseback ride after Leeland finished twisting the minds of his flock. She wished she could practice her telekinesis at church, but she did not in case there was any chance that reverend Leland was able to use clerical magic and thereby detect the operation of any spell she might cast. Even if she had allowed herself to cast in church she probably could not have done so because she had expended all of her power skulking around the stables draining stallions just before church. There would be no time for drain spells after church today with the riding she had scheduled. After the service she dutifully thanked the reverend and bid Abraham, Charles and Mary adieu. She was to board the Jordell carriage in order to seem to be going to view the fall colors with Bernadine Belgado and Larissa Jordell. When she came out into the courtyard she saw the Jordell coach was waiting for her. Coachman Stevens smiled at her and opened the door. Sunlight glinted off her flame red hair just as it danced across the scarlet leaves of autumn. It had warmed up to be what was probably one of the last mild days of the season. "Thank you Coachman Stevens." Bellany smiled. "It is my pleasure, Milady Norwit," Stevens replied smiling brightly. "Hello Lady Jordell, Lady Belgado," Bellany said as Stevens closed the door behind her. "Hello Bellany," Bernadine said. "Hi Bernadine, oh I guess I was stuck in formal mode due to church." Bellany feigned a yawn but then smiled. "The coachman seems to like you." Belgado said. "I am very grateful to Coachman Stevens. He takes me to and from Jordell manor nearly every day. I know he is just doing his job but he is a very nice man," Bellany said. Bernadine nodded. "Are you sure you want to go riding with the men?" Larissa Jordell asked. "Yes of course. I spent the entire summer on the back of my father's Andalusian stallion. I miss riding. I brought my black riding dress." "I don't really enjoy riding," Larissa Jordell said. "Side saddles are so jarring." "Side saddles are silly. No one on a sidesaddle escapes an orc on a decent horse unless the orc also rides sidesaddle," Bellany smiled. "You ride astride?" Larissa asked. Bellany nodded. "I am sure Daelrath does as well. It is a war lady tradition. Formerly daddy would not let me, but he now realizes that it is far more important to escape an orc or troll with your life than it is to worry about the appearance of chastity." "I suppose you have no worries about riding disturbing your maidenhead," Larissa said. "No maidenhead, no worries. Good riddance," Bellany said. "Bellany! You are so scandalous. I would never be allowed to ride astride. Is it fun?" Larissa Jordell asked. Bellany smirked. "It is quite fun if you sit right, but the far forward seat is a little too obvious for use in mixed company." Larissa Jordell covered her mouth. "I would be so dead if anyone caught me riding astride like that." "The whole idea is not to get caught," Bellany smiled. "You are so bad," Larissa said. "It is part of my Fallen Angel role. I have to take advantage of the title while I have it," Bellany said. "I would surely loose my maidenhead and my family would be scandalized. I dare not disturb it," Larissa said. "There is a lot even a maiden can do without disturbing her badge of eligibility for marriage. Don't you think, Bernadine?" "There is? I mean there is," Bernadine said with a bit of confusion. Bellany cocked her head. "You can technically remain a virgin and have fun with a girlfriend. Haven't you..." Bellany trailed off. Bernadine shrugged and blushed. "We don't have to talk about it. I should not have assumed that you had experience with women," Bellany said. "Do you?" Bernadine asked. Bellany smiled knowingly. "But during our conversation at the ratings ball you said that you were as innocent as your finery where women were concerned," Bernadine said. "I was, but time passes and I attend an all girls' school. Please keep my carnal knowledge of women to yourselves. I don't want anyone getting in trouble because you suspect she may have fallen into The Fallen Angel's bed whether she actually did or not." Bernadine nodded. "Of course, what was it like?" "I enjoyed it. Since I am not a maiden, I have less guilt and worry concerning such pleasures. It is a small recompense for being anathema to most of my schoolmates." Bellany smiled. "What did you do?" Bernadine asked. "What didn't I do might be a better question," Bellany smiled. "What didn't you do?" Bernadine asked. "I did not disturb her maidenhead for the same reason as you and Larissa preserve yours. She had no such strictures placed on her where I was concerned so I had a very pleasant time indeed." Bellany stifled a sneeze as she felt the lust of both Larissa and Bernadine tickle her nose. "If you two would like to invite me over sometime, we could delve into this topic in more depth, but perhaps you already know everything I do and are just being modest." Bellany smiled. The girls rode for a moment in silence. The carriage made its way past the guard checkpoint and began to move down Emerald Lane. "Oh gods I can't believe you out and said what you just said." Bernadine marvelled. "Jamie just loves that Bellany is such a tigress. He says all the other young women at Vargrend's are balls of fluff by comparison," Larissa said. "He should talk," Bernadine said. All three women laughed. "One of the boys will be waiting for you in the Jordell carriage house to spirit you into the woods so that the constable's men do not see. If you are going to change you will have to do it in the coach," Larissa said drawing the shades on her side. Bernadine did likewise on the other side of the coach. Thankfully the Jordell coach was quite large. "Oh okay. I am so happy Jamie got me some silk underthings otherwise I would be so embarrassed. Mother only lets me wear cotton and linen. She says I have no husband to show off for so I have no need of silk." Bellany began to undress. Bernadine steadied her and watched raptly. "Cotton and linen?" Larissa asked. "I would feel too much like a commoner wearing that sort of thing." "Yes, this black silk bustier is so much nicer than what mother makes me wear," Bellany said. "You look delicious in it." Bernadine slurped. "You can tell she is an athlete, you really don't even need the support, do you?" Larissa asked. "Well, yes and no. I need plenty of support for riding because in the long run all the jostling would take its toll, but my breasts stand up quite nicely on their own." "I look my best with support but Larissa can get away without it," Bernadine said. "Yes but my figure is not as generous as yours, Bernadine," Larissa said. "Maybe not but Bellany's is nearly so and she is so firm," Belgado said. "She is lucky, and she gets more exercise than both of us combined. Just look at her rump, I am so jealous," Larissa said. Bellany squealed as Belgado swatted her rump. Her skin was flushed and her panties would soon be wet if the girls kept up their scrutiny of her. She quickly got into her black riding dress and sat down. "Sorry ladies the show is over... for now." Bellany smiled. "Aww, but it was just starting to get fun." Belgado said. "I hope this ride with the boys lasts a long time and we are obliged to invite Bellany for a sleepover." "We mustn't. She would surely corrupt us." Larissa smiled. She continued in a whisper, "We have run out of time to talk about it. I am going to send Stevens on an errand to get some lunch from the kitchen. Carnarvon will be waiting inside the carriage house with a horse for you. You can get horsed and ride away before the coachman returns." Larissa whispered. The coach stopped and before Stevens could open the door, Larissa poked her head out the window and spoke up. "We have decided we will not be stopping for lunch after all, Stevens, but we would like you to pick up a picnic for us in the kitchen," Larissa said. "Yes milady," Stevens said. Once Stevens was safely in Jordell Manor, Bernadine smiled. "Let me show you the carriage house, Bellany, it is lovely," Belgado said as she pulled Bellany out of the carriage and through the carriage house door. Lord Carnarvon was within mounted on a dapple-gray stallion. He had a large black gelding all saddled and ready to go. He nodded silently to Bellany and then to the gelding. Bellany mounted up and the two of them rode out a back door. Loyd Carnarvon set a brisk pace across the yard behind the carriage house and through the forest. Bellany enjoyed the wind in her hair and the muscles of the horse working beneath her. It reminded her of the warm days of summer. She could see that Carnarvon was circling back towards the road through the woods that surrounded the yard around Jordell Manor. As they neared the road he stopped and motioned Bellany to a halt. "We must cross Emerald Lane here. I will check for patrols. Wait here." Bellany busied herself situating her dress on the gelding's back. After a moment Carnarvon motioned her forward and they galloped across the lane and into the forest beyond. They rode down a winding path through the forest for a time, crossed a meadow and then stopped in a small clearing. "The other guys should be along in a while. We made good time. I was worried you might not be able to keep up but I can see Charles' estimation of your riding skills was as accurate as his estimation of your skill with a rapier," Carnarvon said. He dismounted and spread a blanket on the ground. Bellany dismounted and tethered her horse to a nearby tree. "Charles has been known to stretch the truth owing to his enthusiasm but stretching the truth about me would sound too much like a tall tale," Bellany said. "It felt good to be back in the saddle. I rode most of the way here from Norwit but they don't let Vargrend's girls ride." "James said you really missed your stallion," Carnarvon said. "Yes, I have a soft spot for stallions." Bellany smiled and sat down on the blanket. "I feel bad about not inviting Charles, but everyone agreed that if it had to be one or the other it would have to be you. Charles would just have to practice his archery today while the rest of us have our Sunday afternoon off." Bellany nodded. "It is best this way. Charles and I try not to put ourselves in positions where we have to observe one another's naughty behavior. That way our parents cannot drag information about one of us out of the other." Carnarvon nodded. "Besides, Charles has already been on several rides and this is my first. It is my turn to have some fun." Bellany smiled. "Just how much fun do you want to have?" Carnarvon asked. "After being locked in Vargrend's for the past two months, the sky is the limit," Bellany said. "Just think of me as one of the guys, only more like Jamie." Carnarvon smiled. "James is quite the slut it seems." "Yes, he obvious likes to play with men, yet does he ever tell the other men about his dalliances?" Bellany asked. "No, not as far as I have heard. There are rumors but James never tells tales. He might make a leading comment or two, but he makes them about all the guys so it is impossible to tell." Bellany nodded. "He just likes to have a little fun. I don't think he wants to get anyone in trouble about it, including himself." "He cannot marry a man or have children. Neither can I," Bellany said. "But you are a lady," Carnarvon said. "By pedigree, yes but I live in exile from my kind. Virtue is a funny thing. Others can take it from you against your will and once you lose it, it is gone forever. I can no more marry a nobleman than Jamie can but it is you noblemen I choose to spend my time with rather than fawning over gentlemen whose parents might overlook my lack of virtue because of my pedigree. I am sure your mother has warned you about women like me and she was right. It is just as dangerous for a nobleman to become emotionally involved with me as it is for a man to become emotionally involved with Jamie." "You don't want a husband?" Carnarvon asked. "No. I have already been a slave and being a wife is a little too close to slavery for comfort. Children confuse the issue, but I cannot have children so my slavery would be that much more obvious. Mother expected I would have trouble with sex after the orcs, but she was wrong. Sex is a force of nature. It is slavery that frightens me." Bellany shook her head. "I am sorry for being so grave. Being locked up in Vargrend's is trying for me. Nevertheless, I don't want to hurt anyone, but I know I easily could." "It is good of you to warn me, I am not sure what to make of you, Fallen Angel." "You worship Virtusar, do you not?" Bellany asked. "Of course, all true warriors worship Virtusar," Carnarvon said. "Then think of me as a concubine of Virtusar." "But if you were a concubine of Virtusar, you would be so wanton and tireless that it would take a god or a hoard of heroes to satisfy you." Carnarvon said. Bellany smiled sweetly but beneath her smile she tingled every molecule of the noblemnan's lust. Carnarvon gasped, and then grabbed her and began kissing her. Bellany embraced him and returned his kisses. Between kisses, they spoke as they took breaths of air. "I have a confession to make..." Carnarvon whispered. "You do?" Bellany asked. "...I am pretty sure the guys won't be here for a while..." Carnarvon said. "You are? ... Why?" Bellany asked. "I think I gave them the wrong time..." Carnarvon said. "...You think you did?" "...Well I am sure of it now, otherwise they would already be here," Carnarvon said. "How long have we got?" Bellany asked. "...A half hour, maybe forty-five minutes," Carnarvon said. "We had better hurry then," Bellany said as she undid Carnarvon's belt. Carnarvon looked surprised for a second and then grinned like a pirate as he began to unbutton Bellany's dress. Soon he was kissing her nipples and caressing her naked body. She got his breeches down, grabbed his erection and guided him in. He thrust madly until she wrapped her legs around his waist and bucked him into a powerful rhythm. He thrust for several minutes and then gasped and spent copiously. Waves of orgasm flooded his mind as if a dam had broken open above him. When it was over, Carnarvon rolled over so that Bellany was on top and panted for breath. He had never come so hard in his life. He felt positively drugged with the afterglow of lust. "Gods Bellany, thinking of you as concubine of Virtusar is going to be a lot easier than I thought," Carnarvon panted. Bellany smiled and deliberately squeezed his diminishing erection within her as she tugged at his lust. He reached up and grabbed her around the waist. She leaned forward as he ground his loins into hers. She could feel his erection reviving after just a couple minutes and began to ride him wantonly. When she came she touched his mind underscoring the conclusion he had already reached. The Fallen Angel really was like a concubine of Virtusar. Then he spent again. This time his whole body shook as orgasm pummeled his brain to new heights of ecstasy. When it was over he went limp and groaned. "Oooooooo gods Bellany!" Bellany smiled greedily and looked into Carnarvon's eyes. "I am really enjoying this." "If someone got raped, I am testifying it was Loyd," James Jordell's gay voice chortled from the path that led into the little clearing. He was mounted on a very expensive looking white stallion. "Damn it James how long have you been here," Carnarvon groaned. "Actually I just arrived. Had you not moaned like a wounded bear I would have stayed in the meadow where we were all going to meet. It appears you took Bellany further into the woods than you really needed to, but I can see why." "I am so sorry, James. I know you are not into women, but I had hoped to be a little more discreet about borrowing Belle," Carnarvon said. "Oh never you mind. I," Jordell stopped in mid sentence as Bellany looked at him. "Oh gods, lady lust! Loyd, keep her away from me. You've just got her started. She wants more!" Bellany put her hand over her mouth. "Oops, sorry Jamie." "You hussy!" Jamie squealed accusingly. Bellany giggled. "Unless you would like to join us, Jamie, why don't you go back to the meadow and we will be with you in a few minutes." Jamie looked at Carnarvon. "Believe me I am tempted but the other men will be along shortly. Bellany you really ought to blush. Heavens Loyd is more modest than you are." "Of course he is; you aren't staring at me." Bellany laughed. "Well you do have a point there." Jamie winked at Carnarvon, waved and sauntered back down the path towards the meadow. Carnarvon looked at Bellany. The kind of unreasoning lust she had engendered in Rames during their first tryst together was evident in his eyes. "I would like to continue where we left off, but we can't unless you want to perform before an audience," Bellany said. Her words fell on deaf ears. Carnarvon's erection was already coming back. He grabbed her torso beside her breasts and teased them with his thumbs as he began to thrust powerfully. But for a small tug at the start of his third orgasm, Bellany let him come naturally, hoping that he would be able to compose himself. Just in case he could not, she kissed him and hopped off abruptly and then began dressing. "Hurry, the other men are probably already here. " With an act of will, Carnarvon snapped out of the lust clouding his mind. "You're right. We had better get dressed." By the time Bellany and Carnarvon made it to the meadow, Lawrence Eagan had joined James Jordell there. A few moments later Vernon Saint Varlans and Brad Bostwick trotted up on their mounts. "This was a clever way to meet for a ride. Have you got a plan for returning me?" Bellany asked. "Of course," James Jordell said. "The girls will be covering for you and you will rejoin them later when we spot the coach and stop for a chat." ------- Bellany looked into the crackling flames of the fire and reviewed her day as she paused in her story for dramatic effect. The day had gone by so quickly. The ride had been wonderful and being with a group of men was such a treat after having been locked in the Vargrend Academy for Girls for so many weeks. The men had been impressed with her skills in the saddle and had made a contest of spotting a tree with leaves as red as her hair. Contrary to what she might have expected from a normal man, Jamie smiled at her often as if he were happy to see that she was as naughty as he was. When she returned to Jordell manor, she rejoined Larissa and Bernadine for a game of croquette. They had then attended dinner and afterwards the young lords had built a fire and invited the ladies to attend if they dared hear a few ghost stories. After the first few stories, Bellany had been cajoled into telling a story of her own. Bellany stood and continued her tale "...and to this day whenever the leaves of autumn fall from the hanging tree to congest and congeal in Brigin's brook, they claim a swimmer. His bloated body incubates beneath the waters of Emerald lake. With the worst of winter's blizzards he rises and breaks through the ice. The winter wight is reborn to stab and slay and drink the blood of the living! " Bellany turned away from the audience, crept a few more steps, clandestinely cast her chill of fear spell and placed her hands on Bernadine Belgado's shoulders from behind. "Aaaaaaaaah!" Belgado screamed. Belgado held her chest while Larissa and the young men laughed wildly. Bellany whispered "Thank you Bernadine," into Belgado's ear before the din of laughter ceased and then reseated herself. "You've got quite a talent for the macabre, Bellany. That was really scary. Would anyone like to join me for a walk along the Shore of Emerald Lake?" Brad Bostwick asked. "Heavens no!" James Jordell said. Bellany got up and took Bostwick's hand. "If we haven't returned within the hour, send out a search party." Bellany winked. The waters of Emerald Lake lapped against the shore propelled by a persistent yet mild wind. Like most of the estates, the edge of the back yard of Jordell manor was a beach. There was a boathouse and docks directly behind the house. Brad Bostwick pointed up at the gibbous moon. "Beautiful, isn't it? It will be full soon." "Yes, look at the moonlight dance on the misty waters." Suddenly Bellany was transported into her past. It was dusk and she had just completed what weeding she could in the garden. She stood looking out over the lake from the cliff top when Rames came up from the abode on Graveston Isle. Rames watched the sun set with her and then spread a blanket on the earth next to the row of green beans and opened a book. "Have you seen this fertility ritual in the reading Thane assigned for tomorrow's magic lesson?" Rapina smiled. "Of course, I read everything I can find about sex magic. I had seen that passage before but read it again for tomorrow." "Want to try it?" When Bellany came back to her senses she was in Bostwick's arms. "Are you alright?" He asked. "Yes, just a memory fragment coming to port." Bellany tilted her head back and received a kiss. She turned and embraced Lord Bostwick, continuing to kiss him and caress his lust with her power. He pulled her towards the docks and they got into a large rowboat. Mist rose from the lake into the cooler night air. Bostwick rowed out into the lake and then pulled the oars up and came to her seat. They began kissing again. Before long she began to caress his rump through his breaches and this prompted him to begin unbuttoning her dress. After unlacing her bustier he kissed her throat and then her nipples. Before long they were naked with Bellany laying on the largest of the bench seats in the boat, her arms up grasping the gunwale as Bostwick eagerly thrust into her wanton depths. After a profound orgasm, Bostwick collapsed atop her and kissed her again. "You were incredible," Bostwick said. "I still am." Bellany giggled as she gave Bostwick a squeeze inside her. "You are insatiable." Bostwick smiled. "Yes, but most men don't hold that against me." "Damn, I wish you were not James' lady." Bostwick said. "It is really a lucky thing that I am," Bellany said. "It is?" Bostwick asked. "It is. Jamie does not mind that I have no resistance to handsome men because he has no resistance to handsome men either. Were I another man's lady I would have to attempt to be faithful. I am pretty sure I would not succeed for long and would soon be in big trouble." Bellany smiled. "So you are a wanton thing?" Bostwick asked as he tweaked her chin. "You couldn't tell?" Bellany asked. "Gods I could tell!" Bostwick said. "Having been locked up in Vargrend's has not helped. It is nice to be out of there for a while. If it were not for the education I am getting, I would just leave. It is not like I am getting to know all of the ladies of the realm. They hate be because I am not a maiden." "They have no idea. If they knew how hot you are they would probably find some way to make you go to a different school," Bostwick said. "I don't know what they are worried about. No noble family is going to let their son marry someone who was captured by orcs and who did not have a child in spite of it." "Yes, but they must realize that any man you are with is going to wind up comparing his wife to you after he gets married. They will be hard pressed not to come out a distant second," Bostwick said, squeezing her rump. Bellany smiled and then propped herself up on her elbows as she heard a whistle from shore. "Oh goodness the mists obscure us. They must think we got lost." "That would not be difficult. We had better get dressed and get back." "On our way!" Bellany squealed, as she got dressed. Before long she was back on shore and the girls spirited her away for bed. ------- Bellany relaxed in the scented bath of the princess suite. She smiled across the large, round bathtub at Bernadine Belgado and Larissa Jordell as she stretched a leg up out of the bath and wiggled her toes at the ceiling. Bellany was trying not to let on that Lawrence Eagan and Vernon Saint Varlans were watching from behind the secret grille but she was actually waving at them with her toes. No doubt Jamie was with them but she could not feel his lust directed towards any of the women thus she guessed he was not looking out through the grill at the women as the other men were. "You have the legs of a dancer but I thought you quit ballet," Belgado said. "I did but I am doing swordsmanship here with Jamie's teacher instead. There is a lot of legwork involved," Bellany said. "How could you take an interest in swordsmanship? That is so tomboy," Larissa said. "I live on the frontier. Swordsmanship is a very practical skill for one who could be abducted by orcs at any moment. Besides I am so tomboy." Bellany giggled. "You are too beautiful to be a boy. What were you doing with Bradley Bostwick on the boat?" Belgado asked. Bellany smiled. "Being naughty of course," Bellany said. "Aren't you supposed to be James' lady?" Larissa asked. "Yes but Jamie likes men as much as I do. I am sure that is not news to you, Larissa," Bellany said. "Not at all, our parents are infuriated by it. They are so adamant that he find a woman and get married. Daddy got married late and has no grandchildren, or insurance heirs. I thought James was going to marry you, Bernadine," Larissa said. "I thought perhaps he would ask me just as a matter of convenience, but you never know what is going through James' mind other than how to have more fun. My pedigree is not the best though. My father is the Mayor of Rosehaven but he is not a nobleman. You would be a better choice, Bellany, had you not been besmirched by orcs." "But I am just the daughter of a warlord," Bellany said. "You are also a granddaughter of Avengene and that means you are practically a Hartmour," Belgado said. "And a Brickner," added Larissa. "I am?" Bellany asked. "Yes, a Brickner daughter helped found the Avengene line. She was married to the second son of one of the barons of Hartmour. It was not your usual warlord takes an impoverished noblewoman as a bride story. It was more the case of a gifted second son who carved out his own barony," Larissa said. "Then Avengene is so much more powerful and populated than Daelrath because the Baron had money and support from noble parents. I should have known that but my memory from before the orc shaman's spell is so worthlessly muddled," Bellany said. "Daelrath is a more recent development. Avengene has been a barony for several generations," Larissa said. "We should wash up. We have school tomorrow," Belgado said. "I'll wash you if you'll wash me, Bernadine." Bellany said. "I can't pass that offer up." Bernadine winked at Bellany. "Gods you two, Bernadine didn't I tell you she would corrupt us? " "Speak for yourself, I'm being cleaned not corrupted." Bernadine smiled. Bellany could feel the young mens' lust building as she washed Barnadine's breasts. Belgado was nearly as tall and broader than Bellany. She had very wide hips and was quite soft and busty. She had black hair, almond- shaped eyes and light olive skin. Larissa Jordell had a fairer complexion and was not as busty but she was thinner and slightly shorter than Belgado. Bellany spent more time washing Bernadine's breasts, rump and thighs than she spent on her back because she enjoyed the feeling of the men's lust tickling up her spine. Bellany knew Jamie must have been stimulating them because their lusts were flaring up as she worked. Bellany tried to linger but Larissa hurried them up, but then both descended on Larissa and washed her from head to foot. Before they had finished she felt Saint Varlans spend. Lawrence was so close but the other women were already leaving the room. Bellany stopped just inside the doorway to the bath and reached around behind herself and squeezed her rump, then extended her fingers between her legs from the rear to massage her mound. She smiled as she felt Lawrence's lust blossom to full fruition as he quietly spent behind the grillwork. "Bellany, what were you doing with a woman that left her a virgin?" Belgado asked. "Lie back, I'll show you." Bellany pushed Bernadine backwards onto the bed, smiled at her, then nestled her head between Bernadine's legs. "Aaooh," Bernadine sputtered incredulously. "Lick the nub but don't insert anything. It's quite convenient, really. You can have wild orgasms without anything inside you. I think being filled adds something but it is not necessary if you are worried about your family's honor. " "Ew Bellany that area is unclean," Larissa said; lust nevertheless fixing her eyes on the scene. "Nonsense I washed it myself and I was very thorough, wasn't I Bernadine?" Bernadine giggled. "She was." "Oh gods that feels so good the way you do it Bellany. I'm sure you could make it too hard and it would sort of hurt but you seem to know just how much lick I can handle." "Perhaps she was not lying about being naughty with women after all," Larissa said. "Uuuh," Bernadine replied. She followed that with several minutes of soft moaning. "Nshlatsflagusch," Bellany whispered unintelligibly as she tongued Bernadine and quietly intoned her latest version of Amorra's Channel. It was a bit challenging doing it in front of an audience, but the somatic components were caresses which made it difficult to identify unless a person was intimately familiar with magic. Bernadine stiffened and quivered, moaning loudly as she came to orgasm. A moment later Bellany glanced up and decided she had better not continue until she had set Larissa at ease. Bernadine smiled dreamily, "Bellany, you are such an angel between a girl's legs." "A fallen angel," Larissa scoffed. "Thank you Bernadine. I just wanted to show you what a wonderful pleasure it was. I am not going to do Larissa. " "You're not?" Larissa said. Bellany smiled, she knew Larissa would have put up a fuss if she tried the direct approach. Instead she turned things around. "You are much too proper. I am not here to vex you." "But..." "Larissa you cannot imagine. All I can say is that it is no wonder all the boys follow Bellany around as if they are in a trance." "You don't need to try it, Larissa. I've already demonstrated the technique on Bernadine." "But, that isn't fair." "Oh all right then, just lie back and relax." Bellany slipped her head between Larissa's silken thighs and began to do her magic. Larissa was quite sensitive but Bellany could feel that and was less direct with her ministrations until she had Larissa writhing on the bed at the brink of orgasm. A direct lick and Larissa completely lost her composure and came powerfully. Bellany soaked up the energy. It was so satisfying. She regretted not having a way to pull much more of the delicious lust into herself as she had with men. There was nothing for it but to increase the number of orgasms from which she supped. ------- Monday morning was a happy one for Bellany. She bid Coachman Stevens adieu and made her way through the inner gate into Vargrend's. Her smile vanquished the scornful looks that a few of the other young ladies coming back from breakfast launched at her to such a degree that it left some of them wondering why they were scorning her. She had been chronically undernourished for so long that she had nearly forgotten what it was like to feel the tingle of lust throughout her body. She was so caught up in being happy that she failed to see Natalie Rose sneak up behind her. Grrrrrrrnk! Natalie Rose pig-grunted at the top of her lungs while briefly grabbing Bellany around the waist. Bellany jumped and squelched a squeal that had half- escaped her lips. She turned on her assailant but Rose had already stepped back into the doorway to Elloisa Elliston's room. "How perfect Porkwit. You hear a pig grunt and you squeal like a sow in heat," Bianca Bristol sneared from just inside the door to Elliston's room. Ellison stood next to her nodding. "Talas skt rrr Eee wall buruk yall mal yal l'bot!" Bellany growled in orcish two inches away from Rose's face before the girl skittered away. "I haven't time for your sick jokes, Bristol. Good day ladies," Bellany snapped through clenched teeth before she stormed off. In spite of her orcish threat to give Rose what she deserved, Bellany managed not to raise a violent hand against the cruel ladies. Instead she stalked off to her room. She was glad Mary was already at work in the library because her usually subdued temper had flared. The fright Rose had given her had served to let loose Bellany's pent up frustrations about the other girls. Instead of ripping her room up, she tore her spellbook from the shelf and began to study the Touch of Fear Spell. It was the next step up from the Chill of Fear Cantrip. If Bellany decided to put the scare into Rose, the poor lady would not know what hit her. Bellany went to The Trivium slightly early and stood just back from the doorway unobtrusively loitering. When Bristol came in she was ready with the spell. She touched Bianca briefly on the shoulder as the young woman came in but failed to get any effect. "I did not appreciate your siccing your dog on me earlier," Bellany said to cover the reason for the touch. "You deserved it you orc slut," Bianca sneered. Gransward was next but Bellany had no luck on her either. Somehow she was not shaping the magic quite correctly. When she caught sight of Elliston, Bellany tried again but failed, yet after she had attempted the casting, she smiled. She was sure she knew what had gone wrong previously. When Natalie Rose arrived Bellany conjured with more confidence and grabbed the back of Rose's neck with her left hand, making sure the numb spot in her left palm came in contact with the girl's neck. At first Bellany thought that she had failed again. Yet she was sure she had got something to work. Rose took two steps and then froze for an instant. Aahhhhhhh! Natalie Rose screamed. The scream was not loud but even if Bellany had got a substandard result she had still managed the first casting of an important spell. Bellany was about to go into the classroom to jot down some casting notes when she realized that it had not been a quiet scream so much as it had been a hoarse scream. Suddenly Rose took off like a bullet, running as if the very claws of death had sunk into her neck. On the other side of the classroom she slammed into the window, breaking several of the small panes before rebounding off the cracked window frame and falling on the floor in a shower of broken glass. Bellany was appalled. She entered the classroom and headed towards the window where Rose had fallen to see if she could help. Rose's legs were still pumping as she landed throwing glass in all directions until she gained purchase, got to her feet and ran around the perimeter of the room like the hounds of hell were on her heals. Bellany barely had time to turn around in order to watch Rose fly out the classroom door behind her. "What happened here," Headmistress Vargrend demanded as she arrived. Bellany opened her mouth and then shut it. She had touched Elliston from behind as the girl had passed through the doorway into the classroom. No one had been in a good position to see the touch, and even if they had it was innocuous enough if one discounted the magic. "Lady Rose took a horrible fright and ran wildly through the classroom. She crashed into the window and then turned around and ran out," Bianca Bristol said. "It was the strangest thing I have ever seen. I cannot imagine what could have frightened her to such a degree." "I felt a chill when I came through the door," Bellany lied. "Perhaps it was a ghost," Miss Hadrian said. "I've had some monstrous chills in the library. Thank goodness I never lost it," Bellany said. Headmistress Vargrend sighed. "Ladies, report to room two on the ground floor. We will hold class there while the custodian sees to this window. I will be along as soon as I can find Lady Rose and get her to the leech's office." Bellany rushed downstairs and tried to push the guilty feelings out of her mind for long enough to write casting notes. She decided that it might have been a better idea to grab with her right hand. Channeling the magic through her ghost hand had probably made the fear spell more effective than she had intended. She looked at her left palm. As usual, the skin over the numb spot was a little paler than it was elsewhere. At lunch Bellany ate with Cleo and then went to feed Nimbus briefly before returning to her room to throw herself into her homework. Today everything seemed so easy. Bellany finished early. She had time not only to read the Gentle Beast Spell but also to get the verbal and somatic components down before running outside with some food to try to find Nimbus once again. He was glad to have a second lunch. Bellany tried the spell on him several times but noticed no changes in his behavior until the sixth casting. He seemed a little dazed and looked at her stupidly. She gently pushed her hand against his feet and he stepped up. She spent the next quarter hour talking to him and gently petting him before he blinked and began talking. "gwoork quork naaa nii nii," he said while rubbing his head against the palm of her ghost hand. Then he fluttered off. Bellany attended her swordsmanship lesson as usual and came back home just in time for a bedtime tryst with Mary. It had been a good day for Bellany, marred only by the overly successful fear spell that she had cast on Lady Rose. She really needed a subject to practice her spells on but the fear spell had shown that casting curses on others was not without consequence. That night Bellany stayed up after Mary went to bed and began to study the Clinging Darkness or Gather Shadows spell. The spell was essentially an addendum that would work with any of the various darkness spells. What it did was cause the darkness to stick to the target even if the target moved. It could be used to blind people by placing a patch of darkness around them that would move with them when they tried to escape it. It could also be cast on oneself for use as a sort of invisibility spell. When cast on oneself, however, one needed a vision spell or she would be every bit as blind as any person caught in a patch of darkness. Bellany decided to savor her stores of lust rather than expend any by staying up late and went to sleep after studying the spell. By the end of the week Bellany had learned to cast Clinging Darkness in conjunction with the Sphere of Darkness Cantrip. She could make the Sphere cling to one of her feet so that she could not see her own foot in a well-lit room even if she walked around. In addition she had become fairly adept at doing the Floating Feather telekinesis spell. She usually sat behind a girl with long hair so that she could practice during classes. It really took the magical wind out of her sails to practice for a few class periods each day, but the progress was worth it. She knew that she would soon be ready for the Floating Dart version of the telekinesis spell. On Friday, Jamie concluded her swordsmanship lesson early and spent a couple of hours teaching her some more advanced aspects of ballroom dancing. "You're really inviting me to the ball again, Jamie? I love being your date but I am feeling a little guilty about Bernadine. "A Jordell does not settle for second best," Jamie said exaggerating the tone of hauteur in his voice to such a degree that Bellany had to laugh. "Belgado is as beautiful as I am," Bellany said. "Nearly, but she is by no means as naughty. Carnarvon and Bostwick are not saying anything specific, but any fool can tell that they are both more besotted with you than ever. I thought that once they had bedded you that your allure would fade. I was so wrong." "How do you know I bedded Brad Bostwick?" Bellany asked. "Oh come now, what else could have caused that idiotic grin he was wearing when he came to shore?" Jamie waved any doubts away with his hand. "Carnarvon insists that the Fallen Angel is like a concubine of Virtusar and Bostwick agrees with him," Jamie said. "The other men are intrigued by you since they feel they actually have a chance to bed you and after that performance in the bath with Bernadine and my sister, Larry and Vern positively drool whenever they see you." Bellany smiled. "I was worried Larry wouldn't make it." Jamie squealed, "You knew he was on the verge when the other girls left, didn't you?" "Me?" Bellany said innocently; "I just stayed behind to scratch an itch." "Larry loves your behind and that scratch was all it took to set him off. Vern and I agreed you did it on purpose, just as you waved at him with your toes," Jamie said. Bellany nodded, her eyes twinkling. "I can't help but notice when lusty men are spying on me. It's a knack of mine." "I noticed but what about women? Tell me why my sister blushes and hits Bernadine every time she starts carrying on about you?" Jamie asked. Bellany shrugged innocently. "We did some talking. Perhaps Bernadine was impressed by my silver tongue." Jamie rolled his eyes. "Just how much sleep did you actually get?" "I am not sure. I lost track of time," Bellany said. "I did really love the outing though, Jamie. It was the best day I have had since coming to Vargrend's. "Trinidar noticed no ill effects in your performance after your long night. If anything he said you were doing better than ever." "That is good. I was a little sleepy," Bellany lied; "but I was also happier than usual and that probably made up for it. I get snippy if I do without for too long." "How can you get snippy when you have Mary in your bed?" Jamie asked. "I am like a concubine of Virtusar. Didn't Carnarvon tell you?" Bellany asked. "He didn't have to, not after that look you gave me while you were riding him. Heavens I nearly jumped you after that and I have no interest in women," Jamie said. "Yes, none whatsoever," Bellany said as she subtly tingled Jamie's lust. "You don't play fair, Lady Lust," Jamie said. "I could not possibly let anyone else take you to the ball. If I did they would think they owned you and then there would be a storm of protest from the other men." "True and I might also have to come in vindicator finery," Bellany said and then she held her nose while Jamie simultaneously stuck his finger down his throat. Both laughed at one another's antics. "That would be unbearable. Tomorrow night's ball will be held at Carnarvon's. He wanted you as his date but I am monopolizing you. Just the same, I have it on good authority that he spent the last two weeks plotting and scheming a way to steal you without alerting the chaperones." "It should be a fun ball then." Bellany smiled. Jamie squealed, "You wench!" ------- This ends, A Breath of Autumn Air, chapter 62 of The Chronicles of Rapina. The story continues in chapter 63, Mistress Bellany.