"I'll be damned. The daughter of the great sorcerer himself. It seems The Grand God of Everything does hate us all."

Not even beaten and bruised as she was, she seemed to be able to help herself. Later on, I would think of her often and of this rude honesty of hers, because at court people are mostly reverent and polite on the surface disguising their disdain in hollow compliments.

"No. The gods have a path laid out for all of us. They are neither good nor bad, but impartial. Sometimes, people don't understand or accept what is laid out for them but it doesn't mean there isn't a plan."

That was the theory at least. In practice, even if I was raised religious, I also struggled to accept sometimes the path laid out for me.

"I bet your dad didn't see it that way. It was rumored in the realm he wasn't able to have children, but apparently, he was, just that empty ones."

My expression darkened. Though she was right, this wasn't something pleasant to hear, even for the hundredth time.

"Thought so," she said smirking with a bit of malice. "Your father was not particularly smart though, in my opinion, if he hid you from the world because of that."

"Well, he was disappointed. He was the most powerful mage known and I am empty. A rather disappointing offspring."

"But you ain't that ugly and not even that stupid. I bet a lot of the uptight courtiers would want to marry you only for your looks and fortune. Not right now, right now you look like a scarecrow but if you learn to walk tall, swing your hips, and do your curls like Salma, I am sure they would. My two sisters were empty too but father didn't abandon them, nor did he sell me off. He treated us all equally and made sure we had the best life we could."

At that point, I felt like smiling.

"Hara, the servant that took care of me since I was a baby, told me that too. About the hair I mean, and often. And your father... I am sorry that he died."

"Yeah, me too. You said we ought to be friends now and friends are honest with each other, Weed."

"No, you just enjoy being rude, and stop calling me Weed."

"Ya' think?" she asked again smirking but this time more genuinely. "How should I call you? Zaaa-ree-taaah is awfully long and doesn't fit you."

"Then call me only Zara."

"All right, I can live with that, Zara. Zara means chain in the language of the quizm."

"Chain..." I repeated to myself. I didn't know that word, but it sounded at least powerful if not anything else. "Tell me honestly. Where would you have gone if you would have succeeded to escape? It didn't look like you thought it through very much," I continued, burning to know the answer.

"In the land of the mountain clans."

"Why? Fera said they hate and kill foreigners."

"And Fera is right for a change, but they kill you if they catch you, and I would have been with Chioma."

"So? Chioma is not one of them..."

"No, but her parents had important ties to them."

That sounded interesting, or as interesting as the story of one's life tragedy can be.

"Not sure if relying on that is safe... I mean Chioma's parents weren't that famous, or were they? And what if they wouldn't believe it was her? But anyway, why there? Why at all? The world is dangerous and here at least you have a roof and food."

Mairi frowned again, this time her mimic was more somber.

"I don't want to be anybody's slave. I liked the freedom I had before coming here even if life was dangerous. My destiny is to be a warrior or a famous thief. And well... we went there because we wanted to search for a dragon."

"A dragon?! You mean tanyin? But they are extinct for a long time. That sounds like a very dumb plan."

"Yes tanyin and no, they are not. They just want people to believe that."

At that point, I felt a bit like making fun of her. It was known that the dragons were killed in and after The War of Scales and nobody saw one in the last few hundred star-circles. Not one, not ten, hundreds of star-circles.

"And what would you have done if you found one, let's say?" I asked, me being the one with the mocking tone at that point.

"Slay it and drink its blood."

I couldn't help laughing.

"Aren't they supposed to be huge and dangerous? And eww gross. Why?"

"Yes, but if you catch them sleeping you might just get lucky you only need a few drops. You see... W... Zara, some things are worth dying for."

"A dead legendary creature? I fail to see still the sense of that very crazy endeavor. You seem childish and dumb when I hear you."

She showed me her middle finger. I was not sure why but I had the impression it was a rude gesture.

"If you drink the blood of a dragon you awaken. All the magic dormant in your blood awakens and is enhanced. We would finally be powerful. Chioma's parents heard a rumor that there are several of them just that they are hiding in the mountains."

"You must be joking! You risked your life based on a rumor and a legend?! I thought you are smarter than that!"

"Hope makes one act foolish. Look at me, my legs will need months to heal properly. At least The White Grace made sure they will. Apparently, she put aside some matches for me," she said rolling her eyes.

Contemplating briefly I said, "After they heal, teach me to climb and to use a knife as you do. I saw you in practice; you are talented."

"I am. I and Chioma can best even Atalaria sometimes."

Atalaria was one of the four older girls. They were seventeen, almost of age, and soon to be bought off.

Fera said she was the best fighter in their classes but that Mairi was a natural that would best her in a few months. Her quizm constitution gave her a great advantage making her faster and with naturally better reflexes than Atalaria which was samak.

Samak are native to islands and shorelands. Their skin has a tint of gray, blue, or green, and three parallel cuts on the sides of their necks that look like gills but only very few of them can actually breathe underwater all the time, most can only hold their breath longer than the other races.

"But why does your noble ass want to learn street rat business?"

"Because the street rat practices, as you call them, are more useful than the history lessons or the languages I was taught when bad things happen."

"Well you can plead for mercy in several languages, that's not so bad," she said smiling at me in that very characteristic way of hers but then her mimic lost the sarcasm. "I was wondering... That first night when I talked to you in Quizeh, you actually answered back. I never thought you would understand or answer but you did and you weren't just delirious. Can you also write it? My language?"

I look at her a bit skeptical, expecting her to make fun of me in some way.

"Well, can you?" she insisted.

"Yes. You always learn to read and write. I am not perfect in Quizeh but quite good. I like learning languages."

"Can you teach me?" she asked, looking at the ground, avoiding my gaze.

"Your own language?" I ask a bit confused.

"Yes, to write it. And maybe the manab language too."

Then it dawned on me. Mairi seemed to not know how to read and write even if she spoke the languages. Likely none of the low-born girls did and apparently, the priory didn't have any interest in teaching them.

"Of course. I will try my best," I say in the end with the most confident smile my young, insecure self could muster.

Later that day, Fera took her usual place at my right at the dining table while Mairi sat this time again at my left.

"You do know it's not good to be associated with them, right? I saw you earlier in the garden. You are likely to attract the scorn of the White Grace."

She was not wrong about that, just that I had already successfully managed to attract the scorn of The White Grace. Nobody was talking about what happened and why the girls just came back. There were only whispers.

"It is all right, Fera," I said smiling at her reassuringly. I suppose she was just afraid to lose a friend after finally getting one, as I was too.

"They are troublemakers."

"Troublemakers that are very good with knives, manab bitch," whispered Mairi from behind me in a menacing tone.

"Mairi, I told you not to be mean to her."

Mairi just rolled her eyes and looked the other way. Fera was happy I took her side. I liked them both and they were more similar than they cared to admit. Maybe they would become friends in the end too.

The conflict didn't die out totally. That day during the rest hours, I walked with Mairi in the inner yard to find a quiet place to sit where nobody would disturb us.

"Look, so these seven symbols are called vowels," I started explaining pointing to the scribbles I made on the sandy ground. "The last one is encountered only in Quizeh but not in Mane."

Mairi looked intrigued at the symbols.

"Mane and Quizeh use mostly the same symbols while for example Taneeh, the language used by most of the mountain clans, is written with a different set of symbols. I am really bad at Taneeh because my father didn't want me to learn it and there were only two books in that language in the library. One happened to be one he had also in Mane so I could learn some words but it was tedious and I had discovered it only recently."

"Zara. Oh damn, it's an effort calling you that. I really liked Weed. Well, anyway, Zara, is there a word in Mane for very bookish people, bookish to the brink of annoyance?"

"Yes, nerd," said Fera coming out of the bushes. "What are you doing here?"

"None of your business," replied Mairi.

"I am teaching Mairi to read. Nothing bad."

"That is forbidden, don't you know? As a concubine, you ought not to read. The White Grace will punish you if she finds out."

"Why not? That doesn't make sense. What ill can she do with reading?"

"Some things are just the way they are. Don't be stupid."

"Did you know that?" I asked Mairi.

"I never cared to remember the rules," she shrugged.

"She lies. She only cares about herself and doesn't care if you get punished."

That was not untrue. The behavior Mairi displayed was showing just that, but I somehow refused to believe that. There was something about her, and I wanted to believe she felt that too, that our relationship was meant to be special. We manab call it an en, a fated chain, laid out by the gods for us. The quizm don't believe in such things but that didn't matter.

"And you would gladly lick The White Grace's coochie if that would give you privileges."

"What is a coochie?" I asked genuinely.

Mairi gave me a side grinn.

"I will explain to you one day."

"You know Mairi, if I were you, I wouldn't be so disrespectful while still injured. I might not control my weapons so well in training and you can't move that quick now so you might just get hurt."

"I thought mountain people have pride and honor but you are special, you are just a treacherous bootlicker."

"Stop it, both of you! We need to go to dinner," I interrupted them sternly, starting to walk towards the dining room.

The issue wasn't settled. I was sure none of them wanted to give up. It was just postponed.

That night, after dark, after having fallen asleep, I felt a hand over my mouth and one moving my shoulder.

Of course, I felt like screaming until I noticed it was Mairi.

"What?"

"Come on."

"Where?"

Even not knowing I just followed.

"Where are we going?"

"To the library. I will get my way regardless of what Fera says. Unless you are afraid."

"Shouldn't I be?"

"Well yes, but you should have been the day before too."

The library was indeed deserted. I watched amazed at how a flame bloomed in Mairi's palm to make light.

"How long can you hold that?"

"Not long, so bring a candle."

My pulse was accelerating but I didn't want to give up. It was unjust that the low-born girls didn't have the right to learn to read.

It worked well, better than scribbling on the sand. Here we used paper that Mairi burned in her palm after we finished. Poof, gone, only some traces of ash left.

Suddenly the silence of the night was disturbed by a loud screech.

"What's that?" I asked frightened and instantly filled with fear and regrets.

"I don't know. My guess is The White Gate. But so late at night... hmm. I wonder."

And unfortunately for us all, Mairi couldn't just keep the mystery. She stood up and followed the sound.

"Aha! It's the supplies. I forgot it's a blue moon."

Our world has three moons. The red is full at midday and mid-night, the purple signals the passing of seven sun-downs, and the blue signals the passing of more or less four violet moon cycles. That is the one that people refer to as a moon or moon circle, the red and purple ones are often referred to as only that, red or blue because they were much smaller.

The supply of the monastery was made every moon when the blue circle in the sky was full. Fera had mentioned it but I had forgotten. It was never a precise time of the day when the caravan arrived, because the roads in Quomared are perilous but they always came eventually.

One sister was responsible to open the gate to a party of men leading a que caravan with food that we didn't grow in the monastery and other supplies.

It was indeed interesting to know, as it was surprising to see that the man that carried the supplies stopped to bring his face close to Sita's, the sister that was on duty that night. He wrapped his arms around her and pressed his lips to hers. One arm lifted her long white gown.

"What are they doing?" I whispered curious and amazed.

"You really don't know, do you?" asked Mairi. "Well, something they shouldn't. The sisters are sworn to chastity and that is... not chaste," sneakered Mairi. "The guy has good taste; Sita is the prettiest and youngest of them."

She didn't have the opportunity to end the thought because out of the blue, a thunderbolt stroke Sita and she fell to the ground.

The White Grace walked towards the dumbstruck man holding the body that now had a big bleeding hole in the stomach.

I wanted to scream but Mairi saw that and pressed a hand hardly over my mouth dragging me away.

"We... have... help!" I tried to tell her.

"No, we don't. We have to save our asses. She is dead. Let it go."