Celestian sat in her room looking out the window. She thought back to the other day when Alanar had dragged her out of the palace to a bookstore and then a cafe. That was when she had met Nick Cutter, a local historian of sorts. While Alanar didn't really take kindly to Nick's questions about their past Celestian found that she was interested in the man. He had mentioned something about setting up a school fund for Travana. Celestian had looked into the matter later that day only to find that most of the children in Travana were being home schooled or tutored with almost no formal education what so ever. To her this was unacceptable, children needed a formal education to learn how to deal with the Court and it's delicate dance. She pull a pen and some paper out of the desk in her study. Writing a quick note to Nick she called in a servant.

"I want you to find Warlord Nick Cutter. He's a historian in the area, deliver this message to him. Either wait for a response or escort him back. Thank you." The servant bowed a hurried out of the room. Celestian wondered if Nick would come right over or write her letting her know when his schedule would allow for a lengthy visit to discuss the topic in her note.

Dear Lord Cutter,
I found your company the other day to be rather interesting. I would like the chance to discuss setting up a fund so that we may have some schools for the local children. You don't have to worry about my brother making a scene like he did at the cafe. Alanar is actually out taking care of a incident that occured last night and he shouldn't be back until sometime tomorrow morning. If your schedule will not allow for a visit today that is fine. Please let me know when would be the best time for you. I am always willing to work around other's schedule. Hope to see you soon.

Sincerely,
Celestian Talelwa
Queen of Travana Province

What a perfect day to do absolutely nothing, Nick thought as he looked out the window over the kitchen sink. The sun was shining in a cloudless winter blue sky; he was caught up his personal deadline and could afford to slack on the story for a day. As he nursed a cup of hot coffee, he mentally ran through all the things he had been wanting to get done and decided they could all wait for a while. What he needed was a day when he didn't have to do anything except enjoy life.

He washed out his coffee cup and breakfast dishes before retreating to his bedroom. Just because he was going to take a day off didn't mean he was going to let everything go. He grabbed a jacket and his bag full of notepads, notebooks, the most recent draft of his book and pencils and stepped out the backdoor. While he would readily admit he did not have the talent to illustrate any of his books, Nick liked to draw the originals as he wrote, to give the Warlord who did the finals an idea of what was going on.

The backyard of the house he was leasing was small, tiny really, but the patio was covered and one side had a small wall built out of the enclosing fence, where Nick had set up a table and chair. It was here he settled, pulling out a well-worn sketchbook and flipped through it, examining each small sketch. This was one of his first pads, and the pictures were worn and smudged from repeated handling. When he reached the end he set it aside and pulled a relatively new book out and flipped to a clean page. Swiftly he sketched out the guidelines for a face and starting filling each quarter. This was a female face, turned slightly to the lower left, looking to the right out of the corner of her eye. A few well-placed brushes with a heavier pencil revealed her long hair and a couple of touches brought out her high cheekbones. After a while, he realized who he was sketching and his strokes became surer, more confident as the face of the new Queen of Travana Province came to life under his pencil.

Finally, he sat back and gazed at the drawing. It was Lady Talelwa alright, but a Lady Talelwa he had never seen. He had only met her but the once and she had been very friendly and open. This was not open, it was borderline sensual, a sultry woman looking off into the distance surrounded by a smoky haze. He lightly touched the paper before shaking himself and quickly signing his name in the bottom left corner.

“Cutter, you need to go out more,” he muttered to himself as he got up and went inside for another cup of coffee. He was warming up the carafe over a tongue of witchfire when there was a knock at the front door.

It was a young Warlord, probably just barely old enough to have gone through his Offering. He held out a sealed letter.

“The lady asked for an immediate response,” the young male said as Nick broke the seal. He scanned the letter’s content, before looking up and smiling.

“As it happens, I have some time on my hands. Wait just a moment.” He hurried outside and gathered his things, stuffing the pencils and pads back into the bag before rushing into the kitchen, breaking off the spell for the witchfire and setting the carafe of coffee in the sink. Tossing the bag in his bedroom, he ran a comb through his hair, shoved his cold feet into socks and shoes and was back at the door in a few minutes.

“Alright, lets go,” he said pleasantly as he locked the front door and vanished the key.

The walk to the Queen’s palace was quiet as neither man offered to start a conversation. Once at the palace, Nick was shown into the Queen’s audience chamber while the lady was notified of his arrival. He rubbed his hands together and smiled as he unbuttoned his jacket. He frowned when he realized he was wearing one of his older, thread-bare t-shirts and quickly buttoned the jacket up.

"Brilliant, Nicky-boy," he muttered. "An audience with a Queen and you can't even remember to change your shirt."

Celestian now walked around her room pacing. Would he come? Or would he be too busy? As she passed a mirror she couldn't help but notice her reflection. As she stared at the woman in the mirror she went into a slight panic. Her hair was a tangled mess, the dress she was wearing didn't seem to be right. Runnning to her closet she looked for something else to wear. If Lord Cutter showed up she wanted to look like a Queen not some frazzled school girl. It didn't matter that he was definately younger than her, he seemed more mature. But such was the case with the long lived races, they matured slower because they had such long lives to live. Finally she found an outfit that she thought would look nice. The top was light purple, it was cut low but too low to show her breast. Thin straps to show off her shoulders, and loose enough to allow her wings free movement. The skirt was a shade darker than the shirt, but it flowed nicely. At the hips it was a tad snug but once free of her hips it went into a slight bell shape down to the floor. She chose a pair of black slippers to wear. (http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/set?id=17803443)

Walking back to the mirror she looked at her reflection again and nodded in approval until she reached her head where her hair was still a mess. Going over to her vanity table she ran a brush through her hair. Pulling a piece of the top section away from the others she braided it down the middle and then laid back. There now I look like a Queen. Standing she went back out into her sitting room and grabbed a book to await either Lord Cutter's response or word that he had arrived. She silently thanked the Darkness that Alanar was away on business. Celestian dearly loved her older brother but since the loss of their family he had become over bearing. She wanted a chance to talk to people without him intimidating them.

After a few minutes there was a knock on her door. The young Warlord she had sent off with the message walked in at her response. "Lady, Lord Cutter is in the audience chamber." Celestian thanked the boy, saved the page she was on and stood up. She walked to the audience chamber, before she stepped through the door she took a deep breath. Then she walked in, "Lord Cutter. Thank you for coming, I honestly expected a letter telling me you were far too busy." She held her hands out in the formal greeting. "How has your day been so far?"

He was still muttering to himself when the door opened, to preoccupied by his annoyance to notice the Queen's arrival. How had he been been so stupid as to not change his shirt? Nick prided himself in his wardrobe, and always being dressed to impress. How he could have forgotten something so basic as to change his shirt...well, at least he had put on his good jacket.

“Lord Cutter. Thank you for coming.”

The words startled him so badly he jumped about a foot into the air. Sheepishly, he turned around and gave Lady Talelwa his best smile. When she held out her hands, he slid his under hers, palms up, exposing his veins to her. Each time he did this, to anyone, it was strange, unnerving, but for Lady Talelwa it was…not quite right, but at least better than with anyone else. He knew she was not his Queen, the one he would serve wholeheartedly, but she was a witch he could come to respect and who he already admired. He had heard, from gossip in the taverns and marketplaces, how she was already proving to be a good ruler. The thought made him glad and it gave him hope that she would see how much the province needed these schools.

“My day has been fine, lady. I was enjoying the early spring air when your man came.” He smiled slightly. “And yourself? You are enjoying the time you have spent so far in our city?” He pulled his hands away and adjusted his jacket slightly.

(Sorry its so short, I was a bit rushed and have to go. Tell me if you think I need to work on it.)

Celestian smiled when Nick jumped in the air at the sound of her voice, apparently he had been preoccupied in his own thoughts. When he slid his hands under hers she smiled again, there was something strange about the greeting with him that she couldn't quite put her finger on. But she dismissed it as he told her about enjoying the spring day. She felt a bit bad about pulling him away from a day of relaxation for business. When he asked her about her day she smiled again. Motioning to the chairs she walked over and sat down. "My day has been fine actually. My brother is away dealing with business so he's not hovering over my wings at the moment." She sighed, "Don't get me wrong Lord Cutter I love Alanar but since the loss of our family Alanar has been a tad over protective. Take for instance the day we met, before our loss he would not have been so harsh."

Celestian looks up at Nick, "But enough of that for now. I'm sorry to pull you away from such a nice day. You could have sent a note arranging for another time, but I suspect that you're eager to get the funds for the schools going." She smiled at him, the man had had a genuine enthusiasm about him when he had spoke of starting a fund for schools in Travana. It wasn't until after meeting him that she had indeed noticed the lack of formal schools for children. While it was true that most children learned about the ways of Blood from their family she strongly believed in a semi-formal setting that actually showed the children how the delicate dance of the Blood worked. "Now I hope you don't mind but I asked around and there are some people who agree that we need schools. They are even willing to help, I want you to be in charge of the project Lord Cutter. After all it was originally your idea."

Celestian watches for Nick's reaction to what she is saying. She hopes that he is happy with what she has done so far to get the schools going. After all this is new territory for her too. While she has been a Queen she has never had a court. Then an odd thought strikes her, "Lord Cutter.... would you be willing to join my First Circle?" She held her breath unsure why she had asked. What if he said no? He was the first person that she had asked to be in her Circle. She wasn't sure what had made her ask, and she wasn't sure if she could handle the rejection.

Nick followed the Queen to the chairs, waiting for her to sit down before taking his own seat. Some habits were hard to break.

“You are fortunate to have a brother who cares for you so, my lady,” he commented. “As a child I often wished for a brother to spend time with.” He smiled as he thought of the afternoons he spent after his lessons were completed, pretending he had a brother or sister to play with. Libraries were lonely places to grow up in.

He listened, astonished as she told him of her efforts to fund some schools. His blood raced as he thought of everything he could do to help the children, Blood and landen, of the city. Ever since Becca’s birth, he had become increasingly aware of the need for formal education for the citizens of his chosen town. And not just this city, but the whole Province. So many children ran wild through the streets, uneducated and unaware of the dance of the Blood, the delicate knife blade the castes walked to maintain the land. It broke his heart every time he saw a begger child on the corner of the street. For now, he would concentrate on educating them, but as soon as possible, he would speak to Lady Talewa about building orphanages and caring for the parentless and unfortunate.

“Lady, this is…this is extraordinary. I…I can’t express my gratitude at this chance to help change the city. I…” his voice broke and he bowed his head. This was something he had been wanting to do for a long time, had been planning for a while and now…it was coming true.

Her next words startled him almost as much as her entrance. He blinked and was silent for a moment, staring at her. Her words raced through his mind, repeating themselves over and over. A moment later, a smile broke over his face and he fell to his knees before her.

“My lady, I would be delighted to be in your First Circle.”

Celestian almost snorted when Nick said she was lucky to have a brother, but decided that it was unlady-like and that Nick was right. If it hadn't been for Alanar, she would be dead with the rest of her family. "I guess you are right Lord Cutter. I am lucky to have my brother, even if he is overbearing at times."

Celestian watched Nick's reaction to her words about the shools, his excitement was almost tangible in the air. When his voice broke and he lowered his head she watched him, unsure what to do. But then he looked at her, shock clear on his face from her offer. Then he smiled and fell to his knees. “My lady, I would be delighted to be in your First Circle.”

Then her excitement became tangible. "Really? You accept? I..... thank you Lord Cutter. Other than my brother you are the only member of my First Circle." But her excitement didn't last long. She felt Alanar's return before he walked into the room.


Alanar returned from dealing with a minor dispute between two farmers just outside of the city's proper. As soon as he walked in the door he could smell a physic scent of a familiar and yet unfamiliar male in the palace. He followed the smell, when he realized that the male was also with Celestian his anger rose. How dare she see males without him there! How could he protect her if she allowed strange men into the palace and granted them an audience without him there? He walked into the room to find Celestian all a fluster and a man kneeling at her feet. He storms into the room, "Cel what the hell is going on? Who the hell is this?" He picks the man up to realize that it's the historian from the coffee shop. "What are you doing here, with my sister?"