Falik sat on his bed and looked across at the empty matress on the other bed in the room. He wondered if he was ever going to get a room-mate to replace Leon, his former room mate, who had left early at the end of second year due to a family crisis.

He gazed around his room exhaustedly. His side of the room held his bed covered with a intricately woven Bazhir blanket made for him by his mother in purples and deep blues flecked with stars, he also had a number of large silk cushions on his bed and a wall hanging on his side of the room depicting a scene from a Bazhir legend. Next to his bed on the small cabinet were various small portraits and trinkets and on the floor was a rug his father had brought him from the Persopolis markets last time he visited.

The weapons stand at the end of the bed held two stunning Bazhir scimitar swords and his bow and arrows as well as some more functional training weapons. He had a bookcase filled with history books and wardrobe full of clothes, not only his pages uniform, but also several burnooses and loose fitting breeches worn tradtionally by the Bazhir.

As Falik did not bring a servant, one of the Pages servents attended him and his things.

He picked up one of his boots and wearily started polishing them up to a mirror like shine.

Alexander began to walk into his newly assigned room, but then did a double take and knocked first.
He wondered who his new roommate would be.

When females started to train for their shields the need for more rooms had increased. Sadly there was not much space to build more rooms so pages where assigned roommates to help solve the problem. Alexander had no problem with that, he just hoped his roommate was not a loud snorer.

“Hello…?” Alexander said in a curios voice as he pushed opened the door.

Falik jumped up off his bed when the door pushed open, he hadn't heard the knock on the door. He looked slightly startled and then smiled when he saw it was Alexander. He wasn't close friends with the fellow third year page but he knew him well enough.

"Alexander!" He looked at Alexander's armful of belongings. "So you're moving in?"

“Yes, and gods all blessed I got a decent roommate!” Alexander said cheerfully :) . Then adding, “Wait, please tell me you don’t snore like a banshee?”

“I was told a palace servant will bring the rest of my belongings soon. ”

Alexander went over to the unoccupied bed and put his stuff down. A spare set of clothes, a journal filled with sketches, his homework assignments, and writing utensils.

"I only snore on special occasions," replied Falik gravely, then breaking in to a grin.

"There's plenty of room for your things here. I have to say I didn't think I'd ever get a room-mate, not many people want to share with a...."

He trailed off embarassed, he didn't want Alexander to feel he'd drawn the short straw.

He tried to draw attention away from what he'd just said by lighting the candles in the now dusky room. He drew on his gift and flicked sandy coloured light from his fingers towards the candleabra, the flame took instantly. It was one of the few good uses for his magic.

Alexander looked over at Falik and finished his sentence “with a Bazhir.” “The only people who believe that Bazhir aren’t as good as everyone else need the tar knocked out of them. It’s silly, just like anyone who thinks a commoner isn’t as good as a noblemen. The only difference is a nobleman is given more of a chance while a commoner has to work his hardest for that chance. The same goes for people who believe that a female is more fragile and less than a man in any way. For example, my younger sister Alexandria has been so kind as to give me a couple of good shiners before when we use to ruff house a lot, and don‘t get me started on how much better she is in grammar and spelling. The only subject I cream her in is mathematics”

Alexander flopped down on his bed and stared at the candelabra Falik had just lit then saying more ponderously “I don’t know how a squire can become a knight with these silly ideas inside his head. I would think that the chamber would fix that.”

“Anyway, on a happier note it looks like the rest of my stuff has arrived.” Alexander moved towards the door and helped a slightly balding, graying, tall, servant bring his things in. He then said his thank you’s to the servant named Gwedo. After that Alexander proceeded to put away his belongings humming a tune his mother use to sing to him in a more cheerful mood.

Falik smiled at Alexander's frankness, it was something he appreciated. It was also good to know his room-mate had no problem with his heritage.

He sat back down on his bed and picked up his boots to start polishing them again.

Thinking he said: "It's going to be good to have company in here. If you're really lucky I'll introduce you to some crazy squires I know." He smiled thinking of Rean and Damien.

OOC: Can one whole line of periods signify it's bean a while later, and if it's been a day or more later in the middle of the periods you post how many days/how much time has pasted? Since this is our room I thought we would probably end up having more than one long conversation and would need a way to signify how much time has past.

Example:

…………………….............………….............5 days……......................................................................
……………………….............……................2 days and a night…........….......................................
.……………………….........………............12 hours…………………………..................................
And so forth.

In character: "That sounds like fun." Alexander said in a truely happy voice that makes you :) smile no matter what you do, the way only Alexander could. "What are their names, the squires?" He asked curiously.

OOC: Sounds fine to me. :)


IC:
"Damien of Seajen and Rean of Lareas. I met them in the infirmary of all places, they'd been fighting in the city! Thinking about it, if you haven't met Damien you've probably heard him!" Falik laughed.

"Of course I have heard of Damien! Who hasn't?” Alexander said in a playfully outraged tone. “Isn't he close to breaking the palace record for using the I fell excuse repeatedly? I know the record is something like 47 times in a row.”

"Something like that, well he must be close to it now." Falik laughed. "He's probably also breaking all new flirtation records with all ladies of the court!"

Falik wrinkled his nose,

"Personally speaking, court ladies scare me!"

Alexander laughed as Falik mentioned he was scared of court ladies. "I know what you mean. I like people who aren't afraid to get their hands dirty and who aren't all stuffy. I personally think most court ladies are to" he then thought a moment choosing his words a little more carefully " proper.”

“And the way they gossip and talk about marriage as if it where a sin to go unwed.” He said without watching his tong this time and then immediately replied " I do realize that not all court ladies are this way but..." Alexander trailed off and then shrugged his shoulders.

"No. it's true!" Falik nodded in agreement. "I just don't know what to make of it! At least in the Bazhir you can save the whole sorry problem if you like and get a marriage arranged for you!"

Falik thought and shuddered, "and even thats not a joyful prospect."

Falik was quite convinced he would never fall in love and the thought of a wife horrified him.

Alexander laughed "I am of to my next class." He said as the bell rang for the start of afternoon class's to begin.

"Have fun." He replied


Falik had magic lessons that afternoon in a different part of the castle, he had a little more time to get to class so he went back to polishing his boots as his roomate left.

......................................... A Hour after the lights out bell has wrong ...............................

Alexander had gone to bed dressed. He was wearing plain leggings, a dark green shirt, with plain calf-high boots. At his side he had his most prized possession, a simple dagger from Raven's armory, it was cased in a plain sheath and had a wire spun wrap around handle. He also had his purse filled with a couple of coppers, nothing much just in case.

Alexander made his way to the door when suddenly he stumbled and knocked over Falik's weapons case that had been in front of his bed. Alexander cursed as pain shot through his right foot.

Falik was startled out of a deep sleep by a sudden crash in the room. He shot up in bed, calling a tiny bit of his Gift up to his hand to light the room.

Blinking blearily he saw Alexander, fully dressed and poised to open the door.

"What in Mithros' name....?" He asked, rubbing his eyes.

So much for a peaceful night he thought.

Alexander jumped in shock as Falik lit the room with his sandy colored gift. Alexander stumbled for words " Sor-Sorry I woke you." He said this in an extremely low whisper.

"Are you sneaking out?!" replied Falik in a fierce whisper.

"Lord Genlith will skin you alive!"

Falik struggled to keep his voice from rising to an outraged volume.

He sighed. He could forsee himself getting caught up in something he didn't want to get caught up in.

"Yes I am." Alexander said in a frantically hushed whisper that held a note of mischievousness in it. “So lower your voice a little…PLEASE. And I will get skinned alive IF I am caught. That is IF I am caught. I haven’t been yet.” Alexander said in a smirkingly evil reply.

"yet?" replied Falik as quietly as his worry would let him, "YET!!! Just how often do you do this? No don't tell me I don't want to know."

Falik was almost fully awake now. He thought for a second, if he just let Alexander go and he got caught Falik would be in trouble for letting him break the rules. He reached a realisation, the best way to keep Alexander out of trouble was to go with him.

He sighed heavily.

"Wait, I'm coming too."

He hurriedly pulled on a pair of midnight blue coloured breeches and a navy blue shirt. He grabbed a dagger and clipped it to his belt. Quickly he tied his shoulder-length coal black hair back.

"Well lets go then." he said resigned to his fate.

"Your positive your coming" Alexander said somewhat skepticaly. Then Alexander sighed, he was kind of happy to have some company on the trip but… He remembered why he had to get a new roommate in the first place. Jason, his last roommate, threaten to tell Lord Genlith if he didn’t get a new room. He didn’t want anything to do with Alexander’s nighttime walks to the Dancing Dove.

"Better to die young and pretty right?" replied Falik and smiled. "Besides, you're going to need company on all those extra punishment duties if we get caught!"

"I don't know, I want to live to a ripe old age." Alexander said more loudly than he should of. He cursed himself again, for being so loud. Then in a voice Falik would have to strain to hear he said "Alright, ready to go?"

Faliks face was set as though he was about to face the axe not creep out for the night.

"Now or never." He replied, nodding.

Alexander put his index finger to his lips, motioning for Falik to be very quiet. Then he slowly opened the door and started to tiptoe out. He held the door open for Falik so he could be the one to close it since he had perfected the art of closing squeaky doors.

OOC- I am starting a new thread in the library entitled Sneaking Out where Livia can start to follow us.

Falik noded, his face betraying more worry than he thought and turned to inch the door shut.

OOC: sounds good.

..................A week and a half to two weeks after Falik and Alexander had snuck out. It's a free day, but it's storming very badly. Also it's sometime during the mid-afternoon............

Alexander had sent for his 12 best old sketches in pen and ink, watercolors, oils and acrylic drawings a week ago. All of them were of Persopolis at sunset, sunrise, the garden areas, and people doing everyday task. He was happy because they had just arrived. His personal favorite was of an old man with one blind eye staring slightly upwards. The man had sat perfectly still for 2 or 3 hours looking at the sky while Alexander used oil pastels to capture the intense beauty and wisdom in the elderly mans eyes. It was some of his best work.

(Side Note- If Alexander hadn’t of become a page he would have become an artist. Being able to Draw is one of his most amazing talents and he cherishes his ability to do so above anything else he can do.)

He had noticed Falik acting a little glum and figured he might be a little homesick. He didn’t think the weather was helping either. They had gotten inches upon inches of ice cold rain that hadn‘t let up for the last 3 or 4 days.

Alexander was wrapping his gifts for Falik back up in the soft linen they had come in.

Falik stormed in to the room cursing under his breath. Not only was he soaked to the skin due to running a pointless errand for some flighty young noblewoman, he had also been jumped in the hallway by five particuallarly nasty squires who felt that "sand rats" shouldn't be in the palace.

He had fought as best he could against them but had earned a split lip and what would promise to be a beauty of a black eye, not to mention a dozen more bruises on his body.

He kept his eyes cast down to the floor as he walked in, his face set with a stormy frown.

Alexander looked at Falik in shock and wondered what had happened as he ran into their bathroom and grabbed some towels. He walked back out and handed them to Falik. "What happened?" He said in a dangerous voice.

Falik put on a sarcastic smile and said "I 'fell down'"

His expression darkened again. He continued, "yes, I fell right down in to pile of screaming, kicking and punching horse manure."

He tried a halfhearted smile as he took the towels and started rubbing his hair dry, careful not to bang his lip and eye. "Still....I gave as good as I got." The grin spread, "I singed one of them's eyebrows off. My Gift may not be good for much but still..." He trailed off.

Alexander held his breath for a count of 10 so he wouldn't explode. Then very quietly he asked "Who did it?"

He quickly formed a plan. He had enough money saved up to give whoever had done this a real scare. He had heard names mentioned in the dancing dove before and hopefully they could see to this problem. He didn't want anyone , but whoever did this would pay.

Alexander then remembered that he still had a little bruise balm from last mid-winter. He had gotten a jar of it on winter holiday ever since his parents found out how often he 'fell down'. He didn't think fighting was all that bad, and fought often enough himself, but for stupid reasons and with unfair odds it was very wrong.

He went over to the chest that was in front of his bed and opened it up. Digging around he finally produced the green stone bottle. Alexander took it over to Falik and said “You can have this my parents send me plenty of it. Put it on the worst bits and the most noticeable spots. You don’t want Lord Genlith seeing you sport this look.”

Falik accepted the balm gratefully. He couldn't stand another face off with Lord Genlith.

"They were squires, I think." He started applying the balm, letting out a little sigh as it eased his throbbing eye. "I'd recognise one or two of them by sight, but there were too many of them. I didn't see all of their faces."

He looked up at Alexander and caught the tense look on his face. "Don't." He said, "whatever you're plotting, don't get mixed up in it. It's not worth it."

Alexander laughed at this. "Falik you should no better, its way to late for me to stop plotting now. And I couldn’t look at you the same if I didn't help you out. Your a great friend and heads will role. All I promise is nobody will be killed, I'll let the chamber do that ."

Then spotting his pictures wrapped up on his bed he grabbed them and looked at Falik. "Here these are for you. I figure you would like them. They are of Persopolis. I drew them 2 years ago when my father took the whole family there for summer break." He said this remembering the trip fondly and handed over the package.

Falik was lost for words. He took the package out of his friend's hands and opened the linen wrappings.

He gasped and a faught back a welling of emotion when he saw the paintings. He had been missing his family and his life at Persopolis. Joining with the Voice of the Tribes at least kept him connected with is people but it wasn't the same as living amongst them.

He looked up at Alexander with a look of pure sincerity and gratitude.

"They're magnificent. Thank you. I'll ask one of the servants if we can have some nails to hang them, it'll certainly take the gloom off the room in the winter!" He smiled, wincing slightly at his sore lip.

OOC: Pardon the interruption the general populaion requests your participation in the Great Search

Three months later

Antony was running down the halls of the pages living quarters waking up those who were asleep. He opened the door to Alexander and Falik's room and battlecried, "Wake up! Wake up. Silas of Heathercove has been kidnapped by a spidren, all pages should are to report down to the edge of the ROyal Forest

OOC: Can you just edit your post and put in some kind of time mark as the previous thread about bullying happened many moons ago and the hunt happens after Falik's whole being stabbed backstory...just put in. I dunno, three months later.

IC:

Falik started up from his bed where he had been reading. He'd barely settled back in at the palace and a bit of action was just what he needed. He nodded at Anthony and grabbed his equipment and began strapping it on.

When he was ready he dashed out of the door and down to the stables.