Falik sat nervously on one of the stone benches in the gardens. He'd arranged to meet Katherine here as it was a free evening. He was still in his pages uniform as he'd been serving at a dinner for some nobles.

He fiddled with a small tissue wrapped package in his lap. It was a carving of a sealion made out of soapstone from Persopolis. He'd asked his mother to have it made and sent to him as a gift for Katherine, he still felt guilty about dropping her mothers book and he wanted to do something to make her happy.

He checked the doorway in to the courtyard for the 15th time and nervously tucked a strand of his hair back behind his ear.

OOC: I guess I'll do it.

A few shadows slipped towards him. "It's that idiot Bahzir brat!"
"Let's get him!" They hissed, moving forward.

It was a bunch of thugs.

"He's gonna pay for thinking he can come here!" They whispered to each other.

Falik had been so preoccupied with looking out for Katherine he hadn't seen the shapes sneaking up on him in the darkness. The first he knew of it was when someone hit him from behind and knocked the air out of his lungs. The litte statue flew out of his hands and shattered on the floor.

He spun throwing the thug behind him over his hip. Staring furiously in to his face he recognised a third year squire. He raised his arm to land a punch in the boys stomach but someone grabbed his arm and turned him round. There were 8 more boys behind him.

When evening had fallen, Rett's brother and housemate Osric had left to visit some friends. Rett had also decided to get out of the house, and made his way over to a nearby inn. There had been a group of boys there, a bit older than him; they were loud and raucous and friendly. He suspected they might be drunk, but most of the city was at that time of day. He was joking with them, and just watching the rest of the inn occupants; the boy thought nothing of it when they started whispering.

Suddenly, after it had finally grown dark, the group all got up at once and headed for the door. "Coming?" one of them asked Rett, but didn't stop to wait for his answer. Rett stared after them for a minute, then shrugged mentally and decided to follow. He'd be as safe with them as he would on his own, and he wasn't entirely ready to return home yet. So he tagged along as they hurried up to the palace.

And now he had no clue what was going on. It sounded like a fight was breaking out, but in the dark, he couldn't tell who was on which side. Maybe the enemy was one of them, maybe it was a stranger. Either way, he started to back away.

Damn, he thought, about to panic. I don't know the way out.

Faliks ears were filled with sounds of people taunting him, terrible slurs against his Bazhir heritage, his mother and anything else they could think of to say or use against him. Falik fought on doggedly, kicking and punching as many of the boys as he could, but it was hard, although few of them were taller than him, most of them had a lot more training and a lot more muscle on them.

He barely registered that his nose and his forehead were cut and bleeding profusely.

OOC: Can Rean come in?

(OOC: fine with me...)

Rett almost thought he could make out what the boys were saying, though he couldn't be sure. It sounded like racial slurs. That was even worse than before...

One of the boys came stumbling out of the center of things, almost knocking him over. Rett's stomach jumped, and he scrambled even further back towards the building; but he couldn't manage to pull himself away completely.

get out, he told himself. stupid stupid stupid stupid. get out of here. At least getting involved was out of the question; no way was he going into that mess, and he wouldn't even know whom to start attacking.

((OOC: It's fine for Rean to come in eventually but I think it should probably be after Katherine's come and goes to get help when Falik actually gets knifed))

Through his fury Falik could only think one other thing over and over. Please don't let Katherine come now, please don't let Katherine come now!

The thought of her getting dragged in to this scared him. He knew she could more than hold her own but against this many and much bigger and stronger boys Falik knew in his heart things were going to get much worse.

He doubled over and fell to the floor as his arms were pinned back and he was punched in the stomach.

OOC: Their going to knife him?!
Rean is going to kick some serious booty.
So after he gets knifed, Katherine comes, and then leaves to get help, and Rean comes in?

Katherine had just come back from dinner with her brother when she remembered that Falik had wanted to meet her. She rushed to the courtyard cursing at how she had forgotten.

She walked into the courtyard and saw shadows surrounding Falik. She saw him beaten and bleeding. Curse the time I stay in a dress after dinner... She thought to herself. She ran to the boy that was punching Falik in the stomach. "Stop! Leave him alone!" She yelled as she tugged at his arm.

"Stay out of this, wench." He roared as he backhanded her across the face. He snickered as Katherine fell to the ground.

She wiped the blood from her mouth as she pulled a dagger out and ran at the boy. "Leave him alone" She shouted. She stood between Falik and the boy. "This is wrong..."She whispered. "You must stop."

Falik's head cleared when he heard Katherine's voice.
"Katherine, no! Get out of here!" He yelled, struggling furiously to get to the boy who had hit her.

"Ah look, the little sand rat has found himself a mouse...how sweet." Another kick connected with Falik's side and he groaned with the pain.
The boy who had hit Katherine grabbed her dagger hand and began twisting it slowly and painfully roundd to get her to drop the dagger. Falik kicked out at the boy.

He tried to call on his gift to do something, anything, that might help them get away but he was exhausted and he couldn't focus his mind enough for the magic to work.

"I'm not leaving you..."Katherine told him. "I refuse to..."

A boy had grabbed her hand, and started twisting it, trying to get her to drop her dagger. Falik had to kick at him, but he had only brushed him. "Little mouses shouldn't be playing with sharp toys." He twisted it alittle more, but she refused to let it go. Katherine kicked him in the stomach. He loosened his grip and fell to the ground holding his stomach. "Wench, you'll pay..." he whispered to her.

"I don't think so..." she winced at the pain that was coursing through her arm. She looked at him. He was grinning at her.

She turned around and saw a big squire standing in front of her. He took a step towards her. He punched her right in her stomach. Katherine's eyes widen at the pain that now filled her. She felt arms snake around her waist and trapping her arms. "Got you..." whispered the squire. He grabbed the dagger from her hand. "Give up, or else."

"I won't give up to you...not until you leave Falik alone."

"So be it!" He raised the dagger and swung down, slicing her shoulder.

As Falik saw the dagger slice down in to Katherine's shoulder he wrenched himself free of the boys who were holding him back, flinging himself towards the boy who held Katherine.

The big squire shoved Falik back, letting go of Kathrine. As Falik picked himself up off the floor the large boy thrusted forward with the dagger.

Falik gasped the air rush out of his lungs from the impact, replaced by intense pain as the dagger pierced below his rib-cage. His eyes were wide with shock and everything almost seemed to swing in to slow motion as he felt his legs give way beneath him and as he looked up in to the face of the boy who stabbed him. The boys face was a blank mask as he stared emptily back at Falik.

From what sounded like miles away, Falik dimly heard someone yelling for the boys to run.

He fell back against the cold slabs of the court yard.

Katherine fell to the ground as Falik rushed at the boy who had held her. Her shoulder throbbed as she struggled to get up. She looked up and saw the big squire knife him.

"No!" she cried. she watched Falik fall to the ground. She looked back at the boys and saw them running away. "Stop!"she yelled. "Someone stop them!" She got up off the ground, and started running after them, but she stopped dead in her tracks. I can't leave him...not like this

She walked over to Falik and fell to her knees. She looked at his face and started crying. "No...Falik..."she whispered "Please say something to me please...please..."

Faliks eyelids fluttered open when he heard Katherine speaking to him. He felt dizzy and confused and he was cold and sweating from the pain. He clutched at his right side where the wound was.

He tried to smile. "I'm okay," he whispered. "I think..I think I'm in trouble...you need to get help." He could feel a swooning blackness trying to pull him under. He knew he was loosing too much blood too fast.

He groped blindly for Katherine's hand, unaware his own was now covered in blood.

Katherine saw Falik's hand and caught with her own, ingorning the fact that his hand was covered in blood. But so was hers. "Hold on Falik...Please...don't die." She got and turned towards the palace.

She ran until she fell. She noticed some shadows just up in front of her. "Someone..." she coughed. "Someone please help me. Falik..." She tried getting up. "Falik's been knifed! He needs help fast..." Katherine fell to her knees once more. Her head was spinning from the loss of blood from her shoulder.

OOC: I assume this is the right time for Livia to come in...if not, please ignore this post.
IC: Livia heard someone calling for help. Running out into the courtyards, she almost yelped. "Madam, do you need help?" of all the stupid things to say.

She grabbed Katherine's arm. "What's wrong? Can I be of service?"

"Please...my friend has been knifed..."She grabbed her shoulder, it hurt to much for her to move it any longer. "Please...you need to help him...he's going to die." she stood up, only to fall in a couple of steps. She cursed at how much blood she had lost in her shoulder. I have to get back to him...Mithros please don't take him yet...

"He's in the courtyard...please...help him." she whispered.

Falik was getting colder and weaker by the second. He was horsely whispering nursery rhymes to himself just to try and keep himself awake until help came. The pain in his side was unbearable and all he wanted to do now was close his eyes and sleep.


He could hear the sound of people running over the stones. He tried to call out for help but his voice gave out on him, which somehow made him laugh. I must be getting giddy! He thought. The laughing made him cough and blood bubbled up in to his mouth.

Livia hurried over the stones, swearing in both Common and Kyprish. There was a bloody mess not too far from where she stood. Looking down, she realized that she saw Falik. "Er, Falik?" she whispered. "You're still alive, right?" Taking a deep breath, she kneeled down next to him. "It's going to be fine, I'll help you," she whispered, trying to assure Falik and Katherine as well as herself.

Falik turned his head towards Livia. His breathing was shallow and he was struggling to focus on the woman's face.

"Just about..." he whispered in answer to her question. He tried to laugh again, coughing up more blood. "I don't feel my best."

His eyes tried to slide shut and he blinked, deperately trying to keep awake.

Rean was walking past the courtyard. She had heard a commotion from her room, and since Natalia's death, she had been even more ready to fight, to take out her emotion. So she had come to investigate. What she saw made her heart stop for a beat. She had just lost Natalia, she wouldn't lose him, too.

She raced up, and slid to the ground next to him. "Livia! What's wrong with him!?" She raged. What had happened. She looked around, and saw the signs of a struggle, and blood in different places. She looked at Falik's wound, and discovered it was a deep slice, a knife wound. She growled, adn said, "Falik, don't you dare die on me." She grabbed his hand, and felt his blood was still warm.

Rean's face was thunderous. Her eyes were dark against her pale face, her hair creating a black halo around her head. Anger swirled in her eyes. "I am going to murder whoever did this." She swore loathesomly, and she meant it.

Falik heard Rean's voice through the delerium in his head. His sight was fuzzy now and he could no longer focus on people's faces.

"Rean..." he stopped, struggling for breath. "Katherine. She's....she's hurt. Is she okay?"

He gritted his teeth against the pain as Livia examined the wound. His normally tan skin pale and beaded with sweat.

Rett was barely aware of one of the boys shouting to run, and then someone knocked into him. Instead of following, like he should have in hindsight, he shrunk against the wall and further into the shadows. And now it was too late, they were gone; he wasn't even sure of the way out of the palace grounds, and the victim's friends had all arrived.

He watched the group, breathing heavily. This was bad in so many ways. Bad for the boy that had been beaten up... bad for him; he needed to get out of there.

After quickly assessing the damage that had been done, Livia started healing some of Falik's little scrapes first. Her red Gift swirled around as wounds closed up. She finally got to the big dagger wound. "Carefully..." she muttered, trying to remember everything she had been taught.

She wiped her blood-stained hand on her skirt. "I just stopped the bleeding," she whispered. "We have to get him to the infirmary so that the healers that know more than I do can help. And, Katherine, your shoulder could use a little help too."

Looking around with a venomous look that was totally uncharacteristic, she asked, "Did anybody see who did this?"

OOC: Can I come in? Because I've got a good idea...

OOC: Not in charge... ;)

Rean nodded, "Livia, was she okay when you left her?" She asked, her voice tight. She would not let Falik die. She would not. She held his hand tighter, just as she had held Natalia's only a few days ago. She ripped a piece off of her tunic, and dabbed his forehead with it. She had the irrational thought that she hoped he wasn't allergic to lilac, because that's what she washed her clothes in. Why was she thinking that? Her mind kept swaying to the dumbest thoughts. 'I'm in shock,' She realised, her eyes widening. 'I can't lose Falik.' She saw a shadow move int he corner,a dn barked out, "YOU! GET OVER HERE NOW!" She picked up the bloodied knife, and crouched next to Falik and Olivia.

OOC: That can be Rett or some stranded thug..

Rett's eyes widened in panic as one of the oldest there stared in his direction and yelled. He could go out like she commanded, or he could hope that there was somebody else there. All the other boys had gotten away, he was sure, but all the same, he pressed himself further into the shadows against the wall and tried not to breathe too loudly.

Eliana was leading Eugene, her footman to the stables so he could go back home with her coach and horses. Along the way, she saw a large crowd. Curious, Eliana stepped forward and looked at what was going on. A boy, who Eliana remembered as Falik, was lain on the ground injured.

Oh no! thought Eliana, as she quickly went to the scene. "Is everything alright? Can I help you?"

OOC: Falik, hope you got my PM so it doesn't seem like I jumped in too quickly.

Rean growled, and stood up, knife in hand. She knew she saw something. What was it? 'Let it be the people who did this to Falik. I want to exterminate them.' She raged in her mind. She took a step forward, peering into the darkness next to the wall. "Come out, or I'll throw my knife into your throat." She growled, and her face was a mask of anger and pain. If Falik died, she would hunt down and kill everyone that was here tonight. But Hell, she would do that anyway. Or at least beat them up.

This was absurdedly not good.

Rett wavered for a minute, holding his breath. It was definitely him to whom she was talking.

Maybe they would believe him.

He squinted in the darkness and took a small, wavery step forward.

Carefully, Livia stepped forward, just a couple paces behind Rean. "Goddess, help me be strong," she muttered under her breath. Knowing this was about to be a total breach of all servant rules, she reached down and pulled a small dagger her Da had given her out of her boot. "I'm behind you, Rean," she whispered. "Just...just in case you need any assistance." Even though she knew it might not be neccessary, she stayed right where she was.

Katherine walked into the courtyard where Falik was. The bleeding on her shoulder had stopped, but would continue if she moved it. She looked at Rean who had arrived. "Rean!" She called to the older girl.. "Please don't...kill anybody...please..."she begged through tears. "I can't bear to see anybody else get hurt..."

She looked at Falik, and sat down next to him. She took his hand into hers and held on to it. "Please Falik...you have to hold on until we get you to the infirmary." As much as she tried she couldn't stop her tears.

"Eliana...please go to the infirmary. Tell them Falik is hurt."

She looked back at Falik. She squeezed his hand. Please Falik don't die...I can't bear to lose you...I'd wouldn't know what to do...

The healing had taken some of the edge off the pain but Falik knew that the damage inside was still bad. He turned his head slightly so that he could see Katherine. He tried to squeeze her hand back, to reassure her.

"I'm still here." He whispered weakly.

Katherine looked at Falik. She smiled slightly, but she just couldn't stop her tears. She held Falik's hand up to her wet cheek feeling the little warmth in his hand.

"Just alittle longer Falik...hold on alittle longer..." she whispered to him.

Eliana gulped. She knew this was serious. "I'll go right away. May the Gods be with you all." With that she and the footman dissapeared down the path, running toward the infirmary.

Katherine nodded at Eliana."Please hurry. I don't know how much longer he's going to last."

Katherine sat up against a bench that was near Falik. She still held his hand refusing to let it go. I don't even know how much I'm going to last...

Turning, Livia realized that Katherine was back. She sheathed her knife and asked the girl, "Katerine, do you need help with your shoulder? At least, I can stem the blood."

Katherine looked up at Livia. "Please..." she whispered "It just hasn't stopped bleeding yet...and truthfully I don't know how much longer I'm going to last...cause right now I just want to close my eyes and go to sleep..."

Eliana had rushed to the infirmary and grabbed the first healer she could. Now the page ran back, dragging along the healer, as fast as she possibly could. "Katherine! Falik! I'm back with help!" she cried, and quickly saw Katherine almost fall asleep. Eliana ran behind her and propped her up, shaking her awake. "Stay just a bit longer...just a bit longer..." she murmered as the healer began on their wounds.