--Alter-Ego--
Chapter 7

From the thunderous scowl on Neal's face, Kel could tell that Ozen's actions at the ball the night before had not gone down well. "It's unbelievable," Neal spat furiously, thrusting his spoon into his porridge. "Bloody ridiculous. Of course he took a shine to Mia, it was so obvious; I should've taken my practice sword and hacked his eyes out before he had a chance to set them on her."

The others sat at the breakfast table in silence, petrified that if they spoke, Neal would turn his wrath on them instead. An awkward sympathy radiated from the other boys, while Kel kept her head down, barely able to keep her eyes open. Though she had escaped the ball early thanks to Ozen's encouragement, the encounter with Joren had left her shaken and then troubled. Exhaustion had swamped her thoughts when she first slipped into bed, and she had surrendered to sleep quickly. But then a fragmented nightmare woke her, the details of which now escaped her, and she had not been able to drop off again due to a sense of foreboding that remained from her dreams. She knew sleep would not answer her beckon until she resolved the mysteries of Joren's words and the depth of his knowledge.

The Stone Mountains were shrewd, and their connections ran thickly throughout the Palace and those in its employ. It was possible Kel's secret had been leaked - perhaps someone had seen her emerge from her rooms dressed as Mia, and questioned why a respectable noblewoman would have been paying a visit to the disgraced Girl page. From previous scuffles between Joren and Kel, the news of which had circulated the palace's population several times over, everyone would know that bizarre and uncommon events relating to Keladry of Mindelan would surely be of interest to Joren of Stone Mountain. There was no doubt he could (and would) pay to hear such information.

Perhaps, even, he had figured it out himself. If he had been keeping a close enough eye on her, he would have noticed Kel's odd behaviour over the past few days. Perhaps he had noted sneakier things - how Mia conveniently disappeared each evening after she left the ball, and reappeared as she went to the next, never being seen at other times and not seeming to know any other nobles. Further investigation would reveal that she didn't even have a guest room in the Palace, and nobody had seen her arrive. Add that to any sightings of her regularly going in or out of Kel's rooms (though she had tried her best not to be seen, she couldn't be completely sure) and the correlation between Kel and Mia's physical attributes such as height and build, and it would all sum up to be pretty suspicious, with one key suspect.

The only conclusion Kel had come to was that she was doing something unbelievably stupid. Maybe the Lioness had pretended to be a boy from the moment she entered the Palace to the moment she gained her Knighthood, but at least she'd only changed her gender so she at least had a background. Juggling two selves, one of whom had only come into being a few days ago, was overwhelmingly difficult. How she'd managed to pull it off up until now was a mystery even to Kel. She could only hope that nobody would start to question Mia before Kel could finally be rid of her.

In any case, she couldn't be sure about what Joren knew, so for now, she'd just have to wait and see. It was almost dawn before Kel finally accepted this, so then she had risen, performed a quick pattern dance to clear her head, and begun to get ready for breakfast. Though she had been quite refreshed earlier, an overdue weariness was already creeping in, which led to her current torpid state over her porridge.

It seemed Neal was still grumbling. "And the worst thing is that I got announced with Mia, but the moment we got to the bottom of the stairs, a bunch of her rabid admirers swept her away! I barely had a word with her, let alone a dance! It's not fair. Then Roald, the lucky bugger, stepped in like some gallant fairytale Prince and rescued her from all the salivating fools banging heads over who got to dance with her first… then she only seemed to have eyes for him - at least until Ozen stepped in, anyway."

Finally someone else piped up; it was Faleron, who up till now had sat quietly with the others. He quickly related the story of how he had come across Mia being interrogated by Joren and had told him to leave, when Roald stepped in and took her back to her rooms. Though Faleron's telling of the tale was a very neutral account, revealing no spite towards Roald for stealing Mia away, Neal apparently took it that inside, Faleron was secretly burning with hatred.

Neal stirred his porridge disinterestedly and noted, apparently to no-one in particular, though the volume was quite loud enough for Roald to hear, "Well, I hope he doesn't get too excited. He is going to have an arranged marriage, after all."

Kel was suddenly bristling with anger, her lethargy forgotten. "Neal, you're acting like a spoilt brat," she declared loudly, much to the surprise of her year-mates. "That's the kind of petty conduct I'd expect from my youngest relations." He gaped at her, his mouth falling open to such a degree that the back of his throat became visible to anyone who cared to look. "I'm disappointed that you've become so shallow over some court lady," Kel added, before returning her attention to her breakfast. She avoided the gazes of everyone save Roald; they probably thought she'd gone mad overnight to show so much emotion in one go, but when she met Roald's eyes, he smiled warmly, appreciation thawing his regal façade. Kel allowed the corners of her lips to rise slightly in reply, then she occupied herself with eating, hoping to bestow some much-needed energy to her bone-weary body.

Though still a little irritated by Neal's words at breakfast, Kel partnered with him for most of the training that morning, since their abilities were at similar levels. He did not say anything, but Neal looked thoroughly sorry for himself, keeping his eyes down and his defence feeble. Kel didn't have the heart to give him a good thrashing - he had so many openings in his current state, Kel could have had him unconscious on the floor in a flash - but nor did she want to forgive him until he apologised for saying such things about Roald. They continued to spar inattentively, practice swords occasionally faltering as a thought consumed them.

It seemed he finally caved in. "Kel, about earlier," he began, his earnest eyes asking her attention. "I'm sorry for being so immature. I am but a fool in love. Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! For I ne'er saw true beauty--"

"Stop gossiping, Queenscove!" Wyldon bellowed, drawing a snicker from some of the other pages. "We have visitors!" His warning acted only as a further distraction as Neal stopped completely to allow his eyes to scour the area, finally landing on a group of people being led down a path from the Palace.

As they drew closer, Kel recognised several of the faces from the group; Tyran courtiers, it seemed, and, at their head, Prince Ozen. Recalling the night before and the dance they had shared, his handsome face so very close to hers, Kel could not extinguish the blush that flourished in her cheeks.

Despite her best efforts to hide it, Neal noticed quickly. A snide comment escaped his lips, prior apology forgotten. "Oh, don't tell me you're falling for him too," he seethed.

"I'm surprised you even realised I'm capable of something so feminine," Kel found herself replying. It was the second time Neal's jaw had dropped to the floor that day, and it was just as gratifying as the first. Somehow, it seemed that this was revenge for all the time she had mooned over him while he had been blissfully ignorant, his attention occupied by so many others. Her alter-ego, Mia, may have snared his feelings, but it only made Kel hate Neal more; he had the choice of two people, both almost identical, except one was his comrade and friend, and one was a stranger, and plastered in face paint. And he preferred the latter.

Kel noted belatedly that the other boys were leaving the practice court, anticipating a quick bath and some hot food in their stomachs. She followed them, not looking back at Neal. Despite the satisfaction her retort had brought, she feared that should she try to talk to him further, it would only ignite her temper once again. Perhaps she no longer liked Neal romantically, and thought him fickle and shallow, but she wanted to keep their friendship. Better to cool off before she confronted him once more.

Roald appeared at her side, a crease of concern in his brow. "Are you okay?" he asked. "I heard you blow up at Neal just now."

"I'm fine," she informed him discreetly, wary of the presence of others. "I just got impatient. The events in Neal's life are normally quite comical; it just doesn't seem funny when my feelings are involved, and he's clueless."

Roald offered an encouraging smile. "Well, take it easy. You seem tired."

"I am," Kel admitted. "Mithros knows how I'm going to get through tonight."

"We'll manage," Roald said.

"I hope so," Kel replied, managing a feeble smile. "Anyway, we part ways here. I'll see you at lunch."

Roald bade her a similar farewell before they took different paths - Kel to her rooms, and Roald to the baths. As she ascended the usual route, she remembered the group of Tyran courtiers and Prince Ozen, who were apparently on a tour of the Palace. She paused momentarily to search them out. They weren't difficult to spot, though the distance between them made making out faces a challenge. Kel squinted, then, turning swiftly as though alarmed by what she had seen, she fled up the path.

Was it just Kel's imagination, or had Ozen been staring right at her?

Phew! It sure has been a while since I updated this story. (Like... nine months!!) Well, here's my treat to you! I'm afraid another update drought awaits you - I've got to get my exam head on because the next three months are going to be GCSEs, GCSEs, and more GCSEs. Sigh. Anyway, how was the chapter? Kel is a bit OOC in here, I suppose... though I think my writing has matured a little (or maybe that's just my imagination.) Anyhow, I'd like to take the opportunity to thank everyone for their support in advance, since you probably won't hear anything from me until July at least. Best of luck to everyone (those who are taking exams this year in particular)!! Thank you for reading!!