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Our procession heads uphill We live on the ruh to be Cohborn status After we cross the saddle between the two hills, we cli’s Hill than I have ever been in ardens and spacious courtyards How beautiful the sea looks from up here and how lovely the harbor with its masts and colorfully painted ships Out on the water, sails flash like wings atop the waves Their easy grace makes me think of my mother and sisters Tears seep down o? What will they do?

The brass-striped gates of Garon Palace looe halts My lips are dusty and aron steps down and to ht up to me The scent of cardamom and rant oils to cover the sround like a soldier

"Let me be clear, Jessae for your father’s good behavior A man like hihts to win regardless of your fate You are worth nothing to me except as an adversary I have taken on considerable debts in order to bring your father into my household If you do not pass muster at the stable, I will have you sold into servitude to irl like you would be welcoold mines Do you understand me?"

"Yes, my lord" My voice is little more than a scrape

He beckons over a stout wos and tunic worn by adversaries She cannot possibly run co one hand The stu the Garon Palace servants "Tana, if she does not pass muster, return her to my stewards and they will dispose of her"

"Yes, rand front gate opens and the carriage, servants, and guards proceed in to the palace Beyond the open gate I see pavilions, gardens, and courtyards stairstepped up the hillside, as beautiful as a painting

"Girl! Stop daydrea and come with me!"

The woate, also painted with the horned and winged fire dog ate stands open, flanked by a pair of guards who give s walk in hopeful and walk out rejected

Inside, a Fives court takes up e central courtyard An elderly Patron h the traditional foreries," a formal pattern dance meant to imbue adversaries with the mental discipline necessary to succeed on the court Four wohts, a standard beginner’s configuration of Trees ToPatron woman with her hair clubbed up in the style of the old country I have never seen a Patron wo the Fives

Tana leadsshelter where theMy mouth waters She ushers me into the dim confines of a bathhouse built into the wall that separates the stable fro

She gestures at my shroud "I didn’t know people still wore those While you wash I’ll get you clothes for today If you pass muster, you’ll be measured for an off-duty tunic and sandals, two sets of Fives gear, and palace livery for for, are you?"

"No"

"They’ll explain about that, if you stay," she says as I tug off the shroud "Don’t go in the hot room or pool; just use the washrooivesWhere did Lord Gargaron get you?"

"He picked me out of some rubbish that was throay"

Mother always says that bitterness is poison but I a look, s and leaves The entry curtain slaps down behind her

The floor of the changing roorinificently set up with a trough in which to stand, sieved basins hung froes lined up on shelves Pipes bring water, with levers to start and stop the flow Because there is no one around I creep into the hot room just to see what it looks like Steaular pool Voices echo through the cha a palace bathhouse that shares the sa system I scramble back to the washroom