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When he got up to go urinate in the uard accompanied hi Merely walked with Kip, and held him back for a moment while he checked that there were no assassins in the toilet Ridiculous

It was a relief to get out of bed in the htest Several older, second-year students ca hall

Kip was ravenous, but he got noline He reached the end of the line in dread Tables were laid out in long rows, and students cluether with friends

Which I don’t have

In fact, Kip had quite the opposite He caught sight of Elio, whose ar The boy was talking with his friends when he saw Kip He shut up instantly and blanched

I should go over there I should go and sit with the happened, but assert hest boys in the class

But he didn’t have it in hiuard following hi He looked around at the lines of students, tables, food, servants, and slaves No Blackguards anywhere For so confidence he had and knocked it over with a breath They’d seen what he’d done They’d decided he wasn’t worth protecting

Then Kip saw soe spectacles who’d sat behind hiuard training class They were the outcasts--Kip could tell ily, with those Blackguard hopefuls ere destined to fail out early and were et in from some vain hope of their own or their masters’ There was, of course, space at their table, and space around theious Kip went over

"Can you read?" the boy asked as Kip came close His flip-down spectacles currently had the blue lens down over one eye, and the yellon over the other

Kip hesitated Did they not want hiet to lecture if you can’t If you can, you need to check the work schedule Hold on, you had that--Oh, never o stuff herself"

"Really?" a honored her and tucked into his food

"Why are you sitting with us?"

"You looked nicer than the with a toss of his head toward the tough boys "You want ed "No," the boy with spectacles said

"So, what are your names?" Kip asked

The bespectacled boy pointed to hiirl, "Tiziri," then to a gangly, gap-toothed boy, "that’s Aras, and--"

They were interrupted by a girl’s voice "Hey, did you all hear about Elio getting his halos tapped by the new--" She cut off as she saw Kip

"And… that would be Adrasteia Classic, Teia"

"We’ve met," Kip said dryly

Teia opened her mouth, then sat down silently, defeated

"I didn’t hear," Aras said "What, neho? What happened?"

"Aras," Teia said through gritted teeth

"What? Was there a fight?" Aras asked

"I don’t know if I’d call it a fight," Kip said

"You? You were in a fight? With Elio?" Aras said

"You broke his arm in three places!" Adrasteia--Teia?--said