The last few days of her studies having been some of the most strenuous of her stay there up until now, Chloe was probably glad for the break when the teachers announced that they'd have a long weekend. Her last class having been largely about magical theory rather than class, Chloe had elected to use the time more productively by taking a well-deserved nap, and since that had been her last class of the day, she now had four days of freedom to look forward to. She still had a mountain of work to get through, of course, but she figured that she could at least take the afternoon off for some leisure time.
The day was still young, and the snows had just melted at the dawn of spring, leaving the grounds around the Academy complex beautiful, if a little damp, and ready to be explored. The festival for the coming of spring down at the village, which lay about a mile away from the Academy, was set to begin today, so that was another option. She could also return to her room and perhaps find something to do there. Or perhaps she could go to the Academy library and see if any of her friends were there, and if they wanted to do anything. So many options....
It had been a difficult year for Ashley. When she'd arrived at the Academy after leaving Artmirst, she'd figured that all of her practical experience in combat magic and her teaching by Ozy would have let her breeze through all of the classes at the Academy. She'd been very wrong. The classes at the Academy had taught her to do things with magic she'd never have thought of before, and granted most of those things were practically useless, they had still required a degree of control and finesse that Ashley had quickly learned she did not possess. While her control of storm magic was as strong as ever, she had learned to use spells from a variety of different disciplines, though none of them with the degree that her professors could display.
She had manged to get through her first year, however, and now that she was into her second, the young mage had acclimated well to her academics. Not having to use her powers to defend herself from slavering rapists had certainly been relaxing when compared to her time in that dessicated corpse of a town, Artmirst.
The last of her classes of the day finally ended, Ashley was probably looking forward to some leisure time. The instructors had given them a four day weekend, and even though they'd also given her and her class a great deal of homework to complete over their break, she knew that it could all be completed last minute if need be. She was free to enjoy her afternoon as she chose, and she certainly wasn't spoiled for choice.
One of the male apprentices had been staring at her lately, particularly at places where his eyes shouldn't be, and Ashley had heard that he would be going down to the spring festival down at the village as soon as he got out of class, which happened to be at the same time as she did. He was three years her junior, and not the best of mages, but his father was some sort of local noble, and one time she'd seen him get into a fight with a group of older apprentices, whom he'd promptly taken apart with the fluid grace of a dancer and the power of a raging cyclone. That was an option, at any rate. She might also want to look through the library for one of her friends, or peruse the grounds now that spring had thawed the snows. Or, perhaps she could go back to her room and work on her studies if she could think of nothing else to do.
Ashley considered her room, briefly. It was cozy and quiet, she could use the practice, and study was her reason for being here in the first place. On the other hand the reason it was quiet was because nobody sane would be in their dorm today. And she could practically feel the air itself begging her to come outside and enjoy herself.
The grounds held a certain attraction. They would be nice this time of year, and she could have quiet there as well. She discarded that idea almost as quickly as study - she had spent several years doing little other then walking in the countryside, and it would take more then the familiar school grounds to tempt her to spend much time admiring nature.
Then there was the festival. All kinds of interesting things there. A golden opportunity to get news from distant lands first hand, to meet interesting people. And of course to buy interesting things, or at least look at them. And if someone she knew happened to be there, well, what was the harm in talking? The idea was certainly appealing on some fundamental level. But she couldn't help recalling her time in Artmirst and before, which left her a little wary of walking out with some man she didn't really know.
The library welled up in her mind. That would be little better then her room... but she was likely to find Jennifer there. Ashley had a healthy appetite for books, but the young crolian water mage spent far too much time in the library. It couldn't be healthy, especially on a day like this.
Ashley smiled, her mind made up. It was practically her duty to find her friend and bring her out to the fair. By force if necessary.
Her decision made, Ashley headed toward the library, and once she got there, began searching the massive room for her friend, Jennifer. The library at the Academy had hundreds of shelves and over a dozen study areas, as well as a plethora of hidden cubicles in which a student could pursue their studies, though they were also often used for certain 'extracurricular activities' as the librarians put it whenever they caught someone. Knowing that Jennifer would probably be in one of the cubicles, Ashley set out to find her. Most of them were empty, but after about ten minutes she peeked into one and spotted her friend with a pile of books and a roll of parchment sitting in front of her.
(for the sake of speed, I'm just going to have Ashley attempt to convince her to go outside. If you want something else, ignore the rest of this post, PM me and we'll work it out.)
After a minute or so of hushed conversation, Ashley manages to wear down Jenns resistance, and she finally agrees to accompany Ashley. She insists that she return her books first, however, so once they get that out of the way, Ashley is free to lead her friend wherever she'd like. The festival was due to start in a little while, but they'd still have a chance to explore the grounds around the Academy for a little while if they so chose.
Ashley shuddered slightly as she entered the library. It always felt like such an alien place. It wasn't just that before attending the Academy her idea of a "library" had been a single shelf full of books, it was also the fact that as her magical abilities developed she liked being separated completely from the open air less and less. In her room a slightly cracked window would do, and even in the winter the weather was at least reflected in the temperature and humidity. The library, however, took considerable pains to distance itself from the rest of the world. Damp and extremes of temperature would damage the books, of course, but it was still unnatural.
The feeling passed quickly, though. The library might be unnatural, but it wasn't strange, not anymore. As she approached the cubicles where Jenn would be if she was anywhere, she slowed down and hesitated. There was, of course, one reason why someone might choose to be alone in the library on a nice day. Well, almost alone. She didn't think Jenn was seeing anyone, but... the matter was put to rest when Ashely peeked into a cubicle and saw her friend alone, studying.
Ashley wiped the slight blush from her face, stepped into the entrance, and gave an exaggerated sigh. "Jennifer. You are the only person I've seen inside since I passed the front desk. We have almost a week to study, why are you here?"
The girl put up some arguments of course. "This is a serious assignment, Ashley. You always procrastinate, Ash. Did you even look at the length of this essay?" Ashley ignored them. It was clear that Jenn really wanted to be convinced to attend the festival, and might even have gone on her own if Ashley hadn't shown up. It also set her mind at ease with regards to the amount of work. If Jenn had really been worried, it wouldn't have been so easy to convince her.
Outside, a warm breeze greeted them, blowing their hair back for a moment before calming down. That always seemed to happen around Ashley, and Jenn was never sure if that was because Ashley reflexively worked her magic, or if one just noticed it more around Ashley because she seemed to delight in it so, to the point of deliberately wearing clothing that billowed dramatically in the breeze. Either way, by the time the two girls reached the festival even Jennifer was obviously enjoying herself.
Jenn easily convinced of the idea that it would be best to spend the first day of spring outside, rather than with her nose in a book, she and Ashley made their way outside without incident. The breeze, while still rather cool for Ashleys tastes, was extremely refreshing after the dry, still and claustrophobic library. The two girls made their way down the hill which led up to the front door of the academy, which they'd just exited. The sun was warm, and even though the stone road leading to the village was slightly damp, the trip was extremely pleasant.
Perception: Ashley fails.
Had she not been so enthralled by the wonderful spring air, and the beautiful morning sky, Ashley might have noticed a series of strange booms coming form the South East. As it was, she was oblivious, and Jenn only tilted her head in that direction for a moment, before returning to the conversation at hand. "Do you think they'll have those apples covered in that blue stuff again? They were wonderful! I hope they do! You should try one this time, I'm sure you'll love it!" Jenn continued, on the subject of what might be at the festival. Ashley hadn't had the heart to tell her what she suspected the sweet blue syrup covering her favorite treat was, and she didn't feel as though she did now either. It wasn't as though it would be easy or comfortable to explain to her what a shorn weed was either.
Continuing after Ashleys response to her comment on apples as they passed over the bridge crossing the stream between the village and the academy, Jennifer went on to say; "So..... Who are you looking forward to seeing?" She spoke suggestively, and Ashley remembered the young man who'd been staring at her lately, and tried to remember his name. Charles? Was that it? That was probably who Jennifer was hinting at.
The two continued to chat as they walked, getting almost to the village before they heard the sounds of the festival. The sounds of drums and harps and flutes and lyres hung in the breeze around them, growing steadily more powerful with every step. As they got closer, they could hear the sounds of laughter and singing beneath the music, and that combined with the wonderful weather put the two girls at ease. The village in sight, they hurried forward until they reached the archway marking its entrance.
Buttersville, as the village was called, wasn't particularly large or wealthy, but the place had been free of conflict for so long, protected as it was by the mages and monks from the academy, that the people were cheerful and boisterous. There were stalls with dishes of all types, including Jenns favorite, which she immediately started dragging Ashley towards. The band was energetic, if not refined, with a single exception. Playing the pipes for the band was a man with the lower half of a goat, and a pair of rams horns arching up from his head. A satyr, if Ashley recalled her Fey Studies classes correctly. She'd never seen any of the creatures in Artmirst, though she'd met some of their goat-headed cousins, which most people simply called gruffs. As Jenn payed for two apples covered in thick blue syrup, the satyr potted them, and upon seeing Jenn turn toward her, offering her one of the treats, the fey gave her a knowing wink. Whether she accepted it or not, the festival offered a series of contests, some of which involved magic, and some of which didn't.
The Targets contest she'd nearly won last year, and the man that had beaten her had left shortly after, his apprenticeship complete. The Discs contest, in which one tried to get a series of small ceramic discs to stack up onto a plate, was another option. The Dance contest, while open only to women, was something Ashley wasn't sure she wanted to try, given that she had to dance in front of a private audience of judges, with the points being awarded on how 'arousing' the participant could be. Jenn had won it last year, though she'd refused to tell Ashley how such a bookish girl could win such a sexual contest. Finally, the Wrestling competition, which she knew Charles was competing in, was open to both sexes, though Ashley doubted her ability to win it.
(Pick a contest if you like. Or, Ashley can just relax. Up to you.)
Chloe stretched and stifled a yawn. So many options she thought to herself the village festival sounded tempting, but making a dent in her workload would let her enjoy the weekend more. She stopped at the door to her dorm room made her decision. A walk to the village would help wake her up and she had seen enough of libraries for the moment all she had to do was to take care of her books and grab some money. No telling what treasures awaited at the festival. Though perhaps getting some of her friends to come along wouldn't be a bad idea just in case. She thought a moment longer and decided against it. It was only 1 mile to the village what could go wrong.
"Who am I looking forward to seeing? I have no idea what you're talking about. I just needed to get you out of that library and into the fresh air."
In the fair, Ashley turned the 'spiced' apple over in her hands, not sure if she should eat it. It would be rather rude not to eat it without explaining why, though, and even then it might be a little shaky. It couldn't be very strong, after all, or everyone would notice. Then the satyr winked at her, and she decided that she certainly wouldn't be eating it in front of him.
As they walked around the stalls, Ashley absentmindedly took a bite of her apple. As soon as she realized what she'd done, she blushed and imagined that she could already feel its effects. Or it could just be psychosomatic. Either way it didn't feel very strong - at least not yet - and the apple was quite good. She endeavored to finish it before anyone else could recognize just what it was.
After some idle chatter with Jenn, she decided that she would have to enter a contest. The 'dance' contest was of course out of the question. Ashley wasn't very good at dancing, and certainly not with how it was practiced here. Though after that apple they might just appreciate her... but no.
The idea of the wrestling contest was also a bit enhanced by her apple. She couldn't help blushing as she imagined being pinned by Charles. But that would be like throwing herself at him, and it was equally likely that she'd lose to someone else.
And since she'd never had the patience for the disks, that left Target Shooting as her only real option. It was also the only one she had a good chance of winning. Winning was always satisfying. It could also impress people, though of course this was a secondary concern. After all, she hadn't been the one making eyes at other people, so she wasn't the one that needed to do the impressing, right?
"I think I'll do the target shooting competition. You going to dance again?"
And that was an interesting thought. Jenn had won the dancing contest last year. And she had eaten at least one of those apples last year as well. Could it really be that she knew what the apples did? It wasn't impossible even if she didn't know about the Shorn, and it put a different twist on giving an apple to Ashley. If she wanted Ashley to start talking about boys, it was actually a fairly clever move.
Ashley smiled, feeling a grudging respect for the move, if so it had been. And wondering how she might get back at the girl. It didn't have to come right away.
After heading to her dormitory and dropping off her books, Chloe proceeds through the practically deserted hallways, heading for the front entrance of the Academy. It seems like most of the students, as well as the teachers, are taking the opportunity to be outdoors. After going through the main door, and pausing to feel the cool spring wind on her face, she heads down the road, toward the village, which was called Buttersville. The walk took about half an hour, and Chloe was in no hurry, so the festival was in full swing by the time she reached the archway marking the village entrance.
She had heard the boisterous music form the road for the last ten minutes, and as she got closer Chloe couldn't help but smile. The band was extremely energetic, if lacking in finesse, with the exception of the pipes player, who was easily the best Chloe had ever heard. Upon entering the village proper, she saw why: The band stage took up about forty square feet, and the pipes player was standing in the front, rams horns curling over his head and hairy goat-legs tapping the ground in rhythm with the music he was playing. The satyr seemed totally engrossed in playing his flute, and he had dozens of people openly dancing in time with the music in the square.
There were many options for things to do, the first of which might be to grab herself something to eat. The festival had numerous treats, such as apples dipped in a sweet blue syrup. Alternatively, Chloe might try her hand at one of the many contests that were played at the fair. The Targets contest, which required that she own her own weapon to enter with, was probably a bust, given that she had no weapon to enter it with. The Discs contest, in which one tried to get a series of small ceramic discs to stack up onto a plate using magic, was an option that she might try, though she wasn't much practiced in force or wind magic, which were the two most useful options. The Dance contest, which was open only to women, offered the greatest prizes, though she'd heard that the only way to win it was to perform as lewdly as possible without actually revealing anything, which probably explained why the judging was private. Finally, the Wrestling competition was available to both men and women. Of course, she could just relax, which would cost her nothing, and wouldn't risk embarrassment.
Ashley wasn't sure if anyone else, besides possibly a couple of the teachers, knew what the blue syrup truly was, so at least she'd be spared that embarrassment. Though, from his suggestive wink, it was clear that the satyr had some idea of the origins of her treats blue coating. As she bit into it, she felt slightly warmer, but nothing more, even as she quickly finished the treat, faster even than Jenn did. "How did you finish it so fast? I thought you didn't like them?" Her friend said, blue syrup smeared around her lips. "You've got it all over your face too!"
At her decision to enter the shooting contest, and her question, Jenn replies; "Yeah, I should probably go sign up for that, now that you mention it." and she quickly heads off, licking blue syrup from her face and fingers, as she'd finished her apple by now. She returned a moment later, now mostly clean except for a spot on her right cheek, and said; "It'll be a while before it's my turn, so I can watch you shoot. It looks like the line's pretty short for yours, so let's go!"
The two arrive at the target shooting contest a moment later, which was run by a grizzled old one eyed man named Vartath. He'd fought for Therion for almost forty years, and had retired here about a decade ago to start a farm. upon seeing Ashley, the old soldier smiled widely, showing a mouth that was missing over half of its teeth, and croaked; "Ahhh.... The would-be champion returns! Here to see how you fare now that Eric's gone eh? Well, we'll see how you do then missy! Step right up, you know the drill! The current record's a ninety five points, let's see you beat that!" Knowing that she'd scored a hundred and ten points last year, Ashley felt a degree of earned confidence as she stepped up to the plate. She had seven shots, and there were about thirty different targets, with each being worth varying points on difficulty.
(Some hidden rolls later......)
Her first shot, aimed at a middle value target worth only fifteen points, missed completely, going wide by almost an inch, which brought a roar of laughter form the crowd behind her. Her second shot, for the same target, hit the mark, and now that she was back into the swing of things, Ashley aimed for harder targets. Her next four shots went well enough, all of them earning her points. She took out the two thirty point targets, as well as another fifteen and a ten point target. That left her with one shot, which she loaded into her gun. She had eighty five points, only ten away form the current record. But, if she wanted to make sure that she won, she'd have to try for something more valuable. There were plenty of ten point targets left, which were easy to hit, as well as a few fifteen point targets,and finally, there was the fifty point target, which was hardest to hit, but would guarantee her the win. What would she do?
Chloe frowned many of the games seem to be physical in nature and she wasn't exactly an amazon warrior. Still she is well versed in the school of body and could off set her physical prowess at lest for a short time.
She went over to the candy coated apple booth and ordered one. While eating the sweet treat she decided to at lest ask if the target contest would let her use her attack magic as her weapon it couldn't hurt after all this was a festival. If that turns out to be a bust she could enter the dance contest.. though looking down she wasn't exactly the most endowed woman in town however it did hold a certain improper excitement. Maybe should get an eye on the competition before attempting. If that all fails or she loses her nerve she could try the disk competition and at lest listen to the Satyr and maybe have a dance or two.
(I'm going to assume that magical augmentation is a no-no, otherwise any mage contestants would already be using it, and since this is just outside magical academy that's probably quite a few people...)
Ashley frowned, and did her best to wipe the goo from her face before she responded. "Did I say that? I haven't actually had one before, really." She considered licking her fingers clean as her friend had done, but decided against it. The stuff might not be as strong as she'd feared, but she still wasn't going to go out of her way to eat more of it. Instead she rubbed her hands together until it fell off, and rubbed at her face a little more as well, until she was fairly sure it wasn't visible anymore.
=====
After her somewhat lackluster start, Ashley stared at the remaining targets and reloaded her gun for the final shot. The fifty-point target probably wasn't a great idea. It would certainly be a spectacular finish if she hit it, but it was much more likely to be another miss.
A ten-point target wouldn't get her a win, and so was right out. Even the fifteen didn't seem a tempting target, leaving her very vulnerable to being picked off by a later contestant, but at least she was likely to hit it, and it would put her in the lead. Still behind her previous year's record, but that unlucky miss at the start was the difference, and it wasn't like she'd been practicing her sharpshooting much in the last year...
Fifteen or fifty. A fairly sure slim lead, or a small chance of a resounding victory. The fact that she'd missed her first shot at a 15-point target said to play it safe. Another part of her said that it was just a game, and that the chance of explosive victory was worth the risk of a mediocre placement.
Ashley finished reloading and took a shooting stance, feet shoulder width apart and both hands on her gun, now pointing at the ground in front of her. She closed her eyes, and mentally pushed everything but the targets into the background. She felt the air around her, made sure she understood the way it was moving. She opened her eyes, and brought her revolver up to sight on the target, exhaling as she did so. She froze in place for just long enough to feel her own heart beat twice, and fired before the third. At the fifty point target.
The man at the stand hands Chloe an apple coated in thick blue syrup, charging her only a single coin for it. The stuff coating the apple was extremely thick and sugary, and the apple itself was fresh and crisp, altogether producing a wonderful treat. As she finished it, she began to feel a strange warmth spreading throughout her body, which Chloe quickly attributed to a sugar high.
Heading toward the shooting contest, she found a man with one eye waiting for her, sitting on a bench in front of a table. When she told him that she didn't have any ranged weapon, he said; "Too bad, girlie. We don't let mages use their magic, else it would just be another magic contest. That's what the plates are for, ye might have better luck there." Turning away, Chloe went over to the booth for the dance, where a motherly looking woman with glasses and a blue robe sat waiting. When Chloe approached her, she looked up from a sheet, and said; "How can I help you, hun? D'you want to enter the dance contest? There's an opening in a few minutes if you like."
Chloe looked around to see if any other girls competing where present. Um yes Miss I do have a couple of questions to ask first. Ummm what type of dancing is the contest about and what is the prize. Chloe fidgets a little feeling slightly warmer than normal in the cool spring air maybe it was from embarrassment and she hoped she wasn't blushing. Which only made her think about the gossip she had herd about the contest. Maybe it wasn't to late to back out before she embarrassed herself plus she didn't even have an extra set of cloths to change into that where fit for dancing. Her heart started to beat faster from being nervous as she waited for her answers.
(Yep. No magic except for the plate tossing contest.)
time seemed to slow down for as Ashley squeezed the trigger, firing her last round of the competition. The sound of her gun going off in her hands, and the feel of the weapons kick, was seemingly amplified a hundred fold in that split second. Then, just as the moment came, it passed, as time sped up. At first, she thought that she'd missed, the 50 point target seemingly undamaged. Another second later the truth was revealed, however, as the tiny clay target collapsed in on itself, the shot probably having only clipped it, which was still enough to break the fragile pot. A chorus of cheers and wild clapping, accompanied by a few raucous whistles, erupted form behind her. When Ashley turned, Vartath was grinning like a wolf, clapping along with all the rest, and then beckoning her over. When she approached, she could barely hear the old man over the noise around her; "Congratulations missy! A hundred and thirty five points! No one's beating that! You'll have to wait an hour or so to make it official, but that prize is yours for sure!"
Once she got out of the little booth that was used for the target competition, Jenn came running up to her, smiling, and said; "That was amazing! Where did you learn to shoot like that?" The crowd was starting to disperse now, and someone was talking to Vartath, one of the farmers from the village by the looks of him. Ashley was now free to enjoy the festival however she liked, perhaps entering another contest, or just relaxing for the rest of the night.
Ashley felt a huge grin spread over her face as the little target finally collapsed. She habitually replaced the spent bullet in her revolver before sequestering it about her person, and turned around to face the crowd.
She listened to the old man's instructions, then did her best to disappear through the crowd. She found Jenn again, and accepted her compliment.
"Lots of practice. And a bit of luck too. It was a useful skill to have, before I came here."
That was true enough. She had originally started carrying a pistol when she'd been left defenseless after a long fight because she had become magically exhausted. Since then she'd found that fewer people messed with her in the first place if they could see a weapon on her, and at times it had even been convenient to leave people ignorant about her magical abilities.
Ashley considered watching other people shoot until the contest closed, but it would just make her nervous every time someone decent came up, and there wasn't anything she could do to influence it in any case. Fueled by the adrenalin of victory she also considered heading for the disc contest to test her magical mettle, but that competition was likely to be stiffer and wasn't really something she practiced. Plus she should give other people a chance to win. She gregariously decided not to enter a second competition.
Instead, she would stroll around the fair with Jenn, seeing what there was to see. She would also of course have to go with Jenn to the dancing contest and support her friend, even if she couldn't actually watch. Perhaps she would even see who had won the other contests, after she officially found out if she'd won.
The woman tipped her head forward, allowing her glasses to fall down the bridge of her nose so that she could look Chloe in the eye, before she responded; "Well, you must have heard the rumors about it. You've got to be as.... Arousing, as possible without actually showing anything. Any clothing comes off and you get disqualified from the contest. It wasn't always this way, but the judges are all male, and pigs to boot, so this is what its turned into. The winner gets 200 in hard coin come sunset, with the runner up getting 20. The dancing is private, so you won't know how anyone else does, but the judges will all hold up a card with a number form 1 to 5 that will tell you how they think you did. Signing up is free, so if you're interested, we have an opening right now. So, what's it gonna be?"
Chloe pondered her words a moment. So the rumors are true which both excited her and made her a slightly ill at the same time. 200 denarii was alot of money but prancing about a stage for the lewd entertainment of men was not how her parents raised her. Yet this was most likely a once in a life time opportunity. Right now was her chance to live a little before the trappings of life..... well trapped her. But what if one of the Professors or fellow students saw her she would die from embarrassment. The internal debate raged for what seemed an eternity. "I'll do it!" she said a little loader than she was expecting. "You only live once right!" she threw the other woman a slight smile. A new uneasy feeling swelled up in her as she made her way to the prep area. She tried to console herself. It wasn't going to be anything obscene she could make sure of that and you can use a little magic to improve her grace to make sure she didn't stumble over her own feet. Its not like my parents will be here they are days away in the capital and its private so no one should even know I did it. Anyway she felt her chances of winning where most likely slim and hoped the disk competition would still be going on when she finished here.
(The Academy has a much longer time before shit starts happening than the rest of the locations.)
Ashley and Jennifer enjoy the festival for a while, Jenn waiting to be called for her turn at the dance and Ashley for the winner of the shooting contest to be announced. There was a lot of dancing and cajoling of all sorts, but Jenn wanted to save her energy for her more private dance, and Ashley wasn't particularly in the mood for it, so they went over to the wrestling contest. There was a sizeable crowd around the ring, which was little more than a dirt circle surrounded by a wooden fence. Currently two sweaty shirtless men, both locals judging by the dirty condition of their thick trousers, were busy trying to shove each other over. Neither was having much luck, but the crowd around them was energized enough that the spectacle was enjoyable. When one of the two finally did manage to push the other over, the crowd of under a hundred roared like a crowd of thousands, which only grew louder as he climbed onto his opponent and the two continued their contest on the ground. It was another ten minutes before the fight ended, the man who'd originally been knocked over having made a startling turn and pulled his opponent into a headlock. There was a lot of coin changing hands after that, along with the expected laughter and curses.
The two men left the ring once the loser had recovered, allowing the next two to enter, one a young local boy and the other a female apprentice from the Academy. Ashley didn't recognize either, but Jenn said she knew the girl, someone from far to the South and East. The boy was easily a foot taller than her despite not being more than sixteen judging by the look of him, and his bulk was enough the Ashley doubted if the girl could even move if he simply tackled her and laid on top of her. He apparently thought the same, as he charged her as soon as the bell rang, and was promptly brought to the ground as she side-stepped his awkward attack and kicked out his legs form under him. She jumped on top of him, and ten seconds later it was over, the boys arms pulled up behind his back in a way that looked extremely painful, while she sat calmly on his back.
As the next fight was about to begin, Ashley heard Jenns name being called by the lady who ran the dance booth. The two of them left the area around the wrestling ring and headed there. After Ashley wished her good luck, Jenn went past her into a tent, and about fifteen minutes later she came out, blushing brightly but with a wide grin. Her clothing was slightly skewed, but she otherwise looked fine as she quickly blurted out; "Two eights and a seven! That's even better than I did last year! I'm sure to win!"
About ten minutes after that, Ashley heard her name called by Vartath, who was ambling toward her through the crowd. "You've got a prize to collect missy! Come right this way!" He said, grinning his usual toothless grin. Then, before she could respond, he turned away and started ambling back toward his desk. When they arrived there, he handed her a box containing her winnings, a hundred denarii.
(Things should happen after this, assuming Ashley doesn't change her mind about entering another contest.)
Ashley watched the wrestling match with moderate interest. The two men were well matched, and neither was wearing a shirt. On the other hand they didn't look like students, and Ashley found herself with some of the institutional prejudice against the men and women outside the academy, who were mostly illiterate.
It wasn't something Ashley had thought about before attending the Academy. Her own mother had never tried to teach Ashley to read, but she'd picked up a few words in an informal sort of way on the streets, and then taken to it like a fish to water when the old wizard Ozymandias had taught her. But even then everyone else she knew hadn't really cared about reading even if they could. In the academy, with everyone around her at least as interested in books as she was, that had changed, and so had her perception of people who didn't - or couldn't - read.
Her thoughts turned back to the wrestling men when the crowd started yelling. She threw her own voice into the mix, and then waited for the next match. It looked to be a little more interesting in that on one side was a woman from the academy and on the other a man, but less interesting in that the two were clearly not well matched. When the match turned out just as quick as Ashley had predicted, but in the opposite direction, Ashley gave a somewhat more enthusiastic cheer.
Then it was time to support Jenn in the dancing competition. It was a pity the thing had devolved into little more then a strip tease, but Ashley nevertheless wished her friend luck, and waited outside. After a few minutes, Jenn came running, clearly happy, proclaiming her score.
"Ha, that's great! We'll take home half the prizes in the fair, between the two of us." Ashley studiously ignored her friend's shifted clothing, and did her best not to imagine exactly what the contest had entailed, for Jenn. For a moment she thought she felt the effects of the apple again, which was odd since she hadn't really noticed it since taking her turn at the shooting competition...
A few minutes later, her own reward collected, she walked back towards the dancing tent with Jenn. For a moment Ashley's thoughts turned back to the reason she'd first decided she wanted to come to the fair. But she hadn't actually seen him, and the other reasons were just as valid. More valid, in fact. Jenn really would have stayed in the library, and that was just wrong.
"Well, aren't you glad I pulled you out of that library? But... I think it's about time to be going back, once we hear the final results for the dance. We do have a bit of work to do, and I think I'd prefer a proper dinner to more, erm, candied apples. And it's not like anything else is happening."
