[b]Chen![/b]

+So to summarize, you don't really have a strong relationship with anybody yet,+ thought Jessic. +And that makes sense. You're very young and you're also very offline so you don't have history or long distance relationships to call on. You're engaged in a clash of hearts with people your heart is pretty ambivalent about. No wonder you're finding it hard.+

She shifts about, lying down flat across the bench. +And this isn't a problem that's unique to you. Kikil, for example - you're scared of her, right? That's her rep. If you came to blows tomorrow then she would be spooky and mysterious because while you don't know her you [i]do[/i] know fear and how you relate to it. It's, like, a handle on her. A sign of how you're supposed to relate to her. And so even if you'd never exchanged three sentences before you'd be able to go into that fight knowing who [i]you[/i] were meant to be. And that's what I think this problem really stems from, Chen. You're trying to get under everyone's masks as soon as you meet them. You're not engaging with the stories they're trying to tell you.+

She looked off at the distant arena. +That handmaiden you came with, Yue? She's the opposite. She just buys into everyone's narratives so sincerely that she throws them off guard. They buy into hers in exchange. And if you feel like you're being trapped by other people's expectations, consider that they're trying to support the narrative they think you're telling them. Before today I assumed that your narrative was the unstoppable pure-hearted prodigy and would have proceeded based on the idea that's who you wanted to be.+

[b]Rose![/b]

"Oh?" said Keron, eyes filling with a terrible amusement. "Princess Chen? You think she can save you here? More importantly, you think that when she does she'll find anything other than a perfectly trained slave dancer?"

The handmaiden behind you twists your arms, sending you to your knees before the Countess. She uncrosses her legs and then bends forwards, a long fingernail tracing your ear all the way down to your chin, which she tilts upwards so she can see your eyes.

"You silly little thing," she said, putting her hand on the vein in your throat, "I can hear your heart pounding," her hand slid up to cover your mouth, "I can feel your breath panting," she seized your chin and pulled you up, close, until you were inches away from her. "I can feel your body trembling. You wish you weren't Princess Chen's, don't you? You wish you were mine, you lust-crazed slut. You wish you were mine - and you're too much of a submissive to act on that wish. You won't be mine until I drag Princess Chen in here and make her tell you that you [i]both[/i] belong to me, will you? Because you would never disobey your mistress no matter how much you want to."

She flicked you away, sending you sprawling into the arms of the waiting handmaidens as she leaned back in her chair. "So what to do with you until I pull your ownership from Chen's whimpering lips? I suppose I can keep you here. Stay, watch, learn - and that way when your true mistress claims you at last you'll be properly trained. Girls, chain her to the wall, and gag her."

[Keron spends that string: Mark XP if you do what she tells you]

[b]Yue![/b]

You're running. You're running! You're running like it's flying and everything is perfect except you have no idea how to slow down without crashing nose over tail. It's scary and wild and amazing, like the first time getting real speed out of a bike, and maybe if you never stop you'll never have to.

Hyra insisted on this after all the externalities of breakfast and bath were resolved. "Learning how to be graceful has nothing to do with the body you're currently wearing," said Hyra. "Even if you're in a body that's miles away from your ideal one you need to be able to carry yourself like your ideal self. That way when you finally transition into your true self physically you'll have already transitioned mentally!"

And with that the lessons of the previous day had resumed. No swords yet - Hyra wasn't so ambitious she was blind to the fact that you didn't yet have your paws under you. Right now was just about speed and agility. It had started with a gentle jog but now you were flying around the walkways of the Sky Castle. To your left was the infinite vista of the Nine Kingdoms, to the right where the spires and flags and kites of a city made to catch the wind. You are running, and you've left Hyra in the dust, and this enchanted world is flashing past your eyes in every direction.