(Continued from Ch 62, A Breath of Autumn Air)

The Chronicles of Rapina
Chapter 63, Mistress Bellany 

Saturday's tournament against the Brickner Academy went by rapidly. Timothy met Bellany in the thicket twice. She successfully cast the gentle spell on Nimbus again and got to hold him and pet him some more. She hoped he was getting used to her touch. He seemed to like to rub his head against her left palm. There were no surprises as far as the competitions. Steefl and Carnarvon won the joust. Last Sunday's practicing seemed to have improved Charles' aim. He had bested Erol's score while they defeated the other team together. Jaimie won the rapier event. As usual he danced around his opponent while making leading remarks that his opponent tried to ignore but did not entirely succeed. Mary won the pumpkin pie bake-off. Bellany had a brief conversation with Cooyman during the joust. Unfortunately she had had no new developments to tell him about in regard to escaping in order to see him. 

Throughout the tournament Bellany kept herself occupied sketching Charles and his friends. She had decided to do pen and ink portraits of all of them and had already ordered frames for those that she planned to give Jamie for his solstice gift. Pen and ink was the only media she had been able to practice with because she could do so during dull lectures that were merely repetitions of what was said in a given text book. Thus she had become a fairly competent pen and ink portrait artist. Earlier in her artistic career she had done a drawing of the academy buildings that had turned out rather well. She planned to send that one up to her parents for a solstice gift.

Before she knew it she was leaving Jordell Manor after dressing for the ball. During the ride over she and Jamie discussed some of the moves Bellany had learned in her most recent rapier lessons and how they would work against an opponent wielding a longer or shorter rapier. The subject of the conversation then shifted to the finest rapiers made by various weapons houses and how they differed. James preferred very light rapiers with a sharp point but little or no edge whereas Bellany preferred a beefier blade that had some secondary utility as a slicing weapon. She also admitted that she liked blades finished in roguish black because of her pirate fantasy. When James mentioned the Montfort Forge, Bellany made sure to get him to tell her all about it so that she would no longer have to pretend she knew nothing about the weapons house. She pretended fascination with the stainless metal and conjectured to James that a rogue black rapier from the Montfort Forge would be the ultimate blade. James promised to show Bellany his collection of rapiers before her next lesson so that she could confirm which sword maker's style matched her preferences. 

Once she and Jamie arrived at the ball, Carnarvon gave them a royal welcome and smiled at Bellany a little more than was polite given that Jamie was her escort. Yet it was obvious that Carnarvon could not quite help himself and Bostwick was little better. As the dancing began, Bellany noticed that the young men from the Brickner team were not asking her out on the floor. Bellany enjoyed being constantly on the dance floor and did not appreciate all the mingling time she seemed to have. Lord Brand Brickner ought to have been on good terms with her since he was one of Bellany Norwit's relatives, but she had noticed he had tried to remain aloof from the rivalry between herself and Bianca Bristol. Bellany scanned the men of the visiting academy. After considering them all she found one who was blessed with a considerably amount of reckless lust. She took hold of the man's lust and began to subtly pull on it as she stepped over to Bruhnhilda Daelrath.

"I just wanted to tell you that I have no hard feelings about the thing at the last ball. It would have been so pitiful if you had held to the alliance with Avengene after what that priest did. I am glad to see that the Daelrath backbone is not a myth," Bellany whispered in Bruhnhilda's ear.

Bellany's statement took Bruhnhilda by surprise, but before she had time to react, the gentleman whose lust Bellany had been pulling walked over and broke into the conversation.

"You are both quite lovely. I wonder which of you is the Fallen Angel?"

Bellany rolled her eyes at Bruhnhilda and smiled at the young man. "That would be me, otherwise known as Lady Norwit of Avengene. This is Lady Bruhnhilda Daelrath."

"I would like to ask you both to dance but I am unsure whom to ask first," the gentleman said.

"Ask Bruhnhilda first. She outranks me. She could be a Baroness if she plays her cards right. All I will ever be is barren." Bellany smiled.

"Ew, because of all those diseases," Daelrath blurted before covering her mouth with her hand.

Bellany cleared her throat. "I am fallen due to having been abducted by orcs on my way south from the frontier late last summer. The horrible contagions that I supposedly have are Bianca Bristol's fabricated contribution to my reputation. If you think otherwise, Bruhnhilda, you are welcome to search me for whatever pocks, scabs and lesions Bianca has made up. The orcs were mean and smelly but were otherwise healthy. The infirm are quickly culled from the herd in battle against the armies of Avengene."

Bruhnhilda looked a little nonplussed as if she was convinced otherwise, but she did not have time to discuss it.

"I am Aaron Spates, a distant relative of Lord Brickner. Might I have the pleasure of this dance milady Daelrath?"

"Of course, Mister Spates, It would be my pleasure to dance with you," Bruhnhilda said.

Bellany enjoyed watching the Lords, Ladies and athletes in their finery for a while but was glad when Abraham Steefl came to ask her out on the floor for the next dance. 

"How is your paladin training going?" Bellany asked as they danced.

"Reverend Leland is actually just laying some groundwork. As you know I am a knight now but that is not the only prerequisite for being a paladin. I must finish my education here at the Bristol Academy. Reverend Leland believes I will have no trouble getting into the Academy of Righteous Wrath. It is a school for paladins in Southern Norwit. If I get in I must choose an order. There are three orders, The Order of Righteous Wrath, the order of the Swift Steed and the Order of the Searing Light."

"How will you choose? Are they very different?" Bellany asked.

"Yes, originally I was going to into the Order of Righteous Wrath. It is the order that trains to be filled with righteous anger on the battlefield. I thought the ordeal I went through with the orcs as a child would make me perfect for the Order of Righteous Wrath. They are known for turning the tide of battles and surmounting incredible odds. Since my father is a knight and the righteous order contains the largest number of gifted commoners it would be quite likely that I would become an officer of the order. 

"Last year I was thinking that I would aim higher and try for the Order of the Swift steed. They are knights that specialize in tactics and swift movement. They often become generals. I was still strongly considering the Swift Steed earlier this year. I had hopes that I might meet a lady here at the academy and marry but that was before you confessed to me that the orcs left you broken and not fit to be the bride of a paladin. I searched for another but none can compare. I did not tell the reverend why but I told reverend Leland the tragic truth that you could not have the same feelings for me as I had for you. He advised me to take heart. He said that the finest of the Vindicator's blades are forged in the fires of tragedy. He has been encouraging me to try for the Order of the Searing Light. It is a celibate order whose members have the full powers of a priest and often wield the vindicator's mystical might as well as mundane weapons."

"Oh is that why you have been studying so hard under reverend Leland?"

"Yes, priestly training is often what makes the difference in trying out for the Order of the Searing Light."

"I understand," Bellany said as the dance ended. "Taking on the most challenging order is knightly. You are a very gifted warrior. I am sure you will succeed but even if you did not there would still be the other two orders to fall back on. Good luck Abraham," Bellany said as she embraced him and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you milady Bellany," Abraham said, his voice cracking.

Vernon Saint Varlans asked her out on the floor next. She had a good time making him buz with lust. He was a very sweet and handsome young man and she regretted not having had the opportunity to make love with him.

When the dance was finished Mister Spates returned to her.

"Here you are, Lady Norwit. Would you like to dance?"

"Of course Mister Spates," Bellany said as she accompanied the young gentleman out on the floor. The dance began and Bellany followed Spates' lead with an easy grace. She spent most of her time at balls on the dance floor and it was having an impact on her skills.

"You dance well milady," 

"Thank you, mister Spates. I have been taking a course in ballroom dancing but I think I've learned more from Jamie than from the course," Bellany said.

"Is Jamie one of your girlfriends?" Spates asked.

"No, he's my date, Lord James Jordell," Bellany said.

"Oh," Spates said as his eyebrows rose.

Bellany softly drew on the young man's lust as they danced together. She judged her success by the flush of mister Spate's face as the dance progressed.

"This is marvelous, Lady Norwit. You practically float across that floor. I can see why Lord Jordell favors you," Spates said.

"Thank you Mister Spates although the favor came first. James is a brilliant dancer as you might imagine and he often borrows me from my rapier lessons for a few hours before balls to indoctrinate me in the finer points of dance, not to mention he enjoys designing dresses for me. He is a talented man," Bellany said.

"Were those leading lines of Lord Jordell's at the rapier tournament simply a way he used to outwit his opponent?" Spates asked.

"Not exactly, there is no doubt that James is a naughty man that prefers men as playmates. I am just a friend of his. We are both students of the rapier," Bellany said.

"Then he prefers women as friends and men as...," Spates trailed off.

"Precisely," Bellany said.

"Then do you cleave to women for romance?" Spates asked.

"I am the Fallen Angel; if rumors are to be believed I enjoy the company of both men and women." Bellany's eyes twinkled.

"You do have a way about you," Spates said.

"It's just me," Bellany said.

Spates nodded. "You are very attractive but not in the way of an innocent girl."

"Thank you Mister Spates, I must play to my strength. I have no desire put on the false airs of an innocent girl," Bellany said.

"Please call me Aaron," Spates said.

"Of course Aaron, you may call me Bellany," Bellany said.

"Not Angel?" Spates asked.

"That works, but it is only a title." Bellany smirked.

The dance came to a close at that point and the two of them walked off the floor. 

"I will be back, Spates said. I've danced with many women, but only one angel," He said.

"Thank you Aaron, it was a pleasure to dance with you. I'll look forward to our next foray together," Bellany said. She blended in behind those watching the dance as she pretended not to keep track of Spates while he talked to several of his fellow athletes singly or in small groups. 

"I thought Brickner had us honoring Bristol's caution about Norwit," one of Spates' friends asked him as Bellany listened from behind a cluster of people.

"I had to find out why so I danced with her. Lady Daelrath commented on the state of the angel's health but the angel claimed that the orcs were perfectly healthy as is she. Lady Bristol would be shrewd to tell all the men that Lady Norwit is afflicted with every pox on the planet, whether it was true or not."

"Why is that?"

"How else is Bristol going to compete with a breathtaking redhead whom everyone knows has no virtue to preserve?" Spates asked. "The woman is as hot as her flame red hair. One dance with her is enough to make a man buzz like strong liquor."

"Bah, you can't be serious."

"Dance with her and tell me I am wrong. She dances to Amorra's lyre," Spates said.

At first it was only the most curious and rebellious athletes of The Brickner Academy that danced with her but curiosity was nothing if not contagious, especially with the way Bellany caressed each man's lust. At first she managed to stay beneath the radar, but after a while it became obvious that she was having her usual effect on the athletes of the visiting team. As Bristol began to realize this, she began to glare at Bellany. Somehow she found Bianca's jealous scorn nearly as satisfying as the dancing.

After dancing for another hour with many of the athletes who had come to compete against the young men of The Bristol Academy, Bellany took a break from contorting Bianca's face and danced with Lord Carnarvon. Near the end of the dance with Carnarvon the young lord whispered in Bellany's ear, "I got a few extra chaperones for this ball. One is a very trustworthy retired professor from The Bristol Academy for Boys. Would you like to go on a special tour of the house?" Carnarvon asked.

Bellany smiled. "That sounds fun."

"Okay, just follow my lead. This might take a few tries. We have to be assigned the right man."

As it turned out Bellany visited the family portrait gallery with Carnarvon under the watchful eye of one of the hall monitors from Vargrend's. After dancing with Brad Bostwick and a few others Carnarvon took her over to the chaperones again and they visited the Carnarvon armory with Headmistress Vargrend. About an hour later Headmaster Bristol began serving as chief chaperone while Headmistress Vargrend was otherwise engaged. Carnarvon asked for a chaperone so that he could show Bellany the view of the lake from the south tower. An older gentleman was assigned them whereupon Carnarvon changed his mind.

"What the heck, I've shown you the armory and the family portraits already. Why don't I give you the full tour of the house?" Carnarvon asked.

"That would be fun. Charles has said so much about your house. He must spend a lot of time here," Bellany said.

"He does. May I give her the tour then?" Carnarvon asked.

"Do you feel up to it, Professor Howard?" Headmaster Bristol asked.

"Yes, yes as long as Lord Carnavon does not rush it the walk will do these old joints of mine some good."

"Very good then take your time, Lord Carnarvon," Headmaster Bristol said.

"Thank you Headmaster Bristol."

The Carnarvon library was the first room featured on the tour. Carnarvon produced a key and opened a study connected to the library.

This is my father's study when he is in residence. When he is not here we usually keep it locked.

"Goodness, he has a copy of the Natural History of the Eastern Elfin Forest. I've been looking for one of these for ages," Professor Howard said.

"Yes, it's a rare book. I cannot loan it to you but no one would be the wiser if you would like to give it a read while Belle and I do the tour."

"You'll behave yourself won't you?" The old man asked.

"You can bet we will behave," Carnarvon said.

"Well run along then. I am sure your word is as good as gold," The old professor said.

"Absolutely, I trust you will find the contents of the book to your liking. Come along Belle, this house has some interesting features. I think you'll enjoy them," Carnarvon said.

"I am sure I will." Bellany smiled.

The tour quickly led to a secluded bedchamber not far from the library. Carnarvon unlocked it, ushered Bellany in and locked the door behind them. Carnarvon embraced her and gave Bellany a heated kiss.

After the kiss Bellany's eyes twinkled as she licked her lips. "I am afraid Jamie is working against us. This finery is going to take so long to get out of we had better start right away or we will be away far too long not to be missed."

Carnarvon grinned like a pirate and began helping her undress. Even rushing it took nearly ten minutes for Bellany to remove her finery. Although he had been helping Bellany, Carnarvon managed to finish undressing shortly after she did. Carnarvon carried her to the bed and began kissing and fondling her. After a few minutes Bellany pulled his erection between her thighs and enjoyed the feverish thrusting of a young man who was extremely excited. He came nearly instantly but Bellany made sure his peak was as profound as his feverish excitement was to her lust sense. His body shook and his eyes bulged as he spent.

"Gods Belle, you are so incredible. I hardly have to touch you before I'm gushing madly," Carnarvon marveled.

Bellany smiled as she massaged the young lord's butt. "Just rest a minute. You'll have more control the second time around. It is too bad we don't have more time but it is amazing you were able to get us any time at all. Thank goodness for Professor Howard.

"Carnarvon nodded. Professor Howard is a great guy who has lived long enough to realize that protecting something that does not exist is a bit foolish."

"I am sure your golden word didn't hurt either." Bellany smiled.

"The poor man never planned to live this long. I don't mind helping him out. It is a shame that honesty can't buy him his winter fuel but at least this subterfuge is nothing that will come back to haunt him. You really are barren, aren't you? You seem so fertile I worry in spite of the evidence."

"Don't worry about that," Bellany said as she drained the life force from his seed. "My fertility has been put to the test. I feel fertile all the time but nothing takes. It must be a trait I share with the concubines of Virtusar." Bellany gave Carnarvon a squeeze within her as she pulled his lust.

Carnarvon gasped. "Gods that is not the only trait you share with them." Carnarvon rolled so that Bellany was now on top.

Bellany sat up and began to rub her nub against his pubic bone while he fondled her breasts. Before long he regained his hardness and she rode him as she had in the forest clearing. Bellany had a delightful orgasm that served to bolster Carnarvon's faith that Bellany really was like a concubine of Vitusar. The end came all too soon. After Carnarvon roared through his second peak, Bellany savored his energy as she reluctantly dismounted. While he assisted Bellany in dressing, Carnarvon told her a few things about the house in case anyone should ask her about the tour. 

When they were finished they picked Professor Howard up at the study and returned to the ball. The rest of the dance went by swiftly and before she knew it she was in bed watching Mary breathe, lost in the deep sleep brought on by an evening of plenty of exercise that had ended in heated sex. Bellany staid up and studied the Life Vision spell for about an hour. She needed to learn it so that she could see in darkness, even magical darkness. After working on the somatic components for a while she drifted off to sleep.

The next day Bellany endured Reverend Leland's sermon on the fruitfulness of the righteous. After catching up a bit with Charles and Abraham she returned to her room and briskly did several homework assignments so that she would have some time to work on her magic. It took her a few hours to get the Life Vision spell to work, but she was surprised how easily it came to her. Perhaps she should not have been surprised since she knew exactly the effect she was trying to get. She had spent countless hours under the spell's effect since Guardian Thane had routinely cast it on his minions. When used in daylight she could see a glowing halo of life force around everything. People and animals radiated more brightly than did plants. Objects radiated only dimly. In darkness the halos were all that was seen yet they seemed much tighter and more solid without normal visual input.

After she was satisfied that she could cast the Life Vision spell, Bellany studied the Floating Dart telekinesis spell. She would have to conquer this spell and practice it until she could wield it at its maximum power before she could open even the lightest lock. To open the locks in the doors of the school she would probably need the spell after Floating Dart. She also had concerns about being able to move something she could not see but she decided she would work on that once she had sufficient power to turn a lock.

The next morning after a brief workout and spell casting practice, Bellany again worked on the Floating Dart spell before rushing off to the Trivium. The Bristol athletes traveled to an academy in the Barony of Bostwick starting on Wednesday. Since Jamie took his trainer with him during tournaments, Bellany had to practice what she had learned from Leafwhisper until they returned. This gave her a little over a week to practice some magic. 

She had the Floating Dart telekinesis spell working by Tuesday night. She was now able to pick up the small charcoal pencils she used for drawing with nothing more than the power of her mind and her magic. She tried drawing using telekinesis but the result looked like something from the hand of a small child. Nevertheless it was a start. At first she was at a loss as to how to practice her telekinesis in class as she used to do with stray bits and braids of people's hair. Items heavy enough to be a challenge to move were a little too obvious to have moving of their own accord during a class period. 

She decided that rather than putting off learning to move things she could not see, she would do it right away. She read ahead and studied the Floating Dagger version of the telekinesis spell. The casting notes for this particular version had all of the various tricks and tips needed to open locks as well as exercises leading up to that feat. The notes suggested one exercise that consisted of closing one's eyes and tickling one's face with the butt end of a dagger. Bellany could not yet lift a dagger. She could not even lift a dart and even if she had been able to, she had no darts. She substituted a comb made of horn. Instead of closing her eyes and tickling her face she kept her eyes open and tickled her calves. No one could see her comb tickle her calves beneath the long dresses she invariably wore to classes. She soon learned to tuck the comb into her sock for safe keeping when she was too tired to continue floating it beneath her dress.

Bellany also worked on combining the techniques of Clinging Darkness with her more powerful darkness spells and adding the ability to see through the darkness by casting the Life Vision spell. A day before Jamie arrived back in town Bellany had been able to cast Life Vision and a clinging version of Darkness II. She felt so proud of herself that she had to go down into the crypts on Wednesday night to show Baladus. 

During the day she studiously reviewed all of her spells and cantrips, especially the telekinesis spells so that she could talk about them knowledgeably. That night, after wearing Marry out, she waited a while for her roommate to fall into a deep sleep and then cast Life Vision and stole out of the room, through the library and down into the crypts. She brought her spellbook in case she wanted to copy any more spells into it but she was glad there was no longer a need to carry candles. Navigation through the darkness was easy. When she reached the crypts she found the door was unlocked, as she had left it. She cast Ghostly Whispers, intoned the prayer to Mortaebius and then entered, softly closing the door behind her. Elaine was as plain as day as she rose from her resting place, Bellany waved to her.

"It is good to see you Lady Elaine," Bellany said.

"But you have no light," Elaine said.

"I have been busy. Not long ago I learned the Life Vision spell," Bellany said.

"Goodness that is more than a cantrip. You really have been busy," Elaine said.

"I learned as many of the cantrips as I could as well. Unfortunately I have no one to practice them on that I can trust otherwise I would have been able to learn more of them.

"That sounds splendid. Baladus will want to see your progress," Elaine said.

The two of them made their way to Baladus' sarcophagus and rode the secret elevator down into his chambers. Elaine rushed through a door and came back with Baladus while Bellany lit a few candles with her Firefinger cantrip.

"Lady Elaine says you have progress to show me," Baladus said.

Bellany nodded. "I do indeed. Shall I start with the cantrips?"

"Yes, I would like you to demonstrate your mastery of each one that you have learned and then speak about how you came to know it and what problems and observations you have made in its realization."

Bellany nodded. "I can do Ash Kinetics, but I can do Floating Dart now so let's talk about that one later. Bellany conjured three balls of light and caused them to zip around the room. I worked on the bluelight spell to help me with the telekinesis spells and it helped a lot. I can also do chill of fear but I have done Touch of Fear so that one is old too. Touch of Fear is a dangerous spell. I really need a controlled environment for that one. The girl I cast it on nearly crashed through a second story window she was so frightened. Thankfully she bounced off the casement and ran back out of the room."

"Anyone who can cast fear spells ought to know how to cast Remove Fear spells as well. Ideally you should know the ranged version of Remove Fear because it is nearly impossible to use the touch version if the target is running at top speed. The touch version is really only useful for removing fear that also paralyzes. It is convenient if you have to deal with ghouls. Their paralysis is based on magical fear."

"Then I will definitely have to work on the remove fear spells," Bellany agreed.

"After that I recommend the Cancel Magic spell. It is more advanced than remove fear but it works to cancel a much greater variety of spells, including one's own if they go awry," Baladus said.

That would surely be useful, but let me continue with what I do know first," Bellany said. "I have done drain vitality but I could already do Draining Touch so that one is not a big deal. Bellany began casting and caused a finger-shaped shadow to appear. "That is finger of shadow. I learned it in mid October. It is easy now. I did not have a lot of trouble getting it to work once I had done the sphere of darkness spell but before that I was stuck on it."

Bellany cast Fleeting Stench. "I don't know if ghosts can smell, but that was Fleeting Stench. It was a little foreign at first but I have no trouble casting it anymore."

Bellany next conjured a globe of fog. Globe of Fog took me a while to get but I had very little trouble with most of the cantrips. I can do Mental Picture too, but I have no experience casting it on ghosts. Bellany cast the spell and softly touched Baladus' forehead.

"A landscape?" He asked.

"In a way but what did you see on the landscape?" Bellany asked.

"Lists, practice dummies and targets?" Baladus asked.

"Yes it was the tournament grounds for The Bristol Academy for Boys," Bellany said. "It is what is outside the keep to the South."

"I see, that is where you wish to take me to absorb the anger of men in simulated battle," Baladus said.

Bellany nodded. "I am past the cantrip stage for darkness spells so let me put that off. I can do Touch Empathy and Twitch but I am not sure those would work so well on ghosts."

"You really do have need of a partner you can trust to be the subject of some of your spells," Baladus said.

Bellany nodded. "Yes, but it is not easy to find anyone nearby who would not gossip or give me away through body language and actions. It is too bad there is not someone I can trust off the school grounds."

Bellany began casting until a gross sound briefly filled the room.

"That could only have been the Tuz cantrip. It was always a favorite among the younger apprentices," Baladus said.

Bellany rolled her eyes and then cleared her throat. "I got it with a little steady work. I know it is important because it will be the foundation for more artful audible illusions to come."

"You are right. The frequency it was cast did nothing to hurt performance on the later illusion spells," Baladus said.

"As you know I can also do draining touch. I have been practicing that on stallions. Also I could do the first Vision of Magic spell when I got here. This Life Vision spell that I am using now is wonderful but I knew exactly what to expect because my former mentor used to cast it on me a lot. I also found a raven that I named Nimbus. I perfected the Gentle Beast Spell with his help," Bellany said.

"That is fortunate. The raven is a symbol of death and serves Mortaebius well. You were able to bypass the minor charms on Fireflies and Bumblebees?" Baladus asked.

"Yes," Bellany said. "I had no choice since the early frosts killed them or drove them into their nests before I got a chance to work on the spell."

"Good, finding a raven was very resourceful of you. Insects have very different minds. I have always felt those two insect spells were of limited use," Baladus said.

Bellany steeled herself for a large expenditure of magical energy and then cast the clinging version of Darkness II.

"Bravo Bellany! Is that Darkness III with the clinging additions?"

"No, that is just darkness II with the clinging additions. I am almost embarrassed at how easily I cast the darkness spells and how large their areas are. My cantrip darkness is the size of a human head," Bellany said.

"You should not be surprised. You are the Life of Death. Mortaebius has blessed you. That reminds me. How much do you know about Mortaebius?" Baladus asked.

"Quite a bit, but there were some things I was not allowed to know while I was just an outside apprentice to a Mortancer. I was naughty and know more than I should. I suppose now that I have been touched by Mortaebius things might be different as far as what I would be allowed to see. I was a knowledgeable deaconess but not a priestess," Bellany said.

"There is little difference between the two," Baladus said. "With a little more learning you could be ordained. It would be best if a living priest were to instruct you. I have been dead too long and I am sure many customs of the church have changed," Baladus said.

"There is a priest of Mortaebius at the academy chapel to Mortabius. His name is Guardian Moore, but I cannot afford to be seen with him," Bellany said.

"Traditionally the Headmaster is also a priest of Mortaebius. Often one or more of the professors are as well," Baladus said.

"Oh, then it is no wonder Lord Avengene did not send his other granddaughters here to school. I was very lucky. Charles had already started here and it is much closer to Norwit than Li'Yeiraun is. I think I am also lucky that Charles has political ambitions and wanted to go to school with the peers of the realm."

"Be thankful that Mortaebius has seen to your proper placement," Baladas said.

Bellany nodded. "It is strange how I got here. I keep wondering why it was done."

"I am sure there was some reason beyond cheering up a couple of old ghosts." Baladus smiled.

"I would have been glad to come for that purpose alone. Your spell book is wonderful, especially the casting notes, and I am sure you are a fine teacher even if I have not taken full advantage of that yet because I probably knew most of the cantrips before the accident. Yet, I cannot help but wonder why I was removed from one teacher and placed with another," Bellany puzzled.

"You must trust Mortaebius' wisdom. I am sure it will become clear in time," Baladus said.

"I suppose it will. Anyway that is all I managed to learn so far. Lately I have been using up a lot of time practicing swordsmanship under Trinadar Leafwhisper. He is positively legendary so I do not dare pass up the opportunity to train under him. He goes with Lord Jordell when the tournament athletes leave the academy to compete with other schools. He has been away and that has given me more time to work on my magic lately. That is why I was able to learn the Life Vision spell."

"I understand the need for some mundane weapons training since I spent a great deal of time on the battlefield, however there are spells that will reduce the need for skill at arms. Perhaps once you are through with your telekinesis spells you may wish to concentrate on some of the spells that are useful in combat situations."

"Yes that sounds wise. I would like to copy some more spells tonight since I have learned most of the ones that I have already copied," Bellany said.

"Have you had any difficulties with the cantrips and spells you have learned so far?" Baladas asked.

"So far I have had no difficulties that I have been unable to surmount. I will let you know if I get stuck on a spell though."

"Good, then I must turn in. It seems I am perpetually weary these days. Headmaster Bristol needs to be harsher on the errant boys so that I may gain more sustenance."

Bellany nodded. "He also needs to let me get into the boys' math classes. So far he and Headmistress Vargrend have conspired to stonewall the idea of higher mathematics classes at the boys' academy. Father even wrote that he was interested in my getting the training so that I could help him with catapults."

"I shall think more on Headmaster Bristol. Apparently he holds cards we could both use in our hands."

Bellany nodded.

Farewell milady.

Goodbye Baladus. Thank you for coming out to see me. I hope we can come up with a way to get you more sustenance.

Baladas smiled, waved and disappeared through the door.

Bellany got down to business and began copying spells. After a while she Checked Darkness III to make sure it was correctly copied into her book. After she was sure of that she decided she would copy Telekinesis IV, Dancing Sword into her book even though she had previously thought that Floating Dagger would be the last telekinesis spell she would need in order to open locks. She remembered that sometimes the casting notes from more advanced spells helped when trying to learn similar but lesser magics. She also copied a spell called Empathy and another called Transient Shield. She felt she could cast the Empathy spell on Mary when she was dreaming and the transient shield spell sounded like a great safety measure while on spy missions. It only worked on a single attack before fading but if that first attack were an assassin's bolt from the dark, the spell could be lifesaving.

When she was finished she returned Baladus' book to the podium and bid Lady Elaine adieu. She took both her coded spell book and the backup copy she usually kept in the crypts because she needed to transcribe her recent additions into the backup copy. She worked her way through the library to the door and checked the keyhole. The hall monitor was nowhere to be seen. Bellany waited several minutes and then decided the woman must be on break. She very quietly unlocked the door, looked out, opened the door a crack and then listened for footfalls. She heard nothing but at that moment she thought to use her lust sense to see if she felt any ambient lust nearby. She felt a woman very nearby. Before she could react the door was pushed open forcing Bellany to backpedal. 

"You have some explaining to do young lady, the hall monitor said as she took the library key and Bellany's spellbooks from her nerveless hands. "I will take you to an appointment with Headmistress Vargrend at half past seven when I come to give Mary this key. Be ready."

"Yes Ma'am," Bellany managed to croak before the woman pushed her into her room and locked the door behind her.

She stood there stunned for a moment and then realized that she needed to think. There was a chance that the Headmistress would have someone search her room for contraband books. If she did that, they might find her skeleton key, her weapons and her share of the loot from the highwaymen. Instead of dealing with that problem she decided that she would first write down everything she remembered about the telekinesis spells using her personal code. She knew she had the notes for Floating Dart correct because it was the one she had most recently learned to cast. She had recently reviewed all of the telekinesis spells and was glad they were fresh in her mind. She glued the resulting notes to her desk above the pen and pencil drawer and hoped for the best.

She very quietly stashed her rapier, her main gauche, her throwing knives, and her crossbow bolts below the false bottom in her trunk. They might find them but at least she could claim that the items had been put in there in case of emergencies on the trip up. She put the crossbow in the bottom the same trunk under some extra blankets. They might not like the weapons but she could explain them away. After all she had come down from a dangerous area. She put all of the loot from the highwaymen into her purse except for a golden comb and a few other pieces of jewelry. That way it would not be in the room when they searched it.

The skeleton key that Cooyman had made her was another matter. She absolutely did not want them to find it. After casting Floating Dart she carefully opened the window and threw the key upwards and towards the keep. Once airborne she guided the key's decent so that it fell just beyond the parapet wall on the roof of the keep. She felt so stupid. She should never have left the library without being able to see the Hall monitor was leaving the floor. She should have used her lust sense right off. If she did leave without seeing the monitor she should at least have used clinging darkness on herself so that she would have been invisible and could have pretended to be a ghost. After chasing a hoard of could have, would have, should haves out of her restless brain Bellany went to sleep for a couple hours until Mary rose. When the monitor knocked to wake Mary up, both Marry and Bellany began getting dressed at the same time.

"You're getting dressed early," Mary said

"Yes, I have to get to an appointment," Bellany said sheepishly

"With whom?" Mary asked.

"At the office downstairs," Bellany said. "I'll tell you about it later Bellany said, wishing to delay her secret getting to reverend Leland as long as possible."

"Okay, good luck," Mary said. 

Bellany grinned sheepishly "Thank you," she said.

A few short minutes later the door opened and the Hall monitor took Bellany's hand while handing Mary the key to the library.

Marry looked a little confused about the monitor having the key to the library but Bellany quickly left with the monitor and Mary did not have time to inquire.

Bellany was shown to a small room that was part of the office. It contained six student desks and a blackboard. Headmistress Vargrend arrived a few minutes later wearing a scowl.

"So now we see your true colors young lady. I am beginning to doubt your testimony concerning the drawing attributed to Miss Elliston."

"Headmistress Vargrend, I told the truth about Elliston but my word is really not necessary. Constable Herrington had the testimony of the art teacher as to style and from some other source as to the fact that the depiction of the orc was inaccurate. This is another matter entirely. I broke the rules purposely and I expected to be punished if caught. It was a calculated risk," Bellany said.

"The nerve of you saying that breaking the rules of The Vargrend Academy for Girls is a calculated risk!" Headmistress Vargrend said.

"The rules are important to me but they pale before the lives of thousands of people. There is a war brewing, Headmistress, and if war comes, I am going to be in the thick of it. I am obliged to sit through Reverend Leland's sermons each week wherein he labels the worshipers of Mortaebius as evil. At the same time I am not allowed to read about Mortaebius and come to my own conclusions. You have commented that my perspective is narrow in my assignments for the Trivium. Perspectives narrower than mine are common to worshippers of the vindicator. I felt it essential to broaden my mind before the arrows start flying. Otherwise how am I to make a difference? The irony is that Lord Avengene has you enforcing a rule that is guaranteeing misunderstanding between worshippers of your god and mine. I will face any punishment you deem necessary, but frankly I don't much care. Whatever it is, it will pale before what reverend Leland and my parents will do when they find out that I crept into the stacks of the library to read about a god they all consider both evil and unclean."

Headmistress Vargrend still looked cross but Bellany could tell by the sudden silence that she had struck a nerve.

"How do I know you were reading about Mortaebius?" Headmistress Vargrend asked.

"You could have someone examine the appropriate section of the stacks. I am sure I disturbed the dust on the books. You could also ask me anything you like about the god of the dead."

"I must talk to the Headmaster about this. In the meantime young lady, you will write me an essay about the worship of Mortaebius if you are such an expert. I will return with parchment."

After the Headmistress gave her parchment, Bellany began to write an essay on the worship of Mortaebius from a historical perspective. She stuck with a summary of common knowledge that could have been gleaned from the books in the library stacks. Yet it was an easy assignment. She knew far more about the subject than anyone could have expected.

When the headmistress returned, the headmaster was with her. Headmistress Vargrend took her essay.

"We will return shortly," Headmistress Vargrend said.

Bellany could not resist standing after the headmistress left and putting her ear to the door. After a few minutes of silence she could hear the headmistress and headmaster talking in the offices.

"She is well-informed, Headmistress. I have seen far worse essays written by young priests in their first year of seminary," Headmaster Bristol said.

"Miss Norwit is intellectually gifted. Her grammar and spelling are impeccable. She realizes she has been sheltered and obviously she is not above breaking the rules if she believes she has good reason to broaden her mind. Nevertheless we cannot allow her to get away with this."

"I agree. She must be punished severely, Headmistress. Yet any punishment we devise will pale before what she faces from her parents and the faithful of the vindicator. Judging from what you said she said, she wants us to feel uncomfortable about that and I resent her using it against us but the discomfort remains. I cannot help but feel uncomfortable delivering the girl for persecution because she has been studying the god whom I worship, the very same god that Leland defames each week in spite of my warnings," Headmaster Bristol said.

That man is a snake! He realizes you cannot banish him from the academy for fear of stirring up ill will and he uses that fact to stay here and turn his flock against us guaranteeing ill will if you do banish him. But let us get back to the topic at hand. Bellany has flagrantly violated our rules and our trust. She must be punished," Headmistress Vargrend said.

"Perhaps there is some way we can punish her for breaking the rules without allowing the faithful of the vindicator to make a circus of it. Leland would get far too much mileage out of this incident. He would punish her not for breaking the rules but for learning about Mortaebius. I do not know how you feel about it but as a priest of Mortaebius I would be turning against my own god were I to promote the persecution of those who studied him," Headmaster Bristol said. "I have never been comfortable enforcing Avengene's censorship in the library. The worshippers of every other god are free to inquire about other deities but it has become obvious that that freedom is a sham for worshippers of the vindicator."

"What if we punished her severely without letting the exact nature of her transgression be known to Leland and her parents?" Headmistress Vargrend said.

"Yes, I see what you mean, Headmistress and you have my full support," Headmaster Bristol said.

"She would not dare complain of the harshness of her punishment if she knew it would only bring worse from the faithful of the vindicator, thus we would have complete control over the situation, control that we would otherwise loose to that hooligan reverend Leland," Headmistress Vargrend said.

"Good then we are in agreement. Since it is customary for you to determine the punishment of girls I will return to my office."

"I normally use detention but this is a flagrant and willful violation. She should be paddled first and then do detention for at least a month. She can tell the faithful of the vindicator what she likes but I will just make her sit and contemplate her misdeeds, at least at first. She should also be punished immediately but I told Miss Griffon I would cover her early class this morning while she meets with the historical society. I usually let you handle the corporeal punishment anyway. I do not believe it is ladylike to swing a paddle. Why don't you take Miss Norwit down to the dungeon for paddling right away? She is a willful girl who needs a strong arm behind the paddle. When you are done with her you can lock her in the detention room. Here is the key; you can leave it on my desk when you are finished. I must hurry and catch the hall monitor to make sure word of Lady Norwit's misdeeds does not escape her lips."

"Of course Headmistress, I will see that Miss Norwit suffers the same pain as the boys do. That should give her a leg up on contemplating her misdeeds," Headmaster Bristol said.

Bellany scooted back to the desk that she had been sitting at as the voices began to approach. Soon the door opened.

"Young lady, you have a severe punishment to face but we do not wish to see reverend Leland make a circus of your transgressions. Have you told your roommate why you came to the office this morning?" Headmistress Vargrend asked.

"No headmistress. I put her off. She might have told reverend Leland and I did not want to see him about this any sooner than I had to," Bellany said.

Good, there is no need to tell your roommate the exact nature of your offense. You can tell her that you were caught trying to find a way out if you wish. We will not share the details of your transgression with others. You are to be punished for breaking the rules, not persecuted for studying Mortaebius. The hall monitor will hereafter give Mary the key to open the library in the morning. When Mary leaves you are expected to come here. I want to see you every morning at half past seven sharp for detention. After your Ballroom dancing course you will report here for further detention until it is time for you to get ready for bed. For now you are to receive a paddling from Headmaster Bristol. You will accompany him to the dungeon to be punished, is that understood?" Headmistress Vargrend asked.

"Yes Headmistress," Bellany said as she hung her head. 

"Good, I have a class to teach. Good morning Lady Norwit," Headmistress Vargrend said crossly.

"Good morning Headmistress Vargrend," Bellany replied.

"I will come for you as soon as I fetch a torch, Headmaster Bristol said as he shut and locked the door. 

Bellany stood there with her mouth open. She needed to think but all she could think of was that she was going into a dungeon with a priest. It seemed many twists in her life had begun in much the same way. She willed herself to think. Was she now to provide sustenance for Baladus? Would she be angry or helpless? She did not have a plan exactly but since she only had a few spells that could be useful in a dungeon she decided she had better cast them before she was dragged off. Bellany straightened herself and briskly cast ghostly whispers followed by life vision. She was just finishing her floating dart telekinesis spell when she heard a key opening the lock. It was an act of will to maintain her casting but she finished the spell just as the door opened. She was not sure the telekinesis would come in handy but she knew she could keep it going as long as she did not have to say too much. She felt that perhaps she could soften the blows with it, although it hardly seemed practical.

Headmaster Bristol took her by the wrist and pulled her through the offices and through the door to the familiar spiral staircase that lead to the dungeons and then to the crypt. As they descended the blush of dawn's light that had been coming through the windows of the offices diminished and disappeared. Bristol opened the door to the dungeon and dragged her in. Some of the old equipment may have been removed from the dungeon but there was still plenty left. There was a pair of shackles hanging from a pulley anchored into the ceiling in the middle of the room and several more pairs of shackles were anchored at intervals to the walls. There was a pillory and a large whipping post. On one wall there was a huge wheel with shackles affixed to it. Bellany also saw a large basin with hardware that looked like it was made to hold a person's head for dunking. The basin beneath it was empty and looked as if it had not been used in quite sometime. There was also a chair with built on thumb and toe screws and a head vice as well as a table with shackles affixed to it. There was a door to what was probably a cellblock on the far side of the room.

Headmaster Bristol stopped at a rack that held a selection of whips and paddles and pulled out a stout oaken paddle pierced by many holes.

"Ahh!" Bristol squawked as the dungeon door suddenly slammed of its own accord. 

Bellany had applied her telekinesis to the formerly wide-open door and had managed to work up some reasonable speed by the time the door had impacted the doorjamb. She hoped to attract Lady Elaine's attention by sending a wave of fear into the ethers complements of Headmaster Bristol. She thought perhaps Lady Elaine could fetch Baladus. For his sake she was going to try to feel angry while being beaten rather than her usual helplessness.

"You have ghosts, are you sure we should be down here?" Bellany asked.

"I have nothing to fear from any ghosts. If they exist they are my departed ancestors from the crypt. The door simply startled me," Headmaster Bristol said.

"Lay over that table and prepare to be punished," Bristol said.

Bellany could not resist hiking her dress up and exposing her scarlet silken panties before lying over the table. She set up an undertow of lust as she did so.

"Ouww!" Bellany hollered as the first blow came. Headmaster Bristol really was administering her punishment with the strength he probably used on the boys and the telekinesis spell helped slow the paddle about as much as a light breeze. She dropped the spell and cultivated her anger as Bristol slammed the paddle against her high, lush rump. After about the seventh blow Bellany found herself succeeding in turning hopelessness to anger in spite of having put herself up to it. She was angry that she had been pulled out of her happy if macabre apprenticeship. She was angry that the High Shaman of the Orcs had stolen her body and that Vulvilia had changed it. She was angry that Mortaebius had savaged it in the process of rescuing her. She was angry that her memory had been shredded. She was angry that she had been cast into an unfamiliar household with strict parents who did not truly understand her. She was angry that she was isolated and kept from men in Vargrend's Prison for Girls. She was angry that she could not be herself but had to constantly play Bellany. After the fifteenth blow she whirled and caught Bristol with a spinning sidekick that sent him sprawling to the floor.

"Enough!" She screamed. Bristol got to his feet with surprising speed, so surprising that he would have ruined the minor spell that she was casting had a mighty chill inflicted upon him by Lady Elaine not paralyzed him for a moment. Bellany could now see three ghosts in the room. Until she had spun they had all been behind her. She recognized Lady Elaine and Guardian Baladus but she had never seen the third ghost. She assumed he was Alistair Vargrend. 

Bellany completed her casting and a globe of darkness enveloped Headmaster Bristol's face just as he grabbed her. It was her darkness cantrip enhanced with the clinging properties that she had recently learned to do.

Bristol yelped. He was blind and disoriented. Bellany spun from his grasp and caught his right wrist before he could blindly bring the paddle to bear on her. She clapped his wrist into one of the shackles hanging from the ceiling and locked it in. He kept jerking as Lady Elaine lit into him with chill after chill. Bellany got his left wrist into a shackle and then stared open-mouthed. What was she doing? How could she let her anger run away with her? She was getting herself into no end of trouble. If Headmaster Bristol could have seen her wilt at that moment he would never have been afraid of her again.

"I am spent but you must go on," Lady Elaine whispered. "Baladus and I discussed it. Headmaster Bristol is the man to assist you with your studies. He seldom sees you in public; therefore his body language is unlikely to give your true identity away. He has also inherited knowledge of us ghosts from his predecessor, although he may not currently believe it. You must help us make him believe! He has many valuable books in his personal library including a few books on magic and one that will give him a broader picture of our history. He is also trained as a priest of Mortaebius."

Bellany found a loose set of shackles on the rack of whips and snuck around behind Bristol to clamp them onto his ankles as he regained his composure and yelled at her. While he was yelling she trotted over to the windlass on the wall and cranked it up to raise the headmaster to his tiptoes.

Young lady! Release me this instant! You have no idea what trouble you are getting yourself into!

He was angry. Bellany looked at Baladus and smiled. She knew this was helping the ghost. She yanked the paddle out of Headmaster Bristol's shackled right hand placed it on the floor. She then undid his belt, and breeches and pulled his breeches down around his ankles along with his underwear. She could feel lust dancing through his loins as she pushed his pants down but she knew he would ignore it in favor of anger for the moment. Bellany picked up the paddle.

"What are you doing?!" the Headmaster yelled.

"Smack!" Bellany swung the paddle smartly with her sword arm. It would hurt, not enough to make him hopeless but certainly enough to make him very angry.

"You Avengene bitch! Release me this instant."

Bellany said nothing before slamming the next blow across the Headmaster's reddened butt.

Anger poured off the headmaster in waves so thick they were palpable. The humiliation of being paddled by a girl was just right to fuel Bristol's rage, yet the longer she did it, the more lust began to tickle around the edges of the anger. She had long known that dominant women did something for Headmaster Bristol but lust, for a change, was not what she was after. Not just yet anyway. Bristol yelled and broiled with overwhelming anger as Bellany beat him with blow after blow of the paddle.

"Now how tough do you feel, Bristol?" Bellany taunted.

"You get me down from here you ignorant bitch!"

Bellany used the paddle again, this time with both hands. By the time she was finished Headmaster Bristol was hoarse from yelling and he hung exhausted from the shackles.

"Release me please, we can make a deal..."

Bellany smiled as she took off her dress. She thanked her lucky stars that Jamie had bought her silken lingerie. Somehow it was appropriate that she had decided on the scarlet bustier this morning. Hopelessness had been first for her, but for Headmaster Bristol it was coming after the anger and exhaustion.

"You don't get it do you Guardian Bristol?" Bellany asked.

"What!?"

"The darkness, the ghosts..." Bellany said as she approached the Headmaster and softly began to cast her fear spell. She regretted doing it, but she needed to make absolutely certain that Headmaster Bristol did not take her actions to be those of a schoolgirl trying a clever means of escaping punishment. She cancelled the darkness just as she completed casting her fear spell. She looked into Headmaster Bristol's eyes as she clamped her left hand around his neck, releasing the power of her fear magic.

Aaaaaaaaaaa! Headmaster Bristol shrieked as he convulsed with fear. All the while Bellany looked sternly into his eyes.

When at last he stopped quaking she knew any bits of anger that might have lingered within him had been completely drained from his soul. The hand of death had touched him. He could do nothing but swing in his chains quaking with fear for several minutes.

Bellany removed a light leather whip from the rack as she tugged on the helpless headmaster's lust. At first it hid from her, covered by overwhelming fear. She teased it for several minutes before it blossomed like a lush, red rose.

He looked at her open-mouthed as his fearful eyes took in her beauty. She wore a bustier of scarlet silk and carried the whip as if she owned him. He shuddered but his cock began to rise of its own accord.

"You were trained as a priest, Guardian Bristol?" Bellany asked. "Yet you were punishing me for reading about Mortaebius. For that any child of Avengene deserves commendation. You, on the other hand deserve punishment for letting Avengene steal your balls!"

Bellany lashed the whip across the headmaster's abdomen. She would have liked to lick it over his balls but she lacked the skill for such accuracy. Nevertheless it had the desired effect.

Headmaster Bristol yelped. His cock twitched and hardened. He looked utterly pitiful in his confusion, as he stammered, "but, but?!"

Waa-kash! Bellany drew a red stripe across the headmaster's upper thighs.

"Avengene has already pulled most of his grandchildren from the academy. Why must you still censor? You cannot be afraid of offending his granddaughters over in Li'Yieraun."

"You have no right!" The Headmaster squealed pitifully.

"Wha-kish!" Bellany put another faint stripe forming an x across the headmaster's upper thighs. His erection was ragingly hard in spite of his protests.

"Really headmaster, you are smarter than this, aren't you?"

Waa-kash!... wa-kish! Bellany used a relatively light touch to paint red lines across the Headmaster's groin for a moment and then she took a few steps backwards as if to admire her handiwork. With the whip coiled in her right hand she stiffened her left arm at her side and then brought her left hand up in a sweeping motion across her upper thighs up across her right side and around so that when she completed the gesture of her order her middle finger rested over her nose.

Bristol gasped "The Shroud."

Suddenly the three ghosts manifested in unison on either side of Bellany. The male ghosts bowed while Lady Elaine curtseyed. 

Bellany gestured towards Lady Elaine. "Guardian Bristol, You probably already know Lady Elaine Bristol as Lady Weepins. This gentleman ghost is Guardian Baladus Vargrend, and this is Baladus' father Alistair Vargrend. Baladus is my teacher. He is of the Shroud. You will help us by serving me. Among other things you will act as a target for spells that I learn in the course of my magical studies under Baladus and you will help complete my training as a priestess of Mortaebius. That should be quite easy since I have previous knowledge.

"Now you really must be punished." Bellany smiled as she tugged powerfully at Headmaster Bristol's lust. She experimented with what sort of pain drew the most lust from the headmaster. Then when he was shaking with desire she put a second pair of shackles on his wrists and released him from the pair that held him suspended from the ceiling. He could hardly stand so she half carried and half dragged him to the table where she strapped him down.

Bellany climbed up on the table and straddled his face. "Lick me," she commanded. He obeyed. Bellany rode his face until she shuddered with orgasm. She used her charm power to establish herself as the Headmaster's Mistress instilling unquestioning loyalty in her new slave. Had he not been wired the way he was she doubted whether her power would have been up to the task, but he was shaking with lust and he was already a good fit for the suggestion. The suggestion seemed to click just fine. She would reinforce it later. For now she was also shaking with desire. His energy was calling to her. She backed up and rode him. When he came she was rough with him, pulling an excessive amount of energy from his loins. He drooled on himself and nearly passed out from the savage pleasure.

When it was over she unchained him and let him dress her. "You must continue to act as you have. No one must see a change in your behavior towards me and no one must know that I am of the Shroud. In the past when Baladus took a student, often the Headmaster, the Headmistress and the priest of Mortaebius were informed. There is a war brewing and I am a wolf in Avengene's flock so we do not have that luxury. You are the first and last living person who is to know my secret. We are taking Avengene very seriously and his special forces actively oppose us. Regrettably you will have to continue to play politics with Leland. Avengene's military is powerful. We must give him no excuse to go to war against us until we are ready."

The headmaster nodded dumbly. He was still in shock.

"I will go back to playing my role as a schoolgirl. I will serve my detention but I noticed that Headmistress Vargrend has a notion that she is going to suspend my swordsmanship lessons under Jordell's sword master. I cannot afford to let my skills languish with war looming on the horizon. I will see if I can get Lord Jordell to apply some pressure. It is your job to make sure that you yield to the pressure in a way that will work without revealing the operations of the Shroud to the Headmistress, Lord Jordell or anyone else. I am counting on you to serve as one of my instructors. It has become painfully obvious of late that there are things Baladus cannot do because of being dead and things I cannot do because of my role as a schoolgirl. You must also get the coded books that the hall monitor took from me when she caught me. Return them to me as soon as you can without drawing undue attention to yourself," Bellany said.

"But, but why did you do those things to me? Why?" Headmaster Bristol pleaded. A simple request would have been sufficient.

"Secrecy is very important. First and foremost you needed to behold the fear of Mortaebius and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am of the Shroud. Also someone must have neglected your training in regard to caring for the ghosts. They were so undernourished that I needed to give them a jolt of my emotional energy and yours in order that they could manifest to make the necessary introductions. Besides, you prefer strong women. You needed a good turning on so that I could use you to quench the fires of my lust. Being locked up in Vargrend's drives a healthy woman to distraction."

Bellany patted him on the rump.

Headmaster Bristol's face reddened.

"We must snap back into our former roles as wounded schoolgirl and triumphant headmaster. Remember what I have told you."

"Yes Mistress," The Headmaster said.

Bellany slapped her own face several times and began sniffling as if she had just been beaten while the Headmaster stood tall.

Headmaster Bristol escorted Bellany to the detention room and let her in.

"Let that be a lesson to you, young lady," he said, somehow managing to sound more decisive than was normal for him before the scene in the dungeon. He closed the door briskly and locked it, leaving Bellany to her thoughts.

She collapsed on a desk for a while but after a few moments a smile began to tug at her lips. She sat up and withdrew her comb from her stocking and began to cast Floating Dart. She knew she would be exhausted from practice by the time Headmistress Vargrend returned, but she did not care. She needed to look drained anyway and she was definitely not feeling drained after having taken so much of the headmaster's energy. It was time to take her telekinesis seriously. She needed to master Floating Dart and Floating Dagger before she could overcome the need for keys. 

Bellany turned out to be correct about the search of her room. The searchers did not find the secret compartment in her trunk but they did find the crossbow and the coded notes on telekinesis that she had glued above her pencil drawer. She rewrote the notes from memory and was pretty sure she did not loose anything.

Over the next few days while in detention, she spent most of her time moving her comb beneath her dress with telekinesis while pretending to contemplate her misdeeds. Sitting in the detention room doing telekinesis was more interesting than doing nothing but it was still very boring. When she switched from nudging her calf with the comb to nudging her clit with the comb it became much more interesting. She had some serious spell-canceling concentration issues at first but after a while she was able to school herself in receiving pleasure while maintaining the telekinesis spell to give her yet more pleasure. The new twist made her telekinesis workout more difficult but much less boring and it gave her incentive to develop telekinetic strength and dexterity that she would otherwise not have been able to muster. It also helped immensely with her ability to maintain the spell while doing other things. 

During her detention she composed and memorized a note to Jamie about her punishment requesting that he do what he could to get Vargrend's to resume her training at swordsmanship after she had served a week or two for her misdeed. Mary delivered the note directly to Jamie's research assistant to bypass the scrutiny of members of the library staff that might have checked her mail for signs that she was helping Bellany in ways Headmistress Vargrend would not approve. Mary was surprisingly good. She seemed to have figured out the gist of what Bellany had done. Bellany let her think that she had been exploring and looking for a way out of Vargrend's using the key but she did not know if Mary believed that was all she had been doing. In any case Mary had promised her not to tell anyone. 

The money Charles had suggested that his father send Mary to become Bellany's research assistant came through. Mary insisted she would have helped Bellany regardless since spending nearly all of her time in detention was making it difficult for Bellany to keep up with her schoolwork. Mary helped Bellany by gathering research materials for her and strategically placing bookmarks to speed Bellany's research once she had time to get to it. It was obvious to Bellany that the Headmistress was going to be true to her word of not allowing Bellany's parents to know the nature of her misdeed; otherwise she might not have allowed Mary to help. Yet with the money coming in Mary needed to work for Bellany and take the money. If she did not Baronet Norwit would wonder what was going on. At least magic practice was not a problem since she could cast most of her spells during her detention. She even did her swordsmanship exercises during her detention when her lust sense told her that no one was nearby. 

Headmistress Vargrend was a busy woman and preferred to ignore Bellany and keep her locked in the detention room. There were few inquiries about her, although Bellany did hear Mrs. Sedell try to convince the headmistress that Bellany ought to be allowed to do artwork in the detention room because she had never seen such talent for realistic portraiture in all of her years at Vargrend's. Headmistress Vargrend had bluntly told Mrs. Sedell that detention was not supposed to be fun or interesting and that Bellany would just have to continue her artwork after she had served her detention.

After a week and a half Bellany was ready for the Floating Dagger telekinesis spell but she was not sure that she had the verbal and somatic components written down correctly. At lunch she gave Cleo a sealed note to give to the headmaster on Sunday. She said it was an attempt to get into higher math classes next semester but what it really said was, "I need my book. If you cannot get it to me please copy the four pages following the heading that you see below. It is important that the copy be absolutely accurate. I will be having a long detention during the tournament when I can work on what is on that page. I may need the next few pages later. 

The next day just before dinner Bellany was in the detention room practicing telekinesis when there was a quiet knock on the door and a sealed envelope addressed to Headmaster Bristol was slid under the door. She knocked back softly and quietly said, "Thank you." She guessed it must be addressed to the headmaster in case she did not get it and someone else picked it up. Bellany opened it and found copies of the four pages she needed within. 

There was a brief note on a separate scrap of parchment. The penmanship was strange. She guessed the headmaster had deliberately written oddly so that no one would be able to tell who had written the note. It said, "I know where the books are. But it is not safe to recover them. Please accept this copy. V is being stubborn. I have tried to persuade her to be lenient for the sake of your marks but she will not hear of it. All will probably stay as it is for at least a month. Please burn this message. The signature was a little drawing of a skull. After reading it Bellany tore it to small bits and put it in her purse. She would burn it in the heater when she got back to her room

Bellany had detention during the tournament with The Bostwick School for Boys on Saturday and during the ball on Saturday night. She was allowed to attend meals and the crossbow event but that was all. She told her brother and his friends that she was tied up with papers. She created a special casting cheat sheet early Saturday morning and worked up the entire Floating Dagger telekinesis spell on Saturday during her detention. She could probably have used a little more practice with Floating Dart but she did not wish to waste any time getting on to the spell she really needed. She knew Headmistress Vargrend would be busy with the tournament but she kept listening and casting about with her lust sense in case the headmistress should try to surprise her. By nine that night she was casting Floating Dagger. The new spell gave her a little more telekinetic strength. She found practice taxing but quite satisfying.

In a very real way Bellany was fighting for her freedom by practicing her telekinesis for more hours everyday than was advisable. She did little else during her periods of detention in the morning, afternoon and evening. For the next two weeks she fought a bitter war with fatigue. If it were not for Mary and the Amorra's Channel spell Bellany would have succumbed to exhaustion. The end of term papers were all due soon which necessitated getting up early in order to work on them before she had to be in for detention. Yet she had so little time she only put a small dent in the paper for history and did not touch the larger paper for the Trivium. During her detention she practiced telekinesis. At first she was new at the Floating Dagger telekinesis spell and her lack of practice and finesse made practicing quite exhausting. Gradually she learned to be more adept. After a few days practice with the Floating Dagger spell Bellany switched to a heavy golden comb that she had got with the loot from the highwaymen. By the end of the third week of detention she was doing pretty well with it.

On the fourth of December the boys had their last tournament of the season with The Southern Brickner Academy. The weather had turned so cold that any event that could take place indoors did take place indoors. The tournament took much of both Friday and Saturday because equipment for a given event had to be taken down before the equipment for following event could be set up. Bellany spent the tournament in detention but the offices were largely vacant for most of those two days. 

Bellany stood by the door to the detention room. After casting about with her lust sense she was satisfied that no one was around. She began to fiddle with the lock using her telekinesis. She was pretty sure she had the requisite strength but she had no experience with locks. She had spent most of Saturday afternoon trying to open the lock without success. It was very frustrating. 

After dinner while everyone else was attending the Ball at Natalie Rose's manor, Bellany worked steadily, peering into the keyhole of the lock that kept her in the detention room. She tried one variation after another until she caught hold of the bolt mechanism and tugged. She opened the door and smiled but did not relent. She closed the door and relocked it. She unlocked it and then locked it again and again until she got the feel of doing it. She then took a step backwards and repeated the process.

When she was confident she knew what she was doing she went out into the corridor and tried the lock on Headmistress Vargrend's office. It was easy. The same locksmith had probably created all of the locks in the office. The bolt worked in the same way and was basically in the same place on all of them. She took a look around inside the headmistress' office and then left closing the door behind her. She looked over her shoulder and the bolt slid home. She walked towards the door to the spiral staircase but realized that it was too late. The hall monitor would soon be by to let her out of detention to get ready for bed. Bellany gritted her teeth; the lock to the detention room opened as she approached. She opened the door, closed it and gritted her teeth again. The lock did not move. She collapsed in a chair for a moment barely maintaining the spell before trying once again. The lock turned sluggishly into place. Bellany groaned as she sunk back in the chair. She should have realized how little magical energy she had left after all of that work but it had been so exciting.

The past few weeks had worn her down. The dark circles that she had been trying to avoid previously had blossomed beneath her eyes. Nevertheless she had pressed on, fighting fatigue hour after hour, often keeping her magic up through shear force of will. After a month of very intensive work she knew that at last she had the key to open any normal lock. 

The hall monitor came by to let her out for bed about a quarter of an hour after she let the telekinesis spell end. When she got to her room she meant to relax a moment before getting her nightgown on but fell into the dreamless sleep of exhausted instead. There was only a week left in the term and she had several papers to finish and final exams to study for. When she awoke the next morning she was still dressed but Mary had stacked a few blankets on her to keep her warm. Bellany got cleaned up and rushed off to detention. She used the telekinesis spell only sparingly just to make sure she could still unlock and relock the door. She needed to try to recover from some of her accumulated fatigue and keeping the spell going was not going to do that for her. She could tell she was exhausted by the way her loins ached for men.

On Sunday she drained a considerable amount of energy from a couple of stallions before darting across the courtyard to attend Reverend Leland's sermon. The energy took the edge off of her fatigue but she found that she had nothing left for healing the dark circles or filling her reserves after restoring herself. When the sermon was over there was more detention. She relaxed for the longest time and then cast her telekinesis spell. She kept it going long enough to unlock and relock the door a single time. After that she let the spell lapse and propped her head on her elbows. She spent the rest of the detention as close to sleep as she could get while listening for the approach of the headmistress.

Monday noon Bellany claimed she needed some air after being let out of detention for lunch. She took the outdoor route to the cafeteria. It was quite chilly out. She cast the Floating Dagger telekinesis spell and made her way to the gate that led to the courtyard. There she spent a few minutes familiarizing herself with the lock. She wished she could spend more time outdoors. She seldom got a chance to see Nimubus. She had taken to leaving food for him in the crook of a branch in the thicket where she and Cleopatra used to spend part of their midday break before Bellany had earned Headmistress Vargrend's wrath. Occasionally he would be there when she arrived and she was able to hand feed him. After a brief lunch with Cleopatra, Bellany stopped by the gate again on the way back from lunch. This time she smiled to herself after successfully unlocking and relocking the gate into the courtyard.

On Wednesday, Bellany snuck out of her room, through the library, down through the offices, out the courtyard gate and into the stables to cast her drain spell on the stallions. The excursion had used up all of her magical energy but had given her enough life force to vanquish the dark circles beneath her eyes and put a trickle in her reserves.

On Thursday morning Headmistress Vargrend greeted Bellany as she arrived for detention. "Good morning Lady Norwit."

"Good morning Headmistress Vargrend," Bellany said.

"You have been in detention for one month now. Have you learned your lesson?"

"Yes Headmistress," Bellany said as she silently went over the means to avoid getting caught. _Use your charm power to keep Mary from waking up in the middle of the night or waking up enough to notice you are gone if she does wake up, use telekinesis rather than incriminating keys, always keep clinging darkness on yourself when going abroad at night and use your lust sense to make sure the hall monitor is not waiting to surprise you. In the event you do run into someone consider using your fear spell on them from your cloud of darkness so that you will be mistaken for a ghost._ Somehow she did not think that what she was thinking was what Headmistress Vargrend had in mind.

"Good. This afternoon you will resume your normal schedule including your swordsmanship lesson at Jordell manor. This morning you are to stay in detention but you are allowed to go fetch your books so that you may begin to catch up on your studies until Headmaster Bristol arrives to administer a mathematics aptitude test to see if you really are capable of higher mathematics. It seems your father is a very persistent man and has been in contact with Headmaster Bristol directly. Run along now and fetch your books," Headmistress Vargrend said.

"Thank you Headmistress Vargrend. I will go get them," Bellany said.

Bellany was feeling very good to be getting out of detention when Headmaster Bristol arrived. He opened the door, nodded to her and then looked around behind him to insure no one was in the area. He entered the room and closed the door. "I am sorry this lasted so long. The headmistress can be very stubborn," Headmaster Bristol whispered.

Bellany nodded. "I noticed," she whispered. "It is too bad I cannot let her know that all is not as it seems but it is important that she treats me as she does. I appreciated the pages you sent. At least I had something to do while I was in detention. Are you scheduled for anything on Friday nights after lights out here at Vargrend's?"

"No, but coming to fetch you late at night would be extremely dangerous for me," Headmaster Bristol looked uncomfortable.

"Don't worry about that. You needn't fetch me, Headmaster. No one will see me. The hall monitor should never have caught me. I was mystically exhausted from a casting test for Guardian Baladus and took unnecessary risks."

"But you have no key," The headmaster said.

"That is no longer important," Bellany said. "Just be ready to receive me on Friday nights. I need to continue my training."

"Yes Mistress. I have been gathering the materials from my priestly training as you bid me do." 

"Good," Bellany whispered.

"Would you like to take a mathematics aptitude test, Mistress?" Headmaster Bristol asked.

"Yes, that is a good idea," Bellany whispered.

"I have written out many types of problems here to get an idea of what you know. I will return in an hour," Headmaster Bristol said.

"Very good, thank you Bristol" Bellany said.

The headmaster bowed and left her with the test. He returned later to find that Bellany had been able to do most of the problems.

"This is excellent. I will have a math book put in your mailbox at the library. It is what the senior boys have been studying this year. I see you had more trouble with the ones the boys are doing now. Perhaps you had been keeping up with them but this detention made that impossible. During the solstice break if you were to review the problems you missed you would be on an even footing with the boys when we start next semester."

"I will do that," Bellany said.

"Headmistress Vargrend asked me to tell you that your detention is now officially finished. You may get back to your regular schedule," Headmaster Bristol said as he bowed.

Bellany smiled "That is magnificent. What happened to the two books the hall monitor took from me?

"I was able to get one of them as I claimed I was going to try to decode it. Headmistress Vargrend has the other locked up in her office closet. She plans on sending it home with Charles so that your parents can look at it," the headmaster said.

Bellany scowled. "I will have to take care of that. At least you got one of them. Be ready to receive me late Friday evening." Bellany punctuated the last sentence by tugging on the headmaster's lust.

The headmaster suddenly inhaled. "Yes Mistress Bellany," he whispered.
-------

Bellany looked down at Mary's sleeping form. Her breathing was so deep. She looked peaceful yet Bellany knew she must have been exhausted after all of the orgasms Bellany had brought her to. She felt a little guilty about her cutthroat sexual style. It was all about getting Mary to come and come. Mary had become so deliciously sexual in a soft, secret sort of way now that she was far from being a virgin in the orgasmic sense. Bellany dressed, slung the cloth sack with the new blank red book in it over her shoulder and then whispered the vision in darkness spell. 

She then went over to the keyhole and checked for monitors using her lust sense. Once she was sure the monitor had started down the stairs she cloaked herself in darkness using the clinging darkness spell, cast her telekinesis spell and then quietly left the room. She opened the door to the library and softly locked it behind her. It took some concentration but she knew that eventually she would not even need to look at the lock.

Bellany made her way through the library, through the librarian's cage and then up the spiral stairs past the stacks to the door to the headmaster's tower. The door was not locked. She stepped in. She could see Headmaster Bristol sitting in a comfortable chair reading. As she entered his mouth fell agape as the cloud of impenetrable darkness advanced on him. He was blinded as she neared him. He trembled in the darkness as she kissed him and kissed him again. Her hands wandered over his body, undressing him as she went. Soon she was riding him. Her long, hard ride ended in her own squealing orgasm just before she savagely drew his orgasmic energy sending him into quaking ecstasy. 

Bellany dismounted and took a step back as she let the darkness fade. Her robe was lying over a chair where she had tossed it. She was wearing a violet lace bustier. "Have you been preparing for my visit?"

"There is no way I could have prepared for that, Mistress, but I have been brushing up on my priestly books."

"Good, I have been taking it easy for a few days, catching up on schoolwork and studying for final exams. I still have two papers to do. I am not sure how I am going to manage it. Obviously Headmistress Vargrend planned her detention to interfere with my grades."

"Headmistress Vargrend is a very astute and at times vindictive woman. I am surprised it is only the two papers you have left," Headmaster Bristol said.

"The Headmistress's detention left me severely behind, but I have caught up on everything but the papers thanks to Jamie Jordell and Master Leafwhisper."

"A swordsmaster and a future count are helping you with your schoolwork?" Bristol asked.

"Master Leafwhisper has shortened my lesson until the end of the term. He says he already knows the grade he will give me and he has no doubt that I will make up the lost time during the break. Jamie lets me alone to study in his library and then sends me home at the usual time so that nothing looks amiss. Mary seems to have spent most of her spare time during my detention getting sources for my papers and so on. My father hired her as my research assistant when I started swordsmanship under Leafwhisper. If it were not for the three of them, Headmistress Vargrend's detention would have caused me to fail at least one subject. My grades will likely suffer unless I can think of some way to write good papers and study for finals from tomorrow until Thursday morning when finals begin. At least I will pass."

"I am surprised you came to visit given your dire predicament," Bristol said.

"I think much more clearly when I am not climbing the walls with lust. I will not be staying long. I am painfully aware of how much work I need to get done.

Bellany spent about an hour with Headmaster Bristol. During that hour they talked about Mortaebius. Headmaster Bristol cleared many cobwebs from her memory and was at the same time quite impressed with the breadth and depth of her knowledge. By the end of the hour he had a pretty good idea what he needed to concentrate on. Primarily they would be working on rites that only priests performed that Bellany had no practice doing.

"I had no idea you would know so much," Headmaster Bristol said near the end of their interview.

"Mortancer Ash liked to challenge me," Bellany replied.

Bristol stiffened. "Mortancer? I thought the Mortancers of Moraebius were a myth."

"They are a myth, and so is the Order of the Shroud. I am just a schoolgirl trying a new twist on getting out of a paddling," Bellany said.

Bristol laughed until tears came. "It sounds so absurd now. A month ago I would have believed you."

Bellany nodded. "I should go now. Next Friday I may limp back here the night after my last final exam. Maybe using you for sex will help me get over the mockery Headmistress Vargrend is likely to have made of my grade after I turn in two hastily written papers."

"I will help you commiserate, Mistress," Bristol said.

Bellany smiled at Headmster Bristol as she donned her robe and then slipped out the door. She nearly tripped a few stairs down into the library tower when an epiphany struck her like a bolt of lightning. She rushed back to her room, dressed herself in boots and warmer clothing and then stepped into the hallway once she knew it was clear of monitors. Venturing into town in the middle of a windy Friday night somehow appealed to her, but she knew that if she were successful she would be even more satisfied by what she would do on Saturday night.

Although some of the athletes surely missed having tournaments, few would have wanted to have one on Saturday because the wind was so briskly blowing snow against the windowpanes that it sounded like sand was clattering against the windows.

Thanks to Headmaster Bristol's energy, Bellany got up very early Saturday morning and worked hard on her history paper. 

When Mary woke up in the morning, she came over and put her arms around Bellany.

"You're up early. How can you stand to write in this cold?" Mary said.

"I put a few billets in when I got up, but I guess I lost track of time. I figured out that the monitors scold us if we try to stay up late but they never say anything about getting up early. I just had to figure out at what point late became early. I think I woke up about four. I have so much work to do or my grades will turn my Mother's face white and my parents will end my swordsmanship lessons for sure. Perhaps that is what Headmistress Vargrend is after," Bellany said. "I know you might not mind them ending but it would break my heart."

"If it would break your heart I will do everything in my power to help you," Mary said.

"Thank you Mary. You have been so much help already. I can't believe the number of sources you have written down and you've written page numbers and everything. All I have to do is check the relevant books out and use your notes. It is helping immensely. I am sure I will finish this history paper by Sunday night.

Mary Grimaced. "I don't know how you will ever finish the big paper for the Trivium."

"I am going to have a friend buy a couple of large candelabra for me tomorrow and a big box of candles. I figure if worse comes to worse maybe we can make some space in the closet. I could use my flat-topped trunk as a desk and stay up all night, or at least until late becomes early. Depending on how much stamina I can muster I will do the best paper I can in the time that I have.

"But when will you study for the exams?" Mary asked.

"I can do okay even if I don't study. I've read the books and attended the classes. Thankfully I have a good memory," Bellany said.

"I hope you are right, Bellany."

"I do too, because I cannot have mom loosing it over bad grades and ending my lessons with Leafwhisper," Bellany said. "Charles sometimes gets away with a bad grade here or there, but he can charm mother and keep her from dwelling on his marks. I have no such magic," Bellany said.

Mary nodded.

Bellany was glad there was no tournament on Saturday. She went to classes and tried not to think about the evening to come. After lunch Bellany wrote a couple of essays to keep current. At her swordsmanship lesson at Jamie's she drafted much of what remained of her history paper. 

After a brief session with Mary she waited until her roommate was asleep and then got up. She put the clothes on that she had set aside just inside her trunk and then cast the spells she used to go abroad at night, Life vision, Clinging Darkness and Floating Dagger. She made her way through the library and the offices and went outdoors from the offices. From there she went outdoors, where powder snow was still blowing across the landscape. 

The courtyard gate lock was difficult due to the low temperatures but yielded to concentrated effort. She stuck to the shadows close to the walls of the courtyard and made her way to the front gate. She was embarrassed about the amount of time and energy it had taken her to get the front gate open last night. She had been obliged to leave the gate unlocked to save magical energy. Thankfully no one had discovered the breached security. The lock on the gate out of the courtyard was a little different than the lock on the gate into the courtyard and had taken some time to learn to open. This evening she opened it easily, went through it and then relocked the gate before making her way towards the Town of Vargrend. She wished she could take a horse but she knew she would have to work on Darkness III before she should try to conceal a mount.

The frozen turf crunched beneath her feet. Shortly after leaving the academy she saw a couple of mounted men down the road. Their life force made them stand out like beacons against the dark clouds of the night sky. Bellany stopped and pressed herself into the embrace of a pine tree while they passed. They were armed. She was pretty sure they were Constable Herrington's men but life vision did not show the same details that normal vision did. The darkness around her rendered her completely invisible to them in spite of their powerful lanterns. They passed without incident. 

Once in town she headed down an alley towards the Vargrend Armory. Once again she was glad she had made her first trip and the arrangements that went with it during the night before. Things had actually worked out better than she had expected. Behind the Armory were three cabins, although she really could not make it out using her life vision one of the cabin doors had a flat piece of steel forged to depict the profile of a strong man's arm. That marked it as Cooyman's cabin. Tonight it was much easier to find. All she had to do was follow the sounds of revelry. Bellany could hear music and smell roast beef as she approached the cabin. Cooyman had gone all out. During the winter solstice, a friend of Cooyman's was going to be getting married. There had not been a bachelor party yet. Cooyman had simply decided to throw one on the spur of the moment. Bellany was that spur.

As she approached the cabin, Stratton came out and intercepted her. "Come round ta th' bedroom window, lass. We will sneak ye in so that ye can get ready without the men knowin' ye're here. I made the mask ye asked for extra stout like Cooyman said. Guaranteed not ta come off without some time 'an labor."

"Thank you Stratton. I am so excited!" Bellany said cheerfully.

"Aye that's the spirit. I never would 'ave guessed ye'd be volunteerin' ta help out as part o' th' entertainment, but ye won't see me complainin' neither. Cooyman 'bout died this mornin' when th' daylight showed 'im the coin ye chipped in ta help on expenses was a gold dragon, but the food an' ale he could afford to buy convinced many a fence-sitter ta come ta the party. 

Bellany nodded. "The highwaymen lived well, now it's our turn." 

We got the' cabin stuffed full o' near a score o' men. Is that too many? Cooyman said ye wanted at least ten strong an' virile men if he could get 'em."

Bellany smiled. "Twenty is even better. I've been climbing the walls for months," She said as she drew on Stratton's lust.

Stratton shook his head, "Ye're actually willin ta..."

"Be part of the entertainment, just like I promised," Bellany smiled.

She climbed in the bedroom window with the help of Dempsy who was inside. Once the window was closed she undressed while Stratton secured a black leather mask with a network of leather laces around her head and neck. 

"There, that shouldna come off fer nothin," Stratton said, satisfied with his workmanship.

Bellany looked into the polished metal that served as Cooyman's mirror. "This is just what I wanted, a net of woven leather like a hood in the back and a nice solid piece to cover the area around my eyes and nose in front. It even leaves my lips uncovered just as I'd asked."

Hold still milady, Dempsy said as he busied himself pulling measured clumps of Bellany's red hair through the network of leather that held her mask on. When he was finished he had created many braided strands that roughly resembled snakes. He threaded two yellow crystal beads into each of their knotted ends to enhance the effect.

As the Dempsy worked Bellany put on a pair of soft leather moccasins. The tops of the moccasins resembled the net of leather that held her mask on and did little to conceal her feet. Stratton had created a simple garment that consisted of four shear green veils to go over her red silk bustier and her matching panties and stockings

When she was ready Stratton opened the door a crack and gave Cooyman the high sign. Bellany could hear Cooyman making an announcement outside the bedroom.

"As ye all know, it ain't easy findin' appropriate entertainment fer bachelors in Vargrend what with th' constabulary stepping on indiscrete professional women due to th' academies bein' so near. Luckily, bein' that I'm an armorer I got a lot o' knightly friends and clients who go out an' about adventurin'. One of 'em said 'e 'ad captured somethin' that might just fit th' bill for a bachelor party such as this 'ne. As luck would 'ave it 'e also recently got 'er fitted with an enchanted mask that keeps 'er devastatin' power in check long as she keeps it on. He loaned 'er to me with only a couple o' strings attached. First of all there will be no removin' of 'er mask as dire consequences would result ta all present. Second, stipulation is understandable bein' that she's on loan. We are not ta leave any lastin' mark or marr on 'er perfect complexion. Other than that me friend assured me that even with 'er mask on she'll turn certain parts of a man ta stone, an' havin' spent so much solitary time amongst statues she's understandably developed a bit o' a hunger for men who can do a bit more to slake 'er monstrous lusts than a 'unk o' stone.

With that the musicians stroked a sensuous melody on their lutes. Bellany took a moment to get the feel of the melody and of the collective lusts of the men in the main room of Cooyman's cabin and then she was out the door, her hips swaying to the music. She inhaled suddenly as the collective lust of nearly a score of men caressed her. It had been far too long since she was able to really indulge herself.

Her improvisation took her through the groping fingers of several men whose wandering hands added more heat to her loins. Lust tingled up and down her spine as she drunk the scent of the revelers through her lust-tickled nostrils. She tossed the veil from her back onto the head of one of the enraptured men and smiled at how quickly he tore it from his eyes and smelled it. Her dance continued and she shed the veil that covered her loins.

As the men gazed at her calves and thighs their lust intensified. The feeling was positively intoxicating. If she had any doubts that she really was the Rapina of her pirate fantasy, she shed them with the veil covering her breasts and belly. As she danced she drew on the abundant lust that was calling to her, making her body tingle with promise. The hunger was undeniable. The men watched the undulation of her hips and the quivering of her breasts within the confines of her lingerie with rapt attention. Hands caressed her whenever she got too close to her audience. On one such pass a young man removed veil that covered her rump. The audience cheered and clapped him on the back as they relished the sight of the high yet generous cheeks of her behind.

Bellany wove a tapestry of their lust, pulling and moving it with the undulations of her dance, yet it was not a static thing. Some of her gyrations brought a greater tingle of lust than others thus the audience guided her dance as much as she did. By the time the music ended her panties had been confiscated and the laces of her bustier were trailing on the ground. She did not sit with the men and try to socialize. She knew she had no time for such niceties if she was to bring her plan to fruition. She spotted the young man whose lust was blazing with the most power, she took his hand and she dragged him into the bedroom accompanied by the hoots and jibes of the men.

He was so excited he came nearly instantly. Bellany drew on him strongly making him squeal with pleasure. She knew the men would drink plenty of ale, thus she was confident that any debility the next day would be attributed to being hung over. As the man staggered out Bellany stepped into the room and grabbed the back of the neck of another man and kissed him. He grinned like a pirate, lifted her off the floor and carried her into bedroom. As she left she could hear the buzz of the conversation as the young man that had bedded her first was interrogated over mugs of ale. 

To the accompaniment of music and drinking, Bellany bedded nearly a score of men. After only about a dozen of them the energy racing through her body and mind felt like a hive of crazed bees doing their best to break out from inside her body. Her breasts were firm and flush as her reserves swelled and yet she continued to gluttonously take man after man from the main room. Whenever she came to climax she used her charm power to build an addiction to her within the men. It was a sort of latent lust. They would want to bring her to a party such as tonight's gathering again and again.

The power working on her mind grew and it seemed as if the swarm of bees began to vibrate the depths of her thoughts. Where previously she had flashed back to a memory here or there, and some of her memories had joined together into coherent units, presently she began having cascades of memory that made her quake and gasp, but she wove these reactions to mental events into her incessant lovemaking to keep the true nature of them hidden from the men who were quite literally pounding sense into her. About an hour and a half before dawn no one entered her room after the last man left. She left the bedroom to see what had happened to the party. Cum rolled down both of her long legs as she picked her way through the bodies of the drunk and exhausted men. She judged that roughly two thirds of them had left. Five were sprawled on the floor of furnishings of the room sleeping off their excesses and hers.

Cooyman looked her up and down as she neared the table where he and Dempsy were playing cards. Stratton had passed out in a chair nearby. 

"Gads lass, ye can still walk after that?"

Bellany giggled and nodded. Then hugged herself. "Mmmmmm, no that was a party. Ballroom dancing in rich finery could not compare.

"Would ye like a drink?" Cooyman asked, a bit drunkenly.

"Maybe later. I came out to see if there were any men left," Bellany said.

"Gods girl, ye've got the stamina of a ox, but ye sure look a lot finer. I can hardly contain meself even though I never would 'ave guessed the cum of a score of men drippin' out of a greedy girl's snatch would rise me lust well above th' rims o' the many mugs o' ale I downed tonight. Cooyman loosened his belt and let his breeches slide then sat down as he took Bellany's hips and lifted her off the floor and onto his hardened shaft. "Look at ye wench, all flushed and sassy. Ye should be exhausted he said as he bucked beneath her.

"I'll be exhausted tomorrow," Bellany lied.

Cooyman's spending was slowed by ale but Bellany's was speeded on the tingling wings of energy that felt like a swarm of lusty bees, his powerful thrusting soon brought Bellany to a delicious moaning orgasm. The suggestion she left was a touch that inspired awe and the idea that repeating the party would be something no one could resist. A few moments later Cooyman bellowed like a wounded bore as he spent a fountain of seed into Bellany's greedy depths.

Cooyman sunk back into his chair. His eyes were glazed and he mumbled, "Damned ale," as he fell asleep beneath her.

Bellany got up and smirked at Dempsy who had been watching.

"I was the one been drinkin' only a little cider to make sure to get you off before dawn.

"That was sweet of you," Bellany said.

"They all assumed I would not take a turn," Dempsy said.

"Do you prefer men?" Bellany asked.

"I think so, but you are so lovely and the men have just soaked you in cum..."

Bellany took Straton's hand and led him into the bedroom.
-------

She was flushed with exertion as she entered her room at Vargrend's. She had cut it a little close and had been obliged to run home. The thing that really frightened her was that she was not even winded. Part of that was obviously due to her conditioning under Leafwhisper, but part of it was the amount of energy she had absorbed. She had hastily washed up at Cooyman's but she cleaned up again just to be safe. By the time she was half way done, Mary had awakened and started watching her.

"You're flushed," Mary said.

"I splashed a lot of water on and it is really cold," Bellany replied.

"Why don't you build a fire in the heater?"

"I am in a hurry. I have decided to commit a heinous sin this morning and not report to church," Bellany said.

"How am I going to explain that?" Mary said.

"You'll just have to tell the truth. I am behind on my schoolwork and desperate for time. Reverend Leeland won't be happy, but you can tell him that if I don't pull my grades up, he will not be seeing me at all next semester because mother will order me to stay home."

"You have a good point, and I am sure if I can deliver your line with such absolute cheerful confidence that Reverend Leland will have no choice but to understand. You must be really determined. I can practically feel the power of your resolve," Mary affirmed.

"Indeed I am. I am not going to loose my swordsmanship lessons to Headmistress Vargrend's overzealous detention and that is that."

Bellany worked on her history paper for the rest of the day. When Mary returned from the library that evening after dinner she came over to her roommate and looked over her shoulder. "That's Trivium. Did you get bored with the history paper?"

Bellany pointed to Mary's desk. There were innumerable pages spread across it as if they had been put out to dry sometime ago.

"I finished it at about three this afternoon," Bellany said.

"No, I thought you said you hoped to have it done by tonight and I thought that was impossible."

"It should be dry by now. Would you please proof it for me?" Bellany asked.

"Yes of course I will. Mary looked a bit dubious, as if she were sure the paper would be slip-shod at best. As she gathered up the numbered pages she began to realize that Bellany had not shirked on length. As she read her mouth dropped by degrees. The paper exceeded the required length and was absolutely brilliant. The grammar was flawless and the writing was obviously Bellany's. The penmanship looked a little rushed, but no one could find any serious fault with it.

Bellany took a break at lights out for the benefit of the monitors but was in the closet working after only a brief interlude with her head between her roommate's legs. She just couldn't resist.

The next morning Mary rushed off to the library early and brought back a whole list of books that Bellany wanted for the second part of her paper for the Trivium. Bellany already had the draft outline done and had written perhaps a quarter of the paper. After classes Bellany brought Mary and a large number of books to Jordell manor with her. Master Leafwhisper had clandestinely given his student finals week off. Bellany read and wrote speedily as Mary helped mark books and find additional sources in the Jordell library. When Mary rose on Tuesday morning she realized that Bellany had not slept since Saturday night. At long last on Wednesday night, Bellany finished her paper for the Trivium. Mary could not believe her roommate's dedication. After a brief nap, Bellany studied for the rest of the night for her Thursday exams. From the moment after her last final on Thursday, Bellany studied for the Trivium exam. She was still studying as she walked to the room to take the test on Friday morning.

Early Friday after her last exam, Bellany strode through the door to Headmistress Vargrend's office.

"You wanted to see me, Headmistress?"

"Yes Lady Norwit. I have been reading your paper on the morality of war. You have done an excellent job of developing your points, but at every phase of the exposition, I find your conclusions slide entirely out of phase with the sound reasoning that comes before them," Headmistress puzzled.

Bellany tilted her head like a puppet and spoke in voice that was sickly sweet, "I am a faithful Lady of the Vindicator. I come to all the proper conclusions. Besmirched Ladies, who do not think as the vindicator bids, are hidden away in convents until they die. They are not allowed to attend classes at prestigious schools for girls unless they think properly."

Headmistress Vargrend looked stunned for a moment and then her face wrinkled into a pained expression. "You are a slave in your own house."

Bellany put on a false smile and curtseyed gracefully. "I am incapable of subtlety because I am such a simple lady who hangs on the reverend's every word. I have total faith in his divinely inspired logic." 

Headmistress Vargrend groaned. "Are you saying this paper is a grand parody of vindicator logic?"

Bellany behaved as if she was utterly confused that anyone could believe such a thing but she greatly overacted her part. "Why Headmistress, I could never write anything that questioned the values of the faithful," she said breathlessly.

Headmistress Vargrend smiled. It was a rare occasion. "I am going to read this paper again, Lady Norwit, this time with a subtler eye. You shall be marked accordingly."

"As you wish Headmistress. I am sure you will find that the logic of the faithful is implacable."
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This ends, Mistress Bellany, chapter 63 of The Chronicles of Rapina.
The story continues in chapter 64, The Chill Curse of Winter.

Copyright 2005 by Rapina (Includes Lee's corrections so far)