Speak

Chapter 9

Tipping her head to the side, Scarlet would have let out a hum if her body would allow her. Looking at her refection in the small bathroom mirror, she felt a conflict within herself. One side, the side of her that screamed the loudest, told her to remove the strange, foreign clothes from her body- she was never meant to be a fighter; a second, that was loud but nowhere near the first, told her that this was what the King had order and she lived under the King's laws now- so she would learn to fight by his ruling; lastly, there was a third side, this one was much more quitter than its counter parts but it was the one scared her the most for this one liked the idea- the freedom of her new outfit, learning to fight and becoming something more.

One must chose to always remain calm, no matter what the situation calls for or how dire it may be. For staying calm one will gain both clarity in the mind and mouth- and with that comes inner peace thus creating outward peace. To harbor a fear leads the harboring of anger which thus leads hate and hate can only end in suffering. The High Lord and the Courts wish for the people of Tobus to live in the best, clear state of mind. That is why the following list is constructed clauses made up of things one must avoid at all cost- and the reason for it- and should one fail you might face severe consequences.

For some odd reason or not, the introduction to the Code of Mind and Conduct found itself playing within Scarlet's mind. Pulling her hair up and back into a bun, the raspy male voice of her sixth year teacher continued on within her mind; reading off each of the clauses on the list. Sticking a hair pin in, she stopped Mr. Nite's voice in a ponder to herself. She hadn't thought of school since she finished her final year- her tenth year- nearly two years; and she most defiantly hadn't thought of her sixth year teacher in easily two times that. Reaching for another hair pin, Mr. Nite's voice resumed its reading, and this time Scarlet did nothing to stop it.

Opening the door to the small bathroom she had been told to change in, Scarlet stepped out into the spacious training room and walked over to Renee. Renee, who had changed first, sat on small bench by a large rack of different sized blades that could only be assumed to be one for those of on lookers who wished to watch the practice. As she walked over, Renee eyed her once over before letting out a low whistle. "Wow Scar, I don't think I've ever seen you in such clothing. I've never seen you in pants before... You look... different."

Suddenly, Scarlet felt extremely self-conscious and found her arms wrapping around her stomach. Renee was right- the form fitting one piece with both leather breast plate and leg armor was like nothing Scarlet had ever worn. Not to even mention the fact that the one piece was that of a shirt and pants- the latter being a clothing Scarlet only rarely ever even looked at let alone wore. There is also the fact of how form fitting the clothing really was, while it allowed her more movement then she ever imaged her body being able to have, it layered her body like a second coat of skin. It was in the bathroom that she realized how thin she truly was, and how utterly disgusted she was with it. Her near protruding ribcage and narrow hips were nothing but a reminder of her hard childhood and her time spent in the Trade. Beauty was found within a flat tummy but rounding curves of a real woman's body- something Scarlet knew she would be forever haunted by the lack of.

'You look... nice.' Scarlet gave a small smile to her friend, while she envied her. Dressed near identical to Scarlet, minus the leather amour for a simple leather vest, Renee's outfit hugged the soft, near womanly curves of her body.

Envy, is one of the worst emotions. Mr. Nite's voice filled Scarlet's mind once more as she took a seat next to her friend. Envy skips over anger and leads straight to hate and suffering. It those who we are closest to, it has been shown, are the ones we are most envious of. While you are encouraged to befriend and love those fellows around you- you must be weary of how close one allows themselves to get to others. For should you get too close, these emotions are sure to bud and bloom.