As the wagon rolled up to the shore, Madeleine marveled at the sight of the huge gates, currently shut tight against the tide. A long, wide walkway linked mainland Armorica with the island city of Ys. The cart rolled to a stop as a weatherbeaten man walked up to it.

“Passage to Ys is closed,” he said. “Opens again at low tide. You'll have to park your wagon over there. It'll be a while.”

He indicated a handful of buildings to the side of the road. One of them was an inn with a carriage house off the side. The buildings were all made of grey and weatherbeaten wood, obviously survivors of the intensely salty sea air.

Madeleine’s father urged the horses off the road and to a stop by the carriage house. A groom came out and took the reins and Madeleine’s father jumped down from the seat and then swung her down off the wagon. He held her hand as they walked into the inn. It was an unusual gesture for him and reminded her that they'd soon be parted.

The inn was about half full, but surprisingly quiet. A waitress lazily made the rounds while a most of the patrons hunched over their food and drink. A fire crackled in the corner, warding off the ocean chill that didn't seem to realize that Spring had come.

Madeleine’s father stood at the door for a moment, surveying the room, looking for a seat. A flash of color caught Madeleine eye as a flash of noise caught her ear. While most of the inn seemed tired, drab, and beaten down, there was a table that was lively. As Madeleine’s father walked toward it, she took in the table’pps patrons.

At the center was a young man, not much older than Madeleine. He wore a bright red, tunic in a Roman style. The tunic was edged in gold. His clothes looked they hadn't been much worn, a contrast to the locals, and in fact in contrast to Madeleine’s own clothes. The boy's hair was blonde and meticulously curled. He seemed to hold court at the table, telling a very elaborate story that Madeleine couldn't hear. Next to him sat an older man. His grizzled features and stiff beating marked him as a soldier, or former soldier. He shared the young man's golden hair, but his was cut short. He seemed supremely uninterested in the young man's story. On the other side of the table was a plump older man. His white hair was curled in a style similar to the boy's. He leaned his head on his hand, held in rapt attention by the boy's story. With a flourish the boy finished his story. The white-haired man nearly clapped and the boy beamed at the attention. The soldier surveyed the room. He narrowed his eyes slightly when he noticed Madeleine and her father. She resisted the urge to shrink under his gaze, instead choosing to stick out her chin and hold her head up proudly.

Then the boy caught sight of her. He took in her clothes, a blue dress that, while not fancy, contrasted sharply with the browns and greys of the other patrons. He waved her over.

“Another traveller!” he said, his voice easily carrying in the quiet room. “Come! Join us!”

Madeleine’s father started toward the table, taking in the seen as Madeleine had done herself a moment ago. The boy beamed at them, his smile brightening the whole room. He gestured toward two empty seats at the table.

“My name is Gaius Flavius Aurelius” he announced proudly. “Are you another new student at Ys?”

“I'm Madeleine Brigantia. Yes, I'm a new student.“

Gaius’s eyes lit up. “Brigantia, eh? So you're from Britain too? “

“Uh, no. I'm from Armorica. At least, I was born here. My family is originally from the North Kingdom.”

Gaius waved that away. “We're all Britons, then. At least by blood.”

“You're from Britain? I thought you were Roman.“

“I was born in Londinium. My family has deep ties to Rome.” Gaius launched into his history, and then that Of His Family, Going Back Generations.

Madeleine listened with interest to the story. Interest that soon turned to boredom. Gaius’s family was vast, his lineage was long, and his ancestors were very busy. A lot of them also shared names, making the story quite confused.

It was several hours -- or at least that's what it seemed -- later when the door opened and two figures bundled in cloaks rush in. They huddled by the door for a moment talking, then the smaller figure dismissed the larger one, who bowed deeply and left. The small figure looked around the room and settled on the colorful group. Making her way toward them, she lowered the hood, revealing a breathtaking young woman.

The girl's hair was tightly braided and pulled back in a bun. Her features were sharply defined. Glimmers of intelligence and curiosity sparkled in her eyes.

“You must be students on your way to Ys,” she stated confidently. “My name is Cleopatra. I've come here from Alexandria to study at the Academy.”

“Gaius Aurelius. A pleasure to meet such a lovely lady. And this is…” he gestured at Madeleine.

“Madeleine Brigantia, “ she said shyly. Cleopatra was poised, noble, and confident, qualities Madeleine didn't see in herself but desperately wished for.

“A pleasure to meet you both.” Cleopatra smiled warmly at Madeleine, who blushed slightly. The new arrival sat down and ordered something warming and the group chatted about their families, the school, and other matters. Cleopatra had a deft way of preventing Gaius from monopolizing the conversation without seeming rude.

As they sat, the gate attendant poked his head through the door.

“Gate’s open in 5 minutes!” he called.

Madeleine looked at her father, who started to get up from the table. Gaius and his entourage followed, Gaius telling the story of how one of his ancestors had single-handedly saved Rome from a barbarian invasion. Madeleine half-listened to his improbable tale. Cleopatra rose demurely rose and smoothed out her dress. Madeleine slowed down, letting the others drift ahead of her. She glanced back shyly at the other girl, only to find that Cleopatra had closed the distance quickly and was practically beside her. Cleopatra wrapped an arm around Madeleine’s shoulder, causing the young girl to flinch.

“I think we're going to be fabulous friends. You must call me Cleo. Cleopatra is so formal. And I think I heard your father call you Maddie?” Madeleine nodded, tongue-tied.

“Excellent! We shall have such fun together.”

The group walked up to the gates of Ys, now slowly opening. Gaius’s company and Maddie’s father said their goodbyes. He hugged her tightly and whispered “Stay safe an have fun. And learn a lot.”

She smiled sadly as she pulled away.

“I'll do all those things.”

She turned to go, running to keep up with her two fellow students. The excitement started to overtake her and she looked back with a wide smile. Her father was smiling poudly and waving. Maddie was able to detect a bit of parental worry in his eyes, despite the smile. She waved and turned back, running carefree to catch up to th two people who would no doubt become her closest friends.