Barishka Gets the Boot

            “My dear Prince!” cried Barishka, laughing of Varick’s blunt refusal “I think a man of your station should realize that one can catch more flies with honey then with vinegar, as they say.”

         “Ah, but Lady Barishka,” said the Prince, his voice and manner dripping with an overabundance of sweetness, “I must ask what I’d do with a fly when I can have something worth catching.”

The End of the Beginning

Alissa dove to her right, holding up the sword in her left hand to deflect the blow as she cut low with the one in her right. She danced backwards as both of Henric's weapons passed inches away from her and cut away several of the ribbons affixed to her armor.
She smiled, knowing that, as long as she moved correctly, they perfectly served their purpose of obscuring her exact location. And that perfect movement was a dance she knew well.