Sayana woke with a start and stared with some confusion around the room. Where was she? She wasn’t in her room in her father’s house, and she wasn’t in the hiding spot on the street. She heard other girls’ voices and memory crashed down on her. She was at the courtesan academy on Atania.

She got up and ran into the bathroom. She took a fast shower and dressed in one of the new uniforms before running out of her room and joining the stragglers heading for the great hall. She took her assigned seat and waited for the Matrons to serve her breakfast.

She ate everything on her plate and started back to her room. A Matron caught her arm. “Sayana? You’re to come with me. The Head Matron wants to speak with you.” Her voice was calm and there was a serene smile on her face.

“I haven’t done anything wrong.” A stab of panic filled her. Was she being sent back to her father after all?

“Matron Hannelore told me to tell you it’s about your younger siblings,” the Matron explained.

“Oh, okay.” A sense of relief followed by a different fear filled her. She followed the Matron to an office. Kallam was waiting for her there.

“What did we do?” Kallam looked as nervous as she’d felt earlier.

“The Matron who brought me here says it’s about Addie and Eon and Ethian.” Sayana smoothed her shirt and ran sweaty hands down her pants legs.

“Oh, that’s okay then.” He calmed down instantly.

They waited for a few minutes before Hannelore opened the door and ushered them inside. She smiled at them warmly. Head Matron Dushana looked over at the two children and smiled at them. “So, these are the two with the scholar siblings who were promised they could contact them.” She nodded as if to confirm to herself what she’d said.

“They weren’t promised they could contact them exactly, Head Matron.” Hannelore put her hands on their shoulders. “Only that Pen and I would plead their case to you to let them contact them.”

“Well, as I work closely with the head of the scholar academy, and he has given his approval for it this morning, I don’t see why we can’t allow it. Only once a week though, and only a short call.” The Head Matron gestured to the comm sitting in the corner. “Just fifteen minutes.”

“That’s fine. Just so long as we can talk to them.” Sayana was ecstatic. Even fifteen minutes was more than she’d expected.

“Then I’ll arrange it for the sixth day in the evening. That’s when the scholars are most at their leisure and we have some free time ourselves.” The Head Matron glanced up at Hannelore. “Hannelore, please see to it that the children are brought to my office each sixth day evening for that call.”

“I will, Head Matron,” Hannelore agreed.

“Now, I also heard that the two of you aren’t too thrilled with the idea of becoming courtesans because of what happened with your mother.” The Head Matron looked inquisitively at the two children.

“No, we’re not. We understand it’s what we have to do but we’re still not happy about it.” Kallam spoke for both of them, so Sayana just nodded her agreement with her brother’s words.

“I spoke with Treolia Academy, just in case there were some legality issues we needed to deal with. They were unaware you even existed, so you are free to stay at Atania Academy. As for what happened to your mother, they thought she was being cared for and the doctor’s report when her body was returned shocked them. They have blacklisted your father, as have we, and the two academies have sent our recommendation that others do the same. He won’t be able to do this to another courtesan if the mood should strike him.” The Head Matron looked grim and from everything Sayana knew of the woman, what he’d done must be appalling to her if she didn’t allow it to happen at her academy.

 “So now that you no longer have to worry about your father, and we don’t have to worry about your mother’s academy causing problems for us, we can start you on your training. We promise you, life here will be nothing like what you imagined it to be and your life as a courtesan will not be like your mother’s.” Hannelore smiled down at the two children.

“What’s to stop someone from doing what our father did and stopping us from calling out?” Kallam asked. Sayana was very curious about that herself.

“We have several very large enforcers that I hired. They will go in and retrieve you if I don’t get a regular check-in from you every six months. I’ve done it four times now, and each time the patron was fined for restraining a courtesan against their will,” the Head Matron told them. “I do not take it lightly when our rules are disobeyed and when my courtesans are harmed. I will not tolerate it, and neither will Hannelore, who will succeed me when I step down. You are well protected.”

“Okay.” Sayana was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, though Kallam still looked a little suspicious. She hadn’t seen anyone looking beaten down and unhappy here, so perhaps they were doing what they said they were.

“Hannelore, take them to their first class and apologize to Inara for me for detaining them.” The Head Matron looked at the younger woman.

“Yes, Head Matron.” She ushered the children out and took them down to a classroom.

“Hannelore, I trust there is a good reason these two are late.” The Matron in charge frowned. “You know I do not like tardiness.”

“Yes, I know, Inara. I’m sorry,” Hannelore apologized. “There was a matter of politics between academies that had to be dealt with, and the Head Matron needed to talk to them. It’s all been sorted though so you should have no further issues with them.”

“Excellent.” Inara gestured to two empty chairs. “Then if you two will take your seats we’ll resume our lesson.” Kallam and Sayana sat down. “Now, as I was saying, Atania was first settled 900 years ago by miners who were looking for rare metals needed for industry. They didn’t find any and moved on. Then came the farmers and the craftsmen, who also didn’t find much luck here. Then came the schools and the tradesmen. We weren’t interested in changing the landscape to suit our needs. We adapted to the landscape. We have thrived here where no one else has.”

“Is that why Atania is so hard to live on?” someone asked.

“It’s not hard at all.” Inara shook her head. “It’s just not suited to industry. It’s better suited to being a home for learning.”

“I thought Atania was chosen because it made it impossible for us to escape. There’s nowhere for us to go,” another student grumbled sullenly. From the look on his face, he wasn’t thrilled with being there.

“If you do not wish to be a courtesan, there is always the Scullery.” Inara’s expression was stern. “If you try to run away, if you break the rules too many times, that is where you’ll be sent.”

“Why drag us here anyway if we didn’t want to be here in the first place? We were doing okay, my brother and I.” The student glared belligerently at the Matron. “They sent my brother to the Scullery right when we arrived because they said he was too old to be a courtesan.”

“How old was he?” Inara looked at him curiously.

“Fifteen.” The student scowled.

“He was too old. Anyone thirteen and older is considered too old to train and is sent to the Scullery immediately.” Inara frowned. “Which recruiter brought you in? They should have known that was going to happen.”

“It was a woman named Trena,” the boy told her.

“Trena? I don’t know her. She must be new. I’ll have a word with the Head Matron about her. She can’t be allowed to keep bringing in children who are too old to be courtesans because it upsets the balance of things too much.” Inara made a note on her pad.

“Trena said because we had no parents we had to come here, but my brother and I were living with my uncle. We were just fine without her interfering.” The boy was very angry about having been taken from his homeworld.

“Your guardian didn’t object to you being taken?” Inara seemed perfectly calm about the situation.

“He didn’t get a say. She just swooped in when he was gone and took us while he was away.” The boy’s anger seemed to grow as he told his story.

“Hannelore and the Head Matron must be made aware of this. Please excuse me a moment, students.” Inara swept out of the room. She returned a short while later with Hannelore. Hannelore collected the boy and took him out of the room. “If she is kidnapping children without their guardian’s approval, then this must be stopped immediately.” Inara took a deep breath. “Now, moving on with the lesson…”

Sayana learned more about the history of Atania and what it meant to the courtesan academy. Then a tone sounded, and Inara left the room, but told the students to stay as their next instructor would be in momentarily. “What do you think?” Kallam whispered.

“The history is interesting.” Sayana frowned. “But it’s horrible what happened to that boy and his brother.”

Kallam snorted. “I bet the uncle sold them out. I don’t think she kidnapped them at all.”

“You think so?” Sayana gave him an uncertain look.

Kallam nodded. “Yeah, they’re only his nephews, after all. They aren’t really that close to him.”

“But what if he didn’t have children of his own? Then they’d be worth keeping around like his own sons,” Sayana pointed out.

Kallam gave her a scornful look. “You’re too soft, Saya. No one’s that kind in this universe.”

Sayana shook her head. “I think you’re wrong, Kal. Some people are kind. Or else there wouldn’t be any good things in this universe and there are lots of them.”

Kallam just snorted again and turned away from his sister. Sayana knew in her heart she was right. There were good things in the universe. Just because they’d never happened to her didn’t mean it wasn’t true. Just look at what the Head Matron was doing for them. They were being allowed to have contact with Adjira and the boys. It would be short calls only, but that was better than the no contact at all that they were initially afraid it was going to be.

Sayana believed in good things with all her heart. She’d had so little to have faith in living as she had with a sick mother and a cruel father that keeping her belief in the good things in the universe was all that had kept her going. She’d read about the good things in her books and believed that one day they would come to her if she was patient. Maybe being a courtesan wasn’t what she wanted to do but maybe, just maybe, being a courtesan would bring her some of those good things. If that was what it took, then perhaps it was worth becoming something she didn’t like to get them.

A Master walked into the room. “Well, it’s my turn to teach you and let me tell you now. I do not tolerate interruptions of any kind. If you have a question, raise your hand. Don’t simply blurt it out or I will ignore you,” he instructed. “I am Master Benjin, and this is your class on etiquette, though I doubt you’ll even remember a fraction of what I’m going to teach you, which is why you’ll get another class on this in a few years to remind you of all of this.”

One of the others raised her hand. Master Benjin sighed and gestured for her to ask her question. “Master Benjin, if we’re likely to forget it, why are we having a class in it now?” she asked.

“So you at least learn a few mannerisms appropriate to your station and can learn to fine tune those mannerisms at a later date.” Benjin gave them all a look that Sayana couldn’t quite interpret. “We do not want you developing bad habits that will take longer to train out of you by allowing for poor behavior now.”

Sayana paid attention to Benjin’s lessons as he taught them the first steps in the intricate dance of manners all courtesans must know. He was moderately surprised to find that she and Kallam already knew these things, but their mother had taught them manners from the day they could walk. She had taught them what she knew, which was the manners of the courtesans. They’d forgotten some of them, but for now they were doing slightly better than the others.

A third teacher, this one another Matron, came in after Benjin left and taught them mathematics. When challenged why a courtesan would need to know mathematics, she replied with a stern glare for the one questioning her, “It’s a poor courtesan who has no head for figures and can’t manage their own finances. The academy isn’t going to do it for you when you retire. What will you do if you don’t know how to do basic math and find yourself in a bind because you can’t manage your own bank account?”

Then it was time for a break. The children were taken to the garden and left there to amuse themselves for twenty minutes before being taken back inside for two more classes – these were on playing a musical instrument and poetry – before heading to lunch. After lunch there were lessons in dance, voice, and reading for those whose skills were below a certain level. Kallam and Sayana, along with a few others, were dismissed from the reading class. That gave them free time until dinner.

Kallam came to Sayana’s room. He stood just outside the doorway. “Today was rough.” His voice was scratchy, and he was drooping.

“But interesting.” She was curled up on her bed, having nowhere else to sit in her room. “I didn’t know that voice lessons included ways of speaking.”

“I can imagine a courtesan with a vocal tic would get very annoying very quickly, given we’re supposed to recite tales and poetry.” Kallam coughed. “It’s better to train those out early.”

“Yes, I can see that. At least the lessons aren’t boring. I mean we wouldn’t have a choice about taking them even if they were, but still, it’s better than lessons with mother.” Sayana felt a pang of sadness. She still missed her mother.

“Mother wasn’t a very good teacher. But I can see where some of what she taught us was what she learned at her academy. Those early lessons in manners for instance. They’re like what Master Benjin is teaching us now.” He moved to leaning against her doorframe.

“I expect we’ll be learning more advanced stuff too. He said we’d need a refresher in a few years, and I don’t think it’s for the simple stuff we went over today.” Sayana shifted her position and stared up at her older brother.

“Me either.” Kallam sighed. “Well, we’re into it now, Saya. I can’t say I’m enjoying myself but at least it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.”

“Same here.” Sayana smiled. “The way mother talked about her academy days, you’d have thought they walked around beating us for every mistake.”

“Maybe they did at Treolia. I get the impression that each academy is different, depending on who’s running it.” Kallam glanced over his shoulder.

“You might be right. I hope Addie and the boys are okay. Today would have been their first day of lessons too.” Sayana looked down. She tried not to cry because she couldn’t be there to hear about their classes.

“We’ll know on sixth day when we get to call them,” Kallam reminded her. “I’m just as worried about them as you are, Saya.”

“I didn’t have time to think about them all day. I was too focused on classes.” Sayana rubbed her eyes and tried to hide the fact she was crying from her brother.

“Same here. But now that classes are over, I can’t stop thinking about them.” Kallam rubbed his nose on his sleeve.

“Yeah, I’m the same. It’s going to be hard waiting for sixth day.” Sayana tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear.

“I know, but we have to be patient.” Kallam straightened. “I’m going to go back and read over the rules again.”

“I’m going to find something new to read. There’s a philosophy book that looks interesting.” Sayana picked up her pad.

“It’s going to be too advanced for you, Saya.” Kallam’s voice held a note of warning.

“So? It’s still something new to read. Besides, you know I always read adult books. It’s what I prefer.” Sayana started skimming through the list of titles for the book she remembered seeing.

“Okay, but when you can’t understand any of it, don’t whine to me about how hard it is,” Kallam told her scathingly.

“I’ve never whined to you about how hard a book I’ve chosen to read is.” Sayana looked up, stung by his words. “Not once.”

“That’s true.” Kallam waved. “Okay, Saya. I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m going to bed after dinner.”

“I might read a bit first, but I’ll probably do the same.” Sayana resumed her search. Kallam nodded and headed back to the boy’s side.

Sayana read until it was time for dinner, the philosophy book proving to be quite difficult to read as Kallam had suggested. Sayana didn’t mind. She liked difficult reads. They were more interesting to her because they challenged her mind in new ways. She set her book aside and went to dinner. There were a few new faces, and they all tried to grab at the food before the Head Matron gave permission. They were stopped and their hands slapped, and when the Head Matron gave her permission, the matrons and masters came around and served the children.

“This is stupid,” one of the newer children complained as she was handed her food. “We’re not babies. We can serve ourselves.”

“They do this so everyone gets the appropriate amount of food,” a teenage girl explained. “Everyone gets a set amount based on their age and weight profile. You get exactly what you need, no more and no less. It stops waste and keeps us from overeating and getting fat. Not that we could get fat with dance practice and the exercises they start having you do in your second year here.”

“Then how come she gets more food than I do?” the child persisted, pointing to Sayana’s plate.

“Because she’s underweight.” The teenage girl gestured to Sayana. “You can see that by just looking at her. They’ll get her up to a proper weight and then her food portion size will go down. That’s how they do it.”

“What if I want more food? I’m still hungry after I eat what they give me,” the girl whined.

“Get used to it. That’s all the food you’re getting, and if we hear of you trying to bully another child to steal their food or if we see you eating more than the portion we gave you, it’s straight to the Scullery for you,” a Matron informed her, coming over and standing over the child. “You’re overweight as it is. You need to shed a few pounds. Less food and more exercise are what you need. When you reach a proper weight for a child of your size, we’ll increase your portion size to what we normally feed a child of your age. You’re not at home anymore so there will be no coddling.”

“Do we at least get sweets with our meals?” the girl asked sullenly.

“Only on holidays, and only in small portions.” The Matron frowned. “Sweets are an overindulgence that none of you children need.”

“Why did my mother even bother sending me with the recruiter in the first place? If she knew how horrible this place was, she’d never have made me come,” the girl whined.

“Your mother, child, is one of our retired courtesans. She knew exactly what you were going to face when she sent you with the recruiter,” the Matron chided. “I think she felt you needed some discipline, and our courtesans are not set up to raise children. Sending them back to the academy to be taught a useful trade is the only way that they know of securing their child’s future.”

“It’s still not fair,” the girl muttered.

“Life isn’t fair, child. The sooner you realize that the better off you’ll be.” The Matron glanced at Sayana. “You are going to eat all of that, correct?”

“Yes, Matron.” Sayana dutifully took another bite of her dinner.

The Matron nodded approvingly. “The sooner you put on the weight you’re lacking, the better for your health.”

“I understand, Matron.” Sayana continued eating.

“You’re going to be more active now, so it’s going to be harder to pack on the calories. We may have to increase your portion size again if we don’t see a marked improvement in your weight.” The Matron watched Sayana for a moment.

“I can barely finish this. I don’t think I could eat more food,” Sayana protested.

“Well, we’ll see what the Head Matron decides to do with you.” The Matron patted her shoulder. “Eat your dinner and then return to your rooms.”

“Yes Matron,” came the reply, somewhat in unison.

“I still don’t think it’s fair,” the girl muttered as the Matron walked away. “No sweets, I don’t get as much food as I want, and we have all those stupid classes we have to take. There’s no time to play or have fun.”

“We’re not here to play and have fun.” The teenage girl spoke as sternly as any Matron. “We’re here to learn a trade. You need to accept that quickly or you’re just going to be miserable.” Sayana finished eating and headed to her room. She read for a little bit and then went to bed.