Upstairs in the library, Jayhan was keeping himself from becoming completely comatose by having one eye on his books and the other watching events in the yard below. As his eyes travelled over the stables, he thought about Sasha and the amazing fact that she was a girl. He looked at Eloquin and tried to imagine Sasha wearing a long flowing dress with her hair long enough to be tied back with a bow. Now he thought about it, Beth didn’t wear flowing dresses either. He had seen her in dresses occasionally, but they were unadorned riding habits. Mostly, she wore trousers. Hmm. Now he thought about it, Beth was unusual in that way. Hannah the cook, Rose the maid and Maud all wore skirts or gowns. He wondered how Sasha would go climbing trees in a dress. She might get her skirts snagged and end
