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"Yes," Tatiana continued, "you are doubly named with power. Your names represent the finest<br />
qualities people have to offer and hearken back in time to deeds of greatness and valor." She<br />
paused a moment. "But, as you have demonstrated, names do not make a person. Nor do they<br />
have any bearing on how that person turns out.”<br />
And with that verbal slap in the face, she turned away and continued her procession.<br />
A collective shock filled the room. I briefly contemplated and then dismissed any attempts at<br />
jumping into the aisle and tackling the queen. Half a dozen guardians would have me down on<br />
the floor before I'd even taken five steps. So I sat impatiently through dinner, all the while<br />
feeling Lissa's absolute mortification.<br />
When the post-dinner reception followed, Lissa made a beeline for the doors leading out to the<br />
courtyard. I followed, but got delayed having to weave around and avoid the mingling,<br />
socializing people.<br />
She'd wandered outside to an adjacent courtyard, one that matched the Academy's grand<br />
external style. A roof of carved, twisting wood covered the garden, with little holes here and<br />
there to let in some light, but not enough to cause damage to Moroi. Trees, leaves now gone for<br />
the winter, lined the area and guarded paths leading out to other gardens, courtyards, and the<br />
main quadrangle. A pond, also emptied for the winter, lay in a corner, and standing over it was<br />
an imposing statue of St. Vladimir himself. Carved of gray rock, he wore long robes and had a<br />
beard and mustache.<br />
Rounding a corner, I stopped when I saw Natalie had beaten me to Lissa. I considered<br />
interrupting but stepped back before they could see me. Spying might be bad, but I was<br />
suddenly very curious to hear what Natalie had to say to Lissa.<br />
"She shouldn't have said that," Natalie said. She wore a yellow dress similar in cut to Lissa's,<br />
but somehow lacked the grace and poise to make it look as good. Yellow was also a terrible<br />
color on her. It clashed with her black hair, which she'd put up into an off-center bun. "It wasn't<br />
right," she went on. "Don't let it bother you.”
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