In the Brotherhood, kindness wasn’t exactly encouraged. The elders would give speeches about being a family, sure, but it was easier -- and more fun, to most -- to simply harass each other. To make others seem weak was to make yourself seem strong.

So, there was never really a moment of peace. If the teachers were not being cruel, then fellow aspirants were. But for one week out of the year, that was different. In the coldest days, when the sun didn’t beat so harshly, and the sands seemed to settle and sit still, it had become almost tradition to be kind to each other, just for the week. It was as if some ancestral feeling, thousands of years old, took over them.

Dane was glad of it. They had never really been cruel, so this week was relaxing. With practice cancelled, most of the Brotherhood aspirants were gathered in the hall, a large fire keeping them warm. Little gifts and offerings were passed around through the hall.