Term Study Guide free essay sample

Matching and chronology ( 40-50 points) Matching: You will have to match terms to the provided definition. All the terms will come from the term sheet posted on and covered In class. The definitions are generally very short and concise. You will probably have between 10-15 of these to Identify. Ex: Battle of Gettysburg would match up with US Civil War Battle of July 1863 Chronological section: You will be given a list of empires, kings, or events and will need to places them In chronological †you will probably be given two of here to do.These will also come from the term sheet. Ex: Proclamation Line of 1 763, Declaration of Independence, Stamp Act, Boston Tea Party Correct Order: Proclamation line of 1 763, Stamp Act, Boston Tea Party, Declaration of Independence Essay (50-60 points) You will be required to write an essay on one of the following questions. (l pick the 1 . Compare and contrast the religious beliefs and practices of two of the question. We will write a custom essay sample on Term Study Guide or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page ) following cultures: Mesopotamia, Egyptian, Hebrew, Persian, or Greek. 2. Discuss the cycles of empires in Mesopotamia from Summer through Alexander the Great.What was similar or dissimilar in the empires? 3. How was military conquest used to build strong ancient states? Discuss two of the following: Persia, , Sparta, or Egypt. 4. Discuss the political evolution of Athens and Sparta from the Dark to Classical Age. On the day of the †please bring a pen. I will provide the test and the paper for you to write upon. You will need to drop your stuff at the front of the class or leave it behind. As a reminder: all phones are to be off and stored during the †if you are found with a phone your test will be confiscated.

Top Training Companies for New Truckers

Top Training Companies for New Truckers Listen up, new and inexperienced drivers! If you can’t wait to get behind the wheel of a truck and start earning a paycheck as a professional driver, then keep reading! RJ Trucker Blog has some no-nonsense advice for getting yourself road-ready and employed in no time- including some top picks for company-sponsored training! Are you worried that your lack of training or experience will make it impossible for you to get started? Don’t be! There are plenty of companies that have sponsored training programs- you can get trained and hired all at once! This includes either company-subsidized training or training hosted by the company itself, often in return for work for a specified length of time or some repayment arrangement, or both.Here’s a list of some top trucking companies that offer sponsored CDL training:U.S. Xpress, Inc.Schneider NationalKLLM Transportation ServicesBaylor TruckingCrete Carrier Corp.Werner EnterprisesJB HuntTMC TransportationPrime IncMaverick TransportationGordon Trucking, Inc.Con-way TruckloadCovenant TransportShaffer TruckingAll of the companies on this list are well known and have solid reputations, but don’t forget- you should still do your research when choosing the one that’s best for you. Company-sponsored training can be fast, easy, and free you from upfront costs, but be certain that the specific terms in the agreement are acceptable before signing on. Make sure you choose a good company that offers thorough training and reasonable work hours at an acceptable wage!

The History of the Sony Walkman

The History of the Sony Walkman According to Sony, In 1979, an empire in personal portable entertainment was created with the ingenious foresight of Sony Founder and Chief Advisor, the late Masaru Ibuka, and Sony Founder and Honorary Chairman Akio Morita. It began with the invention of the first cassette Walkman TPS-L2 that forever changed the way consumers listen to music. The developers of the first Sony Walkman were Kozo Ohsone, general manager of the Sony Tape Recorder Business Division, and his staff, under the auspices and suggestions of Ibuka and Morita. Introduction of Cassette Tapes, a New Medium In 1963, Philips Electronics designed a new sound recording medium - the cassette tape. Philips patented the new technology in 1965 and made it available free of charge to manufacturers all over the world. Sony and other companies began designing new compact and portable tape recorders and players to take advantage of the cassette tapes smaller size. Sony Pressman Sony Walkman In 1978, Masaru Ibuka requested that Kozo Ohsone, general manager of the Tape Recorder Business Division, begin work on a stereo version of the Pressman, the small, monaural tape recorder that Sony had launched in 1977. Akio Moritas Reaction to the Modified Pressman This is the product that will satisfy those young people who want to listen to music all day. Theyll take it everywhere with them, and they wont care about record functions. If we put a playback-only headphone stereo like this on the market, itll be a hit. - Akio Morita, February 1979, Sony Headquarters Sony invented the compact and extremely lightweight H-AIR MDR3 headphones for their new cassette player. At that time, headphones weighed on average between 300 to 400 grams, the H-AIR headphones weighed just 50 grams with comparable sound quality. The name Walkman was a natural progression from Pressman. The Launch of the Sony Walkman On June 22, 1979, the Sony Walkman was launched in Tokyo. Journalists were treated to an unusual press conference. They were taken to Yoyogi (a major park in Tokyo) and given a Walkman to wear. According to Sony, The journalists listened to an explanation of the Walkman in stereo, while Sony staff members carried out various demonstrations of the product. The tape the journalists were listening to asked them to look at certain demonstrations, including a young man and woman listening to a Walkman while riding on a tandem bicycle. By 1995, total production of Walkman units reached 150 million and over 300 different Walkman models have been produced to date.

Global Investement Strategies Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Global Investement Strategies - Research Paper Example Globalization has been defined comprehensively by the IMF as a historical process that is the result of human innovation and technological process and encompasses the increasing integration of economies around the globe especially through trade and financial flows (IMF, 2000). The phenomenon of globalization has touched markets, nation states, corporations, businesses and individuals alike. There are advantages and disadvantages that have resulted from this change to all involved stakeholders (Friedman, 1999) but this change has affected businesses like never before. On the positive side businesses have been able to access more markets than ever before as markets are becoming more and more integrated. This has allowed businesses to reach greater audiences and this in turn has increased their revenues to newer levels. Market integration has also meant that businesses can now distribute their functions to around the globe depending on specialties. For example it is common for electroni c businesses to have manufacturing facilities located in China, to have marketing facilities in North America and Western Europe and to have operational offices and retail centers all across the globe. This kind of market integration has meant that businesses have been able to lower their operational costs as each specific business function is handled by the most economically feasible option. Lower costs of labor and other inputs have meant that relocating manufacturing facilities to developing nations would reduce base costs. This reduction in base costs has enabled businesses to lower overall production costs which in turn are encouraging businesses to expose their products to larger audiences. The lowered costs have in turn allowed consumers all over the world to purchase goods and services from manufacturers and service providers which has meant increasing revenues for business around the globe. This can simply be seen as the creation of a singular world market which is the ulti mate object of the globalization regime (Shirakawa et al., 2000). While on the one hand these changes have allowed businesses to reap the wide benefits of integrated markets but difficulties in financial transactions have intensified as a result. Although the entire globe is more connected than ever before but the movement of capital has become far more intricate given the large number of interfaces involved to make these transactions possible. The financial markets around the globe have been integrated using modern electronic communication but this has represented a new constraint on the already developed systems. It is essential for a business to increase its workforce to encompass people with requisite IT skills and expertise to support the system required to carry out such financial transactions. The use of these systems has also exposed businesses to new menaces such as online attacks and chances at fraud. It is not uncommon for internationally integrated businesses to become v ictims of DOS (denial of service) attacks as well as being victims of unethical hacking activity. In turn the consumers of these businesses have also been victim to such actions and certain nations have been blacklisted for transactions in order to protect both consumers and businesses.

The Ford Motor Company Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

The Ford Motor Company - Term Paper Example This has lead to $153 billion in revenues and a market value of $ 73 billion (Hochman 90-7). However, due to the economic crisis, the company has seen its revenues and market value slumber in the recent past (Hochman 90-7). As one of the leading automobile producers, Ford Motor Company competes in the oligopoly market (Hochman 90-7). Its main competitors include Honda, Toyota, Kia, Subaru, and many other companies. The market entry in the automobile industry is free to every interested party; however, due to huge initial capital investment requirements needed only a few firms are players in this industry. When Ford Company started with the Model T, they were enjoying the monopoly power as they were the only producers. But this has changed since many firms have also ventured into the industry (Hochman 90-7). A market-centered company is a company that identifies the needs and the wants of its customers and tailors all its businesses towards those needs and wants (Hochman 90-7). The customers have enough knowledge about the products and the market; and are willing to be persuaded. The company offers mass customization and utilizes the importance of 4 Ps in its marketing. Ford as a company had experienced both the good and bad business experience. From one of the leading automobile companies accounting for 25 percent of all cars and trucks to drop in revenue and market share to $146 and 14 percent respectively (Hochman 90-7). It may have attributed to the financial crisis that had befallen the entire motor industry hence reducing the sales. However, Ford did not explain its drop in market share or magnitude of its losses compared to the rest of the companies in the industries. Ford’s company operations were characterized by excessive costs, it had lost touch with its main customer's needs and finally, his innovation was not up to date (Hochman 90-7). After the arrival of Mulally, the company started to improve their innovativeness, reducing the costs, and axing some of the un-performing brands. Mulally was convinced that competition in all market segments was the way to go and this policy was adopted.  

The Play The Crucible By Arthur Miller English Literature Essay

The Play The Crucible By Arthur Miller English Literature Essay The play The Crucible by Arthur Miller is set in the New England town of Salem, Massachusets in the year 1692. This has a very important effect on the play. Salem is populated mainly with Puritans, or a person who is strict in moral or religious matters. Therefore, there were strict rules as to what it mean to be a Christian. Now, you are inoccent until proven guilty. However in that time, you were guilty until proven innocent. Things that happened in the play, such as the witch trials, could only happen in a theocracy based on literal Christianity. A subsetting in the play is the forest within Salem. The forest was seen as the last strong hold of evil in the town. Abigail and the girls danced in the forest, therefore it was seen as ruled by the devil, when Salem was seen as ruled by god. Plot A group of girls go dancing in the woods lead by an African American slave named, Tituba. Reverend Parris daughter Betty falls into a coma-like state. Revernd Parris sends for Reverand Hale, an expert of witchcraft. Elizabeth urges John to denounce Abigail as a fraud. Mary Warren, returns from Salem with the news that Elizabeth has been charges with witch craft. Giles Correy and Francis Nurse arrest Elizabeth. John Proctor forces Mary Warren to testify that the girls are lying. Elizabeth is spared for time because she is pregnant. John Proctor convinces Danforth to allow Mary Warren to testify and Mary tells the court the girls are lying. When the group of girls are brought in the accuse Mary of bewitching them. John Proctor confesses his afair with Abigail Williams and accuses her of being motivated by the jealousy of his wife. Danforth asks Elizabeth if her husband has been unfaithful to her, but says he hasnt to spare her husbands name. She did not know John had already confessed. Mary accuses John Proctor of being a witch. John Proctor is arrested and Hale quits the proceedings. Abigail Williams runs away, taking Reverand Parris money with her. Reverand Hale begs the accused witches to confess falsely to save their lives, but they will not. Elizabeth trys to talk John into confessing. John confesses but refuses to incriminate anyone else, and ends up retracting his confession. Characters There are many important characters in The Crucible. One of them is Reverand Samuel Parris. Reverand Parris is an egolistic man that was more concerned with his reputation than the sickness of his child. He has made many changes to his church that are to the peoples dismay. He was strongly disliked for straying away from the ways of the Puritan Church, such as placing gold within the church and wanting to own the house that the church had provided for him. John Proctor, the protagonist in this play as well as a target of Reverand Parris, is another important character. Mr. Proctor is a man in his thirties, and is seems unlike the other men in the town. He had a brief afair with Abigain, and is making it his duty to stop the witch hunt that he and his wife, Elizabeth Proctor, have found themselve caught up in. Mr.Proctors wife, Elizabeth Proctor, has a non-affectionate demeanor towards her very caring husband, leading him into the arms of Abigail. This makes Elizabeth Abigails main ta rget, for she thinks if she is gone, she whave a chance with Mr. Proctor. Abigail Williams, the teenage neice of Reverand Parris, is the main force behind the witch hunt. She is the leader of the victims claiming to be possesed who are in search of the towns witches. Abigails cousin, Betty Parris, is the ten year old daughter of Reverand Parris. She mysteriously became ill after being caught by her father dancing with the other girls in the woods naked. Bettys illness brings Reverend Hale to Salem to check for signs of witchcraft. Reverand Hale is a revered reverand who starts a massive outbreak of people being accused. He realizes the corruption of the outbreak and tries to protect the lives of innocent people. Themes Many themes are portrayed in this pay. One of them is lie and deciet. Most, if not all of the characters are lying in some way. If not to other people, then to themselves. Along with, Respect and Reputation, the social status in the town is tied to ones ability to substain the unspoken religious rules. A good name is the only way you will survive, such as getting people to do buissiness with you or even getting a fair hearing in court, however reputation means nothing when it comes to witch craft. Another theme is Good and Evil. The village bases their belief system between good vs evil, or god vs satan. The play is divided into two camps, but nobody truly understands which side is good, and which side is bad. Then of course, theres the theme of jealousy. However, the main theme is fear. Fear of the devil allows the witch trials to proceed, fear of death causes people to lie and say theyre witches, and the fear of lying causes inocent people to die. Quotations Act 4- John Proctor: Because its my name! Because i cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name! John cares more about he and his friends reputations that his own life Act 3- John Proctor: A man may think god sleeps, but God sees everything. I know that now. -John now realizes that what he did was Abigail was a sin and that it was wrong, and he claims he will not make the same mistake again. Act 1- Abigail Williams: I danced for the devil; I saw him, I wrote in his book; I go back to Jesus; I kiss his hand -Abigail is worried about being disgraced for having cast charms, dancing, and worshipping the devil with her friends and hopes she can be forgiven and return to god. Act 2- Elizabeth Proctor: John, grant me this. You have a faulty understanding of young girls. There is a promise made in any bed -Elizabeth is trying to explain to her husband, John, that Abigail is accusing her of being a witch because she is jealous of her and wants John to herself. Act 3- Danforth: You must understand, sir, that a person is either with this court or he must be counted against it, there be no road between. This is a sharp time, now, a precise timeà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬we live no longer in the dusky afternoon when evil mixed itself with good and befuddled the world. -He is saying that everything and everyone belongs to God or the Devil. The court as well as the government of Massachusets necessarily belong to God. That means, anyone who disagrees with the courtà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s activities is not an honest opponent. Questions 1) Why did they set the people that claimed to have worshipped the devil free, rather than the ones that claimed they didnt? 2) What started the witch trials? 3) How did the witch trials end and who ended them? 4) 5) Response I believe things that happened in the Salem Witch Trials were highly unfair and uncalled for. It made me realize that Im very greatful to live in the society we live in today. The court was unfair and people got killed for no reason. If the court had not improved since then, I cannot even begin to imagine what society today would be like. I think they should have at least found evidence of people being guilty before they were hung, rather than taking peoples word. Just because they swore to tell the truth, doesnt mean they actaully do. Assignment #2 Expository Creative Dear Elizabeth Proctor, Throughout the play, i found you one of the most inspiring characters. You were a mother and wife, who has been through a great deal. You were accused of witchcraft simply because of jealousy, and were cheated on but still managed to help your husband when he was in need. The way you carried yourself even though you were accused of something you hadnt actually done is really amazing. You stayed true to who you are and didnt break down like many of the others that had been accused did. When the court asked you to step in and convince John to confess, even though you knew he didnt, you helped him decide what was best to do for not only yourself, but for him aswell.

Stefan’s Diaries: Origins Chapter 14

I woke the next morning and stretched my arms outward, dejected when I touched nothing but goose-down pillows. A slight indentation in the mattress next to me was the only proof that what had happened had been real, and not one of the fever dreams I'd been having since Rosalyn's death. Of course, I couldn't expect Katherine to have spent the night with me. Not with her maid waiting at the carriage house, and not with the way the servants talked. She'd told me herself that this had to be our secret, that she couldn't risk ruining her reputation. Not that she had to worry about that. I wanted us to have our own secret world, together. I wondered when she'd slipped away, remembering the feeling of her in my arms, a warmth and lightness I'd never felt before. I felt whole, and at peace, and the thoughtof Rosalyn was just a vague memory, a character in an unpleasant story that I'd simply put out of my mind. Now my mind was consumed with thoughts of Katherine: how she pulled the curtains closed as the summer storm pelted hail on the windows, how she'd allowed my hands to explore her exquisite body. At one point, I was caressing her neck when my hands fell on the clasp of the ornate blue cameo necklace she always wore. I began to unclasp it when Katherine had roughly pushed me away. â€Å"Don't!† she'd said sharply, her hands flying to the clasp, making sure nothing had been disturbed. But then, once she patted the charm into place on the hollow of her neck, she'd resumed kissing me. I blushed as I remembered all the other places she did allow me to touch. I swung my legs out of bed, walked toward the hand basin, and splashed water on my face. I looked in the mirror and smiled. The dark circles were gone from my eyes, and it no longer felt like an effort to walk from one side of the room to the other. I changed into my waistcoat and dark-blue breeches and left the chambers humming. â€Å"Sir?† Alfred asked on the stairs. He was holding a silver-domed platter–my breakfast. My lip curled in disgust. How could I have lain in bed for an entire week when there was a whole world to discover with Katherine? â€Å"I'm quite well, thank you, Alfred,† I said as I took the stairs two at a time. The storm from last night had disappeared as quickly as it came. In the sunroom, the early-morning light was sparkling through the floor-to- ceiling windows, and the table was decorated with freshly cut daisies. Damon was already there, drinking a mug of coffee while flipping through the morning paper from Richmond. â€Å"Hello, brother!† Damon said, holding up his coffee mug as if he were toasting me. â€Å"My, you look well. Did our afternoon ride do you some good, after all?† I nodded and sat opposite him, glancing at the headlines on the paper. The Union had taken Fort Morgan. I wondered where exactly that was. â€Å"I don't know why we even get the paper. It's not like Father cares about anything except the stories he makes up in his head,† Damon said disgustedly. â€Å"If you hate it here so much, why don't you just leave?† I asked, suddenly annoyed with Damon's constant grumbling. Maybe it would be better if he were gone, so that Father wouldn't be so frustrated. An odious voice in the back of my mind silently added, And so I don't have to think about you and Katherine, swinging on the porch swing together. Damon raised an eyebrow. â€Å"Well, I'd be remiss if I didn't say things were interesting here.† His lips curved in a private sort of smile that made me suddenly want to grab his shoulders and shake him. The force of my emotions surprised me, so much so that I had to sit down and shove into my mouth a muffin from the overflowing basket on the table. I'd never felt jealous of my brother before, but suddenly I was dying to know: Had Katherine ever snuck up to his bedroom? She couldn't have. Last night, she'd seemed so nervous about getting caught, having me promise over and over again that I'd never breathe a word to anybody about what we'd done. Betsy, the cook, came in, her arms laden with plates of grits, bacon, and eggs. My stomach rumbled, and I realized I was starving. I quickly tucked in, reveling in the saltiness of the eggs combined with the sweet bitterness of my coffee. It was as if I'd never tasted breakfast before and my senses were finally awakened. I sighed in contentment, and Damon looked up in amusement. â€Å"I knew all you needed was some fresh air and good food,† Damon said. And Katherine, I thought. â€Å"Now let's go outside and cause some trouble.† Damon smiled wickedly. â€Å"Father's in his study, doing his demon studies. Do you know he even has Robert in on it?† Damon shook his head in disgust. I sighed. While I didn't necessarily believe all the discussion about demons, I did respect Father enough to not make fun of his thoughts. It made me feel vaguely disloyal to hear Damon's dismissal of him. â€Å"I'm sorry, brother.† Damon shook his head and scraped his chair back against the slate floor. â€Å"I know you don't like it when Father and I fight.† He walked over to me, pulling out my chair from under me, almost causing me to fall. I scrambled to my feet and good-naturedly shoved him back. â€Å"That's better!† Damon called with glee. â€Å"Now, let's go!† He ran out the back door, letting the door slam shut. Cordelia used to scream at us for that offense as children, and I laughed when I heard her familiar groan from the kitchen. I ran toward the center of the lawn, where Damon had unearthed the oblong ball we'd been tossing two weeks before. â€Å"Here, brother! Catch!† Damon panted, and I turned and leapt into the air, just in time to catch the pigskin in my arms. I pulled it tightly to my chest and began running toward the stable, the wind whipping my face. â€Å"Y boys!† a voice called, stopping me in my ou tracks. Katherine was standing on the porch of the carriage house, wearing a simple, cream-colored muslin dress and looking so innocent and sweet that I couldn't believe that what happened last night wasn't a dream. â€Å"Burning off excess energy? â€Å" I sheepishly turned around and walked toward the porch. â€Å"Playing catch!† I explained, hastily throwing the ball to Damon. Katherine reached behind her, braiding her curls down the back of her neck. I had a sudden fear that she thought we were tiresome with our childish game and that she'd come out here to scold us for waking her so early. But she simply smiled as she settled on the porch swing. â€Å"Are you ready to play?† Damon called from his position on the lawn. He held the ball far back behind his head as if he were about to throw it toward her. â€Å"Absolutely not.† Katherine wrinkled her nose. â€Å"Once was enough. Besides, I feel people who need props for their games and sports are lacking in imagination.† â€Å"Stefan has imagination.† Damon smirked. â€Å"Y should hear him read poetry. He's like a ou troubadour.† He dropped the ball and ran toward the porch. â€Å"Damon has imagination. too. Y should see ou the imaginative way he plays cards,† I teased as I reached the steps of the porch. Katherine nodded at me as I bowed to her but didn't make any other effort to greet me. I stepped back, momentarily stung. Why hadn't she at least given me her hand to kiss? Hadn't last night meant anything to her? † I am imaginative, especially when I have a muse.† Damon winked at Katherine, then stepped in front of me to grab her hand. He brought it to his lips, and my stomach churned. â€Å"Thank you,† Katherine said, standing up and walking down the porch steps, her simple skirts swishing down the stairs. With her hair pulled back from her eyes, she reminded me of an angel. She gave me a secret smile, and finally I relaxed. â€Å"It's beautiful here,† Katherine said, spreading her arms as if blessing the entire estate. â€Å"Will you show me around?† she asked, turning and glancing first at Damon, then at me, then back at Damon again. â€Å"I've lived here for more than two weeks, and I've barely seen anything besides my bedchambers and the gardens. I want to see something new. Something secret!† â€Å"We have a maze,† I said stupidly. Damon elbowed me in the ribs. Not like he had anything better to say. â€Å"I know,† Katherine said. â€Å"Damon showed me.† My stomach fell at the reminder of how much time the two of them had spent together in the week I was in my sickbed. And if he'd shown her the maze †¦ But I pushed the thought out of my head as best I could. Damon had always told me about all the women he'd kissed, ever since we were thirteen and he and Amelia Hawke had kissed on the Wickery Bridge. If he had kissed Katherine, I would have heard about it. â€Å"I'd love to see it again,† Katherine said, clapping her hands together as if I'd just told her the most interesting news in the world. â€Å"Will you both escort me?† she asked hopefully, glancing at us. â€Å"Of course,† we said at the same time. â€Å"Oh, wonderful! I must tell Emily.† Katherine dashed inside, leaving us standing on opposite ends of the stairs. â€Å"She's quite a woman, isn't she?† Damon asked. â€Å"She is,† I said shortly. Before I could say anything else, Katherine came bounding down the stairs, holding a sun umbrella in one hand. â€Å"I'm ready for our adventure!† she cried, handing me her parasol, an expectant look on her face. I hooked it over the crook of my arm, while Katherine linked arms with Damon. I walked a few feet behind, watching the easy way their hips bumped each other, as if she were simply his younger, teasing sister. I relaxed. That was it. Damon was always protective and was simply being a big brother to Katherine. And she needed that. I whistled under my breath as I followed them. We had a small labyrinth in the front garden, but the maze on the far corner of the property was expansive, built from a boggy marsh by my father, who had been determined to impress our mother. She'd loved to garden and had always bemoaned the fact that the flowers that bloomed in her native France simply couldn't withstand the hard Virginia soil. The area always smelled of roses and clematis and was always the first place couples would retreat to when they wanted to be alone at a Veritas party. The servants had superstitions about the maze: that a child conceived in the maze would be blessed for life, that if you kissed your true love in the center of the maze, you'd be bonded for life, but that if you told a lie while within its walls, you'd be cursed forever. Today it felt almost magical: The arbors and vines provided shade from the sun, making it seem that the three of us were in an enchanted world together–away from death and war. â€Å"It's even more beautiful than I remembered!† Katherine explained. â€Å"It's like a storybook. Like the Luxembourg Gardens or the Palace of Versailles!† She plucked a calla lily and inhaled deeply. I paused and glanced at her. â€Å"Y ou've been to Europe, then?† I asked, feeling as provincial as any of the country bumpkins who lived in the shanty town on the other side of Mystic Falls, the ones who pronounced the word creek like crick and who already had four or five children by the time they were our age. â€Å"I've been everywhere,† Katherine said simply. She tucked the lily behind her ear. â€Å"So, tell me, boys, how did you amuse yourselves when you didn't have a mysterious stranger to impress with a tour of your grounds?† â€Å"We entertain pretty young things with real Southern hospitality.† Damon smirked, falling into his overdone accent that always made me laugh. Katherine rewarded him with a giggle, and I smiled. Now that I saw Damon and Katherine's flirtatious friendship as being as innocent as the relationship of cousins, I could enjoy their banter. â€Å"Damon's right. Our Founders Ball is just a few weeks away,† I said, my spirits lifting as I realized that I was free to go to the ball with whoever I pleased. I couldn't wait to twirl Katherine in my arms. â€Å"And you'll be the prettiest girl. Even the girls from Richmond and Charlottesville will be jealous!† Damon pronounced. â€Å"Really? Why, I think I should like that. Is that wicked of me?† Katherine asked, glancing from Damon to me. â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"Y Damon said at the same time. â€Å"And I, for es,† one, think more girls should admit their wicked natures. After all, we all know the fairer sex has a dark side. Remember when Clementine cut off Amelia's hair?† Damon turned toward me. â€Å"Y es,† I chuckled, happy to play the role of storyteller for Katherine's amusement. â€Å"Clementine thought Amelia was being too forward with Matthew Hartnett, and since Clem fancied him, she decided she'd take it in her own hands to make Amelia less attractive.† Katherine put her hand over her mouth in a gesture of exaggerated concern. â€Å"I do hope poor Amelia's recovered.† â€Å"She's engaged to some soldier. Don't worry about her,† Damon said. â€Å"In fact, you shouldn't worry about anything. Y ou're far too pretty.† â€Å"Well, I am worried about one thing.† Katherine widened her eyes. â€Å"Who shall escort me to the ball?† She swung her parasol back and forth on her arm as she gazed at the ground, as if thinking through a deep decision. My heart quickened as she looked up at both of us. â€Å"I know! Let's have a race. Winner may get to take me!† She threw her parasol on the ground and ran off to the center of the maze. â€Å"Brother?† Damon asked, raising an eyebrow at me. â€Å"Ready?† I smiled, as if this were just a casual children's footrace. I didn't want Damon to know how fast my heart was beating, and how very much I wanted to catch Katherine. â€Å"Go!† Damon yelled. Immediately I began running. My hands and legs flailed, and I propelled myself into the maze. When we were in school, I was the fastest boy in the class, lightning quick when the school bell rang. Then I heard peals of laughter. I glanced back. Damon was doubled up over himself, slapping his knee. I gulped air, trying not to seem winded. â€Å"Scared to compete?† I said, running back and slugging Damon on the shoulder. I'd meant it to be a playful punch, but it landed with a heavy thud. â€Å"Oh, now we're on, brother!† Damon said, his voice light and full of laughter. He grabbed my shoulders and wrestled me easily to the ground. I struggled to my feet and tackled him, throwing him onto his back and pinning down his wrists. â€Å"Think you can still lick your little brother?† I teased, enjoying my momentary victory. â€Å"No one came for me!† Katherine pouted, wandering out of the maze. Her frown quickly turned into a smile as she saw us on the ground, breathing heavily. â€Å"Good thing I'm here to save you both.† She knelt and pressed her lips first to Damon's cheek, then to mine. I released Damon's wrists and stood up, wiping the dirt off my breeches. â€Å"See?† she asked, as she offered an arm to Damon. â€Å"All you need is a kiss to make everything better–although you boys shouldn't be such brutes with each other.† â€Å"We were fighting for you,† Damon said lazily, not bothering to stand up. Just then, the sound of horses' hooves interrupted us. Alfred dismounted his horse and bowed to the three of us. It must have been a sight: Damon lying on the ground, resting his head on his hand as if he were simply reclining, me frantically brushing grass stains off my trousers, and Katherine standing between us, looking amused. â€Å"I'm sorry to interrupt,† Alfred said. â€Å"But Master Giuseppe needs to speak to Master Damon. It's urgent.† â€Å"Of course it is. Everything is always urgent for Father. What do you bet he has another ridiculous theory he needs to discuss?† Damon said. Katherine lifted her parasol from the ground. â€Å"I should get going, too. I'm all disheveled, and I'm due to visit with Pearl at the apothecary.† â€Å"Come,† Alfred said, gesturing for Damon to jump onto the back of his horse. As Alfred and Damon rode away, Katherine and I slowly walked back to the carriage house. I wanted to bring up the Founders Ball again but found myself afraid to do so. â€Å"Y don't need to keep pace with me. ou Perhaps you should keep your brother company,† Katherine suggested. â€Å"It seems that your father is a man who's best taken on by two,† she observed. Her hand brushed my own and she grabbed my wrist. Then she stepped on her tiptoes and allowed her lips to graze my cheek. â€Å"Come see me tonight, sweet Stefan. My chambers will be open.† And with that, she broke off into a spirited run. She was like a colt, galloping free, and I felt my heart gallop along with her. There was no question: She felt the same way I did. And knowing that made me feel more alive than I ever had in my life.