3 – The Grounds

I made it in time as the bows and arrows were being taken out. Looked like archery today.

𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺.

Time to show everyone how it's done.

The once green trees now looked like they would collapse due to the heavy snowfall as I approached the open, frost-covered field. I could almost picture them breaking in a ninety degree angle like the cartoons.

A soft chuckle slipped through my lips.

"Good day, Skyler. How is my favorite princess doing today.?"

That was Anvis, my fathers' right hand man and whom I favored above all.

He was like my second father.

The only difference was he had trained me properly when my father forbade me to. I was better than everyone here, and that was a 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵. I knew it, and so did everyone else.

Except my father.

"Hello Anvis." I smiled, making sure to keep any annoyance out of my face from what he called me. "I'm well thanks but the thought of Winter is getting to me."

"You shall come around to it someday, Princess."

There it is again.

I studied his tired face and took note that more wrinkles had formed under his eyes.

My father had been working them hard this past week, but I didn't just think it was about his physical state but rather his mental one that made him seem ten times his age in the past years.

My '𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳' did that to him.

She did that to all of us.

My mouth opened to voice my opinion when a big figure stood in front - broad and dark and not afraid to show he doesn't give a crap. He practically had arms that could downright snap someone's neck with no effort.

Everyone knew him as Loon.

You'd never catch him having a bright, open conversation with anyone. He was an...unusual child since birth and even now people would still avoid him.

We never spoke to him. He spoke to us.

Once off The Ground, you don't see him nor hear him - like he disappears into air-until next training. No one knows his family, his background, nothing. And I don't blame them.

I wouldn't 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 to know either.

"Today, as you can see, is Archery training. Hit as many targets as you can. Try not to get hit. Next training will be out in the field. Now on with you."

We fell back into formation and had our bows and arrows raised.

"Release!"