Fight Me

Henry looked up at the sunlight that broke through the branches. He took a deep breath, he had finally calmed down. His mother had angered him–again–with her lectures about Florence, and he needed to get away.

He did not understand why he needed to be at Geiranger when he could be back at Salicera doing his work. Instead, he was stuck here, forced to socialize with strangers and put up with a future wife he did not want.

"Lord Flock." The voice came from a distance. He halted.

'Great, now I even hear her voice in my head.'

Henry turned around and saw Florence, she was with Marquis Galley. Her pleading eyes met his, and for a moment he almost walked toward her.

'No, it has nothing to do with me.'

He turned away from the scene, and resumed walking on his path. Florence called him again, louder, but he did not stop this time.

'She is with that bastard, Galley. Since she came all the way here with him, she can take care of herself.'

Henry heard the marquis laugh. It was annoying and loud. His feet faltered, then he heard Florence's voice again. It was barely audible, but it was full of emotions–desperation, fear, pain. It was the first time she had used his first name to call him. He could not take another step away. It was like something was pulling him to where she was.

'Gods damn it.'

"That bastard is a coward, he cannot even protect you properly," Marquis Galley spat.

"Who is the coward?" Henry asked as he strode closer to the two.

Florence's eyes flew to him, they were red and tears were racing down her cheeks. But he saw relief and for some reason, his chest tightened.

Florence wobbled to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He froze. She was shaking, and her sobs were muffled against his chest. Henry instantly felt guilty. He gently brought her closer to him, placing his arm around her shoulders.

"How dare you touch someone else's fiancée?" Henry spat, finally getting the marquis' attention–he had been watching the two of them with wide eyes.

"Can you really call her your fiancée, boy?"

"Boy?" Henry repeated with knitted brows, then he laughed. His reaction infuriated the marquis. "You are pathetic, Galley."

The marquis lunged at him furiously, he was ready to knock the smile out of Henry's face. But as soon as his fist approached Henry, a thin layer of ice materialized in front of him. Galley's knuckles slammed against the ice, making him groan in pain and take a couple of steps back.

Henry looked down at Florence whose eyes were wide, staring at the ice. He gently pushed her away from him.

"I think Lord Galley wants to have a talk with me."

He walked right through the ice as it melted to the ground, but Henry did not get wet from it. Galley gulped. His hand throbbed from earlier, but he was not going to back down.

"So, you were saying?" Henry grabbed the marquis' collar to bring him closer to him.

"I–I was saying that you were a co-coward," Galley stuttered before he pushed away from Henry. "Fight me, man to man," he added with a more confident voice.

"You are welcome to use your magic too." Henry shrugged.

"I guess you just want to hide behind your powers," Galley said, smirking. "Are you scared of me?"

'This bastard actually thinks he stands a chance against me.' Henry suppressed a laugh.

"Alright, I promise I won't use magic." Henry never liked violence. Even when he was at war, he only killed when he had no other choice. But for some reason, he really felt like making Galley bleed.

The Marquis charged again at Henry.

'What an idiot.'

Galley threw a left hook, but he was way too slow for Henry who avoided it with ease. Then, the marquis tried his right fist, but missed again. He was clenching his teeth in frustration. He decided to aim for Henry's ribs next. Henry moved at the last minute, making Galley's arm slide right by him. Henry grabbed it and locked it in place with his left arm. The Marquis tried to pull back, but he was stuck in an iron hold.

"My turn," Henry uttered before his right fist crashed on Galley's nose. The loud crack and the hot blood were proof that he had broken it.

The marquis fell back to the ground, his shaky hands covering his nose. "You broke it," he yelled.

"You should consider yourself lucky, I could call for a duel for laying a hand on my fiancée." Galley's eyes widened. "Now leave. If you are still in this castle by nightfall, I might break something else of yours."

The marquis scrambled to his feet. He glared at Florence who was kneeling on the ground. "You will pay for this," he yelled. But as soon as Henry took a threatening step toward him, he broke into a run.

Henry turned back to Florence and stared for a moment. She had stopped crying, but her eyes and nose were red. "Why are you on the ground?"

"My legs could not stand anymore," she whispered, looking down.

"Can you walk?" Henry crouched next to her, but she did not answer. He noticed her fingers fidgeting with her dress.

"Why did you come back?" she asked after a long silence. "You saw me, but you walked away," she met his eyes. "So, why did you come back?"

Henry did not have an answer. He did not know the reason himself. "Should I have left you alone?"

"That is not–"

"Can you walk?" he asked again, annoyed.

"I doubt it," she uttered. "My ankle is on fire, if you can just tell my maid to come help–" Florence's words died in her throat and a shriek replaced them. She was in Henry's arms as he walked back toward the castle. "Put me down," she demanded.

"I would not mind putting you down. But what if Marquis Galley comes back when I leave to call your maid?"

Florence's fist unconsciously clenched around Henry's shirt. He pressed his lips tightly to prevent a smile from pulling on them. When she did not protest again, he resumed walking again.

"Thank you," she mumbled.