Holiday's End

I was allowed to watch Gisel's demonstration of her knife skills, which she did on one of Hungerford's infernal assault courses. Watching her leap and dive through obstacles whilst skewering targets that moved or popped up, I realised how agile and skilled she really was.

Hungerford seemed impressed too. 

"A few areas you could improve a little," he said, when she had finished, and was standing there, panting, in front of him. "However, for your age that was excellent. Now, how about your close combat work? Come at me."

She didn't need to be told twice. I suspect she was a bit mad at the 'few areas to improve' comment, because she launched herself at him at once, throwing two small knives in advance of her attack, which Hungerford batted away almost absent-mindedly. 

As fast and nimble as Gisel was, she simply couldn't get a strike on the man, even with a dagger in each hand, something I could have told here would (or wouldn't) happen, from my own experience, and from seeing him spar with Freia and Rath.

"Arrgg!" she shouted, as her attacks were simply avoided, time after time. Only once did Hungerford knock one of her knives away with his stick.

Finally he stopped defending and, moving so fast you couldn't even see him, swung his stick and knocked her through the air. She landed some metres away, rolling over in a semi-controlled fall.

"Very good." He looked at me. "Did you see how she landed? One of your weak areas."

I ran over to Gisel, who was lying on her back on the grass, panting hard.

"That man is impossible," she gasped, as I extended a hand, grunting as I pulled her up. I grunted. I'd forgotten she was so much heavier than she looked.

"He's much older and experienced," I pointed out.

"I will beat him one day though." She scowled and glared at Hungerford, who was chatting with Rath and Lissa.

"I think you need to join the queue for that."

Gisel looked at me then, and suddenly laughed. "I guess I'm not as invincible as I like to think."

"Yeah, welcome to my world."

~*~

The next day I was let off training, as Lissa and Rath had announced that we would be going into the village to buy some equipment for Gisel. I would be allowed to accompany the party, mainly because I also needed some new clothes before we returned to the academy.

"You've grown a lot," Lissa said, hugging me so hard I couldn't breathe.

"I'm still small."

"No rush," Rath commented, walking up. "Enjoy your childhood whilst you can."

I'd heard that before, in my last life. This time though, I knew what she meant. I remember looking in the mirror one day, back on the old world, and wondering where my youth had gone.

So, the four of us walked into the village, past the baker's, which was my boundary still, although I'd not really visited in a while, and then down a side street.

"We're going to see an old friend of mine," Rath said, when I asked how far it would be. "Don't be afraid of him, he's a gentle chap really."

That doesn't sound at all ominous. "What does he do?" 

"He's a Master Smith. He makes weapons and armour of all sorts. We're really incredibly lucky to have someone as skilled as him in such a small village. He came here to retire, but still does a bit of work, more to keep his hand in and have something to do than make money. I've asked him to make something for you Theo. It should be ready by now. I'm sure he won't mind outfitting Gisel either. You should call him Master Greaves."

Master Greave's workshop tuned out to be on the edge of the village, in a fenced off area. There was a fairly nice cottage, behind which was a large yard filled with metal sheets, rods, scraps and even old, broken and bent, weapons. To the rear was another structure, one half of which was stone, and the other with two sides open to the elements. Under the roof I could see an anvil, a large set of bellows and some kind of furnace next to a work bench, cluttered with all manner of tools.

"Master Greaves, are you here?" Rath shouted, as we approached.

A moment later, the door in the other half of the structure opened, and a man squeezed out of it.

I took a step back. Gisel made a whimpering sound and hid behind Lissa. 

The man, and I only use the term because he was human in form, was the largest person I had ever seen. 

"Hello Rath, Lissa!" the giant boomed, stepping over towards us and blotting out the sun. "And who is this? Surely not your lad? He's a fine chap!"

I bent over backwards, literally, and stared up at him, mouth hanging open. He must have been as tall, and as wide, as two normal men. You could tell he wasn't young, a mass of grey hair flopping about on his head, and tied behind him in a ponytail that rested over his shoulder. He had a long grey beard, also braided. Intelligent eyes gleamed down at me from a strong, rugged face. 

He was clad in dark breeches and was wearing a leather apron with nothing underneath. His arms bulged with muscles that were larger than I was.

"Hello lad, what's your name then?" he boomed.

"I… I…" I pulled myself together. As intimidating as he was, he seemed friendly enough. Like a bear who wasn't hungry maybe. "I am Theobold sir giant. Glad to make your acquaintance."

"Sir Giant is it? Mwhahahaha!" The smith held his sides and laughed uproariously. "I like you my tiny friend! Oh, and you have someone else here!" He had spotted Gisel, peering out from behind Lissa. "Welcome to our village ambassador!" 

Gisel took a deep breath and stepped out of cover. She gave a shallow bow. "Thank you Master Smith. Hello to you too."

"So polite." He looked back at Rath. "You are here for your order I take it?"

"If it is ready," Rath nodded. "And also, we wish to get some light armour, maybe a few knives for our visitor too."

"It would be an honour, step this way please."

We followed him to his forge, and then waited whilst he threw open a chest and reached in, pulling out a black wooden box, which he presented, with both hands, to me. He had to squat to do it.

"For me?" I asked, eyes wide.

"From your mothers."

"I… thank you." I took the box with both hands and stared at it. It was made of dark wood, with a silver inlay. 

Greaves coughed. "The present is actually inside."

I blushed. "Sorry, but, it's a nice box!" I set it down on the anvil and opened it. "Oh, wow."

Within, resting in carved slots was a black sheath and a straight dagger, inlaid with silver etching and inscribed with a line of writing on the blade. I gasped. 

Taking it by the hilt, which was wrapped in black leather, I picked it out and held it up, admiring the craftmanship. Even though it was just a long dagger, it was about the size of a short sword for me. I tried to read the inscription, but it was in a language I didn't recognise. 

"We will not tell you what it says," Lissa said, when I looked up at her. "You will have to learn the language to read it."

"What script is it?"

"You can find that out yourself too." Rath tittered, a very girly sound, unusual for her.

I swung the weapon around a little, being careful where I waved it. The balance was superb. 

Remembering my manners, I bowed again, first to the smith, and then to my mothers. "Thank you for this wonderful gift. I shall treasure it."

"We hope you will not have to use it in anger," Lissa said. "However, I have a feeling that wish will not come to pass, and so may it help protect yourself, your allies, and your loved ones for many years to come."

All emotional all of a sudden, I could feel tears welling up, so I bowed again, to give me time to blink a few times, and then slid my new blade into the sheath, which I then attached to my belt. Now I felt like a proper adventurer!

Whilst I had been rearranging myself, Master Greaves had been speaking to Rath and Gisel. As he took measurements and notes, I wandered around his workshop, being careful not to touch anything, fascinated at being in an actual, real-life blacksmith's forge. 

Thirty minutes or so later, we said our farewells to the giant man. Rath had placed an order with him for Gisel, which he said would be ready before we headed back to the academy.

"Right then," Lissa said, taking my hand. "To our next stop, then we can have a bite to eat I think, before heading back."

"Where is our next stop mother?"

"I promised you some new clothes. Your mother wanted to get you some light armour, but I feel something of a different style would suit you more."

She wouldn't say anything else, and so we trooped along more roads, back to the main street, and then down another alley, to a small shop. At least I think it was a shop. There was no display in the window, and no sign overhead. 

Lissa didn't knock though, just pushed open the door and entered. 

I found myself surrounded by clothes. Robes, tunics, cloaks and all manner of garments were hung, stacked, folded and draped around me, apparently with no thought to any order.

"Youngster!" An older woman, wearing a plain black dress, burst out of a doorway in the back of the shop and hugged Lissa. I raised my eyebrows. She had a long nose, and thin face with dark eyes. I looked down to see if she was wearing sparkling red shoes, just to confirm that she wasn't in fact, the Wicked Witch of the West. Nope, black boots. Maybe she wasn't wearing the ruby slippers right now.

"Is this the lad then? How darling!" She swooped down on me like a large bat and picked me up with no apparent effort, twisting me from side to side and examining me like a piece of merchandise.

"Yes, yes, the perfect size, as predicted!" she cackled, putting me back down. "Wait a second."

I looked up at my mother with a questioning expression on my face.

"Grettle makes wonderful garments," Lissa explained. "And because she is a spirit user, they will have a little something extra embedded in them."

"A spirit user?" I frowned. Spirit magic was one of the types of magic I had read about, but knew nothing of what it did yet.

"People who can wield spirit magic are very rare," Lissa said. "It is used to imbue items, clothes, weapons, anything really, with magical power. Well, amongst other things."

"You can make magic items?" I gasped. Fantastic! Then I frowned to myself. Wait, I had made some magic items myself. My purse and bag of holding. Did that mean I was a spirit user? No, that had been Transposition magic. I had only cast a spell onto the purse and bag, not infused it with mana. 

"Here we go!" Grettle exploded back into the room, various garments draped over her arms. "Now lad, try these on." She lay several items on a nearby table.

The first thing I saw was some underwear, slightly embarrassing but needed. However, there were also two sets of breeches. One in dark blue and one black. Two tunics of matching colours were next to those, then there was a pair of black boots, ankle high with a turned over top, and for me, the pièce de resistance – a wonderful black cloak. 

Grinning madly. I grabbed the cloak and swirled it about me. I had always loved cloaks, and yet, back in my old world, they were just not in fashion, much to my chagrin. 

"Excellent!" I said, attaching the clasp. "How wonderful!" I posed in front of a nearby mirror, placed there just for such an event no doubt.

"The lad has taste," Grettle said, smiling at my enthusiasm. "It has a few small enchantments within it," she informed me. "Resistance to heat, cold and attack, and the power of warming. Nothing too powerful, but every little helps, yes? I've made it a little long, so it can last you a while. I know how young boys grow."

"Thank you madam Grettle," I said, bowing to her. Now I had a weapon at my side and proper garb! 

"Thank your mothers," she responded.

I did so, bowing again to my mothers, who were both grinning madly. Even Gisel was smiling.

Of course, I was made to try the tunic and breeches too, all of which fit well. Luckily, they didn't insist I try on the underwear. There was no changing room.

When I left the shop I was wearing my new cloak, and carrying a bag with the rest of the items in. Rath and Lissa took us to a small restaurant, where they were made a big fuss of, which meant both myself and Gisel were also made a big fuss of, and we ate a sumptuous meal. I was even allowed to have some cake. 

Tired and quite happy, we finally headed back towards home, only for someone to call my name out just past the baker's shop.

"Theo! Hello!"

We stopped as a small figure, well, a little smaller than me, ran up to us.

"Marie!" I said. "Hello again."

"Theo," the young lass beamed. She had grown since I'd last seen her, but otherwise seemed the same. Maybe her hair was a little longer. "You said you would come and play!" She pouted.

"And who is this cutie?" Lissa asked, smiling down. "Theo, you didn't say you had a friend in the village."

"I'm sorry Marie," I said. "I've just been busy, with my training and everything."

"You forgot me then?" Marie made a face.

"No no, I didn't forget. I'm sorry I've not visited."

"Well, as long as you're sorry." She perked right back up. "Do you want a lollypop?" 

I remembered the pre-sucked sticky thing from last time. "Er, no thank you, we've just eaten."

"Who's this?" Marie pointed at Gisel.

"I'm Gisel." 

"You're green."

"I know this."

"Do you want to play too?"

"What are we playing?"

"I don't know. Maybe running? Do you like running?" Marie beamed.

"It depends on what I'm running from, or to." Gisel scratched her head.

"I promise we will try and find time to visit and play." I decided to interrupt this riveting conversation. "But we're going back to school soon, so we may not have a chance."

"I like school," Marie said, apparently unphased.

"I'm sorry lass, but we have to get going," Rath said. "I'm sure Theo will visit, if not this year, then the next one. Can you wait that long?"

"I guess I can," Marie said. 

"Good girl." Rath patted her on the head, making Marie giggle.

"See you!" I waved at her, as we were ushered along once more.

"Study hard at school. I will too!" she shouted back. 

"What a cute little girl," Lissa said. "You should try and make more friends."

"Yes mother," I replied. Mentally I tried to imagine Marie as a teenager. Maybe then I'd be interested in playing with her!

~*~

The remainder of my mothers' vacation time flew by. I continued my training with Hungerford, who pitted me against Gisel in a number of different sparring matches. It was good to have someone of my own size to train with, although I did acquire a number of, reasonably minor, injuries. She was not as skilled, or didn't hold back perhaps, like Hungerford did. As Lissa was with us, that wasn't a problem. She healed me when needed, although for the bruises and small stuff she said I could recover as nature intended. 

Gisel, now with new clothes, including as set of light armour and even more straps to hold even more knives provided by our giant blacksmith, was a good match for me.

She was a little older, and quite a lot stronger than I was, and her agility was just about a match for me, even using my wind magic. I could beat her up close, especially with swords, but she usually beat me when we were in a distance fight, although I think if I had been allowed to use more powerful magic, that wouldn't have been the case. Hungerford was really good at creating different scenarios though, which didn't give either of us too big an advantage.

"You need to be flexible," he lectured. "It could be that you can't rely on magic for some reason, which means you will have to figure out other ways to overcome problems. Do not fall into the trap of narrow thinking. Always try and have a backup plan, and use different skills and methods. Outwit an enemy however you can, even if it means striking unexpectedly."

"Isn't that rather dishonourable?" I asked.

For way of reply, he spat on the ground. "That for honour. The only thing you need to do is be the one who can walk away. And if that means running from a fight, do that. If you live, you can try again. Dead, well, that's it."

Sound advice, which actually matched my philosophy.

Freia wasn't in total agreement though.

"But the honour of a warrior is something that contributes to their standing!" she complained.

"If you are speaking of promises made, and so forth, I don't disagree," Hungerford replied. "Even in a practice bout, there is room for honour. For real war, for a real, to the death fight though, the winner takes all. Don't forget that."

Freia made a face, but nodded. She was still young enough to fall for the bard's tales of glory, I suspected. No doubt if I was only as old as my body, I would be the same. Experience was the one thing that changed your outlook, and I carried mine from my previous life.

I did see Marie once more, but I arranged it so I didn't have 'time' to run around and play with her. She was still too young to interest me, but it's always good to put in some groundwork for when that wouldn't be the case. So I met her and took her to the baker's, and bought her a few cakes and treats, and also one for her brother this time. 

She was very excited to have these. I had the feeling her family wasn't so well off, and couldn't afford such things. I added a few more baked goods, and told her to give them to her mother, apparently her father was no longer in the picture, and she promised she would.

As a final gesture of goodwill, I also gave her my small purse of holding as a present. I never really used it, as I had my larger bag. She was thrilled with that, and gave me a kiss on the cheek as a reward. I took that as a promise of more to come when we were older, and breathed a little harder at the thought.

And so the time to return to the academy grew close. 

Hungerford drove us mercilessly in our final few days of training, running us ragged with exercises and drills for most of the day. I went to bed exhausted each night. I think Gisel felt the same too. 

And finally the day came. 

"We're ready," Lissa called, from the wagon. 

Gisel, having already said goodbye to Freia and Hungerford, climbed aboard. She was wearing her new armour, and no doubt had about five hundred knives strapped about her person. 

I turned to Freia, who was standing next to Hungerford to see us off. Why not? I thought. I ran to her and hugged her. 

"Hey!" she said, shocked at first, but then relented and hugged me back, kissing me on the head before pushing me away. "Go on, you pervert," she said, but in a nice tone. 

Guess I'd been made then. 

Stepping to the side, I gave Hungerford a deep bow. "Thank you master, for all your training."

"I've only just started," he said. "Next time I'm not going to be so soft, so you better keep in shape."

"I will master." With another bow to both of them, I grinned widely and blasted myself upwards with my wind magic. I did a backwards summersault high in the air, and landed on the seat of the wagon, next to Lissa, who gave me a clip around the ear for it.

Still, worth it.