With a satisfying sound, the stubborn knotted stump finally split in two. The knotted ones were most difficult, some almost impossible for Leisa to split.

“You handle that axe almost as well as a man,” the wide shouldered stable boy, said, a saddle in arms. Jasen was barely older than Leisa, and had short black hair and ruddy cheeks. She stared at him flatly. He wasn’t unhandsome.

“Why aren’t you letting one of the manservants do that?”

“Lady Casen is away, so there is no need to keep the servants running about. They deserve a rest too, you know. Besides, I can cut wood.” The truth was, she was waiting on the captain. He trained her in the sword by order of the lady mage.

I do hope he shows, she thought, looking around. If he doesn’t, this will be the second time this month.

For some reason lady Casen didn’t want anyone to know Leisa was being groomed as a candidate for the Hall of Mages.

“Maybe I can give you a hand after I saddle Korvin,” he said, tightening the saddle girth under the dapple grey’s belly. Korvin was the captain’s horse, which meant he would meet her. Good. She didn’t want to be standing there in the chilly air until night time again. What would they do tonight? She felt giddy, trying not to show it, knowing she shouldn’t be so excited. She didn’t actually know why the lady mage made her train in the sword. Mages didn’t need them.

A few moments later, the captain entered the stable yard. Jasen straightened, moved quickly to bring Korvin out into the open. He handed the grizzled captain the reigns. “Is it a good day for riding?” He asked the stable boy.

“Yes, sir, but there’s only another hour or so of sunlight.”

Leisa smiled. Jasen tried hard to sound like a soldier, but something was off. Maybe that leathery attitude soldiers had just wasn’t there.

Captain Commander Caldren grunted. “I think I’ll take Korvin to that meadow on the west side of the castle grounds, he said casually. Leisa caught that hint of a nod. He mounted Korvin, then trotted the animal toward the castle gate.

Leisa split another stump, then made an excuse to go for a ride herself. Jasen gave her a quick rundown of the quirks of her new mount called Renar, since her usual choice was sick, correcting her after she called the animal, “the horse.” He hated it when the animals were not called by their proper names. She waved to him from atop Renar as she walked him out of the stable yard.

Leisa had asked Sorela why no one was to know about her training. The lady mage had not answered her though. Probably because she was a handmaiden. The Hall of Mages was the only place birth or military stature didn’t matter. After a moment she realized being a mage was its own form of stature.

After meeting the captain, he handed her one of the familiar wooden practice swords after they both dismounted. People would start rumors if they found out the Captain Commander of the castle guard was training a handmaiden. He pointed to the trees where she could wrap her reigns.

A short time later the captain was instructing her on the forms required for self-defense against foes on horseback. Her eyes widened as the greying man mounted.

She cursed. “I have to fight you from the ground?”

He chuckled. “Would you rather learn against an armored enemy intent on sheering your head from your body?”

Blinking, she tried to remember what he’d said about the form. At least lady Casen is not here to watch me fail, she thought with some small relief. She was always quite sharp when criticizing failure. But when would she ever need to fight a mounted enemy? She frowned.

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“No!” Leisa squeaked and ran away when the captain charged, feeling stupid. She imagined Sorela’s sharp tone. The captain responded nearly as sharply. “You will not always have the luxury of running away, girl. You have sparred against me innumerable times. Face me as you would any other day, or I will have to tell the lady mage how craven you are?”

Leisa bit her lip, tangled her fingers together. She went back to the spot where the captain had tried to bat her head like a filthy rat in the castle. He charged her again as she raised her sword in the correct form. Their wooden blades cracked against each other as Korvin galloped past. He didn’t hit her… Luckily.

“Good, very good,” he said loudly, wheeling his horse. He trotted the animal toward her. “This time I will come low,” he continued as he dismounted to show her the form. After he finished, he mounted and rode away from her, positioning for another charge.

This is not as hard, or as scary as I thought it would be, she told herself, smiling at her success.

The captain charged again, and this time things did not go as she thought they would. The next she knew, she was rolled onto her back.

Caldren grimaced. “Are you all right?”

I must have done the form wrong, she thought, gingerly moving her fingers up to her cheek. She winced. “I think I’m okay,” she said. “How do I look?”

The captain raised an eyebrow. “Like we will not be training for some time,” he said.

* * *

Leisa winced as she sat up in bed. Again she gingery touched her cheek. It still felt big. It wasn’t as bad as it was last night, but it still hurt.

He’s going to tell Sorela what happened, she thought, biting back a curse. She imagined stern disappointment on the mage’s beautiful face.

After the captain had carried her into the servant’s quarters, the others crowded about, wide eyed and in more shock than Leisa had been in after the accident! Mistress Wemok nearly fainted, muttering something about footpads so close to the castle. The captain told them all to settle down, and explained that he’d found her, bucked from her horse. Of course, it wasn’t true, but she corroborated the lie. Leisa didn’t like lying, but she couldn’t just as well have told them what actually happened!

After a few moments feeling around the swollen spot, she finally slipped out of bed and cursed softly, reaching for the fresh bruise on her shin. She limped to the basin under the window. The morning sun provided enough light to cast her reflection in the still water. She winced at her reflection, remembering how the captain had come at her on horseback. She tried to parry, but instead his sword knocked her feet from under her and she ate dirt.

Leisa almost laughed, but quelled her moment of mirth. She would have to work double hard to make up for the failure. She could only imagine what Sorela would say when she arrived to find her with a bruised eye and a fat face. You have to prove yourself to me, she’d said before. I will not present a girl to the Hall, bound for failure so that you can embarrass yourself, and worse, me. Do you understand, child?

I won’t fail, she thought. I can’t. Well she could, but that would mean living out the rest of her life as a commoner. Being a commoner wasn’t bad, but she wanted more. What was it that Sorela originally saw in her anyway?

Suddenly mistress Wemok came through the door, paused. “My, my,” she said, shaking her head and tsking. “I will not blame you child if you cannot work today, but if you can, I expect you to be at your fullest. I will not have any slack under me.” She took Leisa’s chin under her hand to get a good look at her face. She made more disapproving sounds again. “Back in bed, child—there will be no work for you today.”

“I feel fine, Mistress Wemok, truly I—“

The Mistress of Servants interrupted. “Oh, enough, child. I will not have you going about the castle with that face of yours.” Then as an afterthought she added, “Besides, unless you want to spend the day cleaning out the privies, I would best shut my mouth if I were you—lady Casen isn’t even here! Who will you be tendin’ to?”

The privies? I’m a handmaiden, not an ordinary servant. But mistress Wemok was right, though Leisa still had other duties to attend to. They could wait. She nodded, slowly limping back to her bed.

“Now,” Wemok said, “I will have some hot breakfast brought down to you soon. You just rest, child.” She smiled, then left the room.

“Sorela’s going to skin me.”