Day 7

Joe walked thought the castle she was playing games with Rosaleighm. Not quite hide and seek but rather she must sneak up on Joe. An impossible task but fun for a child.

Making skills a game is how you teach a child quickly. Joe wanted her to be able to take care of herself, to not to need anyone, not even Joe.

She heard Chris yelling in pain. She opened the door and saw Rachael hitting him with a metal fire poker.

“What do you want to know from him?” she asked.

“Nothing” Rachael replied “I just want him to hurt. To truly be sorry.”

Chris passed out from loss of blood.

“Careful you might start to enjoy yourself.” Joe said leaving.

Poor girl consumed by rage.

Joe made sure the door was closed and she continued moving throughout the castle. She saw Kerri and James talking away.

“I am just checking up on you” James said.

“Oh thanks. I’m fine. Just trying to find us a way home.”

“Can we maybe talk?” James asked.

“We are talking” Kerri answered.

“I mean have a serious talk” he stumbled over his words.

Joe rolled her eyes. Clearly, they liked each other but no one had the gut to make a move.

She continued on.

Natrica came over.

“I was wondering if things like traps count in this war game?”

“It’s not a war game and yes traps do count. Why?”

“Just wondering” Natrica said with a silly guilty grin on her face.

She needs to learn to hide that, Joe thought

So, I should be aware of traps. Let’s see how good these traps are?

Intrigued Joe moved quietly thought the passages. Observing as she went.

Is this why Rosaleighm still hasn’t made a move for a while? Joe wondered She’s building traps. Maybe expecting an assault was asking for too much too soon.

Then she heard a metallic something fall, from the room she just passed. She listened, there was no follow up sound.

Hiding in a room? Joe felt a little disappointed. She pushed the door open while staying out of its path, just in case there was a trap.

She looked in, there was a metal bucket in the middle of the room.

“My bad” Natrica said.

But she couldn’t be seen.

Joe walked in slowly, a curtain, a heavy curtain was dropped onto her. Part of her knew it was a trap. But she wanted to know how good a trap it was. As she tried to get out of the curtain someone began to tie her up in the curtain.

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Nice try she thought tripping the person up.

But the ropes kept going round her. She was pushed to the floor and a hole was cut where her head was.

“Are you impressed?” Natrica asked.

Rosaleighm sat on her with a big smile.

“You worked together?” Joe inquired.

“You didn’t say we couldn’t”

Spice appeared.

“So, who did I trip?” Joe asked.

“Rosaleighm, she was trying to make sure you didn’t get out of the curtain. While Spice and I kept a safe distance and ran rope around you.”

“Team work. Well done. Now untie me.”

They set Joe free.

“I want you to also be able to face an opponent. Would you feel better if all three of you faced me at the same time?”

“Yes” Natrica answered.

“Ok, let’s find the training grounds.”

They walked past Kerri working and James, hovering.

Natrica decided to help them along.

“Would you both join me this evening for a walk around the castle gardens?” she asked.

“What are you doing?” Joe asked.

“Helping them out” Natrica whispered.

“I’m busy” Kerri said.

“It will inspire you” Natrica enticed

“I will keep asking until you agree.” She persisted.

“Fine when”’

“Just before sunset. Don’t be late or forget. I will find you.”

Kerri rolled her eyes.

“You are as scary as a mouse.”

“Well, if you have seen the mice around here, that’s scary.” Natrica trotted off.

“Why did you do that?” Joe asked.

“They need help.”

“So, you are going to sit them down tonight and have a “let’s talk about your feelings”?”

“I am not going. But I am going to plan a wonderful date for them.”

Joe shook her head

“You really shouldn’t get involved”

“I like helping people and it will help us later.”

She said knowingly like she already knew the outcome.

They found the training grounds. Soldiers were using it and they didn’t feel like sharing. Joe didn’t care much for their feelings so she ignored the clear get lost signals they gave.

Black Beard Gruff was there. When Natrica, saw him, she wanted to leave.

“When we are bullied, we don’t run. We return with a bigger sharper stick” Joe said.

“But some fights we shouldn’t fight. Peace is always best.”

“If you let yourself be pushed around you will always be pushed around. Stand up for yourself. Defend your dignity.”

“I am ok, with not fighting this battle. It’s ok. Really!”

“No, it is not.”

Joe gave her a training staff. Joe gave Rosaleighm, a training staff and Spice. She however took a spear.

“We are training today. One way or the other.”

“I don’t want to” Natrica wined.

“Life doesn’t always give you what you want. That man scared you, threatened you. It’s not ok. You will take your power back. You will become powerful.”

Natrica stood in the corner. Her corner became crowded as Rosaleighm and Spice crammed into her corner.

Black Beard Gruff looked the women and child up and down.

“Men this woman killed your friends. Your family, she killed my men in Point. What say we teach her a lesson?”

“Umm... is that not the woman the queen searched for. Even freed a whole tribe of slaves over?”

“Are you too afraid to fight a woman?” Black Beard Gruff taunted.

“We serve our queen.” they replied.

“It looks like she wants a fight.”

“Captain, with all due respect. You do not outrank the queen. I do not want to die because of your personal vendettas.”

“Cowards!” He shouted.

The men dropped their weapons.

Natrica watched. She was relieved to see them drop their weapons.

“See no one wants to fight.” She said happily.

Joe crouched ready to fight Black Beard.

But when he saw he was alone he dropped his weapon too.

Joe was disappointed but she understood he didn’t want a beating in front of all those men.

She gestured for them to leave. They picked up their weapons and left.

However, Black Beard decided that he couldn’t walk away. He did have a personal vendetta against her. So, while Joe’s back was turned, he struck her behind the knee and as she collapsed, he went for the head. Joe was able to avoid the head shot but he had an advantage.

Then Rosaleighm charged him. She hit him on the nose with her staff. Blood gushed.

Then she went for the eye, but he dodged that. He pulled the training staff from her hand.

“If you want to fight, I’ll give you a fight.”

He was double her height. He kicked her to the ground and continued kicking her. Rosaleighm was crying.

Natrica took a deep breathe. When with all the courage she could muster she struck him in the face.

It knocked him off balance. She hit him again, afraid of what would happen if he got to her. The same sick feeling she had felt when he was planning to kill her rose up in her stomach.

She struck him again, this time it was the back of the knee like he had done to Joe.

He fell to his knees. She hit his chest. Knocking him onto his back. Then she stepped on his chest with the staff against his neck.

Rosaleighm was crying in Spice’s arms. The child had been beaten unjustly.

Joe was standing with the spear in her hand.

“Well done. You beat the man that made you afraid. You now know you can beat him. So, you never need to fear him again.”

“What about Rosaleighm?” Natrica asked.

“She learned that sometimes, most times your opponent is bigger and stronger than you. It doesn’t mean you are defeated; it means you find another way.”

“I don’t think that child feels like finding another way.” Natrica stated.

Natrica was unhappy. She didn’t feel empowered. She had been afraid the whole time. She still was which was why she hadn’t let Black Beard Gruff off the ground.

“Some of us are not warriors or fighters.” Natrica said.

She backed away from him watching him carefully.

“No, but everyone should be able to defend themselves and the ones they love. Life is cruel.” Joe replied.

Natrica went to her room. She wasn’t in a happy mood, she felt nerve wrecked.

She was angry at Joe for making her do it. Even though it was Black Beard who struck Joe and then kept kicking Rosaleighm. She was angry with Black Beard for kicking a child. For making her hurt him. She didn’t want to, she didn’t want to fight. She started shivering. She lay on the floor with a blanket over her.

Joe hugged Rosaleighm, then gave her the staff. Spice realized if she was going to be around Joe, she needed to start taking this fighting stuff seriously. She didn’t like the idea of dying because someone like Black Beard Gruff had an issue with Joe.

So, Spice and Rosaleighm held their staffs and followed the steps Joe demonstrated.