Lady Till addressed those present at the weekly captain’s meeting. “I hope this morning finds all of you well. Let us begin.” She quickly flipped through her papers. “There have been increased reports of bandits raiding supply caravans within the Gilded Region. Tomorrow, we will begin doing patrols from Mareth to Volo Refuge. Assist any travelers who are in need of it.

Our troubles will no doubt increase the longer the war lasts. Anyone who avoids the draft may choose to turn to a life of crime. Due to the unpredictable skill level of these criminals, we will take care in choosing who we send out. Mister Arbutus, will you hand out the current squad missions?”

Shaw didn’t like being the center of attention. The normally bulky paladin had shrunk down in his seat. He hadn’t anticipated taking temporary control of the commander’s position while Duxton was away, he wasn’t even used to being away from Duxton’s side.

“Yes, well...” He stood up and fumbled for the notebook in his pocket. His trembling fingers had trouble pulling it out, forcing him to give up and recite everything from memory. “Duke Sickleson has asked for help in an investigation. We are sending Miss Rodanthe to assist.” A silence slowly sunk into the room as Shaw stared helplessly at Till.

Blinking a few times, Till finally gave a reply. “Is that all?” Shaw gave a single nod of his head and quickly sat back down. Till stood there, absolutely stunned for a moment, then continued. “Then I suppose you are all dismissed.” She gathered her papers quietly and quickly left the room.

Tish leaned towards Veximarl and whispered quietly to him. “She didn’t used to be so obvious when she was biting back her words. Pregnancy has certainly made her easier to read.”

“I’ve always heard that winter babes weigh the most heavily upon their mothers,” remarked Veximarl. “Sir Stonetoe is fighting in the war, and Lady Till is no longer a young woman. She has more troubles that we cannot begin to comprehend.” Their daughter would be born in the dead of winter, when tainted beasts would be their strongest. The closer winter got, the more frustrated their headmistress was becoming.

Alton sneered at the pair. “She's got enough to worry about without us gossiping behind her back.” He then glanced at Shaw. “Is it true that the mail from the Crimson Region came in last night?” The paladin nodded. “Should be sorted by now. Vex, I’m going ahead to see if anything for our squad came in.”

Veximarl stretched out his arms. “Be aware that I am unavailable for much of the day. Rite will need to be let out on her run and I will be grading papers after that.”

Tish reached over and graced the back of her fingers against Veximarl’s cheek. He shivered from embarrassment. There was no need for her to do this in front of their peers.

“Can we go over our acolyte studies first? Better yet, why don’t you let me go with you when you go play with Rite. You’re always doing that by yourself... It has to be lonely, right?”

Correction, he always did that with Gwyn, but Vex didn’t want to mention that at all. “... I would rather go on my own.”

Tish pouted. “I understand that men need their alone time, but I’m worried about you. You’re always so depressed when you come back from those walks.”

A loud banging rang through the room as Gwyn stood up and slammed her book down on the table. She shut her eyes tightly as she took a long and labored breath. Her head then snapped to the side as she gave an intense glare to the pair sitting next to her.

“Vincent has matters he wishes to discuss with you, Vex.” Gwyn’s tone had a hint of a growl in it. She looked quickly down at the table so that her rage would become slightly less noticeable.

“It must be about next Satyrday's service.” Tish grinned widely. “Oh! It’ll give me enough to arrange a picnic basket. Do your pets need to eat? Or will it just be for the two of us?”

Gwyn’s patience was snapped in half. “Why don't you arrange to keep it in your robes for once instead of being so obvious about asking for sex?! Not everyone needs to hear about what a horny little bitch you are!”

The reaction from the rest of the squad captains was mixed. Amalfrieda was about to complain about being sent to the north alone, but this was far more interesting. She and Rebecca exchanged a look before they both leaned forward on their seats. One was grinning widely while the other was feigning a lack of interest.

Tish stood up and placed her hand on her hip. The tips of her fingers were resting neatly on her folded up hammer. “Pardon my rudeness, Miss Hewitt, but is it possible for you to mind your own business?” Her declaration of war made Gwyn subconsciously flex the hand. Small vines and leaves began to curl out of her sleeve and around her wrist.

“See, Rebecca? That's how you should be fighting over Duxton,” whispered Amalfrieda to her fellow captain.

“You do realize that I was the one that left him, right?” Whispered Rebecca.

Amalfrieda frowned. “But it would’ve been fun to watch you fight over him.”

Rebecca shrugged. “I just didn’t have the heart to continue.” She then lowered her voice to a barely audible whisper. “But it is fun to watch them fight over the pale boy.”

Gwyn turned around to address the pair, the vines retreating back into her sleeve as she did so. “I am not starting an argument because I have a romantic interest in Mister Tuton. We are squad captains. It is simply the matter of reminding her that our role within these barracks is to hold ourselves to a higher standard. We mustn't let our personal lusts get in the way of being leaders.”

Speaking of being a good example, Elm and Rowan had spent their time watching Alton. He had ducked below the table and crawled down to the first row. Now that he had succeeded in making his escape, he popped back up between the pair of first years. Alton had a sixth sense when it came to avoiding getting in the way of women fighting, especially magic flinging women. Meanwhile, Veximarl was so panicked that he had turned several shades paler.

But such arguments between captains should be dealt with by Bronzescale. Shaw turned to Beat, wondering why he hadn’t bothered to interfere yet. Beat was staring right back at him in a disapproving fashion.

Shaw cursed under his breath and knocked on the table in front of him. Everyone turned his way. “Gwyn. Let us take a walk.”

She scoffed and tossed her head to the side. “Don't any of you see what's happening here? There’s a time and a place for everything, and what she’s doing… It’s...” A pained look crossed her features as she fumbled over what to say next.

“... Gwyndolyn.” Veximarl gave a brief shake of his head.

Gwyn tensed up for a moment. “... I will make an official complaint to Lady Till if I see it again. Enough is enough.” Her gaze fell to the floor and she remained still until Shaw had finished standing up. She ignored Tish as the priestess possessively curled herself around Veximarl’s arm.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“Temporary Commander Arbutus.” Rebecca raised a hand. Shaw winced at the title and looked over his shoulder. “May I request that Amalfrieda have a partner assigned with her on her mission?”

“I doubt anyone in your squad can handle her… Unique personality,” replied Shaw.

“I was going to suggest Naiov, Temporary Commander Arbutus,” added Rebecca.

Amalfrieda put her hand to her chest as an offended display. “But Trenchall is stronger! Temporary Commander Arbutus, you wouldn’t weaken my team by giving me Naiov, right?”

“Actions have consequences, Amalfrieda,” Rebecca scolded. “You’re the one who tried to rip out Trenchall’s eye when he broke up with you.”

The third years looked over Trenchall. He was staring blankly at the wall with one eye twitching. His hoop of coins was making a horrid rattling sound, a habit he had developed whenever someone even mentioned the idea that he and Amalfrieda should be partnered.

Shaw’s shoulders sunk. “You do it,” he muttered to Beat. The man responded by shaking his head. “Then stop being useless and help me more.”

“I was unaware that you needed my help, Temporary Commander Arbutus,” answered Beat. “Our lord has instructed us to respect your authority in his absence, as you are more than capable of being an exemplary leader for these barracks.” Shaw glared at Beat. Beat replied by smiling innocently back. An expression that hardly suited him.

The paladin raised his voice. “The meeting has been adjourned for some time now, yet you all waste your time with accusations and gossip. Move out!” Everyone began to shuffle their belongings together. “Trenchall, inform Naiov that he will be traveling with Amalfrieda to Duke Sickleson’s court.”

“Yes, Temporary Commander Arbutus.”

Great. Even the blank slate of a mage was in on the joke.

Shaw tensed up, remaining stiff as he approached Gwyn. They exchanged a nod before the pair walked out together. The rest of the room began to follow. As both Alton and Veximarl exited the library, they were ambushed by Chickadee and Zaniyah. Chickadee wedged himself under Alton's arm while Zaniyah wrung her hands together. Her eyes were silently pleading with Veximarl. She was done. She was beyond done.

“Please get me out of here. Please. Anything. Get us a mission. I don't care where it is, but I haven’t done anything since I’ve come back from the abbey. I'll do anything. Clean up duty, delivering letters, anything that involves not being here.” She jutted out her bottom lip and fake tears were forming in the corners of her eyes.

Alton pecked the top of Chickadee's head so that the mage would let go of him. “Aren’t you scheduled to leave in two weeks? That’s not enough time to put anything together.”

“Yeah, but do you think they’re gonna let me do anything fun in Fogbloom? Because I don’t think so.” Zaniyah folded her arms and pouted. “Shaw already said I’m just gonna be paraded around as a noble and that I need to keep my mouth shut, so I already know I’m in for a bad time.”

She had a point. Alton sympathized. She was likely going to be tearing her hair out from boredom. “I'll talk with Till. Meanwhile, read fewer books? You don't need to study so hard. Our official classes ended a while ago and you already passed your make up exams.”

Zaniyah hadn't told anyone other than Veximarl and Chickadee about her plans for early graduation. After Sybil's disappearance, she didn't know how Alton or anyone else would react, but the pressure to catch up on everything was wearing her thin. Sybil's abandonment had also weighed heavily on her conscience. Henry's strict training schedule wasn't helping her either.

“... I don't know.” Zaniyah let out a whine. She didn't seem to know anything anymore. “Maybe the answer is to read more books.”

“Perhaps take up a relaxing hobby. Like mediation?” Veximarl's suggestion made Zaniyah's stomach churn. “... Spend more time on the farms? It's never too early to start preparations for winter.”

Taking Alton's free hand with both of her own, Zaniyah clutched it tightly. “Please talk to me in private later. Please. It’s important.” Alton gave her a confused and slow nod. “Thank you so much.”

Beat raised an eyebrow. He had been idling close and eavesdropping. “I am currently available to speak with you.” He gestured away from the group. “In a private fashion, if that would make you more comfortable.” Zaniyah bit onto her bottom lip. “Do you not want to?” The look she was giving him was puzzling. It was a combination of terror and embarrassment.

“We can...” Zaniyah nodded her head. “Yeah, we can do that.”

Zaniyah was torn with how much she should tell Beat. They were going to break up when he graduated, so what was the point? Should she tell him that she was scared to be around Vincent, or that she wanted to graduate early because she was worried that her back hadn’t fully healed… Would she dare mention those strange threesome dreams she had whenever Luca gave her that pain medication?

But maybe spending time with her soon to be ex-boyfriend was a good thing. They could go on a horseback ride or have a duel, maybe even meditate, which was something Zaniyah hadn’t done in a while. But why was he heading to the dorms instead of outside the barracks? Better question, why was she following upstairs and into Duxton’s bedroom?

Beat crossed the room and flopped onto Duxton’s bed. He let out a long, drawn-out sigh before he proceeded to melt into the bedsheets. Zaniyah locked the door. They would get in so much trouble if someone found them here… And that fact made this venture exciting.

“I have permission to be in here whenever Prince Duxton is out on a mission,” said Beat.

“... Aww,” replied Zaniyah. It wasn’t fun if there wasn’t a risk.

Beat sat up. “I had the sheets sent off to the laundry first. They are clean.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” said Zaniyah with a nod. She remained idling by the door.

Beat frowned. “... Do you find me to be repulsive?”

The question sent Zaniyah’s mind spinning. “No?” She frantically waved her hands about in the air. “No! A very solid no!” Just to prove how not repulsive he was, she quickly moved across the room and sat down on the edge of the bed.

“... I had asked because you hadn’t been as affectionate as of late.”

Zaniyah hadn’t processed what he had said. The moment she sat down, she immediately became distracted by how soft and springy it was. She was already bouncing slightly. “Eh? … Affection?” She shook her head. “I mean, it’s hard, right? Shaw is dragging me off to Fogbloom, and you’ll be leaving before I get back. That’s that for us.”

“And you have been hardening yourself in preparation for heartbreak?” Beat asked.

“What we do is… It’s very separate, isn’t it?” She drew invisible boxes in the air. “There’s the us when we train, then there’s the us when we’re being nasty, and then I think there’s supposed to be an us for when neither of those things are happening, a lovey-dovey us, but there just isn’t one.”

“Ah… So you have been wondering if I had fallen in love with you.”

Zaniyah nodded her head. “Yeah… I mean, love and stuff. I know that it’s stupid to be curious, because it’s not gonna be long until it’s all over, but… I’m still wondering.”

That was a statement that Beat pondering as well. He placed a hand to his chin and let out a brief hum. “I hadn’t put much thought into it.”

Had she put a lot of thought into it? Did Zaniyah love Beat? She frowned to herself. “... Oh.”

Beat stared at her for a moment. He put an arm around her shoulders, and she let out a “oof” as he pulled her down on the bed with him. His lips brushed along the edge of her ear as he spoke. “I will always appreciate how you always saw me as me and have never asked for him.”

“Because you’re always going to be two different people,” replied Zaniyah in a matter-of-fact manner.

He laughed to himself. “What is your schedule for today?”

“I was supposed to do some dueling with Elm, but he canceled on me,” grumbled Zaniyah. “I mean, it’s fine because he wants to spend some time training with his mom, but now I’ve got nothing to do.”

“Do you wish to take a nap with me?”

“Ehh, I guess so.” Zaniyah rolled on her side so she could look at him. “That’s gonna be really hard to do with clothes on.”

“It most certainly is,” he replied with a grin.

Maybe it didn’t matter if she loved him or not. But was not loving him at all also a problem? How was Zaniyah supposed to feel once all of this was done and over. Should she be sad, grateful, or ready to move on? Yet the softness of Beat’s kisses, and the firm way in which he held her… It had a way of chasing those worries away. When she was with Beat, Zaniyah never wanted to leave the present. The past and future? It didn’t matter to her.