Mia sat at her seat in the war room with her eyes shut her chin in her hands breathing rhythmically as the sound of Laurentius frantically running around downstairs echoed faintly through the halls. As she did so she felt a slap in her face acompanied by a familiar voice.

"Wake up."

She received another slap in the face, she looked up and saw a shrivelled old man hunched over in front of her crouching on the table wearing rags. he tried to swipe at her again but she caught his hand and spoke up,

"Master wait I need to talk to you."

"You just woke up, it's not good for you to fall back asleep so soon."

"I need you to teach me how to talk to people."

his other hand that was mid-swing stopped and he tilted his head, his eyes scrunched up and his mouth puckered wording the word, "what".

"I was training with you alone on that mountain for so long I forgot how to talk to people."

"Just do it. The rules of etiquette for talking to people change so often I gave up on learning centuries ago and just talk as arrogantly as possible all the time."

"I tried that but I don't like it. It's really embarrassing when I mess up after thinking I could handle something."

"Then stop doing things you'll regret."

"Can't you give me any advice besides that? Can't you offer some sagely old man wisdom that only comes from having lived as long as you're always bragging about?"

"Mia listen. I am not you. What works for me might not work for you and I don't blame you for it everyone is different and you're never going to find someone who is exactly like you who will be a perfect example for you to base your entire personality off of. You have to decide how you're going to think and act and you're going to have to deal with the embarrassment of messing up yourself. There is no advice I can give you except to tell you to do it because I am not you."

She froze for a moment in silent contemplation not seeing the next slap hit her in the face.

In the war room, her face slipped from her palm and she caught herself an inch before kissing the hardwood table. She sighed a deep heavy sigh mulling over the last wall of text her master threw at her not noticing the sound of the door opening behind her.

From her back came noise as a gagged man was being dragged in by a tired and sweating Laurentius. following close after him was the woman Mia'd brought with her to the boy's camp to deliver their message.

"Mia I found the guy who abducted... uh..."

"Daniela"

Laurentius Still dragging the man up to Mia gestured to Daniela as he spoke before trailing off halfway as the realisation he never caught her name sank in. The woman in question was standing naked in the doorway with a blanket draped over her shoulders held in place by her hand.

"Right Daniela sorry, What should we do with him?"

They waited for a few seconds for Mia to reply, When she realised the silence in the room she turned around and said.

"Oh, when did you two get back."

"Mia, did you fall asleep waiting for me?"

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Her eyes darted to the other girl in the room and she looked down at her hands before stealing her resolve looking him straight in the eyes and answering him,

"Yes, yes I did."

He couldn't help but chuckle at her response. Laurentius quickly tried to cover his smile behind his hand shaking his head for a second before proceeding.

"What should we do with him?"

"He's the one who stripped her naked right?"

Both Laurentius and Daniela nodded once in unison while shouting "Yes!" in harmony. The gagged man bound at their feet frantically shook his head in protest. His eyes were wide with worry as they stared into the uncharacteristically happy face of Mia as she focussed her intense gaze at him.

"Take his clothes and give them to Daniela, he was content to leave a girl shivering undressed and scared it's the least we can do."

"You... don't want him dead?"

Laurentius asked his eyes squinting as he spoke to her. Mia closed her eyes and let out an audible breath casting her eyes down past the man and to a ring Laurentius hadn't noticed her wearing before. She looked up at him and said.

"How are we going to set an example if there's no one left to tell the tale of how terrifying a woman's wrath can be."

Daniela smiled and looked at the poor bound soul. He tried to worm his way away from her but Daniela made quick work of him taking what little covering he had and began sewing it for her own clothing, she even took his bed sheets and fashioned for herself proper clothes.

For the remainder of Mia's time watching over Laurentius making sure he didn't try to attack the elven scout the man was not permitted to wear anything and he had to sleep under the bedsheets that had a fair amount of patterned holes in them from Daniela's first attempt at sewing. If he attempted to patch the holes with what little of the fabric of his blankets he had left he knew the remaining blanket would be too small so he merely suffered until Mia and she left so he could be permitted to hunt for a new blanket again.

Daniela and Mia began to talk more after Mia had sent Laurentius to save her. Daniela was understandably nettled at the fact Mia delegated the task to someone else while she slept just as she slept through her initial abduction only moving to swat away the person who tried to strip her personally.

Daniela was still quite frightened by the memory of how swiftly that man became an example to the others not to touch her even while she was sleeping. Daniela also feared what might happen if she was the one thrown against the stone wall in Mia's sleep.

Mia however didn't care how she felt and forced her to be her socialising partner until she got used to talking to people again.

"You know Mia, you should really do something about your habit of bringing up your master every time one of your dangerous ideas are opposed."

"What do you mean? My master spent five years teaching me how to be as strong as I am, and, seeing the results of my training didn't fail me, everyone should just accept his teachings as facts."

"You know just because something produces results doesn't make it right, You can't just end all your arguments with one source and have nothing but the word of one old guy who lives up on a mountain end all your arguments for you."

That night her master told her that Daniela was right in principle that Mia should test out what people tell her but was wrong in that she questioned his teachings.

"I don't mind you testing the things I tell you because I know I'm right. Sometimes people are too afraid to test the things you tell them because they don't want to be wrong."

"Master..."

"Let me finish."

"But I don't recognize this body."

Hanz looked at Mia in her dream as she sat in PJs on the bed holding a stuffed doll resembling Daniela. The top button of her shirt unbuttoned, and his eyes wandered. He took a deep breath.

"What was I talking about?"

"You were teaching me magic."

"No, I think I'd remember if I did that."

The plushie in her arms began pressing its fat stubby little arms into her face and she soon woke up to Daniela's shouting.

"MIA WAKE UP!"

"What? What's wrong?"

"I have to pee..."

Mia released her grip on Daniella and turned over in bed. As soon as her grip was released Daniela ran out of the room and down the hall. Mia lay half awake unable to get back to sleep and looked down at her ring before whispering to herself.

"So close."