Davon’s hand swung down between the two teenagers, and Draco charged immediately. He thrust his sword at Saphira, who effortlessly parried it to the side, a bored expression on her face as the grinding steel blew a few sparks past her cheek. Draco stepped into her space, pressing his sword against hers in an attempt to overpower her. As he pushed, Saphira slipped under his blade and stepped around him. Draco stumbled forward as she vanished behind him, then yelped in pain as she sharply swatted his backside with the flat of her blade. He turned to face her, face red in embarrassment as she took a new, more aggressive stance.
“Shall we continue?” She asked, her expression unchanging.
Draco did not answer; instead rushing her with an overhead swing. As he brought his sword down she lunged up, striking his blade with her own, knocking the long sword away and putting him off balance. As he staggered back she stepped forward, blade poised to strike.
“You say you were trained by a former member of the Order for three months?” She said, her eyes flashing dangerously. “I have been trained by a current member for over six years.”
Draco could not follow her attacks after those words. He kept backing away as her thrusts came at him in rapid succession. He was able to block the ones coming at his body, but it did not stop her from covering his arms, cheeks, legs and sides in shallow cuts. He was being completely overwhelmed, unable to find a single opening.
“I’m being pushed back… by some Halfwing trash?!” He thought angrily, his eyes shooting around the area, looking from Saphira to his sword to the ground. He took a large step back and dug the tip of his sword into the ground, swinging it up and tossing dirt at Saphira’s face. She brought her left hand up to shield her face, and Draco charged, slamming his shoulder into her. As he connected, however, Saphira placed her blocking left hand onto his shoulder and vaulted herself over him, standing one handed and upside down over him.
“Pathetic,” she said, a look of disgust on her face. Her hand gripped into his shirt and she twisted 360 degrees around as she came down behind him, her grip on his now twisted shirt collar as her feet came to the ground. She yanked on his shirt as she swung her sword arm into the backs of his knees. Draco felt his feet leave the ground as his shirt choked him, finding himself hitting the ground ass over teakettle as Saphira once again stood over him, sword pointed down at his face.
“Any more tricks, boy?” Saphira asked, her eyes flashing dangerously, as though telling him to stay down. Draco could hear the others in the squad whispering to one another. He could see Davon shaking his head, as though he knew the fight was over. Nothing was over! Not yet! He was a Pendra! Damn it! He could not lose to some nobody, even if she was trained by a member of the Order!
“DRACO!” He roared, and flames erupted from the ground around him. Saphira’s eyes snapped wide with shock and she took a step back. Draco spun around into a crouched position and shouldered his sword in an attack position.
“I am finishing this!” He shouted as he felt his entire body burn with energy from the Salamander. “Wyvern Rush!”
He vanished in an instant, using the powers of his Spirit to dash around and behind Saphira; her back was wide open. With a hearty battle cry, he swung his blade as it bit through the air, its blade alive with flames. The blade hit the ground and blasted up a dust cloud, blinding everyone momentarily as Draco smiled in victory.
“Gotcha, bitch!” He shouted, a wide wicked smile on his face.
“Really now?” came a voice behind him. Draco’s smile vanished as a hot, sharp pain exploded from his right shoulder. Every nerve in his arm burned, his grip on the sword failing. The long sword’s guard clattered loudly to the ground as the dust cleared to reveal Saphira standing behind Draco, her rapier cleanly thrust through his shoulder. Draco’s eyes were wide in shock and pain as he looked at the blade sticking out of him, watching his blood run down and drip from the tip of the weapon. Saphira pulled the blade out in one fluid motion and he dropped to his knees, screaming in pain as the Salamander returned to its normal form and Willow rushed over to him. Davon sighed and stepped forward, placing himself between Draco and Saphira.
“Alright, that is enough. I am calling this duel. Saphira, you are now the Squad Captain, unless anyone else would like to step forward and challenge her?”
From the remaining three on the sidelines, Arius did not move. Elizabeth closed her eyes and shook her head and hands, as though warding off an attack. Sebastian struck a pose with a mysterious smile.
“I feel that the Lady of Halfwing is more suited to leading. She shall guide my powers, truly a most suitable commander.”
Saphira nodded to the three of them before looking down at Draco as Willow helped him up to his feet.
“I will only say this once, Pendra,” she said, bringing the sword up and whipping it to the side, spraying his blood clean from the blade. “Speak ill of Sir Gerand again, and I will remove your tongue from your head. Understood?”
Draco glared at the girl, then looked to Davon, who gave him a warning look. The duel had had two conditions. Draco sighed in defeat.
“Very well. I apologize for any disrespect I levied towards Sir Halfwing.”
Saphira nodded and turned to leave, tossing her rapier to the side where it flashed silver and reverted back to the unicorn.
Willow reached into the pouch on her hip and pulled out a dark red potion.
“Here,” she said after pulling the cork off with her teeth. “Drink. William said it will help heal minor wounds quicker.”
Draco took the bottle and drank it, its contents making him want to gag as he swallowed.
“That’s William,” he said as he hung his tongue out of his head, “amazing at healing concoctions. Terrible at making them not taste like ass.” He gritted his teeth in pain as he felt his wound start to heal; the raw flash bubbling as it closed.
“He sent a lot of them, too,” Willow said, showing Draco the dozen or so bottles still in the pouch.
“It is like he knew I would get my ass kicked!” Draco thought in shock. “I don’t know if I should feel thankful or insulted!”
“Alright, listen up everyone!” Davon called out to the rest of the group. “That’s it for today. Tomorrow you will begin your classes in the morning. After lunch, you will be meeting me here for combat training. For the rest of today, I would suggest you all get to know one another. You will be relying on each other for the next three years, and possibly beyond. I will see you all tomorrow after lunch. Dismissed!”
With that Davon walked back to the Academy, leaving the six students alone. Saphira turned to the group, a warm smile on her face that seemed strangely out of place.
“Well then, shall we get some lunch?” She asked, immediately getting Willow’s undivided attention.
“I could go for something to eat.” Elizabeth said, smiling shyly as she hugged her book.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
Sebastian slid up to the girls. “I happen to know of the most elegant dining establishment not too far from here. Their services are well renowned for tea, coffee, light meals, and sweets.”
Elizabeth’s eyes shone at the mention of sweets, and Willow began to drool beside Draco. She looked to him, her eyes pleading with him to go.
“You go ahead,” he said, his pride still wounded, “I’m not feeling hungry.”
“You sure?” She asked, her face now concerned. He forced a smile and tousled her hair.
“Go. Have fun.”
Willow beamed and skipped over to the others as they headed towards the gate. Draco remained on the ground, staring at the dirt.
“You had no chance.”
He looked over to see Arius still standing there, watching the group leave.
“What the hell do you mean?” Draco asked, a nerve touched.
“In your fight against Saphira. You never had a chance.” Arius repeated, both he and his wolf turning to look at Draco, who got to his feet in anger.
“You looking for a fight, pal?” Draco asked.
Arius closed the distance between them in the blink of an eye, face to face with Draco before Pendra could even react. Arius pressed a finger against Draco’s still-healing shoulder, causing him to yelp in pain and fall back to the ground again.
“I don’t fight wounded dogs.” Arius replied coldly, staring down at Draco as he clutched his shoulder, glaring up at him. Arius closed his eyes and sighed, shaking his head. Without a word he turned and walked off towards the gate, his wolf following him, leaving Draco and the lizard alone in the training grounds.
Draco bit his lip as his fingers dug into the dirt, struggling not to cry.
“Damn it…”
~
That evening Draco sat at the dining room table, chin resting on his hand, staring out the window at the street lamps as Maria and Willow washed the dishes. William sat in his corner of the room, reading a book by candlelight and taking occasional sips from a cup of brandy. Draco let out a heavy sigh and his elder brother closed his eyes and shut his book.
“Okay, out with it. What happened?” he asked, getting up from his chair and walking over to the table. Draco looked over at his brother, mildly surprised.
“How do you know something happened?” he asked as Willam sat down across from him.
“My potions may heal physical injuries, but you’ve had the expression of a whipped pup since you got home. So: who did you lose to?”
“What makes you think I lost?” Draco asked, getting up from the table angrily and glaring at his brother. William’s soft smile never wavered, and Draco dropped back into his chair, ashamed and defeated. “Saphira Halfwing.”
“Ah. That would make sense.” William said, his smile growing wider. “I am quite well acquainted with her adoptive father, Gerand.”
“Adoptive?” Draco asked, surprised. Then another thought hit him. “You know him?”
“Aye. Gerand has no wife nor children of his own. Not as of yet anyways. But one day, when he returned from one of his grand adventures, he had a young girl in tow with him. Several wealthy families offered to look after the girl for him, but she refused to leave his side. No one knows what the story is there. Even when I asked him, Gerand merely said that he found her when she needed him. The rest of the story will have to come from her when she is ready to tell the tale.”
Draco’s mind reflected back to the afternoon, the look of rage on Saphira’s face when she had heard him talking trash about the Order member. A slight pang of guilt hit him in the gut.
“I see…” he said. “But beyond that, how is it that he came to take your place on the Order? He was just a vagabond mercenary! A man of wanderlust and whimsy! Sure, he is a Rank Five Knight, but he is still just…”
William’s gaze stopped Draco’s sentence, warning him to watch his words.
“... just a… commoner…” Draco trailed off, and William shook his head.
“Draco, Draco, Draco,” he said, reaching across the table and flicking his brother in the forehead with his finger. “Gerand is a commoner, yes. Born of common parents. Raised by common standards. Lived a… somewhat common life, and has gone on to become the first-ever member of the Order of the Cross to be of common origins. But that has nothing to do with me stepping down from the Order. When I was assigned to the Order all those years ago, the position had been meant for Gerand.”
“What?” Draco asked in complete shock, jolting back in his chair.
“Yes. I was given the position solely because Gerand did not want it. He did not want to be tied down to the King’s side. He wanted to continue living his carefree life. Traveling the world and having no true responsibilities. Well, the joke’s on him now. Both on the Order and playing the role of a father.”
Draco felt a nervous twitch in his neck as William’s expression turned dark and malicious, as though he was reveling in the man’s fate. William’s low chuckling did nothing to mask his evil glee. Draco looked down at his knees, his hands clenched on top of them. He had never known any of this. But how could he? He had never asked. He had never cared to know.
“How do you know so much about Gerand?” he asked, and William looked to him, surprised.
“He and I were best friends in our youth. We Awakened on the same day as well. But that was where we split ways. I went to the Academy, and he went to the Drakin Guild. He never felt the call of Knighthood, but instead, the call of the wild. He became a mercenary, gathering himself a small fortune over the years, and then achieved a Rank Five Brand when he was just 19.”
William fell silent as he saw that Draco was no longer listening, instead staring down at his knees, clearly lost in his guilt. He smiled and got up from his chair, walked over and placed a reassuring hand on his brother’s shoulder.
“You are stuck with Miss Halfwing and the others for the next three years. Tell me; do you want them to know the old you? Or the new you?”
Draco silently got up from his chair and walked over to the staircase, ascended the steps and went to his room, flopping down on his bed face first. He felt sick with guilt and frustration. He had spent so many years hating William, thinking him a coward; all because he never knew any of this. Had he ever taken the time to talk to him, to get to know anything about his brother, he would have known all of this and possibly avoided making an ass of himself in the process. He closed his eyes and tried to fall asleep. In the morning, he knew what he had to do.
~
Draco and Willow stood outside the Royal Highlands gate the next morning, Draco tensely looking around as Willow munched happily on a bunch of grapes she had brought along from the breakfast table. Draco turned to watch as she tossed one up into the air and caught it in her mouth, smiling brightly as she chewed the sweet little fruit.
“How can you be so relaxed?” he asked as she plucked another grape from the bunch.
“This is a ‘you’ problem, not a ‘me’ problem.” She replied, tossing the grape up and chomping it. Draco sighed. She was right. Even though she lived with him and worked for him, she did not say the things he had said. She was not responsible in any way for the mess he had made.
Looking back down the path, he saw Arius, Elizabeth, and Saphira approaching, all three seemingly in conversation. Draco felt his heart beat increase as he began to sweat. He was nervous. He had never done anything like this before in his life. The three came up and noticed him, stopping as he stood in their way. Saphira approached and crossed her arms, giving him a warning look as Willow slid over beside Elizabeth and offered her some of the grapes.
“What do you want, Pendra?” Saphira asked coldly, Dawn trotting up beside her and letting out a warning grunt. Draco took a deep, shaking breath and whipped his head down, bowing to the girl.
“I am sorry!” he blurted out, causing everyone in the area to stare at him in shock; even Willow as she pushed a grape against the corner of Elizabeth’s mouth, trying to feed her. Draco lifted his head slightly, his cheeks red. “I am sorry for everything I said yesterday. I was out of line. I was uninformed. And I…”
“Acted like a twat?” Saphira finished, arms still crossed, though her expression had softened somewhat. Draco lowered his head again.
“Yes.” He said. He stood upright, looking the girl dead in the eyes. “I would like to also extend my apologies directly to Sir Halfwing, should he wish to receive them.”
Saphira shook her head, smiling.
“He doesn’t know. I didn’t say anything to him. And even if I had, he would have laughed it off.”
Draco lowered his gaze, feeling some relief. He then extended his hand out to her.
“I hope we can put yesterday behind us, and move forward with a fresh start today.” He said, looking from her to Arius and Elizabeth, who was now choking on a grape as Willow squeezed her from behind to try and dislodge it. “All of us.”
Saphira took his hand and gave it a strong squeeze.
“Sure thing, Draco. And we will all be happy to kick you in the ass whenever you start to get too high on your horse again.”
Draco smiled brightly as he squeezed her hand.
“Please do!”