A Year Later

Seventeen-year-old Sakura struck the glowing orange wrought iron on the anvil, shaping it into the graceful curve of a battle axe. She stepped back after a good twenty minutes, wiping some sweat off her forehead. The heat from the forge contrasted with the brisk cold air from right outside the blacksmith. John came to her side, peeking over her shoulder to inspect her work.

"It's looking good, Psych." He paused, looking at her, handing her a flask of water. "Stay hydrated, though," he said with a smile.

Sakura smiled back at him, taking it and gulping down a long swig. She swiftly went back to work, striking the curve of the axe more.

After an hour and a half, she stopped for the day, going back inside the weaponry store. She took another swig of water, scanning the room for potential customers. She smiled to herself when she saw an archer looking at a few bows and crossbows. The girl had a confused look on her face, a slight frown tugging at her mouth. She looked like she could use some guidance.

Sakura sidled up next to her and spoke:

"An archer, eh?"

The girl jumped a little, turning to look at her. She smiled back after a moment, scratching the back of her head sheepishly. "Yeah. Trying to decide whether or not to try out the crossbow."

Sakura shrugged. "I personally use a crossbow more often. But it really depends on your skill level and what it is you're using it for. Compound bows come in handy for hunting because they're quieter and you can load an arrow much faster. This also makes them handy in competition. They're also a lot lighter, making them perfect for travel."

The girl frowned, looking at the compound bows, still thinking.

Sakura chuckled. "On the other hand, crossbows often require less skill and practice than compound. So, if you're having some trouble with compound, crossbows might help you out with that. And crossbows have higher FPS, or arrow speed. Which gives you an edge on hunting and competition. Compound bows usually only reach 350 or lower, where crossbows can reach up to 400 FPS. Which makes them highly ideal for speed competition or quick animals while hunting."

The girl smiled, gazing at the beautiful crossbows they had on showcase. "You know, I think I'm going to go for it." She paused, looking at Sakura. "See what crossbows have to offer, you know?" she said, her smile widening.

Sakura smiled back. She pointed at one just above the girl's head. "I suggest that one. I've used it myself a couple times, but don't tell my boss I've been toying with the merchandise," she said with a teasing tone.

The girl laughed lightly, taking the crossbow and heading to the counter where John waited.

Sakura smiled after her, but the smile disappeared as she felt an arm snake around her from behind. A rough voice crooned in her ear:

"Hey pretty girl. What is someone like you doing working in a place like this?"

Sakura rolled her eyes, grabbing the arm and twisting out of the man's hold. She easily slammed him against the shelves, knocking down several weapons on stock. Before he could break from her hold, she kneed him hard in the crotch, keeping him pinned as he leaned over, coughing in pain at the sharp jab to his sensitive area.

"If you think you're the first perv I've had to subdue in here, you're dead wrong, sir. And if you think being a customer will protect you from me defending myself, you need to realize you're in the wrong kingdom, buddy. No obligation to polite customer service here," she bit out, glaring at him.

He nodded, still in too much pain to reply. Sakura released him and backed away, only for him to grab her butt.

Without a moment of hesitation, she turned on him once again, slinging her fist, knocking him to the ground easily. He let out a string of expletives at her as he quickly got up and backed away. Sakura didn't flinch at a single one of his nasty, degrading insults. The red mark spreading across his face as a result of her punch took away the sting of any of his words.

"Dang, Psych. That guy's going to have a nasty bruise for weeks," John's voice said from beside her.

Sakura smiled, the deadliness leaving her face as she turned to him. "Something to remember me by. Could've used your help, you know," she teased.

He laughed. "I was on my way to beat him up myself, but you beat me to it. You alright?"

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Sakura nodded, raking a hand through her fiery orangish-red hair. "All part of the job description," she said with a sarcastic tone.

He laughed yet again, shaking his head. He slung an arm over her shoulder, squeezing her to his side a second. "You do it well, Psycho. You do it well."

She grinned, looking at him from the side of her eyes. "I told you I would."

***

Sakura grabbed her crossbow and sword, strapping her belt sheath to her waist. She quickly braided her hair as she walked out of her room at the inn.

Most nights she would have to stay there to help out in order to earn her stay, but tonight things were slow, and Mr. and Mrs. White were letting her have the night off. She was going to be sure to take advantage of this rare free time to go hunting.

She went through the lobby, waving at Jaxyn where he stood at the counter. He frowned in concern at her leaving, but she wasn't about to stop and tell him what she was doing. He would only try and stop her. It seemed he ALWAYS tried to stop her.

She went behind the inn to the stables, saddling her horse, Missy. Easily she mounted it, riding out of the stables. She smiled to herself as she sped up her horse, taking off through Grumor until she reached the outskirts, where the forest bordered the kingdom. She heard the caws of some crows and the hooting of owls. She saw red eyes peek at her through the leaves and bushes, terrible creatures hiding amongst the night. Her eyes caught sight of a ghoul creeping up to her, it's dagger like teeth baring, saliva dripping from it as its lifeless eyes admired her and the horse.

She grinned, raising her crossbow and readying an arrow as the ghoul prepared to attack. As it lunged at her, its mouth opened wide, she raised the bow with it, shooting it directly in the chest. It fell on the horse limply, but Missy flipped out, hiking up it's rear, sending Sakura flying through the air.

She fell to the ground with a thud, the air being taken out from under her at the impact. She let her face lay in the grass as she fought to breathe normally until she heard the familiar, guttural growl of werewolves. She rose her head to see red eyes surrounding her now. Without warning, one lunged at her back, tearing into her flesh. She screamed out in pain, turning on it and quickly driving her sword through its flesh. The other werewolves lunged at her next, but this time she was ready.

She kicked one of the werewolves, driving her sword through the other. When two more jumped at her, she dodged out of the way, piercing through both of their backs. She grinned at their lifeless forms until she felt the piercing pain of teeth on her neck. She elbowed the werewolf back, forcing it to move enough for her to turn on it and stab it like she had its pack members.

She looked a moment longer at the dead werewolves around her, before scanning her surroundings for her horse. Her heart sank. It was just as she expected. Her ride was long gone. That meant she would be trekking back through the woods alone. On foot. In the dark.

Shaking her head in disdain, she took off running back the way she came. Fortunately, she hadn't traversed far into the woods. Nevertheless, the run proved treacherous as vampire bats dove at her and black-eyed beings grabbed at her. When she finally reached the edge of the woods, she fell to the ground, heaving from exhaustion. She hadn't stopped running once.

She let her breathing get under control, then stood, making her way back to the inn. She groaned when she realized in all of that mess, she had lost her crossbow.

After an hour of walking, she finally had the overwhelming pleasure of once again seeing her beloved inn. She paused before it's door, just now feeling the cold now that she wasn't running or fighting for her life. She didn't want to walk in like this. She would garner far too much attention.

Instead, she made her way around the building to where the window to her room was. She slowly climbed up the wall, rolling in through the window. When she was safely in her room, she let out a deep, relieved sigh as she sank against the wall. She looked up and her heart caught in her throat.

Standing at her room door was Jaxyn. His arms were crossed, one brow arched, his whole expression demanding an explanation. At the realization of her appearance, his face paled, his eyes widened and his whole countenance softened. She didn't blame him. She could imagine she looked pretty roughed up.

"What the heck happened to you, Psycho?!" Jaxyn asked in a panicked tone as he hesitantly stepped closer.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Could you keep it down? Don't exactly want to alert the whole inn to my situation," she said, taking off her belt sheath and laying it with her sword in her closet. He grabbed her wrist, pulling her into the hallway. "Hey!" she whined, before realizing with relief that the hallway was devoid of people.

He pulled her into a bathroom and stared at her neck. His face paled even more, he looked like he might pass out. "Sakura, that needs stitches. What else do you have on you?"

Sakura shook her head, taking a step back from him. "You don't want to know."

He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "Could you at least tell me what happened? You went hunting alone at night again, didn't you?" he asked with exasperation.

She nodded. "Yeah, a ghoul tried to attack me, and my horse flipped out and bucked me. It left me and I had to take on a pack of werewolves, then run back through the forest."

A tiny bit of admiration flashed through his eyes and a slight grin tugged at his lips. "You fought a pack of werewolves?" he asked in awe and slight amusement.

She smiled back at him. "Yeah. You should see the other guys."

He shook his head and chuckled lowly, stepping closer to her. He kissed her briefly, gazing into her eyes afterwards. "You are something, I'll give you that."

She grinned even wider, kissing him again. "Something wonderful, you mean."

He chuckled yet again, arching one brow, this time in playfulness. "Is that it?" he asked teasingly, kissing her once more before backing away. "We're going to the clinic. That bite on your neck needs stitches and I can only imagine how bad the other stuff is that you don't want me to see."

She crossed her arms. "And who's going to pay for that?"

He rolled his eyes, grabbing her wrist. "Me, Psycho. I'll pay for it. John would kill me otherwise." She laughed, allowing him to pull her out the inn.