Chapter 6 - Training
Yue woke up in bed and stared at the ceiling. How did she get in bed? She focused on yesterday, and then groaned when she remembered. After Nikolas decided she would do warrior training, she was plopped into a carriage and ended up falling asleep. Wait! Maybe it was just a dream, thought Yue. Yeah it was just a dream she thought again. Yue sat up to get ready for school when
“YIP!”
Startled Yue fell off the bed with a thump and looked at her bed. On it was a small, white, short furred puppy. Its mouth was open in a smile with the tongue hanging loose, its tails moving so fast that Yue would swear she felt a breeze. Yue laughed at the pup but then she froze and felt the blood drain from her face.
Puppy real = dream wasn’t a dream = might be forced into warrior training = less time to watch her father craft.
“No, let’s think logically, Yue. No one can force you to train….right?” Yue said to herself as she got dressed while staring at the happy puppy.
It was after she finished getting dressed and using water magic to wash her teeth that Yue noticed something wrong with her new puppy…… it had two tails, and was now black in color not white.
Yue ran over and picked up the pup to make sure. As it tried to lick Yue’s face she touched both tails. Yes, Yue confirmed her new friend seemed to have two tails and her face now was covered with saliva. Setting the puppy back down on her bed, Yue went through her mental inventory of all the animal/beast books she had read in this world. Focusing on the enthusiastic puppy Yue remembered a beast that would match this description; a Ying Yang Beast. They are a rare group of species found on the Helioa continent. Hatched from eggs a Ying Yang Beast will take on a form of an animal with a slight difference, even if the parents are both bird form their offspring may be dog, cat, raccoon, etc. In childhood the Beast will change colors between black and white often but when they reach adulthood they prefer to stay as one color. As to why it was here on Natria, Yue had no clue.
“You need a name if you are going to stay with me.” Yue told the baby beast, not minding that beasts are known to have mana, become ferocious, and are seemingly dangerous.
“I know! I will call you Ink, because you can be white as paper and then turn black like someone dumped you in ink.” Nodding to her own genius naming skills, Yue patted Ink on his head.
“YUE! You’re going to be late for school!” Grace yelled from somewhere in the house.
“Oops.” Yue quickly ran out of her room then sped out the door not noticing the happy puppy racing behind her.
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Yue ran into the classroom then plopped into her seat huffing and puffing. Feeling someone poke her,, Yue turned her head to Nikolas.
“Are you okay?” Nikolas asked with a worried face.
Yue opened her mouth to answer when the teacher interrupted.
“Oh how adorable, Yue who is your little friend here?” Bella asked as she picked up Ink who had lain down next to Yue’s seat.
Yue just blinked at the scene, was that okay? Yue thought as she watched Bella cuddle Ink. Yue hadn’t noticed Ink follow her but was it okay for her pet to be in the classroom?
“His name is Ink.” Yue replied dumbly as her teacher continued to baby talk Ink.
“What a cutie pie! Yes you are yes you are.” Bella rubbed her nose against Ink who was now squirming to get away.
Nikolas came to Ink’s rescue as he snatched him out of Bella’s arms and replied, “Can we start class teacher?” placing Ink on the floor who quickly hid behind Yue.
“Oh, right of course.” Bella pouted then started class.
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“Okay, that’s all for the day, be careful on the way home.” Bella clapped her hands, grabbed her supplies, and then left out the door.
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Yue quickly jumped up Ink in her arms and ran toward the exit….only to bump into a large scared man aka the driver/guard.
“Young Master are you ready to depart?” The man asked Nikolas who had come up behind Yue.
“Yup, come on Yue.” Nikolas smiled, grabbed Yue’s hand, then followed his driver to the carriage pulling Yue along.
“Wait, Nikolas! I don’t want to do warrior training, I want to watch my father craft.” Yue protested as she was pulled into the carriage.
Nikolas sat down beside Yue and eye’s large and pleading, “Please Yue. I don’t want you to be in the same position as yesterday. Promise you will train with me.”
Yue looked at Nikolas who seemed so sad and wanted to say yes, but she wanted to watch crafting. “…But…”
“Please Yue, we are friends right?” Nikolas pleaded
Yue felt her brain exploded as her mind repeated what he just said. Friends…Friends…I have a friend!?
“Say yes Yue,” Nikolas said again
“What, yeah sure.” Yue couldn’t think straight the only thing in her head was the repeated word friend.
Instantly Nikolas’s face did a 180 turning into a proud one the sadness gone ‘as if it was never there.’
“You promised, and call me Nik since we are friends!”
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As Yue followed Nik into the courtyard she felt a forbidding, it wasn’t until they arrived at Nik’s Castle that her brain stopped smoking and she realized what she had agreed to. Also unfortunately ‘Sarah’s’ parents had drilled into her that promises must be kept, and after they died ‘Sarah’ had taken it to heart so now Yue was stuck with honoring the promise.
The knight stood in the center of the courtyard smiling. “Great you both are here. This is your last chance to back out since after I take you in I will train you and drag you back if you run.”
Nik did a determined nod
Yue thought hard about running away but her body refused to move, the power of a promise held her there and kept back the sound of denial.
“Wonderful, you may call me Master Arthur, Sir Arthur, or just Sir. Now we start today with something simple, twenty laps. Get to it!” As he said this he went to the edge of the yard to a barrel. Then he took out a wooden sword.
Yue followed Nik with a slow jog around the yard when “WAP” something whipped her backside leaving a stinging pain. Looking over her shoulder Yue saw Sir Arthur Grinning wide.
“Better pick up the pace girl.” Arthur said before brandishing his wooden sword again and “WAP.”
With a startled cry Yue sprinted to the front. Hearing Nik laugh before another “WAP” resounded followed by Nik’s cry as he too picked up the pace.
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Yue’s body felt like slime as Arthur plopped her body into the carriage headed home. Nik’s corpse body already had been dropped off in his room.
The way home was uneventful but when Yue got off the carriage at home she saw the workshop lit up and could hear the pounding of a hammer. Yue thought about her bed, and looked down at the sleeping beast in her arms but instead she followed the melody of the hammer and watched as her father molded a plow.
Two hours past until her father had finished working and Yue headed to her room. The techniques her father used in her mind. Yue set Ink at the bottom of her bed then sat cris-cross applesauce and started to meditate her mana. Since she had awakened to her magic Yue’s mana had increased a lot. Originally she could make a flame the size of a finger nail, now she could make a fireball the size of her arm. After an hour of meditation Yue practiced a small amount of voiceless magic then went to bed. Smiling as Ink changed from white to black and crawled into her arms.