“I’m off!” I said, waving back at Mira, already speeding for the door.

“Be careful! And remember—”

“Before nightfall, yeah, I will!” I cut her off running straight into the forest.

I was so excited for today!

Now that summer had made its first steps, Mira was ending the lessons earlier, and while what we learned was cool and interesting, they couldn’t compare to summer!

The warm tingly air rustling through the trees, the smell of fresh grass and blooming flowers. Even the shadows under the trees seemed lighter!

And of course, the different sounds of beasts and animals, some scary, others funny, and a few more, annoying.

Like those cursed things! Cicada’s Mira called them.

They wouldn’t stop buzzing!

Like, how long were they able to keep going at it?

Slapping a leaf away, I headed for the same place I was going every other time. It was the same place Mira had taken me back in winter when we needed to get water.

At the time, I was barely even talking to her.

She had done so much for me, and she always cared, and she never asked anything out of me, so, when she did ask something, and that something turned out to be a simple walk in the forest, I felt like I had to go with her.

We came across so many different flowers that day, even if it was winter! It was so awesome! And she always explained them as if reading from a book without me even needing to ask of her, because she knew I wasn’t going to ask on my own.

‘Ah, so embarrassing.’

I could feel my cheeks turning hot, and it wasn’t because of the weather.

I misspoke when I first met her, but she really was like a.... mu—

“Ah, what are you thinking again!”

Leaves rustled and squawking sounds came from the surrounding trees.

Immediately, my hands flew for my mouth, and I peeked left and right, calming down after confirming that no beast was coming for me.

After a few moments of silence, I continued on my path.

Today was especially bright, and even if the leaves were like a blanket over the trees, sunlight still managed to pass through. I couldn’t play checkpoints anymore, but that was okay because I had more important things to do.

And the first was to go to the lake.

As I reached, trees spread out, and in the distance, the three trees intertwined over the lake.

It was so beautiful, it was magical.

Mira had told me the reason as to how such a thing could happen, but I always forgot because I was absorbed by its sight.

That was also the main reason our lessons were restricted to the house and not outside. Around the middle of the spring, was our first session outside, going around the forest and learning not only about the flowers, but the animals and beasts. Where did they live? What did they eat? How did they behave? And all the related questions.

For instance, the Deerhorns, both the one I had seen and the one I had fought, turned out to be friendly beasts. Well, friendly isn’t exactly correct, since they were still wild, but they weren’t usually aggressive, and more often than not, they wouldn’t attack if not provoked.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Sadly these expeditions had to be cut short, mostly due to me being unable to fully focus on her, and partly because, it was still dangerous. We lived in a forest out of all places. No matter how well we knew it (and I was sure Mira knew it better than the leaves of our tree), the element of unpredictability was always there. And it was so exciting.

Mira was worrying but I managed to convince her to let me play outside after our lessons.

Finally reaching my destination, I took a handful of cold, refreshing water and sat beneath the trees, waiting.

After a minute or two, the familiar Deerhorn came.

I recognized it immediately—the missing chip from its horn stood out, especially when the rest of its magnificent form was so flawless.

Giving it an apple it lowered its head and let me pet it.

We walked a little deeper, where there was an ‘arena,’ as I called them. It was a place similar to the one where I had seen the two Deerhorns clash, where tree roots encircled a small puddle of water, but I was wrong about them fighting.

Kinda.

In reality, it was some sort of training they partook in to sharpen their horns, their skills, and their control over quint.

Standing on opposite sides, the Deerhorn growled and spun its horns to indicate its excitement.

If only our first encounter was like this.

I first found it, a week after Mira had allowed me to go outside. At the time, I was simply looking around the forest, going in a different direction each time to explore more. One day, when I visited the lake, I heard a noise, so I hid behind the three trees, and that’s when I saw it. Panicking as it reached closer, I attacked it, however, I found myself on the ground before I even realized it. Strangely, however, the Deerhorn didn’t charge at me back, instead it drank water, and then came and sat next to me as if it was there to keep me company.

That’s how we became friends, and quickly, training partners.

The other Deerhorns, were avoiding him, probably something to do with its horns, or maybe it was something else, but it didn’t matter now, because it had me.

I smiled back and prepared myself for what was to come.

One stomp, two stomps, and the Deerhorn was moving, speeding towards me, its horns ready to slice me.

This was the most dangerous moment, where I would face the attack head-on.

If I wanted to, I could easily avoid it, but that wasn’t the point.

I had to get better. I had to get tougher, I had to get stronger.

If I wanted to face the Phoenix, I had to be able to take its hits head-on.

My hands trembled in excitement, and unable to hold myself back, I jumped forward. As I did, the earth moved beneath me to boost my speed, and just before my hands could come in contact, a frail veil of water enveloped them like a second skin.

Water splashed, but no waves followed—most of the impact absorbed by the clash. A tremor ran through my hands, spreading across my body, and a fresh scratch marked my cheek, but I couldn’t help but smile. Because next, was my turn to attack, and for the Deerhorn to defend.

Taking back our original positions I closed my eyes and focused.

With a deep breath, I felt the air course through me, turning nature into my teacher.

Guiding the quint in a similar fashion, I let it flow—became the air. When I got the feeling right, I gripped it into a fist, and when my eyes were open again, I could feel the physical change.

With wind outlining my body I began.

No one was stupid enough to attack a Deerhorn head-on. A simple glance at its horns was more than enough of a warning. A single mistake, and you wouldn’t have to worry about anything else. Forever. So, my friend wasn’t expecting me to do exactly that, and it took him a moment to react.

Just as it lowered its head, ready to knock me off my feet, I jumped. Wind propelled me higher, and I clutched onto its horn just as it was about to strike upwards.

The plan was simple. Grab it by the horn, and land perfectly behind it, buying enough time to find a clean strike.

Reality, however, worked differently than my imagination.

The sudden extra weight on its horns shifted its balance, and unable to lift them up, they touched the ground. Stumbling, we were both sent to the ground.

Thankfully I landed inside the water, so my fall was softened, but it still hurt.

‘Damn it!’

Was my plan too unrealistic? Maybe, but still, it was worth a try. If I knew it would react like that, then I would probably not try to balance on top of it but rather, push more wind and jump higher, only tapping the horns lightly instead.

‘Note to self: next time, jump higher and just tap the horns.’

Scratching the back of my head, I prepared to defend, and the cycle continued.

I opened more wounds, and I found myself face to face with the ground more times than I wanted to admit, but at one point, it had to come to an end.

The sun was beginning to go down, and I didn’t want to worry Mira too much.

Training was important but Mira was even more so.

I made it home just as the last light of the day faded, exhausted and unable to make myself look presentable, bathed in mud, scars, and blood.

I was still happy though, so when I opened the door, I couldn’t help but smile.

The familiar warm smell of freshly made food filled my tummy with butterflies, and the fatigue melted away when Mira turned to me with her familiar smile.

“I’m home.”