Fey Hearted

by N. E. Conneely

  The paths to the various locations were blending together, and Silverlight had introduced her to so many people that she’d forgotten half their names. The wildlife had been fun, though. Pearl had spent part of the afternoon riding on her shoulder, and at one point, two particularly average-looking squirrels got into a spat over some acorns. One promptly doubled in size and swiped at the other with its substantial claws. The second squirrel backed off, but Rose had a feeling it would be back for revenge.

  After hours of exploring, Silverlight took her to the healing house, where Rose met a woman named Moonbeam.

  The tall fey with a friendly smile and long white hair looked her over and smiled. “Hello, Rose. I’m so glad to meet you.”

  Rose couldn’t help but smile back. “Nice to meet you, too.”

  After a short quiz on healing techniques and herbal knowledge, Rose was given a couple of books and told to return for lessons the next day.

  On their way out of the healing house, Rose asked, “Silverlight, do you smell anything?”

  His brow furrowed. “Some herbs—rosemary, mint, lavender—and lemon, I believe.”

  “But is it a strong smell to you?” To her, it was overpowering.

  “No, but there is a fair amount of magic done here. You could be sensing that.”

  “Must be, because those herbs are really pungent.”

  He cocked his head. “I can hear it. Over time, you’ll learn to block out ambient magic. For now, try thinking that you don’t want to be as sensitive to magic.”

  It sounded like vague advice, but she tried it anyway. It actually worked, but she wasn’t sure if it was due to her thoughts or because they were outside in a matter of seconds.

  “Better?”

  “Yes, thanks,” she said.

  Silverlight nodded. “We’re almost done for the day. Just weapons work left.”

  Rose groaned. Her feet already hurt. More walking and then whatever happened during a lesson with Alda and Bronzeblade wasn’t going to improve matters.

  As they traveled, she considered what weapons work would be like, but she really couldn’t picture it. It seemed a little ridiculous to try to teach her how to use a sword, and she really wasn’t confident in her ability to use something like a bow and arrow. Alda and Bronzeblade had been nice, and it would be fun to see what they thought they could teach her, but the reality was that combat had never really interested her.

  When they reached the Lesser Field, Rose looked around. The homes were larger and more like traditional human houses than the underground home she shared with Silverlight—though they did still have a living roof.

  “See the big building to the right? That’s the hoplon, or weapons building,” Silverlight said.

  Rose followed the direction of his finger. There was a large structure at the very back of the Lesser Field with a big bald spot next to it. She guessed it was an outdoor practice area where, over time, feet had worn the grass away.

  Two dragons—one red and one blue—took off from the nearby trees, and Rose stopped walking to watch the colors run across their scales. As they dove, rolled, and turned, they sent waves of blues and reds racing across their bodies.

  “I never get tired of them,” Silverlight said.

  “They are beautiful. Everything here is so beautiful.”

  The red dragon did a backflip, and the light trailing over the different parts of its body made it look like it was glowing with dozens of shades of red, all vying for dominance.

  Silverlight touched her arm. “Come. We don’t want to be late.”

  Rose let him propel her forward, giving the dragons one last look as they twirled around each other, making purple shadows between them.

  Rose got a good look at the hoplon as she and Silverlight approached. It was similar to the surrounding buildings, though it was larger and didn’t have as many windows in the front. The dirt area beside the building had been roped off and was at least the size of a basketball court.

  Silverlight held open the door and waved her in. She stepped into the building, blinking a couple of times so that her eyes would adjust to the dim light. When she could see again, Rose examined the room. The room appeared to take up half the building. One wall was lined with mirrors, and a door to her left must have led into the rest of the hoplon. With the exception of the mirrored wall, every vertical surface was covered in racks of weapons and armor. Along the perimeter were dummies of several shapes and sizes.

  “There you are.” Alda bounced over to them. “I was beginning to think you’d gotten lost.”

  “Rose was distracted by the dragons.” Silverlight pointed up.

  Alda grinned. “They are beautiful, if occasionally annoying.”

  Something let out a sound between a grunt and a yowl. Rose’s eyes darted around until she spied a green dragon curled up on a windowsill.

  Alda ignored the creature, but her smile got a little wider. “Off with the jacket. I need to see what I have to work with.” She transferred her attention to Silverlight. “Drills for you, sir. Bronzeblade will be back soon to spar.”

  “Rose, I leave you in Alda’s capable hands. Don’t be afraid. She’s not nearly as mean as she looks.” Silverlight dodged away before Alda could land a punch.

  “Come on,” Alda said impatiently. “What are you waiting for?”

  “Sorry.” Rose took off her jacket and looked around. “Why exactly am I learning about weapons?”

  “Silverlight didn’t explain?”

  “He said something about animals and crazy people.”

  Alda crossed her arms. “That’s part of it. Being fey does not make us immune to the dangers of nature, especially outside of Veles. And no matter how idyllic this place seems, there are those who do not agree with our way of life. We call them the wilds. They live alone or in small groups, far from towns like Veles. They are dangerous, and you must be able to defend yourself.”

  “Oh, that makes it seem a little more important.”

  Alda nodded. “Now stand still. I want to get a good look at you.”

  Rose froze as Alda circled her. “All right. Some simple stretches, and then you and I are going for a run.”

  “A run?” Rose whined.

  “Yes, a run.”

  Alda led Rose in some stretches that weren’t too difficult, and then they headed for the door. Silverlight was doing stretches of his own when they walked by him. Rose gave him an envious look before continuing outside.

  “Come on, then,” Alda said.

  She started off at a slow jog, and Rose matched her pace. If they kept to this speed, she might not embarrass herself.

  They were well out of earshot of the weapons room when Alda spoke again. “Now, there are a couple of reasons for this run. I want to see what kind of shape you’re in, but I also want to give you some time away from Silverlight. He’s a nice boy, but, well, he is a boy, and this is all new to him. He’s never mentored a fey hearted before.”

  Those were lovely intentions, but…

  “Hate running,” Rose panted.

  Alda laughed. “Then we will focus on other activities for you in general, but you aren’t getting out of short runs like this.”

  Their pace had been steadily increasing, and it was all Rose could do to spare the breath for a reply. “You wretch.”

  “Been called worse.”

  Rose had no doubt of that, especially when the fey wasn’t even breathing hard. Halfway around the Lesser Field, Rose couldn’t do it anymore and slowed down to a walk.

  Alda must have heard the panting because she turned around and came back. “Not bad.”

  Rose just glared at her.

  “No, I mean it. For someone who doesn’t like to run, that was a good showing. Get enough air in you that we can keep moving. When we get back I’m going to test your reflexes.”

  Rose studied Alda as she tried to catch her breath. The fey seemed genuinely pleased, and Rose had a feeling Alda wasn’t one to fake emotions. Pleased was go
od, because it might offset some of the disappointment that was about to come when Alda realized how little Rose cared about weapons work.

  They didn’t talk much on the walk back to the hoplon, but Rose caught Alda studying her. The fey tracked the way she moved and how she navigated over the bushy spots in the grass. Rose guessed that Alda was deciding what weapons would play to Rose’s strengths.

  Back at the hoplon, Silverlight had a sword in hand and was going through a series of movements in front of the mirror. The sword was a two-handed monstrosity that was far larger than anything Rose wanted to wield. For the most part, his movements were slow and focused, but from time to time he would go through a sequence so quickly that the blade blurred. Rose had read about the beauty of swordsmanship in books, but the firsthand experience was something she could spend hours enjoying.

  “Rose, pay attention,” Alda chided.

  Rose focused on Alda, trying to ignore Silverlight.

  “These rules are very important. I’m going to go through a series of attacks. Some will be as simple as throwing something at you, others as complex as trying to immobilize you. Your goal is to catch or avoid objects, and in hand-to-hand attacks, you should block or dodge me. The fewer times I can land a hand on you or hit you with something, the better you’re doing. What you can’t do is pull weapons off the wall or launch some other type of attack. It’s dangerous and defeats the purpose. Do you understand?”

  Rose nodded. “It’s a survival game. Don’t get hit, but don’t attack.”

  “Exactly.” Alda turned around and walked over to a shelf. Rose couldn’t see what she picked up, but it sounded a bit like a beanbag when Alda moved it around. She stood there for a moment, then spun around and hurled it at Rose’s head.

  Rose squeaked and ducked. The bag ruffled her hair as it passed but didn’t touch her. Something thudded into her shoulder, and Rose glanced down to see another bag falling to the ground. Looking up, she saw two more in the air. Rose hurried backward, trying to dodge them. One of them barely grazed her, and the other passed by harmlessly.

  Alda was closing in quickly, but Rose didn’t see any more beanbags so her teacher would be doing something else this time. Alda lunged forward. Rose backpedaled, and Alda’s hand caught the sleeve of Rose’s shirt rather than her arm.

  Another hand came after her, and Rose twisted to avoid it, wrenching herself free from Alda in the same movement, but she wasn’t fast enough to put any distance between them. Alda landed soft, openhanded blows against Rose’s ribs and chest. Rose put her hand up in a defensive position and fended off two attacks. The third one landed, and so did the fourth and fifth. Rose dodged again, and twice more, causing Alda to miss.

  The game was a lot like one Rose had played with her father and brother as a child, and her muscle memory was slowly returning. Turn like so, block with a forearm, duck, and move. Alda lunged forward again, this time grabbing Rose.

  Twisting, Rose tried to loosen the fey’s grip, but Alda was strong for her size and Rose wasn’t sure what to do. A moment later, Alda let go, grabbed a beanbag off the floor, and threw it at Rose. She rolled to the side, and it just missed her arm.

  While Rose had been dodging, Alda had gotten her hands on the other two beanbags and hurled them at Rose’s chest. She threw herself out of the path of one, but the second hit her. Rose kept rolling, only to have Alda pounce on her. Alda got a good grip on both Rose’s arms, and started pulling her right arm across her body. Rose maneuvered out of Alda’s grasp by going under her own arm. That move didn’t make Rose’s shoulder happy, but it was worth it because it broke Alda’s grip. Back on her feet, Rose did her best to stay out of reach until Alda pulled back and signaled for a stop.

  Rose was encouraged to see that her instructor was panting—certainly not as hard as she was, but hard enough to indicate that Alda had been putting effort into the exercise. Rose noticed Silverlight leaning against the wall, his sword on the rack next to him. She couldn’t remember when he’d stopped practicing and started watching Alda chase her around the room.

  “A respectable first showing,” Alda said, “but you can do better.”

  Rose wasn’t entirely sure what to make of that statement, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw Silverlight nod and smile, so she guessed it was a good thing.

  “You’ll learn the rapier,” Alda said with a nod. She went over to one of the racks on the wall and picked up a thin sword, only slightly shorter than the one Silverlight had been using. “It’s a style of fencing suited to those who can move quickly. You won’t be trying to land heavy hits that break bones or inflict large cuts. Instead, you’ll dart in, stab, and disengage.”

  She handed the weapon to Rose, who eyed it, not sure what to do. Alda rolled her eyes and adjusted Rose’s grip. “That is how you hold it. We will practice until you can’t forget that grip even if you wish to.”

  Alda tugged the sword out of Rose’s hand and handed her a similar sword that had blunted edges and a rounded tip. Then Alda showed her where her feet and the rest of her body should be when she was in a basic guard position. Her feet wanted to be in the wrong place, her hands kept changing grips, and her hips and shoulders were often out of alignment.

  The sound of blades clanking distracted Rose, and she looked up to see Bronzeblade sparring with Silverlight. Alda grumbled at her, and Rose forced herself to turn away from the two graceful fey. They were only doing a drill, but if it was any indication of their abilities, a fight between them at full speed would challenge the eye.

  It didn’t take long for Rose to realize that learning even the basics was going to take awhile. However, in the short time Alda had worked with her, Rose also discovered that she liked the sword. It felt good in her hands. She enjoyed the feel of it moving through the air, and trying to coordinate her body with the sword was like dancing with a prop that had to be guided through its own moves.

  “That’s enough for now,” Alda said. “Put the sword up, get some water, and we’ll stretch for our cool down.”

  Rose followed Alda to the weapons rack and got a cup of water from the other room before settling in a corner and stretching. Alda started to lead her through another series, but when Silverlight and Bronzeblade moved to the center of the room, Rose couldn’t keep her attention on the stretches. The swords they used were still metal but they looked to be blunted, and both men were wearing leather armor. That didn’t make the danger any less real, but it reduced the chance of serious injury.

  They moved so quickly that the fight looked choreographed, but the focus in their eyes said they were watching and reacting. Rose had seen gold-medal bouts in the Olympics, and these two were at least as fast and fluid. They flowed around each other’s blades, staying just out of range and managing to move as though they knew what was coming.

  In a flurry of blows, Bronzeblade disarmed Silverlight, who held up his hands in surrender. “You were going easy on me that time.”

  “Not easy as you think.” Bronzeblade grabbed the sword off the ground and handed it back to him. Seconds later, they were at it again.

  When the men started the third bout, Rose leaned over to Alda. “Silverlight says he’s unexceptional, but that doesn’t look like average swordplay to me.”

  “Silverlight is not much older than you. He has plenty of time to find what is uniquely his.”

  “What if I have trouble finding what’s mine?” Rose asked.

  “You’re young, too. Let yourself get used to this place first.”

  Rose nodded and returned her attention to the fight. When there was a lull in the action, she turned back to Alda. “I noticed that most people here wear weapons. When will I get a real one?”

  “When you’re ready,” Alda said firmly.

  Rose simply nodded again.

  The third round ended up being the last one, and after Silverlight and Bronzeblade cooled down, Silverlight led Rose out the door.

  “Same time tomorrow,” Alda yelled after them.


  “Always is,” Silverlight yelled back.

  Even with the stretching, Rose was already feeling sore. Before today, she had considered herself in reasonably good shape. She lifted weights, spent time on the rowing machine, and liked to walk, but she had never been this active. Her arms hurt, her legs didn’t want to move, and her feet ached. She was sure that her feet would’ve done more than ache if she hadn’t been wearing the fey boots. They were the most comfortable shoes she’d ever worn. She was also quite certain that she’d never walked so much in her life.

  She was so tired by the end of the day that she gave up on the idea of eating at the Commons because she didn’t want to talk to anyone. After she had a quiet dinner with Silverlight, instead, she more or less collapsed into her bed.

  As she was falling asleep, images of the beauty, magic, and people she’d met floated through her mind. She wished her grandmother could have been here to see it, too. It was everything the stories had said and more.

  Chapter 11

  Something cold and wet poked Rose in the ear. She jerked upright, sucking in air to scream as she frantically patted the side of her head. She opened her eyes to see Pearl doing a barrel roll above the bed. She flopped back onto the pillows. Maybe by lunch her heart would quit racing.

  The mattress dipped down when Pearl landed, and Rose rolled onto her side to look at the dragon. This was the second time she’d been rudely awakened by the dragon.

  “Why, Pearl? I was sleeping.”

  Pearl belly-crawled over to nuzzle Rose’s cheek.

  “Oh, is that it? You want to cuddle?” Rose sighed and started to pet the dragon. Pearl heaved a sigh in return and curled up against Rose’s chest. When Pearl had settled in, Rose closed her eyes, determined to get some more sleep while she still had the chance.

  “Rose! Time to get up,” Silverlight yelled from the living room. “We have lots to do today.”

  She groaned. So much for more sleep. “I’m awake. I’ll be out in a couple of minutes.” Rose got out of bed, every muscle in her body protesting. If yesterday was any indication, she’d be in great shape in a matter of weeks.