“You’ll be in battles that less befit your ladyness before the year’s out,” he countered. “Now get over here so I can start teaching you your forms.”
“Forms?” she asked, even though she knew exactly what he was talking about.
“Yes, princess. Forms.”
She heaved a larger sigh than she needed and stalked over to the mat across from him, her arms still over her chest. “Well, that doesn’t sound too bad. Is it anything like dancing forms?”
He gave her a narrow look. “In a way,” he admitted. “However, while only a potential marriage may depend on a girl’s dancing skills, your life itself may depend on what I’m about to teach you.”
Clara frowned. “That sounds serious.”
“Naturally,” said Sir Martin. “War usually is. Now, uncross your arms and we’ll begin.”
She reluctantly allowed her arms to fall to her sides. He showed her a form, a simple one that she’d been able to do since she could walk, and told her to copy it.
Because there wasn’t any actual fighting involved yet, she allowed herself to get it correct.
“Hm,” was all Sir Martin said. “Now let’s see you hold that for five minutes.”
Her eyes widened and she fell instantly out of form. “Five minutes!” she protested. “Why!”
“Unlike archery where it’s mostly strength and good aim,” said Martin with a roll of his eyes. “Martial arts is based on the control of one’s body. If you cannot control your body, then how can you use it as a weapon?”
Clara frowned. “And why does that mean that I have to stand in an unnatural position for five minutes?”
“To teach you self-control,” Sir Martin replied. “Trust me. Before the week is out, you’ll be standing in less comfortable positions for longer. This may be a dance, Water Princess, but it is a deadly dance. Now, back in form and I’ll tell you when you can move.”
And that’s pretty much how her lesson with Sir Martin went. An hour of him showing her forms and once she had one “mastered,” he’d tell her to hold it for a set amount of time. They were all easy forms, and there was only one that she didn’t already know. Since she was comparing this to dancing, she allowed herself to do pretty well – also, these forms were so ingrained into her being that getting them wrong would have been almost impossible.
However, she had already determined that once they got to actual fighting moves, it would be another story.
Eventually, the lesson was over and he allowed her to change back into her dress and go her merry way. It was lunchtime, so she enjoyed a nice meal with Li’Daughter Dina, Jakob’s younger sister, whom she was expected to make friends with, even though the girl had no thoughts for anything beyond the next party.
Apparently, Lady Roxanne was planning one to celebrate Clara’s arrival.
“When?” asked Clara, trying to be interested. Parties could be fun, but she wasn’t sure she was prepared for a party in this world, and certainly not one where she was hailed as a Water Princess.
“Oh, in a week or two,” answered Dina. “It does take time to prepare this sort of thing.”
Clara nodded. “Cool, so it can be my birthday party too.” A birthday party was something she could accept.
“Your birthday, Water Princess?” asked Dina, an excited smile spreading across her face.
Clara nodded. “September third, I’ll be sixteen.” Then she frowned. “I bet that date means nothing to you.”
“I will profess confusion.” Dina grinned.
“My birthday is in two weeks and … three days,” Clara corrected herself, glad she was close enough to her birthday to be counting down that carefully. “Provided you have a seven-day week…”
“No, it’s eight days, because of the Eight who founded Rizkaland,” Dina explained. “And we have ten months in honor of the Ten who founded Klarand.”
“I see.” Clara frowned. “And how many days are in your year?”
“Three hundred and sixty-five.”
“Small miracles. Well, in that case – and I’m going to assume that your days are the same as ours, my head already hurts – my birthday is in two weeks and one day.”
“I’ll be sure to let my mother know,” said Dina. “She’ll be thrilled to include such a celebration in a party that is already devoted to you.” She clapped her hands excitedly. “Oh, it’ll be such fun!”
“Sounds like it.”
After lunch, she had swordplay with Sir Henre. It was another hour-long lesson, but like martial arts, it was inside and her fingers weren’t going to be frozen off. That was the main reason that her lesson with Sir Rigel had been so short, that and her power of persuasion.
Upon arriving in the room for sword practice, Sir Henre immediately presented her with a sword that looked sharp and was at least an inch thicker than she was used to working with.
She raised an eyebrow. “But … I’ll cut myself with it!” she protested.
“Nonsense. You are the Water Princess,” countered Sir Henre, in a nasally voice that she instantly decided she hated. “You were born to fight. You’ll do fine.”
“I’m an innocent young girl who was pulled into another world against her will and expected to fight a scary dragon lady,” she countered.
“Yes, yes,” said Sir Henre. “Now, pick up the sword and we shall begin.”
Putting on the most offended glare in her arsenal, Clara grabbed the hilt of the sword and picked it up. “All right, I have the sword,” she said. “What do you expect me to do now? Cut off your head?”
“No, I would much prefer to keep my head on my own shoulders,” said Sir Henre. He struck a form, the sword held level at about shoulder height. “Can you do this, Water Princess?”
“Oh,” said she. “Sir Martin was having me do that sort of thing. Am I going to have to hold that position for five minutes?”
“Hardly,” said he, falling out of form. “I don’t think you could, Water Princess. That isn’t a light sword.”
Taking a deep breath, she imitated the form, though her sword drooped sadly. Technically, she could have held it level. Her mother had a large collection of swords of all sorts of weights and sizes that the two of them practiced with, though they both favored the narrower, skill-oriented swords. But she was supposed to be something of a weakling, so she let it droop. She managed to hold the position for a few seconds before she let her arm fall again.
“You’re right,” she admitted. “That is a heavy sword.”
“I warned you, Water Princess,” said Sir Henre. “Now, could you repeat that form again?”
So, Clara did just that and pretty much everything else the man asked of her – as badly as she could without feeling guilty, making as much use of her skirts as she could. She quickly decided that she liked him the least out of all of the instructors she had been given. As curt as Sir Martin had been, at least he was a good teacher.
Honestly! Giving an inexperienced student – and a girl at that – a sharp sword right off the bat? Her mother would never dream of doing a thing like that. She always started her students with wooden practice swords or blunts. Some never graduated past them. It was a good thing for him that she actually knew what she was doing, or she would have probably cut herself already by now.
Actually, that wasn’t a bad idea for cutting this lesson short. She waited for his back to turn, then reached up and touched the point of the sword, pressing just hard enough to draw blood.
Then she let out the loudest scream she could conjure, tossing the sword away – nearly cutting off Sir Henre’s leg. Pity it didn’t.
The man spun around, instantly becoming all concern. “What is it, Water Princess?” he asked.
She stared at her blood-stained finger, eyes wide, breathing heavier than necessary (she should honestly sign up for drama once this insanity was over with).
“I – it – I,” she stammered out, as she fell as if in a faint.
Sir Henre, to his credit, was quick enough to catc
h her and ease her descent to the floor. A few seconds later, she felt strong arms under her, lifting her up and carrying her through the halls. She didn’t open her eyes until she was laid down in her own bed.
“Will I live?” she whispered, for dramatic effect.
“No doubt,” said the knight who had carried her. “It’s barely a scratch, after all.”
A doctor was naturally sent for, and he bandaged up her finger and declared her fine. He could see no ill side effects from the faint, though what they were thinking by giving the girl a real sword on her first lesson was beyond him, and he warned Sir Henre that he would have a word with Lord Erik.
“Oh, Water Princess!” cried Jasmine, as soon as everyone else had left the room. “Are you all right?”
Clara sat up, dropping the pathetic damsel act all at once. “I think so,” she assured the girl. “I only cut myself just hard enough to draw blood. It’ll heal soon.”
“Oh.” The girl looked thoughtful for a moment. “Did it hurt, Water Princess?” she asked. “It must have since you fainted.”
“No worse than cutting one’s finger usually is,” Clara stared at her finger a moment, and then shrugged. “I’m not sure why I fainted. I never have before. Then again, I’ve never cut my finger as a princess before. That might change things.”
“Does it?” asked Jasmine.
“Of course,” Clara answered. She slid out of bed. “Now, I don’t know if they have anything else planned for me today, but I think this is supposed to be my reading time or something. So…”
“So what?” asked Jasmine. “Oh – you want your books!” She scampered away, found where Alphego’s Hill and Through the Mountain had been placed on a shelf the night before, and brought them to Clara.
Clara smiled as she accepted the books. “That is one thing,” she admitted. “But I was also thinking in the direction of wardrobe. I know they provided me some clothing, and I’m quite grateful for that. However, I learned today that dresses just aren’t very smart when you’re learning how to use a sword.”
Jasmine looked thoughtful a moment. “No…” she drew out. “Now that you mention it, I don’t see many people wearing a dress while fighting with a sword.”
“Exactly,” said Clara. “In the martial arts class, Sir Martin gave me some different clothes to wear that were much more practical. And then there was the outfit I was wearing this morning. Even that would be suitable.”
“So you want to wear that for your sword lessons?” asked Jasmine.
Clara nodded. “I’d like a few more of them, too. Know what? I need a seamstress or something like that. I’d do it myself, but I’m all thumbs when it comes to a needle. Always have been, and I have a feeling that that’s something that being a princess is not going to fix. Nor do I think I’ll have time for it.”
“I could get you a seamstress!” Jasmine informed her. “I could get you Jill!”
“Jill? Is she good with a needle?”
“She’s one of the best.”
“Good, then run and get her.”
The girl scampered out of the room, and Clara, nodding in satisfaction, flopped onto the bed with the books. She cracked open Alphego’s Hill, took a deep whiff of its pages, and started reading. Since she was in a crazy new world, she might as well learn something of its history.
The Legends had an interesting format. The first few pages were a summary of the story, giving her the gist of what happened, and then the story started over, this time going into details and taking up the rest of the book.
The second thing she noticed was the strange spelling. C’s were few and far between. For the most part, k or s were used instead, whichever one was appropriate. The only time she saw a c was in words like cherish or chime in which case, the h was absent.
“What do you expect from another world?” she muttered. “At least they have an alphabet I can read and they speak English.”
At that moment, the door flew open, and Jasmine ran in, dragging a young woman of about Clara’s age behind her.
Clara slid off of the bed again. “Hello,” she said, taking in the newcomer. She was a few inches taller than Clara herself, wore her black hair in a braid that fell past her waist, was dressed in a simple long-sleeved green dress and black leggings, and she carried a cloth bag.
“You must be Jill,” Clara said, extending a hand.
“It’s Jill Anna,” the girl corrected, withdrawing her hand from Jasmine’s and placing it in a fist over her heart, as she dipped into a curtsy. “Jasmine said you needed my help with some sewing?”
“Yeah, I do,” said Clara, nodding and letting her hand fall to her side. “I’m no good at it myself, so I sent Jasmine after some help. She had a very high recommendation for your services.”
“I am honored to be in your service,” said Jill Anna, dipping into another curtsey.
Clara rolled her eyes, not willing to put up with this sort of thing. “Okay, first thing you need to know about me, Jill Anna, is that I prefer an informal work setting. That means you don’t have to curtsey every time you speak to me.”
“Oh,” said Jill Anna, starting to dip into another curtsey, but remembering herself just in time. “I’m sorry, Water Princess,” she said.
“Forgiven,” said Clara, with a shake of her head. “I suppose I should get used to it, given my new title, but I would prefer it if people kept it to a minimum. Now, on to the sewing that I need you to do.”
Taking Jill Anna by the arm – something that the girl clearly found uncomfortable – she led her over to the chest and showed her what she needed. The girl said nothing unless it was to ask a technical question, taking notes in a sketchpad that she produced from her bag. However, a frown creased her forehead, and it grew more intense as Clara explained.
“What’s wrong?” Clara asked. “Am I asking for something too complicated or something?”
The frown instantly disappeared. “Oh, no, Water Princess. Nothing too complicated, I’m one of the fastest seamstresses in Upper Klarand. It’s no problem.”
“Oh … but you looked like you were upset by something…”
Jill Anna was silent for several long seconds. “I wasn’t upset,” she finally admitted. “It’s just that the dresses – if they can be called that – that you’re asking for, they’re not exactly ladylike.”
Clara shrugged. “I’m aware of that. But I’ve been informed today that I’ll be in battles during this war, and they’ll be even less ladylike … so I need to get used to it now, don’t you think?”
“Perhaps so,” said Jill Anna, trying to conceal the shudder that passed over her. “Well, I should begin at once.”
“Yes, do, um … uh … I’m not really used to dealing with seamstresses, clothes are ready-made where I come from,” Clara admitted. “Uh … do you need anything else?”
“Ready-made clothing?” Jasmine piped up. “What do you mean by that?”
Clara hesitated, not sure if she wanted to get into the workings of machines. “Let’s just say that in my world, we have a way of making lots of clothing really fast. It’s not magic, but it is complicated.”
“Yours is certainly a strange world,” said Jill Anna.
“I guess you can say that,” Clara admitted. “But remember that I consider this one just as strange, and we’ll call ourselves even.”
“Ah … yes, Water Princess,” said Jill Anna. She was quiet for several moments, then added. “Well, I suppose I should go get started…”
“Would I be bending any rules if I were to ask you to sew them in here?” Clara asked, on a whim.
“It’s not traditional, but there’s nothing to say that I couldn’t,” Jill Anna admitted. “Most people don’t want a seamstress underfoot.”
“This room is big enough that I doubt you’ll be underfoot,” Clara admitted, waving her arm about the empty space. “It’s just that I’d like the company and I’m not sure I’d like anyone to see what you’re sewing before you’re done with them. They
may get ideas and stuff like that.”
“I understand, Water Princess,” said Jill Anna. “Ah … let me go get the rest of my things, and some fabric. What colors would you like? Fabric preferences?”
“I honestly don’t care, though blue is a must since I’m a Water Princess and it actually is my favorite color. If you want to use any other colors, it’s fine, as long as you don’t do orange, it looks terrible on me. As for fabrics, I’m still getting used to what this world has to offer, and since you’re probably the expert, find something you think would be best for what I’m doing.”
The girl nodded, curtseyed, and left the room.
“Well, that’s taken care of,” said Clara. “Thank you, Jasmine. You can go back to amusing yourself, though I would appreciate it if you’d be quiet. I’ve got some reading to do.”
Jill Anna soon returned with some fabrics, and after measuring Clara carefully, made claim of a chair in a corner and set to work. Clara went back to reading Alphego’s Hill. It had been very interesting thus far, and she had already collected a few quotes to use when occasion arose.
Chapter 6
“Water Princess, can I watch your lessons today?”
Clara glanced at Jasmine in the mirror as the girl did her hair for the day, a routine Clara was getting used to after nearly a week in Klarand. “Why?”
“Oh, I’m a bit bored in these rooms, since Jill doesn’t like to talk much,” Jasmine admitted. “And I thought that maybe I could watch you do your lessons since it’s bound to be more interesting than watching her sew, especially since today’s her day off. Besides, I might learn something watching you.”
“Fair enough,” Clara admitted. “Who knows, having someone watching me may improve my performance.” She heaved a huge sigh as though dissatisfied with herself. “I don’t think Sir Martin would appreciate you underfoot though, and I think sword lessons would be a bit too dangerous for you. Sir Henre may have finally gotten smart and let me learn with a wooden sword, but I still don’t quite trust myself with it. I’d suggest you come watch me at archery, but it’s frightfully cold outside.”
Water Princess, Fire Prince Page 5
