An Old Friend

Chapter 4: An Old Friend

Shaela

It had been a bit over a week since I had filled in the blanks for my father’s proposal and sent it off with one of our carrier birds. I had no idea what to expect or when to hear back, or if I even would at all. As such, my morning routine changed quite dramatically. I awoke an hour earlier than normal, and instead of taking our carriage to the academy, I jogged. Arriving around the usual time, I would be turned away, and then jog back. After a hearty breakfast of fruit and grain, I would then sneak through the hedges and flowerbeds of our garden, in my fatigues instead of an officer’s uniform, and would begin training on my own. A friend of mine, Ace, had snuck me a set of dumbbells, which accounted for much of my typical workout at the academy. I would be lacking in some areas, but it was better than letting myself atrophy while waiting for either a response from the witches or worse, my parents impatiently launching me into another scheme to land me in a marriage. The training most difficult to reproduce was my firearm and fencing drills, firearms especially so. I made do, using a hoe with its flat blade against my shoulder like the butt of a rifle, but there was no impact, no recoil, just the marching aiming and my make-believe of combat. Fencing, at least, I could practice with a weighty enough stick. No partner to truly hone my skills, but the footwork and forms still were important.

Having reached the end of my constricted training regiment, I paused, obscured from any windows by some hedges in our garden, and heard footsteps clacking on the cobblestone path that weaved through the labyrinthine layout. Before I had a chance to hide myself further, Ace rounded the corner, and seeing me drenched in sweat, scrambling for my officer’s jacket to at least have the appearance of a forlorn noble musing in their garden, sent him into a fit of laughter.

“You know, your jogging has gotten closer and closer to sprinting each morning,” Ace chortled, tossing me an apple in with a thick, fast gesture. I caught it with my still-exposed arm, jacket half-pulled over my body, and braced in between my teeth so I could finish dressing. For someone of a more acclaimed family than mine, House MacDove, Ace lacked the decorum that goes along with that. Hell, if not for the bars on his uniform, you’d figure him some wise-ass enlisted grunt, getting away with as much as before being subjected to push-ups or sprints. But no, he, like me, was on course to captain an airship. Ace slowly clapped a few times, whistling at my catch, “You’re parents really don’t know what they got, do they? Reaction speed that fast? Forget captain, you’ll be taking the Grand Admiral’s seat before they know it. Walking over to me, he patted the dust from my jacket before standing back, hands on his hips, smiling wryly.

“Joy!” I mumbled through the apple, still clenched in my mouth, as I finished buttoning my jacket and tidying my uniform. I took a crisp bite, swallowed, and lobbed it back towards Ace in a high arc. “There is nothing more appealing about our navy than being sat in an office, answering to nobles, foreign nations, concerned citizens, and the King.”

Ace's eyes were locked onto the apple as it tumbled through the air, the sun masking its exact location. “So not much would change then?” Ace's smile widened as the apple landed square in his hands.

“Shouldn’t you be doing your own drills?” I snapped back, Ace having finally struck a nerve. “Or have they finally kicked you out and left you your uniform as a parting gift?”

Ace smiled widely, “That’s exactly it.” his smile turned to a feigned frown, “Without a great family like the MacCrows vouching for me, they decided enough was enough.” The pout turned back to a smile.

“Oh, so being the son of a war hero doesn’t cut it these days? So you came to beg me to put in a good word so you may be reinstated.” I played along, being sure the sarcasm seeped into every word that left my mouth, “Well, bad news for you, I’m not in much a position to act as your sponsor. Not so long as I remained the unmarried heir to my house.”

Ace's smile faded. “Actually, I’m here about that--”

“Please do not propose to me. Especially while I’m hiding sweat stains under a stiff woolen jacket.”

Ace caught himself before laughter could burst through his pursed lips, “God’s no. I wanted to come check how much you’ve been kept in the loop. Your parents have been running the rumor mill with exceptional prowess as of late.”

My eyes widened, and I involuntarily sighed. Of course, my parents wouldn’t really leave this to me, as the order from the King seemed to imply it should have been. Their meddling couldn’t just stop with the letter my father had ghostwritten for me or the continued ban from my attending the academy as if it weren’t my career. “What is it now?”

Ace took a moment. His eyes broke from mine as he mulled over how best to deliver this news. “You’d be surprised to hear that it isn’t just you who is banned from the academy. Any military personnel in training are on forced leave for the next two new moons. Except for those who live in the barracks, that is.” My face contorted, befuddled by why they would stop us, all of us, from training with rumors of conflict brewing in the south once again. Ace took a moment to deliberate, taking his own bite from the apple before lightly tossing it back to my now free hands. Mouth still half full, he finished his thought, “And that is because the MacCrows intend to host a ball. So that all of the unmarried can find love... right before the war breaks out.”

My heart sank. All of us at the academy were aware of the rising tensions down south, of how frail the terms of armistice really were, of the ongoing fruitless negotiations. But it wasn’t clear how much the nobles outside of the King’s court really cared. Nearly ten years of peace had fostered confidence, or maybe complacency, among the nobles. There was a general sentiment that we would win again, should war break out, and I agreed, for the most part. We had so much more knowledge on the Hesperia Republic's tactics and strategy. Not only that, but our training, strategizing, and technology had continuously improved. If all-out war broke out, it would be different this time, and Ace and I would be on the front lines, leading our fleet to a swift victory. I finished the apple, threw the core onto a pile of compost by the garden shed, and turned back to Ace. “A single apple won’t tide me over until supper. Let me freshen up, and you can fill me in over lunch.”

---

I military-quick stripped out of my uniform and began wiping the sweat from my body behind the closed doors of my bathroom. Waiting on the other side, Ace lingered in my bedroom, ready to continue our conversation from just earlier. Our conversation had been disrupted by my need to draw water, leaving us both unsure where to pick up. Finally, Ace broke the silence, “So... is this a sign they think we won’t win?” Ace half yelled to reach me through the door. I could hear him pacing in laps around my room.

Matching his volume I yelled back, “My parents? No. They’ve been trying to get me to shag just about anyone for half a decade now.” My joke landed better than expected. Ace’s laughter cut clear through the door that separated us. I had finished cleaning myself and was wringing out the towel in time for Ace’s reply.

“Oh, I am well aware of how your parents feel on these matters.” Ace’s sarcasm filled the distance between us once more. “I’m still shocked you turned down my older brother.”

“Which one?” I yelled back, “The ninth or tenth in line of the famous House MacDove?” Ace was the eleventh child of the family, which spared him a lot of scrutiny from his parents, but not from mine, who had lined him up after his two older brothers, Fergus II and Jack, ninth and tenth respectively and each only one year older than the next, as my potential partner for life.

“Oh, stuff it. You know what I meant, do the nobles, the court, the King, not trust us to come back alive and victorious?” Ace’s patience had lapsed, and his pace increased as he drew circles around my room.

I had finished dressing and sat in front of a small vanity, ensuring my hair was properly pinned back into a neat bun halfway down my head so that my cap still fit. “I wish I knew. My parents have done a great job in confining me here, discouraging me from interacting with even our neighbors.” With not a loose hair in sight, I exited my bathroom and made eye contact with Ace. He stood at my window looking out across the nobles’ estates. “Ready?”

Ace spun around, rolling his eyes. “You are lucky this isn’t morning muster. We’d all be running laps with how slow you were moving.”

I shrugged, “We are on leave, aren’t we?” and the two of us headed out of my estate, down into the city, towards our favorite spot: Clashers.