Lady (Y/N) of Valor Tower~SGE~ Tedros

Go Time

Don't panic. You'll be fine. Don't panic. You'll be fine... DON'T PANIC! I was pacing around the gate of the school- it was the evening of the Trial by Tale, and even though I was prepared, the fear was setting in. There was less than an hour left until I would be going into the Blue Forest alongside nearly two dozen other students- most of whom probably wanted me dead, or at least out of the way- with nothing but my sword. I thought back to this afternoon; Tedros and I had spent the last three hours carefully penning words on my arms. We had to make sure all the words were neat and dry before I would go in, otherwise I might mistake a word for something else, and disaster could ensue.
A hand landed on my shoulder, snapping me back to the present. I reached for my sword, but it wasn't there. I whirled around.
"Thought you might try that." Tedros laughed, holding my sword and smirking. "So I was prepared."
"Give me that." I said, trying to sound mad, but ending up having to stifle a laugh. "I need it."
"Oh yeah? Make me." I lunged for the sword, but Tedros- who was taller than me by several inches- laughed and held it higher, dancing out of the way. "C'mon (Y/N)- I'm not gonna give it to you, you have to come get it."
I rolled my eyes, and jumped- coming just shy of the handle. "It's not funny, Ted- the Trial starts in an hour!"
"And? Get it back before then!"
"I hate you."
"You know you love me."
"In your dreams, Ted."
"You're mean." He pouted.
"I know." I childishly stuck out my tongue and took another swipe at the sword. This 'battle' went on for a few more minutes. Eventually, I got annoyed with it, gave in and kicked Tedros sharply in the shins.
"Ow! (Y/N)!!!" He exclaimed, dropping the sword down to a place I could reach.
Snatching the sword out of his hand I apologized, "Sorry, but I had to get my sword back."
"You're not really sorry."
"Nope, I tried but I've got nothing."
"Unbelievable." He sighed. "You would hurt me- your best friend- for a sword."
"You know it." I joked. "That sword is my ticket to not dying in the Trial. Well, that along with my fancy arm tattoos." I gestured to the writing on my arms.
"Honestly, you'd win if you went in there with your bare hands— I'm pretty sure you terrify most of the students here, and probably a good number of teachers too."
"You're just being nice, although being feared is kind of awesome."
"No, I'm serious- you scare me too, more than you know." I don't think I was supposed to hear the last part, wonder what he meant... whatever it's no big deal.
Suddenly, a fanfare sounded- that was the signal for the contestants to come to the starting area. Any calm Tedros had instilled into me immediately went away, I started panicking again. "Hey- you've got this. I'll be right outside the forest at sunrise." He smiled softly at me, "See you in the morning." He held out his hand for a high-five.
"Hopefully."
"(Y/N), optimism."
"Okay, okay- see you in the morning." We high-fived.
***
I walked over to the edge of the Blue Forest, some of the other contestants were already there. They all sent withering glares my way, honestly I wasn't intimidated- and to show that I just put on my best cocky smirk and strutted to the front where Professor Dovey and Lady Lesso were standing along with Castor and Pollux (Pollux had the body today, and Castor did not look happy). I know it probably wasn't the best idea to tick off the competition, but I couldn't help myself.
About twenty minutes later- only about fifteen minutes before the Trial was supposed to start- everyone had arrived except Sophie. We were starting to get impatient, everyone was rearing and ready to go, but we couldn't begin until Sophie got there. Speaking of the devil, she flounced in and when she saw everyone glaring at her, she asked, "What? I was doing a facemask!" She had no clue what was going on. I growled and started to lunge at her, but Professor Dovey put a hand on my shoulder and held me back.
"Not until you're in the forest, dearie." She wasn't telling me not to throttle Sophie- just to wait for a bit. I liked Professor Dovey, she had a competitive streak. She cleared her throat and started addressing the whole group to explain the rules one final time. "Students of Good and Evil, you are about to enter a very dangerous situation. It's purpose is to mock a real fairy tale, and to prepare you for your life after school."
She paused, and Lady Lesso took over, "As soon as the sun sets, the first pair of you will be sent in. Fifteen minutes later, the next pair will go. Fifteen minutes more, then the third, and so on. Your entry time depends on your rankings. Sophie and Kiko will enter first." Lady Lesso kept naming pairs until, "And finally, Hester and (Y/N) will enter last."
I could hardly contain my excitement, this was a massive advantage. I was going to enter the Trial three hours in. That means the others could pick each other off, and I wouldn't have to fight as many people.
Professor Dovey jumped in, "You all have enchanted handkerchiefs to surrender. If you are in a deadly situation, please drop this, and you will be safely removed from the competition. Whoever remains at the first hint of dawn will win. If there is a single winner," She paused, and I swear she looked directly at me when she said this. "They will be rewarded five first place ranks in the race for class captain. If there are multiple winners, they will each be awarded two first place ranks."
My ambition peaked at this point. I would be the only winner. I was going to prove once and for all that I was definitely worthy to be here.
"First pair, prepare to enter. The sun is setting." It was go time.
A/N: I AM SO SORRY! This chapter should have been out WEEKS ago! I really haven't had any time lately and I know that's a lame excuse, but I've been pulling double duty sports (track and softball) and most nights I'm not home until like 7:30 or later. Thank you so much @Writer4Runner for keeping me on my toes about updating- hopefully it won't be too long until the next update! (Fingers crossed)
Thanks for sticking with this story! -Kelsi!