A Lifetime Ago

Chapter 12

(17 years old - about a week after chapter 11)

It was early morning as I walked towards the Specialists' training area, or I guess you could call it just the training area now as Rosalind has the whole school learning how to fight. The sun was just starting to wake up and make its way into the sky. Saul was already there waiting for me.
"Morning Princess" He smiled, leaning in for a kiss. I rolled my eyes but obliged in the kiss. Princess. His newest nickname for me. There was no actual meaning behind like the way I acted or some title I might have - like some people- it was just how he felt about me; to him I was the world, his life, his princess. "Little overdressed for training" He laughed, motioning towards the jacket along with the scarf I had thrown on before I left my suite.

"Did you want me to freeze to death before I got here?" I joked.

Since I still had no magic and I kept getting my ass kicked in training Saul had offered me some help. Some one on one tips and I had been quick to accept his help. I tossed the jacket and scarf onto the bench, the cold morning air finding my exposed skin immediately. He tossed me a sword as he started to tell me a few starting points.

"The key to combat isn't about strength or size. But more about strategy and awareness."
He showed me a few things and we went over a few basics, nothing too drastic. When the sun was higher in the sky and my usual alarm went off on my phone we decided to wrap up and head back to Alfea.

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(17 years old - about two month later)

Saul had been helping me improve for about two months now and my improvement was substantial. The swords were clashing against each other as one after another someone made an attempt at an attack and the other blocked. He tried to shove me back with his kick but I ducked underneath and swept his other leg out from under him. He fell to the ground landing on his back and I pointed my sword at him for a moment before lowering it and catching my breath when all of a sudden my legs were pulled out from under me and I hit the ground right in front of him. I sat up and saw he was already back on his own two feet. He offered me his free hand, I took it and he helped me up.
"You just can't accept defeat can you?" I teased, punching his arm softly.
He smirked, "Never let your guard down until you know you've won for sure" He lectured.

The specialists in the room smiled at the iconic line they'd heard from their teacher millions of times. Yet they also knew the truth in Farah's statement. Silva never accepted defeat, it was like he couldn't process even the thought of him losing.

We cleaned up and I tossed my coat back on trying to maintain some of the warmth I was feeling after training. We walked back to the school in a peaceful silence heading to the canteen for breakfast. The girls - along with Jason and Ben - were already seated at a table by the time we'd grabbed our food and found them.
Rose: How was training?
I sat down mixing around my parfait a bit before answering with a small smirk on my face.
"This one can't admit his losses" I nudged Saul
Ben: So nothing new?
Saul: Hey!
Everyone had a laugh, even Saul. After breakfast I headed to the stone circle to observe since I couldn't participate in classes using magic.

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AN- Idk anything about combat so hope it was good enough. If anyone has any knowledge and would like to share I might redo this chapter with more detail. Also sorry for the short chapter.

Merry Christmas!