Rowan Nightshade's Short Stories

Rowan Nightshade

In the courtyard of a huge castle, a girl looked at her opponent through narrowed eyes. The boy in front of her was glaring back, sweating in his plate armor. They had been sparing for almost an hour, and she had managed to 'kill' him 47 times.

After the first 15 minutes, the girl had seemed grimly satisfied to see the boy being coming embarrassed, humiliated. Some time after that, a crowd of people congregated around then. The boy, whom the girl did not know his name, started playing offense. Boys in battle were stupid, but this boy was even stupider. His armor was for defense, which made it harder for him fight offense, making him slower and more clumsier.

The girl would teach him a lesson, assuring.

As the boy dealt a swinging blow towards her head, the girl ducked, rolled forward, and swung her leg in an arc, hitting the his legs. She sent him tumbling to the ground with a loud Thud, his armor clanking and creaking. Dust billowed from the ground in little clouds.

As the girl leapt up and backed away, the boy lifted his head, and gazed at her with fury. The girl strolled back, and casually put her sword tip at his neck.

"You're dead again." Her voice, edged with contempt, rang through the courtyard. "Get up."

The boy stood, and rubbed his arm resentfully, which he landed on when the girl had kicked his feet out from under him. She looked him up and down again, then said:

"What are you called?"

Everyone in the courtyard could feel the tension between the fighters, and the crowd shifted uneasily.

"My name is Casper." the boy growled with as much dignity as he could muster.

"Casper...." the girl said thoughtfully, obviously thinking. "Meet me here tomorrow, at dawn. Don't wear armor, and don't bring a shield. You were a worthy opponent, and I want you to teach me your style of fighting, if you're willing." The girl looked around, as if noticing the crowd for the first time. "I could learn a lot from you." she added.

The girl phrased it just right, showing at least a bit of respect. The crowd leaned forward, anxiously awaiting the boy's reply.

"At dawn. Tomorrow." Casper promised, a scowl crossing his young face. As the crowd dispersed, he locked eyes with the girl, who turned and walked away. The boy fought his way to her, and managed to grab her arm before she could disappear into the surrounding streets of the castle.

"You asked my name, I deserve to known yours." he demanded. The girl looked back at him shrewdly, then flung up her hand. Casper raised his arms in defense, then dropped them in embarrassment and he realized she had caught an apple.

He turned, and watched a child of about nine, probably the apple-thrower, trot pass them. The little boy winked at the Casper's opponent, and the girl nodded back. The two grinned at each other, before the boy melted into the shadows of the streets. Casper compared the two people he just met. Both had the same facial features, and build, but the boy's hair was strawberry-blond, the girl's reddish. Siblings, perhaps.

The girl took out a pocket knife and cut a bad spot out of the apple, then sunk her teeth into it.

"Name?" he prompted.

The girl chewed thoughtfully, looking him up and down, evaluating. Eventually, she swallowed, and swiped her hand across her mouth.

She looked him over again, her chestnut fringe of hair falling into her eyes. She pushed it back up, and gazed into his eyes.

"The name's Rowan. Rowan Nightshade." she said coolly. She took another bite of her apple, sheathed her knife, then disappeared into the shadows after her brother.