Keir bent over his knees to stretch out his back. "I'm a knight now."
"Sentinel," Pascal corrected.
"That too," Keir told them. "Knight's my title. Sir Keir Delaney. Official and everything." Then he used the end of his stick to gesture to me. "Benefit of being the Morrigan's assistant."
"Damn," Bran said. "I wouldn't mind being a knight."
"Hell, we could all be royalty if you think about it," Pascal said. "I don't have a clue who my parents were. Maybe they were some big-shot nobles."
"One was human," Keir reminded him. "Makes you a mongrel at best, and I don't know how the real deal thinks about that."
Axel gestured in a circle in Keir's direction. "Considering you're the real deal? How do you feel about us mongrels, Keir?"
"I amnotthe real deal," Keir assured him. "Pure fae, yes. But by 'real,' I actually meant the type who is considered nobility."
"And don't ask me," I told them.
Pascal just lifted his weapons again. "I think I'll ask Aspen. She's coming here after class again, right?"
"Yep," I agreed. "And Torian. Wilder, too." Then I nodded to show he could start.
Pascal rushed me. His practice sticks moved fast. They were all aimed at my head, but I'd gotten used to that. Twisting one blade sideways, I could block all of it and still attack with the other arm. Not that I'd have this luxury in battle, but Bracken liked us to use two weapons in practice so both arms were worked equally.
And I was definitely starting to get good. I could tell, because Pascal went from pushing in to backing up. Twisting a bit, I shifted around him, angling his back towards Keir. Unfortunately, Pascal noticed, and just when I was sure I had him, he turned to lock his shoulder in beside Axel's.
That put the pair of them against Keir and me. Without a word needing to be traded, we engaged. Keir blocked. I attacked. When I felt my stick thump Axel's arm, I knew that would leave a mark. The trick would be to keep up the speed without using so much force. Even better, no one stopped me to make the correction. Instead, I was allowed to work it out for myself.
And we sparred. When I started to get winded, Keir turned to help Hawke, leaving Pascal to work with me again. Bran turned to help Keir, and Axel fell in on my other side. Three against three, we kept going, pushing ourselves harder than I had in a long time - and it was nice.
I could feel sweat trickling down the back of my neck, but my arms weren't tiring. Granted, a wooden practice stick was alotlighter than the steel sword I used against the Hunt. These men also moved slower, if more consistently, and that was what I needed to increase my own endurance.
"Break!" Keir called, stepping back. "I think we forgot the instructions."
"Mhm," Bracken said from behind me, proving he'd been watching us. "But I think you're doing more, not less. Bran, you need to push Rain harder. If you let her get you on the defensive, she'll keep you there."
"Which means I need to work on getting out of it?" Bran asked.
"Sure," Bracken said as he stepped closer. "The Hunt won't give you a second chance. They won't let you fumble for a correction, so none of you should allow it either. You want to make all of your mistakes here, where you'll live through it."
"Is that what you're doing with the court?" Axel asked.
"Ask them," Bracken said, gesturing to me, Keir, and Hawke. "But catch your breath, then do it again." And he turned, walking away from us to check on the next group.
"Is it?" Bran asked Keir. "I mean, since Rain won't talk and Hawke will kick my ass for asking."
"I won't," Hawke huffed. "And yeah. We're trying to figure out how to use their magic and our weapons, because the Hunt has come after them a few too many times."
"Because you're a duke?" Axel asked slyly.
"Shit," Hawke said. "I can guarantee the Huntsman isn't after me. I'm more of an addendum."
"He wants Rain," Keir said. "Keeps asking her to ride with him."
"And Torian?" Pascal asked.
"He's not on the Huntsman's list," I said, relieved to have a truth I could actually say.
Pascal's eyes just narrowed as he looked me over, weighing that for some sort of evasion. "Interesting," he finally said. "Well, how's this? I'm more than willing to hang out after hours if the group of you needs some help."
