Disclaimer: I don't own any of this, though I wish I did
A/N: this is my first fanfic, so bear with me! I hope you enjoy! Please review. Also, just to let you know, the page break isn't working. Sorry.
Chapter one: One Girl's Decision
"Come in." The duke's voice rang out loud and clear. A young girl of about ten years of age stepped into the brightly lit study with a spring in her step. She started to run towards the duke as if to give him an affectionate hug, but at the last moment remembered all of her lessons in decorum and politely curtsied before throwing herself at the man, who promptly chuckled merrily.
"Oh, dear Cliona." The duke tried to regain his composure as he looked at his favorite daughter, but his voice cracked. "What ever am I going to do while you're gone?"
"Gone?" The girl, the duke's daughter Cliona, pulled back slightly and looked surprised. "But that won't be for a while will it?" She knew, as well as anyone, that once girls of noble birth reached the age of ten, they were sent off to a convent to become a proper lady before being formally presented a Court. However, this truth she always avoided because of how sad it made her feel. She did not, under any circumstances, want to go away from the home she loved so dearly to learn boring things and be forced to give up her favorite pastimes of archery and horseback riding.
The man heaved a sigh, and at once Cliona's heart sunk to the bottom of her shoes. "I know dear, but…" Another sigh. "You see, if you are going to have any future at all, that's your only choice. I know you don't like it but what else could you do? I am sorry, truly I am. I do not wish to see my daughter unhappy. But I do think this has to happen."
Cliona's eyes watered and she blinked rapidly to keep her tears from falling. She mumbled as loudly as she dared, "I want to become a knight."
"You what?!?" Apparently she had mumbled too loudly, for she really had intended to keep her secret desire, well, secret. "Did I hear that correctly? You want to become a knight? Preposterous. You're only a girl; you couldn't manage."
She had meant to say sorry and leave the study quietly, but that last remark filled her little ten-year-old self with a cold fury. "What did you say? That girls aren't as good as boys, that we're as tender as feathers and can't do anything? Well I tell you, you will regret that you ever said this. I thought that you were above all of that nonsense and that you would at least try to understand. Apparently I was dead wrong."
And with that, she flung herself out of the office, and ran to her tower room before dissolving into tears.
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Cliona didn't come down for dinner; she just couldn't bring herself to. She cried and threw things about the room in a fine temper until she was so exhausted, she fell asleep on the rug. When she woke up, the sun had set and the moon was bright. While she absentmindedly stroked her faithful black cat, Midnight, an idea formed in her head. She couldn't stand by and let her dream fall away; she just couldn't. And she wouldn't. Maybe she should for propriety's sake, but that was the last thing on her mind at the moment.
All of a sudden, she jumped to her feet and scurried about her room, throwing objects carelessly into two giant saddle baskets. When the city clock chimed midnight, she crept downstairs to the kitchen to steal some provisions. Once she had everything she needed, she headed to the stables to saddle her horse up. Within minutes, she had fooled the guards and was riding out of the city limits into the dark forest. She rode on for many more hours, before finally making a camp in an out-of-the-way place so no one would notice her.
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Dawn came, and with that the bell that summoned the Duke and his family to breakfast. Everyone was present, down to the very last mouse, except Cliona. Very worried, the Duke turned to his wife and said, "Do you think she's alright? It's not like her to miss breakfast, or any meal for that matter."
"My dear," the Duchess answered, "you worry too much. I'm sure she's fine, she probably just slept in a bit for once."
"I know, but she did take the news of her departure quite seriously; worse than I expected. And then the whole outburst about being a knight… I suppose I should've seen that coming. After all, she does spend most of her time out of doors, and when she's inside she is off reading some tale or another."
"It'll be fine. I'll check on her after breakfast if you like."
"Thank you very much dear."
And that she did. But of course, Cliona was nowhere to be found. When it was discovered that her cat, her horse, and a few of her favorite belongings were missing as well, the Duke looked like he was going to faint and the Duchess gave a quiet shriek before dissolving into tears. Their favorite daughter was gone.
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Meanwhile, Cliona was aroused by the sound of the bell clanging the alarm signal. Oh no. They've discovered that I'm gone already! Without a second thought, she was off, galloping at top speed. After a while, the sun rose to its highest position in the sky and Cliona was forced to stop to save her laboring horse. She rested and munched on some bread with cheese before saddling up again and setting off at a more reasonable pace.
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Many such days passed. After the week had ended, Cliona was relaxing by a campfire. It probably wouldn't be much longer until she arrived at the palace; though her fief was out in the countryside surrounded by farms and an expansive forest, it wasn't too far from the capital city. And strange as it may seem, it was even faster not traveling on the road, for it was busy and full of travelers at this time of year, going to see the fair or trade goods at local markets.
All of a sudden a clash of steel and much yelling could be heard. Without a second thought, Cliona was bounding after the source of the sound, which was surprisingly farther then she had originally gauged it to be. Once she arrived at a little clearing, a devastating scene lied before her: three nobly dressed people, a man, woman, and a child, and about a dozen body guards were strewn across the forest floor, all sporting some sort of wound. They all seemed to be dead, except the young boy who looked to be about her age.
She immediately went to his side, kneeling by him and taking out her satchel of herbs and other materials needed for healing. She prepared a bandage with a salve to wrap around his leg which seemed to be the cause of his discomfort; a large gash was there, running almost the entire length it.
"What is your name?" She asked him, for he appeared to be conscious.
"Edmund." The reply was so soft at first, she hardly heard it. "Edmund of Hollybranch."
"What happened here?" She asked, indicating the scene of devastation that surrounded them.
"My father, mother, and I were riding to the palace. I am to become a knight, you see. All of a sudden, the attackers came out, killed my mother, father, and guards, badly wounded me, and took off with our precious goods." A single tear rolled down his cheek as he said this.
For the next hour, Cliona used all of the knowledge she had of healing and herblore to try to save the boy, cursing the numerous times where she had daydreamed during her lessons from the village healer instead of really paying attention. All the while she was doing this, she talked to him gently, coaxing information out of him incase she would need it later. Finally, she gave up knowing her efforts were futile. The wound was too deep and her knowledge too little; indeed, he died soon thereafter.
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The next few days were grim. Gloominess seemed to coat the world, and Cliona's guilty conscious inhibited her normal lively countenance. Why, oh why hadn't she been a good girl and listened to old Mary, her teacher in herblore? She buried Edmund and his family before setting off for the palace. When she was nearly there, she realized that she would have to use his identity to get into knight training; his was a story that no one would question. After all, he himself had told her that he had been exceptionally excited to become a page because his fief was nearly a six month journey from anywhere, so naturally he hadn't met any one before. She prayed that he would forgive her for what she was about to do, before straightening her spine and heading resolutely to the palace.