Several months passed before the townsfolk stopped glaring at her as she passed, or denying her mother groceries when she went shopping. Komugi came home a few times, her face scratched up from catfights she put herself into in defense of her sister. She never seemed fazed by it, and always grinned and said the other girl was worse off. (Surely this was true, as the number of black eyes gracing the entirety of the girl's portion of the mystic's school was growing day by day. Koyori especially seemed to always be sporting a black eye or a swollen lip and eventually earned the nickname "raccoon" because of it.) Things began to look up for the women in town, but for her father it was another story. The harbor men kept denying him work, and they were growing low on money. Some of the students seemed to be slacking in their studies, blaming it upon 'injuries' they sustained during the Were's rampage, which in turn their fathers took out on Sharmin's father. The day he came home bruised from a group beating was the day Sharmin decided enough was enough.

The next day she awoke early, brushing and putting her hair in its usual ponytail. She'd been growing her bangs out, but they weren't quite long enough to put back with the rest of her hair. She blew them from her face and quietly jumped from the bedroom window, careful not to wake her sleeping sister. After grabbing a simple bronze dagger from her father's tool shed, she snuck past a yawning guard and darted around the side of the village wall. Cedric, leading his group of students from the school, halted when he saw Sharmin standing stubbornly ahead of them. She had her feet even with her shoulders, and her arms clenched tightly to her sides, her hands balled into fists. A crisp morning breeze blew her hair, and skirt, determination set firmly in her expression.

"What does SHE want?" a student asked snidely.

"Come to lead Weres to us again?" came another.

"Nah, this time she's going to agro an army of Elpys."

There was scattered snickering with this comment. Cedric held an arm out to silence the boys before turning a stony gaze back to Sharmin.

"What do you want, girl?" he asked in an equally steely voice.

"I want to join your class!" Sharmin said boldly, her expression not changing. "Please! Take me as your student so I can repent for the dishonor I brought upon you and your students!" she bowed low, bending at her waist, her arms still stiff to her sides. There was a moment of stunned silence before Cedric began to chuckle. The boys mimicked it, pushing each other playfully and nodding.

"You? A student in my class? Preposterous!" he laughed, his hands on his hips. "Look at you, in long hair and an equally long dress. You're no more ready to wield a sword than Ryonai here is ready to be married!" he laughed harder, clapping Ryonai on the shoulders. Ryonai stumbled a bit from the force of it and turned to cast a glare at his teacher, his face red.

Without a word, Sharmin drew her father's dagger, gripped a handful of hair, and sawed through the mass with the dagger. She inwardly cringed as her head felt lighter with the lack of hair. The impact of this act stunned Cedric and his students into silence. Sharmin dropped her ponytail to the grass and then cut through the fabric of her skirt above her knees, ripping the dress high enough to allow her legs free movement. When she stood again, the boys gaped at her with wide eyes and slack jaws.

"So? I'm ready to wield a sword now, aren't I?" Sharmin challenged, still holding the dagger. Cedric stared at her for a moment before putting a finger to his chin in thought.

"You speak bravely for a simple villager." he mused. He then reached out and pulled Leon from the crowd of students to stand next to him. "Alright then! You've got guts girl. If you can beat Leon in a spar match on the beach, I'll let you join this class, right here and now. Sound like a good deal?" Cedric said, his voice quivering with laughter towards the end of his sentence. Leon gaped at him with wide eyes.

"Sir, that's not..." Leon began, but was silenced as Cedric gave him a look. Leon sighed, his brow furrowed, but walked to the beach anyway. Sharmin, now aware of the impact of her challenge, gulped and took up a stance a bit away from him. She held the dagger with both hands in front of her, her legs parted slightly, putting her determined face back on. Cedric began to laugh.

"No no, girl. You can't spar with that tiny frog poker!" Cedric reached over and took Ryonai's Gladius sword, and brought it to her. "Use this." he said, grinning at her and handing the blade to her while taking her dagger. Sharmin blinked at him in confusion while putting her hands around the hilt. "Oh, and you swing it with one arm." Cedric stated, his grin growing wider as he released the sword. The instant he stopped supporting the blade, Sharmin was pulled down by the weight, the sword landing in the sand with a dull thud. The boys guffawed while Ryonai covered his face in embarrassment.

Sharmin looked down at the sword with large eyes, dumbfounded by how easily the boys seemed to swing such a heavy thing. With one arm no less. She strained and grunted, lifting the sword slowly with both hands. Once it was upright, she took one hand from the hilt. Her balance horrid, it began to sway forward, and she moved with it, trying to balance it like a performer balancing a plate on a stick. The boys began to laugh harder, and Cedric chuckled, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Sir, this is really embarrassing. I can go get her a Squire Sword...it'll be easier for her to use." Ryonai offered, wincing away from the embarrassing display Sharmin was giving.

"No. No." Cedric said, stroking his white beard. "You see boy, Einhasad made three types of people in this world. The ones meant to wield a sword, the ones meant to control magic, and the ones who are just supposed to live quietly in town. Every now and again you'll get someone trying to cross over the boundary lines into something they're not meant to do. It's up to people like us to put them straight." He looked down at the boy. "Keeps the balance in the world, y'know?"

"I don't think this is very fair though..." Ryonai muttered, looking back as the point of the sword dropped back into the sand. Leon shifted his weight from one foot to the other, not looking at her. Sharmin, growing frustrated, pulled the sword as hard as she could, and lost foothold in the sand and fell flat on her bottom. The group of boys was doubled over from laughter, tears streaming from their eyes.

"And that's all she wrote." Cedric murmured. "Leon." he barked, motioning for Leon to rejoin the class.

"Wait!" Sharmin yelled, standing. "We haven't sparred yet!" Cedric and Leon paused and looked at her.

"Girl, you can barely lift that sword. I'd say you've lost already." Cedric said seriously, but his eyes glittered in amusement.

"Give me a chance!" Sharmin exclaimed, planting her feet in the sand. Cedric sighed and then nodded to Leon, who went back to his sparring position.

"Fine. You have five minutes." Cedric said, crossing his arms again.

Sharmin took a breath and pulled on the sword, swinging it outwards. It came to rest in the sand once more, and she panted a few times, and then focused on Leon, who was once again staring out over the ocean. His uninterested attitude sparked her temper a bit, and she found a foothold and ran at him, dragging the point of the sword in the sand until she was close enough to swing it at him. Surprised, Leon barely deflected the tip of the sword with his shield before jumping back. Sharmin, her expression now seriously intense, swung twice in a row, Leon parrying it with his sword in surprise.

"Don't just deflect boy, attack back!" Cedric barked, all mirth lost from his voice. Leon looked at his teacher, bewildered, another swing from Sharmin pinging off of his shield.

"Sir!" he managed to get out.

"Do it." Cedric said in a low voice. Leon swallowed and turned back to Sharmin, and swung at her with his own sword. Her sword caught it mid air and bounced off of it, throwing her off balance. Behind Cedric, Einhovant's morning class gathered for their lesson, Komugi pushing her way to the front to watch with large eyes. She broke free of the group and ran towards the beach.

"Stop it! He'll kill her!" she cried as a swipe from Leon's sword cut open a gash on Sharmin's chest. Sharmin stumbled back a bit and lifted a hand to the wound, staring at the blood in shock. Cedric put an arm out, restraining Komugi from running to her.

"Don't pause like that, boy! She's your opponent, treat her like one!" Cedric commanded, holding fast to Komugi's robes as she struggled against him, swinging her fists out at him and grunting.

"Sir, she's not even at a novice level yet, I can't get serious..." Leon began, but stopped, his eyes wide, as the tip of Sharmin's sword opened a small cut in his cheek.

"You took your eyes off her, see what happens?" Cedric said, ignoring Komugi as she gnawed on his arm. Sharmin's face had a strange look over it, a more mature, darker expression. Leon, still unwilling to become completely serious against her, deflected a few more of her blows before parrying her sword to knock her balance off, and dropping down, one foot sliding out to catch her leg and trip her. Sharmin released the hilt of the sword, her eyes going wide as she fell. The instant her back hit the sand, Leon was over her, the tip of his sword against her neck. Had she been a real enemy, he had a full advantage to lop her head off from this position. Their eyes met, and for the first time Sharmin saw pain deep in them. He looked away from her and stood, sheathing his sword. When their eyes met again as he glanced down at her once more, it was gone. Cedric released Komugi who kicked his shin and then raced out to Sharmin.

"'Min, are you ok?" Komugi asked, tears welling in her eyes. Sharmin nodded slightly, watching Leon walk back to his now-silent classmates. "Hold still, I'll take care of this." Komugi said, shutting her eyes and holding her hands over the cut on Sharmin's chest. Her mouth moved slightly as she silently recited the simple healing spell the elementary students were taught, and a warm glow formed underneath her hands. "Oh 'Min, your pretty hair..." Komugi said, looking at her through bleary eyes.

"I have to hand it to you girl... I never knew you had such a backbone." Cedric said, standing over them. Komugi turned her head to glare and bare sharp teeth at him.

"I get to join your class then?" Sharmin asked, looking at him with large eyes.

"No, I'm afraid not." Cedric said, shutting his eyes. "See, that was a one-handed sword. The students in my class are all required to use it, and a shield. Seeing as how you could barely handle that sword, I can only imagine how much worse it'd be if you added a buckler to it." he said, walking around her.

"Oh." Sharmin said, looking down. She sat, leaning back upon her arms, which she noticed had begun to shake from muscle exhaustion.

"However..." Cedric continued, kneeling down to look at her. "I'll have to admit, that was pretty impressive work there for someone not even a novice, with a sword much too heavy for her. Leon's one of my better students, not many can put a scratch on even his armor, let alone his face." Cedric began to grin widely, and put a massive hand on her head. "I want you in my school, girl. You sure proved my theories wrong. There might be a great future for you with a sword in hand." With that he winked and stood, Sharmin staring at him with her mouth agape as he walked back to his students. "I expect to see you in the Novice classes come Firesday! Don't worry about armor, tell your parents I'll personally supply everything you need." he called without looking back at them. Both Komugi and Sharmin stared at him with wide eyes, and then looked at each other.

"Komugi...?" Sharmin asked in a small voice.

"Yeah?" she answered back, her voice equally tiny.

"Did I just fight against Leon and actually hurt him?"

"Uh huh."

"Oh..."

"Sharmin!' Komugi exclaimed as she fainted.

Cedric kept true to his word. A simple set of squire armor was provided to Sharmin, as well as a sword that she could actually lift with one arm, the day she began her classes at Cedric's Training Hall. Her parents had not been too keen on the idea of her taking up sword studies, but they eventually gave in after Cedric personally told them of her brave standoff against Leon. (Her mother seemed more upset over the fact that she'd probably never have long hair again more than her swordplay, oddly enough.) Her first year of studies was simple, as it was only bookwork and practicing of simple sword techniques on wooden dummies. Sharmin excelled at this, and learned quickly. Cedric only taught her class once a week, his primary class being the one Leon and Ryonai was a part of. Even though she lived in the Village, all of Cedric's students were required to stay in the dorms of the training hall. Her mother attempted to visit her a few times, but was turned away at the long stairway entrance. Every holiday and Darksday she was allowed to return to the village to visit. Each time her mother mourned over how broad her shoulders were getting, and how unladylike her calloused hands were. The small muscles Sharmin was developing from wielding a sword enthralled Komugi. Sharmin tried to ignore her disappointment as she came to discover that she wasn't seeing Leon nearly as much as she used to just living in the village. She comforted herself with the fact that one day she'd be equal to his strength if she kept up her studies.

It was one day, during the start of her second year, when she noticed the mysterious dual-wielding man standing outside of Einhovant's. Sharmin had been on the beach, practicing her sword swings when she saw him. Now that she did not fear for her life, Sharmin sized him up. He was of medium height and build; his brown hair was short and slicked back. By the looks of his armor he was an accomplished fighter, but nowhere near legendary. (It was a tradition in Aden, the stronger and more renowned a fighter became; the fancier the armor was that was offered to him by merchants.) He gazed into one of the school windows, watching Komugi and her friends play a strange dancing game, the girls clapping and chanting a little song as it went. Sharmin frowned and approached him, holding her sword firmly.

"You'd better not be looking at my sister, you pervert." she said boldly, standing behind him with her feet planted firmly in the grass. The man perked up a bit and blinked before turning to look at her.

"Excuse me?" he asked, his voice shaking lightly.

"You heard me. I'll alert the guards if you don't stop peeping." she said roughly. The man stared at her a few moments before sucking in a long breath of air.

"You thought I was..." he started. His sentence never finished, as he dissolved into a fit of hysterical giggles. He put a hand to his forehead and turned away from her, laughing louder as he walked away. "That's rich...that's really rich." he roared with laughter, as if Sharmin's accusation was the funniest thing in the world. Sharmin watched him walk away with an eyebrow raised as Komugi and her friends gathered at the window, alerted by his laughter.

"You have weird friends, 'Min." Komugi said, giving Sharmin a skeptical look. Sharmin turned to Komugi, shocked.

"That wasn't a friend of mine!" Sharmin sputtered; offended that Komugi would say such a thing.

"Whatever. You'd better get back to the Training Hall lest mom see you and try to steal you away back into the village again." Komugi said, turning away from the window. Her friends giggled and followed her back into the school. Sharmin stuck her tongue out at her sister's back and dashed back to the Hall.