Chapter 9

'Well, here goes nothing,' Pyra thought to herself, walking the following day through the castle gates, seeing Anna in the same gear as last week, except with a light brown tunic on, along with a brown and black leather vest, and a small dark brown recurve bow with a matching quiver of arrows over her left shoulder to her right hip. Pyra was also wearing the same gear as last time, except with a blue tunic on and with a brown longbow and a quiver of arrows on her left shoulder to her right hip, and was holding a light brown recurve bow and quiver of arrows in her hands. Anna frowned slightly in curiosity and confusion at the weapons in her hands, and asked as Pyra approached her "Why do you have those for? I already have my own bow, as do you."

Pyra nodded and replied "That's true. However, these aren't for either of us to use," the castle doors opened and she finished, "They are for her."

Anna turned around to the castle, and saw Elsa walking down the steps dressed similarly to Anna, except with a dark green tunic on and with leather pauldrons, much to Anna's surprise.

"Elsa!" she exclaimed softly, her eyes widening slightly in surprise, "You're coming to archery practise today?"

Elsa nodded and replied "I wanted to learn a bit more than fist fighting. That's why I'm going to practise archery for three years with you, along with knives and maybe swords or a quarterstaffs. I hope I can keep up with you."

Anna smirked at that and retorted "You'd better, or I'll ditch you!"

Elsa grinned back and Pyra smiled in a relieved way, thanking God for the sisters getting along and talking again. She then said to the children "Alright kids, it's time to begin archery practise," walking towards them both as Elsa stepped to Anna's side. She then asked Elsa "Are you right handed or left handed?"

Elsa shrugged and replied "I can use both hands, but I use my right hand a bit more often."

Pyra nodded and then proposed "Okay, I'll put these on you in a right handed fashion for now, but I'll train you to use both hands so you can shoot either way. We'll do this anyway, as soldiers are taught to use both hands in case one's arm or hand is damaged severely or amputated, and it can also be used to catch enemies off guard."

Pyra then slung the quiver and recurve bow over Elsa's right shoulder to left hip and stood up straight, before leading them to the gardens where Pyra set up three different targets: one at twenty feet, one at twenty-five feet, and one at thirty feet.

She then turned to the girls and lectured "Usually in the military, archers are trained to fire as a group, raining arrows upon the enemy, but more often than not, they don't really aim at the soldiers, but fire in a more upwards direction to arch onto the enemy. However, there are marksman who serve the kingdom who take archery to the next level: rangers. They are able to shoot a small target from a great distance away, and are able to shoot quickly and accurately, taking down many foes at a time. They also use small knives and very rarely use swords, as they prefer to kill from a distance rather than in a melee battle, which is the soldiers' job. Now, I am going to teach you how to shoot like a ranger, and like every skill you develop: practise makes perfect."

"So, first thing's first, don't shoot an arrow without with long leather gloves or without a leather bracer that covers the whole forearm. The reason behind this is because after you release the arrow, the bowstring snaps forward and usually slaps the under forearm of the arm holding the bow. Now, since you have leather gloves on that are long enough, we can begin training."

Pyra then turned to the target and got the children to stand away from her on her left side, so they could see how she shoots an arrow, and Pyra drew an arrow from her quiver and pointed at the bottom of the arrow, showing the girls where to notch the arrow on the string.

"It clips onto the bowstring like this," she said as she showed them, holding the arrow and the bowstring in between her fingers, "and you hold the arrow between your index finger and your middle finger like so." Pyra then pulled the arrow back and levelled it at the first target, saying "Then, you pull the string back with your arm muscles and your back muscles, like you're pushing the back of your shoulders together, then aim, and FIRE!"

She let the arrow loose and it flew straight, strong and sure into the middle of the bullseye, sounds of awe coming from the two princesses. She turned to them and said "Now, I'll get you two to try it out, one at a time, and you will fire all of the arrows in your quiver and collect them before letting the next person go. Anna, you may start first, and then Elsa will start after you. After you master archery from this distance, we'll move to the next target, which is further away. Okay?"

The girls nodded and Pyra retrieved her arrow, walking back to the girls before saying "Alright Anna, it's your turn," and moving to Anna's side to perfect her stance and hold on the bow and arrow.

"Okay, pull it right to your cheek ..." she instructed, complimenting as Anna did so "... yep, that's it. Now, level the arrow to your target area … keeping your eyes open. Now … loose!"

Anna slipped her fingers off the string and the arrow flew into the target, nearly hitting the edge of the bullseye. Pyra looked impressed and commented "Well done, Anna. That was a good shot! Now, continue firing your other arrows."

Anna fired the rest of her arrows (all twenty three of them) and looked at the results, seeing most of the arrows in the first two rings around the bullseye, with two of the arrows in the bullseye. The girls were all impressed by this and Anna ran to collect her arrows, before running back behind the firing line, and seeing Elsa lined up and ready to fire.

Elsa pulled her bowstring back to her cheek, naturally picking up the stance without Pyra's help, kept her eyes open and fired at Pyra's command, sending the arrow straight where Pyra's arrow was before in the very centre of the bullseye.

Anna and Pyra gaped at this and Elsa smoothly pulled another arrow back and fired it to the target, splintering the first arrow in two. She kept firing with Pyra and Anna staring incredibly at her, all of Elsa's arrows hitting the bullseye around the first two arrows, before splintering her second arrow with her last shot. She relaxed her stance and Pyra murmured "Wow … you're an archery prodigy."

Elsa kept her gaze on the target, surprised by her own skills and she heard a male voice exclaimed "That was fantastic!"

The trio turned to see Arthur standing there, with Ida by his side, and he praised Elsa proudly "Well done, Elsa! That was a fantastic display! You did great as well Anna, I bet you're not too far off from that level of archery yourself."

Anna actually looked more humble than disappointed at her display of archery skills and replied "While I can and will improve, Elsa will still be better at this than I ever would, and for good reason. She needs to be better than me at something."

The sisters smiled at each other and Pyra sighed internally in relief, now knowing that she had taken the right course of action in letting Elsa train in weaponry. She knew that Elsa would be the best archer in Norway, and couldn't wait to test Elsa's limits.

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A few months had passed, and it was now Elsa's eleventh birthday. Anna was now talking normally to her family again, even though she still shut herself off from them from time to time, she learnt how to hawk from Pyra, and now had a young hawk of her own called Einar, and the family was as happy as can be. Elsa had started training with knives and could throw them just as skilfully as her natural skill in archery, and was now about to shoot targets one after the other much quicker than before, and improvised her shots by kneeling to shoot, hiding behind or in trees to shoot, and threw knives into her targets while somersaulting to the left or the right. It was rather unnerving for her parents to see this side of their heiress, but was grateful that Pyra trained both of their girls well to defend themselves.

However, Elsa was now having a delicious birthday breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast and water with her family, and soon finished before she opened her presents from her family.

Her first present was from her parents, and the present was taller than her, and was thinner than her, and instead of it being placed in a box, it was covered by a beautiful blue sheet. Elsa stood up and grasped the sheet and gently pulled it off, gasping in delight at what was beneath the cover.

It was a beautiful gold harp, which shone from the sunlight entering the windows of the dining room, and looked brand new and ready to be played. Ida then told her as Elsa gaped and inspected her new harp in wonder "Your father and I know how much you love to play the harp, and we though that you'd like this one. Believe it or not, this isn't brand new, but it belonged to my grandmother, the late Queen Elisa. It was part of the royal treasury, and we just gave it a thorough cleaning and replaced the strings, and voila!"

Elsa beamed as brightly as the shine coming from the harp and hugged her parents, repeating over and over again "Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mama and Papa! It's beautiful!"

After a brief hug from her parents, Elsa turned to Anna and Anna raised her hands, lifting her gift from her shadow her casted on the table.

Elsa and her parents gaped at the gift, for it was unlike anything they've ever seen before.

It was a small stand on a shadow plate, made of solidified shadows itself, that could be placed on a vanity or a bedside table, and was beautifully crafted with various designs in it like a royal piece of furniture. However, four beautifully made prongs produced from around the centre of the stand and held the special gift in place, which is what everyone was gaping at.

It was a fire crystal in the shape of a beautiful love heart, around the size of a large side plate. The love heart was smooth and glowed red and was covered in beautiful carvings that glowed gold due to the small pulsing fire in its centre. Finally, it was covered with a mostly transparent solid dome casing like shadow glass, and it was one of the most beautiful things Elsa had ever seen.

"Wow!" Elsa exclaimed softly, lifting off the shadow glass and gently touching the warm crystal heart.

Anna looked pleased with her reaction and said "I wanted to do something similar to the snow-globe you made me, and this was the end result. It pulses with my own heartbeat, so you can know when I'm exercising, which would make my heart race, or when I'm sleeping, which is when my heartbeat slows down in an even pace. I thought that it'd be cool to do that, so, what do you think?"

Elsa turned to her his a wide toothy smile and murmured "This is one of the most awesome gifts ever."

Anna grinned back and hugged her sister tightly, Elsa recuperating enthusiastically and they parted as Pyra came into the room, a small gift in her hands. She smiled widely at the two girls and congratulated Elsa "Happy birthday, Elsa! I hope that you're still opening presents."

Elsa nodded and replied enthusiastically "Yep! I've opened Mama's and Papa's and Anna's, so yours is next."

Pyra nodded happily and stated "Good! Here you go, kiddo" while passing Elsa the gift. Elsa untied the bow and opened up the box, gaping at the gift inside.

It was a dagger made exactly the same materials as Anna's rapier, and when unsheathed, the blade, that took on a sharp and point frost apparel near the hilt before straightening out like a normal blade, was made of light blue diamonds crafted together. The sheathe was also exactly the same as Anna's.

However, what also was inside the case was a pure silver arrow, with detailed engravings on the ice-like arrowhead, and the fletching, which was also made of silver, was in the design of snowflakes instead of feathers. She stared up at Pyra and she told the young princess "It's only fair to give you weaponry for your birthday if you're learning how to fight with weaponry. Like with Anna's rapier, only use it when the time is dire, or when you're fully capable of fighting. That arrow is only to be used if no other arrows are around, and don't lose it either. And once again, happy birthday, kiddo."

Elsa smiled happily up at Pyra and hugged her, exclaiming "Thank you so much, Pyra!"

Pyra patted her head and murmured back "No problem, kiddo" before moving back and smiling down at the heiresses, saying "Okay, now, just like at Anna's sixth birthday, you're going to have to close your eyes and come outside for a moment, okay?"

Excitedly, the children did as she asked and Pyra lead them outside, walking them down the front steps. Pyra then murmured to the girls "Now, don't call out too loudly, okay?" before standing just behind them with her hand on the small of their backs and said "Open your eyes in one … two … three."

The girls opened their eyes and gasped before awing at the sight before them.

In Arran's arms, who was smiling warmly at the girls, were two white and light grey wolf pups, sleeping calmly in his arms. The girls trotted to the man and the wolves quickly but quietly, and Arran murmured to Elsa "The one in my right arm is Saja, which is your pup" before giving the girl her pup carefully, the young girl cradling her gently. Arran then murmured to Anna "This young boy here is called Ragnor, and he's all yours, Anna." Anna took up Ragnor in her arms and held him gently as well, marvelling at the beautiful pup now resting on her shoulder and chest.

Both of the girls gave Arran a one armed hug and whispered quietly "Thank you, Arran" before showing off their new pets to their parents. While this was happening, Arran held Pyra's hand and snuck away from the family to spend some romantic quality time with his lover.

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Arran and Pyra spent the day walking around town together, sharing chocolate and fruit as they did so, along with playing with the town's children and sitting down in a park, just cuddling each other and basking in each other's presence. They stayed in the park until mid afternoon, getting up from their romantic moment together and Arran lead Pyra to the edge of the forest to the south, where Navar and Elena were waiting for them. Pyra smirked at Arran and teased "You have something planned don't you? Spill the beans!"

Arran shook his head with a cheeky smile and teased back "Uh-uh-uh! That'll ruin the surprise! Come on, lets ride."

They mounted their horses and rode through the forest, climbing up the cliffs which reach around the back of the castle. They raced towards Arran's special place and cheered and laughed as they did so, overtaking each other constantly and showing off from time to time. After about nearly an hour of racing, they finally reached to edge of the forest on the top of the highest peak of the eastern cliffs, directly overlooking the middle of the castle and the town. They both dismounted and Arran walked slowly near the edge, holding Pyra's hand lovingly in his own.

He then turned to her as Pyra started speaking Kageri, the secret language of the Kageran race, which is a language Anna had not been taught yet, but something she taught Arran.

"Do you remember this place?" she asked him curiously.

He gave an internal soft laugh and replied "I do, and that's the reason I brought you here. This was the place where we first met, on the third birthday of Princess Elsa. I ran into you by chance as I rode here, to my thinking place. And there you were, thinking to yourself in deep thought at sunset, sitting down on the edge of that cliff."

Pyra smiled and stated "You were such a shy little boy, fumbling over your words, a new recruit in the Arendelle military, while I was a squire, catching a breath from the birthday celebrations."

He smiled lovingly into her own eyes and added "When I saw you turn around, I thought that I walked into a dream, a blissful dream that wouldn't go away, no matter how hard I tried. You were just too beautiful inside and out for me then, and the same even now, perhaps even more so nowadays. I didn't want you to leave, so I let myself speak before I thunk, and I ended up a bumbling mess, and you couldn't help but giggle at my attempts to ask you for a date."

Pyra rested her forehead against his and stated "What could I say: it was cute, as well as funny."

"Hey!" he exclaimed jokingly, both of them laughing softly together in their soft embrace. Arran then said to her softly "I was so convinced that you were my true love, my own soul mate, that I swore that on this day, after the right amount of time, I would ask you the question I'm asking now."

He got down on one knee to Pyra's shock, with his hands clasped around her left hand, and asked her gently and sincerely "Pyra Jeane Kageria … will you marry me?"

She smiled with tears in her eyes and murmured back sincerely "Arran Jarl Bronstad … I will!"

He smiled brilliantly, showing his pearl white teeth, and slid a ring he previously kept on a hidden silver necklace on her left ring finger, the ring being gold with a red ruby in the shape of the sun in the middle with three small diamonds on either side framing the sun's rays. He then slid a gold band onto his own left ring finger, the stone in the middle being a diamond in the shape of the moon, with three red stars framing either side of it. They then embraced each other passionately and kissed each other just as passionately, their silhouettes framed by the setting sun.

Never, in Pyra's entire life, did she feel more perfect.

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After dancing with each other until night fell, Arran and Pyra rode back to the castle and walked into the castle, hand-in-hand, after taking Navar and Elena back to their stables and made sure that they were fed. They washed up for dinner, Pyra dressed in a formal dark green bodice and sleeveless dress that fell to the floor and didn't poof out too much, with a gold belt around her hips. She wore long, dark green gloves up to her elbow, with her ring over the top of the glove, and topped off the look with a plait running down her back with a dark green bow at the top and a matching ribbon holding the bottom and wore a simple gold necklace with a small emerald pendant around her neck.

Arran on the other hand, wore black formal pants with matching shoes and socks, a white dress shirt tucked into the pants with a royal blue cummerbund around his waist, and a matching cravat around his neck with a darker blue waistcoat over the top. He then put on a black tailcoat over the top and tied his hair back as usual, but then put in his silver sleeper earrings in his ears to balance it out. He pulled on white gloves and put his ring on over the top and left his room, escorting his now-fiancé to the dining room.

The couple reached the dining room doors and waited for Kai to announce their arrival, feeling giddy about their good news. Kai then announced "Introducing Captain Arran Bronstad and Lady Pyra Kageria, Your Majesties" and Arran and Pyra entered the room, regal and poised.

The town had a small festival in celebration for the heiress' birthday, and therefore the whole family was dressed more formally. They smiled as they saw the happily now-engaged couple enter the room, and Arthur noticed their barely veiled happiness and couldn't help but enquire "You both look cheerful and lively tonight. Did something good happen today?"

Pyra sat down on the chair her husband-to-be pulled out for her and clasped her hands regally on the table, replying back "That is for your family to guess tonight, Arthur. But I can assure you, you will be surprised."

He quirked an eyebrow at that and the family eyed the couple as Arran sat down, resting his left hand on the table. Ida then noticed the ring on Arran's hand, and saw another on Pyra's and connected the dots, gasping and exclaiming incredulously "You-You're getting married?!"

Pyra and Arran smiled widely and raised their left hands to the rest of the family, the royals congratulating them and cheering for them happily. Arthur shook hands with Arran and Ida and the girls hugged Pyra, both of them showing them the symbolic rings before chatting about their upcoming married lives as the first course was served.

The wedding was to be in a year's time, and it was to be held in late summer.

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The figure rubbed his or her back and moaned "So much writing … it's making me all stiff!" The figure sighed and rubbed his or her eyes before heading back to work, documenting the lives of the royal family.