Chapter 2 - Awkward Years

Author's Note: Thank you to all of you who are reading along! The beginning of this chapter is a rewrite of chapter 2 of "Of Bows, Foes, and Alcoves," but the second half is completely new. This is also the last time I'll be borrowing from that story, as the two deviate completely from here on out. I hope you're enjoying the story so far!

- 9:21 Dragon -

Four years had passed since the day Nathaniel taught Emilia how to shoot a bow. The Couslands made a long overdue journey to Amaranthine to visit the Howes. Emilia, now fourteen years of age, quickly realized that she and Nathaniel were at a rather odd stage in their lives; he was already a man, yet she was still just a girl. She didn't anticipate spending much time with him during this visit. The young Cousland knew that her betrothed was aware of their arrangement, and she decided it best to allow him to be the one to approach her at this age. She wasn't sure if it was out of respect for his feelings, or hers, and decided it was probably best for both.

Emilia knew Fergus and Nathaniel were busy preparing for the hunt with their fathers, and as much as she wanted to go, her father had already made it clear on the trip over that she was still too young to participate. She tried spending time with Thomas, but it became clear within minutes that she no longer had anything in common with, or any interest in spending time with the boy. He had become quite selfish, and had obviously been horribly spoiled. Turning to the third Howe sibling for entertainment, Emilia spent as much time as she could stand with Delilah before slipping away to find something more interesting than art and embroidery.

Knowing the armory would have plenty of weapons and practice targets, Emilia cleverly snuck in while some guards were distracted and quickly took to the shadows, formulating what she would say to the captain of the guard when she decided to reveal her presence to him. She was impressed with herself for getting this far, and was curious as to how long she could keep the charade up.

"I should have guessed I would find you here, Em," a familiar smooth voice called to her.

Emilia stepped from the shadows and towards her favorite Howe. A smirk began to crawl across her face, and upon catching the guard captain's confused expression, her grin grew even wider.

Nathaniel chuckled at both their responses. "Did you actually think he wouldn't have seen you?"

Emilia's chocolate brown locks had grown considerably in length since the last time Nathaniel had seen her, and she now kept it neatly braided and draped over her left shoulder. She twisted the ends between her fingertips as she responded, "of course he would have - when I decided it was time for him to."

The Howe shook his head and smirked, not the least bit surprised by Emilia's actions. "Let me guess - you were bored with my sister?"

Emilia grabbed two daggers off the rack and gave Nathaniel a simple "yup" in response to his question. Nathaniel didn't pry any further - everyone knew Emilia Cousland was a tomboy; she was lovingly called a "spitfire" by everyone who came to know her. Typical feminine pastimes just weren't the kinds of things she was interested in and never would be.

"Do you actually know what you're doing with those?" Nathaniel inquired, responding instead to her fistful of weaponry.

Emilia rolled her emerald eyes. "Of course I do. I've been taking dueling lessons for three years now." She briefly checked her surroundings and gave a whirlwind flourish with the weapons.

"Some would say your father is an enabler," Nathaniel joked.

"Others would say he knows his daughter," Emilia replied matter-of-factly. "You had better watch your tongue, or else I might have to wipe the floor with you, Nathaniel Howe," she teased.

Nathaniel laughed wholeheartedly. "A fourteen year old girl against a twenty year old man? Not going to happen." He turned and began to walk away.

Emilia's voice stopped him in his tracks. "You're just a chicken." She placed her fists on her hips, the pommel of each dagger resting against her side.

Nathaniel turned to face her, rolling his eyes. "No, I just don't want to get in trouble for hurting Teryn Bryce Cousland's little girl."

"Will you always be such a chick - en." Emilia slowly and purposefully uttered the final two syllables.

Nathaniel sighed. He knew the word always was laced with the insinuation that she would never let him live this down. "Alright, fine, if you're so determined to duel, we shall." Emilia gave him a wicked smile and widened her stance, but Nathaniel held up his hand and added a caveat. "But with modified weapons."

Emilia relaxed her posture and cocked an eyebrow. "Those being?"

"Thomas' wooden toys." The groan of frustration that left Emilia's lips caused him to reflexively chuckle. "Meet me in the back courtyard in ten minutes. I'll bring the supplies." Nathaniel ushered Emilia out of the armory ahead of him. Just as the two were about to part ways, he got one more bit in. "Unless you're chicken."

Emilia's maniacal laughter filled the air of Vigil's Keep. She certainly feared nothing - especially not Nathaniel Howe.

The courtyard was empty save a few guards on patrol. Emilia fiddled with her hair impatiently as she waited for Nathaniel to return; he was taking longer than expected. Chicken, she thought, sure he had backed out of their arrangement.

Just as she stood to leave, the sound of footsteps crunching in the grass caught her attention. She whipped around to see Nathaniel approaching, a handful of wooden weapons in tow as promised. He held out his arms, and Emilia picked two wooden daggers out of the small pile, making note of what was left.

"What kind of nonsense are you up to?" Emilia accused as she pointed out the wooden axe.

Nathaniel stepped back and smiled incredulously. "What? I always dual-wield with an axe and a dagger," he stated matter-of-factly.

"Daddy's boy," Emilia chided jokingly.

Nathaniel chuckled. "Alright, let's get this over with, then." He readied his weapons and widened his stance.

Emilia's lunged at him without warning - the duel was on. Wood clashed against wood as the two fenced gracefully at first, testing the waters of their opponent.

The clatter in the courtyard drew the attention of the guards, and before long, a small crowd of them had gathered to watch. Some cheered on Nathaniel, and others Emilia. Wagers were made as the tiny battle grew more fierce. Neither rogue backed down. Both stepped up their game.

Before long, Rendon and Bryce became aware of the gathering of guards and showed up to see what the fuss was about, finding their children smirking and exhausted as the duel was appearing to near it's end.

"Oh, my dear Emilia," Bryce said with a sigh, shaking his head but grinning all at once.

Emilia stopped for a brief moment to catch her breath and Nathaniel followed suit. Before he could react, the sly little girl somersaulted between his widened stance, popped up behind him, and while standing on her toes, placed one of the wooden daggers to his neck. "I win!" she proclaimed for everyone to hear.

Coins were swiftly exchanged amongst the variety of pleased and disgruntled guards, who then dispersed back to their posts without awaiting orders from the Arl - orders they knew would be delivered harshly if they didn't clear out quickly.

Emilia rushed up to her father and wrapped her arms around his waist, looking up at him affectionately. "Aren't you proud of me, daddy?"

"Yes and no," Bryce responded diplomatically. "I'm proud your skills have developed, but you should know not to pick fights," her father scolded.

"But how do you know Nate didn't start it!?" Emilia retorted.

Bryce gave her a condescending look as he took his daughter's hand and led her away, continuing the lesson she needed to learn in private.

Nathaniel wiped the sweat from his brow as he approached his father, who wore a scowl across his face.

"What?" the younger Howe asked incredulously, continuing to explain without waiting for a response for his father. "It's not like I could tell her 'no.' So I let her win. She's fourteen, I didn't want to hurt her."

"I hope that argument is more convincing to others than it was to me just now." Rendon's rebuke scathed his son's pride, and without further discussion, the arl turned and left Nathaniel standing alone to think.

- 9:22 Dragon -

It was a beautiful, sunny Summerday in Highever - the perfect day for a wedding. Which was rather appropriate because today was, in fact, the day of a wedding in Highever. The scent of peonies permeated throughout the grounds as Emilia, clad in a pale, greyish blue linen gown, took her place in the front row on the groom's side of the aisle. As Fergus stood under the arbor awaiting his bride, Nathaniel accompanied him as his best man, taking his side. And Maker, was he handsome. His dark sapphire tunic complemented that of Fergus' - though Nathaniel's had silver accents instead of the groom's golden. Said accents matched Nathaniel's bright, sparkling silver eyes, drawing Emilia's attention.

The crowd stood as Oriana, Fergus' bride, walked down the aisle, a trail of white satin flowing behind her. Emilia's gaze followed the bride as she gracefully glided towards the groom. The young Cousland's emerald eyes shimmered, full of hope and excitement. These emotions were not for Oriana, but instead Emilia selfishly reflected on her own future with Nathaniel someday. Once the bride made it up to the arbor, Emilia's orbs immediately fixated back on her betrothed. Maker, he's so handsome.

His silver eyes flickered over to her, catching a glimpse her new, somewhat more mature form. He swallowed uncomfortably and moved his focus back to his best friend. Today was Fergus' day. No need to let Emilia get into your head. Though she was beginning to look more like a woman, she was still just a girl, and Nathaniel had absolutely no clue how to act around her these days.

After the ceremony, Nathaniel approached his sister and asked her to try to keep Emilia occupied. Delilah had become more perceptive as of late, and giggled, knowing exactly why her brother asked this favor. She did as he asked, and managed to keep Emilia's attention for much of the afternoon. Nathaniel knew, however, that he couldn't avoid the young lady Cousland the entire day; there was some news that he absolutely had to share with her before he departed.

Emilia knew what Nathaniel was up to. Sicking his sister on me, hrmph. Very well, I'll play along. She was also well aware of the awkwardness of the current situation with her and her betrothed. In an effort to make her guest feel more welcome, Emilia did what was politically correct and spent time with other women. In truth, she just wanted to drag Nathaniel out back and spar, but she knew that wouldn't go over as well as last time. He might even turn her down today. This gathering wasn't about her, after all.

The maid of honor, Oriana's sister, was much closer to Nathaniel in age than Emilia and kept hanging around him during the festivities. Ugh, Emilia rolled her eyes each time she saw the harlot touch his arm. His shoulder. Asked for a dance. Antivans. She naively blamed it on the woman's nationality, not knowing at all if this forwardness was just a quality of one, or many, of the ladies from that foreign nation. Nathaniel was polite enough to her, but kept glancing around. It was obvious to Emilia that he was looking to see if she watching, and, of course, she always was. The perceptive young Cousland could also tell that Nathaniel was uncomfortable, but she wasn't sure exactly why that was. Was it because she watching, or was he genuinely not interested in the woman? Nathaniel was doing well to hide his feelings of discomfort from his new acquaintance, but Emilia knew him well and could see all the evidence. Posture is too straight. Voice is pitched ever so slightly higher. She wouldn't know that, though, he's used that tone the whole time she's been here. He keeps touching the braid behind his ear compulsively. If she was smarter, she would pick up on that.

Finally, the Antivan dared to whisper something in Nathaniel's ear, and Emilia could no longer pretend that her conversation with Delilah mattered. The young Cousland excused herself from her keeper, who giggled just as before when Nathaniel had asked for the favor.

The confident girl made a bee-line across the room to her betrothed, catching the attention of the groom, bride, maid of honor, and best man. Fergus stifled a laugh. Oriana stared at her new sister in-law, unsure of how to react. Oriana's sister gave Emilia a quick glance, but focused her attention instead on playing with Nathaniel's hair, causing Emilia to fume further. The person she was intending to bother was ignoring her; it was the worst kind of insult to Emilia. Nathaniel payed no attention to the Antivan woman's flirtatiousness, but instead smirked at Emilia, likely wondering what the Little Lady Cousland had in store for him. Though petite, she was as tall now as she would ever be. Emilia stopped directly in front of Nathaniel and stared up at him, giving equal consideration to the rival woman that she had received: none. The young Cousland did briefly notice that the Antivan had her hand placed on Nathaniel's shoulder as if he belonged to her.

"We're dancing now, Nate," Emilia announced. It wasn't a question or a request - it was clearly a demand. Fergus shook his head and whispered something to Oriana, who nodded and giggled. Oriana's sister scoffed as Nathaniel stepped closer to Emilia, his lips twisted up into an amused grin. The Antivan woman opened her mouth to contest, but before she could speak, Emilia shut her down. "Oh, I'm sorry, did you think he was available? He's just being nice. I'm his fiancee, you know."

Oriana's sister turned bright red as Fergus erupted in laughter. She turned away, embarrassed, and muttered something to the bride. Nathaniel shook his head as he followed Emilia onto the dance floor.

"Must you always cause a scene?" he asked facetiously, offering his hand to begin the dance.

"Must you always flirt with attractive women in front of me?" Emilia shot back, taking her position as the dance started.

Nathaniel circled Emilia their palms together. "That wasn't flirting. That was dodging. Your brother was trying to 'set me up with someone my own age for one night.' Blame him."

Emilia's narrowed her intense viridian eyes and peered directly into Nathaniel's. "Oh, I will."

After a a few more moves in the dance, Nathaniel spoke up again. "I won't do anything with her, you know."

Wit being her sharpest skill, Emilia replied in time with the music, not missing a single beat. "That may or may not have been true before I came over, but it certainly is now." Nathaniel chuckled softly and slowly spun her, as was appropriate in the dance. When their eyes met again, Emilia continued to speak. "Though, jealous as I am, I could hardly blame you. You're spending your ample youth all pent up due to having a fiancee who is too young for you."

Nathaniel coughed and laughed uncomfortably. "Thanks for pointing that out, dear."

"Anytime," Emilia grinned.

This time it was his wit that was prepared for a rebuttal. "How is it you can be so tactful and coercive in some conversations, yet so unbearably blunt in others?"

"It's a gift," Emilia shrugged. The two continued to dance in uneasy silence until it ended. The young Cousland curtseyed, as was proper, and then addressed Nathaniel again. "You can go back to the rather forward Antivan woman now if you want."

"I think I have enough forward women in my life, thank you very much," Nathaniel retorted, walking at Emilia's side off the dance floor. "Plus, there's something I need to tell you." The pair stopped and turned to face each other. Emilia's widened eyes, heightened brow, and gesture with her hand told Nathaniel to elaborate. He sighed. "My parents have decided that since I'm to be arl, I need proper training. They're squiring me to a cousin of my mother's, Ser Rodolphe. He lives up in the Free Marches, just south of Starhaven."

Emilia blinked. This was interesting news indeed. "For how long?" she inquired.

"Five years, or, as father says, perhaps longer if I'm a slow learner."

"Which you're not," Emilia asserted, giving him a subtle, yet somehow also blunt compliment. She smiled warmly and softened her tone. "At least by then, I'll be all grown up." She tilted her head to the side slightly, placing her delicate hand under her chin. "Perhaps this is for the best."

"What a surprisingly mature reaction," Nathaniel replied with sarcastic shock, fully expecting the slap on the arm he received for the quip. His deep voice chuckled heartily. "It's the first thing my parents have agreed upon in years, and I'll be a better arl in the future for it." Fergus waved Nathaniel back over to him. "I better go. Catch you later, Em." He bowed his head slightly and returned to the bride and groom.

Emilia let the news sink in and wandered back over to Delilah. For the remainder of the reception, the young Cousland attempted to keep herself distracted, trying to forget the fact that after that night, she wouldn't see her best friend for at least another five years.

Unfortunately, she didn't get another chance to speak with Nathaniel before he left.

A/N: Poor Emilia, wise beyond her years and all ready to be all grown up. I promise - she does considerably in the next chapter, which is lots of letter-writing fluff. :)