Hey! I got my cousins, who Alexa and Lianna are based off of right next to me. They're making it hard to type.
Lianna: Hey!
Grace
"How are we supposed to find her true love?" I growled, slicing deftly at a straw dummy.
"I have not an inkling," Kelsey sighed, embroidering something on a rock nearby.
"Jack's still protecting Lisette, right?" I asked.
Just then, we all heard a clang of metal.
"Lisette! Stop immediately!" I heard Jack yell.
Alarmed, we all ran to where Jack was fending off Lisette, who had broken free from her trunk-bound prison. He had barely deflected her blow, while she tried to kill her captor. We tried to rush to her side, but Lisette snapped out her free hand, and we were pushed back.
"Prince Jackson, fend her off!" Kelsey screamed.
"I can't!" Jack wailed, falling on his back.
"YOU CANNOT DEFEAT ME!"Lisette's voice boomed. It sounded like multiple people instead of hers.
Just as Lisette was about to deal the final blow, she was intercepted.
By an arrow.
"Who in the name of -?" Lisette snarled, but stopped as a lithe, raven-haired boy - or should I say - man - dropping to the ground.
"M-Maybe y-you shouldn't h-have done that," he stammered.
Who is he?
"I'm William," he stared intently into Lisette's eyes.
Well that answers that question.
Kim
We found Bella and our horses, waiting for us. We'd only been out three days, but they'd been able to survive and have gotten stronger.
"Hm... the feed from our stables must not be nutritional enough to help her reach her full potential," Lianna determined.
I rolled my eyes. Lianna is a smart, smart girl.
"So, Rhiamon, are you okay with riding with Lianna?" I asked. Rhiamon nodded, her pretty chestnut hair blowing in the breeze.
"Alright," I smiled as I clumsily climbed onto my horse, a stallion named Marco, who whinnied and seemed to smile at me.
"So where do we go first?" Rhiamon asked excitedly.
"Um..." Lianna pondered, but Brianna spoke up.
"Maybe we should ask an elf," she suggested. "They'll know almost everything, maybe even how to find Jack."
"Anyone object?" Alexa asked teasingly, while no one could make a sound other than a laugh.
"Then let's go," I laughed, snapping my reins, and letting Marco run almost freely.
Kelsey
Jack stared in fear at Lisette, who we strapped to a thick tree. I rolled my eyes.
"Jack! Do you have your pride? Or did you leave it in your chamber when you left on your fairytale adventure? Come to think of it, you haven't slain any dragons to rescue the girl of your dreams, did you not?" I goaded.
Jack narrowed his eyes at me, but got up and walked away.
"Is that Prince Jackson of Birari?" William asked me.
"Yeah, that is," I growled. "I really dislike the man."
"He is a bit too cowardly, even more cowardly than me," William observed.
"Indeed," I smirked, "and he claims he does the things he does because 'he'll do anything to save his love,' or our dear princess Kimberly."
"He is the type of fairytale princes where they are not specifically interesting, just there to give the princess a happy ending. I assume Princess Kimberly has a bit of dislike because of that as well, does she not?" William chattered on.
"Absolutely," I smiled. I like this guy.
Is it possible he could be Lisette's love?
Alexa
I clung to Brianna's horse's mane, my eyes shut tight.
Are you okay? I heard Rhiamon think. We can both read each other's mind, which is nice, knowing you have someone there when you can't really say what you feel.
I'm fine. Just a little scared of horses, I thought back at her.
Well, I don't blame you. They go rather fast, don't they? Rhiamon laughed softly in her thoughts. I could tell she was exhilarated.
You never rode a horse before, haven't you, I thought curiously back.
No. Mother and Father always left me at home when they... went out, Rhiamon's mental voice was unhappy and there was a slight cringe to her thoughts.
Don't fret, Rhia. You can always change your fate. I consoled.
Rhiamon made no other answer.
Lianna
When we camped for the night, approximately 15 miles into the 100 mile long forest, I tried to spar with Alexa. Brianna had stolen a few swords from the Firezi so we could have something better than a knife. I knew I couldn't face Brianna, and Kim was only talented in bow and arrows, so Brianna had to teach her, and Rhiamon... was just too expert at this stuff. So I challenged my little sister.
Never do that.
She managed to parry my every move, however clumsy it was, simply by reading my thoughts. Finally, I decided to shake off my nervousness and focus on Latin literature. I tuned out every thought of Alexa, and focused on the Aeneid, a classic tale.
Alexa was confused, and tried to attack me, which I intercepted. I took a slice towards her neck, which she barely blocked. She tried a forward stab, which I reflected. Finally, I pretended to swipe at her feet, and then curved around to lightly touch her neck.
"Done," I gasped. We fell to the ground, panting.
"That was... so hard," Alexa choked out.
"Hard? Alexa, you were reading my mind!" I exclaimed, gasping for breath.
"Not at the last part. You managed to block me out," Alexa shook her head. Rhiamon came over, her face thoughtful and amused.
"Alexa, you should rely less on reading people's thoughts. If they block you out, then you'll be dragon meat," Rhiamon corrected gently before turning to me and saying, "And Lianna, your skills are decent. Just practice them so they'll be smoother, and less noticeable."
After nodding my thanks, Kim came over. "Dinner's ready," she smiled before walking back towards the fire, where a hunk of meat roasted over the roaring fire. A small metal pot was right next to it, and in it was...
"Stew?" Alexa crinkled her nose in confusion.
"Yes. Rhiamon taught me how to do a simple stew. It's just meat, any herbs she could identify, and a bit of salt Rhiamon nicked from her home," Kim chattered eagerly.
"Where'd you get meat?" Rhiamon asked.
"I shot a deer earlier," Kim shrugged nonchalantly, turning the spit so the deer could cook evenly. Only when she looked up, did she see our stunned expressions: Rhiamon and Alexa, who had been combing each other's hair, froze, Brianna had almost dropped her meal, and I gawked at her from my place collecting firewood.
"What?" Kim kept whipping her head to quickly glance at all of us.
"Well... everything in the Birari Woods is enhanced. They're stronger and faster due to the magical properties within the kingdom. Deer are especially enhanced. They're the fastest and most lithe creatures in the whole of the forest," I explained, "and most royals, or anyone who's not an expertly skilled huntsman, and catch one, let alone shoot one."
Kim gulped. "Um... I owe you an explanation."
This is so much of a filler chapter. I just haven't got a good idea on how to continue.