The Doll walked to the training grounds with Lila and Malina, who had so far kept true to her word about not letting The Doll out of her sight. Throughout the entirety of Magic Theory The Doll felt Malina's gaze on her, making it rather hard to focus on the lesson.
Adding onto this distraction was Lila, who had been staring at The Doll with a strange mix of worry, fascination, and pity after Malina told her about The Doll's inability to use magic. Unfortunately, The Doll didn't have the time to properly explain the situation to Lila, but she supposed that she also hadn't discussed it with Malina either.
The Doll would have to talk to them later.
Despite these distractions, The Doll had managed to make it through the class and was now heading to swordplay, her last class before the end of academy lessons and the start of her private lessons. The Doll also still had to arrange her meeting with Cecilia, a task that she would hopefully be able to do in this class.
The Doll figured that if there was a time Malina would pay less attention to her, it would be during swordplay lessons, where she would be forced to pair with Lila. It was possible Malina would attempt to make The Doll her partner today. However, given the enjoyment Malina got from teasing Lila and the ease of the practice, this seemed unlikely, especially given Malina's exhaustion.
As the three reached close to the rest of the class The Doll could see that they had already paired off into the typical groups. The Doll scanned the scattered pairs, her eyes eventually landing on Cecilia, who was currently sitting out in a group of three that was likely caused by Lukaz’s absence.
Lukaz's former partner was a boy with dark hair, light eyes, and skin nearly as pale as Malina's. He was sparring before the class officially started with a girl whose hair The Doll believed to be red. Her pale skin matched The Doll's, with freckles adorning nearly all of the visible skin on her body.
If The Doll recalled correctly, these two were Icar Hebra, the son of the current Master of the Sword who was evidently skilled with the sword, and Tanieth Gratus, who was very evidently not so skilled. She wasn't nearly as bad as The Doll but was unskilled enough that it was clearly frustrating, Icar. It seemed Icar would be much happier with a skilled partner like Richard.
This would work in The Doll’s favor.
Looking away from Cecilia before she could notice The Doll looked towards Richard, who was already walking towards her, Lila, and Malina with two wooden swords in one of his hands. With each step he took towards The Doll she felt Malina's grip on her hand tighten. Turning towards Malina The Doll gave her best attempt at a reassuring smile, hoping it would calm her before she turned back to face Richard.
When Richard reached the three of them, he gave a friendly wave with his free hand and warm smile before looking down at Malina holding The Doll’s hand. When he looked at the sight The Doll noticed his typical warm expression briefly be replaced with a slight amount of disapproval. The Doll found this reaction to be rather peculiar, considering that it was far from uncommon for Malina to hold The Doll’s hand in public, a fact even The Doll herself had come to accept.
From the corner of her eyes The Doll saw Lila give a shy wave in response as Richard said, "I've come to collect my partner.” Nodding, The Doll attempted to let go of Malina's hand only to be met by her refusal.
Before The Doll could say anything, Malina responded to Richard, “And what if I don't want to give you your partner?” The Doll noticed Malina add a clear mocking tone to the words “your partner.”
It was clear that Malina would escalate this to an argument if The Doll didn't intervene, so to avoid the waste of time The Doll turned to face Malina and said, “It's only for one hour.” The Doll gave her best reassuring tone before looking to Lila and adding on. “You also get to practice with Lila.” Lila flinched slightly at this but gave her best confident smile.
Noticing that Malina still seemed reluctant to let go The Doll squeezed her hand for a moment to reassure her before loosening again. After a moment of indecision Malina reluctantly let go of The Dolls hand allowing her to walk towards Richard while she grabbed Lila by the hand, clearly waiting to find a spot near where The Doll would practice.
Smiling wider as The Doll approached, Richard said, “Well, let's find somewhere before Jilkan informs us of what we’re doing today.” Richard looked at The Doll after saying this, waiting for her to give some form of confirmation.
Nodding in confirmation The Doll allowed Richard to start walking before maneuvering herself to walk right next to him. The Doll lowered her voice to a level that Malina, who was following the two of them, couldn't hear and said, “I need you to partner with Icar and Tanieth.” Given Richard’s generally kind attitude The Doll figured that he might just do what she said because she asked him to.
Matching The Doll’s quiet tone, Richard continued to look forward and asked, “Why do you need me to do that?” Richard's voice held an air of genuine questioning rather than the teasing tone The Doll would typically hear from Malina.
It seemed The Doll would have to give a genuine reason that would convince Richard; fortunately, this was something she had planned for. Looking down, The Doll sighed. “Icar just doesn't look very happy sparring with Tanieth, and she could clearly use a break. Maybe even someone to guide her until Lukaz gets back and Cecilia can partner with her again.” The Doll said, attempting to play on Richard’s kindness.
Richard paused for a moment to look over towards the group of three before saying, “You may be right, Ashencroft; good catch.” Richard looked back forward and continued walking after saying this, having made his decision.
The Doll did a silent celebration upon hearing this.
Still looking down as she walked The Doll said, “But we need a reason for Jilkan to agree; he's been adamant on you teaching me swordplay.” The Doll knew Jilkan held some form of favoritism for Richard, so she found it likely he would suggest something.
Not even taking a moment to think, Richard smiled before saying, “Don't worry, I’ll handle that; Jilkan will listen to me.” Richard’s voice was completely confident as he spoke.
The Doll looked up after Richard said this and suppressed a smile. This had gone better than The Doll expected; it almost made her feel proud. But The Doll knew that she didn't deserve to feel proud about anything she did. Being proud was a luxury she didn't deserve and something that would only serve to distract her.
Continuing to follow Richard, the two reached an empty space in the training grounds before he handed The Doll one of his two practice swords. The Doll reached out and grabbed the sword by its hilt, the weight still feeling odd in her hand despite the week of practice she already had. Richard consistently told her that The Doll’s progress was typical for somebody who had never wielded a sword, but she knew he was lying.
Seeing that everybody had gotten into an adequate place, Jilkan walked to the middle of the training grounds and clapped to get everybody’s attention, his large frame exemplifying the power of his clap. When presumably all eyes were on Jilkan, he opened his mouth to speak before Richard raised his hand.
Noticing Richard’s hand The Doll saw Jilkan’s commanding expression flick over to the two of them as he pointed at Richard. "What's the problem, Richard?” The Doll noticed how Jilkan didn't drop his stern voice as he spoke despite no longer speaking to the entire class.
Richard allowed his hand to drop to his side as he replied, “Given the absence of unfortunate Zephyr, making for uneven groups, I believe that today we should simply do free sparring.” Attempting to keep her composure The Doll felt uncomfortable at the idea of free sparring considering her current skill level but decided to trust Richard.
Unmoving, Jilkan narrowed his eyes at The Doll and said, “I don't believe these pairs are ideal for free sparring, at least not yet.” The Doll looked over to Richard, waiting to see how he would spin this in her favor.
Without wasting a moment for thought Richard immediately said, “I believe that Ashencroft could benefit from sparring with Lady Umbra rather than simply receiving constant lessons.” After saying this, Richard looked over to the group of three and added on, “I also think that Lady Gratus would benefit most from watching me and Herba spar with each other.” The Doll nodded along as Richard said this to inaudibly support his claim.
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Tanieth looked over to Richard and smiled gratefully, clearly not wanting to spar with Icar, whilst Icar looked over to Richard and intensified his gaze. While the other two looked at Richard, The Doll felt Cecilias' gaze intensify on her as if she knew The Doll was up to something.
Not wanting to meet Cecilia's gaze The Doll turned away from the group and focused back on Jilkan, who was poorly masking his shock at what Richard suggested. The Doll wondered why this suggestion would make Jilkan so shocked but had no time to dwell on it as Jilkan began to speak, “Given the circumstances, I can agree to this suggestion.” This had gone better than The Doll could have expected.
With Jilkan’s approval, Richard started to walk over to Icar and Tanieth while Cecilia walked towards The Doll. The Doll turned around momentarily to gauge Malina's and Lila's reaction. As The Doll expected, Malina was very evidently seething with anger as she watched Cecilia walk towards them. To reassure Malina, The Doll gave her a quick smile before turning back to face Cecilia.
Fortunately it seemed that at least for now Malina was either too tired to make a scene or simply chose to trust The Doll. Either way, this would likely be one of the only chances The Doll would get to speak with Cecilia one-on-one, so she would have to use it wisely.
Once Cecilia reached The Doll she greeted her with a curtsy and said, “It's an honor to duel with you, Lady Ashencroft.” On the outside it looked as though Cecilia truly respected The Doll. If The Doll didn't know what Cecilia truly thought of her, she may have believed this herself.
Matching Cecilia's curtsy, The Doll simply said, “Indeed.” The Doll kept her voice level and calm, keeping up with the mask that Cecilia was wearing.
Seeing that everybody had partnered up, Jilkan clapped his hands again to get everybody's attention back. “Okay, everybody, we will be lightly sparring with each other—no magic and no attempting to injure your opponent.” Jilkan explained before looking towards Icar and Ricahrd. “I will be watching closely.” After finishing his explanations, Jilkan clapped a final time, signaling for everybody to begin.
Cecilia lowered herself into a stance The Doll wasn't familiar with. Her feet were positioned loosely beneath her, and her sword was held at an angle that The Doll couldn't quite understand. Awkwardly The Doll attempted to mimic the stance that Richard had taught her, knowing that she wasn't doing it correctly but hoping it would signal Cecilia to take it easy.
Seemingly noticing The Dolls incompetence Ceilia moved forward and brought the sword slowly towards The Doll. The Doll attempted to move quickly to block it but realized she didn't even have to as Cecilia aimed for The Dolls sword rather than her.
Allowing the two swords to clash with a thud, Cecilia moved close to The Doll and asked, “What do you want, Ashencroft?” It seemed that Cecilia was under no impression her and The Doll were sparring together by chance.
Moving her sword slightly to appear as though she was clashing with Cecilia The Doll responded, “I need to speak with you about them.” The Doll kept her words purposefully vague, not wanting to give away too much to Cecilia.
Cecilia continued to clash with The Doll and said, “Okay, I will pretend to get injured, and we can talk in the hall privately.” After declaring this, Cecilia attempted to disengage from the clash.
The Doll knew that Malina wouldn't let The Doll out of her sight, especially alone with Cecilia, so before Cecilia fully disengaged, The Doll spat out, “No.” The Doll could only hope that the single word would stop Cecilia from committing to her plan.
Rather than pretending to be injured, Cecilia began to criticize The Doll as if sizing her up. In order to keep up appearances The Doll did her best to match Cecilia's movement, well aware that her footwork was noticeably worse.
Once an appropriate amount of time had passed, Cecilia moved forward once again with a slow swing that was intended to be blocked. “Why?” Cecilia asked before pulling the sword away, going for another performative swing.
The Doll didn't answer immediately; instead, she brought her sword up to block Cecilia's swing, intending to use the sparring as an excuse to gather her thoughts. Cecilia, however, didn't allow for this as she continued doing performative swings, not allowing The Doll a moment of rest until she answered her question.
Knowing that she could keep this up for at least a bit The Doll thought about what the proper answer would be here.
Thud, the swords met in the air briefly before pulling away.
Directly telling Cecilia about Malina's words could end poorly considering Cecilia's status as a pillar.
Thud, the swords clashed against each other again.
But under the current circumstances The Doll couldn't think of a proper lie that would convince somebody like Cecilia.
Thud, thud, thud.
The speed of Cecilia’s swings began to increase, likely because she noticed that The Doll was thinking too long. Doing her best to keep up The Doll continued to attempt to formulate what the right answer could be but…
Thud, thud, thud, thud.
With the increased speed of Cecilia’s swings, The Doll could barely keep up, let alone formulate proper thoughts, so instead she simply gasped out, “Malina.” The single word was far from informative, but all The Doll could manage in between swings and as The Doll hoped was more than enough to cause Cecilia to enter another clash.
Taking this clash as a moment to rest The Doll began breathing heavily while Cecilia spoke, “I understand Malina has a strange attraction to you, but that didn't stop you from meeting with me last week.” She looked up to meet The Doll’s eyes and asked, "What's changed?” The obviously probing nature of the question was meant to take advantage of The Doll’s tired state.
Taking a moment to collect herself The Doll began speaking, “Malina already knows I'm not skilled with a sword like everyone else does.” As The Doll spoke, she began formulating the half-truth in her head, “Me injuring you would make her suspicious, and given she already doesn't like you, she wouldn't let the two of us leave together.” Considering Cecilia needed to keep her status as a pillar secret from Malina, any form of suspicion should naturally deter her from going through with that original plan.
This also wasn't entirely a lie The Doll just chose to omit the fact that Malina had kissed The Doll. The Doll not telling Cecilia of this would mean that she wouldn't have to inform the king, and The Doll would be able to discuss what she actually wanted to talk about here.
Cecilia loosened up her pressure on the clash for a moment as she thought about this, allowing The Doll even more time to rest. Finished considering, Cecilia nodded and said, “That makes enough sense.” Cecilia pulled away after saying this to enter another exchange that would likely exhaust The Doll.
Not wanting to allow this The Doll pulled her sword down in a way that would momentarily stop Cecilia in order to say something that would get her attention. The Doll couldn't ask about the strings on her wrist with Cecilia's already present suspicion of her that would end badly, so instead she asked, “Why would one of them protect me?” The Doll found it unlikely. The Strings was a beast after recent developments, but it was still the closest thing The Doll could compare it to.
The Doll also found it likely that asking this would pique Cecilia's interest.
Following The Doll's hopes, Cecilia paused and asked, “What do you mean?” Cecilia's face betrayed a hint of fear for reasons The Doll couldn't decipher.
Choosing her next words carefully The Doll said, “If I were in distress and one of those things tried to protect me, what would it mean?” The Doll tried her best to talk without revealing the fact that she couldn't actually see beasts like Cecilia could.
Cecilia pushed slightly harder on the blade in the clash and said, “That would mean one of them found out you can see it, and if that's the case…” Cecilia allowed her voice to trail off as she pushed harder against The Doll’s blade.
Struggling to push against Cecilia's strength The Doll managed to ask through gritted teeth, “If that's the case, what?” The Doll repositioned her feet, hoping it would help stabilize her as Cecila pushed.
Not answering The Doll’s question, Cecilia asked, “Who did it protect you from? Was it the headmaster?” Cecilia didn't let up on The Doll as she spoke; instead, she further increased the amount of pressure she used.
How did Cecilia know the headmaster was the one who the strings protected her from?
Was it because The Doll had left to visit the headmaster earlier today?
If that was the case, that would mean Cecilia suspected the headmaster was capable of hurting The Doll. But the headmaster was trusted enough by the crown to establish a noble academy, so why would a pillar assume he would ever hurt a student?
It may have to do with the crown knowing that the headmaster was withholding information from them about how magic worked. But that would mean the headmaster wouldn't be trusted to continue operating at Dreadwood.
There were simply too many unknowns for The Doll to make a concrete answer; right now she would have to give Cecilia more information.
Unable to keep holding out against Cecilia The Doll allowed the sword she was holding to fall to the ground, causing Cecilia to stumble forward from the amount of pressure she had been using. In between heavy breaths The Doll managed to get out the simple confirmation of “Yes.” The words caused Cecilia's eyes to widen slightly—not a major tell for most people, but for a pillar like Cecilia, an immense sign of fear.
The Doll wanted to press this advantage in order to get more information from Cecilia while she was off guard. But before The Doll could get the words out, a loud scream of pain echoed throughout the training grounds.
Turning around to the source The Doll saw Richard on the ground with his arm bent in an unnatural position while Icar stood over him. Jilkan moved immediately, running towards the scene while the rest of the class, with the exception of Lila and Malina, formed a circle around him.
Attempting to disregard the sight The Doll turned back to Cecilia.
But when she looked back, Cecilia was already gone.