chapter three

─── training and warnings

           𝔖pinning, I swept my leg out, taking down my training partner as I pointed the sword at his neck.

"Fail," I muttered, causing the guard to growl. He tried to swoop upwards, aiming a dagger at me, but I whacked it from his hand, stepping onto his knee as he whimpered and stopped. "Your reaction time is sloppy. Your moves are faulty and you lack precision and proper forethought. In a fight, you'd be dead in seconds. Now, get out of my sight. Come back when you're better than whatever this is."

He got up, hurrying away from me, as I sighed. Reaching down, I picked up one of my daggers, sheathing it again, only to come face to face with the Shadowsinger. Azriel held my dagger out for me, his lips quirking upwards in what must have been his attempt at a smile.

"You fight." He stated. I tilted my head, taking the dagger from his hand and sheathing it, becoming well aware of the fact that I was only in training leggings and armour. This interaction was highly inappropriate, and I took a deep breath, wondering if someone was watching. I didn't need any more eyes on me. "Where did you learn?"

"The Hewn City," I stabbed my sword into the dirt, shrugging. Grabbing my water bottle, I took a few sips before continuing to explain. "Rhysand went to the Illyrian War Camps, I went to the Hewn City."

"I've never seen their fighting style before," Azriel mused, hands holding onto sword as he watched me with those eyes that seemed to cut straight through me. "Perhaps you could show me?"

"I could," I said, before realising what I had agreed to. Azriel smiled, nodding his head. He tugged his shirt over his head, pulling a long blade from a sheath on his waist and I cursed, turning away. I didn't know he'd be half-naked to do so! "Fine, let's fight."

"You do have to turn around to fight me," I spat to the side, before turning around and spinning my sword around my wrist as I tried not to get distracted by Azriel. My mate was all sharp angles and harsh lines, from the line of his jaw, the definition of his chest, to the two deep V-lines that lead down to his trousers. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing, a smirk on his face, as I tried to avert my gaze from his chest, shadows circling around his hand. It was like he had turned up here for the pure reason of trying to get a rise from me.

I would not let him distract me.

"Are you ready?" He asked, his tone cheeky as I narrowed my eyes at the smirk on his face. I'd wipe that straight off him.

"Are you?" Azriel raised his hand in a come hither motion, and I took the opportunity, rushing towards him to slam my blade into his. He thought he could rile me up by being shirtless and training with me.

He was absolutely right of course, but I wasn't going to let him know that.

Azriel's fighting style was a lot harsher than he let on, often using shadows to appear and disappear, trying to get me off of my feet so that he could pin me. I knew that if he did, it was over for me, because I simply did not have the strength to get a much larger opponent over the top of me.

That didn't mean I was without my own bag of tricks. The perks of being from a family of Daemati meant that I had an annoyingly good ability of predicting his moves as he went to make them. I couldn't break into his mind, as that would take far too much time, and cause me a significant migraine, but prediction? I could do that easily.

"Just like Rhys," Azriel backed off momentarily, sweat glowing on his skin as I pushed my hair from my face. I tried not to let my eyes drift from the half-smirk on his face, or the way his tongue flicked out to lick his lips. "Daemati."

He crooned the word at me, as if I was a cat, and my soul purred in response before I smacked it back down again and winked at him.

"I'm not without my bag of tricks," I grinned, before rushing him again, dropping my sword to grab my dagger. We exchanged blows, going back and forth as I threw my dagger between my hand and slashed at any exposed skin I could see. Azriel jumped back again, before bringing his arm down on my dagger hand, grabbing me into a lock and throwing me over his shoulder.

I lay winded momentarily, before spinning and taking his legs out as he laughed at his supposed victory. He groaned, before I caught both of his arms, pinning them with my feet, and pulling my final dagger free to press to his throat.

A smirk formed on my face, electricity coursing through me as I took deep breaths of air, trying to bring some life back to my battered body.

"I win." I gloated, leaning closer to his face as I tried to regain some air. I took that moment to tilt his head further back, pressing my dagger a little closer, waiting for him to gulp or flinch back, but he didn't.

"So you did," Azriel muttered, his eyes darkening as he lay beneath me. It took me a moment to realize the position we were in, with me straddling his chest and pinning him beneath me, both of us hot and sweaty. That was not going to look good if anyone was watching.

A form of slight paranoia set in, the feeling of eyes burning into my skin as I pushed myself up and off of him, sheathing my dagger. Looking around, I tried to find the eyes that I felt on me. Azriel leant up on his forearms, watching me with those same dark eyes that I knew were going to be the death of me.

"We should talk-" He muttered, but was cut off by someone emerging from the corridors.

"Maiya!" I froze, tensing up an instance as I spotted my mother. Her eyebrows were furrowed, a glint in her eyes that promised an argument, and I sighed, before grabbing my sword and dagger. Leaving Azriel behind me, I turned and walked towards my mother, brushing past her and down the corridor. I knew there had been eyes on me.

"What do you think you're doing?" My mother hissed, catching my elbow and pulling me to a stop before I could completely disappear.

"Sparring, what does it look like?"

"It looked like something entirely different," She stated in response, looking around as she lowered her voice. "You need to be careful, your father is-"

"My father always sees things that aren't there regardless of what I do. I was training, and he expects me to keep my levels up," I yanked my arm free of her, "and you don't get to come back here and act like my mother after leaving for twelve years!"

"Maiya, I'm trying to help. I'm trying to make sure that nothing happens to you," She pleaded, stopping me once more, her arms outstretched. "I just want to make sure you're safe."

"I don't want your help," I glared at her, shaking my head as I walked away. We didn't need to have a full blown argument now as it wouldn't help anyone. "I don't need it. I'm more than capable of looking after myself."

"That's not true," I turned around, storming back to her and towering over my mother as I glared. She paled, stepping back and flinching as anger seemed to take over my body. It was like a cloud of red over my eyes.

"You took Rhysand and went to the War Camps and left me here with my father," I prodded her in the chest, clenching and unclenching my fist as I tried to keep myself together. "I've been training in the Hewn City since you left, I don't need your help anymore and I am more than capable of looking after myself. I've been doing it for the past twelve years!"

"Maiya-"

"No. I needed you when I was eight. I don't need you now." I glared again, before storming back up to my room. I brushed past guards and servants, my temper foul. As I reached my room, I unbuckled my armour, throwing it to the corner of my room along with my weapons, my hands trembling with rage. 

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself as I recognized my father's temper and cruel streak inside of me, trying to push it back down. There was a quiet knock at my door, and I pushed my hair back, trying to seem more composed, before turning to open it.

No one could see me so unhinged, so like my father.

∘☽༓☾∘

Hiya,

Long time no see, but here's another chapter. Azriel and Maiya are just very tense around each other and I'm actually pretty hyped for the next chapter because we're getting a very fun conversation. Maiya doesn't have a great relationship with her parents and that's about it.

Let me know what you think,

Love Li xx