Thain was still gone when I woke up, and the others were either gone or still asleep. Someone had built up the fire. This was the first morning I had not been on the move since leaving the cabin and I didn't know what to do with myself. After some time I settled into old habits. I made myself useful. I made bread. A light rain pattered on the roof while I kneaded dough.

The shelves by the hearth contained everything I needed. Finer flour than I had ever used before lined the bottom shelf in sacks. Jars of herbs in every rainbow nature could grow seduced me until I had smelled each one of them twice. Several plump duck eggs sat in a bowl, ready to use.

Once I had three loaves rising in the window, I took my axe and a rope and left. Opening the door revealed an icing of fog that clung to the valleys between round mountain peaks. Bright drops from the sky misted my face where my cloak didn't cover it. I walked a little ways into the trees before I settled on an untouched copse of pine and oak.

I gathered what large branches I could find that weren't too wet yet, and began cutting dead limbs from the trees. The rhythm of the axe was music to me, and I sang one of the old mountain tunes Bryn would hum as we worked. The damp leaves and singing birds tickled my senses, putting me at ease after last night. I could smell walnuts nearby, and I noted my location so I would be able to gather some before we left. The misty rain didn't stop until I had tied my bundle and started the walk back.

Fog still clung to the edges of the mountains but because of how high up we were the yard was clear and sunny. Even from a distance I could see Schula at her post again. She was striking it with fist and boot in precise jabs. Her strength was astounding. Somehow her lithe frame was more threatening than either Thain or Eberon had been.

I looked down to my side. The rough handle of my axe weighed heavy in my hand. It did nothing against Thain. It would do nothing against any of them. Not that I thought I needed it here, with them, but the wraith...

I entered the yard and Schula nodded at me before continuing her exercise. Her chest heaved, drawing in air. Sweat glistened on her pale skin. How she hadn't already broken the post I wasn't sure, unless she was holding back.

I untied the branches and let them roll out on the yard. When they dried fully I would cut them for the fire. I gathered my rope and my thoughts as my heart pounded. I couldn't get Schula's exercise out of my head since yesterday. It was time to do something about it.

I approached the corner of the yard where the white fae jabbed at her post. She didn't pause for me, she just continued in a trance. I sat on the cool ground, catching my breath and watching. Everything was a pattern. Left hand, right hand, left foot, right foot. Again. Now reverse the order. Now again. I watched for some time, in the same trance she was in performing the motions I was entranced watching them.

In a heartbeat, so quickly I didn't register at first, she stopped. The only motion that remained was the rise and fall of her chest, hungry for air. She walked over to a water skin hanging on a fence post and drained it. She then turned and settled her icy eyes on me, sending a chill down my spine. "Did you need me for something?"

"Oh, I didn't mean to disturb you." I mumbled and swallowed my nerves. "I mean, when you aren't busy sometime could you teach me how to do that?""How to hit a wooden pole in the ground?" Her eyes danced in amusement. "Yes, I could show you the basics. Why the interest?"

"I'm weak. I never thought I was before, but I am. I guess for a human I wasn't. But now that I'm going to the fae Wyldes I don't want to be left vulnerable." I said.

"So you want to protect yourself, is that it?" She looked at my arms and measured me with her eyes. Height, weight, and any muscle tone I carried.

"I just, hate to rely on others," I started. "Not that Thain hasn't been an outstanding warrior, but the only one I can guarantee to be with me at all times is... me."

"Well put, Wren." She smiled and approached me. "I am glad to show you a few things. I train my body, but not in weapons. A solid body is the foundation of any form of self defense, and an excellent place to start. If you would like to go beyond that at any point, I can introduce you to those who know weapons."

"I would love to learn from you." I rubbed a threatening tear from my eye with the heel of my palm.

"We've barely met, but I can already feel an inner strength from you." Schula stood, arms crossed. "I can't promise you'll be as strong as a full blooded fae, but I can at least teach you enough to get by. And that inner strength is what will help you through your training, if you're serious about it."

"Thank you." I smiled.

"That's unexpected." I jumped at Thain's voice to our side.I threw a hand over my pounding heart as my eyes popped wide open. He had snuck up on me! 

My hearing had always told me when someone approached back home. I can see now that would not be the case with the fae.

"You big oaf!" Schula snapped. "You've frightened her right out of her skin."

"I didn't mean to startle you," he said. "I came out for the fresh air actually, when I saw you both out here."

"Did you find anything on the wards?" Schula asked quietly.

"No nothing like that. I can't even see where the barrier is failing us, but things are definitely slipping through somehow." Thain scratched his neck. "I can't find the problem, so I guess we report it and move on."

Schula nodded, then turned to me. "We start tomorrow. I'm going to go clean up."

I watched her elegant stride as she retreated to the warm outpost. She overflowed with confidence and it showed in her every movement. Maybe if I was more like Schula I wouldn't worry so much about what in the Wyldes could kill me.

Thain shifted his weight next to me, a subtle reminder that he was still here.

"For what it's worth, you would do well with an axe made for fighting." Thain told me. "It would be a familiar weight in your hand, and I know you've built up the right muscles for it. Schula's a good teacher; she will start you off right."

He went back into the house, leaving me to the cool air and my thoughts. Glancing at the pile of branches, I walked to them and began to cut pieces for the fire. Tomorrow I may not have the strength.

I spent the day mostly in solitude. I cut wood. I reflected on what I wanted and how I needed to change in order to make that happen. I collected nuts, and I cleaned my tools.

When I felt I couldn't be any more prepared for the next day, I slept.

~

I woke with first light and scrubbed my face. I put on my most worn tunic and breeches, and opened my door. Schula was leaning on the rail outside my room, a handful of clothes in her arms.

"Are you ready to start?" She asked.

"I believe so." I replied.

"Alright, back to your room then." She pushed off the rail and stalked towards me. "We start with clothing."

"Will mine not work?" I was pushed into my own room and she closed the door behind us.

"We train my way, and in my training clothes. I need to see two things first anyway." Schula laid a shirt on the bed, and tight-legged pants. "First, I hope you're not shy because I'd like to see what shape your core is in. Would you take off your tunic?"

"My, w-what?" I stammered. "Do we need to?"

"It would certainly make my job easier." She raised an eyebrow. "Do you have some appendage I don't have that you don't want me seeing? A second navel maybe? Or extra limbs?"

"Not exactly. Sort of? It's a little personal." The seal on my back needed to be kept secret until I was somewhere safe with people I trusted. Not that I didn't trust Schula, at least as much as I trusted anyone. But after hiding it for nineteen years I wasn't ready to just, reveal it, was I?

"I promise I won't tell anyone about what I see. A fae's word is her bond. I can't go against that even if I wanted to." She read my face for a moment. "If it's that important to you though, we don't have to do it this way. I can work around it."

"It isn't you, I swear." I swallowed, suddenly warm. "I'm sorry, I'm just not ready."She appraised me in silence before letting out a long breath. Those icy eyes trained on my face.

"We all have our secrets." She said finally. "Can I touch your back through a shirt?"

I nodded.

"Alright. Change into those and meet me in the yard." She slipped from the room quietly.

I didn't want to hurt her feelings, hopefully I hadn't. I slid my tunic off, standing in my breast band and the cool air. Holding up the shirt she left for me, it was going to be big. There were ties on the side that I had no idea what to do with and it was completely open in the front like a coat. 

I put it on and blushed at the sight of me in the mirror. I wrapped it tightly around me, hoping Schula would show me how to keep it closed like she did before we begin. The sleeves, which were cut for the warmer months, still fell to my elbows. The pants were only a little bit too long, but I had to pull the drawstring in quite a bit to get them to stay on my hips.

The fluttering of a bird landed on the roof overhead. I looked outside to find fog clinging to the 

valleys, the sky still grey. I shoved my feet in my boots and went outside.

Schula stood in an open part of the yard, waiting patiently. I approached her cautiously, but any hurt I dealt her was gone or hidden already. It was down to business.

"First, let's fix that." Schula pulled at the ties on my shirt. I hadn't bothered tying them since I wasn't sure what they were for. I simply gripped the open edges of the front of the garment to hold it closed. Schula pulled them taught, walking around me and cinching the fabric in place as she matched the ties on the inside and outside with their proper counterparts to stay closed. When she was done it was completely transformed. It fit my body tightly. She kneeled over and rolled the bottom of the pants up too.

"It's so... clingy." I blushed. Nothing I wore in the mountains hugged my body like this and I was left feeling a bit exposed.

"Loose clothing will only get in the way." She explained.

I looked at her, realizing she wore the same thing I did. It was only her figure that made us appear so different. I squared my shoulders and readied for her instructions.

"Turn around now, I'm going to try to feel what I need to know." She made a spinning gesture with her finger. I obeyed.

Slender fingers crawled across my back. Schula touched me more intimately than anyone had since I was a babe. She pressed, and stretched, and asked me to flex muscles and move my arms. She felt at my sides, my hips, and my neck. She ran a finger over every bone I had, and I 

could feel the coolness of her through the linen. She pressed down on the muscles in my arms and legs. I had felt the touch of magic from Mila, and while this felt different than hers, I was sure Schula was using hers on me. My back itched where my seal was. I wasn't sure if her magic felt it or not, but if so she didn't mention it.

"Well you're core is strong, but you need to eat. I could feel your bones. You're also stiff as a tree, 

we need to stretch you out." That did not sound promising. "You have a bad knot on your neck I'd like to work out if you'll let me. Otherwise we're off to a good start."

"That seemed to be a lot of things wrong with me." I said, touching my neck.

"Did you expect to be a perfect canvas?" She asked.

"I suppose not." I turned to face her. "Where would you like me to start?"

"First, we stretch you out." She grinned, showing off her sharp teeth. It didn't sound pleasant. I swallowed hard, but obeyed.

For the rest of the morning Schula contorted my body. She pulled, and pushed. She made me move in ways I never had before. I didn't so much as look at the pole I had asked to hit yesterday. I suspected my arms would have fallen off if I tried. Schula moved like a cat. She demonstrated every stretch, every pose that she asked me to do, and she made it look as simple as breathing. By the time we were done, even breathing was not something I could do without effort.

"I want you to take a bath, and I want you to stay in there for as long as you can stand it. Or until the water cools off. Either way, soak that body in the hot water. I'll see you at lunch."

"Thank you, Schula." I muttered, and she grinned as she sauntered inside.Eberon and Thain sat at the table, smiling as I dragged my body through the main room. I wanted to make a rude gesture, but I was too tired. I heard Schula close her door upstairs as I entered the room below.

The bath was more marvelous than it had been the last time I used it. It took a while to fill the tub, but since I could reach the pipes from inside I sat on the bench and let it fill from my feet to my collar bone. Once it finally covered me I turned the water off and laid my head back. I hate to admit it, but I fell asleep.