Lady Katherine Harrington of Johanne

11 October, Year 1 of Sebastian VI, Emperor of the Longbournian Nations' reign

Longbourne Military Academy for Women, Amöneburg

The Longbournian Nations

Captain Keitel was nothing short of amazing.

The meeting that she had called up last night regarding Cadet Eichmann's destroyed quarters – and similar issues faced by a few other younger students – had still not ended, even though it was already nearing dawn.

Although a few were still furiously taking down notes, most of the thirty Corporals, Duelling and Archery Mistresses were either close to, or already dozing off on the table. Corporal Baudelaire was even snoring a little on my right, as she slept against the cool, oak surface of the table.

Yet, Captain Keitel stood upright, talking, bursting with energy as usual.

"I need coffee," Corporal Montgomery groaned softly from my other side, gripping her head in her hands, "so badly."

I gazed at her sympathetically through my own half-open eyes. The poor woman had been awake for close to two days now, due to guard duty at the Palace the night before, and this meeting tonight.

I pushed my cup of coffee, that had been served hours ago, towards her. "Here, you can have mine. It has long cooled, though."

"What about you?"

"I do not like coffee," I yawned, rubbing my eyes, "it is too bitter for my taste."

Assured and grateful, she grabbed the cup from me, and gulped it down.

"....and I shall come up with a duty roster by tomorrow for guarding the student dormitories and classrooms at our Academy. Please remember that this is in addition to the duties that may have been assigned to you by the male army officers in charge of Palace security," Captain Keitel was saying, "any questions?"

Corporal Montgomery raised her hand.

"Yes, Corporal?" Captain Keitel pointed to her.

"Please, may we have the morning off from dawn training?" she blinked at her, "ma'am, we are exhausted."

"Hear, hear," the rest of our colleagues murmured.

For the first time during the entire meeting, she looked around at us, truly noting our drawn and tired countenances. After some deliberation, she released a sigh.

"All right, I will cancel dawn training for today, and increase the duration of the evening session," she compromised reluctantly, "but those of you who are teaching the theory lessons at 08 00 hours will still have to report to their classes on time. Am I clear?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

"That will be all, then. You are dismissed."

There was a loud scraping of chairs, as everyone dragged themselves off their seats, eager to reach their soft, warm beds in their sleeping quarters as soon as possible.

In the meanwhile, Corporal Montgomery was shaking Corporal Baudelaire awake. "Arielle. Arielle."

Corporal Baudelaire woke with a start, looking about wildly. "What did I miss?"

"The last three hours of this new day," I chuckled, ruffling her hair, "ma'am has cancelled dawn training, so you can continue sleeping in our chambers. Come, let us go." Corporal Montgomery and I pulled her up to her feet.

She yawned, smiling sleepily. "That is the best news I have heard all day."

We began to walk back to our quarters, crossing the Academy training grounds as we did so. It was still dark, and very much void of all humans.

Except for one.

A girl hung upside down from one of the trees on the Archery mounts, her back facing us, with her legs swung over the branch, and her lithe torso suspended in the air.

I stopped in my tracks, and rubbed my eyes, certain that they were playing tricks on me. Hanging from a tree?

Was that girl even alive?

"Mistress Harrington?" Corporal Baudelaire blinked at me in bewilderment.

I could feel horror rise up my throat, and I was trying to form the words to express myself, when I noticed the girl reach for her quiver of arrows hanging on the branch beside her, and fit it onto her bow.

I heaved a sigh of relief.

"The both of you, please return to your beds first," I bade them softly, "I will be along in a short while."

They simply shrugged, and walked on without me. In the meanwhile, I strode up the archery mount and towards the tree. As I neared her, however, I was better able to see what she was doing.

She had set up a target board at the bottom of the opposite side of the mount, and was trying to practise shooting accurately from where she hung, upside down and in the dark.

Clearly, she loved a challenge. What more, most of her arrows were lodged in the second innermost ring. Impressive.

Even before I had reached the girl, however, her voice broke the tranquil silence of dawn.

"Are you here to get me into trouble?"

I surmised that she was a student here. She was very observant, considering that her back was turned to me, and my footsteps had hardly made a sound against the soft, moist grass.

"Nay, I am not," I remarked quietly.

She stiffened at the sound of my voice. "Are you new?" she queried suspiciously, "who are you? I would have you know that I am armed – "

"Aye, I am new here," I nodded, "and if I had been an intruder, you would be dead by now."

"You wish. You do not stand a chance against me," she snorted in derision, "leave me alone now, I want to practise. And I do not give a damn whether you get me into trouble for this, or nay." With that, she reached for her bow again.

I smiled, amused at her pride and confidence. At that moment, I could have simply turned around and left her to her practice, but I surprised her, and myself.

"May I join you?"

Her posture stiffened in wary defence. "Why?"

"I am in need of practice too," I shrugged, "so may I?"

She hesitated. "The branch may not hold the both of us."

"I shall take my chances."

Realising that she could not be rid of me so easily, she huffed. "Do not say I did not warn you," she muttered, shifting her quiver of arrows to her other side.

I climbed up the tree deftly, and sat down on the branch next to her, before gripping the branch, and allowing myself to fall back such that I was hanging by my knees.

My vision grew hazy for a moment, as all the blood rushed to my head.

"Not so fast," she advised me, tapping my shoulder condescendingly, "you may want to become accustomed to hanging first, before trying to shoot. You can watch me in the meanwhile."

Again, I smiled in amusement, as I gestured to her to go ahead.

She pulled an arrow out of her quiver, and fitted it onto her bow. Her arms were steady, and her gaze focused on the target, as she released her arrow.

As had most of her arrows, this one too, struck the right side of the second innermost ring. She released a huff under her breath in frustration.

"That was very good," I conceded honestly, "let me try my hand now." I reached for my bow.

I fitted an arrow, and concentrated hard, considering the general direction of the wind, the darkness and the morning mist that clouded my vision a little. Moreover, it was extremely difficult holding my bow in such a position, and my own arms narrowed the range that my arrow could travel.

Taking a deep breath, I released it. The arrow struck, straight and true, to the centre of the innermost circle of the target board.

I heard the girl suck in a sharp breath in shock.

"Well, what do you know," I remarked cheerfully, "beginner's luck."

"That is no beginner's luck," she snapped, suspicious once more, "have you been practising this before?"

"Nay, I have not," I grinned, "truly, I have not had the opportunity to try it before today. It is a very creative challenge."

She frowned heavily. "Then how – "

"Please do not be frustrated. Your technique is excellent, and you have a good stance," I assured her, "the only reason why your arrows are not hitting the centre is because you are not factoring in the direction of the wind when you shoot."

"There is no wind here," she argued.

"Stay still and close your eyes."

I waited with her, as she allowed her arms to hang by her sides, and closed her eyes. After a moment, I knew she could feel the soft breeze very gently push the beads of perspiration on her forehead down her cheeks.

She opened her eyes, surprised. "A very, very slight breeze. Eastward," she mused thoughtfully, "it is no wonder most of my arrows landed on the right side of the board."

"Do you want to try again?"

She nodded, with new found energy, and reached for her bow again. This time, her arrow hit her target.

"Excellent," I beamed, applauding.

"Thank you," she muttered reluctantly, before she narrowed her eyes, "you seem rather advanced for someone who is new."

I smiled faintly. "I could say the same about you."

"Indeed you can. I am better than everyone here at archery, and for good reason, too," she conceded it like it was a matter of fact, and held out a hand, "I am Amelie. Amelie Hartmann. And you are?"

I blinked in surprise. Cadet Hartmann? This was the troublesome Cadet who had been raising Corporal Montgomery's ire?

"I am Katherine. It is very nice to meet you," I shook her hand in amusement, "but you may have to address me as Mistress Harrington during training hours. If you choose to attend them, of course."

She went still. "You are an Archery Mistress?"

"Guilty as charged."

She frowned, toying with her bow. "I prefer training alone, Mistress Harrington," she muttered evasively, "in any case, most of the Corporals here do not like me, and think me an unsuitable warrior."

"Your command of archery is excellent no doubt, and I, for one, would love to have you in my classes," I offered her a gentle smile, "but you must realise, it is one thing to be a good archer, but another thing altogether to be a good warrior in an army."

With that, I swung back up to a sitting position on the branch, climbed down the tree, and slipped away, leaving her to her thoughts.

***

"Apfelstrudel?"

My eyes lit up with joy as the kitchen staff served us dessert during dinner that day.

The maid, who had just placed the plate to my right, glanced at me in surprise. "Do you speak German, Mistress Harrington?"

"Oh, nay, Bertha," I beamed, chuckling, "I learnt the name of this dessert when I had it at the Palace a few days ago, and it was wonderful."

She smiled kindly, nodding. "Enjoy your meal, ma'am."

"Thank you, Bertha."

She turned to walk away to the next table, as I smiled to myself. Today had been a wonderful day. I had slept through the rainy morning, spent the rest of the day exploring the Academy's grounds at my own leisure, and was about to end it with Apfelstrudel. I was very happy indeed.

As I picked up my spoon, and glanced down at my plate, however, I found it empty.

I frowned. I swear, it had been steaming with Apfelstrudels a moment ago –

"Corporal Baudelaire," I turned to my left, "did you eat my Apfelstrudels by accident?"

"Nay, I did not," she denied, "I have my own, see?" She held up her plate towards me, which was also empty.

She did a double take, disbelieving. "I swear, I had not even started eating it – "

"Does Corporal Montgomery still have hers?"

We glanced over at the next table to my right, where Corporal Montgomery was happily enjoying her plate of Apfelstrudels.

I chewed on my bottom lip, bewildered. What sort of sorcery was this?

"Mistress Harrington!"

I glanced up at the sound of the deep, familiar voice calling me. Shaking myself out of my thoughts, I noticed Emperor Sebastian striding towards our table, his handsome countenance made alight by the wide beam gracing it, and his twinkling sea-green eyes.

The guards who followed him remained at the double doors of the dining hall.

Everyone around us made move to stand up. "Your Imperial – "

"Nay, nay, please sit, all of you," he bade us good-naturedly, "enjoy your dinner."

The rest of my colleagues inclined their heads at him, and returned to their chatter.

The Emperor then turned to me. "I had stopped by the Academy to speak with Captain Keitel, and thought I would have a word with you before leaving," he smiled at me warmly, "how are you finding your job thus far?"

I raised my glass of wine towards him in a toast. "The working hours begin too early for my taste, but otherwise, 'tis a joy, Sire. I am most grateful to you for giving it to me."

He chuckled in amusement. "You are not alone, Mistress Harrington. I am not a morning person either," he confided in a loud whisper, before, "goodness, are you all having Apfelstrudels for dessert?" His gaze fell on our neighbours' plates, his eyes twinkling.

Corporal Baudelaire beside me sighed. "They are having Apfelstrudels for dessert, Sire," she frowned, "Mistress Harrington's and mine went missing."

He blinked at us, dumbfounded. "Missing?"

"One moment, Bertha had served us," I was puzzled too, "and the next moment, it had just disappeared...as if it had never been there."

He lifted my empty plate curiously, staring at it against the light from the candles, as what looked like clear, thick drool dripped from the plate. Almost at once, he heaved a huge sigh of resignation, and raised his eyes to the heavens above.

"Rommel!" he called out.

Corporal Rommel strode towards us with all speed. "Your Imperial Majesty?"

"Which of the guards are in charge of Tiny?"

"Corporal Heye, Sire," he confirmed, "but she gave him the slip before we came to the dining hall. Everyone is still looking for her."

"Sire, who is Tiny?" Corporal Baudelaire voiced the same question I had.

"She is my dog. The both of you, stay absolutely still," he instructed us, before, "Bertha? May I have two plates of Apfelstrudels as well, please?" He shot her a charming smile from across the hall.

"Certainly, Your Imperial Majesty!" she hurried over to us, and handed them to him.

Emperor Sebastian carefully placed one of the plates between Corporal Baudelaire's and my seat, and placed a finger to his lips, motioning us to remain completely silent.

After a few moments, a long, wet pink tongue slithered out from beneath the tablecloth and reached up to the plate, swiftly licking it clean within two strokes.

I went still in shock, even as I felt a warm, furry body move slightly against my legs.

"She always has had a penchant for Apfelstrudels," he informed us in exasperation, and kneeled down to the ground.

Fearlessly, he held out his other plate of Apfelstrudels beneath the table and tried reaching for the creature, his fingers accidentally brushing against my leg as he did so.

I sucked in a sharp breath.

"My apologies," he murmured up at me, before making sounds with his lips, "come out, old girl, I have lots of Apfelstrudels for you. Come now..."

Instead of a puppy rushing into the Emperor's arms as we had all been expecting, however, a gigantic, white-furred dog that could easily come up to my waist in height when I stood, bounded out from the edge of the table on my right.

She almost knocked my chair over, as she ran towards the doors, tightly gripping the plate of Apfelstrudels that the Emperor had offered her with her jaws.

"You named her Tiny?" I was incredulous.

"She was rather small when she was born," the Emperor defended himself sheepishly, "now help me catch her!"

Sighing, I stood up and sprinted behind Tiny out of the door, with the Emperor by my side, and his guards and Corporal Baudelaire following us closely behind.

"Did you keep her locked up, Sire?" I asked him, continuing to run, "why is she so happy to flee you?"

"Nay, she is free to roam around the Palace," he answered in short breaths beside me, "worry not, she is only playing a game with us, Mistress Harrington."

"What do we do, then?"

"We indulge her."

And indulge her we did. We chased Tiny around many corridors, and flights of stairs, before she decided that the outdoors was her best option of evading capture.

She ran hard and fast across the training grounds, easily crossing the archery mounts. On the other hand, the Emperor and I were almost panting as we repeatedly leapt up and down the various slopes, nearing her, but never quite reaching her.

As we approached the highest mount, my mind formed a quick plan to end this exhausting chase. There was only one way left to close the distance between myself and this infuriating dog.

When we neared the top of the mount, I threw myself off without a second thought, and latched tightly on Tiny's back.

Unfortunately, the Emperor seemed to have had the same plan.

"Sire?" I was almost wheezing, "by God – "

Together, we began to swiftly roll down the grassy mount, hanging onto Tiny and her plate of Apfelstrudels for dear life. Out of control, we landed straight into a large, muddy pit at the bottom – a result of the thunderstorm that morning.

Splat!

Submerged in the muddy water, I let go of Tiny. I raised myself upright, coughing on the mud that had accidentally entered my mouth. I rubbed my eyes to clear my vision, and noticed the Emperor doing the same on the other side of Tiny.

"Sire, I would have caught her myself," I sighed in exasperation, "did you have to jump on her too?"

"Great minds think alike, I suppose, Mistress Harrington," he did not look up at me, as he tried to scrub the mud from his clothes, looking comically woeful.

"Mama bought me these new clothes only today, Tiny," he mourned, tickling her neck gently, "did you have to pick this day to chase after Apfelstrudels that are not yours?"

The dog simply gave him a cheerful lick on his face, removing some of the mud for him.

The sight of the snow white Tiny covered in mud, and the equally muddy Emperor's sea green eyes blinking in lost bewilderment as he tried to think of what to do now, was too much for me.

I began to laugh out loud, clutching my sides.

The Emperor glanced up and stared at me for a moment, bemused, taking in my muddied appearance, before an amused grin spread across his face. Before long, he too, was laughing along with me, his entire body shaking in mirth.

Peals and peals of laughter left my chest, uninhibited, shattering the silence of the night. The excited Tiny bounded towards me at the sound, and leapt into my arms, pushing me back into the mud as she repeatedly licked me.

Still, I continued to laugh, holding her tightly. It felt good. It felt so good to let go of everything and laugh like this, to release every breath of air trapped within in my chest. After having cried rivers and rivers of tears over the last month, this feeling felt rather new, like a gentle shower washing away all the cracks in the dried ground after a long period of drought.

In that moment, the whole world ceased to exist, with the exception of the Emperor and Tiny, as they both held my gaze, and gave me the same, goofy grin.