We stepped out of the gloomy castle into an unexpectedly bright morning. There was no sign left of the snowstorm of the previous night, apart from a few heaps of snow lying in the shadiest corners of the courtyard. The rest of it had already morphed into large puddles submerging the cobblestones under our feet.

The air was warmer and I imagined that I could smell the slowly approaching spring in it. Even though I knew that this was only a short  melt-down and months would pass before the new season really arrived, it made me feel happy. A step closer to Aurora.

Avoiding the tiny rivulets of melted snow dropping off the roofs, I walked across the yard following Lucas. We only met a few valets and Guards on our way towards the stables. They were more than those I noticed the previous night, but it was my own fault.

They do not trust you to stay put anymore. My subconscious offered.

Never mind... Most of the Knights were with Vlad and I was happy about it, those were the ones I did not like. The Guards, somehow, always seemed more human. I could put up with them.

I walked inside the stable to wait for Lucas there, while he disappeared somewhere in search of bows, exchanging a few words with his fellow Guards on the way. By now he knew some parts of the castle, and some of its inhabitants, better than I did.

Approaching the horses, I spotted Frost, and made a beeline for him. I ran my hand through his white mane, enjoying his friendly welcome as he brought his warm, pink snout to my cheek. I wished I could take him for a ride-- Vlad took most of the horses with him and my Frost did not have much company.

The thought of Vlad made me sigh. "Sorry, not today," I murmured as Frost stumped impatiently as if he could read my thoughts. "I'll be told off as it is, let's not provoke him even more by a forbidden ride..."

Looking around, I noticed a few apples lying on a bench nearby and offered him one before I walked outside again. As I stood in the doorway I noticed Lucas approaching me from across the courtyard, two enormous bows in his hands. The sight of him made me smile. This world suits him perfectly...

"You look like Robin Hood!" I called, giggling, making two Guards passing between us bow in greeting, then eye me curiously.

Lucas rolled his eyes as he reached me, and set the heavy-looking bows down.

"And you are silly as always, Princess Sam. However, they do look a lot like English longbows and they are exactly as heavy. Teaching you to use them will take a lot of time and practice."

"Let's start then. We don't have the whole day. They may come back anytime now..." I said, looking away from him, all mirth forgotten.

"Are you... afraid?" Lucas asked, his fingers under my chin tilting my face up to meet his eyes again.

I shook my head. "I'm angry with myself for not telling Vlad before what I meant to do, or waiting for him... but... Whatever. He has the right to be angry, I think I would be if our roles were swapped. Don't worry about it. Let's do this."

I took one of the bows from him. It was nearly as tall as me and much heavier than it looked. And... it did not have any string or whatever that thing was called... I looked at Lucas inquiringly.

He nodded. "Unlike the modern ones, or those you saw in Robin Hood," he chuckled, "these bows are kept unstrung until not in use. Come. I'll show you what to do."

He led me to a stone bench attached to the stable's wall and we sat down.

Reaching inside a leather quiver he wore on his back, Lucas pulled out two pieces of coiled string, passing one to me, while he tied the other to the tip of his bow.

"Of course these strings are completely natural, made of some vegetable fibres. They do break sometimes and you must remember to bring a spare bowstring whenever you go shooting. You must be able to tie it well and fast to the bow's limbs. Try." He prompted.

I tried to attach the string to my bow, copying the moves of his skilled fingers. It looked so much easier when he was doing it-- I had to move the bow around a few times to even reach its tips comfortably. In the end, with a lot of help from him, I managed, and we stood up.

Lucas placed a sack filled with straw which he brought from the stable on the bench where we had sat and led me farther away, to the opposite end of the courtyard. The Guards and valets we had met before disappeared somewhere wisely the moment they realised what we were up to.

"Apart from the spare bowstring you'll have to carry a quiver. Choose it well, the bigger ones are heavy but the smaller ones don't hold many arrows."

"What if I run out of arrows?"

"Well, the best thing is to collect those lying around you, that's if someone is shooting at you. But it's dangerous..."

I nodded, trying to pull the bowstring. "It's not easy..." I muttered.

"It is not. And the bow is heavy. Your arm will tire and start to shake soon. That's why you must draw only when you are ready to shoot. That gives you very little time to aim. Your fingers will be sore too, I think you'll need a glove, at least until you get used to it. When you draw, remember to bend your arm slightly at the elbow. The string can slap your arm and it hurts."

I looked at him, asking silently if he really expected me to remember all of this at once.

He smiled, "Why don't you just watch me today, it might be easier to remember what to do when you see it."

"Fine. You show me but then I want to try as well."

"Of course you do." He laughed. "So. It's the arrow you hold with your right hand. When you nock, you need to hold one finger over its shaft, and two under it. The arrow goes on the left side of your bow. Once you got that done, you'll need to find your anchor point."

"And... that is?"

"That is for balance, a point on your face where you'll draw the bow fully back. It can be your mouth, chin, nose or the level of your eye. Aim before you draw, the draw weight of this thing will tire your arm really fast."

He lifted the bow higher, the arrow level with his eye. I watched him draw back and before I noticed it leaving the bow, the arrow was stuck in the sack of straw up to its fletching, making some of the golden stems and leaves spill and fly around.

"Well done. You ruined it. Where will I fire my bows now?" I asked, not wanting him to see how impressed I was. I knew it was not easy, but he hit the perfect centre of the straw bag effortlessly.

That made him laugh, "You don't 'fire' from a bow, you 'loose'. But don't worry, it will take time before you aim well enough to shoot that bag."

"Fine, fine, I get it. Let me try."

"All right. Come on then. Nock, good," he said, adjusting my fingers on the arrow, "notch the arrow against the bowstring, find your anchor point and aim, then quickly draw and loose..."

He masked his laughter as a coughing fit when my arrow vanished around the stable's corner, meters away from the bag.

Hopefully there was no one there... I mused while I scowled at him, making him laugh even more.

"I'll behave." He said after a few moments, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Let's try together."

He stood close behind me, his left hand coming to rest on my left arm. Passing me a new arrow he repeated the instructions, helping me to lift the bow this time.

"You aim, and once you are ready to draw, I'll help you keep the bow in place." He instructed, his face hovering above my left shoulder as he tried to see the straw stuffed sack from my point of view.

The sound of multiple hooves rushing through the puddles covering the yard coming from somewhere behind disturbed us, even as I let the arrow loose, sending it towards the stable's roof this time.

I laughed even as I turned around, then blushed as I realised how Lucas and I must have looked just seconds ago, when I recognized the newcomers.

Collecting my wits I smiled at Vlad, who was scowling at me from his black horse.

Lucas bowed politely while I frowned at Junior who already dismounted his horse and rushed to embrace me, his lips twitching with barely contained laughter.

"Don't give up, you'll hit that bag in a year or two..." Then he was off, running inside, in search of Clara and Ioan, no doubt.

Radu, reaching me next, kissed my hand, whispering before he disappeared towards the castle's entrance too, "He... will be fine. Just call if you need help."

Right. You can handle this... my subconscious whispered as I eyed Vlad, trying to analyse his mood. Then, none the wiser but unable to stop myself, I ran towards him the moment he dismounted Midnight.

Sighing deeply he pulled me in a bone-shattering embrace, resting his cheek on top of my head. It feels... rather perfect, having him this close, I mused, inhaling his scent and leaning into him, feeling whole, wishing he would never leave me again.

"Lucas! I left you here to look after her and you..." Vlad's voice brought me back to reality, reminding me that he was angry with me.

Only now I noticed how the place which had been deserted only a while ago was suddenly full of activity; several valets and Guards were helping with the horses of the Knights accompanying Vlad, now filling the yard.

"Your Majesty," Lucas said simply, his voice barely audible over the commotion, and I turned around in time to see him bowing again.

"It is not his fault," I turned back to Vlad and cupped his face in my hands, making him look in my eyes.

"He is a member of my Guard, he must obey..."

"Lucas, please leave us." I said.

"Samara, are you sure?" He asked, his eyes flicking from me to Vlad.

I nodded and heard him retreating across the yard as I looked back at Vlad. Once I was sure that Lucas was out of earshot I said, "He is my friend, not just one of your Guards. If he disobeyed you, he did it for me. Out of friendship. You have no reason to be angry with him."

"Why ever did you leave the castle, Samara, I asked you not to go out without me... I've been worried..." He muttered, running his hand through his hair.

"I missed you too." I said, leaning on my tiptoes and kissing him.

He deepened the kiss immediately, crushing me against him again, making me feel weak in the knees.

"Samara, don't ever do it again, please..."

"I love you too," I said as he wrapped his arm around my waist, and we walked across the yard side by side.