Nathaly:

Her brother always said that only few were privileged enough to see the dawn. It was meant to be seen by none, hidden, shrouded by the blanket of night. Yet Nathaly never got tired off seeing the bright colors streak across the sky, pale fingers painting the infant morning in a torrid of color. The woods were dark and dreary already so it was nice to know that there was something bright to start her morning. 

The morning light, pure and drowsy, was the perfect time to sharpen her wit and skill. In a world where citizens and people had super strength or uncanny agility, she had to be capable enough. The Council was not actually as all powerful as most believed. Everyone had a weakness. Her brother had taught her that as well. The armory was like her second home, the rusty sight of used metal and new weapons begging to be used a comfort. Fighting kept her safe from the strange, dangerous depths of her mind. Grabbing a staff, she tested the balance. It was well crafted, but too long for Nathaly's taste. She turned, feeling the flare of heat from the flame. 

Grabbing a lightweight sword, she padded out to the practice arenas. It was a large space, well ventilated and filled with windows giving off the view of the fog-filled forest below. The mats were gelled and soft to the touch, ensuring you had a soft landing once you fell. The gel was cold under the bulls of her feet, sending slight shocks up her legs. Twirling her sword lazily, she stretched, graceful as the court dancers. She seemed to glide through the air, made of nothing. A slow clap snapped her out of her daze as she whipped around to see the worst of the Novices smirking at her. 

"Beautiful performance, Nathaly. But I'm afraid dancing isn't going to get you a mission." 

She glared at him, irritated that he had already interrupted her private time. Of course it would be Javon- he always ruined everything. His hard emerald eyes glimmered with mischief, his raven black locks barely ruffled. 

"And flattery isn't going to get you anywhere, you lout." Nathaly retorted, sword still whirling easily around her. 

He laughed off the insult. "My, my. It's never a fun day without you, love."

She glanced at him sharply. "Don't ever call me that." She lunged forward and held the sword just at the tip of his neck. One flick and he could be bleeding out onto the mats, simple as that. Of course, he wouldn't die. Ciara would heal him with a snap of her fingers. In a whip flash movement they switched positions, and Javon held her against him with the sword at her throat. 

"Nice try, Princess." His breath tickled her ear and she growled, low in her throat. She elbowed him in the gut and swung around, arching the sword widely. He dodged neatly and slid, knocking her feet out from under her. Nathaly tumbled on top of him as the sword clattered away, out of reach. Inches away from her face, Javon smirked like the self-obsessed bastard he was.

"Get off of me," Nathaly growled again, sounding almost like a Montague during a solstice. 

"Au contraire, love. You seem to be on top of me and aren't getting off." With a jerk she drove her elbow into Javon's crotch, watching in satisfaction as he wheezed with pain. She leaned forward, flicking him painfully to the ear thrice before climbing off him. He was still on the mat as she grabbed the sword.

"Nice try, Javon." She echoed. She could feel his eyes on her, burning through her back. A pattern of footsteps announced the arrival of her other fellow Novices. Nathaly withheld a groan.   She must've been foolish to think that the others wouldn't want to train as well. On any day now, the Council would reveal a task for one of the Novices. Any others who also wanted the mission would duel, and the victor would earn the prize of the task. The mission was an important ritual: it's where the Novice's possibly dormant power would show itself. Her brother's mission had been to return a wayward human that had found their way into the woods. It was when he crossed the border that he discovered his ability to teleport to any location. Nathaly had trained her whole life for an opportunity to prove her worth to the Council, prove that she deserved to be there as much as her brother. 

"Well, haven't you two been busy." Angelique barked out a laugh, holding her hand out to pull Javon up. 

"We were sparring. Nothing more." Nathaly replied hotly, hanging the sword up. Javon's obsession with Nathaly was clear to anyone who had met the two of them. At first it was almost endearing but now it was just irritating. 

"Sure, Nat. Whatever you need to say to convince yourself." Angelique smirked at her, flipping golden hair over her bony shoulder. She may not look it, but Angelique was like a foxglove flower: beautiful and ethereal but filled with deadly poison. Nathaly brushed past Javon without giving him a second glance, and crossed her arms. 

"Well, you sure didn't come here because you enjoy my company. What do you want?" Nathaly arched a brow, straightening her back. Angelique glared back at her with equal fire.

"You know me so well." Angelique jerked her chin to the direction of the throne room. "The Council has asked for us. All of us." Nathaly refused to let herself hope. This might not mean there was a mission available. But then again, the Council tried not to interfere and talk to the Novices, so why would they call unless it were something important?

Nathaly walked briskly to the door, running a hand through her dark brown tangles. As she left, she could hear Angelique scolding Javon.

"Really, Javon, stop staring at her like that." Nathaly could hear the scorn in her voice. "Do you want Nat to beat you up again?"

"She looks even more beautiful when she's angry," he replied with a sigh of longing. Nathaly shuddered with rage and forced Javon's face out of her mind. She couldn't be strategizing how to make him black and blue now. 

The throne room was a sparse room, bare and cold. It reflected the air radiating off the Council members. Harsh, disinterested, and sharp. Kolton the Adamant was the most well known, and the oldest. He looked like he had been chiseled from rock, all sharp angles. Her brother, Calum, was a bit softer, yet still as intimidating. Nathaly pressed two fingers to her brow and bowed shallowly, the typical greeting for those higher above. The rest of the Novices were waiting, not paying her any mind. But Nathaly could tell they were just as nervous and excited as she was. Javon and Angelique came in shortly after. Nathaly had to hide a satisfied smirk as Javon attempted-and failed miserably- to walk proudly and normally. Instead he stumbled to his place, looking like a drunkard. 

Kassandra stood up, eying us all keenly. "Do not disappoint us." That's all she said before sitting down gracefully, skirts spread evenly as she sat. By this point, Nathaly had gotten used to the cryptic messages given by the Council. What awaited them, they would soon see.

A guard bowed and yelled into an amplifier: "Please welcome, Sir Kodiak of the Montagues." A flash of shock flitted over her comrades' faces before melting into the mask of cold indifference. For one of the high-ranking clan members to come here, in person, gave the hint that whatever was going to happen was important enough to worry both clans. Sir Kodiak glided in, cape sweeping behind him. He looked like the night and shadows himself, with thick, luscious black hair and dark blue eyes the color of early midnight. Nathaly stared at him unbashingly- she was just as powerful as him, so why should she bow? Aadhya, one of the weaker Novices, dropped hastily into a curtsy. The others followed hesitantly, bowing low until Nathaly was the only one still standing. She tilted her chin up, looking the Montague deep in his startingly clear blue eyes. Like a wolf analyzing its prey, Kodiak cocked his chin and scrutinized her, face betraying nothing. She could feel the thick silence, smothering them. 

"Who are you?" His voice was like a birch tree: smooth and soft yet rough, low. 

"Nathaly. A Novice." Nathaly infused steel into her voice, making sure Sir Kodiak knew that she wouldn't bow to anyone, not even him. Even though Nathaly was naturally this confident, the sight of the wolfish man of power towering over her made slivers of fear worm its way up her spine. 

Stay strong, Nathaly. Don't break.

After what felt like hours, Kodiak nodded sharply, the slightest of movements. 

"She is the one." At this statement the Council erupted into a wave of whispers. Kolton stepped forward, showing-for the first time- unsureness. 

"Are you sure you do not want to see her fight, sire? Nathaly is one of our best but all of the Novices are able." Any other statements Kolton had died on his lips at the piercing stare Kodiak sent his way.

"Do not question me, Councilman. I know what I'm doing." He slid his gaze back to Nathaly. "You have five minutes, Novice. Not a second more." Nathaly held his gaze without reply, challenging him.

Go on, call me out. I dare you.  Her mind whispered.

"Go on, Novices. You are dismissed." Calum's soft voice waved them off and the group scurried off, looking like mice. Only Nathaly walked leisurely behind. Out in the hall, the Novices collectively sighed, slumping against the wall. 

"Well well. Our little Nathaly is finally going on her mission," Danilo crowed. Nathaly swatted him dismissively on the arm and turned to Alisa, who she considered her closest acquaintance. 

"Don't get yourself killed." That was all before she retreated to talk with Angelique, who was sending daggered glances at her. Nathaly felt heat envelop her. She was going on a mission. This was what she had been preparing for. The sleepless nights, the pain that she had endured had been for this, only this. As she rushed to the armory, a rough hand grabbed her wrist. She turned to see Javon.

"What?" Nathaly snapped, yanking her wrist out of his grip. 

"I'll miss you," he whispered softly, vivid eyes sparkling. Nathaly rolled her eyes and forced the air out of her cheeks.

"I'll miss you too," she replied, smirking as his face brightened. "I'll miss your punching bag of a head." A shadow crossed his face. Javon's jaw twitched and he drew himself up.

"Don't get yourself killed. You are still my future wife." Javon said, all hints of laughter gone. Nathaly took a step back.

"I'm not your future anything. Just... leave me alone, Javon." With that she turned on her heel and sprinted to the armory, grabbing her only important possession. A small stick, gleaming silver. With a jerk the serrated axes leapt out, their familiar weight bringing a smile to her face. Her mother had given this to her, and it was the only remnant of her. Calum closed up like a clam any time she mentioned their mother so she knew virtually nothing about the woman who gave birth to her. She never had need for a mother, but as she had gotten older her heart had yearned for a mother. But there was no time to dwell on such thoughts. She burst into the throne room, ignoring the stares of her fellow Novices. But maybe... not a Novice anymore. The thought made her want to convulse with giggles but Nathaly reined it in. This was not the time nor the place. She looked at her brother briefly, but in that look she heard everything.

Be careful. Remember what I taught you. Stay strong.

"Is that all you are bringing?" Kodiak raised a brow. 

"This is all I need." Nathaly rubbed her fingers over the familiar worn metal, finding the comfort and strength she needed.

Pray for me, Mother.

Nathaly opened the large oak doors and felt the groggy sunshine on her face. Nathaly turned to see a particularly large white wolf, saddled. It was a creature of pure imagination, foreboding and harshly beautiful. It's fur was a sparkling silver, and gray eyes the color of moonlit ice seared through her. Kodiak leaped on nimbly, easily. 

"Do not be afraid." He held a hand out to her. Huffing, Nathaly managed to stumble onto the front without his help.

"I'm not." She said through gritted teeth. Nathaly wove her fingers through the thick fur of the creature, rooting herself down.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Kodiak remarked with a chuckle before grabbing her waist, pulling Nathaly close to him. Red lights flashed through her mind.

"What are you doing?" Nathaly said, making sure to keep her voice from sounding too harsh. She had to keep in mind that this was the Premier's son, one that had power. She couldn't overstep. 

"Trust me." With that, he grabbed the dark leather and snapped the reins. The creature jumped forward, moving swiftly through the darkness. Nathaly gasped as the air was sucked out of her lungs and fell back against Kodiak's chest, hard and warm. She stole one more glance back at her home before it disappeared completely, out of sight.