"Helèna!"

I turned, greeted by the sight of my pupil running frantically towards me, her dark strands swishing unkemptly in the air. She stopped in front of me, hair disheveled and a light pink shade coating her cheeks.

"Sonja, I told you not to run among the premises of the Head Master's quarters!"

She lowered her head in embarrassment, flushing a shade of deep crimson.

"I am sorry Helèna, but I heard you came back and I wanted to see you."

I smiled at her. She had been my pupil for five years now and through the time I grew fond of this girl. Abandoned by her mother at ten summers of age, we took her in, giving her a new family.
We were the place where people came when in need of a second chance at life, searching for redemption, forgiveness or only for a purpose.

"Hush, girl. Don't fret. I am here now, but I won't be for long."

She hugged herself, casting her gaze on the wall in order to mask the panic raising within her eyes.

"You won't? Are you leaving again?"
Her voice was merely a whisper, reeking of all the displeasure she felt at my words.

"I am."

She nodded, fidgeting with the hem of her linen tunic. She was dressed like a recruit in training, as everyone else who hadn't already been on their first mission and being promoted to Assassin.

"When?"
"Tomorrow."

She widened her eyes, gripping her tunic tighter.
"But you just came back! You can't leave so soon!"

I shushed her by placing a hand on her mouth.
"Quiet girl. I can and I will. My presence has been requested somewhere else. I will leave tomorrow at dawn."

Defeated, she nodded in acknowledgment. I knew she was looking forward to my return in order to train with me, but it seemed she had to settle for training with Sienna for a little longer. I tugged at one of the dark strands falling on her face and she tilted her head up to look me in the eyes.

"Before you interrupted me, I was going to find Rhaessa. Would you like to accompany me? Then you could go find Sienna and practice."

Her lips turned up in a beaming smile and she nodded. While we passed through the hallways she enthusiastically told me about the progress she made during my absence; she successfully discerned Malanthus from Aghavir, two herbs very similar to each other, but while the first one was deadly, the second one was used to help cauterize wounds, and she learned how to hit a moving target twenty feet away. When we were crossing the cloister I saw a feminine figure crouched on the ground, intent on pruning some plants. I stopped, reaching for Sonja's wrist.

"Here she is. Go find Sienna and train, I will come to say goodbye before leaving."

She looked at me with sadness-filled eyes, but complied, leaving me in the cloister with a bow of her head. I watched her disappear behind the columns, a swirl of beige linen and dark hair. I walked towards our Head Herbalist and Healer, stopping a few feet away from her figure. Her graying blond tresses were shining under the rays of the sun, resembling the color of wheat. She looked up at me and smiled, crinkles and lines appearing on the corners of her eyes and mouth.

"My dear child, I was waiting for you."

She stood up and I offered her a hand, but Rhaessa swatted it away with a scoff, clutching the trimmed branches in a tight grip.

"I may be old, but I am not incapable."

I smiled at her stubbornness. This woman was dear to me, she was one of the two people I cared about the most, together with my father. She always treated me like a daughter of her own and I always looked up to her like a sort of mother. Having never known mine, as she passed away giving birth to me, Rhaessa was the closest thing I had to that figure.

"I know you are not incapable, Rhaessa. I was merely offering my help to be kind."

She cupped my cheek with her free hand, hard and calloused from her work with plants and mortars.

"You don't have a mean bone in your body, Helèna. I know you did that out of kindness, but it doesn't change the fact that I am still able to stand on my own legs. Now come, and tell me why you decided to pay a visit to me."

I followed her on the cobbled paths of the cloister, until she reached the door of her workshop and entered. The smell of drying flowers and incense burning soon enveloped me, immediately throwing me back to when I was young, helping Rhaessa weaving stems and singing along with her.

"You said you were waiting for me. I thought you knew why I was looking for you."

Rhaessa placed the fresh-cut herbs on a table, trimming their stems shorter. I carefully stroked the dried petals of the flowers nearest to me, recognizing them as Antirrhinums, a powerful hallucinogenic.

"I am always waiting for you, my dear. Albeit I don't know the reasons behind this very visit."

I turned to face her, focusing my eyes on her expert hands, trimming, braiding and tying.

"I am leaving again tomorrow."

She hummed, hanging the now tied flowers on the wall behind her.

"So is this only a visit of courtesy to say hello and then goodbye?"

I outlined the cold blade of the sickle placed near the dried Antirrhinums with my pads, watching my distorted reflection on the sleek metal. My eyes appeared more strange than they already were in reality.

"In part it is. But it's not the only reason. I have been summoned by the King, but I don't know what or who I am facing. He didn't explain the reasons why he wants me in Vharys, only that he expects me to be there in three days time. I don't know for how much time I will be away from Skyon, so I came to you to be prepared."

Rhaessa nodded and tied her hair in a ponytail at the base of her neck with a ribbon, leaving her face free of tendrils.
"I understand, my dear. Come, I will prepare a pouch with everything you may need."

I walked towards the table she was standing at, watching as Rhaessa worked to collect various dried plants and vials of ointments. When she turned to retrieve a batch of dark yellow flowers rimmed in black, I placed a hand on her elbow, stopping her.

"There is no need for that, Rhaessa."

She looked at me, her eyes shining in knowledge. She jerked her arm free, taking the flowers in her hands despite my warnings.

"You can't possibly know for sure, Helèna."

"I don't plan on having a man warm my bed while on a mission, Rhaessa. Put that away."

She narrowed her eyes at me, placing her free hand on her hip.
"Are you defying me, child? You know better than that. I am not implying you will use it, I only want you to be careful, just in case. You don't know how long you will be away, seeking solace in a man's warm embrace won't distract you from your mission. A child will."

I narrowed my eyes in return, cursing the stubbornness of the woman in front of me. She was as stubborn as a indomitable mare.

"There will be no child if I won't have any man."

"So be it, you insufferable girl. But I will put them in your pouch anyway, don't try to stop me."

***

The sun was dying behind the mountains when I finished packing my bags, the sky tinted in pink, golden and orange shades.
I placed my belongings at the end of my bed, carefully leaning my quiver and bow on its rails. I affectionately stroked the peeking curve of my bow, remembering when my father gifted it to me when I was sixteen summers of age. Carved from dragon's bone, it was a marvelous weapon that never failed me.

Closing the door of my room, I started walking towards the dining hall, ready to dine and greet my fellow companions before leaving at dawn. The sounds of laughter and silverware scratching bowls echoed through the walls outside the hall as I opened the door, welcoming the sweet scent of food drifting to my nose. I nodded at my father, sat in the left corner of the room surrounded by the eldest Head Assassins, and he smiled at me in return.

Today's dish was beef stew with potatoes and I thanked the cook when she passed me a steaming bowl. I scanned the long tables in search of my company and spotted Sienna's fiery red mane on the right, while she was trying to steal from Rhys' plate. I approached, sitting in a vacant chair in front of them.

"Helèna! Finally! For the Gods, Sonja couldn't stop talking about your return today!"

"Yes, I know. She came looking for me this morning."

I smiled at my oldest companion. She arrived at the Guild when I was little, carried by an Assassin who found her begging on the streets of Leemport, a scrawny but fierce girl, barely older than me.

"She told me. She told me also about your impending departure."

Rhys spluttered a little bit of broth, watching me with incredulity swirling in his blue eyes.
"Are you leaving again? So soon?!"

I chewed on a piece of meat and swallowed before nodding, noticing how his face darkened, a scowl soon replacing his usual jovial expression.

"The King asked for me. I am leaving at dawn."

Sienna pounded her hands on the wooden table, the rings adorning her fingers scratching against the worn-out surface.

"For the Gods, Helèna! This is big! The King!"
She turned her head frantically, scanning our surroundings for something, when she pointed a finger behind me and shouted "You! You there! Boy! Bring us three pints of the best ale we have! We need to celebrate!"

"Sienna shut up! There is no need to celebrate!"

She scowled at me, her dark eyes piercing my face in indignation. Then, she turned towards the man on her right.
"Come on Rhys, tell her we need to celebrate. The king asked for her! Our Helèna! The infamous Teleite!"

Rhys didn't partake in her enthusiasm, muttering a barely audible "Yes, sure" before resuming stirring his stew. Sienna scoffed, throwing her hair behind her shoulders.

"For the love of Ganharta, you two are no fun! Well, I will drink to Helèna's honor nonetheless, even if I have to drink alone!"

Three pints of beer were placed in front of us, the amber liquid sloshing in the tankards and spilling slightly on the table. Sienna reached for one of them, bringing it to her mouth and taking big gulps, then she licked the lather off her lips.

"Aaaa Gods' gift to humans."

She patted her flat belly, her cotton blue tunic stained here and there by droplets of beer. Sienna eyed us expectantly, arching a brow in my direction. I sighed. This was the last night in the company of my friends and I didn't know when it would happen again, so I outstretched my hand, closing my fingers around the handle of one of the two remaining tankards. Sienna smirked at me, satisfied that I caved in so soon.

"I'm not drinking in my honor, pay tell. I am drinking because I don't know when the occasion of drinking with my friends will re-present itself."

I brought the rim to my lips and sipped, feeling the bitter taste of beer on my tastebuds. Sienna lifted her mug in my direction and sipped, then elbowed Rhys in his ribs, who was occupied by eyeing me with concern.

"So? You piss-pants, grab your pint and join us!"

Rhys shifted his eyes from my face to the pint on the table, indecision marring his face. He then cursed under his breath, grabbed the tankard and gulped the beer down without taking a breath. Sienna patted him on the shoulder, satisfaction pouring from her every pore.

"That's my boy. For a moment I didn't recognize you." She then turned to her right, snapping her fingers. "Boy! Other three!"

My evening was spent this way, drinking and laughing with my companions. When the dining hall began to empty I took my leave too, hugging Sienna and Rhys and biding them farewell. Before retiring to my room I went in the recruits' quarters, looking for Sonja. I promised her to be careful and to come back as soon as possible, even if I didn't know what soon really meant. My father hugged and kissed me goodbye, making me promise to send him missives to assure him of my wellbeing.

The hallways were mostly empty when I exited his chambers to go to my room, the moonlight casting long shadows on the pale marble walls. I silently followed my path, my hands already undoing the tight strands of my braid.

The silvery rays revealed the silhouette of a figure crouched in front of my door, making me falter in my steps. Acknowledging my presence they stood up, their blond hair shining under the rays of the moon.

"Rhys."

"Helèna."

I reached where he was standing, stopping few feet away. His eyes were hunted, restless, defeated. He stepped closer, moving until he leaned his forehead against mine, his breath fanning my cheeks. He smelled of honey and beer. Strands of his blond hair fell on my forehead, feathery caressing my skin.

"I never thought you would have to leave so soon."

Rhys closed his eyes, twirling one of my dark tresses between the fingers of his right hand.

"I know, but I can't refuse when it's the King requesting my presence."

He nodded.

"I know it's impossible to tell if we will ever have a tomorrow, but we can still have a today."

I cupped his cheek with my hand, enjoying the way his short stubble scratched the skin of my palm. He opened his eyes, locking them with mine.

"Yes," I said smiling, " we still have a today."

What do you think so far? Is this a story you would be interested in reading? I truly hope so.

What do you think about Sienna? And about Rhys?

Please vote, comment and share.
Kate.