Annalei spends most of the night crying in her bed. Everything about this situation feels wrong to her, and she wishes desperately to be home. Why would her father send her away to the worst possible location in all the world? Did he truly hate her that much?

She feels lonely, and wishes she could call James into the room, to hold her and tell her bedtime stories like he used to when they were 6 and 11. He was the big brother she always needed then, and in many ways he still is. She thinks about sticking her head into the hallway to see if he's the one guarding her door tonight, but is too tired to explain what happened, too drained to get agitated all over again about what Xeraxes had done to her.

Xeraxes, the terrible beast of her nightmares. Xeraxes, the monster out of myth and legend. Xeraxes, the dragon with a god complex. She tries to think of every bad word in her vocabulary to describe him, and falls asleep long before she's done. The one word resonating in her gut is hate. She hates him. She loathes him. She wishes he were dead.

Dawn rakes across her face with pale morning light. Her face feels crusted over with the salt of her tears, and she looks for the wash basin and water pitcher in the bathroom. The water is chilly, but it reinvigorates her, and she feels ready to face the day. She knows she'll find James in the courtyard if she goes looking for him, and sets her mind to do it before anyone can come looking for her, to demand yet another horrific and traumatizing meeting with Xeraxes.

James and his soldiers are still in their morning warm-ups, getting ready to spar and keep both their minds and sword arms in fighting shape. James bends over, stretching, tightening a lace in his boot, and upon straightening locks eyes with Annalei. Her cold blue eyes are determined, and she's dressed in her riding clothes again. He begins to ask what she's doing, but she interrupts him.

"I need to do something, or I'll go crazy." She says, striding past him and over to the awaiting sword rack. She picks out one of the dulled training swords, and gives it a few practiced swings. James admires her wiry strength, feeling bulky next to her swan-like elegance. "Spar with me?" She asks him.

James would never turn Annalei down, for this, or anything else. He grabs another sword from the rack and walks towards empty ground. A white chalk line has already been encircled across the ground, and he steps into it, waiting for her to follow. "I trust you remember the rules?" He asks her playfully.

"Sure. Drive your opponent out of the circle, you win the advantage of the round. Three 'fatal' taps and you win the match." She flips her sword around in her hand and joins him in the middle. The soldiers around them have grown hushed and started to gather, sensing they're in for a show. A few close friends banter under their breath, placing bets, no doubt.

James' lieutenant walks between the two as they position themselves, ready to begin. The lieutenant holds his hand in the air, then drops it, signaling the start of the match, and then steps back out of the circle quickly. Annalei lunges in swiftly, but James deftly pushes away the tip of her sword, dancing away from her reach. "Well, Your Highness, you woke up feeling lively this morning." James banters, chuckling.

Annalei blocks James' counterswing, advancing aggressively again. "Yeah, I get that way after my host licks my face." Annalei replies, darting in with her blade and targeting the gap in James' guard.

"He what?" James chokes out, just raising his sword in time to block the thrust that would have won Annalei her first point. Locked hilt to hilt, he hesitates for a moment, his concerned eyes meeting Annalei's fierce ones. He starts questioning her further, but Annalei uses his hesitation to push and fling him away from her. He stumbles onto his knee, and her blade comes arcing flat through the air, stopping mere inches from his neck. She smiles wild and triumphant, a pale strand of silvery hair drifting across her forehead. Looking up the length of her blade, James' breath leaves his lungs temporarily.

"Looks like the first point goes to me." She tells him, tucking back the sword and offering her hand to him. He takes it, a sheepish grin spreading across his face.

"That you do, Your Highness." He tells her as they reset for round two. "You still owe me an explanation though. What happened last night?" He doesn't mention that one of his men already told him that she had been crying all night, her sobs audible on the other side of the door as the man stood guard.

They clash, spin apart, and clash again. James begins to feel he has the upper hand when Annalei slips out of reach yet again. She stands still for a moment, catching her breath. "Dinner was a disaster. Xeraxes...he's a pig. He harassed me, and accused me of being a maid swapped for the real princess, all because I don't look exactly like my father." She comes at James again, but misjudges her footing and James is able to catch her off guard and score a point.

He feels his rage simmering deep beneath his calm exterior. James knows he has to keep his mind focused, and not lose his head just because Xeraxes was proving to be every inch of his worst fears. "This is why you can't trust dragons, Annalei. They're conniving, suspicious creatures, and use any excuse they can to double back on their promises."

They lock hilts again, but instead of determined, Annalei's face this time looks distant and consternated. "He said much the same thing about my father." Her voice is quiet and reserved. James doesn't like how it seems the beast is starting to worm his way into the princess's head. James throws her away from him, but she recovers elegantly.

"He has no right to speak to you like that, plus whatever else he did to you." James tells her as they circle each other, looking for an opening. Annalei feels comforted to know that even though they're currently holding each other at swordpoint, he still has her back.

Their match ends rather quickly after that. Annalei manages to score another point while simultaneously scoring the advantage when James steps out of the circle. She led him purposefully towards the edge and is quite proud of her little trick, but James manages to tie it up in the next round. The last round is a tense, yet quick progression of trained steps and muscle memory, and Annalei's speed proves to be the winner of the day as she twists and ducks under James' guard once again to score the final point.

James throws his hands up in surrender, but is smiling with approval. "Looks like you can prove a match even for me, Your Highness."

"I've been taking lessons a lot longer than you think, James." Annalei preens. They shake hands, a long agreed symbol of respect and a fight well fought. They turn to walk out of the circle together when slow, deliberate clapping rings out across the courtyard.

Xeraxes stands on the opposite side of the circle from the forces of Faraley, every inch of him a towering giant silhouetted by the overhead sun. His black horns gleam dully in the sunlight, his orange eyes a baleful glare. James' jaw sets tight and firm, the muscles jumping. Xeraxes smiles a big, toothy grin, almost seeming to egg the Captain on. "Captain, if you will, I'd have a moment with your princess." Xeraxes says, his voice dripping in self-indulgence.

James steps forward with the intent to deny the beast, but Annalei puts a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. She turns to Xeraxes. "What do you want?"

"A spar, or duel, whatever you would call it. You seem talented, and I'd like to test that talent. I think your captain might be going a bit too easy on you." Xeraxes smiles, taunting, and Annalei feels James go tense beside her.

"I don't think so, Xeraxes. If you're looking to humiliate me in front of my men, you're going to have to try again some other time." She tells him, turning away and dragging James with her.

"Oh, come on, princess. Don't you want the chance to humble me? If you win, I'll apologize for last night. Deal?" Xeraxes is toying with her now, and she knows it, but at this point, what he offers seems more than worth her time. She walks back into the circle, head held high.

"Alright. If I win, you'll apologize. But what if you win?" She asks, while Xeraxes selects a sword from the rack.

He hefts one, turning it around and judging its weight. "Then you'll have to humor me, I suppose. I think you've severely misunderstood who I am, princess. If I win, then you'll have to sit down for a little history lesson. Do you feel those are terms you can agree to?" He walks into the circle, towering over her, and blocking the sun from her view. His orange eyes shine in the gloom.

She nods, then takes position rather than answer him directly. He rolls his neck on his shoulders, loosening up lazily. James steps between them, his face turned to stone, yet holding to tradition, raising his hand and lowering it to begin the match.

Xeraxes is much faster than he looks, and lithely lunges within Annalei's guard, knocking her off balance and sending her into the dirt with a grunt and a thump. He stands over her, his mouth in a grim line. "Your opponent isn't always going to wait for you to be ready, princess. And you think you could go to war?" She glares up at him, then gathers herself to her feet, preparing again.

The second round lasts slightly longer than the first. Annalei manages to hold Xeraxes off for a time, but he flashes the light bouncing off his sword into her face, temporarily blinding her. He slides effortlessly into her guard again, the point of his sword just off the tip of her nose. "Anyone you face isn't always going to play fair."

Xeraxes is trying to get under her skin, and Annalei knows it. She refuses to reply to him, no matter what advice he thinks to give her. They reset, starting to circle each other again. James stands impatiently outside of the circle, ready to step in if he feels Xeraxes is getting too rough. "Stay close to him, Annalei. He's always going to outreach you. You're going to have to stay close." He shouts, knowing it could be considered interference, but he can't keep watching Annalei flounder.

Annalei flicks her eyes over to James briefly, and nods. She narrows in on Xeraxes, and attacks him with more courage than she thought she could muster. After a few traded blows, she manages to lock hilts with him briefly. The shock of the impact rattles down her arms, and for a moment, she feels she's already lost this fight. He's far and away stronger than she imagined. He grins, and she watches his muscles bunch, preparing to shove her away. She doesn't let him, twisting away from him before he gets the chance to end this fight as swiftly as Xeraxes had been hoping.

She uses her size to her advantage, slipping behind his sword as his center of balance shifts outward, jabbing the tip of her sword under his chin. His pupils pinch shut in surprise, and jets of steam escape his nostrils. Annalei feels a sense of satisfaction, realizing she surprised him.

Fresh from her point-scoring finish, Annalei is more confident in her abilities again, and grows bolder in her attack. Xeraxes, on the other hand, has grown more irritable, and therefore more prone to mistakes. With a few more quick jumps and fast steps she manages to put Xeraxes on his back foot, pushing him closer and closer to the edge of the circle.

Annalei can see the anger and frustration boiling on Xeraxes face, and fear creeps around the edges of her resolve. Despite that, she doesn't stop, and keeps pushing him back, weaving in and out of his powerful swings, keeping him on the defensive. For once in her life, she feels she's in control of something, and she's not about to let that feeling go.

There comes a point when Xeraxes knows she's about to take the advantage, and from there the win if he doesn't find a way to stop her. He's angry at himself for allowing a mere human to defeat him. What kind of dragon would he be if a princess was able to beat him in a swordfight?

In a moment of frustration and anger, Xeraxes breathes out a gout of black flame. The onyx tendrils reach toward Annalei, and her blue eyes fly open in surprise. She stumbles back, smelling the hot, choking smell of singed hair and fabric. She frantically brushes at her shirt, an unnatural black ember clinging to it. She's never seen anything quite like it in her life. The spot she taps out on her shirt feels abnormally chilled, yet she can see the blackened edges around the hole, her white skin contrasting sharply against the brown wool. She looks up to see Xeraxes holding his sword tip triumphantly in front of her face.

"You...you cheated! You didn't play fair." She shouts, both exasperated at his behavior and stunned by her first experience with Xeraxes powerful firebreath.

"I told you, not everyone plays fair. Not everyone is as chivalrous as your Captain." Xeraxes glances at James, meeting James' hard stare with a leveled and purposeful stare of his own. James grinds his teeth in frustration, but doesn't risk doing anything foolish. "Don't let it bother your pretty little head too much, princess. Not all of your opponents will have Ebonfire at their disposal either."

Xeraxes stalks off, leaving his training sword back on the rack with the others. He turns back to Annalei again, offering his clawed hand for her to shake. She takes it reluctantly, now dreading what claim Xeraxes will put on her for winning. She highly doubts it will only be a history lesson. "You fought well, all the same, princess. You're a lot stronger than you look. Maybe you are who you say you are after all." Xeraxes winks. Annalei still can't bring herself to trust him for a second.

She's about to spit out a retort along the lines of how she would have had him beat if he played fair, when a resounding roar booms overhead, rattling anything not tied down.