Avelyn went through a harsh winter.

And it wasn't just the cold, but the dread of a possible war in between kingdoms. Knights trained harder than ever, perfecting their skills in case they needed to put them to use. More men had joined training to ensure the safety of their home. The castle guards trained like knights, their main devotion being protecting their loved ones.

Edwin felt conflicted; his part as a general fighting with his part as a father. Clara had been knighted, and he was so proud of her, but he never thought a war would be coming their way so soon. As foolish as it was, he had hoped she wouldn't experience any wars.

Alas, Crounia's greed for power was inevitable.

Knowing he wouldn't be able to stop her from participating against the kingdoms who dared to cross them, Edwin made sure to train her fiercely. His commands were harsher, leaving no room for the slightest error.

Clara understood, and she worked ever harder to become the best version of herself.

Julian and Clara often trained together when each two had been partnered up to spar, or other things. They were Edwin's best knights, and he felt immense pride, yet blanketed with fear of dark possibilities in their future.

Victor saw less and less of Clara. In between her training and cooking, and him constantly being with his friend Thomas, or Carmen, the two only saw one another early in the morning when Clara went to wake him and prepare his clothes for the day. Sometimes Hazel would do it if Clara was too busy or tired from the previous night's training.

And boy did she love teasing Victor about Carmen.

Victor and Carmen had been quite...friendly, much to Thomas' dismay. With Carmen's beauty and Victor's charm, no one was really surprised to see them take a liking to each other.

Especially with Clara and Hazel playing cupid.

The three girls had become good friends as well; often going to the town and enjoying the peace it brought them. Occasionally, they had tea parties which Lila adored. Carmen even let her wear one of her tiaras.

Which of course led to her wanting to be a princess, surprising absolutely no one.

On a sunny yet cold morning, Clara entered Victor's room, making a beeline to his bed. Not wasting any time, she struck him with a stray pillow making him wake up with a yelp.

"Wake up!!"

"Will you ever stop doing that?" he groaned with his head in his hands.

"It's either this or my fist," she shrugged. "and I assure you, you might not wake up if I use that instead."

He mumbled something under his breath, freezing when Clara chuckled, indicating that she heard him.

"Now come on," she threw him his clothes, and he caught them easily due to all the mornings of Clara throwing things at him out of nowhere. Clara smiled, seeing him catch it. "we're riding in an hour."

"Oh, that's today?" he asked.

"What would you do without me?" she put a hand on her hip, shaking her head.

"Not be where I'm supposed to be." he laughs. His eyes then notice her apparel. "You're wearing trousers again?"

"I'm not riding horses with skirts anymore." she said blandly.

"Not very ladylike though, is it?"

"Clothes don't make a lady." she turned to him with steel eyes. "Just like the way you think doesn't make you a man."

She left the room abruptly, leaving him blinking and wondering if he said something wrong. Which he did, but he was too much of an idiot to know.

"Women..." he rolled his eyes before he got up to get ready for the day.

"I'm surprised my father agreed for us to come out without a whole party of knights." Victor chuckled, looking around him, his eyes settling on Carmen who rode beside him.

Julian, Clara, Hazel and Alan exchanged looks.

"Well..." Clara started off sheepishly.

"Cleo..." he narrowed his eyes at her. "He does know, doesn't he?"

"He does!" she exclaimed defensively. You know, like a liar. "He just thinks we have more knights with us..."

"But it's fine," Hazel backs her up. "we have three knights with us!"

Victor and Carmen furrow their eyebrows, only seeing Julian and Alan.

"There's only two." Carmen stated.

"Yeah, I don't see a third knight anywhere." Victor agreed. "Does he only exist in your imagination?"

Clara glared at him.

"Oh piss off." she said. "So she got the number mixed up, no need to be so rude about it."

Victor's eyes widened in surprise, as did the others. They expected another playful argument between the two of them, but Clara didn't seem to notice the very slight tone of his teasing in his voice.

"I wasn't being rude-" his words were unheard by her as she and Shadow hurried along. Hazel and Julian watched her with sympathy, and the rest with confusion. She'd never been this tense or closed off.

Hazel nodded at Julian and he sighed before he urged his own steed to go faster so he would be able to reach her. Once he did, he saw her staring off into the distance, a dazed look in her eyes. She heard the sound of hooves and looked over, taking in a deep breath when she saw who it was.

"Want to talk about it?" he asked softly, and she shook her head. "Okay, that's fine."

He reached out a hand to hold hers, squeezing it in comfort. She did the same, welcoming the comfort, not minding how cold their hands were. They rode in silence while conversation was thriving a few feet behind them.

Her thoughts were scrambled, and she couldn't find peace within herself.

"I'm scared." she finally whispered.

Julian turned to look at her, his hand staying firm in hers, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.

"I knew what comes with being a knight," she explained, her eyes trained on Shadow's dark mane, her free fingers combing through it. "but it's so much harder than I ever thought it would be. It's become too real, too soon."

"I understand." he said softly. "I'm scared too, but think of what we're here to do. We're keeping families safe, and that overpowers any fear I have."

"They wouldn't be afraid if it wasn't for me." she admit, holding back tears. "I caused this, there wouldn't be any war to fear if I had just shut my stupid mouth."

"Hey, hey." he furrowed his eyebrows. "Crounia would have tried to attack again sooner or later, so don't even try to blame yourself for it. You did what was right. And you'll continue to do what's right, that's why you train so hard everyday."

"What if I'm not good enough?" she bit her lip in thought. "So many people doubt me, and now I'm starting to think they're right."

"Clara Lux-Virtous." he said sternly, and her lips quirked up a little at her name but faded again. "You are one of the best, if not the absolute best. Anyone who doubts your power is a fool. You're far more skilled than anyone we have ever recruited, and I'd trust no one but you to ride into battle with."

She squeezed his hand, getting lost in her own head once more. The stress of all the training was getting to her, along with the exhaustion of sleepless nights. Her guilt weighed her down, and her mind had no mercy on her as it kept thinking of the worst possible futures.

Nothing could prepare a person for war, no matter how many they experience, they still feel the darkness sneaking up into their hearts. It drowns them in the fear of losing those they love. The fear was both their fuel and downfall.

And Clara had fallen victim to the same fear.

Her dreams were infected with her mother's screams when her father got killed. Her scar on her shoulder burned, and it took everything in her to not scream. It felt heavy and uncomfortable on her skin, marking her as the reason her father died.

She hated it.

She hated every feeling that came with the memories attached to the scar.

And she feared she'd get another scar like that, she feared that she'd become the reason so many innocent people die in a war.

She feared herself.

The rest of the day went smoother, now that Clara had calmed down. She did not snap at Victor anymore, instead went back to their usual banter with a lighter heart. He felt relieved that she wasn't angry with him, and it left a funny feeling in his chest.

They were sat by a lake, enjoying the warmth the sunlight brought on that cold winter day. Their horses were resting not too far from them, also enjoying the golden rays of heat.

The three women were weaving a crown out of all the wildflowers around them, conversing happily while the men discretely admired them. 

"It's peaceful today." Carmen sighed and Clara agreed with her, taking a deep breath of fresh air. 

"The humidity is so not good for my hair, however." Hazel laughed, poking her wild curls.

"You're a beautiful bush, my lady." Alan joked with her, sending a sheepish wink her way. She gasped dramatically and slapped his arm.

"I will break up with you!" she pointed at him, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Alan laughed and put his hands up defensively before reaching over and taking her hand in his, planting a soft kiss on her knuckles.

Clara watched with a grin, enjoying how happy her best friend has been recently.

"Well, you can't scare me with that threat," Victor chuckled. "You're quite the bush, Hazel."

She narrowed her eyes and threw a small pebble at him, making everyone laugh delightedly. Clara even cheered, sending him a sheepish smile when he glared at her, the smile sneaking onto his lips.

Unfortunately that wasn't the only thing sneaking up on him.

The knights' trained ears picked up a distant sound, a rustle in the far off bushes. Light footsteps erased the possibility of the wind being the cause of the moving plants.

Immediately, the three knights spring up onto their feet, confusing those around them. 

"Get your swords." Julian said.

Clara had never been more grateful to have her hair braided for the day. She ran to the horses and grabbed three sheathed swords, bringing them to the other two soldiers.

"Hazel, Victor, Carmen," she called, grabbing their attention. "Go to the horses, now."

No one dared to question the authority in her tone, and so Victor helped Carmen stand and by that time Hazel was already halfway to their destination.

The three unsheathed their swords and they glimmered in the sunlight. They watched around them, weary and cautious. Victor watched in awe as Clara gripped her sword tightly, and had they not told them to stay silent, he would have bombarded her with questions and demanded she joined them in hiding.

But then he saw the way she twirled the blade in her hand, expertly dodging the bandits that had attacked them. She slashed expertly, swift on her feet. Julian and Alan were fighting alongside her, and if it weren't for their skills, they would have been overwhelmed with the number of bandits.

Clara didn't feel useless this time. She fought for the protection of her friends, and she did it brilliantly. Her eyes were as cold as the steel she used to slice the abdomen of a man that tried to attack her.

An arrow shot right in front of her, almost hitting Julian's shoulder. Clara looked back, the fire in her eyes blazing with fury as she marched over to the man responsible, dodging his arrows before she reached him, and hit him hardly with the hilt of her sword and he fell unconscious.

Noticing that the bandits kept coming, Victor trailed his eyes on the forgotten bow and bundle of arrows on the ground. Making his stupidest decision yet, he darted towards his, ignoring the cry of Hazel and Carmen as they tried to stop him. He grabbed the weapon and hurriedly loaded an arrow, sending it flying. 

He missed.

He cursed under his breath, his anger with his father growing for a moment before he shoved the thought aside to focus on his aim once more. 

He never missed a target when he was younger, but due to years without any actual training, his aim had gotten worse.

But old habits never die, and soon, he got the hang of it again. It was probably the adrenaline and fear of getting hurt that made him shoot accurately once more.

A man who had been fighting with Clara fell to the ground, and she saw the arrow imbedded in his head, blood pooling around him. She looked to the source and her eyes widened, seeing the dark haired prince take more shots.

"What the hell are you doing?" she yelled at him as she fought off a man that Victor failed to notice coming behind him.

"Helping!"

"Go back!"

"No!"

"Oh for goodness sake!" she gave up, deciding that it would be best to focus on defeating the bandits. 

A few minutes into it and the knights of Avelyn triumphed. Julian held one of the men as Clara went up to him while Alan checked the rest of the men.

"Who sent you?" she sneered, holding her sword at his neck, pressing slightly.

"I'm not saying anything to a bitch-" Julian kicked the back of his knees and he fell, his head being held from his hair. Clara lowered her sword to his throat again, her eyes darkening.

"Who sent you?" she asked again, but her voice was colder. It was terrifying.

When she was met with nothing but silence, she pressed her sword harder, drawing a little blood.

"King Jacob!"

Her face paled, all redness from the heat of the fight was gone, instead replaced with icy skin. She withdrew her sword hesitantly, and nodded at Julian, whose horse had already joined his side.

"Take him back." she said. "Tell Edwin. Bring more knights to escort the rest of the men that are alive."

"I'm not leaving without you." he insisted.

"Someone has to stay-"

"I'll stay." Alan interrupted. "Most of them are dead anyway, I can take care of the rest. Just hurry."

Clara hesitated but nodded.

"You get a head start, I'll be right behind you with the rest." she told Julian and he nodded and left with his prisoner, his heart heavy with the thought of leaving her when he knew she wasn't okay.

She walked over to the horses where Victor was checking over the two women to make sure they weren't hurt. Instantly, the need to vomit was forgotten, instead replaced with fury.

"Is everyone alright?" she asked, her voice a little softer. Once she was reassured, she turned to Victor and punched his arm.

"Ow!" he hissed in pain. "I take it back, I'll stick with the pillow wake up." 

"What were you thinking, you imbecile!?" she scolded him. He had never seen her this angry, and to be frank, he was quite scared. "You had one job, and that was to stay here!"

"I couldn't just stand there!"

"Yes, you could." she matched his loud volume. "That's all you do!"

Hurt flashed behind his eyes before his own anger rose.

"And what about you, huh?" he roared. "What the hell were you doing fighting them?"

"I've been trained for this!" she stared into his eyes, their close proximity scaring both Carmen and Hazel, in fear that one of them would murder the other. "You, have not!"

"I have!"

"By who?"

"My mother!" he yelled finally, his chest heaving. Clara's eyes softened, but the anger was still there.

"Still, that was so ridiculously stupid of you." she mumbled before getting the horses on their feet and petting Shadow who kept nudging her with his snout to calm her down.

"Since when can you fight?" he asked, still riled up. "I haven't seen you train or anything, you're always in the kitchen or doing chores."

"Right, because god forbid I'm anything more than a maid to you." she rolled her eyes.

She felt sick; her stomach grumbled and she felt bile rising in her throat but never truly coming out. There was blood covering her, and she wasn't sure if it included her own. She struggled with sheathing her sword and attaching it back to Shadow due to the tremble in her hands. She was angry and scared and his yelling didn't help the hurricane in her mind at all.

"That's not what I meant and you know it." he grew frustrated. "Why didn't I know you can fight?"

"Because you don't know me." her tone could cut ice from how sharp it was.

Victor pursed his lips, angry and hurt by her words, but his pride didn't allow him to show it. He lifted his head and went back to Carmen, helping her get on her horse while Clara helped Hazel get on before she climbed over Shadow, and they set their way back to the castle to report what had happened.

It was like all the playfulness between Clara and Victor deteriorated, as if they never formed a friendship during all the months spent together. They were back to square one, and they struggled to know if the other had been just as hurt as them.

Avelyn grew colder, and they knew it wasn't the air that was the problem.

 I really hope I did this chapter justice.

Clara wasn't that great this chapter was she?

I honestly feel bad for Victor lol.

Anyways, let me know what you think!!