Thessan waited in the ring with an unfortunate group of males, the sun gleaming on his bound dark hair, sweat already glistening on his tanned skin, but the smirk that formed on Reyna's face when she saw the General after the memory of yesterday's encounter was just enough for her to realize everything was going to be fine. Even her mother's presence as she stood outside of the training circle seemed to give her an extra boost in her step as she approached.

Today was another day, and with the determination written plain across her face, she silently wished Thessan all the best.

He was going to need it.

Reyna watched the recruits already standing within the ring, waiting for their turn again the General, and a part of her wanted to show them how soft they were, how much further they had to go. How much harder they would need to train to be a Warrior like Thessan. Like her father. But instead of joining then, she stood just on the outskirts of the circle, just close enough for Thessan to know she was there and she was ready as she stepped into her knife belt and buckled the straps the across her waist and thighs.

Her mother stood on the opposite side of the ring- whether this was part of her morning errands or not, Reyna wasn't going to take the time to find out as flung her dark braid over her shoulder and stepped into the ring.

She knew he saw her as he deflected the blade of one of the scrawniest males of the bunch before thrusting the pommel of his blade into the youth's chest, sending his sprawling to the ground with an audible 'oof!'

Thessan snorted and rolled his eyes. "I've sparred with Princesses with better footwork than you lot!"

The cheap shot had Reyna clenching her fists where she stood.

Thessan grumbled disdainfully, motioning for the youth to get up and leave, and that was her signal to enter the training circle.

He stared at her flatly but raised a brow. "Didn't your parents ever teach you manners? Wait your turn," he said with a smile that was every bit a mockery of politeness and servitude.

Matching Thessan's smile with a saccharine one all her own, she unsheathed the blade at her back. "Oh, my apologies- were you busy? Of course, I'm so sorry to interrupt, but we're not done yet."

The recruits took that as their signal to move out of the way, and they immediately escaped their proximity as Reyna and Thessan turned towards each other.

"Your father should have taught you a lesson in quitting while you're ahead," he said as he artfully flipped his blade in his hand, more for show than necessity.

"You know my father- quitting was never an option."

And with her blade ready, she charged at the General, knowing the new recruits watched, knowing her mother observed the exchange, and knowing Thessan would want to put on a show for all them as much as she did.

Being watched only added to their flair for the dramatics. It made the viewing more enjoyable for all parties involved. It was a deadly dance they practiced often- matched partners in potential pain.

But as she lunged with her blade comfortable between her hands, he was ready. Gracefully he feigned right, but her expectations of his dodging left tripped her up as he did indeed step to the right. She was too late to recover, knowing well he used the same moved the attempted with him the day before.

She never would live that one down, not as he brought the flat of his blade around to the backs of her knees before retreating to the other side of the ring, taking up a defensive stance.

The momentum knocked her to her knees, but she recovered quickly, jumping to her feet smoothly as she pivoted to face him.

"That's why he nearly didn't come back from a few mistakes he made," Thessan growled as he prowled around Reyna, circling her before she could lunge at him again. "You'd be wise to learn from his mistakes."

His blade was up and clanging against hers without any pretense. Fury flashed behind the Northern Heir's eyes as she gritted her teeth at the impact, her blade meeting his hard. "Insulting my father, calling me Princess- you should find better ways to get under my skin or these next few weeks are going to be long and miserable."

Her boots soon began to slip in the mud and he took advantage of it to push her back. She grounded herself quickly but wasted no time charging at him again. And again.

She would be damned if she let him get into her head. Not now. Not when there was so much on the line.

Reyna felt as though she spent every moment of her immortal existence trying to prove herself to someone, somehow.

To her father, that she was old enough to make her own decisions.

To her mother, that she could have the compassion she lives by, to never need to be coddled.

To Thessan, and every other gods-damned male in that camp, that she was just as good as they were.

To the Northern Kingdom, that she would have what it takes to fill the roles of their King and Queen when her time came.

And maybe even to herself.

But she refused to ever allow any of it to make her weak.

Even if that meant she had to kick the ass of every insufferable male in that damn camp, if only to prove her point, and starting with the general in front of her, she would do so.

"If you want to be like your father so badly," Thessan drawled on as he readied for another attack, "maybe you should figure out how to at least use your magic so you can get your ass out of trouble."

Reyna wasn't sure she heard him correctly at first.

But even over the sound of metal clashing against metal, there was no mistaking the words that rang through her Fae ears.

Using the moment to his advantage, Thessan blocked her next intended blow and parried her blade away with his before ramming the pommel of his own sword into her ribcage. His foot came around, hooking behind her left knee and tugged, sending her careening to the ground.

She let her guard down as the weight of what Thessan threw at her knocked the wind out of her as much as the kick that sent her careening to the ground. She couldn't move- not because he had knocked her down, but rather because of what he flung at her.

It was common knowledge that she strived to follow her father's path- there wasn't a male in the Northern Kingdom she'd rather look up to, or shape her life after, than he. But her magic, or the lack thereof- that was personal. That was intimate knowledge that only those closest to her knew about, and those same individuals knew how sensitive it was. How it made her feel.

That she was over one hundred years old and couldn't summon a single flurry, or even touch upon a drop of her mother's healing abilities- it was her greatest regret, her greatest weakness... and her greatest remorse.

An Heir without magic might as well not be an Heir at all...

As Reyna lay there in the mud of the sparring ring, for a moment she felt she might as well not be. Her eyes burned, but she couldn't find the strength to retort, or say much of anything. Slowly, she gathered herself up as paralyzing doubt washed over her- doubt of who she was, who she was supposed to be, what she was supposed to be.

Picking up her blade, she refused to let Thessan see the pain he created in her eyes. Turning her back to him, her focus was on the group of new recruits who watched the exchanged with their jaws dropped. One may even have smirked in her direction, but she didn't care.

Not when the General's personal blow landed so deep... too deep.

Squaring her shoulders and straightening her spine, she walked over to an unknown recruit and handed him her own blade. "You're up," she muttered as she put the hilt in his hand, not waiting to see if he actually held onto it, or even moved towards the pit.

She moved on, walking out of the sparring pit, away from the cabin where she knew her parents' watched, and towards the nearest cooking fire set up near the canteen tent. She flexed her hands as she took a seat on a log, her back to the training circle.

She'd wait her turn after all.

She wasn't even certain if she could even find the ember again because at that moment- because of Thessan's damn comment- every doubt she ever had about herself and her abilities was amplified tenfold because it came from him.

The name-calling she could handle. The taunts about her father she could endure. But Thessan was her father's General, and even when they were at odds, she still respected him. She held him in the highest of regards, even when he was an arrogant ass who deserved every ass-kicking she gave him. But now...

Now it felt like he was no better than any other sneering male in that camp, and it hurt her more than she thought it would.

"What did he say to you?"

She hadn't even heard her father approach, let alone take a seat on the log next to her.

Reyna rested her arms on her thighs and stared at her hands in front of her. "Only what every other male in this camp is already thinking- I'm nothing more than a female. A female who shouldn't be spending her time in the ring, in the mud, in the woods. Just a princess."

She knew she was stronger than this... knew that she shouldn't let mere words affect her so, but it was the weight of them that hurt more than anything else. And now that her father was there...

She closed her eyes and begged the gods to keep her tears in check.

"So prove them wrong," he said steadily. "Show them all who you are. What you're made of. Because you're ten times the warrior most of them could ever dream of being, Rey."

"An Heir without magic." She wrapped her arms around her as her eyes stared back into the fire. "I've been trying to prove them wrong since I came here, and of all of them, even he doesn't think I'm worth the time..." She shook her head. "Maybe I should just come home with you..."

She hated this. Hated it more than anything.

"You're not coming home. You're going to stay here, and you're going to train. And you're going to train with Thessan, regardless of what he thinks of you. Because it doesn't matter what he, or anyone else, thinks of you. I think you're worth it, and I will be damned if a daughter of mine gives up because of an pompous Northern Warrior who's too focused on his own sense of self-importance as my General. So, you'll stay."

His tone was final as he stood from the log. "You should say goodbye to your mother, though. We're leaving, and I don't know when we'll be back."

She whipped her head around to him at that. "You're still leaving?"

She didn't know why it surprised her. Maybe it was because she was feeling exceptionally vulnerable, or maybe it was the sound of his voice, but despite the request she made of him, Reyna suddenly realized that she was going to miss her father's presence very, very much...

As if Rikard knew her thoughts, his expression softened, if only slightly. "We've been away from the castle for long enough as it is, and you know how much your mother hates sleeping anywhere but her own bed." He winked, which made Reyna crack a small smile, but he nodded towards the cabin, keeping his eyes on his daughter. "Go say goodbye to your mother, and then be back out here in ten minutes."

"Why ten minutes?" She perked a brow.

"Because in ten minutes, you're going to go back to that ring and kick Thessan's ass. Understood?"

She hesitated, but only for a moment. He was right, of course. She couldn't - wouldn't- let this be the end of everything she had worked towards. So she stood and gave her father a reassuring grin. "I'll be back in five." And left him where he stood near the fire to make her way towards the cabin.