Few things comforted her like the feeling of the hilt of her rapier in her hand, hot with the heat that her skin provided rather than cool as it rested with her other swords and daggers during the hours of the night when they were little more than decorative pieces. The sweat that dripped from her forehead and underarms was also a comfort. A strange sort of comfort that could leave her smelling worse than a warthog's rear on a hot summer day, but she found comfort in the familiar heat of her muscles as they burned. She found comfort in the chill that came when the cool morning breeze nipped at her flushed skin. The sort of shivering chill that made you feel as though you were coming down with a high fever.
Sparring was one of the few things that comforted her during the months that she spent in her family manor, without anything to do. There were only so many people who could come to visit her, and only so many places to explore. And the Escrime family had spent generations exploring the world of Twisted Wonderland. For them, the world was growing smaller every day.
Her opponent took a swipe at her with an uncapped sword and she quickly danced out of the way, bringing up her rapier to parry. She advanced. Her opponent retreated. Then he moved forward and it was her turn to back up.
She could feel the sweat dripping down her shoulder blades, rolling down the small of her back towards her hips. They had been sparring for the better part of the early morning, having started as soon as the sun rose, and already it was nearing eight o'clock. Eden would be expecting her back inside soon to get her ready for the rest of the day. It was time for this battle to end.
She glanced down at her feet, eyes hardening when she saw the polished heel of her boot a mere inch from the white line that had been painted on the cobblestone courtyard. Her grandfather had almost managed to push her out of the ring. She scolded herself for becoming so caught up in her thoughts and tightened her grip around her rapier. She pushed off, lunging towards her grandfather, forcing him back a few paces. She ducked under his arm as he swung at her and brought her sword up, the sharpened point a hair away from the bare skin of his neck. Escrimes never sparred with armour. Small nicks and bruises were to be expected when training, especially when training with the senior Escrimes.
"Well done, Y/N," her grandfather said, laughing deep in his stomach. "You've improved since our last fight."
Y/N smirked and bowed to her grandfather. Then, she headed off to the wooden bench along the walls of the courtyard where her things were waiting for her. The guards and knights in training would be out soon, ready for another day of intense practice, overseen by both her grandfather and grandmother. Her grandfather would teach the knights and guards the proper use of weaponry, while her grandmother would drill them relentlessly in stamina and speed. As always, the guards would end their day with written reflections that they would then turn in to her grandmother and grandfather to be reviewed. Her grandfather always said that reflection was the key to improvement.
"Are you going to practice with Dominique today," Y/N asked as she picked up her water bottle, lifting it to her lips and taking a long swig.
Her grandfather nodded. "Most likely, though Gabriel has already asked if we could spar just before lunch."
Y/N smirked at the mention of the youngest Escrime child. Gabriel was the baby of the family. Already seventeen but still the youngest and the most inexperienced. Y/N often sparred with him in her free time, drilling him as hard as her grandmother drilled the guards and the knights. And when they weren't sparring, Y/N was teaching him things like horseback riding, archery, and jousting. Archery was his favourite.
As Y/N bowed to her grandfather once more, her grandmother joined them in the courtyard, already dressed in her usual black tracksuit and running boots. Her grey and white hair was pulled up into a loose bun, and a whistle hung around her neck.
"Good morning, my dear," she said, descending the steps towards her eldest grandchild. "How are you today?" She gave her a tight squeeze, forcing Y/N to feel the tightness in her biceps and forearms, and kissed her on the temple.
"Good."
"And how did you do this morning?" She always asked how Y/N had fared in her daily sparring matches with her grandfather.
"I beat him," Y/N said, with an acceptable amount of smugness in her voice. Her grandparents did not approve of arrogance. No one in the Escrime family did. To them, arrogance would lead to stupid mistakes that would lead to defeat. And though she had once struggled with being prideful, a few bad sparring lessons with her grandfather had whipped Y/N into shape. She was still arrogant at times and often used spite as a motivator, but she had learned her lesson. She had a scar on her back to prove it.
"Good. Now run along. Eden will be waiting for you."
Y/N bowed to her grandmother and headed out of the courtyard, taking the path that the guards would take as they headed to the courtyard. She never took the path directly to her room. She liked the few moments of morning light when she could walk in peace before the chaos of the day got to her. The nip of the morning on the exposed skin of her shoulders, the warmth of her muscles keeping her from shivering, and the sound of the world waking up around her.
* * *
Y/N smirked at her reflection in the mirror. Her maid, Eden, had picked out her outfit for her today. A simple white blouse with a ruffled neck, a black vest-waistcoat, and a pair of simple tight-fitting trousers. And of course, her favourite mid-calf boots that had been a gift from her grandfather. As she stared at herself in the mirror, running her thumb over a smudge on her cheek, Eden approached and held out a small box with a velvet-lined interior. Inside was a small brass pin. The symbol of the Escrime family. Two swords, one a rapier, the other a cutlass, crossed over each other with a vine of ivy curling around the handles of each one.
Y/N took the pin from Eden. "What's the plan for today?" She pressed the brass pin through the fabric of her waistcoat over her heart and clipped it shut. Then, she picked up her brush from her vanity and started running it through her hair as she turned to Eden.
"You are to have breakfast with your parents," Eden said, pulling out a small envelope from her pocket. "You then have an hour of training with your uncle, followed by two hours of lectures, then lunch in the garden with your siblings, then another three hours of lectures, followed by two hours of free time, and finally supper with your family in the great hall. And then I believe that your grandfather wants to meet with you to discuss the upcoming trip to the Shaftlands."
"Perfect," Y/N said, setting her brush down. "Well then, shall we head down to breakfast?" She bowed slightly to Eden and extended her arm. Eden smiled and looped her arm through Y/N's, allowing the heiress to the Escrime fortune to lead her down to the great hall. But before they left, Y/N took her hat from its place on the door and placed it atop her curls. Her mother would not be pleased that she was wearing a hat to breakfast, but she was going to practice with her uncle immediately after. She had to look like an Escrime after all.
The two walked through the Escrime Manor in peaceful and comfortable silence, and as they did, Y/N took a moment to appreciate the history that seemed to bleed from the walls. For five hundred years, the Escrime family had owned the manor atop the cliff that sat above a small village in the Kingdom of Heroes. The village provided the Escrime family with all the food and textiles they could ever want, and in turn, the Escrime family brought them wealth and protection. For five hundred years the Escrime family had protected those who lived on their land, and they would continue to do so until the day their line ended.
Just outside of the great hall where her parents were waiting, Y/N paused and gazed up at the portrait of her great-grandmother. One of the most famous Escrime women to live in the manor, renowned throughout the world of Twisted Wonderland for her work in freeing a village in the Shaftlands from tyranny and locating the lost treasure of the famed beast who once lived in a cursed castle not far from where the Escrime family now lived. The rose that had been encased in glass and gold, a cursed timepiece from the enchantress who had cursed him.
Y/N hoped that one day, her portrait would hang on the walls of the manor alongside her ancestors. And more than that, she hoped that her siblings would join her on the walls. They might not be the heiress to the fortune that the Escrime family held, but they were family, and Y/N knew that each one of them was worthy of the Escrime name.
Eden knocked on the door of the great hall.
"The Lady Y/N Escrime."
Y/N pushed the doors to the hall open rather unceremoniously and strode in, smirking when she saw her mother and father sitting at the end of the long table that they usually only sat at when they had a party of guests to entertain. More often than not, the Escrime family would eat in the sitting room or they would eat on their own time, as they were a big family with different schedules that often clashed. But when the heads of the Escrime family had time, they would always take a little bit of time out of their day to sit down with their children and ensure that they were doing well.
"How many times have I told you not to wear a hat at the table," Elena said with a sigh. She stood to greet her daughter with a hug and a kiss.
"Sorry, Mother," Y/N joked, walking around the table to greet her father. "Morning, Father." She kissed him atop the head.
"Good morning, child."
Y/N sat down at her spot beside her father and let out a long sigh as she slumped back in her chair, her knees crossing over each other beneath the table. She winked at her mother, who simply rolled her eyes and started eating.
"So, child," Felix said, picking up his cup of tea. "What are you planning for today?"
Y/N shrugged. "Not anything much different than any other day." She helped herself to some food before falling back into her seat a little, accidentally bumping her hat over her eyes. She relented to her mother's wish and pulled the hat from her head, draping it over one of the supporting posts of her chair, and brushed the feather to the side to make sure that it didn't tickle her neck while she was dining with her parents.
"Are you meeting with my brother today," her father asked, taking a bite of his toast.
Y/N nodded. "I believe we are going over the art of hand-to-hand combat today."
"Ah. A skill any young Escrime should know." He winked at her over the rim of his cup and Y/N returned his wink with a smirk. "Make sure to tell your uncle that I also want you trained properly in less elegant arts as well. Swimming, climbing, and the like."
"I know, Father," Y/N said with a slightly exasperated sigh. "You've already told him. And I think I'm a quite proficient swimmer, thank you very much." She took a sip of her water.
Soon, breakfast came to an end and Y/N made her way to the gardens where her uncle would be waiting for her. Perhaps Gideon would be there as well, Y/N thought as she stepped out through the open doors and descended the small staircase into the maze of hedges that separated the rear of the Escrime manor from the edge of the bluff where the family manor sat.
Lately, Gideon had taken a particular liking to attending her lessons, hoping to learn all he could for the day when his coming-of-age ceremony would take place. Y/N's coming-of-age ceremony had passed a few years before, and as a part of her trial, she had been sent to face a mountain troll who had been terrorizing a village for the past five years. She had no idea what Gideon's would be, but she had no doubt that he would pass it without any accident.
When she reached the pavilion in the centre of the gardens, she was glad to see that not only was her younger brother there, but her two other brothers were also there. Luis had been born a year after she was, and Alejandro had been born two years after him. Dominique had been born the year following, and three years later, Gideon had been born as the last of the Escrime children.
"Good morning, my brothers," Y/N said, calling out to her siblings as she strode towards them.
Luis was the first to greet her and glanced up from his book, his small spectacles sitting on the bridge of his nose, attached with a thin golden chain that stretched around his neck, sitting pretty on the shoulders of his neatly pressed suit. He was always dressed formally and was hardly ever seen without a book in his hand. Currently, it seemed that he was studying the art of jousting, as he was reading a book that their uncle had assigned to Y/N when it had come time for her to learn, just a year after her coming-of-age ceremony.
"Good morning, sister," Luis said, rising to his feet and making his way towards his sister. He shut his book and embraced his sister. "How are Mother and Father?"
"Good. And how are you today, Luis?"
Luis glanced down at his book and Y/N rolled her eyes. "You stayed up all night, didn't you?"
Luis sighed and nodded. "Unfortunately. I lost track of time and before I knew it the night had passed." His cheeks coloured and he glanced away from his sister. "I didn't mean to."
"Knucklehead," Y/N muttered, patting her brother on his head. She ignored his muttering as he tried to flatten his hair down and turned to the next brother.
"Morning, Alejandro," Y/N called, walking up the steps towards her second youngest brother, who had most likely fallen asleep in the shade of his hat. She pulled it up and sure enough, her brother had fallen asleep. "Alejandro!"
Alejandro jumped at the sound of his name, whipping out a small dagger and aiming it at his attacker. Y/N quickly whipped out her dagger, metal ringing as her brother hit it.
"Ah! Y/N!"
Y/N rolled her eyes. "Maybe don't fall asleep next time."
Alejandro rolled his eyes and pulled his hat from her hand, slumping back against the seat.
Y/N sighed as she turned to her youngest brother. "I think I need to have a word with Prince Leona. Spending a summer with him did you no favours."
Alejandro smirked beneath his hat. Y/N glared at it for a moment, before plucking it from his head and tossing it out into the gardens where it landed atop a topiary that had been sculpted into the shape of a knight astride a horse. Alejandro let out a groan of irritation and got up to go and fetch it.
"Morning N/N," Gideon said with a small smile, jumping up from his seat to hug his sister around the middle.
"Good morning, squirt." She ruffled his hair before squeezing him tight, smiling as he laughed and returned her embrace.
"I keep telling you not to call me that!"
"You're the littlest of us, squirt. What else am I supposed to call you," she teased, tipping her hat in the direction of her uncle, who was standing beside the pavilion, already dressed in his combat suit and waiting for her.
"My name."
"Well, that's boring." She pulled off her hat and hung it up on one of the coat racks. Then, she turned to the gardens and walked down the steps to where her uncle was waiting for her.
"Good morning, Y/N," he said, greeting her with a sweeping bow and a wink.
"Good morning, Uncle." She returned his gesture. "Are you ready?"
Her answer was her uncle's fist flying towards her. She quickly blocked, grabbing her uncle's wrist and throwing him off balance with a well-placed jab to his stomach. She had learned well that when her uncle fought, his stomach was usually the place he was unable to cover. An easy target. Her uncle stumbled back, but quickly recovered and landed a solid punch against her side. She groaned, but slid around her uncle's next punch, landing two consecutive hits to his side. He was noticeably larger than she was, and much broader. Years of adventures through Twisted Wonderland had hardened every muscle in his body, and though Y/N had gone on a few of her own adventures, her uncle still had a few inches on her and was built like a brick wall. Much different than her lean build with toned muscles from the hours she spent running around the manor every morning. She tried to punch her uncle, but he held up his arms to block her hits, and her fists landed against his forearms. She knew he wouldn't bruise. He never seemed to. She, on the other hand, knew she would be black and blue the following day as her uncle landed another solid punch to her shoulder, throwing her off balance a bit.
About ten minutes later, they decided to take a break, and Y/N joined her brothers in the pavilion, taking a seat beside Gideon and throwing an arm behind him on the bench. He handed her a water bottle, which she took immediately and lifted to her lips. It was hardly ten in the morning and she was already sweating like a pig. A saying that she hated, but one that was terribly accurate for the amount of sweat currently dripping from every crevice on her body.
"Why don't you just take a day off," Alejandro asked.
Y/N pulled the water bottle away and smirked. "And what? Sleep?"
The young man shrugged.
"I think not, kid. You sleep enough for the both of us." She set her water bottle down again. "I really need to talk to the prince about his influence on you." She headed back down to where her uncle was waiting. "Not that he would listen to me."
"He won't," Alejandro called after her.
Y/N rolled her eyes.
Just as Y/N and her uncle were about to start their sparring, someone made a small coughing noise and Y/N turned to see one of the maids standing next to her with a small silver tray, on top of which were three letters, each sealed in wax.
"Thanks, Laura," Y/N said, taking the letters from the maid. The maid gave her a small smile, curtsied, and left the gardens, most likely to head back to the kitchen where the head maid would be waiting for her to give her orders for the evening.
"Who are the letters from, Y/N," Alejandro asked, taking a sip of his wine. Another thing that Y/N would have to speak with Leona about. Introducing her brother to the many different alcohols in the world. But, thankfully, he often drank wine and hardly more than that.
Y/N picked up the first one. "Lady Fayetta of House Archa." She frowned. She had met the lady only once before when she and her grandfather had needed a moment of rest, and most of her time had been spent talking with Lady Fayetta's father about any recent evidence concerning the disappearance of a museum artefact that had been stolen a few weeks prior. What in all of Twisted Wonderland could Lady Fayette be writing to her about?
"Rook Hunt," Y/N smirked at the familiar name. The Escrime family was quite close with the Hunt family and often used the portals in the many Hunt family manors to get around the world quickly. From a young age, Rook and Y/N had been quite close, even though Y/N was a few years his senior. They had bonded over their enjoyment of archery and though she was not as big a fan as Rook, she had confessed to enjoying many films with both Neige LeBlanche and Vil Schoenheit. In fact, it was thanks to Rook that she had been able to meet both LeBlanche and Schoenheit when he introduced her to the boys.
And the last letter was from someone Y/N had never even heard of before. A Lord Aloren. She frowned at the unfamiliar name and took a sip of her water once again as she contemplated what in the Great Seven a complete stranger would be sending her a letter for. It wasn't as though it was hard to find the Escrime family, as they were well known throughout the whole of the magical world, but she was rarely to get letters from strangers. Most of those went to her mother or father.
"Are you all right, Y/N?"
Y/N glanced up at her brothers. "Yes," she said, albeit a little hesitantly. "Yes, I'm all right. Just a little surprised by the senders of these letters." She sighed and handed them to Gideon, who placed them under her water bottle on the table. "I'll have to look at those later." She turned back to her uncle. And as the fight started once again, with her uncle trying to hit her in the nose, her mind flickered back to the letters. She hardly ever received any mail. Text messages and emails were how most of the world communicated. Letters were usually saved for extremely private matters that people didn't want floating around on the history of the web. So what were those three writing to her about?