Page 20 of A Court of Ash and Midnight
To his immense credit, his eyes don’t drop to my overspilling chest once. “That’s clearly the wrong size,” he says, tone serious, but with a hint of mirth in his eyes, which are still locked on mine.
He turns to the chest and pulls out a much more reasonably sized vest, which he hands to me as I shimmy out of the other one. It fits perfectly—snug but not suffocating.
“Good,” he says, appraising me. “You need to be able to move around freely.”
Another turn, and this time he claps loudly and his voice booms across the room. “Trainees to the field!” Gielle and the others flood out through open doors at the back of the room.
I blink, confused. “Are you—”
He smiles back at me and gestures for me to follow him. “I’m the sparring captain for the first years.”
“I’ve never done this before,” I say hastily. I don’t know why I’m suddenly aflutter with nerves because he’s leading the drills. Well, perhaps because I’m about to spar with actual fae who are vastly better at this than I am. “So, maybe, take it easy on me.”
“On the contrary,” he says with a smirk. “You have a few years of training to make up for. But don’t worry, no weapons today at least. Just hand-to-hand.”
My heart plummets as I follow him through the doors out into the sun. Wisps of gray clouds move across the sky, silvering the light. The practice field is a massive stretch of trim green grass that sits alongside the building. Gardens and paths line it on the far side, and the river sits beyond. I can see two bridges arcing over the water.
“Pair up!” Toryn calls to the group. I look around, feeling awkward and mortified at the idea of some first year having to spar with me. But my horror only grows when Toryn flicks his fingers to beckon me. “You’re with me, Embyr.”
I approach him warily.
He grins. “You look like you’re walking to the gallows. Relax. I don’t bite.Much.”
Goddess. He’s not going to make this easy on me, is he?
“Today we’re going to review proper arm blocks and also leg sweeps,” he calls across the field. “This is Embyr. She’s new here, though you all probably already know that since gossip travels faster than the river around here. We’ll be demonstrating.”
Toryn turns to face me. “Try and hit me.”
I shake my head. An excuse forms on my lips, but I know it’s going to drag things out and make this even more miserable than it already is. And I hadn’t lied to Professor Julian about my history in a brawl or two. Or five.
So, I leap forward and come at Toryn with everything I’ve got, feigning to the left and then coming right, slamming my fist into his cheekbone.
Or,almostslamming my fist into his cheekbone.
He sidesteps, barely missing my blow, and I have the satisfaction of seeing his shocked expression just a moment before he ducks back around, kicks my legs out from under me, and slams me to the ground. The windwhooshesout of my lungs, but the grass is springy and soft, so I’m more surprised than anything.
After a moment’s pause, he offers me his hand and helps me to my feet. “That was an excellent attempt for a brand-new trainee,” he calls to the crowd. “And notice the sidestep and foot sweep combo I utilized. Repeat this exercise with your partners. Take turns attacking and defending.”
Toryn stands with his hands clasped behind his back, watching the pairs for several minutes, calling instructions here and there. Then he turns back to me. “Alright, your turn to block.”
“How?”
“Somehow I feel you have better experience than you’re letting on.” He smiles. “But I’ll show you the basic blocks.”
He moves behind me and reaches around, then pulls my arms up into position. I am very aware of the heat of his body against mine, his breath tickling my ear. He really is entirely too handsome to be a teacher, especially of sparring. I doubt any of his students can pay attention.
“Focus, Embyr,” he says, a slight purr in his voice as if he can sense my thoughts.
We move through several blocks, Toryn pulling my arms into position alongside his own. Then he moves back around in front of me. “Okay, try again. Block the same way I just showed you.” Sweat forms along my spine as we continue drilling on the movements. Minutes pass, but instead of growing tired, I feel invigorated. When my muscles are heated like this, I forget the pain that plagues them.
“Okay, and now leg sweeps. Watch.” He shows me a few times, pretending, but on the fifth or sixth time, he actually drops me to the ground. After he helps me up, he says, “You try now.”
I go at him with everything I’ve got once again, and he easily sidesteps and then drops me with his own leg swipe. This time, he follows me to the ground, pinning me under him as he straddles my hips. His eyes meet mine, and he holds me there a moment before letting me back up. Then he’s all smiles again. “That was good. You’re a quick learner.”
My chest feels tight, my cheeks hot, and I can’t tell if I’m mad or turned on. As Toryn turns to bark instructions at the other trainees, I take a moment to wipe the grass off my clothes andout of my hair. As I stand there, I feel a prickle up the back of my neck. I turn toward the river, and for a moment I don’t see anything.
But then, in the shadows of a tree, I catch sight of a lone figure.
