White lies

Chapter 3

It was their first day of training with the general after their yesterday's conversation. Like the general said "before crack of dawn" which means she had to wake up earlier than usual. She'd told one of maids to give her a wake up call just in case she forgot or slept in. Which she did. Y/n was half an hour late to meet the general.

Turns out the maids were knocking for quite sometime while y/n had just been sleeping unbothered. She hastily put on her kefta and rushed through the palace corridors clumsily to reach to where general and decided to meet to leave for training the previous day. When y/n got there he was already present. On time. His tall figure turned to his back, standing by the pavement where they were talking the other day.
"You're late." He said before turning back.
"I got—"
"Rather not waste time prattling I need to get to council meetings later." He cut her off before she could begin
"Oh-f-fine by me."

They left the palace premises and got to the middle of the large circular empty space surrounded by trees, almost like border-lined by trees. Y/n found that slight weird, an empty space in the middle of the woods before she could raise the question why such a setting? The general got off of is horse and began "This place is for new grishas to train with their powers, outside the place just in case they got out of control, nobody at the palace gets hurt."
"I'm not a new Grisha though"
"You are a new Grisha at the little palace either ways"
"Right, how do we begin?"
"You said yesterday you're very much aware of the capability of your power"
"Yes." Y/n added a nod in the end to sound firm.
"Prove it."
"Prove it?"
"Yes go on-prove it"
Y/n took her hand making a circular movement in the air producing a steady tall flame that reached the length of her face. "Prove how? We don't have anyone to set fire on here"
General was still stunned that y/n didn't even had to flinch to do what she just did and was distracted by what she just said "Anyone? So what you used to set "people" on fire at ketterdam?"
"Not all the time." She shrugged as she just let out about setting people on fire like mentioning a random fact in a conversation.
"O—oh-you weren't joking?" He said sounding shocked.
Y/n suddenly regretted how subtle she sounded mentioning that, being in the dreggs mentioning that you set people on fire was more a flex but it didn't seem to stun the general. "Well—in my defence sometimes I did just burn dead bodies."
"I-I don't think I would like to know any further into that."
"It's actually-not—that's—never mind."
Alecksandar let out an audible sigh to clear the conversation they just had.
"Alright take three steps back-and aim on that tree."
Y/n did as he said but didn't try doing that. "That's quite too far"
"You being aware of your power would know you'd be able to do it."
"I am. But that's still too far for me to aim on"
"You can see it?"
"Yes."
"Then it's not too far, now aim on it."
Y/n let out a discontented sigh and lifted her hands up to aim. Her flames went straight horizontally in the direction of her hands towards the tree, though she could only get it halfway through the tree. It did consume a lot of her energy. "I cant take it any farther than that."
"You can miss y/n just use more energy."

She still tried harder to make it reach the tree feeling almost every ounce of energy draining out of her but she finally did make it reach their and held her hands down swiftly after.

Panting loudly she began "wow-that—that took a lot of—" she tried to complete but she had to catch her breath.
"Strength?" He finished. "It shouldn't take that much. You're simply just-weak."
"Huh? No I'm not-"
"Yes you are. Given how you can easily get a flames out of thin air, you can burn down the whole of little palace to the ground from here. But you're just-not trained enough, and like I said weak."
Y/net out a sarcastic snort before starting "I think I would probably know more about my power than you."
"Well clearly you don't. You barely even got to touch that tree-and you're panting as if you ran around the whole Ravaka."
"I've never had to do this in ketterdam and I've been just fine."
"You're not in ketterdam anymore miss y/n."

Her training with the general went on for a couple days after that, he'd make her run around their training grounds, have her race with the horse, lift wood logs where she'd fall on her face with their weight most of the time where general would just watch her standing smug telling her to do it again and if she complained "we never had to do this in ketterdam" or call his training ways ridiculous he'd make her do the whole thing all over again. Almost like the first army training but only on her having her gasping for air by the time they get back to the little palace after training. Everyone at the palace at first would envy y/n how she gets to train personally by the general but it just took them two days of watching y/n come back from training looking as if she's back from a war, their envy would turn into gratefulness watching y/n barely make it back to her chambers or gulping down water as if she'd been thirsty for a month.

Y/n had came back from her training on her usual time as everyday. Reaching back she walked ahead of the general while he settled his horse back to its stables. Y/n met genya's surprised gaze who'd just be stunned each time thinking she can't look worse than that after training and each day the general would leave her surprised.

Genya came forward stopping in her direction "what-what happened to your kefta?" She asked pointing to the kefta that was torn from the side.
Y/n didn't even see that till now she tilted her head to see where she was pointing to "ah—that-it must've been torn while I ran through a bush today."
"I'll see if I still have your measurements and make you another one." She said with a smile.
"Aight thats really-thoughtful of you doing all that work to make a kefta."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean all that work just to make a kefta that looks utterly awful—I mean look at it-"
"Y/n—" her expressions changed to awkward as she tried to cut her off.
"No I mean it—apart from looking utterly awful it even slows you down when you run, it's too heavy!"
"Listen y/n d—" she tried to speak over her again.
"Whichever classical moron came up with this had something seriously wrong with him and it doesn't even end here. This-this blue-it's the most ridiculous attire I've ever come across."
Y/n would've gone about it even more before she heard someone clearing their throat right behind her sounding more as if they'd wanted to join the conversation. Before going on she turned to see who it might've been. "G-general." She sighed sharply realising he'd been there the whole time she ill-talked about the keftas.
"Oh no no go on-classical moron hmm?" General said as a sarcastic remark.
"I didn't intend to—"
"No please do go on and enlighten us about how corecloth made keftas that withstand bullets and help in better combat are found stupid by you."
Y/n just stood silent too embarrassed to think of a defence and just nodded in response.
The general let out a smug before returning back inside "I would have to agree with you on how the blue does ridiculous on you."
Y/n raised her brows taking in another taunt and turned to genya who'd been standing there awkwardly trying not to laugh.
"I tried to warn you but-" genya said trying to sound comforting.
"It's—it's fine."
—
After dinner general had instructed everyone to gather around for he had to make an announcement, rather an instruction. The drüskelle beyond the wall were marching towards here where had already raised trouble amongst the night's watch (people who guard the wall) coming to this side. They'd requested the grishas to help them about it since they were low on men and there might be more drüskelle that might've crossed the wall to come their way. The general was explaining about the briefs of the drüskelle problem beyond the wall where he intended to March with a small Grisha team from here and put back the drüskelle rebel to its place.

Everyone was gathered silent in a C shaped line where y/n stood amongst kaz, Jesper and Inej. Neither of them were paying slightest attention to what the general had to say, not that they cared either. Kaz was standing rigid, expressionless as always.

"Jesper." Y/n whispered to her side.
"What?" He whispered back.
"Take your foot off of my foot."
"Take your foot off under my foot."
Inej tried not to get involved in their usual bickering though she let out a dry chuckle.
"Jesper i will not ask again." Y/n whispered again.
General heard y/n on the side and rolled his eyes on being interrupted "is it something you want to share with everyone miss y/n?"
Kaz answered for her preventing y/n and Jesper causing a facade. "Nothing, general."
"Are you miss y/n?"
If Kaz wasn't standing where he was he would've already killed the general twice. He didn't even consider the insult and shot a sharp look at y/n.
"Apologies general." Said y/n trying not to meet kaz's look.
"Good and you're on the unit of the grishas that leaves for north in two days."
If only it could get any worse that that thought y/n simply just nodding.