Sancha: A Spirit Animals Story

Chapter 9: Fish Thief

Sancha spent the next couple days exploring her new surroundings. She may not have liked the circumstances that surrounded her, but she had come to accept them. She did truly take pleasure in discovering new areas of this place she now called her residence. The castle was vast, and the courtyard was three times as large as that in the palace she'd grown up in. The whole place was certainly better kept that the royal palace in Stetriol which had certainly seen better days to put it lightly. 

Her bedroom offered a full view of the courtyard outside. The cobblestone ground was slightly dotted with moss, but was otherwise clear and not overly worn despite the age of the fortress. She'd had a few interactions with Mustela, the Greencloak's resident (and only) merchant, whose weasel spirit animal seemed a little too fitting. He'd tried to sell her weapons, furniture, and even offered to have her hair styled for a Greenheart Token or two (she'd gotten a couple from Olvan the morning after she first arrived), but she'd gracefully declined all offers. His poorly concealed attempts to drain money out of her were almost comical. Tarik, not one to support scams, had a few things to say about Mustela, and probably wouldn't have felt sorry if the merchant was banished from the grounds. He was, however, an old friend of Olvan's, so it seemed he was likely to stick around for the time being.

Tarik was put in charge of overseeing Sancha's care and training, but he decided not to commence the latter immediately, feeling that it was vital for Sancha to have some time to get used to her new residence. She couldn't call it her new home. Home was in Stetriol. Home was thousands of miles away. Home was a place she might never see again or even be able to return to. 

She couldn't help but remember when she and Shane had dreamed of sailing away together, of escaping the desolate nation they called home, of finding safety, or even adventure. They'd even made a boat, and stocked it with supplies. That very boat carried Sancha to Nilo. But unlike in her fantasies, Shane wasn't with her. He never would be now. 

Sancha hated being confined. While she had shied away from being close to others in these strange new lands, and on the boat to Greenhaven, she took advantage of the vastness of the castle. It was vast enough that she could be alone yet still breathe in fresh air. The air smelled of a mixture of forest, wood smoke, and sea salt. It was not unlike the scents she'd known at home, but it was not exactly the same. Nonetheless, it did give her some sense of ease. At least certain things could remain with her even far away.

The air was slightly chilled, and Sancha pulled the gray fabric of her cloak about her shoulders. Gray cloaks were given to those who elected not to join the Greencloaks' ranks. She had not seen others with the color, but she'd been told she was not the first one to wear it, nor would she likely be the last. It matter much to her either way. The gray seemed to almost blend into the cobbles, as if she were a chameleon. It suited her, she decided. It also slightly matched her spirit animal, but the comparison wasn't acknowledged by Sancha at the time. She wasn't ready for that quite yet.

... 

 The last thing on Sancha's mind during her stay at Greenhaven was seeking out new friends. But it seemed fate had other plans for her. It was early in the morning. Mustela hadn't even set up his stall quite yet. Sancha had been admiring the view of the bay in the distance. On the docks, nearby, her spirit animal had just crawled back out of the water, a lean silver fish in her jaws. Breakfast, most likely. There was food in the kitchens. Plenty of it. But it seemed the seal preferred to catch her own food. Sancha wasn't about to tell her no. 

The seal put the catch down for just a split second. Before she could begin eating it, however, a shape swooped from the sky, snatching it right from under her nose. The seal was startled at first, then furious, barking at the retreating animal as it made off with her breakfast.