Knightress

Chapter 1

Laura pulled her arrow along the string of her bow, she closed her right eye and fixed the left one on the target metres back . She pulled the arrow once more and released it, it traveled through the field and bullseye. Laura lazily dropped her arm holding the bow and smiled lightly. 10 times in a row.

I'm even surprising myself

She slung the bow over her shoulder along with her quiver and tucked a loose strand of her strawberry blonde hair behind her ear. She turned and strolled through the long unkept grass of the training field that she now owned, a place that held so many beautiful memories, bitter and sweet, where she was raised and brought up, a place where her transformation took place. The field grandma Bailey left for her.
She stared ahead and saw her mother glaring at her with crossed arms. Oh no. She looked up and realised the sun hung low in the sky compared to earlier, she increased her stroll to a speed walk.

"Do you have any idea what time is it? You're late for work !" Her mother asked her sternly when she got there

"I know, I know, I lost track of time. Again." Laura answered dismissively

"That the problem Laura, you keep loosing track of time," said her mother hitting her hand on the other palm to emphasis her point

Here comes the lecture

"Honestly Laura, you spend way more time on this field, dangerous weapons , fantasizing about being a knight than you do with your family."

Laura rolled her eyes "mom please, I don't want to have this discussion with you again."

"Well neither do I but I'm getting fed up with your delusion that it's possible for you to become a knight. The only chance you have of being successful is marrying well and being a loyal wife."

Laura stared her mother in the eyes "you clearly didn't do that."

Her mother looked taken aback "Laura !" She said firmly

"What? Am I wrong? We're poor mom, we never know where our next meal will come from, we barely have money to pay the bills mom and I have to work all manner of ridiculous jobs just to keep us afloat."

She could see the pain in her mothers eyes but she meant every word of it.

"I want to become a knight not because I'm delusional but because I promised grandma Bailey I would. Why was she the only one who supported and believed in me ?" Laura asked, her words held pain, she stared at her mother desperate for an answer.

"Laura...we support you, we support whatever you choose to do but- " she started but was cut off by Laura's scoff

The thing is they didn't. They supported her dream in no way. She's realised that over the years.

"Whatever, I'm late for work anyways." she murmured storming past her mother and into the surrounding of trees leading to their cottage.

'Rule 5 : Never show your true emotions, whether anger, sadness, guilt, even joy. That way you'll never be considered weak '  -Grandma Bailey once said

But not anymore. Laura sighed, it were those rules for success that kept grandma Bailey's legacy alive, she was a strong, courageous, resilient woman with a passion for everything combat and weaponry especially swords and arrows. That passion found it's way to Laura. Grandma Bailey's wish was to become a knight, not just any knight but the first female knight ever heard off, but that proved impossible in her time. She's the reason Laura loves combat the way that she does and the reason she wants to become a knight, she trained Laura right from the day she could walk, nurturing and developing skill in her. Grandma Bailey seemed unshakable untill lung cancer claimed her life, even when her lungs were rotten to the core and she was days from death, she still spent hours on the training field and sharpened her daggers. She was the one who believed in Laura more than she believed in herself and hand-trained her to be where she is.