Heir of the Sword

27 | Sutura

Sutura {sweing}

Arya stared at the entourage of knights surrounding them. The King had said that there would be a few additional knights escorting them back to the academy but Arya had not expected so many.

"That King was not kidding when he said we would be well protected." Yasmin said as she moved her horse beside Arya.

Arya nodded in response. The tournament had officially ended and now it was time for them to go home. Arya had gone for a ride with Aaron early in the morning but nothing had been said between the two of them. Twisting her back, she looked at the other side of the castle grounds to see the boys of the Narvanian Academy getting ready for their departure as well.

She couldn't spot Aaron and she knew it was because of the knights that were surrounding them as well. Arya also knew it was time for her to say goodbye but she still felt weird about it. It was as though she and Aaron had forged a special connection between the two of them.

"Is everyone ready?" Madame Kenna asked.

Arya turned her back to focus on what Madame Kenna was saying. She started explaining the route so everyone would know in case someone was lost. She also explained that they were not allowed to wander around without telling anyone or having a knight escort them.

"Well then, assuming everyone's here I guess it's time for us to head back home." Madame Kenna explained.

"Wait, isn't Lady Zelie coming with us?" One of the girls inquired.

Madame Kenna exchanged a look with one of the knights beside her. "Lady Zelie has more pressing matters to attend too, she will be leaving later in the evening."

There were mutters of uneasiness but Madame Mina shut them down. "Hush now, did you really expect that the Princess of Kalvaria would not have other tasks to do besides babysitting you lot?"

Everyone closed their mouths in an instant. Madame Mina looked satisfied before she pointed towards the road, "let us go now."

Arya squeezed Eclipses sides urging the horse to move. She glanced back behind her shoulder once, to see the castle one last time with its spectacular pillars and all. And then, they were off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arya glanced ahead and felt relieved when she saw the academy. The trip back had been extremely stressful as the knights had been more protective than ever before. They were not able to leave camp as the knights would guard the perimeter. King Rupert had been extremely specific with the rules and it seemed that he was keen on making sure that not another student was harmed.

"It's good to be home." Silvia said quietly from beside her.

Arya was surprised to see her speak. In the last couple of days, Silvia had gone from the chirpy bright girl to someone who rarely spoke to anyone around her. As much as Arya might have liked that changed before, she sure didn't anymore. It was bizarre seeing Silvia so silent and it just reminded her of what they had all lost.

They got off of their horses just as people came from inside the academy to take the horses back to the stables. Normally, it was the job of the students to groom and take care of their horses but, Madame Kenna must have realized the toll the trip had taken on the students and therefore she was giving them a slack.

As Arya moved towards the door, she realized how different the academy was going to be from now on. Usually the academy was guarded by females only but now at the front of the doors stood Bianca and another male knight. Looking at the entourage behind them, Arya realized they were going to be more males in the academy then ever before.