Gray Cloaks and Oakleaves (An RA Fanfic)

Chapter 12

Walking through the door and into the training grounds gave me a nice, familiar feeling and brought back memories of my father.

----Flashback-----

I had always known that Dad was handy with the spear; after all, it was necessary for a farmer like him to know how to defend his property and family like any man would want to be able. There could be wild, rampaging boars as well as packs of hungry wolves, itching to steal our livestock. And how could we forget the shady travellers and malicious could-be-bandits that occasionally take a glance at the farm as they ride by before coming back to start trouble. No, to be safe on your own territory and property, he'd say, you have to be the strongest you can be; only then, can you chase them out. So he tried to teach me a thing or two.

I was good with the spear but not good enough. You see, the problem was that my father was a force to be reckoned with;  he was not only strong and tall, but knew how to read an opponent like a book. His spear was a like a cobra, its shiny tip would dart in for a fatal blow and fall back before you could blink. So when he would take us out into the our own little training grounds to go sparring with our practice spears, I'd always lose with little to no effort. He was never bitter; he didn't get mad, but was still determined to teach me as well as he could. But I knew that if I ever met a man like that, I'd lose. I just wasn't simply strong enough to stand my ground, which demoralized me even more. I felt weak, but at least I had my bow.

I wanted to be an expert archer; so I began practicing since I was about nine or so. After learning that the spear wasn't exactly a great choice for a thin, short person like myself, I spent so much time  with my bow because I felt that it was something that I could show for. I realized that since I failed to do well with a spear, I could at least learn use a longbow better than anyone else. My father had never used a longbow before so he was puzzled and unsure of whether or not I should learn it. But my uncle on my mother's side was once a master marksman in the army years ago and he began to help me with it. I got ranging equipment often in order to build strength from one bow to another. As I got better, stronger, and could use stronger bows, I began entering regional competitions for archery, because archery was a time-honored pastime of Araluen in addition other sports. I even made a couple of friends, friends who understood me. I can remember how proud my family looked when I won the annual archery tournament hosted by Baron Arald himself. I didn't actually get to meet the man, but I heard of how nice and generous he had been in all our times of need. But winning that tournament was one of the best things I'd done. ----Flashback Ends----

I remember training to win; I loved archery and seeing those haystacks will blue and red targets made me feel brave and empowered. As Will led me around the training grounds, describing which parts I would be using today, I felt a rush of excitement as I realized I would be asked to show off my skills in archery. It was the only field I was good at; I was determined to prove how I would be the best Ranger I can be, starting now. 

"So..." Will started, "Have you ever used a weapon before, and if so, which ones?"

"Yes, I've used a spear..."

"Were you good?" Will wondered as a question.

"No," I smiled, "Not very much."

"Well, at least you're honest. So..." Will started again. "Anything else?" he wondered this time with expectation, as if he knew what I was going to say, but just wanted me to say it. 

"How about archery?" I began to which he smiled.  "Can I get a bow now? I really want to give it a go!" 

"Well, there's a fifty pound bow in that pack. You can give it a go if you'd like." Will said invitingly. 

As I wandered over to the pack that lay on top of one the haystacks and opened the sack, I felt my excitement wash into confusion. "Wait, but this isn't a bow; at least it doesn't look like one I've every used before."

"Do you mean to tell me that a bow made by the Temujai horsemen of the East isn't a bow because it doesn't look like one?" Will questioned with interest in his eyes. 

"No disrespect Will, but it's just kind of, well, light." When Will motioned for me to continue, I took a deep breath. Time to really shock him, I mused, wait until he hears this. "I want to use your bow." I waited for him to say, 'Are you crazy?' or 'You're too weak!' but he just handed me the bow and said, "Don't break it." in a friendly voice. He handed me an arrow and directed me to shoot at a target very far away, almost two hundred meters away. I held the bow and ran through the motions of shooting a bow a couple of times, being extra careful not to let go yet. I had always remembered what Uncle Phineas told me, "Don't let go or you'll damage the bow, even more so with a strong bow like that. You break that bow that way, and I'll put an arrow in between your eyes, he'd say, deadly serious. 

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Will's voice. "Well, it's good that you wanted to keep my bow safe, but can we get on with it?" he growled, trying to sound annoyed when he was in reality far from it. 

"Well, I like my wrist thank you very much. " I replied seriously. "I'm pretty sure you need a finger tab and a vambrace, you know, to prevent yourself from getting hurt from that strong of a bow."

"Well, then Mr. Wrist-Watcher, here you go!" he said placing them into my hand. As I busied myself by putting them on, Will simply stared at me, no doubt thoughts running through this his mind. As I pulled the arrow to full draw, Will asked me one more question. "By the way, who taught you?"

"Phineas Howard." was all I said, and I let go, sending the arrow flying off the longbow and into the target two hundred meters away, and straight into the bulls-eye.