Spellbound

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Here," Orion said, "take this knife. And you Elek," he passed another knife to him, "take this one."

Orion himself took a bag full of knives and walked ahead. He opened a door and walked in. Fascinthia and Elek took in the sight that beheld them. There were multiple boards for target practice and soft mats on laid out on the floor. Fascinthia noticed some dummies on the side and a target practice board that was actually in the shape of a person.

Orion walked in front of a target and threw a knife. It hit the absolute centre. "That," he stated, "Is what you two are going to learn."

Fascinthia nodded and walked up, positioning herself in front of a target. She looked at Orion and he came to Fascinthia's side. He caught her waist, with the intention to help her get into the right position but she flinched and moved away. "Don't touch me," she said, under her breath, yet, loud enough for him to hear her.

Orion was confused, but he respected her boundaries so, he simply moved in front of her and took the right stance. Fascinthia imitated him, correcting every part of her till she was sure she stood exactly the way he did. He pulled his hand back, then, threw the knife. Fascinthia followed him, being careful of the way she did it. She threw the knife, putting full force and energy into it but the knife missed.

She heard Elek's laughter and shot him a glare. She took up another knife, then, and threw it once more. And yet again, it missed. And not my a few inches, no. It wasn't on the board at all.

Orion moved on to Elek and helped him with his stance. His moved Elek's thin and delicate fingers so his grip was correct and tight on the hilt. Then, asked him to throw. He didn't hit bullseye either, but his knife had hit the board.

That truly ticked Fascinthia off. She took up three knives and following the memory of how Orion had did it, threw them. One after the other with no break in between and yet, not one hit the bullseye. She went to the board and removed the knives, then went back to her position, took her stance and hit it. The blade whizzed in the air and hit the board.

She looked at Orion, and although she still avoided his gaze, she saw his lips curve into a smile, "Not a bullseye, but close enough. Keep trying."

She hit knife after knife, occasionally walking to the board to collect them, then returning and throwing again. At the end of thirty hits, she had hit fourteen bullseyes, seven on the board and nine were off completely.

"I think we're done for today," Orion announced with a sigh, walking towards the board and stuffing the knives in the bag. "We can eat something in twenty minutes, then get back here."

"But I didn't get as many bullseyes as Fascinthia!" Elek groaned as Orion rolled his eyes.

"You got just as many chances," Fascinthia said, "you just suck at this."

"How rude Fascinthia! You don't need training in fighting skills, you need training in being kinder and politer." Elek retorted as they walked out.

Fascinthia simply gave him a smirk, proud of her wild mannerisms. She walked out of the training room, then, out of Orion's, and rushed to her own. She looked back at Elek, before leaving but continued to avoid looking Orion directly in the eye. Whenever she tried, there was a flash of that terrible nightmare and how delirious she probably seemed and she remembered painfully that he had seen her weak, trembling and crying in fear, sadness and pain. So, she had been avoiding him, over all. She wouldn't look him in the eye, and would keep their conversations to a bare minimum. She would try to be next to Felix or Elek or even alone, as far as she wasn't very close to him.