Riven’s POV
“Again.”
Nyra stared at me.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“I rarely kid.”
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and tightened her grip on the training weapon.
I stood several feet away, completely composed despite the fact that we’ve already been training for hours.
Nyra, on the other hand, was exhausted.
“You said we’d work on fighting multiple opponents.”
“We are.”
She glanced around.
“There is only one of you.”
“For now.”
Nyra narrowed her eyes.
Before she could ask what I meant, a voice came from behind her.
“Surprise.”
Nyra spun around.
A man stood several metres away, grinning.
She immediately raised her weapon.
I sighed.
“Jace.”
Jace lifted both hands.
“Relax. I come in peace.”
Nyra looked at me.
“You brought someone?”
“Yes.”
“You could have told me earlier.”
Jace walked closer, looking between us.
“So this is Nyra.”
Nyra lowered her weapon.
“And you’re…?”
“Jace.”
He smiled.
“Riven’s best friend, occasional voice of reason, and the person responsible for keeping him from becoming completely unbearable.”
I stared at him and shook my head.
“You talk too much.”
“And yet you keep me around.”
“Unfortunately.”
Nyra smiled.
She already understood why we were friends.
Jace looked at her curiously.
“So you’re the one.”
Nyra raised an eyebrow.
“The one what?”
“The reason he’s been disappearing from the cabin.”
My expression changed.
“Jace.”
“What?”
“You’re done talking.”
Jace laughed.
Nyra looked at me.
“You’ve been telling him about me?”
“No.”
Jace immediately interrupted.
“He absolutely has.”
I gave him a warning look but Jace ignored it.
“He mentions your name approximately-”
“Jace!”
“Fine, fine.”
Jace turned to Nyra.
“Nice to meet you.”
“You too.”
I stepped between them.
“Enough introductions.”
Jace grinned.
“There he is.”
Nyra laughed.
I pointed toward the clearing.
“Both of you. Get ready.”
Jace’s smile widened.
Nyra’s disappeared.
“Wait.”
I looked at her.
“You said fighting multiple opponents.”
“Yes.”
“You meant you and Jace?”
“Yes.”
Nyra looked between them.
“You’re both fighting me?”
“Yes.”
“You’re enjoying this.”
“Maybe a little.”
Jace nodded seriously.
“He is.”
I ignored him.
“Your biggest weakness is that you focus too much on the person directly in front of you. When there’s more than one opponent, you lose awareness of what’s happening around you.”
Nyra tightened her grip.
“So what’s the lesson?”
“Don’t let either of us control the fight.”
Jace stepped to the side.
I moved in the opposite direction.
Nyra looked from one to the other.
“This feels unfair.”
“It is,” Jace said cheerfully.
I nodded.
“Exactly.”
Then we attacked.
Nyra barely blocked my first strike before Jace came from her left.
She ducked.
His weapon passed over her head.
She turned and struck toward him, forcing him backward but I was already behind her.
Nyra spun.
Too late.
Jace’s weapon tapped her shoulder.
“Dead.”
She glared at him.
“That was cheap.”
“That’s fighting.”
Jace laughed.
“Welcome to the lesson.”
Nyra took a breath.
Again.
This time, she didn’t focus on either of us.
She watched both.
I moved first.
Jace followed.
Nyra stepped backward instead of forward, forcing us to come toward each other.
Jace nearly collided with me.
Nyra smiled.
“Got you.”
She attacked Jace, He blocked.
I came from behind.
Nyra ducked and rolled away.
Jace looked impressed.
“She learns fast.”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
Nyra heard me.
That tiny acknowledgement made her smile.
Then Jace attacked again.
The next hour was brutal.
Nyra was knocked down.
She got back up.
She was caught off guard.
She adapted.
She made mistakes, corrected them.
By the end, she was breathing heavily, hair sticking to her face, but she was still standing.
Jace lowered his weapon.
“Okay.”
Nyra looked at him.
“Okay what?”
“You’re terrifying.”
She laughed.
I shook his head, “She still has work to do.”
Nyra groaned.
“Of course.”
“But you’re really improving.”
She looked at him.
This time, he didn’t take it back.
“Thank you.”
Jace looked between us and smiled knowingly.
“Jace, Don’t, just don’t.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
Jace held up his hands.
“I’m innocent.”
“No, you’re not.”
Nyra laughed again.
********************
Nyra’s POV
Later that evening, I sat beside the fire with Jace while Riven prepared something to eat.
She watched him for a moment.
Jace nodded.
“Most of my life.”
“How did you meet?”
Jace smiled.
“Long story.”
I turned to face him and waited with hopeful eyes.
Jace sighed.
“You’re not going to let that go, are you?”
“Nope, tell me.”
He laughed.
“Fine.”
He told me about meeting Riven when they were children, about both of them having nowhere to go, and how they eventually became family to each other.
I listened quietly.
What I liked most about their story was that neither of them had chosen the circumstances that brought them together but they had chosen to stay.
“You’re lucky,” I said.
Jace looked at me.
“So are you.”
Nyra frowned.
“What makes you say that?”
Jace glanced toward Riven.
“Because now you’ve got him too and knowing Rven.. he’ll do anything for you. He may be a little tough on the outside and at expressing his feelings but I understand him and I know that when it comes to you he really tries his best”
I followed his gaze.
Riven was still focused on what he was doing.
I always knew this and I really appreciated and liked that about Riven, Ever since I met him, he’s been doing a lot for without asking for anything in return, especially being here to train me every day on a mission I haven’t even shared the deets of with him, being around me most of the time and respecting my boundaries.
I’m really grateful and happy for a mate like him.
Jace saw me looking at Riven so fondly, “Awww” He dramatically placed his hands on his chest and feigned watery eyes.
I threw a small piece of wood at Jace.
He laughed.
Riven looked over.
“What happened?”
“Nothing,” Jace said.
I smiled.
“Absolutely nothing.”
Riven studied us suspiciously before returning to what he was doing.
Jace leaned closer.
“He’s going to pretend he didn’t hear that.”
“I know.”
“He always does.”
I couldn’t help but smile.
I honestly hadn’t expected to like Jace so quickly.
He was completely different from Riven; where Riven was quiet, Jace filled the silence.
Where Riven watched everything, Jace talked about everything.
And they somehow worked.
Later, when Jace had goneto the cabin to sleep, I remained beside the dying fire.
Riven sat across from me.
“You trust him.”
I nodded.
“He’s easy to like and you trust him, that’s enough for me to trust him too.”
Riven looked at the fire.
“He is.”
A comfortable silence settled between them.
Then I remembered the previous day’s encounter.
“Riven?”
“Hmm?”
“About the person who followed me.”
His expression immediately became serious.
“What about him?”
“Do you think he’ll come back?”
Riven considered it.
“Possibly. But for now I think he’ll try to lay off for a little while before he comes back”
“Do you think he’s connected to the people I’m looking for?”
Riven looked at her.
“You never told me who you’re looking for.”
“Oh.. right..”
I looked down at my hands.
“People from my past.”
Riven didn’t push.
He simply nodded.
“If you need help-”
“I know.”
I looked up.
“You’ve already told me.”
Riven held my gaze.
“And if you don’t want to tell me yet, that’s fine.”
“Thank you.”
He nodded then he stood.
“Get some sleep Nyra, it’s late.”
I smiled, “You too.”
Riven slowly walked up to me, stared into my eyes, cupped my face in his hands and kissed my forehead, “Sleep well mate” then left.
I watched him disappear into the darkness with flushed cheeks.
I didn’t know when exactly it had happened but I already knew I was falling so hard for Riven.