The three of them walked down the large pathway leading to the wooden gate. Dall led the way, Veral a little to his side and Avice towards the back.

“So what’s your deal? You comin’ along could make this whole thing a lot harder than it could be.” He leaned back and started talking to Avice. “Wouldn’t mind the challenge though.”

She bit her lip for a short second before she responded, “I won’t live out there in the wild alone.  Lupin’s told me to do a job, and if I do it, he’ll allow me stay here.”

Veral glared at her and a slight growl escaped his lips. “That’s Lord Lupin to you.”

“It’s part of the deal that you learn respect, too…” Dall begrudgingly agreed. He turned to her. “Look, if we’re going on this trip together, I need to be able to call you something.” He noticed her scowl and said, “Look, just a nickname or something.”

“Fine. You can call me Ava.” She said bluntly, and the two stopped. “What?”

“Mm, nothing.” Dall said, a quizzical look on his face. “You don’t hear many names like that…. And the fact that you picked a name like that...”

“It’s a fairy tale… Your sister has a similar name too, but look at them.” Veral looked into Avice’s eyes. “Yeah, see. She’s got brown eyes.”

“What’re you talking about?” Avice asked.

“You don’t know?” Veral scratched the back of his head. “Let’s put it like this. Names starting with A plus a certain eye color equals really powerful people.”

“That’s a drastic oversimplification, Viri.” Veral swiftly took out a blade and held it against Dall’s throat, who chuckled and moved it away with the tip of his finger. “Don’t worry about it for now. The most important thing is that we need to get you a weapon and some protection.” Dall said looking over Avice. “The clothes you’re wearing right now are fine for travelling, but you’re going to need bit more protection. If you don’t get some you’d either end up dead or in a much worse position.” Avice physically shuddered. “Let’s head over to the Blacksmiths. Follow me.”

Dall led Avice down the street and entered a small alleyway. Avice stopped at the entrance to it, but pushed herself forward. Dall told her not to worry, but she couldn’t break away the uncomfortable feeling in her heart.

Having one man in the front and another to the back of her, sandwiching her in a tight hallway, her body almost pressing up on one of them, and the other edging ever closer… her breathing grew ragged, and her palms and forehead sweat profusely. Before tears could swirl in her eyes, Dall opened up a door and led her in.

Avice blinked rapidly and glanced around the room she was in.

It was a brightly lit wooden room. The ceiling was low, and the floor was creaky and loose. There were two bricked fireplaces on opposite ends of the sides, with a single counter directly in front of them. It was rather small, and the air inside was heavy, laced with the taste of iron and ash.

Weapons littered the area. Axes, swords, knives, daggers, maces, scepters, and brass knuckles to name a few surrounded the entirety of the room. Different variants, colors, lengths, and prices lined up next to each other. Swords hung on racks against the wall, and some variety of other goods lined up on the shelves. The reception desk was empty. A loud metallic clanging echoed from the room behind the desk.

“This is Uncle Sami’s. Best blacksmith in the town.” Dall moved over to the counter and rang the bell.

Sami? Thought Avice.

The clanging stopped and a large, topless man came out of the back room. He had slicked back, oiled brown hair and had ash covering his body and face. He had bulging muscles, his arms seemingly large enough to strangle someone just by holding them. He dabbed at his forehead with a wet towel that wrapped around his neck. He had a large nose, and underneath that was a bright, pearly smile.

“Heyo, it’s lil’ ol’ Dall. What’s bringin’ you here? Need some tunin’ on that ol’ thing?” His voice was chipper and higher-pitched than what she heard in her head.

“Hey, Uncle. I’m actually here for her today.” Dall motioned over to Avice, who was still curiously looking around the room. “We’re gonna be going out of the walls for a while. She seems like a pretty competent fighter, so I’d like to get her something to use for emergencies. Also some leather plates like mine would be nice.”

Sami chuckled. “Alrighty then. C’mere little lady.” Avice nervously approached Sami, whose arms were outstretched as if he prepared himself to give her a hug. “Can ya hold your arms out for me?” She did as she was told and he thanked her. With just a glance he nodded and said, “Alrighty, I’ve got some pieces for you in the back. You can get ’em later.” Avice’s eyebrows raised. “So, what kinda weapon wouldja like?” He moved over to the counter again and indicated at all of the weapons.

She moved over to a rack of swords and picked one up. It was lighter than she initially thought. She swung it around for a little before putting it back, a frown on her face. “Not really for me, I think…”

“Go ahead and take your time.” Dall said. Veral impatiently tapped his foot and exited the building.

“I’ll be back.” He grumbled.

She ignored them and kept looking at the other items displayed. She took a mace and swung it around, but it was pretty heavy for her. A dagger? Too technical for her to actually use. Then her eyes fell upon one thing resting in the corner of the room. “That. It’s a bow, isn’t it?” She grasped at it and picked it up.

“Oh, that ol’ thing. Not a lotta people pick those up nowadays. Just a simple ol’ Elven Longbow. Highly favored to the Dark Ones to the West.” He walked over to her. Avice held it tightly to her chest and nodded. Just holding it filled her heart with comfort. It wasn’t a feeling she could easily explain, and she felt unnatural strength swelling inside of her. “It’s a pretty hefty weapon to pull. Wanta give it a try?” Sami pulled out a wooden plate from the counter and fastened it against the opposite wall. “Go ahead and take a shot.”

She nodded and took an arrow that he prepared for her. It’s just like the ones from home… If I remember correctly… She skillfully notched it to the bowstring and pulled it back without restraint. Sami and Dall’s mouths gaped at the simple motion. However, she couldn’t hold it back for too long, and she released it prematurely, the arrow missing its mark by a few feet. It lodged itself into the wall and Avice turned quickly and apologized,

“S-Sorry! I got reckless and messed up your wall!”

“N-No, it’s all fine, little lady.” Sami said, a grin on his face. “Fairly interesting companion ya got here, lil Dall. Y’know what, I’ll give the plates and bow to you for free.”

“Oh, come on, you know we can’t do that, Uncle.” Dall said, dishing out a couple of golden coins.

“Think of it as an investment. After all-” he began to say when Avice approached him and cut him off.

“I’m really sorry, but can you please let Dall pay for it?” She looked at Dall and said, “I’ll pay you back whenever I can.”

“No. You don’t have to worry about that.” The words were fingernails on a blackboard to Avice.

Sami was elated. “I really like you, little lady. That fire you’ve got.” Sami shot a quick look at Dall before turning back to Avice. “I’ll take you up on that, then.” Dall spilled some coins onto the desk, and Sami collected them and nodded. “Pleasure doin’ business with ya.” He beamed.