Chapter Text
Theresa followed Tedros into the classroom.
It was wide and had several small fields for duels.
There were a few chairs lining the walls, but most of the room was filled with the dueling fields and small armory stations for students to put their swords.
It smelled like sweat and hard work, but Theresa grinned at the smell.
Nothing could bring her spirit down now that she was finally here.
Everything was perfect in here.
That is until the teacher turned around and frowned a she watched her.
"Princess, I believe that this is the wrong classroom. Beautification is in the Purity Tower."
Tedros snorted and before Theresa could speak, he threw an arm around her shoulders like he often would in the present.
"I think she'll fit in better here."
There were several princes watching from around the room, glancing from Theresa to Tedros.
He frowned and raised an eyebrow.
"In that case, why don't you give the class a demonstration?"
He threw his coat off and stepped into a dueling field, holding his sword aloft and staring at her.
She found herself smirking and she drew her sword with her right hand.
"Gladly, Professor," she said with a cocky tone.
He raised an eyebrow at her confidence as she practically strutted into the arena.
She raised her sword and beckoned for him to start.
A clear sign that she was confident of her own abilities.
He bristled at that and came forward with a small glare on his face.
All their classmates surrounded them and watched with wide eyes.
Theresa felt her fear starting to grab hold of her.
What was she doing?!
She was barley allowed to join the class because she was a girl and she was already challenging the teacher to a duel!
There was no way she could win!
That's when her eyes met Tedros'.
He gave her a confident grin looking as if he was completely certain that she would out stage this professor.
That was the same look he always gave her before she fought against a particularly talented knight or guard.
And she always won.
She grinned and looked back at the professor that was stalking toward her with a slight scowl on his face.
He swung his sword almost leisurely as if expecting that she would fold immediately.
She did nothing of the kind.
She actually fell to the ground just underneath the sword and kicked out, sweeping his legs out from under him.
She went to put her sword to his throat, but he rolled and hurried to his feet with slightly wide eyes.
He thrust his sword at her an she parried.
They continued this pattern for a minute until the professor smirked, obviously sure he was going to win.
He stabbed at her and, instead of parrying, she threw her sword in the air.
She twirled like a dancer until she was behind his back and triumphant caught her sword by the hilt with her left hand.
She had yet to use it in this fight.
The professor whirled and she instantly started an onslaught of attacks.
She had him backed up in the corner of the field and going as fast as he could to block her myriad of attacks.
Her change in attack lasted for about thirty seconds before she disarmed him and held her sword to his throat triumphantly.
The professor stared at her with wide, disbelieving eyes.
"You're left handed?" he asked quietly once he had found his voice.
She grinned and nodded, slipping her sword into its sheath and turning to give Tedros a smirk.
He was also smirking and she felt herself fill up with pride.
She'd done it.
She'd beaten him.
And to think she'd almost given up before she'd even started.
The princes all stared at her and she grinned.
The professor scooped up his sword as she walked back over to Tedros.
The professor tried to gather his dignity while beginning to teach.
Theresa stayed silent and calm, allowing the professor to lecture them about proper form as both the first and fourth years listened.
She didn't interrupt or disrespect him despite having berated him in combat.
When he realized them to practice form, Tedros and Theresa talked and laughed in the corner while pretending to work.
The professor didn't say anything to them and Theresa took that as silent permission for them to continue.
As their time in class wound down, he told each of them to pair up with their mentor and have a two on two group with another pair.
Theresa and Tedros found no challenge in two and were soon challenged with four, then six, right, and so on until it seemed as if the whole class was against them.
They worked as one, both giving commands to the other.
"Parry right!" Theresa called.
"Watch your left!" Tedros responded.
"Switch!" both of them said at the same time.
Tedros bent down and Theresa vaulted over his back easily, partying two swords at once and giving a wide grin as she watched her father do the same out of the corner of her eyes.
Soon, they had disarmed every student, first and fourth year alike, and were beaming at each other.
Tedros felt like he'd finally felt someone that could keep up with him when he fought,
Chaddick and his mentor, whose name he hadn't caught, were the last to go down and Tedros' friend looked at him with a frown on his face.
Tedros and Chaddick had always been close, but they had just been... on different levels.
Tedros felt like he had finally met another person that could fight like he could.
Someone he could rely on and not have to protect constantly.
It was exhilarating.
Theresa sheathed her sword with a dramatic twirl of the hilt and Tedros laughed, doing the same, but slightly more intricate.
"Show off," she said with a laugh.
Tedros smirked.
"Pot calling the kettle black," he said.
"That's the smartest thing I've ever heard you say," Theresa responded just as evenly.
Tedros laughed and looped an arm around her shoulder as they left for their next class.
~
Axel followed Agatha to Animal Communications.
He was not at all surprised that he was the only boy in the class.
Beside him sat Serenity and Milly.
Princess Uma was talking with animals in the distance and laughing every once in a while.
She told them about communicating with animals and how it could save their lives, but it would take time to learn their languages.
Milly frowned and raised her hand.
Princess Uma seemed surprised, but she called on her nonetheless.
"What do you mean by 'time'?" she asked, cocking her head to the side slightly.
Uma raised an eyebrow.
"It's like any language. Although, once you've learned one you can understand practically all of them."
Milly still looked confused.
Uma gave her a rather fake looking smile.
"You can't call animals to your aid now, dear, but I promise that at the end of this year, all of you will be able to call at least s bird."
Milly felt the Beatrix in her rising up inside of her.
She let out a loud whistle and Uma glanced at her.
There was a moment of silence before loud padded footsteps sounded.
Two beautiful golden wolfhounds burst in through the forest and skidded to a stop beside her.
She stroked its head and glanced up as birds swooped overhead and stared down at her, all chirping.
The wolfhounds in front of her was Gildy and Gordon.
She'd met the hounds about a year and a half ago when Milly .
They had been left alone in the Woods near Camelot, both mewling and alone.
She had taken them back home and nursed them back to health.
Ever since then, the two didn't leave her side (that is until they got sent back in time and she kept them away for safety until now).
The two wolfhounds laid down beside her, resting their heads in her lap.
A rabbit hopped from the woods and squeaked quietly to her.
She grinned and responded with a squeak of her own and the rabbit tittered and laid down beside Gildy.
Serenity and Axel both smirked at their friend's showcase of skill and Princess Uma stared at her in shock.
Milly gave her a grin and laid her hand on Gordon's head, stroking him gently.
Axel rolled his eyes as once again one of his friend's found their talent they were better at than anyone else while he was so boringly normal.
He just wanted to be able to be good at something for once.
Princess Uma glanced from Milly to Beatrix to Reena, both of which were sitting near her.
Milly shrugged and looked at her mothers.
Both of them looked impressed and she grinned smugly.
She had been excited to show the younger forms of her mothers her talent.
Princess Uma was still staring at her in disbelief.
Milly gave her an innocent smile and then turned to Axel.
He could tell she was smug and proud.
He frowned slightly.
He’d always been good at guessing people’s emotions... but this was different.
He gently set his hand on her.
He felt confusion as she glanced at him.
He felt sorry for the mission they were on and-
His eyes widened and he tried to probe that deeper, but Milly swatted his hand and glared.
“What are you doing?” she hissed.
“You... you have a crush,” he said with certainty.
Molly’s eyes popped.
“What?! No I don’t,” she hissed.
Axel had felt it, but he wasn’t sure on who.
She’d pulled away too quickly.
“Yes you do,” he said.
She blushed and looked away.
He could feel her embarrassment coming off of her in waves.
He turned around and looked at Serenity.
She was nervous and confused.
He knew there was more, but he knew that he would have to touch her to know the rest.
How he knew this... well, he wasn’t sure.
He guessed he knew in the same way that Hester knew her demon could come to life, or the way Dot knew she could turn things into chocolate.
He just did.
Axel found himself grinning.
He’d done it.
He’d found his talent.
Something he could do that nobody else could.
Suddenly, an idea popped out at him.
He needed to see Theresa.
~
As Axel walked by, he could feel the disbelief and slight concern from Uma.
He could feel Serenity’s awkwardness as she stood beside Kiko.
He wasn’t sure why that was, but for the moment he ignored that.
He had more important things to do.
“Where’s my sister?” He asked Agatha.
Agatha paused.
“Well, she must be with Tedros, so I assume that she would be headed to her room.”
Apparently, they’d finished their classes of the day.
Axel grinned.
“Perfect.”
He took off at a run, though his sprint was not impressive, toward where he assumed he’d catch up to Theresa.
~
Theresa heard familiar, clumpy footsteps.
Both she and Tedros turned around and looked.
Tedros clearly expected Agatha, but Theresa was sure this was Axel by his slow, leaping stride.
He skidded to a stop, almost falling over, and looked at his sister.
He didn’t wait a moment before he grabbed her wrist and held it tight.
She would have ripped her hand out of the weak grip of it had been anyone else but him.
~
Axel allowed her emotions to follow through him.
He felt pride and smugness, he should have guessed it.
Nothing underneath that.
He almost let go-
But he felt something stirring deep inside of her.
After a moment she burst with insecurity and anxiety.
She looked at him and her worry bloomed.
She looked around the room for someone attacking and her protectiveness flare.
He found himself bursting with joy.
She... cared that much?
The anxiety and doubt was palpable and he soon realized it was always there.
She was worried about living up to their father.
Just like he was.
Theresa realized there was no threat and grinned down at him.
How could she always be so happy with such worry and doubt?!
He noticed something familiar-
But she gently removed her wrist from his grasp and put it on his shoulder.
Her was left with just the surface emotions again.
“Are you okay?”
Axel finally understood.
Everyone worried about it.
He wasn’t the only imperfect one.
They all were.
Even Theresa.
He grabbed her in a tight hug and burrowed his face in her shoulder.