Chapter 19: A New Day of Training

They would begin planning their arrival into port three days in advance. Ivy found herself anticipating the opportunity to find her way back on land. In the meantime, she helped the crew with maintaining the ship. She scrubbed the deck often, and she continued to clean without complaint.

After everything she had been through, it felt wrong to make snide comments about the assignments Queen Lavender had given her. Ivy disliked some of her tasks, but the pirate queen had a reason for it. And Ivy didn’t want to seem ungrateful for the opportunities, or the ship.

“Hey,” Lavender said the night before they would make landfall. She gestured at Ivy while Ivy helped maintain the mast. “I am going to find your replacement here, and then I want to see where you are at with your sword training.”

Ivy nodded. An older woman named Gladys took Ivy’s place, and she nodded at Ivy, before whispering. After catching Ivy’s attention, Gladys spoke.

“Be careful,” Gladys said. “She’s a tough teacher.”

“It doesn’t surprise me,” Ivy said.

Ivy grabbed her sword for the first time in two weeks and brandished it. Fear held her back, though. She had not used her weapon in the time she had been on the streets. To show one of the most feared pirates in her region left her quivering in her stomach.

Queen Lavender found her on the deck and she nodded. “We don’t have much time here. Don’t talk to me beforehand; just show me what you can do.”

Ivy took her weapon out and began to watch Queen Lavender’s moves. She parried a blow Queen Lavender delivered. Queen Lavender countered by sending another quick blow, which Ivy blocked out of sheer luck. Grunting, Queen Lavender gave a subtle nod and grin, before she continued her onslaught. Ivy continued to counter the woman’s blows, her heart racing.

Everything she had learned from Captain Val, and then from the revolutionaries before rattled around in her head. By the time she finished the fight, she managed to disarm the pirate queen, although her face flushed, a certain sheepishness in her expression.

“You’re quick on your feet,” Queen Lavender said.

“That’s why the revolutionaries chose me to steal the stone,” Ivy said.

“I want you to fight me again,” Queen Lavender said.

This time, Ivy knew she wouldn’t last long. She fought as best she could, but this time, Queen Lavender was merciless with her. If she had thought that Queen Lavender was a challenging opponent during the first fight, then Ivy knew there was something missing from that thought. Queen Lavender was quick, and she was harsh with her blows. By the time she defeated Ivy, Ivy had stepped back, panting fervently.

“Hi,” Ivy said awkwardly, not knowing what else to say.

“You know that’s not up to par,” Queen Lavender said. “You leave a lot to be desired with your muscle memory. Although you have a great instinct, you really need to work on your muscle memory. I can tell that, when you missed your cue there, you were thinking too much.”

“I didn’t think I would last that long in the fight,” Ivy said, her face flushing.

“Exactly the problem,” Queen Lavender said. “If you go into a fight thinking you have already lost, it is guaranteed to be a self fulfilling prophecy. You must go into your fights with more confidence than that.”

“I see,” Ivy said. “I also haven’t used my sword since I left the other ship.”

“Excuses,” Queen Lavender said. “Your old buddies are likely to become a problem for us. And you have to be able to defend yourself without using more magic if you are to stay aboard my ship. I want you to practice sparring with me today some more, because I am going to go hard on you with training. I will not see anything less than perfection.”

“Thanks,” Ivy said, her face still beet red. She stuffed the thoughts aside. “May I have leave to go eat something?”

“Go,” Queen Lavender said. “After I am done training you. I now want to see your target practice with a pistol.”

Ivy nodded. She loaded her flintlock, aimed it at one of the targets, and she shot. She continued with the other three targets. Queen Lavender crossed her arms.

“Alright, you’re pretty good with your target practice,” Queen Lavender said. “Have you practiced on the streets?”

“No,” Ivy said. “Against my better judgement.”

“We need to focus on preparing you for any sea battles you might have,” Queen Lavender said. “Tomorrow, we should arrive into port, and with the growing threats from the prince, it’s going to be rather dangerous for you. I will defend you so long as I am able. But you need to be able to protect yourself.”

Ivy nodded. She continued to practice with Queen Lavender. The woman would be a tough teacher, noting every discrepancy in Ivy’s form. But after noting the discrepancies, she spent a lot of time working with Ivy, until she was confident Ivy had corrected the mistakes.

“You will need to practice daily,” Queen Lavender said. “That is my command for you. If you ever skip a day of practice without undue reason, and I catch wind of it, I will take your stone for the rest of the day.”

Face flushing, Ivy squirmed. “You could take my sword instead, if you wanted.”

“No,” Queen Lavender said. She narrowed her eyes, sending a look which caused fear to shoot down Ivy’s spine. The pirate queen remained steady. Although she hadn’t grabbed Ivy’s shoulder, Ivy almost wished she had. Ivy shoved that thought out of her mind. Queen Lavender continued to speak. “While your magic is a great asset, I want you to learn how to defend yourself without it. Because what if there’s a point where you lose your stone?”

Ivy shuddered once more. “I shouldn’t lose it.”

“That’s not my point,” Queen Lavender said, sternly. Even with how strict she was, her voice and her stance was not void of kindness. “The point is that I want you to be able to defend yourself in more ways than one. If you’re aboard my ship, and you come across a dangerous threat, I want you to be able to defend yourself. If you can’t win, I want you to at least put up a damn good fight. Is that clear?”

“Yes,” Ivy said.

“You are relieved. Just know that we make landfall tomorrow,” Queen Lavender said. “The king’s guard is ever present, which is why I have been tough on you today.”

As Ivy made her way to the galley for some porridge, she was grateful for the break. Even more so, she was grateful for Queen Lavender’s guidance. Although stern, the woman spoke in a way which caused a shiver to course down Ivy’s spine. Ivy batted at the thought.

I cannot develope a crush on Queen Lavender. She’s out of my league, and I swore I would never fall in love again. Besides. I just joined this ship. What is wrong with me?