Heart Over Sword

The next day Evanna got to work, she only had that day to get her things in order, then the following morning she would be leaving before first light. Once her bag was sorted and a few other errands were completed, she went over to the stables to see to her horse, Midknight. The black stallion was a gift to her from her father once she turned to the age of 10. At the time she could not choose between the names of midnight and knight, so as all children do, she became creative, merging the names together.

Midknight was not just any ordinary horse though, of course the king would buy the best for his little girl, but he also unknowingly brought a 'friesia' horse as suggested by her mother. These were a very rare breed; they were very smart and protective of their owners. Evanna would speak to the horse and know that he understood every word, their bond was so strong that he would also complete tasks without her breathing a word. Although they were technically magical as their ancestors were of unicorns, King Osian could not separate the pair, especially after watching the stallion protect his daughter from a wolf in the woods. Unless a human was an expert on horses, they could not tell it was different from any other.

Evanna whispered to the horse for a few minutes while grooming his mane, she told Midknight of her plan for the next morning and where they were going. Once she finished with his mane, she got a stable boy to attend to the horse's hooves before she left to go to her mother's room.

As soon as she arrived, she saw her mother sitting outside in the sun on her balcony, Evanna stopped walking and took a moment to look at her mother's serene face. Until she moved her head to look back at her, reaching her hand towards Evanna who quickly stepped forwards to take it. Loraven squeezed her daughter's hand gently, sensing some urgency and stress radiating off of her.

"Let us go have a walk in the garden."

Evanna smiled on hearing her mother's suggestion, it was a beautiful day and if her mother felt well enough to get some fresh air then she was not going to stop her. She wanted to spend as much time as possible with her today, she was unsure on how long it would take for her to get the gemstone and return. She knew it would not take more than 4 months. Enough time to get the gemstone and return to her mother before her demise.

Soon after making their way to the garden, Evanna knew that her mother was exhausted, they sat down on the bench that stood across from a pond surrounded by flowers. Evanna lay her head on her mother's shoulder, closing her eyes as she listened to the wind rustle through the leaves on the trees. Her mother started to stroke her hair gently, which she had 'wildly' left down, as most nobles put it. They stayed still in this position without speaking for a few minutes, happy in the peaceful moment between mother and daughter. Her mother then sighed.

"* I can tell, just by this action that you will be gone soon,*" Loraven whispered, who was also cautious and aware of the servants nearby. Even if they were unable to speak and understand the language, she did not want rumours spreading around the castle that they could be elves, especially if word were to get back to the queen.

"*Tomorrow,*" Evanna replied, her mother moved away from her, looking at her daughters face in shock.

Loraven thought she had at least another week with her, but she was wrong. Without another word she started to stand up, Evanna immediately helped her before waving for the servants to come forward. They brought a wooden chair that was designed with wheels at the bottom, which helped people who were immobile to move to places in comfort. Once her mother was seated, they made their way back to the room where they then sat in the living room comfortably.

"Do not strain yourself mother, if you need rest then please take it," Evanna said, watching her with concern. Her mother waved her hand towards her

"Nonsense. Deirdra grab those boxes I brought and place them on the table, once you have done that you may leave, I would like to spend some time alone with my daughter," Loraven spoke to her personal maid.

There were three boxes brought to the table, one was quite small and the other two appeared to be rectangular boxes for clothes. Evanna wondered what her mother had brought, she normally spent her money on artefacts, never bothering with the latest fashion trends. As soon as the maid left, her mother spoke,

"* I am so glad I brought these early, now that I know you are leaving tomorrow, you will need these, *" She gestured for Evanna to open one of the boxes, in which she chose the smallest out of the three first.

On opening the box, she found a beautifully crafted dagger. The handle was black with gold embroidered across it and just before it merged into the steel blade, there lay a light blue gemstone with intricate branches styled around it with black and white pearls edged around the design. But the detail did not stop there, once it got to the blade there were little designs engraved into the steel. Next to it lay a belt and sheath for it to go into, Evanna looked up at her mother, "Thank you."

"* No need to thank me until you have received all of your presents.*"

"* Presents? *"

"* You may not be back in time for your birthday. *"

This may be true, her birthday was coming up, but she still did not expect anything until she returned. However, this beautiful dagger would come in handy and was indeed an extra weapon for the road ahead, so getting early presents was not a bad thing. Her mother always brought her gifts she knew she needed, unlike her father who just loved spending his coin and getting her extravagant gifts, she would never complain though, they loved her equally.

Loraven gestured again for Evanna to open another box, which she soon found to be some form of dark blue leather clothing and underneath it lay a navy cloak. She brought it out from the packaging so she could look at the top properly.

"* A corset will not do on your travels it will become uncomfortable. This is something similar to what I used to wear, there is a lot of movement available in this and it also benefits in protecting your vital organs. You wear it on top of a shirt. This and the cloak will also make any normal person stay clear of you. *" At that remark, Evanna turned her head to look at her mother who smiled, but it did not reach her eyes. "* It is best if people fear you. Pay heed to my warning, men are just as ugly as the creatures that lay wait in Direwood forest. You are young and beautiful, keep yourself hidden whilst out in the open. *"

Evanna nodded her head before putting the item of clothing back into the box. Her mother then opened the last box and brought out a thin, light blue, crystallised shirt, it sparkled, sending dots of light around the room as she put it down on Evanna's lap. It felt very light, and she was mesmerised by the look and soft feel of the material. It did not look like the material should be soft, the work put into the design must have cost a lot.

"* This is 'Dracosbain' armour, *" Her mother revealed, Evanna looked up at her in shock and awe. Dracosbain was not meant to have been made any more, the material of the shirt was made out of dragon scales, which were near impenetrable due to the strength that it held. But dragons had been extinct for hundreds of years which of course stopped the production of such material.

"* How? *" she breathed

"* I still have friends in Lyvaria, the elves there still have a few of these lying around. They sent it as a favour to me. No questions asked. *"

Evanna's eyebrows were raised, feeling almost like they were nearly off her face at the thought of the elven kingdom- Lyvaria. Though there were a few elven kingdoms across the land, the Flori elves were the closest to most of the human kingdoms, they resided in Direwood forest, whereas the Lyvarian elves were much further back near the mountains. They were also known to be more prestigious above the others.

Her mother continued "* Though the dragons have been gone many years, the underwater dragons are still being said to be wandering the realms. It seems the Lyvarian elves came across one recently, or well over 100 years ago. And that is why this armour in particular looks very different. I know you do not want to be weighed down with armour, but this will be like a second layer of skin. Once you put it on it moulds itself to you, your skin of course will not change, you can remove it like a normal shirt. *"

Evanna was already feeling overwhelmed with the gifts her mother had provided her, but she was dumbfounded when she saw her mother put her hands on her neck and remove the necklace she wore, to be placed in her hands. Loraven smiled at her daughter's tear-filled eyes before placing her hand on her cheek and wiping a fallen droplet. Evanna shook her head "I cannot take this."

"* Yes, you will. I was going to wait until you turned 18… *"

"* Then wait. I do not wish to break it mother. *"

"* You will not break it, it has an enchantment on it. It can never be destroyed, it cannot fall off and it will keep me informed on your health. *"

Evanna looked down at the light green gem that had engraved markings going straight down the side of it, she wiped her thumb across the surface to feel that there was a tiny pulsing energy coming off of it. But just by looking at the gem, people would think it was a normal necklace.

"* Keep it on at all times Evanna. It will give me peace of mind. *"

Evanna nodded her head then her mother grabbed the necklace and placed it around her neck.

"* The only person that can remove this is me or you. There.. beautiful. *"

Evanna then rose to go look into the mirror near the bed to look at the small necklace that lie against her skin. The chain and gem were so dainty, it looked as if the gem lay there without anything holding it around her neck. It truly was beautiful, and she was emotional at the thought that it was her mother's and now hers.

"* I shall treasure it, *" Evanna said, before turning back to face her mother.

For the remainder of the day, they spent it together cherishing each other's company, even having dinner in Loraven's chambers. Time seemed to have gone by very quickly that day and although they did not wish it to end, Evanna felt at ease. She knew that what she was about to embark on was the right thing to do, her mother needed her, and she would do what was needed to be done. Before she was about to leave for the night, they hugged each other tightly, nearly to the point of not being able to breath.

"* Stay safe, my sweet, sweet girl, *" Her mother whispered in her ear, Evanna whispered back, "* I love you to the moon and back, *" At that, her mother smiled with tears in her eyes as she pulled back to look at her daughter one last time for a while. Loraven used to say that to her daughter when she was a child, the memories were so sweet she could almost taste it even now.

To keep herself from crying, Evanna turned around and left the room, not looking back once. Pain coursed through her chest as she knew she was leaving her mother for a long time, but she was determined to get the gemstone and bring it back to her, to save her life.