Page 33 of The Kingdom of Eternal Ice
“Aza is not a werewolf, though,” Flinn argues. “I think it would be best for her to start with Royan or Ita, and then maybe one of us can help her.”
It feels foreign to have other people call me by my first name, and even more foreign to hear them use a nickname. Normally, I’m just the princess, with the exception of Simin and Shayan. And here, they dropped the formalities around me so fast. To hear these two mention my name so casually and naturally, it makes me smile. It feels like I belong here.
Aza... I like how my new nickname sounds.
“What do you think, Aza?” Flinn asks me.
“I’m sure the both of you know what’s best,” I reassure them. “You are the professionals, and I will happily take your advice.”
Caelan’s lips tug into a careful smile. “I will talk to Royan,” he announces. “He can be her sparring partner, and one of us can coordinate the training. Or maybe General Shayan can show me some tricks about how to train with humans.”
“Good idea,” Flinn nods. “And now, let’s make sure to get to Alana. She already linked me and asked me what’s taking us so long.”
The stables are at the back of the castle. Walking closer to it I can already hear the neighing of horses and the sound of their hooves. Simin tenses up next to me and I take her hand, squeezing it. We have barely walked through the door when Alana calls our names and waves. She is riding on a very elegant black horse, easily maneuvering it through a jump parkour.
“She is fantastic,” I say, impressed.
“She will love to hear that,” Flinn grins. “But I agree.”
“I agree, too,” Caelan says.
I tilt my head, looking at him thoughtfully. “You don’t look happy, though, Pri... Caelan.”
He looks surprised and, once more, flustered. “It’s just, she chose a difficult path,” he says.
“How come?”
Flinn rolls his eyes at his brother. “And we are back with the one-word answers. Alana chose the path of a warrior,” he explains to me. “We sometimes wish she would be taking a less dangerous path.”
I tilt my head. “But, so have you,” I state, “chosen the path of a warrior.”
Flinn stares at me. “True,” he says after a while. “That’s true.”
We can’t discuss it any further as Alana approaches us, effortlessly jumping off her horse. She pats its nose and neck softly. “You came,” she says happily, smiling at us and showing us her perfect white teeth. She wears her hair short, just chin-length, and is dressed in pants and a long-sleeved shirt tucked into them. Despite her short hair and her unusually masculine attire, she looks beautiful, and I respect her so much for following her dreams. I also envy her a little for having a dream.
“I have heard you know how to ride, Azadeh?” Alana asks me. “Ita said you are quite good.”
“I’d say my skills are mediocre,” I admit.
Alana beams at me. “Do you want to learn more?”
“I would love to.”
“And you?” Alana turns to Simin. When Simin shifts around nervously, Alana eyes her gently. “Are you scared of horses, Simin?”
Simin blushes. “There was an incident when I was a child,” she answers warily. Flinn looks like he wants to ask more, but Alana elbows him, making him shut up. Simin’s story is more complicated than that, but it’s hers to tell and not mine.
*CAELAN*
This woman is both fascinating and scary at the same time. Her deep, knowing eyes seem to pierce us constantly, and she doesn’t even seem to be slightly intimidated by our alpha aura. Flinn might come off as juvenile and like he is taking nothing serious, but wolves of lesser rank are intimidated by his aura, just like they are of mine or Endellion’s.
Yet, Azadeh just talked casually to him, completely unfazed. It’s a bit scary how she seems to be in control of her emotions all the time.
Is this what Father meant by melting her barriers or whatever he said?
“She is interesting, isn’t she?” Flinn observes as we watch Azadeh and Alana help Simin up onto a pony; one of the kindest ponies we own, with the emotions of a rock, before Azadeh mounts a beautiful white stallion. It’s a difficult horse, but she said she wanted a challenge to improve.
It’s obvious she has only learned the basics so far, but her posture is elegant and graceful - even though she lacks the skills, she proves to have talent. Her cute friend, Simin, seems to be terrified of horses, but both Alana and one of the other warriors are doting on her a lot. “You are doing great,” Flinn calls towards Azadeh when she rides past us.
