Submission (#7415) Approved

The morning sun was bright and warm as a gentle breeze blew across the town. Ice opened the window in her bedroom, feeling the breeze and admiring the rolling hills past the edges of the town center. She could see the elder tree standing tall in the distance, large even as a testament to the distance.

After a bit of daydreaming, Ice felt the familiar tug of her pomu grabbing at her leg. Reminding her of the time, she grabbed the little one and carried it over to her wardrobe.  There she put them down and began rummaging through for the right outfit for her planned activities.

She needed something light and easy to move in, something that wouldn’t be a hinderance to her plans to learn how to fence. It was a simple outfit and quickly she was ready to head out.

She closed the small, rounded wooden door between the stones and vines and then hurried along. She walked with purpose but she did not run. She took her time to enjoy the scenery.

There were beautiful paper lanterns hung throughout the town, draping across the cherry blossom trees that lined the cobblestone pathways. It was decorated for Starfaire, bringing the festival to life even across Faerindell.

Ice walked about twenty minutes, more than enough time to properly wake up and enjoy the sights. She particularly loved seeing the cherry blossoms with their lanterns, various colours and patterns highlighting the blossoms.

It was a stone large building. The sign on the front door assured Ice that she had in fact come to the right place. No lanterns decorated the face of this building but the trees on the main road still hung decoratively.

Opening the door, Ice walked inside. She followed her way through until she reached an enclosed courtyard where she found her class. She wasn’t the first student to arrive but neither was she the last.

Her instructor stood by the side of the courtyard, checking all of the fencing sabres with care. They were checking all of the tips, making sure that there were no shards or cracks that could snap off during training.

Next they checked the padded vests, making sure all of the sewing was secure.

As the last student arrived, the teacher explained what they were doing and why, leaving the students to ohhh and aw. Of course, everyone really just wanted to get to it.

Ice had seen fencers before, and she thought that they were quite graceful. She wanted to be as graceful as a fencer.  If she could become a great fencer then surely her gracefulness would improve tenfold.

Each kittom was paired up with another, and although Ice didn’t know her partner… or was that, opponent? Well, she introduced herself and bowed her head a little.

They were taught some basic moves and steps, and instructed to practice them. Ice didn’t her best and reminded herself that this was just the first day when she made mistakes. Her partner didn’t seem to struggle as much but they were helpful.

After a while, the instructor explained that they would now be given a chance to try and get a feel for the sabres. It would be short, and only one group would get to go at a time so they could properly monitor the kittoms.

Everyone was excited though, and although it wasn’t their turn everyone gathered around for each group. There was something awe inspiring about watching, as well as something envious.

Demonstrations had begun and although Ice had to wait she decided to practice her moves as each pair before her went. Two by two, pairs were brought up to the front. They were dressed and then given the light fencing sabres.

When Ice finally had her shot, her envy and awe quickly turned to nervousness. She didn’t handle performance very well, and awkwardly recalled the tree climbing incident earlier in the season.

She felt the straps tie around her and as the sabre was handed to her, her eyes narrowed back to reality and she took it.

She was nervous but the instructor was easygoing and clear. She was given simple, basic instructions and steps to follow. She performed them… against a dummy nin. She had missed an important fact. They were practing with the sabre against dummies.

She didn’t have to be so nervous!

She got to poke it a bunch, performing the same strike over and over with her partner as they worked on dummy nin opposite of each other.

After class, all the kittoms looked exhausted. Who would have thought it was so much work?