The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy
Chapter 0506

"You can sit there, Ariel's boy," Blaze says, waving a general hand towards the wall by the door as Luca follows me into the small gym and pulls the door shut behind him. "You are not to interrupt. Read your book, if you would, or watch. But no talking." Luca raises his eyebrows at me, I think a little baffled and intrigued by this bossy little man, but he nods and does as he's told, taking a seat by the wall and settling his bookbag on the ground next to him. As I drop my own bag by the door and head to the center of the room, Luca pulls out the same book he was reading in the hall and opens it in his lap, starting to read it. Or at least, pretending to.

"Hands behind your back," Blaze says, taking his familiar, relaxed fighting stance across from me and raising his own hands. When I exhale a deep breath and knot my hands behind my back, he nods once. "And we begin."

Blaze is instantly moving, as he always does, his hands like knives in the air coming for me so quickly that I can barely see them. I move backwards, dodging his blows as best I can. When I run out of space on the mat, I move swiftly to the left - which is when he gets me. "Hahaa, princess," Blaze says, smacking me hard on the shoulder. "Got you."

I scowl a little, glaring at him. "You always get me."

"You are getting faster though, little bird," he says quietly, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and leading me back to the center of the room. "I see your progress. Soon, when you can get all around the room without a touch, I will teach you how to block."

We continue like this for a long time - what feels like hours even though I know it's less. And honestly, even though it seems basic, it's all that we do. On our first private meeting together I was surprised when Blaze made me put my hands behind my back - told me that I wouldn't learn to strike at all until I could learn to properly dodge.

"You cannot hit," he had said, his cheerful smile on his lips, "if someone is already punching you in the face."

And then he'd smacked me across the cheek, pretty hard, to demonstrate his point that I really, really needed to learn how to evade the kinds of blows that would take me out.

Unfortunately, I'm not very good at it yet. But like he said - I am getting better. When we first started a few days ago I could barely get one step without Blaze smacking me. But he taught me some techniques about how to watch for movement, how to predict the direction of the next blow - how to even control my opponent's next actions, in part, by how I move my own body in response. The work is fascinating and engrossing, engaging my mind as much as my body.

And I have to admit - I love it, and I'm improving. By the time the class ends, I make it nearly halfway around the room before Blaze gets a touch in.

"Very good, little bird," Blaze murmurs, stepping forward and giving me a big hug even though I'm all sweaty and gross. I laugh a little, hugging him back. "In a few short months we will teach you how to do it with a knife in your hand, and then you will be a dangerous little animal indeed."

"Cool," I say, panting a little and grinning as I pull back. "I'm excited for that part."

"I am too," Blaze says, giving me a steady nod. Then, to my surprise, he turns to look at Luca. "And what does the creature think?"

"Me?" Luca asks, looking up at us and pointing a thumb at his chest.

"Yes, you," Blaze says slowly - perhaps a little too slow, like he thinks Luca might not understand. I laugh and Luca grins.

"I think it's cool," Luca says, closing his book and looking between the two of us. "I've never seen a technique like that before - it's really interesting."

"And you are a fighter?" Blaze asks, his eyes sweeping expertly over the well-muscled set of Luca's shoulders, well-formed by years of boxing.