In the end, Amneris had made her way to the Palace. The training room was empty at this hour, much to her relief. She’d expected to find a Nightwalker or two but none were to be found. Perhaps they were out on the town tonight. It was a lovely-looking evening. Amneris was fine not sharing. She wasn’t in the mood to share anyway.

Amneris bandaged her fists and looked over the weapons rack. There were so many to choose from but, as always, she was drawn to the wooden practice staff. It was her weapon of choice, had been for as long as she could remember.

Amneris ran her hands along the familiar polished wood, smiling at its smooth texture. She hadn’t actually used her staff in a while and was beginning to miss the feel of it; the stability from her power that came from wielding it.

Amneris twisted the staff between her hands, starting slow and working her way up to a speed where even her own eyes struggled to see it.

“Hello, Helia.”

Amneris spun on her heel, the staff stopping just short of Lvaane’s face. “Fucking hell!” she breathed, lowering the staff. “How do you do that?”

“I may be old,” her father said, taking the staff from her with a half-smile, “but I am in no way incompetent.” He lightly knocked her leg with the butt of the staff. “Care for a match?”

Grinning, Amneris grabbed a second staff. She kicked off her shoes and jumped into one of her rings. She held the staff in one hand, twisting it behind her and waving her other hand in a ‘come at me’ motion. Lvaane appeared in front of her, his position similar to her own.

Lvaane attacked first. With one strike, he brought his staff down upon Amneris. She blocked from above. He moved again, slower this time but aiming for her side. Once again, she blocked. He feigned to the right. Amneris saw it coming, blocking effortlessly and giving her adoptive father a flat look. Something in his deep purple eyes glimmered. Lvaane took a step back. Amneris prepared herself for whatever was coming.

In a blur of motion, Lvaane attacked. Amneris struggled to keep up. Left, right, middle, left, top, right, left, top, right. Each move came faster than before. Lvaane swung toward her head. Amneris ducked, dropping to sweep a leg beneath his feet. He jumped over easily. Amneris rolled behind, swinging down from above. Lvaane spun on the spot, blocking the attack with ease. Less than a second later, the woof of his staff slammed into her side. Amneris stumbled and growled.

Amneris charged, sliding between his legs and jumping to her feet. She swept her staff at his legs. Lvaane fell to the ground with a thud. He recovered with amazing speed, rolling out of the way as Amneris slammed the butt of her staff into the ground. Lvaane stood and Amneris spun on the spot, attack his left, his right then aiming for his chest. Lvaane made a one-handed backflip to get out of the way.

Amneris blew golden strands of hair from her face. “Show-off.”

She ran forward again to make her next strike, the one she felt would end the battle—

Her form flickered. No!

Amneris’ staff was knocked from her hand. Before she knew what was happening, Lvaane flipped her over his shoulder and onto the ground. He help the butt of both staves at her throat.

Sighing, Amneris raised her hands in surrender. “Lucky hit.”

Lvaane helped her to her feet. Amneris took their staves to the rack, putting them back into place. Wordlessly, she opened the small fridge beside the rack and pulled out two bottles of water. She threw one at her father, opening the other. Amneris took a long drink before pouring the rest over her face. She tossed the empty bottle in the bin.

“Thanks for the match,” she said, unwrapping her hands.

“Helia.”

She stopped.

“Is there something you want to tell me?”

Amneris glanced over her shoulder, forcing a smile. “It’s nothing.”

Lvaane placed his half-empty bottle on top of the fridge and held out his arms. “Come here.”

Sighing, Amneris walked to her father. She pressed her brow against his chest, arms hanging limply at her sides as he hugged her. She didn’t know how long it took to muster the strength to return the motion. It felt like ages.

“I’m scared to shift,” she admitted. “After last time . . .” Amneris took a deep breath. “I don’t want to be that out of control again.”

Lvaane held her a little tighter. “That explains why you’ve been training alone. In the middle of the night.”

Amneris flinched at the last part. “You challenged me!”

“I think I know when my daughter needs to – what’s that phrase? – let off some steam.” He kissed her hair. “On a more serious note, you will have to shift again someday, Helia. Perhaps not tomorrow or even this year, but the day will come.”

I know.” Amneris looked up at him. “Can you help me?”

“Of course.”

“Now?”

He chuckled. “No, not now. Sunrise is only hours away and you need sleep.”

“We need sleep,” she corrected. “Actually, no. You need sleep. I’m totally fine.”

Her father was having none of that. Keep an arm around her, he led Amneris up to her room. She’d taken a step inside when he said, “I expect to see you at breakfast in the morning.”

Amneris kissed his cheek. “Night, Pa.”