Bow and Arrow

Ivy yawned. It had been an hour since dinner, and she had spent that time chatting with Nick in front of the fire. They were one of the few still awake. "I'm gonna go to bed," she said, yawning again and standing.

"'Night," Nick said. "I'll be up a little longer. Just holler if you need anything, alright?" Ivy nodded, then walked over to her bedroll. Some sneaky person had stolen her pillow. She sighed, then took off her pack and pulled out her cloak. These kinds of cloaks were generic enough that no one would question her having it.

She rolled it up and laid her head on it, using it as a pillow. Wishing she had a blanket, she looked around. Only a few people had blankets. She curled up and closed her eyes.

Her sleep was fitful. At one point she woke up shivering, the bonfire reduced to glowing embers. She sighed as someone laid a blanket over her, and she looked around, seeing Nick returning to his bedroll, without a blanket.

Ivy smiled blearily, curling back up under the blanket. She fell asleep quickly this time, and stayed asleep. She had no dreams.

...........

Ivy yawned, tiredly sitting up. She pulled her blanket around her shoulders, shivering. A few men were working on getting the fire going, to warm up the cavern. "My lady?" Someone whispered from behind her. She turned to see the spy she had seen earlier.

"Yes?" She asked, bending over and folding up the cloak, which had unfolded during the night.

"I must report to my lord Thorne," he whispered. "Anything you'd like me to tell him?"

"Just that I've successfully gained a friendship with the leader. Tell him I will get even closer soon."

"Yes, my lady." The spy left. It was a quick conversation, but that was fine. It would not do to arouse suspicion. She glanced around to see if anyone overheard, but the closest man appeared to be asleep. He'd have to listen hard to hear anyways.

Ivy yawned again, dropping her blanket and standing up. She put on her cloak and wrapped it around herself like she did with the blanket, gaining a little warmth. She pulled her hood over her hair and rubbed in some gel, just to be safe.

She wandered over to sit in front of the now burning fire, relishing it's warmth. If this cave got cold at night during the spring, she hated to think what it would be like during the winter. She shivered just thinking about it.

"Cold?" Someone asked, sitting beside her. It was Nick.

"A little," she admitted. Nick handed her a hot bowl of leftover stew. She sipped it gratefully. "Thank you."

"No problem," he said, drinking his own stew. Ivy started into the crackling flames as she ate, lost in thought. Nick was so nice to her, even though they had only known each other a couple days.

She didn't want to kill him, but she had to, for her father. She'd have other chances. Ivy tried to convince herself of this. It was hard. The fire crackled unhelpfully. Ivy sighed, finishing her stew.

"Are you alright?" He asked, putting down his bowl and turning to her. This was good, he cared about how she felt.

"Yeah," she said quickly. Not too quickly, she hoped. Nick nodded.

"We're doing some scouting today," he said. "You wanna come along?" Ivy perked up.

"Yeah, sure!" she said. Something to clear her mind, finally! "When do we leave?" In a few minutes, so grab what you need and meet at the flat. Bringing a weapon is a good idea." At that moment Ivy wished she had brought her knives, but they would have given her away.

She stood and walked over to the weapons side of the cavern. They were scouting, so she would want a long range weapon and a small short range weapon. Ivy grabbed a good looking bow, a quiver, and a handful of arrows. She slung both bow and quiver over her back, after taking off the cloak, of course.

After contemplating the short range weapons, she chose a small dagger. Along with the knives, she had been trained in dagger-battle.

Ivy joined the small group back at the flat, softly shutting the trapdoor behind her. A few of the men saw her bow and arrows, snickering quietly. She'd show them. "What're we waiting for?" She asked, playing with her dagger threateningly. She didn't like the look in some of their eyes.

"Nick," one man grunted. The trapdoor opened again. "Well speak of the devil," the man muttered as Nick climbed up into the light. He had a sword at his waist.

"Let's get moving," he said, letting the others go ahead. He hung back with Ivy. "Excited?" He asked.

"Yeah," Ivy replied. "I'm kinda hoping we get into a fight; maybe I can prove myself. I've trained in the bow, you know."

"Cool," Nick said. "We actually do usually get into a few fights. Thorne's wardens are everywhere." Ivy cringed inwardly. She hadn't thought of that. Oh well. Thorne would just have to accept that she was going to kill some of his men. She'd enjoy it, though. Some of those men were creepy.

They walked through the streets quietly, trying not to attract attention. Most men wore weapons these days, so they were fine. But Ivy drew quite a few stares, with her bow and arrows. Fighting was distinctly un-feminine.

Nick tapped her shoulder and pointed up ahead at a group of wardens. He nodded his head at a tall building, and Ivy understood. She nodded and sprinted into the building, ignoring the startled cries.

She dashed up the three flights and onto the roof, where she crouched down behind the stone railing. Ivy grabbed her bow and nocked an arrow, then glanced down at Nick. He nodded, giving her the signal to attack.

Ivy aimed, closing one eye, pulled back, and let loose. The arrow plunged into the leader's head, knocking him off his horse. She grinned. He was the creepiest. Nick's men stopped in surprise as she let two more arrows loose at the same time, both plunging into two different men's heads. She grinned as Nick and his men attacked, taking down three men.

She shot again and again, taking down four more men. After a moment of thought, she pulled out a piece of paper, scratched a note on it, and attached it to an arrow, which she shot at Thorne's fortress. The arrow stuck itself right outside of Thorne's window. She didn't see if he got it, but now he knew she had killed some of his wardens.

Hopefully he wouldn't be too mad.