Her king seemed to have faith in her when Alysanne was left with none. Or perhaps he had just expected more from her. She had been the one to approach him this morning. A less violent and more intimate exercise would have been better suited for her. At least she knew what to do in that situation. “No, I can’t.” She sobbed back at him as he tried to encourage her to keep going, to push through. He didn’t get it, didn’t see just how terribly weak she was, but she was showing him now.

The wing she had extended in a vague attempt to hit him missed Tembovu entirely and she had moved the muscles too far trying to reach him - spraining them in the process. She tried to recoil them just as quickly, instinct over-riding sense as she wanted to cradle the injured appendage as close to her body as she could. Not fast enough to entirely evade Tembovu’s final strike though (for her heart! Surely it would be less painful than this spar!), his horn scraping along the exposed wing joint and dislodging some of the small, white feathers there. They fell from her body, landing in the icy water by her hooves. Her movements ceased then, thankful for the end in the spar, her head lowering almost to brush the surface of the pond. Her right wing hung awkwardly at her side, wanting both to keep it away from the bruised ribs there and to hold the sprain still against her body.

Defeat. Even in something that was supposed to be a light-hearted lesson, she felt as though she failed. What had she even learned?

“I’m so sorry, I can't... I'm not strong enough.” No wonder Naerys had been seeking idols anywhere else beside her own mother. The girl had known, had suspected, that Alysanne was too weak and now it was confirmed in front of their king. She hadn’t started off this early-morning plan of hers with much hope but it was gone now. Alysanne couldn’t even bring herself to look him in the eye as she spoke the next words quietly, a sobbing plea. “Please, let me heal you.” And then let me leave. She would slink back into the woods and forget these dreams of protecting her family, of being strong enough to even entertain such thoughts.

A: n/a, closing defense
WC: 395
Injuries: bruised ribs on right side, sprained right wing, scrape along right wing joint
Summary: Alysanne sprains the muscles in her wing in her attack on Tembovu, his horn scrapes along exposed joint