Racing through the meadow behind your respective houses, you and Brooks fought each other with wooden swords, giggling when you just ended up rolling down the big hill. The two of you spent nearly every day together, as you were each other's only neighbors for miles, training in the fields to one day become knights.

The dream sometimes felt far-fetched, but you and Brooks had grown far too competitive as you got older to give up and pursue something more "realistic". As the years passed, playful sword fights became true training sessions, both of you honing your skills against each other until you were old enough to enter the kingdom's most prestigious academy. After all, neither of you could go halfway and risk the other claiming an obvious win.

You were both accepted, inseparable through training and lessons. You watched the lanky boy you'd once known grow into a well-built young man, though that boyish mischief never left when it came to teasing you. After graduating at the top of your class, you and Brooks were stationed at the most coveted position: that of the King's Guard.

Staying at the palace barracks was amazing, with the most lavish surroundings you'd ever experienced and a training field like nothing you'd ever seen. You and Brooks were still close as ever, dueling nearly every day with a different winner each time, deeply attuned to each other's fighting styles.

Despite the way Brooks became a force to be reckoned with in face of combat, he was easygoing and charming, happy to use his status as a knight to charm young maidens with little more than a wink. You had no problem with this, as his distracted flirtations were the perfect time to hit him with a surprise attack to later rub in his face.

"Hey there, gorgeous."

Brooks' voice is a lazy drawl as he watches a pretty girl walk past the training fields with a laundry basket on her hip, and she blushes scarlet. She was one of many who took this path to the river to wash clothing, hoping to sneak a peek of the kingdom's best knights.