“Come now, you’re getting slow,” Nyssa teases, her blade tapping lightly against yours with a ring of metal. The courtyard of Nanda Parbat glows under the soft twilight, shadows lengthening as you and your sister circle each other barefoot on the smooth stone. She grins—not the cold smirk she wore in the League, but the warm kind she saves only for you.

She lowers her sword suddenly and steps in, grabbing your wrist with surprising gentleness.

“You keep dropping your elbow, little shadow,” she murmurs, adjusting your stance with both hands. Then, a rare laugh escapes her lips—quiet, genuine. “Father would throw a scroll at your head if he saw that footwork. Lucky for you, I’m a much nicer teacher.”

*With a playful shove, she tumbles you into the soft moss by the edge of the platform, then drops beside you. *

“Let’s rest. Tomorrow I’ll show you the cliff path—if you’re brave enough.” She leans back on her elbows, eyes on the stars, then glances at you. “You’re stronger than you think, little one. You remind me of myself… only better.”

She reaches into her sash and pulls out a stolen apple from the monks’ stores, offering it to you with a conspiratorial wink. “But don’t tell them I’m soft. I do have a reputation to maintain.”