Young Writers Society

Author's Notes: 1,045 words.  Haha have some surprise character development for two minor characters.

Drusus, holding a short sword, weakly swiped the air in front of his canine opponent.

"You thought that dagger would be useful?" the wolf said, raising his own blade and stabbing at Drusus. It caught the edge of Drusus's robes, which tore as he leaped back.

Now preparing a defensive stance, Kasimir's strategist breathed deeply, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "It will do fine," he said, before sidestepping another strike.

"Where's your energy?" The wolf rushed towards Drusus, kicking at a leg with his clawed feet. Drusus winced and nearly fell on his knees. Looking smug, the wolf ignored Drusus reaching out for the wolf’s sword until it was too late.

"Right here!" replied Drusus, grabbing his opponent's sword hand and thrusting his dagger at the wolf's middle.

Surprised, the wolf regained his senses and countered almost immediately, shoving the sword in their hands towards the dagger. The dagger landed harmlessly on the dusty ground, thanks to the wolf's strength. He then pushed forward, sending them both toppling onto the ground, the sword embedding itself in the box that Drusus had been sitting on before the fight.

"Well done," Drusus said, looking up into the wolf's burning-forest eyes. The wolf immediately rose up, so that Drusus could prop himself on his elbows, but the gap between them couldn't hold anything larger than an apple. "Why do you even need me around, Torion?"

"You know exactly why," Torion said, smirked.

Drusus sighed when, as expected, the moment fell apart with the arrival of someone in blue and silver armor. He gestured for them to speak as Torion hesitantly pulled away and sat on the ground, looking at his sword.

"Valeri would like to inform you that he has received a letter from his son," they said. "His situation is well; Pfanxi still holds the route into Claec, the borders are secure, and he wishes you all well."

"Isn't that what the King always says?" Torion commented dryly, sounding upset. "Why does he have to bother us with this?"

The messenger shrugged. "Be fortunate that Valeri did not have to tell you himself. Finish with whatever it is you're doing, because we'll be leaving before noon. Kasimir would like to speak with the both of you shortly, so you had best come to him." They marched off without hesitation, joining the moving throngs of people.

Drusus stood up and brushed himself off, looking around to make sure that nobody else was watching. "Our King must be putting the final details on his plan."

"Yeah, I could tell," Torion said, leaning back to stare up at the blue sky. "Is everything packed up?"

"As far as I am aware, yes" said Drusus, sitting in front of Torion and joining him in watching the clouds. "At least we are fortunate enough to not have had to do it ourselves."

Torion ran the back of his furry hand through Drusus's hair and laughed. "The King needs that smart head of yours. What's the good of it if you're using your hands to lift some books?"

Pulling a red apple from his pocket, Drusus took a bite out of it and swallowed. "Fair point. Though, I could’ve had someone to talk to while I worked."

"Nah, I would’ve done the work for you," Torion said, placing an arm around Drusus's chest. "It would’ve been an hour, maybe?"

They were silent for a little while. Drusus eased his head onto Torion's chest and smiled, still eating the apple. Drusus could spot, from the corner of his eyes, a few people walking by, but they quickly averted their gazes and moved on. The two were alone, the sun warming them and rewarding them for their minute's laziness. They had had many moments like this in the past, beginning almost as soon as they'd first met, back when Kasimir had promoted Drusus to assistant strategist and personally welcomed him to the City of Axes. That had been before the lead strategist had retired (whether by force or not, Drusus didn't know, as the old, half-blind codger had little respect for Kasimir), and he’d been faced with a whole new world of responsibility and service. At least the King Walety and the King of the Bears were young themselves.

But he was thinking too much. Besides, Torion was raising his hands over Drusus's head and conjuring tiny sparks. They danced between the fingers and gently floated onto Drusus's face. "Do you think I'm getting better at it?" Torion asked, wagging a finger playfully.

"Absolutely," Drusus said, putting his own hand through the wave of sparks. He yanked it back when it jolted him, but felt more amused than hurt. "You've been learning well. Still not much compared to this, of course." He concentrated, sending jolts of eletricity coursing through his body and arching onto the tip of his nose, shooting into the weak sparks and intensifiying them.

"Wow!" said Torion, yanking his hands back. "It doesn't get old, that's for sure." He went back to embracing Drusus, placing his chin on the strategist's shoulder. "Hey, remember that day when we first met? Wasn't that fun?"

Drusus threw the apple core aside. "Hmmm...if I recall correctly, I caught you getting dressed, and you immediately tried to hide behind a closet. And you tripped on your pants and fell onto the floor."

If Torion could blush, Drusus had the suspicion that he would’ve. "Y-you did pick me up, wasn't it?" said the wolf after a few seconds of awkward silence. "I don't...uh...don't remember looking that silly."

"You looked fine," said Drusus reassuringly, gently pushing himself up off the ground. "Now, let us see how the King's doing, and prepare for his little game, and find out what that creepy child hopes to do. As for now, I would like to have my leg checked on."

"You said the Mad King thinks he can ransom that kid or hold him hostage, and bring Wyandanch to its knees. Honestly, I'm worried that the kid's going to cause some problems of his own. Do you know how strong he is? They said he-" Drusus's words sunk in. "Woah, I'm sorry, I didn't know."

Standing, Drusus smiled and pulled the frightened Torion up. "No worries; it didn't hurt at all."