Cunning Fish of the Forest - Chapter 2

Arox helped me to my feet, easily lifting my arms which were no match for his strength. The undergarments and skirt hem torn from climbing trees were beyond repair. Seeming a bit embarrassed by my disheveled appearance, Arox started by fixing my hair, which looked like a bird’s nest.

“If you get seriously hurt, Mother will be upset. A lady soon to be married shouldn’t be climbing trees and fences.”

“I won’t get married.”

“That’s impossible.”

I had heard these phrases so often from the moment I could understand speech—the talk of marriage and a woman’s fate. It seemed my life was decided without my input. I wonder if I could ever love the life that denounced freedom as something dreadful.

The meadow beyond the castle, allowed only to the men of the family, belonged to Arox and Ahmet. How heartbreaking it was that my love for the meadow was contingent on my brothers’ permission.

The wildflowers unattended yet delicate, the hill named after a horse’s back, the forest of trees forming an ancient woods thriving in seclusion, the animals full with their young—all these things I loved, yet I could only see them with a man’s permission.

Sometimes, my father and Arox, feeling sorry for me, allowed me to visit. But my mother and Ahmet conspired to make me seem odd. It was humiliating that I needed Father’s permission to go places now, and in the future, my husband’s.

Ahmet’s pretense of not understanding the significance was particularly galling.

Therefore, it was a justified punishment.

While Arox bent down to pick up his wooden sword, I crouched down and dug up the fine dirt. Gathering it in my arms to drop on Ahmet’s head would make for a fitting scene. Those unaware of the situation might think I went too far, calling me a girl who throws dirt because her brother didn’t catch her when she fell.

But Ahmet had committed an unforgivable mistake.

“Ahmet!”

It was the moment Arox was distracted while inspecting his sword.

Ahmet had conspired with the tutor to forbid my outings and would somehow always find out and snitch whenever I tried to escape from lessons. Even if he didn’t treat me with the same leniency as Arox, orchestrating schemes behind my back was something a brother shouldn’t do.

I seized the opportunity when my brothers were not paying attention and ran with the dirt in my arms, imagining Ahmet’s disgruntled march back to the castle in his sorry state. Despite spilling some dirt or stumbling over stones, giving up was not an option.

Just as Ahmet’s beloved book, covered in soft leather, came into partial view, Arox’s shout, having noticed my mischievous act, echoed across the green meadows.

“Neth!”

Despite his pleading cry, the dirt had already left my hands, covering Ahmet’s book and chest. After witnessing the successful hit, I quickly turned around, ready to claim my victory by running and hiding in the hill.

“You wretch!”

“Ahmet!”

My attempt to flee was thwarted. Ahmet, a year my senior, might have seemed slim, but he was tall and spent his afternoons training with a wooden sword. Before I could react, he had caught me by the nape, dragging me along like a pig to the slaughterhouse. Ahmet grumbled and flung me in the opposite direction.

Despite ending up rolling on the ground, I felt no remorse.

“Didn’t you ever think to use that strength to help me? I would have.”

“Ahmet! Stop it!”

“Let go! It’s because Brother always covers for her…”

If Arox hadn’t intervened urgently, Ahmet might have landed a blow on my head.

With Arox’s arrival, any chance of Ahmet’s revenge was thwarted. Feeling cheeky, I stuck out my tongue at Ahmet in provocation. Unable to move with his arm caught, Ahmet furiously kicked about in rage.

“You wait, when Brother leaves, I won’t let you off easy!”

“I could say the same to you.”

Just last year, I was confident in our scuffles, winning at least three out of ten times. But ever since Ahmet began formal swordsmanship lessons, I’ve been losing without fail, which was infuriating.

“Araneth, I was going to let it slide because I felt sorry for you, but…”

“Go ahead. Whatever you do, I’m not scared.”

Ahmet’s threats probably meant tattling to Mother or Father. My taunting response made Ahmet’s face turn beet red as he jumped up and down in anger.

“Araneth… you!”

“What about me?”

“Do you know who your betrothed is going to be?”

Ahmet’s threats, usually ending with just a twitch of his lips, were always dull. But not this time.

The mention of a soon-to-be fiancé carried too much emotion to be a mere fabrication, and it was too specific for Ahmet’s usual tactics.

A silence fell over the meadow that had been filled with the perfectly mixed breeze of sunshine. Arox’s reaction, glaring at his brother as if to shut him up, was equally unfamiliar.

So, it was true.

Regardless of my will, my arms uncrossed, and the strength drained from my eyes. I had sworn to boldly face it when my beloved freedom was taken from me.

Yet at that moment, I was powerless to do anything.

Nothing.