61 - A Lesson On Swords

61 - A Lesson On Swords
“Today, we’ll be going over Swords.” Frey explained as Clare and Xavier sat across from him for their daily afternoon lesson. “Soon, you’ll have to choose your own so it’s better that you learn it now. Also, we don’t want another… situation like last time.”
He gave Lav a pointed look as he said those words, his words clearly directed at her. However, Lav gazed blankly back at Frey as she stood behind Clare, acting as if his words meant nothing to her.
Considering how Lav was to others, Clare guessed Lav had just ignored his words. It made Clare want to learn how Lav did it so easily.
“Anyway, first thing we’ll go over is Sword responsibilities since you have one already.” Frey stated, turning his attention back to Clare and Xavier. “We can go over ranking and the choosing ceremony afterwards. I’ve also got some books here you can go over.”
As Frey said those words, Lif dumped a pile of books on the coffee table. Clare flinched at the sight, hating the fact Frey was once more giving them homework.
He was worse than some of her professors in college giving students multiple assignments at once along with reading material to go through.
The thought of Frey being a professor made her think back to her academy days before everything and she felt a pang in her chest. Those days had been somewhat good and in a way, she missed them…
“Tea?” Lif asked, breaking Clare’s train of thought as he held out a cup of tea.
“Thanks.” Clare said, taking the cup of tea. “So, Swords’ responsibilities… One of them is protection, right?”
She knew it had been briefly explained to her and Xavier before but it was good to go a little more into depth about how Swords worked.
After all, she would one day rely on them when she became queen.
“Yes, that’s the basic responsibility of a Sword.” Frey nodded before taking a sip of his tea. “However, there are other responsibilities. Swords also are responsible for advising the Queen on political matters, deal with any issues within the Court, act as messengers and so on.”
“So, they’re basically the Queen’s right-hand men.” Xavier mused. “Like what a Beta is to an Alpha in a werewolf pack.”
“Yes. It’s similar to that.” Frey agreed. “The essence of being a Sword is that they help the queen rule the Fae Court and watch over the Fae Tree of Life. It means your Sword has to be flexible in multiple accepts to serve you well. Just being good at fighting will not cut it.”
Clare silently nodded in understanding. It seemed Swords were more complicated than she first thought, meaning she would have to take her picking of Swords much more seriously.
Still, it wasn’t to mean that she regretted choosing Lav. Clare had decided long along she was not going to regret that choice. She was going to deal with it.
Because running away was no longer an option.
“Okay, so Swords’ responsibilities depend on what the queen needs.” Clare mused. “Does it affect their ranking or is it based on when the Sword is chosen?”
“Everyone’s ranking among the swords depends on what their responsibilities are and how important those tasks are.” Frey explained. “For example, Lady Reverie runs the royal court and helps the queen deal with day-to-day issues among Fae. Meanwhile, I am more focused on the care taking of her majesty despite helping with the court so have a lower rank.”
“Wait, what about being the queen’s mate?” Clare asked. “Wouldn’t that increase your ranking?”
“No.” Frey shook his head. “Being the queen’s sword and being the queen’s mate are two different things. Her majesty’s affections cannot affect the rankings of Swords as they exist to help the queen. Swords are a logical choice while mates are an emotional choice.”
“But then what of Swords becoming the queen’s lover?” Xavier questioned.
Frey smirked. “Remember Swords are constantly at their queen’s side unless they’re on a mission. Affections can easily grow especially over centuries. Of course, this depends on whether the queen has a mate and if they still love each other.”
“Mates can stop loving each other?” Clare exclaimed in disbelief.
It was a little hard to believe that such a thing was possible. Xavier also gazed at Frey with complete doubt written across his face. A person’s mate was someone that was perfect for them in every way, chosen by the Goddess herself.
There was no way mates being soulmates was wrong or the Goddess choice was a mistake. It didn’t seem possible.
“You think of love with the eyes of someone that’ll one day die.” Frey sighed. “Fae are essentially immortal. Being with one person for eternity can be hard for most. Even if their partner is chosen by the Goddess. Why do you think vampires rarely become mates with their thralls? They don’t want to regret a choice…”
A tense silence fell in the room at Frey’s words. Clare wasn’t sure how to feel about his words, worried about her future with Xavier. Would he still love her after a long time of being together or would he eventually get sick of her?
“If you two are done overthinking something that is unlikely to happen considering how you two are, let’s move on.” Frey muttered. “I need to go over the first Sword since they are a special case before moving onto the choosing ceremony.”
His words snapped Clare out of her spiralling daze. “A special case Sword?”
“Yes… Don’t you find it strange that you haven’t met the first Sword despite being introduced to everyone else?” Frey raised a brow at them.
“I mean… I assumed they were on a special mission for the queen and would be introduced to us later.” Clare shrugged.
“Well, you are right about the special mission but you will not meet the first Sword.” Frey stated. “In fact, no one has met the first Sword aside from the queen who secretly chose them. This is because the first Sword is responsible for taking on special missions that require a hidden identity.
“They are also your most powerful Sword and are chosen outside the choosing ceremony. It’s one of the reasons you picking Lav as a Sword was an issue.”