Amazon Companion (30 page)

"Let us try to teach you," she said. "We won't hurt you. If you don't like the practice grounds, we'll do it when you check your snares." She paused. "I bet I can get you out of afternoon training if you agree, at least for a few weeks."

"This would be my training instead?"

She nodded. "We leave to check on your snares, then we can give you a good workout somewhere you seem to enjoy better. You'll come home tired, and no one can say you are shirking your training, but we wouldn't be late."

"You have duties to your warriors."

"Do not worry about that. We might not both go eve
ry day. And we would try to ease you into doing it here, but if you just can't, then you can't."

Vorine returned at that moment, Aura with her. Aura took a look at me and fixed my lips.

"Malora saw me bring her," Vorine said, "and probably knows why. She may push it if she wants to add to your embarrassment."

"If she asks you if my lips were smudged, tell the truth," I said. "Don't lie to her."

"Thank you for that," Omie said. "We wouldn't have lied, but we would have felt badly for it."

They were being kind. "If you can, come check my snares this afternoon. We should have at least a little time."

They both smiled. "We'll make time. We'll make this fun, Maya. We promise. You must be honest with us though."

"I will." I paused. "If I have to wrestle, I don't want it to always be you two though."

"We'll invite the others, too."

"I need to ask you something. Does Varda cheat?"

They both looked uncomfortable. "Bea told you that?" Vorine asked. I nodded. "She doesn't cheat," Vorine said. "But she has little compassion. Avoid competing with her. We're willing to compete with her because we can beat her. And you could beat her in the water, but she'd make you pay for it later."

I nodded. "Do the warriors know?"

"I don't know," Omie said. "She can be subtle."

"Perhaps not consistently subtle." I remembered Nori guessing that Varda had asked for my help getting her out of the binding Malora had applied.

"Varda is not overt," Vorine said. "She'll use your hair. That's considered poor form. Our warriors often ask us to keep our hair long."

"
Benala likes running her fingers through my hair," Omie explained. "And she brushes and braids it for me."

"Malora braids mine, and she fixed my pony tails this morning. She was chuckling while she did it. I think she likes that she was able to change the color."

"She would," Vorine said. "It's a form of marking you as hers."

I hadn't thought about that.

"So, companions often have long hair to please their warriors," Vorine said. "Both Omie and I would cut ours very short, like Bea's, but our warriors have asked us not to. And so because we are companions first and warriors second, it is considered bad form to use our hair against us."

"But Varda will pull hair. She usually gets away with it, but Nori is getting fed up with it."

"It's stuff like that," Vorine explained. "She does it to the other companions, and then when we get a chance, we kick her ass for it, but she's too stupid to realize we're meaner to her than we are to anyone else."

"If we wrestle, I intentionally go for the most painful locks I know,"
Omie said.

"Locks?"

"Submission holds. I am not allowed to use damaging holds on the companions, but if she is ever made a warrior, I can."

I nodded. "Malora said the dispute with Bea was
caused by both of them."

"It was, but Bea was only reacting badly."

I nodded. "Thank you for explaining."

They hugged me, and then it was time to serve lunch.

As soon as lunch was over, I began to feel the butterflies in my stomach. "I'm nervous," I admitted to Malora.

She didn't have an answer, but she increased the amount of physical affection she was giving me.

I let her draw me to the training grounds, and she sat next to me as we began our stretches even before Nori declared the start. We stretched, then we ran a bit, then Aura and Neela fixed our lips. Malora laughed and said, "From the start of training until any bathing is completed afterwards, smudged or bare lips are allowed. We aren't going to interrupt training for this."

Nori broke us into groups, saying, "We're going to wrestle today. Companions with companions and warriors with warriors.
Serra, Vorine and Omie, you are warriors today."

The two
sisters beamed, but I raised my hand like one of my students in school. Nori turned to me.

"We all know I'm a pansy."

"Please do not say it that way."

"We all know my heart is already pounding in fear," I said. "Is that better?"

"Really?" Malora asked. I nodded.

"You wish to be excused?"

"If I am not begging to be allowed to change my mind, I would like a bout with Omie or Vorine at the end of the lesson."

"Of course," Nori said immediately.

After that, we separated with Malora leading the companions. She taught us as if we had never wrestled, demonstrating the simplest of moves then letting the four of us pair up and practice slowly with each other.

I hated it. I absolutely hated it, and I didn't know why yesterday it had been okay.

But I did everything she asked, and I let the other companions practice on me.

They were all deeply enjoying themselves, and I tried to absorb some of their spirit, but I just couldn't.

"Let's do a round or two of bouts," Malora said. "Do you need me to officiate?"

"No," the other three agreed. "We can call our own pins, and we'll stop if we need to."

"Malora," I said. "I have a request."

"Yes?"

"Will you let my first bout be with you? Can you make it a good workout?"

"How about we go as lon
g as the other first bout goes? I'll probably pin you several times, and I'll let you try to pin me."

I nodded. "All right."

"Which of us goes first?" Bea asked. "I think all three of us are anxious to wrestle."

"Aura and Neela," Malora said. "Bea, I'll give you a bout, if you like, or you can wait for someone to catch her breath."

She smiled. "Okay. But I hope I get to wrestle with everyone today. I had fun yesterday. It's worth the pink lips."

"You aren't supposed to tell me that, Bea."

She glanced at me, and I realized she admitted it for me.

"Bea, I'll wrestle you as many times as you want," I told her, "as long as I have time later to check my snares. But if I don't calm down, I don't know what to do."

"Scared?"

I nodded.

"Don't be."

"I'm trying."

I moved onto my hands and knees then waited for Malora. She settled over me. "Try to have fun," she whispered. "Begin when you're ready."

I grabbed her wrist on my stomach and rolled, one of the moves she had just taught us. I know she could have stopped me, but she let me roll her over, and I settled on top of her.

"Good," she whispered. "Can you pin me?"

I struggled to pin her. She squirmed and arched her back, but she didn't try to actually get away. I grabbed her leg and tried to pull it up to pin her, but that wasn't working. She let me try that for a while, then she flipped us over, grabbed my leg, and pinned me, holding me in position for several seconds.

"You're supposed to announce your pin."

I tapped her arm.

"What did I do wrong?"

"You were trying to grab the wrong leg."

"Hold me for a few seconds and can we go again?"

"As many times as you want," she said, pulling me into her arms. It felt nice to be held.

I started down again, and this time I went for an escape, but I did it wrong, and I found myself on my stomach with Malora over me.

"Do you think you can stop me from flipping you?"

"You didn't teach us that."

She squirmed her hand in and began rolling me over, and I was helpless but to go where she put me. A few seconds later, I was pinned again.

"Hold me," I whispered.

And she did.

Over and over, we began. A few times I was able to get her onto her back, but I couldn't pin her, and I was sure if I were doing it right, she would have let me.

Finally I pushed away and sat on the ground, staring at the trees. Malora sat down next to me, her arm around me.

"I am a complete waste of your time," I told her.

"Don't worry about that," she said. "Think about this. You are my companion, and I value that greatly. The only part of this that upsets me is your frustration and your inability to enjoy this."

"You want me to be able to defend myself. And I'm failing. What do you do with a companion who can't defend herself? I'm a laughingstock."

"That's what's wrong, isn't it? You're worried about what I think? Oh Maya. Please, try to have fun. Right now, that is progress."

But I couldn't.

I wrestled with all of them, and I performed badly, but I wrestled with anyone who asked, and I did my best, which wasn
't much.

Omie
came over. She knelt down next to me. "Will you wrestle with me?"

I nodded.

She was kind, and she let me try to pin her for a while, but then I whispered to her, "Finish this." And again she was kind, reversing us gently, then she struggled for a pin. "Stop screwing around."

"I'm not," she said. "I'll wear you down eventually though."

"Do it your way," I told her.

"No. It hurts, and I don't want you to think about me hurting you."

"Do it slow, and I'll tap out before it hurts."

She adjusted her grip, and suddenly she had my arm pulled away from my side, one foot in my armpit, her other leg crossed over her own leg, and she pressed my
elbow against her leg. She held it there.

"This is one I shouldn't do with you," she explained, "but I'm being gentle. Try to escape, and then I'll show you why you should tap out."

I squirmed for a long time, but I couldn't escape the hold she had.

"All right," she said. "If I pull harder on your arm, it bends your arm backwards. I'm going to start, and you tap out the moment you know it will be too much." She began pulling, bending my arm backwards, and almost immediately I tapped out.

She helped me to sit up.

"Well?" she asked.

I turned to look at her, and I was sure what I was thinking was written all over my face.

"Oh Maya. I didn't hurt you."

"I know. And I knew you weren't going to." I climbed to my feet and turned to Malora. "I have snares to check. May I go?"

"I'll go with you," she said.

"May I talk to you?"

She nodded, and we stepped aside. "I want to go alone. I am going to be gone for a long time. I may miss dinner. I promise, I am not running away. If dusk arrives and I am not back, please send someone to find me."

"Are you sure you don't want company? Maybe the girls?"

"No, not today. Thank you."

She let me go, and I shambled from the training ground.

* * * *

I checked my snares. And then I lay in the meadow, staring up at the clouds in the sky.

I didn't have any particular thoughts. I just stared, numb.

Time passed. I didn't notice, but then I realized dusk was approaching. I climbed to my feet, caught my horse, and turned her to home.

Malora didn't send someone to find me, she came looking herself, and it was nearly full dark when she found me, staring at a trail and unsure which way to go.

I saw the relief when she saw me.

"I promised I wasn't running," I said.

"And you asked me to come find you if it grew dark."

"May I ride with you?"

She nodded, and I climbed onto the front of her horse, and we led mine by the reins. She wrapped her arms around me, and I leaned against her, not talking.

"Good catch?"

"None today, but unless I want to trade them, I have more rabbit than I could use for a long time."

We rode slowly back, Malora making small talk. I replied, but I had no fire.

"Please tell me what's going on."

"You know what's going on," I said, "and there's nothing either of us can do about it."

Later, in our hut, she held me, and then she slept, but I lay awake, staring at the wall, for a long, long time.

"Why am I not on the duty roster beginning tomorrow?" It was breakfast three days later. "All my assignments have been assigned to other companions."

"I thought I told you we had a trip coming. We're going to visit the other villages."

"When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow morning. You can assign your snares to someone else or take them in for now."

"If someone wants them, she can have them while we're gone."

"You'll have to show them this afternoon." She paused. "If you want to skip training this afternoon,
Omie and Vorine would like to check your snares with you. You could take the girls, too. I think you should accept."

"Whatever you say," I told her. I paused. "We're going to be gone for the first day I was supposed to do swimming lessons."
I was good at swimming, and I didn't feel I was good at anything else the Amazons found valuable. I'd been looking forward to teaching everyone to swim better.

"They'll wait," Malora replied.

I excused myself to make arrangements, gathering the available companions. Varda was back, and I didn't want to extend the invitation to her, but I didn't know how to avoid it. Nevertheless, I was able to grab Bea, Neela, Aura, and the two sisters. "I have a trip with my warrior beginning tomorrow. Does anyone want to take over my snares while I am gone? If not, I'll take them down this afternoon."

Neela and Aura wanted to share them. "You need to ask your warriors," Vorine pointed out. "We can ask before training this morning."

"My warrior has offered to allow me to skip training this afternoon for this," I added. "The offer appears to be contingent on Vorine and Omie going along."

The two immediately began to smile. "We would love to."

"What about me?" Bea asked. "My warrior is not here to ask."

I turned to her. She hadn't gone on patrol with her warrior
, and that meant none of the companions had gone. "Why didn't she take you with?"

"Um." She looked at me. "I don't want to answer that."

"All right," I said. "So everyone wants to go this afternoon, if Neela's and Aura's warriors will allow them to tend my snares?"

"We want to go whether or not we may tend your snares," Neela said to a set of nods from everyone else.

"We'll have to invite Varda."

"Don't you worry about Varda,"
Omie said. "If she comes, Vorine and I will see to it she behaves."

"Thank you."

And so, twenty minutes later, when we were done stretching but hadn't done our morning run, I stood up and announced, "The companions have a request for this afternoon. May we present it?"

"Certainly,
Pink," Nori said. She probably already knew what it was. I didn't think Malora would have given me the offer she had without Nori being aware.

All of us had been caught at least once with smudged lips from our punishment, and Malora had tacked on additional days, so I was still wearing pony tails and pink lips, plus my hair was still a brilliant pink. I considered making it a permanent fashion statement
, as it amused everyone so much when they saw me. Several of the Amazons had taken to calling me "Pink", which also amused me.

I outlined the plan, wrapping up with, "But I believe this plan requires permission from nearly every warrior here, and Bea's and
Omie's warriors are not here to offer approval."

Malora announced, "This plan was my suggestion and has my approval, but I speak only for my companion and proxy for Clara and
Benala."

Lidi and
Gaylie communed for the briefest moment before Lidi said, "If Neela has been taught how to snare rabbits, and this is a temporary arrangement, I have no problem if she checks the snares each afternoon, but she must not neglect her training. I will allow it this afternoon." Gaylie nodded with her, adding, "But I want assurances my companion will not become lost on the return. I have not yet taught her some of these things."

Nori said, "Perhaps this is an opportunity."

"Yes," Lidi agreed. "I believe we have focused on training immediately nearest the village, but an Amazon must have skills in the woods as well. I will accept responsibility for them but will welcome any company."

The other warriors agreed to allow their companions the afternoon. Varda asked, "Am I invited?"

"If your warrior will allow you to attend," I said. Her warrior agreed, but I wasn't sure she was happy about it.

With that settled, we ran.

The six companions left for Backbend Gulch shortly after cleaning up from the lunch meal, and spirits were high. Mine were mixed. I was nervous about the trip, as I didn't know what was expected of me, and I was nervous as to my reaction. I knew we would be wrestling after checking the snares.

When we arrived at the gulch, I told them, "I have moved all my snares since any of you were here with me, and some of them are due to be moved again. I have little tricks for finding where I've left them, but they are subtle. Perhaps we should mark them."

"I brought more of the pink ribbons," Aura said.

We checked all my snares, finding I had one more rabbit. Aura and Neela agreed on how they wanted them marked, and we moved three of the snares, Varda offering good suggestions where to put them. Bea quietly told me she was a good hunter, so the girls put the traps where Varda recommended.

By the time we were done, most of the girls were excited. Varda noticed the looks, but she wasn't clued in to what was going on.

"Now we wrestle?" Bea asked.

I nodded, and there were whoops.

"I think everyone knows the only reason we got out of training was because Vorine and I are going to teach you today,"
Omie said, but I noticed Vorine had pulled Varda to the side and was whispering quietly into her ear.

"No," I said.

"Excuse me?"

"No. I don't want to do that. This place is a place of fun. I will wrestle anyone who asks, and I will accept informal lessons. I do not want formal lessons. We keep this fun."

That confused Omie and Vorine. Vorine broke off her conversation with Varda and pulled Omie to the side. I sat down and began stretching and was soon joined by the other companions. Finally Omie and Vorine turned to me. "I am quite certain your warrior did not recommend this as an afternoon of play."

"I didn't say we would play. I suggest what we do should be fun."

"But learning to wrestle is fun," Vorine said.

"Perhaps for most of you."

They conferred again then turned back to me. "You will wrestle with anyone who asks?"

"Yes, and as many times as I am asked, and I will even try to have fun. But. Tickle holds are legitimate submission holds."

That resulted in laughter, although Varda was confused. She hadn't heard the story, although I was pretty sure someone told her why four of us were still adorned in pink, as she hadn't directly asked in my hearing.

"You will accept other, perhaps less playful, submission holds in our wrestling with you?"
Omie asked. I nodded. "And will you allow us to, informally, show them to you more slowly. Will you allow that and pay attention?" Again I nodded.

"I do not believe this is what your warrior intended," Vorine said, "and I do not care to wear pink hair."

"My warrior will be satisfied if I am worn out, and she will be ecstatic if I report that I enjoyed myself. Otherwise we should return to the training grounds and train there. This field remains a place of fun."

Omie
looked at Vorine and nodded.

"My sister and I will be using submission holds, and we will be trying to teach them to the rest of you," Vorine announced. "We will also teach, informally, and perhaps in a fun fashion, other maneuvers." She looked pointedly at me. "Is this acceptable?"

"Yes. And if you have other suggestions for keeping this fun, I will accept them." I looked at the rabbit. "I am willing to offer my rabbit skin as a prize."

"For a tournament?"

"For the best suggestion that adds fun, perhaps."

"Or the person whose wrestling most amuses you?" Bea suggested.

"Maybe the most amusing win," I said. "Perhaps we should vote at the end of the day amongst the choices presented."

"Training is not supposed to be fun," Varda said. "It is serious work."

"Varda," Vorine said, "you invited yourself along, and Maya graciously included you. If you don't like the training this afternoon, Omie and I will happily offer you more serious training any time you like."

"Varda," I said, "I am happy you came. You've missed a lot while on patrol, but I'll do my best to fill you in, if you like. Have you heard why four of us have pink hair?"

"Just that it was a punishment, and that you were the ringleader."

"Perhaps we'll tell you the entire story. My warrior enacted the most amusing punishment she could, and I wear my pink hair with pride."

"So do I," said Neela.

"I wish my hair was long enough to have some of it
dyed pink," Bea said.

Aura was shaking her head. "Pink."

After that, we had fun wrestling matches. Bea immediately asked for my first match, and I agreed. She won, but she was giggling for half of it, and her joy was infectious. I had fun.

I hugged her and thanked her.

I had fun, and was especially amused when I discovered Vorine was ticklish. It wasn't enough for me to win my match with her, but we were both laughing when she applied a complicated hold, and I found myself entirely helpless, pinned to the ground, but my fingers were in her sides, and I never gave up tickling her.

Omie
and Vorine both took time to teach us, showing me very simple moves I could actually do, and then letting me practice them. Before we were done, the entire event turned into a massive tickle fight, people ganging up on one another. Near the end, Vorine had me pinned on my stomach with Bea and Neela tickling me mercilessly, but suddenly Omie did a sneak attack on her sister, wrapping her in a complicated knot before Vorine could react.

"Tickle her!"
Omie yelled. "Hurry! I can't hold her forever."

We all launched ourselves on Vorine. She really started complaining when Bea took one of her boots off and began on the bottom of her foot, and soon after it all dissolved into a big pile of laughing women.

We lay there together, panting.

"Who won the rabbit skin?" Neela asked.

They began throwing out names and examples of some of the more amusing moments of the day. We hadn't decided, but then Vorine asked, "Maya, did you have fun?"

"Yes."

"Then I vote Maya won her own rabbit skin," Vorine said. "I had fun, too. I haven't had a tickle fight since becoming an Amazon, and tickling me during a match was incredibly funny."

"But-"

"I agree," Omie said immediately. "When I realized she was doing it, I almost lost my match with Varda, I was laughing so hard."

"That was pretty funny," Bea admitted. "I like wrestling all of you, but I enjoy my matches with Maya the most. I vote Maya."

They all found reasons to vote for me, and so I kept my own rabbit skin.

"Can we go once more?" Bea asked.

"I think it's late," I said. "And we have to let Neela and Aura guide us home to make sure they know the way. But Bea, I'll wrestle whenever you want, if you promise to giggle."

She laughed. "Deal."

Varda shook her head. "Giggling during wrestling."

I had explained once, and we'd taken turns telling her about the pink hair.
Oh well.

Aura and Neela fixed our hair and lips, and then we were on our way.

We were all still laughing by the time we arrived home. Lidi was hanging out at the stables, and she didn't appear to have a reason to be there. I decided she'd been watching for us. We took care of the horses and then, arm in arm, we strolled into the center of the village. The other warriors were seated in the dining area, presumably holding warrior planning meetings or making assignments to last while Malora would be gone, but I thought perhaps they'd all been watching for us.

"I'll skin the rabbit, Maya," Aura said. "I believe your warrior wants a report."

I handed her the rabbit and thanked her, then altered my direction towards Malora, the rest of the companions veering off to their own duties before dinner. As I drew closer, suddenly whatever conversation was going on finished. What coincidental timing. Malora indicated the bench on the other side of the table from her.

"Do I have time to bathe before dinner?"

"We'll go together, if you like."

"My lips will smudge."

Malora raised her voice. "Our four tardy companions have paid their penalty. They will wear pink the remainder of the day, but there will be no additional punishments if they are not entirely diligent."

I smiled. "Tell me. When you see these bright pink lips, do you think about kissing them?"