Drasna woke up early as she always did, she sat up and threw off her cotton sheets, not bothering to make her bed, it wasn’t as if anyone would see. She was quick with her routine, grabbing a fistful of her messy blond hair and putting it in a pony tail. She threw on one of her green training tunics which still smelled nice from laundry day. She also snatched a pair of loose black pants, some sturdy sandals, and her lucky red scarf. She took a moment to stretch and fully wake up her body, before racing outside to start bringing buckets of water over to the barracks. The Coldstone Monastery offered 5 disciplines, Sun Soul, Mercy, Shadow, Long death, and Dragon’s fist which was her chosen, each had their own building to house the acolytes. Drasna didn’t mind the chore of course, in fact she often hummed and danced a bit while she did it, it was hardly a challenge for her anyway.
After several trips, she managed to fill the main basin in the Dragon house, “That should be enough for everyone to make tea and bathe. I wonder what’s for breakfast today?”
Drasna made her way to the main hall, it was loud, but still quiet enough to think. She looked over at all the students and teachers chatting and enjoying breakfast together. She smiled and got into line, after receiving a generous portion of eggs, rice, and berry medley, she looked around for a seat. Drasna quickly found a spot between a long death and a mercy acolyte, who greeted her and scooted over to make room.
Once breakfast was over, she hung back to help clean up, she didn’t need to, but she knew Master Tao appreciated it, besides, it hardly took any time out of her day. Once the floors were squeaky clean, she took off to find a tree to kick and punch for an hour, after locating one in a clearing, she got to work. The cool breeze and full belly filled her with vigor as she practiced her forms and strikes. Her goal was never to hurt herself or destroy the tree, that just meant she did something wrong. The first few were clumsy, but each round got smoother and more precise, until an hour had gone by.
Drasna wiped some sweat off of her forehead, “I really worked up a sweat today, I think I’ll take a break and go make a vase, I wanna use the purple glaze this time”
As she got ready to leave, a voice caught her attention, upon turning around she found master Tao. He was a large jolly man who clearly loved to eat, but could still keep up with his drills, though his rope belt was perhaps a bit distressed.
“Good morning, Drasna, your form has improved since I last saw you, most impressive”
Drasna put her fist inside her palm and bowed, “Thank you master Tao, I’ve been noticing the results myself.”
Tao chuckled and placed a basket down, “That’s good to hear, I was actually hoping to ask something of you, it would seem Lady Isobella has requested for you to bring her the herbs and berries from now on. Do you think you can find time to deliver them to her in my stead? I’ve already collected them for you if you can spare yourself."
Drasna cocked her head confused, “Miss Isobella? She seemed rather uncomfortable last time, so I tried not to linger, she really asked for me?”
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“Lady Isobella, is somewhat of an odd young lady, I suspect she gets nervous around new faces, perhaps she wished to apologize for being cold last week?”
“Aw, how sweet, I’m sure I can break her out of her shell eventually. The walk down the mountain was rather pleasant too, so I don’t mind, I can probably do it faster than you.”
Tao laughed, “Are you calling me fat Drasna? Let's see how confident you are when I roll down the mountain like a boulder."
Drasna snorted into her own laughter and took the basket from off the ground, slinging it on her back.
“I was gonna do some pottery, but I can do that any time, I can just skip breathing practice today since I’ll be doing plenty of that for the next 2 hours.”
Tao nodded, “Clever girl, a trip down and up the mountain will do wonders for your lungs and heart. I appreciate your willingness.”
“Its no bother, I’ll head out right now.”
At the gate of the monastery, stood two large wooden doors which were always open. A few monks stood guard in case of wolves or injured travelers. They both gave her a wave and a thumbs up as she left.
“Heading down the mountain?”
Drasna nodded, “Yup, I think Miss Isobella likes me.”
“If anyone can break her out of her shell it's Drasna the chatter box.”
Drasna stuck her tongue out at the comment, then blew them a flaming kiss which turned to embers long before reaching them. She took her time descending the mountain, stopping to admire the view, drink some water, and listen to some birds. The whole way down she performed her breathing exercises, the signature technique of the Dragon fist school. Learning to spew flames with her chi was becoming much easier as the air continued to get thicker with her descent. So far she’d managed to last 6 seconds without coughing afterwards, a new personal record. Eventually the top of Gloomdusk Chateau came into view, it almost made her sad as she was enjoying her quiet stroll, but she was also excited to see Isobella again.
“I hope she’ll be interested in becoming friends, I’ll bet she gets lonely, running a chateau lets her meet lots of people, but they always leave.”
She took a bit of time to admire the building, it was a large manor, converted into a hotel for travelers in the area. Built with a pattern of gray and black stone with ivy growing up the side, the structure was at least three or four floors in some places. The windows were tinted purple with an almost magical glow going through them.
“I wonder if Miss Isobella is a sorceress of some kind? Noble bloodlines are often associated with magic, she does seem like the witchy type.”
As she got closer, she took note of several rows of blackberry bushes lined up along the path way to the front door. She was tempted to take some, but didn’t want to be a thief, opting to ask permission instead of forgiveness. She passed a guest along the way, she stepped aside to let him pass, he seemed incredibly relaxed perhaps smitten by something.
“They must have incredible beds and food inside, he looked like he was in a trance.”
Drasna finally approached the large wooden door to the chateau and gave it a knock. She had a grin on her face, a large part of her had suddenly become excited to try and make a new friend out of Isobella.
