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[Ridge]

"Are you ready?"

A Knight should always be prepared.

"No."

A Knight should acknowledge fear, then defeat it. That's better.

"Don't even worry about it, man." Kadeeth rested his gloved hand on my shoulder, "Hey, I mean it. There's no one more deserving than you."

"I dunno, I-" The hand on my shoulder disappeared for a moment, before smacking down on my back. I lurched forward and turned to look at my soon to be ex-best friend.

"Don't take it so seriously, I swear, you always get in your own head. You've already been accepted, this is just a formality really." He laughed at the scowl on my face, those obnoxiously white teeth only seen on Nobels flashing in a bright grin. I smirked and raised my hand behind him.

"Gee, thanks for the advice, buddy." His eyes shot wide and he tried to scramble away, but to no avail. I crashed my own large hand down on his back in a friendly gesture, hitting the bone of his shoulder blade.

He winced, rubbing his back as I pulled on the breastplate of my, strictly ceremonial, plate armor. I usually prefer a mostly chainmail attire. As the metal settled around me I felt oddly restricted. Kadeeth's grumbling faded as my breathing picked up.

I've always been dramatic like this. Kadeeth tells me that everyone feels like this at one point or another, that it's just nerves, and I'll get past it. Yet it keeps getting worse. Sometimes, like this morning, I wake up and just lay there. My limbs get heavy and the lumps of the mattress impale them, holding me down.

Today should be one of the most exciting days of my life. So why am I so afraid?

"Ridge? Hey? Man, snap out of it!" Kadeeth's hands are back on my shoulders, gently shaking my heavy body back and forth. I can feel the fear leave my lungs as we lock eyes. He looks concerned, and a little freaked.

"What's wrong?" I ask, playing like nothing just happened. I turn away from him and pretend to look for my helmet. I can't show weakness right now, I need to focus.

"Um, shouldn't I be asking you that? You're not going to have another, uh, episode, right?" It's my turn to wince. I look back at him while slipping on my helmet. He looks uncomfortable.

That's fair, I guess. It hasn't been that long since that night. Before that, situation, we'd never really done the whole 'talk about your feelings' thing. Not seriously anyway. That's just not something a Knight and a Nobel discuss. Or men in general. Before that night, the only one who knew about my issues was my mother.

"I'm fine, Kade." My face melts back into my usual cold expression. Neither of us can afford to dig further into what happened that night. At least, not right now. "Today is big. You can't make me forget that, but nice try."

"Whatever." He smirks, glad for the change of mood, "Just, consider a smile? Mother would eat that up."

My facade breaks again, my face wrinkling up in mock disgust. The Squire, who had been silently helping to adjust my armor, made a hasty exit at the comment. I don't know what I'll do when I take on my own Squire. I don't think anyone besides myself can handle spending prolonged amounts of time with Kadeeth James Riddotha.

Sometimes even I find it unbearable.

"Please, stop saying things like that. I beg of you." I grimace as I readjust my armor, again.

"Whaaat? But it's no secret Mother fancies you, Sir Ridge Riddotha." He laughs.

"That's disgusting, man. And I'm not a part of house Riddotha yet. Wait until after the ceremony to dangle that over my head." I try my best to wipe the smirk off my face and return to my usual stoic expression.

Kadeeth picks up my sword from the rack and holds it out to me, "Ya'know this is supposed to be the Squire's job, wonder what happened to the poor guy to make him run off like that?"

"You're a nuisance. You know that, right?" I deadpan, sheathing the obsidian black sword with meticulous care. He lets out a loud gasp.

"How dare you address your Lord that way."

"Lord? Young master, maybe." I put my arm in the air, elbow bent and forearm horizontal to my armor clad shoulders.

"Ha! Real funny." His forearm raised to join mine. We always do this, it's become almost a superstition as much as a tradition at this point. Our arms clinked against each other, iron against cloth. The Riddotha Guard, Ravenous, adorns their Knights in steel armor. Money buys the finest after all, and the Riddothas are practically drowning in funds.

Most smaller Nobel families prefer to hire a few Knights at most. Those Knights are usually the ones not selected by prestigious families after their dubbing ceremonies. They sign contracts before their Oaths, so that they're only employed by that family for the duration of their contract.

Higher Nobility, such as Duchies like the Riddothas, can afford their own guards. The Riddotha guard in particular rivals the size of the imperial army at it's full capacity. Currently though, many Knights and soldiers are assisting with the battles to the west.

Luckily, I don't have to worry about being sent to the front lines. Kadeeth made it very clear that Ravenous, an elite section of their guard, is a force made with the intention of protecting the Riddotha family and their estate.

"I guess you just need one more thing then." He reached into the pocket of his silk jacket and pulled out a small crest. The Riddotha crest is a deep maroon color, with a single black raven poised to take flight in the center. A silver ribbon design borders the basic shield shape.

"Wow. This is real."

"Best believe it, friend. Is it everything you ever hoped it would be?" He hooked the wire attached to the back of the crest to the lip of my armor, so that the tiny emblem rested on my chest. My breath hitched at the question.

"And more."

He grins, "then, go down humble?" He starts our familiar slogan.

"Or stay standing." He nods, and with that he's gone, his shit eating grin following him out the door.

My armor grows tighter as the hinges creak shut.