@inocciiduous liked for a starter-!
The sound of the arrow tip embedding itself into the bark of the tree reverberated loudly in the otherwise-quiet of the small garden clearing. It melted into a light, vibrating twang that was quickly overshadowed by the thumping in his throat. His heart, which had metaphorically climbed out from its home in his chest to strangle his breath away.
He was frozen in place, tendons stitched over joints to lock his limbs in his motion of aborted panic. Miles wasn’t the only one to have halted so abruptly (and comically); the girl who had nearly wound up sporting a new piercing through her nose seemed equally stunned by the sight of the arrow mere inches from her face.
It was the aching burn that laced through his muscles that finally forced Miles to lower his arms. Just that simple movement was enough to prompt him to move forward, brow furrowing and mouth pressing into a flat line as he strode towards the tree. The arrow was embedded too deep to be pulled out cleanly, the tip ruined for sure, but he masked that discovery with a scowl.
“I could have shot you-! Don’t you think before just wandering around with your head in the clouds?”
Anger laced his tone to mask the near-panic he had felt, and the shame. Miles should have been the one paying better attention, and he had known that practicing his aim so close to the castle courtyard was a bad idea...