" Me,” she said at last. “You should pick me.” “But you’re a girl.” It was impossible to tell what he was thinking. “So?” she demanded. “Even Captain Sklaw says I’ll be a swordsman yet. I’m as good an archer as Alex, and he’s a boy and a squire. I’m a better tracker than Raoul. And have I ever failed you? Back there, or when you had the Fever—” “I’m glad you agree "

― Tamora Pierce , Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness, #1)