[Training] Bolder and Brighter

Each day you wake up with an aching
For something to set you apart

Hotaru had asked Talyson to meet her today for training, but she hadn't slept well the night before and as such is rather early to their meeting spot. While the barracks are more than adequately equipped for all manner of training, Hotaru has always preferred finding areas that would more reasonably turn into battlefields, and Tal was always just along for the ride.

With time to kill, Hotaru practices with her ice spheres. The trees sing beautifully when struck by their frigid exteriors, and the chorus of sound will only make it easier for the courier to find her. In fact she is getting quite good at recalling the tones each tree produces, and has begun to 'play' them for lack of a better word. That is, until she hits one a few too many times, and the hollow bark shatters inward as her sphere connects. "Oops," she murmurs to herself, and proceeds to launch another just to determine if the sound will be different now.

Strip the scales from your heart
(It never comes, it never comes)

Just because things had been peaceful for awhile didn't mean that they would stay that way, and Tal was determined to keep his edge so he'd be ready. There were always dangerous beasts in the wilderness, thieves in the cities, and skypirates in the air to fight off - not to mention surviving Boreal's rough housing and Soh's map-making adventures!

And besides, it was Ru. All she ever had to do was ask - or even sometimes when she didn't - and he'd show up.

He set the Peregrine down at the edge of the Hollow Forest and sent Boreal to spy out the Valkyrie's trail, but the crashing, percussive music in the distance quickly drew him in the right direction. He caught sight of his friend through the trees just as one was damaged by some familiar-looking ice spheres, and a grin tugged at his lips as he scooped up a silent snowball and then flung it at the blonde woman's shapely shoulder blades by way of greeting.

Each day you wake up with an aching
For something to set you apart

The downside to percussive, loud trees and shattering ice is that it makes your ears go a little numb to any extra sound. Were she half-shifted perhaps she might have sensed him coming, but as it is Hotaru is caught quite by surprise when a snowball smashes into her shoulder and sends chilly slush spraying against her cheek.

Startled she turns and automatically lifts a sphere, already loaded and strung, towards her assailant. Only to narrow her eyes playfully when she realizes it's Tal - and let it fly anyway, hoping to catch him square in the chest. "Sneaky, Tal!" Even if he runs or ducks behind trees she can keep him well at bay with her spheres; she supposes their training has been decided for them.

Strip the scales from your heart
(It never comes, it never comes)

If he was being completely honest with himself, Tal hadn't quite thought through the consequences of his actions when he threw that snowball. Sure, he'd hoped that he'd hit Ru, and that she'd give him that wicked, feral grin as she plotted her retaliation, but he hadn't expected it to come so fast. He barely had time to quip: "Just like y'taught me-- hey!" before an ice sphere was headed towards him, and he wasn't near to any convenient cover.

So he didn't stop to think or regret that fact. He just dropped flat, feeling the chill breeze ruffle his shaggy hair as the magical ammunition flew past the back of his head. He caught himself on his arms and toes before he completely face-planted into the snow, and as he pushed himself back up he scooped another ball into his hands, packing it as he made a dash for one of the thicker steel trees nearby. He let loose his own projectile as he ran, aiming at Hotaru's upper body and grinning the whole while. "Didn't mean t'give ya the cold shoulder there," he taunted gleefully, riding high on his first successful attack.

bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones, bones.

---

You've encountered the OG random event! This allows you to skip one levelling requirement with the character in this thread. (Unfortunately does not count for characters over level 10, how sad.)

Each day you wake up with an aching
For something to set you apart

It is just as she'd taught him, and his acrobatic dodge is equally reminiscent of their past trainings, which makes it more tolerable that she misses. He's a slippery little bugger, but her own hands are just as swift, and though he scrambles swiftly she already has another sphere loaded and pulled back by the time he's on his feet - which makes dodging hard, so she uses her magic to twist and pull the air around it to have it flying harmlessly past her shoulder. It does mean he escapes behind the tree with his equally-awful pun, but Hotaru can be patient and drive him out.

"That was low-hanging fruit," she groans, and lets the sphere fly to shatter against the tree at his back, hoping to startle him with the loud ringing sound of the tree - and to use the noise to hide the crackle of lightning as she gathers it overhead, striking down near his feet at a painful but non-lethal level. All the while she jogs closer, hoping to ensnare him one way or the other if he bolts.

Strip the scales from your heart
(It never comes, it never comes)

Her magic caught his snowball and tossed it aside, but Tal was already scooping up more snow from the safety of his narrow shelter. His grin was downright wicked as he started to peek back around the trunk to see what direction Hotaru would be coming from. "Yeah, well, I'll take what I can--Ow!" No sooner did he get a glimpse than the tree behind him clashed and rang like a gong and the courier jumped like a scalded cat, landing just as the lightning struck.

"Hey!" He danced back from the sharp stinging sensation in the air that raised all the hair on his body and left the scent of burning ozone lingering over the snow. He flung his snowball half-blind as he made a break to the right and tried to race across the distance to an even bigger tree, shaking his head to try and clear the ringing in his ears and the blinding afterimage of the lightning strike from his eyes.

Her voice is a fearless proclamation of protection
She lives what's within her out loud

Dark hair is easily evident as it peeks from behind the tree, and Ru grins like a madwoman as she gets to witness the electric-shock jumpscare her magic readily provides. Even half-blind his aim is decent, knocking against her calf as it falls short with little power behind it, but Hotaru doesn't slow in her pursuit.

Shifting mid-stride, tawny paws touch snow and shake out the lingering discomfort of new joints and limbs before rejoining the hunt, dark-tipped tail flicking gleefully. As soon as he tries to hide behind a new tree she skirts around it and pounces, hoping to take him down and pin him beneath her - or perhaps springboard off him, depending on her success.

Tal was fast. He'd always been a better runner than a fighter and he wasn't shy about admitting it. If he'd been racing Ru fair and square he'd have bet on himself every time. But he only had two legs to cover the same distance that the Valkyrie could use four on, and his booted human feet weren't nearly as efficient as a cougar's broad paws atop the snow.

Still, he'd almost made it to his next patch of shelter. If he hadn't slowed to scoop up another couple of handfuls of snow he might have actually reached it, but he made the rookie mistake of prioritizing ammunition over escape and he glanced over his shoulder just in time to see the big cat leaping for him.

He twisted as he straightened up and Ru hit him in the chest, knocking the courier back into the soft snow. He didn't even have a chance to cry out or swear with how the air was knocked out of his lungs, but it didn't stop him from a final attack - attempting to smoosh both handfuls of snow into the feline's fuzzy face in final vengeance as he tried to wheeze a little oxygen back into his aching ribs.

Each day you wake up with an aching
For something to set you apart

If Tal were capable of feeling her emotions through the Attuned bond, he would know she is impressed and proud of his speed. She certainly wouldn't be able to catch him if she were on two legs - but Ru equally doesn't fight fair, and doesn't see why she should given his ambush of her, so she simply does not.

He does, unfortunately, get the last laugh by shoving snow in her face. The rrrroowwww!! of angered feline is muffled from both snow and fingers, and her huge but claw-free paws smack near Tal's face in hopes of imparting her own revenge before she flops to the side and shifts back to human form so they are both laying in the snow side-by-side. Grinning, hair a little damp from residual melting snow from her previous form, Ru kicks her foot at Tal's ankle. "Nice shot, earlier. I wish you could be one of my students." Though maybe he'd be insufferable like most siblings are in public.

Strip the scales from your heart
(It never comes, it never comes)

The angry mrow was almost worth getting the air knocked out of him, and at least Tal knew he'd been avenged. A shower of snow dusted over his forehead and hair from a big, fuzzy paw, but he was too busy trying to remember how that whole 'breathing' thing worked to brush it away. Not until Ru rolled aside, removing her weight from his Vest and chest, was he able to properly inhale again on a rattling wheeze. A few coughs finally jump started the instinctive process again and he flailed an arm over to ruffle her hair at the ankle kick, feeling warm and fuzzy from the implied compliment even as he managed a shadow of a smug grin.

"Nah, you're just sayin' that 'cause I'm better'n Sah." His grin widened as he got more air, and he looped his arm down around her shoulders to tug her against his side with affection as they lay in the snow and looked up at the black trees that stretched high above them, singing their song of wintry steel. If he'd had the Attuned bond he could never have tried to hide how pleased as punch he was at her words. "Never was any good at official schoolin' anyways. You'd have t'kick me out for poor attendance afore the year was out!"

Each day you wake up with an aching
For something to set you apart

It's no surprise he mentions Sah given their nearly legendary rivalry - not that Hotaru buys for a minute the idea that they aren't secretly begrudging friends - though it does make her laugh. "Given he is a student, I'm not allowed to say. Confidentiality and all that." She taps the side of her nose as she turns her head slightly to see him, grinning in a foxlike fashion.

He pulls her close, and she shuffles slightly to lay her head on his shoulder, the encroaching wetness of snow beneath their backs a distant thing given their shared defenses against the cold. "I'm sure I could make an exception for you," she chortles, sinking into his hold. People could clamor and claim favoritism all they wanted, but there was no clause in the Academy rules stating she couldn't have favorites.

"Anyway, tell me about your last trip. Before you ambushed me of course." She's eager to have him regale her with tales, a great storyteller even if he doesn't see himself as one.

- Fin <3

Strip the scales from your heart
(It never comes, it never comes)