Crouching Tiger, Running Fox [Fae!]

[Zane]

"No? Alright then. Well from noon to the fourth hour each day, my office is open to anyone without appointment, feel free to drop by if anything arises." then the Shadow Master quietly left. The sound of the front door to the flat closing offering a loud contrast to the quiet of the living area. There was no noise, save for the soft crackle of the hearth fire, and Ashia turning a page on the thick leather bound tome she was reading.

"There's tea in the kettle" Ashia said, just loud enough to be heard but not enough to seem out of place in the quiet room. Without looking up from her book, she added, "In the larder, there is an jar of honey, a small cup of cinnamon, a bottle of milk- which need to be used up today least it goes bad -, so feel free to make yourself some, or unpack your room and get settled in. Training for tomorrow is to be self pursued, the official teacher for our year is an Umbra Ranger, he was called away for a mission during group sparing today, so the substitute is looking over his notes and classes will resume as normal the day after tomorrow. Finally, Second years with last names 'A' through 'G' have kitchen duty tomorrow evening. And now, you are up to speed." With the turning of another page, the quiet of the room returned.

[GoblinFae]

Feeling anxious and not knowing what to do now that she was left alone with her new roommate who seemed to talk a mile a minute, Dagrun began to busy herself with the task of making herself a cup of tea. It was not that she even wanted one but without a place to retreat to she felt incredibly exposed and lost in her new surroundings.

Upon finding the kettle to have cooled a bit she hurried herself with placing it back on the fire to warm a bit as she stared into the flames pensively. With a sigh, Dagrun sank to the floor, pulling her knees into her chest so she could rest her chin on them, completely oblivious to all else but her thoughts. Not even rare and wispy appearance of Felix, slinking around the shadows nearby caught her attention or distracted her in those quiet moments of turning pages and crackling wood.

[Zane]

Also soft turning of a page. But Ashia had stopped reading, instead she was quietly taking stock of the newcomer. No, newcomers. Ashia corrected herself as she spotted the yet unsolid form of a shadow. She knew that her own spirit shadow was hidden withing the shadows behind her. Briefly the fledgeling wondered how this Dagrun would react to her spirit. He seemed like a timid, almost craven, thing. Yet despite her tough girl, take-no-shit attitude, she didn't want to run off yet another fledgeling. A large part of her hated the deafening silence of the flat towards the end of the day. Zeroth may be intelligent, but he was poor for conversation and, not that she would admit it, the tiger's presence unsettled her too. Like his mere appearance threatened to crush her soul.

"That fire will likely die soon unless you add to it, there are some logs in the larder, open the small door on the kitchen side and you will find them." It was then, of course, that Zeroth decided to show himself. Detaching from the shadow. The tiger plopped onto the couch before flopping on his side and laying his head on her lap.

[GoblinFae]

Dagrun's head shot up at the voice but she did not turn to look at Shula as movement by the fire soon caught her attention. The sight of the great tiger though had her eyes widening in shock and surprise. While her own shadow spirit was small and insubstantial, coincidentally disappearing at the first sign of the larger beast, the tiger was anything but.

She kept her eyes trained warily on him, not once letting him out of her sight even as turning to follow him onto the couch made her entire spine crack. It was only as he finally plopped down on the other fledgling's lap that Dagrun ran her eyes up the other girl to briefly meet eyes. Her gaze was not one of a fearful child but an observant watcher. Dark eyes took in everything without revealing the thoughts deep within.

At last though Dagrun nodded her head once in acknowledgement before dragging herself quietly to her feet and tossing a log on the fire, watching as it flared to life again for a moment. She went through the motions of making the tea. But when it was she looked down that she realized she had made two and with a surprised shrug she brought one over to the other girl as if it were an unspoken peace-offering. Yet even as Dagrun stood there beside the couch her eyes easily slid to the shadow spirit as if evaluating any potential threat.

[Zane]

Ashia allowed a sigh of relief to flood past her lips. At least he hadn't run screaming out of the room like her first flatmate had, and the second, and the entire first year had whenever he appeared in the shared barracks. Ashia closed the book and set it aside, placing it on the flank of the tiger before accepting the tea in both hands. "Thank you, Dagrun."

Nodding her head to the behemoth taking up all of the couch beside her, she added, "This is my Shadow Spirit, Zeroth. I've had him since before I was a fledgeling." An uncommon thing regardless. The majority of second years still hadn't had a shadow spirit manifest. "He's more or less tame." she explained, running a hand through the soft fur around his neck ask a shallow rumbling growl sounded from the spirit. Though it was likely purring. She hoped.

[GoblinFae]

She let loose a quiet hum in response, not knowing what to say or do. Dagrun placed her own cup down on the end table beside Shula before once more falling to her knees and slowly extending her hand out towards the tiger. Her breathing was even, her body seemingly relaxed. The only sign of her possible apprehension was the slight tremor in her extended fingers but she did not back down. Dagrun was determined to make the best of her situation and upon making peace with her human flatmate she still felt the need to do the same with the room's other occupant who would be more than likely squash her into oblivion with a single blink of his eye.

[Zane]

If the large spirit tiger objected to Dagrun's approach, he didn't show it. Rather her watched her hand with a very docile look on his face. After a few slow seconds, the spirit turned his further to the side, so the top of his head were against Ashia's lap. Much to the fledgeling's relief. Now to just get this Dagrun to say something. "The tea is really nice."

Ashia mentally cursed herself, seemed she wasn't so good at small talk herself.

[GoblinFae]

Dagrun accepted the complacency and gently reached out to run her fingers through the fur of at his neck and behind his ears to scratch carefully at them. She nodded her head absently in response to Ashia before offering the tiger a gentle pat on the cheek and rising to her feet once more.

After a moment's hesitation though she looked the other girl in the eye once more and offered her hand out, feeling as awkward as she most likely appeared. Another moment and she was able to work up the courage to quietly but clearly murmur one word. "Dagrun," the fledgling stated by way of greeting.

[Zane]

Well, it was a start. "Ashia." She responded with a small smile taking his hand when it was offered. Then came the mental berating once again. She had already introduced herself, hell, she'd even threatened him should he call her by her first name. Ashia busied herself in her tea, one hand combing through Zeroth's fur. The tiger was absolutely eating up the attention, he was being oddly affectionate this evening. Not that she minded.

[GoblinFae]

The squeeze of warm hands was brief but comforting to Dagrun. She withdrew once more a few steps away from the couch. "I'll let you get back to your reading then," she murmured softly, her head down as she started to make her way towards her new bedroom before remembering the wards and turning on her heel to head towards the flat door, with no real plan.

[Zane]

Ashia nodded solemnly, "Don't stay out too late, tomorrow may be self pursued practice, but we still need to practice." Ashia finished off her tea as Dagrun walked out, picked back up he book, she turned to where she had left off. "Now Ranger Avron, what happened in Hyoite?"

--------

Winter lounged against one of the pillars on the outer side of the practice courts. Once again, he was denied promotion to Penumbra Regiment. Not that he didn't understand why. The massive man stuck out like a black dress at a wedding. He had made it through his Rites based on his brute strength alone.

Tasks done, patrol done, yet not quite in the mood for drink. So in the solace and alone of the empty field, Winter summoned a small hand harp and began strumming absentmindedly, playing songs that he remember in the moment, weaving them into others with apt skill.

Winter himself didn't have a shadow spirit, but that didn't bother him. Most rangers called the man half beast himself, which is why he didn't need a shadow.

[GoblinFae]

Lost in her own world of thought, Dagrun did not even notice that she had managed to flee from her dorm and down the halls all the way to the training grounds until she ran full force into one of the support columns. Or at least that is what she assumed she had run into as she struggled back onto her feet only to realize it was another ranger. With a wide-eyed stare and a hurried bow, she attempted to shuffle away only to trip over her own feet in her haste and end up sprawled out on her back again. Four heart attacks in one day, it was certainly not her day.

[Zane]

In all honesty, Winter hadn't realized Dagrun what there until he heard the shuffling of feet, turning, he saw a fledgeling bowing towards. "Hallo there. Ah, um. At ease." He went back to strumming his harp and pasted a somewhat goofy grin on his face. For children, Winter had nothing but compassion. "I am Winter, and you?"

[GoblinFae]

Dagrun propped herself up on her elbows as she stared quizzically at the behemoth of a ranger before her. Seeing him stare at her with a goofy grin and play his harp had her wondering at just what kind of man he was. Running into him had certainly felt like racing head first into stone yet there he stood as if he was no more than a young boy carefree and dandy.

Licking dry, dust-covered lips and wincing at the taste, she struggled a second time to her feet and dusted herself off slowly. "Fledgling Dagrun Baarda, Ranger Winter," she murmured, afraid if she spoke too loudly he might turn into a great beast and pummel her into the ground like a giant of old.

[Zane]

"Please, just call me Winter. There is no need for formalities here." The giant of a man smiled wider and  turned to sit cross-legged. His torso still overtaking Dagrun in height, "And what brings you out to the practice fields so late, ah? Looking to perhaps get some lone training in?"

[GoblinFae]

'My roommate has a massive tiger and is a little scary,' was Dagrun's first thought with 'and the Shadow Master just barred me from my room and all of my possessions for the rest of my life,' following quickly on its heels. Neither of these she said aloud of course but the thoughts nevertheless made the Fledgling feel infinitely more weary and without hope.

"Do you always use a harp on the training grounds instead of sword, Ranger Winter?" she asked instead, wishing to divert attention away from herself and onto the other man instead.

[Zane]

Winter decided not to ask the fledgling to just call him by his name instead of including his title. Part of him realized that was as informal as a response we was getting from this little one. "No, the harp is more a recreational tool. And I like the quiet echo of this place." He dismissed the harp into his shadow barracks and placed his hands on his knees. "Do you have a weapon yet, Dagrun?" The giant's eyes gleamed with curiosity about the young fledgling.

[GoblinFae]

Dagrun shook her head negatively, though no sign of regret or remorse displayed upon her face. She was still quite young yet and even being newly advanced only hours previous did not change the fact that there was still much she had left to do before she could truly earn her advancement at least in her eyes.

"Unless music qualifies as weaponry that is," she found herself quipping quietly, her eyes trained on her toes as she did.

[Zane]

Winter laughed a very deep, guttural laugh. Only when he managed to regain himself- which did take more than a few minutes -did he respond, "Anything can be weapon when one is smart, Dagrun. Take you for example. Small, petite boy does not look strong. Small, petite boy is overlooked by target. Target overlooks small petite boy."  The ranger's grin looked particularly wolfish, "Small, petite boy gives target knife in the back. Music work the same. Can put target at ease, or teetering on edge. Like stressed glass, target will shatter if struck true." The entire time he spoke, Winter made many gestures, in another life, he would have been a great story teller, despite his trouble with Common.

The ranger then shrugged, calling forth two heavy handaxes and laid them across his lap, "Skjall. Vhati." He said the names of his axes as they were set in his lap. Next, he called forth a massive crossbow. On closer, the bow had two strings and complex mechanisms as well as a bolt trap. "Rokk Hunter." That weapon was laid at his side, still in plain view. "These are my weapon."

[GoblinFae]

The young Fledgling looked to her elder warily. His matter-of-fact way of speaking made her uneasy and wish she had not chosen to linger after colliding with him. It would have been much better to scurry off in the same manner her "friends" usually did when spotted.

"Big," she murmured softly while staring at the two weapons in wide-eyed awe and apprehension.