Resting at the lake's edge atop a rock, Nemesis let a single gold-tipped paw dab at the water. He was getting a bit restless. While it was nice to be reunited with some of his Xanilov siblings, the boy was tired of the monotony of Ebony. Captivity, even the kind that wasn't all that unpleasant, chafed at him. He was too attached to freedom, too attached to choice. Limbo too was tiring. His mother had promised to free him and his siblings, but since making that promise not a single word of such action had reached his ears. He was beginning to lose faith in her. Not only that, but as time went on, the boy found himself becoming comfortable with his place in Yfir and in Ebony. He liked Katja well enough and he could find no fault with Kassander or even Valeriya. His position on the whole matter was slowly becoming more and more muddied. He didn't know what to think. Stretching so that both front paws skimmed the surface of the lake, Nemesis stared down at them and absently patted at the water. This was how he spent his days. Honestly, it was about time he found something of substance to do. Maybe Ebony needed a hunter or something? He wouldn't mind going out with Kass or Solo or maybe Andromeda and doing a little hunting for the pack. Or maybe, if one of the knights wouldn't mind teaching him, he could find someone to give him fighting lessons. He craved action. "Speaking" Thinking

Gaia was not often without the presence of her large red bodyguard, and soon-to-be husband. After he'd given her the cardinal though it seemed easier and more comfortable to be without him there. Somethings could not be done at her side, and as he was out to catch their next meal she would find herself strolling around the lake. Life always seemed to be throwing curveballs at the girl and her siblings, it was almost nice to be in Ebony. Life seemed quieter here with out the almost overbearing eye of the older olympians to watch her. In some ways she had much more freedom now than when she was within Olympus borders.

Still, she felt almost useless. There wasn't much expected over her and chores were not often divvied out to the blind she wolf. Solo seemed to easily take on her share of the work. She wanted to train though, she didn't want to be the helpless wraith that haunted the woods. How was she going to learn to defend herself without a wolf like Natalya to help? A sigh would filter through her lips before finding the scent of her brother near by. She hadn't spent much time with any of her siblings recently, even if they were close by. Finding herself eager to speak with him her trot would increase, the fluffy red bird on her shoulder would be disturbed slightly. His wings would flap and he would move to the back of her neck. Curiously she would seek out her larger brother, curious what he was doing with his time. "Nem?" She would call out as she drew more near, not completely sure where he was laying.

Gaia's voice drew the boy from his revery. He sat up and turned to look over his shoulder, neck craning so he could speak directly to her. "Gaia?" he asked incredulously, eying the empty space around her. Where was Solo? It was so rare to see one without the other. Standing, he turned around completely so he was facing his sister. From there he flopped down so that he lay with his forepaws hanging over the rock as he had done when he was patting at the water. "What are you doing out here?" And where was her massive, freakishly red bodyguard? "And where's Solo? I can't remember the last time I got to hang out with just you." "Speaking" Thinking

She would hear his move, shuffling slightly before her name would draw her further into his presence. She would pick her way to his side as her turned to face her, obviously elevated from the ground. Sightless eyes would fall on him as she reclined back onto her haunches. The questions would bring a shy smile to her features, finding amusement in the rather sad truth. "He's hunting now." she would voice softly, "He found this bird for me," she would pause, wondering if he could see him. "It's easier to get out in the snow." Her aunt's avian companion was incredibly useful to the olympian woman, Gaia was finding the same in this little bird. ""

A bird? The boy craned his neck to get a look at it. Sure enough, he could just see the top of its head peeking out from behind Gaia's ear. "A cardinal?" The red crown atop its head was unmistakable. "That's awesome!" And appropriate, considering the matching red of the gift giver. Pausing, he took in a deep breath. Clearing his throat, he said, "I've been thinking and...well, maybe it's not my place to...but um...would you maybe..." He stuttered, trying to make his point without stepping on her toes. "Like to um...practice self defense with me?" Rushing now, he went on, "We could even work your bird into it, if you like. I just think...you know...maybe we'd both benefit from it." They could both use the training in his opinion, but more than that, Nemesis hated the idea of Gaia having to depend completely on Solo. What if one day he wasn't there to be all big and red and intimidating? "Speaking" Thinking

She would find herself easily smiling at Nem's reaction to her gift, and would commit the name of his species to heart. She could not see him, and thus had no way of identification, and Solo had not offered a name either. She had yet to give it a proper calling so would only smile in response to his first words. Gaia hadn't expected him to continue, but her ears would perk forward as he stumbled through his next words. Her head would tilt curiously as she waited patiently for him to form the words that wished so badly to come out. She couldn't contain her smile as he finally blurted out the question, foggy silver eyes would seem to light up even as he said it. She had gotten by so far living with her large bodyguard, but what if there were to come a time when her mate could not be there. Would she be defenseless to stop whatever harm was befalling her? Or would she be prepared for such an event and be able to fight back? "Nemesis, I'd love to.. practice with you." She'd say warmly, trying to keep the absolute pleasure from the statement from interrupting her words. Silver tail would swish happily at her ankles, "How do we start?" Gaia had been waiting so long for someone to offer to train her she could hardly contain herself within her wispy frame. ""

"Defenses," he said with more certainty than he felt. You always started with those in a fight, so why not? In any case, it sounded good. Okay now...defenses, defenses...where to start? "Um...let's see. Oh, I know! Show me your defenses." Yeah, that sounded like a good idea, didn't it? He wasn't very experienced in fighting, but he had defenses down pat. Curiosity pricked his ears forward as he waited for her response. Everyone went about fighting differently and he was curious as to what his sister's take on it was. Would she set defenses totally different from how he'd do it? He was dying to know, dying to glean as much information from her as possible. "Speaking" Thinking

He would answer her confidently with one word, defenses. Already she would feel overwhelmed, ears would fall to her head and her knees would pend slightly. He'd ask for her to show him what she thought were good defenses. Unknowing she'd already gotten two. Her tail would tuck under her body slightly as she felt her hackles raise as well. What else could she do though? "Kind of like this?" She would ask with her limited defenses in place, surely this was not all she would need in a fight for her life. Anyone could easily rip her apart at this point. "I don't feel very... defensive?" The girl would add on, feeling more vulnerable now than she had in a good long time. What did Nemesis think of her obviously lacking amount of knowledge? ""