Power and Purpose

*Fern* · 05-07-2022, 12:19 PM

Fern feels the sting of embarrassment as she returns to Artorias’s side, not from anything he did but from her own perceived shortcomings. The gray girl is her own worst critic and, as she looks up to Art, she worries that she is a failure as a student. It feels like her teacher reads her troubled mind because he quickly banishes her self-deprecating thoughts with a few, powerful words. She listens to him, finding the wisdom in everything he is teaching her. With a firm nod of understand, the girl remains silent but a determined smile appears. Right then, she vows to herself that she will strive to be humble and always work to continue learning. Her smile grows as the suborn determination takes hold.

Eyes track the tall Aegis as he calmly strides up to the dummy his focus taken completely by the armored foe. A blade appears as if from thin air as Art withdraws a hidden blade in his bracer and smoothly drives the blade home between the small sit of an opening. Eyebrows lift and Fern’s mouth falls open slightly as she watches the way Artorias moves. There is a confidence in every small shifting of muscle that is born, not from a cockiness, but from the weary time put into learning and relearning and honing every single movement. When he turns to face her, the girl tries to quickly snap her mouth shut which makes her teeth clack together from the force.

Art speaks and Fern looks up at him, the girl beginning to see him in a new light. There is a wise old soul housed in the body of a young wolf. He speaks of her namesake and another smile tugs at her lips as her tail wags. Art returns to sit beside and she finally, folds her haunches to sit with him. Ocean-hued eyes look up to him, a bright spark of grit in her eyes as he talks of getting into a fight before he was ready. Fern feels her heart drop and a frown tug at her lips. But then he looking down to her and she sees the wisdom that lays behind the words. She offers him a soft smile that grows as he speaks of continuing to train and she nods slowly.

Being kind and giving herself patience and time seems like a difficult undertaking for the gray girl but she decides to give it a try. When Artorias lifts one of dark paws to gesture at the dummy, Fern looks over to it before looking back her teacher. He has given her a lot of food of thought and so, she sits a moment longer. Finally, she stands and gives him a nod before stalking back over her armored foe. As she approaches, the gray girl takes time to inspect the gap on the target’s side. The angle might be tricky but, if she can get it just right, the sword could cut into where the wolf’s lungs and heart lay.

Stopping in front of the training dummy, Fern looks back to her mentor, working to calm her racing thoughts. As she turns her head back toward her foe, Fern draws her sword, sliding the deadly steel from its home. Paws push her forward as she turns her body to run past the side of target, sword striking out in an attempt to find the sweet spot in the gap. She is still distracted by racing thoughts and there is a distinct lack of confidence in her thrust which leads to her missing the gap and striking the armor on the belly. Her sword skitters off and is deflected under her target. For a moment she huffs in frustration, beginning to chide herself once more. Turning to return to the front of the dummy, her ocean-hued gaze catches Art’s fiery embers.

Patience.

The word flutters through her mind, a soothing balm in a turbulent ocean of emotions. A calmness settles over Fern, her racing thoughts suddenly dispersing as she dips her head to Artorias. Sword clutched between her teeth, the gray girl, once more, turns to square up her opponent. A stillness comes over the gray girl as she stands there, looking at the dummy. This isn’t a battle of life and death, heck it isn’t even an important test. She is her to learn and grow. The sudden revelation that Art has been trying to explaining finally hits home and Fern feels a shift in herself.

Shifting her weight into her back legs, Fern takes a deep breath in through her nostrils and holds it for a moment. Slowly, deliberately she begins to push the air through her mouth and around her sword as her body begins to move. The world narrows and it is only her and the armored target. The energy she has stored in her back legs is released and the girl smoothly lopes forward. There is no hesitation, no doubt in Fern as her pale paws pull her toward the target’s side. She takes it slower, understanding that this is an exercise that is meant to build her up and not to see how fast she can do.

The gap comes into view and Fern slides the sword toward it, knowing that it will hit this time. It slides through the gap cleanly, the soft give of the stuffed target underneath letting her know she has struck true. She doesn’t celebrate, instead withdrawing the sword and turning to face Artorias. Eyes are bright with happiness as she slides the sword back into her scabbard, a small bounce in her step as she returns to sit next to Art. Once settled she says, “You are right Art. When I took time to assess the target, I felt more confident. The confidence helped to still my mind and I was able to see the route I wanted to take. I… I hit it.” Tail thumps against the ground as the smile grows and she can no longer contain her happiness.

"Fern Lark" | "Puff"

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