Prince of vengeance

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Ah, there she is. Tulius thought, all of a sudden it made sense that he had not seen her yet, she wasn't there until now. He found it rather arrogant of the woman to simply stand at the side if the king despite the fact that they weren't married and she wasn't queen, he found it even more despicable due to the fact the king allowed it. though, admittedly if anyone was going to wear a crown like a queen, it was her. When she walked in the room went silent, the noble women red with envy, the noble men, well, most were jealous of the king, others were trying to hide their jealousy from their wives. Tulius on the other hand, couldn't care less, he knew what was expected of him; A lower noble woman to wed later in his life so his line could live on, he wasn't going to mislead himself into believing someone of such high standard even saw his face in this crowd of higher born. Besides, his love was with his men and his horses. A little fact that spurred nasty rumours amongst the nobles that Tulius would... lay with his mount during some nights. Lies, obviously, created by those either too envious of his prowess in battle or by those higher born whom enjoy keeping the lower nobles just that: low.

He yawned without much tact while the replacement queen took her not so rightful place at the king's side. He really didn't want to be here, he was called away from the front for this rather pointless gathering of court in place of his father who had other business to attend to. Tulius wasn't all that convinced that his father just didn't want to go and is sitting somewhere by a fireplace reading a book and downing wine by the barrels. His presence instead of his father's had already been noticed by other nobles, it was hard not to; he was young, wore armour since he didn't really pack frilly clothing for his time in a war camp and he had not received a proper shave in days; a real faux pas in the noble world.

He took one more glance at the proxy queen and wondered if she actually did anything in court or simply stood there looking pretty like a glorified statue.​
 
The dame stood there with her hands across her lap, head high and posture perfect, she was so very aware of the throne just there, taunting her, urging her onward, but not even Azeline was insolent enough to take the throne while the queen was absent, instead of focusing on the call of power she bid her time elsewhere as she always did. Azel's eyes slowly and carefully scanned the room as the meeting resumed, falling upon familiar and foreign faces. Though most were just a waste of space there were the odd few she would linger on, she made it her business to know powerful friends, enemies and everything in between. Knowledge was power at court, it was only here that a rumor could kill just as well as any poison she could brew, here where knives failed and cunning succeeded, it was only here that Azeline could ever truly feel great and in control.

The keen eyes finally found their way to the sixteen high houses of Derega. She knew each as well as the next and slowly her sight moved from one representative to the next, her father --who sat in for his house-- noticed her gaze but turned his eyes away coldly. Even after all this time is still hurt, even if it was just a needle prick on her heart. He'd never approved of her choice as a mistress, she was little more than a high placed whore to him, supposed to sleep with whatever high lord he wanted to sway in whatever matter he needed, after all that had been what previous mistress' were for, for previous kings. However her king wasn't one who gave away his prizes needlessly, things were that desperate... yet. The Deveraux seat was held by one of Demetrius' cousins, only the gods knew which one of which side, the Voltaire house seat was taken by the red haired man, little more than a boy really, who stood in place for his ill father.

Those bright eyes were green as summer, and they, along with his fidgeting frame gave away how uncomfortable he was. Few others caught her eye save for one, if for no other reason than the utter grubbiness of his person, her wore armor rather than jewels, cotton rather than silk or satin, really his attire was only half a step above her servant to the side. Her eyes didn't linger long, there were other people to see and learn from. Watching the nobles was really the only thing she got out of these sessions, every meeting was the same. Nobles, knights and few others from every house would get their opinions in, one man would say something another disagreed about and they would debate for another half hour, they just loved to hear themselves speak. The meeting went on... and on... and on, yet Azel remained straight-backed and lady-like, keen eared as well as keen eyed, listening for the drops of information that mattered, all the while, the picture of grace. Hiding all her schemes and intentions behind a perfect porcelain mask.

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As the time went on and the same boring speeches were made about "how the rebelion was to be crushed" or "how Laurentius shall adorn a spike on the city gates", Tulius found himself dozing off from time to time, a fact that didn't go unnoticed and nearing the end one of the higher nobles was quick to place the young lieutenant on the spot in the obvious hopes that he would make a fool of himself.

"Tell us, Sir Equite, what's taking so long in crushing the rebelion? I'm starting to wonder what we're paying you for."
Tulius straightened himself and through his yawn he said "You don't pay me... and wars are not won overnight, strategy and men require time."
"Strategy, eh? Big word coming from a lieutenant." Some nobles around the speaker chuckled at the insult, Tulius merely bit his tongue and kept his silence. "Do tell the court how you would deal with young Laurentius. Enlighten us with the wisdom of house Equites." More and more nobles tuned in to listen to what Tulius had to say. In truth, most wanted to laugh at him, believing him to be a foolish little boy and an inferior officer. Tulius, on the other hand, wasn't deterred.
"Truthfully, we going about this the wrong way. We've been treating this like a regular war, waiting for the enemy army to appear only to crush it in the field and scatter it to the wind. The problem is Laurentius doesn't have an army, he has disgruntled farmers and angy civilians. Our farmers and civilians. The people flock toward him because he not only promises a better life, he delivers it. Both sides promise food to the people, but while Laurentius feeds his "troops" with one hand, he burns our crops with the other. Not only that, but while our farmers work so they can feed our troops, his farmers work to feed themselves for they are his troops."
"Accurate statement, but you still haven't told us an answer for this little problem."
"I see only one solution: Lower the taxes..." The court flew into an uproar, insults and mockery flew at Tulius' head from all sides, but still he continued speaking. "pour money-" he paused until it quieted down somewhat "Pour money into the aggriculture; give the farmers new tools and horses so they can work more easily."
"A minute ago you yourself said it were the farmers and civilians that betrayed us and now you want to reward them with lower taxes and new materials? What madness?"
"Not reward, bribe. Steal Laurentius' army from underneath him. We don't need taxes at this time anyway, most of it goes to the army, but as I said we don't need a standing army for we don't have an army to stand against. Disband it, let them go home to their families. If we keep this up, we will run out of the one thing laurentius has more than us: time. He doesn't need to pay for his force, we do. He's winning, slowly but surely, and he knows it. Soon we will be too weak to fight back and then he will break us. Or must I remind to you all that the poor cannot afford an army."
"I should have known better than to ask some lowborn noble for his thoughts. It is clear to anyone that Laurentius must be crushed swiftly and harshly in the field, only a fool does not see that."
This was too much for Tulius and he snapped. "I'll be dead and buried before I take military advice from a fat, pompous noble who's never even seen a war camp, let alone a battlefield."

The court exploded and several of the nobles went after Tulius' head, he was ready to defend himself when he noticed other nobles, mostly lowborn fieldofficers, coming to his aid. It was unclear to him whether they supported his arguments or just wanted an excuse to finally beat on those that have looked down on them for so long. Before long the prestigous court devolved into a glorified bar fight with only the women avoiding a clash of fists. The royal guard quickly tried to intervene, but even they had trouble keeping the rabble in check.
Between al the commotion Tulius gazed up at the king and noticed him sitting in his throne observing the fight that unraveled before him, eerily content and it was then that Tulius realised what for a man he was a fighting for: A king whose heart thirsts for battle and conflict.​
 

Voices and faces were starting to blur together when one loud man spoke up and called out the armored man she'd noticed earlier. She blinked, an Equite? Well, that explained his garb, what he was being called on for was simply to embarrass him in front of the king and make the rest of them smile, she highly doubted they gave half a rat shit about him and his opinion. The noble who'd spoken was heavy set, a lesser noble who had taken effort in all things to try and climb in wealth and stature, that included trying to war, he of course had similar thoughts to every other man. Charge the Prince, end it quickly before the economy could suffer enough to affect them. The fact that others agreed with the concept only fed his ego fatter than his gut, he was letting it get to his head, and arrogance without a cause was one thing that disgusted Azeline. She was half tempted to ignore what was about to come next, but she forced herself to heed every word, seeking vital information where it was not so obvious.


She waited for the boy to truly begin speaking, wanting to see just how he would handle this. By the time he was finished his first statement she was almost beside herself in pleasant shock, though the name Laurentius made her scowl inwardly, while the dark haired king clutched his fist silently and waited for the boy to finish. To Azel it seemed his time in the field had given him a unique perspective of what they should do. He continued to talk, and as he did she could see the various men begin to bristle in anger and annoyance, it came as a mild surprise to her that few seemed to agree with him. All over the charts there were markings for their own armies across Derega, as well as where reported attacks took place, yet no where was there a marker for the enemy, only a name and a haunting face. The dame wanted to help the young men, but her thoughts didn't do much good when no body listened to women in these matters, they were left to the side until their men decided a sword at his side is not such fine company as a warm body.

"I should have known better than to ask some lowborn noble for his thoughts. It is clear to anyone that Laurentius must be crushed swiftly and harshly in the field, only a fool does not see that."
She sighed, and here it came, "I'll be dead and buried before I take military advice from a fat, pompous noble who's never even seen a war camp, let alone a battlefield."
She glanced over to see her son smiling like a dunce at the comment from the boy while the throne room was thrown into chaos. With an inward sigh she look down and pretended to brush dirt off her fine gown, a moment later Alistair walked up and leaned in, "I like what he's saying, make sure they don't kill him"
She whispered, her eyes trained on the center of the quarrel, the giant nodded and stepped back. She continued to watch, keeping tabs, such as the first to thrown a punch.

Most of the women at court shielded their eyes and backed up into the walls, trying to avoid being hit or dirtied. To her side she didn't need to glance over at the King to know what he thought of it all, she could easily envision the look of smug enjoyment on his features. After waiting a few more long moments she turned and to courtesy. H glanced over at her, as she bowed she spoke, "Your Grace, could I be so bold as to request to make an attempt to stop this?"
The King waited, looking back at the brawl and watching further before finally nodding. She knew he didn't expect her to be able to do much, but she hoped she would prove him wrong there. She bowed again to show her gratitude and snapped her fingers. Without a blink in between Alistair went into the fray, shoving full grown men aside and making a path as a farmer would push through stalks of corn. When he reached the men he gestured to follow before turning and walking away.

He had to re-clear his path, when he was by her side again she cleared her throat and began to speak, her clear voice somehow above the now quieting din, her eyes were on the women in the back, "Noble Ladies of the court, you may dismiss yourselves as you see fit. It would seem the time for discussion is over, unless of course the esteemed lot of men before you calm their wrath until the meeting can be adjourned." She looked the the nobles men, who stared at her wide or narrow eyes, "Gentlemen, If you feel the need to fight there is a yard in which you may do so, however please keep in mind that you're simply doing the work for the usurper and his farming wretches. There is no glory in fighting one another, only shame."
She paused and let that sink in, before bowing her head to say that she was done speaking, the men looked around at one another, ashamed and quiet, until one brave soul made his opinion known. Discussion continued, but there was no further blows thrown. She smiled to herself.​

 
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Tulius was proud to admit he showed the fat noble that lower houses should not be underestimated, he even had two of the fat man's teeth in his hand to prove it. However, he was less proud to admit he behaved in such a manner not only in the king's hall, but in his very presence. When he finally got pulled out of the conflict and was brought before king and proxy queen he still kept himself tall and proud. Even at his lowest points in his manners he still believed himself to be a proud horseman of his house. He bowed, low, toward his king and the lady by his side. "Mylady, your grace. Forgive my outburst, such actions are... regretable, but you'll have to forgive me if it was wrong of me to protect my name and that of my house from being dragged through the mud."
The king merely rolled his eyes and dismissed Tulius with several waves of his hand, yet Tulius remained before them waiting for an answer from Lady Falaise, she and the rest of the court could see it as a sign of respect or disrespect for all he cared, in truth it was to get her wipped dog of his tail.​
 
As the fighting came to a close the noble man followed her pink haired pup to the front, he bowed when the commotion had settled down,
"Mylady, your grace. Forgive my outburst, such actions are... regrettable, but you'll have to forgive me if it was wrong of me to protect my name and that of my house from being dragged through the mud."
His royal majesty beside her waved him off, he'd heard enough of soft words and polite apologies through out his time on the throne. When the boy stayed however and looked up at her in her perch she blinked, "Your apology is appreciated, good Ser, and Your reasons are understandable, you house and name remain untarnished"
With that the meeting continued and eventually came to a steady end. The people of the court were dismissed once the King made his leave, some lingered about to talk while most went on about their business. Azeline stayed to speak to her children and a few others before turning and beginning to make her exit.


--


Kat lay abed peacefully, over the past few days she'd slept off the injury from one visiting little witch. Thanks to the warning from the prince as well as her sisters fervent care, Kat was miserable and wrapped neck to toes in blankets, making her typical thrashing as she slept difficult. As of late her nightmares had been worse, and now was no better. She woke with a start from her dream world when she rolled off of her hay mattress and onto the floor with a painful thump. She groaned as she crawled out of her warm cocoon and flopped down on the ground tiredly when she was free Three long, unbearably boring, pointless days had passed and all she'd done was sleep, eat, and watch the light come and go. Suddenly her sisters, usually honey sweet voice sounded,
"KAT. You are NOT trying to get out of bed again are you?!" Came her sister's angry voice from the room next door, obviously she's heard her struggle, "Oh gods"
The purple haired girl murmured, making one feeble attempt to get up before falling back down with a sigh, "I think I'm all better now. I need to work anyway"
She called over, it wasn't a complete lie, she was stiff, but the worst of the pain had faded. Her sibling wouldn't have it, she stomped over to her room and threw open the door, bright eyes livid and arms crossed over her board-like chest. Katalena gave her a weak smile before pulling herself to her feet, Wisty's frown only deepened, "Back. In. Bed. Now."
Kat shook her head and walked to get dressed, her movements were as fluid or graceful as usual, but she wasn't shuttering and hissing in pain, it was a sign of improvement.
"I wasn't kidding, kid, I'm going to work" She closed the door to change, and after putting on the barest of armor and knives she slid a dress on. and tied an apron around her waist. She opened the door and ruffled her sister's hair, "...If you feel sick--" "come right home, I got it. So you later Wisty"
She shot her a smile and with that she was off toward the tavern with her shoulders up and her head high, trying to shrug off any difficulty she was having whatsoever.
​
 
When the opening to leave came, Tulius took it with both hands. These court meetings were a huge waste of not only his, but everyone's time. A pointless event held by boring people to discuss known opinions. When tulius left the building he saw his escort waiting, ten of his best riders, the only ones of his camp that can keep up with him. Without any words he mounted his horse and rode off, the personal guard following close. At least this time Tulius had two teeth as souvenir of his visit, that was always fun.

-----

Rikard had not killed a single person in the past few days that he was chained to the hideout and hardrock. Time and time again he saw troops patrol through the town, and every time he had to let them go. It was getting so bad the he had trouble concealing his murderous intent, even now, as he sat with several of the tavern wenches in the hopes of getting a distraction, he found himself carving his dagger deep into the table and more often than not attempt to start a barfight so that an "accident" could happen, yet he had no such luck. He would have to wait, for now...​
 
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Kat slide through an alleyway to get to the tavern in hopes of avoiding patrols and unnecessary attention, guards always made her uneasy. Luckily the vast majority of the small troop had a tendency to focus on the small market in the square and avoided the back roads. When she finally reached the bar she opened the door and stepped inside, the little bell chimed and heads glanced over to see the newcomer. Voices called over in greeting, she glanced over at one booth to see some half of the bar wenches waving from their place. She gave them a tired smile and her eyes fell upon Rikard in his small sea of women. She gave him a curt nod and turned away toward the kitchen to help with tankards and meals. From what she could see he looked more than a little irritated, honestly she wanted to take him aside and ask just what she'd missed during her leave of absence, but the knife sticking out of the table warned her away. Distance was probably best at this time.



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Rikard noticed Kat's head sticking out from the back, he was a bit surprised since the most recent reports showed her still bedridden. No matter, this was just what he needed, Laurentius did order him to play nice with her, but that also meant she had to play nice with him. He slammed his dagger in the table and pushed of the wench on his lap, much to her dismay. Forcing a path through the tavern patrons he made his way to the kitchen. Nancy tried to stop him from going in, but he paid her off.
Once in the kitchen he motioned the rest of the kitchen staff out with a shake of his head and only when the last left did he speak.
"Good to see you up. Are you ready to go hunting?"​
 
Kat barely heard Nancy's voice outside haggling with a customer, the soft jingle of coins sounded and then the door creaked open. Everyone seemed to stop and after a pair of heartbeats they hurried out. She didn't need to glance over to know he was there, she just continued prepping the tray and pretending to ignore him, "Good to see you up. Are you ready to go hunting?"
She paused a moment then smiled and continued to work, setting the now ready tray in the little window to be given to the customer who's ordered it,
"Rikard, I only just got out of bed." She turned to face him with a smirk and a dagger twirling in her fingers, "Of course I'm ready to hunt. When do we leave?"​
 
"Rikard, I only just got out of bed." She turned to face him with a smirk and a dagger twirling in her fingers, "Of course I'm ready to hunt. When do we leave?
Rikard could barely hide his excitement and smiled almost from one ear to the other
"Now."
He opened the back door and motioned her to follow though he didn't quite wait. Roads weren't needed at this time since he simply went into the forest that was almost surrounding the village and headed headed west. Rikard had walked this forest often and almost knew it like the back of his hand, if they kept on the path he was leading they would eventually reach the other edge that lay by an royal road that served as a not unimportant supply line. Despite the fact that it was close by, Laurentius' troops rarely raided it since it would draw far to much attention to the immediate area. That said, not attacking it at all would also draw attention so they had to be careful and pick their attacks wisely.
"If you have any questions, now would be the time to ask them, because I don't know how much time we will have by the time we get there."​
 
"Now."
He replied with a smile to match her own, though admittedly wider, "Oh goodie"
She sheathed her dagger and undid the apron, hanging it by the door before following Rikards lead into the forest. The guilt of leaving her job behind so suddenly after arriving was practically non-existent next to the thrilling concept of actually getting to use her knives for cutting up live flesh rather than dead meat to be stewed. By the time she closed the door behind her Rikard was already disappearing into the high trees and underbrush of the woods. She ran to catch up with him, slowing to match his pace when she reached him, "If you have any questions, now would be the time to ask them, because I don't know how much time we will have by the time we get there."
She thought to herself a moment as she began to unlace her dress, but paused before throwing it over head into a bush to be retrieved later,
"Fine, I've only one. Will this be a surprise attack from the trees or would you prefer I get in close first?"
She inquired, leaving her half tied gown to tie her hair back.​
 
"Fine, I've only one. Will this be a surprise attack from the trees or would you prefer I get in close first?"
"A suprise attack, I've received word that a shipment of food, weapons and other supplies is headed for the nearby war camp. Could prove highly useful for us if we can catch it, the last thing we need is them catching wind of something and running off."
When they were nearing the western edge of the forest, Rikard stopped and held Kat back. He whistled a tune of a local bird, or at least something similar; three short tones followed by two long ones and then he repeated it. A second or two went by when the same tunes were heard somewhat further in and from several hiding places came some of Rikard's men dressed completely in green, brown and black so they could blend in better with the forest. One of the men stepped forward and gave Rikard a longbow and a crossbow as well as some arrows and bolts.
Rikard turned to Kat with the weapons. "Which do you prefer? The longbow or crossbow?"​
 
Rikard kept his eyes forward, not bothering to look over at her as he replied, "A surprise attack, I've received word that a shipment of food, weapons and other supplies is headed for the nearby war camp. Could prove highly useful for us if we can catch it, the last thing we need is them catching wind of something and running off."
She nodded mostly to herself, he was right to make that choice, it was what she would have done with a prize such as this. She knew it wasn't time to gamble, and she would abide by that knowledge, even if that did steal a sliver of her fun. As the forest began to thin out Rikard stopped rather suddenly and as she moved past him he caught her by her wrist, she silently took a step back and looked at him as he whistled a bird-like tune, within moments other little birds answered, the whistlers made themselves know with movement and Kat blinked in surprise. This certainly was what she would have expected from someone like Rikard, but the lot of them had been hidden well enough that she'd had no idea they were there. Though she didn't show it he was impressed, even if it was only a bit. One of his men shouldered through the brush and offered a pair of weapons to them, when he took the her turned to her.
"Which do you prefer? The longbow or crossbow?" She paled and her eyes narrowed, darting between both ranged weapons, 'I'd prefer my knives...'. She didn't want to make much of a scene here, and so she sighed and gestured to the weapon that was less likely to end in disaster, "I'll take the crossbow"
She said, 'All a crossbow requires is pulling a trigger. I can do that. I can do that... I think. In any case, if worst come to worst I'll use my knives' with a gulp she took the weapon, setting is aside to throw off her dress and stuff it in a bush near the two of them, "Alright, where do you want me?"
​
 
As she took the crossbow from his hand he handed her the bolts aswell. "Alright, where do you want me?"
"Next to me, we'll need to be the first to act so pay close attention: I'll take out the officer leading the escort, as soon as I do you make sure you get the driver of the cart. You'll only get one clear shot at this, especially with a crossbow; if the driver forces his horses into speed it'll be a problem, you'd be surprised how fast they are."
And with that, Rikard sat down and got a bit comfortable. In truth he wasn't sure how long it would take for the cart to get there, could be a minute, could be an hour, but what he was certain of was the little fact that another one of his hidden little "birds" would let them know if something was coming. That was there whole deal, these birds of his had the most boring post of all: constantly keeping watch on the road. It was also the reason they've gotten so good at hiding, they literally had nothing better to do most of the day than perfect their stealth. Rikard knew that today was probably one of their more exciting days since they could actually do something.
He gave a little look at Kat and motioned her to sit. "You'd best get comfortable, could be a while before they show up... could be a minute, I don't know."​
 

"Next to me, we'll need to be the first to act so pay close attention: I'll take out the officer leading the escort, as soon as I do you make sure you get the driver of the cart. You'll only get one clear shot at this, especially with a crossbow; if the driver forces his horses into speed it'll be a problem, you'd be surprised how fast they are."
Her shoulders slumped as she sighed, Well then, no pressure to hit... The man sat himself down and began to relax, she raised the crossbow and peered through the sights to try to get a feel for the piece. The weight wasn't the problem, in fact it may have been a bit on the light side for her taste. She let the crossbow fall and hang down her side, from the corner of her eyes she caught Rikard looking. She glanced over and gestured beside him, "You'd best get comfortable, could be a while before they show up... could be a minute, I don't know."
She raised an eyebrow, "There're things you don't know?"

Trying to be humorous to cover her annoyance, she scratched her cheek, "I'm just going to... practice for a bit"
She moved over to a close tree across from the two of them and marked it with an 'X', ensuring her mark was facing away from the road so the probable stray arrow wouldn't alert their true targets if they got closer. With that she moved back to stand near Rikard with the hope that he wouldn't poke fun too much. She drew the line back and put a bolt in the rift, taking up the piece and aiming. When she pulled the trigger the arrow flew and actually hit the tree, which was a miracle in itself, however it was well above her mark. She cussed under her breath and drew again, getting too low this time. With a sigh she crossed over and pulled the pieces from the tree, laying them down with the crossbow before sitting down next to Rikard and leaning back against the tree. She didn't need to ask what happened if she missed, she just knew that she would finish the job, as she always did.​
 
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"There're things you don't know?"
Rikard couldn't help but chuckle a bit, but perhaps it was true that ever since he got command over the spies he's been hording intelligence more than a squirrel hoards nuts before winter.
"I'm just going to... practice for a bit"
Now? He thought giving her a questioning look. Over the next few minutes he heard her work as well as two conseques thuds of a bolt landing a tree. Rikard didn't really have to look to know she wasn't as good as she thought, but had a little peek either way. She was horrible. When she was done messing around she decided to be saeted next to Rikard at which point he turned to her and said. "Aim slightly higher then what you want to hit, crossbows have a mean drop-off and aim for the heart, even if you miss, you'll still be likely to hit something." after that he went back to his comfortable position and actualy almost appeared as though he was planning on taking a little nap. "I could show you how to properly shoot. If you want to that is."​
 
As she sat down to make herself comfortable Rikard turned toward and, and she glanced over at him curiously, honestly expecting ridicule, instead she got advice, "Aim slightly higher then what you want to hit, crossbows have a mean drop-off and aim for the heart, even if you miss, you'll still be likely to hit something."
She blinked and looked over at the piece, then glanced back over at the tree with her mark. She shrugged to herself figuring she couldn't get much worse than she already was, where was the danger in giving it a go? She jumped to her feet and scooped up the crossbow and a bolt as she walked past, readying it and aiming. As she brought up the weapon, peering into the sight and lining them up just above her target he spoke again, "I could show you how to properly shoot. If you want to that is."
She paused, half tempted to ignore him and pull the trigger to see where the shot flew, instead she gave in to the other half and brought the piece down to look back at him with as much humility as she dared, "I'd like that" She admitted with the slightest hint of bashful reluctance, "I know my position is wrong, I can feel it... but I don't know how to fix it, everything feels unnatural..." She trailed off, raising the weapon and pretending to aim at the tree to show him what she meant.​
 
"I know my position is wrong, I can feel it... but I don't know how to fix it, everything feels unnatural..."
"Well that's a start at least." Rikard got up and wiped some of the dust off his clothes before walking over to Kat. He placed his foor between hers and pushed her legs open somewhat. "Wider stance, makes you less shaky." He then moved to her side and raised her elbow a bit higher. "Keep the elbow holding the back end of the crossbow about as high as your ear, it'll give you more control over the contraption." After that he went to stand behind her to simply look at how she would do. "Lastly, don't jerk the lever, squeeze gently and exhale slowly while doing so... Now, try again." ​
 

Rikard stood at her comment, she looked over as he dusted himself off and drew near. He pushed her legs farther apart with his foot and she complied silently, keeping her balance as best she could, "Wider stance, makes you less shaky."
She raised the bow again as he came around forcing her elbow higher, "Keep the elbow holding the back end of the crossbow about as high as your ear, it'll give you more control over the contraption.". He gave her some space, stepping back to watch the outcome, "Lastly, don't jerk the lever, squeeze gently and exhale slowly while doing so... Now, try again."
She wriggled her toes and tilted her heel slightly inward to gather better balance, glanced over to make sure her elbow was where it should be and then took in a deep breath with her mouth and let it out slowly through her nose, pulling the trigger as she did. The bolt flew, thumping into the body of the trunk with a heavy 'thunk'. She let the crossbow down, narrowing her eyes in mild disbelief at where the piece had hit, a mere half inch above the center of her 'x'. She rubbed her eyes with a single clutched fist, thinking they were playing a trick on her. She rushed toward the tree, her heart leaping. She pulled the bolt from the body of the tree and tracing the wound with her finger tip while murmuring something along the lines of, 'Good gods'. She turned to Rikard with a proud look to her, aware that mere luck could have played a hand but glad anyway, and though she did her best to surpress it a smile spread across her lips, "Mind showing me how to work a bow next--?"
The twitter of a bird cut her off, she was unable to tell the difference betwen Rikards man and the actual native birds. Her head whipped over toward the road but before she rushed into position she looked back at Rikard with an unspoken yet quiteaudible question in her dark purple irises, Is it time?

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