Turtleback Lake it's either education or elimination

Growing increasingly coy under Kjors’ wordless judgement, the princess stared at her paws as she waited to hear what her teacher would do with her.  Really, what could he do with her-- he a teacher, and her a student who not only couldn’t, but wouldn’t learn? She wasn’t sure what she expected, perhaps another sermon about the circle of life, or maybe a stern reminder of what wolves were made to do, or even a matter-of-fact explanation of difference between lesser and higher creatures. Kjors did none of those things, choosing instead a wordless show of acceptance. The girl lifted her eyes when she felt her companion’s tongue swipe affectionately across her muzzle. He continued to lick and nibble, and Karina’s solemn look melted into quiet giggles at the tickling sensation. ”You’re a weird one,” he told her, and she pawed his nibbling muzzle away, smiling bashfully as if he had complimented her. The way he said it, she could almost imagine that “weirdness” was one of those charming imperfections he kept talking about.. one of the imperfections that were actually good because they made her such a rare gem.

Kjo rose to his feet to reach for her ruff, and Karina’s tail thumped the ground a couple times as he began nibbling at the thick fur beneath her jaw. It was one of his usual affectionate gestures she had grown to expect, and she tilted her head up to return him a few licks. He agreed to fight for her when he could, which was helpful, but it was the next thing he told her that brought her true relief. He said the words she had been waiting to hear; the words that would absolve her of any pain she might cause while fighting off another being. She, her, she.. was special to someone, and because of that she had to live.   “Yes!” she answered quickly, surprised to feel her original enthusiasm returning. “That’s what I want to learn!” She pulled away, taking a step backward in order to meet Kjors’ eye. “I want to learn to defend myself from attack.” Running away from harm was even less of an option than fighting-- high speed and poor eyesight were a terrible combination (Karina had the bruises to prove it). She was special to someone, she had to live, and that was a good enough reason to stand her ground.

   

    
 

Acceptance. It was all about acceptance. Acceptance gave way to affection, which gave roots to something much deeper, darker, and unseen. If asked, he would explain there was a telesthesia between them – she was his greatest treasure. It was his job to understand where she was and how she felt. It was more important that the dragon understood when his gem was threatened, especially when she was out of sight and beyond the reach of a wolf's sensitive ears. But now, now Karina was standing right next to him, and he would not squander this opportunity. Huffing softly when the princess pulled away from him, he had not the chance to complain. It seemed he'd unwittingly found exactly what the youth was looking for. Something bright returned to his single eye, lifting his chin as he looked her over. He wore something akin to pride atop his crown, tail sweeping behind him as the expression morphed into a short nod. This, he would teach her. "Good. Good girl," he hummed, quick to reinforce the behavior. She was rewarded with one last lick before moving, this time to tower over her. "Ah wan' y' t' try t' get free," he instructed her, moments before reaching out and grabbing her ruff. It was not the usual affection he lavished upon her, but a fierce grip meant to hold and push down. Karina would never be the aggressor, and so he must know she'd be able to escape and retaliate, should she be taken by surprise. Ears rolled back and he braced himself, starting to push his weight down. He wanted her to learn, not to be coddled. Once he was confident the female could defend herself, she would be spoiled proper.

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Good girl, Kjors told her, speaking the praise she had come to expect from him. The child’s tail swung rapidly back and forth, and she smiled as Kjors placed a final lick upon her muzzle.  She had become a little complacent with her companion’s constant shower of approval and adoration, and she was beginning to think she could do no wrong in the eyes—or rather, eye—of Kjors Sorenson. That notion would be quickly laid to rest in the coming moments, now that at long last Karina was expected to act on her commitment to train for combat and self-defense.

At once her teacher’s bearing shifted, giving Karina only an instant’s warning that to Kjors, she had morphed from angel to opponent. The child gave a squeak of surprise as Kjors’ teeth once again found their way to her throat, though this time there was not a trace of affection in his steely grip. The sudden change in her companion’s demeanor had shaken her, crippling her reaction time to the point that it was already too late. The child froze in panic, and the sounds of Kjors breathing in her ear and her own pulse pounding beneath his crushing grip consumed her utterly, nullifying any logic or strategy that might have chanced to pop into the child’s brain.

Without any instructions from her brain, the child’s body did the only thing it knew to do in such a situation; her knees buckled as her posture crumpled utterly, and the man forced her so swiftly and easily to the ground that the movement could almost be considered graceful. The collapse reflex was a an involuntary response leftover from puppyhood, one that Karina –who avoided rumbling with her brothers whenever possible-- had never had the chance to outgrow. Only once she was on the ground, face being pressed into the dirt, did she even process her teacher’s command, which had been “try to get free.” So much for that..

(This post was last modified: Jun 07, 2015, 02:55 AM by Karina.)

   

    
 

The princess didn't look like a puppy any longer, but it seemed her childhood instincts had dug their little teeth into her and refused to let go. When it became clear she'd been dragged to the ground, Kjors released her quickly, nosing her ruff twice to ensure he'd caused to actual harm. Once satisfied, he took a step back and shook his head. "Someone's gonna take advantage of ya, like tha'." Someone like me, he thought darkly, ears rotating out to the side as he waited for the younger wolf to regain her feet. He'd never expected this to be easy, but it seemed it was time for him to aggrandize his efforts. There was no natural instinct on the youth's behalf. Everything would have to be taught, shaped, and molded to perfection. It was a challenge no ordinary wolf would be able to surmount. Fortunately, he was no ordinary wolf. But he would have to start from ground zero. With a sigh, he sat himself down, rolling over his experiences as he allowed Karina a moment to collect her thoughts. Wrapping his tail around his haunches, he began. "Yer small, gem. Now, tha' ain't a bad thing – y'jes' gotta realize y'ain't ever gonna overpower bigger wolves. Ah can't either, so don' start gettin' fussy over it. Wha' tha' does mean is, yer faster. An' y'gotta use yer speed t' git out their way an' hit 'em where they least expect it. Now, we're gonna try this again, alright? Ah'll show y' how, an' then yer gonna give it a shot yerself." Getting back to his feet, the swarthy man hesitated before lowering his head, offering up the back of his neck. How far he'd fallen, he thought dryly, that he'd been reduced to this. But it would be worth it, when his kingdom finally came. "Now, bite me th' way Ah bit ya, an' Ah'll show ya how t' wriggle free."

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Kjors released her quickly and the girl rose to her feet, a slight tremble evident in her limbs. She gave herself a shake to rid her pelt of dirt and debris. Her eyes landed on Kjors, and she sucked in a breath of air to steady herself. Adrenaline still pumping but danger past, the princess felt an odd wave of calmness as she turned to Kjors to receive the rebuke that she could sense was forming in his brain. As she watched her teacher with heightened awareness, she found that she had lost her understanding of past and future; she had no access to thoughts, fears, or memories. What she could feel was the cool, rubbery grass cushioning her paws and the afternoon wind blowing in from the lake to tickle through her pelt. She could hear birds entwining their songs into the breeze and somewhere beyond the treeline, she could hear that fox creeping closer, watching them. Most of all though, she could feel Kjo’s emotion rolling off of him in waves, and it surprised her to sense within him more of a hardened certitude than actual disappointment.

The aura around Kjors shifted suddenly—became busier—and Karina reacted by stepping away from him uncertainly. Her ears flew backward and nose lowered protectively. In that same second Kjors stepped toward her, and Karina was stunned to realize that she had predicted her teacher’s intention to reach for her in the exact moment he began the motion. Kjors’ nose once more moved across her ruff, gently this time, snapping the girl’s attention to the present moment once more. As he pulled away Karina could feel a small note of satisfaction beam out from him, which Karina took to mean that she wasn’t hurt. The back of her neck ached at a dull throb, but the pain occupied her thoughts in a similar way to the birdsong, and the smell of the lake, and the curious fox that had now settled itself down to watch the show. The pain was present and noticeable when she sought it, but easily pushed from her mind when her focus was required for something else.

Kjors began speaking to her, and Karina focused her cloudy eyes upon the grizzled man. In this state of mind she was unable to process the lecture he gave, so thoroughly immersed in the present moment that his words faded into the scenery as soon as they left his mouth.  The child’s gaze penetrated her teacher’s words for the feeling behind them—though she could not hear the words “faster”, “speed”, or “small”, she could perceive the pride Kjors attached to these terms, and a note of urgency permeated his speech giving Karina the impression that she needed to be quick; react quickly, move quickly.. learn quickly. A shadow stirred within her teacher’s aura as he spoke the word “gem,” and the dark emotions attached to the word were quite familiar to Karina since the birth of her sisters:  possessiveness, greed, a hint of desperation.. They were odd feelings to attach to a term of endearment, but in her present state of mind Karina was unable to judge or process this observation; for now it simply was.  

Kjors bowed his head to leave the back of his neck exposed, and as he did so the dark presence exploded outward from his aura. The child could sense its roaring protests within him, this shadowy part of him, this phantom, this.. thing.. it did not approve of this weakness, of Kjors opening himself up for attack. Karina stepped backward, not in fear of her companion's pentimento—she still lacked access to her own emotions-- but simply to assess the scene further. “No,” she said simply, voice more steady and tone more even than Kjors would have ever heard from her before. Every fiber of her being rejected the idea of harnessing this shadow creature, even for a moment, and if she were to close it within her jaws she knew the cascade of rage that would pour from Kjors would be too much for her mind and heart to bear. “I'll try again..” the words left her tongue in barely a whisper, urging Kjors to grab for her once more. It was not a demand; the phrase was delivered simply and in the same flat tone, devoid of any emotion or connotation. She lowered her head just as Kjors had, braced to feel his jaws one more upon her ruff.

Ahhhh this post is so long!! This is the first time Karina has experienced her "super sense" and I got a little carried away. Basically the ultra-sensitive girl can perceive a wolf's energy and emotion so long as she doesn't have fear or anything distracting her (canines are well-known for perceiving and communicating through energy, even across species). When she's in this meditative place mentally, her brain translates this super-sense into a sort of visual image for her, which she identifies as an "aura". Of course the emotions that she "feels" in another wolf are routed and interpreted through her own experiences, so it's entirely possible that what she is "feeling" in another wolf is completely different from their actual thought/emotion-- she's not a mind reader!

(This post was last modified: Jun 10, 2015, 06:04 PM by Karina.)

   

    
 

As the dragon stepped forward, bowing before his princess, the slender fae took a step back with a simple dismissal of his offer. In the length of one breath, fury roared through his entire frame – how dare she, when he offered up everything that he was. A second breath, and the dragon fire was extinguished by confusion, perhaps even concern. Ears pressed out to the side as he paused, trying to process the sudden change – hadn't he just frightened her so badly she'd dropped to her knees without any sort of protest? If she'd never been taught, Kjors had assumed demonstration was the only operation of education. But he lifted his head all the same, shaking out his thick pelt as studied her a moment longer. He would not have responded well to a demand, but the timber wolf could read voice. The soft, gentle request wasn't uncertain, but only as quiet and poised as the princess usually was. After several silent moments, the dethroned king gave a short bob of his head. "As y' wish," he rumbled, quirking one eyebrow. A man of his word, he slithered forward, pausing as her head was bowed. "Don' do tha', Karina, not 'fer 'nyone else," he muttered, a hint of jealousy coloring his voice. "Y' protect yerself. Now. Try t' git free," Kjors instructed again. He doubted she forgot the point of the exercise, but felt obliged to warn her before leaning in and wrapping his jaws around her neck. There, he rested, grip firm without being cruel, and again he waited, curious to see if the yearling's reaction would change.

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UGH I love Karina so much. How is it possible to love her even more? I really enjoyed that last post, you never have to apologize for length! <3 I'm so curious to see how this will all fall out.

It's this plotline, I swear. She was going a whole different direction before Kjors came into the mix (it was shaping up to be just the usual pack role, mate, and pups routine..)  and then this plot happened and her character exploded. Yush, she's pretty quick and clever when she's not immobilized by terror. Perhaps Kjors can help her explore this meditation mindset a little further..

Despite her effort to sooth the shadow-beast inside Kjors, she saw rage radiate from her teacher like fire surging from an inferno. For a moment the man’s entire aura was swallowed by shadow, and Karina could do nothing but close her eyes tightly and focus inward, to keep the beast from swallowing her too. The child’s own refreshing aura flowed peacefully within her mind’s eye, swirling slowly around, enveloping and insulating her from the fire’s onslaught. There were no worries while she was submerged in this river of peace, no memories, nothing to fear.. no awareness of anything but the present moment. As quickly as the fire swelled it subsided, and Karina opened her eyes, allowing her own protective aura to ebb away as well. Kjors gave a shake, as if to rid himself of the last few angry embers. Karina could no longer recall the words she had spoken to anger her tutor, but she could feel the weight of them hanging in air between the pair, demanding a reply from Kjors.

Kjo’s acceptance banished the heavy feeling at once. He was speaking again, and moving forward, but the child held her ground dutifully. This was what she wanted.. what she was inviting. The shadow creature within Kjors rumbled indignantly as Karina bowed, but Karina ignored its little tantrum.. she had to learn, whether Kjor’s shadow-thing liked it or not. Her teacher wrapped his jaws around her ruff once more. Karina shivered at her teacher’s hot breath on her nape, really feeling each individual tooth digging into her soft skin.  Do doubt due to his missing right eye, he gripped the child slightly to her left, so he might watch her reaction with his single golden eye. She felt him apply the downward pressure to her neck, and her knees locked in response. Banished were her preconceived notions of failure and gone was the blind terror. She could feel and sense with Kjors’ every breath, with every micro-movement that he wished no harm upon her. His grip was tight, but tight in the way a hug might be between the best of friends… Tight, so that memory of it would linger long after the two pulled apart.

The downward force upon her neck was too much to fight—had she been stronger, she might have been able to raise her skull above her assailant’s, twisting his neck to the point at which he would have to release her.  As it was though, she was weaker than Kjors even when she was at her strongest, which she most certainly wasn’t in this moment. She instead moved with the downward momentum, dipping her muzzle under Kjors’ to bring it back up on the right side of his neck. The skin on the back of her neck pulled taught in Kjors’ grip, and if he wished to hold on his neck would remain bent down uncomfortably. The momentum of Karina’s limber movement was enough to offbalance the pair and would likely roll the two of them over onto their backs, Kjors on hitting the ground first and then Karina tumbling down on top of him.  

   

    
 

So, she could learn. Kjors supposed that was a useful thing to know, though now was hardly the time for him to be pondering what else he could teach his youth. Instead, his attention pinpointed on this one moment, on each slight, subtle shift of muscles between her teeth. The princess did not collapse downwards like sodden land tumbling down a steep cliffside this time. Nor did she cavort about, like a child who would not pay attention and take her lessons seriously. Her knees locked, clicking into place as she bolted herself to the forest floor. She did not fight the pressure or force. The dragon had expected his inexperience apprentice to begin to thrash, unused to being held or shoved in directions she did not wish. When she simply followed his degree of motion, using his own strength against him, the dragon found himself taking a step forward as he was pulled from his own pillar of fortitude by her clever move. As she dipped, Karina also twisted and when the one-eyed wolf did not release his vice grip, he found his neck strained at an awkward angle. The male grunted as he stepped forward again, trying to relieve the crooked tension. Still, he refused to give up – who knew what his princess might face someday? A wolf without motivation might have given up already, but were she ever to come against an animal that truly wished her harm, he wanted her to be prepared for the struggle she would face. It was gravity that captured them both then, pulling Kjors down towards the earth. The male landed on his shoulder, the jolt enough to release his hold as he skidded once. Before he could get up, the Baranski princess landed on top of him, forcing a grunt from his chest. The male attempted to slither forward, and then he lay still, single eye blinking as it refocused. "That'll do, princess," he murmured, something akin to adoration warming his raspy voice. "Yer gonna take a lot a' folk by surprise. Should we try somethin' else, too?"

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He's so impressed adkjfhlsf. I think discussing her special mindset might come in another thread afterwards, once he has a chance to mull it over himself. < < He will definitely be VERY interested in it though. (She's definitely shaping up to be a little dragon priestess~)

I know!!  This avatar state thing is perfect for a dragon priestess.. her being able to see and communicate with his “dragon” side and all. The more Kjors draws Karina into his crazy the more I love this plot..
 So! I think we should wrap this one up and start a new one that takes place right after; perhaps in the early evening when she’s had a chance to rest (at Kjors’ den maybe?). They can talk about the mediation and the dragons and maybe a little more self-defense..

Body coming into hard contact with the ground—whether it was hers’ or Kjors’, she could not tell in this state--  had a jolting effect on the girl, and she came to her senses as she was rolling off of her teacher. Kjors’ aura faded from view, and as he crawled forward to escape entrapment under his student Karina felt anxiety’s cold tentacles wrapping around her chest once more. Was Kjors hurt? Was she responsible? The child couldn’t remember a thing from the last few minutes—how had they ended up on the ground?! Karina sprung to her feet, and the sudden motion had a dizzying effect. “Ahh..” She lowered herself back to the ground, and somewhere in the spinning background Kjo spoke to her, That’ll do.

The child’s cloudy eyes settled on her teacher, and gradually the world around them stilled. What would do, exactly? The girl reached into her memory, trying to recall the lesson from moments before, but what sprang to mind instead was an image of Kjors enveloped in living, breathing darkness. Terror seized the girl for a split second and she inhaled sharply, but the memory vanished as quickly as it came. The princess flung the chilling memory aside with a slight shake of her head. “O-okay,” Karina answered shakily, raising herself to her feet once more, this time a little more slowly. Unsteady from both emotion and physical exhaustion, her legs trembled from her body weight. “Actually.. I might need to rest.” She knew this feeling well—this ‘about to collapse’ feeling—and was disappointed to have it return after feeling so energetic this morning. Karina knew her muscle strength would take time to build back up, but it was frustrating to have to stop when Kjors was willing to keep going.

   

    
 

Where the princess quickly scurried away, leaving him a moment to catch his breath and curl his legs underneath his stunted frame. The wolf allowed himself a moment to yawn as all his passion passed, leaving only the cool, collected observer in its wake. Turning his head, he gave Karina a once over as she trembled, raising an eye when he realized it did not cease. Whatever the momentary calmness was that had come over the yearling in the first place, it had gone now. It made it impossible to tell whether the loss of her composure had given way to a shivaree trapped inside her own skull had shaken her, or if it was the scuffle itself that had rattled the female's confidence loose. After another moment of silence, Kjors hauled himself to his feet. The dirt was shed from his pelt nonchalantly before he strolled over to his charge, leaning in to nibble on her jawline. There was nothing to be disappointed in. "Y'did well," he reiterated, something firm in his expression before he moved onwards. "We can stop, fer now. Mebbe practice some more after a rest." He was going to have to start feeding Karina more, if he wanted her to stand a chance against your average grown wolf. But, there were many things to consider now, and if she needed a brief cessation, he could use the intermission to mull over a great many new facts brought to his attention. Glancing over his shoulder, he summoned the youth to follow. "C'mon, gem. Back to the den." Exit.

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