_____Kaede moved carefully, her weight increased as she slowly moved with the last log towards the unfinished section of the area fencing. It was crudely made and could very well be pushed over by a strong wind or anyone with some weight to them. However, as Kaede set the log down and backed away with crossed arms she nodded with a smile and approved her very poorly made creation before moving back into the center of the area. The most important thing to any fighting match was knowing the limits of the area and hopefully the logs she set slightly over the ground encircling the area just outside the trees around the clearing would give such indication.

Kaede Hoshi

"To anyone who is getting this message I'm looking for someone to spar with. I don't care if your a mage, knight, archer or whatever else there might be. My only request is that you don't hold back and provide me with a decent challenge so we can both improve."

_____Kaede spoke with pride into her message before sending it out to all nearby adventures and players. Attaching coordinates to her location in the nick of time before it spread and happily getting ready. The dawn’s early light still climbing as Kaede drew her dagger and calmly spun the weapon in her hand with ease. Today she was hoping to focus mostly on her dodges, maybe on how well her character could take hits before they started to hinder her actions maybe? To be honest she was still unsure and without knowing who she was fighting the choice would remain in the air.

”I wonder if I left enough food for him… Or if the fire will stay burning long enough… Hopefully the system to drop wood every so often works… if not I'm sure he can manage on his own while I’m away for the day…” Kaede rambled to herself as she swapped hands with her weapon and spun it around some more, a few practice strikes to the air before she began to stretch and got ready for battle.

 

Crouched down on all fours, Nalla growled with anticipation through grit teeth. Carefully, she raised up her left hand from the ground, the escaping whispers of crunched leaves softly resounding as she removed the palm's pressure. Her finger extended outwards, serpents of fire twisting and spiraling around the outstretched digit, like rings upon Saturn.

A few meters forward, a squirrel clasped an acorn between two possessive mittens. With wide, black pupils, it frequently scanned its surroundings, careful not to meet a quick end. Nearby, the steadfast statue of Nalla was invisible to the miniature creature. Embers breathed through the barricade of fangs, like cinder from an open furnace. With focus and and precision, she attempted to discharge a thin, searing bolt into the animal.

Three... Two... She thought, counting down to the moment when her attack would be released. "Now I've got you." She whispered, smiling, before the fiery bolt fizzled. The flickering bolt escaped her fingertip with a waver, a hesitating wriggle weakening its flight. This wag and joggle intensified as it soared, before the radiance of flame was snuffed. Leaving behind it, this failed attack whistled like a finished kettle. This noise, far beyond what would have been necessary, frightened the paranoid animal, sending it skittering up the nearest tree with an alarmed trepidation.

"Damn it! Not again!" Nalla stood and stomped her foot, glaring ferociously up at the tree in front of her. One precise arcane bolt would have, without a doubt, pierced the critter effortlessly. "I guess I've got to go all out then." Cupping her hands, she held them tight, forging between them a sphere of heat, held together by weak, searing tethers. Tossing this ball into the air, it's texture appearing not too unlike that of the sun, Nalla took a step back. Then, with a swift approach, she flung her leg forward, punting the ball of fire. Spraying outwards, like the breath of a dragon, the conflagration was released. The tree erupted in a expeditious flare, eating up the limbs and leaves in seconds. From the scorched black branches, the charred corpse of the escaped squirrel.

Hopping on the opposite foot, she winced, bringing her foot up to her hands, a scorched mark on her shoe. What a silly choice to take, kicking a fire bomb! Regardless, it had helped to get out her aggression.

"Hmph." She was not sure how to judge her own performance. On one hand, she had managed to catch her opponent, but on the other, she had failed her initial attempt... "I still got you, punk." She pointed at the squirrel, before a message notification lit up in her view. In part startled, she stepped back with a start, before accessing this message in full length. "Spar? I can spar." She nodded, reading once more through the message, before skimming the coordinates. "Not too far away either!"

It was not long before she had reached the location that would be the sparring zone. Crossing her arms, Nalla nodded, examining the circle of logs, placing her foot upon one to hop over it casually. "Heavy things, those logs are. Moved them all yourself?" She procured, moving forward to the stranger and putting out her hand, the palm hot to the touch. "I'm Nalla, by the way."

 

_____Kaede would be a fool not to notice the rising smoke, her focus catching the black pillar as it ascended to the heavens. Her mind splitting into internal conflict, on one hand she wanted to rush to make sure everything was ok yet on the other, she did not want to look like a coward who runs from her own challenges. Fingers turning pale as her grip tightened around her dagger while the conflict in her mind was waged until a voice broke her focus back to the area. Blinking a few times before she forced a small smile and spoke back.

”Some of them, the rest seemed lighter then some weapons i have tried to pick up in the past.”

_____Kaede spoke with some pride in her words, hand reaching outward only to stop as she noticed the faintest steam lines from the girls hand and her smile changed to a grin. Moving back a few steps and throwing her dagger back to her left hand and lowering her frame closer to the earth. Right hand carefully reaching for her shoulder, digits locking onto her cloak and carefully trying to unfasten the metal clip. Her hopefully attempt at distracting her sparring partner in the form of spinning her dagger towards the light to reflect the shine and draw focus.

”Seems someone is hot to the touch.”

_____Her words shallow as Kaede focused, if the girl was not here to spar her next actions would make her seem dangerous but Kaede doubted anyone who approached did not check the message. Right hand pulling her cloak forward, the fabric spreading slightly as Kaede used it for cover, the metal clip acting as the weight to help guide it towards her sparring partner. While underhanded to use distractions Kaede was at the disadvantage in her mind. If that heat was what she thought Nalla was a mage, and as a close combat fighter she needed everything she had to make up the distance.

____Picking up quickly Kaede started running forward directly behind her cloak expecting it to be the last place her sparring partner would expect her. With dagger ready at her side Kaede spun around to the left, her frame lowering closer to the earth to slid along the ground with weapon moving to stab Nella’s left and right patella tender, muscles just below her target’s kneecaps for hirst strike. Pulling her weight across her frame to spin as she rose to Nalla’s right side.
@Nalla

 

Nalla had not expected the request of a handshake to be taken as an initiation of combat, but it mattered not. The fighting was upon her, as the stranger flung their cloak towards her. Fair enough. Nalla did not bother moving, crouching quick enough that her short, purple hair couldn't keep up at first, flopping down over her face.

What she was to attempt was something that she had practiced before. In fact, it had been one of the first techniques she had learned upon first gaining affinity with pyromancy. Accidentally, a casual picnic for the magician had taken a turn for the worst, when she, leaning back on her arms, had ignited the cloth she sat upon, as well as the batch of apples, and the book she had brought as well. It was, to say the last, a tragedy. Mostly for the book, not so much for the burning reader.

Laying her palms upon the earth beneath, she breathed heat into the ground through her open hands. The fire caught on anything flammable below, igniting the area around her. Nalla became to this land, as a dragon becomes to its den. As her hands rose, her fingertips still upon the ground, the embers within the earth became the catalyst for more, each bursting into full fledged flames. In a circle of fire, she stooped.

It was not the most proactive action to take, but the most defensive one she could think of. To surround herself with that which gave her power would hopefully have negated the approach of her opponent. Unless of course the foe was willing to delve the flames, certainly trading pain for damage in the process.

Somewhere within the fire, a wispy, partially translucent cat peacefully walked through, seemingly careless to the world around it. Her eyes only noticing this in her peripherals, Nalla cursed the creature. Not gonna help me, huh, Ele? Damn you, cat! These thoughts, imagined with a smile, were not of unpleasant intent or tone. The cat did as it pleased, Nalla knew that. It was something that could not be argued with.

@Kaede Hoshi

 

Kaede Hoshi

95 HP

MAX HP

90 EN

MAX EN

Conditions - Burning until removed.

_____Kaede hated to admit her failed plan, rather not seeing something she should have accounted for. If the girl’s hand had steam it was only safer to think she had already started a spell of some sort but the thought was lost in Kaede’s eager nature for combat and sought payback in the cruelest form it could. Her only warning was the rising heat but by then she was too late to change plans or quickly recover from her approach. As the flames rose Kaede was caught in the middle of it all but grit her teeth and saw it through as best she could.

_____She would emerge inside the circle with her enemy, eyes glowing with excitement and her once grit teeth forming a joyful smile. She seemed to enjoy the attack, even as parts of her clothing still burned lightly and her hair slightly singed. Frame rising up and jabbing her dagger towards Nalla’s stomach with quick precision. Kaede’s attack pouring in quickly as she aimed for the girl’s waist line with more thrust with the idea to hopefully back them into the fire wall under the idea they might remove it from play.

_____Kaede’s focus would carefully move around the area watching for anything the girl might try to do while she was getting attacked from the front. While Kaede was quick she was not strong enough to take hits or good with dodging them if she did not know about them.
@Nalla

 

Nalla

65 HP

MAX HP

80 EN

MAX EN

Nalla knew that most people were faster than her, at least physically. It was her wit, she believed, set her apart. Her rapid thinking, her vast knowledge, her unruly cunning that gave her an edge. While creating her barrier of flame had been an effort of improvisational thought, there were things she could not account for. One of these things was the overwhelming relentlessness of an opponent.

As the glint of the knife and the shadow of it's bearer appeared before her, Nalla remembered a time within her previous form. A prisoner, she had nothing but rags, and one of her opponents had thrown a cleaver. This weapon rotated towards her with lethal intent, it's aim readied upon her head. Once more, her cleverness devised an escape, and through magical competence, she had evaded the blow. But things were different here. The blade that came for her was not one thrown, but one held, and the magic she possessed was not arcane, but flame. No matter how fast the clock within her conscious ticked, there was no escape, and the blade found itself within her stomach.

Her mouth choked open, as she felt the blade penetrate her body. That timer in her brain slowed, and reality became enriched with pain. On instinct, she gripped the arm of it's owner, her hands searing into the flesh. If she were to take blows, she intended to deliver them as well. Though, for the time being, with the blade in her stomach, she merely held tightly.

"You still haven't introduced yourself." Nalla groaned, pieces of flickering cinder escaping her lips as they opened to speak. "Let us at least be civil?" The circle of fire reduced in height, leaving behind the scorched earth, still smoking. Somewhere within the smoke, the both of them could hear the loud meow of a cat. Nalla knew precisely what this creature was, but her opponent... Perhaps not.

@Kaede Hoshi

 

Kaede Hoshi

75 HP

MAX HP

80 EN

MAX EN

”Where are my manners, I’m Kaede. Kaede Hoshi, sorry for the delayed introduction.

_____Kaede chimed happily, her arm burning up under the Nalla’s touch causing slightly pained filled tone to seep into the happy words. She was enjoying the fight, sadly that was something Kaede knew to be a issue with herself but in times like this it helped out slightly. Grinning slowly before she tried to put her enemy to the test on how long she wanted to keep Kaede locked down so close. Pulling her weight down to crouch and pulling her dagger out as quickly as she could before pushing off the ground to jump towards Nalla.

_____If Nalla tried to stay standing she likely would be rammed as Kaede’s head moved towards the girl’s throat, and if she tried to lower herself like Kaede had she would try to place her free hand along Nalla’s shoulder and flip over the girl trying to bring the arm behind Nalla, or get free. If all went well, or as Kaede hoped it would she would be behind her target with weapon in hand ready to strike again. However at the sound of the meow Kaede jumped backwards.

_____Her previous underestimate of her enemy cost her some burns, that of witch she still needed to address as she jumped backwards again and side stepped into the tree line for cover. She had both hope the girl would not try burning the area to find her, or try to enter the forest where someone mobile could use the cover to become very dangerous. Trying her best to stay out of view of her foe and within the limited ring towards the edge before she began patting out the fires as best she could. Teeth locked on her lip to draw blood and keep her focused on things outside the dangerous burns on her arm.

”Shocked you aren't trying to keep your distance from me though…” Kaede tried to speak a friendly chat, however mid sentence she remember her current game plan was hiding and talking was sort of counterproductive drawing her to shut up and try to move along the perimeter of the sparring zone.

 

Nalla

60 HP

MAX HP

70 EN

MAX EN

Silly, fiery girl. The voice of the cat echoed in her mind, followed by a chuckle. "Damn cat! No help at all." Nalla muttered, the sudden exit of the blade from its wound causing her words to waver greatly. Stumbling back before her opponent could further approach, she beat the inside of her fist against her chest, lowering her jaw to let her mouth erupt with flame, as though it were a volcano, spewing death in a cone forward.

Unfortunately for her, the combatant seemed to already be out of the way, having leaped backwards to a safe distance. For a brief moment, at the very least, the pyromancer had a moment of rest. Leaning forward, she placed a palm upon the open knife wound. It had cut deep, having only stopped at it's hilt. Blood, as the weapon had exited, soon followed, pouring out. With a palm covering this grievous blow, she grit her teeth, the hissing sound of cooking flesh mirrored the sharp agony that dug through her once more. This pain did not last, however, as in seconds, she had managed to cauterize the wound. Now, only a severe burn remained.

"I'm not really quick on my feet." She panted. Using her magic always did this to her. Between the proximity to her own heat, or the expended energy, it was exhausting. Even more so than arcanamancy. Sweat dripped from her hairline down onto her lip, dripping onto the ground. Most of her flesh was covered in variable densities of sweat, as adrenaline kept her form upright. "Quick on my head, I like to think." She brought a fist, lazily knocking the side of her skull, as though to check whether its contents were still in tact. Luckily for Nalla, there was a rattle in there somewhere.

To prepare for the next assault, her mind sputtered, before coming upon the first idea. Clasping her hands together, between her cupped palms, she formed another explosive. This sphere, black and smoking, was like a trip mine. Quickly, she forged multiple, setting them upon the seemingly most viable areas of approach from the shrouded forest. She did not bother pursuing her foe. After all, her foe would certainly be pursuing her soon enough.

"You're fast though," Nalla panted, seaming together a final explosive, tossing it to a nearby place on the ground. "Much quicker than me, no doubt." She cursed herself. In her previous form, she would have never placed herself in such a dangerous position. Why did she have to be so anxious, so ready? Why did she pursue death as though she did not fear it? Of course she feared death, there is not a soul without at least a shred of doubt. And with uncertainty, there is always fear.

@Kaede Hoshi

 

_____Kaede listened to her sparring partner, she did not seem to have any interest in moving and even if her mobilty was not the best getting out of the open or making sure she was not such an easy target. Shaking her head for doubting Nalla again before moving to sit down and relax slightly. Hands moving to tap each finger together as Kaede tried to think up a plan. Moving to hide behind more trees before sitting down again and letting her mind work with most her focus, the rest diverting to early warning should she be aimed while planning.

’So far Nalla has played defensive, she stays in her spot and even if she says it is because her speed is not the best there must be a reason. With fire magic is it possible they gain strength when staying still? Maybe it is the area still smoking she is trusting… Overall she likely will be expecting me to rush back in, traps are possible but how to counter them or notice before rushing in would be the case i need to consider. Maybe… I’m just overthinking things this time…’

_____Moving to stand up straight and dust her butt off before weaving closer with the trees as cover. Her focus peeling around a tree each move forward to check for her sparring partner, once she was in view Kaede broke her sneaking plan and simply rushed straight forward. Her frame low to the ground to reduce wind drag and make her tougher to hit should Nalla try to keep Kaede back. Kaede’s dagger resting in her right hand, her left drifting at her side as the burns still seemed to effect Kaede and her ability to use the arm effectively.
@Nalla

 

As expected, at some point the opponent would have to come to her. At the first sign of movement, Nalla's eyes flickered to the location she had heard. Though her foe got closer than she had hoped, the plan still commenced as expected. Clenching her knuckles, she popped each of her smoking explosives, each erupting in a wide geyser of smoke, whistling like firecrackers. While the smoke did not completely obscure their makeshift area of combat, it seemed well enough as a measure to make visibility very difficult.

Rolling to the side, and keeping her face close to the earth, this was where the smoke was least potent. Of course, it was not very damaging to breathe the stuff in, but discomforting very, at least to Nalla. She hated the smell of smoke. The taste that would linger in her throat after inhaling such scent. needless to say, she was careful to avoid it. With fingers digging into the dirt, she erupted trails of fire through the earth once more, using stray roots and lingering flammable material within the dirt as the catalysts for her spreading plague of flame.

Nalla remembered a song. One that she had heard from a very long time ago, or perhaps at an old store. This song, sung beautifully by a group of four men, detailed a misguided desire. One not to set the world on fire, but to start a flame in one's heart. The memory of this song, "I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire" by "The Ink Spots", amused Nalla, bringing her to chuckle. This chuckle, chuckles be damned, brought her a swift inhale, which delivered to her lungs the smoke that she so much hated to taste. Coming forward with a harsh cough, she no doubt gave her position away to the enemy, if her opponent was listening over the sound of the crackling earth beneath.

This magical smog would not last long, however, and would fade in not even a third of a minute, but it served quite well as a temporary smoke bomb. Especially since with more energy spent, the more bombs Nalla could create, the more exhaust would be created. Certainly a creative technique, but one only useful in niche situations. The pyromancer hoped that this situation was niche enough for it to become effective, even as she proceeded with it.

@Kaede Hoshi

 

_____Kaede was taken by surprise, the sound and sight of smoke sent her to slow to a full halt and cut off the idea of breathing as she was caught in the thick of it all. Clicking her tongue in her mind before she rapidly jumped back to escape the smoke to try and see her target and not get taken by surprise. However even with distance from the smoke she was still looking to go in blind before the cough caught her attention. While she could not lock the exact spot, she got a good reading and slunk back into the tree line and began moving behind the additional cover.

’The smoke has got to be double sided then. So i have little time left before it rises to high or fades to make things happen… Time to end this before she has time to cast stronger magic.’

_____Nodding slowly Kaede sheathed her dagger and lurched forward at top speed, forging silence in favor of rushing to end the sparring match before it reached the favoring of the mage who bought herself time to likely cast something to end the match herself. Using the trees for cover once the smoke faded to get behind Nalla outside the clearing and going deftly silent, her steps gone and sneak quickly returned as she moved upward in the shadow of the trees. If everything went well Kaede would calmly perch on a tree branch watching Nalla.

_____Waiting for either the girl to approach or start searching higher off the ground before she lunged with everything she had in her body to land on her sparring partner and bring the girl to the ground. Dagged quickly pulled from her belt and held to Nalla’s throat as Kaede sat over the girl’s waist to keep her down, burnt arm pressing along Nalla’s shoulder line of all went well to keep her locked to the ground. With a small smile Kaede spoke if her plan worked.

”Guess we call this one my victory?”

_____Taking a brief moment to enjoy the idea she won before it dawned on her exactly how she was sitting and how close she was to Nalla. Face burning hotter than any flames Nalla might have used and turning red as her cloak before she scrambled to get off the girl and slammed her head to the ground while bowing noticing what she had done finally. There was a difference between pinning a target and assaulting them and Kaede was more heavily towards the assault without even thinking causing her to feel so ashamed and flustered.

”Please forgive my actions! I had no intentions of pinning you down in such a way or anything like…” Kaede could not bring herself to even say the words as she got more flustered and tried to slam her head into the ground to the point it would likely have looked like a ostrich impression. Refusing to look up or stop bowing towards Nalla, Awkwardness unintended.
@Nalla

 

Hiding beneath the cloud, a voice inside her head rang. This voice surprised her, speaking in a tongue that she had not heard before... Or had she? An ache in her stomach later, the knee jerk reaction tugging her hands to her abdomen. She felt it quake, as the crackling voice in her mind echoed. With both palms clenched to her flesh, the pain exaggerated with each consonant of the stray thoughts.

Ignite the smoke. The words were strange, and though not spoken in plain language, they formulated a clear meaning in her consciousness. Light the forest in fire. It continued, as though the devil itself were whispering into her ear. Was it her instinct? Perhaps driven from some deficiency of kindness, she had turned cold and callous. Was this some sort of unconscious need for revenge, with a rope wrapped tightly around her ankle, dragging her towards chaos? It will be your throne. Ignite. The speaker, though intoned with a calmness, spoke like the crackling of an open flame. As her mind hung, empty of thought, a finger was raised. Underneath the nail, and between the folds of flesh, she felt it stir. A concoction not too unlike a match that, if applied, would set the air around her into a storm of flame. While she recognized this idea, the idea of erupting this place like a volcano... She rejected it. To destroy so much would do no good. Now was not the time to get personally invested. Ignite.

Calm down, silly girl. A second voice spoke. A voice of reason. This voice, though it did not speak again, was calm. Familiar still, soft and subtle. Subtle enough to be dismissed as perhaps a distant breeze rattling the branches of a tree. Soft enough to be mistaken for the hint of lavender in a cup of tea. The origin of this sound, just as the first had been, was undefined and impossible to know. Regardless, she had a choice to make.

"Mmmph..." Somewhere stuck in the middle, Nalla decided, squandering this flame, as she stuffed the finger into a closed fist. Just as she expelled the idea, so vanished the smoke, and she realized herself, undefended in the ring. The most she could do is roll over onto her back, not quick enough to dodge the incoming opponent, who swiftly came down upon her. The knife at her neck signified her failure. But was it a failure, she wondered? Certainly, if she had taken her own advice, the advice in her mind, she would have succeeded... But at what cost? Pride? With the blade pressed to the flesh of her throat, a hand pinning her shoulder, and a body pinning her down, these thoughts passed calmly. Her heart, as it seemed, had not had the time to prepare a swifter tempo. Having been preoccupied with the puzzle, it was still catching up to reality.

Once the other had come off of her, she leaned up, weakly coughing. At some point in that billow of gas, she had inhaled, and in doing so, cursed herself to the temporary blight of hacking. The sign of wetness upon her stomach reminded herself that she was still wounded, and perhaps the blade had previously cut deeper than before. With another hand upon her stomach, she seared the wound shut, the hissing of tissue mended by burning reentering the scene, but only briefly. Turning her gaze towards @Kaede Hoshi, Nalla shook her head to the apology.

"We agreed to not holding back when this began. You needn't apologize. Don't bow, come now." The bowing reminded her of her own culture, as she came from Japan. To bow in such a way meant great shame. To Nalla, there was no need for that kind of shame at this time. With her hair wet with sweat, as well as greatly heated by being in the proximity of such great flare, the pryomancer spoke between weighty breaths. "You really are quick on your feet." She reiterated, looking off towards the trees. A rustle between the branches caught her attention, but swiftly lost it again. More pressing matters than squirrels. "Perhaps we can try again in the future. I'm still getting a handle on this fire." She turned back towards the stranger. Inside of her mind, she dangerously ran her fingers over the grenade that lingered somewhere between her mind and body. "You seem to have a really good handle on your skills though. Sorry that I didn't put up much of a fight."

 

”Are you kidding? I can’t feel my left arm at all still ha-ha.”

_____Kaede moved her arm as best she could while getting up from her bow. While she was still red from her previous actions she tried to do as the girl asked her and assure her that she had some things slightly wrong with her last statements. Moving the dagger back to the sheath Kaede tried to relax to speak clearly and not sound odd with her words.

”To be fair I’m not much better with my weapon… I just know how to fight because rough childhood, and I used speed to hide the fact I can’t always move the dagger where I would want or should have it because hurting people is still sitting bad with me… If you think about it your control of fire is a lot better than you seem to give it credit for, i don’t think it ever once flared outside what you wanted from it and you stopped it rather easy in the heat of battle so…”

_____Kaede’s blush returned when she noticed the girl was burning her wounds, feeling guilty Kaede opened her inventory tab and got out some spare bandages and a light drink offering it to Nalla. ”You don’t have to burn them… They should close themself after some time, and any blood you lost just seems to be refilled… Take it from someone who woke one morning with her head cracked open like a egg…” Kaede smiled faintly before bowing her head slightly and moving closer to Nalla as she started to wrap the wound she caused with her bandages.

_____At such distance it was clear, Kaede was simply ignoring the pain and was more banged up then she was letting on. Her legs suffering a number of burns from running into the fire wall, her left arm trembling in pain as she forced it to hold the cloth and move around, her eyes red from staring while in the smoke, and her blush still in heavy swing from touching Nalla to try and help the girl out.

”I’m always down for another sparring match, hopefully though we talk some and get to know each other before that though… I’d rather want to know more about the person I should be thanking if the training sessions help me out of some dangerous situations. Know what I mean?”
@Nalla

 

While Nalla's pain tolerance had been greatly heightened since her entrance into the game, the flame that singed together the tear in her body still gave her a tough discomfort. Fortunately for her, in this circumstance, there was an alternative. She was grateful that the person in front of her, who was a difficult adversary moments prior, was now assisting her in recovery. Silently knocking herself in the brain, she internally scoffed. Bandages. Why wasn't she carrying bandages? For one who previously held pride in her ability to be prepared, her lack of caution was going to get her killed one of these days... Again.

But thoughts of Azog did not seem to haunt her as much as they used to. The bundle of flashbacks and memories that hit her upon logging back into the game, after her break, had been as explosive and horrifying to the original happening, but since then... There was not wince that came to her face when the thought of her high dive into that volcanic maw. Part of that absence brought comfort, but the other provided questions.

Taking the offered drink, the pyromancer gulped it down in an instant, before lifting the hem of her shirt to apply the bandages to her wound, now more burnt than bleeding. Whilst placing the cloth over her stomach, wrapping it around behind her back, she listened to Kaede. Something nagged her in the back of her mind. Something she had meant to mention, but was uncertain of it's appropriateness.

"Earlier," The entrance of this word was abrupt, sounding vaguely similar to the clearing of one's throat, before smoothing out with the following statement, "You bowed your head to the ground in apology." Letting her shirt come down, the bandage fully applied, Nalla continued, "That sort of reminded me of... Something." Reaching up to the back of her neck, she left her hand there, before her hesitant words escaped again. "Are you also from Japan?" Of course, upon speaking, she cursed herself for such insolence! The word 'also' had been such a careless slip! It not only gave hints towards who she was outside of the game, but also her physical appearance. It was a long shot to think anyone would track her down but... Paranoia ran rampant in her mind. Her heart was a rattle in the hands of an active infant, shook left and right and with growing vigor.
@Kaede Hoshi

 

”Yes, sorry if the action was a bit odd. I’m just glad i did not start fumbling my words and mixing Japanese into my sentences… Worst history report grade i ever got ha-ha…”

_____Kaede smiled softly after her laugh, she found it best not to try and pry at the girl’s question or her reactions after asking it. The memory of her first ever history report took most of her focus away, she never did do well speaking in front of large crowds and if not for her dad deciding despite being american to teach Kaede Japanese first so whenever she got flustered or very angry she would speak it rather then english.

_____Moving to give the girl some room hoping it was not the closeness that was making Nalla uneasy. This was not exactly easy on her, the whole ‘helping’ and ‘friendly’ vibe she was trying to go for. Coughing to clear her throat, and deal with some of the smoke she still had in her lungs Kaede moved to start walking away before remembering it would be wiser to say goodbye rather then just walk off.

”I do hope at some point we can spar again Nalla, hopefully next time you ask for a time out before you go seering your wounds shut… or I don’t stab you with a dagger or weapon… I never did say sorry for that… sorry… ...A...Anyways, I’ve got to log out soon I think. There is this stupid classwork i still have to finish but because i got stuck i tried playing the game to refuel.”

_____Nervously moving to sway on her feet, rising to her tiptoes then moving back to resting both feet fully to the ground. Waiting a few moments to see if Nalla still wanted to talk before Kaede moved to open her UI and started to log out, she was not lying about the due report, but she was mostly sure she already passed the due time to submit it to her teacher. Needless to say she least wanted to have a chance to be wrong and get it in on time.
@Nalla