It Takes a dog to train a cat (Kita)

[Ryalas]

Ryalas stepped through the dew covered grass, this morning was a chilly one and he watched the fog of his breath rise and disappear to make it more cold was that his clothes weren't meant for this weather. They were loose and easy to removed plus he had no shoes so his skin was stepping on rocks, twigs, and of course the cold morning dew. Ryalas walked into a open clearing looking around "i believe this was the place...if she shows up" he sighed, "i doubt it..." ryalas approached a tree and say underneath it gently tugging on the Choker around thinking about the woman he was supposed to meet to teach him how to use a Bow & Arrow "kita..." he said to himself "she was so beautiful...and even thinking of her makes my hear race once again..damn it..i hope she shows up.." he looked down at his hands opening and closing them "one of these day's ill take this damn choker off..just 5 minutes of being natural again..would be amazing.." he closed his eyes Smelling the cool air and placed his hand on his stomach "man im hungry again...hopefully i'll be able to hunt for my own again." he smiled thinking of kita teaching him how to hunt "hey at least i'll be able to be close to her while shes teaching me" he smiled waiting patiently

[Kita]

The air was cool and it whipped around Kita's air as she walked to meet Ryalas. She was excited, estatic even. When she saw Ryalas she felt like she was running through the Avanthal snow. She felt at home, free, and most of all happy. She had never felt this way before. She felt like her heart was trying to float out of her chest. She remembered back in Avanthal Tayn had claimed to be in love with someone. He told Kita that the girl he loved was always on his mind and she made his heart race. Ryalas made her feel the same way. He made her heart race so fast that she thought I was going to break out of her chest and it would have been a flat out lie if she said that she never thought of him. Just the thought of him made her blush. He was so kind to her. She could not wait to see him but she kept an even pace. She liked these relaxed walks through the mountains. Her delicate bare feet walked across the cool forest floor. She loved to walk barefoot. She had always disliked wearing shoes. It made her feet feel locked in and when they were covered she couldn't feel the earth through her feet. She felt in tune with everything around her and what made it better was she was heading to see Ryalas.  When Kita saw him standing there she smiled and ran to his side. "Ready for your lesson Ryalas?" Kita was slowly getting more talkitive around her feline friend. She felt comfortable, like she did not have to hide anything. It was a luxuary that she did not have to often.  Kita pulled out her bow and moved her fingers across the arc of the weapon. "Archery is not like using a sword. It requires concentration and focus. If you just blindly shoot at things you will not hit anything." Kita's ear twitched as she heard a rustle in the trees. She looked up at the bird that was preening in the tree. Kita's eyes narrowed and suddenly she was someone different. No longer was she sweet little Kita. She was a ruthless hunter. "The first arrow must hit the target or it will get startled and flee. " Her gold eyes were focused on the bird and she slipped an arrow from her pouch. She closed her eyes and breathed in. With her breath her arm drew the arrow back. She began to speak to Ryalas like a girl possessed. This was truely her art. Some girls liked to paint, some girls liked to arrange flowers. Kita truly loved archery. "You need to feel everything. Feel the wind blowing, feel the weight of your arrow,and most of all, feel the bow you are working with. Without it you are just throwing a small spear." Her eyes shot open and she shot her arrow. The arrow flew like a rocket through the air and hit the bird right out of the tree. Her gold eyes widened and a huge smile spread across her face showing her fox-like fangs. She grabbed Ryalas by the hand and ran after the fallen bird.  When she got to the bird laying bloody in the grass she beamed at Ryalas. "Now you can try." She looked down at her brotger's bow in her hands. She handed it to him and smiled. She never let anyone use, let alone touch her bow. She trusted Ryalas though. She knew her bow was safe in his hands. "Just do what I did. Listen to the forest, aim, and shoot. If you miss it is fine. Just getting it to shoot straight is a feat within itself." She felt a wave of pride wash over her as she watched Ryalas with her bow. Just a year ago Tayn was teaching her how to use a bow and now she was teaching someone else. It made her feel close to Tayn. Everything about Ryalas made her feel so close to home.

[Ryalas]

Ryalas's mind wandered to Kita again and he smiled "can't wait to see her." he stated to himself taking in another nose full of air "cold..refreshing with a hint of roses..and canine" he smiled remembering whose scent that was. "kita." he whispered to himself opening his eyes and scanning the tree line for his new found friend. he felt his heart race and his breathing become harder, she was constantly in his head every moment since he met her yesterday Ryalas has thought of her. he even dreamed about her, it had been a long time since he had a dream...not a nightmare.
He was ecstatic when he saw her step through the brush-line with her bow, She was beautiful and wore a smile bigger than one he's seen "Kita! its great to see you" he walked up and gave her a giant hug pulling her close "it's great to see you...and sure i'm ready to give it a try." he said reluctantly letting her go. he loved to be in her arms, feeling her skin and the rise and fall of her chest in unison with his, he smiled and took a step back watching as her ears twitched and she closed her eyes closing in on her prey. He followed hers up to bird perched on a tree not far from where they were he approached her silently placing his hands on her hips watching every move she made and he leaned in gently smelling her hair then he jumped when she released the arrow and let it fly to the bird hitting it dead on "wow..." he whispered to himself when she took his hand and led him to the body "looks tasty" he mumbled. He was shocked when she handed him the bow "really? your brothers bow? wow...i was expecting you to just show me..not let me really use his..i kinda thought you would be offended if i used Tayn's bow." he swallowed hard, closing his eyes and listening for anything he heard a bird land on a tree and squawk not to far from them he turned, notched a arrow and began to pull. He was surprised to see that the Tension was high on the bow "thats right..this was a mans bow." he smiled pulling back until it became easy and placed his finger on the arrow mimicking everything Kita did with her arrow, he inhaled and held his breath bringing his hands into a steady position and aimed, on the exhale he released the arrow as it flew through the air towards its target...except the arrows target was the tree. The bird Sqwuaked again and looked at ryalas as if to say "ha. you missed" and flew away "ma-" he cut himself off as he felt a intense pain, he dropped the bow and looked at his arm there was a large red mark and even some ripped skin were the string ripped across his fore arm "ow...that hurts like hell" he said biting his lip and standing up again "sorry for dropping the bow" he shook his head trying to push away the pain and picked up Taym's bow wiping of the dirt on it "guess i should recover your arrow. huh?" he smiled at her trying to reassure he was fine even though the pain was intense.

[Kita]

A shock ripped through Kita's body when Ryalas placed his hands on her sides. She was not expecting that. She smiled at the touch. It was good to feel someone close to her. It was a bit distracting to have his hands on her waist but it was a distraction she welcomed.  Seeing Ryalas with Tayn's bow was quite a sight to see. He was surprised that Kita let him use her bow. "No, Tayn loved archery. It was like art to him, as it is to me. He would be glowing with pride if he knew that his bow was being used to teach someone about his most charished art." Ryalas reminded Kita a bit of her brother as he pulled back in the arrow. There was a similarity between the two that she could not put her finger on. Maybe it was because both of them had long dark hair. Tayn's had been lighter than Ryalas' though. Where her new friend's hair was purely black Tayn's was brown with black streaks. Then she saw it. It was Ryalas' stance when he pulled back on the bow. It was strong even though as far as Kita knew, he had never used a bow before.  It was not surprising that Ryalas was unable to hit a target on his first try. One would have had to have been a natural for them to hit a target on the first go. That or luck was turning things in their favor. She giggled as the arrow stuck into the tree. "Don't worry, it was very... She trailed off when she saw Ryalas bleeding. She raced to his side and placed her hand on his arm. "Oh my gosh! I'm sorry you got hurt!" She lightly ran his fingers down his arm. "Come on, we need to wash your arm. Don't worry about the arrow, I'll get it." She grabbed his hand and walked toward a small stream.  Kita did not know a lot about healing. The Whitevine hold was in charge of that in Avanthal where she was from. No one else really needed to know how to heal. She did know that the best way to halt infection was to clean the wound. When the got to the river's edge she cupped water in her hands and ran it over Ryalas' wound. She knew that the best way to clean the wound was to lick it clean but she was not sure if this man would want her licking his arm even if he did seem to have affection for her. When the wound stopped bleeding and brought his arm to her lips and kissed it. "Jeran always kissed my wounds when I got hurt. I know it is silly but it always helped me." She smiled and looked at Ryalas. She pulled a peice of cloth out of her bag and wrapped it around his arm delicately. "So do toy want to try your hand at archery again or are you scared?" She was joking with him. She really enjoyed his company. He was not to quiet nor was he exceptionally loud. Just like her. It made her feel comfortable. If only her brothers could see her now.

[Ryalas]

[

Ryalas was happy when she allowed him to keep his hands on her sides.

"well...both you and your brother must be a marvelous sight with a bow..because watching you pull back and fire the arrow...it was spectacular..you were beautiful. and judging by the bow your brother must really of loved this art and you must as well by how clean and amazing condition you kept it in." he smiled as he inhaled to release the arrow.

While he was on his knees Kita ran to him gently running her fingers over the mark, winced in pain "im telling you Kita im fine..its not gonna kill me..ive had much worse. it's just a simple burn and torn skin, not gonna cause any serius damage" he smiled again trying to re assure her he was fine, but, she would not listen to him, he realized this when she took his hand to wash the wound "Kita..im fine" he said as she dragged him to a stream and dipped her hand in the water gently splashing water onto his "wound". it was cold and made him shiver when she first threw it on the blood and it washed down his arm "there see all better" he smiled "there was nothing to be worri-" he lost what he was about to say when he felt and saw Kitas lips on his arm his face turned red and his heart raced to the point it skipped a beat every few thumps in his chest "wow...it is alot better!" he smiled blushing again "scared...yes i am.." he sighed trying to make the blood leave his face "however..it is not about trying archery again...it is your reaction to this..." he moved his hand up and behind her head gently placing it on the back of her neck and pulling her close. he closed his eyes and shocked himself when he realized he was doing this "well..there's no turning back now" he thought as he gently brought her lips to a kiss and took her hand in his free hand.

After Kita's reaction ryalas stood, "if it's alright with you..i would like to continue my training with the bow..please?" he took another arrow and notched it pulling the string back and looking at a tree "this shouldn't be hard." he took in another breath reclaiming his prior stance, only with a minor adjustment to keep the arrow from running across his arm and exhaled releasing the string. Once again, however, the arrow missed where ryalas was aiming and hit the ground beside the tree "i am just horrible" he smiled notching another arrow, inhaling, then exhaling, releasing the arrow. another miss "this is just getting annoying" after many arrows scattered across the forest floor ryalas shook his arm "i just can't do it" he said placing the bow against a tree rubbing his shoulder from the strain of constantly pulling the string "oh and...my apology if you took offence to the kiss...but kita...i was in Syliras before i came here and someone told me a word...explained to me what it was and how to know if it had captured you...kita...that word was love...and.." he shook his head "never mind" he walked past her picking up the arrows from the ground here and there.

[Kita]

Shock rippled through Kita like the arrows she was so fond of shooting. Ryalas had pulled her in close and her lips here on hers. Was this what Tayn had dreamed of when he spoke of the girl he was in love with? Had he wanted to lock lips as she was doing now with Ryalas? She felt as though every inch of her body was alive. Her heart was racing, she had butterflies in her stomach, but most of all she kissed back. She never thought this would happen to her. She wrote kissing off as a human privilage. She never thought that a kelvic like her would be able to feel another person's lips on her's. It was like a dream. An archery filled, feline smelling dream and she loved it. She had thought Tayn was so silly getting so head over heels for that polar bear kelvic he had seen on the docks each day. Now she knew why he made the daily travel to the Port of Avanthal jus to see a glimpse of her. Being in love, if this was truely what it was, was worth braving a mountian just to see who ever held your heart for a moment. Shortly after the kiss the two went back to training per Ryalas' request. Kita watched patiently as Ryalas tried and failed at hunting with the bow and arrows. It was expected. No one mastered the bow in a day. It took a year for Kita to get the level was was now. She was not amazing at the bow, far from it. She did know a thing or two about shooting though. "Don't give up so easily Ryalas. In life one can only truly appreciate something if they work for it. If you got everthing you wanted the moment you wanted it or mastered a skill the moment the class started how could you feel pride in working for it? With time comes reward." She smiled at him and drew patterns in the dirt with her bare feet. Her ears perked as Ryalas began to speak. He stopped himself short and looked embarassed. Was he going to say what she was thinking? She looked at him "Finish your thought Ryalas. If you are going to speak in cut off scentancss you might as well keep them to yourself." Her voice was kind and incouraging. She wanted him to say what he as going to say. She looked at him with her bold gold eyes and placed her hand on his arm. "What were you going to say?" She tried to make herself as welcoming as possible. She knew the words were hard to say but she knew that if he admired to her what she expected he would she would know in tgat instant if this was truely love.

[Ryalas]

Ryalas smiled "yeah i wasn't expecting to hit anything either. But hey, i was hoping to atleast come close to what i'm aiming for..." he sighed picking up more arrows. he seemed to ignore Kita's request to finish his sentence, it wasn't that he was trying to be rude or add mystery to his answer. it was more that he was scared to say it, afraid of her reaction afraid of her rejection aswell "i...missed arrows" he turned and continued to pick up the projectiles from the forrest floor "man she is gonna get pissed if i don't respond soon..." he thought, standing and placing the arrows in the quiver. He turned to Kita, bit his lip thinking of how to explain his feelings. "well..." he thought then shook his head "thats not a good one.." he sighed and approached Kita gently pulling her close and moving the hair out of her eyes looking deep into them, "kita...i love you...i didn't think i did before i thought it was simply someone to talk to and someone who finally wasn't scared of me...but now..i have to believe Kita that i truly do love you..." he sighed, gently kissing her head and wrapping his arms around her and smiled "when im with you...i feel surreal...like im dreaming..after that time in darkness i finally found a light.." he smiled closing his eyes taking in her scent again A womans scent but with hints of canine her beauty as a human was only matched by her beautiful kelvic form, a fox, he smiled remembering yesterday "guess i should let go of you now..." he gently kissed her fore head again stepping away "well...if were gonna go find your brothers...i need to find some warmer clothing...and get this chain off" he said yanking on the choker around his neck "i truly do hate it..and ive been dying to repay you back for showing me your form." he smiled gently touching her face "you truly are beautiful"

[Kita]

The waves of anticipation ripped through Kita's body like the rushing elk from her home in Avanthal. She got nervous like this far to easily and when she got nervous she got cold. It was an odd reaction but the cold bolts seemed to shoot through her body as she waited for his answer. He wasn't answering though. He just went around picking up arrows and her heart began to sink. Why would she think that he would return her feelings? She had set herself up for disapointment or so she thought.  As the last of the arrows were gathered Ryalas walked to her and she looked up at him with somewhat sad eyes. She was surprised that the very idea she had just shot down was happening right before her eyes. He loved her! He really loved her! She felt her heart racing and she tried to hold back tears of joy. She wasn't alone anymore. He pulled away after kissing her on her forehead and appologized for telling her that he loved her. Kita was a shy girl, painfully shy infact. Something washed over her though. She grabbed his shirt and pulled his lips down to hers. "Never appologize for love. " She barely made the words out before kissing him. It felt good to be close to someone. She looked up at him and smiled. "Thank you Ryalas. You are not to bad yourself." She ran her fingers over Ryalas' choker. She really wanted to see his animal form. She could only imagine what he looked like. She looked up at the choker "I cannot wait to see what you look like. Take your time though. I know it is hard. I'll be here for you whatever happens." She really was. She knew how kelvics could get when they were trained to kill people. If needed she could run but she trusted Ryalas. She knew be wouldn't hurt her. "So I'm guessing the archery training is off?"

[Ryalas]

Ryalas smiled it felt good to tell her everything...better then good fantastic and amazing. He was shocked when she grabbed his shirt, he was expecting a punch or a slap for saying those things to her, but instead, he felt her pulling him close when her words registered into his brain it was already to late he felt her lips touch his and was in bliss. Ryalas wrapped his arms around her trying to smile and kiss at the same time if it was possible..he was definitely doing it, that and kissing back of course. He smiled at the compliment but was still in a daze he couldn't believe what had just happened moments before he had only know Kita for about 2 days now and she just pulled HIM into a kiss. he just watched her with a goofy smile on his face until she touched his choker, this pulled him out of the daze and back to reality. He froze feeling her fingers on his choker, then sighed gently placing his hand on hers and smiling at her "i promise...soon i will have this off...i plan to go into town and pay for it to be removed...or something...this is horrible...i want to be free again" he smirked "and here i go rambling my problems to you again...and thanks...its nice to know that if things go wrong the closest person you have won't abandon you..." He smiled "yeah...i think i pulled a muscle in my arm or something" he stated while rubbing it "although in between i wouldn't mind training again...it is a nice technique to know...err..art..my bad" he smiled gently kissing her head again "i guess i should find a tree tonight huh...." he picked up her bow and quiver holding out "thank you for the help."

[Gossamer]

. Character: Ryalas Experience: +3 Bow, +2 Observation Lore: Stealing Kisses, Dangers of Archery (string lash, muscle aches), Professing Love, Being Nervous Character: Kita Experience: + 3 Bow, +3 Teaching, +1 Medicine Lore: Having a Kiss Stolen, Teaching Archery, Having Someone Love You Additional Note: Next time I wouldn't have cut the thread so short. There was a lot you still could have done here. But overall it was a nice sweet read. I love how nervous Ryalas is around Kita. .