[ Action, Voice ] .021

[markofthebrave]

Hey, Caesar! Do you mind if I stop by this afternoon? [Because mind or not, she is coming. But before she gets there, if you asked after her while she had eye-mushi and she hasn't spoken to you yet, she's looking for you. She will be all about town, since she doesn't know where some of you live. She also plans on checking in with Sokka and the rest of the Gaang at some point today.]

[And later in the evening, after dinner and far past when she is usually fast asleep, you can find Katara practicing not far from her house. Since Ginko died she's been robbed of her rest - combine that with the draft list being posted and she's decided to cope the only way she knows how - by using the time to find some peace. For that purpose, she is doing a special form. She runs through the first without doing any bending at all. When she repeats it, she bends thin tendrils of water up and around and over, following the movements of her hands - and when one catches her eye she freezes it in place, creating a small practice area of frozen arches and swirls.

They won't last long, especially not in the heat of a summer night. That's not the point. That's not the point at all.]

Comments

[action]

[chaincutter]

[Someone else is up and about late as well, observing the village with a distant sort of attitude about him. He's not hard to spot, that silvery armor has a way of catching the moonlight and announcing his presence - probably across the river from her, if that's where Katara is. He watches for some time, still and quiet so as to not interrupt her. Unless she takes notice of him, he'll let her continue and go on his way.]

[action]

[markofthebrave]

[The natural course of the form brings her around in a full circle, and when she sees him, she pauses.] Hey. Sigmund, right?

[action]

[chaincutter]

[He dips his chin, both a greeting and an affirmation.] I did not intend to interrupt.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

That's all right. I was just finishing up. [You may notice that the entire area is surrounded by thin and melting frozen streams of water.]

[action]

[chaincutter]

[They are pretty noticeable, yes. Certainly enough so that he moves closer to get a better look at them.] You are quite skilled.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

Thank you. [She says because it's true - even if she's not sure how Sigmund's qualified to judge from what he saw.]

I had a good teacher.

[action]

[chaincutter]

Does something trouble you? [People usually aren't up and about late because they feel like it, or at least, he usually isn't.]

[action] 1/2

[markofthebrave]

[...what a question!]

[action]

[markofthebrave]

...it's a good night to practice. [Avoid the question? Well, why not? She came out to find peace, not dig around in all that was bothering her. There was more than one way to let something flow.]

The moon is out. Even if the stars are, well, that.

[Her disgust for that message is plain to see.]

[action]

[chaincutter]

[Sigmund glances up at the sky. His expression is mostly impassive, except for a slight narrowing of his eyes - not when he looks at the star-writing, when he looks at the moon. Either he doesn't notice her sidestepping of his question, or he simply doesn't care.]

It is cool, at least. And peaceful.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

Mmm. [She's just happy to let the subject drop, and manages to draw some small amount of comfort from the presence of the moon, even if it isn't real.] And what brings you out this late at night?

[action] sorry, life got a bit hectic

[chaincutter]

I was standing guard. [...Well. He was wandering guard, anyway. But it's a quiet night, and truthfully he just couldn't sleep.] Your training intrigued me.

[action] no worries! life does that.

[markofthebrave]

Oh, this? [She smiles a little.] This wasn't as much training as it was... well, I guess it was, in a way.

[She doesn't really want to talk about what she's doing out there right now that's not training.]

Is this what water users were like in your world?

[action]

[chaincutter]

[He blinks at her, and then his expression softens a bit and he tilts his head in a polite and sociable sort of way. Not all training is physical, after all.]

No. This is... delicate.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

Well, sometimes it's like this... and sometimes it's more. Was it always the same on your world?

[action]

[chaincutter]

... There is a spell that creates ice arrows. And a spell that kills instantly.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

A spell that kills - instantly? With water? How?

[action]

[chaincutter]

[He crosses his arms. That's a bit naive of her, but naivety isn't always a fault.] A carefully aimed shard of ice could kill instantly. It douses the target with tainted water. They die. [So dispassionate.]

[action]

[markofthebrave]

[Oh. That's a... bit of a relief, actually. She'd thought he'd meant something much worse.]

...so it's basically a kind of poison.

[action] this is so beyond forgivable that you should punch me for it

[chaincutter]

[Sigmund tilts his head a little, as if to say 'What should I know?' He's no mage, after all.]

Regardless, it is rarely so artful. [Although... he's starting to look quite thoughtful.]

[action] *punches* -- pff, no worries. Between notifs and birthday parties and everything else...

[markofthebrave]

[She notices his thoughtful expression, and, ever-curious...] What is it?

[action]

[chaincutter]

I was considering whether I might learn from it. [There are probably several people here too proud to think they can learn much from a teenage girl. Sigmund is not one of them.]

[action]

[markofthebrave]

[Katara doesn't find this out of place - after all, since she's arrived at Luceti, she's been intent on adapting her skills to everything of worth that she's found. But she is obscurely pleased - both at the request and at the way he phrased it. He's not interested in learning bending, and she's somewhat convinced that it can't be taught to people out of her world anyway, but in learning from it. That's an amount of respect that, dealing with Sokka day in and day out, she can appreciate.]

Hmm. What did you have in mind?

[action]

[chaincutter]

[His expression shifts from thoughtful and wise to something almost childishly earnest. It's subtle, as all of his expressions are, but definitely there.] You needn't do anything. My swordmaster just let me watch.

[action]

[markofthebrave]

[Ah. Well. There are two problems with this, and they flicker across her face in a moment of uncertainty. The first problem is that what she had been doing was private and special, a working out of loss and grief, an act of restoring her own inner balance. The second problem is that she doesn't know Sigmund - and is fully aware of just how much someone can learn by watching.

But then the moment passes, and she smiles at him.] Sure, if you like. But what I was doing before wasn't really for combat. So I'll do some more basic forms instead.