Those That Fail Don't Go On

     The kid moved, his fist just starting to fly towards Kaelan. He’s going to overextend himself, and when he does, he’ll be off-balance. It’d be easy to get him off his feet and onto the deck. Just one simple blow is all I need. Kaelan tensed, ready to dodge at the last possible moment and ready to knock the kid off his feet. But the last possible moment never came.

     A figure walked into Kaelan’s peripheral and a sudden flash of light came in between him and the other Tiro. Kaelan ducked, turning his face away from the light. The yelp that came from above told him that the kid had hurt himself, but Kaelan couldn’t feel bad. It was his own fault after all. Kaelan stood, looking over at the older Tiro. He was a Cepheid Variable magic user like Larael. Interesting. Here to save the day? Not like I need to be saved though.

      "Should really think about being a bit nicer to your comrades, eh?" The comment wasn’t aimed him but rather at the Tiro as he cradled his hand. Kaelan tilted his head slightly as he watched the newcomer smile maliciously. The glint in his eyes made Kaelan wary. It was savage, unappealing; it told of an anger that could explode, and it told of a person who let himself give in to these fits of anger.

     A streak of light came from the older Tiro, marring the other’s cheek. The Tiro then turned to Kaelan and let his head hang. "Mm, dare I ask what you were doing there, being such a--" He whipped around, gabbing onto the kid who had the audacity to attack him and within moments he had shoved the Tiro onto the deck. The kid scrambled away (obviously he had had enough, but there was still a gleam of anger in his eyes. Kaelan would have to watch out for him.) as the older Tiro turned back to Kaelan.

     "As I was attempting to say earlier, what would cause one like you to pick a fight with such a... Hot-headed kid like him, hm?" It was an indictment, but there was… approval in his voice too. Why?

     Kaelan lifted a brow. “Picking a fight? I was going to give him advice, but he decided he didn’t want any. Apparently he likes seemingly one-sided fights better.” He then turned to picked up his quiver so he could fish out his pen. His fingers closed around it and he pulled it out. Looking over at the older Tiro, he examined him for a moment before he put down the quiver and stuck out a hand. “Kaelan,” he said, deciding to introduce himself. He needed more friends. Now was a good time to start making some, right? It wasn’t like that other Tiro was going to welcome him with open arms.

     Kaelan nodded his acknowledgement before he took Anton’s hand. The look he had seen earlier in the young man’s eyes was gone, replaced by a smile on his lips. Was he like his magic then? Bright, powerful, volatile, unpredictable, but his anger dissipates just as quickly? Whatever you do, Kaelan, don’t get on his bad side. He’d not be an enemy you want to deal with. Though, by the politeness of the past moment or two, Kaelan doubted that he was on this young man’s bad side, but he was sure that his position could change within a moment’s notice.

     "So, I take it you're good with a bow?” He would say he was. Very good, at that. “I'm jealous of you, to an extent. I'm better than…” that Tiro you sent packing and his friends? A lot of people, beginners included, would be better than them. “Well, I've learned how to use a bow in my life, but I never had a good teacher." That’s good. Wait a second…

     He watched as Anton sat with his back up against the railing. "So, advice, hm? I might be just in need of that advice as he was.”

      Had Anton actually asked him to teach him without asking him? I think he did. Not that Kaelan would be opposed to teaching Anton. Better he learn from someone who had been shooting practically their entire life rather than trying to do it on his own like those other Tiros. Look at how well it had gone for them: lashed arms, marred cheeks, and bruised pride. It had gone so well.

     “Oh?” Kaelan asked as he sat down beside him. Once firmly planted on the deck, he reached into his pocket, pulled out the book, and flipped it open. Leafing through the pages, he stopped when he reached the half-filled page he had been writing on earlier. He had been partway through a sentence when the whole fiasco pulled him away from writing, and now he wanted to finish it before he completely forgot about it. His pen scratched across the rough paper for several seconds before he dotted the period. He blew on it gently to make sure the ink was dry before he closed the book and pocketed it once more.

     Writing that sentence had a dual purpose; it had given him a few extra seconds to think. With it done and over with though, Kaelan glanced over at Anton. “Are you asking me to teach you?” No sense in beating around the bush. That oftentimes got nowhere and was as pointless as could be. Better to get to the heart of things quickly.

     Had he put Anton on edge? The young man’s sudden relaxation had not gone unnoticed by Kaelan when he had closed the book. Had he not liked the silence Kaelan had deliberately caused? Must not have. Whoops. Too late to do anything about it now, though it was something to keep in mind for later on.

     Anton seemed unsure momentarily before he smiled and nodded. "I was trying to see if you were willing to teach me, but yeah. Lessons would be nice. Finally would get someone proficient to show me, instead of my father. He's a pretty good guy, but not the best marksman out there."

     Kaelan smiled back, letting out a soft laugh. “Of course, Anton, I am willing to teach you. And I understand. My father couldn’t really be considered a swordsman. He knew how to wield one, but not that well.” And that was probably the reason Kaelan’s swordsmanship was seriously lacking. His father had taught him what he knew: archery; he had tried with the sword as well, but that hadn’t gone particularly well. Granted Kaelan had become better with a sword since joining the Drakonrhedi, but still, he wasn’t that talented. It just didn’t stick in his head like archery had. He wished it did, but everyone had their particular skills and that just wasn’t one of his.

     "Of course, I do suppose it was a bit rude of me to assume you were giving lessons out to anyone who was asking. I'm more than willing to help you with anything you might need help with. Assuming I can help you, but we'll worry about that when it comes to it."

     The younger Tiro waved away his comment. “Don’t worry about it.” Kaelan stood and motioned to the range with a jerk of his head. “Might as well start now, yeah?” He picked up his quiver, slinging it over his shoulder, before he took hold of his longbow.

     How had his father felt when he first began to teach his son the craft he had mastered long ago? How proud had he been when Kaelan had first hit the target, and when he had taken down his first deer? Kaelan could still feel the gentle hands over his own as his father guided his unsteady arms. He could still hear the shout of acclamation that came from his father’s lips as he fired near perfect shots for the first time. He could still see the love and pride in the big man’s eyes and the smile that reached his face as he was chosen to join the Drakonrhedi.

     An unconscious smile reached Kaelan’s lips and it took him a moment to realize it had. He let it slip away as he headed over to the range. “You’re right-handed, Anton?” he asked, looking over his shoulder at the older Tiro. Most of the practice bows were for right-handed people, but there were a few for the rare left-handed people like himself. He’d also have to make sure that Anton could properly draw the bow without having difficulties or over draw it. And then they could start on the basics.

     “The difference?” Kaelan glanced back at him before he paused in his walking and held up his longbow, pointing to just above the handle. “You see that L-like shelf, yeah? It’s called an arrow rest. I’m left-handed, and because I am, my arrow rest is on the right side of the bow. For someone who’s right-handed, like you, it’ll be on the left.” He started walking again. “Most bows will have an arrow rest,” he explained, “but you can still find longbows without them, and horsebows, bows you use when riding a horse, usually will not have them.”

     "And, I hope you don't mind be asking, but how old are you? You can't be older than me -- I won't allow it."

     Kaelan quirked a brow and laughed. “You won’t allo-“ Anton’s hand was suddenly messing up his hair, causing him to break off midsentence and duck his head. He took several quick steps away from Anton, glaring up at him. “Oh hell no. You do that again, and I’ll make sure you have one less hand.” Yes, he was short. Yes, he knew he was short, and there was no need to go around patting his head to remind him of that, even if it was just for fun. Yeah, fun on their part, not his. And not like he’d need reminding when he had to look up at practically everyone anyway.
He grumbled to himself as he ran a hand through his green hair to get it back to the way it was, making sure to stay several steps away from Anton lest the older Tiro did it again.

     Kaelan was tempted to say that he was nearly twenty-one just to spite Anton, and he nearly did too, but he decided against it at the last second. “I’m seventeen, and yes, I’m short. I know.” He gave an annoyed smile before he let it fall away. There was no reason to stay angry for long. Anton had probably done it jokingly and meant no harm. He let out a sigh and stopped before the rack that held the practice bows.

     His eyes roamed over the different sized bows for a moment before they settled on one. Glancing back at Anton he thought for a moment. It may work. Letting his own bow lean against the rack, he plucked the bow from its resting spot. Kaelan took its string, slid a loop onto the upper limb put the other loop in the lower limb’s bow nock. He then put his leg between the string and the bow, putting the tip against his right foot. Placing a hand against other tip, he pulled the limb back toward himself, at the same time sliding the string into place with his other hand.

     Stepping out from the bow, Kaelan twanged the taut string and smiled. Looking over at Anton, he lightly tossed the bow to him. “See if you can pull that back. If it’s too difficult, or you overdraw, I’ll find one you can draw, okay? And, whatever you do, don't let that string go when there's no arrow. You can break the bow and hurt yourself. Neither of which would be good.” He then picked up his longbow and watched Anton to make sure that bow would be fine for him.

     “I apologize. I'm not the first one to do that,” nope, “and I hadn't realized how frustrating it would be...” Extremely so. “I hope you forgive me, and I sincerely hope I don't have to experience your archery skills first hand.” Ha. Like I’d shoot someone just because they insult me. Well… No, probably not.

     Well, at least Anton realized that Kaelan could follow through with a threat—he was a part of the Drakonrhedi for a reason. Most people underestimated him just because of his size. He knew he couldn’t compare to others brute strength, they could probably pulverize him without breaking a sweat, but he was lighter on his feet, he could move faster, he could outwit them, and it did help that a few sharp jabs in the right places could force a man to his knees. Yes, Kaelan would fight dirty if the need arose, but usually he didn’t need to; outwitting them suited him just fine.

     “So long as you don’t do it again, you won’t have to worry about that,” Kaelan responded, implying that Anton was forgiven.

     The other Tiro was unprepared when Kaelan tossed the bow to him, but he managed to catch it. Kaelan suppressed a smile even though he realized he probably should have given Anton a warning, but one always had to be prepared for the unexpected so… Just keeping him prepared.

     Anton tested the string and Kaelan raised a brow. The Tiro didn’t seem too sure about what he was doing. Perhaps it’s been so long since he’s handled a bow? He did say his father was a poor teacher. But it was kind of hard to forget something like that even if it had been years. Maybe he’s never handled one before. Anton’s question and arched brow only fueled Kaelan’s newly formed suspicions.

     “Too hard is if you can’t pull it back or it’s too difficult for you to do so," he replied. "Too easy is if you pull the string back way too much, that’s easier to tell though if there’s an arrow on the string. But it didn’t seem too hard for you, and as far as I could tell you weren’t over drawing it, so,” he shrugged, “it should be fine.”

     He cocked his head, unsure if he should ask if Anton had actually held a bow before. Maybe later he would.

     “Here, you’re not holding it quite right.” Kaelan walked over and let his bow lean against his shoulder. He then readjusted Anton’s grip on the handle. “The handle shouldn’t be in you palm, rather it should be to the side of the ball of your thumb. Right here.” He held up a hand and traced where Anton should be holding it.

     Kaelan turned and picked up one of the many quivers before he headed over to stand a number of yards from a target. He motioned with his head for Anton to join him. Plucking an arrow from the quiver, he held it out for Anton to take.

     “When you shoot, stand with your feet shoulder width apart, left shoulder facing the target. You want to have your left arm straight, but don’t lock your elbow. If you do, the string can catch your arm and that’s never pleasant. When you pull back the string you want an anchor point, this is where you should always draw the string to. A few examples would be the corner of your mouth, your cheek, your ear. I suggest drawing to the corner of your mouth because that tends to be easier, but that’s up to you. I’m just going to assume that you know how to nock an arrow and how to hold the string.” That’s the bare bones yeah? Yeah. “So, go ahead and shoot. I’ll correct you as you go along.”

     He stepped out of the way of the target and stood off to the side and slightly behind Anton to watch.

     Aha! So Kaelan had been right to assume that Anton probably hadn’t touched a bow before. (Maybe he should have given Anton the information more slowly, but it seemed that he had picked up everything, so Kaelan guessed it would be fine. Not to mention that he’d be fine repeating stuff.) It was obvious in the slow way he positioned himself and the “What do I do now?” look in his eyes. It took him several seconds to put the arrow to the string. Maybe he should have given Anton the information more slowly, but it seemed that he had picked up everything, so Kaelan guessed it would be fine. he knew which end went where and didn’t need to ask how to nock the arrow.

     Some poor kid several years ago had actually asked him that question, and Kaelan wanted to face-palm. It was easy enough; just make sure that the string was in the notch of the arrow. Simple, right? Apparently not.

     Anton gripped the string and pulled it back. Kaelan cocked his head, mentally judging Anton’s form. His right elbow needed to go down slightly; his left arm was too tense; his grip on the belly of the bow too tight; he needed to use his back muscles to pull the string, not his arm. Stop nit-picking, Kaelan. This is his first shot. It took him a while to release the arrow (probably figuring out what was the best way) and even before the arrow had left the bow Kaelan knew it wasn’t going to hit the mark.

     True to form, the arrow shot past the target and sped onward. Kaelan mentally winced as an image of a shaft accidently hitting someone popped into his head. Over all it wasn’t a horrible shot for a first try, but it wasn’t spectacular either. Anton would have to practice if he wanted to become good.

     "So, it may have been the worst shot you've seen in your life, but go easy on me. How'd I do?”

     Kaelan smiled. Anton probably thought he that he made a terrible archer, but, in Kaelan’s eyes, he had potential if he actually wanted to have more than one lesson. “Actually not that bad. Need to loosen your left elbow and your grip on the bow. You’re tensing too much and that throws off your accuracy.”

     "And, just to appease my curiosity, think I could see you shoot as well? It might be just as helpful as the practice itself. After all, it's pointless to practice something that doesn't work."

     This time he laughed before he asked lightly, “If archery didn’t work, do you honestly think that I’d have dedicated practically my life to it? But of course, Anton, I will. Seeing it might help just as much.” Looks like he’d have to get Anton into the proper position and fix his stance slightly, along with explaining a few more things after he gave a demonstration.

     Kaelan had his longbow strung in a matter of seconds. Taking the quiver from his shoulder, he hooked it around his waist, the nocks of the arrows at his left hand. Practicing was the only time he used this quiver. He had another one, a back quiver, in his room. That one he used for hunting; his hip quiver wasn’t suitable for it, or at least he didn’t like using it for that purpose, because it could easily get caught on undergrowth and would just be in the way generally.

     Kaelan stepped over to the target, waving Anton to move off to the side. After all, safety first. It wasn’t likely that something would go wrong, but there was still that off-chance that something may. He stepped back several paces before he got into position. He held the bow lightly, just enough to keep it from falling out of his grasp when he shot, and pulled an arrow from the quiver. It was noticeably longer than the arrow Anton had used, but then again, his bow was 70” and the one Anton was using was much shorter. Notching the arrow, Kaelan brought up the bow, holding the string with his fingertips. He pulled the string back to his ear using his back muscles and aimed for a fraction of a second before he released it.

     The arrow sliced through the air, swooshing as it went. It struck the target dead on and imbedded itself several inches. Only then did Kaelan move from his position and glanced over at Anton. “See? It works just fine,” he said with a smile.