"How seriously we taking this," Kate asked, readying her bastard sword in a high two handed guard, with her hands over head. She sank into her footwork, ready to either slash or parry.

Blackrest held the ribbon loosely, with slack between his two grips. After his initial spin to unspool the material, he had quickly picked it back up. He eyed Kate's hips warily. "You've been taught better than that girl," Blackrest chided. "When's a spar ever not?"

Kate scoffed, "When it's meant for--" she darted forward, slashing downward from overhead while coming into a lunge "-demonstrations," she finished grunting.

Blackrest generated a loop of slack in the ribbon as he pivoted, aiming to encompass the sword before snapping taught.

Kate withdrew her sword before the ribbon tightened, using a backwards lunge to gain space, before quickly lunging forward again in a stab. Blackrest diverted the point of the blade with the stretch of ribbon between his hands, before snapping it out on a parabolic arc towards Kate.

Surprisingly, Kate chose not to block or parry the ribbon, likely fearful of getting tangled, and instead dove into a roll. She came back up with an arc of her own, aiming at Blackrest's waist in a bottom to top diagonal.

Blackrest pivoted away, using the added momentum to swing the ribbon around him in a fanciful twirl that was almost reminiscent of ballet; except in this case the performer was a grisled and scarred man with an eyepatch.

"Seems somewhat... fanciful," I murmured.

Esmerelda, watching besides me, snorted. "But graceful. Imagine instead of Blackrest, that it were me. Or you. You can see the appeal?"

I had to concede to that fact. Part of the disconnect in this situation was that Instructor Phillip Blackrest was dancing around with a ribbon. I was understanding his earlier hesitation more and more as the spar went on.

"Jackie," Esmerelda murmured beside me, her voice soft and lilting. "Have you noticed how Kate keeps glancing at you? Even during this spar? She must find you absolutely distracting."

I followed her gaze to where Kate fought, her bluish skin glistening with perspiration and her startlingly cyan eyes flicking toward me every so often. "What do you mean?" I asked, feigning ignorance.

"Come now, Jackie, don't play coy with me," Esmerelda chided gently, her ice-blue eyes twinkling with amusement. "You know very well what I mean. She's clearly taken quite the interest in you."

"Is that so?" I mused, watching as Kate deftly parried another knight's strike, her wooden bastard sword slicing through the air like a razor-sharp blade. It was hard not to admire her prowess, even if it did send a shiver down my spine.

"Indeed," Esmerelda replied, nudging me playfully in the ribs. "Perhaps you ought to indulge her curiosity, hm? There's no harm in getting to know one another better."

"Maybe," I hesitated, feeling a strange flutter in the pit of my stomach at the thought of engaging with Kate on a more personal level. "But I'm not sure if...you know."

"Ah, Jackie," Esmerelda sighed, shaking her head. "There is much you have yet to learn about the intricacies of human interaction. Trust me when I say that it is not as daunting as you might think."

"Easy for you to say," I muttered, watching as Kate dispatched yet another sparring partner with a swift, decisive blow.

"True," she conceded with a wry smile. "But that does not mean you cannot learn to navigate these waters just as effectively. Besides, from what I've seen, Kate Guardson is hardly the type to bite."

"Unless you cross her, of course," I added ruefully, recalling the way she had so effortlessly bested me in our earlier bout. "Then you might lose more than just a finger or two."

Esmerelda laughed. She thought I was joking. Of course she did. I was already hopeful that Kate would forget me by the time her spar finished.

Meanwhile, the spar was progressing at a strong pace.

Blackrest had managed to fling the edge of the ribbon around Kate before whipping it back towards him, somehow catching Kate's thigh.

"Gods!" Kate swore, falling off balance as she tucked, jumped, and rolled to escape the snare.

"Have nothing to do with it," Phillip mocked.

"I'll show you," Kate threatened, coming back in with a flurry of diagonals, from top right to down left then top left to down right. She came forward, slashing with each step in fury.

"Impressive," Esmerelda murmured. "I've heard of Sir Kate's ability..."

I nodded absently, thinking back to all the times that I had personally witnessed her ability. Not that I could admit to doing so.

"The fact Blackrest is not only holding her off, but winning, and with an off-skilled weapon at that... I think we've made the best decision," Esmerelda answered.

In response to Kate's offensive, Blackrest slipped back further, parrying when necessary with the slip of silk ribbon, pushing the blade just far enough away to prevent a cut. As he went, he released bits of the ribbon, so that it fluttered ahead of him, in his wake of retreat. I realized what was happening likely after Kate did, but by then it was too late, and the trap had been set.

"I've told you not to overcommit," Blackrest grunted, snapping the spool upward, causing the ribbon to follow suit up between Kate's legs and snagging her calf.

Kate had one final chance to cut him down before her footing was all but lost. She might have tried pulling back and recovering, but she went all in, committing to an overextended strike that lacked the weight of her normal attacks.

Blackrest used the handle of the spool to knock the wooden blade aside, and in the same upward motion, flicked his wrist so that a loop of ribbon went up and over Kate's head.

The onlookers cheered.

With the ribbon wrapped around Kate's leg and neck, Blackrest pulled with two hands, and sent Kate stumbling to the ground. He stepped on her practice sword and kicked it away, breathing hard.

"Ugh," Kate groaned, sitting up and unwrapping herself gracelessly. "Ass. Didn't have to make me look bad."

"Course he did!" one of the knights shouted back. "Why else would none of us volunteered?"

Several of the other men laughed, feeling justified in their lack of valor.

"You've somehow managed to get worse," Phillip said, rewinding his spool. "I woulda thought true combat to sharpen ability. You proved me wrong, girl. You got worse..." He muttered, going about doing several lunging stretches, wincing when his shoulders popped.

Kate's face flushed as she bent down and picked up her bastard sword once again. For a moment, I thought she might strike him out of anger. But her eyes lingered on the ribbon, then over on me.

"Not the best showing, I admit," Kate said, approaching me.

"Show's over everyone!" Phillip shouted at the onlookers, ignoring Kate.

"Might I still be honored by your name?" Kate said, making a half bow towards me.

Esmerelda nudged me forward, a mischievous smile on her face. "Go on," she murmured. "I do believe the girl likes you."

Kate's ears proved too sharp, as she turned to face us. "That I do," she said boldly with a smile. May I have your name?"

I hesitated for a moment before firmly replying, "No."

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Kate seemed taken aback by my response. "O-oh? Why, may I ask?"

I cleared my throat awkwardly and shook my head. "Nooo?" I answered, lacking a good reason but resistant all the same. The less I had to do with Kate, the better.

"Playing coy, then?" Esmerelda asked, laughing in an encouraging manner.

"If you won't give me a name, then I'll have to think up one for you," Kate proclaimed with youthful folly and exuberance.

I groaned and covered my face with my palms.

"Let's see..." Kate led off, tapping her chin theatrically. "What would a fine name be?" She seemed to be asking Esmerelda.

"I would not want to pollute your well of inspiration," Esmerelda replied, her voice like a silver bell's chime.

"Hm. Well now the pressure is upon me. I'll have to think for a bit and come back, to make sure the name is worthy of your beauty," Kate said to me.

I groaned even louder than before, a mixture of mortification and embarrassment.

Esmerelda nudged me, "We look forward to it, don't we?"

"You won't need to wait long. You'll be here on the morrow to train?" Kate asked.

Esmerelda answered on my behalf.

"Yes, we'll be here."

"Good! But if we're gonna be sparring, then we'll definitely be getting more familiar..." she said, waggling her eyebrows in an obscene fashion.

While Esmerelda may have tittered, I refused categorically. Why was Kate even trying this hard? She had literally just seen me for the first time, at least under this Guise? Unless... now that was a queasy thought; it involved the 'Gift' and I would rather not dwell on it at all.

I glanced around, looking for any sort of distraction. Phillip seemed aware of our discussion, though he was still stretching out and cooling off after the spar, and seemed willing to forgo providing instruction, at least at that second. Some of the other onlookers had gone back to their own drills, from archery to lopsided spars. No matter where I looked, I failed to find refuge from the persistent Kate. Even Esmerelda had betrayed me!

"Hey, c'mon!" Kate insisted, going to nudge my shoulder before thinking better of touching. "It's not often I see another girl my age sparring. This is exciting!"

I shook my head, blushing. Sensing her approach had failed, Kate changed topics. She sideled on closer. "Ya know," she said. "If you want to learn the battle-ribbon, I would be more than happy to help train."

"Oh?" Esmerelda said, her interest piqued. "You know the ribbon as well, Sir Kate?"

"Just the basics. My expertise lies with the sword."

"And what of the Instructor?"

"He doesn't make house-calls. Speaking of, where can I find you?" She waggled her eyebrows.

Blackrest returned, a scowl on his face. "I thought you lot were here to learn," he snapped. "Yet here ya are, yappin' jaws." He tossed the spindle of ribbon to me.

"It's the only one we got. I'll walk ya through some basics, but I've got other duties, an' it'll take practice. Still wanna learn?"

I nodded. The demonstration had only reaffirmed my desire. Originally, I had been choosing the least bad option. But now, now that I saw the dexterity and the possibility that a ribbon offered, I was somewhat excited.

"Alright then. We'll start with blocks, then get ya started on snares."

"You mentioned I should be practicing on my own?" I asked.

"Ya."

"Don't worry Jackie," Esmerelda said, likely intentionally revealing my name to the lingering Kate. "We'll pick you up something nice later. For now learn the basics."

Independent study then. I could learn that way, though it would be best if I had a guide. For some reason, I doubted I could find a useful instruction manual on ribbon fighting. It seemed very much non-standardized.

"Grip the ribbon loosely with your left," Phillip instructed, his eyes never leaving my hand as I tried to follow his directions. "You want enough slack to move freely, but not so much that you get tangled up."

I adjusted my grip, trying to find the right balance. My false-arm, unfortunately, was not the most dexterous, almost a split-second behind what I wanted, at best. But with practice, I hoped it would improve.

Phillip, meanwhile, didn't seem to have any patience for my struggles. He scowled and spat on the ground in frustration. "You're never gonna learn if you don't focus," he snapped. "Now try again."

And try I did. My right arm was to lead my left, with just enough slack to either wind around or deflect. But my left was too slow. Why did the limb not listen to my nerves when they fired? Seeming to sense my frustration, the tendrils attaching to my ribs writhed rhythmically.

Eventually, Phillip had enough. He came over and grabbed my false-arm, holding it out.

The hairs on the back of my neck raised. Would he recognize signs of the infestation? He had been around the block, he was an old seasoned veteran, there was a chance--

"Deviation?" Phillip asked, noting my silver limb and misshapen fingers. "You'll need to figure that out on yer own time." He sounded utterly disgusted.

"I could help!" Kate offered, having never left.

Phillip spat. "So you could. On your own time. For now, you owe me drills."

I let out a frustrated sigh as Phillip turned his attention to Kate, who was still lingering nearby. I could feel her gaze burning into my back, and part of me wanted to turn and glare at her for interrupting my lesson.

But another part of me was grateful for her offer to help. I had never been the type to ask for assistance, but in this case, I knew I needed all the help I could get.

"Fine," Phillip grumbled, clearly annoyed at Kate's persistence. "I'm getting too old for this. But you're still gonna owe me your endurance drills. Captain made a point of that."

Oblivious to the threat, or simply uncaring, Kate nodded eagerly, already moving closer to join me on the makeshift training ground. In or training, she would serve as an exaggerated mock aggressor, while also helping me to correct obvious deficiencies. Oddly enough, it helped.

The next hour was spent covering the basic stances, pivots, and blocks. Nothing near mastery, not even apprentice level. It was just to give me a taste of what I should be aiming for. I had my doubts about the teaching technique. As we rushed through the movements, I raised them up.

"Aren't I learning bad habits doing it this way?" I asked. "I would have thought--"

"That I'd spend time tutoring yer ass?" Phillip mock asked.

Esmerelda frowned slightly, just enough to provide a warning.

"Sorry woman. There's favors, then there's Favors. I'll do what I can, but I still got duties. Besides--" he glanced at my bare Marks on my right arm. "-Quality Marks tend to carry the distance."

Soon, my time training came to an end, and Esmerelda was leading me off for another errand, saying her goodbyes to Phillip, with her extracting a promise for him to visit her later. During that time, Kate approached me, having cut short her own drills. She was covered in sweat and grime, but smiling boyishly all the same.

"Heading off so soon?" she asked. "Here I hoped to spar with you a bit more."

I scoffed, and before I thought better of it: "I'm a neophyte. Maybe in a decade."

"Yeah, but, ya gotta start somewhere!" she said with a smile, showing off her slightly crooked teeth. "And you've got potential..."

"I'm sure you tell all the girls that," I scoffed, coming back to myself. If I took a step back, Kate was just another amorous pursuer. I had practice dealing with them. I had no reason to lose my confidence.

"You're actually the first," Kate said, taken somewhat aback. "Why, do you think that we get many girls? I thought I told you we're rare here."

"You did," I said, observing Kate's serious demeanor and lack of humor. I changed the subject, probing for possible information instead. "By the way, what are endurance drills? It almost seems like--"

"Punishment?" she said, smirking and shaking her head. "Well, basically because it is punishment. Assigned by my mom, ugh."

I had a fair idea of why she was on the receiving end of punishment, but I was not supposed to know that, at least if my Guise still held.

"Oh?" I asked, prompting for whatever more she would give.

She shook her head, smirking. "I'll tell you about it later," she said.

Of course, that was the exact moment that Esmerelda chose that time to come back.

"Sounds like a play-date!" Esmerelda said, laughing. "Now come along. Let's see about getting you a ribbon. And maybe a preparatory textbook?"

"For the Academy?" Kate asked, eyebrows raising.

"Naturally, Sir Kate."

"Kate! Get yer ass back to runnin'!" Phillip shouted.

I made a timely retreat, somewhat blushing.

Guise of the Kitsune: 5/9 (+1)

At least it seemed Kate had failed to see through my Guise.

Blessings: Rank (1/9)

* Body: 65

* Mind: 75

* Spirit: 49

Talents:

* Athleticism (3/9):

* Climbing I (3/9)

* Featherlight I (3/9)

* Inversion (2/9)

* Stealth I (6/9)

* Trackless Tracks I (3/9)

* Area Coverage (5/9)

* Alchemical Immunity (ineligible for growth)

* Eschiver I (1/9)

* Evasion I (1/9)

* Impending Sense (1/9)

* Lucky Break (1/9)

Spells:

* Illusion I (5/9)

* Touch (8/9)

* Guise of the Kitsune (5/9) (+1)

* Closed

Gifts:

* Obsession (3/9)

* Closed (0/9)

* Closed (0/9)