Riley rose up out of the water within the tub like a sea monster, the water cresting at her neck, leaving little room for bubbles.

A green scum accented the bubbles, as did dirt and grime, the result of weeks of build-up from the city streets and the endless running through the woods.

"Oh, nothing has ever felt so good," She whispered, eyes closed, ignoring the tickle of suds existing between her ears, which stood like twin towers, rising up over the lip of the tub, as she remained centered, and transfixed within it, the hot water soaking into abused muscles and her recently healed frame.

Reveling in the relaxation, Riley checked her prompts:

Righteous flame progression to 2-3 now at 20%

Chaos Bolt progression to 2-3 now at 20 %

Healing Halo progression to 2-3 now at 10%

You have been afflicted with the debuff "Sore Ribs." Your movement and reaction speed is decreased!

"Just another reason to soak," She muttered, her eyes half lidded.

“1,2,3,4!” The sounds of Tobias going through his sword training drifted over her sensitive ears, forcing her eyes to open. She flattened her ears, trying to ignore the noise and distraction of his ambition.

The sudden rush of warmth through them forced her muzzle to dip in deep relaxation.

Straightening up, not wanting to get soap up her nose.... again, she shook her head in an effort to gain greater consciousness.

“5,6,7,8,9!” Riley felt the tug on their currently shared power as the light of an orange flame showed through the paltry fabric door, providing an illusion of privacy.

As it turned out, the town didn't have a tavern or an inn, but it did have a laundry.

"Good enough," she said with rumbling agreement towards that errant thought, only as Tobias got going again.

"1, 2,3,4!" He had hardly taken time to wash or eat; there was a new focus and direction to him.

"I hope he's ok," Riley worried within, only to see Cid burst through a drying room in the back, looking cleaner than she had ever seen him.

She eyed a tub of clean but cold water next to her, contemplating the awful impending moment when her vacation would end.

"I hate trains," She allowed herself a whine to punctuate the thought, which caused Zorna to perk up her head from where she was resting in the corner.

"What? You don't even like baths. You're missing oooouuut," she teased.

The kraus barked.

"Zorna hush!" Cid said. Riley noticed he was strapping on his sword and tying back his hair.

She needed to get out; it was clear enough that Cid saw something, too.

"God dammit," Hooking her paws over the lip of the tub, she pulled herself out, the cold attacking her wet fur with almost physical force as she wearily hopped her way toward the rinsing tub.

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Tapping it tepidly with a forepaw, her ears flattened again as she jerked back.

"It's ice cold!" Landon must have been pulling from a deep well or a snowmelt creek. Tobias had been the one to heat her water, and it was perfect, beyond perfect.

Wearily, she looked back towards the soapy basin with longing.

"What's on your mind, boy?" Cid asked, prompting her toward action.

"Just practicing, sir," Tobias replied.

"Oh," the sound of a blade being drawn drew Riley's attention, "show me."

"I hate my life," pulling at her power, she reached out for righteous flame, her paws glowing white.

Holding them over the water for a few moments, she was distracted by

the clanging of blades, losing her cast.

"Good, nice form. Now try to actually hit me!" Cid laughed in his mad, manic way.

"Fuck it," With a hop, Riley leapt into the still cool water and forced her muzzle under.

"Oh god! Oh god!" rising up, she shivered before falling into a groom, making sure to get her ears, trying to work the soap out of her fur.

A blade clanged. It sounded like Tobias', followed by the wet sound of fist meeting flesh.

"Tighten that defense. This isn't a game!" Cid snapped.

Tobias grumbled in anger, prompting her to pull herself out and shake herself off, sending water flying everywhere, forcing Zorna to duck and run for cover.

"Good enough," she said, pausing to shake one more time. Now feeling not just chilled but frozen, she dashed out to see Tobias charging hard for Cid, sword low, broadcasting form one. At the last moment, he slid, then rolled into a forward summersault, going for a low form nine, scything at his instructor's knees.

Cid, like a ballet dancer, took a quick step back and brought his sword down in form two, impacting Tobias' blade and driving it towards the ground using the position to pop him in the chin with the pommel.

"You bastard!" Tobias spat, rubbing at his sore chin with his free hand.

His eyes burned with fury.

"Guilty," Cid chuckled warmly.

"Let's set up again," Tobias worked his jaw, then snapped back into a ready position.

Cid shrugged and lurched forward, holding his sword with one hand, drawing Tobias towards a defensive position, catching the blade.

As he pivoted to exploit the weak strike, Cid flicked Tobias' wrist with his forefinger. A blue flash pulsed in Riley's vision, throwing off the strike.

Tobias' sword landed in the dirt. Cid threw a savage left cross, knocking him to the ground.

He looked up, his eyes broadcasting pure and feral rage.

Riley didn't know what to do.

"You're angry. Anger doesn't help, boy," Cid lectured.

Tobias leapt to his feet, taking up his dropped sword and launching into a flurry of attacks.

Cid kept his blade down, moving like a ballroom dancer, staying just out of reach until he found an opening. Then, with one palm strike, he disarmed Tobias again, rewarding his efforts with a right cross.

"Still got some fight in you?" Cid held out his hand and gestured towards himself in invitation.

"By the Dead Gods! I need to be ready! This shouldn't happen! I've..." He trailed off, the anger cooling strangely towards despair.

"You've never seen it up close and personal, have you son? It's a bit different from your book learnin, isn't it?" Cid asked, his words hitting with all the force of one of his charged strikes.

Tobias dropped down to his knees before plopping down in the dirt, hanging his head in his hands.

"What did we really do here except show up too late? It all seemed so noble when we parted ways with the refugees the other day, righting the wrongs and doing our duty, but it's not enough, is it? The victims are still just as dead, and it's going to keep happening no matter how much I do. There's no winning this war," he panted, holding back a crumbling dam of emotion.

"We're always too late for the dead, and we're often too late for the survivors..." Cid began.

"Then what good is any of this?" Tobias interrupted.

"It's about minimizing the damage, blunting the cost, and stopping the bleeding. Nothing can be done about what's been spilled, but left unchecked, those bugs would have bred to the walls of Ashenvale, threatened every town outside the defensive rings, and even a few beyond. The dead are just that, dead. Their troubles have ended, but some people will keep living because of what we did, and the trick of it is they'll never know, but we will." Cid explained, his eyes showing an empathy Riley had never seen before.

"And that's enough?" Tobias challenged.

"Who knows, but the anger at what's lost is a sure path to becoming a monster yourself. You gotta make a choice, boy, right here and right now," Cid pointed down toward the ground.

"Well?" Tobias said, wiping at his nose before rising.

"You can let it kill your soul or drive you to be better. Rangers are called to stand, and I'll train ya the best ways I know how, but maybe now you understand a little why I push you so hard. This is real, and now you know that, but I won't have you enraged. You're just another monster to be put down if you're gonna do nothing but grieve and get angry," Cid's gaze hardened with his tone.

"I understand, at least, I think I'm starting too," Tobias held out his hand.

Cid clasped it.

"Excellent, we can finally begin," He grinned manically.