Swordmage training: lesson 2

[Airen Auditoren]

Airen slowly entered the Room of Requirement. He hoped that there wasn't as much drama as last time, and he'd do his best to keep himself together. Yes, it was likely that things would be awkward between him and two of his pupils, but he'd try to keep them all, including himself, from being distracted.

The room had the same set up as last time, minus the training sword rack. He focused for a minute. A blackboard appeared and some chalk. He wrote on the board 'Forms'. Quite simply, he'd be teaching the three the different forms of sword combat. Each person had their own style, but each style fitted a certain form better than the rest.

Taking a deep breath, Airen sat cross legged and closed his eyes. He meditated, breathing in and out. t was a way of focusing, that he found very helpful.

[Humphrey Williams]

Humphrey walked into the Room of Requirement and saw Airen already there. He had strapped his katanas x-sheath into position with Sasuke and Itachi sticking out above his Trapezius muscles. Anduril's sheath was strapped across his back so that the hilt protruded above his left shoulder and he could grab and draw it easily. Anduril was a smaller version of a Scottish Claymore. He saw a blackboard at the front of the room, and it had the word 'Forms' written on it in Airen's neat script. "Hello Airen, how do you like Sasuke, Itachi, and Anduril?" indicated the katana he named Sasuke, and its twin blade Itachi. Then he drew his modified claymore Anduril. The black metal emitted a faint pale silver glow like the moon as he drew it. "Pretty special, eh?" he asked. Then he re-sheathed it.

[Charlotte Smith]

Charlotte walked into the Room of Requirement, happy to have recieved an owl from Airen saying that the new lesson was about to begin, she had been looking forward to it since last time, things would be better now. Even if it was this lesson last time that caused this drama.

Seeing Airen meditating Charlotte smiled and decided not to bother him too much, waving at Humphrey Charlotte sat down on the floor and placed her bag beside her, wondering just what 'Forms' meant.

"Hey Air, hey Humphrey." she said happily.

Hoping that she hadn't disturbed Airen Charlotte flicked open her sketchbook and thumbed over some of her drawings while they waited for Pyxis. Beside her was a mostly green crystal sword, it was probably emerald or something, and on each side of it where the hilt joined there were two extended pieces dropping over the blade, black crystal that looked like onyx. Upon the hilt there was another emerald.

[Humphrey Williams]

"Hey! Nice sword, Charlotte. It is beautiful, very Slytherin-like as well. I must say yours is prettier than mine, I made my blades to kill, and they are kind of cool but not as artistic as yours. Listen, about the Ball...I freaked on you. I"m really sorry, but when I saw you look at me and then run away. Well, it felt like I was losing you...just like I lost my parents. And I tried to cling to you. I'm really sorry." he said and felt tears well over and fall onto his cheeks, and then onto the desk he had sat in.

[Charlotte Smith]

Charlotte had hoped that this was not going to come up but no such luck, she sighed and got up from the seat on the floor and walked over to his desk, she leant on it and knelt down so that she could look up at him.

"I'd like to say it's okay but it's really not, you ruined my night the way you acted, I'm sorry if this sounds mean, and you know that I am rarely mean, but the way you acted didn't communicate at all that what you said about me is true."

She smiled slightly and got up from her desk:

"Let's not make another one of these lessons awkward, Airen is trying his best to be a good teacher and we wont make it any easier for him carrying this out here."

Wiping the tears away she smiled slightly more: "So stop those tears there's no need for them."

[Humphrey Williams]

"Charlotte, you pretty much just called me a liar. Everything I told you is real. Did you even look at that piece of paper I gave you? I poured my heart out to you and apologized for everything. Do you even care enough about me to at least look at it?" he asked her. "Look at me, we have to wait for Pxyis to start anyways, look me in the eyes." Humphrey stared into her eyes with love and compassion, thinking about how great she was. "Can you honestly tell me that I didn't mean what I said? Because if you think that, you are dead wrong." he said emphatically.

[Charlotte Smith]

Charlotte snapped, this guy just didn't know when to quit, she turned to him and resumed her pose of kneeling down at the bottom of his desk, she took out the paper from her pocket and gave it back to him.

"Yes I did read the paper. But I think we both had more important things to worry about that night than this, my father almost killed you, I'm not exactly going to come over and talk to you after the hassle you caused at the ball."

Sighing again Charlotte looked him in the eyes and said calmly and cooly:

"You compliment people so readily and easily that yes I feel that some of what you said is not sincere."

[Humphrey Williams]

"So just because I am nice to people that makes me a player or something? I was raised to compliment girls when they spend hours getting ready for a dance. Sorry, but I like making people smile and feel good about themselves. If that makes me come across as insincere I won't do it anymore. But, you are the only person who has ever said that about me. I believe you, and I'll try to be...meaner, in the future if that's what it takes to get you to be friends with me. I miss you...so much." Humphrey told her, and then grabbed her hand. He gave her slender hand a light squeeze. "Please trust me, I've never lied to you, or said something I didn't mean.

[Airen Auditoren]

Airen had been enjoying the silence when Humphrey walked in. When the kid started boasting about having three swords, Airen inwardly smirked. Only one of them had the potential to be a sword worthy of a swordmage if he followed Airen's instructions. When Charlotte walked in, Airen smiled. He was glad that she could make it.

"Humphrey, you should let go of her hand," he warned. He didn't want either of them to get hurt by his actions to stop the fighting.

Sighing, he opened his eyes. Standing up, he turned to the two pupils who had made it. He'd give Pxyis a few minutes. He unsheathed his sword and bought it down to the ground while saying, "Barriera Sorgono. (Barrier Arise.)" A stone wall shot up between the two arguing pupils. He sheathed his sword calmly.

"Sorry, but I think that you both need to give each other some space. It won't help the lesson to have this anger clouding your judgement and focus," he said. He walked over to Humphrey. Taking out both swords on his back, he weighed them in his hands. Giving them a few swings and slices, he shook his head. He took out the shortened claymore. Swinging it around, he shook his head again.

"Humphrey, I told you to let your magic make the sword for you. When you forge your own blades the muggle way and use spells to help make them, they are nothing more than muggle swords. No magical quality. A blade made by magic is both stronger and is better suited to cast spells. Magic channels itself the best when it comes to a swordmage," he said. "I'm sorry if that sounds harsh, but you need to learn that you can't be the best at everything," Airen said laying a hand on his fellow Gryffindor's shoulder.

Walking around the wall, Airen looked at Charlotte's sword. It was quite a sight. Truly, it did show her affiliation. Airen smiled. He took the sword gently. It was a bit long in the blade. He swung and parried a few times. Nodding his head, he handed the sword back to her.

"It is a good sword, though it is a bit dull, this will make it somewhat harder to cast spells, but only marginally. I suggest you try again. Use what you have, then focus on making it sharper," Airen said kindly. He also laid a hand on her shoulder too.

He walked back so that both could see him. He hated having to be teacher sometimes because he couldn't show favorites.

"Well, seeing as I had to put up this barrier, I think today's original lesson plan is not ready to be taught yet," he said nonchalantly. "Instead, we'll be meditating and focusing our swordmage potential."

Sitting down cross-legged once more, he indicated the others to do the same. Taking a deep breath, He straightened his back.

"Now close your eyes and breathe deeply. Swordmage magic requires a calm mind. It will take awhile, but you will soon be able to calm yourselves by just taking a deep breath," he explained. "If either of you were to cast a spell with your swords now, then you'd find that nothing would happen. You cannot make nature bend to your will with a clouded mind. You must first be at peace with yourself. That means that you must be humble and admit when you're wrong," he finished.

Taking a deep breath, he let it out slowly. "Now, breathe. Focus on righting your wrongs. Be humble, not proud," he said softly, almost like the whole thing was a dream.

[Guest]

Pxyis hesitated by the RoR, staring as the door revealed itself to her. She knew she was late, and felt terrible for it. She was also nervous about her sword, and her eyes dropped to her hands, which held it. It was an ordinary sword, except with a few Slytherin-esque touches of her own. The hilt of the sword was silver, with emeralds set on it, and the blade had an emerald right at the top, beneath the hilt.

It was pretty boring, but she had focused more on the quality of the sword then how pretty it looked. She took a deep breath and entered. Immediately, she felt a blush on her cheeks as she realised they had already started. She heard Airen mention being humble and not proud, and she wondered if that would be hard for Humphrey. Most likely, he was very up himself and rude.

She cleared her throat softly as the doors swung shut behind her, and she shuffled her feet. "Sorry, Airen," she said. "I didn't meant to be late, just got caught up in other things." She apologised. Her attention was then drawn to the wall. She frowned and looked questioningly at Charlotte before returning her gaze to Airen.

[Airen Auditoren]

Airen looked at Pxyis. He smiled warmly. He motioned for her to come over. He stood up and walked over to her. He gently took the sword from her. It was simple, yet it also had the same Slytherin feel to it. He swung it a few times. Smiling, he gave it back.

"Very good. It is a bit heavy due to the metal, but that just means that you have a strong belief," he complimented. "The only thing wrong is that it lacks sharpness. Ask Charlotte what to do. I already told her," he whispered.

"We're meditating, today. No one can cast a swordmage spell with a mind clouded by strong emotions. So, you must be humble and admit when you're wrong," he whispered. He gestured to Charlotte's side of the wall, indicating to Pxyis where to sit.

[Guest]

Pxyis beamed at Airen's compliment and nodded when he told her to take a seat next to Charlotte. She carried her sword over to Charlotte's side of the wall, excited by the prospect of meditating.

She'd always wanted to try it, but had never really had the patience to. Now she was going to learn, and she actually had a reason to meditate.

Pxyis sat down next to Charlotte, and would've said hello, but she did not want to disrupt Airen's lesson anymore than she had already.

[Charlotte Smith]

Charlotte smiled happily when the two of them were seperated, she was glad that she wasn't going to have any more distractions because oddly enough she actually wanted to be able to be a sword mage at the end of her lessons with Airen, which she wouldn't be if they were interrupted.

"Oh okay then Airen, I will make sure that I make it sharper this time, but I do hope that it stays the same colour, I like it the way it is."

When she was told that they were going to be meditating Charlotte sat down on the floor cross lessged and took a deep breath, it was going to be hard to totally switch off from everything, and all emotions.

Charlotte closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, she thought of everything that had happened and how it could be her fault, she tried to dispell all of the anger that she herself was feeling and already felt a little calmer.

Smiling when Pyxis entered Charlotte waved to her and then went back to meditating, wanting to make Airen proud of her skills.

[Humphrey Williams]

Humphrey had done Yoga exercises before that focused on calm, meditation, and deep breathing. He walked to the opposite wall, away from Charlotte and Pxyis. He counted sixty seconds and by the end of it he was perfectly at piece with himself. He took out the blades on his back, and looking at the Katanas, he snorted. They were not even remotely close to what he needed. He imagined a trash can and tossed them in the trash. Then he pulled out Anduril, named after Aragorn's sword forged from the broken shards of Narsil. It meant Flame of the West, and that is who he was. The Flame of the West, he was indeed from the west he thought. He needed to represent America well. He focused his thoughts on the claymore blade, he didn't think he just simply felt his magic flow through him and slightly alter the sword. When he again looked down at the sword, it had changed, warped into something that was more him. He had mastered himself, the anger and hurt he had felt about Charlotte had melted away. He realized it was his fault, and he knew what he had to do. Just as his magic knew how to alter the sword. It was now a deep maroon blade, the color of dried blood nearly, though not quite so dark. It had a large sapphire in the middle, it was now an American's sword. The white hilt that encased the sapphire was the white and blue. It was the justice and belief in God that America knew so well. The red represented the blood that had been shed to keep America safe. Millions had died to protect them from terrorism, British, Germans, and he felt the weight of their sacrifice in the blade. The pommel, was made of pure white gold, and it shined like the sun in his palm. The sapphire gave a blue tint to the light reflected. And the red of the blade made it a slightly purplish hue. He had always loved the color purple. Yes, this was his blade. The sheath was turned into a red, white, and blue American flag. Now the sword was the Flame of the West. "Yes, this is perfect!" he then walked over to Charlotte. "Charlotte, Pxyis, I apologize for my behavior at the ball. I should have left you alone with Airen if that is what you wanted. I was just hurt, and I didn't take the time to master my emotions and think about it. Now I have, and I beg that you will forgive me for my errors." he said, bowing to her. "I am at your mercy, you may strike me with no fear of retaliation from me if you so wish it.

[Airen Auditoren]

Airen quickly erected another stone wall that encompassed Humphrey. Just in time for the release of magic. Sighing, he lowered the wall. When he could see Humphrey's face, Airen had on the coldest face ever seen on him before, and that was saying something.

"Humphrey, I told you last lesson to forge your blade privately. You could have harmed us had the wall not been in place at the right time. Just be more careful," he sighed at the end. He pulled his emotions back under control. You could see the strain on his face. It took everything he had not to slug the tosser in the face. The kid seemed to not take any heed to what Airen said.

After another deep breath, he lowered the wall between the three pupils. But before Humphrey could approach the two, Airen put a hand out to block his path.

"Listen. You need to listen to what I say. I don't make this stuff up. I've been training and practicing since I was eight. I have more experience. I told you those things last lesson to protect, not just Charlotte and Pxyis, but you as well. I want to be friends, but if you keep ignoring what I say when I try to protect you, then why even attend the lesson, and..."Airen cut himself off. He took another deep breathe. He was surprised he hadn't gone into a trance with all the calming technique's he was implementing. "I'm sorry. Forget I said anything," he finished quickly.

He walked back to his place at the front of the classroom.

"Keep meditating," he said coldly. He sat with his back facing the three. He closed his eyes and breathed. And breathed. And breathed.

[Humphrey Williams]

"Airen, you're right. I need to pay attention. It slipped my mind and I apologize. Just tell me how to become a better swordmage, and I will do it. Even if it requires never speaking to her again." he said, pointing at Charlotte. "I need to be ready for the upcoming war. You can teach me enough to help me be better prepared. I am yours to command while in this room, Airen." he said, bowing at the waist and offering his sword in a gesture of fealty.

[Airen Auditoren]

"Firstly, you need to let go of your pride," Airen said, still keeping eyes closed. He felt calmer, now, so hopefully, he could instruct Humphrey without getting annoyed by his stubbornness. "It will be hard, and you won't be able to do it often because it is a part of who you are. It takes small steps that eventually add up over time. To begin that, you need to first stop bragging about your accomplishments to others. Try asking questions and not answering them," Airen suggested. He had friend once who went through the same process. A few years later, he was still prideful, but he had learned when to be proud and when to be humble.

"For now, though, get back to your meditation. Don't do yoga. It is for stress relief. Meditation is used to focus the mind, not relax it. It can have that effect, but it is not its primary use," Airen instructed. He kept his eyes closed and kept breathing.

(OOC: Humphrey, don't immediately be good at everything you try. No one is that skilled. Just saying. Best of luck. )

[Humphrey Williams]

"Alright, I will try Airen. Would focusing on a flame in my mind be a could technique to focus my thoughts?" he asked him. "And I am already trying to be less prideful, it helps having you keep calling me out. So keep doing that please. I'll try listening more." he said.

(OOC: I have an epic fail planned for the play. Humph thinks he is the big-shot and gets the lead, then forgets the last line of the end monologue)

[Airen Auditoren]

"Actually, what I had in mind was really to just let go of all thinking. Focusing on one thing will lead to thinking of another," Airen corrected. He smiled. Maybe Humphrey wasn't as hopeless as he once thought.

"I know you are trying. It is evident, but you need to remember that you don't need to just be all humble. Be proud in things that really matter, like your friends..." Airen said, gesturing to himself and the two Slytherin girls. "...family..." He pointed at Humphrey's heart. "...and culture," he finished unsheathing Humphrey's sword. He swung it around a few times. Smiling brightly, he gave it back to Humphrey.

"Excellent sword, by the way. A bit unbalanced, so wait until you're alone to correct it. But all in all, very good," he said. He gestured to Humphrey's meditation area, indicating to him that he should return there.

"I think you two have focused your minds enough, for now," he said to the two girls who'd kept quiet and still throughout the exercise. "You two are free to chat for awhile. I have a surprise for you all at the end of the lesson," he said. He had a cheeky smile on his face. He was sure they'd all like the surprise.

[Humphrey Williams]

Humphrey just nodded. He walked over to his meditation area, and just let his breaths draw in and out. He wasn't thinking about anything, and he felt a sense of clarity he had not yet experienced. He knew exactly what was going on around him, not just some of it, by not focusing on one thing in particular, his five senses picked up things they would otherwise not be aware of. He heard the scuffle of shoes on the floor, the smell of each person in the room, saw the insides of his eyelids, and then examined the stone brick in front of him, seeing more detail in it than he thought, he felt the beating of his heart and the flow of life through his veins, and he tasted saliva and the bacon and eggs he had eaten for his last meal. "Wow..." he said. He walked over to Airen. "I think I am ready, I just felt completely at one with myself master." he told Airen.

[Airen Auditoren]

Sighing, Airen looked at Humphrey. When he said that he felt completely at one with himself, Airen knew he was exaggerating. He held up a hand to signal to the boy to slow down.

"First, don't call me master. I'm eleven, like you, so we're even. Second, your wrong. Being at one with yourself means that you can feel every fiber in your body with detail. Which is impossible. I need you to accept humility and admit that you're wrong and some one else is right. You need to slow down, Humphrey. Don't rush and force your way through life. It will only push back harder. Instead, let life take it's course. You're in control of your choices and your choices only," he finished.

"I think that you need to figure this out on your own. Some things cannot be taught, only learned," he sighed, exasperated. Motioning for Humphrey to join him, Airen walked over to his rucksack. Fumbling around in there for a bit, he withdrew both hands to reveal four cases of incense.

"These will help calm the mind and focus it. I got these while in China once," he said. he handed one case to each of his pupils. He kept one for himself.

"That's all for now. Have una meravigliosa estate. (a wonderful summer) Class dismissed," he said.

[Guest]

Pxyis blushed when Airen said that her and Charlotte were doing a good job, and that they could chat. She felt to tired to talk, though she had no clue why. So instead, she just toyed with the fabric of her school skirt, letting her eyes droop as she yawned.

When summoned back to where Airen was, Pxyis stood up quickly - too quickly. The rush of blood to her head made her stumble and shake her head as she blinked. Pxyis walked over to Airen, smiling softly as she took the case he handed her. "Wow. Thanks Airen. For this, and for the lessons. It's really nice of you. Have a nice holiday as well." She hugged him gently, and then left the room with the case and her sword.

[Charlotte Smith]

Charlotte smiled happily as she was told she was doing a good job, she was happy that Airen was pleased with her, after all she had tried very hard after all. Even though he said they could chat Pyxis didn't seem to want to so Charlotte ducked her head and wondered why.

Sighing softly she traced an idle pattern on the floor as she waited for the class to finish, when Airen dismissed them Charlotte smiled and hovered around for a moment.

Playing with the box of incense Charlotte pecked Airen on the cheek:

"Thank you for the lesson Air, and, if you do want to come over for a day in the holidays, I'll be glad to have you." she smiled.

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