A Ninja's Reveng(closed)

Ronin chuckled and followed the pair outside, stopping just below the tree and away from the shade. He held out the small dagger to the young one hilt first, the blade pointed toward his chest. "Take the handle. I'll show you a proper way to handle weapons and then I'll show you some tricks."

Smiling Claire took the blade while Fiona watched from above."I like the way it feels in my hand." She told him as she looked at the unsharpened blade. "Show me what to do!" She said happily as she held the small blade by the hilt.

Ronin gave a small nod and drew his katana. He stood in front of the girl with the sword held at the ready. "It's no sword, but it's a slightly similar concept. We'll start with a simple move first, to get you used to wielding a weapon." Ronin proceeded to show her simple moves first. Simple blocks, swipes and stabs and simple footwork.

Claire watched him carefully, studying his movements. She waited until he had finished before she attempted to copy him which she did almost perfectly except for a few errors here and there. She had watched her father, aunt and uncle over the years as well which had also helped her.

"Good. Make sure you keep your balance, even when you shift into a different stance with the weapon. Because one wrong step will send you tumbling to the ground and to the mercy of your enemies." Ronin said with a nod and shifted his feet into the earth while directing her footwork.

Claire changed her footing like he was directing her too. She listened to and did everything he told her to without question. Fiona watched as she laid on a tree limb above feeling quite proud of Fergus's little girl.

"Good. Now, try this." Ronin demonstrated what looked like a twirling slash with his katana, his idle hand swinging behind him while the sword swung in front of him.

Claire nodded and watched his movements. She did as he did making a few more errors than she had but managed to do as he did. "How am I doing?" She asked while still concentrating on what she was doing.

"Not bad. Any errors I see will be smoothed out with practice." Ronin said with a small nod. A grin then appeared on his face and he faced her once more. "Now, I'm going to demonstrate a trick that's perfect for a small weapon like a dagger. Here, try this one." Ronin flipped his katana a certain way, spun around so that his back was facing an invisible enemy and slammed the blade backwards with his idle palm pressing against the pommel and his fingers splayed out.

Taking a deep breath she did as he did and spun around like him but she must not have had a good grip on the small blade as it slipped from her hand and fell to the ground. "Oops." She said as she picked it back up. "Let me try again.." Claire walked back over to where she had been and tried again. This time, she did it almost perfectly.

Ronin couldn't help but chuckle at her little slip of the blade. "Here's a trick to remember when performing that trick: Tighten your grip on the hilt of the blade as you spin and your front is away from your enemy. That way you won't drop it and won't give them an opening to harm you." She was doing really well. Indeed, she would be a good apprentice to train. He would definitely have to inform Carmen soon, which meant having to tell Fergus soon as well.

Claire's eyes never left Ronin as she spoke. She listened and took his words to heart before nodding. "I'll remember that." She said with a smile. "Whats next?" She asked excitedly. She wanted to learn more and was ready to follow Ronin's instructions.

Ronin smiled. Her eagerness refreshed his heart and raised his spirits. No doubt the future of the Brotherhood rested with the young ones. "Let's try a few more tricks with your small weapon before lunch." Ronin said, ruffling her hair for a moment before he showed her two other tricks that he himself had been taught when he was first training with a close ranged weapon. Perhaps one day, this one would grow to use a katana, or even a sword like him.

Claire watched him again and studied his movements before copying them. She moved almost perfectly. She followed his instructions almost perfectly. Once she had done what Ronin had told her to she turned to Ronin. "How did I do?" She asked with a large smile on her face.

"You move like a true Assassin." Ronin remained silent for a time before he sheathed his katana back into the sheath that rested against his lower back and ruffled the girl's hair again. "Go on inside and get some lunch now. And make certain you put that up so Fiona can take it to be sharpened later, okay?"

Ok!" She said as she walked back inside. Fiona who had been up in the tree dropped down and walked over. "I wish you luck. Fergus isn't going to like this." She told him with a frown, lightly chewing her lip. "Don't stand within arms length of him." She said as she placed her hand on his shoulder.

Ronin looked over at Fiona for a moment before he nodded and took a deep breath. "Send a bird to Master Carmen. Let him know that we'll be stopping by one more time and that it's important that he meets us outside. I'll go tell Fergus."

Nodding Fiona turned on her heels to take care of the message. Fergus was sitting in his armchair staring at the fire in the fireplace. His eyes transfixed on the dancing flames. He was lost in his own thoughts as his daughter stood in the kitchen and told her aunt and uncle about the tricks Ronin had been giving her.

While Fiona was taking care of the message to Carmen, Ronin went inside and stood a good ways from Fergus as he told him the news. "Your daughter's done well. She's caught on quite well to everything I've taught her so far."

Looking over at Ronin. Fergus's eyes held a warning in them as he listened. "I had a feeling she would..." She said trailing off slightly as he turned to look towards the kitchen before looking back at Ronin. "I can't run with her anymore and I know if I don't do this now the brotherhood will come to claim her by force..." Fergus went silent for a long moment. "I'll tell her to pack her things..."

Ronin bowed his head to the man who had helped him recover from his injured side. "Fiona's already sending word to Carmen that we will be visiting one last time. He'll be waiting for our arrival." Ronin went silent for a while before he said something meaningful. "I will personally take on Claire to keep her safe. Fiona won't be a student forever and when she gets sworn in, I will start Claire's actual training. It's the least I can do to give you peace of mind after everything you've done for me."

I did it because you are an assassin and I would never let one of my brotherhood die in the cold. I also did it because you are important to Fiona." Fergus went silent for a long moment. "Take care of both of them both." Standing up he looked defeated. "I and Mary will go with you as far as Master Carmen... Mary will be happy to see him anyway and I will know you all made it there alright..."

Ronin nodded. They would likely stay with Carmen for a day or two before they continued their true journey. "They will both be safe. I give you my word as an Assassin. Just let me know when you're ready to move." Ronin had already had his things with him, so he exited the house and went to the stables where he was greeted with a loud nicker from the black stallion that was his constant companion. "Come, Sentinel. Time to get ready to leave."

Fergus Came out of the house and set a small bag that he had slung over his shoulder. Walking into the barn he pulled out both of there horses. The old stallion and the young mare who seemed slightly bigger today. Fergus frowned and looked over at Ronin. "Hey, lad! Your boy got to my girl!" He said as she sighed amd petted the young mare.

Ronin couldn't contain a smile but did a pretty good job at not laughing. "Hey, what can I say? Sentinel interacts better with everything around him. He chooses the mare to carry his foal and apparently he took a shine to your young mare." Sentinel snorted and tossed up his head the second Ronin released it with the bridle on, his mane flipping around with the motion. "Don't worry. I shall have a word with him."