A Chance Encounter (Ciar & Liam) Finished

Ciar had made it a point to practice every day since she had returned home to the Eastern Kingdom, and today was no different in that regard. By now she was used to people coming and going, and for the most part, did not pay any attention to them while she practiced. Briefly, she considered taunting the dummy, but discarded that notion. She would then pull her small, light sword away from the dummy. That is when she felt like she was being watched, so she turned, looking for the source of that feeling. After turning from the dummy, the only person she found that was watching her was an unfamiliar grinning giant. Okay, so not really a giant, but he seemed about Lorcan's height or so, judging from this distance. She did not recognize him, but she did not know a lot of people yet either. She noted his axe, tilted her head slightly, and wondered how hard that was to use, and if she could even lift it. One of her eyebrows would raise, almost in question, and she would glance behind herself to see if there was something else he might be staring at. Not seeing anything behind her but the dummy, she would return her gaze to him questioningly. Who was he, and why was he staring at her?

When the giant of a man approached and said, 'Not bad,' Ciar would offer him her shit-eating-grin. Then she watched, impressed, as his axe landed in the dummy without seemingly any effort on his part. He seemed to retrieve it in the same manner, and she knew she would never be able to throw an axe, if she could even pick it up. She brightened when he said that she should learn how to throw a knife or dagger; she actually had a dagger, but had never considered throwing it. In fact, she sheathed her sword and pulled out her hidden dagger, looking up to him. "Will you show me how?" she asked, rather hopefully. A slight flush tinted her cheeks, and she defended her sword, "My brother gave me this sword..." she trailed off a moment, "Though I wasn't supposed to use it," she admitted,  confirming that its use had been for decorative purposes intentionally. She bit her lower lip slightly, "I will have to talk to Lorcan, or Esras about it, I guess." She was not sure who she was supposed to ask about it, though probably Lorcan. Then he complimented her use of the sword, even if it was meant for decoration, and she brightened. She offered him a true smile, "Thanks, Lord...?" She had no idea what his name was, or title, or even where he was from as he was tall enough to be from the East, so she just went with what was safest and said 'Lord.'  She tilted her head slightly, looking up towards him as he spoke. A soft sigh escaped her lips, "That is good to know. I am actually waiting for Esras, from the North?, to arrive. He promised to help train me a little after I..." she paused, uncertain for a moment, then continued with, "observed his style at the Knight Games."  She said the "North" in a question like way, uncertain if he knew whom she was speaking of. When Ciar finally settled on the word, "observed," she could not keep the shit-eating-grin off of her lips, as she remembered her experience at the Knight Games. "Though if ye are offering, I apparently could use another sparring partner... after I get a different sword." She stared at him, not afraid to try and spar with him at all, and actually feeling a bit of determination that maybe she could beat him, at least once. Hey, a girl can dream. Besides, that would show both Lorcan and Connall that she could do this!

"Hey!" Ciar said in surprise when he snatched the dagger right out of her hand. Then he went into teacher mode, and she paid attention to every detail. "Okay, so, does the balance go bad then? How often do you have to check?" she watched the way he used his hands with the knife, and how he held it for throwing. She wanted to be able to repeat his stance the first time. She watched him throw and when he said, 'Bam! Kill shot,' with his own shit-eating-grin, she couldn't help a soft chuckle, amused, and a little impressed. She would take the knife from him, and try to hold it as he did. "Like this? Do you breathe out like with arrows?" She would glance up to him, holding the knife in a position to throw it, waiting for him to check the way she held it before she would throw it at the dummy. Once he would okay her position, or correct it, would be when she would throw the knife at the dummy. When he insisted that she call him Liam, she would grin again. "A pleasure to meet you, -just- Liam," a teasing note in her tone, "I am Ciar." Hey, if he could do just the first name thing, she was too. Besides, he might change his mind about helping and offering her any training if he knew who her brothers were. Though she had mentioned Lorcan's name without thinking a few moments ago, but maybe he had not noticed or did not make the connection. She did not even look to see where the knife landed, as his laugh distracted her and she looked to him again. Her eyes widened, "Wait, really?" she asked excitedly. Though she looked at him a little uncertainly. "You taught your sisters?" It was true she had never really asked Lorcan or Connall to teach her, but Liam had taught his sisters. Her tone was perhaps a bit wistful, maybe she should have asked them, but now they were busy men. "I do not really know how to do that at all," she said, a little nervously, and yet excited at the same time. At least a sword put distance between people. But hand-to-hand combat? She wondered if Lorcan would be upset, but then again, he had said she could become a Squire, and wouldn't they need to know that type of thing? She'd tell Lorcan later, when he had time.

"Hmmm, good to know," Ciar said, filing that information away. Even though she waited for him to correct her, the second time when he repositioned her would fluster her a little bit. After all, she was not used to men being so awfully close to her. Luckily though, it did not effect her aim. Probably because she was really good with her bow and arrows, and it was sort of similiar to that, yet completely different at the same time. She would light up again when he complimented her, excited that she had done it the first time, even though she had needed his assistance in how to hold it. Ciar would blush ever so slightly, feeling a bit guilty when he made his comment about the Captain of the Guard's little sister being interested in fighting. Then she lifted her chin and stared at him, her gaze a bit defiant, "Probably because the Captain himself just found out," she said with a bit of sass, not backing down. "Though it really is not fair that you know who I am, and I do not know who you are, or where you are from." She shrugged slightly, "But you can keep your secrets, Liam. I would much rather pick your brain in regards to fighting."  She tilted her head slightly, "Then I think I like your sisters very much." A true grin teasing at her lips once more. Well, he wanted to teach her hand-to-hand combat? So she moves closer, uncertain if she should just swing at him to see what he does. She was not sure she could reach his jaw effectively, so she throws a sudden punch at his stomach, and immediately follows that with a kick to his kneecaps. Those were places she was sure she could reach, though Ciar was uncertain if she could actually land a hit on the giant man.

Ciar glanced up at him, her head tilting a bit, when he said that he had been there. So obviously he had seen the whole ordeal, or had seen enough of it, or heard about it. It was a bit hard to miss. She sighed softly, "Lorcan and Connall do nae seem to be afraid of anyone," that was said with a bit of pride as well. She would shrug a shoulder, "That is what everyone keeps saying. I am sure I would have been safe, there was a lot of people around." She winces slightly when Liam adds on that the Scottish King did not wait for permission for a woman. That made her very uncomfortable.

Ciar would feel that Liam had been appropriately warned about her brothers. She still was a bit naive and had a difficult time understanding the intentions of men. For herself, she did not have any inappropriate intentions, and she was innocent enough that she would not really know enough about that to cause any problems. 

She would shake her head slightly, "I can tell," though she was still holding onto the idea that maybe he was part rock. Then again, she really had not tried to hit anyone before either, particularly someone who was in the Army or the Guard. Ciar rolls her eyes, "I will make a point to ask for tips before I learn to knock ye on yer ass," she quipped with a smirk. "Though now I guess ye will be expecting that, eventually." She shrugged, amused, and she hoped to be able to do that at least once because it would be extremely satisfying to knock the 'Rock Giant' to the ground, particularly because she was so tiny compared to him. She would mutter, "Because I do nae know how," and then get quiet when he got serious and explained how people could get hurt if they tried to fight without knowing how. Lesson #2, right there.  "Well, crap," she said, thoughtfully.  She would watch intently as his huge hand took hers and positioned it into a proper fist, as she needed to be able to replicate it by herself. It was a little weird to have him touching her, though it was innocent enough, as it was a teacher and student experience. For her, she was just hyper aware of how his hands felt on her when he would position her correctly, because she just was not used to being that close to men other than her brothers. She chose to ignore it, as she felt that he would not hurt her. After all, he did know who her brothers were, and he had to have a sense of honor to have been raised up to the Commander in the Army.

Ciar would go with him towards the dummy and watch how he hit it. She would then look at him again, questioningly. "Okay, so, am I supposed to hit the dummy and split my hands open? Or am I supposed to hit the mountain of rock that you are and split my hands on you?"  She was serious in that she was not sure what he wanted her to hit; him or the dummy, and he had made her a little nervous by saying his hands would split open because he knew what he was doing and she didn't. So how was she, a novice, supposed to avoid that?