The Tiger Within

Whoosh… Thud . Another arrow flew and embedded itself into the target, several inches from the center of the target . A rather unladylike curse escaped Kyera"s lips as she lowered the long bow to her side . The trainees and teachers alike watched her rather surprised to see her struggling so much with what was a easy task .

The target moved back and forth in a hypnotic pace, controlled by two men pulling levers . In all honesty, it was a fairly easy shot, and yet the Princess was struggling to land a perfect shot . They knew they could never defeat her in hand to hand, but they hadn"t expected her to be a bad shot with a arrow . So many challengers would have chosen arrows if they knew she was not sharp with them .

Advertis.e.m.e.nt"Kyera, why don"t you just guide the arrow? I don"t understand why you are doing this to yourself . " Talis sighed, leaned against the tree as he watched her shoot yet another arrow, only to miss the target entirely . "The shadows would be more than happy to make sure you never miss . " he replied with a bit of a teasing laugh . Kyera turned, hurling a arrow at his chest, it stopped inches from him and fell to the ground .

"That isn"t the point of this exercise, Knight Ranger Talis . I swear If you suggest that one more time I will use the shadows to pin you to a tree . " Kyera growled her aura was swirling and sharp . Talis stared at her with his eyes wide, completely shocked as he picked up the arrow that had flown at his chest rather suddenly . There were several rather unnerving feelings floating around in the air . He was fairly sure she was rather unbalanced .

She turned back to the target and notched another arrow . He watched as she let it fly again, striking the edge of the target . "Your getting better . " Talis praised and Kyera looked down at the ground, her eye twitching .

"I was aiming for the second target, not the first . " She replied and notched another arrow, shooting several in a row, each came close to their intended target but not actually struck it . She was clearly letting out her anger while becoming even more frustrated with each strike . Talis sighed, and walked forward, taking hold of the bow and disarming her . In the process Kyera flipped around and he had to block as they fell into a sparring match . He was careful not to hit her, and kept her balanced . There were tears in her eyes by the time she stopped .

"I"m so sorry, Talis . What the f.u.c.k am I doing?" She asked pulling back . He frowned and grabbed her arms, making her look at him .

"Kyera what"s going on? This isn"t just the archery . What"s wrong up here . " He asked gently tapping his fingers against her forehead . She felt his fingers tapping that smooth skin, and her eyes slowly closed . The truth was she was being torn in two by the pressures within . Her fears, her confusion, the things she was trying so hard to conceal would never allow her to aim a arrow true .

"Talis, please, let it be . " She replied her eyes filled with the pleading she felt deep within . He stared deep into her for several moments, his sister… well then again she wasn"t . A thought sparked and he nodded, realizing he knew part of the puzzle .

"Alright . I will let it be . " He picked up the bow and offered it to her, horizontally, so she would have to turn it straight before she could use it . He met her eyes, not releasing the bow . "When your ready to talk, come find me . I am your knight since the one who should have been true betrayed you . Keep that in mind, Princess Kyera . " He replied carefully before letting go and stepping back .

She took the bow in trembling hands . Turning she pulled the arrow from her quiver and knocked it again . After nearly a hour of near misses and carefully planned strikes, her frustration was growing again . He sighed .

"You never answered me . Why is it so important that you strike true without the aid of the shadows?" Talis asked frowning softly as he tried to puzzle it out on his own . Kyera waved the men controlling the pulleys away . They left, letting her and Talis alone, all the other trainees having already left for the day .

"I have to be able to do this myself . Talis I am not asking you to understand, I am simply asking you let me do this my way . " Kyera replied and he sighed deeply .