Training Can Be Therapeutic (Ember)

Nelle’s eyes narrowed on the target in the distance. The bow in her hands was familiar as she drew it up in to her line of sight. She practiced archery regularly for more therapeutic purposes than training ones. While Nelle held more skill with a wand, she felt that the physical power of a weapon such as bow and arrow held a significant allure. Something different to what she had been taught throughout her life. She was about to release the arrow when she heard a twig break nearby. With the bow still drawn, she turned toward the noise knowing that the forest was not a very safe place.

Ember had her cross bow on her back and the arrows actually hanging on her hip. Her foot stepped on a dry twig causing it to make a loud crack and her wolf dog, Quies howled gently before crouching to the floor. ''Who's there?'' Ember called out, pulling out her cross boy to point it towards the figure only to see it to be a hufflepuf but couldn't tell who it was.

Nelle frowned as she looked in the direction of the voice. It sounded like a human, and since she hadn't already had a crazy being running at her, she deduced that it wasn't a wild animal. Her eyes widened, and she quickly dropped the bow to the ground behind her back. "It's Nelle Rosier!" She called, still trying to make out a figure in the gloom. She didn't want for anyone to think any more of her than a quiet little Hufflepuff. Her voice changed in tone to one that seemed afraid as she called out, "Don't hurt me!"

Ember came out of the darkness, pointing her crossbow as she checked the surroundings to see if Nelle was alone. ''Ember. Ember Shadow...and this is Quies.'' She pointed to the pure white wolf dog. Narrowing her eyes towards Nelle, she then smirked almost darkly. Well look here, Em..A hufflepuff that knows how to use a bow. oh shush. ''Won't hurt you, unless you hurt me first.'' Ember told the hufflepuff, touching Quies' forehead to stop her from growling.

Nelle placed a smile on her face when she heard a girl introduce herself. She had not met Ember before, but she knew by the trimmings on the girl's clothes that she was probably a Gryffindor. Her eyes glanced down at the wolf dog and smiled. She hadn't seen an animal like that before, but Quies was very beautiful. "I don't plan on hurting anyone," Nelle said quietly, raising her hands so that ember could see that she didn't have another to harm her with. "It's nice to meet you both.."

Ember tilted her head at Nelle, taking her in before glancing at her hands. Putting the crossbow back in it's place, she nodded slowly. ''Then why are you so skilled with a bow if you don't plan on hurting someone?'' Ember asked, curiously. A sly smile tugged at her lips before running her hands through Quies fur. ''How do you know if it's nice to meet us when you don't even know us?'' She questioned.

Nelle's gaze drifted to the target ring, which held numerous arrows in it's smallest centre circle. Perhaps she should learn to cover herself better if she was going to be practicing at Hogwarts. "I like to know how to protect myself in more ways other than with a wand," she answered simply, "Not to mention the calming effects of having the knowledge that you can remove someone's eye without much thought." Her voice was emotionless, though she really did believe the things that she said. Her icy blue eyes returned to Ember and she smiled, the same sweet looking smile that she wore so often at school, "Because it is always nice to meet new people."

Ember listened to Nelle, completely understanding. ''That's always calming...Having someone's life in your hands. Having their fate..just a simple action can decide if the person is on the floor or walks away.'' She mused before smirking. ''Don't you worry..I won't tell anyone.'' She winked whilst checking out the target. ''Depends on how that person will be in the future. Shit happens.''

Nelle looked down, when Ember spoke. Her eyes caught the white wolf dog, and she kept her focus there. She had a big secret, not just that she was a fantastic shot. She lived her life at Hogwarts as a huge act. She did everything that she could to remain a quiet little Hufflepuff, and she couldn't believe that she'd been stupid enough to allow the chance for someone to seem otherwise. "Thanks," she said quietly, before looking back at the girl. "That's true.. though usually the first meeting is much more pleasant, no matter how crazy the person ends up being."

Ember wondered about Nelle. If the innocence was just a facade and if it was, she did a great job fooling everyone. This is stupid! GO ON! KILL HER ALREADY! NO NEED FOR HER HERE. OH SHUT UP, CLIO. Just leave her be, Ember. She ain't doing any harm. Shut up please...You guys are giving me a headache...again. As the argument went on in her mind, she simply stared at Nelle, her brown eyes curious. ''What if the person is already crazy...just ain't shown signs?'' She pointed out.

Nelle's eyes remained on Ember as she appeared to have an internal debate. She started to wonder if she should have dropped the bow, when she girl spoke. The Hufflepuff's eyebrow furrowed as she thought of an answer. Within a few moments she said simply, "Then they're crazy, aren't they? Nobody is a threat, until they threaten." Her words were flat, but she meant them. Her eyes locked with Ember's, and she awaited a reply.

Ember let a small smile grace her face just like Isabelle told her to. ''That's a good point...'' She replied, wondering why the girl was so...hidden but she didn't question it. Not yet. She then pointed towards the target. ''You're pretty good.''

Nelle looked over at the target again, and she shrugged, "I've been practicing for as long as I can remember." She glanced at the crossbow that had not too long ago been directed at her, and nodded toward it, "Are you good with that?" She briefly wondered what the girl had been doing wandering through the forest with a crossbow in her hand, but she chose not to ask.

Ember nodded slowly before glancing at her crossbow. ''Not one to brag but yes. Extremely. I have...a great aim.'' She admitted, still looking Nelle in the eye. She lifted her bow arm and without looking, shot the arrow hitting the very middle of the target causing it to split one of Nelle's. An overconfident feeling washed over and Clio went wild, begging to kill.

Nelle looked as the girl aimed her crossbow in the same direction as she had been shooting her arrows. As the well aimed bolt spilt her arrow in half, the Hufflepuff smiled, "You are very good, aren't you?" She wondered where Ember had learned to aim like that, without even looking. She looked down to her bow, and then back at Ember, "How do you do that? Hit the target without even a glance."

Ember smirked. ''Yes i am..'' Walking over to the target, she retrieved her arrow and looked back at Nelle. ''Years of practice and overconfidence.'' She explained before tilting her head. She was extremely prideful and it showed when she worked with weapons. ''As my mum would say...Ya gotta believe in yourself but to me, the bow is just an extension of my arm. It knows where i want it to go.''

Normally, Nelle would think that someone who spoke the way that Ember did was cocky. But with another look at the bolt, she figured that she was right to say that she was extremely good. She listened to what the Gryffindor said, and she made a mental note to practice the skill that Ember had just shown. It would be very useful if she were to ever end up in a fight. "That's some good advice," Nelle said, her eyes following Ember as the girl went to fetch her projectile. "You've been learning weapon use for a long time?"

Ember knew she must've sounded cocky but that's the way that she was. Sort of like her own barrier. ''Thanks. My sister taught me it.'' She explained before leaning against the nearest tree, checking out the surroundings like she usually did every five seconds. ''I've been learning weapons since i could walk and talk. It's second nature now. Then when i turned seven, i began hunting.''

Nelle nodded. The girl didn't have a sister, and her brother could probably teach her nothing more than how to get in to a girl's pants. Ember's words took the Hufflepuff back to the woods were she would hunt for food. Sure, there were stores that could easily supply food, but she liked the thrill of the hunt and honestly didn't like spending money much. Hunting had been able to help her whole family in some way or another. Her eyes shifted to Ember and she asked curiously, "What do you hunt?"

Ember watched Nelle think, making her want to search the girls mind to figure out what about. Whilst the girl was sucked into her thoughts, she crouched down and stroked Quies' head, staring at the blood on her wolf dog's muzzle. The question caused her attention to be drawn away from her dear pet and tilted her head. ''Deer, rabbits, pheasant, elk and the occasional bear. Ducks too. I once got a mountain lion. That was a rough fight there..'' Ember told Nelle, pulling out her skinning knife to sharpen.

Nelle nodded slowly at the girl's answer. She had a feeling that that wasn't all that the girl hunted, but she wasn't one to pry. As the girl drew a knife and began to sharpen it, Nelle found it hard to pull her eyes away. Ember was dangerous, she could tell, but she didn't seem like she intended on harming the Hufflepuff. "How long have you had her?" Nelle asked, gesturing toward the wolf dog, "She's quiet lovely."

Ember grabbed a cloth from her pocket and wiped the tip of the knife that was covered in blood. Staring at Quies, she smiled and kissed the dog's forehead. ''Around 5 years. My mum has a wolf dog and the pups got passed down to me and my sister.'' She smiled, thinking of holding the little white fluffball in her hands. ''She's all i need in a hunting partner.'' She said, a soft laugh escaping her lips.

The Hufflepuff couldn't help but feel slightly jealous. She had always wanted a pet that could do so many things with her, but it would be difficult when she was in school and when she wasn't she could be anywhere. "I just have an owl. I wish that I could have a dog or something," Nelle said, her voice sounding akin to a sweet little girl's. "I can imagine. She looked strong, and very intelligent." She crouched quickly and picked up her bow. Without looking, she pulled the sting and released it toward the target. It flew past, missing the outer ring by about two inches. "There is my attempt," she laughed, looking over to see if her arrow was lost for good.

Ember smiled. ''My sister's friend has loads of creatures..she just won't tell me what as they're a bit extreme.'' She said, laughing softly before tilting her head. ''That she is...The funny thing is her name means Dream in latin and my sister's wolf dog is called Tantibus. Means Nightmare in latin..'' Ember said, burying her face in Quies' fur. Looking at Nelle as she shot the arrow before listening out for a thump and there it was. ''Two trees back. That's where the arrow is.'' She told Nelle before glancing back at her. ''You're concentrating too much. Imagine the bow being apart of your arm, simply an extension.''

"I like animals," Nelle said quietly, her eyes again focused on the wolf next to Ember. "They are far less complicated that people. Even the vicious ones, they're that way for a simple and pretty legitimate reason." She laughed slightly as the revelation about the animal's name, "So is she the nice one of the pair?" She asked, gesturing with her hand toward Quies. The Hufflepuff wasn't much of a people person, though she spent a lot of time around people. She talked and laughed along with them, but she hid the fact that she would rather be alone. "I don't mind talking to you. You're far less annoying that the Huf-" She cut herself off quickly. "You quite easy to talk to," she ammended, a small smile gracing her lips.

Her brow furrowed as she thought about what Ember meant. How was she supposed to hit the target without concentrating? Reaching into the quiver that was hidden beneath her robe and drew another arrow. She had a large supply, but as she made them by hand she tried to retrieve as many as she could. Looking at Ember, she drew the string and released it straight afterward. This time she heard the familiar thud that meant she had hit the board, but when she looked she frowned. The arrow was a mere half inch from having on the same way as the last. "That's not too much better.."