"Dareth shiral, lethallan! Paivel's teaching me tracking today!" Tamlen waved at Faleni, and headed over to the storyteller's aravel. It had been a week since Paivel took her friend on as an apprentice, and it still surprised her how well the two got on. It seemed to surprise a lot of clan, actually, that the perpetually sunny Tamlen and the stoic Paivel would mesh well together. Tamlen was still learning skills he needed to become a hunter, but he was also learning to take over for Paivel one day; apparently he had discovered an interest in Dalish history that the storyteller was doing his best to encourage. Faleni felt betrayed; she had never gotten on with Paivel and now every word out of Tamlen's mouth was 'Hahren Paivel this...' or 'Paivel that...'. It hurt.
"Da'len? Would you come with me?" A tall figure obscured her vision. Faleni looked up to see Haysha staring down at her. She looked severe; her face unsmiling, her nut-brown hair pulled back tightly. Faleni nodded, gulping. The older woman turned on her heel, and strode off without another. Faleni stood there confused for a moment before realizing she was meant to follow. She had to sprint to catch up. It didn't take long to figure out where they were headed; she could see the practice targets up ahead, all set up and ready. There were a number of the clan already there; a few of the older apprentices training on the bor'assan and some adults honing their skills. Junar was holding a contest against Ineria, one of the older apprentices and probably the next to get her vasselin, and was winning handily. Haysha walked over to one of the empty targets, and handed off her bow and quiver to Faleni.
It was the largest bor'assan Faleni had ever seen; most of the clan used light scouting bows; small and compact, meant for speed and accuracy, not for distance. Haysha's looked like it could shoot an arrow fifty meters and penetrate the skin of a bear. It was almost as tall as Faleni herself.
"Here da'len, stand behind that line, and try to hit the target with this." Faleni pulled an arrow from the quiver and struggled to get the large bor'assan into shooting position; her small hands were just barely able to curl around the limb. Haysha watched her impassively. Finally, she managed to get the thing aimed in the direction of the target and pulled the string; or at least she tried too. Haysha's bowstring was much thicker than even what Fenarel used on his light bow, and it took all of her might to bring it back while keeping the arrow strung. Finally as the line began to dig painfully into her fingers, she released it. The arrow flew only a few feet before clattering on the ground some distance from the target.
She looked at Haysha, who hadn't changed her expression or moved one inch. Faleni felt her cheeks grow warm with embarrassment.
"Well?" Haysha asked. That single word held so much scorn in it. Embarrassment burned away, only to be replaced by anger. This was not fair.
"I want another shot." Faleni heard herself saying. The older woman nodded. She drew another arrow from the quiver, and lifted the bow again. It was easier this time around, though her fingers were still stinging from the last time and the string dug even further into her skin. She loosed the arrow, and again it fell far short of it's mark. It was however, a lot closer than the first time. She glanced over to Haysha, and noticed with dismay that she had aquired an audience; everyone who had been practicing was now watching her; even Junar and Ineria had ended their contest. She squared her shoulders and looked Haysha directly in the eye.
"Again." She said firmly. Haysha's expression didn't change, but several of the other elves smiled. Faleni took the silence as assent, and turned back to the target.
It took her five more arrows to hit the target, and even then it bounced off harmlessly. By then her arms and hands were shaking so bad that she could no longer hold onto the bow up; she grounded the point and leaned heavily on the longbow for support. She searched Haysha's face for any sign of pleasure or displeasure, and got nothing.
"Irenia, would you lend Faleni your bor'assan?" The hunter said finally. The apprentice nodded, and handed Faleni the scouting bow she had been using, taking away Haysha's in the process. The shortbow felt lighter than air; though she knew for a fact that it was heavier than the toys she was used too. She drew one more arrow from the quiver and drew back, ignoring the sharp pain in her right hand. One last arrow, to make it count. She released the string.
The arrow zinged across the field and buried itself into the target. High, almost too high; another inch or so and she would have missed the target entirely. But she hit it. She crossed over and started to pull out the arrow, surprised how deep she had managed to get it in there. Faleni practically fell backwards yanking the thing out. A cheer went up from the crowd, and she threw a tired grin in their direction. Only Haysha was unmoved. She trudged towards the group, and handed Irenia her bor'assan back. Slowly the crowd drifted back to their own separate practices, leaving Faleni with Haysha.
"Here, hahren." She said, handing the arrow to her elder.
"Ma'serannas da'len. Come, we have much to do, and Marethari needs to see to your hand." Haysha's fist clenched around the arrow and turned back towards the main camp. Faleni's brow furrowed in confusion, and she looked down at her hands. Her right hand was covered in blood. There were welts and cuts on her fingers where she pulled back the string, over and over again. She hadn't noticed the blood.
It was Merrill who saw to her injuries; the Keeper was apparently off on errand. The small girl's eyes bugged at the sight of Faleni's injury, and she asked a number of questions that Faleni refused to answer. Haysha had disappeared while Merrill worked. She apologized profusely for not having the skills to heal magically, but she poulticed and wrapped the wound as skillfully as Marethari would have done. Faleni tested her hand; splaying her fingers, making a fist, over and over until she was satisfied that everything was fine. Haysha returned and two of them thanked Merrill, and headed toward an open part of camp.
There, Haysha pulled a dar'misu from her belt and handed it hilt first to Faleni. Faleni ran her finger along the ironwood blade; it had been whitled to a silky texture, and the edge gleamed with deadly precision; it was clearly one of Master Ilen's finest.
"Come at me." Haysha said, startling Faleni from her examination. The hunter stood in front of her in a defensive posture and completely unarmed. "What are you waiting for?"
The challenge was enough. Faleni changed her grip on the dar'misu so she was holding it like a whittling knife; like Ashalle had tried to teach her, and ran at Haysha with a yell. When she was within striking distance, Haysha stuck her foot out, causing the small girl to trip, and fall practically on her face. Faleni scrambled to stand up, but Haysha had already moved out of reach.
"Try again, da'len!" Faleni ran at her, this time a bit more cautiously. However, Haysha didn't even let her get close before leaping out of the way. Before Faleni could reorient herself; Haysha had moved to Faleni's back and thumped her on the head with her bare hand. The small girl whirled, ready to strike, but she was too late again.
This time, Faleni didn't rush; she sidled around, step by step, trying to figure out a way to get around. Haysha countered her movements, and they circled each other in a slow dance. She wasn't sure, but Faleni thought she saw a glint in the older woman's eyes.
She thought she saw a way. They had only been circling one way; as soon as she saw Haysha start to take the next step, she changed directions and sprinted towards the hunter. Haysha's first reaction was to try and go in the opposite direction, but she stumbled over her own feet in the process. Faleni peddled madly, and then launched herself upwards. And upwards and upwards. Faleni looked down. Haysha had caught her mid-flight and was holding the girl above her head.
"Nice try, da'len." There was a trace of amusement in the older woman's gravely voice. "See if you can do better."
Faleni continued to chase Haysha around until she was gasping for air, but she never got close to touching her. She finally flopped down on the ground, completely exhausted, and her hand still throbbing from the bow. Haysha sat down crosslegged next to Faleni and handed her a skin of water, which she took gratefully.
"So. What do you think da'len? About today?" There was genuine curiousity in Haysha's voice. Faleni gulped down the water, and thought for a moment before answering.
"I don't think I've ever worked so hard in my whole life. Your bor'assan is really heavy and you're much faster I am. I'm sorry hahren, that I've failed so badly." The words hurt coming out of her throat. She hung her head and stared at the water skin in her hands.
"Faleni... why do you think you've failed?"
"I couldn't hit the target, not really. I didn't even come close to you." She sighed unhappily.
"But you tried."
"Yeah."
"And you got a little better every time, right?" Haysha coaxed.
"Yeah."
"Da'len, what is the the Vir Tanadahl?" The question seemed to come out of nowhere, but Faleni was too tired to argue.
"The way of the Three Trees. Vir Assan – fly straight and do not waiver. Vir Bor'assan – bend and never break. Vir Adahlen – together we are stronger than the one."
"Faleni, those were not just tests of skill, although I must say, you did much better than I anticipated."
"I did? But..."
"Trust me on that one, da'len. As I was saying, these were not just tests of skill, but also ones of resolve, determination, and character. I wanted to see how well my apprentice followed the Vir Tanadahl, and in that you did admirably. You kept trying; despite the insurmountable odds – you did not give up when it was too hard. You showed no fear of what you were asked to do, and you trusted that I would not lead you astray. These are the qualities that make our clan stronger." Haysha pulled out another skin of water, and drank deeply from it while Faleni processed what was just said.
"I'm your apprentice?" She asked incredulously. Haysha sputtered, spraying water everywhere.
"Is that all you got out of that speech? No don't answer that, I know. Here I am, trying to tell you what a credit to the Dalish race you are, and you stopped listening after the word apprentice. Dread Wolf, why do I even bother? Yes lethallan, if it is amenable to you, I will be your master." For the first time all day, Haysha smiled; a giant grin that stretched from ear-to-ear. Faleni couldn't help it, she threw herself into Haysha's arms and hugged her tightly, prompting a loud laugh from the Hunter.
"Why me?" She asked, her mind racing with anticipation.
"Why not? You kind of remind me of myself at your age. You have the potential to become great. Besides, I have a feeling we can learn from each other – the best pairs do just that. I'd really like to know how you managed to get so good at disappearing." The older women's grin was sheepish; it was probably hard for her to admit that a child was better at something than she was.
"And can we tame wolves?"
"That, da'len, we'll just have to figure out together." Haysha stood up, and reached a hand to Faleni. "Come on, we should tell Ashalle the good news." Tired though she was, Faleni pratically skipped back to camp with her new master. She was going to be a hunter after all.
