Piccolo frowned, casting more weight on her shoulders when she lifted her burden… again. Her drive for momentary relief was only going to slow down her progress. He shook his head. She had better learn that lesson fast or she'll never get to the lake before she's crushed under the mounting weight. He kept an eye on her, getting more irritated every time her incredulous "COME ON!" echoed in the forest.

The night fell swiftly. Piccolo stood on the cliff of the lake and looked down on Tarine as she struggled to climb. Almost 100 lbs on her shoulders, 10x more than she started with. She was in reach of the ledge. Her trembling hand gripped the rock at Piccolo's feet, knuckles white at her effort to pull herself up.

"M-made it!" She barked through clenched teeth. Piccolo raised an eyebrow and let out a heavy breath.

"You would have made it here faster if you didn't ignore the rules." He sighed. Tarine attempted to throw her leg over the edge, using her tail to push her weight further up. Piccolo stepped back as she rolled onto the dirt in front of him. She thrust her arms into the air with a weak cry of triumph. She panted and reached out to his legs, punching his shin as hard as she could muster. There wasn't much strength left in her reservoir. Piccolo smirked. Her feeble attempts at defiance were amusing.

"I'm here… aren't I?" She huffed, pushing herself to her feet and tossing the weights into the river. He folded his arms and looked up at the sky. Stars twinkled overhead, the moon full and beautifully bright. He thinks a moment and floats off the ground away from the winded woman. She rubbed her neck and rolled her shoulders, too sore to ask what he was planning.

"We're going to spar. Airborne only." He said finally. Tarine groaned, lowering her head and hanging her arms.

"Dammit…" She sighed. Shakily, she rose into the air as well. Her energy was almost entirely depleted by the climb. She couldn't tell how long she'd last flying, let alone fighting. Piccolo kept his muscles loose. He watched her lift her fists, her ragged body having a hard time holding up. Tarine groaned and gritted her teeth, searching him for a place to strike first. She charged him and threw a punch for his face, whiffing completely and lagging past him. Tarine's tail wavered as she tried to retain balance. She attempted to strike again, but her arm wouldn't raise.

"Are you seriously that tired?" He asked, watching her falter and crash to the dirt. Piccolo sighed and landed beside her, kneeling to check her breathing. He pulled her into his arms and flew back to the capsule home. Piccolo was all too used to weak students crashing in the middle of training. He laid Tarine in the bed and quietly shut the door behind him. He shook his head and walked to his own abode. The longer, down to Earth route wound through the valley. His cape danced in the wind, entering his peripheral and plastering itself to his back.

Piccolo kept his eyes forward. Moonlight illuminated the rocks surrounding him giving everything a celestial blue tint. The cold breeze rushed past him with several snowflakes peppering the air. Visible fog clouded his view with each calm breath. His mind kept drifting to his student. The young woman was a mystery. Unknown origin, uncommon fighting style. To make matters worse, he couldn't read any ki from her whatsoever. He had nothing to gauge, nothing to benchmark. It was going to be a challenge.

The home came into view finally. He stepped through the small garden, watching the river reflect the moonlight for a moment before entering his home and setting his cape on a dresser. It was a comfort to be home with the weights lifted. He sat on his thin, barebones bed and breathed a long sigh of relief, rubbing his neck. The cool air was bliss on his sweaty neck. He wiped his brow and laid on the sheets. As much as he tried to avoid the thought, he was stuck on the vanishing ki and the appearing woman. They had to be connected. However it remained, she was progressing too slowly for his liking. He shook his head and attempted to shut down for the night. There would be no more slacking off.

Piccolo wasted no time. The second dawn hit he was at Tarine's temporary abode, shoving the door open. The place was bathed in the breaking light. The combo kitchen/living room was empty of life. Piccolo paused at her bedroom door, gripping the doorknob. His long time on Earth let him know women preferred privacy in these kinds of rooms. He raised his hand to knock instead, grumbling quietly to himself. He didn't need these trivial hang-ups.

"Tarine. Get up." He called, placing a hand on his hip. His keen ears picked up the shuffling of a groggy body fighting against the remnants of sleep. She never answered. Instead, she remained silent before opening the door, leaning on it with one arm, using that bicep as a pillow.

"Please let me sleep…" She mumbled, fighting a yawn and losing. She stretches while Piccolo shakes his head.

"We need to get moving. Come on."

"Alright, just gimme a sec." She cracks her neck and shakes herself out, stepping past him and out of the home. He raised his brow and stood in the doorway, watching as she walked to the creek and knelt beside it. He was about to question it when she dunked her head into the freezing water and breached just as quickly with a howl of surprise and discomfort. Piccolo raced over, confused more than anything.

"Why the hell did you do that?" He barked, unsure of what to do. Tarine shook her hair, water flying everywhere.

"To wake up. I'm ready." She said through shivers. Piccolo grimaced. There wasn't much time though, so he moved on. He raised into the air, arms folded and weighted clothes heavy on his shoulders.

"We're starting with the airborne spar you messed up last night." He stated simply. Tarine nodded, flying up and immediately throwing punches at him. They weren't hard to dodge, her tells were far too obvious. He refrained from retaliating. Instead, he swiftly moved around her strikes in silence, watching her intently.

"Are you even trying?"

"Will you be mad?" She floated back a bit, dropping her arms. Piccolo gave her a harsh glare in answer, "hm, well the answer is yes. But less effort is going into the fighting if I'm flying. Doing both at once and constantly is draining."

"Then you need to be fighting smart. Use your energy wisely. This won't end until you hit me." He said, more bite to his tone than the night before. Tarine frowned, raining more punches on him without landing any. His ducking was faster than she could even attempt going. She pelted kicks and tailwhips on a mirror image he produced. As it vanished she whipped around looking for him. He was above her, watching her fling useless attacks at more mirages. At this rate, she was never going to hit him. Piccolo groaned internally, dragging a hand over his head. Tarine finally caught on. Piccolo had his guard down and she was willing to exploit it. Before he returned full attention to her, a flying uppercut caught his chin. He grabbed her arm and held her in place.

"Uh… gotcha?" She said, nervous and struggling to reclaim her arm.

"Hm," Piccolo let her go, rubbing his chin, "so you did. You can land now." Tarine smiled and landed on the dirt. It seemed she wasn't too tired anymore as she leaped and bounded in triumph. He smirked faintly. It wasn't what he planned, but she was beginning to catch on.