"Start with something basic, lets see where your strength is at right now... see how much you can handle before you tire." The White Wolf said, pointing to one of the dummies.

Raven centered himself with a short breathing exercise. Wishing to pace himself so as not to tire to quickly, he went at the training dummies with a simple kata of established moves. He kept his form strictly by the book at first, but as he went thorugh the moves, his muscle memory took over. The standard form, melting into the fluid, dance-like style he had adopted during the years of training unsupervised accept for by Kistig who enjoyed the way he appeared to dance with his blades. He kept the pace steady executing a series of elegant sweeping strikes, nimble darting attacks and light-footed spins His hands and feet beating a soft tattoo against the wood. Not to fast, but not to slow as he struck the training form with a median amount of force, wanting to last as long as he could unless prompted by Tidus to pick up his pace.

Tidus stood, taking note of how the other moved. Raven's style was different from his own but it wasn't unknown to him. Saying it was an 'old' style would be an understatement. It was ancient and rarely seen, most Sins eshewing the highly technical aesthetic style for newer, flashier more streamlined forms. He could see where the other had subtly changed many of the structured moves applying an individual influence to the classic style. "Who taught you this? Who exactly trained you?" He asked, crossing his arms standing near by one of the dummies.

"Drogfinn picked me when I advanced from basic training. He said his style of hand-to-hand combat would best suit my frame and bearing...but I have...changed it slightly over the years of training on my own." Raven said, his breathing elevated from the exercise, but not ragged nor stressed yet.

"It's not bad...but here..." Tidus explained, moving to stand facing the same dummy. "See this was your move..." The more experienced Sin mirroring how he'd seen Raven use a part of his kata. "Now this is good, it keeps your wrist straight and directs your enegry in a straight line, but see here..." He instructed, pointing to his side. "It leaves you exposed, if you change it to this here.." Tidus corrected, shifting his posture altering the move "This is faster and takes less energy and leaves you less vulnerable to this spot here.."

Raven leaned in as he watched intently, nodding as he took note of the slight changes. He copied the adjusted move as shown slowly, repeating it several times over each time with a slight pause to check Tidus's face for approval.

"Here... lift your elbow..." The Snow-maned Sin said, reaching out to tip Raven's elbow higher. "See right there how much more power you're getting... that's enough to send a man on his ass..." The bird flinched at the contact, averting his eyes afterward. Tidus stepped back his eyes narrowing in thought. "Raven do you think i'm going to hurt you?"

"NO!.." Raven exclaimed with frustration. " No, I don't! I don't think you're going to hurt me. I Know your aren't going to... I...I can't help it..." The young sin said, his voice falling softly. " As hard as I try. I can't help it..." Raven's face squinched in frustration as he performed the move Tidus had just shown him hard enough to make the dummy shake. Angry with his weakness.

"What I did... when I got back... was I trained...and I trained harder than I ever had in my life...these here... these were my enemy... the same way you focus your mind to control your emotions, you do it here as well... channel that fear here..." He explained tapping the dummy. "Go all out..."

Raven exploded, throwing himself at the dummy. He did not lose himself in his fury though, he held onto a measure of control. The moves of the kata maybe not as precise as they had been before as Raven through his rage and frustration into them. he attacked the dummy mercilessly. His pulse thundered in his ears deafening him to any other sound. His eyes only on the dummy before him. His breath coming in ragged gasps between blows. Though he thought his lungs might burst, he refused to relent. His muscles burned, but he pushed through the discomfort straight into pain. He poured his anger into his moves as if attempting to sustain his attack with nothing but the raw emotions he had been holding inside since his escape.

Tidus watched on as the bird threw his all into the dummy, it wasn't what he'd plan to teach, but it was what the other needed giving him a chance to fight back at the ghosts that haunted his mind. Instead of asking him to slow he did the opposite giving a growling word of encouragement "You've got more than that...dig deeper..."

Tidus's word were fuel to the fire burning inside Raven and he obeyed. He dug deeper. He moved faster. Struck harder. He abandoned the graceful style he had learned in Pandae for the brutish one that Fayvr had taught him while he had trained at the waterfall by the old Sins supply depot cookfire. It was harsh and mean, lacking the smooth curving arcs and soft flowing moves. It was an explosive and brutal fighting style designed to cripple and kill quickly. Attacking in this way Raven soon began to paint the wood with wet flecks of red.

"Keep going... go until you can't see it any longer..." Tidus urged. He didn't want to see Raven hurt himself, but he did want him to have a chance to exorcise his demons, his hands would heal and his muscles would repair but his mind was what was at stake. He'd growl his eyes glowing red. "More..."

Raven reached deeper still, tapping now the fear. The dreaded fear that haunted his ever waking moment, ruled his dreams and had him flinching at the slightest contact. He grabbed onto that fear attempting to rend it as his claws did the dummy before him. He threw more and more at the dummy. He kept going. He no longer felt any pain. He only felt the all consuming desire to destroy what stood before him. Tear it to shreds. Rip it asunder. What stood in front of him was no longer the dummy, but his fears, his frustrations and he rained down his fury upon them.

The dummy began to fall apart the wood cracking under the pressure and flying off and yet, Tidus didn't tell the other to stop. He wanted Raven to demolish it, absolutely destroy the dummy and with it, at least some of the fear that he carried with him on a day to day basis. It wasn't a cure but if nothing else perhaps a little helpful.

"Good..." The White Wolf encouraged with a hiss to his voice.

He had felt himself begin to tire, but the specter of his fears still stood before him, mocking his weakness. Gloating at it's triumph over him once again. He bent his will on utterly destroying it, but found he needed more. Tidus's voice slid over him like silk, the soft hiss of encouragement joining that of the insidious mewling that scratched hungrily from behind a door the night-maned Sin kept locked and barred. Raven was desperate to win this fight that to him had become a kill or be killed struggle against his fears. Loosing the lock, the door swung slowly open. "...Good..." Whispered the shadows behind the door, echoing the hiss in Tidus's voice. The wild unfocused fury of Raven's attacks subtly changed, as the chilling darkness born of things he had done and things that had been done to him oozed out from where it had lain coiled and waiting. His attacks grew ever more precise until each one became a skillful killing blow and Raven smiled.

Tidus watched on and saw the change in the others demeanor and strokes, how he smiled. This hadn't been how Tidus wanted to see Raven find himself again or rather he had the impression that he was now lost... he was about to test that theory.

"Enough..." He said.

The word was like a sudden gust of wind slamming the door shut and Raven dropped to his knees. He swayed, utterly spent, before the ruins of the dummy. Struggling for air, his heart pounding in his chest like a sledgehammer, spots before his eyes.

"Maybe you can be saved after all..." smirking "tell me Raven when you can catch your air, how do you feel now?"

Raven went from his knees to all fours, a hand on his chest. It took a moment, but he caught enough air in his lungs to croak the word 'Better'.

"You train every day hard... Focus your mind, it is your best tool to channel everything you require. So when you find them... if you ever see those fuckers... you know exactly what to do to them..." The snow haired Sin said as he held out an arm to help Raven off the ground.

Raven grasped the forearm Tidus offered, grunting as he came off the ground to stand. He swayed a bit, but kept his feet under himself. He shook out his hands inhaling thru his teeth as the sensation returned. He looked at the other, his eyes holding a question he decided not to ask and so he averted his gaze.

"Take your time... walk it off... then ask me..." Tidus instructed, eyes following the crow about concerned he may pass out.

Raven did as Tidus instructed. He walked a small circle, his knee buckling once again, but he caught himself on one of the remaining dummies. Facing away from Tidus and leaning heavily on one of the remaining forms, he drew a breath and held it before exhaling slowly.

"...Did you..." Raven asked softly. "...Find them?"

"I found them... and they wish I hadn't..." The Wolf answered after a moment. The older Sin had his own triggers and nights that were filled of nightmares but not every night, having his own methods to combat his issues. Taking in a slow breath, he would nod before continuing. "If you want to do it right, it takes time... time to know their routines, their shifts, their homes, loved ones and any other thing they care about... Know your enemy then you can really kill them... so much more than just their body..." He didn't falter as he spoke a sternness and cold chill to his words. As Raven turned to face him, he held the other's gaze adding "It's not the cure you seek... There is no cure...Get your revenge but know when you're done, the feeling will still linger. For me, I'm stuck in a loop of killing. I couldn't let them go free... but I also became one of those people. I am the enemy... as much as they are. I have inflicted untold amounts of pain.. If you go back, do it with open eyes." Tidus said, stepping back towards the house, the sorc having taken his leave at some point most likely the noises of the two causing him a bother. It wasn't like he made a habit of saying goodbye anyway.

Raven followed after Tidus. "I'm going to feel this in the morning, aren't I?" He said meaning to lighten the dark mood he had caused to descend upon the other, but he also more than just the pain pulsing in his torn up hands.

"If I were you I'd soak in the tub..." He neglected to mention he'd like to have drunk a ton while IN the tub. "You're a daeva. Your body can handle quite a bit and heal fairly fast... it depends on if it helped your mind..."

"If I say it didn't will you let me sleep in?" Raven ventured, fulling expecting to get cuffed upside the head.

"Sure... sleep in ... See how it works for you." Tidus smirked. One could tell by the challenge that if Raven did sleep in there'd likely be a bucket of water or something worse waiting for him.

His mouth draw to one side in his small lopsided grin, he went into the bathroom. He sat on the edge of the tub turning on the taps to draw the bath Tidus had suggested. Stopper in his hand, he sat blinking as the bright red blood that dripped from his hand to fall upon the white porcelain joining the water to swirl down the drain. Turning off the taps, he left the bathroom, his eyes slightly wider than normal.

"I'm beat. Think I'll just go lie down..." He murmured as he strode past the other Sin toward the bedroom.

The Wolf raised an eybrow, but said nothing. He waited a few moments before going into the bathroom. Light ruddy smudges stood out against the white. He fished the washcloth Raven had used in his cursory clean-up from the hamper, Exhaling thru his nose as set about wiping away what remained of the traces of colour he knew had caused the bird to abandon his bath. "One step forward, two steps back..." He growled half at himself for not forseeing this possible reaction. It was not that long ago that he had croutched beside the devestated young Deava in the hotel room shower as ribbons of red waved over white porcelain.