By The Light of Lightening: Step
By: M14Mouse
Summary: Chip is out in the rain again. Catalina starts her own adventure.
Disclaimer: Don't own them.
The Ways are hard to explain even to those who have study them.
It is a place touched by the Mother and the Master. Some say that it is a lost part of the Mystic Realm. At leaast, that is what I have been told. It could easily be a myth for people who don't understand The Ways. It is a place good magic and bad magic twisted into the very ground. Things of hollow and darkness run through the swamps. A mere touch from its water could burn the skin or make you invincible. Its caves are full with wonders that the eyes could blind a man or heal him. All sides avoided this place during the war.
It was a rule passed down to both sides.
But Mother was particular about me going down there.
She seemed to think that it was important to get his spirit out of there.
By the spirits, I hate the Ways-Catalina
Chip could never understand the saying that it was raining cats and dogs.
If either of them were smart enough, they would stay out of the rain.
He should be out of the rain but he wasn't.
He should be doing a lot of things. He had homework to do. There were cousins to look after. There was always a spell to learn or potion to mix.
There were always things to do.
Right now, he was in the middle of storm to stare at a target. It was the same target that he was shooting at months ago. His fingers ran along the arrow before he placed it on the string. He fixed his body into a comfortable stand then pulled back the string and let the arrow fly.
He really didn't need to check to see if it hit the mark.
He knew it did.
"Nice shot, Chip," Daggeron said behind him.
He didn't turn around for a moment. He felt Feival's presence close by. It was nice.
"I was trying to figure it out."
"What?" Daggeron asked.
"Why you had me spend hours out here making this same shot over and over again. I figured it out."
Daggeron didn't say anything. He didn't expect one either.
"I knew that it was a lesson involved. Vee said that it was a lesson about giving up and letting go. But…I don't think that was it. I think that it was a lesson on orders. If I would follow them, if so…for how long. I followed them for a long time. Vee had to drag me out of the rain."
"Chip…"
"I got it. I may not have understood like the whole Spiderman Clones or Daredevil movie. But I got it."
"What did you get, Chip?"
He stared at the target.
"Nick and I talked about it. We are guessing that you were afraid. You afraid that you were going to mess like you did with Callidor. He wasn't your fault like Zaria's death or Diane's disappearance wasn't yours either. That is a ton of guilt to carry around. Nick and I aren't him. He made his choice. We make our own."
Silence fills the air between them. The rain continues to hit the ground.
"That is a very wise thing to say…I supposed that underestimated Brig…Feival's influence."
"He has been awesome. He knows so much stuff. Getting him to share it is hard. You want to know the secret. Apples. He loves apples especially the granny smith type," He said with a pause.
He learned a lot of things. Most of the things were books, Feival, and Catalina. Even if they think that he couldn't do it, he learned loads from Leanbow, Daggeron, and the Snow Prince. He isn't bitter about his training as much as Vida and Catalina are about it. One of the important lessons of his life was to let go. He couldn't hold the bitterness because he knew what it could do.
He really hoped that Catalina doesn't do something stupid when she appeared. It would be awkward. He really hoped that she doesn't break anything…or anyone.
Maybe, that is why he loved archery so much. He could let go and focus on the target before him. He put his arrow onto the string and set his stand again. He pulled back and let the arrow go.
End of Step
Next Chapter: All Roads
A/N: I am slowly wrapping up Book 1 of this trilogy. Book 2 will focus on Nick, Chip and the knight's school of old. Read and review if you wish. ^_^