A pleasing breeze rippled through the woods, caressing the foliage and producing a cascade of shimmering light on the forest floor below. The trees themselves swayed melodically, an ocean of green billowing in the wind. The sun beat down from above, and a cacophony of birds chirped from the relative safety of their nestled nooks.
The dull, intermittent crack of wood striking wood was the only sound to interrupt the atmosphere, but was no less out of place so close to the Arc family home.
Neo sat on the porch, idly rocking back and forth in a wicker chair with a thick textbook resting in her lap. She was catching up on the reading material she would need to know for the next year of school. Three months had passed since her departure from the hospital, and she had much to learn if she was going to avoid being left behind. The Arcs had helped her as much as they could, but were currently out of the house and running errands in town.
Only Nicholas and Ariel remained to keep an eye on her, both currently out in the front lawn, sparring with practice swords to pass the time. School would begin soon for all of them within the week, and it was the last chance for any of them to spend quality time with Ariel before she left for her final year at Pharos Academy.
The rest of the family was planning a surprise party for her, and had used Neo's voluntary exclusion from the trip as an excuse to keep Ariel unaware of their plans. Neo didn't mind in the slightest, far preferring to stay at home in most cases than brave the outside world. Thankfully, the Arc family home was a cabin out in the woods, far removed from the wandering eyes of curious strangers.
Neo looked up from her book as the sound of combat became more heated. Ariel was in the midst of pressing the attack, using all of her strength and speed to try and whittle down her father's impregnable defense. Even without the majority of his aura, it was still a daunting task. Neo had never seen Ariel land more than a glancing blow, and even those had been laughed off by the mountain of a man.
"Push off harder before you attack! Your strength comes from more than just your arm! Put your entire body into it!" Nicholas instructed, easily blocking each of his daughter's blows with one hand held behind his back.
Neo frowned, taking a closer look at Ariel's footwork. Though she couldn't put it into words, Neo could tell what Nicholas was getting at. Ariel wasn't keeping herself low enough to the ground. Her strikes were weak, lacking the proper amount of force due to… 'What?' Neo cocked her head to the side, losing her train of thought as the book in her hands was entirely forgotten.
"Looks like we have a spectator!" Nicholas called out, noticing Neo's rapt attention. He was looking straight at her, a curious smile on his face. His sword continued to block, reacting to Ariel's strikes from out of his periphery. He turned back to his daughter with a smirk, "Perhaps you'd like to test yourself on someone your own size?"
Ariel glared, pretending to be angered by the taunt. Regardless, her attacks slowed to a stop, and she cast her eyes in Neo's direction as well. The pretend glare immediately dropped into a soft smile, the older girl beckoning her towards them. "I did promise to spar with you some time. Not many chances left until I come back next year! What do you say, Neo? Wanna give it a try?"
'Ummm,' Neo glanced at her book, then back to the two sweat covered blondes. Ariel was right, time was dwindling. Even so, Neo had never held a weapon before, and she had no aspirations of becoming a Huntress. Though they claimed she had aura to defend herself with, she'd never managed to consciously activate it. Only the healing factor ever came into play, stitching up scrapes and repairing bruises on the rare chance she got injured.
"It's alright if you don't want to. I just thought it would be a bit of fun to remember me by." She winked. "I promise I'll take it easy on you~"
Neo only had to think for a few seconds before nodding her acceptance. Ariel was strong, though you wouldn't know it by watching her spar with her father. But with that strength came an unprecedented level of restraint. Living with so many auraless siblings meant Ariel always needed to take care not to cause undue harm during sisterly squabbles. She'd never hurt any of them that Neo knew of, and certainly wasn't going to start now.
Neo set her book on a nearby table, then hopped to her feet. Trying to give herself a modicum of flare, she grasped the end of her scarf and threw it over her shoulder, confidently walking down the porch steps to approach the two blonds. Ariel giggled and Nicholas cracked a smile, meaning her efforts were entirely in vain.
Nicholas waited until Neo had reached them before flipping the wooden sword in his hand and holding the pummel out towards her. Neo accepted it cautiously, still aware that even without a blade, the weight alone would allow you to cause harm if swung with enough force. Nicholas nodded, noticing Neo's care. She began to adjust her grip, finding a more comfortable way to hold it.
"So, first thing's first. You're gonna want to hold it like…" Nicholas began to move around behind Neo to assist with her stance. He stopped half way, eyes widening ever so slightly.
Neo glanced back at him, then followed his line of sight to where she was gripping the wooden sword. She shifted awkwardly, wondering if she'd messed up so soon.
"Looks like you've got it handled…" Nicholas spoke slowly. He stepped back, then nodded to Ariel. "Let's see what she's made of, eh?"
Ariel had a curious expression on her face as well, sizing Neo up more than the younger girl would have expected. Neo squirmed under her gaze, letting the sword point drop lower and backing up uncertainly. Ariel's expression immediately shifted, returning to the soft smile she'd worn before.
"Don't mind me," Ariel laughed lightly. She hefted her own wooden sword, taking up a stance that closely mirrored the one Neo had previously been in. "Go ahead and attack when you're ready. You haven't learned to activate your aura yet, so I won't swing back for now."
Neo rallied her failing willpower and returned to her stance. The sword point raised once more, directed towards her opponent. She hesitated, wondering what angle would be the best for an attack.
Nicholas seemed to have noticed her confusion. He gave a brief laugh and pushed Neo forward, "The best way to learn is to fail. Don't worry about technique, just… do what feels right."
Neo gulped and nodded, turning back to size Ariel up. Looking at her stance, there weren't any visible openings she could find. Neo shrugged and hefted the sparring sword higher, readying herself to make her first attack.
It was pitiful.
Ariel smirked as she easily knocked Neo's blade to the side, almost seeming relieved that the young girl hadn't posed more of an immediate threat. Though she was confused, Neo continued with her strikes, trying her best to imitate how she'd seen both of them move in weeks past. The sound of wood cracking against wood picked up once again, now caused by the wild swings of a young child.
Though it was new to her, Neo found herself having fun swinging the sword in Ariel's direction. She knew that with such a large gap in strength and skill between them, she didn't really need to worry about actually hitting the older girl. Neo allowed herself to relax, arms and body moving of their own accord as she rapidly increased her pace.
The practice sword flickered in her hand, cracking against Ariel's with a deft precision born of boundless enthusiasm. Neo dipped and spun, striking out at the older girl in a flurry of attacks that Neo herself could hardly keep up with. She could only continue to do what she felt was right, a natural response to every perceived gap in Ariel's defense.
"Uh, Dad!?"
Neo was enjoying herself so much, she barely even noticed Ariel's panicked words, nor when her own legs coiled beneath her, ready to spring into action. Neo's only thought was of challenging herself more, and trying to get past Ariel's defense in whatever way she could. Both knees bent, legs tensing for a moment before launching her in an acrobatic flip over the top of the blond in front of her.
Upside down, seeing the ground and Ariel suddenly beneath her, Neo's excitement vanished with a jolt of panic in her gut. Brought back to conscious thought, she flailed in the air before landing heavily behind the older girl, her ankle twisting and the wooden sword clattering from her fingers. Pain exploded through her body, a sharp pulse originating from where her leg had contacted the ground.
"Neo!" Both of the blondes reacted instantly, rushing to crouch by her side and offer what support they could. Neo clutched her leg, rocking back and forth in pain while trying to keep it from touching the ground. Wearing a skirt as she was, the discoloration around her ankle was immediately visible to all present.
"I-I'm gonna go get some ice!" Ariel said quickly, rising up to hurriedly run back inside. Neo heard her footsteps fading into the distance, eyes too blurry from welling tears to watch her go.
"It's alright, Neo. Your aura should heal you up soon enough. You're going to be just fine," Nicholas assured her, setting a hand on her knee to stop her rocking back and forth. "What kind of foolish maneuver was that anyway? You really gave both of us quite a shock."
Neo could only shrug weakly through the pain, uncertain why she ever would have tried something like that either.
Ariel returned a minute later, offering up an ice pack only to find a pink glow already surrounding Neo's ankle. It shimmered in place, like light reflecting off a placid pond. Neo felt the pain in her leg beginning to subside, eventually vanishing completely after a minute had passed. She looked down to see her skin had returned to its normal complexion, and tested it by rolling her ankle slowly. No sudden pain flared up at the movement, proving that her aura had once again healed her wound.
Neo raised a hand to her chest and pretended to sigh, then smiled up at the two blonds standing over her. 'I feel better,' she signed quickly, knowing from their lessons that both would understand the gestures.
Ariel held a hand down to her, helping Neo back to her feet. "That was crazy! Has Dad been giving you secret lessons or something? I wasn't expecting you to fight so well!"
Neo's eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, hands moving hesitantly. 'What do you mean?'
"She means the skill you demonstrated while fighting," Nicholas spoke up. He rubbed the blond stubble on his chin, raising an eyebrow while giving Neo a measuring gaze. "You really didn't notice? I could've sworn I was staring in a mirror, up until you tried to jump over her, anyway."
Neo could only shake her head. It was true she'd gotten caught up in the thrill of the fight, but she hadn't really been paying attention to her own movements or thinking about any special techniques at the time.
"What does this mean, Dad?" Ariel asked worriedly.
Nicholas let out a grumble, "If I had to venture a guess… It's because I gave Neo so much of my soul. Ever since then, I've had a… sense…" He glanced in Neo's direction, silently asking for confirmation. "Like I knew what she was feeling… knew when she was close."
'I felt it, too,' Neo gestured. She could remember sharing an odd empathic connection with Nicholas at times in the past, understanding his desires, or knowing when he was close by. Neo shivered, worried about what it might all mean for her. 'Is it bad?'
"It's unprecedented, at the very least. I've never heard of anyone else giving away as much of their aura as I did. I guess if my soul truly held some part of me… You may have inherited my skill with a blade."
Ariel shook her head, "More than that. I could feel the amount of aura Neo was putting into her strikes. It was all I could do to deflect them instead of taking them head on. If you both aren't just messing with me, then... she's a natural at aura enhancing."
Nicholas exhaled slowly, raising a hand up to rub the bridge of his nose. "This isn't good…"
Ariel looked taken aback, "Why? This is great! She practically skipped twenty years of training!"
Nicholas shook his head, "Because she doesn't want to be a Huntress, do you Neo? Having that kind of strength at her age means she's going to have to learn restraint, and quickly." He met Neo's eyes, a very serious expression on his face, "I know you aren't the type, but if anything ever happened… If you weren't careful… You could really hurt someone... Maybe even kill them."
Neo flinched back, eyes wide. She gestured quickly with her hands, 'I don't want to hurt anyone!'
"I know you don't, but…" Nicholas glanced around for a moment, finally spotting a decent sized stone in the grass. He picked up the practice sword that Neo had dropped, then turned around to face the woods away from the house. Nicholas lobbed the stone up, then swung the wooden sword like a bat, hitting it with a deafening crack and sending the stone hurtling into the forest at blistering speeds. With a heavy 'THUMP', the stone hit one of the trees, splintering the bark and embedding itself a few inches into the wood beneath.
"Aura grants strength far beyond the capabilities of normal people. You have all of your own aura, and most of mine. I wouldn't be surprised if you could hit that stone all the way through the tree with a little practice." Nicholas turned back around, trying to measure whether or not Neo understood the implication of what he was saying. "That tree is a lot sturdier than any person…"
Neo stared at the hole in the tree, a sinking feeling growing in her stomach. 'One wrong move… that's all it would take…'
Nicholas sighed, "I'm sorry to say it, but we may need to hold off on letting you go to school."
Neo's eyes darted back to him, widening in surprise. As nervous as the prospect of going to school made her, she really did want to be around kids her age again. To make friends, outside of those she now called sisters. As long as she had her trusty scarf to protect her, Neo no longer feared the gaze of others quite so much.
"Dad! Don't say that! I'm sure Neo will be fine! She's really been looking forward to this!" Ariel argued on her behalf.
"The safety of the people comes first," Nicholas said evenly. Though he regarded both of them with a calm expression, Neo could feel the underlying regret on her own behalf. Nicholas didn't want to deny her, but felt it was for the best.
Neo's breath hitched, but she refused to let her emotions get the better of her. Instead, she breathed deeply and raised her hands, ready to say her part.
'I won't hurt anyone. I promise.'
Nicholas gazed at her intently. Neo felt her body beginning to shift uncomfortably, but willed herself to be still. She held Nicholas's eyes with the best approximation of a determined expression she could muster.
After a few long seconds spent staring back and forth, Nicholas finally relented. "I know you're a kind person at heart, Neo. Just… if you start to feel yourself getting angry, or want to try and play sports with the other kids… Just think about that tree. Can you promise me that?"
'I promise.'
"Well then, you'd better get back to your studies. You've still got a few books left to read before you're caught up."
Neo beamed, sharing a smile first with Nicholas, then with Ariel. She spun on her heel and ran back to the porch, snagging up her book to flip to the page she'd left off on. She sat back down, gleefully rocking back and forth on the wicker chair.
The sound of two wooden swords colliding with each other once again picked up, though it lacked the ferocity it had held previously.
Despite staring at the page, Neo was left to wonder…
'What else am I capable of?'
That jump had been exhilarating... at least until she hit the ground.