RP:Sweating For The Wedding

Summary: Lanara surprises Talyara by hiring them a personal fitness instructor to whip them both into shape before their upcoming weddings! However… Lana mistakenly hires some crazy man that has recently gotten out of prison, and his exercise methods are downright torturous. After Taly gets attacked by a crocodile, the sisters decide to fire Jailbird Johnston, and they plan a workout routine and diet of their own.

Part of the New Moon, New Motion Arc

(Post 1 of 2) It’s an hour past dawn and Lanara bangs loudly on the front door of the cottage, shaking her head, and speaking to a strange fellow in a loud voice, “I told her to be ready! She’s probably oversleeping...Or... She didn’t get my letter.” The witch scowls, as she’s pretty sure she recalls spilling a pitcher of apple cider and that it soaked the letters she had meant to mail. Talyara’s invitation to start ‘sweating for the wedding’ must have been in the pile! She hopes there weren’t any bills that went unanswered, because Tiber will scold her for being so clumsy and incurring any late fees! She’s already caused the lycan enough financial strife and an eviction from a place he dwelled for nearly a decade! Lana is practically shouting, so her companion can hear her words over the roaring of the harsh winds. “I’m going to just unlock the door and drag her from bed, then we will proceed to Venturil for our lesson in agilities. I’ll be right back!” Without a second though, Lana mutters a spell and shoulders her way into the warmth of the cottage. “Wakey, wakey, Taly!”

(Post 2 of 2) Naturally, her sister, along with nearly everyone else in the northern hemisphere, is sound asleep. She’s nestled beneath a heavy comforter, her cheek pressed against a fluffy pillow, with Taylor and Ella lying at the foot of the bed. Krice is nowhere in sight, thankfully, or Lana may have some serious explaining to do! With a forceful tug of the blanket, Lana snags Taly by the ankle, and tries to literally drag her from her slumber. “Come on, Sister! We have a lot to do in a short amount of time! We are both getting married soon and we need to get in shape! This is Operation Sweating For The Wedding and you are already slacking! I thought you would have had your stretches and breathing exercises done already!” Lanara’s face is bright red, her skin is as chilled as ice, and she’s wearing a fur-lined snow parka that has her looking a tad like the abominable snowman. She continues to bark orders like a drill sergeant as she tries to drag Taly along the carpet and towards the washroom, “Hurry up! Mr. Johnston and I will be waiting outside. I hired a personal trainer!”

(Post 1 of 3) Talyara was sleeping very soundly. It had taken her a while to fall asleep thanks to Krice not being home (she always struggled to sleep when he wasn’t there), but she eventually drifted off a couple of hours earlier, snuggled under a heavy quilt with Ella and Taylor acting as guards to the slumbering witch. It was a particularly windy night and the windows rattled loudly which the witch counteracted by pulling the blanket almost completely over her head. Lanara was incorrect in that Talyara never received a letter from her regarding anything let alone an early wake up call! The younger witch wasn’t a particularly heavy sleeper but those blustering winds ensured she didn’t hear the incessant knocks on her front door.

(Post 2 of 3) Unfortunately, Taly’s slumber was soon interrupted when the quilt was ripped unceremoniously from her body and a cold hand wrapped around her ankle and began to drag her from her bed. Naturally, the little witch went into a frenzy; the disorientation of being woken so suddenly and the trauma response from being kidnapped by witch hunters causing her to kick out at her assailant and begin to scream and flail her body about. “Ahhhh! Let me go! Let me g--” The buzzing against her wrist pulled her screeching up short and she conjured up her familiar blue flames in her palm to cast the room in an eerie glow. “What the hell are you doing, Lana?! Talyara yelled, her chest heaving and eyes wide and wild looking. Her sister seemed unfazed by her response and calmly (if not annoyingly) goes on to explain about hiring a personal trainer to get some workout sessions in before their respective ceremonies. Taly raked a hand over her face in disbelief and was about to flop down back on the bed when a final tug from Lana pulled her completely from the mattress and onto the floor with a loud thud.

(Post 3 of 3) Talyara cursed but Lana didn’t seem bothered as she opened up a chest of drawers and riffled through them, coming up with some fur-lined leggings and a heavy sweater and throwing them at her younger sister’s face unceremoniously as she glared from the floor, continually barking orders about getting dressed because Mr. Johnston was waiting and he was being paid by the hour. Only once Lanara left the room did Talyara begrudgingly get up off the floor and pull on her warm clothes while cursing her sister on her breath the entire time.

Lanara snickers beneath her breath all the while that Taly is frantically struggling and looking around the room with wide eyes. She laughs at her obvious bed head as her wild hair is frizzy and pointing every which way. She’s glad that Krice isn’t around because he would put a stop to this adventure before they even got near the door! Lana heads outside to discuss things with the trainer while her sister gets dressed, and as soon as Taly meets them outside, it seems that things are about to begin! Mr. Johnston is a human, about 5’5”, with a handlebar mustache, slicked back black locks, pale skin, and a pair of spectacles that are twice the size of his head. He wears a black jumpsuit, sneakers, and a whistle around his neck, and he studies the forms of both witches as he pulls a piece of parchment from his pocket. “Alright. We will begin with a roll call…” Lana blinks and exchanges a look with Taly, as they are the -only- two that signed up for this training session, and they are the only ones crazy enough to be standing outside in the middle of a blizzard! “Alright. Is Spina here?! Bach… Spina!?” Lana interrupts, “Uh. Mister Johnston, it’s just Talyara and Lanara… Just the two of us.” He mumbles he needs to write that down and ceremoniously spends the next twenty minutes dipping a quill into an inkwell and trying to write their names down. However, the ink keeps drying from the wicked wind and he sighs and gives up, “Alright. Let’s start with some breathing exercises…” He stares at his two ‘students’ but he doesn’t give them any indication that he’s going to lead them through the exercise. Lana shrugs and whispers to Taly, “How hard can it be? We just inhale and exhale, right?”

Talyara shucked off her bed clothes and donned the warm gear that Lana had tossed at her. Despite her sister's insistence that she needed to hurry, Taly took some time to tame her crazy hair into braided pigtails. She snagged a knit beanie from her top drawer and pulled it over her head and likewise zipped herself into a thermal vest and stuck her feet in fur-lined boots. She completed the ensemble with some warm gloves before following her sister's voice through the cottage and out the front door. She blinked in surprise at the man standing before them. The way Lana gushed about a trainer, the little witch had assumed he would have been...more athletically inclined. When he pulled the parchment from his pocket and announced he would be taking roll call, Talyara arched her brow and turned her face to catch her sister's eye. They were the only two there, why did there need to be a roll call?! "Who the hell is Bach Spina??" The younger sister hissed to Lanara, wondering if she had invited a band of misfits to join in this training session. Thankfully, it seems that the incompetent trainer had merely packed the wrong list--a small miracle that he had been able to secure anymore students--but felt it necessary to write their names down. It took an agonizingly long time, and Talyara was beginning to inch her way back to her front door. Unfortunately for her, Mr. Johnston decided at that moment to give up taking attendance and instead instructed them to do some breathing exercises...except no demonstration or explanation comes. "This is a terrible idea," Taly whispered to her sister over the blustering wind as Lana began to take deep breaths. "Remember the last time we took a physical fitness class? It was supposed to just be breathing and stretches and you told me to grab the vacant mat but it ended up being that trollish woman's and she gave me a black eye for stealing it!"

Lanara keeps a watchful eye on the trainer as she does her breathing exercises, trying to stifle her laughter as Taly keeps giving her a ‘look’ and mumbling about this ‘Bach’ person that was supposed to be joining them. “I heard he’s the best! He just got out of jail and used to train the inmates!” She’s a little confused as to whether he was a felon that liked fitness, or if he was employed by the prison, but she didn’t bother to ask. Mr. Johnston interrupts them, “Enough breathing! You both can stop now! Alright… Let’s move into some stretches.” He glares at Taly as she keeps talking, “You should -NEVER- wear glasses when exercising!!! Everyone knows that, as they can break, and you shouldn’t have been playing football! It’s a man's sport, not meant for ladies!” Taly’s mention of the black eye incident seems to have sent Mr. Johnston into hysterics, as he rants and raves about the dangers of football for the next several minutes. He’s shouting at the top of his lungs to combat the roar of the wind, and Lana stares at him with wide eyes and forgets to exercise. “You! Lazy Lanara! Stretch those legs and arms, because we are running all the way to Venturil next! We have to get some cardio in and we are running out of time!” He runs off towards the south, blowing his whistle every few feet, so the witches know to follow close behind, lest they get lost in the blizzard. Lanara tucks her chin to her chest and sprints after the man, much like she had back in an agility course she had taken in her youth, the one that Taly had teased her endlessly about, as she had signed her sister up for the special olympics in Kelvar! Once her sister catches up to her, she breathlessly replies, “Tracy the Troll! I remember! And I couldn’t even defend you, as I was napping through the whole thing!” She chuckles, “Do you remember when I log rolled into you during gymnastics and you had to wear a neck brace for six weeks?!” Mr. Johnston blows his whistle and bellows, “We are now crossing the Xalious Mountain Pass, beware of where you step! Treacherous terrain, Tracy and Lazy!” Lana pauses to catch her breath, her heart pumping wildly in her chest, “Did he just call -me- Lazy and you the Troll?!”

Talyara's emerald eyes widened as Lanara casually mentioned that Mister Johnston had just been released from jail! Why her sister thought a felon was the best person for the job was beyond her! She longingly looked over her shoulder towards her front door, imagining herself still cozy in bed, wrapped up in blankets waiting for Krice to return home, when Mister Johnston began to scream that they need to stop breathing immediately! "Is he an undead, too?!" Taly hissed at Lanara, wondering why this man wanted them to cease being alive one calisthenic into training! She barely had time to consider this when he began to rant about glasses and exercising and how dangerous that was--never mind the misogynistic diatribe that dribbled from his fat mouth afterwards! Pressing her fists into her hips, Talyara lobbed a glare in the trainer's direction. "I'll have you know that I am a fantastic football player. I'm fast and coordinated neither of which require a di--" "Dickering will not be tolerated young lady!" Mister Johnston chastised before blowing his whistle right in Talyara's face and taking off in a run. The two witches were obviously meant to follow but Taly was too stunned to move. Lanara, on the other hand, was rallied into action, not so much as running, but charging after the trainer, her arms pumping up and down almost robotically. It took another three blasts on the wretched whistle to jostle Taly from her murderous thoughts and get her moving. She didn't particularly care for running--especially in the snow of Frostmaw--but she wasn't terrible at in. In fact, by the time she caught up with Mister Johnston and Lanara, she was barely out of breath and keeping a decent jogging pace. "Why were you even napping?! We were supposed to be stretching and meditating!" Talyara admonished her sister before shaking her head at the memory of the gymnastics mishap. "How could I forget? I was the one who was competing in a competition! You were supposed to be spectating with Mother, I have no idea how you weaseled your way onto the floor and sabotaged my routine!" Clearly, this was still a sensitive subject for the younger sister who often grew up in Lanara's shadow but had found athletics to be a forte of hers. "Where did you -find- this guy?" Talyara scoffed when the trainer called them names. "Well if you're Lazy and I'm the Troll, he's Jailbird Johnston."

Lanara inhales a huge amount of fresh snow that falls from the treetops, as she tilts her head back and laughs uproariously at Taly’s comment about their fitness instructor being undead. As she’s cackling she begins to choke and has to stop and catch her breath, fighting the urge to vomit, from all the running, laughter, and aspiration from a mouthful of snow. She takes her pause at the moment that Mister Johnston blows his whistle rudely in Talyara’s face, before the sexist jerk runs off again! “What is with this guy?! I mean… I -did- have a choice! The other option was some butch woman, Ludvick, but I’m pretty sure she wanted to help me burn calories in a far more physical and intimate way!” Lanara shudders at the thought, before they carefully navigate their way down the steep mountain pass, “I was conserving my energy, and I was -helping- with your routine! I was returning the favor, like the way you taught me all those routines for when I signed up to be a cheerleader.” Taly had a fervent crush on this elf, Trug, and in an effort to set them up, Lana tried out for the cheer team and Taly had to come to -every- game to watch. Trug was a linebacker, which is likely why she was so defensive with Johnston earlier! “What ever happened to that Trug guy? Last I heard his toy store went under because some girls came in and wrecked the place! They stole from his inventory, they busted up the champer pots and smeared shi-”Mister Johnston cuts in, “Shin splint stretches at the bottom of the mountain!” The sisters groan, but Lana does as she’s asked and stretches at the base of the mountain, her gaze trailing westward, “Why didn’t we just meet him in Venturil? At this rate, we won’t be getting back to Frostmaw until nightfall!” She misses Tiber already, because right about now he would be bringing her breakfast in bed, and she would have been guaranteed a workout that wouldn’t involve snow, mountains, and who knows what is waiting for them in Venturil!? At least the rest of the journey is mostly on even ground, and once they finish with their stretches, Johnston leads them through a variety of exercises, stemming from push ups and sit ups, to splits and some difficult yoga poses. “Hey! JJ!” Lana shortens his new moniker, but even this upsets him, as he whips off his spectacles and glares at the women, “MISTER JOHNSTON is ALL you should refer to me as, not this JJ nickname! What does that even stand for? Jumping Junebug? Jilted Joe? Jazzy Jezebel?!” He pointedly glares at the younger witch, his brown eyes boring into her emerald, as though he overheard her earlier referring to him as Jailbird Johnston! “To the mines! We will work on arm curls and lift weights by using some of the rocks!” He barks out the order and jogs in the direction of the mines, leaving both elves bewildered, but Lana relents, “If he didn’t cost so freaking much I would suggest we ditch him and get some breakfast…”

Talyara observed her sister with moderate concern as she began to choke on the snow as she laughed hysterically. She reached out and smacked Lanara's back in an attempt to assist in clearing her airway. "Be careful! You don't want to choke like Grandpa!" Of course she wasn't referring to their biological grandfather--Lanara had turned him into a squirrel as a toddler--but there had been an elderly man who lived in their village whom all the others referred to as "Grandpa". There had been a mishap at a post-ritual dinner where 'Grandpa' had begun to choke on his food. The elders had called for everyone to come and help and Lana, in her infinite wisdom, had told them not to do anything until she got there. Thankfully, no one listened and the chunk of chicken that had been lodged in his throat had been cleared. Lana barely had time to catch her breath before Johnston was off again and the sisters are left contemplating this workout. Taly is about to chime in that her sister should have hired the woman anyway when they are forced to trudge after the trainer. Talyara was thankful that the cold has already stained her cheeks red for the mention of her old crush, Trug, brought on a fresh wave of embarrassment. She had been infatuated with him something awful although he barely even noticed her existence. "I heard that, too," she huffed out a breath when Lana mentioned the toy store going under for the disgusting reason of smashed chamber pots and smeared feces. She was about to elaborate when Mr. Johnston interrupted their conversation with a snap. With a groan that matched Lanara's, Taly propped her foot up on a stone and grabbed her tippy-toe and leaned forward to stretch her leg. "I hate running," she murmured under her breath although Lana was sure to hear. She is spared more running as the crazed trainer began to lead them through a series of other exercises. "Never mind. I hate push-ups more," the witch explained, face first on the ground and unable to lift herself up any longer. Talyara snorted at Lana's new nickname for their trainer but looked up to find him glaring at her instead! He barked his next set of instructions before jogging off in the direction of the mines and Taly rolled onto her back and closed her eyes. "What do I have to do to get you to agree to ditch him?" the younger sister asked seriously. Knowing Lana's past with pranks, it had to be an indication of how much Taly wanted to get away from Jailbird Johnston and his chaotic agilities.

(Post 1 of 2) Lanara shakes her head as Talyara reminisces about the dear old Elder, fondly referred to as ‘Grandpa’ by the villagers. “I don’t know why you all didn’t wait until I finished braiding my hair! I excel at dislodging food and if I had been there, Grandpa wouldn’t have bitten his tongue when he spat up that chicken!” She’s serious as she says this, completely discounting the fact that the old man had to -breathe- and didn’t have time to wait around for Lana to finish playing with her hair! Jailbird Johnston seems to somehow be gaining energy, while the sisters are struggling through their exercises. Lana manages the push ups with ease, but she loathes all the squats, as she already has an amazing derriere and it seems pointless. Johnston is rubbing his thighs and going on and on about the various muscles at work, and Lana is seriously considering taking her sister up on the offer of ditching this trainer. “Alright, Ladies! Now, we are going to race to Venturil! The first one there will earn themselves a bottle of water!” He’s off before the girls have even risen from their last set of sit ups, and Lana growls softly, before jerking her sister upwards and racing after Johnston. The terrain isn’t as steep as the mountain pass, but it’s equally as treacherous, as they have to dodge rocks and debris that litters the pathway across Craughmoyle, until they reach the entrance to Venturil. “Where is he? I’m going to -kill- him…” They cannot see Johnston anywhere, and so Lana has to use her enhanced senses to follow his trail, by scent. The sisters walk and catch their breath over the next half hour, mostly out of curiosity. Had Johnston been attacked by a wild animal? Did he call upon a flying mount and abandon them in the wild west? Lanara enters the swamplands and she slows her pace, a hand lifting to cover her nose as the stench is unbearable, when out of the murky depths a head pops up! Lana screams at the top of her lungs and jumps back several feet, as she hadn’t been expecting the ambush! Johnston reaches out and coils his hand around Taly’s ankle, as he uses his other hand to pull himself onto dry land, “Ah. Took myself a little dip!” He’s covered in filth and smiling at them in a creepy manner, as he reaches out to grab the hem of Lana’s shirt so he can clean his glasses. The man points upwards to some sturdy vines that have been pulled taut between two trees, just above the large, disgusting pond, “We will conclude our workout here, and you ladies will work on your body strength! Then we will have a cool down period, some final stretches, and we can meet again tomorrow!”

(Post 2 of 2) Johnston claps his hands and explains what he wants the girls to do, “No need to worry about any predators, ladies! I’ve already inspected the pond and there is -no- danger! All you have to do is scale the tree and drape your legs over the vine. Your knees will hold you in place, while your upper body and arms will hang below, as if you’re pointing at the water. I will shout when it’s time to slowly curl your body upwards, inch by inch, until you ladies can touch your knees. Then, you will hold the pose, until I tell you to slowly drop again. It takes considerable strength, so we will only do about fifty of them.” Lana exchanges a fearful look at Taly, because she’s unsure if she can accomplish -fifty- body curls, while dangling over water that has who knows what breeding inside?! She has the flexibility and strength, thanks to her years of being a dance instructor, but this seems a bit over the top. Nevertheless, the sisters are semi-forced to get into position, and Lana smiles at her sister, as they both hang upside down. “It will be over soon, then we can go to that yogurt place in Kelay! Plus, we will look so hot at our weddings!” Johnston blows his whistle and yells at the top of his lungs, “NUMBER ONE!” Lana nearly loses her balance upon hearing that booming voice, but she does the exercise as instructed, and continues until body curl five. She spies a little bubbling of the water and pauses, her arms outstretched and her fingertips only about six inches from the water. Johnston had said there weren't any animals lurking down there, right? Without warning, Johnston blows the whistle and out of the water, in an upward motion, lunges a monstrous crocodile! It snaps wildly at the air between its mouth and Taly’s fingertips, but it seems that it can reach much higher than anticipated. Lana stares in horror at her sister, as she tries to helplessly swing closer, so that she can hopefully subdue the killer crocodile and save her sister from a certain death. “Taly! Curl up, curl up! Do NOT let go!” Johnston blares the whistle again, as though he expects the sisters to continue their exercise!

(Post 1 of 2) Talyara had no plans of continuing with this exercising routine. If he was as expensive as Lanara claimed, she would work overnight at the clinic for a fortnight to pay her back before she continued. Even their amusing reminiscent stories weren’t enough to detract from the pain coursing through her body. Talyara was not an unhealthy person–her body was soft in all the right ways and considering where she had been a few years ago, she was strong and healthy now. But this was excessive! She grumbled that she wasn’t getting up when Lana managed to snatch her arm and pull her up before nudging her after Jailbird who could only get his energy with the use of improper substances. “I hate this,” Taly whined as they jogged towards Venturil. “I am not chasing some maniac all around Lithrydel!” The sisters pulled to a stop at the border of Venturil but didn't find the man anywhere! Taly scowled at Lana, but followed her as she used her senses to try and track the man. “If we don’t find him in five minutes I say we abandon the fool. Clearly he was just out for your money and to get some sick pleasure out of torturing us!” Talyara was busy looking at her sister so she didn't immediately notice the head popping up out of the murky water. Lanara’s scream startled her but not as much as when the wet pruny hand curled around her ankle. The scream that left her lips was so loud and shrill, the little witch was sure that Krice would come running from Frostmaw at any moment from hearing her. Talyara attempted to kick off her assailant but Johnston had only needed her for an initial anchor and was halfway out of the water by the time she realized what exactly was happening.

(Post 2 of 2) If looks could kill, the younger witch would have struck Jailbird to the ground, destined to a swampy death. Bad looks weren’t enough though, and Taly made a start to throttle the would-be trainer and if it weren’t for Lana grabbing her at the last moment, she would have made contact. “Fine,” she grumbled out of the corner of her mouth. “I will do this last damned exercise but I am -not- doing anything tomorrow!” She looked at Johnston disbelievingly when he explained what he wanted them to do before shooting a glare her sister’s way. This was somehow -worse- than the secret mud wrestling match where she confessed to being engaged to a witch hunter! Still, she was ready to get this over with, so she shucked off her layers leaving her in a sports bra and expertly climbed the tree. She scooted across the vine until she was out in the middle with her sister and with a grimace, she lowered herself so she was dangling over the water. Talyara was going to get extra toppings on her yogurt after this! The curls were painful and Taly struggled with even the first one (she never had the best ab strength). “I…can’t…do anymore…” she huffed as she hung back over, her hair and arms dangling down over the water as she closed her eyes for a moment of reprieve. She felt a shift in the water and she reopened her eyes just in time to spy the monstrous crocodile surfacing! Another scream left Talyara’s lips as she did her best to curl up–but she was very fatigued and wasn’t fast enough. A yelp of pain replaced the scream as the crocodile managed to sink it’s sharp teeth into her left shoulder. Thankfully, he didn’t manage to latch on to then drag her down into the swampy water, but she struggled to pull herself upright on the vine as blood began to pour from her shoulder wound.

(Post 1 of 2) Lanara helplessly tries to inch nearer to her sister, going as far as dangling her own limbs dangerously within reach of the crocodile, as the tips of her ponytail dip into the murky water. She cries out when those powerful jaws clamp down and those needle sharp teeth sink into Taly’s left shoulder, but he seems to quickly lose his grip and plunges back into the dark depths. As Talyara weakly climbs upwards on the vines, Lanara swings and launches herself into the water with the crocodile, who is violently thrashing from side to side. She climbs onto his back as though he’s a reptilian steed, and she applies pressure to the sides of his neck, using her empathic abilities to subdue him to a less ferocious state. Meanwhile, Johnston is pacing back and forth and cheering them on, “That’s -fantastic- Lanara! Really crunch those abs and work those muscles to calm the croc! I love your squat, those glutes look fabulous!” Is this part of his exercise program or was it mere happenstance that a crocodile had attacked Taly?! The grip on the crocodile is lessened as he calms down and eventually, Lana allows him to swim to the other side of the pond, as she stands waist deep in the water, glaring at Jailbird Johnston. Her sister is painfully climbing down the tree and in need of a healer, she is covered in swamp sludge, and their wedding days are approaching! Maybe they can just arrange some morning strolls, something tamer, and less likely to end in disaster. Not that either of them need to truly get into shape, it was just another wild idea that Lana had cooked up in her unstable mind!

(Post 2 of 2) Lanara pulls herself from the small swamp and loudly trods over to Johnston, her shoes making squelchy noises and her clothes feeling like iron weights clinging to her soaked flesh. She is miserable, somewhat out of breath, and she stinks worse than a chamberpot after Taco Tuesday. “You. Are. FIRED.” The words are hissed out and tinged with fury, aligning with the murderous look in her dark eyes, and Johnston blinks her way before he realizes that she’s not kidding. He glances at Taly and shakes his head, as though he expected her to wrangle the crocodile and she had let him down, before he looks Lana up and down, “Fine. I hope you can whip yourself into shape before the big day, or maybe you’ll be left at the altar again!” He spins on his heel faster than the words register in Lana’s mind, and he’s out of sight before she can clobber him or curse him out. A moment passes as the sisters stare in the direction that Johnston had run off, wondering if they should hunt him down and bury him in Venturil. Would anyone even miss the creep?! Lana sighs and looks at Taly, her gaze dropping to the wounded shoulder, that’s peppered with pinholes from the obvious bitemark, “I’m so sorry this happened… Let’s get you patched up, okay? Then we will clean ourselves up and go out to lunch. My treat! I know this place in Kelay that makes the best salads and we can get some yogurt for dessert.” A dirty arm is offered to her sister, should she need assistance or feel weak from all the exertion, as Lana leads them to the nearest clinic.

(Post 1 of 2) Talyara barely had the mental capacity to force her fatigued muscles to cooperate enough to climb up the vines to keep her out of reach of the ferocious crocodile once more, let alone register the fact that her sister just dove right into the water with such a beast. It wasn’t until Taly caught sight of her sister, riding the creature like a rodeo cowgirl, that she began to yell down at her. Animal empathic abilities or not, it was dangerous! The younger witch shot a scathing look at the so-called trainer as he praised Lana’s form as she tamed the croc, wondering if it was all part of the plan. Her shoulder continued to drip blood and once she was sure Lana was okay, she carefully scooted herself across the vines and then cautiously made her way down the tree, wincing as her wounds were stretched and manipulated. She heard Lana hiss Johnston’s dismissal and as she was making her way to her sister’s side, she heard the jerk’s rebuttal. Talyara is too stunned to speak or react at first and the pair simply watch him run away.

(Post 2 of 2) “We could do it,” Talyara mused, her emerald eyes narrowing in the direction that Jailbird Johnston ran. “There’s no way he has any family or friends. We could kill him and no one would know or care.” It’s mostly an empty threat on Taly’s part; her sister may be of the slaughtering type, but the younger witch’s body count was significantly lower as she didn’t like harming people, even insane trainers who tried to get her killed and insulted her sister. That glare is then shifted to Lana’s face, although her expression and tone have lost their heat. “Uhhh yeah it will be your treat! You had me running up and down mountains all day and then got me bit by a crocodile!” Talyara huffed, but accepted Lana’s arm all the same. “You smell gross,” she commented, knowing despite not falling in the water, she wasn’t much better off. “And I’m not getting yogurt. You’re getting me an ice cream sundae!”