Morning Practice

[Marie]

ooc|| anyone welcome to join, but 4 or more sentence response please.
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Maire emerged from the shadowy forest sitting casually upon her cantering steed. His dark mane flowed in the gentle breeze. Twilight slowed slightly once he and his rider were traveling across the field.
Marie leaned forward in the saddle and squinted her eyes to the distance. She saw what looked like a small practice ground on the other side of the field, maybe an eighth-mile away. She had been meaning to practice her sword and riding skills in case she did come into close combat. The rider kicked her horse gently and he lifted his front legs off and sprung into a dead gallop. His heavy hooves hit the ground as Twilight bolted swiftly across the field. The tack and sword clanked against each other loudly, and Marie put a free hand on the sword to steady it.
Once she had reached the practice ground, Marie slowed her steed to a trot. The court was simply a large dirt patch with about twenty posts sticking out of the hard earth. Strong sacks of straw were tied to each pole, fit for sword-lashing. Seeing no one in sight, Marie pulled her thick hood back, exposing her golden-and-auburn hair which glinted in the sunlight. She unsheathed her sword and kicked Twilight again, this time the Percheron cantered slowly.
Marie raised her light but strong sword up with her right hand as the passed a post and swung with one fluid motion. An explosion of straw came from the post and a sharp vibration came from the maiden's sword and went right down her arm. Marie slowed Twilight to a stop and steadied her arm, ready to try again.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

The Black Knight rode threw the country side, when he passed a practice field. He stopped when he saw someone practicing & from the looks of it they missed there intended target. A breeze came over his shoulder that he did not feel, but he saw it play with his stallions mane.

He watched for a bit longer, before he lightly taped his horse sided. Bringing him closer to the person, he approached with cushion not knowing what the person might do.

[Marie]

Marie was happy she had hit her desired target and kicked Twilight into a steady canter. She guided him between the sharp turns and twists with one hand gripping the reins. With the other hand she wielded her sword, cutting and slashing the tightly packed straw sacks.

The girl was happy she was free to do what she wanted in the world. When she had finished slamming the sacks, she looked up to see a knight watching her. Surprised that Marie was trespassing on his court, she sheathed her sword and nodded her head to him, unsure of how to greet him. Was he impressed? Marie sighed. If he wasn't, she didn't care; she wasn't trained professionally though it was her dream to become a lady knight.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

He quietly approached & was a bit surprised to see that the figure that, was practicing was a lady. Something that was not something heard of & some thing even rarer to be scene. But he was not upset by this, for he had already found threw his battles & fights that the Lady's, could be as good a men at anything & at time where more resourceful then men where.

He decided to see what she would say, at his words. "What brings you here?" His voice held no threat, but he was interested to see what made her come.

[Marie]

Marie rode her horse boldly over to the knight, for she wasn't afraid. Was I ever? she thought.

The girl shrugged. "I am fleeing from my home, which is many miles from here," she replied simply. "I wasn't banished, but merely..." Marie hesitated for a second. Why not let the truth out? It will never change and nothing will make you go back. "...fleeing from love." Maire felt defiant when she had finished. It still pained her, but she was determined to turn over a new leaf; to start over, like the heroins she had envied in novels she read.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

He nodded at her words, before he spoke. "Then if you are not banished, why flee from love? Love is one thing that most of use, can never out run. No matter where we run to or how far we run to. It will fallow use like a shadow in the night to the sun's rays with in the sun." He looked at her more closely "And since you are fleeing, why practice to fight in hand to hand. You appear to be preparing for a war, in the way you fight or perhaps it is only your anger that you let get the better of you."

[Marie]

Marie shrugged again, but this time trying to lessen the sharp stab in her heart. "He...he had an arranged marriage...and our courtship was not fit. I was a simple servant to him. He was much more." The female warrior did not want to speak his name; it pained her too much. "I am only practicing because I want to be a knight. I am of no other use in the world." Well, it was true.
Twilight swayed and stomped his hooves impatiently, wanting to continue to practice. "It is my dream to serve as a warrior such as yourself," Marie finished boldly.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

He nodded at her first answer, for it was not his place to make or say any thing. At her second answer he nodded once more before he spoke. "If that is what you wish to do, then who am I to stop you. But to do you, much find away to do it. With out them finding out who you are, for they would not be pleased if they did."

[Marie]

Marie didn't care what this knight thought of her; she didn't even know his name! She didn't care about anyone or anything, except for Twilight, and that was her outlook on the world. She wasn't going to the extent of doing insane things, but she finally felt free to be who she wanted, and not what was expected of her. "I do not care what they think of me anymore, or if they find me. They will never find me, and if they did, what would they do?" Marie inquired challengingly. She felt invincible; which was ignorant to feel, but Marie had left all of her cares behind her.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

"It is one thing to not care what they think of you & if they found you or saw you would not be a great deal. It is also good to do what you wish to do & not let others tell you what to do or become. But once you take on title of knight & should you be found out, they would likely toucher you as a sign for others, then they would probably drag you to you where almost dead. By the time they got do with you, they would see that your body, soul & mind where broken to a great deal."

[Marie]

Marie shrugged off the warning and wheeled Twilight around so she was facing the practice court. The wind blew her golden hair and the auburn flecks caught the sunlight. "They can torture me all they like, but why would they? Just because I ran away? I did no crime," Marie said strongly. "I do not feel like arguing anyway, especially with someone who I do not know the name of. And they will never find me anyway; I had planned my escape: I did not just leave."

[Black Knight/Shadow]

He did not say any thing at her words as he listened. Before he spoke "They do many things for less & if they wish you found there, are people good enough at doing such things." He watched her as she turned back tords, the field. "How fast can you, make it threw the course?"

[Marie]

Twilight padded forward heavily at a walk. Marie looked back to the knight and shrugged. "I'm not sure;
I haven't been through the whole course and it's been a few months since I've practiced my jousting and sword skills." Skills? I don't have any. Marie led Twilight to the course and she began, slowly as a warm-up. Her horse cantered fluidly between the tight turns between the posts, his black mane flying like a splash of spilled ink. Everything seemed to go in slow motion: the motions of the Twilight and Marie striking each post, letting out spurs of anger in the process.

[Black Knight/Shadow]

He watched her lead her horse, to the course before starting to go threw the course. He watch as she made her movements, hitting the target. He watched for the cleanness of the hits. And found she was not bad, considering she likely had learn all she knew on her own. He waited tell she got done, before he spoke. "Your skill is not bad, for one that has trained them self."

[Marie]

When Marie had finished the course and heard the man speak, she nodded and shrugged, unsure of what to make of the comment. She went through the course again, this time with a faster clip. Twilight loved the thrill and the huge aqueous was able to maneuver like a gentle pinto; able to weave in and out of curves swiftly. Small dust clouds rose from the drum-like beating of heavy hooves on dry earth. The rhythm flowed through Marie like it had done when she first learned how to ride.

When she struck one of the poles, her sword had cut deeply into the old wood and had been wedged in the grooves. Surprised at the change in the rhythm and at her weak hand, Marie wheeled her stallion around without him losing a single beat, and at the same death-defying speed. He galloped back to the pole and she pulled her sword out of the wood. Twilight slowed and came to a halt to rest briefly.

Sheathing her sword, Marie wished there were other courses like this one, or even different ones with more of a challenge to them. She made a note to keep exploring the land, and maybe set up a jumping course later for extra practice.