tsubasa

The gladiator and the princess

Lauralye smiled and took the coat from Robert and placed it under her head. She yawned a little and looked at him, "Alright.... But make sure you get some sleep as well...."

She reached over her hand and took his hand as she started to drift off. She felt safe knowing he was there. She found it funny that she felt more safe in his presence here, out in the world, than she had in a palace where she had been guarded her entire life. As she fell into her slumber, her fingers slipped from his and rested gently on the ground next to him.

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Jaya dropped her eyes when Nikko placed his hand on her shoulder and spoke to her. She was embarrassed. She felt childish... Like she was a small child who had just had a tantrum, which there was no denying that she had. She took a few deep breath, trying to calm herself, before looking up at him, "I know... And I know there are still Firebenders out there who are still dangerous to people... it's just...." She leaned back against the tree and blinked a few times, finding in her rage she was on the verge of tears, "They aren't just being cautious... They are being cruel and cold and... horrible...."

She had far to many memories of people's cruelty to her, because she had been born in the wrong country, since she had arrived here. None of them had any reason to think ill of her beyond appearance and ability to bend fire. But she had been thrown out, beaten, cussed at, and treated like dirt since the moment she got here. She wiped under her eyes to prevent any tears from falling, "Sorry..." She whispered.

The gladiator and the princess

Lauralye looked at Robert when they landed then at their surroundings. Lauralye had never slept outside. The concept was quite strange. However, Robert seemed quite alright with it. She sat down where he was building the fire and watched him. She was quite tired, despite not really having done much work. She yawn and lay down on her side and looked up at Robert, "Thank you... for doing this, Robert," She whispered.

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Jaya led them to a quieter section of the city quickly out. She had been planning on looking a little more but something began to eat away at her. She walked them far enough away before dropping Senge's reins. The creature looked at her quizzically then over his shoulder at Nikko.

Jaya started to pace back at forth before letting out a short grunt of anger and punching the air, causing a large fire burst from to erupt. She clenched her fists and tried to get a hold of her breathing, however, a moment later, she punched again and more fire, "Gah, I hate people like that. Making assumptions about things you don't really know about," Jaya kept moving every once and a while, fire erupting, "Armadillo lions are vicious. Firebenders are evil. My child is perfectly fine running around in a crowd street by herself."

She stopped and held her hands out to the sides of her and yelled again, her hands erupting blue fire. Once it extinguished, she dropped her hands and looked at Senge, who had moved himself and Nikko away from her, then Nikko. She brushed a strand of hair out of her face and sighed, "Sorry.... I... get carried away sometimes..." She rubbed her shoulder and tried to calm herself down.

Avatar: Trusting your enemy

"Mama, mama!" Jaya heard a small child call before running up to them, "Lookie, lookie," the little girl jumped with excitement as she pointed at the lion. Senge didn't seem as comfortable as he had been a moment ago. She placed her hand on his nose and pet down his face, "It's alright," She whispered to him, trying to keep him calm.

It didn't really help any when the mother to the child screamed when she saw where her daughter was. She ran over and snatched her daughter away and looked at Jaya accusingly, "How dare you bring such a beast so close to children?!"

Jaya looked at her calmly, "I see no beast, ma'am."

The woman huffed and walked away quickly. Jaya pulled Senge forward and they continued to walk and she started to look for things that might fit Senge as it seemed as though he wished to stick around.

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Update.

Avatar: Trusting your enemy

Jaya held her makeshift reins tightly, her eyes on Senge. She wasn't sure how people were going to react to him, much like herself, people saw him as dangerous. Who knew what someone might do if they didn't think he belonged. But there was also the fear of what Senge might do. This wasn't something he was used to, she was sure. As they came to the centre of the town, people seemed to be skirting them, however, Senge seemed to remain relatively calm. Jaya started to wonder if maybe he had been trained before... Maybe in a circus...

She placed her shoulder against his neck and pet him as she looked around, "Is there anything you need, Nikko?"

Avatar: Trusting your enemy

Jaya was a little surprised when Nikko asked if she wanted to pool their money together. She couldn't lie, she had hardly been expecting him to stay with her for this long, let alone having intentions to stay long enough that they could put their money together. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled softly, "I don't see any problem with it if you don't."

She grabbed her makeshift reins and started them at a nice trot. She liked to think that Senge enjoyed the cool water on his fur that she hadn't dried as much as she liked the cool water in her own hair, fighting the heat of the day.

It didn't take them too long to reach the city. Already, even outside the city, people who saw them were reacting to their large and potentially dangerous friend. She pursed her lips, maybe Senge would take some of the attention of her. She slid off hybrid and grabbed her bag pulling it over her shoulders. Senge looked at her, curiously. She smiled at him and patted his shoulder before gathering the reins and pulling them over his head, using them as more of a leash. She looked at Nikko, "I'm going to be keeping an eye on Senge... If anyone tries anything... give me some warning?"

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Jaya nodded and agreed when Nikko suggested they get on the road again. She walked out of the water and with a little small fire, that Senge seemed more curious about now than scared of, she dried all but her hair. Then she grabbed the clothing she had discarded and flicked out whatever sand had got onto them. She pulled the green clothes on quickly before drying off enough space on Senge for her and Nikko to sit without getting soaked. She looked at Senge for a moment before disappearing into the tree line. The armadillo lion looked at her as she went, when she went out of sight, a sound, almost like whining, squeezed out of Senge as he looked at Nikko.

Not to long though, Jaya returned with from sad looking vines in her hand. Senge ran over to her happily, confusing her a little. She laughed and wrapped the vines around the hybrid into a make shift harness. She looked at Senge, "How does that feel?"

Senge placed his flat nose on her shoulder and seemed to purr. Jaya gave him a good neck scratch, "I think that means good," She grabbed her bag and placed it in front of her before she climbed on herself. She looked to Nikko, "I think I want to see if we can't get some proper travel gear for Senge..."

The gladiator and the princess

Lauralye had been wise this time and grabbed a jacket. She had just pulled it on before Robert guided her over to the window, a hand around her waist. She looked at him as he secured his arms around her then flew off into the air. As they threw over the castle wall, she looked back at her window and the place that had been her home. She bit her lip, she knew it was right to leave. She could do more for her country out here than they would ever let her do in there. Robert's voice, asking her how she liked the view, tore her out of her thoughts and her eyes away from the ever-shrinking castle. She looked down to the ground far below them and nodded, "It is quite lovely..."