Hexus: Neo

~5~ Breeze

[4:31PM, December 17, UTC +02:00]

ADRIANNA would have screamed when the ice platform shattered and she dropped out of the air, but she was already getting used to the sickening feeling of falling. She idly formed another platform out of pressurized air and landed on it. Sighing loudly, she felt the mist flush through her lungs, the little water molecules dancing outside her range of influence though the air around them obeyed without question. She looked down at Kojiro. The man should have been annoyed with her by now, but his eyes only showed sympathy.

"I'm sorry," she said, "I thought I had it that time."

"Don't be. You're doing better than you think."

Her eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"Actually, no," he smiled. "But you're sure not doing any worse."

"Right," she huffed.

She brought down the platform slowly and dispelled the air molecules once her feet touched the ground. She snorted a silent laugh; Kojiro was giving her a sullen gaze, his hands behind his back. He was a small man - barely up to Adam's shoulder and practically half the size of Damilare - so he looked every bit like a cliché of a martial arts instructor. 

"What's funny?"

"Nothing, just...forget it, it's nothing."

He looked self conscious for a moment, but quickly regained his composure. Adrianna let her amusement fade and sighed in frustration. She had started water magic training with Kojiro after Adam advised that it would really help her level the playing field, seeing as she was the only team member with only one elemental affinity. Initially, she had gone along with it just to oblige him. But after she was kept out of battle because of being 'unfairly disadvantaged', she really got into it, just to avoid the indignity of not being considered good enough by everyone else.

Four months had gone, and she was yet to see any reasonable improvements.

"This only seems to get harder the more we do it," she sighed.

"You're not yet well attuned to the element," he replied. "For now, that seems to be the main problem."

She frowned. "Are you kidding me? I've been attuning for months now."

"Yes, but only your senses. I can tell that you feel the movement of the water by how easily you can avoid my attacks, but you're still trying to force air magic to work on water."

  "Can you at least tell me what exactly I'm doing wrong?"

"I just did."

"That wasn't very helpful."

"Talking about it will not fix anything," he said with a huff, causing the fine mist around them to disperse in jerky movements. "What you're going through is only natural. Transitioning magic from air to water is a lot harder than from water to air."

"So it's what? Some sort of natural handicap?"

She raked her fingers through her hair and hissed. She was about to turn and walk away when she felt a strong grip on her wrist. Kojiro eyes were stern, and her breath hitched at the intensity of his gaze.

"Don't just give up. Have some faith in yourself. You're not that weak"

She didn't want to stare, but there was something about him that both flustered and unnerved her. Maybe it was his confidence; that attitude of his that was always both rational and serene even in the face of danger, commanding authority in a way that seemed less militaristic and more...regal. Or maybe it was the admiration she held for him all these years, the feelings which were starting to turn into something she couldn't quite put a finger on. She opened her mouth, but no words came. All she could do was look back into his eyes, transfixed like a deer in the headlights. His grip was not tight, but the callousness of his hands on her seemed to churn something...feverish inside her.