#rivervale_lodge

"Way I figure, everybody breaks promises. Not everybody gets weird magical punishments for it."

"Oh, no, any kith can be oathbroken, sidhe, Pooka, boggans, redcaps, Somata..."

"But only trolls get weak."

"I ain't gonna be weak again, tell you that much."

"true, but some trolls get stronger the more oaths they take, which is a stupid reason to swear"

"With the risk? Yeah."

"Can I try your sword?"

"Here," he hands it hilt first, "Balance is good. I like the feel. Your hands might be a bit smal lfor it yet."

She takes the hilt, experimenting to find a grip that feels 'right.'

And while, indeed, she's towering for a 14 year old girl in either mien - she's a stripling compared to the grump. Still, the weight itself is no burden. "Is this right?"

"Inch it a bit further, watch your finger lacing, your' holding it, not squeezing. Unlike a pole arm, the grip is more specific"

Adjusts, and then gives the air a good hack. She lacks the grump's clean stroke, but there is power there, and some modicum of grace. The second sweep is cleaner, more comfortable. "Cool."

"You're getting the feel for it," He nods "Not bad. You're not so ready to fight beeing told what to do you ignore good advice. "

"I want to learn how to fight. Proper, you know?" A third swing - even if it seems more like she's hitting a grand slam than properly slicing.

"work with the edge," He says, "Mmm makes sense. Claymore and Spear are my two favorite weapons, but learning how to use different types is always wise. Good on you for learning other things along with your polearm there. Your Halberd got a name?"

"Not that I remember."

Adjusts - now the edge whistles through the air.

"mmm some believe weapons are born with names, but most I know give them a deed name."

At the whistle, he grins "Now there's a clean cut!"

"Olgar thinks I got it in another life." A sudden smile at the unexpected compliment. "It felt good, yeah."

A nod, "Probably Rovers see enough to make good guesses."

"I might be a Rover, I think." She offers the sword back, hilt-first, as he did.

He takes it, checks it not that she hit anything that would damage it, and then nods, putting it away "You might. It's a hard life."

A snort. "Maybe. But it sounds good, too. Go wherever you want. Fight monsters."

Abruptly. "Hey, you wanna see her?" She draws her halberd from her back.

"well, sometimes they don't go where they want so much as go where the trouble is, but yeah" At the offer, "Sure." He offers his hand and when she passes it over, gives it a rather military twirl like a rifle company man before taking a more practical stroke in the air.

She releases it, but there is a glimmer of nervousness as the grump handles her weapon. "She's great, isn't she?"

"Mmm good balance, some weight on her head, but strong as you are, that's..actually an advantage."

"Yeah?" She holds out her hand.

"Yes. That's her strength, force and edge, she's a severer."

He hands it over proper like

She takes the halberd back, drawing it close. "She can cut. I killed some chimera with her already."

"Oh, tell me about it."

"When I 'chrysalized'..." He can practically hear the quotes around that word. "Frank said all the glamour, that makes chimera get born. There were two, and they attacked. My halberd, she was there when I reached for her and I just... I just knew how to swing her, you know?"

A nod.

"Though I don't know how much of that was luck. Can't depend on instinct."

"Nope. you can't. Smart to see that. You need to get a mentor or two. "

"Frank is teaching me. Says it's his duty."

"Sounds like my once brother" A nod

A studying look. "You're his brother?" Not entirely a question.

"Depends on how you measure it, in a past life, we were brothers."

"But not this one."

"Not this one,' He says "I'm trying to get to know him again. But it's..not easy. I'm Jaymes by the way, Jaymes Ironhawk"

"Dagmar. But you knew that. Hammerstrike, maybe, but that seems... like.. jumped up, you know?"

"You want to earn it," He nods, "You probably did once. Maybe figure out what Hammerstrike means to you, and use the name if you walk the walk?"

Nods. "If I don't remember it, pretty sure it doesn't count."

"Oh, sometimes it's not you remmebering it that matters"

"How so?"

Jaymes shrugs, "if a Shacklebreaker frees a hundred slaves at a battle, but doesn't remember it, does it mean it didn't happen,, not in our world. Doesn't mean it didn't and doesn't matter."

Brekke is here? We're gonna need a bigger coffee mug