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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 21, 2018 23:52:55 GMT
Axel voiced exactly what Adeline's goal was: to stop Ariel before she hurt anybody else. It was why she'd refused to flee Bellerouge in the first place. If she left, Ariel would just come after someone she cared about. And if Ariel got past her, who would she go after next? Pitch, because he'd hurt Thrax pretty bad? Weiss, because she'd tossed him around like a rag doll and broken him? Cinder would probably be on her list too, but Adeline didn't care so much about her. If Ariel's vengeance wasn't satisfied, she'd go after anyone she believed had hurt Thrax. And that was a lot of people. She couldn't let that happen. "You're right. I can't hold back when she comes. I've gotta give everything I have." Axel's pep talk actually made her feel better and she felt a sense of determination fill her.
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Post by skyeknight on May 22, 2018 1:26:40 GMT
"There's a good girl," Axel commended. "Now, any experience with a weapon?"
They would run through physical attacks too, but he needed to know. He would keep working with her until they built up some sort of muscle memory in her. Where she would be able to throw a punch, land a kick and strike where it hurt most. He would also have to see what kind of demon this psycho chick was. Every demon had a weakness. Fire demons like him abhorred water. You wouldn't see Axel taking any leisurely strolls around the docks any time soon. Even him going into the swamp to save Anna had left him extremely fatigued due to the water in the swamp.
"And do you have any emerald you can keep on you?"
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 23, 2018 1:10:30 GMT
"Um..." Adeline was reluctant to admit that she wasn't really skilled in anything else besides magic. It just made her feel stupid. "Not...really. The closest thing I have is this. Pitch gave it to me." She held up the amethyst necklace that Pitch had given her. It still quietly pulsed with energy, although so far, Adeline hadn't used it yet. She kept telling herself to save it for when she really needed it. There was a lot of energy stored up in there and she didn't want to waste it. When Axel asked about emeralds, she answered with "Wearing them gives me a headache. I guess I could start carrying some in my pocket or something, but..." Her voice trailed off, and she found herself blushing. If she was honest, she'd admit that she didn't carry emeralds on her because she spent a lot of time with Pitch. She knew how much emeralds hurt demons. If carrying one meant not being with Pitch as often, she didn't like it.
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Post by skyeknight on May 23, 2018 12:47:58 GMT
Axel's expression softened. That's what he thought. He pat her head. The kid was trying so hard to better herself, to protect the things she cared about. It was something the demon understood. He got territorial over the important people in his life. It's why he actually broke his own personal 'no fire' rule to chase off the punks who tried to harm Anna. It's why he went to the swamps to go after her. Why he involved himself in Adeline's problems. Why he was that sympathetic ear at the bar. Why he offered advice. Why he went after Cruella for stealing one of his girls to add to her pack.
"Okay, no emerald then..." he mused. "For now, we'll work on your hand to hand until you can throw a punch that actually hurts me. We'll start discussing weapons later."
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 23, 2018 23:15:03 GMT
Even though Adeline didn't finish her sentence, Axel seemed to understand what she meant. Did he know how she felt about Pitch just from looking at her? Would his reaction be the same as her parents? Apparently, it had been pretty obvious to them. "Okay. That sounds good." It was a nice game plan to start with, at least. Figuring out where to go from there might be a bit of a challenge though. Ariel could show up tomorrow, or months from now. It was hard to set things in stone when she was pretty much a wild card. But, she wasn't something Adeline could control, so she tried not to focus so much of her worry on it. She just wanted to worry about the things she could control, and improving her punch-throwing game sounded like a good place to start.
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Post by skyeknight on May 24, 2018 14:18:26 GMT
"Okay, so we'll spend the next... hour or so with hand to hand, sound good?" he asked.
This was something Axel knew better. He could fight. But he fought dirty. He fought to win. He fought to survive. At least back when he was a tiny little shrimp back during the Black War. This was just the sort of lesson Adeline needed. A no bars held, no mercy given, no weakness unexploited. If anything, she would be able to properly take down someone like him. He wasn't sure what Ariel was like. Axel would feel better if Adeline didn't go out alone, but it couldn't be helped. So he showed her what he could, taking her through the ropes. By the time they were done, he was certain she could throw a good punch. Axel went to his bag, fishing out two water bottles. He handed one to her.
"Here kid. Got to stay hydrated." he said. "After this, you should probably take a cold shower. Helps your muscles relax."
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 24, 2018 23:06:42 GMT
Adeline nodded. As the training session wore on and she worked on her moves, she felt like Axel was kind of similar to Pitch when it came to teaching her. They were both honest and didn't sugar coat anything. And while they were patient in their teachings, that didn't mean they didn't go easy on her either. Adeline had been pushed to her mental limits when she was with Pitch. Now, Axel was pushing her to her physical limits. But it was what she needed. By the time she was finished, she felt worn out. But at the same time, she felt a little more confident. "Cold shower, right," she said as she gulped some water down. "I guess I can see why some people do this sort of thing as a workout. Yoga isn't quite this extreme." Yoga was all about being slow and steady and settling your mind down. Fighting like this was almost the complete opposite. It was fast and furious and left you with almost no time to think. You just had to go with the flow and hope you came out on top.
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Post by skyeknight on May 25, 2018 12:55:49 GMT
"Yoga's good for stretching. Right now you're using muscles you probably don't normally use."
Adeline was going to be sore for the next few days, but if there was no pain, there was no gain in strength training. Her yoga would likely help with stretching out those muscles. So he didn't have to worry about her being inactive and having to start from square one if they did another session. He wanted to do more sessions. It bettered her chances if this became muscle memory. Where she didn't have to think about channeling magic in a burst through her hand or that she should aim for vulnerable spots like the jugular or kneecaps. Axel wanted Adeline to be able to fend for herself if she had to or stall long enough for some form of backup to arrive.
"We can keep doing a few sessions every few days." Axel told her.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 25, 2018 20:46:48 GMT
"I'd like that," Adeline said. She'd probably have to tell Pitch about this eventually though. She hadn't exactly lied about it, she just hadn't brought it up yet. Would he even mind though? Maybe he'd understand that she wanted to learn how to defend herself better. But would he be hurt that she went to Axel instead of him? Adeline wasn't sure, and she was reluctant to bring this up if it meant hurting his feelings. She already caused him enough worry. "This kinda brings me back, honestly," she said. "When I first met Pitch and he was helping me control my demon side. Stuff like that was pretty exhausting too."
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Post by skyeknight on May 26, 2018 2:36:52 GMT
"And do you have full control of that side?" Axel asked, curious.
He knew how Adeline felt about demons. She had nearly fainted upon seeing him. It took lots of gentle coaxing for her to see he wasn't like the demons in stories. He wasn't about to 'gobble' her up and hurt her. Like other demons. He wasn't like Thrax. He wasn't like lots of other demons. It was why they were there now. Why he was helping her learn how to defend herself from others like him. Because he knew what his kind were capable of.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 26, 2018 14:49:28 GMT
"Most of the time," Adeline replied. "You remember how I used to be. I was a paranoid, anxious ticking time bomb. I'm a bit more relaxed now. Or, I was, at least." Ariel kind of made her stress and anxiety kick back into gear. Then again, a little bit of it was always with her. That stress and anxiety would always be with her now. She just had to make sure it didn't control her life like it used to. She used to be so afraid all the time, and if she slipped up and her demon side came out, she'd hole herself away for days, feeling like the worst person in the world. At least now with Ariel, she wasn't just hiding away like she did when Thrax was around. She wanted to face her, if only to make sure she didn't hurt anybody else.
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Post by skyeknight on May 28, 2018 17:39:09 GMT
"You're going to be fine kid. You got plenty of people who are in your corner." Axel said. "And if you ever need my help, you've got my number."
If she called in the middle of the night, he would go after her. She was one of the people he considered as 'his'. True he had Anna and Pitch had Adeline, but Axel still saw her as one of his. Just like his staff at the bar. He would go to bat for them a hundred times over if it meant keeping them safe. He invested himself in bettering their lives. Because they needed that second chance. Adeline didn't need that from him. But she didn't get to see not all demons were the big mad monsters in the closets they were made out to be.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 28, 2018 18:58:37 GMT
Adeline nodded. "I know. Thanks...for being here for me." Not many people had loyal friends like Axel. Adeline knew she was lucky to have someone like him. Heck, almost everyone she knew was ready to protect her and help her at a moment's notice. She just had to not let her guilt get the best of her. She swore that she'd work on it once Ariel was dealt with. She just had to get this problem out of the way, then after that, she'd work on bettering herself a bit more. It was just hard to focus on the future at the moment with Ariel looming over her head.
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Post by skyeknight on May 28, 2018 19:13:29 GMT
"It's what friends are for." he reassured her.
He might not have a lot of friends, but he counted Adeline among them. She was a good kid. A bit timid but she was working on it. She was branching out. Doing new things. Standing on her own two feet after Thrax knocked her down. It was a lot to overcome. She had shown such strength getting through all of this. He couldn't help but be proud of her.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on May 28, 2018 19:22:06 GMT
Adeline gave a little smile. Axel was right. That was what friends were for. They helped each other, picked each other back up when something bad happened. They trusted them with their secrets. And Adeline figured it was high time she trusted Axel with one of hers. Not that it was a secret anymore, but a lot of her friends still didn't know about her relationship with Pitch. And she wanted to be the one to tell them instead of them finding out from somebody else. "So...you know how I said I would tell you more about me and Pitch?" she said, glancing up at him. She paused for a split second, then let out a sigh and figured to just cut to the chase. "Well, he's...my boyfriend, I guess you could say. All those times I came to you about my love troubles and all that stuff, I was talking about him." It still felt odd, calling him her boyfriend. The word didn't seem to encompass everything they were. But "true love" wasn't used in conversation that much unless someone was talking about a fairy tale, so boyfriend would have to do.
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