Earning your Scales [Lerna, Hana]

Was that normal? Not having a surname? Hana was used to everyone having a given and family name, so that created some questions she had no right to ask, so she let that go immediately. Instead, she focused on being trained in kido.

"Alright," Hana said and walked over to where she was needed, holding out her hand. Hana's experience with learning kido wasn't a hands-on one. It was reading through books and sometimes watching it be done by someone better, so this was welcome. She normally learned from books well, but kido was different. Maybe this method would help become more proficient than before. "So, what do I do now?"

Hana did as Lerna instructed. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and focused. It was startling at first, feeling someone else energy so finely. Her lack of experience with reikaku made a less defined image though. She tried focusing harder, until it felt like she was looking at a flat screen TV, not an old 10 inch with an antenna on top, but she couldn't get that far. Instead, she settled a step below and focused on not loosing the image. She tried getting a good feel for what Lerna did to shape and mold the reiryoku, but it only came toward the end. When Lerna tapped her shoulder, she opened her eyes with a five percent better understanding.

"Not perfectly..." Hana said. "But I was approaching a pretty clear image. My skill with reikaku is lacking, but I saw clearer than I normally do, so you aided me in two areas." Hana looked at her own hand, wondering if she could learn to do something so intricate with her own energy one day. She doubted it would come today. "I wonder if this method could help me with Byakurai." Hana asked. "I often have it too weak or I fire it off course because the energy isn't entirely stable. My aim is not horrid, but it happens often enough that it feels like it is. I might attempt."

Hanna looked around and chose an old target dummy that a previous member hadn't taken down. She moved away from Lerna and about fifteen feet from the target. She took a look over at Lerna and moved away a bit more, and then she moved away a bit more again, until she was at least sixty feet from her squadmate. "S-Sorry, but I don't want it to explode or something, and you're near me." Hana explained, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head before she took her stance.

Hana closed her eyes and focused on shaping the reiryoku the way Lerna did her own. Byakurai didn't have the same sort of solidness, so this may not work. She mostly focused on creating a small release of energy at the tip of her finger, one that would come out zappy instead of lazery, but still long enough to reach the target. When she opened her eyes, there was enough energy present, but Hana couldn't tell it was unstable. She pointed and fired the kido at the target. Her aim was right, but the Byrakurai fired off to the right again and arched to the ground.

"Damn it..." Hana said, clearly disappointed.

Hana looked up to Lerna, who closed the gap between them quickly. That one display let Lerna understand so much. Impressively observant. Hana smiled weakly. "You're correct... It has been said that I over think or lose focus when training. I've always found training tedious, like I can be doing something else more relaxing," Hana explained, her tone filled with disappointment in herself.

Lerna's suggestion helped her perk up. "You're probably right. Are you sure you're okay with pretty much acting like a target for me? I'm not that good at kido, but I'd rather not accidentally hurt someone, even if it is clear you're much stronger than I."

If Lerna confirmed she was okay with it, Hana smiled and bowed gratefully. "Thank you so much. I really appreciate all your help." Hana said and stretched a bit before facing Lerna with a readied expression. "So, how will you provide motivation?"

Hana was thankful for Lerna's confidence because it gave her a reason to trust she couldn't hurt her. And seeing Lerna power up in front of her, though it brought out some questions about the nature of this ability being used, helped Hana feel things would be just fine. Then Lerna made a rapid move, one that Hana had difficulty following. It was little more than a blur for Hana, and caused her to wonder if she could get that fast. Hana took a deep breath and began focusing on her reiryoku. The rules were set, and both were ready to go. "Alright, I get what we're doing here. Again," Hana said with a smirk, holding up two fingers, "thank you, and don't be afraid to put me on my ass. I could use a good lesson in getting back up again."

The moment Lerna moved, Hana's stance became defensive. She tried keeping up with Lerna's movements, but found the task difficult. She kept her hand up, ready to use Byakurai, the one kido no one seemed to have an incantation for. She always wondered whether the lack of an incantation was the reason she couldn't really focus it, but that wasn't the case for anyone else. So, when Hana felt she got a strong enough glimpse of Lerna, she aimed at the spot and fired. "Hadō number four, Byakurai," Hana said. A blue linen of lightning shaped energy snapped forward from the tip of her index and middle finger, a quick crack echoing in the training arena, though the same issue occurred and the attack arched down and crashed into the floor about twenty feet away from her. "Damn it." Hana said, getting ready once more. Her eyes darted around for Lerna, trying to relocate her training partner.