Put Your Fist Up

[Devyn Solway]

Devyn had contacted Andrew beforehand and brought up the fact that she wanted to train him how to fight to at least a level of being able to defend himself. She may have still been feeling super depressed and in a dark face but that did not mean she was going to leave her friends hanging, not when she needed them the most. None of them seemed to fully understand just how much she needed them but she figured in a way that was her fault because she kept things hidden. At least in a way she could be proud of herself for keeping it together; other than the whole losing control in the library and what not. At least by now she had cleaned up most of the damage she caused and other then still needing to sign up with someone to talk to, she had pretty much fulfilled what Guy had told her to do in order to try and get back in the good books of the school.

Since she was a Senior this new year and the fact that she had used her power in the last fight she had gotten herself into with Andrew, she knew that she had to teach the young boy how to fight. She would not always be able to come and save the day for him and that meant she had to teach him how to fight. So she told Andrew to wear something he was ready to sweat in and was breathable. She planned for them to get in a nice workout and teaching Andrew how to defend himself. She had already gotten there pretty early, and was busy wrapping her hands up in a special tape so she would not scratch her hands up on the punch bags or get too many calluses from any weight lifting they would probably end up doing. Devyn was at least pleased that by this point her black eye was pretty much gone and any other injuries she had were all healed up.

The sound of the door opening to the training room had Devyn looking up and smirking, figuring that Andrew was not here. She could smell his scent enter the room as she used her teeth to cut the last bit of the tape from the roll. “I was starting to think you were going to back out on me.” Devyn teased a little but it was a bit weaker than her normal level of teasing.

[Andrew Wylen]

Andrew blinked wearily up at his alarm clock as it beeped irritatingly, though he simply lay there, making no move to turn it off while his mind raced like a fleeing bird. Something was wrong, no not something, somthings, he jumped to his feet, cold sweat running down his back uncomfortably and eyes shooting about the room, what was it, he was so sure, so posi-

Then Andrew remembered: the alarm clock, it had been a little over a week since he started taking those pills and every day had begun the same, confused, his mind still expecting to fall into the nightmarish hallucinations that had plagued him for much of the previous year. It probably sounded absolutely insane, though waking up to an alarm clock and not being buried alive by a group of hideous fiends simply seemed unbelievably… odd? Not to say Andrew disliked the change; on the contrary, it was a relief, in fact, the only thing that could dampen his exhilaration was the constant reminder that this was no perfect solution. Even now the nightmares were coming back slowly, brief flashes, and vague imprints of their previous horror yet there none the less, soon enough Andrew wouldn’t be able to sleep again and all of this would hardly matter.

Maybe Seigi can figure something out, the young shifter thought, shaking his head almost out of instinct to rid himself of the otherwise unpleasant outcome. Besides, perhaps I can learn to control it, like the transformation, even as the brief sentence crossed his mind he knew it was untrue, but still, false hope was better than no hope, so he gulped staring over at the clock which in the process of flinging himself from the sheets had been thrown to the floor. Thankfully the near foot of dirty clothes tossed about the room had cushioned the devices fall as Andrew was not especially eager on trying to get it replaced; new pillows had been hard enough, then again, he doubted the fact that they were torn to shreds and he still had a piece of stuffing in his hair had exactly helped matters in that regard.

None the less, he couldn’t help but feel as though he was still missing something, some detail, some obligation-

Devyn! Andrew had completely forgotten, he had agreed to train with Devyn today, well, agreed was not really the word he would have used as anything involving physical exertion usually involved him not being present, but still, none the less. He grabbed a sweatshirt off the floor, still wearing the clothes which he had been sleeping in, torn jeans and a dull brown T, only waiting to grab his shoes before he tore from the room.

About fifteen exhausting minutes later, Andrew had finally found the training room, having gotten lost twice and accidently opening three different rooms before he found the correct one and half walking, half stumbling inside, panting.

Devyn stood in the middle of the expanse, tall, lean and looking every bit as much like a prowling wolf as he expected a human could get without sharpening their teath and walking on four legs. The lights were neither dim nor bright, though caught in a semi balance that still left shadows at the edges of the space while not causing Andrew to strain in order to see clearly, eyes jumping over the slouched training dummies and rows of dumbbells. The girl turned towards the boy, flashing a halfhearted pixyish grin, her voice oddly hollow as she spoke, the words somehow more drained then usual and left him feeling more confused than embarrassed. Andrew had heard vaguely about the library incident of course, just whispers, though he hadn’t thought much about it then, was it possible Devyn wasn’t entirely alright? He cast the question aside, no, I’m not going to ask anyway, its none of my business, Devyn would tell him if she wanted to, otherwise nothing would come from prying and even so, she was the only friend the young shifter actually had, he wasn’t going to risk that by trying to inquire upon her personal life.

Instead Andrew stammered “s- sorry, e- er, I- I uhm, k- kind o- of forgot.”

[Devyn Solway]

Andrew was late, and that meant that Devyn was just going to make him work that much harder for making her wait. She didn't actually mind that much since she tended to at least arrive one or two minutes late to an events so she was 'fashionably late'. Still how long Devyn had waited was not all that bad so she would still go a little easy on him. For now she was just happy that he had actually showed up and that she didn't have to go hunt him down, catch him, and then drag him over here. That was all a bit forceful, but this was Devyn and she was working on still getting her dominate part under control. It was less easy when she was dealing with all this drama that made her beast side hang out on the surface more often. She was pretty sure that she had not eaten a single fruit in all this time since the breakup and she had shifted a lot more often.

Thankfully she had only lost control once to the degree that others knew about it but the other two times she had lost control were late at night and Devyn managed to get herself into the woods so she could calm down. She was sure that Andrew knew about her library drama but unless he brought it up she was not going to say anything about it. This little hang out session was not about her, it was about helping Andrew know how to defend himself a little better. Devyn would also try and stress that Andrew should avoid using his power in a fight, even if she was not the greatest role model in that department. She also could not really get on Andrew about using his power when at every moment she felt like she was on the verge of using her own. She still maintained control but if people were paying close attention that would see that the shadows in the room would occasional twitch or move a little when she was around.

"You forgot? For shame Andrew, you are going to have to make it up to me for forgetting about this." Andrew pointed out as she smirked a little, a smirk that showed a little bit of her teeth, hinting at something a little more predatory for a moment. Grabbing a hold of the tape she headed over to be closer to Andrew and reached for his hand. If he didn't pull away too much and she managed to grab a hold of his hand she would begin to wrap his hand up in the special tape. "This will protect your hands." Devyn explained so Andrew would not be confused or anything as to what she was doing. Her green eyed gaze avoided Andrew's own since she knew that her eyes would give away something was wrong if her tone of voice and mannerism didn't give it away. She had the room lit in such a way that she didn't need her shades on.

"How have you been?" Devyn asked, just wanting to check up on her friend. She did of course still wave and say hello to Andrew in the halls and hang out with him when she could but that had dropped a little since Devyn's breakup since she was just working through things and didn't want her friends to have to deal with her depressed self.

[Andrew Wylen]

Devyn’s expression turned mirthful, almost teasing, at Andrew’s response, yet, he still couldn’t get over the fact that she still seemed just, off. The unease was only heightened due to having had scarcely seen the older girl over the last several weeks, here and there in the hallways maybe, though now that he thought about them, wasn’t her expression slightly forced then too?

Andrew was so deep in thought that when Devyn reached forward to take his hand he all but jumped away, in fact he did jump slightly, but he tried to pass the movement off as some type of exaggerated cough… as was probably obvious, the boy wasn’t much of an actor. Letting out a breath the young shifter murmured an apology before holding back out his hands allowing her to wrap the tape about each knuckle in turn while she explained, it was to prevent injury, of course that made sense, well, kind of.

Andrew eventually managed to work up the nerve to look up from the scared wooden floor, only to find that Devyn was also starring downwards, her question coming suddenly, so quiet it could have been mistaken for a whisper had he been standing a couple feet away.

The standard reply “good” almost came automatically from his tongue; mostly just out of reflex than anything else, though given that his dreams were, at least temporarily, subsided, right now he guessed it wouldn’t have been a complete lie. As such, Andrew instead said “n- not- b- bad, all things considered” after about half a second he inquired further, voice hesitant, terrified of somehow broaching on a painful subject “w- what a- about you?”

[Devyn Solway]

Devyn didn’t even think that Andrew was observing her or noticing that something was off about her, but Andrew had known her for a while now. How long had it been since Devyn met the younger boy in the hallway and helped him get to his class. Declaring that Andrew was her friend from day one in order to look out for the younger boy and because she just felt some sense of bond with him. It was probably because of her power or just because a little bit of Andrew reminded Devyn of herself, as shocking as that was. Devyn had not always been this bold and brazen. By Andrew’s age she was how she was now or at least on the way to being like she is now but before that she used to be shy.

Hunting, training with your dad, and being okay at making friends helped out a lot but when you had a mom like Devyn’s mom…it messed you up a little. Such things Devyn didn’t want to think about at the moment but such thoughts had a habit of sticking around in Devyn’s head of late. Devyn hesitated a little with grabbing Andrew’s had a second time when Andrew flinched, not falling for his attempt to cover it up like he coughed. She was used to people flinching and just in general fearing her, even more so since her slip up at the library. She did wrap up Andrew’s hands when he seemed to relax and focused on that task in silence until she asked how Andrew was doing.

Devyn expected Andrew to respond with good, a response that never really gave her much in knowing just how someone was doing. Instead she got something a bit more, words that actually made Devyn smile a little bit. “That is good to hear.” Devyn said as she looked up at Andrew for a moment, using her teeth to rip the tape after she was done wrapping up Andrew’s hands. The question was stuttered back at Devyn, causing her to just shrug her shoulders. “If you read Dirty Laundry she is pretty spot on how I’m feeling…sure you know about the library incidents. I’m still alive so I figure that means I’m still doing alright.” Devyn said with a nod as she moved away and went over to the punching back, gesturing for Andrew to follow her.

“I figure the first important thing to know is how to punch. Well, really it’s to know when to pick your battles but knowing how to punch is important to know. A good punch could knock someone out, break something, and that basically means you can end a fight quick.” Devyn explained, giving another small shrug as she patted the punching bag. It was one of those large one hanging from the ceiling and full of sand or possibly like foam or something. Devyn never really ripped one open so she was not really sure, but she knew she tended to see them in either red or black.

[Andrew Wylen]

Andrew rubbed his hands idly as Devyn let them drop back, knuckles now wrapped with a thin layer of tape that left him feeling oddly unsettled, like a rabbit who had heard an owl’s hoot. Honestly, he didn’t read dirty laundry, well besides once, having had the misfortune of coming across the page while studying for a chemistry exam and as it was certainly an “interesting” blog, to put it one way, Andrew had never really taken to gossip, at least no more than your average teenager. Besides, he preferred to console his own beaten pride between the covers of books, a pass time that became more precedent by the day.

Reaching her unsettling conclusion Devyn turned and waved for him to follow as she stalked up behind a slumped punching bag, its leather sheath looking crumpled against stout stone wall that rose up against it. she was already speaking before Andrew reached her side, words pertaining the necessity of a good punch though the young shifter figured that the day he managed to knock someone out older then the age of four was the day hell would freeze over. None the less he did listen intently, while not entirely having been keen on learning to fight he wasn’t going to waste Devyn’s time. She was one of the few people who he could actually call a friend… well, really the only person for that matter and for one reason or another, while he wouldn’t tell anyone this upon threat of painful death, she had become almost like a big sister to the young shifter.

Andrew gave his head a half shake, eyes flitting between Devyn, the punching bag, then back again, not quite sure what she expected him to do. After a moment of quiet nervous hesitation he gulped and tried to punch the bag, throwing his entire momentum into the punch, he was sure it was going to hit, this wasn’t that hard after all-

Andrew yelped like a kicked dog as his little finger burst into a shocking pain, had it ended with that, he figured things would have been so bad, he could have just turned and spared himself most of the humiliation, that is, had the punching bag not come back with the force of a stampeding cow and threw him backwards, stumbling then tripping onto his rump. Sitting there, stunned for a moment, a blush rose to his cheeks, staring down at the hard wood floor and determined to not look as though he had just made about the biggest fool of himself he possibly could. Well, Andrew decided dejectedly I guess I know what not to do.

[Devyn Solway]

Devyn was not even sure if she was even explaining everything right because again she was better as doing then saying. Of course she was going to show Andrew but she figured that she try speaking actual words first before just going to town on the punching bag. She certainly spent a lot more time working out in the recent days. When you could not get out your stress in any other way that Devyn was normally used to being able to do, she worked out. It was not like she could not relieve stress the way she used to, it was more of her not allowing herself to for various reason. While she waited for Andrew to come closer she leaned a little on the punching bag in silence for a moment.

She was pretty close to Andrew and while she would not beat Andrew to a pulp if the boy ever told her that he thought of her as an older sister, she certainly would probably blush or get all weird for a moment. She was an only child; well she had a half-sister but Devyn grew up and was raised as an only child. Plus she figured that no one really ever wanted to be related to a person like her. Devyn moved away when Andrew went to punch the punching bag, watching him closely and by the way Andrew punched the bag he expected the boy to end up hurting his hand some. Not entirely his fault because she could have explained it a bit better and some more. Devyn didn’t step in as the bag came back; as expected and hit Andrew, causing the boy to fall back. Devyn could not help but to smirk a little because it was slightly comical in her eyes.

“That would be an example of a bully hitting you back.” Devyn said as she moved over and offered out her hand to the younger boy. She planned on helping him up to his feet and then checking his hands to make sure that nothing was broken. If something was out of place then she would quickly push the finger back into place without giving Andrew any warning. “You want to make sure that you have you on the outside of your fingers but under them.” Devyn explained but found that it sounded really weird so she held up her fist to show him. “As for when hitting the bag you don’t want to just beat at it with everything you have in you, if you have never hit one before or else…” Devyn said and then gestured to Andrew, referring to the scene that had befallen Andrew.

Devyn moved then to stop the swinging cow from doing any more damage or swinging too much. "With the whole bag coming back at you, you just have to get that down to timing. Wow I suck at explaining. You getting this or should I just show you before you give it another go?” Devyn asked, stilling feeling odd and even more so because she was trying to explain something but felt like she was doing a horrid job at it.

[Andrew Wylen]

Devyn choked back a smile yet to her credit, she didn’t outright laugh at the situation, a fact which given the circumstance, Andrew found as little consolation. Eyes still alight with mirth she let a hand fall in front of him and accepting it quickly he got back to his feet, wincing as the pinky throbbed in a small burst of pain. Devyn took it, managing not to touch the bruise, she peered at the finger, carefully inspecting the scarlet splotch upon his otherwise paled skin for a long moment before releasing it to fall back to the boy’s side. Seemingly content with her findings the older girl spoke quickly, explanation not horrible -especially better then what Andrew himself could do- though was still slightly befuddled, leaving him vaguely confused, a fact which she herself must have noticed, as, with a cock of her head, she held up her hand to demonstrate the appropriate gesture.

He gave a short nod and then she continued, moving an arm to encompass the scene, himself shifting from foot to foot, blush returning briefly upon each cheek. Without pause, Devyn turned, walked over to the bag and put out an arm, halting the swinging pendulum with all the ease of a parent touching their child’s shoulder, until, eventualy, she took a breath, turning back to Andrew and asking if he understood a word she had just said.

“er-“ he bit his lower lip, truthfully, he doubted he would have understood much about fighting even if an actual teacher had been there coaching him and besides, she wasn’t actually that bad, just a bit unorganized comparatively. Finally he managed in a weak voice “n- no uhm- y- you’re a- actually good- I- I mean- n- not t- that I d- didn’t e- expect y- you to b- be, I- I mean, I- it- uhm-.“ Andrew gulped “er- y- yeah, showing would b- be great.”

[Devyn Solway]

Andrew accepted her hand and without any real effort the boy was back on his feet thanks to a good pull from Devyn as well as Andrew standing up. Devyn hated it when someone would ask for help and then she would end up doing all the pulling and the person would make no effort at all to stand up on their own. That tended to result in one or both of the people involved falling but that didn't really matter at the moment. Devyn first made sure to check over Andrew's hand and while she figured his hand might hurt for a little while and perhaps have a small amount of brushing, she didn't really see anything serious. Nothing to be worried about and nothing was broken so with that she was moving on. She was confident in her ability to be able to tell when someone’s hand was broken, having broken hers a few times of course. She did her best to explain how one should have their hand, but just ended up showing Andrew, hoping that would be enough.

At least I know that I should not try to be a teacher of any kind.Devyn though to herself because if she could not explain something to Andrew without just showing him then there was little hope in a career for being a teacher. Why was she even thinking about what kind of job she should try going for? She still had time before she really had to worry about all of that and she honestly figured that worse case that she would just leave BA and go live off the land if she could not come up with something better before then. Still, she tried explaining what was next and again felt like she was just doing an awful job at it so asked if she could just show Andrew. Showing seemed like honestly the best way to go and Devyn knew for a fact that she was better at showing someone something then she was telling them something. Andrew stuttered and fumbled with his words, with Devyn just watching him and waiting for him to get it all out, not even bothered by the stuttering all that much since she was used to it.

"You know I'm not going to like beat you to a pulp or anything if you disagree with me right?" Devyn asked with a small chuckled as she started to crack her knuckles. She still did wish that Andrew would ease up a little more around her because he was her friend and she was not going to hurt him. She had his back in whatever way he needed her to have it and that was all there was to it. Devyn wanted to say more, but her mouth just hung open for a moment before she chuckled and moved to get ready to hit the bag. Taking up the proper stance with her feet and hands. "Remind me to take you out drinking one of these days." Devyn said as she looked back at Andrew and gave him a quick week before focusing on the bag. Going for a quick four hit combo on the bag, but ended up hitting the bag eight times because something about just hitting the bag once just really made her want to hit it harder and harder each time before she remembered she was working with Andrew.

"You're up Pup." Devyn said after clearing her throating and slowing down the bag for Andrew after causing it to swing a bit from her punching.

[Andrew Wylen]

Devyn gave a chiding jest as she cracked each knuckle in turn, eyes alight with mirth and sending Andrew’s cheeks blazing with a bright burgundy glow that spread all the way to the boy’s ears, though these were thankfully covered by his still bed ruffled hair. Finishing with one of the best conspiratorial winks he had ever seen, she turned and ran a powerful arm, full length into the otherwise calm bag, silent as a stone after its last encounter.
“PHRUMP!” Devyn’s fist collided with all the ease of a dancer yet sent the hundred pound object soaring backwards, chain rattling as though momentarily stunned. After seeming to hang in the air for a mortal age, it came crashing back, pulled by gravity like a malice wrought hammer come to break that which struck it, bearing down on her, four feet, three feet, one and half- but the impact never came, instead she simply stepped out of the way, lithe as a feather and smashed a second blow to what would have been an opponent’s jugular. Needless to say, it was impressive, especially when compared to Andrews pitiful attempt, every one of her blows landed, each forming a solid indent in the leather yet never was she caught unawares, never did she misjudge a blow, every one forming a type of painful song, as if taking apart her opponent piece by piece: head, neck, groin, left for arm, right kneecap, so on and so forth until finally, not even breathing hard, she steadied the bag mid swing and turned back towards him.

Andrew only stared for a moment, mouth held slightly open, until finally her voice roused him back to wakefulness. He shook his head, managing a week nod and stepped up to the punching bag, a gulp hanging in his throat, mind racing through what he had just seen and trying to work out how he might possibly duplicate it. The process was like reading a book upside down, he didn’t know where to start, for one he doubted he had the muscle mass to do half the things Devyn had shown and even if he did, he wasn’t even entirely sure how she had done them in the first place.

After a few seconds Andrew began to realize he hadn’t moved, having peered at the bag for the past half-minute or so. He shook his head again in a halfhearted attempt to clear his mind before settling into the pose Devyn had demonstrated, or at least he attempted to, the result resting somewhere in the desolate void between bad and dreadful though at least it wasn’t down right unspeakable which in that he held solace. Holding up each hand, fingers curled about themselves as was instructed, he threw a ridged punch, trying not to throw his entire body into it but instead achieve the cool control that Devyn displayed, ease, grace, strength…

“phump” the bag moved four inches total, then slumped back into place with hardly a whisper of sound leaving Andrew standing as he struggled to keep his face from looking properly humiliated.

[Devyn Solway]

Devyn really didn't mean to have 'gone to town' on the punching bag like she ended up doing but it was just in the moment. The feeling of leather wrapped bag hitting against her fist, the sound that came from each strike, and the satisfying way the bag would swing away from her after each hit just made her go one. It was amazing how much each hit helped, release that pent up anger, aggression, and a little bit of sadness that still lingered inside of her. It was just a good thing that she liked to work out and that she pretty much did it every day because she was certain that it was the only thing keeping her from losing it. Keeping her from crumpling into tiny pieces and unable to hold herself together anymore. She could not and would not allow herself to break in front of Andrew of all people. He was like a younger sibling to her and she could not help but to think that if she looked weak in front of him then how that would make him feel?

Such thoughts seemed to have ended up writing themselves on the bag that Devyn kept hitting until she remembered why she was even here. For Andrew, to help her younger friend out so he could defend himself when she would no longer be around. That last part sounded depressing but at this point Devyn would not be surprised with herself if things took that kind of turn. Devyn called to Andrew to go ahead and give it a try but the boy stayed still for a moment. Nothing about that too odd since it was Andrew and he had a habit of hesitating or taking his time before getting to what was told or asked of him to do. Devyn just assumed that Andrew was the type to end up over thinking everything. She gave him space and watched as he did do a good job at copying her stance and even the whole going to punch the bag. He still needed some work but as always Andrew did at least impress Devyn at the level he was able to pull off on his first go.

"Hey, don't make that face. You are learning after all." Devyn said as she reached out a hand to give Andrew's hair a good and rough ruffle. "Try closing your eyes, taking a deep breath and then just hit the bag a few times next." Devyn suggested but before she would let Andrew get to it she got even closer. Hands reaching out to touch Andrew's body and work on adjusting his stance a little better. Practically treating him like he was some living doll for a moment but it was all just to help him and since she was not all that good with words, moving him the right way seemed to be the best bet. "Throw some weight into your hips when you swing you punch too, it give it a bit more force." Devyn added as she moved away to give a quick demonstration but punched at the air instead of the bag, then moved back some more to give Andrew some more space with the punching bag.

[Andrew Wylen]

Devyn reached out, ruffling Andrew’s hair and remarking on his not-quite-so- outstanding punch; not to say she spoke in a demeaning way, rather her tone was knowing, eyes peering over his expression with a friendly glance. Following the advice he closed his eyes, a pitch shadow settling beneath each lid, though before the young shifter could gather the self-respect to attempt a second punch he felt a hand grip his right shoulder. Andrew gave a violent start, blinking to see Devyn holding his arm and –not seeming to be bothered by his surprise- pushed it a quarter of an inch to the right, then, moving to his left leg, she maneuvered that as well. The boy, after pushing down an initial urge to pull away, let each appendage go, more or less, limp as she moved to them, shifting his stance, pulling up his hands, pushing back his stomach and a lot more miniscule changes that seemed to have been obvious to her though Andrew couldn’t tell the difference either way. After all was done, Devyn stepped back, giving the result a final look, before adding a final piece of advice which she was quick to demonstrate, he watched imitating the motion, but even that statement was not entirely accurate as he supposed “imitate” implied he in any way understood what she was doing.

This is a lot easier in books Andrew groused to himself, gaze fixated on Devyn’s graceful form, then back on his own stiff, hesitant motions. In a story the hero always was taught how to fight, or use magic, or a power, et cetra, differing from story to story though it usually ended the same, the hero would work to the breaking point and while it was difficult he would eventually surpass his master, kill the dragon, save the princess, et cetra et cetra, we all know the stories. Well what those stories neglected to mention was when the hero tried his best and still failed, when the goal was so unbelievably laughable it would have been outrageous in most comedies, trying to turn Andrew, a book loving, scrawny, teenage mutant into some kind of hand to hand combatant was one of those said goals and besides, as his life had made pretty obvious by now, he highly doubted he was by any means the “hero” in this particular tale.

Curling his hands into a fist he turned to the bag, rolling back one arm, letting out a breath he swept the ligament forwards swiftly, it lacked the control and strength of Devyn’s barrage of thrusts though amazingly it connected, rocking his target away and left the student so surprised, stunned even, that he almost didn’t duck out of the way as the bag came soaring back clipping him sharply on one side.

[Devyn Solway]

Andrew of course jumped when Devyn touched him; the boy had always been so jumpy so it was not really something that she did not expect. She did hope that at least one point that she would not always end up scaring him all the time. She knew she had a habit of sneaky when she approached people that just sort of happened and she didn't often plan on it. It was probably that inner beast side to her that made her approach with stealth, caution, or whatever someone wanted to call it when apply to Devyn. Either way, she didn't always do it on purpose but knew she needed to work on using more words then just actions. Actions were just easier and provided things to be less complicated if you just did something over talking about what you wished you could do. "Oh, have you been working out a little already?" Devyn asked with a small smirk on her face as she moved Andrew into position, feeling the boy's body of course while she was moving it the way it needed to be.

Stepping back, admiring her work, and giving more advice to the boy to help ensure that his punches would be better. This was a lot harder then she thought, in terms of training someone. She was just used to sparring with people who already knew how to fight and defend themselves. So she had to try and think back to the times when her father would train her in some of his military combat style and try to show Andrew like her father showed her. Devyn had no plans on turning Andrew into a combat master of course; she just didn't see it in the boy. Sure it would have been cool to have a little version of someone like herself going around, but Andrew was not her. He had different likes, dislikes, and his own set of problems that Devyn probably would not have been able to understand. Still, she wanted Andrew to know how to at least protect himself since she didn't think she would be around that long to do it for him. Not with how she was thinking lately, but she pushed such thoughts out of her head for the moment and focused on watching Andrew make his move.

His hands were the right way and with Devyn having fixed his stance everything had a higher chance of going a lot better and a less result of Andrew hurting himself. At least that was what Devyn was hurting but she recalled how many times she got herself hurt, but then again she tended to train alone or take far too many risk. She just made a mental note to be careful with what she was going to put Andrew through. Andrew did pretty good, hitting the target but forgot to keep hitting it or keeping it from hitting him. Devyn still gave a small clap for Andrew either way. "Good job Pup. Do it again, but give it a few good hits. This of that bag as that stupid kid that started a fight with you in the hallways. Make him pay. Teach him a lesson." Devyn said; with a slight grow behind her words, trying to get Andrew's inner animal to stir a little.

[Andrew Wylen]

Andrew managed a weak smile, his cheeks burning red at Devyn’s tease, glad that at least she was acting somewhat normal again, though he figured the last time which he had, as she had put it, “worked out” involved a dog, a pillow and several tastes in his mouth that he would love to forget. None the less, the young shifters largest surprise came when the blow knocked back the bag, chain creaking like the prow of a ship and leaving him, for lack of better words, baffled; in fact, it could probably be attributed more to luck than anything else for how he managed to duck out of the way, the sagged form of the hundred pound bag coming back with all its force against the empty air he had just been standing within. Save one shoulder Andrew felt fine, which admittedly stung quite a lot, but still, compared to Devyn’s praise it was nothing, a mere twinge, he was just beginning to believe there might be some truth to those stories, when he miss stepped, tripping over his own laces and fell once more, painfully, on his back.

You know… on second thought, he chided, pulling his scrawny self-off the floor, ears probably able to act as miniature lighthouses at this point, never mind.

Andrew pushed up from a crouched position and half staggered, half walked, wincing, admittedly, back to the bag, staring down at him as though in silent mockery. Great, now I have worse self-respect then an inanimate object, that’s wonderful, he thought sourly, recalling Devyn’s words with half a glance back in her direction, yet unable to meet the girl’s eyes in his own.

Andrew turned again, letting a breath escape his lips, air gently caressing his chin like a cold finger, eyes locked on the object before him, which, for a moment… was no longer an object at all.

Rell stood silhouetted before his friends, hair brushed to one side, clearly supposed to be windswept though the end result was that the greasy strands clung to his skull like some kind of nesting animal. As Andrew watched, a smile crept upon the teen’s lips; a smile of those who believe they could control the air around them if they wanted to, the smile of a snake that has chanced across a delicious feast. It was an evil twisting of the mouth, no happiness or joy rested in its pronouncement, only the promise of misery for any that might stand in the tormentor’s way. He wanted to run, to hide, to flee, a primal instinct inside of him screaming louder than any vocalization ever could, but not a muscle shifted, not a single fiber of his bodey twitched. No, Andrew thought, terror filling his thoughts, no no no! Then- something else entirely… a feral, animalistic nature of one who is cornered, something he had felt far too many times, yet now? Now all he wanted was to fight, just like that afternoon, the day that had changed everything, when he had struck back.

Andrew let a calm fist rest into the punching bag, it was far from perfect, he was still learning, though he was proud of that punch, it wasn’t the form after all that brought small bursts of pride with every continued attack, he visualized Rell, the Bullies from his last school, the nightmares, every single pain he had been struggling through over the past half year. It wasn’t until he snapped a fist into the bag and it came back shooting in pain from hitting it the edge of his palm that he stopped, as to whether the tears beading in his eyes were from the faulty thrust, or perhaps something else, well, there are something someone can keep private…

((ooc note: hi Raku, really sorry about how late this is, thousands of things seem to be coming up again and again though I think I finally have one in hand  ))

[Devyn Solway]

Devyn smirked at seeing Andrew blush at her words, she really did enjoy seeing people blush and it made her feel a little bit better. Devyn Solway may have been feeling depressed and unsure of herself but she was still sort of herself. That was a good thing on some level that she was not so far gone that she was just an empty shell. She had become something of a shell before on her very first breakup with her first pretty much everything, but she had been able to move on. Devyn’s arms crossed over her chest as she stood back and watched Andrew hit the bag, impressed at his improvement. Devyn was proud, until Andrew ended up on the floor. She held back a laugh that wanted to escape and instead just smirked.

Going to have to drag him out all the time to run with me and work on his coordination. Devyn thought to herself as she already planned on starting to wake up Andrew to at least join her on one of her every day jogs around the campus. Devyn head turned slightly to the side as she came to something of a realization. Andrew didn’t just give up in the things that he was doing, sure Devyn was giving him some encouragement but she was not outright forcing him and yet he was still getting up and trying again. Still showing up and giving it a go with whatever Devyn ended up putting him through when he could have just avoided her or whined and gave up. Devyn smirk seemed to grow even larger until it turned to more of a pleased smile.

She could see the change in Andrew and how he was looking at the punching bag. She could see Andrew letting out that other side of him, it had first seemed like something like fear but then it was turning more into the side that was in all shifters. Andrew could change into a dog; Devyn could change into a wolf like creature. They were both predators and had that side to them that really did allow them to push themselves a little further because of the animalistic side. Devyn remained silent as Andrew hit that bag, repeatedly until he ended up hurting himself but he was still learning. Devyn started clapping then as she moved over towards Andrew and went to give him something of a hug from the side.

“That was pretty damn good Andrew. I could see that other side of you popping out there and I’m pretty sure that if Rell had really been there, he would be on the ground by now.” Devyn pointed out as she went to give Andrew’s hair another ruffle. She would then reach for his hand, going to check them and make sure the tape was doing its job at least and making sure nothing was broken again. If she had boxing gloves she would have gave them to him but she always felt like they got in the way. “Need a break or are you ready to move on?” Devyn asked as she glanced around the room for a moment, wondering if they should keep at the punching or get the dodge ball to get Andrew’s reaction time to increase.