A Hiking, We Will Go

[Blair Collins]

In all her four years at Bellefonte, Blair had never tried mountaineering. She had considered it many times, even visiting the mountain base when she could work up the nerve. But ever since that night, hanging out with the random and wild Poppy, she felt a longing for more adventure. The past three years, ever since teenage melodrama set in, each day seemed recycled. So when they parted ways, she decided to try something new as often as possible. The best things in life come unexpected anyway.

So she woke up earlier than usual--which is extremely early for the average student--and got dressed for a hike. She had to make her way through the forest just to get to the base, encountering no one so far--not that she expected to. It was cold this early in the morning--and the extra oxygen provided by the trees contributed to this. Besides, who was crazy enough to go hiking this close to winter? She breathed out, creating a small white cloud. Pulling her woolen beanie over her ears, she started trudging up to the looming mountain.

So now here she was, staring up at it as she did a number of times before. But this time, she would actually try to hike up it. She smiled, already excited.

Richard Buckles

[Richard Buckles]

Richard was taking his way through the woods not with the intent of camping this time but just to simply be out in nature taking a breath. He was finding himself a tad more stressed as of late than when he was just a student. Who knew that teaching would be so much more stressful than being in college. Then again he had a bit more hands on approach wanting to be sure everyone was learning properly. As being a person who had trouble with understanding physics he knew it was easy to get lost in the equations.

Between his students and the lately reoccurring deficits of attention of Elsa he had to find something to take his mind off of the situation. He enjoyed helping and supporting his girlfriend since she helps run the head office of the academy. He knew how important that work was but he couldn't help but feel like it was a bit crushing to their relationship to stay the least. The long hours and the intense work making for forgetful nights of plans. But out with the trees and mountains there was a stillness and a silence that let him just be ever so comfortably.

He was easing his way through the woods with nothing on hand besides his usual when not in school a sheathed Kabar. He stretched and as he wandered through the patch of un touched earth.

As Blair made her way to the mountains she did find herself in a strange situation. If her sensitive hearing picked up on it she would hear very soft and faint sounds of something stepping. If not she would be unaware till an accidental foot placement cause some rocks to shift and some bit of earth roll down the base of the mountain. There was a mountain lion preparing to pounce her once she was up further.

[Blair Collins]

She heard it before she saw it. Footsteps crunching on dried fallen leaves. Blair stopped. Was that just her or...? Dirt and small rocks rolled down on her left and she could hear soft heartbeats from a little further up. She swallowed the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat and turned her head. "Shit." A mountain lion was watching her from behind a strategic rock structure. If she did not have heightened vision, she might not have been able to spot the creature. But she did. What now? It was times like this that she wished she had manifested into a mutant with more... attack-based powers. Well, hell.

She had been so excited just trying something new that she did not consider bringing any protective gear. Sure, she was safe against the cold in her sweater and beanie. And her hiking boots and cargo pants were suitable. But all she had in her backpack were some sandwiches, a canteen of hot chocolate, and a pair of binoculars--what good were they against a predator? Her camera dangled from her neck and in a moment of hysteria, she felt the urge to snap a photo of the creature. How often would one get the chance?

Heart racing, the girl started to move back down the mountain as slowly as she could--no sudden movements. Maybe this was not such a good idea. But then her foot slipped and she fell to her knees. The mountain lion pounced.

[Richard Buckles]

Richard was making his way through the woods and he hadn't visited the mountains as he had spent most of his trips out here with a focus on camping rather than hiking in any shape or form. So as he made his way through the trees he saw the mountain and he smiled seeing it up close finally. He hadn't really gotten up close and friendly with a mountain before.

He wondered what it was like higher up on the mountains. Though he was not by any stretch of the imagination someone who was a rock climber. Though he might had had some interest he had not followed through with learning any new skills outside of more practical ones lately. He smile and saw another person down the way a bit a blonde girl who looked rather stricken with terror for some reason.

He started his way over to see what was the matter. "Hi there." he shouted friendly enough. When he saw her fall over he took a walking approach and ratcheted it up a gear to a jog. Little did he know his words and her fall made an animal want to pounce down on her. When he spotted the start of the mountain lion pouncing down through the air Richard immediately started moving fast as he could.

He wasn't sure what was happening as everything seemed to be moving in slow motion for a few moments. He wondered if this was his power or not as he felt his brain processing the situation with numbers flashing through his mind. He unsheathed his knife swiftly and at about 20 feet away still he threw the knife through the air. He aimed at a target he saw with a line of some sorts showing the path the knife took towards the lion

The lion had landed on her with its claws on one paw sinking into her shoulders. It was a hot piercing feeling as as the claws dug in. They were several inches long as they dug into her body. Though they did not hit any serious veins or arteries. The impact of the cat landing on her felt rough as it was around 150lbs.

It stopped from attacking her as it roared out in a series of sounds. It turned to her left and pulled its claw out of her. It ran off at Richard as the knife he through sunk in and drew its attention to him. Blair's wounds welled up with blood quickly.

Richard could see the way the animal bounded towards him and he decided the best choice of action was to catch it off guard mid stride. If his mind didn't process the information so fast that small gap between them would not have been enough time to devise a plan. He ducked down while it was mid bound and charged harder. He tackled the now injured cat and took it to the ground.

If not for that element of surprise he would have had no chance as the creature was a bit smaller over all than him but it's body was much more muscular. Once on its back it lashed out clawing and raking at his back. He even took a bite to his face as he grabbed his knife lodged In the beast. He pulled the blade out of it and then brought it up and sliced into its throat with a swift motion. The creature flailed a bit and pounced out of the grapple. It tried to run but made it only a few feet before falling dead from blood loss.

Richard stood up breathing hard with blood trickling down his face as he did get bit on the face. Though some of it was the animals from arterial spray. He walked over to Blair sluggishly. He cleaned the blade off on his shirt before sliding it in his sheath and snapping it shut. He felt a bit numb and tingly with head on his back.

"Stay still moving will only speed up the bleeding." he saw seeing the claw marks she had on her. He pulled of his shirt show if he had a black tank top on under. He brought it down and pressed it her collarbone region. He wrapped the sleeves around and tied them tightly. He knew it would be painful but she needed it to be sure she didn't bleed to much from the wound.

[Blair Collins]

Blair could barely process what was happening around her. All she felt was cold claws deep in her shoulders. And the pain... This was another downside of her powers. Since all her receptors increased in number, so did her pain receptors. She had no idea how serious the injury was; only pain ran through her mind. And her body ached all over from the impact of the creature. From this close, its heartbeat was pounding in her ears--or was that just her blood rushing?

She heard something whistle through the air and the mountain lion roared. Blair's head screamed, her ears ringing. As it pulled its claws out of her, she screamed. This would only cause her to bleed faster but hey, at least the kitty was off her. Turning her head, blue eyes scanned the scene before her.

A man was fighting the creature that attacked her. She spied a knife lodged in the mountain lion--must have been from her saviour. What the hell was he thinking? After that thought, everything else seemed mostly like a blur of movements. Even the fight sounded distant.

Then she saw him approach her. Blair blinked. He was splashed with blood. Oh my gosh, the lion's blood. She tried to wiggle away but stopped on his orders. Feeling pressure on her wound, she screamed. Breathing heavily, she tried to focus on him as he patched her up. Finally, she found her voice, though it came out rasped. "Thank you, crazy person I do not know."

[Richard Buckles]

Richard could see she was injured with ease and he knew it would hurt what he was about to do but it had to be done. She seemed to be in a good deal of pain. More than he would have expected given the situation. But then everyone's threshold for pain could be radically different. He didn't let up the pressure till he was done tying it snuggly. "Can you walk?" he asked looking her over in the legs to see if she was obviously injured.

He stood up and reached down to help her up since if would be hard with one hand to get off the ground. He pulled his under shirt off and used it to rub the blood from his face. The blood cleared there was the obvious showing of his face having been by by the cat as he had an impression of the beasts teeth dug into his face.

He took her hand and pulled her back to standing. He was sweating with his bare chest exposed to the cool air. He was pal still but had a muscular physique to his build. "We need to get you back to the academy and from there we can get you medical help." he said slowly as he wanted her to process what he was saying fully. She was obviously and with good reason I a bit of shock.

He was walking with her back the direction of the academy with her in front of him though he didn't know if she was a student he just knew that was the closest place for help. "What's your name?" he asked trying to distract her from the pain "Mine is Richard."

[Blair Collins]

Looking down at her legs, Blair nodded to his first question. A little numb from shock but otherwise just fine. Her eyesight started to clear too and her mind began properly processing her surroundings.

Oh gosh, he was taking off his shirt! Her cheeks warmed but she did not know why. This was not the first time she saw a man shirtless. Heck, Hugh Jackman was more impressive but still, she looked away as he wiped the blood from his face. When she returned her gaze to him, she saw the bite marks on his face. Ouch.

She took the offered hand and got back on her feet. Trying not to look at his bare chest, she fiddled with the straps of her backpack and checked her camera. It seemed to be fine. "Yeah, I think I will manage." As if to prove this she wiggled a foot. "It is just a scratch..."

Blair exhaled sharply at her own words. That line had been used several times across various movies. Today itself felt like something from a superhero blockbuster. A young girl is attacked and the hero steps in to save her. And so begins his journey to save the world.

The hero Her saviour The man's voice pulled her out of her thoughts. Oh. She did not even realize she had been following him. "Blair. Nice to meet you--really nice, obviously. What brings you here?"

[Richard Buckles]

Richard was not particularly observant of her reaction to his shirtless. When he wiped his face he felt the pain in it and pressed the shirt to his face again as he knew he got hit by the beast but didn't really notice it for some reason. It was like he was numbed a bit for some reason. He was glad he was out this way to help her for certain as unless she was going to pull out some combat power she would not have made it through the attack.

He smiled as best he could hoping to sooth her from the situation a bit. "Good to hear cause as light as you appear to be carrying you a few miles might have been a bit odd of a circumstance." he said as he was prepared to do that if he had to. "Don't kid yourself you got sank into with some 3 inch long claws. Luckily it missed the heavy bleeding spots or else you wouldn't be here right not talking to me. Lets just get you back and patched up."

He had this hot almost burning sensation on his back he didn't know why but he kept walking with her. As she was behind him and sort of waking out of her stunned shock she could see gashed from the claws on his back that were several inches long and still dripping blood out of them. "I came out for a walk in the trees. I don't get out here as much as I would like anymore since I started teaching." he told her. "What are you doing out here Blair?"

[Blair Collins]

Blair found herself pouting at his comment on her weight. What did he know? She could have bones made of adamantium or golden blood flowing in her veins and he would be none the wiser. She knew she was fretting over nothing but it helped keep her mind off the pain in her shoulder. Hm, maybe that was his intention... Blue eyes fell to her limp arm. She shifted the backpack strap on her good shoulder and rubbed her nose. "Lucky for me that you are quite the boy scout." Who know what would have happened if she had been left alone.

"Oh? Do you teach at..." Her voice faltered when she looked back up at Richard and saw the blood on his back. A squeak escaped her. Of course. No one could walk out of a fight like that unharmed. She caught up to him and grabbed his arm. "Hey, stop!"

She winced slightly at the sharp pain that shot up her injured arm--but this should be nothing compared to Richard's wounds. "You have slashes--gashes--your back is bleeding!" Blair grabbed the black shirt from his hands and held it up to his back. Hesitating, she bit her lip. "Uhm, what should I do? Do I... dab at it? Pour alcohol over it or something?"

[Richard Buckles]

"No I wasn't much for the scouts. To much time wasted doing things you learned out on the farm or hunting in the woods. But never leave home without a knife kind of a big thing. Never know when you might need it as a weapon or tool." as he spoke he pulled out his knife and then put it away after he finished speaking.

When she faltered in speech he picked up "Yes I teach over at Bellefonte Academy we'll sort of." he was about to get into clarifying whe she squeaked which made him turn towards her. "You alright?" his voice launched to be sure she was doing alright. He stood still now looking at her confused.

He looked rather startled at her statement of his injury. He shook his head "I mean back feels warm but not in pain...." He was a bit surprised when she came at him and grabbed his shirt pressing it into the slashes he had on his back. He winced a bit "Ouch....do you have some alcohol?" he asked as he felt that an odd question.

"Just calm down panic won't help in this case. If I am bleeding out of a wound and can't really feel it that means the adrenaline is numbing me up. Only thing to do is to apply pressure and try to get back to the school before I bleed out to much to keep moving. That being said if I try to run will only make it worse. So I need you to go ahead of me and get help."

[Blair Collins]

a hiking, we will go.

Alcohol? She laughed curtly which was odd given the situation. But she could not help it. "I just turned 18!" That was also a silly answer. She knew for a fact that many teenagers started drinking long before they reach the age that was legal for them to do so. But she was a complete goody two shoes. Never tried drinking and not planning to any time soon. Still, maybe I should start carrying a flask around. You never know when you would encounter someone who fought with a mountain lion.

She was freaking out, she knew that. This blabber inside her head had been a defense mechanism against outright panic for a long time. But when Richard told her to calm down, she took a deep breath. He is right. This is not about me. "Adrenalin... Adrenalin is good..." She jumped at his suggestion though. Would that be a good idea? Leave an injured man in the middle of a forest? What if the lion's pride came back for revenge?

Blair slapped herself mentally. Get a grip! Paranoia would not help either. She straightened herself and tossed the shirt back to its owner. "Good idea. I can do that." She dropped her backpack to lighten her weight. "I am actually a pretty good runner--I have been jogging a lot. If that counts." Panicking again. "I will be right back." And so she ran back to the school, forgetting her own wound.

She rushed to the nurse's office--almost missed it due to her momentum--and her panic easily caught the nurse's attention. After informing her of the situation, she led the nurse back to Richard. "Got him!" she panted out.

tag: richard | notes: none

[Richard Buckles]

He looked at her rather serious so when she laughed he was a bit befuddled. He had to calm down as much as coming off the adrenaline would hurt it was his best bet to slow the bleeding down. He had to make it as far as he could so he could be reached before blood loss made him die. He needed Blair to stay calm and just do as he says.

He pulled his knife out and handed it to her "Adrenaline isn't good because it thins the blood and makes it flow faster. But here take this with you just to be sure. I don't think there should be anything worse than a wolverine around here so we should be fine as long as you don't trip over one." When she rushed off then he was glad she was able to keep her wits well enough to run off and get help like he suggested.

When she reached the nurses office they took off in a four wheel drive vehicle with another person and when they came around he was closer to the edge of the forest as he didn't stop walking. But Richard was collapsed on the ground from the blood loss. They loaded him up on stretcher and took him and Blair back to the school. They called for an ambulance while giving him some blood and tender to the wounds as best they could.