A few weeks after our little adventure through those caverns, I caught a small cold. I got over it quickly. Soon after my recovery however, I became restless. My inability to protect Croy or myself was troubling me. Winter break was over, and our classes had begun again. I sat quietly through every lesson as I thought of a way to make myself stronger. I began neglecting my homework and classwork. Since all I did was space out in class, it began to take a toll on my grades. One night, I was sitting at my desk in the cabin during free period, with my homework spread out in front of me, when an idea crossed my mind. I stood up and made my way over to Croy, who was laying on my cot reading a magazine about guns.
"Croy..." I began. He looked at me curiously. He knew that when I did homework, I was usually immersed in it until I was finished. I stood before him in silence, trying to pick the correct way to phrase my words. "Never mind..." I muttered with a sigh as I changed my mind and made my way back to the desk.
"Hey, hold on!" he protested as he got off the cot and made his way towards me. "You've been acting odd lately. I want to know what's up with you." He said as he rested his hand on the back of my chair. I turned to him wearily. "Tell me what's bothering you." He urged and crouched next to my chair.
"Well, it's just..." I began as I looked down at the floor. "It's just that, I've been thinking a lot about what happened with Scaggot that day in the kitchen and the way you broke my fall when the ledge collapsed...." I trailed off. "I hate putting you in danger." I admitted. "I hate that you always get hurt trying to protect me." Croy shot me a sympathetic smile.
"Hey, you know I don't mindâ"
"But that's the thing!" I interrupted. "I mind! I don't like it." Croy listened quietly. "I want to be useful. I want to be able to protect you as well, that's why..." I trailed off. "...that's why, I want you to teach me how to fight." I clenched my hands over my thighs as I glanced at him. "I want to learn how to protect myself, how to protect you." I admitted as I bit my lower lip.
"I'll always be here to protect you." He said as he placed his hand on my face. I turned away.
"No, you won't be. As much as I would like to believe that, you won't always be here to protect me."
"What are you saying?" he asked me seriously. "It's the truth Croy! You can't always be chained to my side trying to protect me! You need to take care of yourself too because.... because I can't protect you!" My eyes watered with frustration.
"You need to focus on yourself, not on me..." I trailed off, my voice wavering. He stared at me in silence as he considered what I was saying.
An exasperated sigh left his lips when I was finished. "Fine. Meet me outside at 21:00 hours tonight, we have work to do." I looked at him, a bit surprised. Never in a million years did I think he'd agree. "But before I teach you anything, you have to finish your homework, got it?" he asked with an arched brow.
"Yes sir!" I saluted him as he made his way outside. Happily, I picked up my pen and began tearing through my homework.
Two hours later, at 21:00 hours (9pm) exactly, I put away my text books and made my way out of the cabin. When I stepped outside, I realized it was sprinkling. "I thought you weren't going to show." he joked and flashed me one of his signature smiles.
"I was the one who suggested it remember?" I retorted as I made my way over to him. His hair glistened with fresh drops of water.
"Okay, so before I teach you any moves, I need you to clear an obstacle course." he said as he placed his hand on my back and led me to the setup. My mouth gaped open. Hurdles, rope ladders, barbed and electrical wires were all set up for my training.
"Wow, you're serious...?" I asked a bit frightened. He clapped his wet hands and rubbed them together.
"Okay, time to get to work." he said as he stuck his hand in his pocket and took out a stop watch. "On my word, I want you to run the obstacle course as fast as you can manage. When your foot crosses this line here, I'll stop the time." he said as he picked up a stick and drew a line on the moist soil. I nodded as I walked over and stood behind the line.
"On your mark, get set, go!" he shouted as I took off at full speed towards the obstacle course. I jumped over the first hurdle and the second without any problem. I sprinted towards the rope ladder and climbed it, just as lightning lit-up the sky. The rain got heavier as I made my way over to the electrical field.
After I cleared the wires, I arrived at the barbed fence. I paused in front of it for a few seconds, catching my breath. I glanced at Croy, who was looking down at his watch. I took in a deep breath and exhaled loudly as I took off at full speed and jumped on the fence. I began to scale the slippery metal, my goal within reach. When I made it to the top, I carefully navigated my way through the barbs, trying not to cut myself.
The rain however, made everything more difficult. Because of all the water, I lost my footing and slipped. "Hazel!!" Croy's panicked scream echoed loudly through the camp, as I plummeted helplessly towards the ground.
A jolt of adrenaline coursed through my veins causing my hand to shoot up instinctively. I grabbed onto the top of the fence, where the barbed wire was the thickest.
"Ahhh!" I screamed in pain as I felt the steel thorns pierce through my flesh. Warm blood trickled down my arm.
"Let go Hazel, you're hurt! We'll stop for tonight!" Croy screamed from below, his arms outstretched in case I fell.
"No..." I gasped through clenched teeth. "I won't give up..." Using all my strength, I managed to pull myself up slowly and painfully. Blood squirted from my palm as the wires dug themselves deeper into my flesh. I ignored the pain as I climbed over and continued the obstacle course. When I finished, I waited for Croy behind the finish line. His hair was matted against his face.
"Are you insane!? Let me see your hand!" he scolded as he picked up my palm and examined it. I had a big serrated cut across my entire palm. Croy sighed as he took out a bandage from his pocket and wrapped it around my hand. I flinched. "I think we should stop for tonight..." he said seriously as he finished with my hand.
"No!" I protested. "Please, let's keep going a little longer..." I whispered as I stared at the muddy ground. Croy sighed.
"Why is it that I can never say no to you?" he asked as he shook his head. "Fine, since you cleared the obstacle course, I guess I can teach you a few moves..." an excited smile lit-up my face.
"Stay here." he instructed. He walked a couple of steps ahead of me then turned to face me. I watched as he bent down and picked up a twig. "Ok, I want you to copy everything I do." he said as he tensed his body. I obeyed and spread my legs apart just like he did. I bent down to look for a twig. "No, you don't need a twig. I want you to use your knife." he said seriously.
"But that's dangerous Croy, I could hurt you..."
"Trust me, I'll be ok..." he assured, flashing me another one of his smiles. I pulled out the knife Myra had given me. My hoodie and cargo pants were heavy with water. "I want you to try and cut me." he said as he motioned for me to attack him.
I hesitated at first, but after a deep breath, I charged. I was about to make contact when suddenly, in a flurry of motion, he was gone. "What the...?" I muttered in surprise as I stood there dumbfounded. "Where the hell is he?" I wondered as I looked around. I was about to turn when I felt him yank me from behind and disarm me. I blinked twice as he pressed the twig to my throat.
"Gotcha." he whispered in my ear, his warm breath misting when it touched the cold. He'd twisted my wrist behind my back as he held his free arm around my upper torso. I swallowed thickly, my heart racing. I wasn't sure if it was because of all the exercise, or because of our proximity. I suspect it was a combination of both. After a few seconds of reluctancy, he released me.
"That was a good try, but you have to consider your opponent's agility as well as their strength. Here's your knife." he said as he handed it to me. "You're smaller and thinner than me, right?" I nodded. "That means you're probably a bit swifter than I am. So instead of going on the offensive, I want you to try a defensive move and dodge my next attack." I nodded as I prepared myself to go again. This time it was Croy that charged at me.
At first, I couldn't see him very well, because the rain made everything blurry, so instead I concentrated on the sounds around me. I could hear his footsteps on the ground as they splashed through the mud. Without thinking, I dodged quickly to the left then lunged forward, my knife in hand. After a few seconds I focused my eyes to see a smug smile spread across his lips. My blade hung inches from his throat.
"I knew you had it in you twerp." he smiled as he broke free and took off running. I sprinted after him playfully, accepting his challenge. We practiced fighting for hours. Everything he taught me, I picked up almost instantly. Time went by and the rain got heavier. Before we realized, it was 01:00 am. "One more time, then we head back inside. We have to get some rest..." he told me seriously. I agreed and took my defensive stance. "Ready?" he asked, a large grin on his face. I smiled back eagerly.
"Bring it on dork!" Croy took off towards me at full speed, the twig in his hand. That was when I felt an odd chill run down my spine. I began feeling light-headed and dizzy. I swayed unsteadily on my feet. "Hey are you okay?" Croy asked as I looked at him through blurred eyes. His voice began to sound distorted in my ears. Next thing I knew, my legs turned into rubber and gave away beneath me. "Hazel!!" Croy screamed as I collapsed in his arms. "Speak to me, Hazel?!" Croy's worried voice began to sound distant as everything began getting dark. The last thing I remember was the warmth of his arms as they held me tightly and the worried expression on his face as everything went black.