A Drink To Remember

Chapter 13

"First step of self defense is space awareness. Know what's around you, how far away, and exits. This is also great for detecting presences of possible threats." I coach in the yard. Kaiya is eager to learn to defend herself better. "For example, can you tell me what's behind you?"

She closes her eyes and focuses on the area around her. "The back of the tavern, some trash bins, a mouse." She says, opening her eyes. I had stepped much closer to her while her eyes were closed, making her jump. "Jeez! You're quiet like a cat too!"

"Why didn't you pay attention to in front of you as well? Be aware of everything that is going on around you." I say, poking her in the forehead. She pouts and rubs the spot I poked her. "Once you get this down, you can avoid and defend just about everything."

Her face hardens with determination and we begin to train harder. By the end of the day, she has it almost completely down. "Wow, that's a lot harder than it looks!" She says with a breathless sigh. I had started to throw light blows at her once she got better at reading her surroundings. "I'm going to go take a bath, okay?" She says with a wave.

I finish drinking some water. "Of course. Let me know if you want company!" I say with a wink. She laughs it off and heads inside.

"You two look good together."

I turn around to see Ban leaning on a tree. "I figured he would keep eyes on us. Kind of surprised you agreed though." I respond.

"You knew I was here but didn't hide anything?" He asks, walking over.

I shake my head. "Out of the three of you, I noticed you have the best head on your shoulders. After all, you're just here to make sure we don't run, right?"

He chuckles and sits next to me in the grass. "That's true. Honestly, I don't like how Malachi does things, but I owe him so much that I feel like I have no choice but to turn a blind eye. I'm just sorry you and your woman got involved."

I stare off into the darkening sky. "I'm used to things not going my way. As long as she's okay though, I'll be fine." Ban sits in silence with me for about twenty minutes before finally clearing his throat.

"So how did you even win the heart of a woman like that?" He asks.

I small smile forms on my face. "Great question. Honestly, I think it was our shared sense of humor."

"How did you fall for someone? You've always liked to play, so I never saw you settling down."

I shake my head. "Honestly? She was stubborn and forced me to stay so I could heal. Then she conned me into helping with some stuff to repay her for buying my clothes, not the fact that she saved my life. She would joke with me, taught me new things, and just... cared. I had no one care about me and my well being like that before. I'm not sure when it happened, I just woke up one day and thought to myself, 'I'm in love with her.' Crazy, right?"

Ban shakes his head. "No, makes sense. I'm happy for you man." He stands up. "If you wanted to leave, I'm not going to stop you. Whack me over the head or something to make it look realistic. Go be happy so I don't have to pay up on how much I owe Malachi."

I smile at him and give a firm handshake. "Wish I could, but she won't leave. That's why I was training her today."

He gives me a pained smile in return. "That's too bad. I don't think I can help you do anything about it without risking my own neck."

"I understand. Thanks anyway though Ban." He gives me one last nod before heading back into the forest.

"Three days Obi. You've got three days!" He calls. Thank you for the warning.