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Ryder finished off her slices of the meat and crossed her arms on top of her knees, which she had pulled close to her chest. "I want to fight. I want to do the right thing. But you seen the same damage I did at the other place." Ryder knew she didn't have much to be talking here. She hadn't fought... Addie had. And Addie has survived. Ryder gave a sigh. "I just... I just don't want to risk losing you. I know I can't tell you not to fight. I would never try and do that. But I still can't shake the feeling that they will only be worse this time around. I fear they'll have more fire power. And I just want you an Annabel safe..." Ryder looked down at the little girl. She was so pure, snd being thrown into a world of pure hell, just because of her birth. They all had been. Just because of who they were. Ryder looked up at Adysin, her eyes were swimming with every type of emotion she was feeling. She just blew out a small breath of air. "But I'll fight. I'll stand by you and do all that I can and then some." The words came from the tiny girl with such strong conviction. She wouldn't sit out of a fight this time.

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Ryder turned away from Adysin's pointed look. "Trust me, I know you don't need my protection. But that doesn't mean I don't wanna---" Ryder shook her head. "Nevernind. So we stand with them and fight. We do all we can and hope to hell that there's a better outcome." Ryder reach down and pulled out her dagger. "I'll have to get better at this thing, thing." But the idea made her smile. She would be able to defend herself. That was happy with. She wanted to prove that she could do it. She wanted to make up for all the times she'd run. But that didn't stop the what if questions from running wildly through her mind. She knew she'd be lost if she lost anyone with them now. Even Adamaris, and the large wolf wasn't even her own guardian. But the girl had grown attached to their little ragtag group. And she wouldn't trade it, even Adysin's grumpiness, for the world.

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Ryder smiled at Adysin's promise. "I'm glad you found someone to wield it." Ryder gave a little giggle. She had to admit, it felt nice to use it. During their earlier practice, she felt powerful. She felt useful. She felt like she might be able to do some damage if needed. She wasn't perfect by any means. At most, she just knew how to extend the water through the blade and use it as a weapon. She knew nothing fancy. If it came to a fight right now, she could hold her own for a bit, but she wasn't sure how well it would turn out. Ryder had always been a words over fighting type of girl. She never liked to harm others. But she figured that came from her years of dealing with her father. He wasn't overly violent. But... He loved to scream and yell and command a room. He always got his way. Ryder shook her head briefly, ridding herself of such thoughts. She didn't have a reason to think of him anymore. That was over with. She never had to go back to that house and be near that man. She could keep in touch with her mother without her father being in the mix as well. As Ryder drug herself from her thoughts, she glanced at Adysin and found her watching Annabel. This brought another smile to her face. Ryder loved watching Adysin watch Annabel. It looked as if Adysin was watching her entire world. And it made Ryder happy to see Addie happy, even in those brief moments. She leaned down and lay down on her side, facing Adysin before she spoke, "So, tell me, Addie. When did you pick up your first weapon?"

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Ryder gave a small sigh at the other girl's words. She wanted to offer up the same message as Adysin had... But Ryder had tried that before. All it lead to was a pissed off Addie. She didn't want that again. ANd Ryder understood where the girl was coming from. Adysin didn't need Ryder to protect her. But that didn't mean that Ryder didn't want to try. Oh well. She sat up and turned to Adysin. "Thank you." Her voice was sincere and grateful because she was. She loved to know that even when it seemed like no one had her back, Addie was there for her. Ryder then stood up and headed over to Zayden. "Come on... We still have a good bit of light left. We should head on a bit." Ryder started to pack her thing back into her and Zayden's packs. She was eager to go because she wanted to put more space between her and her family. She wasn't sure if she'd ever come back here. Not after the offer her father made. She pressed her hand into Zayden's shoulder fur and held on for a second. She'd never give him up. She'd never leave him. He was her protector, and she was his. They did everything together. As her thoughts continued to race around her head, she removed her hand from his shoulder and picked up his packs. She slung them over his shoulder. "Thanks for carrying this, Zayden." She then picked up her guitar and threaded one of the bags through the shoulder strap. She moved the instrument so that it rested in the middle of his back and was held down by the packs. "Is that alright? Can you still move fine?" She stepped back as he stood and walked a small circle around her. "Yeah, hardly know it's there." The large beast smiled at his master as she offered her thanks again. The pair then turned to Adysin. "Ready?"

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Ryder started walking into the woods, opposite the way they came into the clearing. Zayden walked beside her, matching his large steps to two or three of hers. Through the silence of the forest around, Ryder heard her Guardian speaking to her telepathically. "So... Ryder, whats going on between you and Adysin?" Ryder glanced up at him, and odd look over her face. Whats was going on between them? They had had their moments and quite a few of them. But it seems that Adysin always came to her senses and ran away from Ryder. The girl sighed and stared back at the ground in front of her as she directed thoughts toward the large leopard. "I don't know, Zayden... I know what I want to happen. But it seems she may not want the same things." As she kept walking, Ryder felt a gentle nudge on her shoulder. She looked up to see Zayden leaning his head down and rubbing his nose on her shoulder, a loud purr vibrating leopard and girl. "Maybe it's not meant to be with her... You shouldn't try to force anything. I don't want to see you get hurt by her." Ryder reached up and patted his neck. "Thanks for the concern. What would I do without you?" She smiled up at him and kept walking. But his question still rang in her head. And his comment. Ryder changed a quick glance over at the girl. What if they weren't meant to be and all this ended in nothing but tears for her? Her mind started racing a mile a minute, she couldn't stop replaying all of their encounters and analyzing everything. After a few moments, she picked up a ball of water from a small puddle they passed. Keeping her focus on it and the ground in front of her, she moved the ball around in her hands. She'd make it one shape, then another. She turned it to ice and back to liquid. Ryder was doing anything to keep her hands busy and her mind off of Zayden's quesion and comment.

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