Stand Up

The last time Thiul had seen the big training hall under the Drakenhardt mansion she and Titus had sparred and he had nearly killed Thiul. Well, they had nearly killed each other, but Thiul had been at a considerable disadvantage. And since then they'd become first friends and then started dating. And Thiul was quite happy with that arrangement, she liked Titus and his company.
Today's occasion was much more peaceful than last time, Titus was going to teach Thiul partial shifting before she left for the holidays. Hopefully she'd be able to get the hang of it before then.

Thiul and Titus walked the same path to the hall as last time, and yet again Thiul looked around her and the sound of her cane echoed in the mansion. Although this time she walked alongside Titus rather than followed him. And Thiul wasn't wearing her doctor's coat, she had a free day today and was wearing a simple dark blue shirt and jeans.
It didn't really take long for them to arrive and Thiul took in the largeness of the hall yet again.
"I really appreciate you doing this, teaching me."
Thiul said and turned towards Titus, evaporating her cane.
"Then, lets get right to it. What do I do?"

Partial shifting was, in a way, a lost art within the Alpine community, and though Thiul was aware of it the way Titus said it made her narrow her eyes at him slightly. "Something every dragon should be able to do". But she let it go, they could argue later.
"You can say no to me, but I am known to be tenacious."

Thiul was intelligent and indeed did pick things up fast, and she listened to Titus' intructions with quiet concentration. She reached out her arm, the one with the tattoo, and attempted what Titus had told her. She remembered the feeling of shifting, and concentrated it on her arm. Slowly scales and small ice spikes formed on Thiul's arm and spread up to her shoulder. And she could tell it would spread to the rest of her body as well if she didn't stop it. Thiul concentrated and frowned at her arm. Her fingers were already hard black claws and most of the arm was already that of a dragon. For few moments Thiul was able to stop the shifting from spreading, but she relaxed too early and the rest of her body shifted as well. Soon enough Thiul towered before Titus in her dragon form and a growl of frustration rumbled in her chest. But Thiul knew things were learned through trial and error and she shifted back into her human form, exhaling a bit.
"I almost had it."
She muttered a bit, reached out her arm and began trying again.

Thiul had one special reason for this exercise and for learning partial shifting, and that was to partial shift her legs and see how it affected her condition. Best case scenario was, that Thiul would be able to gain strength in her legs in human form and she wouldn't need to use her cane anymore. Worst case scenario...well, there were many, but one that came to mind would be that Thiul's condition reacted badly with the effects of partial shifting and her legs would stop functioning all-together. But that was improbable.

Thiul simply let out an agreeing sound at Titus' words, she was already trying the partial shifting again in her arm. This time the transformation happened faster, because Thiul had gotten a sense of how it happened. Soon enough Thiul's whole arm was that of a dragon, and she yet again had a small frown as she tried to stop the shifting at just the arm. This time she succeeded, and Thiul slowly squeezed her dragon hand into a fist and open again. She allowed a small triumphant smile rise to her face.
"I think I have it now."
Thiul said and as a test formed ice spikes on the tips of her claws, making her already sharp, thick claws even longer and sharper. Thiul shifted her other arm too, it happened with relative ease, and she was pleased with her results.
"We have to spar when I return after New Years, I want to test this new skill."
Thiul was planning to get a lot of practice under her belt during her so-called holiday. Hopefully Wera wasn't too pre-occupied.

Thiul glanced down at her legs and then at Titus, shifting her arms back to her normal human ones.
"Is there any difference when shifting different parts of the body? For example, legs."

The thought of being able to shift just your muscles fascinated Thiul. That way she would even be able to put her own condition aside from possibly decades to come and focus on curing Hal.
"Maybe I should've gone to Lugh for lessons then."
Thiul said with a small smile. But no, Thiul much rather learned from Titus, and it acted as an excuse to spend time with him before she left.

Thiul understood Titus' concern, she had similar concerns, but her will and curiosity bested the worry. Thiul looked up at Titus.
"I wish I could say I know what I'm doing, but clearly I don't. I need to see if I have options, since curing my condition might not be one of them. If I lose all mobility in my legs then so be it. It would've happened eventually."
Thiul reached up to give Titus a brief kiss before stepping away and taking off her shoes.

Thiul looked down at her feet as she began shifting her legs, and again it happened relatively fast. It wasn't that different from shifting her arm, like Titus had said. But this time Thiul, though she would never admit it, was slightly scared. Because not being able to walk at all was a nightmare she had often. But as the shifting progressed Thiul didn't feel much different, aside from growing a bit taller, which was strange. And soon enough Thiul had the lower body of a dragon, up to her hips. If she shifted herself any further Thiul would have a tail.
Thiul didn't move. She was unsure to take the first step, to see if her legs moved in the first place. What if she merely collapsed and never got up again?

Thiul briefly noted that even with her lower body shifted she wasn't as tall as Titus. But mostly she just thought about his words. Naturally Titus was right, and Thiul was frustrated with her own cowardice. Why was she so afraid to take a step? She shouldn't need someone's support to walk, literally and figuratively. It was prideful, maybe even stupid, but that was Thiul.

Thiul looked at the hands Titus was offering. He had offered to catch her if she fell. Thiul frowned slightly, she hesitated to take his hands, she was taking his words too seriously. It was a simple offer for support, Thiul was being overly suspicious.
Thiul reached out and took Titus' hand, she didn't lean her weight on him, she merely kept her hand there. Thiul glanced down, sighed slightly, and took the smallest step forward.
And she didn't collapse.

After the first step was a success Thiul felt relieved, and she stomped on the ground strongly few times to see how well the legs supported. Thiul could feel they were not as strong as they were supposed to be, but they were as strong or stronger than her legs had been before the accident. Thiul squeezed Titus' hand a bit, smile forming on her face.
Thiul let go of Titus' hand and stepped away, doing the first thing that popped into her mind. Thiul bounced a bit in place, gaining momentum, and did a few fast high kicks. Thiul let out a laugh, it was a strange sound to hear from Thiul. She rarely laughed aside from with family.
"I need to spar with as many people as possible in the community. I need to see how far I can go with this."
Was Thiul moving too fast? Probably. But she was so excited, that she finally might've found something to lift her on even ground.