[Wind Reach]When the Tables Turn [Private-Haya]

[Kovac]

Kovac's heart was pounding so hard in his chest, driving the blood through his arteries with such intensity that the pounding in his ears was almost deafening. He clung to the rock protruding from the cliff, his arms wrapped around it as he hung, his feet striving to set toes on anything that would help support his weight and relieve the strain on his arms. He was frightened beyond any fear he had known, and a quick glance down only served to elicit a colorful stream of frantically muttered curses and swears from the desperate avora. Quickly turning his gaze upward again to the edge of the trail, he saw Haya's head pop into view. Looking down at him, her tangled locks hanging to nearly concealing her face as she peered at him. The Drudge too appeared scared, or surprised. Another colorfully worded response was offered after the girl instructed him to 'hold on'. The Dek was gone for what seemed an eternity to the weary Avora, who attempted to remain as still as possible to conserve his strength. Finally Haya's head appeared again. Different. It took a moment for him to perceive what it was. Hair, light burgundy strands that appeared draped around her, coiled up before her. Kovac questioned his mental capacity, wondering if he had struck his head before careening over the edge. Was that her hair? The girl shifted to wrap more of it around her small hand. He could see the spike jutting from her palm. "What the petch...what...how?" For a moment, Kovac forgot the certain death that awaited him below as his brain tried to fit a square peg in a round hole. With a toss Haya sent the train of her hair over the edge, the ends dangling beside him near his waist. He looked up again as Haya instructed him to grab the hair. "But, how did you..." The archer decided now was not the time to look a gift falcon in the beak. "I, I don't want to pull you over too!" She was small, frail. When he went for the hair, almost all his weight would have to be supported by this bizarre length of mane. He had grown somewhat fond of Haya, and the only thing that he could think of that was worse than falling to his death was taking her with him. He shifted as close to the cliff wall as he could. His toes found solid footing, though his calves burnt with the strain. Wrapping his right arm tightly around the rock, Kovac carefully reached out with his left hand to take hold of the hair. He tugged on it. There was no slack, though it was hardly a sufficient test to ensure him she could hold him as he climbed up. He looked up again, Haya's face hard to see in the cascade of her own hair. "Are you sure?" The Avora determined his first move would be to get up to stand on the rock he was holding on to. With the extra support of Haya's mane, he could probably scramble up to the rock without putting all his weight on her hair. "Alright, hold on, I am going to try something!" He yelled up. Wrapping a fistful of deep red hair around his left hand, Kovac began to pull himself up with the right, his feet scrabbling to help propel him upwards. His left hand tugged on the hair as he used it for additional purchase until he got a knee up on the rock. His leg slipped, and he leaned precariously back, hanging onto Haya's hair, which gave a little with the unsuspecting yank. Kovac let out a sharp cry before recovering his balance and getting both knees under him on the rock. Carefully, using the hair rope for support, he stood on the narrow rock. hugging close to the cliff wall and looking up at Haya, now two meters closer than she had been. A little over a meter remained, but there was little for him to work with. Kovac would have to use Haya's hair to climb the short distance back the the trail's edge. "Haya, are you alright?"