[center][h1][color=a187be]ShiZhen Fang[/color][/h1]
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[@Saltwater Thief]

The water dripping onto ShiZhen woke her up from her stupor. Blinking, she looked up to the pinnacle to see Mr. Narquis, the drama teacher. She knew of him, but not being one for the arts, she didn't take any of his classes. He was rooting for her. What was she doing? As her thoughts collected, everything hit her all at once: the pain in her hands, the ache in her muscles, the cold in her bones, the fear in her mind, and the disappointment and self-loathing in her heart. She knew she had reached her limit. She knew she would let everyone down: her peers, her teachers. She knew that no amount of coaxing or encouragement could get her to surpass her weakness.

[Youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5GonK2B-ms[/youtube]

NO! ShiZhen came here to learn about her element, to learn about herself. She came here to change, to improve, to grow beyond the normal, meek self that she had been before. [color=a187be]"HHNNGGRRAAAAGGHH!!"[/color] ShiZhen groaned as she strained every muscle in her body to pull herself up. Her feet were stuck. Of course they were, she hadn't melted the footholds that she had created. Straining to concentrate against the encroaching fuzziness, ShiZhen imagined the water molecules, slow moving and latticed in hexagonal patterns, begin to move and vibrate, separating and melting. One foothold melted, but she couldn't lift the foot; her leg was too tired. ShiZhen tried harder to lift her free leg, putting undue pressure on her other foot. The other foothold broke loose, her previous attempt to freeze it to the wall had been shoddy. Now she dangled only by her arms, her bruised and bleeding fingers frozen to the wall. Everything hurt, and suddenly she felt warmth; hot streams flowed down her face. Tears. [color=a187be]"I...I can't...anymore..."[/color] stutters evolved into ugly sobbing as the verbal admission of defeat somehow made it worse, made it real. [color=a187be]"I-I'm...s-sorr-ry..."[/color] ShiZhen hiccuped to no one in particular, then began bawling in frustration at her own ineptitude and failure.