// @lightbcund / shippy drabble.
“You’re improving, love.”
“I still haven’t beaten you yet, Sona. At least you win properly now, instead of forcing a tie.” That had been embarrassing. The few months where Sona only parried until Lux collapsed from exhaustion and couldn’t hold her sword anymore... If the mage did not know better, she would assume that Sona had a really sadistic streak.
“You will win, sooner than you think. Not today, however.” Hadn’t she realized? Forcing Sona out of a tie was an accomplishment in and of itself, a clear mark of improvement. It had taken a while to explain that while Sona was a high wall to clear, it was not insurmountable - it was merely the years of experience difference between them. Comparing a young talent only now approaching their mid 20′s to a perfectionist at ‘thirty young’ simply wasn’t fair. When Lux toppled Sona ( and she would, at least once ), Sona had to wonder if the Crownguard would realize her own talent - just how far she’d come.
For now, however, Sona’s job was to physically beat temperance and experience into her sometimes far too reckless partner. To keep things fair ( and to avoid her own arrogance from causing trouble ), they had set simple rules that limited the kinds of magic allowed. They both knew that, if pushed, either one of them could completely decimate any one person... But part of this exercise was learning temperance and restraint. For both of them, really.
And Sona wanted Lux to feel a ‘fair but disadvantageous fight’. A difference in skill, not raw physicality or magical power - so when she won, she could feel she had won on even terms. There was nothing more disappointing than, ‘Of course I wouldn’t take the fight seriously,’
Sona sighs and tilts her head left and right, lifting her sword twice. For her, who couldn’t speak during bouts, it was their signal that the time to sign at each other was over and the match was restarting. The musician, for her part, had come to appreciate their spars. It was a refreshing change of pace and... If she was being completely honest, it was a little hard not to stare.
But you have the right to stare. You’re dating her. Sona wrinkles her nose and pushes that argument away for later, as well as any thoughts about admiring Lux’s calves. Bad. Bad, bad, bad, focus on the fight.
Their swords clash again a few moments later, a rhythmic progression of back and forths. Sona’s stern expression remains as she carries the melody of sword slices forward, then cuts into the harmony - only to be deftly countered. Oh... See, you’re improving. Why don’t you realize by just how much? Most people can’t respond to a change of tempo like that.
Still, an experience gap is an experience gap. Sona repeats the same trick, watching Lux parry her strike... and lets go of her sword entirely. Her hand slips forward and she quickly pries Lux’s hand off her own blade, kicking it to the side, then pushes the blonde down onto the floor.
Sona’s eyes twinkle as she pins Lux to the floor, straddling her hips and keeping her in place. Her hair curtains down around them both as both of their panting breaths fill the room. The musician smiles softly. As promised, Lux wasn’t going to win ‘today’. But soon.
“Um... Sona, are... you going to let go now?” Sona blinks, wondering why Lux is radiating ‘embarrassment’, only to realize far too late just what this looks like. It’s a spar! It’s a spar, this is normal- Her cheeks give her away and she pouts hard, harder as Lux begins to giggle underneath her. Doubling down, Sona slides down and rests all her weight on Lux, smothering the smaller woman. Hmph!
“Sona.... You’re smothering me! Come on, get off.” Sona shakes her head, grinning into Lux’s neck.
“You smile a lot more than you used to. You seem so much more expressive around me. I’m glad.” Unfair. That’s totally unfair, Lux. Sona’s cheeks go deep red as she rolls to the side, pulling Lux into a proper embrace. Cuddling on the floor was a bit stiff, but it was no less stiff than Sona’s mortified expression. Turning her head away, she vaguely signs something affectionate with her one free hand, the other keeping Lux tucked in close.
“Mhmm...” Lux hums in agreement and for a few moments, they sit there on the floor - damp with sweat, exhausted, and strangely comfortable. Finally, Sona feels Lux shifting by her side. They were rather sweaty, so a change of clothes and a shower would do wonders. Preparing to get up as well, Sona shifts her hips... and feels herself pushed back down onto the mat.
She blinks, then glances curiously at Lux, only to see a coy and satisfied grin. Finding her hips straddled and her wrists pinned, she shirks slightly. That mischievous, sly look meant nothing good - it was a look Sona had mastered for herself. I’m a bad influence, aren’t I?