[Training] [SE] Every step you take, I'll be watching you

Smiles are contagious.

He wasn't sure if his nose was still on his face, but the sniffling sounds hadn't changed so he was hopeful. The gloves on his hands kept his fingers functioning despite the chill that still managed to reach him. Did he remember what it felt like to be warm? He'd only been outside for a few days of travel and he somehow couldn't recall what it felt like to be comfortable. Luckily, his attitude and adventurous spirit hadn't suffered as he approached the climbing steps in the middle of the open field.

The staircase was covered in snow with the stone sides peeking out. Interestingly, it didn't appear to lead anywhere. At least not that he could see. A mischievous grin split his face as he bounded up to the first step. Making sure his sword and bag were secure while his layers of travel-worn clothing were properly protecting his body, he took the first step.

It wasn't a narrow staircase, but it still gave him concern for slipping off the side, so he made sure to test each snowy step with his thick boots. Before long, his slow progress had him standing most of the way up, about ten feet off the ground, taking a moment to admire his surroundings. The bright sun was reflecting off the sparkling snow, a vision of purity amongst their decaying world. He smiled and enjoyed the view.

Zavien

A joy hard-learned in winter was the warming of the bed
You'd shake for minutes there and move your legs

Koa's dislike of winter has not dwindled, but Pip's love, like her body, has grown. Together they cut a contrasting pair, one bundled and unhappy as he trudges through pathways, the other bounding merrily between snow drifts, causing as much chaos as she possibly can. Having continued to grow throughout the last year, Pipsqueak the Fuzzy Catsnake is now a feather boa to be reckoned with, her leathery wings capable of sending showers of snow flying into the air. Her delight is almost infectious enough to warm the Dragoon's frozen fingers as he scoops a fist of snow, hurling it toward her flying form--

-- and toward the person on the staircase behind her when she suddenly ducks.

"Aw shit, sorry!" Koa calls, not sure if his ball flew through but figuring it's best to be polite. Truth be told, he hadn't noticed Zavien at all, the other man having been obscured first by the staircase, then the dragon. Now as Koa edges around the bizarre work of architecture the bond comes fully into view, recognition brightening the young Dragoon's expression as he recalls when they met before.

"Oh hey, good to see you again." His apple cheeks are apple-red from the chilly air, shiny above the easy grin. "I see you decided to go for elevation- smart. No quicksand up there," the young man laughs good-naturedly, gesturing at the stairs.

Koa Carpenter

Wrap the blanket over you and keep your head within
Let your breath heat the air until you'd feel it getting thin

Smiles are contagious.

A flurry of snow cascades around him before he feels the full impact of the snowball. It disrupts his unsteady placement on the stairs and he has to spread his feet and arms to keep himself from tumbling off into the piles below. His breath hitches and he holds it for a moment, waiting to see if his grasp holds. Luckily enough, it seems to be sufficient and Zavien slowly rights himself to look around.

An eerily familiar figure is in the distance and he squints tightly in order to make out the face. It isn't until the voice calls out and he sees the mini blizzard of snow and feathers that he realizes where he recognizes him from. In a cheery voice, he calls back, "Hey! Good to see you too!" As he waves in greeting, his feet slip again and he secures his boots further in the snow. With a laugh, Zavien looks down. The height doesn't bother him, but the fall definitely wouldn't be fun. "It's hard for the ground to eat you if you're not touching it."

His movement sends snowflakes falling down, sparking his memory of the accidental assault. He brushes the snowball remnants from his shoulder, an idea sparking in his mind. While he reaches forward to further clear his clothing, he gathers a bundle of snow in his hands. Before the man can see it being formed, Zavien throws it directly at his chest.

Laughing good-naturedly, he shouts, "The name's, Zavien, by the way!"

Zavien

A joy hard-learned in winter was the warming of the bed
You'd shake for minutes there and move your legs

Koa isn't used to looking up at people, but then again, he's usually not having conversations with strangers standing 10 feet off the ground, a good four feet above his head. "That's true," he laughs back, wincing slightly in alarm as the stranger appears to slip. "But it's likely to punch back pretty hard if you hit it from up there."

A spray of snowflakes has him suddenly sputtering, which, if anyone asks, is why he doesn't dodge the snowball that flies into his chest. "Hey!" the young man calls with mock-indignation, a playful twinkle in his copper eyes belying any actual ire. "Zavien, huh? Good. Now I have your name for the report. That was an unprovoked attack- any action I take in response is only self-defense!" With that he scoops up his own handful of snow, sending it flying toward Zavien's head before bounding out of the way of any repeat assault.

Having achieved her life's purpose of instigating chaos, a very self-satisfied Pipsqueak settles down on a step about five above Zavien's, shaking snow out from her dark fur before turning to peer at the man. With her long tail draping off the edge of the stairs she looks more ferret-like than dragon, especially as she tucks in her wings and tilts her head curiously to the side.

Koa Carpenter

Wrap the blanket over you and keep your head within
Let your breath heat the air until you'd feel it getting thin

Smiles are contagious.

The satisfying *thump* of snow against the man's chest has him chuckling, but it's short-lived as he recovers quickly. An orb of white snow comes flying with surprising accuracy towards his face and he has to duck to avoid it. Zavien's foot slips again and he uses the momentum to kneel on the steps, solidifying his stance on the steps. The snow seeps through his pants with shocking speed, making him gasp out a giggle of discomfort. Gritting his teeth to ignore it, he pulls together another handful, packing it tightly.

That's when he notices the flutter of wings a few steps ahead of him. He smiles nervously and puts a non-threatening hand up in hopes that the dragon will remain a spectator in the snowball fight.

Zavien spots the man dodging around and begins to take aim. "Hey! EcoWarrior Captain! Don't run! You're the one who fired first!" He laughs and lets the snowball fly.

Zavien

A joy hard-learned in winter was the warming of the bed
You'd shake for minutes there and move your legs

"That's Captain EcoWarrior Captain to-- no, wait, that's not right." Too busy puzzling over the mistaken correction to a mistake that wasn't made, Koa doesn't see the next snowball until it's whizzing at his head. He flings up his hands with a yelp of surprise, managing to keep the bulk of the chill from his poor defenseless cheekbones, but still quite indignant about being hit at all. Even with a mere four feet between them Zavien has the upper hand, and the competitive Dragoon isn't about to be taken out without a fight.

So he ducks below the staircase, eager to put a barrier between himself and the onslaught. "I was trying to combat a viscous wild animal," Koa informs Zavien from under the stairway. "In fact, I think she's landed right beside you - better watch your back!" he adds, before popping out to fling a snowball at said back. You know, for emphasis.

The vicious wild animal, meanwhile, has responded to Zavien's extended hand with a smoky sneeze guarantee to leave soot all over the poor fellow. Satisfied with this greeting, she sets about grooming the fur on her back - though one keen eye stays fixed on the men, eerily calculating in its intensity.

Koa Carpenter

Wrap the blanket over you and keep your head within
Let your breath heat the air until you'd feel it getting thin

Smiles are contagious.

His victory at hitting his target is cut short by a puff of soot covering him from head to toe. Sadly, his responding sneeze is no less chaotic as he faceplants into the stone step in front of him. The following force of a snowball to the back puts his face into the snow for a second time. Lifting his head slowly, Zavien shoots the fuzzy ferret a playful glare through raccoon eyes and patches of wet black goop coating his cheeks. "Not a word."

By the time he cleans himself up and scans the ground below, the man is nowhere to be seen. What the...? Utterly confused, Zavien shifts into a crouched position - as if the extra foot will miraculously reveal his snow-dusted opponent. Not unsurprisingly, nothing of note appears, but he does spot tracks leading under the stairs.

With a cunning grin, he says loudly to his stair buddy (as he affectionately begins to refer to her as in his mind), "Ugh. Now where did he go? Do you see him anywhere?" Zavien pauses for a second as if expecting a reply while he proceeds to kneel and spread his limbs to the edge of the stairs. Now in position, he shouts, "You can't hide! Face me out in the open!" He then shoves all the snow in reach off the stairs and onto the area bellow.

Zavien

A joy hard-learned in winter was the warming of the bed
You'd shake for minutes there and move your legs

Pipsqueak has just enough social graces to make sure Zavien isn't about to fall to his doom before gargling out a draconic chortle, clearly pleased with the turn of events. You're welcome, her feline head tilt seems to say. But when Koa disappears beneath the steps she is quick to join Zavien in searching for the Dragoon, unraveling her obscenely long form to dangle her upper body off the floating stairs.

"Shh!" Koa chastises as the wyrm comes into view, waving his arms to shoo her back up. But in stepping back from Pip he winds up right in the path of Zavien's trap, and a poorly though out glance upward means the barrage of snow hits him right in the face.

"Oh Frey's tits ass and cunt that's cold!" This and a few more choice obscenities ring out across the snowy field, punctuated with sputtering laughs as he bats the snow off his face and neck. "That's rude, sir- underhanded!" Placing his hands on his hips, he fixes Zavien with a mischievous glare. "I, however, prefer to take the high road. Isn't that right, Pip?"

On cue, the dragonling lashes with her tail, shoving the snow from the step she's moved up to flying toward where Zavien crouches. Standing on her hind legs, she flaps her wings for emphasis, creating flurries that dance merrily to the tune of her piercing battle cry.

Koa Carpenter

Wrap the blanket over you and keep your head within
Let your breath heat the air until you'd feel it getting thin

Smiles are contagious.

A blush spreads across Zavien's cheeks at the colorful obscenities as he laughs at his successful attack. "Don't you mean overhanded?" His amusement with his own joke has him leaning back on his knees and holding his abs to support the tension of his muscles against the overwhelming laugh. He slowly stands in preparation to launch a follow-up attack. Zavien narrows his eyes against the increasing presence of snow thanks to the flapping wings nearby but focuses on forming his next snowball.

It's Pip's battle cry that startles him enough to stop his progress and he instinctually covers his ears. The combination of his eyes squinting against the snow and hands over his ears puts him in the perfect position to lose his balance. Snow flies around his face in slow motion while his feet struggle to find purchase. "Oh shi-" His words are cut short when he tumbles backwards down the stairs. Each step hits a new part of his body, making him grunt in pain. The world blurs by him in flashes of white landscape, dark stones, and pale skies, causing his stomach to turn and his head to spin uncomfortably. It seems to alternate between quiet floating and slamming violence.

When it finally stops, Zavien finds himself staring up at the sky in frozen pain. A groan escapes and he props himself up on his elbow to search for signs of his opponent. Not wanting to be caught off guard, he gathers a bundle of snow once again, readying to throw it despite the aching in his shoulders. While he waits, he shouts up to Pip, "Not cool!"

Zavien

A joy hard-learned in winter was the warming of the bed
You'd shake for minutes there and move your legs

Well, Pip, looks like you've won.

The plan, such as it was, had not been to send Zavien tumbling down the stairs. Believe it or not, both Koa and Pip hadn't wanted to see their new friend face serious bodily injury. As soon as he hears the first thud and shout Koa emerges from his hiding place, wincing as he watches his vanquished foe bounce from stone to stone. Too far away to do anything but shout, the young Dragoon begins to plough through the snow toward the staircase base, trying to manage some approximation of speed despite the difficult terrain.

Unhelpfully, Pip takes the path of a toddler who realizes she's fucked up, flying to the uppermost stair to fretfully sulk.

"Ok, I think it's time to call a truce." Having finally reached Zavien, Koa kneels in the snow. With practiced efficiency he scans for injury, making sure to rule out any evidence of major head trauma or paralysis. "You ok? Not dizzy or lightheaded at all? Can you wiggle your toes and fingers ok?" Every Dragoon worth his salt has some training as a combat medic, and in this moment Koa certainly embodies the calm confidence and professionalism required from his field.

Koa Carpenter

Wrap the blanket over you and keep your head within
Let your breath heat the air until you'd feel it getting thin

Smiles are contagious.

Although his body aches all over, it appears that the multiple layers of clothing kept his body from any serious harm, other than the wounded pride. When he sees the man standing over him with concern, he notices the practiced assessment and systematic approach. Zavien almost feels bad for his next action. Almost. In response to the worried questions, he takes the handful of snow and shoves it down the back of his attacker's clothing, attempting to get directly against the skin. His laughing rings out across the snow in childish amusement while he slowly stands.

"Don't worry. I'm fine. My mom always said I had a thick skull." Zavien doesn't think she meant it in the physical sense, but he knocks his knuckles against his skull for emphasis anyways. The thudding sound makes him wince slightly and he grins stupidly at the man. He stretches his cold, tight muscles, trying to work out the developing bruises. In a good-natured tone, he offers his hand to his opponent. "I think you won this round, Captain EcoWarrior." Zavien glances up to the sulking dragon. "Although maybe next time, Pip can be on my side. She's a formidable adversary." The words are more for the dejected creature than the man as he says them loudly up the stairs.

Zavien