DAMIEN
I know it's been a long time coming
I'm angry and I know that's weak
I'm angry and I know that's weak
Her smile falters, and Damien notices. Of course he notices. Something in her voice when she says she’s never thought of it as unfair catches him like a hook beneath the ribs, and his gaze flickers wider, regret pulling faint lines around his eyes. He looks away, rolling his jaw the way he does when words threaten to come but won’t. How could he tell her what he meant? That there’s a certain ache in seeing someone forced to grow teeth and claws too soon. That it makes him wish for a world gentler than the one that shaped them both, a world without war crouched on the horizon or worse things lurking in the void. One where she might have been free to want independence without having to pay for it in blood.
He doesn’t try. Not now. The words aren’t ready, and besides, there’s no pulling back what’s been said. Maybe she’d resent it, maybe not. Either way, the moment passes on the tundra wind, and they square to each other.
Her dodge is clean, swift, and entirely expected but that doesn’t make it less satisfying to watch. There’s something in her footwork that tells him she’s no stranger to this kind of game, and he’s already thinking he might regret taking her head on. Then she’s smirking at him over her guard, asking about the bar fight, and before he can so much as blink she comes in fast.
It’s a good feint. A really good one. His focus hooks on the arc of her right hand, and he’s already shifting to deflect it when her boot thuds square into the hollow above his hip. A sharp breath jolts out of him, more from surprise than pain, and he pivots away, clutching his side and giving her space.
He bends as if it’s serious, lips curving into a sly, knowing smirk. “Didn’t know you fought dirty,” he says, the words dry but edged with approval.
“Which one?” The question hangs in the air, light enough to be a tease but with the weight of implication that he’s been in a few barfights.
As he stoops, his other hand falls just enough to snag a clump of snow, keeping his eyes on her face. The moment he sees her weight shift, he flings it in a blinding flurry, closing the gap behind it. His reach is longer, and he uses it — stepping inside her guard, hooking his leg quick and low behind her knee in an attempt to take her off balance. The move is quick but decisive, testing where her limits are.
He doesn’t try. Not now. The words aren’t ready, and besides, there’s no pulling back what’s been said. Maybe she’d resent it, maybe not. Either way, the moment passes on the tundra wind, and they square to each other.
Her dodge is clean, swift, and entirely expected but that doesn’t make it less satisfying to watch. There’s something in her footwork that tells him she’s no stranger to this kind of game, and he’s already thinking he might regret taking her head on. Then she’s smirking at him over her guard, asking about the bar fight, and before he can so much as blink she comes in fast.
It’s a good feint. A really good one. His focus hooks on the arc of her right hand, and he’s already shifting to deflect it when her boot thuds square into the hollow above his hip. A sharp breath jolts out of him, more from surprise than pain, and he pivots away, clutching his side and giving her space.
He bends as if it’s serious, lips curving into a sly, knowing smirk. “Didn’t know you fought dirty,” he says, the words dry but edged with approval.
“Which one?” The question hangs in the air, light enough to be a tease but with the weight of implication that he’s been in a few barfights.
As he stoops, his other hand falls just enough to snag a clump of snow, keeping his eyes on her face. The moment he sees her weight shift, he flings it in a blinding flurry, closing the gap behind it. His reach is longer, and he uses it — stepping inside her guard, hooking his leg quick and low behind her knee in an attempt to take her off balance. The move is quick but decisive, testing where her limits are.
[Training 2/4]
And I'm longing out that open window
For whatever it is I seek
For whatever it is I seek
