[Training] how's one to know?

flora

The Ashborns' door isn’t half as intimidating as Flora remembers it being, which only makes her feel worse about standing in front of it. It’s not like she’s close with them—just nods and pleasant-enough smiles when she'd been younger. But still, the guilt twists low in her gut as she knocks. This isn’t an ambush or anything, but it still feels a little off. Like her feet have wandered where her heart said no, and now her pride is playing dumb about the whole thing.

The woman who answers is polite, if a little surprised. Flora explains—short and breezy, the way she always does when she’s trying not to feel too much. She says now that Kai is staying in King's End, it'd be nice for him to have a piece of home. Something tangible. Something small. Just a rock, really. The Ashborns exchange a glance but don’t ask questions. A minute later, Flora’s tucking a rough bit of paving stone into the inside pocket of her coat, the weight of it somehow heavier than it should be.

—

The walk to the training grounds is a wind tunnel in every direction. Stormbreak is always lofty and lightheaded, but in Leafchange it’s downright obnoxious, like the city’s trying to rip the words from your mouth before you can say them. Flora’s coat flares like a banner behind her, crimson velvet snapping in the gale. Her curls are a losing battle, pulled loose from their twist to whip wildly around her face. She tries to tuck them back once, then gives up with a huff, letting them snarl as they will. Spice rides in the hollow of her collar, wings folded tight against the gusts and nose buried in the scarf looped around Flora’s throat.

By the time the gilded towers of the training grounds crest into view, she’s breathless, windblown, and worst of all, early.

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Soh had almost forgotten what it was like in Stormbreak during Leafchange, the way the wind ripped through the city and lightning storms prevailed in a near constant state of storminess that had often had her longing for spring. Now, though, it seemed like the city matched her mood, most days - dark and turbulent, and entirely unresponsive to any efforts to calm it down.

She’d dressed in plain clothing - long-sleeved against the chill of the howling wind - and tied her hair into a tight braid. Not that it stayed that way for long; tendrils leapt free despite her best efforts to flail about in the gusts that were wholly unrepentant for the chaos they were causing.

Soh might have elected to stay indoors, on a day like today - it wasn’t like she didn’t have plenty to do, fixing up her shop and cleaning out her home. The building had somehow remained vacant in all this time, like it was waiting for her to return. But that didn’t mean that it was ready for her to live in quite yet.

But that was a problem for another time. Today was for training: training so that she could protect those she loved, and never have to risk someone else she cared about again.

Wishful thinking, perhaps, but there it was all the same.

”Flora!” she called out over the wind as she approached. ”Glad to see you weren’t blown off the edge of the city.” She offered a smile as she joked, pushing her hair out of her eyes for a brief moment before the gale blew it right back to where it had been a moment before. She might still be hurting, but Flora had given her hope, and that was enough to cling to in order to provide a sense of normalcy for the Luminary.

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

The second her name cuts through the wind, Flora turns, curls tangling across her cheeks as if even her hair is eager to greet Sohalia. Her grin breaks through instantly, bright and blustery, chased by a laugh as she throws her arms out wide in dramatic exasperation. "Nearly was, actually! Think I saw my dignity do a little nosedive off the edge about five blocks ago."

Spice chirps her agreement, the sound muffled by scarf and scales as Flora brushes a cold-reddened hand over her dragon’s head and squints playfully into the gust. "You sure you want to move back here?" she teases, stepping closer so they don’t have to yell quite as much over the storm. Still, the warmth in her smile is genuine, even if it tugs a little at something sore inside her. Soh looks good. Strong. Like she’s standing a little taller than before.

"Come on," she says, nodding toward the training grounds with a flick of her chin and the swoop of wind catching her coat again like a sail. "What do you want to work on today? I'll obviously use my daggers, but like, we can definitely spice things up."

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Soh laughed in response to Flora's playfulness, doing her best to ignore the hollow ache in her chest when she caught sight of Spice wrapped up in her friend's scarf. It wasn't that she begrudged Flora her companion, but seeing the dragon so clearly cared for and well reminded her the ways in which she'd failed Tarak.

The queen's gentle teasing had Soh's smile falling into something softer and less defined; she had very mixed feelings about leaving Torchline - and therefore Flora. But Stormbreak was her home, and she'd looked forward to this for too long.

Even if Leafchange was her least favorite season here.

Soh tucked a lock of hair behind an ear, only for it to fly free with the next gust of wind. "I thought I'd grab one of the practice staves and work on defending," she said, linking arms with Flora as they made their way to the training grounds. "Although, if you're using your daggers, it might end up being more dodging than anything." Then she winked, as though to assure Flora that she didn't mind.

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

Spice, clever as ever, doesn’t need words to feel the quiet tug in Sohalia’s chest. She lifts from Flora’s scarf in a flutter of pale wings, the wind tugging at her tail as she sails the short distance between them. Landing lightly on Soh’s shoulder, the little dragon gives a soft, affectionate trill, nuzzling at the side of the Luminary's jaw. Flora doesn’t say anything about it; some things are better unspoken, especially when it come to grief. Words rarely mean as much as you want them to anyways, so the queen merely offers her friend an understanding smile.

As Soh decides on a stave, Flora unclips one of her daggers from its loop and gives it a lazy toss into the air. The blade spins in a glittering arc before dropping neatly into her waiting palm, like it never left. "We’ll start slow,”" Flora promises, though there’s a playful glint in her eye. "Give you a chance to bat ’em down before I really show off."

She steps back several paces, boots crunching over gravel until there’s enough distance between them. Her stance settles — balanced, loose, familiar — and she lifts the first dagger, weighing it in her hand before flicking her gaze toward Soh. "Ready?" Once Soh nods, Flora flicks her wrist and sends the blade arcing through the air slower than usual, deliberate, almost lazy in its curve, but still flying point-first toward the Luminary like a dare wrapped in silver.

---

1/4

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Spice rose from her spot in Flora's scarf to flutter over to Soh, and the Luminary accepted the dragon's affection with a lump in her throat, tears suddenly pricking behind her eyes. There was the bone-deep ache of the severed bond, of course, but there was also a strange warmth that rose up in Soh's chest at the companion's gesture of kindness. "Thanks, Spice," Soh whispered, reaching up to scratch the dragon's chin.

Then she went to select a staff, picking up a few before settling on one that felt properly weighted and balanced for her. Swallowing down her feelings and stuffing them back into the little box in her mind that she kept reserved for the Hard Things We Don't Talk About, she turned around and shot an overbright smile at Flora. "Ready."

Soh stood with her feet apart, balanced lightly on the balls of her feet; her staff was in a guard position, held diagonally up and down in front of her. When Flora threw the dagger, the Luminary twisted from the hips to bat at the dagger, knocking it aside with a flourish. "Come on, Flora," she teased, some of the strain leeching from her throat. "Don't go easy on me."

---

1/4

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

Spice lingers just long enough to nuzzle under Sohalia’s touch, her trill soft and warm—like seafoam curling around bare ankles, like the memory of something once precious and still beloved. Then, with a flick of her wings, she lifts away, catching a current and sailing back toward Flora in a loose spiral, the wind toying at her small form like it doesn't want to let her go.

Flora watches, not just the dragon but the girl too—takes in the gleam of that too-bright smile, the edges of it sharp with effort. Gods, did she know the feeling. Smiling through the thunder. Pretending the world hadn’t left claw marks on your ribs. But today wasn’t for pity, and it wasn’t for grief either. Today was about control. Focus. Fun, even.

"Alright, alright," Flora calls, her grin tilting mischievously as the first dagger sings through the air and Soh’s staff snaps it away like it was nothing. She lifts her hand, fingers flexing with the motion, and the dagger she threw spins back toward her in a lazy, arcing call. Flora catches it in one smooth motion, tossing it up again with a gleam in her eye and a laugh that rings clear despite the wind. The second it slaps into her palm, she throws.

This time there’s no delay. The dagger cuts the air like lightning, fast and true, its spin tighter and its path sharp with intent. Not meant to hit, but meant to test. To see if Soh could meet it, not just with her staff, but with her grief folded small and tucked deep—and still move.

---

2/4

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Soh might not have been the most experienced fighter in many ways, but she had been religious with her staff practice over the years. The polearm was very much like an extension of her own body, and though she now preferred to use a glaive over a simple, unbladed staff, the principles were the same. Her movement knocked Flora's dagger away easily, and as Soh reset her position, she prepared for a more aggressive attack.

This time, the dagger that flew towards her was quick as lightning, its aim true; Soh moved again, batting at the flying blade, simultaneously leaning away just in case she missed - and was rewarded with the clatter of wood on metal as the second knife went flipping away. Perhaps later, the Luminary would look back at this fight and see a mark of her resilience, an ability to keep going even when she wanted to curl up in a ball and never come out again. But for now, she was focused on the task at hand.

---

2/4

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

Flora lets out a whoop of delight as Soh knocks the second blade away cleanly, hands lifting in applause like they’re centre stage and not just two girls dancing grief into muscle on a blustery day.

"Okay, show-off," she grins, already recalling the dagger with a flick of her fingers. It skips through the wind like it’s eager to return to her, nestling into her palm with a familiar weight. The other she draws from her belt, spinning both by the hilts with a flourish before stilling.

"Double trouble time. You ready?" Her tone is all sparkle and challenge, but there's warmth threaded through it too—admiration beneath the teasing. She waits just long enough for Sohalia’s nod, then throws. One dagger, then the other in quick succession, back-to-back like twin streaks of silver catching the light.

Not too hard. Not cruel. Just enough to show her friend that she was more than capable of holding her own, even when the world threw more than one thing her way.

---

3/4

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Movement was nice. Movement was good. It helped to drive the cobwebs from Soh's brain, narrowing the focus of her mind to the movement of her staff in blocking sweeps that knocked daggers from midair with an ease that a younger Soh would have envied. She might not be a master fighter, but she'd certainly come a long way from that girl who'd left the Grounds all those years ago. She could hold her own now, and that was something that she could be proud of.

The dagger returned to Flora's hand, and Soh reset her position. "Ready!" she called, and then Flora was tossing two daggers at her, one after the other in quick succession. Soh watched the streaks of silver flying towards her and moved instinctively, smacking at one with the staff and leaning out of the way of the other. While she wasn't quite quick enough to knock them both down - a staff was too unwieldy for that kind of speed - she did manage to avoid any injury, and honestly, what more could she ask for?

---

3/4

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

Flora can’t help the gleeful laugh that bursts from her as Soh moves—fluid and focused, like she was born with the staff in her hands and something to prove in her bones. One dagger clatters to the side, the other misses harmlessly, but neither finds their mark, and that’s what matters. "Godsdamn, get it babe!" she crows, spinning to recall the daggers with a sharp, sweeping motion. They return like golden birds called back to roost, and she catches them easily, brushing windblown curls from her forehead with the back of one hand.

"Alright," she says, grinning as she draws her third dagger from the sheath at her thigh and waggles it in the air like a magician about to pull off a particularly sparkly trick. 'Now all three." Taking a few quick steps back to widen the range, she lets the wind rush around them like an audience holding its breath. And then—flick, flick, flick—Flora throws.

Three daggers, one after the other, their arcs staggered but relentless.

---

4/4

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

Flora's gleeful laugh had a smile appearing on Soh's face - proud and pleased by what she'd been able to accomplish thus far. The daggers recalled to Flora in a whoosh of silver, and Soh set herself up for the next wave of attack. This time, she nodded to indicate that she was ready for all three.

Flick. The first dagger cut through the air, slicing towards Soh's arm. She leaned to one side, but not far enough; the blade sliced lightly through her sleeve, leaving a bright line of crimson behind. Just a graze, but a hit all the same. Flick. The second dagger arced towards Soh's chest, and the Luminary raised her staff in a two-handed grip, hands spread apart; the dagger thunked into wood, embedding itself in the staff. Flick. The third and final dagger flew towards Soh's other shoulder, and with a quick spin of the staff, went clattering to the ground.

Two out of three wasn't bad, and she'd only barely been hit by that first one. Still, she made a face as she lifted a hand to touch the spot where blood was seeping slowly through the fabric of her shirt. "I'm fine!" she called to Flora, sure that her friend would be immediately at her side to check on her. "Three are wicked." Her voice was bright with enthusiasm and approval, glad that Flora had her daggers to protect herself.

---

4/4

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia

flora

Flora winces dramatically the moment that slash of red blooms on Soh’s sleeve, her expression twisting into a comic OOOPS face complete with a hiss through her teeth and wide, guilty eyes. "Sorry babes," she calls, even as her friend’s chipper reassurance floats back across the space between them.

As Soh praises her weapons, Flora lets out a delighted cackle, already lifting her hand to summon the daggers back. They zip through the air like obedient little monsters, one still glinting faintly with blood as they land neatly into her outstretched palm. She slides them back into place with practised ease, patting the last one fondly as she says, "I’ve thought about adding a fourth, you know. But three seems to get the point across."

She crosses the distance between them with her usual flair, coat flaring and curls wild, reaching out with the same hand that recalled the blades. Her healing ring flashes subtly as her fingers brush against Soh’s arm, and the shallow cut knits itself closed beneath her touch. "My bad," she murmurs, then grins. "Looks like we need to go shopping."

My house of stone, your ivy grows
And now I'm covered in you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

To kiss in cars and downtown bars
Was all we needed

The daggers really were something, even if they weren't to Soh's tastes. She dropped her hand from her bleeding arm as she watched them whoosh through the air and back to their mistress. "Oh, you'd be unstoppable with four," she teased with a wink. "Gotta keep things fair for the rest of us. Better stick with three."

Flora crossed the distance between them, curls wild and windswept, and Soh watched as the Doubletake healed her arm in the span of one heartbeat. "That's handy," Soh murmured. "I really should get one of those." Maybe after her current quest. Linking arms with Flora, Soh steered her away from the Dragon's Nest and towards the city proper, where they could do as much shopping as the queen wanted. "Oh, did I tell you Frey's helping me make some armor?"

You drew stars around my scars
But now I'm bleedin'

Sohalia