route_1065 | (no subject)

Entry tags:

(no subject)

Who:

soggypastry
Where: Olivine beach
When: Backdated to Sunday the 4th, about half past seven.
Summary: Xion's first training session with Lightning, and Leon decides to check it out.
Rating: PG at the most.
Log:
[ Leon makes his way down the steps, easily balancing a tray of breakfast sandwiches and milk. Plastic wrap had been thrown over the food to guard it against the sand the wind picked up, but when he sees the two figures he's doubly glad he'd been preventive.

He slowly makes his way up, admiring the easy grace with which Lightning dispatches Xion, commenting on specific points of improvement each time the younger girl misses or falls. When Lightning had told him she'd be training Xion, he'd known she was a good teacher; now he has the opportunity to see it first-hand. ]

Working hard, you two?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It means Lightning needs to train your legs.

[ The punch is caught easily in one powerful fist before it hits its target, though he commends her on her choice of going for the chest instead of the comparatively stronger abdominal region. He calmly readjusts her hips, which are out on synch with her shoulders. Without skipping a beat: ]

Hit with your whole body. Now where's your other arm?

[ Because if the answer is 'down next to my hip' and not 'up around rib-height to defend myself from a side attack', he's going to frown at you, Xion. ]

[ On instinct, Xion tries to jerk her hand out of Leon's fist, but stops when he moves to readjust her hips, to make sure they're more in line with her shoulders. What's wrong with her legs? They carried her pretty far when she really needed to jump.

At his question, she blinks, looking down at the arm not caught. She didn't think much into her attack, letting her body move on instinct for a moment there. When she threw the punch, her other arm curled, albeit, still pressed to her side.

Guess she failed that one? ]

Uh...

[There's nothing wrong with her legs, really, only the manner in which she's trained them before. They'll be doing a lot of running soon, that's for sure.

Right now, however, Lightning steps forward and takes Xion's other arm, raising it to a more defensive height. For her first lesson, Xion is making remarkable progress. There's just still a lot more to learn.]

Always know what your body is doing, no matter the situation. You can be aware of your opponents and your area, but that knowledge is useless if you can't defend yourself and you get hit.

[That having been said, Lightning steps back to give Xion a look over; she's more aligned now, so...]

Now try again. Feel the difference in your movements and tell me what feels more natural.

[ Leon nods approvingly at Lightning's interjections, settling back in front of the younger girl. ]

Remember: move with your hips and your shoulders. [ He mimes a hook, the motion of his entire torso giving power to his punch. ]

Now hit here. [ He points to a spot about two inches above his bellybutton. Target ready! ]

[ She's analyzing the motions of his body, rewinds it several times in her head and focusing on specific points when she does so. And Lightning's advice makes her pay attention to how she settles her legs, positions her hands... and then she refocuses onto Leon.

Stares at the spot he told her to hit. She tries another hook, making sure she puts as much force as she could in conjunction to her hips and shoulders moving together.

Smack!

Her tiny fist hits hard muscle and only stings slightly upon contact. She blinks. Did she do it right? She'll tell Lightning what feels more natural once she gets a verdict on this. But for now... ]

This does feel more... powerful.

[Better this time, that's for sure. It's not much of a hit in terms of power, but they can work on that at another time. Now it's just the form that they need to get down.]

That's because you're putting your entire body into it, not just your arms. It works, but you have to be careful you don't over-balance and fall, especially if your target moves. They're not going to wait for you to get your feet back under you.

[ He sees her wind back, the shifting of her body, better, smoother, and--

--oof. Harder.

He exhales as the strike falls, hardening the abdominals, but he can still feel the impact. He breathes. ]

Good. Now you're going to have to practice that until you can do it without thinking about it. [ He turns his attention back to Lightning. ]

Want to help her with her kick?

[ Because let's face it, the lady with the amazing ability to backflips mid-battle while shooting things was probably better equipped than he. ]

Edited 2011-09-08 11:04 (UTC)

[ She's practically grinning at the approval of them both, like a child showing good marks on a test to their parents. Hah. Hah. Well, she did notice something between the two, but more importantly... training! She nods eagerly. ]

Yeah. I'll practice really hard.

[ Then she looks between them both. ] Kicking?

It's a good idea, but we'll need to work on your balance first, Xion.

[Said with a glance and a nod in Leon's direction, before she returns her attention back to her pupil.]

Kicking is harder than throwing a punch because you have to learn to keep your balance on one leg while still having the right amount of power behind the kick. In a punch, you still have both feet on the ground if you're doing things right and that makes it a little simpler.

[Unless you started with the backflips, but those would come later. Much later.]

[ He's about to comment, when he remembers that Lightning's the teacher here, not him, and their styles are vastly different. Maybe helping out wasn't such a good idea. ]

Light's got a good point; get your feet under you, and then move from there. [ He claps a hand on Xion's shoulder. ] You're lucky to have such a reliable teacher.

[ She looks between the two of them again. Oh, she's listened to Lightning's advice, but she wouldn't want to leave Leon out, too, after all the advice he's given himself to her. Then she remembers the food Leon was carrying earlier then turns to Lightning. ]

Can we work on the balance after we eat?

[ Just so the three of them an have some more time together. And, well, it really was up to Lightning on whether or not they take a break now. ]

[Before answering Xion, Lightning takes a look at the sky; the sun is still rising, but it's not that high. So she nods, looking over to the tray. It does look good, that's for sure.]

Yeah, we have some time. Just stretch before you sit down; you don't want your muscles complaining when we get back to work.

[Which will likely be soon, if she has any say in it.]

[ Well it'll have to be at least a half-hour, to give them both time to digest. Food cramps are the worst.

Privately pleased that they're both willing to eat his breakfast, Leon quietly goes to fetch the tray while Xion stretches. Only a little bit of sand has penetrated the wrap; extra flavor? Either way, he peels off the plastic as he returns to them, presenting each of them with a sandwich filled with eggs, cheese and ham. ]

Let me know if you want some milk. [ So that he can take the glasses off the tray without everything tipping over. ]

[ Xion does as she's told, doing all the routine stretch exercises Lightning told her about earlier. Stretch here, stretch there, stretch a little bit more, and... phew! She briefly shakes her arms as well, which also helps to further reduce the sand and dust on her hands before taking one of those proffered sandwiches. ]

Thank you, Leon. [ Smiles and goes to take a bite. She hardly notices any sand, and of course, since it's Leon's, the sandwich is good. Due to the fact that it's morning and she hasn't had breakfast yet, Xion's actually chewing through the sandwich quite fast.

By the time she stops, she's more than halfway done with eating her sandwich. Swallows before turning to the milk. ] May I?

[Lightning does indeed know about food cramps, so she'll be sure and keep Xion off the "field" for a bit after breakfast. And there's always tomorrow if things get too hot today anyway.

And it might be tomorrow, anyway. If Xion's hungry enough to eat half that sandwich so quickly, they might just stop so she can have a more proper breakfast that doesn't have sand in it or sun cooking it from above. That's enough to get Lightning to look up at the sky, shielding her eyes against the light.]

We might have to continue this tomorrow. It's only going to get warmer from now on.

At least it's not as hot as last month.

[ He looks pointedly out in the ocean as he adjusts his grip and hands over Xion's glass of milk. ] You could even go cool off in the sea, if there aren't too many Tentacool.

[ He's even capable of joining them, now, with his newly-minted swimming...skills. Or something. His gaze turns towards Lightning, the tray out, slightly expectant. ]

You like this, right?

Really? [ Sounds just a tad disappointed that their training might end so soon. ] I've fought in hotter climates than this. [ Hi, Agrabah.

She takes the milk with another nod of thanks and takes large, long gulps of it. When she pulls away, what was once a full glass is now inches from the bottom of it and she blinks. Even she's surprised she's downed that much just now.

Leon's question, however, makes her look between the two adults. Then her mind briefly clicks back to her... educational discussion with Cecil about men, women, children, and how they all combine. Xion blinks, opens her mouth to ask the first question to pop in her head, but smartly closes it after. Didn't Cecil say sex was also a private manner? Huh...

Now she looks confused. ]

You might have, but there's no point in risking heatstroke if we can avoid it. There's always tomorrow or this evening.

[But then Leon gets her attention and Lightning nods, smiling softly and taking one sandwich to slowly eat it, just enjoying breakfast. Leon's cooking is as good as ever, and it certainly sates the appetite she didn't know she had. Xion draining all that milk that quickly gets Lightning to look over at her pupil in time to see her confused look. What could be going through her mind?]

What is it?

I trust Xion. If she thinks she can handle it...

[ He's glancing the girl's way. ] She can handle it. She's a fighter, too.

[ It's not that he wants to override Lightning, honest, it's just that he feels Xion deserves to be trusted. That said, he aware Xion might want to push herself beyond her capabilities--but he definitely knows Light'll step in if that's the case.

At Light's question, he double-takes at Xion, then blinks. Whatever Light noticed, he certainly didn't. ] Hm?

[ At the adults' attention focused on her again, she jumps a bit. She seems to hesitate to ask whatever's on her mind, but... She trusts and has grown to like Lightning and Leon even further, so...

No harm in asking, right? ]

Have you two had sex?

[Luckily, figuring she'd have to speak, Lightning hadn't taken another bite of her sandwich and so there was no choking as her eyes went wide.

As it was, though, that cannot not be a good sound that she just made, what that it sounds like a strangled, drowned cat in the back of her throat as she just...stares at Xion. Where in all the worlds had that come out of?]

What?

[...eloquent, Farron. Real eloquent.]

[ Leon's brain rolls over and dies, essentially.

He blinks. Repeatedly. His nose turns pink. He is going to find whoever told xion that sex wasn't a polite thing to ask about and strangle them. ]

Ah--Xion!

[ Leon's thought process: fhsdjkfhdsjkfhsdjkfhvsdk ]

[ She blinks back herself, watching the two and their reactions to their questions. She colors only a bit, but mostly because she feels a little embarrassed that she's asking something that... seemingly everyone else knows, but she doesn't.

Obliviousness. Really. ]

Hmm... Your reactions were just like his when he and I were talking about it...

[ SOMEONE GOT THE TALK... albeit, a bit too much information for her to process that well yet. Add to the fact she's woken up early and has only had something to eat now, and was thrown around earlier... ]

["He"? Oh, whoever brought this on is going to get flipped like a turtle whenever she gets her hands on them. Hard. ...if they survive Leon's wrath, at any rate.

Just, give her a second, Xion, before she shakes her head and blows her bangs from her eyes. Never expected to have to do this again...not after Serah.]

Xion, that's...that's not something you just ask someone. Not in public.

[ They won't.

Leon exhales and gathers his composure again, arms crossing over his chest. ]

Xion, whoever told you about that stuff...they should have told you that it isn't polite to ask about. In private, maybe, with another woman, but not out here. All right?

[ God, he's still blushing, no matter how serious he looks. HE IS HOISTING THIS ONE ON LIGHT AT THE FIRST OPPORTUNITY. ]