caughtinanetwork | .11

Entry tags:

.11 - audio;

I understand the basic premise behind... Valentine's Day.

[Hubert sounds a little awkward, uncertain and even a little nervous as he speaks.]

But I wasn't here last year, and we don't have a holiday like this in Strahta. Would anyone be willing to give me a little more information behind it? What's common for ah... not... "couples" but perhaps two close friends... ?

[Short, sweet and... mostly to the point. Mostly.]

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[Shiro chuckles at that.]

I've been using swords and guns longer than you've been alive. At least give me a little credit.

[Cheap shots he can tolerate, demons don't fight fair anyway. The big thing is he doesn't want to go all-out on Hubert yet, partially because he wants to keep some things a secret and partially because the last thing they need is an escalating conflict that destroys parts of the island. If that fireball was a weak attack, he can only imagine what a strong one is like.]

[He hasn't even broken in to Mystic Artes yet, Shiro. Destroying the island would be an understatement.]

I'm allowed to be concerned. I'd rather not have the wrath of your sons coming down on me for a poorly dodged shot.

[Again, it's not an age thing. Hanging out with Malik, Hubert got first hand lessons on how a seemingly calm old man can nearly take down a building if riled enough. He really just doesn't want to accidentally injure Shiro and have it turn in to an incident with either Okumura twin.]

[He was about to argue that his kids are smart enough to figure out this isn't an actual fight if something goes wrong, but he stops. No, Rin would definitely assume something was up. By the time he got healed up and would be able to run damage control, things would have probably escalated too far.]

You're right, if I just keep messing around like this, an accident could happen. I'll go ahead and treat it more seriously, then.

[And he'll ditch the wooden sword for the more dangerous one he brought.]

[And Hubert, through at least some second hand knowledge through Asbel and having been present when Vatheon nearly burned, knows that one of them does have a temper. His concerns are somewhat valid.]

Good.

[Bringing the blades back to staff form, he takes a stance.]

Whenever you're ready then.

[Well, Shiro already got a feel for how Hubert handles attacking, so he decides to see how he handles being on the defense. He'll run up and do a horizontal swipe at Hubert, aiming a bit low, at about knee-level.]

[It's a close swing, enough that he actually feels it pass very near his clothing, but a quick downward swing keeps it from clipping too close. The blades clank together noisily, but rather than retaliate, Hubert lets them deflect and returns to his defensive stance.]

[In a fluid movement Shiro pivots on one foot, sliding his sword out and to the side, and continues on with his turn to bring the sword in a wide arc and aim it back at Hubert again. This time it's also moving upward and in, so it's aiming a bit higher.]

[Seeing the upward movement and having it be too close to get a safe block with just the staff, he quickly snaps the two halves apart, instead catching the blade with his two crossed just inches from his face.

The tip of the blade still gets too close for comfort, but amazingly he doesn't flinch too much, maintaining his stance.]

[That's actually pretty cool, Shiro was totally expecting Hubert to flinch there.

But with Hubert's swords occupied, Shiro will shift his weight to one foot and try to trip up Hubert with the other, sweeping forward with his leg and pushing back against the two swords which have his pinned.]

[There's a reason Hubert likes to jump back and take long range shots. He's good at short range attacks, but he would admit that it can be a weaker point. His stance was strong, but not enough to keep Shiro's leg from catching him.

He stumbled back, unable to regain his balance, which resulted in him landing ungracefully on his ass.]

... well that was undignified.

[Shiro is actually glad he was able to get the upper-hand on Hubert at least once, because he had the feeling Hubert was going to kick his butt and make him look like a useless old guy.]

Fighting rarely is dignified.

[He offers a hand out to Hubert to help him stand up.]

True... and I suppose I am more out of practice than I thought.

[He sighs, but takes Shiro's hand to get back up.]

Moments like these, I wish Asbel and I had sparred more before he was sent home...

It would be nice, but it's hard to control that kind of thing. The best you can do is make use of the time you have now. Luckily there's a few swordsmen here so you shouldn't have too much trouble finding sparring partners.

I'm aware. I'm... grateful for the time he was here, however brief it was.

But you're right. I simply need to get back in the habit of it.

It seems like you're doing pretty well even without sparring.

I'm certain a couple of months of slacking wouldn't completely erase my talents.

[Sound more haughty, Hubert. Really.]

Ha! Now that reminds me of a saying. What was it? "Pride cometh before the fall", that sounds about right.

It's not pride if it's the truth.

[Haha o Hubert. Shiro just chuckles at that.]

Right, right. Did you want to take a break, or keep going?

Are you sure you want to continue? Your hands are looking a little raw.

[Shiro blinks, and then he looks down at his free hand. Sure enough, it's red on his palm and the insides of his fingers.]

...Well that hasn't happened in a while.

... when was the last time you picked up a sword?

...

[He's quiet because he's thinking about it.]

Six months ago? Somewhere around there, I know it was before Christmas.

Hmn...

[Hubert makes a face, taking one of Shiro's hands to look at it.]

I suppose six months is enough time for callouses to wear away... unfortunately you're going to get blisters at this rate. I would attempt a healing arte, but that's not going to take care of such superficial wounds.

[He's still grumpy because there's no way he should be this much of a softie, even after six months. But then a thought comes to him.]

...I was healed when I came here to Vatheon. Could that healing have affected it?

[The question is more to himself than to Hubert. He has a tendency to talk out loud when he's mulling over things.

Now he is frowning and starting to shift on his feet as he thinks. What else could have changed about him from that healing? Whatever was done to him, it repaired some pretty serious damage.]

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