Focus

Sachi and Estinien faced each other in the training grounds, their weapons held gracefully. The sun cast its golden hue upon the sparring arena as the couple prepared for their friendly yet fierce duel.

The Miqo’te held her axe with grace and pride, her determination evident in the sharp glint of her golden eyes as her tail swayed behind her, ready to make her move. On the opposite side of her, the Elezen wielded his lance with precision, his focus unyielding despite the playful smirk on his lips.

As they exchanged blows, Estinien found himself struggling to keep up with Sachi's fiery blows. Despite his agility and mastery, her instincts, fueled by pride and determination, granted her an edge that often led to her victory.

"You've improved," Estinien remarked, parrying Sachi's strikes with his lance to keep his distance. "But you rely too much on your strength. You need to focus on technique." His lance was then swiftly twirled around to aim a thrust at her sides.

Sachi smirked, deflecting his thrust with ease. "Says the man whose technique crumbles when faced with my strength." The Miqo’te landed back on her feet and readied herself once more.

Estinien chuckled, a glint of determination in his eyes. He stepped back briefly, reaching into his pouch, and pulled out a bright red ribbon, attaching it to the tip of his lance. He reached into his pocket again and affixed a couple of small bells to it, their faint jingles breaking the silence of the training ground.

"What's this?" Sachi raised an eyebrow, her ears perked as she was eyeing the ribbon with curiosity.

"Just a little something to make things interesting," Estinien said with a smirk plastered over his face, twirling his lance with a flourish.

Their spar resumed, but the tinkling sound of the bells threw Sachi off guard. The distracting noise coupled with the flash of red disrupted her focus, allowing Estinien to gain an upper hand. Try as she might, she couldn't ignore the sound, each strike reverberating in her mind.

As they clashed, Estinien maneuvered swiftly, taking advantage of Sachi's momentary lapses in concentration. Despite her remarkable skill, the ribbon and bells created a subtle but effective diversion, causing her to falter at critical moments.

With a calculated move, Estinien disarmed Sachi by hooking the side of his lance under the curvature of her axe, taking the length of his weapon to advantage as he pulled it out of her grip, and with his left foot tipped her off-balance by placing it swiftly behind her leg.

The warrior fell backwards and landed with a grunt as her armor greeted the ground with a metal thud. She laid flat on her back looking perplexed at how he outmaneuvered her. Her ears no longer had that perked confidence, and instead were lowered in a confused state.

His lance swiftly moved at her throat as he declared victory, a triumphant smirk gracing his lips. "Seems the mighty Warrior of Light can be thrown off balance by a simple ribbon and some bells." He taunted her as he used the tip of the lance to tilt her head up by her chin to make her look at him.

Sachi scowled, clearly vexed by the unorthodox tactic. "You only won because of your cheap trick, no tricks next time," she grumbled, and prepped her body up on her elbows as she got to a sitting position. Her tail flicked in annoyance at the defeat.

Estinien chuckled, lowering his lance and extending a hand to help her up. "Challenge accepted, my fierce little light. But until then, I shall savor this hard-earned victory."

She accepted his hand begrudgingly, but her frown softened into a faint smile. "Don't expect me to go easy on you next time,” the woman said assuringly as she got back on her feet and wiped off the dirt from her armor.

The Elezen placed his other hand on her waist and pulled her petite figure closer to him to embrace her in a gentle hug. He smiled at her lovingly, but also in a prideful way since he was able to defeat her in a match. “That’s the spirit, my little light. I want to see you improve and not hold back,” he reassured her as he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “However…” the man paused to rethink his words, “I hope this taught you a lesson that you need to stop relying on your strength only. If this were a real threat, you would have faced severe consequences,” he sighed, his voice tinged with worry.

Sachi’s ears focused on him when she noticed the tone shift in his voice, she took a step back to look up at him, meeting his steel blue eyes with her own. “I promise I will work on that… It’s not easy for me to think ahead,” she answered him honestly, feeling guilty having made him worry. The warrior gently took one of his hands in both of hers, and gently placed a kiss on top of his gauntlet in a protective manner. “I won’t die so easily, not when I finally have a family to protect and care for,” she added.

Silence befell Estinien for a moment, unsure of how to respond. He knelt down and embraced her in a proper hug this time to match her height. “Just remember, you don’t have to fight alone, let me help you when you need it,” his tone of voice was almost sad but he tried to hide it, he knows why she is so stubborn and prideful about help, but he doesn’t want her to bear her burdens alone.

The warrior nodded and wrapped her own arms around the man’s figure, returning the warm embrace.