Fire with Fire

[halfdarkened]

Characters: Riku, Xion, and any onlookers on that level
Content: Xion and Riku spar for the first time in ages for either of them with their weapons of choice!
Location: Rec Deck
Time of Day: Afternoon
Warnings: Onlookers should stay far back. This is live steel, err, key, afterall. (Onlookers may not be replied to.)

Riku stood atop the shorter diving board, waiting for Xion to come in. He could watch for her easily from there, and to be honest, he felt outright empowered. There was a thrill to having his Keyblade back and the distinct comfort of feeling he could take on whatever threatened the satellite this week. ...Well, aside form bad movies. However, if this week super-villains appeared or old nemeses, he had the power to fight for everyone's safety.

It felt good.

But even then he hoped he hadn't grown rusty. That was the best part about this. He enjoyed sparring, but making sure his skills were sharp was important. Way to the Dawn was a reassuring weight in his hand. He couldn't wait to feel the rush of a contest of skill.

Comments

[skysmirror]

Xion herself was glad to have her Keyblade back. Realizing she could use it again was like...was like that day in Beast's Castle, when Roxas had helped her recover it for the first time. Only this was better because she'd been without it so much longer. Much as she'd gotten herself used to the sword she'd found on the weapons deck, her Keyblade was a part of her, and she didn't feel right without it. Even with just the Kingdom Key, though, she felt ready to take on the world.

Entering the Rec Deck, she waved to Riku where he sat on the diving board. Sparring with him as a friend would be interesting after some of their earlier encounters, but she'd long since stopped thinking of him as an enemy. This would be just for fun, testing their skills.

[halfdarkened]

"Hey, Xion," Riku smirked down at her. Rather than jump from the board into the water, he leapt to the floor. Normally that should have hurt, but at least the Keyblade helped him defy the more painful parts of gravity. He landed dramatically and with not even a grunt.

"So. First direct hit, or whenever one of us wants to stop, we call it. Since we hopefully won't hurt each other, got any ideas for how we determine who wins? Or does that even matter?" Leave it to one of the boys to be competitive.

[skysmirror]

"Hey, Riku." Xion smiled...then sighed as he jumped down. Really, the ladder would have worked just as well. Experience with Axel having taught her that calling a boy out on showing off would get her nowhere, though, she let it slide and moved to responding to what he said.

"Right, and no pretending that we aren't really as hurt as we think we are if we do get hurt." They both had enough experience to know the difference between a minor bruise/scratch and something more severe."I don't think it matters who wins, but maybe we could say one hit equals a point? First to five points wins?"

She can allow for a little competitiveness; her Original is Sora, after all.

[halfdarkened]

He raised his brows slightly. "Right." In the light of his recent injury falling down the stairs, he couldn't help but feel that was directed at him to a degree. He shouldered his Keyblade as he considered. "...Maybe a better goal would be to try to knock each other down? We'd be less likely to seriously injure each other." They both knew the importance of disabling their opponent. "We should both have enough experience to make disarming each other very hard, but if either one of us does that should be an automatic win."

"And you said you had found some padding?"

[skysmirror]

It hadn't been directed at him so much as stating a potentially needed precaution. They'd both been known to ignore or make light of injuries in the past. Granted, those were in situations more serious than a simple sparring session, but she'd thought something needed to be said.

She considered his suggestion for a moment, then nodded. "That sounds like a good idea. First one to disarm or knock the other down wins.

"I did." She gestured to the pile of protective gear she'd set down as she entered. "I hope I got the right size for you, I kind of had to guess..."

She's not horrible at estimating heights, but there was always a chance for mistakes.

[halfdarkened]

"That way we're not trying to count blows." It'd be interesting. While he had a distinct height, weight and strength advantage, Xion had a lower center of gravity, meaning she was more agile and better-balanced. She also had the opportunity to catch him by getting underfoot. There was always the chance that this sparring match could have all the grace of a grown man chasing after a mouse.

Riku went over and started strapping it on. "Hmm, not bad." There as actually one piece that was slightly too big and one slightly too small, but it was still very much usable. Such was the life of a growing teenager. "This'll work. Thanks."

He walked to stand across from her. "Now that we have rules and gear in place..." He raised his Keyblade to take up a battle-ready posture. "...Are you ready?"

[skysmirror]

"Or debating over whether or not something counts as a hit." Xion smiled slightly. It definitely would be an interesting match, no matter who won. She was definitely used to keep a taller opponent on the run--though those were usually giant Heartless.

Seeing him strap on his padding, she started on her own. Fortunately, nothing she'd brought for him appeared to be totally unusable. "You're welcome."

It was the work of a moment to summon her own Keyblade and fall into a ready stance at his prompting. "Ready."

[halfdarkened]

"Exactly." Sora may have been Xion's original, but she was more on the ball, it seemed. It would also be interesting to see how much her fighting style was like his. This could also be a very familiar battle to Riku, he realized, just in a difference in size and weight on her end.

"Then bring it." Riku turned his outstretched hand palm upward, beckoning her forward before he brought his blade up defensively. He wasn't hiding that he was prepared to try to block.

She held Sora's memories and lived them through her dreams. Let's see how much she remembered.

[skysmirror]

When it came to being on the ball, well, Xion had been in the Organization. Even if she'd been kept in the dark about some things, there had been missions every day, and training in recon--a far cry from the peaceful life Sora had led before his adventures.

There probably were a lot of similarities between her and Sora's styles, though mostly unintentional. Considering that she did still have Sora's memories, sparring with Riku would probably feel familiar as well. Those two had grown up sparring and competing with each other, so they knew each others' styles well.

One way she did differ from her Original was that she wasn't quite as competitive...but that didn't mean she was going to turn down Riku's invitation to take the first move. "Okay."

She started with a simple strike, one that would land on his side if he didn't manage to block. He probably could, but best to start small.

[halfdarkened]

Riku indeed blocked, and easily. When she made contact, he pushed back hard, but didn't counter. The teen wondered if she might remember Sora's fights with him at their home. If so, she might catch on to what he was doing. It was nearly a game of red hands, but with weapons.

He smirked at her, Keyblade still held up and ready to block again. "What're you so afraid of?"

[skysmirror]

Xion was mostly just trying to get warmed up. Sora might prefer to run in swinging, and there were times on missions where she'd done that herself, but she hadn't used her Keyblade in nearly a year. She needed time to get used to it again.

She'd anticipated his block, and moved back out of striking range easily. The commentary should have been expected, too--she knew that Riku's snark tended to turn into goading during a fight, even if was just sparring. After a moment of surprise she managed to come back with, "Says the one who wouldn't make the first move."

[halfdarkened]

"That's just called 'strategy.' The first move isn't always an attack." She might have been out of strike range, but his range was very long thanks to the reach of Way to the Dawn. Regardless, still in a defensive stance, he moved forward, stepping easily within her reach, yet he still didn't attack. Every step he took, though, he kept his feet far apart, meaning it would be hard to unbalance him right now.

Riku had fought Sora many times, and she seemed to fight similarly. However, anyone who watched him would possibly figure out what he was doing. Riku was sizing Xion up. "You got what it takes? C'mon, show me." And now, though he was within her reach, he began to circle her.

[skysmirror]

She decided to merely raise her eyebrows instead of answering verbally this time. She needed to keep her focus on actions rather than words, especially since he was moving now. Not attacking, but...observing. Trying to size her up like she'd used to size up Heartless she hadn't fought before.

The bad thing about him being within striking of her meant that she was back in his strike range. She could try to move, but he'd just adjust his circle for that. So instead of even trying, she kept her stance wide and well-balance, waiting until she could read his movement better. Once she could, she aimed a combo attack where she predicted he would be just at the moment it hit.

[halfdarkened]

Riku knew Sora well enough to know she'd attempt an attack eventually, and a combo didn't surprise him, though it was certainly harder to block. As such, he didn't push back like he did with the previous attacks, but focused instead on defense. The best offense is a good defense, after all...

As such he blocked one attack, using the length of his blade to place his arm pulled back. In a quick two flashes he's dismissed and resummoned his keyblade to wield it backwards, and swung his pulled-back arm forward in a slash.

A game of red-hands it was.

[skysmirror]

In a similar way, Sora knew Riku enough for Xion to know that getting him to take a more direct offense was tough--though how much of that was a result from years of trying to counter Sora's style was anyone's guess. She'd expected the block. What she'd only half-expected was his follow-up.

Not that she'd thought he wouldn't attempt a counterattack at all. She just hadn't known the form it would take. So she was just able to block it, and then moved in for another strike at his side.

[halfdarkened]

Clever move. With his arm swung around, his side was vulnerable, and Riku whirled around to catch her blade just barely with the teeth of his. While under normal circumstances it would be a great way to wrest the weapon from someone's hands, Riku was unused to using his Keyblade backhanded, and having been caught partially off-guard he didn't have the leverage needed to do so properly. As such he disengaged, leaping back and swinging his Keyblade back forward. He moved a distance from her.

But it all did give him an idea...

Riku flipped his Keyblade so the teeth were on the opposite side from the way he normally wielded it. With that, he charged, his head kept very low...

[skysmirror]

Well, she was a clever girl even if she wasn't a raptor. Fighting Heartless tended to encourage making use of any opening possible. She disengaged at nearly the same time he did, mostly to avoid the very sort of maneuver that might have left her disarmed. Fortunately it left her a moment to gather her bearings and see what his next move would be.

She hadn't expected the charge, managed to move in an attempt to evade at the last moment.

[halfdarkened]

That wasn't the reaction he'd hoped for. However, her evasion again gave him distance from her, and Riku planned to make use of it. Again he charged Xion, head again held low and Keyblade drawn back. If she reacted the same way, he'd try something else, but he'd at least know she'd tend to react that way when charged.

That could be useful if he needed to force distance from her.

[skysmirror]

Xion had fought enough Heartless that liked that method of attack that she'd developed a bit of an evade reflex. Not surprising, particularly since getting knocked down in a fight with one of them was a bad idea. When Riku charged at her again, she evaded a little more neatly.

[halfdarkened]

And now Riku knew. It was time for a more direct approach. Rather than charge, he moved towards her and close within the reach of her weapon... Unusually close. His form for his attack was unusual. He planted his right foot firmly forward, bearing his weight, while his left stayed on its toes. With a wide sweep he slashed across at her...

...And about half a beat later he swung his left foot around towards hers.

[skysmirror]

The direct approach was fine. It gave Xion a chance to try to get close enough to try to trip him up--it had worked with Axel a few times when they sparred. Not that what worked against Axel would necessarily work against Riku, but at least she knew she could try.

The unusual attack surprised her, though, and she was so busy dodging the slash that she didn't notice his foot. Instead of her tripping him up, it turned out to be the other way around. She stumbled, managing a few steps but never really regaining her balance. Fortunately, she at least remembered how to fall without hurting herself. Bad enough to be tripped and fall to the floor without adding injury to he deal.

Sighing, she picked herself up. "I guess you win."

[halfdarkened]

It's funny how one thing in a battle might work how one wouldn't. Riku's original plan was to charge and wait for her to take a swipe at him. He'd hoped to drop and slide to catch her feet with his Keyblade. And yet this hadn't worked.

"This time." Riku offered her a hand and a smile as she got up. "Want to try again later?" He never was adverse to taking score.

[skysmirror]

Really there was never a sure technique that always worked. Sometimes what hadn't worked previously did, or vice versa. Fortunately, while annoyed at losing in the way she did, Xion had inherited Sora's inability to mope for long.

"Sure." She returned the smile as she accepted the hand up. "Best two out of three?"

(Done?)

[halfdarkened]

Out of sheer habit, Riku clapped a hand on her shoulder and shot her a smirk the same way he would with Sora.

"After lunch? You got it."