HOME | DD

Description
“I know you're really set on all of this, but I'm really not sure this is a good idea, or even necessary. Someone is going to get hurt, and I'm pretty sure it's going to be me.” Almost before the words had left you lips, you shook your head, taking back what you'd said before. “Actually, I'm positive that it's going to be me.”

“It is necessary, and you'll be fine.” Not at all worried, Gladiolus gave your back a firm pat before handing you one of the practice swords. “Just trust me.”

The weight of the sword immediately caused your shoulders to slump forwards. If you were having trouble simply holding the sword in an upright position, you were sure there was no way you would be able to swing it. Something smaller, like a dagger might have worked, but not this. Still, a smaller weapon meant that you would need to use stealth if you ever had to fight, and that was something you didn't possess. Luckily, you doubted you'd ever be in a situation that warranted you fighting. “I do trust you, but why?”

“Because you've got to be able to protect yourself when I'm not around.” His answer came quickly, letting you know that he had actually thought about this, and wasn't just looking for an excuse to test himself. Not that sparring you would have been much of a test anyway.

“Protect myself?” His words took you by surprise. Sure, these were dangerous times, but not so dangerous that you would need to know how to wield a sword. Even if he was able to teach you how to fight, you had no intention of doing so unless you had absolutely no choice. Running away suited you far better. Or it would, if only you were a bit faster. “Just what do you think I'm going to be doing while you're gone?”

“I don't know, but this is still important.” After readying a sword of his own, this one much smaller and lighter than the one he was used to fighting with, Gladiolus waved you towards him. Despite your hesitance, he wore a wide, albeit someone crooked smile on his face. “Come on, show me what you've got.”

“This is such a bad idea. I don't even know how to hold this thing.” After releasing a loud, dramatic sigh, you tightened your hold on the grip and took a deep breath in. As expected, your troubles started immediately. Due to the sheer weight of the sword, your movements were slow and messy. So slow, in fact, that Gladiolus didn't even bother blocking. He simply stepped out of the way. As embarrassing as this was for you, he somehow managed to remain positive, giving you little tips and pointers in an attempt to make things easier on you. No amount of his tutelage was going to make this work though. It had barely been five minutes and your muscles were already screaming for you to stop. “That's all I've got. I can't do this anymore.” Letting the tip of the sword hit the ground, you hung your head and tried to catch your breath. “Isn't there something lighter I could use?”

Gladiolus didn't want to say it, but the sword you were using was the lightest one he could find. “Maybe we should start without the swords.” Taking the blade from your hands, Gladiolus tossed it in a barrel alongside his. As he did this, you could see him fighting the will to laugh. “You don't have enough upper body strength to swing them.”

“Without the swords?” Furrowing your brows together, you looked up at him with a worried expression. “You mean like, hand to hand combat?”

“Exactly.” Smirking down at you, Gladiolus hit the center of his chest with a resounding thud. “Bring it.”

Even now, you knew that you weren't going to manage to do any damage, at least not to him. Your ego was already bruised, so you weren't keen on making matters any worse. Still, you knew Gladiolus well enough to know that he wasn't going to back down or change his mind. For some reason or another, this had become important to him. And while it was, in its own way, sweet of him to worry about you, you knew you couldn't take much more of this. “Fine, but you had better not laugh.”

Your words only made his smirk grow. “I haven't laughed yet, have I?”

“No, but it's only a matter of time before you do.” Shaking your head, you prepared to do as told. However, as you approached him, you realized that you had no idea where to even start. Sure you could just start wildly swinging at him, but what in the world would that possibly accomplish? Now right in front of him, with no clue what to do, you couldn't help but blush.

Unsure if the redness covering your cheeks was from embarrassment or overexertion, Gladiolus took your chin in his hand and tried to get a better look at you. “What are you waiting for?”

Using your lashes as a sort of veil, you sheepishly looked up at him. “I don't know what to do. You didn't really give me any instructions on how I should punch you.”

Still holding your chin in his rough hand, Gladiolus found himself struggling to keep a straight face. He still wasn't laughing at you, bit a slight twitch plaguing his upper lip made it obvious that he wouldn't be able to keep from doing so for much longer. “Hm, you're right. I never had to tell Iris what to do. She just started punching me.” After releasing your chin, Gladiolus took a half step back. “Why don't you just try that?”

“But...” You stopped your sentence almost before it started. Words wouldn't change his mind, but actions might. With no will to fight, you rushed towards Gladiolus once more. Instead of even attempting to throw a punch, you wrapped your arms tightly around his chest and hugged his large body to yours.

Your actions had surprised him so much, it temporarily took away his ability to speak. A few seconds later, however, Gladiolus brushed a bit of your hair behind your ear and cleared his throat. “This is not a punch, you know. This is almost the opposite of a punch.”

“I know that, but I think that five minutes of training was more enough for today.” Hoping he would just give up, you tightened your hold on him.

As he returned your hug, squeezing you so tightly you thought you might break in two, Gladiolus finally let himself laugh. “You can't protect yourself by hugging someone.”

“I can't protect myself by fighting either. I'm pretty sure today proved that.” Burying your face in his chest, you silently wished you could just forget about how horribly you'd failed today. “I'll think of something else, eventually. Until then, you'll just have to stick around and keep me safe from whatever you think is coming to get me.”

Honestly, he didn't know what or who you might need protection from. Gladiolus hadn't really thought that far. He only knew that ha wanted you to be prepared for whatever might come your way. Not wanting to admit this, at least not out loud, he let out a strange sort of snort. “Hmph.”

“What's with that noise?” Still not letting him go, you looked up at him and pressed your brows together in an attempt to make yourself looked concerned. “You don't think you're strong enough to keep me safe?”

Your question caused him to scoff. “That's not the problem. I know I'm strong enough, and so do you.” Almost daring you to say otherwise, he locked his eyes on yours. Something about his gaze made your heart jump. Even if you wanted to wanted to dispute him, you wouldn't have been able to get the words out. “I already told you, the problem is what happens when I leave.”

“Then don't leave.” You knew that wasn't a possibility, but you had spoken before you had a chance to think. With him staring at you like that, thinking at all was proving difficult. “Problem solved.”

Gladiolus' expression chanced at your words. The confident, almost cocky grin on his face vanished and was replaced by a slight look of sadness. “You know I've got to.”

“Then we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.” Finally bringing the hug to an end, you placed the palm of your hand on his cheek and offered a warm smile. If you couldn't talk him out of this, maybe you could simply change the subject around a time or two and make him forget about it. “You're going to get really old really fast if you spend all of your time worrying about every little thing. Besides, worrying over everything is Ignis' job.”

You had tried to be smooth, but he caught on to your plan almost instantly. “Nice try. But worrying about you is my job, not his.” Covering your hand with his own, Gladiolus leaned down and stole a quick kiss before suddenly turning to leave. “We're trying this again in the morning, so you had better be ready. I'm not going easy on you again.”

“That was easy?” You wanted to argue, but you knew it wasn't worth it. Still, if five minutes of this was enough to make your whole body feel stiff, you didn't want to think about how you would feel after tomorrow. “Too bad I can't learn to protect myself against his training.” Head hanging low, you sighed. “This is going to kill me for sure.”