Chapter Seven
Together
I struck hard and fast, but my knife slid off the edges of Lucia's and she delivered a harsh kick to my stomach. I doubled over and breathed heavily against the floor. Her hand slid under my arm and she hauled me to my feet, clucking her tongue.
"Sumire, you'd better not be getting ill like before," she joked, smiling. "I don't want to have to battle your darkness and give you mouth-to-mouth again."
I took her joking as an opportunity and swiped at her neck. The tip of the blade scraped across her skin lightly. If the cover had been on, I would have drawn blood. The round was mine.
For a moment, she looked shocked, then she let out a deep breath and laid her hand on my shoulder. "Well done, Sumire. I should have been concentrating."
The pride of the win settled on my shoulders. "That's one."
"Against ten," she added sneakily, readying her knife and falling into an offensive stance. "Round twelve, get ready." She didn't like to lose, so I took her sudden seriousness as a warning.
Since that night when I had fallen , everything had become much better than it had been. Lucia had apologised so sincerely that she almost cried, and I agreed to forget about all of her harsh behaviour if she continued to teach me to fight. I knew that she had been considering against the idea, but I wasn't ready to let myself fall into the routine of having her save me again. I wanted to protect myself, and after reminding her of the difference it would have made in the park, she agreed.
Her sheathed knife jabbed me in the arm. I lost the round, but I wouldn't give up. I was back on my feet, ignoring the pulsing pain. "Next round. Ready?"
Lucia eyed me carefully, her stance falling for a moment. "Are you sure?" she asked. "It was only a few days ago that your life was hanging by a thread, remember?"
I sighed. She was always fussing like this now, but secretly, I enjoyed it. It proved her words, that she would always care for me and that we're always friends. I soaked in every word gratefully. "Don't worry about me, I feel fine."
She examined me carefully for a moment. "One more round, than we're finished for the day."
I knew better than to argue with the fact that it meant she had won. I took the final round deal, and lunged.
Knife clanged against knife, our eyes ever watching movements. I had been lucky that she had come to my rescue, and I had been lucky that I had a friend willing to put her life at risk for me. I wouldn't ever forget.
Her knife sped towards my throat, and my instincts kicked in. I ducked beneath her weapon and struck out at her ribs. I poked her with the tip of the knife, and she stumbled back in surprise. I had won the final match.
At first she was still shocked, then her face broke into a smile. "Well done! You beat me!"
I felt the pride rising inside of me like a warmth that filled the soul. I shrugged shyly. "You still won more rounds."
Lucia shook her head and held out a hand. "I give the win to you. You've been great today, despite still being exhausted. Take the win. Let's shake on it."
At first I was going to decline, then I saw the determination in her eyes, and I took her hand. "Alright then, but no complaining later."
She cocked her head to the side, frowning. "Since when do I complain?"
I laughed. When did she not complain? Living with her s difficult as it was for her to live with me. We balanced each other out though, and together we could survive anything, even the darkness.
"Daydreaming?" I blinked just as she snapped her fingers in front of my face. "Okay, bed time for you, miss." She crossed her arms like a mother trying to be strict.
My mouth fell open. "No way! What if a mission comes?"
Lucia raised a hand to stop me before I could say anymore. "You aren't coming on any missions, remember? We agreed that you were too weak because of that day."
"You, Nahashi, and Laura agreed, you mean," I corrected, pouting. "I didn't get a say."
Lucia sighed and shook her head, but I could see the tilted corner of her lips as she tried not to laugh. "Sumire, please..."
"Lucia, let me come. Just once, to prove that I'm ready," I begged. "If anything happens, I know that you'll protect me now."
She sighed again, but I could see the argument raging inside of her. She knew that I was right. "One mission to judge your performance. If anything goes wrong, you're not coming again until I'm certain."
A knock at the door caught our attention and we turned to see Nahashi entering. He called down to us from the doorway. "We have a client. Sounds like a heck of a mission, too."
My heart leapt and I turned to Lucia, grinning. "Looks like that mission's arrived!"
Her eyes pierced through me. Normally I would have been crippled by this look, but she had promised me. Seeing that she had no way of changing my mind, she let out a long breath and crossed her arms over her chest. "You're annoyingly stubborn."
"You're annoyingly motherly," I countered. "Honestly, I'll be fine."
She stood tall and stepped towards me. "Prove it to me. Race me upstairs to the client."
I couldn't face down one of Lucia's challenges. Without a second glance at her, I raced towards the stairs, her laughter echoing behind me.
I wanted it to always be like this. I always wanted to be smiling with Lucia, my dearest friend, and my light in the darkness. I would never leave her side.
THE END
