Distraction
Breathing heavily as she looked up at Xander, Ari knew she was in trouble. And judging from his own expression, he knew too.
Trying not to look to her fallen swords, impaled in the ground not far from where she stood, Ari tried not to show her thoughts as she let herself catch her breath. However, Xander could read her better than anyone, and moved in, swinging his axe down and forcing her to move. Scrambling to move, she rushed towards her axes, only for vines to start creeping up them.
"Nice try," Xander grinned as she turned back to him. "Do you give?" he asked, already knowing her answer.
"Never," Ari replied quietly, and rushed at him. He dodged her punch, moving behind her, and Ari ducked under the kick she knew was coming towards her back. Rolling out of the way of his axe, she then pushed back outside of his reach, using the opportunity to catch her breath.
For the first time in a while, Ari found herself being challenged. She hadn't expected his power to return full-force as it had when Minos had returned his animal spirit, but it had, and he was utilising it to his best ability. She'd asked for him to train with her so she could handle the new powers she'd unlocked, and he was definitely giving her a workout. When her breathing started to steady, she rushed in again, leaping up with her knees bent, only to flip as he swung his axe again at her.
Instead, she landed on his shoulders, making him stumble. Xander found himself forced forwards as she then pushed off and landed lightly, turning immediately and kicking out at him. He grunted, almost landing on his face before he caught himself.
"Nice," he nodded, making her smile very slightly. She watched him as carefully as he watched her, waiting for any of his tells. Ari's smile widened as she thought about how well she knew him, and despite the risk of losing against him in their sparring, she was happy that she did.
Of course, the two had always been close, but since they'd gotten together, they'd continued to learn more about each other, and worked incredibly well together. Lily admitted that she was a little jealous of just how well they worked together. She had her best friend to fight alongside too, but he was stubborn and as time progressed, seemed to be pulling away from her. Not that it surprised Ari, well aware of the conflicting feelings between her three team-mates.
Ari was forced to push those thoughts aside as Xander's hand suddenly moved, and vines burst out of the ground and reached for the Gold Ranger. Her hand lit up with her own magic, and she wilted them before they could get too close.
"Distracted?" he teased, and she looked up to find him close.
"Well played," she admitted, not having expected him to approach while his magic worked. "But..." Ari grinned. She feinted left, and moved right, spinning around him. "I'm faster," she said with a sweet smile.
"You've got the Pai Zhuq stuff down, you're really moving like a little bird," he commented, and Ari grimaced.
"Don't say that. Minos called me a little bird," she reminded him, making him chuckle.
"Well stop using your animal spirit then," Xander countered, turning and grabbing for her. She moved again, darting through the grass as he followed, and he grabbed her leg when she suddenly moved to strike. He shoved her backwards, and Ari moved quickly to find her footing before his axe missed her by a few inches. "Come on Ari, I don't normally get that close to you," he reminded her, and followed again, seeing his victory closing in. Ari could see it too.
Looking around the field, Ari then looked to Xander as he charged. She threw a hand up, casting a spell, and Xander was forced to stop, covering his eyes as the sunlight grew blinding around him. It was then that he felt Ari's hand on his chest, using it as leverage. "Hey, what-" he was cut off as her mouth closed over his. The sunlight faded as Ari kissed him with such force that he stumbled backwards. Pleasantly surprised, Xander dropped his weapon and put his arms around her to pull her up into him, her feet barely skimming the ground.
So engrossed, it took Xander a moment to realise that one of Ari's swords was now pressed to his stomach, and he drew back an inch to break the kiss.
"Give?" Ari whispered, a giggle slipping free.
"That's just playing dirty," he muttered back.
"Not my fault you fell for it," she whispered back, pressing another kiss to his lips. Catching her arm, he forced her to drop the sword, and she gladly obliged as he held onto her, feeling another surge of relief that she was okay and back to normal.
Or at least, as normal as Ari got.
This one was fun to write! Just two left :)
Hope you liked it!
Please review!
