There's a spark of innocence in his smile, a gentle warmth like compassion freely flowing, a waterfall of love and the brightness of joy that true love brings with it. And for a moment, she pauses and just really takes that in. Mitsuhide's happy to be a knight, happy to serve Zen, happy to serve Izana in a roundabout way, and happy to be here with her. And Kiki feels that awe like the steep uphill climb of a mountain pile up in her.
And so, she steadies herself, holds her sword, takes a deep breath, and when the practice match starts, she dives right into it, feeling that kind of joy seep in, feeling the clash of metal on metal, blade to blade.
It's always been a way to get out of herself, to relax, to burn off excess energy and fall into the joy of the moment. The only time it isn't is when it's necessity that pulls it out of her. But here with Mitsuhide, there is no necessity but there is the moment. The moment to be present for, strategies to devise and then change, a moment to rush into this.
And when finally, the practice stops with the loud smack of metal to metal, and two breathless knights staring at each other, Kiki feels that joy saturate her whole being, seeping into every little part, and finally relaxing.
"Good match." Mitsuhide's breathless, but his compassion knows no bounds. He needs to compliment her.
"Yes. It was." Kiki takes a deeper breath to fight against the rush of each breath and the racing heart in her chest, and she re-sheathes her sword and watches Mitsuhide do the same. It's as familiar as could be, and she's always grateful to see the sign that the fight is over, the match has ended, and together, they stand, a little bit stronger.