The thing about Skye
Expansion 2 off: Sometimes she gets lost
May observes Skye. Her form is perfect. Almost too perfect, because she moves slowly like she's trying to remember too many things at once. It's not muscle memory yet, but that will form with time.
Skye has come a long way with combatives, but this- this is new. Skye hits the ground with a grunt, but May lets her regain her feet without ending the sparring session. Skye can do it. She has executed the escape flawlessly again and again when they were practicing reps. Now she needs to do it under pressure.
May steps through her guard again. Skye is too slow; she's thinking about it too hard. May can see that she's too in her head. It needs to come naturally- it needs to be second nature. Skye ends up on the ground again. She lets her get up.
Skye is breathing heavily. Her brow is crinkled in frustration, and May idly wonders if she'll let it loose, or if she will hone it like she's been practicing. Make it a weapon, instead of a liability.
"Again," May demands. She increases her speed, her force, hoping to break that perfect technique and get the girl to just react. Over and over, Skye ends up on the ground, and May's frustration mounts.
Before Skye's form can suffer in her exhaustion (practicing bad habits is worse than this too-perfect, overthinking, form), May decides to end the bout. The next time the girl hits the ground, she follows with her weight pressing Skye's head into the mat with her forearm and using the other to twist the hacker's arm behind her back.
They haven't done much in the way of ground grappling, and even if they had, Skye wouldn't be able to break the hold.
Skye yelps at the sudden weight pressing her into the mat, and instantly starts struggling.
"Tap," May intones, ready to just give the girl her corrections and call it a day. Maybe they've just been training too long and tomorrow will be better.
Skye doesn't tap out, though. A rush of energy seems to flood her and she thrashes against May's hold, bucking and squirming. May grits her teeth and actually has to focus on keeping her grip from the sudden strength in the other girl's limbs. Skye pants heavily into the mat, spit flying past clenched teeth as she wrenches her arm so hard she's in real danger of doing damage to herself.
"Tap out, Skye," May hisses, frustration mounting at the girl who seems to have decided to abandon everything May has taught her.
All that irritation vanishes at the whimper that escapes the hacker as she continues yanking uselessly at her arm.
It's a quiet, barely audible whine, but it drops something heavy in May's gut. She launches herself to her feet and takes several steps away from the young agent, cursing herself.
Skye twists, sitting up and hugging her twisted arm to her body as she breathes heavily. There is panic written on her face that she struggles to hide (and she does, visibly, try to hide it).
"Skye," May starts regretfully, "I-"
"I'm fine." Skye pushes herself to her feet, letting her arm drop to her side, and though she plants her feet firmly, the trembling in her body is unmistakable. "Let's go again."
May shakes her head. "We're done for the day."
"I said I'm fine," Skye snaps, voice laced with anger. Her eyes flash with it. Her fighting stance doesn't let up, as technically perfect as ever. "Let's go again."
"No," May says firmly. She's not backing down from this. "We are done for the day."
Skye's jaw tenses stubbornly in the way it does just before she decides to argue. But she doesn't end up putting up a fight. Her hands drop to her sides and ball into fists.
"Fine." She doesn't stay for their normal cool down which more often than not ends in the kitchen with steaming cups of tea. She disappears out the training room doors, and May doesn't have the strength (or courage) to stop her.
A/N: Swimming lessons chapter next. Please let me know what you guys think!
~Silver~