You smirk. It's an expression that comes naturally to your face, for whatever reason.
"If you thought that my giant act was impressive," you tell Ayane, "you should be glad that Gorn didn't merit my final form."
Next to you, Altria shifts, while out of the corner of your eye, you notice Kahlua looking at you sharply. It's Briar, however, who speaks up.
"Don't even joke about that, Alex," she says flatly. Most of the girls glance in her direction, frowning to various degrees. You raise your hands in a gesture of surrender.
"I kid, I kid. Seriously, though, enhancement magic is a great boost to just about any fighting style, assuming you have the right spells. I mean, in the purest sense, I'm less skilled at martial arts than at least half the people I fought, or several of the other finalists. Magic was one of the things that let me bridge the gap."
"That and being at least a head taller than most of your competition," Ayane notes.
"That too," you agree. You pause to take a drink of some green juice. You're not sure what the flavor is supposed to be - and considering some of the strange blends you've seen in the local vending machines, you're almost afraid to ask - but it's wet, it's cool, and it's sweet. "Getting back to your question, Ayane, I can certainly try to teach you the spell, if you're interested. I can't guarantee anything, though; I'm pretty sure we're only staying until the end of the Adult Division. A couple of days' worth of instruction may not be enough."
"I learn fast," Ayane says confidently.
"She really does," Kasumi agrees supportively, smiling at her friend.
"Great. How are you at teaching?"
That appears to throw the girl. "...eh?"
"Well, if I'm going to teach you one of my personal techniques, it only seems fair that you teach me one of yours in return. Equal exchange, and all."
Taki snickers.
Ayane and Kasumi trade glances. "...what did you want to learn?" Ayane asks cautiously.
You think about how to phrase this, so as not to give away the secret (however poorly concealed) of her being a ninja. "Do you happen to know that teleport technique Kasumi used against Cordelia? Because I can think of a lot of applications for something like that, especially if it could be adapted to longer range."
For reason reason, your request makes both girls relax, even smile. "Oh, that. Yes, I do know how to do that one - I'm just not very good at it, which is why I don't use it in a fight. Just so you know, it's not actually teleportation, just very high-speed movement." She smiles. "Still interested?"