[Memory] Strawberry Season

[Cassidy Elwes]

Yaris 21, 2716

Seamus' warehouse, midday.

Seamus was impressed with Su’yina’s attentiveness, and moreso with the questions she had asked. The answer varied based on the hold, which would come into play later. Questions were good, regardless. It showed she was paying attention, and that she actually wanted to learn. He was starting to think that, maybe, Cass hadn’t made a bad decision after all.

“That depends,” he said, “If they getcha like I’ve got Cassidy, ye use one hand. It’s smart to use the one on the same side as the one what they’re grabbin’ ye with.”

“There’s a reason fer that,” Cass said. “Yer gonna use yer other hand t’ pry ‘em offa ya.”

She reached up with her free hand, across to Seamus’. “Get yer fingers around their littlest finger,” she said, moving slowly, going step by step. “It’s the weakest one. The more fingers ye can get round it, th’ better. Then, ye bend it back. Most people’ll let go, ye bend it far enough. If they don’t ye keep bendin’ ‘til it snaps. This part ye wanna do as fast as ye can, t’ catch ‘em off guard.”

“Keep yer elbow up,” Seamus instructed. “If they decide t’ haul off an’ smack ye, yer arm’ll block ‘em from hittin’ yer face.”

He raised his hand and moved to hit Cass, but she raised her arm and blocked it, pulling back on his little finger until he let go. This, too, was done slowly, so that Su’yina could see how exactly Cass was pulling Seamus’ hand off her hair, and how her arm blocked the strike at her face.

“Show ‘er how fast ye can do it,” Seamus said.

Cass nodded, signalling she was ready for him. For a man his age, he moved fast. He grabbed a fistfull of her hair, at the side of her face, as he had done before. Despite his speed, there was a practiced care in it. It was clear he wasn’t pulling hard enough to cause her any harm. Cass, too, moved quickly. She grabbed his wrist and wrenched on his hand, freeing herself easily. Seamus winced as his finger was bent back, shaking his hand out.

“Good,” he said, “just like I taught ye.”

Cass smiled at the praise, then looked to Su. “Now, if they grab ye on the top of yer head, ye wanna grab the wrist with both hands. After that it’s the same, protect yer face an’ pry ‘em off.”

[Su'yina Liae]

🙐 The Rose Arena / Old Rose Harbor

on the 21st of Yaris, 2716, during midday.

Paying attention was the least Su’yina could down now that the two of them were doing her such a grand favor. The little witch leaned forward, shuffled a bit to the left to get a better look, and nodded her head as Seamus began to explain. “I think I got it.” She muttered, mostly to herself. Grab on the same side as the one grabbing, use only one hand, and then use the other to pry the other off. She blinked as she committed things to her memory as best, she could. Su’yina had not known that the pinky was so weak but having it pointed out to her showed her that it -that fact – also made a lot of sense. Like a piece of knowledge that slipped right into place among the scope of her understanding.

There was no hiding the flinch as she watched Cass pull back on Seamus’ pinky. Even if it were in practice and as a demonstration, the knowledge of the pain that it could inflict made her squirm just a little bit. She could only begin to imagine how much it would hurt if she had to do it to someone else. She swallowed her nerves and pushed herself to watch. It made her uncomfortable but being safe[/] did not necessarily mean she was going to be comfortable. This was important to learn, and an aspect of herself she would have to deal with eventually. She just hoped -naively she was aware -that she would never have to use anything she learned here today on another person.

Leaning across the rope, the tsat squinted her eyes as they began to speed up. It was one thing to watch the action move at a slow and understandable pace, it was another to see the speed and precision in which both moved. She knew she was far from their level of practice and this only cemented the notion. It bothered her naught however, she was cognizant of her shortcomings. Fighters, the witch mused, were a different brand of people. Su’yina clapped softly as they finished, her head bobbed up and down as she lobbied Cass a smile. “Copy that!” She tilted her head to the side, a finger moved to tap at her chin, and then she let out a small question, shorter than the last. “If someone much taller than me does that, would what you taught me just now still work on ‘em?” She was not the most built child on the block and loads managed to tower over her. She paused for a moment before continuing. “An, can I try at least once?” It was easy to hear it in theory, doing it however, well that was another story.

[Cassidy Elwes]

Yaris 21, 2716

Voedale, afternoon.

Seamus answered Su before Cass could. “The leverage is what’s important,” he said. “So long as ye can reach their hand, ye can pry ‘em off. Don’t matter how tall they are.”

Cass tied her long hair back up in the bun it had been before they had started demonstrating. It was a relief to have it up off her neck again. It was cooler in the warehouse with the doors open, but it was still hotter than it had any right to be. She smiled when Su asked if she could try.

“That’s why yer here, ent it?” she asked.

“Aye,” Seamus replied, walking over to sit down on the ropes and hold them apart so that Su could duck through them. “C’mon, Fun Size. It’s yer turn.”

The next hour or so was spent going back and forth between Seamus and Cass demonstrating things for Su, and then Su’yina stepping in to practice with Cass. Seamus watched from the sidelines. Cass was an excellent teacher. There were times when Seamus seemed like he was going to interject with something, some tip or correction of their form, but Cass would always get it out before he could. Cass walked Su’yina through things in much the same way he had walked Cass through them all those years ago, going slowly where it mattered and answering any questions the little witch had. Eventually, Seamus left them to it, stepping down out of the ring and disappearing somewhere.

“Arrite,” Cass said after a bit, “it’s hotter than sin in here. I think that’s enough fer t’day, eh? Ye did good.”

She looked around, her brow furrowing. “Where’d th’ old man go?”

“Here,” came a gruff reply, as though he’d been summoned. He was coming through the front door of the place with three small cups of ice cream in his hands. “Figured this’d be nice, with th’ heat an’ all. There's a wick down th' street what sells it.”

[Su'yina Liae]

🙐 The Rose Arena / Old Rose Harbor

on the 21st of Yaris, 2716, during midday.

Su’yina body screamed at her. Each breath she took felt like she was inhaling fire into her lungs and her arms, they burned and ached more than she thought they had ever done in her short life. She had always been spritely, athletic, and speedy, but working out like this and practicing like this, worked on parts of her body she forgot existed. Her chest rose and dropped with each heave, and the sweat that rolled down her neck was a welcomed reprieve. It was hot here inside the warehouse, but it was loads better than being out in the blistering sun. The tsat coughed lightly as she stood. Her thin arms shook even as she stretched.

Cass worked her good and well, enough for the mess of waves she called her hair to plaster to her face and to the collar of her dress. The other woman was a good teacher, clear in her words, patient, and willing to answers the plethora of questions that brew in Su’yina’s ever-inquisitive mind. It was hard not to ask questions when everything felt so new and unusual. The tsat swatted away the dirt from her skirt and counted the skips in her heart as she willed it to calm down. She was exhausted, in a way that left her fulfilled and floating upon the clouds. Proud of her own small achievement when it came to learning something new. With her hands now on her knees, Su’yina could only hold up a hand as Cass spoke. She had not wanted to complain earlier but the heat had been getting to her. “Y-yeah, I think I’m good for today.” If she wanted to be somewhat functional to run errands for her father later in the day, she really did need that break. She sucked in another breath and rolled her shoulders. “I feel like my arms are going to fall off, my poor arms” she whined dramatically.

She would need to stretch on her way back home if only to avoid feeling like a horse had sat on her for the next few days. “But twas fun. I think I moved parts of me I didn’t think moved like that and thanks, for answering my questions.” With each second that pass, she felt a bit more like a normal person. The short time they spent together was all she needed to warm up towards the experienced fighter. It helped that she was just so nice.

Her head swiveled towards Seamus as he returned, water in hand. The witch looked livelier as her fingers beckoned towards the cups greedily but polite enough to not just grab it no matter how much she wanted to. “Seamus, you’re an angel! An absolute angel.” If she were not as tired as she is, Su would have danced around the ring.

Ruddy cheeks beamed up at the older man. “Woo! I get sugar and muscles in one day! What kind is it!”

[Cassidy Elwes]

Yaris 21, 2716

Voedale, afternoon.

Cass grinned as Seamus appeared, ice cream in hand. She had been about to suggest that very thing — she knew the wick vendor well. She was a frequent customer in the hotter months, whenever she was over training. It was a nice treat after a hard workout. She hadn’t expected Seamus to have the same idea. It was a little surprising, but not much. There were, after all, things about the old man that she still didn’t know, even after all this time.

Seamus’ face pinked as Su extolled his virtues, calling him an angel. He scowled, thrusting one of the ice creams towards her. “Sod off with that,” he grumbled, “it’s jus’ vanilla. Didn’t know what kind ye both liked.”

Cass turned away to hide a snicker, climbing down out of the ring. She made her way over, taking one of the ice creams from the man. “Y’know, this’d go real nice with the pie I brought ye,” she suggested.

Seamus’ scowl turned to her. “I’ll keep that in mind fer when I eat it later,” he replied.

Cass laughed. “You stingy ol’ goat!” she exclaimed, giving him a friendly punch in the arm.

“It’s my pie,” Seamus replied, “s’my reward fer puttin’ up with yer nonsense all day."

Cass looked to Su, and a sly smile came over her face. “I bet Su’d like to try a little piece. I think she deserves it, workin’ so hard.”

She raised her eyebrows at the witch, wordlessly trying to goad her into pestering Seamus to share the baked good. She knew her trainer well enough to know he had a soft spot for children, no matter how hard he tried to hide it under his rough and grumbly shell.

[Su'yina Liae]

🙐 The Rose Arena / Old Rose Harbor

on the 21st of Yaris, 2716, during midday.

Su’yina grin only widened at the fluster on the older’s man face. Was he perhaps embarrassed? Maybe, and she found herself amused at it all. “Vanilla’s better than nothin’!” And like hell she was about to deny a free treat! Her eyes glimmered with glee as she gripped the offered dessert as if it was holy and perhaps for someone enamored with sweets as she is; that was not far from the truth. The tsat sniffed the sugary surface, got ready to tuck in, her spoon lifted only to be left mid-air as she whipped her head towards Cass and Seamus at the word ‘pie’.

A pie she had only the chance to smell from within the confines of its box. A pie she was curious to see, and a pie…well she was not forward enough to ask for a taste, but she could imagine! Seamus seemed rather attached to the pie. Whatever lingering reservation she had towards the surly-looking man melted away. He was…odd but sweet. Reminded her of what she supposed would have been someone akin to a huffy grandparent. Not that she would say that out loud. No one liked being called old after all.

She shoveled another spoon of ice cream into her mouth only to still as she felt eyes on her. Meeting Cass’s gaze with an owlish blink, the petite witch eventually nodded her head slowly. Then a bit faster when she realized the other woman’s intention. Not before long, her head was bobbing like a boat left anchored in the harbor during a storm.

Wide hazel eyes turned towards the older man. “Would ya’ mind sharing just a bit with us?” she clasped her hand and ice cream in front of her, “Good food tastes sweeter when shared with friends! At least that’s what my dad says!” But she would need more friends to test out that theory—and so, “We are all friends, aren’t we? Well, you two are teachers and teachers are friendly so which mean’s you sort of a friend.” Her eyes were devious little crescent as she beamed. Now to add the cherry on top of the guilt. “Please? Just a bit?”