Sparring Practice: Gemma, Kuro & Prue

Gemma
 .: A quick forearm wiped at Gemma’s brow, which was flushed a peachy hue and warm with exertion. The day was allotted to training matches between pacted mages, and the pink-pastel battlemage and her pacted great hammer, Kuro, had just completed a combative round with another set of students. The spar was less about points and who ‘beat’ who, and more about exposing where each of their weaknesses and tells were. While Gemma was petite, and her cheerier pastel palette could give the (false) stereotypical impression that she was not a fighter, the massive great hammer she wielded betrayed the misconception. “Work on your physical tells, Waverly. You continue to make that tense expression before you strike. It telegraphs too much to your opponent.” Next, Gemma’s opponent received feedback about their too. “Kuro, if you want your offense to be more effective, stop inclining your will toward shielding her from risk.” It was time for the warshapers to receive feedback, too. The interplay between shapeshifted weapon and the mage who used the weapon as a magical focus was essential in the pact, otherwise all of the opportunities sacrificed for the partnership would be a great waste if they could not amplify the boons of the pact. Thanks to this, no matter the experience of the pairs involved, there was always room to grow. Gemma was flighty, distractible – though the pacted partnership with Kuro helped ground her and give her focus. Some mage personalities were better geared toward this subsect of mage philosophy. Give up ‘standard’ practices people assumed of mages, to gain the benefits of the partnership. Would Gemma be a good mage if she went the typical routes? Probably. Just okay. She had potential, but she lacked that grounded focus. *This* route was where she had the most opportunity to grow and shine. She gave the great hammer’s haft a twirl, which gave the impression the massive weapon was feather-light (it only was thanks to their pact), then, through the channels of mana and the telepathy they only shared with one another through their pact, Gemma gently urged for Kuro to shapeshift back into his human form. Amber eyes surveyed the edge of the sparring ring, and found new faces. “Naka!~ We may have new sparring partners soon!~” She chirped cheerily. Her eyes set on a girl with light hair, who, like her, seemed small and unimposing in a combative sense. Thus, she became fixated and curious. “Heeey!~ Who are you pacted with? Do you have a weapon yet? ARE you a weapon? What kind?! Hi! I’m Gemma – this is Kuro!” And thus, Prue was Gemma’d. :.

Prue
◊ Prudence could barely believe the last two weeks' worth of events. Absolutely sure she'd failed the entrance exam (actually, make that "Imaginary entrance exam") to a Magical School her dreams conjured up. (because this couldn't be real.) The pale-complected Mage stared at the pastel flurry (called "Gemma") as she twirled effortlessly with her elaborate, massive flinty blue weapon. (A partner, named Kuro.) It was all a bit much. People turning into weapons. Magic being real. Time moving back home at an incomprehensible, slow pace. Each time she'd been sent back (only twice, now) it seemed as if no time had passed at all-- despite spending hours at a time on the Hinterland campus. From underneath a curtain of pale golden hair and a fox-eared beret, the timorous Ossian (hey, at least she had a house!) chewed on her lip as she watched the pairing work, particularly entranced by the notably feminine Gemma wielding a rather fearsome hammer Kuro. She’d seen the pairing once before, so probably it was comfort that let her focus fall more easily to them. Well, she’d seen Gemma before. And Kuro, but back before Christmas, he hadn’t been a weapon. Was it a permanent change? Oh! They were talking to him. Well, both of them. But still, he could hear them, she supposed. She scribbled notes in a quick, neat hand on the paper of the open notebook in her lap. Beside her sat a pile of books (as if she’d have time to read with so much going on at the training mats.) As she wrote, Gemma’s gleeful (hardly exhausted!) tenor jingled for her attention. “Huh? Wha?” she stopped writing as she glanced up. And then to either side. Small and unimposing, Prue was used to being inconspicuous-- and that was okay. Especially as she acclimated to all of this new stuf-- “Hi. A what? I’m-- no. I don’t think--” she blinked a few times and realized she had to stop trying to keep up with the questions and replies. It was hard to offer information pragmatically when you coulnd’t keep track of the order of questions in the first place. Bright cerulean hues went deer-in-the-headlights for a moment before she regained her composure. “Hi, Gemma,” she glanced from one to the other, “And Kuro.” she closed her notebook with a decided thud. “I’m Prudence--er, Prue.” she smiled brightly after correcting herself. “I don’t know *what* I am. I guess I’m trying a little bit of everything until I’m sorted?” ◊

Kuro
[ The verbal reminder from Gemma and Kuro’s opponent that if didn’t Kuro didn’t tone down the cushioning defense had him becoming huffy. Although, it was true. Pinky was a fierce fighter, but he held her back in this one area [more so recently since they’d become exclusive.] And, well, while sifting through emotions wasn’t on the  top of Kuro’s list … the Twerp was. He didn’t want to see their toils go to waste just because he couldn’t get his shit together. Funny to think, really. Considering he was the pillar [most of the time anyway], while the roseate witch bounced from one path to another just as fast as one blinked. Don’t paint him as one shade just yet though. Like how Gemma learned from Kuro to be balanced, he learnt to connect with people more and now that he’d become more embroiled in his emotions – it just … well … slipped from time to time and he couldn’t always keep a calm exterior. ESPECIALLY when it came to Gemma. When push came to shove, he didn’t brush away the critique. Instead, he harkened to it, making a mental note to allow his partner a chance to be exposed from time to time when the opposing enemy rushed forward. While the conversation carried on and Kuro was left to his thoughts --- never mind. The pink ball of energy had rushed into his thoughts, chirping rather cheerily into his sentient ear about how they might have new sparring partners soon. <”Really?”> His voice rang with curiosity. <”Does this mean we’ll have new training partners or we’ll need to TRAIN new partners?”> Huff. Huff. The annoyance in the erstwhile gang member's reverberated about his partner’s mind then. There was always a catch to everything [at least in Kuro’s mind.] He wasn’t always pleasant with new company, and when the large warhammer happened to espy a meek individual’s approach, guided by his partner’s vision – he heard Gemma’s encouraging words next to fully form. Damnit. Focusing through that familiar channel of their pact; minds and bodies separated, and the seemingly feather-light weapon dispersed into multiple beads of evanescent light. In that next instance – Kuro shapeshifted back to his form and a male with blackish blue locks appeared towering beside the ebullient roseate witch. Introductions were made and he became rigid, pierced brow raising. “…hey.” Compared to his partner, he was rather standoffish, but he offered a light smile thereafter. “Nice to meet you, Prue. If you’re just starting off – have you found a partner yet?” There was genuine curiosity in his voice [despite his dark demeanor.] "Gemma and I have been partners for awhile, ain't that right, Twerp?" He grinned, but it faded just as quickly as it surfaced. "Should we test out your abilities and see where you fit then? Can't knock it until you try it." ]' [

Gemma
.: Kuro’s huffy, defensive mood added to the consistent, anchoring weight in Gemma’s own psyche, which helped keep her from entirely floating away like scattering balloons. Still, she buzzed with a sense of ease at him, to assure him. <”Either way, we get more practice! And new friends, maybe!”> She knew he didn’t care for the latter as much as she did, but she’d keep acclimating him to the idea of ‘outsiders’ anyway! Who could blame him for trust issues, given his history? They’d approached the girl with the amazing fox beret (Gemma had a ‘weeb’ level obsession with anthropromorphic fashions, and *the hat had fox ears, come on! <3*). Rather, Gemma had. Kuro was dragged along!~ “Prudence! … Prue!” Gemma echoed the names the girl had given, shifting to what Prue preferred. “Well. Do you shapeshift? What sort of magic are you most inclined for? What house? We’re in two different houses, but that doesn’t matter for pacted battlemages, sometimes its good to have the diversity! He’s stable and I’m kinda everywhere for example! I’m House Esben, he’s a Sinnopa – what’re you? Also, omigod your hat is the best!~” It Kuro didn’t reel her in, Prue might get crushed under the exuberance of the Hinterlands ‘bear.’ When Kuro loomed beside her, Gemma wreathed her smaller arms about his nearest to her. It was evident that they were very comfortable with each other, despite the stark, external differences. He looked like the type who might mug the bubbly lamb at his side. Though, no. “I never could shapeshift, it was his talent, so it worked out for us! Can you shapeshift? Or do you cast? You know, you have to sacrifice a *lot* of typical casting abilities to pact up with a partner, but its *definitely* worth it. We carry on a legacy, you know! From times of terrible mage wars! We were – er, pacted battlemages, I mean – an unexpected new angle who saved the day!” Or so went Gemma’s rendition of history. :.

Prue
◊Oh…boy. With an overwhelming sense of awe (a little starstruck by Gemma’s ebullience, and her somber counterpart) the bookworm nodded silently along, in an attempt to keep up. She didn’t want to seem too dense, and the result was a silent head bobbing as she waded in an ocean of questions. Until!! The large hammer (dragged so easily!) beside Gemma trans…muted? Formed? Er…? into a person again-- the one she’d seen with Gemma before. So, it wasn’t permanent. Fascinating. The jig was up-- Prue could have never imagined that in her (literal) wildest dreams. She bit the inside of her lip instead of pinching herself. Yep. Pretty real. Not realizing she’d been staring at Kuro, resisting the urge to reach out and jab his arm a couple of times to check his corporeal…ness, Prue’s attention bounced between the pair with rapacious interest until she sensed the lingering still in the air between the pair and herself. Safe to talk now? Well, here goes…nothin’? Probably everything. She picked a ball of fuzz off of the sleeve of her uniform, toes wiggling in her leather slides. “Er, I really don’t know. I’m having a hard time finding my feet in all of…” she gestured widely, intimating ‘the school.’ “this.” she concluded. “Madame Delvaux gave me my entrance exam.” she started, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees. “And then someone with…” she gestured again, “angel wings (she said it skeptically) asked me to do some basic hand motions and taught me some spells.” she seemed deflated by the end of the sentence. She iterated the motions, but nothing happened at her fingertips (they were supposed to make a small spark, but her digits weren’t quite dexterous or intentional enough.) “And then I spent some time reading. Like, a week.” she patted the books beside her on the seat. “So much interesting history!” she chimed, voice leaping into that interest again, as if that had been, by far the easiest thing to cling to. “I received a note this morning, an actual *frog* brought it, would you believe?! And it told me to come here.” she concluded, smiling meekly. “Although I doubt this will be it.” she admitted, glancing between the pair. “I mean-- it just seems a little…intense?” she asked, lifting a brow in earnest.“I’m an Ossian!” she tacked on proudly, making a mental note to inquire about their legacy…and if it could be found in any of her newly acquired books. Her fingertips gingerly grazed the edge of the umber-colored beret and she beamed "Thank you! I got it in town!" Warily, she regarded the weapon. “What’s the…test like?” she asked with hesitation, wondering if this would finally be the moment the other shoe dropped. Immediate failure, return to sender! ◊

Kuro
[ Joy. New friends. Of course, he was dragged along. Appealing as it may have sounded to Gemma; it didn’t to Kuro. Nonetheless, he was kind to the newcomer. They were all here for one common goal – to succeed and graduate. ‘Sides, what was the point in making an enemy anyway? Rivals came and went, but to flourish in life one needed to acclimate to their surroundings [including the people within them … a major weakness of Kuro’s.] Temporarily shaking off his pondering mind – those piercing eyes of his settled upon Prue and Gemma. While they varied differently in comportments; the one thing they obviously held interest in was fashion and … cute stuff? Yeah. Something like that. His partner’s enthusiasm was enough to tell him she was in love with that hat. A – and to picture her in it … maybe even with moving ears – GAH! Those cheeks of the shapeshifter turned ruddy, and he hid his face by looking off. Urrrgh. Daaaamnit -- -- wait what? What were they talking about again?? Suddenly, Kuro realized the youth named Prue had been staring at him as she and Gemma spoke. Yet, seeing that his partner was throwing a million and one questions at the new student [unintentionally overwhelming her] – he was quick to respond by placing his palm atop her head, splaying his rough fingers through those cotton candy locks to befuddle her. It was nice to be hospitable and welcoming, but sometimes the buoyant mannerisms of Gemma could be a bit too much for newcomers. So, the brat was reeled in. However, that wasn’t to say he didn’t have his moments either. He could be a real asshole and with Gemma’s reach, she watered down those ugly layers of his personality. An example of that showing when the little witch wreathed her smaller arms about his waistline – weighing him down from tetchiness. Questions were asked and answered,and when their respective houses were named [thanks, Gemma…. b- baka] – Kuro nodded toward Prue. “It’s a lot to take in when you first approach it from an outsider’s view. But look at this space around you as the norm, as your home. You’ll fit right in, in no time.” Briefly, Kuro closed his eyes, his lip beginning to twinge at the memory, “I can’t say Gemma and I adjusted straightaway the first day. I actually ended up hitting an animal messenger with a bat when I saw it entered Gemma’s dorm room back in the U.K. not so long ago … a lot different from the U.S. campus – that’s for sure. Didn’t help when she was screaming at the top of her lungs -- -“ ahem, ahem. He tried to break the ice for the wary youth, but he knew that it was a lot to take in. This magical world that became about as habitual as breathing for him and Gemma. When addressed directly by Prue, the great hammer gave a shrug of his shoulder, “… it’s okay, I guess. If you know your shit.” Ambiguous answer was ambiguous. Good job. "Where are you from? Gemma and I have been to several campuses, but I can proudly say this is our last year. Thank fuckin' God. " Fingers continued to mess with the Twerp's hair then, tugging and pulling as the Chump saw fit to distract her. "Don't worry, you'll mold yourself as a piece to fit into this puzzle soon enough, Prue." Kuro being nice? What was this?? Definitely Gemma's influence. ]'

Gemma
: While Gemma *was* a ball of sprightly vim, she *did* have sense enough to realize Prue was actually pretty overwhelmed. Oh. She was *really* new it seemed. It’d been awhile since they were this new! More, Gemma and Kuro both had magical backgrounds even before they ever teamed up or attended mage schools together. This was their final year, so where Prue was just beginning her journey, theirs was well underway already. Gemma reflected a moment, catching in that pause what Prue seemed most comfortable with – reading, history. “Yeah, there’s a ton of great history and stuff about pacted battlemages, and our Hinterland houses! Studying them both really give you a sense of legacy, it’s cool to be a part of it, you know? Maybe we all will be a story someone else reads one day, in one of those books,” she nodded toward Prue’s, to make it feel more tangible, personal. Could she envision herself in one of those chapters? Gemma’s mind had her desiring to be in the books, while perhaps Prue’s was inclined to *writing* them one day? She didn’t know yet. Ohhh. Prue was *really* new, not just to the school, but to *magic* itself it seemed. Gemma had become accustomed to only really encountering mages who grew up aware of it all, usually from mage families even. She was surprised by tests from Madame Delvaux, and surprised by a frog familiar delivering a message…. Oh. Then, Kuro’s hand splayed atop Gemma’s head, patting but also reminding her to center in its subtle enough way that still had impact. “Wings?” Gemma explored aloud. Who had wings? Literal wings? Spell-wings? Kuro’s hand was still atop her head, so she remained grounded, no longer spilling a million and one questions and facts at Prue. Wait! Kuro’s response about things being a lot to take in – he could tell Prue was new before her? He might act detached a lot, but he paid attention to things without the same scattered distraction Gemma coped with. “Are you the scholarship this year?” She pried, amber eyes rounded in curiosity, but her demeanor was more relaxed with Kuro’s hand anchoring her down. Her cheeks and lips puffed out with a sudden, embarrassed exhale about how she and Kuro had reacted to one of this region’s messenger familiars, too, but she ended with a sheepish, bright grin under briefly closed eyes. How would they help someone new to magic connect to it? “I remember as a kid when I thought I knew all about math, it was addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Suddenly in the next year, I was told about algebraic equations and I kinda felt my perception of reality shift. It sounds silly but I just felt kinda blown away that there was all this extra mystery and I didn’t know how to relate to it right away. I think maybe this is just algebra now for you, but if you’re the scholarship girl, you’ll be swimming in ‘physics’ in no time!” Did it work? Was it relatable?! :.

Prue
◊ Their continued assurances were working their own kind of subtle magic. The timorous girl was used to being the apple of her family’s eye. Introverted-girl-next-door with a modest circle of friends-- all off to their own schools by now. For some unexplained reason, Prue hadn’t run off to University at the first chance she got-- for all of her studying and love of learning she just never seemed to find a study to settle into. Nothing *felt* right. As awkward as most of her interactions at Hinterland had been, her self-denial of the reality of their world was a closet doubt-- there was no way *she* could be part of this. And if she could (because she knew she had the learning game on lock), well a fresh wave anxiety rolled right in to reassure her at every opportunity ‘this isn’t real.’ In spite of all of that, she could *feel* it. It was real, and she definitely belonged here. Two solid pillars (closer to peers, if you didn’t count the younger staff members) were right there, telling her as much. It was reassuring in a strange way-- feeling comfortable underneath layers of mousy, bookish…prudent… ignorance of the laws of physics. She pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose with a pale, slender digit. “Oh, are there?” she piqued, back straightening at the mention of further historical tomes. She hoped they weren’t already rented out! (Nerd~) Bright hues shifted between Gemma and Kuro, “What…” she hesitated, “shit?” she asked, cursing more quietly than her normal talking voice. “…exactly? I mean, can I study or… practice somehow? Is there any literature?” she asked, questions bubbling out at near-Gemma speed. She opened her mouth to ask a few more questions, but Gemma caught her off guard. Her lips hung open for a moment before closing again. She looked a bit sheepish. “…Yes.” she admitted softly, squirming in her seat. Prue was a quietly proud student, and even the confirmation made her feel uncomfortably boastful. Not only did she realize the gravity of the scholarship-- but also her odd position amidst other magically comfortable Mages and Witches. “Maybe you can show me? I haven’t tried to transform.” she admitted, bouncing her feet on her toes in her seat. Subtly eager, and shifting the conversation away from her academic achievement (which had lingering feelings of Impostor-Syndrome attached to it.) ◊

Kuro
‘[ As the conversation shifted from topic to topic, Kuro felt himself ease up. There was nothing potentially dangerous about this stranger. Her abilities at the university had yet to be unlocked, but like anyone picked for the Hinterland school [including Gemma and himself]; appearances could be deceiving. If anyone was intimate with that type of thought process – it was Kuro. Hell, he STILL had problems with it even to this day. Since moving to Portree, Scotland, Scotland Yard had become familiar with the passing punk’s face. Small town. People liked to talk. Whatever. Mostly about what kind of person he was, and why little miss Brit [Gemma] was seen accompanying him nearly everywhere. It’d always been like that. ANYWHERE they went. But really, he was grateful for his brooding looks because it told people to stay the fuck away. Including those who sought after his Twerp, t’ch … but this conversation happening presently with Prue wouldn’t lead to that. She had a type of ease to her; just as Gemma did when feeling content with people. Furtively, the warshaper was kinda jealous of such comfort around others. He’d not had a normal childhood like most. Still, what could he surmise from this short conversation with this young lady? She was pleasant company. A bookish demeanor, but polite and collected. But with Gemma’s sudden zephyr of exuberance once again sweeping past the present trio – it seemed that that mousey exterior of Prue cracked, giving way to an equally loquacious girl. Not that that was bad or anything, but Kuro hadn’t expected it. It was a nice surprise, however. He liked the idea of his partner making new friends [him excluded.] The pair of girls went on to speak to each other about school experiences and upon finding out that she was the prime candidate for the scholarship this year, Kuro said his congratulations. Though, that lowkey curse word from Prue had the great hammer grinning lightly only then to retain his erstwhile stoicism. “Ain’t something that I can teach you in one standing.” Again, he came forth with the ambiguous answer – rolling a broad shoulder as he did so. He wasn’t rude in answering these questions, just candid. “As fer teachin’ you how to transform – you’ll learn. No worries. You need a partner first though. An’ I’m sure the school is doing their best to see where you properly fit.” Kuro wasn’t the most helpful to the new student when it came to introducing the subject of shapeshifting, but he was glad to see that Gemma was doing her best to be relatable in her own terms with Prue. And from the looks of it – a friendship had already sparked between the pair of them. “Though,” he added, “if you really want to learn – come to practice with Gemma and I next time. Make sure you know your mana reserves and their limits. Tightening his arm around the roseate witch’s frame, he squeezed her close. Wilting forward then, he spoke, “Oiii,” he began, letting his lips gravitate towards Pinky’s peach cheeks, “…I hafta to go now. My work shift is coming up soon at the shop. I’ll text you when I get there.” Ringed fingers played a bit more with Gemma’s long locks of hair until Kuro ultimately pulled away. “Nice to meet you, Prue. I hope we can hang out in the future.” He said, before turning to his girlfriend with an impish grin, cheeks tinged. “See you later, Twerp.” And off he went, stealing one more glance over his shoulder at the fashionista with a wink ... ... god why was she so cute?! ]'

Gemma
.: Despite being in their final year, Gemma and Kuro never really perceived themselves as role-model material to look toward for anything. They focused hard into their studies when it was time to do that, and then floated about in their own world – should it converge with that of others’ or not varied (but thanks to Gemma, their world often had open borders to others). Gemma was aware of Kuro taking a slightly easier posture, and the way he tousled her hair a bit extra here and there demonstrated that further to her – he was teasing her a little bit sometimes, which he was less prone to do if he was on the lookout for trouble instead. Kuro was interacting now with someone who had been guided to the pacted battlemage sparring lessons, signifying that the school considered her a good candidate – to be a wielder or weapon, though, it seemed *none* of that trio knew just yet. “Cool, I wanna watch!” She cheered on the opportunity to see Kuro teach someone, or at least help them discover if being a warshaper was the side of the pact Prue was inclined toward – if not…. “And if you find you’re suited to the battlemage side, *I* can help!~” She chimed. Gemma felt Kuro tense slightly, and she suspected-- … yes. He was preparing to go. She felt her stomach sink a little, but she grinned up at him and nodded. “Nakaa~” she hummed quietly to affectionately tease him back. After Kuro left, with a vigorous, full-armed wave from Gemma, catching the last few spying glances he cast back at her as he went; Gemma turned to Prue. “Come have lunch with me, we can talk a bit more about the pacted battlemage stuff, and where some good books are on the topic! And who had wings anyway?” The girls could talk academics, people, or whatever called to them as they felt one another out over the bridging tool a good meal could be. :.

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