Spears Crossed
LISTEN. Nobody said I was good at titles, okay? Spear Lessons was bad enough, but I didn't wanna just call this Spear Lessons Part Two, you know??
Anyway, this is the second part to Spear Lessons. I am completely addicted to medieval sparring youtube now and there is no turning back for me. Also might be a little in love with Raphael, but that's a different problem.
GN!MC x Raphael
Warnings: none, 'tis still fluff
You stood in the RAD coliseum, your feet spread and knees lowered in a fighting stance. You clutched a spear in one hand, held up and slightly behind yourself, waiting. The large space was filled with tense silence.
Across from you, still several feet away, Raphael stood straight, but relaxed. His spear was held in his hand, pointing up to the ceiling. He seemed perfectly composed as he kept his eyes on you.
You crouched slightly, waiting for him to make the first move.
When Raphael stepped back, bringing his spear down into position, you knew he was deliberately going slow enough for you to see what he was doing. It irritated you just a little. After all this time, why was he still going easy on you?
Because of this, you were prepared for his lunge. You brought your spear down and around, tucking it on the inside of his to easily knock it to the side. It stabbed past your head harmlessly.
You took advantage of the moment and stepped forward into your own thrust, aiming the tip of your spear at his chest.
Raphael stepped backward, pulling the tip of his spear just beneath yours so it was positioned to knock you out of the way.
Your spear listed to the side a little as you pulled it back into yourself, rearranging into a prepared stance. The tips of your spears were now crossed and they clanked against each other faintly as you each shuffled your feet in preparation for the next attack.
It was a split second decision for you to take the offense, stepping forward before Raphael could, bringing your spear into line to hit him.
Raphael deflected your spear almost too easily. He may have started slow for your benefit, but you recognized when he got serious.
That was when his spear slid across the top of yours, the tip aimed right at your neck.
Your best choice was to duck, so you did. You took several steps backward to further avoid the strike. Then you turned a little to re-enter the fighting space and thrust your own spear out at Raphael. You kept your dominant hand on the bottom of the spear, using your arm's strength to send it out from you as far as it would go.
You nearly clipped him, but Raphael knocked it aside in time.
You were breathing a little heavily now, but you were proud of yourself for getting that close.
You didn't let up. You decided a series of quick thrusts was the way to go - throw him off by not letting him take a break from defending against you.
You moved forward with each thrust, your feet carrying you across the coliseum floor easily, the continual jabs from the spear being repelled each time. But you noted how Raphael's parries were getting sloppier and sloppier as you pressed him.
So you continued, kept going until you saw the perfect opening. Raphael's spear was already slightly off to the side due to meeting your last thrust. So you used your own spear to press his down, forcing the tip to the ground. Then you thrust, letting your spear slide up the length of his until the point reached his throat.
If you had been fighting for real, he would be dead.
Raphael looked at you over the tip of your spear, which was made of a harmless rubber and was now bent in half against his neck. His surprised expression suddenly melted into a smile and your heart constricted when you saw the pride there.
You laughed, overwhelmed at the fact that you had finally beat him. For months now, you had been sparring here in the coliseum and you had never once managed to hit him. Every time, Raphael deflected your attacks.
You dropped your sparring spear, a simple thing made of wood, letting it clank against the ground.
"I did it!" you exclaimed.
You didn't wait for a reaction from Raphael, you simply ran toward him and flung your arms around his neck.
There was another clank as Raphael dropped his own spear - also for practice and made of wood and rubber. His arms caught you and he stepped back a few paces from your momentum.
You suddenly found yourself staring directly into those blue eyes. They were as calm as they always were, but there was something else there now. A spark of feeling that you couldn't quite decipher. It was more than pride, it was fondness, it was accomplishment.
Memories flashed through your mind - all the days you had come here with your practice spear, ready to lose yet again. Every time Raphael had carefully shown you the nuances of handling the spear correctly. Whenever he took the time to explain to you what you were doing wrong. The adrenaline of a sparring match firing you up, the rapid beating of your heart, from exertion and exhilaration and something else you couldn't quite admit to.
"I'm proud of you, MC," Raphael said. "You've really mastered the use of the spear."
It was such a simple statement. It was just like him to say something like that to you so easily, with all his emotions simmering beneath them. He remained so calm upon the surface, but his words gave him away.
"You were still holding back," you said quietly. "I saw how you fell into the stance so slowly. Don't do that next time, okay?"
Raphael chuckled. "I won't, I promise."
You pulled an arm back so you could let your fingertips brush through his hair, just barely catching the edges of the gold diamonds.
All the feelings that had built up inside you throughout the time you'd been learning from Raphael finally spilled over.
It seemed that Raphael could see it happening in your eyes because his arms tightened around you.
That was all the encouragement you needed. You cupped his face with your hands and kissed him.
The spark you'd seen in his eyes flared up between you instead, a swirling flutter in your stomach as he returned your kiss.
You pulled away with a little gasp, your nerves jangling.
Raphael's eyes were shining. "MC," he said. "I want to give you something."
He let go of you, though you could feel the reluctance as he did. You waited, watching him.
Raphael lifted a hand, a glow surrounded him, and the rain of spears he was so well known for began. You didn't need to step out of the way because you knew they wouldn't touch you.
And they didn't. They didn't even hit the ground. Raphael grabbed one and the rest disappeared. It looked just like the Celestial Realm spear he had been using that day you first saw him on the grass on the RAD campus. Bright and shining, all gold and steel.
Raphael held it out to you. "I want you to have this."
Your eyes widened. "Y-you… what?"
He smiled, stepped closer to you, lifted one of your hands to hold the spear with his. "You've earned it," he said. "And if there's ever a day when you need to defend yourself for real, you'll have a weapon that will never fail you."
The thoughtfulness of this gesture made you feel like you might explode into a tiny burst of spears yourself.
"Are you sure?" you asked.
Raphael's expression became serious. "I have never been so sure of anything in my life."
You turned into him, overwhelmed. And although the bright and shining spear was still clutched between you, Raphael kissed you again. It was full of all the things he hadn't said - everything you already knew from the look in his eyes and the spear in your hand.
It was a bit risky, perhaps. You were both keenly aware of what had happened the last time an angel fell in love with a human. But you were also prepared for any adversity that happened to come your way. Even if it meant that in the end, it would only be the two of you and some stolen Celestial Realm spears.
Spear Lessons | masterlist | Thank you for reading!
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