(no subject)

[tooprettytodie]

Valkyrie wiped the sweat out of her eyes and for not the first time since arriving on the island, lamented the loss of her magic. She didn't realize how many tiny ways she had used it every day, for things even as simple as keeping a cool breeze on her so she didn't get all sweaty. In a place as humid as the island, that skill would have been very helpful.

It was a minor thing to be annoyed about, but it helped take her focus off of the way her arms and shoulders were burning. The practice sword that Edmund had made for her wasn't terribly heavy, but she had been drilling with it all morning. She hadn't learned much yet, but Valkyrie was a dedicated student and wanted to learn everything to perfection.

Leaning the sword against a tree, she got a drink of water from her canteen and massaged one of her shoulders. She was mildly pleased with how hard the muscle there felt and wondered if maybe she should go hunt down Percy later since she felt like she was looking especially good in her sleeveless tank top and yoga pants.

Nodding to herself, she picked up the practice sword again. She would practice for another hour, then go see if Percy wanted to get lunch.

Comments

[tooktheblack]

There were several people on the island who seemed deft with a sword and Jon had tried to make a point of getting familiar with each, knowing who he could count on in a fight or, if things went sour, who to watch out for lest he ended up with a knife in his back.

"You've got good form so far," he remarked as he passed by the girl, appraising her the way he would have one of the new boys up on the Wall.

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

If there was one thing that Valkyrie liked- and there wasn't, she liked several things- it was compliments. Compliments from handsome men were especially nice to get.

"Thank you," she said, keeping her focus on her sword-work as she glanced at the sound of the voice from the corner of her eye.

"I've only been at it for about a week now."

[tooktheblack]

"Then it's even more impressive," Jon said, the smirk smoothing out into an actual smile. He wasn't so far removed from the Wall that he'd forgotten how to teach a man to hold a sword, or guard his back, and he drew a little closer.

"I could help, if you wanted. I've taught dozens of people how to fight with swords and daggers."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"That would be brilliant, actually," she said. It wasn't that she thought Edmund's teaching would be lacking. Quite the opposite. She liked to excel though, and if she could surprise him by how much she was progressing by getting some extra help, that would be great.

"It would be nice if I could learn a bit extra before my next lesson. And I don't mind working extra hard to learn."

[tooktheblack]

"Not a problem," Jon said, drawing Longclaw. "Would you like to wield it, see the weight of it? It will be much different from your practice sword but this is Valyrian steel. This is the finest type sword a man can have in Westeros."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"Sure, although my arms are already pretty tired," she admitted. Valkyrie wasn't about to pass up the chance to practice a bit with a real sword.

"Don't suppose you've got a few extra of these laying around? Or any metal sword for that matter, they seem to be in short supply."

[tooktheblack]

“I only have Longclaw and a few daggers. The daggers are made of dragonglass, though, and won’t be any match against live steel.”

They’d been good against the Others, though, and Jon had been grateful for their protection on more than one occasion and grateful for Sam Tarly’s discovery of their potency against the walkers.

“I can see if my brother or Edmund has another, though.”

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"What's dragonglass?" she asked. It sounded exotic and magical to her. She wondered if they had any back in her world.

"And Edmund said he would find me a sword when my training got along more. I'm just... Enthusiastic about it. Plus I don't like not having a weapon."

[tooktheblack]

"Obsidian, I think you'd call it," Jon said, drawing out the dagger and letting her see it. No harm in that, because while it was sharp, it wouldn't do much damage compared to Longclaw.

"Very brittle, though, even if it is beautiful. It's the only thing that can slay something at the Wall called the white walkers."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

Valkyrie let the tip of the sword rest on the ground so she could hold it with one hand while she took the dagger from him. She wouldn't have thought it would make a good weapon, but she understood about things having special properties against certain creatures.

"What's a white walker?" she asked, handing the dagger back. She was pretty much going to ask him about every noun he said that she didn't understand.

[tooktheblack]

"A wight, have you heard of those? It's a man that's been possessed by the cold and walks in undeath," Jon explained. "Unnatural and normally only seen north of the Wall but they're moving south now, and quickly."

"Not something you want greeting you, put it that way."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"I haven't heard of anything specifically like that," Valkyrie admitted. That didn't mean her world didn't have them though, she was still learning about things like that. Half the time she only learned about something because it attacked them.

"We have things that are sort of similar though. At least undead things. None that got that way because the cold made them that way."

[tooktheblack]

"Most frightening thing I've ever seen," Jon admitted readily. "And I hope to never see one again even if I do want to go home someday. That's why I keep the dragonglass on me even though it makes a poor weapon as a general rule."

Never too careful. Never too safe.

[percy_jackson]

Finished with my classes that morning, I walked through the halls of the Compound, heading for the kitchen. Looking ahead, I was pleasantly surprised to see Valkyrie in the corridor, looking around. Pleasantly surprised and... suddenly rather nervous. If I wanted to ask Valkyrie to be my date at Zell's wedding, now was the time. But... that would mean asking Valkyrie to be my date. That was harder than it sounded.

But it really was now or never, so it was time to man up. "Hey, Valkyrie!" I called. I waved to her as I came closer.

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

It was rather convenient that Percy had found her, especially since she was hoping to find him without actually looking really hard to find him. She didn't want to seem that stuck on him or anything, she just... wanted to see him.

"Hey Percy," she said, smiling at him and giving a wave.

[percy_jackson]

"Hey," I said in return. Then realized I'd just said that, and that if I didn't do something quick, we could be doomed to be just standing here, saying 'hey' to each other a lot. I took a deep breath. "I was just going to get some lunch. Want to join me?"

Well, partial success. I'd invited her, but to lunch, not to a wedding. Why was it so hard?

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

Percy was kind of awkward at times, but it was endearing. Sort of like a puppy that got so excited to see you it peed on the carpet. Only fortunately with Percy the pee was just metaphorical.

"Yeah, sure, I could eat," she said with a shrug, trying not to sound too excited about the prospect. "What have you been up to today?"

[percy_jackson]

"Taking classes, mostly," I said, leading the way to the kitchen. That made me sound younger than I wanted to be, but there was no getting around it. "I've tried to take a full course load since coming here. I've had far more success at this school than any of the others Mom sent me to back home."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"I heard the classes here are pretty interesting," she said with a nod. They really didn't hold much interest for her, at least not enough that she wanted to jump right in and take one. Maybe next semester.

"Which ones are you taking?"

[percy_jackson]

"Whatever I can get my hands on, really," I said, handing her a plate. "Though not so much that I miss out on walking Mrs. O'Leary, training, or time with my friends. History. Some astronomy. Composition." I coughed. "Baking. It's just nice to get through a semester without being expelled."

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

It was cute that he was embarrassed about taking baking, but not so embarrassed that he was going to not mention taking it. She liked that about him, secure in his masculinity but still a guy.

"You know, I could walk Mrs. O'Leary sometimes," she said. If Percy wanted to come along sometimes too, that wouldn't be all bad. "It's been ages since I've properly gone to school."

[percy_jackson]

"It's certainly an interesting experience," I said. "And some of the teachers? Way cooler than the ones we got back home."

I was becoming aware that I hadn't even broached the subject I'd wanted to ask Valkyrie about, and I wasn't likely to if I didn't go and do it right now. I took a deep breath and said, "Hey, I wanted to ask you something. A friend of mine, Zell, is getting married in a couple of weeks. He's asked me to be a groomsman, but I'm allowed to bring... someone else along." I gave her a hopeful smile. "Want to come to a wedding?"

Okay, that didn't come out quite the way I'd anticipated, but it would have to do.

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

Valkyrie piled her plate up with food, not really caring what type of food it was. Ever since she'd started training years ago she'd found she ate as much as most guys her age.

As Percy talked, she avoided looking at him since she was worried that might cause him to fumble the words. It was pretty obvious he was asking her to be his date and as easily flustered as he got, she didn't want to add to that. At least not too much. When he had finally gotten the words out, she glanced up at him.

"Sure, I'd love to," she said. It was something pretty minor, but something he was asking her to do with him. Her eyes roamed his face. She liked his green eyes especially, and his lips. Lips that felt very nice to kiss.

"So help me though, if it's tomorrow and I have to rush finding a dress and figure out how to do my hair..."

[percy_jackson]

"Nonono, it's not tomorrow," I said quickly. For a second, there, I thought it was, and I felt a jolt of worry that we hadn't chosen our groomsmen outfits yet. "It's December 1st. They're going to do it at the Compound, I think, and have a party afterward. That should give you some time, right?"

[prettywithawill.livejournal.com]

"Plenty of time," she said, smiling at him. She tried not to get too excited about the idea of it. It wasn't a huge deal, really, but the fact that he had picked her to ask was especially nice.

"So are you going to be wearing a tuxedo and everything?"