//------------------------------//
// Unrequited pt 3 
// Story: Sins of the Mother 
// by Chelis 
//------------------------------//

They each grabbed a wooden sword and readied themselves. They were fantasizing they were on the field of battle. The clashing of steel, the smell of gunpowder, the screams of the dying was heard in the distance. 

Leon charged in the tight space of the armory, every swing was met with her block, the sound of the tapping of wood resonated in the room. Leon's attacks were always in a pattern. First, he went for a slash across the belly, then he would raise his sword and try to slash in a slant. He would then turn and try to go for a diagonal slash on the other side, but each blow was being blocked by Star's wooden sword. 

Every time he would finish the three swing combination, she would go in herself on the attack. Unpredictable, quick, and not afraid to get close. They both swing at the same time,blocking each other’s hit, and got closer to their opponent.

"Whats with the attack, Leo? You are basically telling me your attack plan," Starburst grinned

"And your barbaric fighting is any better? Next thing I know you're going to tell me you eat without a fork!"

They backed off, circling one another like a pair of wolves, sizing each other up and waiting for a chance to strike. It became too much for the impatient Starburst, who chose to go on the attack striking at Leon with wild and unpredictable attacks. In the midst of her attack, Leon got in close and slapped her down with a hit to the cheek from his bare hand. Star stayed on the ground, her hand holding where she was smacked. A sense of guilt and fear washed over Leon, who realized he may have taken it too far. 

"Star? You okay?" he said as he slowly walked closer to her, and dropped his sword. Her back was to him, and he started to hear her quietly sob.

"I-I'm sorry, hey.." he said as he knelt in front of her back. 

Without warning, Star swung her sword backward, narrowly hitting Leon. She was already around and on her feet, swinging at the defenseless leon while kicking his sword away and under a rack of real metal swords in the process. 

"Never fall for the possum in battle!" Star laughed as she continued her attack.

Every swing would hit air or metal from the racks. Leon grabbed a decorative wooden shield from the wall and used it to block her attacks, trying to stay alive as long as possible until he got his opportunity. It didn't help that he was losing his energy just holding that thing up. 

Soon, he was backed into a corner, holding the heavy shield up as Star used every bit of her strength to keep hacking. Every time she did, it was met with the knocking sound of the sword hitting the shield. 

Star's last attempt at winning was grabbing the shield from the top and trying to pry it out of Leon's hand, throwing her sword aside to get both hands on it. The tug of war lasted only a few seconds, after which both combatants collapsed on the floor. Both were sweaty, unkempt, and breathing heavily.

They couldn't get up or move, the battle was over.

Throughout the fight, they were so caught up that they didn't know that in front of the armory, they had a small audience composed of Starburst's friends

"So she meets a boy, and she ends up sparring with him on the first meet," Bolt sighed.

"Is that like, sex for sadists?" Anthea asked. 

"Star is a sparring slut, what can you do." Crystal chuckled. 


***


"Wow, what were we thinking with that sword fight?!"  Star chuckled

"It was fun beating you," Leon said.

"Bull fucking shit! I had you fair and square!" 

"Whatever!"

The watch tower had become their personal meeting place, the lantern, and the moon their only source of light. They were laying down, watching the stars.

"I get it you like me, it's just... it’s just I’m preoccupied with things. I have a job to do and my parents to find," Starburst said

"I know. You know us griffons."

"Yea. Tell you what, Leon. After this is all over, we should finish our fight," 

Leon chuckled. "I usually don't give rematches to people who have lost to me, but for you, I'll make an exception."

"Wow, that's so nice of you," Star remarked, rolling her eyes.

They would spend the rest of the night sharing stories and catching up. Through that, they realized, like back in that bedroom that many years ago, they were not so different from each other.