Private Take On Me!!!

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

It was evident Aris Noble didn't particularly care for any references regarding his royal status. It made him giggle. This was the first time she'd ever really seen him express such an embarrassed frustration. It only made her want to tease him more just to poke fun. At least, as long as it didn't really bother him, and he knew she was just teasing.

Whatever she had in mind to say faded momentarily as she felt the flood of thrilled excitement at her proposal to double down on her training to become the perfect personal knight. Without a thought, her skin began to shine with a pearly luminescence, the edges of her patterns glowing a lovely shade of cerulean-edged gold.

Glow Knight, indeed.

"Hey! Are you finally giving me a nickname?" She shot back, lifting her chin in mild defiance, eyes narrowing in mock affront. That was the thing of her kind; she couldn't quite pretend to be annoyed when her glowing skin and their emotional resonance indicated she was anything but.

"Fine, Your Highness, two can play that game." she stuck her tongue out at him in a silly expression to punctuate that.

 

[Aris Noble]

Aris cleared his throat and.. Blushed. Just a little. Yes, he was giving her a nickname, but he wasn't sure if it was a good one or not. That uncertainty was clear at least through the bond she'd made, though he wasn't focused or even thinking that she'd notice. At least, until he realized she wasn't truly annoyed. A peek at any of her colors assured him of that. So, he grinned again, rolling his eyes as she stuck out her tongue.

This wasn't going to end. Ever, he felt. These names were with them for life.

"I think, then, it's far more important for you to focus on your practice. Can't have a proper Glow Knight who slacks mm?"

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

There he was, blushing again. Granted, that didn't help Zaiya any better, feeling heat wash up her own face as that flustered feeling came back, dyeing her mottled spots and stripes a delightful pink.

"Anywayysss... okay. Back to sequences, I guess." She added, letting go of his hand before the fluttery feeling grew in her belly again. A thought came to her, "Besides this, I should learn hand-to-hand combat techniques, right?"

Time to start thinking of the best way to get Aris Noble on his back and Zaiya standing over him in victory!

"You know more about combat styles and what is out there; what do you think would work best with my strengths?" she asked him, curious on what he'd say, amber highlights rippling with citrine in thoughtful curiosity.

 

[Aris Noble]

​

"You should yeah. It'd be good for you to learn, just in case you ever lost your lightsaber." Back to the sequencing. He almost reluctantly let go of her hand, but absolutely did as he felt the fluttery feelings. Feelings he knew they shouldn't share at all. He looked back to the dummy, clearing his throat. He wanted to protect her. He would protect her. Even if she did truly end up being his Knight more than just this joking tease, he'd protect her.

"As for your strengths, I don't know much of them in physical combat. You're smart, and inventive. But I don't know how that translates into how you use your fists yet. I think it'd be best if you learned some of the basics on that from your Master, first? Then I can help with more."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

Focusing on what Aris Noble was saying helped Zaiya regain her concentration on the subject at hand rather than the fluttery feelings that had darted through her belly.

"I see, I guess we can continue with sequences for now. " She told him, pondering on asking Shan Pavond what basics in fighting she'll learn from him. However, if she recalled correctly, she thought Shan had told her before that he wasn't proficient with the lightsaber and chose not to focus on fighting if needed. Something he'll have to clarify so Zaiya knows what path to take to defend and protect others.

"So combinations of sequences, and constant repetition and practice to start?" Zaiya retook her stance and waited for Aris to call out zones. At least that way, she could see her reaction time as well. Hopefully, she was getting better.

 

[Aris Noble]

"For now, yeah. The basics are important." Without them, there wouldn't be any worth in training anything else. He looked to the dummy, kept his gaze there. He needed to calm down his mind at least from all the feelings he had bubbling there. Feelings he wasn't too sure on just what they were, only that he didn't feel he should have them. Not now, likely not ever. He'd go right into the random call outs then, one after another at a decent pace until he started to quicken it up. Pushed her, to see just how well she could keep the pace.

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

They spent this time for the next several minutes. Each time Aris Noble calling out a random sequence of combinations for Zaiya to practice her vertical and horizontal strikes. By the time a half hour passed, Zaiya was sweating, beads of it rolling down her jaw and neck and saturating her top. Her rosy golden skin was flushed, and she was tired. She never worked or exercised this hard before, and her body was not used to such a demanding regimen.

Even her palms were starting to hurt, with tender spots growing along the upper ridgeline, but she continued, determination igniting a glowing dark orange hue with blue rippling highlights as she continued on.

However, even Zaiya knew she'd need a break for some water. She was already parched.

THWACK!

With a huff that blue the damp tendrils of hair away from her forehead, Zaiya finished the last sequence, arms already feeling like jelly.

"Okay... maybe... a water break." She panted out, giving a slight grimace as she flexed her hands around the hilt of the Bokken and did her best to give her arms a bit of a stretch.

"How do you even do this for hours on end, Aris... " Zaiya asked, exhaling hot air with a whoosh from her lungs. There was a damp vee over her tank in between her chest and under her arms. She certainly had given it her all.

But how did Aris seem to never get tired of doing it all?

 

[Aris Noble]

Right, she got tired.

He watched her for a moment, no longer focused on the dummy but her specifically. Zaiya was exhausted. Sweating and tired. He wasn't used to seeing people like this- No. No he'd seen Valery Noble and Kahlil tired before after their own spars and fights. Their training. But Aris himself had never reached that point. He just didn't get tired at all, did he? How was he supposed to get stronger if he couldn't push himself more?

Those thoughts didn't matter. He stepped away to get up a bottle of water to toss over towards her. Mix of testing her reflexes and seeing just how exhausted she was.

"You did good. Really good. Just keep on working on this and you'll catch up in no time."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

The bottle of water was tossed at Zaiya's direction and she barely had enough time to react. As she was still holding her Bokken, she had to try to catch it with one hand, but her palm was so sore that she struggled, the bottle bouncing in her hand as she tried to scramble to catch it. She only barely managed to grab the cap section, and a sudden flurry of bioluminescence and glee dyed her skin in teals and blues as she held up the bottle victoriously.

"Ah hah! Got it!" She grinned at Aris Noble , although now she wanted to sit. Plopping down, she sat cross-legged, setting the Bokken down to her right and then opening the bottle. She chugged it down for a few gulps, a bit of water trickling down the sides of her mouth. She brought the back of her hand and wiped them off, giving another heavy whoosh of an exhale.

"Geez... that's a work out." She exclaimed, wide opal blue eyes staring up at Aris. He was standing over her again, quiet. Pensive.

"Juma juice for your thoughts?" she pipped out, grinning, grateful she was too tired to admire his height. She had been checking her height recently, and she'd grown an inch!

"Come on sit down silly, you can rest too."

 

[Aris Noble]

He blinked out of his introspection as she called out to him, and he smiled after a moment before he sat down beside her. He wasn't tired, he wouldn't be, but he didn't want to just loom over her while she was taking her own breather. Aris's smile softened as he looked at the dummy again, glancing over it for the scuff marks of each of her strikes. She was consistent, at least when she wasn't embarrassed.

"I wonder what it's like to push yourself to this point. Does it hurt? Does it feel empowering? Do you start to feel stronger? That's all I'm thinking about."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

Delighted that Aris Noble sat down, Zaiya's face glowed with pleasure, an ombre of teals painting her face. Curiosity quickly would shift that into a citrine hue, her brows perking at his commentary.

"Wait, do you never get tired? Like at all?" That was crazy. A frown of thoughtfulness would scrunch her face, "I mean... have you ever tried to get tired? Just to see what your limits are?" She asked, bringing her knees up to her chest to rest her cheek against the top of her kneecaps as she studied him.

A wry grin would twist on her lips and turquoise would bloom over her mottled spots, "Trust me... it can hurt if you overdo it. But... It does feel good after if one starts seeing the gains of what effort you put in." she picked up her hand and showed how pink it was along the ridge of her palm.

"Bet eventually I'll get callouses, and these won't hurt or burn as much."

 

[Aris Noble]

"I get sleepy. I have to sleep. But, nothing like this. I've never ran so far that I've had a hard time breathing. Sweated, the like. Sometimes it just feels like I've been chiseled from stone." He wasn't, of course. He was still getting taller, still growing. And he did get hurt at times. The battle of Coruscant showed that much by the nick on his neck, even if it had healed completely before the day was even over. Aris reached over to take her hand in his so he could actually study her palm.

"You likely will. A sign of your effort. Of your progress." Something he'd never have. He frowned, rubbing his thumb over the reddened parts of her palm.

"It doesn't hurt too much, does it?"

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

The light drift of Aris's thumb sailing over the tender areas of her palm made Zaiya's palm twitch. It felt equally good as it tickled. A faint flush rose to her face.

"Um.... it's sore, but I think I'll be fine. Shan taught me how to heal with the Force and I need to practice anyways. Maybe I can take away a bit of the swelling and the pain before we start up again."

Flicking her gaze up at Aris's face, the corner of her lip gave a quirk.

​

Sleepy? Just sleepy? Zaiya gave Aris Noble a bemused expression, the patterns on her skin shifting into an amused and wry tone of teal and light blue, especially when he said it felt as if he'd been chiseled by stone.

"Right. Chiseled by stone." Zaiya quipped, setting her bottle down to impulsively reach up to grab both of Aris's cheeks. Mischeviousness danced in her opal blue eyes as the teal would glow over the mottled spots on her face. Oh, she was having fun.

"Hmm... hrrrmmmmm, Let's see. " She mocked giving his face a good look, palms squishing his cheeks together as if studying their composition. "I don't know... just a little bit squishy." she gave his cheeks another little squish, drawing nearer to his face to give him a mocking inspection.

"Oh yeah... totally... I can see exactly where the chiseled stone could come from." Zaiya's breath barely tickled his face as she teased, turning Aris' head to the right and left, then squished a bit more until Aris's lips puckered out like a mudfish.

A terrible thing in hindsight because they were all of a foot apart, and suddenly, just how close she was to Aris bloomed in Zaiya's mind. Never mind how her iridescent eyes suddenly fell to his mock fishlips.

"Anyways.... " She immediately pulled away, swiveling her head and dropping her hands to make it as if she was going to grab her bottle of water again.

"Maybe you don't get tired or sweaty because you haven't tried to see what your limits are. How about you try and push yourself. I know you told me you've control yourself before with others. Why not let go and see what happens?" Zaiya took another chug of water, trying to fan her flushed face as if needing to cool it down due to her earlier training session, added. "I mean.. sweating is the body's natural way of cooling down so... why not try now to see if we can get you sweaty?"

 

[Aris Noble]

Confusion.

It was the thought that crossed his mind as she took his face in her hands and just, manhandled him. He put up no resistance, but a brow slowly raised as his own bemused smile formed. He hadn't been serious about him being made of stone. That was silly, given he was very much of flesh and very much growing. But she took the thought and ran with it, and it wasn't hard for him to see why.

Rather than the solemn thought of just how inhuman he might be, he was smiling now. Though confusion returned as she suddenly pulled away and shifted to a different color as she turned away. He tilted his head, but, felt it best not to press into what had just gone through her mind. "Alright. I think. I.. Don't know what I can do. I've been doing everything everyone else does. More, of course, but, I should be tired, right?"

He looked down at his hands, frowning as he idly curled his fingers inward. He should be tired doing what he's been doing. Sweaty. No one else in his class could keep up. He knew he was distant in that regard. Maybe he was just holding himself back too much. He didn't want to break things as he had before. Shattering bokkens was a normal occasion if he didn't keep in control. He glanced to the dummy again.

"I don't really know how to, I guess."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

Doing her best to calm the jump skip in her heart, Zaiya focused on what activity Aris could do here in the training center to get him to really start feeling the burn.

"Umm... let me see what's around. " She pushed herself up from her sitting position, leaving her Bokken on the floor. Dusting herself off, she panned her iridescent blue eyes around the area until they settled on a storage cubby.

"It can't be just sparring. You are used to doing that. It's the same with using a sword or something similar -- plus I know if we spar, there is no way you'll work up a sweat fighting me right now. " She flashed him a mischievous grin and a waggle of her brows, "Sorry, your Highness, but your personal knight isn't quite up to par yet."

Walking over to the storage cubby, she continued, "So it has to be something you are not used to having to do. " Opening the doors, she flung them gently wide, eyes searching. It only took a few seconds before her attention landed on a thick rope with wooden handles.

Oh!

"I got it!" She grabbed the rope. The thick length was smooth and woven tight. Excited, Zaiya took one end in each hand and began to loop it over her head, giving a few jumps to test it out. Her messy topknot bobbed and swayed with every bounce, subtle curves joining as Zaiya giggled and her skin began to gleam in delighted hues of teal and gold. The biolummienece of her skin shimmered with mesmerizing glee again.

"Have you ever jumped rope?"

 

[Aris Noble]

"It's good she's at least started now, so she can catch up, mm?"

If they were going to stick with this Knight, then, he was certainly going to go all in. He remained seated as he watched her, humming in thought. What was she searching for? .. Why was he still looking at her? He glanced away with a brief blush. He shouldn't stare so much, right? He certainly didn't want to make her uncomfortable was looking at her uncomfortable?

It really didn't help with her shirt in it's state.

Then she was jumping. It looked silly, to Aris at least, as he ended up snickering into a laugh before he finally stood and reached out to take the rope. He did a couple practice jumps before the gears in his head started to turn. He could do this quick, couldn't he? And controlled? There wasn't much to even break, considering, and unlike running where he couldn't fully run at his fastest without the risk of breaking things, this.. He could?

".. Yeah, okay. Yeah. Let's go with this."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

Zaiya gave a clap of excitement as Aris agreed that this would be the best attempt to try and get him sweaty. With a wide, beaming grin and a ripple of colorful hues, she hurried to grab her water and then came back, choosing to plop herself down on the floor to rest for a bit more while watching Aris Noble do his thing.

"Okay, so you can try to keep a steady pace, or we can alternate speed and types of jumps to make it a bit more difficult. Jumping will get your heartrate up and is a great cardio activity, so maybe take notice of how your body is reacting to it as you jump, kinda like Master Qel-Droma said. "

A thought came to her.

"My bangle can play music if you like? Unless you want me to make it harder and distract you while you are jumping, haha,"

 

[Aris Noble]

A steady pace?

Aris hummed in thought as he looked to the rope in his hands. Then, without much more thought, he started to jump rope. Small hops as he got a feel for how it worked, the timing. It was awkward at first, especially as he continued to catch his legs, but he was taking his time. And, well, he was an eerily fast learner. Bit by bit he'd get the hang of it, and soon enough he was really jumping.

Fast. Probably to fast, but, he was grinning as he did start to feel.. A burn? Heavier breathing?

This was good. This was working.

"Music timing..? Yeah. Yeah! Let's- give that a try that could be fun."

Zaiya Ceti

 

[Zaiya Ceti]

​

"Awesome!" Zaiya grinned, immediately working on grabbing her datapad from the satchel she left on the ground just out of the way earlier. Things were starting to go back to normal, the odd fluttering waning. That was weird, she mused. Maybe I'm just overheated from training, she thought to herself, looking for excuses for why she'd felt so flushed before.

Either way, helping Aris Noble find ways to see if he could get himself tired or exhausted was a good thing. She was helping him!

Quickly padding over towards her satchel, the girl would dig in, plucking it out before putting on a rapid, high-energy mix that would be perfect for jumping rope.

A sudden thought and a flash of competitiveness would etch her face and dye her skin in a medley of familiar colors the Epicanthix would recognize; a challenge was coming.

"Bet I can jump rope faster than you!" She quipped out in playful defiance.

"See if you can keep up with me!"

 

[Aris Noble]

"You shouldn't make bets you'll loose, you know."

Aris could only grin. The music certainly helped him to get into a jumping mood, but competition? His grin was as fierce as ever as he paused his own jumping to wait for her to set up. To step up, more or less. It wasn't completely fair, given how exhausted she just was, but hubris was an important lesson for Jedi to learn right? "On your mark, then, Zaiya! I'm sure you're ready to loose~"

Zaiya Ceti