Tales of the Abyss, "Sparring"
Okay, so. I don't normally do this, but knockturnul and maladaptive encouraged me shamelessly, such that I was unable to resist the lure of genderswapped Fabre boys. Written for the prompt "my type" at 10_switched, where the premise is that your claimed character is of the opposite gender.
Contains snarky!Guy, female!Asch, young!Asch, Asch->Van.
.Sparring.
Under ordinary circumstances, Gailardia Galan Gardios would never have wished a son and heir on his mortal enemies, but he made an exception for Duke Fabre, because Duke Fabre had a daughter, and she was eight years old and terrifying. Lucia fon Fabre was too much of everything dangerous -- she was too smart, too confident, too bold, and too opinionated -- and she was mentoring her cousin and closest friend, the Princess Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear, on how to be the same way. If she weren't so adorable that she threatened to rot Guy's teeth, she might have made it a lot easier to plot murder.
But Lucia had one weakness that Guy was privy to, and that weakness made him feel much better about being terrified of her.
Lucia kicked her legs, which could not quite touch the ground from where she perched on a bench, and she said, miffed, "It's very difficult to practice my lessons when my manservant, who to all accounts is very skilled with a sword, refuses to help me."
Guy spread his hands apologetically. "You know that my-- condition makes that hard, Lucia."
She eyed him darkly. He crouched low to the ground so as to be at her level, but kept a safe distance away from her -- so that if she for some reason saw fit to lunge at him, he would be able to get away in time. "Yes, yes," she said impatiently. "You hate women, I know. But I shouldn't count. You're supposed to be my attendant!"
"I, I'm sorry," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "I don't get to decide who counts and who doesn't."
Lucia folded her arms over her white dress and her brows drew together. "One more time," she insisted.
"No! The last time you said that, you hugged me on purpose when you lost!"
"I forgot," she said without turning a hair. "And I'm not a sore loser."
He was saved from having to call her the bald-faced little liar she was when footsteps on the cobblestones heralded Van's arrival, and Lucia's face came alight. It was an entirely different little girl, to all appearances, who hopped from the bench and hurried up to her swordsmaster, hands clasped in front of her.
"Master Van!" she exclaimed. "I've been so excited about our lesson today!"
Guy got to his feet, folding his arms over his chest to hide his amusement. "Good morning, Master Van," he said pleasantly.
The older youth looked up at him and smiled, a private smile, just for him, and then back down to Lucia, and the smile curved into something more affectionate. "Have you been practicing, Lucia?" he asked warmly.
"I was trying," she said, and slanted Guy a flat green-eyed look over her shoulder that made him take a hurried step back before he could stop it.
"Practice is important, but you mustn't be inconsiderate of Guy," Van scolded her before Guy could speak up in his own defense. "A faithful servant is worth a dozen sparring partners, and Guy does his best to attend you despite how difficult it is for him to be close to you."
Lucia hovered a moment longer, and then ducked her head, taking the rebuke. "I know," she said, muted. "It's just that he's the only one here who's close to my age, so I thought..."
Van put a hand on her head, stroking brilliant red hair with an ease that Guy rather envied. "It is hard to wait. But in a few years, you will have your choice of sparring partners from all of Baticul, and if you are good to him now, you will still have Guy as well. Is it really worth rushing if it forces Guy to quit?"
"No, Master," she murmured, so softly that Guy almost couldn't hear it.
"And in the meanwhile," Van added, smiling, "you still have me."
Lucia turned her face up to beam at him, her fingers tangling for a moment in his maestro robes before she realized what she was doing and hurriedly tucked the offending hands behind her back. "You have to see Father before we can practice, right?" she asked, impatience in that apparently-understanding question.
Van chuckled and with one last stroke of her hair, he said, "I'll do that now." He stepped away, striding across the courtyard, and dipped his head very slightly to Guy as he passed him.
Guy waited until he was gone before moving closer to Lucia. "He was a little harsher than I'd have been," he said, almost apologetically. He could see that she was still regretting it from her posture, and being uncomfortable was so -- not Lucia.
The redheaded girl turned to him, shaking her head a little. "No... Master Van is right," she said, wearing her dignity around her like a shroud -- gracious in her defeat. "I'm sorry for pressuring you, Guy."
He rubbed the back of his neck and moved on -- being thirteen, it was the most gracious way he knew how to deal with that sort of attention. "You certainly sing a different tune when Van's around," he said lightly.
"I-- Well, he's right," she protested. "Master Van is really smart."
"He is," Guy allowed, his lips curling up smugly. "But not enough to account for the way you just turned bright red. Unless really smart guys are your type?"
Lucia flushed and raised her hands to her cheeks, maybe feeling their heat or trying to hide the color, then glared at him.
He said blithely, "Well, maybe if he stays unwed until you're twenty -- that's only, what, twelve years? He'll be thirty and ancient, but--"
"He won't be ancient!" Lucia said, on the verge of stamping her foot, and then she seemed to have realized that she'd given herself away and she turned red to match her hair. She curled one hand into a tiny little fist and stepped closer to Guy threateningly. He retreated quickly, holding up his arms to ward her off.
Still, Guy thought while she sparred with Van a short while later, watching Lucia's face glowing with energy and pleasure. As fun as it was to tease her about it, he hoped that she didn't really plan to marry Van when she was of age. He knew Van's real intentions with her, and it was cruel to think that her trust might be abused quite that deeply.
After all, fitting to use the daughter of the Butcher of Hod to enact his revenge; but the Butcher of Hod had never broken anyone's heart.
Contains snarky!Guy, female!Asch, young!Asch, Asch->Van.
.Sparring.
Under ordinary circumstances, Gailardia Galan Gardios would never have wished a son and heir on his mortal enemies, but he made an exception for Duke Fabre, because Duke Fabre had a daughter, and she was eight years old and terrifying. Lucia fon Fabre was too much of everything dangerous -- she was too smart, too confident, too bold, and too opinionated -- and she was mentoring her cousin and closest friend, the Princess Natalia Luzu Kimlasca-Lanvaldear, on how to be the same way. If she weren't so adorable that she threatened to rot Guy's teeth, she might have made it a lot easier to plot murder.
But Lucia had one weakness that Guy was privy to, and that weakness made him feel much better about being terrified of her.
Lucia kicked her legs, which could not quite touch the ground from where she perched on a bench, and she said, miffed, "It's very difficult to practice my lessons when my manservant, who to all accounts is very skilled with a sword, refuses to help me."
Guy spread his hands apologetically. "You know that my-- condition makes that hard, Lucia."
She eyed him darkly. He crouched low to the ground so as to be at her level, but kept a safe distance away from her -- so that if she for some reason saw fit to lunge at him, he would be able to get away in time. "Yes, yes," she said impatiently. "You hate women, I know. But I shouldn't count. You're supposed to be my attendant!"
"I, I'm sorry," he said, rubbing the back of his head. "I don't get to decide who counts and who doesn't."
Lucia folded her arms over her white dress and her brows drew together. "One more time," she insisted.
"No! The last time you said that, you hugged me on purpose when you lost!"
"I forgot," she said without turning a hair. "And I'm not a sore loser."
He was saved from having to call her the bald-faced little liar she was when footsteps on the cobblestones heralded Van's arrival, and Lucia's face came alight. It was an entirely different little girl, to all appearances, who hopped from the bench and hurried up to her swordsmaster, hands clasped in front of her.
"Master Van!" she exclaimed. "I've been so excited about our lesson today!"
Guy got to his feet, folding his arms over his chest to hide his amusement. "Good morning, Master Van," he said pleasantly.
The older youth looked up at him and smiled, a private smile, just for him, and then back down to Lucia, and the smile curved into something more affectionate. "Have you been practicing, Lucia?" he asked warmly.
"I was trying," she said, and slanted Guy a flat green-eyed look over her shoulder that made him take a hurried step back before he could stop it.
"Practice is important, but you mustn't be inconsiderate of Guy," Van scolded her before Guy could speak up in his own defense. "A faithful servant is worth a dozen sparring partners, and Guy does his best to attend you despite how difficult it is for him to be close to you."
Lucia hovered a moment longer, and then ducked her head, taking the rebuke. "I know," she said, muted. "It's just that he's the only one here who's close to my age, so I thought..."
Van put a hand on her head, stroking brilliant red hair with an ease that Guy rather envied. "It is hard to wait. But in a few years, you will have your choice of sparring partners from all of Baticul, and if you are good to him now, you will still have Guy as well. Is it really worth rushing if it forces Guy to quit?"
"No, Master," she murmured, so softly that Guy almost couldn't hear it.
"And in the meanwhile," Van added, smiling, "you still have me."
Lucia turned her face up to beam at him, her fingers tangling for a moment in his maestro robes before she realized what she was doing and hurriedly tucked the offending hands behind her back. "You have to see Father before we can practice, right?" she asked, impatience in that apparently-understanding question.
Van chuckled and with one last stroke of her hair, he said, "I'll do that now." He stepped away, striding across the courtyard, and dipped his head very slightly to Guy as he passed him.
Guy waited until he was gone before moving closer to Lucia. "He was a little harsher than I'd have been," he said, almost apologetically. He could see that she was still regretting it from her posture, and being uncomfortable was so -- not Lucia.
The redheaded girl turned to him, shaking her head a little. "No... Master Van is right," she said, wearing her dignity around her like a shroud -- gracious in her defeat. "I'm sorry for pressuring you, Guy."
He rubbed the back of his neck and moved on -- being thirteen, it was the most gracious way he knew how to deal with that sort of attention. "You certainly sing a different tune when Van's around," he said lightly.
"I-- Well, he's right," she protested. "Master Van is really smart."
"He is," Guy allowed, his lips curling up smugly. "But not enough to account for the way you just turned bright red. Unless really smart guys are your type?"
Lucia flushed and raised her hands to her cheeks, maybe feeling their heat or trying to hide the color, then glared at him.
He said blithely, "Well, maybe if he stays unwed until you're twenty -- that's only, what, twelve years? He'll be thirty and ancient, but--"
"He won't be ancient!" Lucia said, on the verge of stamping her foot, and then she seemed to have realized that she'd given herself away and she turned red to match her hair. She curled one hand into a tiny little fist and stepped closer to Guy threateningly. He retreated quickly, holding up his arms to ward her off.
Still, Guy thought while she sparred with Van a short while later, watching Lucia's face glowing with energy and pleasure. As fun as it was to tease her about it, he hoped that she didn't really plan to marry Van when she was of age. He knew Van's real intentions with her, and it was cruel to think that her trust might be abused quite that deeply.
After all, fitting to use the daughter of the Butcher of Hod to enact his revenge; but the Butcher of Hod had never broken anyone's heart.