Saccharine Secrets - Magna x Luck

4.

The prospect of the Royal Knights exam weighs heavily on Magna's shoulders. It means more to him than anyone else in the Squad, he would think. He's been scrambling for a chance to prove himself ever since that fight at the Underwater Temple. It's not the only chance he has and not the only chance he will have, but he has to start grasping at all those little chances eventually. He can't afford to slack off when Luck is right there and getting stronger without him. He grits his teeth, half in frustration and half in anticipation. He just wants to be able to do something already, dammit.

"What's this? Are you getting tired, Magna?" Luck calls out to him, getting his attention. He licks his lips hungrily and crouches, getting ready to pounce. "Go ahead and rest."

That's right. They were sparring, holed up inside the training room of the Black Bulls base. It's a little too cramped here for his liking, but they're stuck for the time being due to the weather. All the rain is making it impossible for them to train in the open without catching a cold.

"I'm just bursting with energy, you idiot." Magna chuckles, planting his feet firmly on the dirt of the training grounds and adjusting his grip on his fiery bat. "You butt out, Luck."

With a burst of energy, Luck goes straight for him as if he's a pure bolt of lightning. It's at such a blistering speed that any normal person would have a hard time reacting, but Magna knows him too all too well. He ducks instead of sidestepping, knowing that it's easy for the other boy to make a simple adjustment otherwise. His knees don't scream at him for the sudden motion anymore, thanks to him working out and training his flexibility.

Luck crashes into the dirt behind him, and he whips around quickly as he summons a bunch of floating fireballs around him. He can feel the other boy freeze in place, eyes wide as he scans them in a frenzy. It's no use. It's nearly impossible to discern between the ones that are normal, will disappear, or explode. Magna starts swinging his bat, burying the instinct that tells him to put more power into it. Time and time again, he's seen the boundless limits of other people's magic around him and he knows it's extremely unlikely he'll be able to catch up to it. He's not backing down though, what he lacks in power he can make up for in accuracy so he can more easily whittle enemies down.

The other boy blitzes past the volley of flames, resorting to tanking the hits. Magna falters a bit, but he stands his ground. He's already gone over this in his head. He's sure it'll deal damage over time, so he sticks to his guns and focuses on his endurance. Focus, Magna. He's not gonna get anywhere by thoughtlessly hitting things until it works. He has his weaknesses, but there's more to a battle than just raw strength.

A bolt of lightning comes hurtling at him, and he has to step to the side. Before he knows it, there's another trying to hit him from a different direction and it makes him stumble backwards in order to narrowly dodge both. All the while, the other boy is closing in rapidly. Shit. Lightning claws strike at him left and right, and none of them are hitting but he's getting strung taut like a bowstring. He can tell that he's dancing to Luck's tune, getting backed into a corner as he's moving exactly how the other boy wants him to. Finally, he gets punched right in the gut, making him crumple to the ground.

Luck lowers his stance and offers him a hand, giving him a tired yet satisfied smile. "Still wanna keep going?"

Magna wheezes as he takes it, smacking his fist on his chest until he feels like he can breathe again. "Wouldn't dream of stopping."