The Unforeseen

Sparring

I grabbed my shirt from the floor and slipped it back on. I smiled as I felt a pair of strong arms wrap around my waist.
"Can't you just reschedule?" Ace pleaded.
"I'm already an hour late, Ace. You may not value punctuality, but I do."
"He can wait five more minutes."
I glanced at him. "You and I both know it would not just be five minutes." I gingerly removed his hands and moved to grab the jeans now piled on the floor. "I'll be back later, though."
He gave me a devilish grin. "Why don't I come with you?"
"Nope." I immediately shot him down. "You have to replace my mirror." I pointed to the bathroom as I buttoned the jeans around my waist. "Besides, I can't focus with you in the room."
He groaned. "Fine. But once I get it fixed I can come see you?"
I rolled my eyes. "As long as you fixed it and not some rookie." I grabbed a hair tie from a random shelf and pulled my hair back into a tight bun.
"Got it." He said, his smile returning.
"Later," I called out as I closed the door behind me. I made my way down the hall down a flight of stairs. The training room was huge, with a set of double doors usually propped open to let the air flow. No one knew who's idea that was, but I was grateful for it; there are members who I know spend hours at a time working out, and that multiplied by thirty at any given time creates the foulest smell.
I spotted Marco near the rack of bows, seated with his feet propped on a barrel. His hands resting behind his head, leaning against the wall. He looked quite comfortable. Too bad.
I walked up poked him. "Hey," I said. He grunted a peeled one eye open.
"What." It wasn't a question so much as a statement.
"Ready to train. Sorry I'm late."
"Never apologize; it's a sign of weakness." He growled. He waited before he opened the other eye and looked at me. "Just kidding." He said, a laugh escaping his lips. He stood up, stretching his arms over his head. He grabbed a bow and a single arrow from a bin next to him.
"Alright. Shoot at that target." He handed me the bow and arrow while nodding toward a target hanging on the wall about ten feet away.
"You aren't going to show me anything?" I questioned.
"I'd rather see where you're at first. You know, see if you have your own style." He replied. "Now, shoot."
I knocked the arrow in its place and took a deep breath. I straightened my left arm while my right, fingers wrapped around the butt of the arrow and the string, pulled the two back to my cheek. I closed one eye to focus on the target better, and when I felt I was good, I let the arrow fly. To my pleasure, it hit the edge of the ring outside of the bullseye.
Marco whistled. "I thought you said you hadn't touched a bow in years."
"I haven't," I confirmed. "I went through a phase where I thought archery would be the best way to fend off pirates. It stopped after maybe two years after I realized they weren't good for close quarter combat."
"Well, we should work on that instead." Marco offered, walking to grab the arrow from the target.
"On what?"
"Close quarter with an arrow. It's basically a dagger, so it can be just as effective." He scanned the room as he plucked the arrow out.
"Rin!" The entire room froze, the poor rookie beginning to look mortified. "Come here; I need to demonstrate." He tosses the arrow back into the bin and grabbed a small stick- a baby staff, if you will.
Rin's eyes darted to me, and after a brief moment, he set his weights down and shuffled over. "Commander?"
"Grab a weapon- whatever you want- and spar with me," Marco said. He chuckled when he saw the terror in his eyes. "I'll go easy, don't worry." I grabbed a sword that was carelessly laying around me and handed it to Rin.
"Thanks." He muttered.
"Now, Rin, come at me with everything you've got." He grinned when the fear returned to his eyes. "Again, I won't kill you."
Rin took a big breath, and I stepped back about five feet. Rin lunged at Marco, his sword aiming for the commander's core. Marco easily sidestepped and jabbed the staff into Rin's back. He stumbled forward, but maintain his footing. Rin swung around, his sword staying close to the ground in a sweeping motion. Marco hopped over the blade, like it was but a stray toy, and knocked Rin's forearm with the staff. Rin hissed at the contact but seemed to ignore it as he charged again. Marco merely moved his shoulder away from the blade and stuck the staff to Rin's chest- exactly where his heart would be.
"That's enough." Marco decided. "Rin, you still leave yourself open in all of your attacks. You've gotten better, but you'll still be putting yourself in a tight spot if you don't fix those gaps."
"Yes, sir." Rin nodded.
"Who's your sparring partner?" Marco asked.
"I don't have one anymore. Ty left with Vista last week." Rin answered between breaths.
"Good. You'll spar with Alissa until otherwise notified." He ordered, then turned to me. "It will be some time before you can move like that, but once you can handle the arrow, you'll be just fine."
I nodded and took the staff from him. "Thank you."
Marco looked like he was about to say something else, but I heard Ace's voice call from the doorway.
"Ace, I told you-"
"I know, I know, but I'm not here for me;" a fierce grin appeared on his face, his eyes shining with excitement, "Whitebeard is ready for you."