Blazing Hearts

A Competition

Cass was teaching Catalina and Kiera sword - fighting as she had promised them earlier, while Lance was sitting on a mat at a distance watching them.

"Hey!" He saw Varian walking towards him.

"Hi!" Lance replied and invited Varian to sit.

"What are you doing?"

"Just watching Cass teaching Catalina and Kiera sword fighting."

"Oh." Varian looked at Cass. She was looking serious, as she taught them the right way to hold the sword. She looked beautiful, as she swiftly used her sword. Perfection, he thought.
Suddenly, as if knocking him out of his thought, he heard a cheerful "Hi!"
He turned to see Anne and Steve walking towards them.

"Hi!" Lance replied, while Varian just smiled.

Steve looked over to Cass, "Hey Cass! Practicing, huh?"

"No, just teaching Catalina and Kiera sword fighting" She smiled.

"Them!?" He looked at the girls, confused. "Are you sure? Aren't they too young?"

While Kiera huffed in annoyance at this comment, Catalina just made a face.

"I started training with my dad when I was six" Cass smiled.

"Well... you are Cass!" He playfully teased her.

"And they are Catalina and Kiera!" And she winked in the direction of the girls, who winked back.

"How about a match?" Steve asked her.

"Match?" Cass asked confused, not seeming to understand.

"You know, it's been a while...since we have had any competition between us."

Cass seemed to prod upon the matter. "Fine." She finally said.

Steve grabbed his sword and they both started to fight.

Varian felt the heat rise up in his body. His jaws were clenched and his fists tightened.

Lance seemed to sense this and he asked him quietly, "Buddy, you ok?"

Varian took a deep breath and said, "I am fine."

Lance didn't feel right at this sudden change of environment.

Just a while ago everything was fine, they were happily watching Cass teaching the girls sword - fighting. Suddenly, now, there was a drastic change, a heavy, gloomy feeling hung around him, which seemed to have been emitting from Varian.
Thus, he decided that leaving this place would be for the best. He mumbled a quick "Goodbye" and got up and went away.

No one seemed to notice, as both Varian and Anne had their eyes fixed upon Cass and Steve, though with gaze quite opposite of each other.

"I swear they bring out the best in each other." Anne smiled. She said that more to herself than to Varian, and didn't see Varian's expression darkening at her statement.

"I won!" Cass laughed.

"I would be beating you one day!" Steve smiled.

Cass then looked at Varian, "Oh hey Varian, didn't notice you there." And she smiled.

Varian felt a pang of jealousy as he felt his heart shattering into pieces. She saw Steve and overlooked him?
"Hey Cassie." He stoically replied.

"Cassie?" Anne looked at Cass shocked.

"Yeah, Cassie. Varian calls me that." She smiled.

"Cassie...that's a cute nickname." Steve smiled.

"Yeah, and only I get to call her that." Varian said, stone - faced.

""Oh no, don't you worry," Steve smiled at his direction, "I am not going to call her Cassie. It's just, you know, I feel that doesn't quite suit Cass."

"Well, I like it." Cass smiled and looked at Varian, whose face brightened up on hearing this comment. "Hey Varian, want to have a match?"

"Huh, what?" Of all the things, this was clearly unexpected.

"A match. You challenged me in the woods before we met Steve and Anne."

"Ah yes yes, I remember. "

"So?" She raised her eyebrows.

Varian took his sword and looked at her, "I am ready."

Both were equal to each other and neither showed signs of tiring. Steve and Anne stared at them, as if dumbstruck while Catalina and Kiera gaped at them from a distance.
However, after sometime, Varian, with a quick use of his hand deftly swiped out Cass' sword from her hand which landed at a distance. All of them who were watching clapped in appreciation.

"He beat you?" Anne asked Cass, which was more of an exclamation than a question.

"That was the best sword - fighting match I've ever seen!" Steve exclaimed.

Cass looked at Varian, who playfully smirked.

"Well I did learn something after all these years." He said.

Cass rolled her eyes at him, and then looked into his deep blue eyes. Those electric blue eyes, which carried a spark, which had been capable of igniting a series of emotions in her, ever since that dance.

"Cass?" Varian asked, unsure, thinking whether he had upset her. "Oh I am sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." He said, worriedly.

"Oh no - no, it's fine." She said to him as she snapped out of her thoughts. "It's - it's just..." She faltered.  

"It's just that she isn't used to being defeated." Steve said.

Varian looked at him with an expressionless face, while Steve just genuinely smiled.

Catalina and Kiera, who were witnessing all this from a distance, came upto Cass. Kiera crossed her arms and said, "So?"

"Huh?" Cass asked, confused. But suddenly she seemed to remember the situation and looked at them and said,"Oh yes, I had to teach you two." With that she picked up her sword in her hand.

Varian went upto Steve and Anne, sat near them to see Cass resuming to teach the girls.