Rivalry or? [dreamnoblade]

Chapter 7: Swapping Workouts

     Techno was in the training area of the coliseum as he usually was midday, doing practice swings and other drills. The sun had been getting hotter, which wasn't great for his motivation. As he took one of his frequent breaks to wipe his brow and rehydrate, he noticed the sound of the entrance door.
     "Techno!"
     "Dream, what are you doing here?" Techno asked, his mood instantly lifting. Dream was wearing his mask and green cloak today, unusual since no one else was here.
     "I told your manager it would be good to practice our bit together. How's training?" He said, waltzing up and looking around.
     Techno chuckled to himself, knowing Dream had no intention of practicing. "Alright, getting hot though."
     "Yeah, that's one of the benefits of training in the woods, lots of shade."
Techno saw Dream glance at the rack of wooden swords. "Have you learned sword fighting? We can spar if you want. I haven't had someone to practice drills with since Skeppy left."
     "I've never had official training, so you'll have to teach me the drills, " Dream said coyly. "But I'm pretty confident."
     Techno threw him a sword, picking up one for himself. "Watch and learn."
     For the next few hours they practiced and practiced with the fake weapons. Dream picked up on the drills easily, which made Techno have even more fun as he teached his new student more and more advanced sets. By the end they were exhausted, taking turns to splash their face with water. Wilbur had already gone home, so Dream had been mask-less for a while.
     "What a work out, I can barely stand." Dream said, not complaining.
     Techno merely nodded as he threw his used towel in the pile for the laundry boy. "You have a change of clothes right? The changing room's over here."
     When he was done, Techno left his stall to see Dream collapsed in a chair. "Um, are you gonna be alright? You live pretty far away."
     "Probably. Just give me a minute. Or ten." Dream said, unmoving.
     A sprig of sympathy sprouted inside Techno. "Would you rather rest at my place? It's pretty close."

     The walk to Techno's house was painful. Dream probably should've stopped training when he knew he reached his limit. Luckily, he had a strong, steady arm to rely on.
     The house was smaller than he expected. Very clean and well maintained, but small for a champion. Inside was simple and homely, almost cute. "Over here is the comfiest chair I own." Techno said, pointing to a little reading nook. "Use it wisely."
     Dream plopped down, letting the cushions do their job. It sure was comfortable. They had tea, and when he felt like his muscles were staring to recover, he started walking gently around.
     "You have a chess set?" He said, observing the carefully centered board on the shelf.
     "Oh, yeah, I won it at something or other. The kings were specially carved." Sure enough, both king pieces had little pig ears and noses.
     "Do you know how to play?" Dream smirked.
     Techno eyed him. "Only the basics."
     In an hour they were happily playing. After a long, hard think, which was plastered all over his face, Techno moved his rook forward, directly next to his opponent's king. Dream saw it coming a mile away and nudged his king forward. "Checkmate."
     "Argh, I knew it. What's that, six to one?" Techno groaned.
     "If you count the time you accidentally cheated, sure." He said, leaning forward. "You've gotten a lot better though, you almost had me in the ropes that time."
     "Almost being the key word." Techno quipped, hunching over to reset the board.
     Dream could've leaned back and helped, but instead he studied the face in front of him, frustrated but determined. The smell of sweat from earlier almost completely gone. He was glad he came.

     "Sorry, but I think I'll have to postpone the rematch." Dream said, standing up. "I should get home."
     Techno tried to find an excuse to ask him to stay. "Are you sure you feel better? I don't want you collapsing in the streets."
     He giggled. "I'll be fine, thanks."
     As Dream put on his shoes, Techno offered him an arm for balance, which was quickly accepted. He could feel the callouses and newly formed muscles. His hand would probably feel nice without the sticky layer of beer from last time.
     As they said goodbye, Techno was reminded of something. "Could you invite me the next time you go running? It's much nicer to run the woods."
     "I run there every morning, so feel free to stop by whenever." Dream responded, smiling back.
     Techno was glad he had finally been able to ask him, and after he shut the door, his smile naturally widened. 
Though they were friends, Techno had no idea how to hang out with people. His other friends were all through work at the coliseum, and he'd practically grown up with Wilbur. Hanging out with them was easy. So he was glad when Dream had visited him first. It had been a lot of fun too. He just about wished every day could be like that.