driftfleet | (no subject)

You can't tell me it's not fun, either.

[ The fact that they can do this, mess around and spar and have it be something gentle and fun and just... Enjoyable means something to her. All the times she had fought and practiced and messed around in the past had been for a purpose; preparing herself for war, for fighting, for defending herself. Now it's just because she wants the exercise, because she wants to stretch herself, because she wants to spend time with Hank. It's a new meaning to something that had once been bad and almost painful, and she welcomes it.

She does pout at his little laugh, though, turning her head around to speak over the weights. ] I don't even know how to mask it, and I bet my mutation doesn't let me cheat, either.

[ She shifts, leaning forward, and rolling so she can dart to the next piece of furniture to use as defence. ]

What does 'me' smell like?

I might be having a little fun.

[he's enjoying himself, enjoying the challenge - the closest he's gotten to this is running the obstacle course and that's always been by himself, in the late hours so no one would see. And forget back home or before Kyriakos - he hadn't bothered. In a way he didn't have to, and Paris and Washington had only shown him that he had to start bothering again, unless he wanted to get thrown through more cars.

There's a creak of metal as he moves closer, perching atop another piece of gym equipment as quietly as he can. Stealth isn't his forte by any means, he's too big for that, but he still tries to be as quiet as he can, equipment noises aside] Maybe that's something you should test. [because honestly, he'd be interested in knowing if her mutation allowed for it, too.

. . . why would you ask him that]

I don't - think I can put words to it?

We'll see if you're still having fun when I win.

[ Which isn't going to be as easy as she hoped it might be, but she's enjoying the challenge. When she had been sparring with the others, before, she had been matched up with people she knew, people who's styles she understood completely. Now, with Hank, she's learned once more how to read an opponent, how to shift and make herself more dangerous, how to settle with what she has at hand and learn to use her surroundings. It's not perfect, but she can work with it.

Still, she turns her head and listens, hearing Hank and huffing a little noise, making her way back to the opposite side of the room, way from him - which is an unusual stance for her to take since, usually, she enjoys being close to him. ] But you'll know where I am from the foreign scent. I can't win, really, can I?

[ All the same, she keeps going forward and shifts into some random persons he had seen on the Paris Metro, then someone else, stranger upon stranger until she settles on the familiar - Charles. ]

Then don't. At least I don't smell bad.

You're assuming you're going to beat me.

[he might be opposed to actually attacking her, but he's certainly not going to make it easy on her, either. It was only a spar, and it was a way for both of them to test themselves against each other. They'd never sparred before and it worked out, that they could not only spar, but take their time figuring out how the other ticked. It was a challenge, and a fun one, and it'd be a lie to say that Hank wasn't getting more and more into this.

He tilts his head as she moves, and he waits until he's sure she's settled to move himself, leaping down from the equipment to the ground. He follows the direction of her voice with slow, careful steps, conscious of his claws so they don't click against the floor]

That's because it's just us. Maybe we should test it out the next time we stop.

[he pauses, though, at the familiar voice]

Well now you do.

[hank mccoy: sometimes a little shit]

Let's pretend I'm being optimistic.

[ She had over-estimated how she would work in this situation, and the problem of her scent isn't going to go away, not when Hank is so sharp and she can't really hide herself. Even transforming isn't good enough, but at least she can hope that the weird mix of smells hanging around might be enough to make things a bit more confusing for her boyfriend. It's not a particularly nice thing to hope, but at least it might even things out a little.

As Charles, she pushes herself up, tense as she does her best to listen for Hank, deciding that the best thing to do now, of course, is to transform into him, blue fur and all. He's been in here longer than she has, so maybe his smell is just as prominent as her own.

When she speaks, though, it's with her own voice. ]

It'd be fun. Are you promising to spar with me more outside of the gym, Hank?

[ And then she huffs a laugh. ]

I'm telling on you.

As long as you pretend to believe my false confidence.

[the different scents are working, but he isn't going to tell her that - not now, at least, not in the middle of their sparring session. He can pick out different scents, sure, but it isn't as practiced as he would like - and that Raven has already found a work around is a clear sign that he has to work on it. Which is a good thing, he thinks, especially considering that he does want to improve on what he's capable of, if he's going to be accepting of his mutation.

Well, as close as accepting as he tends to get.

He pauses, though, and - smelling himself is a very strange thing, and not exactly something he's that familiar with, considering. He stops short and frowns in her general direction. He tries to mask the confusion in his voice, though] I wouldn't be opposed to it?

[if only she could see the grin on his face, though]

I'd say the same thing about Erik, too, may as well tell them both. Are you me right now?

I believe in your real confidence, the one that's coming. You can't escape it.

[ Raven has so much faith in him, and she's sure that she can push it into him and encourage it to shine and grow. She believes in him and she believes in his strength, and his abilities, and she wants to see his confidence shine through so he's just as proud of himself as she is of him. He's so... Wonderful, she thinks, and he doesn't even realise it. He doesn't really how miraculous he is to her, and that's something she's still trying to get across without smothering him or making it sound as if she's lecturing him in an Erik-like way.

Raven doesn't want to shove it down her throat, not again, because all that will do is drive Hank away from her.

Hovering, she pauses behind a larger set of weights and tries to calculate. She can't exactly run for it, not as Hank, despite actually feeling oddly capable in his form. Instead, she grins and starts to move around the room, careful not to make even the smallest amount of noise, doing the best she can. Even her voice seems to echo as she moves from place to place, trying to shout and whisper to throw him off. ]

I'm anyone I want to be, Hank, you know that.

[ She has to try very hard not to laugh, though, as she moves to creep up behind him. ]

[he just makes a huffy noise in response, because she's right. Maybe one day it'll be real and he can be as confident in himself as he puts his confidence in other people.

At the very least, he knows why Erik does it, and he's accepted that, as much as it frustrates him sometimes. And he knows he needs it, that reminder that yes, there are people who don't care as much as he seems to think they do. When he's with Raven like this, he can almost forget that he isn't accepted like this back home; that he can be free and himself without worry, and it helps. He wonders if she realizes how much it helps just being around her, what it does for the little confidence he does have.

He's straining his hearing to see if he can't pinpoint where she is, but he's limited even in that and he has to silently berate himself. Hiding in the mansion had done a number on him, and even in Kyriakos he was so limited there was no point in doing anything more than what he did manage. Now, though . . . now he knew he had to get a handle on it]

I think it's cheating to be me. [no it isn't, he's just being contrary]

Says the man that can smell me.

[ Raven is slow as she moves, careful as she tiptoes about the room. Turning into Hank might have been a good idea, but wandering around as your boyfriend is a little more uncomfortable than she had imagined it would be. She had been Erik and she had been Charles, but this is different - she knew Hank's body far more intimately, after all, and it was strange. She had to keep her mind on what she was doing, her focus entirely on getting the upper hand on her partner.

Pushing herself forward, she peeks out from behind a stack of mats - probably for something like stretching or yoga, she wasn't an expert - before she makes her way up towards Hank. His body is so different from hers that being quiet is a little more uncomfortable, and it's not until she's right behind him with her hand reaching out to grab him that she turns back into herself, to give her the momentum and the bend she needs to push herself forward so she can practically leap onto his back.

From outside this must look ridiculous, but Raven feels alive. ]

I'm not doing that on purpose.

[he can't help but be a little jealous; he can be quiet, sure, but she's currently him and she's making it seem easy. Not that stealth really was his forte, considering it was rather difficult to miss a bright blue, 6 foot something beast. That and him not being entirely comfortable in this body, well - another thing to add to the list of things to work on. He had no idea it would grow so quickly because of a simple spar with Raven.

This time she gets the jump on him - she's on his back and he reacts immediately, reaching back to grab her. He doesn't throw her, though - he could, especially since there's mats everywhere, but instead he decides to drag her to the floor instead, moving over her to pin her there.

That is, if he's successful]

[ Raven knows that her stealth comes more from experience than the body she's in; she's had to get used to transforming into people in and out of crowds and in toilets, slipping into places she doesn't belong and making it seem as though she was always meant to be there. It comes naturally to her because it's something she had forced herself to learn, and there's no escaping that, not really, no matter who she's pretending to be. It's just something she's had to adopt, part of who she'd become in the years they were apart.

She doesn't fight when Hank grabs her and twists them both so they're pinned to the ground, and all she does is tilt her head up to look at him, her grin widening as he moves over her. There's no way for her not to look particularly pleased with herself, especially, when she stretches her arms above her head and raises her eyebrows, trying to hide how pleased with herself she is. ]

I surrender.

[he huffs out quietly, but he can't help but smile in response to her grin. He can see exactly how pleased she is with herself and he can't say he minds; she did sneak up on him successfully, even if he's the one pinning her now. He has to admire her attempt at restraint, though, because his response would've been entirely different. Surprised, for one. Then again, that comes from his lack of confidence.

He leans down to kiss the tip of her nose, then shifts back to stand up, offering her a hand up. They're in the gym and alone, but that didn't mean anyone couldn't just walk in at any moment. He wasn't risking it]

But you got me. I think that one goes to you.

[ Her nose wrinkles but she doesn't protest, taking Hank's hand and letting herself be pulled back to her feet. She's quick, then, to wrap an arm around him before she tilts herself up, giving him a quick, hard kiss before she steps away. It's not exactly fair tactics, she thinks, but since he has one up on her from his rather amazing nose she thinks it's fair enough for her to use her own skillset against him. ]

Let's say best of three. Next point wins.

[ First to three would take them far too long, and Raven was already feeling the urge to tug Hank back to their ship and show him what else she could be good at. Stepping around behind some weights, she transforms herself back into his body before she starts to creep around all over again, her own voice echoing around them. ]

And it's going to be me.

[it isn't fair, because it leaves him dazed for a moment or two after she pulls away and it isn't until she's transforming and it registers that he finally remembers to speak up]

I - yeah, best of three works.

[and of course, she chooses him to walk around as, which throws him off completely. With a huff he rubs a hand over his face, trying to snap himself out of where his brain just was and focusing more on their sparring session. If that was what this even was anymore. It had turned into hide and seek and something else]

You keep thinking that.

[idly he wonders if he can cling from the ceiling. He stays where he is for now, eyeing it curiously]