wind them up and wish them away (closed)

[rewritethis]

Characters: Rainbow Dash and Ed Elric
Location: Training Centre
Rating: Probable PG-13 for language and/or violence; other stuff to be edited in.
Open/Closed/Finished: Closed
Summary: What's a lifelong killjoy to do during Homecoming season, apart from bask in the fact that he's not in it this time? Drag somebody down who is, obviously!


For some reason, what struck Ed first as he stepped into the by now familiarly humid air of the fake jungle was the flyer - small, ragged and so damp you could only have guessed that the front of it used to read "LAS THOMAS FOR HOMEC", but nevertheless apparently important enough for somebody to climb all the way up a tree and leave it there, to drip and flutter in the draught brought in by the closing doors. When you thought about it, it was practically symbolic.

"Looks like someone was serious about their popularity contest," he said, with a smile that didn't suggest it was a compliment, and turned his head. "If you weren't so eager to screw around in here, you could learn a thing or two."

Comments

[rewritethis]

He just smirked back, his ego for now overriding his usual inclination to take offence. After all, he was about to show off. He could afford to be in a good mood. "Like you've seen anything yet!"

With that, and with his coattails streaming out behind him, he charged.

But something was different about it. Although his punches and kicks came in as relentless a flurry as he'd ever managed, it was almost as if he was holding back - and at the first opportunity he sensed, he sidestepped, hoping to trip her and provoke her into taking flight.

[elementofloyalty]

He didn't even need to try to trip her. As he pressed her with strikes from both sides, she threw up her own forelegs to block and parry the blows, judging her moment to counterattack when it would do the most good. As a consequence, her wings spread for balance, and no sooner did he sidestep then she spun around to roundhouse-kick him -- which of necessity meant taking to the air.

[rewritethis]

In turn, he spun out of the way, into a flip carefully timed to look effortless. A moment later, as well as the slightly uneven thump of his feet hitting the grass, there was a clap. The familiar accompanying blue glow, however, was lost in a concentrated burst of upheaving soil.

The transmuted pillar broke apart almost immediately, even faster than it had risen up, crumbling back into harmless dust - but not before he'd leapt off the top of it clear into the air, if not overhead, then definitely high enough to leave an impression. Maybe even physically, given where his boots were aiming next.

[elementofloyalty]

Rainbow had enough time to let out a surprised yelp and twist before one of those boots connected with her shoulder. She hit the ground hard beneath the alchemist, but not hard enough to keep her down. Quickly, she wrapped a leg around Ed's to pin it, then rolled to drive a hoof into the back of his thigh, aiming to send him crashing down in turn.

[rewritethis]

With a grunt of pain (ugh, she would know which leg to gun for by now), he hit the turf, all the heavier for deliberately not throwing his hands out to break the fall. But he did throw one of them out a fraction of a second later, and near instantly, the ground erupted a second time - noticeably slower than the first, but still rapid enough that the trail of fragmented rock behind him resembled a contrail more than a disintegrating solid structure, and more than forceful enough to fling her across the clearing along with him if she couldn't dodge the pseudo-rocket-propelled tackle in time.

[elementofloyalty]

The problem here was that Ed was flinging himself across the clearing along with somepony with wings. He nailed that tackle all right, but she twisted in midair with a few flaps to aid her, to put him on the bottom of their inevitable landing.

[rewritethis]

In other words, crash - right into the earth he'd torn up moments ago. Still, going by the amount of coughing and cursing the collision kicked up along with the dust, he'd had worse. If that wasn't good enough evidence, his renewed efforts to push her off after just a few seconds probably added to it.

[elementofloyalty]

Rainbow planted her forelegs on his shoulders, then used the strength of her upper body and her wings to push right back at him to pin him down, grinning down at him from just a few inches above. "What's wrong, Ed? Has fighting a pony got you down?"

[rewritethis]

He glowered up at her, gritting his teeth with his considerable if fruitless efforts to move her away. "Don't - jerk - me -"

Until, abruptly, they stopped, and all of that force was thrown into a viciously scything upward kick.

[elementofloyalty]

"Whoa--!" Caught off guard, Rainbow tumbled head over hooves over him, crashing to the ground a few feet past his head. She rolled forward, coming to a halt sprawled out on her back. For the moment, all she could do was shake her head to clear it, giving Ed precious time to get back up. Or do some alchemy.

[rewritethis]

Seizing on her moment of disorientation, Ed dragged himself upright, scraping across the cracked ground, clapped loudly enough to make a point... and hesitated for the barest instant longer than he'd intended, just as he was getting to his feet. One advantage of losing the coat that he'd overlooked until now? Not getting it caught on stray rocks.

[elementofloyalty]

She flipped right-side up and into the air with one dramatic roll. She hadn't seen the clap, but she'd heard it, so her next move was to swoop in low, going for the legs. She was trying to bait him; as soon as he ducked low to touch the ground, she'd put on some height, dodge whatever he was doing, and hit him high instead!

[rewritethis]

Whatever he did have in mind a moment ago, it took a backseat to his throwing himself the hell out of the way. But there was a little tearing noise behind him as he did it, and the almost graceful roll he'd intended just turned into some more painful scraping across the disturbed turf. Damn rock.

The next order of business was to scramble to his feet, but with the state of the battlefield, finding a steady foothold wasn't quite as trivial as it might have been - and again, for just one distracted moment, left him open.

[elementofloyalty]

"How 'bout some alchemy, Ed?" Rainbow taunted as she pulled up into a tight Immelman loop, rolling at the top to strike back at him like a descending arrow. She had him now!

[rewritethis]

She did, because the split second of indignation it took for him to whip his head around and open his mouth to yell back at her cost him his chance to evade the lightning-fast blow. He went over heavily, kicking up a choking dust cloud from where his face unceremoniously mashed itself against the ground.

[elementofloyalty]

The horrible ironic thing was: instead of following up with an elbow-drop or a flying tackle or a Diving Destroyer, Rainbow veered sharply away. She honestly believed that had been too easy, and Ed had just been setting a trap for her!