Dahlia joined her, panting, and showed no qualms about using the wall for support. She leaned back and slid down to a sit, peeling the helmet off her head. Hair was sweat-stuck to her face, she blew strands out of her mouth and took long draws from her own water bottle. It seemed like she was even more winded than Quinn was. Perhaps that shouldn’t have come as such a surprise; Dragon wasn’t a marathon Savior after all, it was a sprinter. 

“[color=skyblue]Good,[/color]” she breathed hard between gulps. “[color=skyblue]You’re getting quicker. S’good. Gotta watch the blindspot—if I hadn’t caught you with that hook, I think you would’ve gotten me.[/color]”

These sessions had been good for Dahlia, too. Teaching was more difficult than she’d suspected it would be, harder than Besca or Ghaust made it look, and she was always anxious that she might explain something poorly, or unintentionally help foster bad habits. Her lessons weren’t perfect, and were far more about instinct and reflex than anything else, but seeing Quinn improve so much in such a short time—especially with her particular background—gave her confidence. 

It also reminded her that one day, perhaps sooner than not, Quinn might have to put what she’d learned to use. That was much harder to square herself with, but she tried, if for nothing else than to make things for Quinn easier. There was enough stress in this job already. 

“[color=skyblue]We can call it for now, what are you feeling for lunch? Tohoki Grill? CB Danes? We could always grab whatever’s in the mess, or something from the vending machines. Your call—I’m starved, I’ll eat anything.[/color]”

It was true enough, but Dahlia and Besca had both been making efforts to give Quinn choices where they could. They kept the schedule as strict as the higher-ups commanded, but when it came to things like meals, or movie night, or even just what she did with her spare time, it was important that she felt she [i]could[/i] choose. 

She got up off the ground, tossing her gloves and pads into the hamper. She gave her sister an expectant smile. “[color=skyblue]So? I’ll text Besca once we’re settled down.[/color]”