reflection ● jason grace

Ryan and Leila let them touch sharp things

"What's wrong with you two?" Ryan yelled from the sidelines. "I know you're sparring against each other but usually you're a lot more friendly than this."

    It was late afternoon and the four of them were at training. The sun was beating down on them hot and unbearable as they fought, but what was more unbearable was that after he had run away, Jason hadn't talked to her all day.

    "Asinos," Daria muttered, tripping Jason so that he stumbled.

    "Daria!" Leila scolded. "Who taught you that word?"

    In reality, it had been Mitch, but Daria had promised not to give him up. And plus, if Jason was going to act like this, then she was going to retaliate. "Oh, no one." Daria parried Jason's strike with her sword. "Just a friend."

    Jason scowled.

    Out of the corner of her eye, Daria could see Ryan and Leila exchange a glance. "Well, I guess that's enough for today," Ryan sounded defeated. "Come back here. We want to talk to you about something."

    Daria knew they had never established a race, but she still tried, and failed, to beat Jason back to the edge of the field when their sponsors were waiting. She elbowed him in annoyance; he was up in her space, and he swatted her back, leaving a stinging feeling on Daria's arm.

    "Quit it," Leila snapped, then she sighed. "This was supposed to be a fun surprise but I don't know if you deserve it."

    "Leila's right," Ryan backed her up. "In the legion, you have to trust and respect your partners. Does this look like respect?"

    Daria's cheeks burned with shame. They were right. This wasn't proper behavior for legionnaires, especially if Daria wanted to be praetor one day. And besides that, she didn't even like being mad at Jason. He was her best friend, not Atticus.

    Jason seemed to be having similar thoughts. He turned to her with a serious expression. "I'm sorry, Daria. I didn't mean to get angry at you like that."

    Daria kicked some dirt on the floor. She wasn't very good at apologizing, it was like admitting defeat. But this was Jason; he wouldn't think any differently of her. "I'm more sorry" she muttered. "I do respect you, I promise."

    "It's okay if you don't," he offered. "I-"

    "Jason, my man," Ryan snorted. "Just accept the apology."

    Jason blinked. "Okay."   

    "Now that that's settled." Leila rolled her eyes. "Oliver is letting you choose out real weapons today. Isn't that cool?" She pulled out a familiar dagger from her hilt. "This is mine, Optatus."

    Daria touched the blade. She felt strangely uncomfortable with giving up her swords, like it was a rite of passage that she wasn't yet prepared for. "They have names?"

    "Not all weapons do," Ryan touched his back where his bow and quiver rested. "I mean, I kinda just call her Britney Spears for fun."

    Jason frowned. "But that's a bow," he said in a similar confusion to what Daria felt. "Not a spear."

    "Eh, nevermind," Ryan changed the topic as Leila snickered at him for some reason. "Jason, you could go with a bow. Sagittariorum is something you're good at."

    "I dunno..."

    "He's good with a sword too," Daria pointed out, their argument long forgotten. Jason nodded his head in agreement. "Like me."

    "Come on," Leila said. "Let's go to the weaponshed and you can decide for yourselves."

    The weaponshed was located at the other edge of the Field of Mars, but the walk took the same amount of time as it did to walk from the barracks to New Rome. Of course, this was only because anyone who wasn't training had to use the pathway. There had been too many accidents that started with 'the shortest path between two paths is..'