02.Jan.21, 03:32 AM
A’tay shouldn’t have been surprised at how bold Zelly was in learning something new given how she approached life daily but he still was. He watched her grow more confident in her strides and laughed as she came zooming back toward him—and panicked when her skills in stopping matched his. He tried to reach for her but wasn’t quick enough and still horrified for several seconds as he watched her face plant into the snow before dashing over. His worry only lasted until she rolled over and started laughing—which was contagious and he laughed but tried biting his lip to stop.
“I’m sorry. I’m not really laughing at your fall but at how you’re so unaffected by it and your own reaction to it.” He helped her back to her feet and dusted snow from what seemed to be every available surface of his body. If you were going to fall—might as well do it in style. “And maybe we should have started with how to stop first. That’s on me. But I’m not great at it still. It requires hitting the blade the right way on the ice and… we’ll practice. But your way is also a popular way.” He teased, as he walked her back onto the ice. A lot of people aimed for the edge and prepared for what they hoped would be a graceful transition from gliding to running to finally stopping.
They spent the next few minutes going over how to stop while standing in place so Zelly could get the motion down and then with a little speed while A’tay held her hand to keep her upright in case the blade slipped or a stumble happened. Finally he deemed her as ready enough to tackle the pond once more. She was a quick learner and A’tay was willing to bet she could out-skate him soon. He suspected it had a lot to do with being fearless and taking risks. Those were both things he was still working on himself.
As they skated side by side, slowly joining in the flow of the crowd as others circled around the surface, A’tay could see the appeal of having the winterscape at his disposal for months at a time. He was still happier in Ista’s weather but this wasn’t too bad. “Now that you’ve had your first taste of snow,” A’tay grinned as he said it, gently teasing her again about the face-first splat into the fluffy stuff, “did you want to play in it some more before we head in?” A glance at the sky showed they still had plenty of time before they were expected inside and he didn’t want to rush their time on the ice, but he also didn’t want Zelly to feel like she missed out on properly exploring snow as well. He had kind of rushed them right on the ice in his own excitement and Zelly had to make a full report to her brother about what it was all like.
“I’m sorry. I’m not really laughing at your fall but at how you’re so unaffected by it and your own reaction to it.” He helped her back to her feet and dusted snow from what seemed to be every available surface of his body. If you were going to fall—might as well do it in style. “And maybe we should have started with how to stop first. That’s on me. But I’m not great at it still. It requires hitting the blade the right way on the ice and… we’ll practice. But your way is also a popular way.” He teased, as he walked her back onto the ice. A lot of people aimed for the edge and prepared for what they hoped would be a graceful transition from gliding to running to finally stopping.
They spent the next few minutes going over how to stop while standing in place so Zelly could get the motion down and then with a little speed while A’tay held her hand to keep her upright in case the blade slipped or a stumble happened. Finally he deemed her as ready enough to tackle the pond once more. She was a quick learner and A’tay was willing to bet she could out-skate him soon. He suspected it had a lot to do with being fearless and taking risks. Those were both things he was still working on himself.
As they skated side by side, slowly joining in the flow of the crowd as others circled around the surface, A’tay could see the appeal of having the winterscape at his disposal for months at a time. He was still happier in Ista’s weather but this wasn’t too bad. “Now that you’ve had your first taste of snow,” A’tay grinned as he said it, gently teasing her again about the face-first splat into the fluffy stuff, “did you want to play in it some more before we head in?” A glance at the sky showed they still had plenty of time before they were expected inside and he didn’t want to rush their time on the ice, but he also didn’t want Zelly to feel like she missed out on properly exploring snow as well. He had kind of rushed them right on the ice in his own excitement and Zelly had to make a full report to her brother about what it was all like.