You know I said it in a prayer like a war cry

[kremdelacreme]

WHO: KREM and basically THE ENTIRETY OF SKYHOLD
WHAT: Krem is coming back from his private mission in Antiva and fulfilling some promises.
WHEN: 18 Wintermarch and onward
WHERE: Various places about Skyhold
NOTES: Attractive shirtless men?

He was stiff, sore, not exactly moving well, but when he finally mounted the stone bridge leading into Skyhold, damned if the smile on Krem's face wasn't as brilliant as the glare of sunlight on the snow. It was damned good to be home. He'd held up a hand when one of the front gate guards offered to run inside and inform the Iron Bull of his return, letting them know that he would be seeing Bull himself, as well as most anyone else that needed to know he was home.

As soon as all was said and done and the appropriate parties warned (Except for Cullen, Cullen could be just as surprised as everyone else) the toys would be collected, loaded en mass into the catapult, and seconds later, there would be stuffed toy nugs in a large variety of different fabrics hitting the ground with squeaks bordering on deafening in volume from the sheer amount of them. There would be enough for every child in the hold, plus a good portion of the adults that might come along and pick them up.

-Training Ring-

It was time for drills now. He had the ring to himself, most people were off and occupied elsewhere, and someone had set up a practice dummy at the edge of the ring that would make the perfect partner for a bout of shadow boxing.

Anyone that had ever witnessed Krem's drills before knew that sound: the maul swinging through the air fast enough for it to be faintly whistling, occasionally thudding down into the dirt. But if they approached, they'd immediately notice a difference. Where was Krem's armor?

Bracers on, boots grinding into the dirt, gauntlets on, but other than a pair of comfortable breeches, Krem wasn't actually wearing his armor. In the late afternoon light, the muscles of his arms, back, shoulders, and chest were gleaming faintly with sweat. He'd been at this for a little bit now, and it had warmed up just enough that he actually could break into a sweat as he trained. He was still trying to get used to his center of gravity changing, and as such was moving more carefully than usual. It lent a sort of grace to his movements that wasn't usually present.

If anyone wanted to come and spar with him now, they would have to get his attention first. He's entirely focused on the mild ache of his muscles, and moving to compensate.

Comments

Bull

[kremdelacreme]

It was done. Everything was done. His surprise was sprung, his return was cemented, his alcohol drunk, and now he needed to work the stiffness back out of his body. He'd been walking, riding, sometimes running, and at one point swimming, on his way both to and from Antiva, and it was good to be back in familiar company with his weapons, armor, and capable partners at his disposal.

"Come on Chief, I said we needed to get back in practice, and I meant it."

He did mean it, too: he wanted to get back in the action. He'd taken his time to heal, he'd even visted with the healers to clean up the scar tissue a little better. His chest still felt bruised, but that would fade with time. He could rub some dirt on it, so to speak, and go right ahead with his training regimen, which today would include a good spar with his commander. He was waiting at the edge of the training ring with his hands on his hips, dressed in armor that wasn't his own, but was at least the proper size. He would leave it up to Bull for what weapons they would brush up on.

[qunari]

"Don't get in a rush. We've got all day."

With a snort, Bull pulled two shields from the rack. No weapons today. Overextending could pull things that still needed healing. Besides, Krem was still kind of terrible at fending off a proper shield bash. Made as much sense as anything to give him something solid to practice one.

One shield is given an underhanded to his second where he stands, the other fitted somewhat snugly onto his own arm. Best way to deal with change, with stress or anxiety? Go out and hit something. Cured most anything that could plague a person.

[kremdelacreme]

The look on Krem's face said very clearly how he felt about having to put up with Bull's lessons on the Shield Bash.

"This isn't exactly what I had in mind," Krem pointed out with a slight pout, but he put on the shield after turning it the right way around and squared himself to take a hit.

[qunari]

"Which is exactly why we're doing it." Krem's offensive attacks were on par with anything he could teach, but his defensive needed a lot of work. And one day he might not be there to take the hit for him.

Better he learn now.

"Feet further apart. Don't lock your knees." Once he was satisfied with Krem's posture, he gave a nod, lowering his head and shifting his weight on the balls of his feet. Then, at a slower pace than he might normally, he charged forward, pushing the bulk of that force behind the shield.