The Hands On Approach To Training

"Wow Ven, you've definitely made a lot of progress!" Aqua cheerfully called out to Ven as he completed yet another repetition in his basic keyblade combo.

"Thanks Aqua, that really means a lot coming from you." Ven really meant that; sure, it was always great whenever Terra or Master Eraqus praised him for a job well done, but whenever Aqua did it, it just made him feel so warm inside, right down to his toes.

"That's so sweet." Aqua smiled, but only for a moment. "But you're still got a long way to go." Ven wasn't sure when it had happened, but Aqua was right behind him. "Here, let me show you what I mean." Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed his arms, pulling them outward. "See, if you're going to use a reverse grip, you need to increase your reach as much as possible to compensate." She pushed down on him, and his knees gave way. "And if you keep your center of gravity low, you'll be able to attack much more quickly and reliably without having to worry about overextending your reach."

"Ah, do you really think so?" Ven hoped that Aqua didn't notice how red his face was getting, and really hoped that she didn't get much closer than she already was.

"Absolutely. Just keep swinging like this, and you'll be beating Terra up in no time." She moved his arms in the particular fashion she'd just mentioned, and in so doing pressed herself right into Ven's back.

"Right!" Ven slipped out of Aqua's grip, and ran for the door with all due haste. "I just remembered, I really need to go clean my room! Thanks for the advice Aqua, hi Terra, bye Terra!" He said the last as he ran right past Terra, not even turning his head to look at him.

"Huh." Terra said, a bemused expression on his face. "Aqua, you have any idea what had Ven so spooked?"

"No idea Terra; I was just helping him with his form, showing him the best way to swing his arms…!" And it hit her like a bolt of lightning.

"That's weird, now your face is just as red as his; you sure you don't know what happened?" Terra asked with honest confusion on his face.

"Absolutely no idea. None. At all." Aqua said as she walked past Terra.

As Terra stood in the training hall all alone, thinking to himself, inspiration struck! "I've got it! My birthday is in a week, and they just remembered that they need to get my presents." Satisfied with his deduction, Terra began his own daily training, all on his own.