Authors note: A silly drabble blossomed from a conversation with Cherry Tiger bemoaning the lack of SenaSuzu fics. It's been awhile since I returned to the world of fanfiction so its nice to work on something so non-committal, silly and fluffy. I only hope it's not too draggy. Other than that, r&r welcome, and enjoy!

Of Skates and Spiked Shoes

Peering from the ground, two pairs of legs could be seen. One pair lithe, twirling gracefully like weeping willow vines blowing in a soft, gentle wind; while the other clumsy, scattering and tangling up like boughs caught in a storm.

Yelps and shouts of laughter could be heard above and occasionally a pair of wet trousers came into view with a bump, across the darkly shining moonlit ice.

oOo

'I used to want to be figure skater. Sometimes when I close my eyes and glide along, I can almost feel the smooth ice and the lack of friction that threatens to draw me in all directions at once. I love the control I feel then, the power it takes to perform every maneuver, every cut through the dangerous beauty of ice. Then I open my eyes and it's my trusty old rollerblades crunching on gravel. '

Her glittery dark eyes opened then and she corrected herself with a smile, 'Well, usually…' She glanced down at her feet snugly encased in ice skates for once. Pushing herself off with one leg, she took a few long strides and launched herself into a pirouette, spinning till she felt the giddy and breathless but childishly happy in the cold winter air. Outings like these made reminded her of her childhood and of rigorous yet fun skating classes she and her brother had so greatly enjoyed.

Shaking back her short raven hair, her breath forming small, rapid puffs of air before her pert nose, a small frown creased her features as she thought of her idiotic brother. "Hmph!" she uttered under her breath, proceeding to carve the words 'Idiot brother!' in the ice. Then she let herself fall back on the soft snow smiling in reminiscence over his one hare-brained scheme that had brought them both to the happiest years of their lives…

xXx

Suzuna hopped off the bike and smiled at the bikers, gesturing as she spoke in halting English, "Thanks! I'm going to look around for him now… he should be in this town somewhere." They smiled and nodded to her while the only other lady in the group cheered her on, "We'll help you look!" And then, turning to her companions, "Isn't that cute! It's a love love meeting!"

The comment hardly reached Suzuna's retreating back as she headed straight for the town's assembly hall where she knew the Armadillo's Team Tryouts was being held. She circled the place a few times before she was finally convinced he wasn't there yet. Shoulders slightly slumped; she headed back to the city square where one of her companion's voices greeted her.

"Hey, Japanese Girl! We found the boy you were looking for!"

"Really!" Eagerly she waved her thanks to the buff, gruff biker below and, without a thought, jumped on the stair railings and skidded down, oblivious of the short Japanese boy standing at the end.

She was only alerted to his presence when he yelled out, "Mamori-neechan?" And then, "LOOK OUT!"

Her eyes widened when he zoomed in front of her, but it was too late. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second and the only thing that crossed her mind as she crashed into the small, spiky-haired boy was, 'Who the heck is Mamori-neechan?'

Next thing she knew was the smarting on her palms from the impact with the floor, although the rest of her seemed fine, cushioned by the guy that caused this in the first place. Concerned, she hurriedly got her weight off him and asked, "Why the heck did you get in the way?"

The boy immediately looked apologetic, "No that… sorry"

Suzuna was abashed, the emotion on his face right before their crash right up to before it changed to embarrassment was of worry and concern. Although her brother cared about her, it was hard to discern such a coherent display of emotion between his foolish grins. She finally said, "There's no need to apologize though."

Brushing herself down, she got up with a bounce and began skating off, "The guy I'm looking for is my brother… it looks like we both mistook each other for someone else. If you see a football player named Taki Natsuhiko tell him Taki Suzuna is looking for him."

xXx

A giggle bubbled out of Suzuna, breaking her reverie, when she recalled how Sena had chased after her in that half-panicked way and how cute he looked when he'd been so embarrassed to address her by her first name minus any honorifics.

A familiar voice called in a distance, "Suzuna!"

Taller now, Sena's dark hair still shot up unmanageably and his sinewy limbs easily mistaken as lacking strength, but his newfound confidence could be seen as he strode purposefully toward Suzuna. Then, as he neared her, he slipped on a patch of ice falling comically over himself with a yelp.

Suzuna stared at him, stunned at first, and then she burst into peal after peal of laughter as she struggled to get to him in between spasms. "Silly! You're still as big a klutz as ever!" He sat up looking sheepish, rubbing the back of his head. "Ah ha ha ha, I didn't see that… I'm sorry…" She laughed again, "You really don't have to keep apologizing, you know." She knelt beside him and took his elbow, checking for bruises. "Does it hurt?"

A faint blush colored his cheeks as he shook his head. She tugged on his arm to help him up and as he raised his head, their eyes met and a wave of déjà vu hit them both dragging them back to the moment they first met.

This time, he wasn't the only one blushing. Suzuna sprang up, forgetting she was still holding his arm and in the next moment, his weight brought her down while her skates betrayed her. A familiar sting spread over her palms and she found herself staring straight into Sena's alarmed brown eyes, wondering why she felt so warm until she realized his arms were wrapped instinctively around her to protect her.

"Ah! I'm sorry!" they both sprang apart. There was a pause before they both burst out laughing.

When they were finally out of breath from laughing, Suzuna sat up and exclaimed, "Are you wearing your football boots?"

Embarrassed, Sena laughed awkwardly, "Yes, they dig into the ground so much better especially in this snow."

With a sigh and an exasperated expression, she asked, "Then have you skated at all?"

The question hardly helped lift his embarrassment. "I'm not very good at it…"

"Well then try, silly! Come on I'll help you!"

"Ah, no it's getting dark. I came out to ask you to come back in and it's almost dinner too."

But Suzuna wouldn't take no for an answer. "Come on! It'll be fun… quick, they'll close the booth soon, let's go rent some skates before they do!" She grabbed Sena's hand practically dragging him along.

Few people were still on the ice for the sun was rapidly sinking and the dying embers of its light gave barely any warmth. Neither Suzuna nor Sena cared for the warmth though. Suzuna, flushed with excitement barely felt the cold and Sena's concern rode on his ineptness on ice, away from sturdy, solid ground. Besides, while spiked football boots hugged his feet like comforting old friends, these foreign-feeling skates pinched and made him awkward all over again.

Stepping out onto the ice and feeling his legs wobble like jelly beneath him gave him a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Vulnerable, once more, he couldn't do what he'd been doing best for the past few years – run. And the moment he tried, he fell.

Stuck in a comical position, with limbs in all directions and butt on the ground, Sena groaned.

Suzuna glided in circles around him shouting her encouragement. "C'mon, Sena, you can do this! Bend your knees!"

Images of life before football flashed before him and he tried to get up only to be startled by Suzuna skating up to him and poking her face right in front of his, till they were almost nose to nose. She looked surprised when he fell backwards, landing on the seat of his pants again.

"Ano…You can't do it like you're running, you know. Get up and I'll show you." She took his hand and gently led him over the ice. Wobbly at first, he nevertheless enjoyed the gliding sensation… until he looked down at Suzuna's hand in his then he blushed and slipped, dragging her down once more.

"Ow!" she winced. "What the heck was that for!"

"I'm…I'm sorry! I mean, you took my hand and…" Sena was glad the darkness hid his red face. But his stutter gave it away and Suzuna smiled and gripped his hand tighter than before. "Don't you think it fits?" she asked.

Taken aback, he only managed to say, "Suzuna…"

And that was all the motivation he needed. Hand in hand they skated across the frozen pond, one sure and smooth, and the other clumsy and less sure, slowly making progress.

Suddenly, she let go of his hand. "Catch me if you can!" she grinned, a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

"What! But that's not fair…!" he protested.

She laughed and skated up to him, gently taking his hand again. "You know, I used to want to be a figure skater. When we were younger, my brother and I used to take classes. Funny thing is, he was the showy one, and I loved the speed."

Sena imagined Taki kicking his leg up in a full split while doing the pirouette and thought it wasn't so surprising but he said nothing and she went on.

"Then one day I fell and injured myself badly enough so our parents wouldn't let either of us go again. I thought my brother would hate me for it but he just laughed it off and soon, he fell in love with American Football. It was so irritating watching him practice especially during the times when we were supposed to go for classes! But… I really envied and admired him, finding that one thing he wanted to do most, no matter what."

This time Sena did let out a laugh at the thought of Taki's ridiculous self-praising speeches. "Sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. It's just that I imagined Taki saying stupid things that annoy the Ha-Ha Brothers and our opponents. But how come your parents allowed you to get rollerblades?"

She smiled, "I tried everything else but nothing, not even running, could make me feel the way skating did. So to stop me from moping around the house, my parents finally relented and allowed me to get rollerblades. It really helped, even though its not the same as gliding on ice, it's almost just almost as good and as fa…"

"Suzuna" he interrupted her, raising their clasped hands between them, "I've caught you."

"You cheat!"

But he smiled shyly at her and in the glistening moonlight, two silhouettes met in a cold winter night's kiss.

oOo

Peering from a ground awash with the brilliant green of summer grass, one could feel the rumbling that can come only with the excitement of being on a football pitch and see the many legs that crowded in a huddle.

And then one spike-shoed pair stood a little behind all the others and with a quick, "Set, Hut!" that pair took off speeding across the green, parallel to a rollerbladed pair from behind the stands, zooming together towards victory.