After spending saturday buying more beverages for their get together on the following day and catching up on all her assignments, Laura was looking forward to seeing Gabe play.
Getting up quite early, she managed to get showered with enough time to clean and dry all nine of her tails before the rest of the dorm's inhabitants got ready for the day.
Once she had put on some clothes, the Kitsune decided to head through town to get breakfast at Akiko's bakery, and use the opportunity to get some rolls for Daiki, Gabe and herself to snack on during and after the game.
Just like the day before, the trip across Hiyokuna took Laura longer than before. Being more conscious of her tails, she tried her best to keep people from running into them. When she finally reached her destination, the bakery had already been open for a while and the number of customers made navigating the small space difficult for the nine tailed spirit.
"Good morning Laura, what can I get you today?" Akiko asked her a few minutes later once it was her turn to order.Surprised with how she seemed to recall all her customers names, the student took a moment before she spoke up.
"Morning, can I get a melon bread and six anpan please?" Laura requested as she pulled her purse from one of the small pouches hanging from her belt.
"Okay, just one moment," the older woman replied with a friendly smile as she began packing the order in a brown paper bag. A Moment later she took the yen and handed over the bag in return. Before she turned to the next Customer, Akiko gave her a friendly wave goodbye as Laura carefully made her way back outside. Once she was in front of the small bakery, Laura took out the melon bread and began to enjoy her breakfast on the way back to campus.
A couple hours later Laura and Daiki were two of the handful of students sitting in the stadium watching the friendly game between Yamatanuki and a small college closer to Tokyo.
While the game was just about to finish it's first 40 minute long halftime, Laura still wasn't a hundred percent sure what was going on on the field at any given moment.
Deciding to use the 10 minute break to take a break herself, she made her way into the stadium, and began searching for the closest lady's restroom. It took a while to find one, but once inside it turned out that the small stalls inside it were definitely not designed for visitors with tails, especially not nine of them and a longsword. Trying her best to manage despite this, Laura got into one of them, her tails brushing against both sides despite her best efforts.
Just over 10 minutes later she was finally done and stepped back out into the empty restroom.
Leaving it soon after that, Laura frowned when she heard steps following after her. Putting a hand on the handle of her for now still invisible sword, she turned to face her stalker.
As her eyes trailed down to meet those sitting underneath the small man's helmet, he spoke up, his accent sounding germanic of all things. "So you are the one to stop all of the giant's minions are you?"
As he stepped closer, his mail hauberk clanged against the scabbard of his blade.
"Now get your weapon and fight me." the Dwarf demanded as he slammed the bottom end of his poleaxe on the floor.
Laura, more than a little perplexed by this, dropped the illusions hiding her weapon and non-human characteristics as she inquired, "Why didn't you try to kill me when you had the chance? And why are you this polite?"
"Well I am polite to a young lady because that's just the right thing to do," he explained, "And I didn't just strike you down because he asked me to fight you in return for his help, not to kill you."
The look of utter confusion on her face was plain enough that he continued right on without waiting for Laura to ask another question. "Not everyone that dislikes Onyu and her ways of keeping everyone locked up is with Yo-tsu. I mean just take yourself, pretty sure you don't agree with her much from what I heard. Oh I also forgot to introduce myself, I am Austri, proud blacksmith of Arminius."
"Laura, Laura Rosenthal, engineering student." She introduced herself, still a little unsure what to make of all this. "Why would Yo-tsu send someone like you though? Is he running out of warriors?"
"No not in the slightest, " Austri replied with a shake of the head, his braided beard swaying from side to side. "But from what he told me none of them would be much stronger than those he already lost to you, so he asked the best warrior he knows for help." he finished, proudly puffing out his chest.
"So, Yo-tsu asked you to fight me for him in exchange of getting you past Onyu's seal?" Laura asked, hoping she had understood everything correctly.
"Yes, and as I do not want to mar such a lovely ladies body overly, I would challenge you to a duel to the first blood. If I win you come visit me once I found my way back home."
"And if I win?" She inquired with a raised eyebrow, not sure how this whole situation would go on.
"How about I let you keep my blade should I loose? Little can compare to a weapon forged by us dwarves." He offered her, one hand extended as if to shake on it.
"As long as you still make your way home." Laura said as she took his hand.
"Splendid." Austri said with a smile before he leaned his poleaxe against the doorframe. "Now draw your blade and let us begin, that I may be off on a homeward path soon."
Doing as he asked, Laura assumed a ready pose and waited for the dwarves first move. Despite the weight of the mail armor he was wearing Austri moved as quick as any of the students she had fought during Kendo practice just days before. Taking a couple of steps back, Laura hoped to keep her reach advantage over the smaller opponent as she parried his first strike to her torso. Her own attack to the dwarf's shoulder easily glanced of his armor, prompting him to let out a small chuckle.
"We are fighting to first blood, not first hit lady Rosenthal," He taunted her as he continued attacking her, forcing her on to the back foot, doing her best to keep his blade from her skin. Each hit she blocked carved a new notch into the edge of her blade.
Quickly moving a few more steps back to be fully out of Austri's reach, the fox tailed spirit carefully took hold of her sword's blade. With a little luck the mordhau would work better than her previous attacks. As the dwarf was about to close the distance between the two of them, she swung her sword like a mace, striking the pommel against his helmet with a ringing sound.
With the now disoriented dwarf just standing there for a moment, Laura brought the tip of her sword around and, without changing her grip on the weapon, cut across his cheek.
Just as the first drop of red ran down his face, Laura felt a cold pain along one of her tails.
"Seems like we have a draw on our hands here." Austri said happily as he dragged a thumb over the blood on his face to keep it from trickling into his beard.
Laura for her part was doing her best not to let on how surprised she was at this turn of events by looking over her injured tail. To her immense relief the cut was only a few centimeters long and not too deep, although she did not look forward to having a bandage over her fur for the next few days.
"So how about this," Austri continued, the smirk on his face just reinforcing Laura's assumption that he had not taken her for a serious challange. "I make my way back home for now, and when you come visit I'll have a newly forged blade for you."
"Ah sure, sounds good," Laura replied unsurely, turning to face the small man once more. "But how would I find you?"
"I got a raven that still owes me a favor, I'll have him bring you a note once I am back in my forge." Austri said as he started to walk of shouting,"Don't you dare die before we meet again," over his shoulder at the ready to collapse Kitsune.