The Laughing Swordsman

Apollo and Layla stared each other down for a few moments.

Apollo's breathing was clear and regulated, though it was mixed in with laughs. He was still having difficulty breathing at the correct times whenever he decided to use the basic shadow step technique.

However, Apollo was already getting used to it. He controlled his breathing both deliberately, and instinctively.

In... then out.

In...

Then laugh.

The smile on Apollo's face gradually widened. He was trying hard to suppress his laughs, but it truly was too hard for him. The grip on his bokken tightened, audibly stretching his skin in the process.

Apollo slowly brought the bokken in front of him, holding the hilt low, but pointing the blade towards the sky.

As for Layla, she leisurely bopped her head around with a bright smile on her face. Soft jingles resounded throughout the forest, seemingly assuming.

Apollo bent his knees before sliding one foot across the snow behind him.

Layla hunched over and raised both her hands in the position of a claw.

Then, two bangs resounded throughout the forest.

Layla directly pounced forth, directly smashing through a poor tree along the way. Apollo erratically dashed to the left and right as he charged forth, weaving between the trees.

Layla acted first.

Her claw tore through the air, letting out a sharp whistle.

In mere moments, it appeared in front of Apollo's eye, making his pupils dilate. But before it could hit, he disappeared.

In the brief moment that Apollo was in the shadow world, he remained still. Apollo closed his eyes and kept a large amount of air in his chest.

The moment he reappeared, his eyes shot open, while a loud heave escaped him.

Apollo's bokken streaked through the air, as though it had the intent of cutting through the world.

It took a fraction of a second for it to reach the back of Layla's neck. Yet, it was as though she had seen his attack coming.

Layla casually ducked down, her hair following close behind. In the end, Apollo's bokken only blew by a gust of air, causing her hair to scatter with the wind. 

Layla flashed a cheeky smile. She did an uppercut with her claw like she was trying to lift up the sky.

Apollo had yet to take a breath in, but had no choice at this point. He disappeared, feeling a tight suffocating feeling in his chest.

The moment he reappeared, he let out a laugh with what little air was still left in his lungs, further straining his body that had already lost so much oxygen.

Apollo gasped for air, but before his lungs could fill, Layla had already thrown her elbow towards Apollo's waist.

He disappeared once more, feeling the strain in his body increase.

Apollo's eyes widened further, enough to clearly feel the wind that brushed past it. Upon reappearing, he immediately bent his knees and threw his body back.

A loud rushing noise passed by him, blowing aside his bright yellow hair.

Layla had swiped horizontally, unbelievably close to bashing the side of Apollo's rib cage.

While Apollo was still doing the limbo, his bokken shot forth, right for Layla's abdomen. But Layla twisted her body to the side like a ghost, dodging as though the bokken was the one making way for her.

Without warning, Layla brought her head down, ready to slam it against Apollo's chest. However, he disappeared before her attack could land.

Apollo reappeared a few steps back before hastily backpedaling for a few meters.

Layla did not give chase. Instead, she tilted her head to the side with a mischievous smile and a finger on her chin.

"Hehe, friend can disappear now!"

Layla's tail swayed enthusiastically, like she was still savoring the moment.

"But I will still win!"

As for Apollo, he heaved loud and wheezy breaths in between his laughs. Sometimes after breathing out, he would laugh, straining his lungs heavily. After all, his laughter made him expel air faster than normally breathing out.

Apollo's eyes narrowed.

...Wait.

What if he just decided to breathe in, and laugh when he needed to breathe out?

Apollo's breaths gradually stabilized.

He breathed in, then laughed.

It was a strange mixture of stability and insanity, but it was somehow working.

Apollo bent his knees once more before dashing towards Layla, splashing snow into the air as though it were water. His path was a circular arc, as though he was drawing a crescent moon.

Layla decided to dash forwards too, pulling her claw behind her.

Apollo and Layla reached each other in moments. They locked eyes with one another in a way that could be mistaken for passionate lovers.

Well, perhaps a little too passionate.

Apollo had his bokken pulled back, but before he could swing, a claw was about to smash his arm to pieces. He disappeared altogether before appearing behind Layla, letting out a loud laugh.

Apollo twirled around like a ballerina taking their job far too seriously. His feet pushed heavily against the snow, digging past it and into the dirt.

Yet, before his swing even got close, Layla dropped to the floor like a plank. She pressed her palms against the floor, then raised her foot as though it was a blade.

And all that was accomplished before Apollo even finished his swing.

He recoiled his head back and disappeared once more. He reappeared less than a meter away from Layla and to his surprise, the bokken continued moving, completing its swing.

Apollo came to a realization.

He could disappear while halfway through his swing and reappear to have it completed on its own.

Just like how Willow did before.

Apollo lunged forth and swung vertically. But halfway through his swing, he vanished, only to reappear behind Layla.

As for Layla, she twirled like a dancer, letting the bokken glide harmlessly past her back.

Apollo's laughs filled the air, along with Layla's giggles.

Almost like a child and devil laughing together, relishing in a strange common ground.