[Sweet & Frosty]

"If you don't tell me where we're going, you're getting there alone," Valentine smirked at Frost to let him know she was only half-kidding. "I got my Flair! We should be celebrating!" Frost, the blue-haired teen stopped walking and turned to face her. They were on a downtown sidewalk in the middle of the afternoon; a majority of people were still at work or school. The street was calm with only a handful of patrons moving between the shops around them.

"So, this is the patience of a Grandmaster?" Frost chuckled at her.

"Shut up," she rolled her dark red eyes at him. "I'd prefer to be patient somewhere else and not have to spend another minute on this Server," she relaxed and leaned closer to bump against him, shoulder to shoulder. "Thanks for doing the dailies with me, by the way. Every day...," she added.

"Aw, what's a few weeks?" Frost nodded. He knew that would be her only 'thank you' on the matter; and, he was glad for even that much.

"Seriously though," she added. "I know what I am, but even I'm tired of seeing them everywhere," she gestured at the shop next to them for effect. It was the closest example; but, she could have easily pointed at the ninja coffee shop or the ninja dry cleaners next door. The front window was covered by a ninja clad in black standing with his sword ready. The word 'Blacksmith' was printed in small letters on the blade. "So, can you at least give me an idea of how much longer we'll be?"

"No idea how long it'll take," Frost shrugged. But, he turned and opened the shop door for Valentine. "But, this is where we're going." Valentine gave him a curious look and walked past him into the store.

"Paladins can use katanas?" she asked.

"We can equip them," he nodded. "The synergy isn't ideal; but, there’s no handicap," he explained.

"Are you window shopping, or....," Valentine asked. If he was picking something up maybe they would be out of there within a few minutes.

"No, picking up a custom order," Frost replied as they walked through the long, narrow shop. The walls were lined with shiny katanas on display. They arrived at the waist-high wooden counter and Frost placed a node down next to the register.

"Hi, I’m here for this?" he asked the ninja clerk. She was a short woman with reading glasses and a brown leather apron over her black ninja garb. She nodded and collected the node before turning around and venturing further into the depths of the building. She passed through a curtain made from hundreds of hanging origami cranes.

"I should start thinking about my next sword, I guess...," Valentine mumbled to herself. She walked away from the counter and began studying the nearest rack of swords. "Because, that's what my Flair does, you know?" she asked Frost.

"It thinks about your next sword?" Frost asked. He smirked; but, Valentine still doubted him for a moment before she shook her head. Her long, wine-red ponytail made waves with the motion. Of course, he knew what it did. He was there every step of the way.

"You know what I mean," she replied.

"The Grandmaster's Patience...," Frost explained her own Flair to her. "...lets you store up to three different swords and switch between them even during attacks. So far you only have two swords you'd want to use; so, you should start thinking about your next sword," he said.

"Since you went through the trouble of being a smart ass about it...," Valentine grinned at him. "...I'm going to enjoy proving you wrong. I only have one sword and still need two more," She was secretly thrilled that he showed interest in the things that interested her. But, when he got a simple detail like that wrong she realized he wasn't interested because of her at all; he just enjoyed that kind of minutia in games. But, she didn't lose heart completely; maybe he included her starter sword.

"I'M SO SORRY FOR THE WAIT!" A portly man with thick upper arms dashed through the curtain of cranes. His face was dirty with grease and sweat and he had a pair of goggles sitting atop the few curls of green on his balding head. He wore a dark leather apron over his dirty black ninja uniform. He carried a long white box wrapped with a golden bow and set it on the counter while he bowed to Frost.

"My name is Glory Smith, I own this shop; it's an Honor to do business with you, Sir Frost."

"Uhh... thank you?" Frost replied. He would have preferred to have a quieter interaction.

"Please, would you do me the honor of inspecting my work?"

"Uhh..," Frost hesitated and glanced at Valentine. She was thoroughly amused with the situation.

"Well, don't leave him hanging," she said. "Inspect the man's work."

"Fine...," Frost's shoulder's slumped as he pulled the box closer and lifted the lid. The inside was lined with black velvet.

"Whooaaaa....," Valentine was awed as soon as she saw the sword. The blade appeared to be made of golden translucent glass and the handle was wrapped with a silky light blue material. Her eyes were glued to it as Frost lifted it out of the case. He turned and held it by the handle awkwardly for a moment; then, he offered it to Valentine.

"I don't know a thing about katanas. Is this any good?" he asked.

"Is it any good?" Glory Smith interrupted. "That is made with the highest grade materials available anywhere! It can't not be good," he scoffed. Then, he seemed to remember his role.

"But, please," he nodded at Valentine. "Sir Frost values your opinion," he said. As soon as her hands gripped the handle, Valentine could feel its quality. It was balanced and light as a shadow.

"It's amazing," Valentine said. She offered it back to Frost. He shook his head, then nodded at the curtain of cranes behind the counter.

"Not like that, go try it out," he said. "There's a training room she can use, right?" Frost asked.

"Of course, Sir Frost!" Glory Smith nodded at Valentine. "First room on the right," he said. Valentine did not hesitate to take the sword around the counter. The truth was she wanted to see what the sword could do too.

"Hey, what's with the,‘Sir Frost’, business?" Frost asked Glory Smith once they were alone.

"You could have taken your commission to any other ninja blacksmith and you chose me. I'm very grateful!"

"Are things that slow for smiths?" he asked.

"Oh not at all," Glory Smith shook his head. "Smiths are in high demand, and I can charge more now. As a result of your commission, I was able to meet Turbo. The quality of raw materials makes a huge difference in crafting. On a small scale, Turbo has higher quality than materials from Sharp Development; truly artisanal quality."

"This was so wicked!" Valentine dashed out from behind the curtain with a large smile on her face. "It has Holy and Ice damage!," she dashed to Frost, then sheepishly offered the sword back to him. "You know that already,” she added.

"Yeah, that's how I ordered it...," Frost nodded. Instead of taking the offered handle, he made a point of staring at it. After an extra moment of looking at her hand, he met her eyes. "...for you."

***

Thank you for reading! I’m responding to prompts every day. This is story #1846 in a row. (Story #036 in year six.). This story is part of an ongoing saga that takes place at a high school in my universe. It began on August 22nd and I will be adding to it with prompts every day until May 26th. They are all collected in order at this link.