[ their time together had been long enough that sam knew about this difference in their view - that geralt's understanding of the world was adjusted to the harsh place he'd been from. and while sam could, in his own right, see himself carrying that same cold acceptance of what had to be done - that was part of all of him, wasn't it? the fact he didn't stop fighting, wouldn't stop fighting, even when it felt like everything in the world was pushing back?

we can't lose this fight.

geralt steps around and places his hands on sam's waist, adjusts him to where he should be standing and placing his feet in the correct place. sam lets geralt adjust him, quieting for a moment as he focuses - specifically - on the placements of his feet and hands, listening quite seriously as geralt talks. the air between them is easy, and even when sam lets himself soak in the information, there's still enough of that easiness for him to give a small smirk up towards geralt where he's still close enough to see it. there's a teasing tone to sam's words, and if he were any more like jaskier, probably some kind of eyebrow arch. ]

Good thing there are plenty of ways to end an encounter.

[ sam strikes out again as soon as geralt lets go of him, the movement of it already looking better. ] So you keep your eyes on your opponents' feet? What about their face? [ another practice swing, still right in line with what geralt is probably trying to get him to do, though not entirely there. ] Unless you're worried about how handsome they are catching you off-guard. [ this time, sam is going to turn, his strike going directly for geralt again, attempting (and knowing he will probably fail) to catch him not paying attention. except that geralt is probably a bit too close for even a sparring strike to do much damage, even if it did hit. ]