melodiesofeternity | (no subject)

Who: Castor, and maybe you!
When: Throughout June
Where: All over! But mostly around house C-03 and the Curti Centre
What: Monthly catchall for Castor!
Warnings/Notes: None so far

1] Things we lost in the fire
Castor’s kept to herself following the foray into the Dream Width, not engaging with the new souls found, nor does she linger once the airships land safely once again. For not being a sneaky sort, she’s pretty good at just vanishing.

Towards the end of the day though, an astute set of eyes might notice her up on the roof of one of the Curti Centre buildings, silently regarding the airships, and those coming and going.

2] Anyone have a Gyshal Green?
If you’re anywhere near the C-block of housing, there’s a new Wark in the neighbourhood! Look close and you can spot the ivory feathers of a new chocobo! Sometimes it’s just chilling in the yard, sometimes it’s napping quietly against Castor (who is probably just as quietly napping out in the sunshine), but it always seems even tempered if a bit aloof...Do you have a treat for it?

3] Something Something praise the sun
Despite the occasional complaint to the neighbours, Castor really was one to rise early. In the small yard of C-03, she stretches and drills and finds herself keenly missing the striking dummies from back home. Sometimes she prays, even if The Twelve can’t hear her here. If you’re out for an early morning run, maybe she’ll join you?

4] PUNCH PRACTICE (for Hunk)
Early one afternoon, the following message comes in over the network.
hunk if you want to learn some hand to hand meet me at the curti centre in one hour and ill teach you.

5] BYOPrompt!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well, first've all, I found somewhere private fer us te work, so follow me.

[ She found an empty gym room; good enough for their purposes. ]

I told ye I was going te teach ye about pressure points an' fightin' dirty an' defensively, but first I want te see what ye can do. Hit me as hard as ye can.

[ There might've been a sigh of relief as Hunk realized they wouldn't be throwing punches near his hovercar. Small victories. But as he walked into the gym, he became visibly. Tense. This is really happening. ]

Are- are you sure? We don't have any healers around and what if something goes wrong and should I switch off from Gourmand or- [ He just sighs. It's training. With Castor. She's cool. She knows what she's doing. And they're in the Curti Center. They have some doctors here. It should be fine, right? Right?!]

Fine. [ Another sigh, and he lets out a small shout as he throws a heavy punch with... a bit too much of his body behind it. Is he stumbling? She wanted his best, whatever that looks like. ]

[ She catches his fist easily and stops him before he can stumble too far forward. ] Alright alright. Jes needed te see what I'm workin' with. I think before we get te any more punchin, we should start with yer footwork and stance. If ye wanna be up close, ye can't let whatever yer fightin' push ye around. Make sense?

Now, try yer best te mimic this...

[ She slides easily into a ready stance, legs apart, weight low and arms in tight. ]

[ Hunk breathes a sigh of relief as Castor catches his fist and the rest of his body. That was almost embarrassing! ] Th-thanks... [ And as he goes to try and steady himself, he listens to Castor's words about stances. It made sense! And so he nodded at her and smiled, because he could do this! ]

So like... this? [ And then he tried to mimic her. It's not quite as hard to do as he thought, as it turns out. ]

Better![ She moves close, grabs his shoulder and pushes a little bit, challenging his stance. ] See how it's hard few me te push ye off balance like this? Yer probably gonna see more success holdin' yer ground like this than y'are tryin' te outmanoeuvre whatever yer fightin, so a solid stance like this'll serve ye well.

[ She uses her feet to kick his into a slightly better position, then steps back. ]

Now, punch at somethin' again and tell me how it feels.

[ Hunk just listens and nods as Castor guides him. The change to his stance works, and he feels sturdy. He's used to throwing his weight around, and he knows physics and mechanics, but this just feels right. ]

Uh-huh, makes sense. [ And then he tries not to giggle as she nudged his feet around. This is so silly. ] 'Kay.

[ And then he throws another punch, still with a bit of haphazard overextension to his arm. But Hunk's got a sturdier stance, he's able to catch himself this time, and his eyes go wide as he realizes how much force was actually going into that blow. ]

Whoa. [ He can see how Shiro fights hand-to-hand so much. This is cool. Even though he's shifted himself out of the stance with that punch and hasn't realized it. ]

Better already, yeah? Keep te the ground, and it'll lend ye it's strength. Next step is not te overextend like that. S' a little hard te do, with nothin te hit against, but ye learn pretty quick when ye've gone too far in any direction.

Any questions so far? I admit, I don't usually teach.

Well I don't usually punch, so I think we're both doing a pretty good job! [ And he laughs, trying to shrug off the nerves for both of them. ]

But what about kicks? Kicks are a thing people do sometimes. Should we practice kicking? Is that a good idea?

No objections te teachin ye kicks, but fer now, we ought te stick with ye on the ground. Kickin's better fer when yer more mobile or light on yer feet. Fer now, I think helpin ye stand yer ground is the better lesson...and lest ye think I'm foolin' wiv ye, this stance is somethin' I ended up teachin my own Master, cause it was better than the one he was usin!

What?! [ Hunk starts to laugh as his eyes go wide like dinner plates. ] You taught your Master?! [ That means she must be really good! Like, some kind of martial arts supergenius! ]

Okay, so... [ He hunkers back down into the stance, trying to make adjustment based off what he thinks feels right and what he's learned so far. He's winging it, but martial arts is basically the same as cooking, right? ] So how do we know when I'm light on my feet?

[ And then he starts laughing, because him? Light on his feet? That'd be the day. Don't think there's not a hint of enthusiastic optimism in his eyes though. ]

Ye! I got my start learnin' gladiatorial pugilism in Ul'dah. S' a little more rough'n tumble; more've a brawl. S' important te be able te hold yer ground, even against someone who might be bigger or faster'n you are. So. Low stance?

[ She slides into one mirroring Hunk's with a practised ease. ]

When I came across my Master an' learned proper Monkin' he taught up here...

[ And she slides up onto the ball of her feet, bouncing a little. ]

Lets me hit a little harder, but isn't doin any favours if I'm on the arse end 'o somethin'. Anyways, a day came an' my Master lost a fight, an' lost it badly - Just as there was an order 'o monks, there was an order who hunted us, and they could shut us down without a thought. Not me though, cause I remembered how te fight a little dirtier. So, I taught my Master how te fight a little dirtier, too. An' now I'm teachin' you.

Once yer comfortable an' confident we'll move on. I don' think you're like to be light on yer feet any time soon, but I think ye'll have a mean roundhouse kick in ye.

[ Hunk, as he listens to Castor's story, looks a lot less lost than one might think. It helps that Nanano told him a bit about Ul'dat, and he knows what a Monk is. ]

So... what does fighting dirty mean? [ He gets a bit of a cheeky smirk. ] Like... stepping on someone's foot? Or, uh... bringing a gun to a fistfight? [ He has no idea, Castor. No idea at all. Help the Paladin learn how to fight dirty. ]

Not quite, no. Fer one thing, guns aren't too common; Limsa Lominsa's got a good supply o' flintlocks, and a fool up in Ishgard is workin' on some little beastie that fires aether slugs, but ye seldom see 'em elsewhere. Fer another. Well...

[ Castor slides into a low stance a few feet away from Hunk. ] One more try an' I'll show ye.