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Post by shin on Mar 16, 2013 21:49:10 GMT -5
As Shin was being shocked, a battle of epic proportions was being fought within his mind. The more angered he became with the dark one, the more powerful it became. Shin seemed to be fighting a losing one. For every punch he delivered, he received ten. The walls of his mind were as ropes, and there was no referee, or panel of judges to make a decision. What was happening was pure carnage. The next blow, an uppercut that rattled Shin's brain. He seemed to be falling for a moment or two. Then, he composed himself, and yelled out.
"Just who the hell do you think I am?!"
It was then, that Shin found his strength.
"I am Shin! And I am the one that controls me, no-one else!"
He delivered a solid liver shot, followed by a quick uppercut and a sideways uppercut. The dark one, was lifted off it's feet, and crashed to the ground. Then, with these final words, it disappeared in a burst of dark smoke.
"Hmph...seems I underestimated you. Things won't be so easy next time."
After this happened, Shin regained consciousness, and the azure flames became concentrated in his right fist. With new found strength, he punched the sandbag hard, sending it on a 45 degree arc on it's chain. When the bag came back, he stopped it with his open palm. Then he took notice of his surroundings.
"Kenny, what's going on....and what's with that strange look on your face?"
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 17, 2013 16:07:05 GMT -5
Kennedy broke the current, taking a step back. She had been expecting the boy to maybe fall over, or react in some sort of way. Instead, he remained standing, stationary, solid. Like a brick wall, the boy remained standing, the flames licking at his frame like an eager puppy looking for a treat. Something was wrong, that was for sure, but whatever was going on was beyond her control. In fact, it was honestly not anything within the range of a ninth grade Fire. It was dangerous and--though most of the kids with settling powers were unpredictable--something dark and sinister was lurking within this boy.
The thought of shocking him once more when he came-to flickered through her mind, but she couldn't let herself get carried away. The last thing she wanted to observe was another episode like this. This sort of thing was why they had to hide their powers from the government outside of the realm of the Hollow. There were many people who were, in fact, incapable of controlling their powers. Used in the wrong--or correct, in the case of war--situations meant that they would be hunted once more. They would lose their humanity, become objects of a "greater cause".
Finally, something seemed to happen to the boy. The flames retracted, concentrating into his hand before he struck out at the punching bag before stopping its decent as it swung back down. She gave a nod, a mixture of awe and vague interest on her features as the boy turned towards her and asked what was going on. Kennedy smirked, giving a shrug. "Nothing's going on," she lied smoothly, walking forward with a strong gait and putting her hand on his shoulder, directing him away from the punching bag.
"Thank you for stopping by," she called over her shoulder towards the medics, as if they were not there as medics at all. Sort of shell-shocked, those who were there left, saying something about sending a bill. Kennedy waved them away, waiting until everybody had left the room before she spun the boy around and pushed him against a wall. "What the fuck was that?" she accused, her voice cold and hard, her grip even more so. In all honesty, she wasn't really overreacting at all. If the boy was going to take lessons here, she had to make sure that something like that didn't happen when other people were around.
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Post by shin on Mar 17, 2013 19:24:57 GMT -5
In the heat of the moment, Shin did something entirely unexpected. He kissed kennedy on her lips, for a good three seconds. Then he stepped away, his face completely flushed.
"You asked what happened earlier. To be honest, I can't be sure as to whether you'll believe me, but I guess what you saw was pretty unbelievable itself."
Shin sat down on the floor, his back against the wall.
"I remember passing out. After that, then next thing I knew, I was in some world of darkness and mist. There was another guy there. He looked exactly like me, but dark, twisted."
Shin covered his right eye with his right hand.
"The two of us fought for a long time. When I finally beat him, I was here, and there were a few people gathered around me. When I turned around, you had this really worried look on your face, and that scared me a bit. That's why I asked what was going on. Just what happened here?"
He lowered his hand, as well as his head, looking down rather hard.
"What's wrong with me?"
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 17, 2013 21:39:19 GMT -5
There were a few things that Kennedy could say had once surprised her. There was one thing in particular though, that had somehow seemed to keep on surprising her. It was something that, as a girl, you'd think that she would eventually get used too. However, despite the number of occurrences and the variety of people, Kennedy would still be taken by surprise that anybody at all was attracted to her to the point that they kissed her.
It didn't mean that she appreciated it, or that she particularly enjoyed the number of people who had acted on that impulse. So, she pushed back. She broke the contact about the same time the boy did, just after she got over the shock. A brief memory flashed through her head, of a time when she once exploded a light bulb because of surprise. Now, she was in charge of her powers more than they were of her. Which meant she didn't react.
At least, not immediately.
Shin continued to explain what had happened, or what he thought had happened. He must be insane the Thunder couldn't help thinking, clenching her fist as she took a step backwards. The punching bag was near enough, she could easily go back to hitting that. What in the world made it for. But there had been something that bothered her as he spoke, something that made her clench her jaw to prevent herself from snapping at him. He asked what was wrong with him.
"Well, I could name a few things," she responded, narrowing her eyes. "First of all, what on God's green earth gave you the inkling that you could do that!" the Thunder yelled, gritting her teeth. Another light in the room went dim and Kennedy directed it at the boy, a crackle and zap resounding where the current sparked right at his feet. Her fists clasped again, this time with a sigh as she took a deep breath and took another step back...
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Post by shin on Mar 17, 2013 22:16:05 GMT -5
The lightning hit the floor near his feet, but Kennedy's words hit him right in the heart. With a heavy sigh, he responded.
"The moment just felt right."
Then he stood up, his head low, and began walking towards the door.
"I'm gonna go now. I don't think I'll be seeing you again, so goodbye."
And with that, he walked out the door, tears streaming from his eyes.
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 18, 2013 0:31:40 GMT -5
Kennedy couldn't help it, she laughed a bit as Shin responded that the moment just felt right. There had been plenty of times where the time might have felt alright to the Beaufort but she had never acted upon it. She forgot, in a sense, the awkwardness that the early teen stages were like. Sure, she was only sixteen herself but she couldn't exactly compare her mindset to the thirteen or fourteen year old boy who had decided that the moment feels right to kiss a girl when she pins you to the wall in anger.
But she did feel a bit remorseful as the boy sulked out of the room, excusing himself and saying that he wouldn't be seeing her again. As far as melodramatics went, he was playing them well. But, despite how cold her heart seemed to be, she couldn't just let him walk out of there thinking that he had officially screwed up any chances of being normal--or whatever you could be--in the Hollow. So, as he approached the door, she didn't stop herself as she called out after him.
"Lessons are from ten to noon on Saturdays. Don't be late." Her voice was calm, blatant, but not something to be ignored. "And keep your happy lips at home, we have business to attend too," Kennedy finished, giving a smirk towards the boy before turning her attention back to her punching bag. That was her date for the rest of the evening and she might as well take advantage of it while she could.
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Post by shin on Mar 18, 2013 23:54:35 GMT -5
THE FOLLOWING SATURDAY
Shin walked into the gym about fifteen minutes before ten. He waved a quick greeting to Kennedy, then proceeded to the punching bag. He was still quite angered by what happened the last time he was here. His anger, though, was not with Kennedy, but with himself. Since he didn't feel like saying anything, he vented his anger on the bag, hitting harder and harder with each rep.
I have to get stronger. Stronger, stronger, stronger, I have to.
As he thought this to himself, he continued punching. Still, he said nothing to Kennedy. If he did, he feared that he might blow up in her face, which wouldn't do either of them any good. Instead, he just kept angrily punching the bag.
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 21, 2013 23:43:04 GMT -5
There were a few things that confused Kennedy, but none of the caliber that she managed to do to herself. The reason why she invited Shin back for lessons, at the time, seemed like the right thing to do. The young Fire had just seemed so distressed about his behavior, she couldn't bring herself to just let him walk away. He had at least seemed adamant originally to learn more about his defense. She was curious as to what he could pull off, as long as he kept his emotions and powers under control.
So the young Beaufort made it to the gym when her father did at eight AM that Saturday, hoping to get a few reps and brush up on her techniques before the boy showed back up. It was a few hours early, but her mind had been whirring lately at a million miles an hour. There was just too much to think about and too little time. About twenty minutes before ten, the Thunder perched herself on a stack of mats, drinking her water.
Today, she was adorned in matching clothing. Her athletic tops and bottoms and some nice tennis shoes. Kenny had her ear-buds in her ears, listening to some of her work out music as she waited for her student. At that moment, Shin walked into the gym and made his way to her punching bag. His gait, his attitude, was still upset. It wasn't that she could do anything to help the boy, but he wouldn't do well to have another episode like he did last time.
So, the Thunder turned her attention towards him, making her way easily to be behind the bag. "Don't let your emotions get in the way of your form," she remarked, watching him evenly. "With your powers, especially as a Fire, you're going to need to work hard to keep them under control," Kennedy continued, arching a brow in his direction. Might as well get straight into business, after all.
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Post by shin on Mar 23, 2013 12:58:32 GMT -5
Shin quickly realized that his anger was causing his form to suffer. After the small reprimand from Kennedy, he allowed his strength to flow naturally. He resumed his repetitions of jabs and 1-2 combos that he had been practicing at the last time he was in the gym. With each blow, he felt a definitive impact. While this made him feel good about his strength, it also worried him. He didn't want to hurt her, so he eased up on his punches a bit. "Sorry, almost forgot you were behind the bag."
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 27, 2013 0:05:33 GMT -5
The Thunder couldn't help but wonder what was passing through the young Fire's head. What was making him so angry? She was not a teenage boy, nor a Fire, so she didn't have an inkling of what might be racing through his thoughts and making him so upset. He couldn't still be bothered about his... Mishap last time, could he? The audacity in attempting the move was still beyond her, but she would be willing to forget if he understood what he did was wrong.
But he seemed to take her advice well, as his punches became more rhythmic and fluid. The punching bag moved slightly as they landed, but nothing that she was too worried about. Apparently, however, Shin was as he apologized and stopped his routine short of his bursts of energy that he had been using. Kennedy arched a brow at him, almost challengingly. There were a few things that tended to rub on her nerves. One of which happened to be people who underestimated her because she was a girl.
"I don't know where you come from," she started, watching him as she stepped out from behind the bag. "But in this gym, it doesn't matter what gender your opponent is," Kennedy explained, crossing her arms. "Just because I'm female doesn't mean my skill set isn't lesser than yours," she shot, watching him to see if he understood what she was saying. She wasn't trying to upset him more, but the weren't going to get anywhere if he was scared he was going to hurt her.
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Post by shin on Mar 28, 2013 0:24:47 GMT -5
Shin came to a complete stop, he didn't even have his fists raised anymore. Instead of looking at the bag, he was looking right at her, his face flushed.
"Kennedy....growing up, there were two important thins that I learned. The first of which was, and still is, that a man should never strike a woman. It doesn't matter if the bag is there. If you're the one behind it, I just don't feel right. I'm not trying to be disrespectful. Quite the opposite, actually. I know that you're a lot better than I could ever hope to be. Still, this is something that I will stand by, no matter what."
He turned towards the door.
"If you can't understand that, then maybe I should train somewhere else."[/font]
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Post by KENNEDY LYNN BEAUFORT on Mar 28, 2013 11:27:28 GMT -5
Kennedy smirked as he stopped punching the bag, making eye contact and turning a bright shade. She wondered if the feeling in her stomach was felt by anybody who made people fluster like that. It raised her confidence a bit, though she couldn't tell you why. It didn't matter what this boy thought of her, but the fact that she seemed to have some sort of control over him simply because of looks or personality was a new feeling for her. That was something that Dee specialized in. Kenny just beat the crap out of people to get them to listen.
She listened complacently as he explained that he learned to things growing up, one of which was not to strike a woman. He was different. She wasn't quite sure whether it was good or bad, but he seemed to always talk in a fashion that was far too stilted, too formal. The brunette allowed herself to entertain the idea if everybody talked like that. Where ever he grew up, it was obvious that his English was taught in a very formal setting. Maybe he learned it in Europe or something. It seemed likely.
He turned towards the door, saying that he should go train somewhere else if she didn't understand. "I understand perfectly," she pointed out, her voice a bit more cold than she had been aiming it to be. "But don't expect me to go running around to make you stay. This is one of the best training facilities in Maple Hollow," Kenny explained, watching him evenly. "And if seeing a woman as an instructor is too much for you, I will see you out."
She wasn't quite sure what she was trying to accomplish. Some part of her wanted a good fight. It had been a while and the boy proved to be a good opponent. While testing a Fire's temper, especially a young one, wasn't her best idea, it definitely meant she should get some sort of reaction from him. If he left... Well, power to him. That sort of control was hard earned in the Fire Elementals.
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Post by shin on Mar 28, 2013 14:20:23 GMT -5
"It's not that I don't see you as an instructor, because I do. That aside, I also see you as a friend, and I don't want o hurt any of my friends. Is there possibly some way for me to train, without the risk of possibly hurting you?"
He knew he was asking a lot, since boxing was a full contact sport. He just didn't want to see Kennedy get hurt, especially because of him.
"I'm sorry, I know I'm asking a lot. It's just....if I did hurt you, it would leave a bad taste in my mouth."
He turned back towards Kenny, the redness gone from his face, which had a somewhat apologetic look.
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