Learning How to Fight (open)

[sephora]

Time had passed. The girl had been out of the infirmary for just over a week, though her entire arm was in a cast and her ribs were still healing. Her face was still recovering from bruises, as was most of the skin on her legs and back. Walking into the gym, her short black yoga pants and tight black nike t-shirt helped to hide everything.

She had been spending time at the pool in an attempt to gain strength, and anything with water was low enough impact that it was fine for her. Sephora was now at the gym to start learning how to fight, though she knew she wasn't ready for anything serious.

Walking towards the equipment, she clutched a paper book in her hand. It was a pamphlet filled with information and stances for Tai Chi. Ever since her attack, the girl had realized just how helpless she was. So used to being surrounded by bodyguards, she had never really learned how to fight. After discovering her Qi, Sephora had then thought that she would use it as a defense. The problem was, she hadn't figured out to use it defensively at this level. All she could do was make things grow.

Reaching an area where the floor was covered in mats and there was a tall, wide mirror, she set the book on the closest object that would support it. She had chosen Tai Chi because of its graceful qualities that hid its dangerous truth. Tai Chi was often seen as a dance, but was truly a vicious was to defend oneself, and since she never planned on attacking, she only wanted to learn how to defend herself.

Stretching as best she could while grimacing through the pain of her still healing ribs, she opened the book to the first page of stances. Going into it, she held it for the count of ten and then stood. Doing it again, Sephora had decided to hold each stance for 200 counts, with rest intervals in between, and then start learning transitions.

She ignored the ache of her still healing body.

[Riley]

Riley entered through not the door, but the wall and found himself in the gym. He at first thought he was alone, until he spotted a girl standing on the mats, a tall wide mirror located nearby. Riley drifted over to her, and hovering above her, took a peek at what she was looking at. " A book, on Tai Chi?" he questioned, looking at her face, which had a look of grimace on it, clearly she was stretching, but stretching through pain.

He concluded that her body was healing, considering the stance she was currently doing shouldn't be this painful. He continued hovering beside her, reading the book that was open, the pages showing various stances. He occasionally glanced over at her, wondering if she could see him or not. Should he try to make his presence known? He didn't need to ask, he already knew the answer. A mischievous grin started to form on his face, yes, yes he would.

Quickly looking at her, he saw her face the other way, and taking the opportunity, he began to possess the book, and moved it over, enough for her to notice that the book wasn't in the spot it was originally. Being a ghost had its perks, he could play tricks and not get caught. He then hovered above her, and waited to see her reaction. If she could see him, well, if she wanted a partner, he'd be more than happy to help. If she couldn't see him, oh, would he have some fun.

[sephora]

Moving through the motions, Sephora stopped. Clutching her side, she wheezed a bit from the pain. Straigtening, she ran a hand over her face and sighed. Maybe she hadn't been ready for training to fight.

Looking back down to the book, she saw it had moved. Her eyes widened in sudden terror. She hadn't kicked anything and moved the booklet. Which means something had moved it. Her heart pounded, could the demon have come back to finish the job and was toying with her? No, that one had wanted her to know it was he who would be killing her.

Looking around, tears began to roll down her cheeks. She shouldn't have come here alone, this was a mistake. Maybe another demon had come on the first demon's bidding to finish her off. Should she find Nymn? He had defeated the last one.

Squeezing her eyes togher, Sephora brushed at her face, the tears leaving streaks over her bruised cheeks. Looking around, the girl didn't see anything. Looking up, she had thought she saw something. Squinting, the girl looked harder.

[Riley]

Looking down at the girl, Riley was surprised to see her crying, did he go too far on his prank? He started to feel ashamed, looking around, he spotted a discarded ball of paper and a pencil somebody had thrown away. Moving closer to it, he began possessing it, opening it, so that he could write on it.

Taking control of the pencil, he began writing on the unused side of the paper. Drifting back to the girl, the paper and pencil not hovering, but moving as if a gust of wind was pushing it along, it landed near the girl's foot. What he wrote on the note was,

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I'm not a demon, or anything of the sort, just a wandering ghost who had nothing to do. Okay, take a few minutes to take that bit in. Are you okay now? My name is Riley, I'm sorry, I didn't know if you could see me or not. Are you okay? I didn't mean to make you cry. I think it'd be easier for you to write on the paper, because then people won't think you're going crazy, talking to yourself.

Riley hoped that his note would cheer the girl up a little bit, one thing he couldn't take, was a girl crying, especially if it involved something he did. He continued hovering above her, noticing she was squinting right where he was hovering, could she see him? That little bit of hope made him feel slightly better, he was kind of lonely after all.

[sephora]

As she squinted at the area that she thought she saw something, Sephora felt something against her foot. Looking down, she saw the paper and wiped away the rest of the tears.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I'm not a demon, or anything of the sort, just a wandering ghost who had nothing to do. Okay, take a few minutes to take that bit in. Are you okay now? My name is Riley, I'm sorry, I didn't know if you could see me or not. Are you okay? I didn't mean to make you cry. I think it'd be easier for you to write on the paper, because then people won't think you're going crazy, talking to yourself.

Bending down slowly, the girl grimaced at the pain of her bent torso. Her ribs creaked as she stood and sat on a close bench, holding the paper on her knee. She smiled slowly, but still wasn't sure how safe this appiration was. After all, the boy she had loved was possessed when attacking her. Could she trust anything that was from a different world? Sephora didn't know.

Lifting the pencil, she wrote, It's alright, I'm sorry for crying. I was attacked recently by a demon and am still shook up. Pausing, Sephora stared at the pencil then back up at the spot she had seen earlier. It was almost as if it was darker there, something was trying to not let her see through to what was behind. The more Sephora tried to see it, the darker whatever was there became. My name is Sephora. I can see a shadow where I think you are.

Looking back up, the shadow had gotten a tiny bit darker. Did her believing in the ghost make it easier for her to see it? Was it because of her recent contact with a demon? Was it because she had seen death?

[Riley]

Riley watched as the girl began writing, replying to what he wrote. He then drifted down to read what was on the paper after she had finished. What she wrote made his eyes widden in shock, now he really felt bad for pulling that trick on her.

It's alright, I'm sorry for crying. I was attacked recently by a demon and am still shook up. My name is Sephora. I can see a shadow where I think you are.

Cripes, Riley shook his head in shock, this girl had gone through a lot, a demon attack of all things. Taking control of the pencil once again, he wrote a reply to her below her response.

A demon, that's terrible. Now I really feel bad for scaring you, can you forgive me, please? I can see why you're still shook up, a ghost appearing isn't exactly normal now is it? Sephora huh? That's a beautiful name. Nice to meet you, Sephora.

A shadow huh? Guess that's means I'm not totally invisible yay! It's pretty lonely when no one can see you. I don't really know how you can see me, but I'm happy to meet someone who can. I can assure you though, I'm no demon, I would never hurt anyone, especially girls.

Cripes, that sentence just now made me sound like a gigalo, not what I was going for. >,< Were you here to train or learn to fight? I saw the book you were looking at, Tai Chi right?

Riley finished writing, and drifted down so that he was standing in front of Sephora, his hands in his pockets. Oh the wonders of ghost powers, letting him control objects, it made communicating slightly easier. Considering what Sephora wrote, Riley concluded that the shadow she wrote meant that she couldn't see the spot of wall that was behind him. He studied her face, he could see that she was fighting through the pain, he couldn't help but feel sympathy for her, no one deserved to go through such pain.

[Marquise]

Marquise had a rough few nights. All the drinking of blood, he felt stuffed. He couldn't possibly drink any more. Which was a good thing since it was day time and it was hard for him to use his Qi for very long. At least with vocal changes, those were nearly impossible. He was walking around the school and noticed a girl that he had tasted.

Yes..... I've tasted you.... you're a very special girl..... of course, I'm not sure what Dani would think of that action. She'd probably be angry... her blood would be pumping......[/color]

"Don't think of that right now..." Marquise said to himself in a whisper, it was like somebody talking about desert after a large thanksgiving dinner where you ate way too much, "What was her name...... I can't remember... but she spoke armenian... hell, she doesn't know this form anyway."

Marquise didn't usually check up on his victims, but this one was a little stranger. He walked over as she appeared to be writing stuff. He wasn't paying much attention. He made sure his veins weren't showing, he gave himself a tan complexion, and took away his fangs. It was the best he could do for as long as he might have to talk to her. His hair was the same as when he was alive, just without any coloring, making it look like a brown Mohawk that hadn't been spiked with a ponytail.

"Hey girl," Marquise said walking over to the girl in broad daylight. He had offered her a chance to be like him, she never had the chance to take it, but he thought she might have at one point, "You are that girl who was in that fight the other night, right? The one where a student died? Shouldn't you be resting inside or something?"

There was no rumor, but he didn't feel like chancing telling her that he was the handsome boy with the smooth voice that changed over and over. He was bored, and she might be some entertainment besides, he had always felt a little more human in the daylight. Maybe thats why vampires hid from it. That didn't stop his voice from being cold, harsh, and rather monster like.

[sephora]

A demon, that's terrible. Now I really feel bad for scaring you, can you forgive me, please? I can see why you're still shook up, a ghost appearing isn't exactly normal now is it? Sephora huh? That's a beautiful name. Nice to meet you, Sephora.

A shadow huh? Guess that's means I'm not totally invisible yay! It's pretty lonely when no one can see you. I don't really know how you can see me, but I'm happy to meet someone who can. I can assure you though, I'm no demon, I would never hurt anyone, especially girls.

Cripes, that sentence just now made me sound like a gigalo, not what I was going for. >,< Were you here to train or learn to fight? I saw the book you were looking at, Tai Chi right?

The girl smiled. This ghost, Riley, seemed pretty nice, not someone she should be afraid of. Although the demon who had taken over Joar hadn't seemed a threat at first. Besides, there were no trees or plants around right now to warn her if he was trouble.

No, this ghost didn't seem to type to harm, she could tell through his writing style. Besides, if he had had any ill intent he would have taken her body over or something. She lifted the pencil, Well I'm glad to read that you won't hurt anyone. I can't imagine what it would be like to be unseen, I'm sure you're right about how lonely you get. Looking up to add a facial expression to her words, Sephora no longer saw the shadow.

Suddenly slightly panicked, she looked around and saw a shadow right in front of her. Resisting the urge to jump, she touched the pencil to the paper once more, Yes, I'm learning Tai Chi. I want to learn how to defend myself physically, as I don't know how to fight. I've always loved wat Her pencil stopped, though, when she heard someone behind her speaking,

"Hey girl," Blue eyes looked around, she saw a boy approaching. His brown hair was mohawked and he was pretty tan. She glanced at the shadow once and wondered if the new boy could see Riley. The thought was erased, though, at the sound of his almost inhuman voice, "You are that girl who was in that fight the other night, right? The one where a student died? Shouldn't you be resting inside or something?"

"Yes, that is me," Sephora said in her tilting accent as she stood, "and I'm well enough to be done resting. There were others involved who need more help than I do." She meant Nymn, who was still needing care. He had been battered worse than her, plus she had had help earlier than he did. "I didn't know there were any rumors," The girl said under her breath in Armenian.

Sephora studied him, her bruised face shone in a friendly smile as she held out her warm hand, "Besides, my name is Sephora, not girl." She didn't trust this newcomer, his voice set her on edge. Well, after the attack by the demon, everything set her on edge.

[Marquise]

"Oh, I must apologize, Sephora," Marquise said, taking her hand in his, making it more of a horizontal hold then a vertical shake, and then bowing. It was the manners his sire had tought him, "I am John." He released her hand and stood upright.

I really have to get out of the habit of using that filthy name.... Just because I was born with it. Still, this gymnasium is weird, I don't think I like this school during the day time.... no... no... the night is definitely much more suitable. People walking around, alone, vulnerable.[/color]

"It looks like you've been reading and writing gir- i mean, Sephora, my apologies. But isn't this a place for working out and exercising?" Marquise took a look around. Yes, this was definitely a gym, he didn't mean to keep bugging her, but he was bored, curious, and had nothing else to do during the day. God forbid he actually go to a class.

Heh.... God forbid..... That's John talking. Those memories haunt me sometimes. Of course, this girls bruised face brings me comfort. Afterall, her blood is still nourishing my body as we speak.....[/color]

[sephora]

"Oh, I must apologize, Sephora," Sephora allowed him to make a formal bow, introducing himself as John. Smiling at him, she took her hand back as he rose from the bow. She watched him look around and rested her hand on the crook of the cast that covered the whole of her left arm after brushing back a hair that had strayed from the tail she had smoothed it all into.

"It looks like you've been reading and writing gir- i mean, Sephora, my apologies. But isn't this a place for working out and exercising?" Sephora smiled as he spoke, turning the paper she and Riley had been speaking on over, so that there was more room. She looked at the shadow of the ghost and smiled, winking. She suddenly felt myschevious. "I was just taking a break and writing with someone, John."

Sephora gave him a pretty smile, though her face was bruised. She indicated the book, "I am teaching myself Tai Chi." The smile faded at what she then said, "As you can see I was attacked recently. I'm learning how to fight back."

[Lunari Awren]

Last time she walked down this hallway, she had no idea what she was running into going into the gym. Just a few weeks earlier, she'd been shot in the head by none other than Artemis Chekov, who had mistaken her short stature for a student. She'd been knocked unconscious, and her work broken.

But not today. Oh no.

Lunari reached the door of the Gym and peered in, using her Qi this time to check the room for her signature. It didn't appear to be there, so she formed her scythe and walked in, taking note of the kids. She could be anywhere, hell, she might not even be here, but not satisfied, she crept in, and started looking around, scythe in front of her, making sure she could shield herself at a moments notice.

She put the weapon on her back and started walking, still looking around, everything seemed okay.

There were a few people she recognized. Riley the ghost, Sephora, who wasn't supposed to be out of bed, but whatever anyway. And that other boy she really didn't take a liking for. Something was really up with him. Lunari took her seat on the bleachers and sat back, ever watchful as she opened a book.

[Marquise]

Marquise took careful note that the Lunari woman had arrived. She seemed a little scared at first when she walked in, holding that scythe she had the other night, but then later putting it away, "Curious..... what's she so scared of...."

Perhaps the teacher for this class is one who creates fear for other teachers as well. Funny, I think I'd rather like someone like that.....[/color]

"Tai Chi you say?" Marquise didn't understand, "Surely you could simply find a way to use your Qi. Besides.... Tai Chi is a little more complex, not exactly something self taught.."

Writing with..... she's alone.... who could she be writing with? Perhaps this girl is insane? That would only add to the fun of turning the girl..... she would make an excellent one of our kind.... oh yes.....[/color]

"So.... who are you writing with?" He was trying to sound interested, in fact he was more interested in the girls Qi, if it wasn't for battle... then what was it? In case she ever faught him back if he should get hungry for her again, he'd best be prepared.

[sephora]

"Tai Chi you say? Surely you could simply find a way to use your Qi. Besides.... Tai Chi is a little more complex, not exactly something self taught.." Sephora shrugged. She didn't really want to tell this boy such a personal thing, that she couldn't figure out how to use her Qi defensively. Maybe as she developed it she would figure out how, but for now Sephora just used it to garden and get information.

"My Qi... is complicated." She paused, biting her lip then regretting it, for her lip had been split. The soft bite broke open a scab and a tiny drop of blood marred her chin, which she licked off without a thought, pulling her now softly bleeding lip into her mouth. Better than getting it on her hand or clothing. "I know that Tai Chi is difficult, but it's the best I can do right now. I need to figure out to defend myself incase I can't do anything else. Hopefully I'll be able to find someone to teach it to me once I am better healed."

"So.... who are you writing with?" Sephora looked back at the paper. How crazy she must look, sitting in the gym writing to no one. "I. . ." She started, not knowing how to continue, "I know it sounds crazy, but I was writing with a ghost."

"For some reason they like me" Sephora looked Chris in the eye as she said this in Armenian and gave a soft chuckle.

Eager to make herself appear a bit more sane, and since Riley seemed content to not disprove the idea of her being insane, she changed the subject, "So what are you doing in the gym? Planning on working out?" If he was, maybe the boy could give her a few pointers.

[Marquise]

"Armenian.... I've always wanted to learn a foreign language...." Marquise said as he stared into her eyes, he watched as she drank her own blood. "A ghost you say?"

Filthy creatures.... the soul without the body. They are nothing more then reflections of their former selves unable to sustain their own strengths. Doomed to wander but never affect anything. I'd much rather be here as I am now, with crosses searing my flesh and holy water having the same effect as acid then be a floating spirit.[/color]

"Not crazy my dear," Marquise spoke as he began to answer her other question, "I actually do plan on exercising, I've been eating a lot lately and I would hate to put on a few pounds. Perhaps we could train? I could probably teach you how to fight. Maybe not Tai Chi, but if you show me your Qi and I show you a few things."

Marquise watched her lips again, knowing the sweet taste of her blood, "I have to warn you though, my help wouldn't be free. And I'm not exactly a cheap trainer."

I would consumer her right here right now if it wasn't for that damned Dani. I can't kill the students, that's her job. She's going to be the one who gets them killed in the end. Of course... in the end I will always have Dani to feast on.[/color]

[sephora]

Sephora went to cross her arms, but thought better of it as the cast reminded her of its presence. "Armenian.... I've always wanted to learn a foreign language...." She smiled at him. The girl never thought of Armenian as being a foreign language, but English as the foreign language, not to mention Japanese.

"Not crazy my dear. I actually do plan on exercising, I've been eating a lot lately and I would hate to put on a few pounds. Perhaps we could train? I could probably teach you how to fight. Maybe not Tai Chi, but if you show me your Qi and I show you a few things." Sephora studied him carefully. Her Qi? Why in the world would he want to know about that? It wouldn't benefit him at all, unless he was planning on attacking her in the near future, in which case she planned on having Nymn around most of the time, as he had protected her earlier.

"I have to warn you though, my help wouldn't be free. And I'm not exactly a cheap trainer." Distracted for a moment from the contemplation of why he would wish to know her Qi, the girl grinned at him, her split lip once more threatening to bleed. "Money is no object to me, John." She paused, looking him up and down, "Unless you were thinking of some other form of compensation." Sephora wasn't quite sure what else a boy like him would want. Sexual favors were out of the question, especially due to her physical state. Perhaps he knew of her father and wanted drugs? That would be easy enough.

Sephora's bruised face brightened, "Perhaps we could exchange training for lessons in Armenian. It seems fair, trading one skill for another." She would wait to bring up the subject of Qi. If he mentioned it again, she would ask why it was so important. If not, she too, would drop it.