Description: Being responsible for the training of another is a heavy burden for Hotaru to bear, especially when she has doubts about her abilities to explain certain fundamental aspects of the art. Turning to the young man she considers an expert in the matters of chi manipulation, Hotaru recruits backup for the Teach Kentou project.
Some sort of critical mass has apparently been reached.
The issue with the YFCC staff is that except for Frei, Rose, and Alma, they're all high school-age volunteers. Rose, of course, has her own mysterious issues to worry about, and Alma has a successful modelling career to keep him occupied. Unfortunately, that leaves Frei, who has... nothing but free time, and consequently little to do. His training, after all, is rigorous but not in the sense that he spends a lot of time with a punching bag or standing under a waterfall. He mostly just has to think, and typically if his hands aren't doing something his brain wanders... so the staff have had plenty of busywork for him to do.
It shows. The center is *spotless*, though early morning patrons were surprised to find the slightly-built and not exactly powerhouse-y monk being dragged after a zamboni-like floor waxer in the cafeteria. The books are all tidied, sums and figures added, checks written, supplies restocked. He taught an afternoon tai chi class, as is his actual 'job'. He even solved a Rubik's Cube, if by 'solved' you mean 'screamed at and then smashed with a hammer'. He's going stir crazy.
Thus visitors to the YFCC may be surprised to find the monk sitting at the front desk and sprawled on top of it, face down, arms splayed. It's not that he's tired, he's just... well, BORED. There's nothing to do, no neat visitors to talk to, and everything that needs cleaning is already reflectively bright and shiny.
"If something doesn't happen in the next ten minutes," Frei mumbles into the desktop, "I'm going to go find Tran and insult his mother."
Of course Hotaru had called ahead before making this afternoon's field trip to the YFCC with Kentou in tow. One of the teen volunteers handling the desk had taken the call. "Yes, is Frei around?" the girl had asked. "He's what? ... Okay, thanks." *click* It didn't sound like Frei was going anywhere as long as they got there in time.
The trip across town was accomplished with a taxi ride. Normally the girl would have preferred a brisk walk, but they only had ten minutes before Frei was going to off the deep end, so time /was/ of the essence.
She had promised Kentou that she would introduce him to her friends, but as it turns out, he's already met this one. "He prefers to be called Frei," she comments as the two approach the door. Normally the girl would tack the honorific -san on for him like she does for Mizuki. A deeply ingrained respect for religious sorts of any variety, it would seem.
Of course Kentou had told her that he had indeed met the monk before at the very YFCC they were going to find him no less. But for some reason, Hotaru had insisted that they go meet Frei all the same though her reasons were vague. "So you've seen him fight, too?" she asks as she pulls the door open and steps inside. A glance is made immediately toward the front desk. One face down monk, check. Looks like we're in time, she muses with a quiet smile.
Not that... Kentou was ENTIRELY unappreciative of the taxi-ride. The Kenpo teacher's apprentice has been doing a lot of running lately.
A. Lot.
Part of his most recent spate of exercises has been running back and forth across town at ever shortening times. The boy has always been a natural sprinter with fairly amazing endurance for his age. But even this vivacious bundle of energy knows when his legs have had enough. The smaller youth is all but sprawled into the backseat, having finished his most recent of rushes to meet up with his Master. Trying his best to seem like he's only lightly winded.. as opposed to running from the Docks to the Village in roughly fifteen minutes.
The flustered boy keeps his attention upon Hotaru as he nods eagerly, "..Hf..Frei..ah.. Yes, Frei-san.. woo.." Swallowing as he takes another deeper breath. Leaning down to dry his sweat-soaked brow over his nearly equally sweat-soaked upper arm before regarding her yet again, "He's.. he's a really good fighter! I remember. I.. ah.. I spared with him!" Which is perhaps a little flattering for his part. It wasn't so much a spare so much as a stand-up education, not unlike the first time the boy encountered Hotaru herself! The talented fight even unraveled his best technique with a tap of his finger like it was nothing.. Truth be told, that man was probably only a HAIR under his own Master's skill.
Of course.. Kentou may be biased.
The youth somewhat reluctantly peels himself from the taxi-seat as the ride pulls up to the youth center. Bowing respectfully to the driver before quickly toddling behind Hotaru to her right. Waving a hand lightly under his chin as he tries to enjoy a moment of air-conditioning as he questions, "..S..Sensei.. I don't understand though.. Why was it so urgent to.."
Kentou's mousy eyes trail then to the fallen Monk, widening as he stammers, "Is..is he dead?!" Fingertips touching his lips in genuinely startled terror. o_o;
All is quiet for a moment. After all, it's early evening... most of the YFCC's typical clientele are at home eating dinner, or perhaps downstairs in the fight room taking a class. Very few people are up and about in the lounge at this hour, and there's usually not a secretary on duty either. Thus very little to disturb what might be Frei's sleep and/or death.
Of course, this is mostly an illusion. He's not dead, OR asleep... he's just BORED. And the monk's brain is used to running at a slightly higher RPM than the typical person. Which isn't to say he's necessarily smarter or wiser, just... thinking a lot of things over. In fact, Hotaru and Kentou get within a couple feet of the front desk with absolutely no response whatsoever. And then, without any actual warning, Frei sits bolt upright, green eyes wide, freckled cheeks flushed with red as he POINTS at the master and student pair. "GREETINGS, STARFIGHTERS. YOU HAVE BEEN RECRUITED BY THE STAR LEAGUE TO FIGHT XUR AND THE KO-DAN ARMADA!"
The bellowed non-sequitur doesn't even have time to echo through the lobby before the monk throws his arm down, then rolls his entire body to the right so that he flumps out of his chair, laying on his back on the desk and looking at Hotaru and Kentou upside-down. "What's up, kids? Wanna play some Jenga?"
"No, I don't think so," Hotaru states in response to Kentou's question. Thing is, she almost sounds /unsure/. But then the young man pops up suddenly as if startled out of a very... disturbing reverie that she really doesn't want to know the particulars of. "See?" she remarks calmly to Kentou as Frei's arm drops and the monk shifts to lying on the desk instead.
"No time for Jenga today, I'm afraid," the girl remarks, turning her attention back toward Frei. Her hand comes up to rest on Kentou's shoulder as the girl continues right along, seemingly unphased by the bizarrely bored staffer. "I understand that you've met my student, Kentou, in the past, yes? Only, I don't think he was my student at the time," the girl continues, her expression warming now that she's talking about Kentou.
"Kentou has been taking Kenpo lessons from me for a little while now." She pauses, expression becoming more serious for a moment. "Um... You didn't really want to play Jenga did you?" comes the question with a blink, sounding a little apologetic about it. First she brushes off the chance to be the Last Starfighter, and then she turns down Jenga too? That /is/ kind of rude, she supposes.
"WAAGH!?"
As the dead jolts to life Kentou flails wildly! Squeaking as he gracelessly flops backwards onto his bottom and scrambles backwards crab-like a good few feet, "I..I DON'T KNOW HOW TO FLY! I D..duah?"
Saucer-sized eyes stay fixed on Frei for loooong moments as Kentou just begins to catch his breath. Staying put exactly where he is as Hotaru begins to explain the situation in a bit more detail, while at first noticing her excitable side-kick isn't exactly at eye-level at her side at the moment.
Only after a moment the boy slowly shambles to his feet, yet staring as if Frei could explode into a hive of killer Taoist Zombie clones at any moment. Her calming hand on his shoulder is enough to get him to relax to some degree anyway.. And remind him of his manners as he abruptly claps his fist to his palm and bowing, sword-in-sheath, "G..Good to see you again, Frei-san." As Hotaru openly admits to being the boy's teacher, the youth can't help but smile a bit brighter in pride.
He may never actually get used to hearing that in conversation. HE is Hotaru's student. Well.. not in the same sense as all the other children the Kenpo Champion instructs. But.. more directly. A Protege. Him. ...Heh-hehe. Ahem.
But the boy's thoughts wander.
Zoning back into the here and now, Kentou WOULD blurt what the heck is Jenga.. Is that some kind of hidden African Fighting Technique that Frei learned in the wilds of the Congo fighting Silver Man-Gorillas?! ... The boy can only hope eagerly, but he isn't about to ask. Master's talking, afterall!
"Nah, I hate Jenga," Frei says, still upside down. "Stupid thing always falls down no matter what piece I take out." Kentou's somewhat over the top reaction gets a raised eyebrow from the monk, though it's difficult to tell with his head like that, the long rust-colored tails of his headband nearly dragging on the ground as he continues to stand in what is probably a supremely uncomfortable position. In fact the pale cheeks are indeed flushing red with blood, and Frei chooses that time to heave himself back to his feet dramatically, turn around, and plunk back down in the desk chair, which squeaks in protest. Blinking, he puts a hand to his forehead and knits his brow. "Whoa... headrush."
Linking his fingers together, Frei pushes both arms out in front of him in a U shape to stretch, then pushes the arch up over his head, squinting his eyes shut for a moment as he does so. "Oh hey, it's you... yeah, we've met. How you doin', kiddo?" The news that Hotaru is training Kentou actually comes as a bit of a surprise, the monk turning his gaze to Hotaru for a moment with a surprisingly appraising glance. To him, it makes a lot of sense, after all... a girl who expressed discomfort with how she was taught in the past taking on a student seems like a wise emotional move.
For a moment, Frei actually wishes he'd thought of it first.
Finally, the green-eyed gaze turns back to Kentou with a faint grin. "You could do a lot worse in terms of teachers. For example, she's probably never going to tell you to cut five bundles of wet straw in a single stroke, or pin a thrown bottle in a Shanghai bar on you so the resulting brawl is considered your fault, for example." Oh yes, Frei's stories of his own lifetime training experiences are clearly the stuff 13 year old boys should be hearing. After a beat, Frei pulls on a sprightly smile and turns back to Hotaru. "So what can I do you for?"
Hotaru squeezes Kentou's shoulder a little when he addresses the monk as Frei-san. He really /wasn't/ listening during the ride over, was he! But it's to be understood, he did look pretty tired. The hand on Kentou's shoulder stays in place as her other hand comes to rest lightly against the desk, simply watching Frei as he moves around. The young man seems to be having a hard time getting comfortable. Or, maybe it's that he's finding so MANY positions comfortable he can't make up his mind. The girl isn't sure.
As the highly educated man mentions that the determined young teen seems to have picked a good enough teacher, Hotaru's cheeks blush just a hint, but then he goes on to describe what she can only imagine were some of his own training experiences, the girl coughs, being characteristically forceful in not letting the conversation stray into areas she doesn't think it needs to. Maybe the girl is just more foreceful when it comes to matters pertaining to her student. "Ahem, yes, probably nothing quite like that," she speaks, intentionally speaking over him for just a bit.
And then he poses his question and her expression brightens once more, both of her hands slipping behind her back. "Well... his training is coming along well. He's learning what I have to teach him fast." More compliments for her little protoge. "But there is one area of his education that I..." She pauses, frowning a little, her voice trailing off.
"Well, I don't really want to impose. I- I don't know how busy you are. But there is no one more qualified than you to speak on matters concerning chi and the manipulation thereof and I was hoping that..." Her smile warms then, ", that maybe you could help in his instruction on it. I mean, I-" It's hard to admit a shortcoming. After all, she can call for energy with her attacks as well, so why not teach him herself?
"I just think it would be better for him if you were to help." Her expression looks a little uncomfortable for the moment. "If it wouldn't be too much trouble, I would be honored to learn from you as well."
The youth's lips shift into something of a puzzled pout as he observes Frei laboriously righting himself into a semblance of presentation. While the young man may certainly seem like a slothful fellow, the boy wonder knows this is certainly a kind of act, in a way. Frei is strong in a way that utterly defies Kentou's concept of what makes a great fighter. The guy is certainly quick, certainly assertive and modestly strong. But not overwhelmingly so in any category. This .. vaguely controlled irreverence matches up perfectly with how he approached fighting.
The weird thing is.. It works. It works REALLY good. It works in a way that the boy just can't grasp.
As the boy's shoulder is squeezed he abruptly blurts, "Frei!" Not unlike a sort of suspiciously tall squeaky-toy. When directly addressed by said Monk his confuzzled expression relaxes into a more genuine smile, "Ah, hey.. Good, good.." The boy mumbles somewhat noncommittally. Trailing off a bit as the boy gauge's Frei's reaction with some uncertainty.
The confusion could mean a few things.. Either that Frei is surprised at Hotaru accepting such a hard-luck case as this OR .. something else. Kentou, as always, opts to believe in the more positive possibility even if his anxiety threatens that optimism when it comes to his place at Hotaru's side.
Embarrassing Hotaru is ever on his list of things to worry about.
"Oh! Hotaru's the best!" Kentou blurts without a fraction of a second of hesitation, and certainly doesn't regret the outburst as his smile redoubles. She is. And...
...."Hm.. wet bundles of straw.." The boy begins to puzzle, touching his chin as his eyes roll upwards in contemplation, "..wonder how wet.." Making vaguely choppy motions at his side with his off-hand as he puzzles over this martial quandary.
However! As Hotaru dismisses such silly notions the youth immediately quits his gesticulation and returns to a more rigid, disciplined stance. The youth is quick to snap to attention when the girl adopts that somewhat more forceful tone. At the rain of compliments the boy smiles eeeven more, nodding a bit more at the flattery.. Of course, as Hotaru goes so far as to suggest there's an area in training him that she finds herself deficient in.. The boy blinks once and turns his surprised attention to her, really listening now to this turn of events. His knee-jerk reaction is to blurt that she's selling herself way short.. However, the sidekick manages to stay silent long enough to figure his Master brought him here for a reason. She wouldn't have gone to Frei unless it was for a very good reason. AND.. As Hotaru, herself, admits she could use a little training at this strange Monk's tutelage, the truth seems to be laid bare.
Huh.. Frei must be just THAT good.
The youth then abruptly bows towards Frei again, emphasizing his Master's humble request. Uncertain exactly what he could learn from this man's wholly alien style.. but he isn't about to dishonor Hotaru's request with any level of dissonance!
For a while, Frei just sits there at the desk, regarding Hotaru with a mix of embarrassment -- some color really does come to the normally unshockable monk's cheeks -- and outright shock. This isn't the first time someone's asked for Frei to give them advice or training... but the people in the previous cases weren't Hotaru, an individual that Frei considers to be a more than worthy fighter -- certainly better than he is -- and a more than competent user of chi. Giving Aranha the basics, or helping Tran through his control issues... that's one thing. This is another. He notes Hotaru's sense of frustration and, perhaps, shame... but that only makes his feelings worse.
Sadly, Frei is not very good at accepting compliments. It's not necessarily that he's self-effacing, but rather that he tries to take a realistic view on the type of person he is. "I couldn't be less busy if I were dead," the monk half-mumbles, flustered. "So you're not imposing. But I'm not..." He pauses. Is there a single living being on Earth who uses Frei's particular style anymore? When his master died, didn't that technically make Frei the new master? Even if there was never a codified style to begin with... even if it was just a philosophy. The conflict actually shows in his face, the green eyes staying wide as he puzzles it out. Technically when Frei is gone that philosophy dies with him. There won't be another... and suddenly, all the terror, and shame, and frustration he never understood in his own mother comes flooding into his heart like a tidal wave.
Tilting his head upward a bit, Frei closes his eyes and takes a sharp breath in through his nose. Indeed, he almost looks like he's about to suffocate if he doesn't, lips slightly parted.
Eventually, he blinks his eyes open and settles them on Kentou, then Hotaru. "I'm not... Hotaru, don't put me on that pedestal. I'm very fortunate to have learned... techniques and ways of doing things that aren't common. But I'm nothing special, I swear to you I'm not. Every day I learn a little more from people around me who don't have the benefit of my training. I don't... I don't want the mantle of 'most qualified'." He lowers his head somewhat, having said that... it certainly gives the impression that he's rejecting the request, at least at first.
After a pause, however, he gets up and walks around the desk, leaning against it with both hands and regarding these new visitors again with a surprisingly serious face... an uncharacteristic expression for Frei. "I still think I can help you. I'd like to. I know you have potential, Kentou, I saw it for myself. I believe that. But..."
Here, Frei turns his head to Hotaru for a moment, searching her face for her reaction to this whole diatribe, and then back to Kentou. "I'll help you to master the things Hotaru teaches you. But drawing on chi energy... it's a very personal thing. If you want to learn what I have to teach, that means opening yourself up to my philosophy... and that philosophy might challenge your master's, at times." Leaning back, he looks at both of these fighters, suddenly feeling so much older than they. "I just want you to think about that before you ask me to train you. I'm no... genius or anything. I'm just a man with certain skills..."
And here, Frei looks very pointedly at Hotaru. "Skills that aren't inherently any better than any other fighter's. But you have to decide which path is right for you."
One thing that's clear is that Hotaru is infinitely patient as Frei sorts this request out. Even when his expression shifts through emotions she can't quite read, the girl waits quietly, no longer speaking up to take control over the conversation, nor fidgeting as if hoping he cuts to the chase finally.
As he moves around behind the desk, she just watches, blue eyes focusing on him, showing very little in the way of emotion herself, as if concealing her own thoughts and feelings until she gets a yes or no from him. Only when he agrees does she smile again, though the reaction is faint, subtle, and behind the look she gives him, quiet relief that he will help the boy with an area that she seems to think that either she can not or /should/ not.
"Thank you," she states, before looking toward Kentou, continuing with a firm tone, "In this matter, I feel it would be best for you to discover what Frei can teach you." She doesn't seem to think it a matter up for debate. "I don't want you to think that I am not going to continue teaching you everything I can about Kenpo. And due course, I will try to help you understand to focus chi into techniques that will compliment the style we practice. But to get started... to understand the fundamentals and learn to make that personal connection within yourself, I believe this is the best way for you to get started in that area of your training."
She looks toward Frei again, that hint of relief still present as she bows her head, "Even if Frei doesn't think he's anything special," she remarks with a widening smile, "there are things that he can teach you that I think you shoudl be exposed to." Kept to herself are the secret doubts about her own use of chi and the paths her father and brother have taken with their own training. There's something not quite right with her family's history of fighting... and until she understands what that something is, she hopes more than anything to not pass along aspects of it that she is unsure about, lest Kentou follow the same path her brother did eventualy - a course that would mark the ultimate failure on her part to guide him properly.
For a Master this guy is definitely unsure of himself!
A fraction at a time, Kentou's gaze rises from the floor to return to the Monk as he, of all things, refutes his virtue. At first the boy is wondering if Frei just insulted Hotaru.. not to mention Kentou himself. The youth's frame of reference is somewhat finite, and it may indeed be apples and oranges, but the kenpo fighter knows effectiveness when it smashes him to the floor. Is this guy trying to insult their intelligence by keeping his skills secret?
Its only a moment later when Kentou genuinely begins to realize that Frei honestly doubts himself that much. "That's not.." Kentou blurts, almost beginning to speak out of turn and cut the Monk off, only to silence himself. Paying Hotaru a quick glance at his side before struggling under proper obedience. The boy is usually never one to not go with his gut instinct and speak his heart immediately, but his Master has always managed to have a calming influence on him and keeping him from making decisions that aren't TOO rash.
Usually.
The boy is rewarded for his patience, however, as Frei seems to come around and agree to the training after all. Even if it sounds somewhat conditional, "..I.." Kentou would be lying if he said that he was eager to adopt an entirely new philosophy of martial arts so readily. What made Hotaru such a perfect choice was her reliance on Japanese-style Wushu like his own family style. Frei, himself, suggested that Kentou should perhaps look into learning a broader spectrum.. and Yurika advised him that learning under a Master can help him far better than learning alone. Hotaru likewise pointed out that she gained her strength and skill from learning under multiple sources such as Kyokugen Karate and.. Hm.
A brief flashing image rushes through Kentou's mind. Hotaru sitting at the church, one fist glowing an angry red..
Kentou's eyes drift off for a moment, his thoughts tangent as he begins to wonder about something.. What does Hotaru want to learn from his 'style'? With Kyokugen it was obvious. Strength and stamina are important in physical battles. But the boy remembers moments in battle where Hotaru was capable of incredible feats of energy that.. He can't even fathom knowing.
A flash of a memory of Hotaru screaming, erupting in a blast of Chi that completely deflects Kurow's wicked assault that would have felled a dozen men twice her size..
Frei is really good, certainly. But, by his own admission, is he REALLY that much better than Hotaru? Or is she looking to learn something other than strength.. Hm.
As his Master speaks up, the boy begins to realize he left Frei's offer dangling in the air a little too long. Immediately his attention turns to his Master as he listens carefully. His nod is hesitant, but sincere, "Y.Yes, Sensei.." She seems perfectly and completely confident of this avenue of training. While the boy has some misgiving, he completely trusts Hotaru to always make the right decision. If she believes Frei is the best choice for a particular section of his training then Kentou will not shirk that responsibility. The boy knows his place isn't to understand everything.. Only to understand that his teacher knows what's best. He can only hope to comprehend her wisdom later.
"Of course, Sensei!" Kentou replies a bit more strongly now, committing to this course of action as he then turns to face Frei once more. Sword-in-Sheath, "Frei-s.. Frei. I would be honored if you would instruct me in your philosophy. I will do my best to learn!" The boy IS sincerely flattered at Frei's praise. To have the attention of such incredible fighters is a level of acknowledgement he's wanted his entire life. The boy's cheeks color with a certain level of pride.
Hrmm.. Maybe Kentou can teach Frei how to accept compliments better! A fair trade, that would be.
It's hard to keep a slight grin off his face at the poor kid's courtesy-fueled bluster, and amazingly the monk really does look more comfortable leaning against the desk, arms splayed wide, casual and at ease. It's as if he's taken informality and honed it to an art form, a charge Frei himself would likely happily accept. There's a reason he asks everyone to call him 'Frei' rather than some bizarre combination of Japanese honorifics and his completely over-the-top full name, with its Nordic, Japanese, and French roots.
He then ruins the moment by leaning forward and ruffling Kentou's hair. This... is the first test!
Yanking himself back upright and dusting his hands off on his jeans, the monk gives both of his visitors a wan smile. "'Nothing special'. I should get it on a t-shirt," he jokes, but it's a joke that he's in on, one he finds funny, rather than a self-deprecating deflection of a compliment. "Then I guess I accept you as my first official student, Kentou. Huh... joking aside, I've never been 'Master' before, except this one--" The monk suddenly cuts off and clears his throat. Is he blushing? Maybe that 'hem-hem' Hotaru gave him before has whipped some decorum into Frei after all. So to speak. One hand goes to Frei's hip, his elbow making a >-shape against his body, as his gaze tracks Kentou.
The monk's first real impression of his first real student is an overwhelming urge to tickle him. This bodes ill.
"Anyhow, none of that 'sensei' or 'Master' stuff, Frei is fine... Frei-san if you absolutely MUST." His free hand goes up to the auburn-red bangs hanging over the omnipresent headband he favors and ruffles them a bit too. "If I haven't broken Mizuki of it I probably don't have a snowball's chance in Puerta Vallarta of getting you to stop, either."
Clearing his throat, the monk taps himself on the chest once, then adopts a somewhat pensive expression for a moment. "Well. I could give you your first lesson right now, if you want. That'd give your master the opportunity to see if she's getting her money's worth," he adds, with a faint smile in Hotaru's direction.
Of course she's nervous about this decision on her part. To enlist the aid of another in teaching Kentou means she's putting the burden of his growth on someone else besides just herself - a burden they may not have been looking for OR ready for... But it's something she can handle with careful supervision, of course, to make sure that the boy is learning the right things. Not to mention, she really /is/ open to learning something of Frei and his techniques, even if she keeps her reasons to herself.
As Kentou agrees to the help in his instruction from Frei, Hotaru smiles at him then looks back toward the monk. She looks like she wants to laugh as the young man describes his trouble with people addressing him as formally as he would like. Part and parcel to having a student is the respect the student provides the instructor, after all, and sometimes traditional honorifics just have a way of slipping in there.
"I suppose an evaluation period would be fair," Hotaru replies to his offer to teach Kentou something on the spot, her voice just slightly teasing. She pulls her hands from behind her back only to clasp them in front of her instead, glancing toward Kentou. It would appear today's training session is happening courtesy of Guest Teacher Frei!
FloofFloofFloof.
Frei earns a second squawk from the boy as the young man brazenly ruffles Kentou's do. Reflexively the boy raises his hands to flail about in the way a puppy might before taking a step back and rapidly trying to comb back the mess of his hair out of his eyes. The family tradition actually dictates that the boy should have all of his hair back in a single braid to keep it from his eyes. The truth of his unruly bangs and mismatched secondary braid is from previous fights. His hair tearing unevenly once in a wrestling hold, the other from a sword that cut a little too close. His bangs aren't quite long enough to reach back into the rest of it, and the peculiarity if his family line is to never actually cut his hair. As such, Kentou has to live with the longer, unruly locks. Unfortunately, this makes him sadly vulnerable to ruffling and the dreaded noogie. ._.
By the time he's managed to brush it all back into position, the boy fixes Frei with something of a poofy-cheeked pout of indignation. However, that slowly deflates into a more clearly pleased, and perhaps a little excited, smile as Frei accepts the offer, "Yes Frei..." His tone trailing a moment, ALMOST adding the honorific out of sheer reflex but managing not to. It definitely sounds weird to say. With Hotaru it comes fairly easy as they've gotten to be such close friends.. family really. To call a near-stranger such level of familiarity feels a bit insulting to say. BUT! Frei does have a bit more of a foreign upbringing, and Europeans and Americans have such an informal manner of speaking. Its like they insult each other all the time, by default. So weird.
Clearly. He CAN be taught!
As Frei offers an immediate lesson, Kentou's eyes quickly turn to Hotaru questioningly. While Hotaru may be outsourcing part of his education, perhaps promoting the wisdom of broadening the boy's experience in order to have a more comprehensive style, Kentou is still Hotaru's student first and foremost. However, once Hotaru's consent is given to this 'evaluation offer', the boy smiles once more and immediately looks back to Frei eagerly. His limbs still feel a little tired from his earlier run, but such trifling things as exhaustion are pushed aside as Kentou straightens and stands at rigid attention, "Sens-FREI! I am ready!" The rough diamond is prepared to take on any manner of unquestionably EXTREME tasks that Frei is about to drop on him!
Will it be.. Racing up seven flights of stairs with Frei balancing on his back?
Perhaps.. Doing one hundred push-ups while reading scrolls of unfathomable wisdom??
Maybe.. Doing fifty laps while fighting off a dozen Ninjas who've been waiting for this very moment to strike for their inscrutable Ninja-reasons?!
First test? Passed. If he just sat there and let himself get his hair messed up, then Frei would know Kentou is some sort of robot and not a 13 year old boy. As it stands, now... he can be trained.
"Hm. The first lesson, huh..." Frei pauses, rubbing his clean-shaven chin with one hand. If the monk has any quality in abundance it's spontaneity; he doesn't need to plan things, he just does them. In fact, *planning* usually trips him up in fantastic ways. This isn't to say that the improvisational approach always works. You can ask Hotaru on that one; the monk has often resorted to improvisational weaponry when fighting the speedy kempo artist, using everything from halibut nunchaku to a dessert cart as a battering ram.
Shaking out his arms, Frei steps forward next to Kentou, and cups his hands in front of him, as if he were about to try and catch water from a faucet to drink... but held at waist-height instead. "Okay. I don't know what Hotaru taught you about chi, but it's something that's all around us, everywhere, all the time. You've seen Star Wars, right? Chi is kind of like the Force, just without all the light side/dark side mumbo-jumbo. In its pure form, we can't see it or touch it, and it doesn't smell or feel or taste like anything. In fact, most people can't perceive chi at all, though it's always there."
Suddenly, in the monk's outstretched hands, two little orbs of light appear: one is a rich golden color, like the sun; the other is a dull silver color, like moonlight. "I guess I lied about the light side and the dark side. Chi has two... I guess you'd call them poles, like a magnet. There's yang, which is positive energy... light, heat, life. And then there's yin, negative energy... cold and dark, associated with death. But remember what I said about philosophy? The important thing to remember is that yin and yang are neither good nor bad. They simply are. With me so far?"
While Hotaru's primary objective has clearly been to see to it that Kentou gets instructions that will hopefully help him become the fighter he hopes to be over time, the girl is paying rapt attention to Frei. Since she is able to manipulate such energy in her own fighting, it goes without saying that she was taught /something/ while growing up, but what exactly that something was she remains quiet about. "We haven't discussed it much," she remarks when Frei introduces the topic, making it clear that to a certain extent, Kentou has only whatever his father might have told him to go on thus far.
She's seen some of the two sides Frei speaks of and has even experienced what happens when one or the other gets too far out of balance. An issue she has struggled with in silence for some time. as he brings up the golden and silver orb, she remains quiet, glancing back and forth between the two of them. Opposites, neither good nor bad. Two parts of a whole. "Then there is nothing inherently evil about yin, right?" the girl asks, sounding like it's something she's contemplated for a while yet never came to the point of inquiring of those who might be able to answer her curiosity.
She lifts her right hand, palm up, mimicking Frei's gesture. There is a pause, the girl looking at her hand as if willing something into existence yet not seeing immediate results. But finally a few light blue whisps of energy swirl up from her own palm to form an orb like Frei's, only no where near as stable. The sides keep caving in and the shape of it shifting frequently into a misshapen egg. The blue becomes more vibrant the longer she maintains it, but the stability continues to degrade. Her expression is locked in one of intense concentration, lips tight, jaw clenched. Finally her arm trembles and Hotaru closes her hand, allowing the manifestation to collapse, vanishing as it falls.
"Nn," Hotaru remarks, lowering her arm against her side. "Controlling it on that fine of a level has never been something I've practiced much..." she admits, looking back up toward Frei's hands, glancing back and forth across the two spheres he's able to maintain.
Of the many things Kentou could be accused of, being inanimate is not one of them. If anything, holding still is his nemesis. Frei may never know the amount of discipline Hotaru has had to use in order to get Kentou this.. orderly, as is. But then, for once, the boy's own enthusiasm keeps him better heeled. He wants to train under Hotaru more than anything now, and any other great fighters she introduces him to. Its enough that he'll tolerate such minor discomforts as getting ruffled.
If there's tickling involved Kentou is going to punch the guy through the wall though, mentor or no mentor! >.<
However! As Frei considers his first lesson, the boy's eyes widen a fraction. Shifting from hand to hand as his attention eats up every little detail. The general description of Chi makes sense. Its about what he's heard.. and figured it was like that. The fairly dry description, however, suddenly takes on a whole new meaning as Frei ever so casually works magic at his fingertips.
Kentou's jaw parts just a fraction, eyes locked upon those glimmering spheres as he stares at what may quite literally be the secret to life. "....Its pretty.." The boy whispers quietly, the orbs reflecting in his wide eyes. Young enough yet where the simple wonders of the world filled with street thugs who can disintegrate cars with their flashiness has not yet inured him to the wonder of what it is they truly master.
In a moment of impulse that the youth just can't control, he slowly lifts a hand.. very, very carefully reaching out a fingertip in a bid to get a little closer to the golden sphere.. Just wondering if its radiating warmth like a little sun.. He's certainly listening to the lesson of course.. but the little fighter is completely spellbound by this little miracle.
His own family's history with Chi? Non-existent. At least.. not Chi in the external sense that Frei displays so clearly. His father always said that such things are.. wasteful. Inefficient. To empower one's self was a greater use of resources than squandering it on attacks that diffuse so quickly so far away from the body.. But then there are many things his own Father never taught him. It was a derisive opinion told in passing.. rather than a true lesson.
His only distraction? The blue light eminating from his peripheral. Head tilting slowly away while his eyes only veeeery reluctantly leave Frei's display, to witness that of his own Master attempting a similar display. As the blue flashes warp and fail, only then does the boy understand with an encouraging smile. Hotaru is quite capable of great power.. but not quiiite the same level of control Frei so easily shows. Though.. the display does beg the question,
"..Um..But.. Why is it different colors? I mean.. those sphere's.. Hotaru's.."
Yeah, why is the sky blue, Frei?
Despite himself, Frei laughs at that question. Of course the first thing Kentou asks of him as a student is something he doesn't really have a concrete answer for. Of course, in the monk's eyes, this is actually a good thing... it means that Kentou's absorbing the things he's said *already* thrown out, the basics are already taking root. Of course, it may also be that he's 13 and hardwired for questions that have no answers, but this is neither here nor there.
Crouched as he is to be more towards Kentou's height -- not that it takes much, the monk actually isn't that much taller than Hotaru herself, let alone a growing boy like Kentou -- Frei still turns his head to the side and up a little as Hotaru speaks and Kentou puts his hand over the golden orb, which does indeed radiate a bit of heat. Not like a flame, but rather like waving your hand over an incandescent light bulb that's been on for some time. "That's right. As mortal beings we're a little afraid of death, which makes perfect sense, because the unknown is... a little bit scary. But it's part of the cycle of life, built in to nature... so you can't really call it evil, in my view." He carefully reserves his rather more complex thesis that 'evil' in the sense of the popular notion is a myth; after all, he's had that discussion with Hotaru already and it's likely to go over poor Kentou's head.
With a little, noiseless visual *pop*, the two light orbs in Frei's hands disappear and he stands up. "As for your question, Kentou, I honestly don't know. But... I have some theories, at least. Look at it like this. There's chi inside our bodies, as well as outside. There's a few martial arts that are based on how chi is used invisibly, inside the body, after all. But when we do something like what Hotaru's doing," and here Frei gives the girl-nee-sensei a smile, "you're not actually using *your* chi. You're borrowing chi that's all around us. After all, if you used up the chi in your *body*, you might hurt yourself, and there's plenty of it in the air around us. So how we think about using that chi changes how it appears. Because Hotaru and I think and feel differently, the results are different."
Pausing a second, there's actually a moment where the monk looks like he... doesn't know how to say the rest of this, and in fact he doesn't, or at least not on a level that a 13 year old boy with no training would understand. Suddenly, however, he snaps his fingers and ducks back behind the desk, returning with a piece of paper and a pencil, handing both to Kentou. "I'll give you an example of what I mean. Here, draw a star."
As Kentou voices the question, Hotaru's eyes shift pointedly toward Frei, her mouth remaining closed with no indication that she intends to speak up. Oh no, she's going to let him field that one. She has her own theories, as does probably nearly everyone who has ever so much as seen the energy manipulations of the modern day fighter. Whether it's the blue, sapphire displays of Hotaru's strength, the white flames of Jiro ever since he's learned to focus his feelings differently, or the concussive yellow blasts that her brother and father could create, each seemed to have a personal touch born of the fighter that controlled it.
But nothing compares to the myriad colors she's seen Frei produce with his own attacks. That he has a certain level of fine control over it that most lack is impossible to deny. Clasping her hands behind her back, Hotaru absorbs Frei's thoughts on the matter, comparing them against her own experiences and ideas, returning his smile with one of her own but remaining quiet.
As the paper is produced, the girl moves in closer, keeping her hands behind her back as she waits to see what it is Frei intends to demonstrate with the request.
Yup. Right over his head.
The boy glances sidelong a bit as Frei goes a bit into the finer details of Hotaru's question, which is a bit more advanced in terms of comprehending the whole of nature. As opposed to its.. blunt details. For Kentou's relatively limited experience, life is a simple thing. Death bad, grr. The very notion that death is a GOOD thing is.. He doesn't even begin to understand that, he isn't sure he wants to understand that. Death has taken everything away from him that he's ever loved. His grandfather. His parents. How could such pain and loss be anything other than inherently 'evil'?
Clearly Frei's commentary on that leaves Kentou with something of a cold frown, but the boy isn't about to contradict or argue with his instructor.. At least not while Hotaru's watching! Instead, he just very carefully keeps his hand over that happy yellow sphere as opposed to that morbid, gloomy thing on the other side.
As the spheres are dismissed, the boy's hand recoils. Blinking once in the aftermath of their appearance.. almost wondering if what he saw was really real. His focus returns after staring dumbfounded a moment to grapple with the Monk's answer to his simple, if extraordinarily difficult, question. Funny how that works.
"...Huh.." The youth considers this. Eyes descending to the ground a moment, narrowed in thought. Well.. Borrowing Chi from around in the air seems .. well.. tough. As he says, Chi must exist everywhere however. Well.. How do you even tap INTO something like that? Its not like Chi has handlebars you can grab and shake from nothing. Already the conversation is beginning to go a little beyond his comprehension, and his puzzled expression says as much as it returns to the Monk.
However, Great Teacher Frei is on the job as he hands the boy a paper and pencil, "Hai!" Now THIS Kentou can figure out. Immediately hoping to the desk, the boy lays the paper out and starts to veeeery carefully etch out what approximates a star.
His tongue sticking out of the corner of his lips, one eye squinting as if aiming down the barrel of a gun, the youth begins to scrawl out.. Well..
It basically looks like a Star Man with beefy arms one really thin leg and no head. But it is certainly starish. Pentapodial even!
There's a bit of a coughing sound from Frei as Kentou draws. Why? He's stifling the urge to laugh, simply because the young boy is taking this entire affair pretty seriously. And of course, as we have established, Planet Serious isn't even visible from the Frei Nebula with a high-powered telescope. He at least turns to Hotaru to do this rather than have his newfound student turn around and get the impression that his new master is taunting him.
Stars are hard to draw, anyway.
Once Kentou gets it down on paper, however, Frei walks up behind him and looks over his shoulder with a smile. "Right. There you go. Now..." Leaning forward, he picks up a nearby pencil and then draws... well, a whole bunch of stuff. The standard five-pointed star, the double-triangle shaped Star of David, even an 8-pointed star. Standing back up, he looks down at Kentou. "Those all mean 'star', right? But depending on who's drawing the picture, the star ends up looking a little bit different, because everyone who'd draw one is different. Right?"
Turning to the side, Frei hops up on the edge of the desk to face Kentou and Hotaru together again, letting his legs swing a little, palms pressed down onto the desktop. "It's the same with chi. The way we reach out to the chi around us is through our minds and hearts, so obviously the result ends up being... very personal, and thus very different. It's not a guarantee, after all. Look at Hotaru's friends in the Kyokugen school. They all have that... uh... I forget what it's called." He knits his brow and then pushes both arms up and out, palms extended... the typical pose for the Haoushokouken. "Long name thingy! You know what I mean. But for them it usually looks about the same... because they all learned to adopt a certain frame of mind learning how to do it."
The Kenpo teacher meets Frei's look of amusement with a faint smile of her own. The experience is good for Kentou and Frei seems to make a natural teacher on the very subject she needed his help with the most. All in all, this is working out just the way she had hoped.
She keeps her distance while Kentou draws, but moves over closer to watch from another angle as Frei adds his own symbols to the paper, understanding immediately where he's going with his explanation about the different manifestations of chi. "The Haoh Sho Ko Ken," the girl fills in the blank as he brings up the massive wall o' chi that the Kyokugener's are able to channel forth at the expenditure of a great amount of effort.
"What about the elemental sorts, Frei?" she asks of Frei. She's certainly been on the receiving end of all kinds. Water, fire, poison, blood... they run the gamut. And most importantly, "Like when you fight, you don't really have just one... hn... style for the chi you draw upon."
Hrm.
The boy leans a little closer to the desk as Frei begins to add his own additions to his beautifullerist star ever. Which, the boy must begrudgingly admit, are somewhat better done than his own. However! Kentou must remind himself with a tight-lipped nod that Frei is clearly a more advanced warrior! His skill and proficiency are great in all things, and this includes drawing star people.
...Yes, Kentou is from Planet Serious. Go figure.
However! As the point is made, Kentou considers this with arched eyebrows, "...Huh.." The youth tilts his head slowly to the side, cocked on his shoulder as he murmurs, "...Stars can have that many points? ... Huh.." He honestly didn't think about it until this moment. He figured they were called other stuff when they get more pointy bits, kinda like what his elementary school tried to teach him about that stuff. Trapadudes and dockeygrams and stuff.
OH.. wait.. There was a point to this!
Kentou shakes his head a little, snapping out of his wandering mental tangent to focus again up on Frei as he makes himself comfortabler upon the Youth Center's office furnishing. For a moment, the boy pouts in jealousy. ...They always yell at him when HE tries to sit on furniture. How come Frei gets to do it?! .... Hrmmm.. Maybe Masters get to sit on furniture as a privilege? Hrm... Even more reason to train harder!
"..Oh.." Kentou finally processes a little, "Oh! Like.. um.. Like fingerprints?" The boy replies, lifting a finger in a Eureka-esque pose. .. Although moments later his expression wilts and eyes drift downward, "..Oh wait.. no.. um.. duh.. can't learn how to use someone else's fingerprint like that.. uh.. nevermind..um.." Scritching the back of his head in consternation.
Oh! Saved by the Master!
Kentou's expression perks as Hotaru speaks up about something just as curious and important. Then looking back to the Monk to see how he answers that solid question. Nodding insistently to add his own voucher on the importance of the query. And Hotaru also raises a good point that Kentou never really noticed before until she pointed it out. Frei DID just generate two completely different colors and forms of energy there.. How can someone be distinct and personal energy-type.. And some.. not?
Surprisingly, Hotaru's comment causes Frei some embarrassment, judging by his reaction; his normally pale cheeks color again, a little bit, and he rubs the back of his head with one hand while wearing a thoroughly ^_^-like expression. "Well, that's... complicated. I don't really have a definite answer for that either. But..." And then there's a pause, the monk suddenly frowning. Every word out of his mouth, the mouth that's supposed to be delivering... if not final, then at least authoritative statements, has hedged himself at every opportunity. As if he's afraid of being right. The sudden confusion over that shows on his face, too... because it may BE that he's afraid of being right. For someone whose philosophy can be summed up with the phrase 'It depends...', the idea of an unbending absolute is a little unsettling.
But he does know what he's talking about, doesn't he? If the topic were how to knock someone's kidneys out through their stomach with an open-palmed punch, Hotaru wouldn't be coming to him (well, perhaps if she was mad and needed a test dummy). She knows all the puissant martial skill that comes with being a fighter. Frei, though... he's not a fighter. It's a route to an end -- chi and fighting are connected -- but it's a means, that's all. He's a philosopher.
And a philosopher has to be confident in his ideal.
Clearing his throat, Frei shakes out his hands. "It's a good question, though. See... you two learned to fight before you learned about chi, right? You could throw a punch before you could throw a burst of energy across a room," he adds, directing this last at Hotaru. "But I learned things a little differently. To me, fighting was just a way to understand better how chi works. When I started actually fighting, I'd already studied chi for six long years. So... to me, that ability to shift things around and change them and mold them so I use all different sorts of tricks is as second nature as you being able to throw a punch *just so*, or knowing when to time your defenses, or understanding where to hit and where not to... does that make sense?"
After a pause, he gets up and throws out one quick punch, in midair; the actual blow is inexpert, but a haze of scarlet flame flickers into and out of being as he does so. "There's no reason why someday I couldn't be a fantastic fighter, or you to be able to do any of the stuff I do. It's just a matter of training. At least, that's what I think."
Of course Hotaru can detect the awkwardness Frei is feeling at the questions being popped his way by the inquisitive duo. Now that she has gotten past her own sense of feeling like she should /know/ the answers herself, the girl can't help but to question the young man she considers to be an expert on some of the very matters she had pondered over the years.
"Right," she states when he correctly surmizes that for her it was punch, kick, then chiball, when it came to the order she was introduced to different aspects of fighting. Thus it is that she has been instructing Kentou in the same order. It's how she learned, and it's how she has to teach, not having ever considered that one could be introduced to chi and the advanced manipulation thereof /before/ learning the basics of fighting. For her they are one and the same as well, but differently so than they are for Frei. Chi is to augment fighting... not the other way around.
"That makes sense," she states when he asks if the two were following him. Of course, she speaks for herself. Some of this might be a big jump for Kentou to understand, but there'll always be time to back up to the basics for the youngest of the three. "Thank you, Frei," she continues, offering a slight, respectful bow of her head. "I guess it's a matter of focusing on what one wants to learn the most..."
The boy tries to be unassuming about the details. As concerned Frei seems to be and worried over the details, clearly the man knows what he's talking about. Frei has offered indisputable levels of proof that his theories and philosophies work quite well. Even Kentou has seen that as plain as day. Which makes the Monk's constant back-peddling and self-nay-saying all the more confusing.
But then, Kentou has never seen himself as a philosopher. An honorable warrior, first and foremost. As such, absolutes tend to be essential. What is honorable, what is not. What is right, what is wrong. Who is defeated, who is triumphant. Death suffers no ambiguity, and neither should the fighters who deal in it. Not to say Kentou is even remotely that hardcore about his violence, but its his frame of mind.
The idea of actually being reluctant to be correct is.. Kentou doesn't even remotely understand that. Isn't trying to LEARN the truth the entire point?
Regardless, the boy nods at Frei's question over chi-less fighting. And, well.. the best he managed to get out of that explanation was that it took him six years to learn how to do all that incredible array of Chi techniques. Six years without even learning how to fight? Ooof.. Thats, hm. Yes, there is clearly advantage in the level of what Frei has figured out to do...
But as Hotaru astutely points out the very question, what does Kentou really want to learn? Fighting is.. most important to him. Its the key, he feels. Sooo.. That would be too great a sacrifice in Kentou's book. This isn't to say that the boy can't learn some important things from Frei on a more peripheral basis, even if his own interests proclude him from learning the intricacies of.. of..
"...Frei..? Um.. What ..um.. what did you say you're style's name was? Again? ..Sorry.." He sheepishly adds, certainly curious to know the name of this intriguing philosophy at the very least.
For a second Frei blinks at Kentou in confusion, and then he busts out laughing, perhaps a little too loudly and long than is actually appropriate. When he straightens again from having doubled over a tiny bit, he dabs at his eyes with his sleeve and then clears his throat. "Sorry. You know, Kentou, you're the first person to ever ask me that question? Even my old master never did. He wasn't really a fighter, either... he was a sage, someone who knew the old Chinese magic, or so he called it. Really it was just skillful use of chi, of course."
For a moment Frei closes his eyes, putting both hands over his chest, consumed with memories of the individual who taught him all this in the first place. "You wouldn't have liked him... he was belligerent, stubborn, sarcastic. Old, you see, and thus a little cranky. But a genuine genius." That much is true. What goes unsaid is that he was the first person in all of Frei's entire existence to actually think the boy had potential at anything, who actually believed he could accomplish something other than titanic failure at what others wanted him to be.
Opening his eyes, the monk clears his throat. "It doesn't have a name. And I'm okay with that. I use, you know... a little kung fu, a little tai chi, even some kempo... but I also know some weapons fighting," he adds, his voice becoming surprisingly taut there for a moment before he continues, "all sorts of stuff. Most of it pretty useless. Ask your master, I once tried to brain her in the jaw with nunchaku fish." It's a true story, though perhaps one Hotaru would like to forget.
After a second, he raises a finger to his lips in thought, and then turns the question back on Kentou. "Why do you ask? Out of curiosity."
Frei's reaction to Kentou's question earns him a slightly raised eyebrow from Hotaru. The monk is quite the spontaneous sort, but she can't really see what's so funny about the inquiry. She's certainly never felt like laughing when asked what her own style is. But as he begins to speak, his amusement starts to make a bit more sense. A student of styles herself, the girl never had been able to exactly peg what it was Frei did, besides be remarkably adept at slinging chi around from what seemed like an inexhaustable supply of strength.
But when he goes on to describe the nature of the individual who finally saw something good in him, Hotaru side-glances toward Kentou. It DOES sound like someone the boy knows. Though the genius part may be up for dispute, the girl suspects there's a lot more wisdom in the old shop keeper that cares for the youth than most would take him for. "I wouldn't be so sure that he would be all that unlikeable," the girl states politely.
"A little of everything," the girl remarks, rubbing her chin, perhaps thinking back to the fishy attack from way back. Consindering the things she's seen Frei do, she thinks that's a pretty fair assessment. She almost speaks up for Kentou's question as to why he might ask. She thinks she knows, having gotten quiet used to how her student things. But in the end she closes her mouth and remains quiet.
Kentou's head recoils a few inches as Frei suddenly cracks up. His eyes widen with surprise, until slowly descending into a narrow line. His expression asking what he does not vocalize, 'You're.. mocking me. Aren't you?'. However, that look softens as Frei begins to explain the source of his mirth. At least there's a little more clarity to where the otherwise puzzling Monk is coming from, "..Chinese Magic.." Kentou intones quietly. Plain, simple, elegant.. it has a ring to it. Frankly, with that earlier display he just witnessed.. its actually rather apt.
As Frei describes this fellow, its actually Kentou's turn to belt out a single laugh. Not nearly quite as wild, only turning his gaze towards Hotaru as she makes her polite consideration, as if sharing some kind of private joke.
Yeah.. she may know about a certain belligerent, stubborn old man in Kentou's life. Of course, Ol' Sak isn't exactly a 'genius' by any stretch of the imagination. "Yeah.. I'd probably hate him.." Kentou admits. ._. Though he would NEVER admit that that gruff, stubborn old bastard is probably the single most compassionate person Kentou has ever known beyond Hotaru. In this.. He'd find common ground with the slothful Monk.
However, as the man admits that his style doesn't have a name.. The boy just blinks. The heck? That's like saying his pet Dog doesn't have a name. That's like saying the school went to doesn't have a name. To Kentou's sensibilities.. a name means everything. A name means family. A name means honor. It is the sum total of one's value. To be so complete dismissive of even requiring one is a level of existence that the youth simply doesn't comprehend. If anything, the boy was expecting Frei to burst into another round of laughter at the obvious joke. ... The Nunchuku Fish doesn't help his case of an honest answer either!
"W..well.." Truth be told, as the spotlight is placed squarely on Kentou, it isn't something he can easily answer, "..T..things need names .. I mean.. its.." Rocking in place a moment as his thoughts flail at an easy way to describe it, "..B..Because.. H..How else can you.. I mean.. how else can..can people know what you're talking about? If like.. they aren't there to .. see.. it.. I mean. If this street outside didn't have a name out there.." Briefly pointing behind himself, "... How could anyone ever find the place on a map?" o_o Trying to turn the question around logically.
Something about Kentou's response just makes Frei grin, and he returns to sitting on the desk, swaying back and forth in time with his swinging legs. Sometimes being short has its advantages. Let's see hella tall Alma swing his legs off this desk! Putting up a single finger in the air in the international sign for bastardly disagreement (it's the index finger, FYI), the monk joins the discussion. "Maybe, but sometimes a name is *misleading*, right? Take me, for instance. The name 'Frei' comes from Scandinavia in northern Europe; it's the name of a viking God. My..." And here he falters. There's someone else named after a divine being in his family, but... "...another relative of mine is named Isis, after an Egyptian goddess. Hotaru's name means 'firefly'. But I can't remember the last time I made the people of Midgard dance with joy at my coming and while Hotaru certainly has a bright personality, if her backside starts glowing I'll be on the first train to Kyoto."
A moment passes, and then Frei lowers his head a little. He's already had to think about this somewhat unpleasant fact once this meeting, and now he has to verbalize it. "The truth is I'm the only person who uses this... 'style', anymore. And unless I teach someone all of it someday, from start to finish, I'll be the last. But I think I'm okay with that. Yes, once you give something a name you can recognize it, point to it, identify what it is. But you also... set boundaries on it that are hard to change. There's nothing wrong with that, if that's what you want. But my goal is to understand, well... everything." Finally looking up, his expression of concern has morphed once again into his typical smile. "Maybe I'll call it 'Everything-fu', if I decide to give it a name."
But back to the business at hand. Clapping his hands in front of him, the monk looks evenly at Kentou. "I think that's enough wacky babbling for today. But I'm going to give you homework, so pay attention." Spinning his hand theatrically, Frei closes his eyes and puts on finger in the air. "Your assignment is...!" Opening his eyes again, he favors Kentou and Hotaru once again with a smile. "The next time you're sparring with your master, pay attention to your feelings. Are you happy, or determined? Sad or frustrated? When you do something really well, or push your limits really far, what were you thinking about? I won't lie, it's hard to draw on chi while you're fighting. You have to train yourself to see energy and feel energy until it becomes second nature before you can really get to doing the flashy stuff. It's hard work."
As Frei goes on about names and how they can, at times, mis-define something, Hotaru remains quiet. She catches the hitch in his voice as the monk begins to reference a relative of his, remembering quite well that family is a touch subject with him. But he gets past it, moving on to mention her name, bringing a faint smile to her lips even at his amusing remark about her not really matching her winged namesake.
He speaks more about the longevity of his style, or the lack thereof, and the girl looks thoughtful at that. To her, styles are important. They mean something. They have legacies, legends, masters, students, dojos, moral lessons to be learned and passed on. The thought that Frei's style, as strange and unnamed as it may be, would end with him bothers her a little. It's like hearing that a great Chinese dynasty had come to an end. Even if it is a dynasty of one man. "Everything-fu," she repeats back, sounding amused, drawn out her somber reverie. "You should consider passing it on... but I imagine trying to market a style as requiring six years of intense, non-combat studies would be a hard pitch." the girl remarks with a faint shrug. Most people want to get straight to the punching, after all.
Then he addresses Kentou, giving the youth his assignment. Hotaru nods quietly at Frei's advice, remembering some of the things she was told so many years ago. It's a hard thing to explain in words - to help someone understand how to draw for the energy of the world around them, to borrow for a moment life that isn't theirs, and produce an actual attack from it. But focusing inwardly is definitely the key, and it is the same direction she has been teaching him as late with regards to other aspects of fighting, so that pleases her even more.
"Hard work though it may be, I know Kentou will learn how with time," the girl stats, her hand coming up to rest against the boy's shoulder once more.
Kentou is actually glad Frei speaks up again. Lecturing information is not something Kentou is comfortable with, especially over subjects that he wasn't exactly expecting to be quizzed on. Like the actual value of having nouns in language.
However, it isn't long until Kentou is fairly thoroughly lost, jaw beginning to hang once more as he thinks. Scandinavia is in Europe? "...Y..Your a.. you're a viking?" Kentou slowly posits.
However, the next segment of the answer sweeps away the boy's confusion and the matter again becomes considerably clearer, "..Oh."
True, if one is the last of your kind, do you really need a name? 'That guy' would work just as well if you were the last guy on Earth, after all. Kentou can certainly relate to that sentiment, but not to the same degree. The Ondori Style is distinctive, but in the scheme of Chinese boxing not entirely unique enough to be its own branch of martial arts. This 'Chinese Magic' definitely seems like its own family tree in and of itself. When it is gone, there may well never be another like it. Its a saddening concept. Inevitable perhaps, but such is the nature of legacies and schools of art. Achieving an immortality of thought and memory, if not flesh and blood.
Kentou wants that immortality for his father, for his grandfather. How to achieve that goal? .. Well, that brings him to why he's so ardently trying to study under such magnificent fighters and potent martial theologians. Understanding everything has never been an ambition for Kentou. But then.. perhaps he should learn to understand a little more than he had previously considered worthwhile? After all, 'getting straight to the punching' was certainly an excellent way to describe Kentou's first inclinations about martial arts.
As Frei claps his hands and dispels the deep thinky thoughts, Kentou snaps to attention! Standing rigidly as he awaits the next set of instructions that are sure to follow.
And as they follow... "I.." Chart his feelings while sparring?
....Yeahbuwhat?
"...H..Hai, Frei.." Kentou stammers in an auto-piloted response. Of course he'll try but Kentou doesn't fully understand the depth of the question. He's always happy when he's sparring with Hotaru! How could he not be? Why should there be a variance there? However, clearly Frei believes there's some value in measuring all of that.. somehow. The logistics of it boggle the boy's mind but, he'll try his best. And Frei's following description of why to even bother trying with this does make sense, especially in light of everything spoken earlier, "T..thank you for your lesson! I'll work on your assignment immediately!" Sword-In-Sheath, formal bow.
Hotaru's encouraging endorsement again brings color to his cheeks, lingering in his bow for a few moments more until straightening as her hand touches his shoulder. Eyes filled with both depth-less appreciation and complete devotion. Now he truly understands why she brought him to Frei. While the boy really didn't understand the bulk of what the confusing man was saying, he understood enough to know its both important and wise.
Log created on 22:45:47 11/13/2007 by Hotaru, and last modified on 15:29:35 12/11/2007.