Description: Behold, the greatest adventure of our time. An epic journey that begins with such a simple question. How many fighters does it take to screw in a light bulb? K' and Kentou find out..
Tap. Tap.
Kentou continues to peer up at the ceiling high above. His fingers slowly rotating the fluorescent, energy-conserving bulb in his grasp. Index finger occasionally tapping the translucent, white glass in deep thought as his mousy brown eyes roam the stark ceiling. His gaze always completing the circuit of motion to rest upon the singular dark hole, the final destination point of his electric-appliance charge.
How did the young boy become tasked with this exercise? We're glad you asked.
An hour ago, a passing student noticed one of the fixtures in the high-ceiling hallway of the youth center was blinking. Clearly a sign of eventual failure and dutifully notified the staff. The staff, in turn, notified the janitor whom straight-away finished moping the floor and went about fetching a ladder long enough to reach the ceiling.
There, fate too a cruel twist! For, you see, as the Janitor had clambered up the high ladder, the old, dilapidated conveyance suddenly gave out. Breaking at the axis and sending the poor man to the carpeted hallway floor.
Miraculously, the man didn't break anything and is just a little shaken up. But, alas, that was the only ladder on the grounds that could reach that particular ceiling. This mission would have been left undone if it was not for a chance passerby.
Ondori Kentou happened to be rounding the corner moments after the man had fallen. Rushing to his side immediately, the youth checked to be certain he was alright. Then, the worried Janitor had despaired over fixing the light-socket as was his appointed task.
'Worry not!' Said noble Kentou, 'I will do this!'
And so, this brings us to current time.. With Kentou standing a good six feet shorter than the ceiling in question. Mulling this quandary over with an expression that implies the Jeopardy Theme is playing endlessly in his head.
Given enough time.. He will think of something.. He knows he will!
The halls are largely deserted this time of day, most of the people present within the YFCC occupied either with classes, with training, or with the endless busywork required to keep the facility running. Kentou shall find no assistance in his task, not this afternoon. Or will he?
Presently, the quiet sound of an approaching other might come to the ears of the young man standing daunted and thoughtful, a full six feet beneath the task he's so gallantly taken on. K' rounds the nearby corner, on his way to God knows where, looking like some kind of a young Wolverine ripoff with his scruffy white hair, fitted black tee, dark jeans, and intent scowl. Fortunately, the subject of his scowl isn't Kentou quite yet-- it's the screen of a small DVD player. K''s full attention rests on this handheld contraption.
It would seem K' has discovered film. ...or at the least, 'movies.'
Behind a set of obscuring shades, yellow eyes flick over Kentou with a cursory sort of regard: a glance only long enough to ascertain the kid is nothing he needs to pay attention to. K''s gaze soon returns to the screen as he aims to simply walk clear on by, skirting the boy. What he's watching remains, for the time being, a mystery, given he's using a set of earphones. How crafty.
Hrmm. Hrmmmmmmmmmm.
Kentou pauses in his observations of the ceiling as he glances about the hallway yet again. Thoughts moving over the various furnishings in this general vicinity of the building. The chairs, and even the desks, just aren't tall enough. Perhaps he could move two chairs together and stand on the backrests? Though, thinking about it, even that may not be high enough.
He needs something taller than a chair, for sure. But.. what could..
The youth's luminous eyes pass over K' as the man stalks by. As the TALL man is certainly striking in appearance, the boy's gaze lingers with a pensive lift of his eyebrow. White hair, dark skin, leather jacket, yellow eyes? Huh.. What a weirdo. o.o
Still! Conscious of staring, he quickly looks away. Going back to his thoughts as he taps the bulb against his chin thoughtfully.
Where too find something TALL.. Something TALL... Some...
Dark eyes slowly widening as they refocus upon K', already having moved past and further along the hallway.
...One?
"..Oh hey.." Kentou murmurs to himself quietly as the thought dawns. Looking up to the ceiling then back down to the man. Up. Down.
"..H..Hey!" As the plan takes hold, the youth executes as he lifts a hand, "Excuse me! Sir? Siiiiir!" Spurring to motion as he races across the distance to get the distracted dude's attention. o.o
K' grinds to a halt.
Heels nail to the floor squarely as Kentou abruptly calls out, a quiet wince passing over sharp features as K' registers he's being addressed. What the hell does this kid want...? Against his better judgment, K' doesn't just keep walking: though he sure as hell doesn't do anything so reassuring or polite as to actually turn around. He just stops right where he is in the hall, cursing contractual obligations and keeping his back to the unfortunate Kentou.
He had not bothered to pay Kentou much mind, even though the younger boy had been staring. K' is, by now, used to drawing stares for his looks alone. But the fact that such attention seems now to extend into a desire for actual interaction? That bodes ill. Nonetheless, there is some brief humor mixed in with that disgruntlement. Sir, huh. He can't help but feel some sort of amusement every time he hears -that- label slapped on him. It's just too incongruous.
K''s eyes narrow as he waits for Kentou to catch up, circle around in front of him, and explain himself. "...-What-?" he eventually demands at the tail end of a long, drawn-out sigh of exasperation.
The much shorter boy skids to a halt before K's wrathful query. A half-squeak escapes his throat as his arms flail at his sides for balance, immediately converting the movement into a hasty, polite bow, "I..Ah.. I have a favor to ask! I.. I need your help with something, really quick? It'll just take like.. five seconds? If that's okay with you, Mister?" Babbling voice a bit taken aback by the rough-looking man's vehemence but Kentou shant be so easily denied! Nobody else tall enough is around, K-Dash may indeed be the Youth Center's only hope for enlightenment! He certainly wouldn't be Kentou's first choice, but he has a job to do. A mission. A quest! He promised that poor janitor he would have that light fixtured fixed. And, by gum, that's what he's gunna do!
Though, as Kentou's gaze lifts up and down from his somewhat bowed position, he's beginning to wonder just what this fellow is doing here. The Youth Center actually gets its share of street toughs, as many young men come to the Center for some training from the Gedo High area. Not to mention, Southtown in general is a haven for ...ah.. disillusioned youths. That said, he doesn't look like he's here for training..
K' squints down at Kentou as the kid reels to a halt in the form of a hasty bow. A frown cuts across his face at the unnecessary obeisance, and it only deepens as K' waits for it to end and finds himself disappointed. "Tch. Don't bother with that crap. Stand the hell up," he instructs gruffly, his rough demeanor and interesting choice of language casting even more doubt on why he's here if it's not for training. Why would such a coarse individual hang around a place like this willingly?
The answer is that he's not here entirely willingly.
As for the substance of Kentou's actual request... well, there was no substance to it! Impatience radiates perceptibly from the young fighter. Having expected Kentou to simply spit out whatever it was he wanted upon K''s first demand that he do so, the runaway project finds himself unreasonably irritated that the boy isn't simply reading his mind and complying to his desires. K' is... surprisingly spoiled, in some ways; as much as one can be when raised in an environment like NESTS. Spoiled in the sense he's used to getting things his way... and -making- things go his way.
K' paws his shades down just enough so yellow eyes get bared. They fix on Kentou. Unpromisingly, they narrow perceptibly. "/What/?" he repeats. Spit it out, kid!
At the rude outburst, Kentou immediately straightens with wide, surprised eyes. His lips creasing into a slow frown as a reprisal balances on the edge of his tongue.
The boy manages to not throw out a retort in kind, his frown evolving into more of a pensive expression as he reconsiders this man. He MUST be a foreigner, only foreign people tend to speak that rudely. As such, a certain level of understanding should be exercised. That... And this rough fellow is still the boy's only hope.
At the repeated urging, the youth swallows his pride as he clears his throat. Trying to ignore the vindictive tone as he points behind himself to where he was standing moments ago, "I.. Ah.. I need you to stand there if you could? Sir? I .. um.. I need help reaching something? If you could just.. ah.. hold still riiiiiiight there.." Squinting an eye and glancing down the length of his arm and pointy finger to the exact location, "..For .. um.. for about ten seconds or so.. Ah. If you could?" Mousy eyes then drifting back up to meet K's own. Once again squinting behind his long, wild bangs as he considers if those are some kind of cosmetic contacts are not.
Who the heck has yellow eyes?
A lazy smile coils its cold way across the young man's dark face as he notes the way Kentou bites his tongue back on what are no doubt some choice words: looking ever-so-surprised at K''s callous behavior. The expression is reserved, as most of K''s are when the walking weapon isn't in a fight, little more than a half-smirk that bares a glimpse of a white canine. "...got a problem, kid?" How friendly he is, making such nice conversation with Kentou here and encouraging him to share his feelings. He's already getting along with people swimmingly. Alma would be so proud.
He hears Kentou out through his request, though, which is something. At the conclusion of it all, the NESTS experiment remains unpromisingly silent for some time, his eyes-- seemingly oblivious to the curiosity in Kentou's-- flicking over to the indicated spot... and then up to the light fixture. K' puts two and two together. Mentally, he heaves a drawn-out, long-suffering sigh. Why the fuck don't people just use ladders here? He can only assume something happened to the ladder in question... or that these martial arts aficionados really are that zealously crazy about making everything in life into a stunt. Nonetheless, he really isn't keen on being bothered or begged...
... so fine. Whatever. He'll humor this request, get used like an implement. He's used to being treated like an object, what's one more time?! But he's sure as hell going to be an -amazing- asshole about it, for those deepseated and unspoken reasons alone. Besides... he's learned quite quickly that grudging acceptances sometimes make people even more uncomfortable than outright refusals. There's power in a good guilt-trip, up until you meet somebody that doesn't mind taking advantage. And there are very few of those around a place like this.
"You get ten seconds," K' abruptly warns Kentou in a deep growl. "If you're not done by then..." K' is already walking off, back turned as he saunters to the spot in question. "...hope you know how to take a fall, shortround." ...what -was- he watching?!
What good are martial arts if not to figure out better ways to screw in lightbulbs?
....Kentou's training with Frei is leaving more of a mark on him than he thought..
At K's gruff taunt, the youth's left eye flinches. Having sworn to not start trouble in the Youth Center ever again, Kentou is honor bound not to snap back at this thuggish fellows complete lack of manners. The boy isn't scared! He's faced down men five times this punk's size before. He's even faced down a green-skinned gorilla man in a jungle!
..And... ran screaming. But that's neither here nor there!
Ultimately, the boy settles on something of an ineffective frown as K', at first, seems to be unhelpful to the cause. Juuust about to turn away and just wave the man off and search for someone, perhaps, more helpful.
That is.. Until K''s growling voice actually answers in the positive. The boy blinks.. Genuinely, sincerely surprised as the grousing goth actually stalks past and into position. Kentou's eyes remain wide for long moments as his head slowly pans, following the movements of the much taller man, "..Oh.. S..Sure! Th..thank you Sir!" He stammers.
Huh. Guess there is something to not beating people up just because they act like jerks. ._.
Upon regaining his wits, Kentou immediately closes the distance between them again. Holding up his hands slowly, the youth squints down the lengths of his arms, tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth in calculating thought.
"Okay.. Oooooookay.." The youth murmurs as he adjusts the angle of his reach until his fingertips align with the man's shoulders, "... Okay!"
With his measurements taken, the boy sharply nods and hops a few steps back. Clapping his hands together and wringing them he adds, "Now just hold still! Just ten seconds!" Fetching then the light-bulb he had settled onto a nearby chair, the youth lowers himself into a sprinters stance..
K''s grin widens nastily at the twitch in Kentou's expression-- the obvious way he's trying to bite back the reaction that doubtless wants to spring to the surface. Still, seems like Kentou has opted to be the 'better man' this day. With a humored, somewhat patronizing chuckle from the back of his throat, K' just brushes past Kentou. And for all intents and purposes, the kid seems to cease to exist to him.
Kentou adds some last-minute instructions. There is no response.
K' is not listening anymore. He has unpaused whatever he was watching, and seems to be engrossed in it again. This could either be a gesture of surprising trust, or a cold confidence that nothing Kentou could do, whether intentional or accidental, could actually manage to hurt him. It's most likely the latter.
Incidentally, he is also timing the boy. At precisely ten seconds, he'll simply roll his shoulders in a disaffected shrug, crack his neck unconcernedly, and casually step away. Who cares if Kentou is accidentally electrocuted?!
Kentou has seen this in action. He knows how this works..
At least.. in principle.
Of course, the technique itself is meant to be an attack. However! True mastery of the technique can be applied to other uses than an elaborate way to deliver a solid whooping. Besides, K' is obligingly holding rock-steady for him as opposed to a moving and defensive target the action would typically be employed against.
"Shin.."
Kentou's voice escapes as a whisper of concentration, tensing for several moments longer before springing to motion!
The boy darts across the short distance of the hall in remarkable speed. Immediately closing the distance and -vaulting- into the air, clearly half of the distance as the boy then -runs- right up K's tall stature blurting the words in a rush, "JOU TAI!"
Feet falling upon the man's jacket in feather-light steps as his momentum carries him upwards in a fraction of a second!
Enough so that in roughly one second, the boy will then stand firmly upon K's shoulders! His own head merely a foot and a half short of the ceiling itself!
Arms outstretched, the boy balances himself for juuuuust a moment in case K' continues to be obliging.. Wasting no time to immediately hold his arms up and start screwing in the light-bulb. o.= *twisttwisttwist*
At EXACTLY ten seconds, the light flickers on as the hallway is again bathed in consistent illumination, "Yatta!" ^.^
K' continues to be quite obliging, as a matter of fact. As Kentou springs into the air, agilely clearing up to a tenuous and swaying perch, the NESTS project fails to move. He simply holds fast-forward on his player, as this part is boring.
He's not entirely oblivious, however, as evidenced by a mild feeling of surprise at Kentou's dexterity and obvious training... and a vague feeling of deja vu. Hasn't he heard that move name somewhere before? Or seen something similar on SNF? K' mulls over this question absently as the seconds tick past, and eventually he hits on the answer. By then, time is just about up. He pauses his player, and clicks it shut.
At ten seconds, K' twists deftly out from under Kentou, moving in a manner calculated to upset balance. For whatever mysterious reason, however, he doesn't leave the kid to just plaster into the floor if he doesn't recover to a proper landing in time. His right hand flicks towards the back of Kentou's jacket, aiming to snare him by that grasp and arrest his descent. Even if he gets a hold, it'll only last a few moments: long enough for K' to note amusedly, "/Cute/. Hotaru fanboy...?" before letting the kid 'off the hook,' as it were: dropping him the rest of the way. No violence!! --at least, not yet.
Eeeek!
The boy's 'Yatta!' doesn't even fully make it out of his mouth until the 'ground' is swept out from under him! As K' abruptly moves away, Kentou's eyes bug out and the youth flails his limbs in a hasty bid to regain mid-air control.. Try to orient himself to go down feet first..
..A worry that becomes moot as a sharp 'URK' is jolted from his lungs as his kenpo uniform jacket is caught. @.x His long braids flopping down past K's arm as his limbs limply dangle at his sides for a moment, swinging to and fro as his brain catches up with what just happened.
"H..Hey! What's the big idea?!" Kentou finally blurts out as air is dragged back into his lungs, his outrage boiling to the surface. Feet kicking in mid-air harmlessly as his arms flail about. >.<!
However, as K' brings up that name, the boy blinks. Snapping out of his tantrum, "..Hotaru-senseiiiEK!"
Once again his voice becomes a squeak of surprise as he falls the rest of the distance almost harmlessly. Unprepared as he was, he lands on his posterior with his legs folded at his sides and hands on the carpet to help absorb the impact.
..Oof.
The boy tilts his head upwards, glaring up at the helpful man from his upside-down, backwards perspective, "Apprentice!" He corrects boldly! Thumbing his chest, "I'm Hotaru-sensei's student!" Nodding definitively to that title he's most proud of, crossing his arms with a harrumph. -.-
"...Andthanksforhelpingmewiththelight.." Kentou mumbles under-breath. Fighting the urge to rub his injured... pride.
K' stifles a grin as Kentou explodes in indignance. There are few things as viscerally satisfying to mean assholes as messing with people in such a way to get them entirely ruffled. Perhaps this is K''s idea of vengeance for having to serve as a step ladder. Or maybe he's just a bastard. It's most likely the latter-- even if K' -is- a fairly vengeful sort.
He is kind of surprised by Kentou's declaration, however. This kid, apprenticed to that Futaba girl? They'll really take in just about anyone these days, won't they. The look in K''s flat gold eyes, as he appraises Kentou, is emotionlessly measuring. Mercifully, it lasts only a few moments before it turns away in apparent dismissiveness.
K' straightens in a languid stretch, eventually letting his shoulders slump back into that casual slouch; he tilts a glance down at Kentou, largely indifferent to his thanks or his pride regarding his status as Hotaru's student. A shoulder lifts in a shrug, the gesture seemingly representing just how much he's impressed. Which doesn't appear to be much at all. Is this man slighting Hotaru!? Maybe. K' could insult just about anyone without feeling bad about it. "Heh. Whatever, kid." One-handedly, he flips his player back open, flicking back to where he left off: clearly just about done with putting up with random strangers for the day.
Harrumph! Luckily for K', Kentou figures the punk is slighting the notion of him being apprenticed to a world-renowned great. Something that is about a dozen times more forgivable than the former theory. As the man rolls his shoulders and dismissively begins to walk away.. Kentou deeply frowns with a derisive expression.
Bleh, what a thoroughly unpleasant guy.
Kentou then turns his attention to the ceiling, his lips conforming to an ultimately neutral expression as the good seems to balance out with the bad. He was kinda a jerk.. But he was helpful! So there is that.
The boy figures there probably is some wisdom in focusing on the good people do and simply forgiving the bad. Regardless, with any luck the guy probably won't be hanging out at the Youth Center for very long anyway. ._.
And with that, the youth shambles up to his feet. Dusting off his posterior and readjusting his jacket collar upon his shoulders. Mission accomplished, in a roundabout way. Now... To the next adventure!
Log created on 21:42:19 12/21/2007 by Kentou, and last modified on 01:48:44 12/22/2007.