Description: After recruiting Miu Kurosaki to the Ladies' Team for King of Fighters, Rose decides to see just how much of a young protege Miu Kurosaki can be...
So, what's happened since Rose last saw Miu?
Well, Miu has beaten up a psychic, a schoolgirl, and traveled all the way to Brazil to track down a man with strange chi and beat on him, too. She's been a busy student, that's for sure, and although her schoolwork has been suffering, she's feeling a lot better about her suitability to join Rose's team.
So she's here, at the appropriate time, as the sun is starting to go down and a full moon rises in the sky above. Her fingers hook into the band of her skirt, and, for once, there's no birds hanging around the girl. Instead, she's just leaning up outside the wall of the YFCC. Waiting for Rose to turn up. She's a little nervous, but she's ready. She's going to go for it. She's going to enter this tournament, and she's going to win.
Busy, indeed. Rose.. has not been so busy. But at her advanced age and skills, she can afford to be somewhat less of a go-getter. That doesn't mean she's been lax; in her own way, she's been training herself--meditating, sparring occasionally... and making plans. She'd told Miu to be at the YFCC in a matter of days--now it remains to see if the girl will accept...
But if she's waiting for Rose to show up outside, well, she's going to be disappointed. Rose is already -inside-. This point is salient, and will be demonstrated shortly--as the PA system crackles on, and Rose's voice, softly amuesd, comes over the system. Somehow it doesn't seem too loud, despite being broadcast essentially all over the compound.
"Miss Kurosaki. I see you're here. Do come in; you needn't chill yourself outside on my account."
Miu is surprised. She hadn't thought of Rose as being the sort of person to be involved directly in the YFCC. She'd imagined that it was just a convenient meeting point, but, she's soon proven quite wrong. She blinks a couple of times, regarding the speaker dispassionately for a few moments... and then she gives the lightest nod of her head.
She opens the door, and heads inside. She's never been here before, though... she has no idea where to go to try and find Rose. So, instead, she just trusts to her intuition, and starts walking in what seems to be the 'right' direction to her. This rarely guided her wrong.
It's not too hard to find Rose; she is, after all, leaning against the receptionist's desk, which is itself a scant twenty yards inside the doors. The platform base of the PA system's microphone is balanced delicately in her left hand; a cup of tea is held in her right, and it's this which is up nearer her mouth. She smiles as Miu walks in, taking a sip of the tea then setting it beside her, arching to push herself to a fully standing position.
"So," she says, after a moment, her eyes traveling Miu up and down. "You've been a busy girl, Miu. But have you made a decision?" Sometimes, it seems, she -can- get to the point... as she finishes speaking, she walks forward a couple of steps, stopping with her arms crossed over her belly, regarding the girl.
Miu isn't really one to beat around the bush. Simple, direct, and to the point. Or not at all. Those were Miu's style. Normally the latter, to be fair. Talking to people only encouraged them to ask more questions, get closer, which didn't help anyone, in the long run. She comes to rest a short distance from the elder Psion.
"I have." She says. "I will enter the King of Fighters tournament. If the offer is still open, I'll do it with your team. I've got a lot of things I need to learn, and I think... I may find answers, at the end of this tournament."
Rose turns away even as Miu is speaking; but it's not rejection. As she moves off, towards the far end of the YFCC's main room, she beckons for the girl to follow. It's clear she expects to be obeyed in this matter, just from the manner in which she does it. "Good," she says, though she doesn't sound particularly surprised. She doesn't need to be a psychic to know how appealing an offer it must be. When she reaches the mats, she casually kicks her shoes off.
"But, to be clear, we don't expect a mascot. You'll have to fight. You'll have to deal with the unexpected." Rose's tone is completely bland, almost blase... but as soon as Miu's near, she'll snap her scarf outwards, the silken cloth, so ethereal, suddenly glowing with blue-purple energy, snapping outwards at Miu's head.
"Things like this."
COMBATSYS: Rose has started a fight here.
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Rose 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Miu has joined the fight here.
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Miu 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Rose
COMBATSYS: Miu blocks Rose's Weakened Aura Scarf.
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Miu 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Rose
It's not the first time that Miu is glad she can call on her power in an instant. Rose lashes out at her, and the girl meets the flash of blue with a bright spark of glowing white. Her palm materializing the energy, which bursts into an array of floating feathers after the majority of the force had been countered. She narrows her eyes slightly, and her other hand twitches.
"I. Am not a mascot."
That said, she intends to prove it to the woman, apparently. Leaping backwards gracefully, the girl swings her other hand forwards, and three glowing black feathers as dark as the night lance outwards, aiming to catch Rose in the middle of them, and burst. Demonstrating, in theory, that she can give as good as she gets.
COMBATSYS: Rose reflects Kakure Amagakeri from Miu with Weakened Soul Reflect.
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Miu 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Rose
Rose smiles. "No, you are not. And we wouldn't want you to be, would we?" She feels the upwelling of psi power--can't help -but- feel it--and her reaction is as instinctive as it is practiced; she reacts barely without thinking about it--certainly not thinking consciously, though, of course, she is calculating odds, angles and percentages instinctively.
The scarf whips around her body, forming a complex, hissing shield; the feathers impact, flare--and then are sent back at Miu, with a snap of the hissing scarf as it adds a touch of momentum before sliding back into place around Rose's shoulders and arms. "It's good to feel that emotion, but 'ware lest it consume you, Miu Kurosaki..." A funny thing to say to a girl who is, by all outwards appearances, so -un-emotional, isn't it?
COMBATSYS: Miu overcomes Reflected Kakure Amagakeri from Rose with Amagakeri EX.
- Power hit! -
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Miu 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Rose
Miu's fingers are already burning with more white power. When the three feathers are sent hurtling back at her, she flings her hand forward once more. Black and white power surges, clashes, and a lance of feathery white overcomes the black, the feather much larger than the other three, and continuing on its path.
It's true that not many would think Miu terribly emotional, but also true that she felt all emotions that much more keenly than most. Something that she is very aware of. Of course, there's also that steely will, and... her lack of, real, skill with words. Demonstrated by what she says as she touches down to earth again.
"It won't."
COMBATSYS: Miu successfully hits Rose with Amagakeri EX.
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Miu 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Rose
Rose quirks an eyebrow... and lets that feather lance through her. Hm. The will is steely, but, of course, so is Rose's. Still, she touches her stomach, where the feather impacted, her lips tracing upwards. "Indeed. You understand, of course," she says, casually, "I do not say these things to disparage you..." That isn't her style--not the way she teaches--and so the distinction must be made.
Suddenly, psionic power surges around Rose, limning her in that blue-purple light, coruscating around her like the corona of the sun. Through it, she speaks again. "It is simply in my nature, to be... cautionary. If you learn more about me, you will understand why... perhaps." Again, the words aren't meant to disparage--but the subject of "Rose" is a complex one.
COMBATSYS: Rose gathers her will.
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Miu 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Rose
Miu doesn't quite know how to react. She listens, and she nods her head. "We'll see." She says, acknowledging that it wasn't meant as an insult, and... not certain what on earth she's supposed to take away from Rose's nature. The girl is impressed by the power which flows from the elder Psion, though. That is inescapable.
She doesn't feel /right/ just pressing the attack, though. So she doesn't. She waits, patiently, for the next move, if any, to come. Watching, with those dark, intense eyes.
COMBATSYS: Miu focuses on her next action.
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Miu 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Rose
As languid a woman as Rose is, she is capable of impressive feats of speed, when she wants; she sees what Miu is attempting, and nods. An intelligent thing to do, against an unknown foe, watching and waiting. A defensive stance is to be expected. So, surely, Miu expects this--an attempt to disrupt her attempt to concentrate.
Rose suddenly jolts forward, crossing the distance in a matter of seconds, stopping in front of Miu and attempting to plant a swift palm strike to the girl's forehead--almost a slap, really. As her arm pushes forward, that blue-purple power crackles along her arm, concentrating in her palm--it would feel like an electric shock...
--straight to the soul.
COMBATSYS: Miu dodges Rose's Weakened Jab Punch.
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Miu 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Rose
Miu is surprisingly swift on her feet when she has to be. For instance, right now.
The girl twists around to the side of Rose's strike, managing to dodge the slap to her forehead by mere inches. It takes every scrap of concentration she has to manage to slide to the side, but, she does it. The girl's expression is still carefully neutral.
And then, suddenly, she's lashing out in retaliation. The girl aims to grab Rose by the arm, and wrench up and back. If she manages this, she'll throw all her weight into the small of Rose's back, hoping to bowl her over, and down into the ground. All the while through it, her power is surging, numbing, trying to dull Rose's own. Which is, it must be said, even for someone like Miu, like trying to douse a wildfire with a bucket of ice water.
COMBATSYS: Miu successfully hits Rose with Medium Throw.
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Miu 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Rose
Miu is doing surprisingly well--Rose is surprised, just enough, by Miu's move that she lets her arm be wrenched around; the clash of power doesn't exactly douse Rose's, but the feedback is enough to sting. However, she saves herself the indignity of being faceplanted by the schoolgirl, throwing herself into a forward cartwheel to avoid -that- fate; as she rights herself, she rotates the shoulder.
"Hm," she says, softly, her own gaze growing a touch sharper. It would be bad to let the newbie show her up, wouldn't it? Rose smiles, faintly, and nods. "Very good," she compliments the student.. then she's taking two steps forward and throwing herself into a low sliding attack for Miu's feet, cushioning herself with her psionic power to make the slide easy--and fast.
COMBATSYS: Rose successfully hits Miu with Weakened Sliding.
-**- LUNATIC HIT!! -**-
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Miu 1/------=/=======|=======\=------\1 Rose
The blow smashes into Miu with incredible force. The girl just, hadn't seen it coming. She's lifted bodily off her feet, and flies back through the air, crashing painfully into the wall head-first. She hits the floor, rolls, and finally, comes to a stop. Bleeding from the point of impact on her head. She manages, with some effort, to get back up to her feet.
Most surprisingly, the girl's composure still doesn't crack. Despite the fact that the shock had been incredible, her features are neutral, her only response to take a deep, deep breath. Exhaling, slowly, as she lets her power catch up with her. Heartbeat, returning to normal. The pain, wasn't going to fade so quickly. But internally, she blocks it off. Separates it. Lets it stay there, to be dealt with later.
"That hurt." She says, quietly. Not much more to add than that, really.
COMBATSYS: Miu gains composure.
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Miu 1/-------/=======|=======\=------\1 Rose
Rose, surprisingly, seems contrite. "Mm. I'm sorry about that; it wasn't my intention to -injure- you during this little sparring match, Miss Kurosaki." After all, there's no use recruiting her if she's going to get her head bashed in before the tournament even starts. That said, however, that kind of pain and injury is exactly what she'll have to deal with, and from people who really -do- want to rip her head off...
So it's not like Rose is going to let up at all, as she moves in again, launching another attack--left palm strike feinting in high, but the real attack is a stiffer palm shot to the stomach from the right.
Both attacks are flared with her particular brand of Soul Power, but there is a touch less on the left-hand attack--a clue for Miu, perhaps...
COMBATSYS: Rose successfully hits Miu with Weakened Medium Punch.
? Strange Hit! ?
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Miu 1/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1 Rose
Miu again does everything she can to try and get out the way of the attack, and this time... she fails.
It's a strange failure, though. She falls for the feint, but, when Rose touches her, she doesn't actually get hurt at all. It bumps against her belly, and she stumbles back a pace, mildly put off-balance.
And then she comes in again. She lunges, aiming to grab hold of Rose by her shirt, and if she can manage that, well...
COMBATSYS: Rose blocks Miu's Grasping Yomo.
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Miu 1/------=/=======|=======\===----\1 Rose
When her fingers curl in Rose's shirt, Miu's power literally explodes out of her in a tight, compact cone of white-black feathers, aiming to literally pierce right through the elder Psion. It's not exactly the most finessed attack in the world, but it is potent, and it shows that Miu's power is genuinely starting to flare...
Rose remains calm as Miu grasps her by her clothing; indeed, having sensed what Miu was intent on, she's busy for a moment, focusing her own powerful aura; when Miu's power blasts through her, it is deflected by Rose's willpower, streaming 'through' her, but not doing the sort of damage it could do; once done, however, Rose takes Miu's hands, gently, and disengages them.
"Enough," she says, with a nod. "This was not intended to turn into a full fight. I'm satisfied that you have the skill I thought... and the potential I thought. Thank you, Miu Kurosaki. Your acceptance is, in and of itself, accepted." Rose claps her hands, once, and bows respectfully to the schoolgirl.
Log created on 12:53:12 11/27/2010 by Rose, and last modified on 08:57:37 01/18/2011.