abidingtime | OPEN POST

I had some time before that with other things.

Then they thought I'd fight. Now they're bored of me winning.

Zoë. I'd say nice to meet you, Bell, but you're a frustrating one.

Zoë. Your fate is sad.

But who's isn't?

Is there no way out for you?

I don't even have a count for what iteration I am.

There's never a way out.

I like you.

I'll fight for you, if you want.

Not because I feel bad for you

You're not really that bad yourself.

Look, you're not to my level yet. You just gotta not reach me. Throw a punch or two.

I could teach you if you need it.

I'm still not convinced that I need to fight at all. I still probably won't.

But I'll fight against you, since I know what it means to you. You can take me down fair and square.

So frustrating.

Fine. At least let me train you so you're not throwing a punch like a little bitch.

Alright then, you can train me.

I'm only doing this for you, though.

That's the best damn reason in the world to do anything.

Of course you'd say that.

Where should I meet you?

There's a training ring in the basement.

Don't be late.

I'll be there.

[ Bell's tired, and he doesn't exactly want to learn how to fight. But this woman is being uncharacteristically nice for anyone in House Hapsburg, and he wants her to know he appreciates it. And so, here he is, tramping down to the basement to pretend to learn something about fighting. Or maybe actually learn, who knows? There's a chance she's right, that all he's doing is wasting himself. There's a chance he could need to fight.

Anyway, he's going, okay? See him walking slowly down the steps, crossing the floor to where she stands outside a ring. ]

Hey. [ He says, suddenly a little shy. ]

[ There's a thing about Zoë, and that's that she likes to fight. She doesn't know if she was messed with somewhere down the line of creation to be predisposed to fighting. It doesn't really matter. She doesn't yearn to be some woman she barely even remembers. She's not her clones, she's not her template, she's her. And she likes to fight.

She doesn't like killing, though. She does like to live. Sometimes those two come in conflict, and living will always win out.

Fighting people who don't fight back though? That's not a true fight. It's a slaughter, and she's not into that shit. Fighting may not be anymore what she wanted it to be. It's not something she lives through, it's something she does to live now.

But she'll be damned if she crosses that line into executioner for Hapsburg.

She's already down there, pulling her hair back into a tight ponytail. She wears dark black pants, no shoes, and a blue sports bra. She doesn't look overly muscular, but that's the Hapsburg style. She's built strong. ]

Almost thought you'd pussy out. [ She flashes a grin. Maybe a smirk. Then shakes her head. ]

A waste just lose to spite them. You'd be a good brawler if you tried.

And what worth would that have, except to my captors? [ Bell shakes his head, eyes downcast. No, he didn't want to be a good brawler.

He is, however, game to learn from her. He stands in front of her, hands on hips, dressed in a grey t-shirt and black pants, no shoes. ]

Anyway, let's do this fighting thing. [ He holds up his fists, here they are, show him what to do with them. ]

Some damn pride. [ Yeah, nobody ever gets her. Most people here hate the fighting because they're made into it. No one's ever liked it like she has.

Though she doesn't entirely dismiss it, either. Even with her love of it, they find a way to perverse it and make it nearly disgusting to her. It's just that it's not all bad. It's what they do.

He raises his fist and she appraises him, circling him slowly. ]

Show me your stance. Like someone's about to come at you. No joke.

[ Was it pride that drove him? Pride that left him beaten and feeling victorious?

Shaking the thought from his head, he gets into position. Fists raised in front of his face, left in front of right. He's up on his toes, legs shoulder width apart and slightly bent, left out in front, right slightly back. He bounces a bit there, looks to Zoë for approval. ]

So?

[ As he gets in position, she can't help but grin. ]

Not bad. So you're not a complete loss. [ It's good foundation already. Something she wasn't really expecting. Seeing it, she realizes he probably could be doing so much better than she originally imagined. He's not just got bulk, he's got something of a brain in there. ]

Throw a punch. Both arms. [ She imagines he's a rightie, putting more force on his right arm by having it back farther. Maybe she's wrong, though. She's known some who had good jabs and shit back punches. ]

[ Bell nods at her, then shifts his focus to the wall across the room. Bouncing on the balls of his feet again, he shifts his weight back, then forward quickly as she shoots out first his right arm, then his left. Both punches are fair.

Dropping back down to flat feet, he grins sheepishly at her. ] Well, that's what I got, I guess.

[ Her mouth drops with a slight gasp. ] He smiles!

Not bad, newbie. [ She winks at him coming around him. She doesn't mind his personal space, so hopefully he doesn't mind it either.

She's close, touching the elbow of his right arm. ] Rightie, right?

Next time pull your elbow back, almost parallel with your shoulder. [ She lifts with a surprisingly gentle touch, guiding his elbow back. ] You throw your weight back, so if you pull your arm back it's more momentum to go with your strength. You'll get better power.

[ He steps clear from her. ] So like...this. [ He says, doing a slow motion repetition of the movement she'd just shown him. Now he looks up at her. ] Makes sense. [ There's two more punches into the air, this time with more power. ]

[ She nods her head as she circles around him again. ] Yeah, you got it.

[ She stands in front of him, raising her own hands up. She moves into her own defensive stance. It's more languid and she rests on the balls of her feet. Less movement, but she's also not waiting to strike. Her hands are open palmed as she mirrors his stance. ]

Now try it. Your jab is fine, just make it sharp and fast. Don't need to pull back, though, or you'll defeat the purpose of a jab.

[ He considers that last bit, thinking through how it would affect his movement. ] Okay.

[ He sends a punch, elbow pulled back, into the air to her right, then a quick jab to her left. The first punch is good form, the second he forgets and pulls back a little. He stands in a relaxed posture, laughing at his mistake. ]

Whoops. Lemme try that again. [ A jab to her left again, this time flying without having been pulled back first. He stands relaxed again. ] That was it, right?

[ The right one is good. She doesn't even have to feel it to know. He had it decently before, the little tip was barely anything. More like perfecting something that wasn't so bad to start with.

The jab is loose. It lacks speed and the pull back takes away from the surprise of it. Not that she's surprised, but it telegraphs. She's about to say as much when he tries again.

She grins. ]

Caught before I could tear you a new one for it, huh?

Not so bad, though. [ She winks at him. ] You look good when you're really smiling.

Now teaching you this isn't going to mean jack shit if you can't avoid a punch. Think you can dodge and throw?

[ He gives another quick grin when she winks and compliments him.

In answer to her question, he shrugs. ] No idea, never tried. Got the feeling I'm about to though, right?

Unless you want me to pummel you in the face instead. [ She winks back at him. ]

We'll start with dodging. It's good to get practice with the motion of it first. [ Staying in stance, she drops her upper body bending at her knees and bobs back up slightly to the right. She doesn't shift her feet at all. ]

Try that a couple of times, like you're moving under a rope....

[ Idly she looks around. ] Shame we don't have one. Probably don't trust us enough with it. Might hang ourselves or some shit. [ She gives a half-hearted shrug. ]

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