[Anna turns her head slightly to actually get a visual on it once she processes the side it's coming from, then provides enough resistance to tank the hit and keep her arm steady. she's strong, sure, but getting whacked with one of those things still hurts. she doubts she's at risk at the moment, but powers kick in all the time, yeah? there's respect in her tone after the smack dully resounds through the room.]
Not bad. Good guard, too. I used to leave myself wide open before I learned. [and she glances at Rinka's right arm. there's a couple things she could ask.] You right-handed, or you lead with that one on purpose?
[It hadn't even occurred to Rinka that Anna's field of vision wasn't the same as hers, until she saw Anna turn her head. And by that point she couldn't pull the strike. In hindsight, it's obvious, and she feels a little bad for starting off on Anna's blind side.]
I'm right handed, yes. Sorry, I didn't think about your eye.
[it gets a laugh from Anna, perhaps unexpectedly, and she shakes her head.]
No, it's good. Use that to your advantage. You need to be cutthroat out there, even if it's not really who you are. [and she nods and readies herself again.] Look for your opponents' weak points and go for them. Not everyone's gonna have a big sign on their face saying "hit me where I can't see you".
[Rinka's not sure how cutthroat she's capable of being. Sure, there's that memory of her trying to kick that woman in the face... but that same woman had some sort of teleporting power, so in a way it might have been justified.
Only, that was past her, not current her. Maybe past her was able to be cutthroat, but what about the her now? Rinka can't deny that Anna has a point though. She needs to find her opponents' weak spots.]
Okay. I'll try.
[She brings her batons up again and takes a deep breath. Then she starts swinging. Left, right, left, switch swing direction and left again.
Two of the many things she learned from tennis, how to constantly stay in motion and how to breath well.]
[and it's the last one that gets her. she can see the motion and assumes that Rinka's going to keep alternating, but just a simple mix-up catches her off-guard. she does her best to deflect it at the last second, but can't quite pull it off; she tanks the hit to her side like a champ.]
Good!
[and she actually sounds excited; there's a grin on her face. and if Rinka can mix things up, so can she. Anna won't put all her strength into fighting back, but she can still fight with her fists pretty well and ends up lunging forward, a right and then a left with intent to get her sparring partner to block things quickly.]
[Rinka lets out a startled yelp as she's forced to take a step back. Her brain is working overtime as it tries to figure out the most efficient way to use these sticks. Stopping an attack straight on requires much more strength than she has... but the point is to not get hit, rather than to stop an attack cold.
Of course, in the time her brain figures that out, Anna's able to clock Rinka with that left.]
Oops.
[She shakes out her arm, then tries again. Left, right, backswing with her left... while at the same time trying to pay attention to what Anna's doing.]
[Anna takes no joy in hitting her opponents when she's trying to actually help them get better, but she's glad to see Rinka dodge at least one of them. she'll have to pull her punches a little more, but right now her attention is on Rinka's offensive. her head is turned so her right eye is slightly more towards the front, and it's hardly the ideal fighting situation, but it's what she's dealing with, isn't it?]
[she blocks the first two but isn't expecting the backswing and takes that hit as she jabs out, trying to mix things up, trying not to hit her partner too hard, playing to the strengths she sees in Rinka and her weapons by not throwing out anything wild and letting her get in as many good blocks as she needs, if she's not just trying the "dodge everything" method instead.]
You're pretty nimble. [she's talking with an elevated heart rate and that same look on her face, but it's trending more towards appreciative.]
[With each strike and block, it's like the batons are feeling more and more comfortable in her hands. Rather than trying to stop Anna's attacks cold, Rinka begins to use her batons to direct Ann's strikes away from her, even as she stays close enough to Anna to counter strike, though she doesn't yet.]
Tennis. Have to be quick.
[But the way she's moving her feet is looking less and less like tennis, and more and more like aikido.]
[sure. Anna grins, glad that there's something she can apparently do to actually train people; she's sensing the changes in Rinka's movements too, after all. and her eye, in between blows, darts down to her opponent's feet to get an idea of where her skill level might really be coming from.]
Is tennis all you do?
[which is maybe the politest way of calling bullshit she's ever managed, she thinks, still idly trading blows.]
Uh. I do do track and field, too. My event is the mile.
[So, mostly just running in circles.
Of course, that's when the memory fizzle to the surface.
Rinka, past!Rinka, sparring with her father in a park. No weapons, just their hands (and in Rinka's case, her feet as well). Something had happened. She was upset, angry, because she hadn't been able to do anything. She didn't know which direction to go next. And then something small and fast drops both her father and her.
[Anna recognizes that look; a lot of times they hit her the same way. she stops immediately, freezing mid-swing, then pulls her fist back and relaxes her stance. once it's clear they aren't actually sparring anymore for the moment, she speaks up.]
[Rinka blinks a few times as she tries to figure out what the memory means. Sequence of events is one thing. What those events mean is something else entirely.]
I was sparring with my father. I was... frustrated. Something had happened, and I felt like I had... failed. And I didn't know what to do from there.
[she frowns a little and looks down at the batons in her hands]
I don't know what happened, but I think it was a bit more than failing a class in school. I felt like... I'd tried my hardest and still hadn't done enough...
[interesting. Anna tilts her head slightly, trying to make sense of it. she doesn't have the highest opinion of fathers to begin with, so pardon the venom.]
Yeah, well. Dads are easy as hell to disappoint. Ask mine. [don't, actually.] If it's any consolation? You're definitely not failing here. You're picking this shit up pretty well for someone who's never fought with those things before. Told you you wouldn't get your ass kicked.
[Rinka is fairly certain it she hadn't disappointed her dad. But with all the missing context, it's just really hard to explain.]
I don't think it was him... He seemed kind of... happy they were sparring? I think he was trying to comfort her even...
[She looks down at the batons dangling from her wrists.]
It kind of feels like muscle memory. Like my body is remembering how to do this. Which is really cool, but really weird at the same time.
[Then she points at her head, careful not to whack herself with a baton]
But she still got her ass kicked, sort of. Someone small and fast appeared. Took down her dad and then took her down. Though... I think it was a throw? She wasn't hurt, just surprised.
[yeah, Anna gets that. that's how it felt when she got her sword stuff back. it wasn't really an all-at-once thing for her, and she struggled for, like, a solid month not knowing how to use it, but. that's all in the past now.]
What, she got surprise judo-ed? [wow, what a dumb way for Anna to say it!] But if she didn't get hurt, I guess it wasn't supposed to be an attack. [or. whatever. she shrugs. it's not really her place to analyze other people's memories.]
Either way, this is how it kicks in. Eventually you'll start feeling like you've been doing it your whole life. My first week knowing how to use a sword, I went out into the forest and just hunted panther monsters for a while. [a beat as her eye glances away.] So don't get cocky.
[she turns her back and keeps her ears open in case this is one of those instances where she's gonna get snuck up on. and really, she'd be proud of her. but if Rinka isn't planning to ambush her, then Anna will be glad to carefully unsheathe her blade and show it off in its off-white glory. it's not really anything special as far as katanas go, but it definitely used to be whiter.]
[Anna shrugs. she's extremely helpful. this blade is important to her, yeah, and she has some pretty good ideas as to why, but she doesn't really know much about the blade itself.]
It might still be steel, just stained white or something? Well. Used to be white until I actually started using it. I still haven't figured out how to get panther blood out of it, and it was just kind of downhill from there.
It was the first thing I killed when I got A2's sword skills back.
[she nods, handing over the blade and making sure Rinka knows how to stick the pointy end away from her. it's a lightweight sword, just a standard katana meant to be used by androids. you know, your everyday future blade! for robots! god her life is weird. Rinka shouldn't have too much of a problem lifting it, is the point.]
Or was it when I got the robot legs...? [it's a rhetorical question. it definitely was.] Either way. Zee needed me to do stuff, and I did it.
[Yep, Rinka makes sure the holds the pointy end away from the both of them. No poking her new sparring partner with her own sword. That would just be rude.
It feels a lot different from the batons, as it should. It's not quite as heavy as she thought it would be.]
Ah, like when you ran into that brain thing and lost you eye?
[Rinka gives the sword a couple swings. It's not really a weapon she can picture herself using, but it's still just... really cool.]
[yeah. it is pretty cool. it's cool enough to get Anna to smirk despite herself, and despite how blunt Rinka is being in bringing that up.]
Yeah. Didn't know what the stakes were like back then, though. I was just trying to help bring the city back to normal. [her eye tracks Rinka's movements.] That's all any of us are doing, I guess.
[Anna takes it, then takes a step back and does some slow, one-handed sword spins, just idly turning the hilt in her hand with the confidence of somebody who's found her weapon.]
You'll get there. Long as you come at it with that mindset, you're in good company. [and she lets the sword come to a rest.] Feels like our little fighting force is getting smaller by the day. So we're gonna be the best damn fighters this city's got.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Not bad. Good guard, too. I used to leave myself wide open before I learned. [and she glances at Rinka's right arm. there's a couple things she could ask.] You right-handed, or you lead with that one on purpose?
no subject
I'm right handed, yes. Sorry, I didn't think about your eye.
no subject
No, it's good. Use that to your advantage. You need to be cutthroat out there, even if it's not really who you are. [and she nods and readies herself again.] Look for your opponents' weak points and go for them. Not everyone's gonna have a big sign on their face saying "hit me where I can't see you".
no subject
Only, that was past her, not current her. Maybe past her was able to be cutthroat, but what about the her now? Rinka can't deny that Anna has a point though. She needs to find her opponents' weak spots.]
Okay. I'll try.
[She brings her batons up again and takes a deep breath. Then she starts swinging. Left, right, left, switch swing direction and left again.
Two of the many things she learned from tennis, how to constantly stay in motion and how to breath well.]
no subject
Good!
[and she actually sounds excited; there's a grin on her face. and if Rinka can mix things up, so can she. Anna won't put all her strength into fighting back, but she can still fight with her fists pretty well and ends up lunging forward, a right and then a left with intent to get her sparring partner to block things quickly.]
no subject
[Rinka lets out a startled yelp as she's forced to take a step back. Her brain is working overtime as it tries to figure out the most efficient way to use these sticks. Stopping an attack straight on requires much more strength than she has... but the point is to not get hit, rather than to stop an attack cold.
Of course, in the time her brain figures that out, Anna's able to clock Rinka with that left.]
Oops.
[She shakes out her arm, then tries again. Left, right, backswing with her left... while at the same time trying to pay attention to what Anna's doing.]
no subject
[she blocks the first two but isn't expecting the backswing and takes that hit as she jabs out, trying to mix things up, trying not to hit her partner too hard, playing to the strengths she sees in Rinka and her weapons by not throwing out anything wild and letting her get in as many good blocks as she needs, if she's not just trying the "dodge everything" method instead.]
You're pretty nimble. [she's talking with an elevated heart rate and that same look on her face, but it's trending more towards appreciative.]
no subject
Tennis. Have to be quick.
[But the way she's moving her feet is looking less and less like tennis, and more and more like aikido.]
no subject
Is tennis all you do?
[which is maybe the politest way of calling bullshit she's ever managed, she thinks, still idly trading blows.]
no subject
[So, mostly just running in circles.
Of course, that's when the memory fizzle to the surface.
Rinka, past!Rinka, sparring with her father in a park. No weapons, just their hands (and in Rinka's case, her feet as well). Something had happened. She was upset, angry, because she hadn't been able to do anything. She didn't know which direction to go next. And then something small and fast drops both her father and her.
Rinka drops her guard in confusion.]
no subject
Anything interesting?
no subject
I was sparring with my father. I was... frustrated. Something had happened, and I felt like I had... failed. And I didn't know what to do from there.
[she frowns a little and looks down at the batons in her hands]
I don't know what happened, but I think it was a bit more than failing a class in school. I felt like... I'd tried my hardest and still hadn't done enough...
no subject
Yeah, well. Dads are easy as hell to disappoint. Ask mine. [don't, actually.] If it's any consolation? You're definitely not failing here. You're picking this shit up pretty well for someone who's never fought with those things before. Told you you wouldn't get your ass kicked.
no subject
I don't think it was him... He seemed kind of... happy they were sparring? I think he was trying to comfort her even...
[She looks down at the batons dangling from her wrists.]
It kind of feels like muscle memory. Like my body is remembering how to do this. Which is really cool, but really weird at the same time.
[Then she points at her head, careful not to whack herself with a baton]
But she still got her ass kicked, sort of. Someone small and fast appeared. Took down her dad and then took her down. Though... I think it was a throw? She wasn't hurt, just surprised.
no subject
What, she got surprise judo-ed? [wow, what a dumb way for Anna to say it!] But if she didn't get hurt, I guess it wasn't supposed to be an attack. [or. whatever. she shrugs. it's not really her place to analyze other people's memories.]
Either way, this is how it kicks in. Eventually you'll start feeling like you've been doing it your whole life. My first week knowing how to use a sword, I went out into the forest and just hunted panther monsters for a while. [a beat as her eye glances away.] So don't get cocky.
no subject
[says the girl planning to spar blindfolded with James the very next day]
Could I see your sword? I've never really seen up close one before.
no subject
[she turns her back and keeps her ears open in case this is one of those instances where she's gonna get snuck up on. and really, she'd be proud of her. but if Rinka isn't planning to ambush her, then Anna will be glad to carefully unsheathe her blade and show it off in its off-white glory. it's not really anything special as far as katanas go, but it definitely used to be whiter.]
no subject
[Rinka doesn't have a sneak attack in mind (this time???). Instead she takes a look at Anna's sword.]
Wow. What's it made of? That doesn't quite look like steel.
no subject
It might still be steel, just stained white or something? Well. Used to be white until I actually started using it. I still haven't figured out how to get panther blood out of it, and it was just kind of downhill from there.
[she looks up and smirks.]
Wanna give it a swing?
no subject
Panther blood? That happened here?
[On the one hand, she's remembered kicking a hippo. On the other, panther.]
But, um, yes!
[She holds out her hands, keeping in mind the sword is likely going to be much heavier than her batons.]
no subject
[she nods, handing over the blade and making sure Rinka knows how to stick the pointy end away from her. it's a lightweight sword, just a standard katana meant to be used by androids. you know, your everyday future blade! for robots! god her life is weird. Rinka shouldn't have too much of a problem lifting it, is the point.]
Or was it when I got the robot legs...? [it's a rhetorical question. it definitely was.] Either way. Zee needed me to do stuff, and I did it.
no subject
It feels a lot different from the batons, as it should. It's not quite as heavy as she thought it would be.]
Ah, like when you ran into that brain thing and lost you eye?
[Rinka gives the sword a couple swings. It's not really a weapon she can picture herself using, but it's still just... really cool.]
no subject
Yeah. Didn't know what the stakes were like back then, though. I was just trying to help bring the city back to normal. [her eye tracks Rinka's movements.] That's all any of us are doing, I guess.
no subject
Yeah. That's why I want to learn how to use my batons. I might not be able to do much, but I hate to do nothing at all.
no subject
You'll get there. Long as you come at it with that mindset, you're in good company. [and she lets the sword come to a rest.] Feels like our little fighting force is getting smaller by the day. So we're gonna be the best damn fighters this city's got.