Not So Silent Training

[Demi Smith]

Normally Demi did this whole training thing in something like silence. She usually liked it to focus. This time, however, she'd borrowed someone's "hard rock" mix CD and put it into a player left on the edge of the training field. Which meant that the pulse-pounding music thundered around Demi as she began moving and entering the Flow. The girl flipped and spun, kicking up dust as she went and moving it around. She'd also gathered a few larger rocks to leave around to utilize for further training.

Demi paused as one song began really pounding. She reached out with her hands, gripping tight, using her power to left a rock. It wasn't massive or anything: about the size of a basketball if they made basketballs in jagged, irregular shapes. She'd pulled it out of the ground and just started grinning when she heard... nothing. Someone had stopped her music.

Demi whirled, letting out a "hey" as she did. The rock went spinning toward the person, and Demi actually pulled her arms up and jerked, trying to send it off course a little. She would have totally been within her rights to just smash into the person, but she figured she'd at least try and pull back... a little.

[Richard Buckles]

Richard had come out to the field hoping to train himself. He had in hand a small bag filled with things he was going to use for practice. As he stepped outside he took a nice deep breath as he strolled over. He could hear the loud music playing and was worried where he had been hearing it from. He spotted Demi still a hundred feet off and grumbled a bit to himself as he didn't think anyone else would be out here.

Then he was quite surprised by her display of power. It was the first person using an ability that wasn't mental or physical in nature. He couldn't believe that girl was controlling the earth with just some movement. Then the music really shot down into something he would have qualified as a grinding metal. This music was most definitely not suited to him. He didn't want to get any closer so he didn't spook her. He knew if someone had snuck up on him would cause an unpleasant reflex.

So he decided to pull out his pocket some loose chance he had. He would use this as a challenge in training as well as serving to stop that dreadful noise. He flung the first penny in an arcing trajectory that narrowly missed the music player. He took a breath in deep, he could feel his heart beating. He then took a second shot with a penny and as the coin came down the velocity made it hid with enough impact to shut the music off without damaging it.

As the rock flung at him he was about 30 feet from her still giving his mind ample ability to register a threat. He quickly shoulder rolled to the left in response to avoid being hit. He came back to a standing position after feeling a bit disoriented for a few seconds. He shook his head and looked over at Demi "Hello." he said friendly sounding. He was standing there waving lightly in her direction.

[Demi Smith]

Well, at least he dodged, and with some skill too. Demi had to give him that much. Demi squinted to look at him from the distance, noticing the friendly (and dumb) wave and the greeting and stuff. "Why did you stop the music?" she demanded, stomping toward him. A few more clouds of dust shot off in little puffs from her movements, jostled more by her emotions than the actual motions.

"I was listening to that!" she continued. Demi paused a few feet from the guy, looking up at him. That didn't really bother her; she looked up to pretty well everyone. That was what happened when you barely topped over five feet and didn't look to be growing taller any time soon. Demi still sized him up, even though she'd pretty well already figured that this was yet another person that she could beat easy, should it come to that.

[Richard Buckles]

He saw the way Demi was stomping up at him, his head tilting slightly as he was used to this sort of behavior from his brothers. It was posturing sure but then usually followed up with a punch to the head. So he was sort of expecting her to take another shot at him. "I am sure you were but by playing it out loud like that so was I. I figured since I was going to be using part of the field I would make sure you knew I was over there before you flung a rock at my head."

He laughed a little since it already happened anyways. "My name is Richard." he extended his hand to her to shake while taking steps forwards to close the gap. She seemed very abrasive but he was trying not to backlash the hostility with his own. He knew it would only make the situation worse "That was pretty amazing watching you move those rocks around with your mind."

[Demi Smith]

Guy didn't flinch from Demi stomping toward him, which put him above a lot of the people she met. So many of them were just so skiddish; acting like one loud noise would be the death of them. He even had a good excuse: wanting her to know that he was actually over there so she didn't accidentally hit him.

"I don't hit people on accident," Demi insisted, obviously ignoring the fact that she'd very nearly done precisely that just a few moments ago, not to mention Richard's own laugh about it. he came forward, and Demi tensed for a moment, more than ready for a brawl. Instead he stuck out ah and and attempted an introduction.

Demi looked at it for a few seconds, then looked up at him, eyebrows raised. Did she really look like someone who did the whole handshake, hey my name is, thing? He did offer a compliment, and those always worked on the girl. "Well, yeah, I'm really amazing compared to most of the idiots around here," she let out a "tsch" and then turned to spit out some saliva and dirt, grimacing slightly and working her mouth for a bit as if gathering up more for another round.

[Richard Buckles]

He nodded "I am sure its always deliberate what you hit. Don't worry I don't take it personal." he said sincerely. He lowered his hand as it was obvious the little spitfire wasn't going to be extending him the same courteous. She seemed awfully jumpy for some reason. She was very young looking, he had heard some people manifested as early as 10. She seemed a bit anti-social for sure but he wasn't going to let that stop him.

He nodded "Well not everyone can be as awesome as you sadly." he said again with sincerity. He noticed her spitting "Oh get a little dirt in your mouth?" he asked her. He didn't seemed bothering by her spitting on the ground as he reached into his bag. He pulled out a water bottle that was unopened then offered it to her "Here might help to use some water." He had been looking at her face the whole time but now with the offer of the water he was looking into her eyes.

[Demi Smith]

Was that backhanded praise or something? Demi stared at him, not sure what his little deal was there. He followed it up with yet more, pointing out what Demi already knew: that the people around here generally sucked in comparison to her. "They'd be better if they just trained right," she offered, again reaching up to wipe at her mouth. That sometimes happened, the dry mouth. Probably from kicking all the dirt and dust up from training.

He moved, got a bottle, offered it. Demi recoiled for a moment, half-expecting him to attack her with it. Water had long since proven to be a real problem for her, and she had a feeling it always would be. When the attack didn't come, she realized he was trying to be nice. Demi grunted and took the bottle. She studied it for a moment, then cracked it open, taking a quick swig. She rinsed out her mouth, turned, and spat out an even muddier bit before taking another drink.

"Did you want it back?" she asked, holding it out. already she'd smeared dirt across the surface: another fun little side effect of her state of near constant grime.

[Richard Buckles]

He nodded as she commented about the other people needing to buckle down on the studying. "Well it is important to always try and improve even if it is frustrating. But I am guessing most of the students just don't have the focus or drive you do." he
said with his ever friendly smile. "So I didn't hear. What is your name?"

He saw how suspiciously he was received with the offer of a water bottle. He didn't know why she was so jumpy but he had a feeling just asking would be a bad idea. She took a swig and spit it out to clean her mouth. Though he already had the answer before seeing the after math of her mouth on the bottle. "No that's okay I brought out two. I didn't think I would need both but never hurts to have extra water." he responded.

"Besides if you are going to continue training you probably want more to rinse with later." he told her. He went over to the music playing and picked up the coins he had launched at it. He put them back in his pocket. He turned to face her again and started stretching out. His right arm crossed over his chest with his left arm wrapping around it and pulling it in tightly.

[Demi Smith]

No, no the rest of them didn't. "you bet they don't," Demi insisted, flashing a toothy grin that was at least a little more pleasant than most of the facial expressions she'd been using lately. "And you didn't hear 'cuz I didn't give it," she took another swig of the water. "Demi," she offered, knowing that she might as well. He'd done well enough to learn that, and it wasn't like he couldn't figure out who she was anyway. Not like the school was overrun with terrakinetics that could kick as much butt as she could.

He didn't seem to want his bottle back, which suited Demi well enough. She shrugged along with his comment. "There's usually a cooler or a fountain or something," she said, looking around for a moment. Demi took another swig while she considered it, watching him move to get the coins. Coins? "I didn't have money there," she said, pointing. "Did you... shut my music off with a buncha coins?" Demi couldn't tell if that was cool or totally dumb or some weird combination of both.

[Richard Buckles]

He was happy to see her features change into a smile. "Well thank you for telling me. I am still very new here. I don't know who anyone is yet. Pleasure to meet you Demi." After he had retrieved the coins and started stretching he didn't stop paying attention to her. He now crossed over and was doing the other arm. He was trying to limber up the joints so he could throw with better accuracy and drive.

"Sure there are other sources but I suppose I am just used to worrying about water from all the out doors trips I have taken." he replied. She had asked the question about coins and he let a smile rip up across his face nodding. "Yes I turned it off with a coin. First one was just a small misstep. But then again that's part of why I am out here. To learn to make it on the first shot and not the second. I got some handle on it but its a bit buggy at times. But like you I came here to work hard."

[Demi Smith]

The guy's formal manner struck Demi as being a bit odd, but she didn't see any reason to comment on it or react beyond that. She did offer up a slight "tch" when he talked about being nice to meet her. Give him a few minutes and he'd probably be taking that sentiment back. They still had some time though.

Time enough for him to talk about water and trips. "Well, it's not like we're a long distance from anything," Demi pointed out. She could understand the whole survival instinct thing, but it struck her as being really stupid to keep it up under every circumstance. That didn't catch her attention nearly as much as the money.

He'd turned her music off... with a coin, and that was... "You're practicing coin tossing?" Demi asked before letting out a little laugh. "That has got to be the dumbest ability ever. Like, you can just throw little metal discs really good? Or do you have, like, coinmancy or something," Demi let out another laugh, just trying to imagine that and getting more and more amused with the mental images that appeared.

[Richard Buckles]

."He nodded as he agreed they were indeed not far from anything. He was surprised by her laughter after he spoke about the coins. Then she continued to talk and he realized just why she found him so funny. He himself laughed a bit as she spoke about controlling coins with his mind. "You're right that would be the most ridiculous ability to have. Coinmancy?" he laughed again.

He shook his head "Oh no no nothing like that." after he calmed down from the joke a bit more he continued. "They said it was something like I calculate physics in my brain without knowing it." He pulled out two golf balls from his bag then set it down. He used golf balls for practice before they were meant for long distance and to be nice and even in distribution of air flow.

He didn't really mean to show off, he was just displaying it as when they told him he didn't entirely get it at first. He wound up his arm and under handedly threw the first ball. Then after a few moments he threw the second one in a side ways manner. The first ball arched up and forward ending up 15 feet in the air and 30 feet away from them before it was hit by the second. "So I do things like that

[Demi Smith]

Well, at least he agreed that his power was stupid. That put him head and shoulders above a lot of the idiots that Demi ran into around here. She started to say as much when he continued, shaking his head and insisting that it wasn't like that at all, that he actually... "Your power is math?" Demi said, raising her brows. "I think coinmancy would be better."

Demi watched as he pulled out golf balls, still not sure why that was all that impressive. Lots of people could throw balls and stuff. Demi watched him pick one up and toss it. Then he did it with the second one and it connected. Demi stared for a few seconds while her brain tried to put together what she was looking at and what it meant.

"So... you can throw stuff good?" Demi asked, turning to him with her brows still crunched, clearly trying to understand this. She couldn't tell if that was useful or not...

[Richard Buckles]

He nodded "Yes apparently its math." he replied really not liking that sort of description of it but it was accurate if not a simplified version. Then after completing his demonstration he turned back towards her and shrugged "Throwing is part of it. Its the easier part." he said as he was being modest. Sure he could have told her about his shooting range results but that's not the sort of thing to just throw around.

He could tell she was struggling to either understand or care either way it was obvious she was not one bit impressed by the skill he showed. But then again he wasn't trying to impress her just talk. "They say if I learn how to use it more effectively I could do so many things with it but so far I only got down the throwing. I know it doesn't quite have the bang that controlling the earth has but its all I got."

[Demi Smith]

Math, his power was literally math. It took all Demi had not to start laughing and mocking him. She could recall talking to one of her Honers when she'd first started learning the Flow. His power had involved being able to see weaknesses in structures. Demi had called that stupid too, and he'd responded by numbing her entire body.

Throwing things was apparently the "easy" part of his ability. Demi looked down the field at the golf balls again. He kept going, saying he could do more. "What, you still need more training?" she asked, this time not able to stop her laugh. "You're, like, old, aren't you?" she looked up at him. "I mean, seriously old. You really haven't gotten your power down yet?"

and Demi thought that other people were idiots. This guy was something else entirely, something that Demi didn't even have words for.