deercountry | (open) miyagi-do gathering for new & existing students!

Entry tags:

(open) miyagi-do gathering for new & existing students!

Who: You, you, and you!
What: For members of Miyagi-do, those interested in Miyagi-do, and whoever else might end up there! (Visiting a friend, etc)
When: Some time first half of month.
Where: At Miyagi-do Dojo in Crenshaw!

MIYAGI-DO: A NEW DAY (AN APRIL LOG)

Miyagi-do has seen some unexpected activity in the last few weeks, but has also--fortunately--seen a return to normality. An upgrade, even, where the damage sustained after a student's accidental explosion caught parts of the dojo in the ensuing chaos now gone after hard work hired, with thanks to the builders and those who helped with funds.

Even the sensei of the dojo has recovered from his own injuries, welcoming students--old and potentials--to classes. Along with a few touch-ups to the dojo, there are other changes, new and old, that should be addressed:

1. A (SEMI-)NEW SENSEI

He's been around for a month now, but here's your formal introduction to Miyagi-do's second sensei, Sensei Toguchi. Sensei LaRusso would have introduced him as a...not old, but dear friend from back home who has also learned from the school of Miyagi-do back in Okinawa. Skilled in the use of sais, you may find Sensei Toguchi a different kind of sensei from Daniel LaRusso. But we'll let you see that for yourself.

2. YOUR VERY OWN SNACK PROVIDER

Truthfully, this is a figure who's been around the dojo since the start, doing exactly what he does now...but Daniel LaRusso would not be himself if he didn't take some time to introduce Hakkai to the class as the person who makes their snacks and refreshments. Because Hakkai deserves his thanks, and you cannot escape a dad man like Daniel.

3. ICE BRACELETS: A NEW FORM OF PROTECTION

Miyagi-do has always worked to help individuals with what it is they want out of the dojo. Sometimes, this can just mean having somewhere to meditate and to find comfort in your own body than to focus on the fighting aspect. But Miyagi-do always leans towards protection, and learning how to respond and to engage with danger. It works to help individuals learn how they can use their own powers in ways that they prefer.

And in his announcement for the start of April's lessons, Sensei LaRusso has a bracelet to share to those who want one, after he's explained what they are. They're ice-powered bracelets--not super powerful, but with proper training they can be used as a means of defence. Spread ice over the ground, freeze certain limbs to surfaces, or even use it to shroud an enemy's face just long enough to distract them.

Sensei LaRusso will show how to use the bracelets to manifest the ice, and Robby Keene will also help in demonstrations, as well as with students individually. Dummies and can be used as stationary targets, and are a great way to learn how to disappear the ice, too--especially if you want to focus on using them for actual living targets, which either Sensei LaRusso or Robby can help with (or, if you're really that into getting iced...!).

ENDING NOTES

This log covers the first lesson of April, as well as continuing forward if you want to add extra days and lessons! Please familiarise yourself with what Miyagi-do teaches. Newcomers are welcomed, and there will always be a place to get food and drink...thank you, Hakkai.

Feel free to make your own toplevels on this log, it's meant as a mingle for existing students and those interested in checking out Miyagi-do! You can hang around the snack table, practice some karate, meet the teachers (and food provider...), maybe try out the new fun ice bracelets or.. you know, you can always just hang out with Daniel's Omen. He's a good boy who will stop to get belly rubs from everyone. You can't reject him. Sorry if you sat down for three seconds and are now stuck with a dog on your lap. He will not move.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's the impression that I got, too. We were even talking about ways to help Mob moving forward.

[And Robby said that he was going to come visit soon. Which... never happened, now that he thought about it. That was odd, too. Sunny doesn't understand why he wouldn't have stopped by the house.]

He was supposed to stop by to see Mob soon after that but never did.

[Weird... He nods to Daniel's question.]

Yes, Mob said that's what Robby told him. He was... really upset about it, in his own way. [In how he shut down about things. It was hardly surprising thing to see when Robby had said all that to him, though.]

[ This entire thing is so confusing. No matter which way Daniel turns it, it just doesn't make sense. Sure, the last part by itself does, because of course Mob would be upset if he heard that kind of thing from Robby - especially since the young boy seemed so utterly taken with Robby in the first place.

But the rest of it? It's all so weird. In fact, the more Daniel thinks about it, the more he suddenly realises something that's even more directly off with what Sunny is saying right now. ]

Wait. [ He might have been glancing out at the yard for a moment, searching with his gaze for Robby, but now he's fully looking back at Sunny again.

He still looks confused, but there's something more as he frowns. It's concern. ]

What do you mean, he never did? Back when I was stuck in bed he told me he was going to go see Shigeo. [ Daniel still remembers that. Especially since-- ] I even asked him how it went when he came back, and he said he took care of things.

[ And yet Sunny is saying that.. Robby never stopped by to see Mob? But how is that possible then? ]

[Hang on. Daniel was saying that Robby had told him that he was going to visit Mob, and that he'd come back saying that things were taken care of. That... had to have meant he was lying.

He definitely never saw Mob. But maybe he did leave with the intention of seeing Mob, and then-

Sunny's expression changes rapidly, first to one of horror and then to one of anger.]

Sensei. I'm making assumptions, but if Robby did come by the house and he didn't run into me or Mob, that leaves Ritsu and Makima. And I don't think it was Ritsu. Even if he doesn't like Robby he'd never encourage someone to be cruel to his brother. [That boy was extremely overprotective, he could already tell.]

Which means it was Makima. [And boy does Sunny look mad about that.]

[ .. wait, Ritsu doesn't like Robby?

There's so many surprises being thrown in Daniel's reaction right now that he doesn't even have much time to think about that. It's something to remember for sure, but considering Sunny actually seems angry, it feels important to first focus on the other point the boy is making here.

Because it's rare for Sunny to ever look like this. He's usually so calm, and yet-- ]

Makima?

[ Daniel has at least met her by now, though he has no reason to really think badly of her.. She even came to visit him when she heard he wasn't doing well.

It leaves the man mostly looking a little confused as he looks at Sunny, even though he can feel his heart starting to race with worry. Maybe it's nothing (or maybe it's just trust issues starting to fire up), but.. something here is slowly starting to feel very wrong. ]

You think they talked, and it ended up with.. this? [ With Robby apparently saying things to Mob that he'd never say.

It doesn't make sense. ]

But Robby wouldn't just be cruel to someone he cares for after a conversation with someone else entirely. He's not like that.

[Sunny hadn't known Robby for nearly as long as Daniel had, but he thought the same- that Robby wouldn't be cruel to someone from just a conversation.

The problem was that it was with Makima. And he didn't exactly know what she could do with her powers, only what she did to Mob. It was about time that he told Daniel about that.]

Sensei, I didn't tell you this yet because I didn't want it to affect your healing. [He furrows his brow, obviously concerned.] But when Mob woke up, the first person he saw was Makima. And she... made a 'contract' with him.

Mob says that she can keep his powers from going out of control now and that she'll help him whenever he needs help. [Which sounds great and all but-] The problem is that it's a contract. She has to be getting something in return.

And she is. Mob didn't explain it well but as far as I understand it what she gets is him. It feels to me like she owns him, now.

Makima has abilities I don't really understand, but I wouldn't be surprised if she was able to do something to Robby, too.

[ Every single word Sunny says feels like a hit with a hammer straight to Daniel's head. Sure, at first he can still kind of try to view it in a relative sense. Contract sounds bad, but maybe he's just being paranoid. Apparently it's meant to help with controlling Mob's powers, so maybe it's not as bad as it sounds, despite the chill that runs down Daniel's spine at the idea of any adult making a contract with a child.

But then the boy continues. And it gets worse. What she gets is him. She owns him. Daniel feels sick to his stomach, and though he'd like to play the calm adult here, an expression of pure horror already appears on his face before the man even has the faintest chance to try and control it, to keep it from appearing. He doesn't blame Sunny in the slightest for not having told him earlier, given the boy's reasons, but Daniel can blame himself. While he wasn't paying attention, this happened to one of his students. The sort of thing that sets off all the alarm bells in the head of a man who was once young too, who had an awful experience with someone older trying to control him.

Not to mention the final gut punch.

If she was able to do something to Robby, too--

The horror is joined by more, Daniel feeling the familiar fire of his temper raising up within him. It's tempting to stomp off now, to go see Makima, to demand to know what's going on here, what she did to the kids he's supposed to look out for, what she did to his son.

The reasonable part of Daniel suddenly feels so tiny, but it roots him to the spot all the same, knowing he needs more information. He has to listen to Sunny first, especially with the boy's concerns being very valid. ]

Sunny.

[ Daniel's tone is suddenly so tight. So tense. It had already been worried a moment ago, but now there's even more emotion in it, wound so tight around his tone that it sounds like something is about to burst.

Not in Sunny's direction, though. No, Daniel is still holding the rage part of it all in for now and more showing the horror in his expression, as it's mostly concern that takes over as he asks: ]

Did she do anything to you too? Are you alright?

[The horror in Daniel's face is almost reassuring in an odd way. Having kept this information to himself, Sunny was almost starting to wonder if his strong emotional reaction was warranted. But now Daniel was in front of him and unable to keep himself from reacting the same way that Sunny had.

He was right. This was terrible. This was frightening. This should never have happened to Mob. Makima took advantage of him at an incredibly vulnerable time. And there's a part of Sunny that blames himself for going back to sleep after he first woke up. Maybe if he'd gotten up sooner and went to see Mob first none of this would have happened.

His brows are tightly knit together as Daniel addresses him.]

I'm fine. She hasn't done anything to me yet. [The presence of that 'yet' heavily implied that Sunny thought she would eventually.] As far as I know she hasn't done anything to Ritsu, either.

[ That 'yet' sure is something. Of course it also registers with Daniel when he's paying such close attention to the boy's words right now. There's some relief in the fact that it seems Makima hasn't somehow done something to all these kids, but.. that 'yet' is much too ominious. Not to mention that the thought of her having made some contract with Mob, and having influenced Robby enough to be mean to a boy he cares about..

Daniel breathes out, desperately trying to control himself. Especially when his brains threaten to spiral more and more with this information. There's so much to address here, but he knows he has to get them out of the way one by one.

Like this, for example-- ]

Listen.

[ He fully turns towards Sunny now, hands landing on both of Sunny's shoulders. ]

If you ever feel unsafe at any point, come here to the dojo. I'll let you sleep here. [ He doesn't want to take this decision out of Sunny's hands by telling him to start doing so now - especially when it'd also look mighty suspicious all of a sudden to Makima. Even though a part of Daniel is so tempted to just scoop these kids up and keep them safe at his place right now... ] If you need an excuse, say that we're having some training camp sleepover here. Then you can take the others along too, if you're worried about them as well.

[ It feels like a lot to put into the hands of someone so young, but.. it feels like Sunny is responsible. Like he can handle this. And Daniel will support him in it, wherever he can. ]

As long as you're under my roof, I'll take care of everything and protect you. Understand?

[If things were different Sunny might have taken Daniel up on the offer immediately. Right now, though, not only would it make Makima suspicious but... he doesn't want to leave Mob there with her. Or Ritsu, for that matter. They both trusted her so much and he... he need to be there to make sure they were going to be okay.]

Alright. If things get too intense I'll tell everyone it's a training camp sleepover. That way no one will get suspicious or worried. [And they'd be safe for at least a night or two.

All of this was so much.]

Thank you. It- all of this does scare me.

.. I know.

[ Some of the tension seems to leak out of Daniel. Not internally - no, the worry senses are still working on full force right now - but it's not like he wants to spread that feeling to Sunny. Not when Sunny is already having a hard enough time with all of this, surely.

So instead he tries to relax his body a little. The hands on Sunny's shoulders let go for a moment, but it's mostly so he can instead drape an arm over those shoulders, pulling the boy into a gentle sideways hug. ]

It's really a lot. It's scary when you're so close to someone you can't trust, and you're the only one who knows it. [ God, hasn't that been Daniel's life back home.. But Sunny is so young, and yet he's dealing with it too.

It makes Daniel's heart ache for him. ]

But I'll help in any way I can. I'm completely on your side here, Sunny. I believe you, no matter what.

[Sunny leans into the hug after a second or two. It was easy to. It was comfortable and he trusted Daniel. And, in truth, it did make him feel a little better.

Having an adult that believed him and took him serious and was promising to help made all the difference in the world. He nods.]

Okay. I'm glad I told you. I was almost starting to wonder if I was worrying too much about this. Mob doesn't seem to get how serious it is. [Or maybe he did, but he was too willing to dismiss himself.]

[ Poor Sunny. It's absolutely no surprise to Daniel that the other started doubting himself. If he was surrounded by people who seemed totally okay with it, wouldn't anyone - if not briefly - start to wonder if maybe they're the one in the wrong?

It's still horrifying though, a kid going through this. All the man can feel glad for is that he at least managed to cultivate enough trust between them that Sunny felt comfortable to come to him with this.

Maybe it's why he keeps Sunny close for another moment, even as Daniel slowly speaks up. ]

You think so..? What has Shigeo told you?

[Having an adult Sunny could trust felt so important to him now. He really had trusted Makima and she'd done... this. Even now he didn't know how to feel about her. It stung like a betrayal but he couldn't hate her entirely, either.]

Mob trusts Makima. He thinks... this is a good thing, because it will help him control his powers. But I- I think he either doesn't understand what he gave up or he thinks it's worth it.

[It hurts to say, really.]

Deep down though, I know he hates this. Even if he won't acknowledge that part of himself.

Do you know?

[ It's just a nuance here. It could be used metaphorically here - in the sense that Mob and Sunny are close enough friends that Sunny would just know this sort of thing. But considering everything that had gone down between those two, and Sunny having used his very specific powers on Mob before..

The meaning could be slightly more literal than that. And though Daniel believes the boy either way, he frowns in thought, wanting to make sure. ]

You think he's only being calm about it on the surface?

[It did mean more than that. Daniel had caught on correctly.]

I do. [Sunny knew.] It's not just that he's calm on the surface, he's... completely denying the part of him that wouldn't be alright with this.

[ Daniel practically winces as he slowly lets go of Sunny. Yes, that's-- that's not good. Daniel is well aware that Mob has more thoughts on the inside than you'd figure if you just saw him, considering how blank the boy often seems on the outside..

But he didn't realise this was part of it. That Mob isn't just a chill guy who can think about things deeply more than you'd think, but that it's like he's maybe surpressing anger. Or just negative feelings in general.

Even as a local master of repression, Daniel knows that never ends well with kids. ]

Do you also know why he's doing that..?

[ Because that sure would help in figuring out how to get through to Mob. And with Sunny knowing more about this than Daniel himself, he's fully willing to listen to Sunny on this one, regardless of Daniel being the adult here. ]

[That question was a difficult one, but Sunny thinks he gets it from everything he saw in Black Space and everything he'd already talked about with Mob.]

He's afraid of himself. [That was what this all boiled down to.] He's afraid of feeling things and hurting people, so he keeps that part of him buried.

...

[ Daniel exhales a slow breath. ]

There has to be a healthier solution to all of this. [ Granted, he feels a little naive saying it. What does Daniel, an extremely normal guy, know about supernatural powers? He's been trying to think of ways to help Mob himself, but hasn't been able to arrive at anything other than trying to teach the other to experience emotions more healthily.

It's enough to make him feel a little helpless, and even more so in the knowledge of things apparently having escalated even further than that. But of course he's not going to bring that up. Not to a student. He has to take care of Sunny now, and the other kids too. ]

I will.. try to talk to him about it, though I'm not sure I can convince him. [ Daniel knows what it's like to be so far gone into trusting someone who shouldn't be trusted that you can't even listen to the other people you care about, after all. ] But I'll do my best. I'll keep him safe as much as I can, so don't worry too much, alright..?

[ He'd rather have that burden rest on his own shoulders than Sunny's. ]

[Fortunately, Sunny thinks there's a healthier solution, too. He doesn't think things need to be this way, but he also knows getting to that solution isn't going to be easy.]

There is. It's just going to be hard for him to be able to do it. [A pause.] We should encourage him to feel his emotions for now, I think

[He does feel better hearing that Daniel will talk to Mob though.] Okay. Even if you can't convince him, it will be good for him to hear this from someone else he trusts.

...Thank you.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

(open) miyagi-do gathering for new & existing students!

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

1/2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject