The Combat Classroom (open)

Kidd actually felt himself start to get a little heated up from the dispute him and Blakely were engaging in. "So what if I called you one? I stopped myself, didn't I?!" Kidd was now fully rotated, rubbing his chest against Blakely. Normally, Kidd would love a verbal dispute, it really got his brain going. But this time, he hated it. Blakely was the first person that genuinely angered Kidd with the arguments that they got into. But this piqued Kidd's interest. He realized that if Blakely was able to leave him stumped, she was special and stood out amongst the rest of the people that Kidd interacted with in Death City.

"Full of shit?!" Kidd began raising his voice to the point that some students gathered around the young boy and girl. "FOR STARTERS-" Kidd was cut off as he inhumanely ducked to avoid the chalk without warning. If it weren't for his Soul Perception, it probably would have been inhumane of him to avoid being hit by the chalk. His Soul Perception let him know his teacher wasn't really sleeping, and what she was preparing to do.

Kidd popped back up to face Blakely, to see her forehead bruised. "Huh?" Kidd said, looking over at the teacher. When the teacher called him, Blakely, the quiet kid, and Mrs. Stuck Up up to the center of the class, he looked back at Blakely for an answer. Kidd was used to getting in trouble, but he was sure he hadn't done anything wrong this time. Why would they be called up? However, when Kidd looked back at Blakely, he was met with a face of sorrow. Kidd felt a tinge of guilt for acting up, but didn't know what he doing wrong still. The poor oblivious fool.

"Let's go." Kidd said calmly, standing up. Lending a hand out to help Blakely up, he hoped they could be reconciled before they went up to receive whatever they had coming to them.

Well you see, you four, even though I encourage talking and communication in this class rule number 2 is 'Stretching time is to be used to calm one's center, get grounded, and prepare for the coming lesson'. A blanket began to form over  Professor Thomis's shoulders as she motioned for the two snickering students to go do laps. Though you might see it as silly, this is the classrooms second most important rule. Enough with that though, today your punishment will be 'being used for demonstration purposes in the lesson' or the four of you can pair up/ grab a bō from the bin and play a game of capture the flag with me as your opponent and be excused for the rest of the class period with full points for the day. Today's lesson focused around bō techniques and their application in other weapon techniques. Assuming you beat me, the professor said. The purpose of this game would be to help them feel a sense of community in the classroom. They could choose to partner up with a weapon amongst themselves or grab a bō staff from the little bin of weapons.

Hawk sighed as he heard his options. Neither sounded particularly pleasant to him, but he was in this mess and he had to get out however he could. He glared over at Rori for getting him in trouble, and then heard the teacher say something about pairing up. He say her raise her eyebrows, and he surrendered. He nodded with clear nervousness and discomfort, then walked over to stand next to Rori. He hadn't noticed her defending him, but was thankful that the laughing had stopped. He sighed. " I guess we're partners, now..."

Kidd pulled Blakely up from the ground without very much effort. Sadly, it seemed as though Blakely was still angry at him, but oh well. Kidd was sure that nobody could stay angry at The Legend for too long. How could people bring themselves to hate someone who rescued babies from burning buildings and held doors open for women? The spiky haired meister truly was stumped at why Blakely seemed to be so angry at him.

As he and Blakely made their way to the center of the classroom, Kidd noticed something was off. Blakely was still holding on to him. For a moment, Kidd paused, and stopped walking. Looking down at her hand, he looked back up and stared her in her eyes. What is she doing? People are gonna write some crazy shit on my fanpage about this once word gets out.... Kidd thought to himself, Oh well, it's not a big deal. She probably just wants to end up in a picture with me.

Kidd was still staring into her eyes, but he just shrugged, and continued walking over to the teacher.

Once they were up to the center of the classroom, Kidd remained silent and listened to the teacher's instructions for them. Beat you? Kidd snickered silently at what the teacher had said. I'm Kidd fucking Götze. You'll be lucky if you even catch a glimpse of me once I get going. Kidd thought to himself, confident in his abilities to complete the task given to him.

I you all want to do the game then go on over to the bin over there and grab a pole arm. Professor Thomis raised a hand from under her soft blanket and motioned. If not and tell me and we will begin today's lesson. She read the mixed emotions from each of her students and wasn't going to continue until they all chose the game or someone decided that they wanted to begin the lesson. As the two students who were snickering finished their lap, the professor looked at them and gave a thumbs up her perpetual smile still there.

Hawk appeared lost in thought for a moment. Suddenly, he felt Rori's hand grab his, and he flinched slightly. He gently tried to pull away, but when she made it clear she wasn't letting go, he relented, and squeezed her hand back. "Thanks," he responded, "but you really don't have to worry about me, I'm fine on my own." When Rori told him to decide, he shook his head. When she showed that she was adamant about it, he relented, and thought out loud. "If we are...'demonstrations' for the class, we have a 100% chance of it being terrible. But if we choose the game, there's a chance, albeit a small one, that it goes well and we skip class. So that's what I would choose." He looked over at Rori, slightly more confident. "Are you okay with that?"

Kidd's hopes and expectations for this class were being met. Even though he and Blakely were being punished, and he could understand why, his punishment wasn't nearly as bad as some of the punishments Kidd had received in other classes. A game as an assignment on the very first day? Where could this go wrong for Kidd?

Kidd could feel Blakely's anxiety. It was obvious to him now by the prolonged contact they'd been making. Maybe all she needed was a little reassurance that everything would be alright when she was in Kidd's hands. "Are you crazy?" Kidd gave Blakely a bewildered look, "Of course we're doing the game. And it's your lucky day, because we'll be partnering up for it." Kidd said, taking charge of the situation. Evidently, Blakely didn't look the type to make decisions for herself, and even if she did, Kidd would've chosen for the two of them either way. "You're ready for this, right?" Kidd asked Blakely, giving her a confident smile. That was something he hoped would rub off on her.

So here are the rules, as you can see I have two flags for each of you meisters. the professor holds out two long pieces of cloth."You are going to tie these somewhere on your person. Your goal in this game is not to lose them. If both pairs lose them before a minute passes then you lose and must stay for the rest of the lecture.(ooc: lets say that a minute is eight posting cycles), the professor's permanent smile grows before she says, or you can win if you manage to disarm me. Anyways your time begins at the moment when both weapons have transformed. When Blakely transformed Professor Thomis would pull one of the four strings from her blanket and make a replica of Blakely's weapon form before saying, Well as you can see, this is my ability I can replicate any weapon with my strings. (pm your partners, but if you want you can start your posts with with the weapon half of the partnership already in weapon form starting now. idc. my next post will be the beginning of cycle two,)

Hawk sighed. "Here we go, then." Still holding on to Rori's hand, he gave it a squeeze before looking at her and nodding. He took a deep breath and transformed into a dual-headed spear, resting in both of Rori's hands. "Let's do this." He said, preparing for the worst but hoping for the best. "I hope I made the right choice. Rori, are you ready?"

Kidd was caught by surprise at Blakely's sudden transformation. "Whoa...." Kidd breathed, feeling her slip on to his hands. Perfect fit. "Wow, so this is what you decide to keep a secret from me?" Kidd said, sounding a bit disappointed with Blakely. "Pretty tame, Blakely...." Kidd said, rotating his hands to get a full view of her weapon form. "Actually...." Kidd said, catching a glimpse of the gold on Blakely that glimmered, "This is pretty nice.... Damn, it feels good to be a gangsta." Kidd complimented Blakely and repeated himself from earlier.

"Seems easy enough." Kidd commented on the game's rules, "We've got this." Kidd told Blakely, cracking his fingers to see how she'd react. But when the teacher pulled out some strings from her blanket and made an exact duplicate of Blakely's weapon form, Kidd grimaced. How is that even possible? Kidd thought to himself, mystified by what'd just happened.

Hawk felt strange as he was...handled by Rori. He had never had a meister before, and it was a strange experience. "Thanks, you too," he responded, somehow feeling more confident in weapon form. You too? he thought. God, I'm an idiot. "We have a range advantage, for now. Just watch out, as she might replicate me." He felt ready. Somehow, things felt...right. Being wielded, as the dangerous weapon he was. He was enjoying every second.

Kidd felt nothing wrong when his soul wavelength reached out for Blakely's. In fact, it appeared the two were meant to be together with how well their souls connected. Now Kidd had no excuse for a loss, if that were to befall him and Blakely. However, Kidd didn't intend to suffer a loss here. "Stop whining. You're lucky I took back what I said" Kidd said to Blakely, his voice tense. Kidd glanced over at Hawk and Rori. Dual-ended spear, huh? Kidd thought to himself, studying the girl and the boy. It would seem that they matched up pretty well, just like how he and Blakely did.

"Range advantage?" Kidd said, offended by what the boy had said. "The teacher may have duplicated Blakely, but she'd be a fool to duplicate you." Kidd said, his voice full of venom. It seemed as though the two thought they had an advantage over the teacher and could overcome her just because of Blakely's short range capabilities. And to Kidd, it seemed they thought they were actually a threat to him and Blakely for the same reason. "And even if you do beat the teacher, you couldn't even live up to the real deal." Kidd clenched his jaw. They'd never have a chance against me. Kidd thought, as his eyes narrowed at the other pair. A flame of determination was set ablaze inside of Kidd. Now the spiky haired meister was determined to beat the teacher, regardless of whatever abilities she may have in store.

The professor pushed a button and the handholds in the wall slowly came out, if someone were to slam into the wall now the hand holds would give in under the pressure and decrease the damage they took substantially. A fool, Kidd. Hmm I see, the professor said then she pulled a thread from the string simulacrum, and it shifted into a copy of Hawk's weapon form. Your time begins now. Professor Thomis would slam down the spear at Kidd at blinding speeds. She would change the course of the weapon at the last moment in order to try and gauge his speed. Then she would retract the weapon and get into a defensive stance. Class today's subject will be polearms.

Hawk was surprised at Kidd's seemingly sudden outburst. He didn't feel like he had said much that would be worthy of the insult that was hurled his way. He analyzed the way that the teacher had swung at Kidd, and said to Rori, "She's changing dorection very quickly in her swing. Instead of dodging, try blocking so she can't catch you with the spear end. Be careful, and try to use lunging attacks."

Kidd didn't care if they were on his team or not. All Kidd was concerned with was showing he was the goddamn best the DWMA ever saw. "They can be backup if they want, but this is about us." Kidd told Blakely, the determination in his voice leaking through. "Yeah, a fool." Kidd responded to the teacher at her repeating of his words. Kidd didn't even bother regarding Rori's input, because as it pained him to admit, he'd only lose his nerve if he paid her any further attention.

Taking a few deep breaths, Kidd readied himself for the task. Eyes focused on the teacher, he focused as much of soul into his speed and agility as he could. Strength wasn't exactly Kidd's strength, and it didn't compliment his style, either. The second Kidd heard the teacher say "Your time starts now", Kidd sprung back at speeds nearly untraceable to the human eyes. If it weren't for his attentiveness, he may have actually been struck down by the teacher.

On your toes.... Kidd remembered what his coach taught him when he used to play soccer. If you wanted a chance to react faster as the attacker or defender, you had to stay on your toes at all time to fully utilize your speed and reflexes. And being regarded as one of the quickest U-17 wingers in the world was not something Kidd wanted to compromise, so he did all he could too constantly get faster and quicker everyday. And what do you know, it helped him in this situation.

"You'll have to try faster than that." Kidd mocked the teacher's efforts at striking him down, although Kidd wasn't aware of the fact that it was just a test. And despite mocking the teacher, Kidd almost did indeed get hit by the teacher. Gotta be faster next time. Kidd clenched his jaw to the point of almost breaking it. "You good, Blakely?" Kidd checked on his comrade.

The professor's agility was her specialty in combat, so when Rori blocked her blade her smile widened. I see that I can pump up my speed, if only just a little, the professor thought as she retracted her blade for a moment she focused on Kidd again and purposefully presented a very clear opening to Rori to attack her. Lesson one: As pole arms present a combatant with superior range against most other melee combatants it is vital that you keep them at the edge of your range Because of the professors smaller stature despite being stronger than the average human she could not win in terms of brute strength against a meister, so she sent a flurry of three feints at Kidd that where she would try to aim where he was dodging from in order to make it look like he was dodging her blows, and if Kidd would have been able to dodge them without her trying to miss, her smile would grow. Then with one last stab she would aim at his flag. This final stab would be at a much quicker speed, and she would attempt to stab where the the flag would be based on Kidd's dodging style thus far.

The professor hadn't been ignoring Rori and Hawk, but she definitely wanted it to seem that way for a moment as she presented the opening at her sides. If the professor saw that Rori was going for an attack while the professor herself was attacking. Very good, the instructor would say. She would pull the spear back during one of the feints and use the hammer part of the spear (on the side of the pole arm that she wasn't attacking Kidd with) to attempt to deflect the blade.

"Rori! Don't let your guard down!" Hawk shouted, excited. "We can pull this off if you stay on your toes and stay a spear's length away from her." Hawk looked at Rori from one of the blades of the spear. "You can do this, Rori. I know you can."

Hawk had never fought someone as a weapon before, and it was exhilarating. He felt the blows of the blades against blades, but didn't feel pain. "I wonder where my clothes go when I'm in weapon form," Hawk muttered. "This is a bit uncomfortable."

Tap, tap, tap, tap

Footsteps could be heard down the hall, 2 sets. Classes were in session and this pair was off to Asako's first class. 'Battle training, taught by Professor Thomis', one of the few classes he rarely had to patrol. Dominic wore a dark blue suit, with a black button down shirt, his polished blue shoes tapping against the cold tiles. He was a guard, usually to just patrol the school, but he had been given a semi-permanent assignment to this female beside him. The history he had received? She was a weapon that had either murdered her family, or had her family murdered. Either way, she was a weapon that had used herself in battle, and that's not a low level thing. Ergo, he was here to oversee, protect, and generally Guard. His dark brown eyes would observe her occasionally on this route that he knew all too well. Otherwise, the focus was set ahead of him, watching the route, and making sure the hallways were clear. As they came to the intersection, he turned right. Right towards the clanging and other metallic sounds.

Dominic could hear the classroom from down the hall. Why Lord Death had found it fit to send a possibly murderous weapon to the Combat Training class, Dominic would never know or understand. But he did his job and so far things seemed to work out better if he just followed what Death said. So, satchel by his left side, draping over his right shoulder, with a punky blue haired female to his right, he stepped to the door and opened it for her. Criminal or not, she was female, and Guard or not, he was a gentleman. He said nothing as he let her step through the doorway first, partly because the banging would probably drown out his words. The battle inside would, no doubt, have her intrigued. The teacher was obviously fighting one of the students, punishing them for some wrongdoing.

Kidd frowned at Rori's nickname for him. "'Kiddy'?" Kidd repeated with a disgusted look on his face. "You're not even worthy of addressing me directly." Kidd said, raising a level from Superiority complex, to God complex. Kidd was having a hard time trying to ignore this girl, especially now that she was actually involved in what she was doing. "Plan? There is no plan. I take her down. That's all there is to it." Kidd told Blakely and Rori. One of Kidd's firm beliefs was that you can never plan for the future. Something will almost always get in the way.

Kidd never took his eyes off the professor for even a moment. But even then, she still caught him by surprise with her speed. "Shit...." Kidd muttered as he moved out of the way of the first attack. Everything felt as though it slowed down for Kidd in this moment. The teacher was forcing Kidd to back off more, when he realized something. "No." Kidd said, sidestepping the second hit and lunging forward at the teacher will all he had. Kidd realized that if he wanted to have a chance against someone as quick as her and had the range advantage, he'd have to close in on her and reduce her mobility.

Proceeding to throw himself at the teacher's legs, he hoped to get a firm grab on her to open her up to Rori and Hawk.