Pillar, Livin' Large (1 Person Open)

[Sam Ballerino]

So Linda was a female Juggernaut… well, that didn’t put a strange image into her head at all… Mathew – the word “unbreakable” was pretty fearsome, and yet she got a sudden image of him at an organized desk, shuffling papers. That couldn’t be right. It probably wasn’t. And Matrim, an unknown, but not an incredibly usual name. He wouldn’t be easily overlooked.

Alright. So she had names to watch out for. Now she was getting somewhere.

She followed Damien up the stairs and down the hall to her locker. He smiled and pointed it out to her, and she sighed in relief. “Awesome. Thanks.” She smiled gratefully at him, and made a couple of attempts to open it, but the damn thing wouldn’t budge. Getting frustrated, she tried punching it – somewhat out of frustration, but partially a very sad attempt to convince both herself and Damien that she was tough – and made sure her face was turned away from him before allowing her face to contort in silent, excruciating pain.

Oh, God, oh, God, ow ow ow ow ow…

She tried the combo again and the metal door opened with barely a squeak. Of course it does…

"Finally." Exhaling sharply in frustration, she shoved her dance bag and a couple of her books into her locker and slammed the door shut, trying to hide the soreness of her left knuckles.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

I watched her pitiful attempts at, well, door-opening, with amusement, knowing it was hurting her to try and open it. After her antics ended, I gave a smirk.

"Not much of a figher, hm?" I said, crossing my arms. It was true... If she was a fighter, she didn't have the strength of one... If she were thrown into a fight, I highly doubt she'd be able to hold her own...

So terribly sad... Let's get lunch.

No Jester... This girl needs help or she'll be eaten alive by this school.

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam didn't look at him. His words stung, more than was really necessary, because she knew they were absolutely true. She wasn't any kind of a fighter, she was a dancer, and if it weren't for her father - well, she didn't quite want to get into that just then.

So now, the question was what to respond with. More than anything, she didn't want to admit out loud that he was right. That Damien was right, and that her father was right, and she just wasn't aggressive enough. But Damien seemed like the type to test her should she start trying to toughen herself up. And since he saw completely through her vague attempt with the locker, she didn't think it was going to end well for her. He'd also probably see right through any pity card she tried to pull.

Fine, then. A neutral answer. Simple, completely truthful, and neutral.

Sam turned, and leaned against the locker she'd just closed. She crossed her arms, and finally looked up at him. "I don't fight. I defend myself."

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"Bullshit."

A simple reply.

"If I threw a punch right now, you'd be knocked out cold... No counterattack, no block, no dodge- no nothing. I can tell." I smiled. "There's no shame in admitting faults. It takes even more to improve upon them and make them cease being faults."

Wow... You're such a fucking sensei.

I have my moments.

"Prove to me what you're saying."

[Sam Ballerino]

Maybe he was right… maybe she wouldn’t be able to block him or anything if he came at her out of nowhere – but he hadn’t attacked her suddenly. He’d as good as openly declared an attack. It sounded like a fight was coming whether she wanted it or not, but at least this way she would be somewhat prepared. Sam backed away from him a few steps, cautiously. She could feel the adrenaline pumping, making her feel light on her feet and jittery. Not taking her eyes off him, she centered herself into a defensive stance, hands going up, feet grounded, and mentally started focusing her adrenaline into something she could use.

Here it comes… Please don’t let me blow this…

Her heart was pounding, and she had to clench her stomach to keep her fear from showing when she spoke.

“Fine, I’ll prove it… but like I said, I don’t fight… I defend.”

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"Humph, and I don't fight..." I began just as she did. "I assault."

OoOoOo, let me have a whack at her Damien!

No way Jester. You'd break this poor girl in half... Then probably do some unfavorable things to her afterwards...

Sooooo?

I put his voice aside as I spun my body and dropped to the ground, executing a fast leg sweep- an attempt to bring Sam dow to the ground for a submission hold.

This would be an extremely dangerous position for Sam, so her choice of defense would be important.

[Sam Ballerino]

Oh, shit –

Sam saw Damien drop, and she had an idea what he was going to try to pull. She started to jump up to dodge the leg, but she hadn’t seen him coming fast enough, and halfway through her jump, his leg caught her feet, pushing her body forward and parallel to the ground as she fell. She used her hands to break the fall, but sunk low and rolled. Her plan was to get away from him and back on her feet before he could get her in any kind of hold.

If she managed to do that, she’d get back into the same defensive position she was in before, waiting for his next onslaught.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

This wasn't an attack... This was an assault. There were no timeouts and no moments to catch breath. Upon the slight failure of my sweep, and upon the beginning of her roll, I would lunge after her, my intent being to tackle her down for a submission.

Should my lunge be successful, a simple sleeper hold woul suffice- my arm wrapping around her neck with applied pressure, cutting off her ability to breathe. If her position allowed her legs freedom, mine woul wrap around her abdomen, preventing any sort of counterattack from her legs.

Quite a situation to get out of.

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam never saw it coming. She felt the wind pushed out of her as she was tackled, and once Damien's arm got around her neck, she knew she was about done. She didn't have time to try to get out of the hold because she'd had no air to begin with, and Damien certainly wasn't about to let her get any more.

At this point, there was no wriggling out. Her entire lower body was out of commission, and try as she might to pry his arm away from her neck, it was no use. She started choking, and if he didn't let go soon Sam was going to start seeing colors. She completely relaxed her body in defeat, as verbally declaring it wasn't one of her current options.

[Damien Kross, Jester]

As my body stopped moving, I let her go, allowing her body to slump to the floor. With a sigh and a scratch of the head, I watched her.

"Well... That was... uh..."Pathetic, unbelievably easy, so many words would describe that defeat... "...a good try." I decided on, emphasizing 'try.'

My God... That was almost brutal...

"Are you alright?" I asked her, feeling slight concern for her wellbeing.

[Sam Ballerino]

As Damien let her go, Sam took a moment to get the air back into her lungs, responding to his comment with nothing but a raised eyebrow and an unbelieving stare. He knew how pathetic it was just as well as she did. She was unbelievably frustrated; with herself and her abilities, with Damien for taking her down so fast, and with her father, for sending her here in the first place... and for being right. Even with three years of training, she didn't know how to use it, and what good was that? What good was she?

She was going to die at this school.

"I'm fine," she answered, her frustration leaking out with her reply. The defeat hadn't been overly painful, just her lack of air, and she'd gotten over that quickly once she got her airway back. "I can't fight. There. I've admitted it. Happy now?" She threw out her arms as she spoke, accentuating her words.

Sam knew she probably shouldn't be speaking to him this way, seeing that he was a Pillar, but for now it was the only way to vent her frustration. In fact, part of her was actually considering running at him again for a second round, but something told her that wasn't the best idea, considering how fast he'd beaten her just now...

[Damien Kross, Jester]

"You need training." I said simply. "I've seen people be brought down faster and harder than I just did to you... There are people at this school who are stronger than me... None that can bring me down THAT fast, but ones that can bring me down..." I explained. "If you need training, I can see what I can work out. I know people. Good people." I paused. "What do you think? If I can get you a trainer, would you be happy?"

Awww, doing something nice, are we Damien?

Trying.

[Sam Ballerino]

Sam’s anger evaporated in a flash, and she had to stop a moment and think about what he was suggesting. A trainer…? It would definitely give her something she could use. Training in a studio was fine, but if it didn’t translate to street experience, then it was no use to her. But getting help from someone here would be invaluable to her survival. Refusing him would be… incredibly stupid. Incredibly.

She nodded. “I’d appreciate that.” She said quietly. She felt bad for jumping at him like that now. He could have pummeled her much worse than he did, and now he was offering to help her.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you. I… don’t like being proven wrong.”