Four Paths to Power [Action, Open]

[gunbladegrrl]

[A: Lunchtime!]

[Maria always carries that giant duffel bag around with her in lieu of a backpack, and lunchtime is the best time to see why. At a cafeteria table, she's pulled some of the contents out to sit beside her, and... apparently is trying to read three books as well as eat, all at the same time, while another pair of books and several magazines lie stacked on the table.]

[B: Extra-curriculars!]

[The only real hobby Maria has developed in Garden is Triple Triad, and to all appearances... she might not even enjoy it? Anyone who's played her knows she takes it deadly serious, playing to win. Right now she's sorting through her cards, ordering them by some arcane system only she knows, with all the intensity of a climactic battle.]

[C: The Training Center!]

[One things about Garden's weapon classes: they didn't promote type synergy in the slightest. That is, you could learn to punch, and learn to club someone, but you wouldn't learn how to combine the two into a blended fighting style.]

[This made academic sense; after all, generally SeeDs worked in teams, in which a person using a gun wouldn't need to pull a sword, since they have other fighters to engage in the melee. Still, thanks in no small part to her personal combat idol, she had a distinct interest in seeing if the two styles can be blended.]

[So the evening finds her facing down grats with her gunblades in their mounts and a rifle holster awkwardly affixed to said mount where she can draw it over the shoulder in turn. Watch her for a moment, and you'll see her engage a grat, move to swap the rifle with one of her gunblades and back in the course of the combat, then assess when the battle is over -- adjusting the angle and hang of the holster for a quicker draw.]

[It isn't going very well, but honestly, she hadn't expected it to.]

[D: Dorms!]

[Not long before bed, there's what practically sounds like an avalanche from inside Maria's room, followed by cursing.]

Comments

C!

[socialdisaster]

What are you doing?

[Squall stands a little ways to the left, with his gunblade unsheathed and the typical Not Amused™ look on his face. He had just finished cleaning grat guts off his blade and was getting ready to leave when he noticed Maria.]

(How is she able to carry all of that?)

[gunbladegrrl]

Sir, as I am fully recovered, I do this in clean conscience.

[She promptly salutes. Razor-sharp, practiced, clean.]

I'm attempting to blend short-range gunblade combat with long-distance rifle combat. And before you ask, sir, no, I don't expect it to go very well. This is just trying to see what happens.

[socialdisaster]

[Squall returns the salute. He knows he's going to regret this, but...]

What's the point?

[gunbladegrrl]

To learn, sir. What works and what doesn't. I intend to be versatile as well as strong.

[socialdisaster]

You should focus on your specialty. It's better to be excellent at one thing instead of mediocre at a lot of things.

[How kind of you, Squall.]

[gunbladegrrl]

I intend to be good at everything, sir. [She pauses.] Well, not piloting. I don't think I could do that well at all.

...Besides, if Instructor Farron can master our world's gunblades, I should at least be able to pick up the basics behind hers.

[socialdisaster]

[Squall should know who this Instructor Farron is, but he still hasn't bothered to meet all the new SeeDs. He probably wouldn't remember her anyways -- although, the mention of gunblades on other worlds does ping his interest. He decides against asking and files it for later.]

[Instead of answering her, he sheathes his gunblade and walks off to the side. He leans against a tree, the heel of his foot balancing against the firm trunk, and slides his hands into his pockets.]

[gunbladegrrl]

[Well, NOW she's self-conscious. So rather than continuing her blended-style experiment, she separates it up a little more -- targeting grats from a distance with her rifle, then swapping out for her twin gunblades as they draw closer.]

[She's much more elegant with them than one would think, practically dancing around the grat to butcher it handily.]

[socialdisaster]

[It's strange seeing someone wield a gunblade other than himself or Seifer. And to use two of them? He's impressed, despite himself. He watches her slaughter the poor grat and simply nods at her when she finishes.] Not bad.

1

[sweetapple]

[What the hay? That sure is a whole lot of books you got there, sugar cube. A mildly amused AJ plonks herself in the chair opposite.]

Now I'm not one to argue when someone's working' hard, but don't you think one at a time'd be a mite bit more practical-like?

[gunbladegrrl]

[She looks up with a brief smile.]

It's... I'm actually taking three paramagic courses this quarter, all at the same level, so I'm comparing notes and techniques between the three. I want to make sure I know if one is different from the others, especially if it comes up on a test.

[sweetapple]

See, now, I don't see how dividing your head up sixteen different ways'll help you study. Can't you just think about eating? ain't it supposed to be lunchtime?

[gunbladegrrl]

I am eating! [She nods her head vaguely to a sandwich that hasn't been touched yet. Good defense, Maria.]

[sweetapple]

Yeah, you look like you're enjoying that real good.

[gunbladegrrl]

Cafeteria food isn't about 'enjoyment' anyway. There'll be time to eat and relax when I'm a SeeD, right?

[sweetapple]

There's time to eat and relax now! Call it refuelling if you gotta make some excuse. Can't concentrate on all them magicky whatsits if you ain't got food in your belly.

[gunbladegrrl]

I dunno about relaxing. I have so much to do...

[A brief crack in Maria's competent and capable aura, because the closer they get to finals the more she realizes just how much she's overloading herself.]

A

[shiest_sunbeam]

[Maria wasn't the only one doing studies during lunch time, but she was definitely more relaxed than the other. Not really something new to Maria considering she already knew Ronnae, she'd see the half orc girl sitting the farthest from anyone else, in a table by herself and comically enough having most of her books provide 'cover' while she ate and studied. At least she was eating healthily in regards to her needs... which meant there was a lot of food... lots.

Ronnie notices Maria one of the times she peeks over her books to make sure no one's coming her way and give her a bashful wave and a smile. It was nice to at least someone familiar.]

[gunbladegrrl]

[Maria takes one look at this state of affairs, then heaves a mental sigh and shoves her books all into one arm with a grunt. Luckily she has some alarming arm strength to wrangle those texts, her duffel bag full of more books, and her token stab at lunch.]

[All this she lugs across the gap between the two girls. She drops down next to Ronnae without giving her a chance to protest.]

So how are you settling back in?

[shiest_sunbeam]

[Anyone else would have made the poor girl grab her books, excuse herself and hurry out of the cafeteria with a very red face. However, this was Maria, one of the few she had befriended during her original stay. Even if she was still timid around her, at least she wouldn't be running away.]


This place is still as amazing as ever... Still as c-crowded, but not bad. I got allowed to continue through my third semester, so that made me happy.

How have you been?

[gunbladegrrl]

[SOMEone has to break Ronnae of her shyness, a little anyway. Apparently Maria's the one who has to do it. She isn't certain how she got the job, but since she has it, she intends to do it if she can.]

Don't tell anyone I said this, but... never take three paramagic classes in the same quarter. And if you do, don't be so stupid that you do it again NEXT quarter.

[shiest_sunbeam]

[Ronnae laughed timidly and smiled.]

I'll keep that in mind then, thank you because I was considering it.

Are you excited to be finishing?

[gunbladegrrl]

[She shrugs] None of it really counts except the final quarter and the exam. That's where my focus is. Honestly... I almost hate the breaks.

[shiest_sunbeam]

[Ronnie laughs.]

It's very like you to say that. I don't know, I guess I've been through too much to not appreciate breaks. Sometimes they seem too short...

[gunbladegrrl]

I'm just eager. You're already an amazing warrior, I still have a lot of work to do before my skill can get that kind of respect.