[BBS/ Action]

[om_nom_namur]

[BBS]

Tuesday/thursday morning biology 101 students i got your tests graded and im working on your papers. Ha! You guys are funny. Did good on your tests but youre papers suck. Seriously yall need to come talk to me or instructor enpecee cuz i dont think a single one of yalls got a damn clue what we been talking about. Aint got an office tho so im set up here on the beach. Bring something to drink and something to write with and we'll get ya up to speed.

[Action]

[As promised in the BBS post, Namur can be found chilling in a big hammock strung up between two trees. The papers he's in the process of grading are piled in a folder with a rock dropped on top to keep them from blowing away, the ones already graded in a similar folder. He's got his laptop and a couple text books in the hammock with him, one he's using as a hard backing to write on, a few bright red pens scattered over the lot, and a couple of water bottles in a pile at the foot of one of the trees. Yes, he's wearing the shades Thatch gave him for his birthday. Do feel free to come and bother him for fish caught in a net puns whatever reason. He'll appreciate it.]

Comments

[om_nom_namur]

[.... is she talking about dieting? Namur thinks she might be but he can't really tell... Maybe he'll just come back to it later.]

Jus' the sword or y' learnin' other stuff too?

[fionna_time]

Well yeah, I gotta, right? Magic and animals and all of that stuff. After that fight, might even think of learning more healing magic.

[om_nom_namur]

Meant for yer specialization. Yeah all that shit's good t' know but y' got t' kind a knuckle down an' pick one thing at first. After y' get yer SeeD cert y' can still take all the other stuff an' not have t' worry 'bout it.

[fionna_time]

Oh. Swords, yeah, that's where I'm leaning for. You have any advice?

[Fionna does look generally interested here. She's been pretty much on her own the last few months in that respect, and she does like Namur, so she's curious what he'll say].

[om_nom_namur]

[He thinks for a second.]

Maria. Best damn swordswoman I know here. I'd float y' over t' my sis Haruta if she was here, but Maria ain't far behind. She got these things called gunblades that'll rock y' worse'n rapids in springtime, sheheheheh.

Thatch too, but he's harder t' get t' do shit if he don't offer first. He can teach y' 'bout haki 'n' shit like that though. See if y' got it in y' t' unlock.

If y' can get one a them t' be yer mentor it'd be better'n takin' a bunch a classes, anyway. Y' already met Thatch. Y' met Maria yet?

[fionna_time]

Already met Thatch, he's fun! But no, don't think I met anyone named Maria yet. What class does she teach?

...And what's haki?

[om_nom_namur]

[He shifts around until his butt is in the hammock so he can actually sit in it in a somewhat dignified manner. It won't be long before he starts kicking his feet and making it swing, though, so enjoy the fleeting moments of near sobriety.]

Haki's yer willpower. Yer fightin' spirit. If it's strong 'nuff, y' can focus it outside a yerself an' make shit happen. Check it out.

[Namur hops out of the hammock, kneels down so he'll be more on the level, and motions Fionna to come over next to him.]

[fionna_time]

No way. So kinda like magic, but more with energy and stuff, right?

[She walks on over to him, curious].

[om_nom_namur]

If y' think 'bout it like that, it'll never happen for y'. It ain't magic. It's you, bein' undeniably, unbeatably badass.

[He pats her arm, up by the shoulder, sort of bouncing the pads of his fingers against it.]

See how that don't do nothin' at all, really? Kind a annoyin' but not somethin' yer goin' t' start a fight with.

Except, with haki...

[He puts haki into the push, a fraction of his will pinpointed at his fingertips so it explodes out like a shotgun, likely causing Fionna to go sprawling across the beach.]

... even a small attack can cause bigass damage, if y' know how t' use it right.

[fionna_time]

I only said "like" magic!

[She watched the demonstration, shrugging at the first tap, and then the second one happens and Fionna explodes off the floor, acually cartwheeling a few times before catching herself on one leg and balancing].

Whoa! That was totally what I was thinking about, with the shifting your strength thing!

[om_nom_namur]

It ain't muscles though, an' that's somethin' a lot a people have a hard time r'memberin'. It's what's inside y'. Here, [Namur taps a finger against his forehead.] an' here. [He lays his hand over his heart.] Takes a lot a thinkin' an' payin' attention t' let it loose, 'specially right at first. That somethin' y' can promise t' do?

[fionna_time]

My head...and my heart. Ok. I figured that wouldn't be easy. Man.

I can pay attention, I just gotta train myself better at it. Of course I'll do my best, that's what heroes do!

[om_nom_namur]

[With a nod, he motions to the sand near where he's switching around to a sitting position.]

A'ight come sit 'n' close yer eyes, then. Get good 'n' centered so y' don't fall over. ...An' keep yer damn skirt close t' yer knees. Shit.

[He rolls his eyes and shakes his head.]

[fionna_time]

Sure, sure.

[At the last comment, she frowns].

Yeah, of course. No one needs ya slobbering all over yourself when you're trying to teach me something important after all.

[Burn.

[om_nom_namur]

I'mma have my eyes closed too, wiseass. I'm talkin' 'bout for everyone else.

[Namur reaches over and clocks her one good, on the top of the head where he's sure it won't hurt anything too vital.]

Maybe I'll take that dictionary away from y'. Already made y' too damn smart for yer own good.

[fionna_time]

I'm not showin' anyone else! We were sparring!

[You are totally not helping her focus and concentrate Namur]

[om_nom_namur]

[Psh he is the best teacher ever. Fionna doesn't even know.]

Only me, huh? Should I be flattered?

[He chuckles, pretends he isn't blushing, and decides to get back to the issue at hand.]

Anyway like I said before, haki's yer fightin' spirit, or yer will. Everybody's got it, whether they know it or not. Some people's is strong. They got drive, they don't quit even when shit gets tough. Other's is weak. Maybe it got broke somewhere, maybe they jus' never had much. Y' really can't say. First thing y' need t' do is figure out if y' got it unlocked a little bit already or if y' need t' learn t' feel it in the first place. So sit sturdy, cuz yer goin' t' have yer eyes closed awhile an' y' don't want t' fall over, an' think back over all yer fights an' shit. Was there ever a time when y' had a feelin' someone was goin' t' do somethin' specific, an' then a second later they did the exact thing y' kind a saw 'em doin' in yer mind?

[fionna_time]

I-ju-you're messin' with my words!

[In any case, she wasn't going to continue this, she had to concentrate. CONCENTRATE! She could hear Twilight Sparkle already thundering it in her head when she was slacking on work. What he was saying, she thought she knew what he was talking about: heck, it was starting to happen in class sometimes. But would she swear to it?]

Sometimes, yeah, in class. But you know...I gotta sometimes trust that in a fight anyway, you know? One wrong step, you screw the whole fight, you know?

[om_nom_namur]

[He nods, though she shouldn't be able to see it if she's got her eyes closed like she's supposed to.]

Yeah, I know.

[Namur takes a deep breath, trying to get everything straight in his head so he can lay it out in a way that makes sense.]

So the idea is t' learn y' how t' do that on purpose. There's three ways a usin' haki, two that everyone can do, an' a third that's not so common. Observation Haki, Armament Haki, an' Conqueror's Haki. That thing where y' kind a know what yer opponent's goin' t' do is part a Observation Haki. There's two ways t' use it. First is being able t' feel everyone else's haki 'round y'. 'S kind a like hearin' a voice that ain't got no sound. Advanced a that is feelin' their intent, knowin' if they're goin' t' dodge left or fake right. Got it so far?

[fionna_time]

[She kept her eyes closed, listening.]

Yeah, I got it. How do you get so good that you can feel their intent or whatever?

[om_nom_namur]

Months a practice. Most people it takes 'em years.

A'ight so it's kind a like meditation. Only instead a turnin' yer focus inside, y' move it outside. Go real still an' try t' feel the people 'round y'. Y' ain't focusin' on sight or sound or nothin' like that though. First yer only goin' t' be able t' tell that there's others 'round. After y' get lots a practice at that, y' might be able t' tell when certain people's around, like yer roommate or yer best friend or somethin'.

Anyway for right now, though. Jus' try an' focus on the people 'round us. There's a bunch a folk playin' in the water down the way, an' some shops not far from here. See if y' can feel someone comin' t' walk past us 'fore y' hear 'em.

[fionna_time]

YEARS?!

[Ok, so if you're gonna be good at something it'll take a long time, but this was still startling news to someone like Fionna. She was far more accustomed to things taking a shorter amount of time, a few months maybe, but definitely not years! Just how good was Namur at all of this stuff?

Oh wait, he was talking].

Focus, right. I'm focusing now dude.

[She closed her eyes and waited. Waited. Sitting still was far from Fionna's favorite thing, but she'd been able to adjust to a lot of things she didn't regularly do, so...she could give this a try. She took a deep breath and just waited. This was taking awhile, and there was no real way that she could understand what people FELT like without movement. Slowly though, she was beginning to fel...something].

Is it, like, waves?

[om_nom_namur]

Can be, if someone's chuckin' their will 'round on purpose. But no one's doin' that right now. So no. 'S jus'... Presence. Waves is a different haki, an' feels like this:

[Namur lets out a small, targeted burst. He wills Fionna to feel it but not be overcome. In that brief moment, however, he may seem to one unfamiliar with such things as nearly godlike in his fierceness and intensity. It'd be enough to make her pass out, only he held back a little, so that she wouldn't.]

My brothers're stronger'n me though. S' why Thatch'd be a good trainer for y'. Cuz he knows swords an' he knows haki an' when y' mix the two yer pretty much unbeatable.

[fionna_time]

Feels like wh-

[Whoa. This was definitely new. In fact, it was so startling, it took her completely by surprise. Rather than freaking out or even feeling overcome, she was actually feeling full of energy, and was doing her best to sit in place. Was this what it felt like, to feel someone with all that "will?"]

Man, what would happen if I felt his energy?

[om_nom_namur]

Sheheheh. Screw with his shitty hair some time, maybe y'll find out.

[Best teacher ever. Yep.]

Now look. Try for jus' a few more minutes t' see if y' can sense someone's presence 'fore y' notice 'em with yer eyes or yer ears. It's good t' practice like this as much as y' can, but y' ain't got t' be sittin' somewhere specifically doin' it. Try for it durin' school, in yer classroom, in the halls. Everywhere y' go, try an' feel people's haki 'round y'. Got it?