ArchivedLogs:Crouching Anger, Hidden Amity

Crouching Anger, Hidden Amity
Dramatis Personae Jennifer, Rasa
In Absentia	2013-04-22 Jennifer and Rasa communicate via the most efficient means - the language of sparring.
Location <XS> Gymnasium - B1
For a mutant school, this is a pretty standard gym, even if its sturdy construction to handle mutant powers is less standard. Still, it is designed along normal lines; setup for a basketball court, standard equipment -- punching bags, rubber mats, standard assortment of balls, weight training equipment, the usual fare. It is large, and as well-appointed as the rest of Xavier's tends to be. Thwop. Thwop. Thwop. Today, more than any other day, Jennifer needed to vent. This is now the second day she is staying in the gym past classes. A couple of students remain, as well, as part of extracurricular activities. One of them is trying out barbells, while another is exercising climbing; given the weight of the barbells of the former and the quickness of the latter, it's not awfully hard to guess their abilities. The redhead teacher, on the other hand, exhibits no extraordinary abilities. Dressed in the usual attire of grey sweatpants and a tight sports bra, the strongly built woman is bashing the inanimate shit out of the punching bag that sways and struggles helplessly. The hits are relentless, costing Jennifer precious stamina. Normally, one would measure their hits to preserve their energy, but not Jen. Not today. Today, she needs something to hit. Repeatedly. Hard. Rasa wanders in at length, having switched from hir regular clothes into hir gym clothes after hir last class, which coincidentally wasn't PE today. For some reason, the teen is gray today, skin the color of dry concrete, hir hair is the color of it wet and unformed. Ze is wearing a tee shirt with hir sweat pants and is strapping on a pair of punching gloves, a regular pair of gloves tucked under hir elbow. The punching gloves do not have fingertips, the ones under hir elbow do. Ze circles around the section of the gym where the punching bags are, an eyebrow climbing hir forehead at the way Jennifer is moving. Ze picks out the bag next to hers and sets down her gloves next to the wall where they shouldn't bother anyone. Ze then starts to stare down that heavy bag, like it's going to jump off its chain and come after hir. (In this school, it's a possibility.) Ze starts rolling hir shoulders to warm them up. "You spar with Professor Logan yet?" Ze asks after a minute, a small smile pulling at the side of hir mouth. The way Jennifer is mashing her bandaged fists against that bag, it should come as no surprise that she wears herself out about the same time Rasa picks another punching bag nearby. Knees wobble and forcibly lead their own closer to the victim of her relentless offence. Jen gives the punching bag a one-armed hug - a peace treaty of sorts, perhaps - while another rests between it and her sweaty forehead. The redhead looks over to the nearby student, then. She eyes Rasa intently, trying to commit hir appearance to memory, trying to find a likeness among the files she studiously examined upon her return to the school. "Not yet", she replies along with a weary exhalation, "I don't really feel like switching my career to being a shish-kebab just yet. But if I keep up with my teaching methods, I might just have to." Another tired sigh deflates her toned midriff. As she steps away from the bag, she leaves one hand flat against the rough texture of the punching bag, while the other hand drops to her hip. "You here just for the exercise or something in particular?" Posing the question, Jennifer momentarily looks away to check up on the other two students from afar. Rasa doesn't /exactly/ look like hir profile picture. Then again, the big red lettering under hir profile picture indicates that metamorphs don't often look the same, especially this one, who can't quite control hir gifting yet. Ze rolls hir shoulder again before bringing hir arms in close to hir self, guarding, left extended out a little further, knees bent for ultimate springyness. "Well, you should. He doesn't bring out the knives unless you're likely to be unharmed by them - or well, you're actually in danger of doing damage to him." Ze sticks out a left hand to judge hir distance to the bag, then brings it back and delivers a jab with more force. Ze manages a jab cross before Jennifer's next question startles hir out of her concentration. "What? Oh, no. See, I have to spar with him soon, so I'm trying to get some extra training in." Rasa turns to look at the exhausted teacher and her distraction before starting up hir hitting regime again. "You new here?" As eager as she might be to resume her own flurry of hits, Jennifer is forced to take a break. That is what happens when you don't measure your hits. Then again, she is fully aware of it, given that she treats this state of hers as one should - taking deep breaths, rather than succumbing to quick ones. The punching bag is left alone for now as Jennifer wanders over to the nearby bench to pick up a bottle of mineral water out of a crate full of them. This normally isn't a feature of gym classes, but Jen has taken it upon herself to supply water to both herself and students. Flipping open the cap on the lean bottle, Jen drinks a meticulous measure of water before she answers Rasa. "Sort of. I taught here about a year ago. Went to Europe. Xavier's feels a little bit like home, though, so I figured I'd come back", she admits, secretly downplaying the importance this school bears to her. "You've probably heard others complain about me. Jennifer Walters? Or She-Hulk-- The students are probably more fond of that one." The notion doesn't seem to offend her. A brief curve of a corner of her lips suggests amusement, instead. Her eyes track Rasa's hits. "If I remember right, Logan prefers high hits. Could try lower hits", she suggests ponderously. "I'm sorry, I can't really place you in my memory-- What's your name?" Rasa's identity probably becomes more clear when Jennifer introduces herself. Like graffiti on a concrete wall, colorful paint darts across hir gray skin where visible, showing the different iterations of Jennifer's nickname as recognition blossoms in hir head. 'Walters,' comes first, then 'She-Hulk' becomes 'She-bitch' which is doodled over quickly with 'Bitch-Hulk' which incorporates both identifications without being redundant. During all of this, Rasa is punching the bag, so it might not be all that readable. "Oh. You." There's dryness to the way ze responds, grunting as she throws two left body level uppercuts and turns slightly to deliver a right backhand. "I'm Rasa Djalili." The shifting graffiti on Rasa's concrete-like skin is missed. Motion is noticed, but Jennifer distracts herself with another dose of much-needed hydration. After that, the bottle is set some distance to the side of her punching bag. Before she resumes her own exercise, she casts another quick glance to the other two students. The one who was lifting weights has a towel slung over his shoulder; he passes by the two by the bags, lifting up a hand in farewell once he notices Jen eye him. The teacher offers a polite smile and a nod. The punching bag in front of her is looked at as though it were her archnemesis. "So, you /have/ heard of me", Jennifer notes with amusement highlighting her tone of voice. "Pleasure to meet you, Rasa." For one who has had none-too-flattering nicknames devised for her, she's surprisingly... well, not-hulk-like, at least so far. And then it hits her. Rasa Djalili. Roommate of Shelby Anne Wilson. Shit. Jennifer's amusement drains from her almost immediately at the thought. An awkward silence lingers, and not even the hits Rasa's punching bag suffers from manages to defuse the stiffness of the stillness. Jen clutches her hands into fists and spreads her feet, seemingly getting ready to resume her exercise, but instead she falls back to her previous relaxed posture. "I'm sorry. About giving Shelby a hard time, I mean." It is not murmured. The phrase is spoken crystal clear and loud, with Jennifer looking at Rasa, almost hopeful in trying to catch hir gaze. Rasa's hook slips off the surface of the heavy bag when Jennifer apologizes, but the quick teen turns it into an elbow strike. Ze is quiet, the bag swinging with the force of hir blow, but the exhale of air from hir nose is mostly silent in the noisy gym. "I am probably not the right person to apologize to." The hints of blues and greens in hir skin gradually fade as ze begins to turn entirely black like onyx. Ze rolls hir shoulders a few more times, suddenly more stiff. "You are." Jennifer's reply arrives on short notice. "You're her friend. When she gets hurt-- When she is having a hard time, you are bound to be affected by that. I owe you an apology as much as I owe her one." The teacher keenly observes the chromatic changes Rasa's body undergoes. A faint smile shapes the redhead's full lips. "Although at this rate I'm going to need to apologize to you for distracting you from your exercise." A vague hand gesture is tossed towards Rasa's punching bag. "That was a nice return. From a hook to an elbow strike, I mean." Rasa rolls hir shoulders as ze considers. "Fine, then make it a more specific apology, to me, as a student in this school. Why was it wrong, what you did to Shelby? Why does it affect me, personally, not just as her roommate and friend, but as someone who has to be in your classes and may be subject to your discipline?" Hir eyes are hard and black now, the whites remaining so for the time being, but dark blue filters in a bit like the wispy tips of flames around the edges. Ze starts stretching more, giving hir arms a good amount of pressure, hir joints stretching a lot more than they should. After another long exhale, ze wraps an arm around the bag and waits on Jennifer's response. Of all people, Jennifer knows better than to be affected by the more physical manifestations of a mutation. Rasa's pressing gaze sent out by a pair of dark eyes, however, manages to momentarily catch Jennifer off-guard. The faint smile from before gradually vanishes. And then Jennifer's mood brightens all of a sudden. She crosses her arms just below her bust, hugging her elbows with her bandaged palms. The smile returns as a wide grin. "It puts you and all the other students on edge. The big bad She-Hulk, spritzing students with a water pistol and torturing them in the Danger Room. It makes even the model students wonder if they're not going to get the short end of the stick." "But they won't. Not if I want to keep my job." Her shoulders roll with a carefree shrug. "I have made a mistake, I don't deny it. I wish I had an excuse for what I did, but I don't. Maybe I /am/ a mean teaching machine. Maybe I was exposed to the wrongs of the world so much that I thought I needed to put that into the Danger Room. Maybe it was--" She-Hulk's idea? Jennifer decides not to explain that confusing aspect of her ability, instead cutting herself short and moving on. "Doesn't matter; point is, none of those things sound like good excuses to me." "Want to practice your hits on me?" "The Danger Room was good for both Shelby and Ivan, maybe less so for Shelby, but Ivan is growing because of it. That was not bad." Rasa continues the dialog for a moment, catching hir breath and looking Jennifer over a little bit. "But spraying Shelby in the face with water was intimidating and bullying. She can't trust you now, because you were actually trying to break her. It does not inspire me to trust you either, because it picked at a weakness and a type of self defense at the same time - and for what reason? It doesn't seem /safe/ to be around people who do that. As a teacher, you're supposed to be safe for us, right?" Ze moves away from the bag and looks Jennifer over again, sizing her up in a different way. "Did you want me to land light blows only?" The remark concerning the Danger Room once again manages to surprise Jennifer. Her grin takes a hit, turning it into a feeble lopsided smirk. The teacher lofts a brow. Of all things, she did not expect anyone to consider it a good idea at any length. Far be it from Walters to jump at the opportunity, however; she keeps it to herself. Her surprise slowly turns to disapproval as Rasa moves on to comment on the spritzing. And yet, despite the disappearance of that smirk, despite Jennifer visibly struggling to accept that particular criticism, she stands still with her arms still crossed. "Right", she answers Rasa. The words arrive on their own and without great consideration. It's clear from Jen's unsure gaze that she wants to defend her actions. But her conscience reigns in any dispute that might be brewing within her mind. The question about safety tramples her resistance. "I will try not to spritz her again", she jests dryly. Not something one might want to joke about, but then again, this is after all Jennifer Walters. "But Shelby has to understand that obedience and cooperation are expected of her. The teachers who decide to tolerate her behavior only encourage it. Will I spray her with water again? Probably not. Will I remain firm? I'm sorry, Rasa. I will." Her brows furrow, but the shadow of that smirk lingers. Slowly, she assumes a wholly defensive stance. "Either hits will do. Show me what Logan taught you." "Shelby is /trying./" Rasa points out, frustration behind hir tones. "Are you trying to drive hir out of the school like the twins? Conforming is not the end all and be all of being part of a society. Also, she has only been here a few months. Some comfort, some safety is not out of the question." All the same, the metamorph is not ready to fight, knees bent, arms at the ready, leading left hand and foot forward, Rasa begins approaching Jennifer until she is just outside of arm's reach, then ze begins to circle the teacher, leading in with a pair of jabs an a cross. As ze fights, ze actually begins to grow, starting to match the opponent's height. Jennifer shows little preparation for the inevitable hits, at least not in a readily visible manner. The teacher moves her hands just below her waist and spreads her feet apart just a little bit. This prepares her body for a variety of movements at the cost of slightly more time to deter incoming hits. It's hard to determine her style from such a seemingly casual stance. An irked sigh escapes her. Still, she does not let her irritation reach her voice. "You of all people should not paint the world black and white", she notes softly. "Everyone needs order in their lives. Comfort, you say. Shelby has Jax, she has /you/. She has the safety of the school's walls. She may not know it, but this is the safest she's ever been-- My intrusion notwithstanding." Her speech is forced to face a pause. The first jab is snatched by a motion not unlike that of a predatory swoop of an eagle. It is quick and aggressive, even if the end result is actually contradicting the harsh movement. Both hands snatch the first jab, stopping its momentum a mere moment before Rasa's forearm is let go. The second jab is caught similarly. The cross, however, carries enough power to require for a different defence - although it is caught by both hands much like the jabs, it is also shoved to the side, so that even if the momentum is not sufficiently slowed, it would be flung past Jennifer's shoulder. "I know I did not give the best first impression, but there are many forms of strictness. The water pistol? The thing in the Danger Room? That's not how I usually handle things." Her eyes examine the stance of her sparring partner more closely, almost appraisingly. Rasa picks up some speed, turning the pushed away cross inward and the delivered as a back fist to Jennifer's midsection, power increasing with speed. "I am not painting anything black and white. There is such a thing as not compromising your standards /and/ not compromising a person's security. Assign her punishments, detentions galore for swearing, but don't treat her like an animal, a creature you /can't/ communicate or reason with." Ze turns away and twists low before delivering a right uppercut to the floating ribs, followed by a left elbow strike toward the solar plexus. The increase is speed invokes a flash of caution in those emerald eyes. Jennifer devotes more focus to the sparring, even though she retains her calmness. A calmness that does not extend to the quickness of her defence, perhaps, but that's to be expected with Rasa's increased pace. The recovery from the redirected cross is noted in time, and the following hit is mitigated with both of Jen's clutching, almost vice-like hands. Granted, despite the firmness, there is little pain caused by her defence. The amount of care she puts into her defensive manoeuvres is something that could be noticed, given sufficient attention. Her knuckles brush against her taut stomach as she twists and at the same time guides Rasa's punch away. "What did you think I meant when I said I'd be strict, Rasa? That I'd be beating her with lead pipes?" The tone nears mocking territory, although Jennifer aims for it to sound more like a teasing remark. A smirk creeps onto Jennifer's lips anew. "Coming to a conclusion regarding my teaching methods based on my mistakes? Sounds pretty black and white to me." That, perhaps, is teasing that borders on being inciting. One of the teacher's strong arms shifts not unlike a serpent, quickly slapping the incoming uppercut out of the way. It is perhaps a bit on the rougher side, especially if the power of the uppercut is the sort to demand greater defence. The elbow strike is catered to with her other arm, held up appropriately to soak up the hit with as little harm as possible. But hey, it's not unlikely a bruise might just pop up on her forearm the next day. "You said you would /try/ not to spray her in the face again. Like you can't help yourself. Like it's the victim forcing you to be mean to her. What are you, her abusive girlfriend?" Rasa steps away, a bright red growing and glowing into existence, like a light being switched on underneath a dark blanket, illuminating it. "I didn't say anything about your teaching style. I am addressing one issue. It's not my fault if you are trying to carry it into a larger generalization." Jaw set, the metamorph glowers at Jennifer, standing up straight for a few breaths, thinking, but not in a defensive stance yet. When ze does lower hirself again, ze strikes quickly with a left, left, right, left right, attempting to distract Jennifer before kicking hir right foot into a sweep aimed at Jen's heel, trying to get that leg out from underneath her. Ze drives in with a left hook at the upper chest. Although the change in Rasa's appearance might tip Jennifer off, hir words alone are enough tell the teacher that her coaxing remarks did indeed have an effect. Knowing full well that that might also have an effect on the student's future hits, Jen assumes a marginally more defensive-looking stance, spreading her feet a bit further apart and bringing herself slightly lower, while her hands hover in front of her, readying to dispel punches that might yet come her way. The pause in the assault does give her the chance to reply, however. "Nah, I don't think Shelby's quite my type. Besides, she's a /bit/ too young." A moment later, Jen makes sure to answer Rasa in a slightly more serious manner; she owes hir that much. "Look, I think you're blowing this a little bit out of proportion. I was joking when I said I probably wouldn't spray her again. If this school had a shitlist for the faculty members, I'd be on it. Even if I was sadistic enough to want to water Shelby again, I'd risk my job, and I like this school. I like the students." It seems as though Jennifer had more to say, but the barrage of hits arrive right on time. The redhead begins to step back with each hit flung, noting the speed and the frequency. When the kick arrives, Jenny can't help but exclaim, "Woah, /what/!" The endangered foot leaves the ground at the nick of time. It is this kick, not the punches that preceded it, that serves as the distraction. Those eagle-like hands attempt to snatch the punch, but she only manages to mitigate the damage. It connects with her upper chest, causing her to sputter as she takes a few quick steps back. Swallowing and clearing her throat with some difficulty, she breathes in deeply, eyeing Rasa for any potential follow-ups. Her eyes change, both in their expression and colour; they briefly glow a brighter green, and the gaze is much keener and scrupulous in examining the student, now. Rasa pauses when ze lands a blow, guard up, but evaluating the teacher's willingness to continue. "You teachers shouldn't joke so frivolously with students like that. Just the other day, Ms. Gall told me that she will probably hide from us scary students." Ze shakes hir head, hir ire cooling, slightly. It takes Jennifer a short while to recover from the hit. The fiery-haired adult straightens out with a sigh, the keenness of her observation diminishing reluctantly. Undue seriousness slowly shifts to amusement again, wry as it may look for now. "Don't be strict, don't joke-- Let me try my own hand at being a teacher, Rasa, and if you feel you want to show me a better way, you are welcome to pursue a pedagogical career once you graduate." "You really think being a teacher is easy? I have to account for each and every student. I have to learn their names, their backgrounds, their ambitions /and/ their mutations. A lot of kids don't know what they want. Hell, I didn't know what I want even after I graduated from high school. It is up to me to help mould them, to show them themselves. It is a scary power, a power that no mutation can even begin to compare to." Jennifer lifts up a hand to briskly gesture Rasa to her. "You want to go again? Calmer this time, perhaps?" "If water pistols are the only way you /know/ of to be strict..." Rasa drawls, hir tone edging on impolite, "yes. Don't be strict." Ze shakes hir head and lowers back into hir crouching stance, hir skin a dark brick red now. "Remember, I'm one of those teenagers that don't know what we want. Ask my opinion on things, it's bound to be contradictory and self serving." What? Did ze finally find a sense of humor? It's possible. This time when Rasa comes in, ze does so with a roundhouse kick aimed for the kidneys. "I swear, bring up the water pistol again and /you/ are getting spritzed." The words arrive laced with teasing sarcasm. By now, Jennifer sports a toothy grin. "Come on, maybe you'll get lucky and score another one", she teases, opening her arms in a goading manner. The roundhouse kick that aims to hook a hit is counter-hit with an elbow blow as Jennifer lowers her position by a handful of inches. The counter-blow is followed by added pressure from her other hand with the intention to bend the leg back at the knee. Leaving that mission aside and letting play out on its own, Jen steps forward and places her foot behind one of Rasa's. A pull back might have had the potential to trip hir, but Jennifer refrains. "Want to move this fight to the nearest mat? I'd hate to add 'injuring students' to my list, and I could maybe even teach you a move or two." Still grinning, she tips her head to the side curiously. "I have to say, though, you're not slacking off with Logan, that's for sure." 'I'd like to see you try,' Scrawls itself in black marks across Rasa's forehead, the wry look on hir features fading as ze distances hirself from the way Jennifer might have started to take hir down. "Okay, but be warned, I am getting better with light touches, but touch my skin for too long, and you'll be fighting yourself and all the moves I read from your mind." Ze disengages and goes to fetch hir gloves, keeping them with hir as they move.