#senstrike

having kreese at the dojo still feels  …  strange.   daniel isn’t sure he’ll ever really get used to it.   not when kreese is so different from mr. miyagi,  the definition of a polar opposite,  even as he’s mellowed out over the last few months.

even stranger :  the sight of kreese bent over a bonsai,  scissors in one hand while he examines branches with the other.   (  daniel can’t help but think of the first time kreese was here.   blowing smoke into daniel’s face as he went on about soldiers and war,  before putting his cigar out in the soil of a baby tree.   it feels like a million years ago.   it feels like yesterday.  )   he’d almost thought the old man was joking when he asked about the bonsai,  ready to brush it off and move on to going through lesson plans,  until he looked closer at his face and realized wait.   he's dead serious.

daniel leans against the doorway,  hands wrapped around a mug of tea.   ' mr. miyagi and i used to work on ‘em in his workshop at the apartment complex ma and i lived in. '   the words come out quiet,  with an uncharacteristic hesitation.   things are getting better between the two of them.   but he’s still not sure how much of his reminiscing kreese is willing to tolerate.   ' had more table space over there. '   

ㅤㅤJohnny lands that final blow of a response and the immeasurable weight of the words hangs in the air despite syllables drowning in the deafening roar of flowing water, the rushing sound enveloping the implication of the severity behind them, a mottled amalgam clinging to a film of humidity that stifles everything within their surroundings. They joke about shit like this, but there’s that familiar cadence that rings irrevocably true, Twig knowing when a certain stillness in those glacial eyes bears a deathly seriousness. Withering hoa mai petals lose their golden hue to shrivel into pallid husks, waxy leaves choked by sprawling vines, segments of rough bark uprooted as jade vibrancy commences to fade with diminishing sunlight, the once glistening sheen solely cloying at clammy skin. Dark lashes lower to persistent ripples of errant bugs skimming along the clear surface, disjointed limbs and carapaces feebly curling in on themselves, pathetic jutting motions that don’t seem normal  (  a word that lost all meaning these days  ).

ㅤㅤㅤㅤForcing himself to blink away, a palm protectively clutches a pearl white block, edges sharp and brand new, some knockoff brand’s logo embedded at the centre of the smooth surface begging to be worn down. Probably for the best that they keep upstream, but Silver’s never wanted the luxury of a hot shower more in his life than in moments like these, for the heated pressure of flowing rivulets to rid of the mire that had seeped into every crevice of once soft hands, an ever-shifting chimera of a reflection covered in compounded flecks of dirt. But for now, this would have to do, the metal of dogtags losing its chill to uncompromisingly stick to flesh even with the imposition of gravity, shirt cast to one side as breath desperately pants with cool handfuls splashed over face and nape  (  a small mercy in this hell  ).  The captain and lieutenant tended to take it in turns when out in the open like this, Johnny standing point while the brunet momentarily indulges, shrouding trees imposing a deceivingly false sense of security within apparent seclusion.

@senstrike [ ᶳ ]

ㅤㅤ“ John… ”  A listless huff peters off with the croaked utterance of the name, gaze averted as the man chooses a spot on an adjacent wall that suddenly seems so interesting, the faint glow of an aquarium filtering through the diminishing light of a Malibu sunset painting their surroundings in a cool blue haze. It feels like a mistake to have said anything at all, the back of Terry’s index finger trailing over his lips, motion halting for the digit to curl inward with one of the knuckles poised for a second in contemplation—  But his best friend’s a smart man  (  ‘ smartest, toughest, best guy I know! ’  ),  one who knows his lieutenant better than he knows himself, able to see the weary bone-deep changes within the other that aren’t purely resultant of age - revelatory signs bring around red flags that have no place on a dōjō or tournament’s mat, the kind that can put anyone on edge before even seeing the semblance of an amber hued bottle of pills.

ㅤㅤㅤㅤCutlery lightly clatters against crockery as a member of his staff rids the table of plates, a meal somewhat untouched due to a loss of appetite on Terry’s part halfway through the topic, Carla’s presence practically invisible in her usual service of discretion as Terry casually slouches back in his seat, an elbow bending and hiking up to pivot against the top of the backrest. The conversation continues despite an underlying reluctance to do so.  “ I’ve managed for this long. What’s another year? ”  The question’s oddly very matter of fact,  detached practicality regardless of circumstances of so-called twilight years, the trait having always been a strength that he’d possessed in the face of juxtaposed high strung emotionality, the cant of the man’s temple bringing about an inquisitive air as a means of invitation for the co-sensei to indulge in, the thought batted away just as fleetingly with a small shake of long tresses.  “ Look, forget ‘bout all that. Focus on what’s important— ”  Fingertips reach across to carefully tug at a half empty glass of wine, aged features gazing upon the crimson rivulets brightening with a softened smile ticking into place, lightly tilting the drink in his friend’s direction.

@senstrike ♡

Roses are red Violets are blue If I gotta go Then so do you too.

he's giving her the heebie jeebies. no other way to put it, really. there's no part of her that ever wanted to be in his proximity after everything she's heard. after what became of her friends & ex boyfriend at his hands. she'd much rather not be here. but she doesn't make friends based on the dojo they're in. & as it turns out, not every person who puts on a black gi becomes an insufferable bully. that's exactly why some get cut from the team. & he'd caught her trying to offer comfort. trying to build up what he'd just torn down. maybe she should've waited until they were far enough from the dojo. she hears his voice & turns around & everything in her body tells her to take distance. but she blames him. she blames him for wreaking havoc in her friends' lives & she blames him for her broken heart, too. eli made his own choice, but he didn't get there on his own. it's the only reason she stands still. the only reason her tongue isn't as tied as it would normally be. " in a world with people like you, i think i do. " her heart is ready to jump out of her chest but she stands her ground. " maybe there was a time you could've used someone's kindness, too. things might have turned out differently. "