meet me on the battlefield

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

The smells of the boxing ring would always linger with her. A sharp odor of sweat, blood, tobacco smoke and whiskey, of sand and sea mingled into one; it had been one of the first ones to ever reach her, in this strange new world. And the girl connected it with the safety of her father's arms, with the camaraderie of a winged wolf with a wet nose and a pair of gray eyes gazing down at her, closed off but not so very difficult to read.

It felt as much like home as her own room, and Seren roamed curiously around the room, gazing at the roped off pit, the bags hanging from hooks in the ceiling, and all the other equipment. Its purpose remained largely a mystery however, because she didn't really know what it meant to fight yet. But oh, was she interested in finding out!

"Can I do this too?" she asked, turning back to Sunjata with a luminous eagerness about her. Small as she was, tiny and soft with hair tumbling about the frail shoulders, there was a hunger to her. To learn, and experience things, absorb anything and everything around her. It was perhaps a bit uncanny. Not like most five year old children.

But then, Seren really wasn't an ordinary child.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

“Hmm?” He rumbles to her, fixing up one of the bags that seemed to have lost a bit of its strength, reinforcing the walls and sides of it to keep it from splintering open and letting all of the sand out. He pauses with the fabric between his teeth to look down to Seren with a raised brow as she turns to him. “Can you do this? Sure. But you have to be older first.” He offers her, pulling the fabric from his mouth to apply it again, small stitching patterns here and there to keep it in place.

When he was done, he sits back on his heels, pushing the bag around and seeing how it’ll move when hit. “It takes a lot of practice so you don’t break too many bones.” He rumbles with a quiet nostalgic smile before he braces his hands on his thighs and looks back to her with a shrug, a small half nod toward the roped off pit. “Your father and I spar occasionally in there.” As if she needed any explanation that her father had been a familiar face around here.

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

Her expression brightened, then fell in disappointment. Seren wanted to try now, wanted to do all the things that tickled her imagination, but at every turn she was told to wait. "How much older?" she asked, hoping for something more tangible than 'later.' "How old were you?"

She followed his gesture and looked at the pit. Recalled climbing the ropes and leaping off into the sands within, that very first night. It had been fun, and the memory eased some of the heavy feelings inside.

Turning back, she watched the swaying sandbag with some interest, and skipped over to it and her friend. Small hands reached out to push at it some more, and with a tittering laugh she leaped out of the way when it came swinging back towards her.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

Her question of how much older has him focusing back on the bag for a moment, brows furrowing together in response, because he wasn’t entirely sure how old she was right now to make any sort of suggestion to how old she should be. But she turns the question onto him and he thinks back to when he’d started hand to hand training rather than just the basics. “I was ten years old when they started teaching me how.” He offers her, gaze flickering back to Seren as she bounds over to the swaying bag before him.

He leans back as she pushes against the bag and it swings back toward her, missing his shoulder by a hair. “You can feel how heavy they are, right?” He asks her curiously. “If you don’t let yourself grow some, you could break a hand and then it wouldn’t ever grow back the same.” A raise of his brow to that, some smug hint of ‘winning’ lingering in his expression. He’d done it, when he broke his leg when he was seven and they had to pin it and set it back right. “You can still break things when you’re older, but it’s worse when you’re little because you’re still growing.” He finally manages to explain, reaching up to stop the swinging bag, hand at the back of it before he slides it her way again – far more controlled.

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

Ten? She wasn't sure how long that was, or quite how big she would be by then, but it seemed a very promising number. "When I am big like that, can you teach me?" she insisted, eyes very determined as they fixed on the Flood. "When I grow up, I want to be like you and daddy!" Big and tall and strong; she already looked a bit like both of them, with her dark hair and blue eyes. Which felt like a very promising thing.

The threat of potentially breaking her hand did ward off the insistence of trying right now. Seren grew a bit wide eyed, recalling his tale about the broken leg from before, and nodded gravely that she understood. The bag came swinging back towards her again, and she skipped out of the way of it again, thrilled by the little game.

"Is there anything I can do now?" she couldn't help but ask, perhaps a touch frustrated. Mama said the had to learn things, but no one let her do much of anything. At least not anything that seemed very important. She pushed at the sack again, making it return to Sunjata. It was heavy, but pushing it was still fun.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

“Sure.” He replies with a quiet chuckle – imagining it to be in this quite far off distance. But she speaks again, speaking of growing up to be like him and Ronin, and his smile shifts to something akin to amusement, entertainment of such a thing coming from such a small girl. “You don’t want to grow up and be like me.” He assures her with a quiet chuckle, shaking his head as he guides the bag toward her and she pushes it back.

As for anything she can do now? Well, technically she could do a number of things. So he chooses and focuses on the things he’d learned when he was going over the basics of things – things like being light on their feet and sneaky. “You know that game you like to play? Where you hide and we have to find you?” He asks with a tilt of his head, stopping the bag completely. “You can work on that? Work on being quiet and sneaky… Stealthy.” He offers with a small rogue smirk as if it’s some secret.

In reality, he just wants to see the surprise on Ronin’s face when Seren actually does surprise the man in her sneaking tendencies.

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

The look she gave him was baffled. "Why not? You are nice," she replied, as if that was all that mattered. And really, to her it was. There were added bonuses of pirate and mermaid too of course, but those were really secondary in her reasoning.

He stopped the bag then, and came with a suggestion that made the girl brighten like a rising moon. "Yeah!" she agreed, eyes glittering. "I want to do that!" Immediately she sunk down in her best sneaky position, on her tiptoes with hands turned into cat paws before the chest. Furtively she looked around, searching for something to sneak on. "Like this?" she whispered, in a tone that sounded through the whole hall.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

He can’t help the quiet chuckle that leaves him at her surprise, shrugging broad shoulders in response to her question. “You’ll find out.” He rumbles with a shrug, passing it off to focus on the bag as he stills it and she exclaims her excitement over the idea. And he sits back on his heels again to watch her as she takes up a ‘sneaky’ position, a low chuckle leaving him as he watches her search for something to sneak on. “So you’re going to want to be a little bit quieter, though.” He hums, a conspirator’s whisper leaving his lips.

Then, he pushes up with his hands so he can stand, brushing the sand from his knees as he goes to beckon her over toward the other side of the boxing ring. “You can use anything to hide behind, really, since you’re small, right?” He asks her with a quiet laugh. “You can hide behind boxes or… You can hide against the walls as long as you make yourself really flat and hide in the shadows, hm?”

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

It wasn't a very good answer, but the prospect of learning to sneak properly wiped everything else from her mind. Her mouth clamped shut when the whisper was declared too loud, and slightly abashed she nodded. Didn't dare answer, just yet.

He moved across the room and Seren followed, trying her best to walk just as quietly as she was supposed to speak - which was not at all - and she had some definite help from being so small, and perpetually barefoot. Oh, she'd been wearing shoes when she was dressed in the morning, but inevitably they were discarded some time during the day... and sometimes hidden away, as another pirate treasure.

Listening with keen interest, Seren looked around the room, and found a great number of potential places, like he suggested. Dark corners, nooks and crannies, stacks of crates with and without equipment inside... The place was full of potential. Especially if she climbed up higher.

"Do not look," she broke the silence to demand, and waited to make sure he wasn't peeking before she scurried off, quick and quiet as she could be, to sink down behind a stack of boxes that looked like they might hide her.

Then she waited, to see if he would find her. If she was hiding well enough. The girl had to press her hands to the mouth to hold back the urge to giggle; this was exciting, and her stomach fairly tingled with it.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

“Alright.” Sunjata rumbles with a small huff of laughter, slipping away to where the makeshift bar section was – grabbing a glass of water and ensuring he has all of the other supplies he’s been keeping here, keeping his back to her. And when the sounds finally die down, he lifts his head up and peers around for a moment searching for her. And when he can’t quite see her, he hums quietly to himself.

“Well, I wonder where you could be.” He trails off, slipping away from the bar to focus on where she could be hiding, before deciding to let her believe that she’s gotten away with it for some time. He makes a show of looking around (in reality checking for anything that might hurt her and finding nothing), before eventually slipping out the front door and hanging out on the outside of the entrance way, a cigarette already in his lips, lit as the smoke wafts away outside. He glances to the sky, timing it to see how long it would take before she realized he hadn’t found her.

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

Seren was patient and very focused. For a five year old. She had a pretty good view of the room from a crack between the boxes, and watched him as Sunjata moved about the room. Every time he turned towards her or moved towards the boxes, she had to stifle that urge to giggle again, as the flutter in her stomach intensified. The anticipation was immense... but somehow, it was dragging out, this finding of her. Usually, the game ended much quicker, especially when Haai was playing.

She huddled there, waiting quietly as he stepped outside. Was he checking if she hid outside? Seren wouldn't do that, she knew she wasn't supposed to leave the place on her own. Hmm. He sure was taking his time. Had she hid too well?

It took all of five minutes before her patience finally ran out. Trying to be quiet - and actually succeeding rather well - the girl slipped out from the hiding spot, and began to creep along the wall towards the entrance, with every intention of sneaking up on Sunjata. He had said to be flat and stick to the shadows... so that's exactly what she did. Surprisingly, she was quite good at it.

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

He expects her patience to run out earlier than it does. And he misses having a watch to check the time for, pausing to glance to the sun and the shadows, despite it only being a few minutes and literally nothing has changed. He continues to smoke, leaning with his back against the wall at the entrance, flicking ash along the sand at his feet as he waits and waits.

“Hmmm.” He rumbles, angling his head toward the door briefly to make it seem like he’s still searching for her even though he isn’t. A grand attempt, ears shifting to that of his panther form, earrings still surprisingly in place. He listens to see if he can hear her, finding nothing but the slightest hint of creaking boards and silence otherwise. So he continues, imagining she’s still hiding, ears flickering a small amount as he continues to try and listen.

SUNJATA

Seren

I am magnet for all kinds of deeper wonderment
Destined to seek, destined to know

The closer she got, the more tension built up inside. It was her first time feeling the thrill of the hunt, and Seren reveled in it. With glowing eyes, she stalked on silent feet towards Sunjata, the distance shrinking. Only a few paces away now.

And when she finally couldn't bare it anymore, the girl pounced. With arms outstretched she let the gravity pulse make herself lighter, and with an impossibly leap, she launched herself at Sunjata's leg - it was all she could reach - and cried out a fierce little "Boo!" Grinning wildly, laughing hard, unable to tell whether she'd made it unnoticed or not, because her her head was a turmoil of delight regardless. This was a fun game!

I am a princess on the way to my throne
Destined to reign, destined to roam

all that we got is a dream and a glock and we don't believe anything that they say

He remains quiet, still aside from the cigarette that lifts to his lips, the occasional pauses to rub against his neck and tired shoulders, straining those feline ears to listen for Seren’s approach. And honestly? She does pretty well – up until the very last moment and he can hear her slip around the edge, pouncing toward him. That’s not where the surprise comes from, however, the surprise comes from the way she leaps so strangely, wondering if the thing she had done once before with the gravity of this place had helped her seem almost featherlight against the ground.

And she latches onto his leg as he shifts a small amount, a huff of smoke leaving his lips as he chuckles. “Very good.” He offers, ears wavering as he looks down to her with an approving nod of her ‘growing sneak skills’, letting her laugh childlike and excited. He tries to get his leg free, turning to put out the cigarette as he focuses on her again.

SUNJATA