smashacademy | Video / action

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Video / action

[Not much preamble to the video.]

Happy New Year.

I got a piece of paper I need studied - I wanna know where it came from, who's touched it and pretty much anything else about it that might be unusual including whether it's been handled by a ghost or some other undead type person. Handwriting expert could be useful too because I wanna see if it matches the writing of someone who was on campus. Methods scientific or occult or a little column A and a little column B - Don't care. Just need results. I'm willing to pay.

ACTION! Choose your own adventure.

Scenario A: Knuckles is in the Gym in the afternoons beating the snot out of the training bag, or in the weight room, lifting the custom weights Max made for him in ridiculously high volume. He's less his normal cheerful self and it's pretty clear he's working through some frustrations but don't let that stop you saying Hi! He's more than happy of the company, honest! And if you're up for a spar, he would be more than happy to oblige you there, too.

Scenario B: Inbetween or after classes, you can find him in the halls or finishing up whatever work he didn't get done during whichever class you happen to share with him. He may also be walking inbetween buildings or across the quad or to the gym or anywhere else you may have reason to run into him.

Scenario C: In the city, at night. You're less than likely to spot him unless you're on the rooftops of FDC or doing something you shouldn't be doing and he happens to find you. He's been patrolling late evening through to very early morning, especially in the area near where they found Charlise's body, and wherever else recent violence has been reported on the six oclock news. Feel free to either be also inspecting and looking for clues, Oh Fellow Warriors of Justice. Or just be someone who happens to cross his path.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He shuddered again.]

Given a choice I would much rather be shoved into a dress than a Pokeball. Pretty sure it wouldn't work anyhow, but let's not tempt fate.

[The parking structure grew close and Knuckles pulled out his keys, pressing the little button on his keychain that would unlock and activate his Extreme Gear.]

Have I ever taken you riding on my hoverbike before? I don't think so but I might be misremembering.

[Voile nodded, her smile still gracing her lips, but softer and kind. She followed in closely behind him and at his question, her expression brightened.]

You haven't. I've only been in a vehicle a couple of times. A long time ago when Giovanni was here, he took me shopping and drove. And Seth took me to a restaurant in a limousine once. I tend to either float or walk around everywhere, I've noticed. Probably because I'm still not really sure how vehicle transportation works.

Alright! You're in for a treat in that case.

[He hit the little red button that started the bike charging and watched as it started to lift off the ground.]

It works pretty easily with this guy - I sit in front, you sit in back and hold onto my shoulders real tight. I'll take it slow bein' you're not used to riding like this. Unless you decide ya like it and WANT me to go faster.

Your shoulders? Really? Do you have enough to grab onto there? Here I thought I'd be hugging you, or something like that.

[Voile laughed and she tipped her head to the side with an amused expression. Then she drew up a hand and swept back some hair behind her shoulder. It seemed fruitless considering shorter locks managed to wind their way right back over her neck.]

I'm trusting you, okay? If I get hurt, you'll upset people.

Well, you can wrap your arms around my shoulders and lock your hands over my chest too! Whatever seels most natural for you.

[He chuckled and sat down on the bike, wrapping his tail around his waist so it didn't impede her sitting down.]

Trust me - you're not gonna get hurt. I've been riding this thing to and from school and home and work for a long while now. Way different to racing it and using it for stunts.

[She gave a nod, a little relieved that she had a little more security. She seated herself behind him after finally deciding that she couldn't go against her nature. If that meant sitting aside instead of astride, then so be it. All the more reason for him to drive slower rather than quicker.

After a moment, she curled a hand under his arm and slipped it about him in favour of hugging herself to him carefully.]

I assume you're very good at driving, honestly. I just feel it necessary to remind you I am one hundred percent fragile. [And she was probably teasing.]

I'll drive as if I had a china teapot balanced on my nose.

[He started out of the parking block slowly and sped up just a little as they hit the driveway and the road to town.]

Great thing about this bike? Powered by air. Almost noiseless and it doesn't produce any pollution at all. Plus, it can out-speed almost any two wheeled bike out there.

It's powered by air? [She didn't even know what a regular car ran on. She really was that out of the loop on things of that sort.]

How does that actually work? Like, I don't know anything about cars or things like that at all. So you'll probably need to talk with me like I'm a bit of a child. Enlighten me as to how it works.

Oh... Uh.. it's the...

[What had Tails told him about it? It was the ....something something reaction allowing magnetic... thing...]

....I actually don't remember what Tails or Wave tried to teach me about how it works. But it works really well, so, that's the main thing? Eheh.

[She smiled and couldn't even resist a small laugh.]

You don't remember, but you trust them so explicitly, hm? I seem to remember Wave just slightly. We weren't close or anything, but I thought she was brazen and forward. Direct, anyway. Something sometimes people need to be more of.

[Voile gave Knuckles a little bit of a squeeze.] Maybe we should go visit the library sometime and actually figure out the hows and whys behind your endearing little bike here.

Wave really was somethin'. She'd tell anyone what she thought of them, even when it got her in trouble. But she was super smart. A real genius. She could do some amazing things with machines, and nothing she ever made gave me cause to doubt her.

...as for a book on it? I probably wouldn't understand it even if we found one. But if you're interested, I say go for it!

I take it you're not much for quenching your thirst for knowledge by way of books.

[But she said it with interest and intrigue, a sudden appreciation for the differences between them. After all, it would have been terribly boring for them to be so common with one another.]

Perhaps I am better left for that myself. With that said... [She tapped her left hand's fingertips to his chest.] Where are we going?

Books aren't so much my thing. I prefer to learn with my hands. Gimme something to hold and look at and figure out and I'm good. Reading usually just gives me a bunch of words I don't know the meanin' of.

[His vocabulary wasn't exactly huge to begin with.]

We're going to the cell phone store in town. There's a couple we could try, but I'm gonna take you to the one I went to to get my slightly larger than normal phone. See, I got fat fingers and with little phones, I either wind up masking almost all the keys at once when I try dialing, or, I gotta use a little stylus to push buttons, which takes time and the damn things get lost too easy. Place is pretty accomodating is what I'm saying, and being as you haven't ever owned one before, we can probably find somethin' good and easy to use.

[Oh... The things she thought about saying to that. A hands on kind of guy. She could respect it, though admittedly she liked keeping her own hands clean. Her nails, too. But then, she was a girl and not the tomboy sort of girl either.

As she listened, she gave him a nod and leaned forward just enough to settle her chin to his shoulder.]

I assume even if you got me something a little complicated that you'd be the one teaching me how to use it. I think if I publicly asked for assistance that people would tease me. At least a little bit anyway... And I couldn't blame them for it either.

Pssht. Please - anyone gives you a hard time, I'll tell 'em right where to go. And you know I'll do it, too.

[He moved his head so she could better rest her chin.]

But yeah - I'll be showing you how to use it and inputting some important numbers for your speed-dial. That way, if you're ever in trouble, you only gotta push like three keys instead of dialing the whole number. Makes it much faster for you to get ahold of me if you need to.

Are you really sure you want me to be putting you on speed dial? What if I call you by accident? Shouldn't I be a little more independent?

[She couldn't remember much of any time someone actually telling her to be more dependent on other people. She couldn't imagine anyone actually saying it either. But then Knuckles knew her well enough that she'd made independence something of a 'trait' about her.]

Accidents happen and it's not like I'd mind. And it's not about being independant - it's about getting ahold of me quickly if you need to. It doesn't mean you HAVE to call or that you're expected to call or anything like that. But if you get into a situation where you can't get out of it yourself and you need a little help, you just gotta pull out that phone, hit three little buttons and I'm there.

I guess that's true. I still highly doubt anything would happen to me. I mean... Pretty girl and all. And I'm nice and sweet to everyone, right? Isn't there... Wouldn't it be sort of strange for someone to do that?

[And she knew she was pressing her luck.]

The people who might do somethin' aren't gonna stop and ask you if you're sweet and kind. Kitty was ornery and mean mouthed but she was either half asleep or out cold when she got killed. So, the folks who do this stuff have no worries over attacking and hurting an unarmed girl.

[He frowned. Talk like that from her just made him worry. He couldn't help it. The world wasn't always a fair place and bad things happened to the sweetest, loveliest people sometimes. He didn't want her to be one of them.]

[She shifted to hide her face in the back of his shoulder. It was a reverent action.]

I know. I know that. I just... don't want to believe it. Things... like what happened aren't... supposed to happen here. They're not.

[And it made her angry that it did. It made her angry because she could feel the things other people experienced. Their sorrows. Their rage. Their determination. It was all very overwhelming, and she didn't know how to cope with that.]

You're right. That's true - it shouldn't. Fact is it DOES. And that's why you.... You know, you can't change what other people do. As much as you n me know it's wrong? We can't stop folks acting out and being terrible. What we CAN do, is make it harder for them to do stuff to us.

[The mountain road was evening out now and they were starting to near the outskirts of the city.]

If you have a way to call for help, at the very least you know you have a lifeline. Someone gets you by yourself and you're worried? You can call me or anyone else you trust. You need me and I'll be there and then nothing bad will happen.

[He paused.}

...not to You, anyhow.

[She thought about what he had to say and nodded, hating the idea of conceding to the idea. But she believed what he had to say. One couldn't affect free will, but for the things she knew were wrong to do, they could at least not make it so convenient for one to succeed with something less than righteous.

Voile drew in a deep breath, as if attempting to put herself back together, but she seemed to realise that the more aware she became, the more apparent it was that she couldn't go back to being 'innocent' and 'young.' With that wisdom came an aging that perhaps she wasn't ready for.]

My hero. That's what you are, after all. Always looking out for me. I wish I was strong enough, so you would not have to. But I thank you for it all the same.

Eh... I'm not a hero. I'm just your friend. And I can do a couple things that might be able to help you out. That's all.

[He was a little apprehensive about the term 'hero' right now, considering how badly he felt he'd failed Kitty.]

And I'm happy to help. You don't need to wish for it for my sake. If you want to be stronger, I may even be able to help you with that. But I don't mind being there for you and I never will.

The only downside to me getting stronger would likely be that I got into a mindset where I decided I didn't need anyone else. I used to think like that. It's not a good habit. It makes me too arrogant and too negligent about my well being.

[She did muster up a smaller smile and gave him an encouraging tap on the chest.]

For now, it'll be nice to rely on you. To have someone who cares so much about me that he's willing to keep such a close watch on me. I like the feeling that I mean so much to someone. I don't want to lose it just yet.

You're not about to lose it any time soon.

[He took one hand from the handlebars of the bike and patted her own, much smaller hand in a gesture of solidarity. As he knew, there had been people close to her who had left. He wasn't about to be the next.]

If you want, once we're done getting your pohone and setting up your call plan dealie, we can get somethin' to eat. My treat and everything.

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