On Forms

On Forms
Date of Scene:	24 April 2024
Location:
Synopsis:	Ann begins teaching Cayde about different saber forms.
Cast of Characters:	Cayde Alexis, Annelia Belask

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Cayde Alexis has posed:
    The training grounds are fairly busy today, with several groups of Jedi going about their various exercises around the courtyard. Not that it's crowded, there's plenty of room to move about here today.

    Cayde has made his way here in search of Ann, as he was supposed to meet her here for another session. He wanders from mind to mind, searching for her presence, but willing to wait if she hadn't arrived yet.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    She's not hard to find- she's not one to dress out of the norm for the Jedi like some of late, but even without telepathy it's hard to miss that head of bright, fiery hair as it... rises and falls a good few feet repeatedly?

    Oh, she's doing pull-ups. One-handed. Without the force. Definitely a very normal Jedi thing and not at all her personal obsessiveness.

    She lands, clapping her hands together to dust them off absently as she strolls across the room to the Padawan- she's not sweating, exactly, but definitely has the air of someone who's been here a while already.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Yeah, the hair makes it fairly easy. Cayde approaches and watches her with those one-armed pull ups. She's certainly stronger than she looks.

    As she comes over, she'd notice that he looks tired as if he hasn't slept well. Nonetheless, he bows slightly toward her in respect. [Master] he greets.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Still not crazy about that honorific," Ann muses aloud- not really an admonishment, just a vocalized idle thought.

    She shrugs, looking the boy over a few moments with a furrowed brow.

    "You having voices while you try to sleep or something?" she questions, absently stretching one arm across her chest as she speaks.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde peers at her inquisitively when she mentions she doesn't really love being called that. What should he call her then? He'd never heard of padawans not calling their Masters 'Master'.

    He shrugs. Perhaps it qualified as voices.

    [Nightmares] he tells her.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    A slow nod from Ann, and she jerks her head to the side, and leads him to a portion of the training area further from prying ears and the like.

    "Anything you want to tell me about?" she questions frankly, eyebrows raising with the question, curiously. "Don't tell me it's this sorcerer or something like that."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde follows her over to the more secluded corner, and shakes his head. No, nothing to do with Tomi...but he'd had them every so often for most of his life.

    He frowns pensively, and it seems that he is willing to tell her about it but is struggling with finding the right words to describe it. [I was...left...before...before I came here]

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Left how? By parents and everything? Do you mean in the traditional 'given up to the order' sense or something past that?" she quizzes further- not quite hammering but certainly speaking intently. Her hands go to her hips as she speaks as a motion that seems more habit than full of intent.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Parents...yes] Cayde nods. [Not given up...] Oh, right. [...abandoned] he finally signs. [The Order rescued me]

    He looks away. The topic seems to be making him uncomfortable.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Not a terribly uncommon story. Surprised it happened old enough to remember it. Clearly bothering you even now- do you speak to anyone about it? Not a comfortable subject, I'm sure, but if it's eating at you so much you may need to push through that."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde shakes his head. [Not much to remember...not much to speak about] he replies, shrugging. [I remember...fear...being alone...chaos]

    He shudders slightly at the memory of it. At least, that was the usual gist of the nightmares.

    In spite of her propensity toward the physical and less of a propensity toward the Force, Ann may get the feeling that there's more to this.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Then there's likely more to it than you're remembering. To be thoroughly honest, this is the kind of thing that *will* come up when you come time to possibly make Knight, should they stick to the trials for you as they did with me," says An frankly, frowning slightly. "Sounds a little like a warzone, to be hoenst."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods...perhaps, perhaps not. He has a suspicion about what the vision is remembering, but can't be fully sure.

    However, he seems ready to move on from that topic. [Do we begin the lesson] he asks, watching her expectantly.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Well, if you need a break, sure," says Ann, nodding a little. She stretches again for a moment, rolling her neck to the sound of not a *small* number of crunches of her synovial fluid.

    "How much do you train with a lightsaber, Cayde? Doesn't seem to be something you think much on, and I don't recall seeing you have it at the ready in any of the scuffles we've been in."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Daily] Cayde answers, nodding. Although it was true that he didn't tend to resort to that as much as others did, perhaps.

    [If violence is not needed...] At least that's how he'd always been taught. If one could simply 'convince' someone to stand down and get out of the way without resorting to violence, wasn't it better not to harm?

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Just getting a feel for things- you're not wrong to do that, I just need to know it's for the right reasons," says Ann simply, shrugging a little.

    "How about your strength and stamina work, keeping up on that?"

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [I hope so] Cayde signs. [I train saber forms...and physical work each day] he tells her. Probably more so than most, given he doesn't go and 'just hang' with the other padawans as many did in their free time.

    Then he seems to remember something. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a folded piece of flimsi, handing it to her. [Hobby] he signs, pointing at it, although he seems a little apprehensive as if he's not sure. If she opens it up she'd find a sketch of her. It's...surprisingly accurate, coming from someone who didn't have much practice, anyway.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Hm... not bad," says Ann, smiling faintly as she looks the thing over. She reaches out to take it in her hand, looking closer for a moment.

    "Solid pick- keep your eyes and hands engaged, I'm told it's a whole-brain process at times too. Just good to have that thing to focus on and 'reset' some, hm?"

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods, then watches her expectantly, waiting for her to begin the lesson. From what he's seen of her, he should probably expect some intense physical workout. Like one of those obstacles courses. Or saber form practice...

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Alright- then let's see your form anyways," says Ann- reaching out for a set of training sabers across the room and offering one to Cayde.

    SHe stretches a moment, rolling her neck again as she looks him over. "Which forms do you favour?"

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde takes the training saber. He doesn't really answer the question beyond just bringing it up into something that more closely resembles Form I, the one most often taught first to Younglings and Padawans in training. Although he's studied the other forms, he hasn't practiced them too much.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "And here I expected Niman," says Ann with some amusement- her own training saber ignites, and she holds it... fairly casually actually, down by her hip, almost idle. Though Cayde has seen her fight with her actual saber enough by now, surely, to know she tends to prefer a loose blend of Djem So and Makashi, favouring the former.

    "What forms are interesting you, then? Planning to be one of those unpredictable Shii-Cho specialist types?" she questions further, stepping off to the side and beckoning with a hand for him to come for her.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    <Not sure...> Cayde projects, even as he takes a quick step forward and swings at her. For a padawan, he's above average, given how much time he spends practicing and how much time he doesn't spend relaxing or doing anything 'leisure'.

    However, with Ann's expertise in lightsaber forms, she'll easily be able to predict his maneuvers and counter him.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Suppose I should point out that duelling is kind of my specialty- I was the terror of the other kids, always wanting opponents for training," says Ann as she deflects and blocks several swings from Cayde.

    "Which is maybe not the most useful in a galaxy that doesn't seem to see the Sith so much or anything like that, but good info to have for this training. Don't let my defense fool you- you're doing well. You've clearly put the time in."

    She swings her own saber a few times- not really intending to strike so much as see how he goes about defending himself, thoroughly parryable but not a complete 'gimme'.

    "Let me ask it this way then- how would you describe your personal approach and style?" Even as she asks it, Ann is fairly focused on seeing that style and set of physical tendencies for herself.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    The kid seems to have a propensity for a more defensive style--so much that sometimes he misses offensive opportunities even when they present themselves. However, he does appear to be pretty keen to parry her strikes.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Like defending yourself it seems," Ann comments while returning to letting Cayde attack awhile, letting a rhythm develop for the time being.

    "I had a mind to Niman form, or Six if you're more of a numbers person, given your gifts with the force and preference for them. But maybe Soresu- three if you prefer- is more your approach. Or even Makashi- two- if saber-to-saber is more your interest."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Even when she backs off and lets him go on the offensive a bit, he seems...hesitant for some reason. As if afraid of overdoing things. So even when he does go for it, he's a bit slow.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Hey, Cayde. Remember when you punched me? I've been burned by these training sabers more times than you've had sparring duels, I'm willing to bet. Cut loose a little," Ann suggests, head tilting a little- gears visibly turning in her head. If he looks, it won't be hard to read that she's half considering running him through the variants of form V to try to up his comfort with being a little more aggressive and assertive.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods and throws himself into it more, swinging a bit more rapidly and furiously, although he still seems to be holding back a bit. Perhaps it's subconscious...he doesn't even realize he's doing it. All his life he'd been taught to keep himself in check, due to his...unique gifting. Which wasn't necessarily wrong...telepathy could be rather dangerous, if not handled carefully.

    After several attempted offensives that don't quite land, he finally stops, breathing heavily from the effort.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    Ann pauses on a moment of the sabers being locked, the blades perhaps a few scant inches from her face with an outright smile. "Hey, see? Nearly got me that time."

    As Cayde relents, she disables her training blade, twirling it around in her hand a few times as she thinks a few moments.

    "I bring up those Shii-Cho masters being unpredictable for a reason. See, a lot of people assume they're just letting their training and body take over completely- letting it just flow. Which isn't entirely inaccurate... but it's not the whole picture. Thing about fighting is you need to have that free-flow of everything you're capable of... but under control. Not -stopping- it, just -guiding- and directing it. It's a strange balance to describe if you're not already familiar."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde takes a few moments to catch his breath. Yes, he's heard something similar to that before.

    Finally, he straightens back up. [Not so easy...] he signs, sighing as he watches her twirl the hilt of the training saber around. Again, she may get the feeling that he has more to say, but doesn't.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "It's not supposed to be easy, Cayde," says Ann, shaking her head with a light chuckle.

    "I'm a better lightsaber wielder than Caius. He was more gifted than me in our youth. I worked for it. I talk about these things casually, sure, but they're anything but. It takes years of dedication. Don't take things like these as me telling you where you should be. It's to give you thoughts on what you can work towards, if you want to."

    She tosses the practice saber aside- perhaps assisted slightly with her modest telekinetic abilities- to land back on the rack as she looks Cayde in the eye.

    "Let me be clear. You could literally slap me in the face right now and tell me that that friend of mine, Caius, was a sith all along- I'd be fine. If you're struggling to find the words for something, that's fine. But I'm resilient enough and you've been in my head before. I also bordered on laughing stock for much of my youngling and padawan years. I'm the last person you should be scared or embarassed around, all things considered."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Not scared...] Cayde replies, shaking his head. Suddenly there is a...notion of sorts, that seems to come out of the blue. He just often doesn't know how to explain what he's feeling or thinking, outside of just using projection directly into someone else's mind--sometimes a potentially dangerous endeavor.

    He tilts his head inquisitively. [Why did they laugh at you] he asks.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "I've told you before- I'm not that strong in the force, as those things go. I mean, you can improve at that like anything, I think, but as a child I -barely- made it into the Order. I was born on a planet constantly trafficed by force users and I almost managed to go entirely unnoticed. So, picture a class full of children all thrilled to have these mystic powers- and then insert the girl who hardly ever seemed to get them to work like the others."

    She pauses a moment, shrugging. "I made it up in the physical requirements of the Jedi. But when you eschew social moments so you can 'catch up', and pursue sparring partners and such to a... frankly, legitimately comical degree... it catches up with you. I had strange habits too. I never wanted to leave the training chambers so if I had, say, a cut, rather than go to the infirmary I'd sit on the side while other people sparred and comment and critique while I was stitching myself up. I was a pretty strange youth, all in all. To say nothing of my knack for hearing leading to eavesdropping accusations." A wry smile, with all that.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde arches a brow at her as she explains why she was laughed at. He doesn't really find any of that funny.

    [They laughed because you worked hard] he signs, his gaze inquisitive.

    But then again, the other kids laughed at things he found odd. He glances over at the bar she'd been using earlier, the moves over to it and tries to do those one-arm pull ups. He likely doesn't get as many as she did, but probably more than most of the other padawans his age. They may have laughed, but they probably can't do -that-.

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Because I was different and unusual, mostly. And ungifted. Honestly, I -was- pretty annoying at times. But we all are when we're young. Kind of dumb, too. People learn. Complex galaxy out there," muses Ann, shrugging a little.

    "And hey- at your age, getting those in is pretty solid. That said- I'd say something for your time from today- look into forms two, three, and six- I think if you look into them in more depth than the basics the instructors probably ran you through, you might find some things to think about. Don't rule out the others either, though. Might be my build, but I'm quite fond of five. They're all worth exploriong further than the basic introduction, though."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde pushes himself a bit too hard in the pull-ups, and falls unceremoniously to the ground. Getting up, he dusts himself off.

    He nods. [Yes master...] he signs. Then he follows up with [...am I annoying]

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Am I? It's a state you're in, not a personality trait," says Ann, shaking her head at the very concept.

    "A handful sometimes? Sure. But I'm sure there are certain healers that would say the same of me. Someone will find you annoying at one point or another- I mean, that contact on Yarrum alone... Better to not worry about it. Focus on doing what's right, and what feels right or earnest for you. Better to focus your time on people who are fine with that than fuss about people who aren't."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde shakes his head. No, no of course she wasn't annoying. But there were probably at least a few people who found -him- annoying.

    He looks a little bit...abashed when she mentions the events on Yarrum. A little bit uncomfortable. That had been sort of embarrassing.

    But then he nods. [I will Master...] A pause. [...should I call you something else]

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Don't actually care- just a strange thing to hear myself called when it wasn't all that long ago that my own Master- a full, titled Master, he- was the one I followed around calling that," says Ann with a chuckle, shrugging it off as she nods to the door.

    "But go on, I know at least some of most every form so even if it's not my specialty we can further discuss any that you end up interested in when the time comes. Seven you might want to talk to Caius for, maybe."

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    Cayde nods. [I will study the forms] he signs. Perhaps he'd start in the Archives, to read on them a bit more in depth before trying them.

    Ah, so she was still just getting used to being master over someone. There's a slight bit of amusement at that, and although it isn't really evidence on his face she'll probably pick up on it wandering into her mind from his. He's sure she'll get used to it quickly...

Annelia Belask has posed:
    "Alright, off with you- we should talk about saber maintenance sometime too, now that I think about it- and perhaps next time we talk force or medical training," says Ann simply, nodding a little. "Go on before I decide to show you what it's like when I put some muscle into the swings," she adds with a joking sort of smirk.

Cayde Alexis has posed:
    [Yes of course Master] Cayde signs quickly. So that hadn't been her real muscle then, huh?

    He smiles a little before he turns to leave--something that doesn't happen all that often, truthfully enough.