2013.04.03 - Backflip Lesson

The Village at twilight. It's a wondrous sight, it truly is. The lights of the buildings all around are coming on, lighting the city in a way that no other place can even compare. The crowds, now that it's coming to spring, aren't abating much at all. Shops are open longer, museums too.. as well as the small cafes that are dotted along the roadways.
Kurt is dressed 'normally', that is button down shirt with a light jacket on his shoulders, jeans, boots.. but there is something 'not normal' about him as well. He wears the image inducer, and it's set to a figure that looks passingly familiar; it's the blue elf if he weren't blue, had brown hair instead of dark indigo, brown eyes instead of yellow.. and rounded ears. His hands are set in his jacket pockets, and he navigates the streets like a pro, brown eyes looking forward, a hint of a smile creasing his face.
Another audition, another 'we'll be in touch'. It's becoming a regular phrase to Fern, and has long lost the promise it first carried. Now she knows, when they say that it usually actually means 'don't hold your breath, girlie'. What better then, after potential rejection for yet another part, than to do some window shopping therapy? She could have made a call or two, scared up someone to hang out with, but she decided to just go it alone. As the sun dips low in the sky, she walks slowly down the street, pausing before the window of a trendy boutique. 
 
While she can't exactly afford 'trendy', Fern dresses at least passingly fashionably. Tights and jeans have been abandoned as the weather warms, although her trusty boots are still on her feet. But they go rather well with the swishy plaid skirt and plain red t-shirt she wears. Instead of her bomber jacket, she wears a cable knit cardigan, which is nearly as long as the hem of her skirt. 
"Hey, Wagner! She's coming along!" A head pops out of a gallery slash art shop, the young man sporting a great deal of hair.. and piercings. "You'll be by tomorrow?"
Kurt slows and turns about, his ghosted smile growing broader. "Ja, I will.. und when you are set up in the park this spring, make sure you bring her, ja? By then, she should be finished?"
"Yeah, yeah.."
If Kurt is about to fashion a response, as he finishes his turn to give his attention to the artist, he catches a familiar figure by the name of.. Fern in his sights. For a second, there's a panic.. does he still-- okay, good. Normal. Holding a hand, he steps away and speedwalks to catch up to the now window shopping young woman.
"Guten abend, leibchen." If the face isn't immediately familiar, perhaps the voice is?
Fern turns at the voice, her smile coming automatically, and she sees.... a stranger? The double take is obvious, and she even looks around quickly before looking back at the brown haired, brown eyed man. Her head ducks and she asks uncertainly, "Kurt?" It's kind of like seeing someone you've known for years in an unfamiliar setting... suddenly you aren't quite positive it's even them. 
Kurt inclines his head and offers a brief, but courteous bow. "Ja.. in the.." beat. ".. flesh." Sort of. When he 'rises', he's wearing the same smile that he always has, only those usually pointed canines are also nowhere to be found. 
He takes that final step forward to stand beside her, and glancing at the windows, his brows rise. How much easier it is to read those facial expressions when not covered with blue fur? "Shopping? It's a pleasant night for it. Do you mind company?"
Those are definitely his mannerisms, and his voice, but there's a whole lot of blue missing. It's got to be that doodad he used to be Errol Flynn at the coffee shop. It's absolutely thrown Fern off balance. She's used to the blue fuzz and yellow eyes. Her head both nods and shakes, as if she's trying to answer both questions at once, which she is, actually. "Uh... sort of shopping, yeah. I never mind your company. What're you... doing?" Or maybe it's like when you go to a fast food place and order an orange drink, and they give you a coke instead. That's a shock to expectations as well. 
Lots and lots of blue missing. And a tail. And fur. And eyes that hold absolutely no dark pupil in their center. Eyes are the windows of the soul, so what does it mean when his glow from within, pushing outwards? 
Kurt exhales and reaches a hand out to take hers to lay it upon his arm. She'll feel the familiar 'puff' of fur under the fabric, only it's not .. visible. Not with the inducer on. If she allows for it.
"I decided it was time for a walk again. I've been getting restless," is offered as explanation, and Kurt follows it up with, "I'm sorry I've missed breakfasts." Offering his arm now, he gestures with the other 'down the road' where more shops, more restaurants and more galleries are dotted. And more tourists.
"How are you?"
Fern doesn't resist her hand being taken, and her fingers tighten gently on his arm, then rub lightly. Yeah, the feeling is familiar, what she's grown to expect. She looks up, smiling, but it's still a touch unsure. "It's alright," she says, of the breakfasts, "You have things to do, young minds to shape." It's unreasonable to think he'd come in from the school every morning, only to have to go back soon after. She tucks her arm in with his comfortably, falling into step beside. "I've been alright. You?" 
Kurt watches her face as her hand makes that touch-test, and at the conclusion, he can still sense that she's.. feeling a little awkward, or is that just unsure? Either way, he's not particularly sure how to allay her fears without removing the inducer. And he's not going to do that.
He's got his reasons.
With her arm tucked into his, however, Kurt can feel that she's relaxing in that bit of familiarity, and that's good enough. "Restless," he answers plainly. "Very restless." Looking at the shops, they're slowly passing an antique shop, and to look in, there's a wall devoted to Cuckoo clocks. "Und so, as a result, I keep moving."
If Fern doesn't look at him directly it's a little easier to reconcile that this is her beloved blue friend. She does frown deeply at his words, and cast a glance sideways. "Restless? Why is that, Doodle?" 
"It is my nature to be.. active. To be doing something," Kurt begins, and as he does, he's caught in trying to choose his words. Neat trick when English isn't the first language, or even the second. "Und there are times when I am not content with my lot in life." Before she can assume, however, that this in any way means her, he brings a hand up to lay it upon hers, "Don't think for a second that I am unhappy in being able to remain in your life," he warns softly. "It is not that. It is.." and he exhales in a sigh as they pass the shop, only to approach a small cafe. "I suppose," and here, he offers a quiet chuckle, "I need more opportunities to let loose."
Fern nods, trying to understand and not jump to the conclusion that Kurt so deftly cuts off. "I think being unhappy with one's lot in life is a universal thing," she says gently. "Even people who seem to have everything are usually missing something that they feel keenly." She thinks over his words for a couple slow steps, before venturing, "Like... more heroing?" Her voice is kept low and she leans a little closer so he can hear her easily, the conversation not floating far from their own ears. 
"Is that truly a word? 'Heroing'?" Kurt sounds a barked laugh and shakes his head. "I hero.. you hero.. he, she heroes." He tries out a conjugation, and another soft laugh exits. "It works.." But still!
"I would do anything to help those I care for be happier with their lot in life." And it's something he truly means. "To continue to reach for something und have it always just a little beyond your grasp is frustrating. At one point, you need to get something, or giving up is an option." Kurt is turning philosophical, and that's never good! Again, he gives her hand a squeeze and a warning shake of his head. She'd better not translate it meaning her!
"I need to stretch und reach. I'm now beginning to grasp something beyond my reach, und.. like the apple in the Garden, I'm not sure I should grasp it. But.." It just felt so good.
"Have you ever wanted to go to a gym und attack a large sand bag as hard as you could, with nothing held back?"
"If it's not a word, it ought to be," Fern says reasonably. "After all, nouns are getting verbed all over the place these days. Friend used to just be a someone, now it's something you do to someone." It's a crazy world, and language is a fluid thing, always shifting to adapt to the times. 
 
Since she doesn't imagine she really amounts to a hill of beans in the lives of all the exceptional people she's come to know, she doesn't interpret his words in that way. But they still cause her concern, as witnessed by her light frown. He gets another nod, "I have, actually. Sometimes people make me angry, or they hurt me. Then I just want to hit something, until all that feeling is out of me." 
"Ja, und that make learning English that much harder," Kurt mutters. "Und do not forget the opposite, to 'unfriend' someone." Which doesn't make much sense. "Shouldn't it be 'defriend' or somesuch?" He exhales in a snort, his gaze looking forward now.
"If I hit someone, I could kill them," and his voice never rises above a whisper. "With my teleportation, within the time that it takes you to take a breath, I could have hit three different people in three different places." He's not bragging, he's not boasting. He's imparting information. "Und those that hurt me, or someone that I care about?" He smiles sadly and chuckles, "I am glad that I pay some attention to the Commandments. Because there are times when I long to be that which I so remarkably resemble." Looking across at his companion, he takes a deep breath, and shakes his head in an attempt to dispell any fears that crop up.
"Thus, my reminder. This.. this is what I would look like." If he were 'normal'.
Fern stops walking, her hold on Kurt preventing him from continuing onward as well, and she gently tugs him, and steps so she's looking at him directly, head tipped back. "You could, and you don't." It's not something she'll admit out loud, but if she had the abilities she expects she would be more of a danger than Kurt. "Just because you look like something, doesn't mean you are that something. You prove that all the time." 
"Und I slip, leibchen," Kurt pauses in his step and watches as she comes to stand before him. "Und I find myself caring less." He offers a smile, however, and he reaches out to take her hand in his in order to kiss her hand. "Which is sad, because we have a wonderful Pope." And for a little while, he thought that perhaps he'd be able to emulate him.. but that's gone.
"Come, there's a small park near here. Just benches, but it is a grassy lot." Kurt tugs a little, and the smile is offered again, though now it's a little more encouraging. That 'Kurt' that she is more familiar with shining through. "Do not listen to me. More time working out will ease the tension. Earlier, I was working with a couple of students in how to time backflips to each other. What to watch for.. und the like."
"Everyone slips, Kurt. And you wouldn't do anything just for the sake of doing it, right? You wouldn't just go out and hurt someone. But if they hurt you or someone you care about..." Fern shrugs her shoulders as she goes on, "Didn't the whole forgiveness thing comYou e about because there are no perfect beings and we all need it?" 
 
She moves again with the tug, angling for the park with Kurt. "I'll always be here to listen to you. You do so much for me." Her brows lift, "Teaching acrobatics? That sounds cool." 
"Ja.. we all need it.. und to get it, we need to confess. Und be contrite." Kurt isn't feeling very contrite at the moment, however.
He grins soon after, pushing those other thoughts away. When he gets home, he'll do some more working out, pushing himself.. and find an outlet. "Ja," moving on to the topic of acrobatics, they reach the small park. Letting her go, he puts a hand up in a 'one moment' gesture, and then proceeds to do one, two, three backflips from his standing postion, his hands dropping into where he feet had been only a second ago. The speed and grace in which he does it makes him look.. like a circle as he seems to curl up in that impossible angle- backwards.
Not winded in the least, the three were more than enough, and he pulls down his shirt.. not that it looked out of place thanks to the inducer, but..
"To keep your attention upon others while doing that can be considered a little bit difficult."
Fern watches the short display, her smile broadening. He makes it look so effortless. "Having to be aware of your own body and others... yeah, I could see that. For some people it's hard just to walk down a street and pay attention to more than themselves." She shifts her weight from one foot to the other, her skirt swishing just above her knees. "I've never been great at stuff like that. It always looked like fun, though." 
"It also means that when you are doing something, it shouldn't take your attention off of what others are doing.. und time yourself. Always be where you are expected, or the person who is relying upon you being where you should be and are not? Lost." Kurt takes a step forward and offers a hand, "I can flip you.. I will spot you, und you will do all the work.. und I promise, your skirt will be fine und your modesty will remain intact."
Fern's head shakes immediately and she steps back, away from Kurt's hand. "Oh no, nuh uh." She even tucks her hands behind her back, "No, it would end badly, trust me." There's a quick glance around, taking in all the witnesses around, and her resolve sets. "I'm not as worried about my modesty as I am about my neck, but thank you." 
Kurt keeps his hand out. "Would I let you fall?" Even if she can't see it, if the world can't see it, his tail swishes from side to side silently in his supplication. "All you need to do is stand here. I will put my arm at the small of your back to spot you. Then, you lean back until your hands are on the ground behind you. Then, I will help your legs up und over your head," keeping her skirts in place, "until you come to land. As long as you don't collapse your arms, you'll be fine. But even then?" He'll catch her.
There's a moment where Fern very nearly reconsiders, but then she just shakes her head again, looking apologetic. "Maybe another time. I know you wouldn't let me fall," she adds hastily. "I trust you in that. I just... I can't." She takes a step sideways, rolling her shoulder in a motion for him to come on. "Lets keep moving." 
"Why not?" Kurt digs his feet in for a moment, and he repeats, "Why can't you?" Looking around, he continues, "I won't let you fall, you have the chance to try something new.. something you usually like to do.." and his voice trails off. He's heard that other quote too.. lots of times. "You won't allow for there to be 'another time', leibchen." Just keep moving. "Just once?"
Fern takes a couple steps backwards, looking at Kurt levelly, then stops. There's one step forward. "You better not let me fall, Doodle." She tries to sound stern, but the nickname kinda doesn't carry that off. There's a reluctance as she puts her hand in his, but she does, and looks at him trustingly. 
Kurt watches her in earnest before she finally turns about and makes her attempt at being stern with him. "Doodle.." he repeats in his heavy German accent. "That is quite the unique nickname I have.."
Now, as she puts her hand in his, Kurt shifts to stand beside her. He puts his arm just at the small of her back, and grins, "Now, lean backwards, against my arm. I have you.. you won't fall. Stretch way back until your hands are on the ground." The moment he feels her begin to comply is the moment she'll feel his strong, supportive arm right at the base of her spine.
"You are quite unique," Fern says simply, before she moves. She waits until she can feel the light touch of his arm, then she leans, arms coming up over her head and then reaching downward. If his arm wasn't there, she would go down like a sack of potatoes, but with the support she actually gets her hands onto the ground. "Don't let me fall," she grunts quickly, both with the effort of the unaccustomed position and simple fear. 
Kurt's leaning over more as Fern is petite. His arm remains a presence, and he whispers, "You are now in a 'bridge'. When strength is gained, you would be able to walk forward und backwards.. but I will not ask you to do that," he teases.
Right.. "Now, I have your back.. und I am going to take both your legs out from under you. So, I will have them in one hand, und your back in another." Mind, he could even have his TAIL as a support for her back and both hands supporting her legs, but.. he's not pushing it.
"Ready.. in a count to three, I will take your feet, und bring them up und over. "Ein.. zwei.. drei.." and he begins the lift and the support as he brings her legs up (while keeping her skirt in place!) and headed over.
"Ugh." That would be the response to his little joke. Fern takes a breath, then he's counting down, and on three (five is right out) she attempts to help bring her legs over. Even though she's putting her faith in him, there's still that panicked, "Don't let me fall!" It seems like a moment suspended in time before her feet are over, knees bent as she lands, flipping her hair back as she lifts her head, crouching. She pauses before pushing to her feet, eyes finding Kurt's face, wide and surprised. "I did it." There's a bounce as she launches into Kurt for a hug, "You didn't let me fall!" 
Kurt finishes the shift of her legs over, and once she's got her feet back on the ground, he supports her until she's not wobbly anymore. With a flourish, he brings his hands away, widening his arms and he straightens once again into his usual crouch, watching her. "Nein, you didn't fall.. I told you I wouldn't.." A man of his word! His smile grows as she crows, so very pleased with her accomplishment, and laughs as she bounds into his arms. "Nein.. I didn't. You did it, leibchen. The first time is always the scariest.. not knowing what is to come next. But you did it!" He holds her for a couple of heartbeats before he's willing to release her. "Now, we can keep moving if you'd like."
Fern gives Kurt a tight squeeze, smiling to feel the fuzz of his cheek against hers. Now that's familiar, the Kurt she knows. She nods, finally pulling back, "Yes, now we can keep moving. And maybe do that again sometime." Fern flashes a smile at the fuzzless version of Kurt, moving immediately to link her arm back with his. "I think that deserves an ice cream. Lets find a cart." She starts them moving again, purpose in her step, until they complete their mission successfully. 
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