8/16/2023 - "Lost In Translation"

## Summary

Whilst tending to the garden Jacob spots Kai meditating on the river and wishes to learn more about him. Despite the several language barriers the two become friends through body language and the limited language they have in common. This leads to several trees being blown up before the two go to Jacob's house for tea and more silent bonding.

### Actors & Roles Involved

* Josie: Kai
* Megan: Jacob

## Transcript

* [*Megan*]: Since the other night, Jacob hadn't been able to get the idea of explosives off his mind. They were always visually quite appealing, and it fascinated him how the reaction behind them worked. He'd heard that if an explosion was big enough, one could even *feel* the sound. He'd yet to experience something like that, but it was on his list. His feet sunk in the sand ever so slightly as he dug his knife into the sugarcane, harvesting bundles of it to follow a firework recipe he'd found.
* [*Josie*]: The slightest movement caught his eye, and when he glanced over to look he saw the newcomer, Kai.  He was sitting on the water, literally. As if it was a solid surface. He had his eyes closed and his arms folded. He looked as though he was meditating.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob squinted and slowly lowered his knife, creeping closer for a better view. This boy truly did only get odder and odder..... he found himself transfixed, staring at the way Kai easily levitated on the rippling river.
* [*Josie*]: He said something, something that nearly sounded like a question before slightly opening one of his eyes and staring at Jacob.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob waved, and his gaze bounced from Kai's eyes to the water, then back again. He tilted his head ever so slightly.
* [*Josie*]: Kai stood and walked over, squinting at Jacob a little, as if he had been presented with a complex puzzle he couldn't quite figure out. He stepped off of the water and gestured toward Jacob's notebook before mimicking writing.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob tried offering the book to him, paired with a pencil.
* [*Josie*]: He accepted it and began to write. He wrote a few characters before gesturing toward himself. As if he was linking the two.
* [*Megan*]: "Kai," Jacob said aloud, hoping his pronunciation was close enough.
* [*Josie*]: Kai held up a hand and shook it a little “*almost*” his hand seemed to say, before he vent down and continued to write. This time he wrote using the English alphabet, but with a few accent marks over the vowels. *shuǐ fēng.*
* [*Megan*]: *Ah, I am going to butcher this.* He attempted, "Shui feng," and pointed at him as if to ask, *Are you shuǐ fēng?*
* [*Josie*]: *Kai Shuǐfēng* he wrote before circling “shuǐ” and pointing toward the water.
* [*Megan]: Kai... Kai Water something. Jacob nodded.* *He had a million questions, a million things he wanted to know, but he couldn't figure out how to express them. He frowned and underlined fēng, with a small question mark beside it.*
* [*Josie*]: He drew a few straight lines before adding curls to the end.
* [*Megan]: Kai... Waterwind?* *To test his theory, Jacob blew out a small gust of air and looked at Kai expectantly.*
* [*Josie*]: Kai nodded. He pulled away and concentrated, he folded his hands together in a sort of symbol before muttering something under his breath. At his command, water began bubbling out of the earth and up from the river. It formed bubbles that hovered around the two, and Kai shrugged a little before turning toward Jacob.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob's mouth fell open a bit despite himself, and he reached out to attempt to touch one of the bubbles.
* [*Josie*]: His hand went right through, and he felt the sleeves of his jacket darken and grow heavy with water.
* [*Megan*]: With a small smile, he turned back to Kai and applauded him.
* [*Josie*]: Kai gestured toward the water and made the same hand gesture, muttering something beneath his breath. The water collapsed, falling all at once like a heavy rainfall. Kai made a motion that somewhat simulated fighting.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob shifted his weight ever so slightly and pointed at himself, then at Kai. *Wanna spar?* He meant to ask, as he raised his fist a bit.
* [*Josie*]: He squinted at Jacob for a few moments before slowly nodding, though he seemed a little confused he seemed to have understood him. Kai shifted his weight, eyeing Jacob as he did so.
* [*Megan*]: Mirroring him, Jacob lowered his body and widened his stance. He held up the dagger and held a thumbs up before tilting it to a thumbs down and then back again, trying to ask whether or not the weapon was allowed.
* [*Josie*]: He pulled out what seemed to be a knife, its blade was triangular and the end was wickedly pointed. It seemed to be a yes.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob nodded and waited for Kai to make the first move. Really, he just wanted to see more water techniques- he was curious to see how Kai could use it in a fight. This was the best way he could think to inquire further about it.
* [*Josie*]: Kai was still for a few moments before rushing toward Jacob. He made a single, fluid movement and four shurikens flew forward toward him.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob couldn’t hold back a noise of surprise, throwing himself to the side. Unfortunately, a shuriken caught his arm and opened up a gash- he’d worry about that later. He eyed Kai with a new sort of wariness before attempting to lunge closer.
* [*Josie*]: Kai was still, merely watching Jacob before he channeled what energy he had left and rolled away from Jacob's next attack. He planted his hands firmly on the ground. Bubbles began floating upwards steadily growing bigger and bigger.
* [*Megan*]: While Jacob could, technically, try to attack now, he was far more interested in the water. So, he waited for Kai to make his move. A small smile tugged at his lips.
* [*Josie*]: Kai slowly stood back up, in a defensive position, and Jacob felt one of his feet slowly grow cold, a sensation of wetness seeped over the bottom portion of his leg. The water was quickly swallowing him.
* [*Megan*]: He took a step and attempted to shake off the water, peering at it curiously.
* [*Josie*]: It felt as if he were shaking his leg underwater, the movement was slower than it should have been, and the bubble's pace only increased.
* [*Megan*]: He grunted, bringing his gaze back to Kai. Suddenly, he tried to rush forward despite being bogged down, swinging his rapier.
* [*Josie*]: Kai held up one of his knives and parried it, though slipped a little and the blade managed to slash his arm. He winced a little and backed away a little more. The water's pace increased.
* [*Megan*]: Feeling the pressure from the quickly rising water, Jacob decided to go for a more aggressive, urgent approach. He attempted to barrel into Kai and tackle him.
* [*Josie*]: Kai leapt out of the way, and another water bubble surged forth, aiming toward the higher spots on his torso that hadn't already been covered.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob was unable to dodge it, and in fact barreled right into it. He let out another small growl and attempted to wipe the water away, or at least disperse it.
* [*Josie*]: The water remained, encapsulating him entirely. For a few heart stopping moments it seemed as though he was going to drown. Though the water abruptly dispersed and he fell to the ground. When he glanced up, Kai had moved to sit on a nearby tree branch, and was bandaging the gash Jacob dealt.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob leaned forward rested his elbows on his knees, breathing heavily. He’d never appreciated oxygen so much… he swallowed and straightened himself again before cautiously wandering closer to Kai. *Impressive….* He extended his fist, offering a fist bump.
* [*Josie*]: Kai stared at it for a few seconds before making a fist and knocking it against Jacob's.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob took a seat beside Kai, craning his head to examine his own cut. He frowned and glanced at Kai’s medical supplies before tilting his head at Kai.
* [*Josie*]: Kai briefly glanced at Jacob before nudging them toward him, being careful that they didn't slip off the branch.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob offered him a grateful nod before working on the cut, grimacing a bit as he disinfected it. The two worked in silence, but it was the comfortable kind. The kind of silence where you could really hear your own thoughts, paired with the peaceful murmur of the river. The breeze tousled Jacob’s hair and brushed it out of the way of his eyes ever so slightly.
* [*Josie*]: Kai observed him, squinting a little before clearing his throat. And mimicking writing.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob wordlessly pulled out the notebook and handed it to him.
* [*Josie*]: He furrowed his eyebrows and wrote "fight good"
* [*Megan*]: Surprised, Jacob smiled and nodded before writing, “Thank you. You too.” To reinforce the message, he sent Kai a thumbs up.
* [*Josie*]: The dark blue haired boy nodded in response.
* [*Megan*]: Suddenly, Jacob hummed and flipped through the book. He landed on the page with the bomb drawings and pointed at them once more, staring at Kai.
* [*Josie*]: He stared at it for a few long seconds, eyes tracing the lines over and over again until he reached into his bag and produced a slip of paper with several characters and markings written on it. He then produced another knife before pressing the piece of paper around the blade. Kai turned his attention toward a tree around a hundred feet away and threw the knife. It landed in the tree before exploding, wood splintered and flew everywhere, and the ground shuddered at the explosion.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob’s jaw dropped, and he let out a deep, rumbly laugh. He could *feel* that sound- it was one of the most amazing things he’d ever experienced. He looked at Kai with a massive grin on his face.
* [*Josie*]: Kai returned the smile.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob curiosity held out his hands, as if asking to try throwing one.
* [*Josie*]: The boy hesitated, staring at Jacob and debating before reaching into his bag and pulling out a knife with one of the tags tied to the round handle via a metal wire. He offered the handle to Jacob.
* [*Megan*]: Eagerly, he accepted it and stood. He picked his target- a young oak tree, just beginning to flourish- and chucked the blade at it. It hit its mark and scattered the sapling to the winds. Jacob felt the rumble in the soles of his feet once more, and he loosed another gravelly, invigorated laugh. He bounced over to Kai and playfully punched his shoulder, trying to express his sheer excitement.
* [*Josie*]: Kai flinched a little and frowned a little before nodding.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob silently noted the flinch- *perhaps he’s not used to that. I wont do that again.* Suddenly, he held up one finger and darted away. Jacob jogged through the worn village trails before arriving at his home, where he quickly located and retrieved a small box. He hurried back to Kai and opened the cardboard package, revealing several small novelty fireworks- gravel and silver fulminate wrapped in paper. They were about the size of a pebble- much smaller than the ones he planned to make. But, they made a satisfying snap and spark when they were thrown against the ground. Jacob demonstrated this by grabbing one and tossing it against the siding of the barn. These sounds were far too mild for him to feel, but he enjoyed the way smoke curled around the firework after it popped with a small flash of light. The wispy smoke carried on the breeze and met Jacob’s nose. He turned to Kai, as if looking for approval, and nudged the box closer to the boy.
* [*Josie*]: Kai bent down and picked one up, feeling it between his fingers before he mimicked Jacob and hurled it at the ground. He coughed a little at the smoke, but chuckled a little and gave Jacob a small thumbs up.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob nodded and returned the chuckle. That, at least, was one thing they could both understand. Laughter was universal. Suddenly, he tilted his head and gestured vaguely to Kai’s stomach. *Hungry?* he was attempting to ask.
* [*Josie*]: Kai shrugged before holding up a hand and tilting it a little in a "so-so" manner.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob jerked his head and waved in a *cmon,* type of gesture. He began walking back to his house and stopped about halfway to make sure Kai was following.
* [*Josie*]: Kai had gathered his first aid supplies and retrieved the knives - which miraculously weren't blown up - and was following silently behind him.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob ducked into his house and kicked the door open wide enough for Kai to follow before it swung shut again. Inside, the house was in a state of somewhat organized chaos. There were small projects on all the shelves- clocks in various stages of disrepair, toasters, even a half put together bicycle. Small containers filled with screws or tools were scattered upon his desk. It was a tinkerer’s dream. Hanging on one of the walls was a small assortment of weapons- knives and a sword. He leaned his rapier up against the wall and stepped over a half repaired fishing rod on his way to the kitchen, where he grabbed some bread, peanut butter, and pickles. He promptly slathers the peanut butter on the slices of bread, and then scatters slices of pickles on top. It was a classic meal, one he grew up with. The snap of the vinegar balanced out the muddled flavor of the peanut butter perfectly. It was cheap, easy, and delicious. He offered Kai the sandwich, eager to see what he may think of it.
* [*Josie*]: He stared at it skeptically for a few moments before taking a bite and chewing. He seemed distant, contemplative, before he nodded.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob smiled and took a bite of his own sandwich. It was, frankly, quite rare that someone else seemed to appreciate his favorite childhood meal. He liked this guy. Kai had good taste in a wide variety of things- like sandwiches. And bombs. Jacob pulled a small box of teabags from his drawer and held it up questioningly.
* [*Josie*]: Kai's eyes seemed to light up at something he recognized, he reached out and took one from Jacob, squinting at the label, though letting out a helpless sigh at being unable to read it.
* [*Megan*]: Jacob stared at him for a moment before putting a kettle on the oven and preparing two mugs. “Green tea,” he attempted to say, pointing at the bags. “Tea.” He knew his pronunciation was likely off, but surely it was close enough to teach Kai the basic word.
* [*Josie*]: He saw Kai's mouth move in a somewhat hesitant manner. "Tee....?"
* [*Megan*]: