WEEK ONE: SUNDAY, POST GROUP MEETING
[ well, after That Meeting was over, dave would have hooked a hand on dirk's arm, said "a'ight, come with me" and dragged him off to an area where they can maybe be alone and have enough room for...whatever...the hell he dragged dirk off for.
dirk gets a measured look before dave crosses his arms - dropping dirk's - and says: ]
Ground rules for comin' with me into dangerous shit: you guard the rear, I'm on point. Solid?
[ before dirk can answer, he adds: ]
You're less familiar with weapons that ain't the damn katana. I'm more familiar with 'em. So, point's me. [ he's tense and hesitant when he continues with: ] ...And you guard my back. [ he's usually more than a little wary about having dirk at his back, so this is. probably progress? ]
dirk gets a measured look before dave crosses his arms - dropping dirk's - and says: ]
Ground rules for comin' with me into dangerous shit: you guard the rear, I'm on point. Solid?
[ before dirk can answer, he adds: ]
You're less familiar with weapons that ain't the damn katana. I'm more familiar with 'em. So, point's me. [ he's tense and hesitant when he continues with: ] ...And you guard my back. [ he's usually more than a little wary about having dirk at his back, so this is. probably progress? ]

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It'd get tended to. I always see to my own shit. My fingers were like the sole exception in my entire damn life and that was a trade. [ dave will get fancier then as soon as dirk seems like he can keep up. ]
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I didn't mind doing it. [A beat as he realizes that Dave probably needs more than a nervous understatement.] I liked doing it. It's... nice, getting to help.
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he doesn't falter when dirk speaks, but his eyes flick up for a beat even without a loss of focus to do a quick facial expression scan. ]
People keep offerin' that. [ which is weird and mostly new ] But really, I'm fine. I've handled worse than a few scratches.
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I know you have. I mean, I have too, and I patched it all up myself my whole life. That experience of self-reliance, and knowledge of your own, doesn't actually negate my desire to offer you my help. It's... a nice feeling. Not an experience that happened in my apartment.
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Are you gonna take this seriously at any point? [ @ DIRK: WHERE IS THE POINT WHERE YOU OVERPOWER ME ] And which side of the experience are you even referrin' to?
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I am takin' this seriously. I'm not going to attempt to murder you or maim you for practice, dude. That you can handle it does not make me any more eager to stab a scalpel at your jugular.
The side where there's you there.
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he has to prove dirk can kick his ass i'm not sure why but that sounds like a good plan to him? ]
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Dammit.
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Oh.]
...You're disappointed.
Sorry.
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no sorry still no reply he opens his mouth to say words but then he just keeps staring because what the fuck just happened. he...disarmed bro? he disarmed bro. that wasn't a thrown match, he literally just -
wtf??????????????????????????
it looks less like disappointment and more like a complete and total shutdown of processing at all. what. how? what. ]
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He'll just stand here silently with his scalpel waiting for Dave to decide he's done with him and call him useless.]
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haha jk it's more like ten minutes as his entire life was just. flipped. ]
I beat you? [ disbelief and uncertainty like he's not. sure. it just occurred. ]
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Well crap.]
Yeah. Uh... you're a better combatant than me, Dave. That's the impression I got from this Strife.
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[ and eventually it'd take two of those to take out dave, fighting to protect a corpse. ]
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[He doesn't. Understand.]
I'm not, like, a champion of martial prowess. I tried, and I think I'm pretty decent with a katana, but I'm definitely not the best there is.
[Quietly.]
That was always you.
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[ thirteen years and - ]
Never even a scratch.
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In my honest opinion, you're a better combatant than I am. I don't know if you'd be better than him at this point, I don't know how I match up to him or anythin'. But I can tell that you're better than me.
We can go a few more rounds, if you want. That should make your advantage pretty clear.
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[ because he was raised by bro and dave is like him in some ways, but not in this: he doesn't find any real enjoyment in proving a thing over and over again. he's not sure how to feel about the knowledge he can beat dirk, but that isn't the focus here, and can't be. ]
Run through one more time so I can be sure you got the blocks and strikes down, but not for...this.
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[Dirk actually is more bolder this time, now that he's sure Dave can disarm him. But Dave could still easily beat him, and will if he chooses to end it with a disarming. He has caught up pretty well otherwise.]
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[ and draws back, making sure dirk does indeed stop. ] Good work. You learn fast?
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