voidtreckernet | grasshopper 19, video to all from the gymnasium

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grasshopper 19, video to all from the gymnasium

'Sup everyone, how's it going? Got a more fun proposal than I last time I was here. [ A grin. ]

So I've been thinking we could run some sports groups! The gym's emptier these days with the training one used for all the fighting and magic classes, and it's going to waste! I don't know all the games they have the equipment for here, but there's a few I've been practising, and I figure we can spend a few days seeing what everyone likes and setting up different times people can come in and have a go.

I got a few friends to help out show some off: volleyball, badminton, tennis. Been practising basketball too. But if there's any you know and want people to get involved with, let's do it! Let's get some partners and have fun. There's hoops and nets gathering dust here.

I'm thinking we could do something around after lunchtime for the next few days, but I'll let you guys know the times for sure later. There's instructions on the ICP too if we wanna try something new once in a while, so come and check 'em out--I can even show you a few games now!

( OOC post about this here! )

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Ours is more an audience effort, but I'll show you what people do. Alright.

[ It was still dumb, but if he had to teach Roland what a better team and crowd did in sports, then whatever, he'll get this hike thing done so he can put on a proper show for Roland. Unfortunately, he couldn't do any flips in the air like he could in water--but that was the problem with most of these non-water games.

But this now this meant he had to get into that weird half-crouched position, didn't he. Taking the ball when offered, Tidus inches out his feet, letting his thighs spread apart; asking, ] Kinda like this? [ while trying not to feel like he was locking in his knees. He wasn't going anywhere if he did that. ]

Oh yeah? Okay, sounds interesting. Let's see it after, then.

[ It's exciting for Roland to watch Tidus adapt to this like he's been learning it all his life. Maybe he has - maybe that's the kind of rigor that's demanded of blitzball. You didn't just become the star player of a team without the elbow grease. He takes to it fast, the movements are natural and he looks like he's having fun. It's enough to get Roland to jog faster to set in place, opposite roles now. He stands behind Tidus in a crouched position, hands ready to receive the ball. ]

Yeah, that's right. Chest out a bit more, it'll be easier to run after you pass the ball. Or...the baby, if you want to call it that. [ He grimaces. Regardless! Time to play! ] You can count to three, or say - [ And Roland demonstrates the usual cheer, to see if Tidus can do it, if he's in the mood to follow the usual mechanics of the game. It's breathy with hard vowels - hut, hut, hike!. ] Let's go.

[ The baby. Tidus spits out a laugh, and Roland might need to give him a few seconds -- okay, no, more than that, interrupting this set-up. His legs unbend and an arm wraps around his stomach, his other about reaching his mouth. He takes a few stumbling steps away, turning and facing Roland, but not looking at him as he shakes his head and waves a hand. ]

What are you doing to me! I can't take this serious if-- [ pfffft ] -- a baby!

[ It's not a long or belly-rumbling laugh, but there was no way he could keep standing in the baby delivery position with that. Grinning after, and. Okay. Just give him a tag, Roland. ]

Well, that's what you called it!

[ He shakes his head, trying not to show his own amusement. Well, he had said it...Okay, he'll cave as he watches Tidus try and catch his breath, get back into the game; he chuckles under his breath, like it doesn't really quite leave his throat. But it's there. ]

Heh. Come on. I gotta go long with this kid. Let's see if you can catch -

[ What's this? Roland has a sense of humor? It's dry, his face looks utterly serious, too serious for the punchline as he lifts the ball and pretends to look under it for something, humming. Then he nods and resumes the hike stance, smirk threatening to break out. ] - him.

[ Oh no, it's one of those laughs. The laugh that just won't go, keeps hitting the back of his throat and tickling him to come out. Tidus's grin stays wide regardless of the small chuckles that escape, and Roland is not helping. ]

Alright. Alright! [ Tidus slaps his knees, straightens his back. Does a jog on the spot, short and sweet. ] I can do this. I'm gonna do this! Don't distract me Roland!

[ He won't be beaten, he won't!! Tidus turns back around, getting into position--the threat of a laugh being coughed into a fist, slowing him. He won't give in! ] I've got this! We're doing this game! Gimme the hike!

[ He sounds intense. ...or like someone trying their hardest to push through the urge to break into laughter.

Please don't keep him waiting. ]

No distractions. Got it, coach. Head's in the game.

[ ...He really likes that jog on the spot maneuver, huh? Roland is perpetually amazed at the energy, the level of enthusiasm when you get Tidus going. He makes an amused sort of sound, an affirmation, before the message sticks - it was time to play, right? Shaking off his own bout of giggles, Roland begins again, walking behind Tidus and assuming the position, arms ready, hands hovering as close as possible to receive. ]

[ When he bends down, eyes watching for that swinging movement when Tidus finally passes it to him fast, and he knows it's going to be fast with this kid's strength...Roland takes a breath, counts down. ]

Hut, hut, hike!

[ As soon as Tidus hands him that ball from beneath his legs, as soon as the Zanarkand Abes's star player starts running, Roland will throw the ball with his right arm wound back, getting in as much tension as he can before letting go. ]

[ The ball is back in Tidus's hands from its place left on the floor, that dumb laugh wanting to leave him, tickling at his brain, but he's gotta resist. He can't even think about how odd the position feels, unused to it, 'cause that means thinking about everything else that comes with it.

(Like the baby)

(Can't think about the baby)

It's good that Roland is already on a ball with this, giving the countdown through those sounds, the hike familiar enough now to Tidus to respond. The ball darts from his hands to Roland's, and then he goes darting himself, getting some measure of distance away before he looks back as Roland had; waiting for it to get shot into the air, spiralling for him, or past him if he's not quick.

But Roland has a good throw, knows to use it for a guy like him, and Tidus doesn't aim to disappoint as his hands shoot out, jumping up and catching it. It stumbles as it makes contact, the spacing between them for a wider ball, but Tidus clamps his grip around it before it can bounce and drop, bringing it down to his chest as his feet come to a stop.

What would a guy with the ball now do in Blitzball?

Well, that's obvious-

Tidus looks across at Roland with an acknowledging gaze, before he throws up the football into the air; once, twice, giving it the same strength and catching as it spins back down, the motion almost careless looking. He does it a third, yet this time with a stronger arm, and in that same second it goes up, Tidus jumps with a twist: his entire body spinning, and with a greater height than is natural for a human, like a gymnastic in motion, helped up by a spring. What happens next is swift: a leg coming out, his foot connecting just in time with the rugby ball in its swing, and sending it too high above Roland's head to be a concern, slamming into the farthest back wall within seconds.

Feet hit the ground hard as Tidus catches his balance again, an echo sounding as the ball bounce and rocks to a stop where it lands. There's a pause in Tidus as he looks across at his work, breathing visible in his chest--and then he picks himself up, brings his fingers to his mouth and whistles a cheer obvious to any planet, loud and proud. ]

[ Roland didn't know what to expect, but it certainly wasn't this. It was more than a display, it was an exhibition of talent. Shining talent; flashing, blinding, yet he couldn't look away, not for a single moment. He watches Tidus as if his vision slows to keep up with the speed in which he spins, and before he knows it, there is a sharp whizzing that passes close - it's audible, but his eyes can't keep up with the ball hitting the wall, only air and motion left in its wake.

The only thing that breaks the trance is the whistle that leaves Tidus's lips, high-pitched, sustained, well-practiced. Roland blinks and his eyes follow the trail of the kick, the ball on the floor, then back again to Tidus who. by all means, is treating this as if it was a goal in itself. Perhaps it was. This wasn't just a display, after all. No, Roland understands a little bit of it now; the hints of pride, that spark of joy. This was a glimpse into Tidus himself. ]

[ When the whistle dies down, echoes of it left only in Roland's ears, ringing loud, what could one do but this?

He grins, slowly at first, until it breaks out into joy, his hands coming together, clapping without apology. ]

Attaboy, Tidus! That was amazing! That - that beats out any ceremony I could have come up with!

[ The star athlete. No wonder. ]

[ There's a buzzing across his shoulders, throughout his body; like the spark being woken up inside him, adrenaline finally having a reason to circulate. He wants to do more, get into a game--but the true game is far away, and he'll never be able to show it except in bits and pieces.

Still Tidus grins, for the piece he can share now. ]

I can't hear you clapping in a sphere, Roland! You got to be louder!

[ His voice was already unapologetic loud, rising at that emphasis; feet walking him towards the old man, but with a careless, turning around like the gymnasium, for now, was a stadium. ]

When we're in water, the audiences are our voices! All we can do is tell them to be louder-! [ he waves his arms up, gesturing, encouraging an invisible crowd--c'mon! Cheer more! Lemme hear you! ] Be so loud we feel it through the pool, 'til there's nothing else we can hear! They shout and they scream, they whistle, and it's why you're there. That moment is the reason why you're there!

[ The game, the crowds, that connection experienced solely in victory. With a body that may be tired and a mind too fuzzed, but there's no need for rest. The moment is too euphoric, the sky lit up with lights, a million stars; life a high better than any drug.

Tidus stops before Roland, pleased and proud. Reality around them far quieter, empty, with no adoring fans circling around them, no more Zanarkand nights to ever go back to. Drifting above the world but submerged, at ease, but brimming bright.

But for a moment, it can come out. The memory of it. Life in that city--and who he was, too. ]

That's Blitzball.

[ Normally he would throw Tidus a look, a silent message that he should lower his voice, why was he even shouting when he was the only person there...But no, not this time. This time, Roland is just as unapologetic as Tidus, watching him approach, caught up in the whirlwind of his performance, his passion. A dream unfolding before his very eyes. It's almost something he could touch with his own two hands, so strong is Tidus's love for the sport; for the life he has left behind. So eager is his smile, his arms as they wave to an invisible crowd, and Roland's smile is almost melancholic, not once refusing to look away from him.

If only there were more of me to enjoy it, he thinks to himself, as Tidus finally crosses his vision, directly in his line of sight. Roland wishes he could give it to him; the deafening roar of a multitude of voices that he can only imagine existed for Tidus at some point in time. Faceless people who had voices to share, reverberating against water, reaching the players the way Tidus is telling him, describing to him in detail. Roland's heart pounds with a sentiment he isn't quite sure of, but he knows that he is imagining it as if it were real: as if he was in a stadium, cheering on his favorite player. And by all accounts, Tidus was - regardless of time and space. Is, his favorite player.

The moment is the reason you're there, huh? ]

[ In a move that can't be considered anything but strange for someone like stiff and serious Mister President, he grants Tidus a moment. A moment to be, a moment he probably misses the most, even if it won't be the same. He closes his eyes as the youth stands before him, smiles, then inhales deeply, until his chest expands visibly.

Then, he shouts. Or as much shout as he can give, his throat probably doing more of the work than his diaphragm of breath. It's not prolonged, but it is the loudest anyone would ever hear Roland. It's forceful enough to get him to slightly keel forward, one arm darting up in the air; the other, clenching into a fist. ]

Go Tidus, let's do this Zanarkand Abes! You're the man, hit that goal!

[ What the--?

Tidus doesn't expect it, even if he's the one to go no, that's not how you do it. That you have to be louder, throw your voice and all into your cheers, scream and shout until your lungs give out.

Because that's a different world. That's for a different place, a different time; and he never expected it to come forward, for Roland to entertain it. Wiping off that face of self-satisfaction to an unguarded surprise--because he doesn't know how to guard against this. He doesn't know how to react, despite how his stomach flutters, despite the small voice telling him he should laugh. But the rest of him is too caught up in the moment to, and... ]

Ahhhh...

[ He kicks about his feet, limbs like jelly as he shifts around where he stands. The movements of a kid who has to concede to some chore or point and begrudgingly agree. His head lulling from one side to the other, body turning in the movements on purpose, just to give him that privacy, though looking too careless on the outside to seem that way. ]

Yeah, okay. I guess you'd fit in. [ But Tidus faces back around, arms coming to fold. His smile smaller than it was before, softer; but something grateful in its pull, wistful.

Happy. ]

I'll show you a game sometime.

[ He rubs his nose, smile growing wider by the minute. He doesn't blame him for such a reaction. Roland wasn't even sure if he could do it, but the closer Tidus got, the more he could see that sparkle in his eyes, the more Roland knew he had to.

The football is in his hands again, just a few steps to his right to grab it from the floor, before he turns to Tidus, throwing it back. ]

Don't worry, I'll work on the cheer. Next time, I'll be so loud your ears will burst, even underwater. Heh.

[ He shakes his head. If such a time came, he'd probably bring him along, watch the games of their wildest fantasies side by side...A dream within a dream. Something to entertain, if only to ease his heart's sorrows. This is a thought he quickly casts aside, as if it was never even in his mind's eye. ]

That sounds like a plan, coach. But more than that, you've got to show me how you spun around the way that you did. And you do that submerged, right? Phenomenal.

Edited 2020-08-15 16:50 (UTC)

[ Tidus catches it in his hands, lightly knocking against his chest. The smile on his face grows, but turning more jesting, lighthearted; whatever emotion that had been caught and captured easing, letting Tidus get comfortable again. ]

You have to know how to do it out of water before you even try in. It wouldn't be fun if you were just swimming and throwing and kicking around a ball, right? And it sends the ball whizzing before the other team can catch it! And the goalie, if you're lucky.

[ Which was the one you wanted to miss the catch! ]

[ Roland stretches his arms, one over the other. ]

Yeah, it's a move that builds up momentum, right? It's really something else. No sport I've seen back home compares. [ He reaches up to his hair next, carefully untying the low ponytail and opting to tie it again as a high bun this time, keeping most of the long strands away from his back and neck. ] You mean the way you train to do those moves always starts on dry land? Wouldn't training your body in water help you adjust faster?

Edited 2020-08-15 19:54 (UTC)

Depends on how confident you are, and what moves you're doing. [ He's moved to tossing the rugy between hands, his gaze elsewhere as he thinks. ] But you need to warm up, so you start on land first before moving into the pool. It's less about rushing in, and more figuring how you want your body to move first, you know? Everything you do in the water's going to be slower.

Once you start get the hang of it, you don't practice the more difficult moves on land. [ With Roland's hair up, he pulls back his forearm with the rugby in tow, waiting for Roland to seem prepared to catch it before he throws. ]

-- but it's fun to show off. Fans love it!

That's true. There's a sport from back home - it's a water sport too, called surfing - and I know pros train their bodies to take the resistance of the waves and how to hold their breath for a long time by doing underwater rock running. Is that something blitzball players do, too?

[ It's a sport that involves a lot of thought, he realizes. A lot of intuition too, because the water he imagines, would quite literally drown out a lot of your usual senses. If crowds had to scream so loudly that the players could hear vibrations in the water...

He positions himself in front of Tidus now, ready to pass him the ball for the next throw. The awkwardness from their first trial runs is all but forgotten for Roland, now. ]

So that spin move - was that star player Tidus's signature move? For your fanclub? Heh. [ His arm is positioned just right, between his parted thighs. ]

We do underwater running, yeah! [ Rock though--well. ] Anything you can do above ground, you learn to do in water. Blitzball's an aggressive sport. You need to learn how to hold your breath, swim--how to take a beating from the other team. Blitz training's tough!

[ He hadn't even been thinking about the current game they were playing, completely lost in his thoughts about Blitzball. There's none of the chuckles from before as Roland gets into position, and truthfully, he'd rather be practising something else now... but he'll humour the guy. Man, if he could be training for some blitzball, though...! ]

Nah, that's just a simple trick. Nothing special. [ Not to like, brag or anything, but he is absolutely bragging. He crouches some into position, the fuss over being too near also gone. ] I'd need to find the right ball to show you my move. I do a flip and kick the ball into the goal backwards! Last Abes game I played, I was about to do it... right outside the sphere! It was gonna be played on the screens for life!

[ Yeah, his mind is totally elsewhere. ]

[ The conversation after another round of catch comes smoothly. Roland multitasks, shifting his attention as needed, but he was always listening to Tidus's stories, never straying from catching the small details or the feeling he was trying to express. And it was easy to read Tidus, with his animated facial expressions and body language like a coiled spring always ready to jump into action.

The rest of Grasshopper 19 passes nicely, and when he parts from Tidus and returns to his cabin, he notes down some thoughts as his routine goes. Apart from personal musings, he leaves a reminder for himself to save up points for what he recalls, are the missing accessories to his blitzball team's merchandise. ]

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grasshopper 19, video to all from the gymnasium

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dont u dare reply to this, this is now closed!!!!

ok tita