Gil awoke to the sound of the shower turning on. Looking around for his alarm-clock, momentary confusion rolled over him as he slowly realized he was not in his room. Memories from last night's dream and fight suddenly flashed through Gil's brain, answering the question of why he was sprawled out on the couch. Getting stiffly to his feet and stretching the kinks out of his joints, Gil made his way groggily to his bedroom for a fresh change of clothes. After throwing on a pale blue t-shirt and jeans, he gathered up the rancid sheets, walking briskly to the laundry room and quickly depositing them into the washer; feeling absolutely no regret in disrupting Ludwig's shower. 'How dare he say that! Of course I'm not attracted to Ivan…and even if I was, it's none of his business who I like. He's my brother; he cannot be getting jealous!' Rushing through the morning routine, Gil hastened out the door; not wishing to speak to the person still in the restroom.
"Alright, Gil. This is Kiku. He's here to teach you not to be such a pussy." Angry glares were exchanged at this statement; neither brother having forgotten the night before, nor had they spoken of it since. But Ludwig had flagged Gil down despite the animosity boiling between them, introducing him to the quiet Asian by his side. Kiku was glancing from one sibling to the other; an almost scared look on his face. Quietly and timidly, he spoke.
"I am sensing much…tension in this atmosphere…" Ludwig turned to the small boy, clasping a hand on his slender shoulder and making his sway.
"Don't worry, Kiku, that'll go away once I'm gone. Have fun, you two, I gotta go to practice." Kiku muttered a farewell as Ludwig strolled away, Gil remaining silent until his brother was out of earshot. An awkward silence lapsed as Gil's simmering temper kept him from being sociable; Kiku seemed to be this way naturally. Calming somewhat, Gil found his voice and attempted to pick up a conversation.
"So…I was told you could teach me some martial arts…For a master, you don't look very strong-" Gil's face was slammed up against the brick wall of the school building before his eyes even registered movement. Kiku has a hold of his wrist, but was twisting the joint in a way that sent pain lashing up Gil's arm to his shoulder and neck. A whisper sounded behind Gil.
"One does not need strength when they possess technique and a knowledge of human anatomy." With that, the pressure on Gil's joints was released and he turned to face Kiku again, rubbing his throbbing arm.
"Now what types of holds do you wish to escape from?"
"Well…kids here seem to have issues with my neck…" Memories of Francis's foot nearly killing him and Ivan's subduing made Gil shudder involuntarily.
"Okay, come over here and choke me and I'll show you how to get out of it." Gil stepped hesitantly over to where Kiku stood, looking innocent with his slender face and short stature. Gil wrapped his hands around the delicately thin neck, applying as little pressure as possible in order to prevent injury to the frail-looking boy.
"…In order to demonstrate the technique properly, I am going to need a little bit more force on your part…"
"But I don't want to hurt yo-…" Gil's voice trailed away at the annoyed expression on Kiku's face, his eyes rolling once then connecting with Gil's, all but screaming "C'mon. Really?!" Deciding that this kid was asking for it, and it would not be his fault if he hurt him, Gil tightened his grasp, feeling Kiku's pulse against his palms. A choked laugh escaped his restricted throat and Kiku smiled for the first time.
"Much better, now watch closely." About a millisecond later, Gil was on the ground, Kiku's kneecap digging into his side.
"Now choke me again, but not at full power, and I'll break it down for you." Kiku said as he helped Gil to his feet. Even more hesitantly than before, Gil placed his hands at Kiku's throat, his fingers curling around warm flesh. In a flash, Gil's left arm was shot up into the air; Kiku's arm coming up form below and striking in an upward sweep.
"This is called a 'high block'. It is meant to deflect attacks on the upper body. Twisting your hips and allowing your whole body to flow with the upward movement adds momentum and power to your strike, where it would otherwise be weak and ineffective." Kiku then pivoted his body to a forty-five degree angle to Gil, bringing the arm that was high blocking down on Gil's other arm, his elbow connecting painfully with the inside of Gil's own. Simultaneously, his other hand came up to grip the wrist connected to the hand around his neck, keeping it in place as Gil's arm bent at an odd angle, throwing him off balance.
"This elbow strike is meant to break what's left of your opponent's hold, throwing them completely off-center in the process." His hand gripping Gil's in a strange way, making it completely useless, Kiku then yanked Gil forwards, right into the elbow he had aimed at his neck.
"The momentum of your already-off-balance attacker is what gives this move all its power. I am merely placing my elbow in front of your neck; it is your own bodyweight that makes you collide so forcefully with it as you stumble forward."
"That's amazing…" Gil muttered in awe as Kiku released him and backed away; a composed and serine look on his face.
"I'm not going to teach you the take-down portion of this self-defense due to your inexperience, but would you like to try what I've shown you?"
"Yeah!" Gil said earnestly, eager to try what Kiku had made to appear so effortless. Stepping forward, Kiku placed his hands around Gil's throat, the grip sturdy but not completely restricting.
"High block first, right?"
"Yes, and remember to include your whole body; not just the arm doing the block." With a curt nod, Gil attempted the movement, trying to rotate his hips as he had seen Kiku do but finding it difficult. Shooting his arm up with all his strength, he managed to break Kiku's flimsy hold on his neck, sending the unresisting arm up with his own.
"Good, good. Not bad for a first attempt." Gaining confidence from the praise, Gil, remembering the next step, brought his high block down on Kiku's other arm; his strike not having the same balance-disrupting effect that Kiku's had. A puzzled look on his face, Gil tried to figure out what he was doing wrong.
"Bring your elbow down on the joint of my arm; that's what makes it bend in that awkward way." Adjusting his position, Gil did as he was told, his face lighting up as Kiku was sent lurching forward as his arm bent to Gil's strike.
"You forgot to grip my other arm; that's essential to the next step." Correcting his mistake, Gil grabbed Kiku's wrist, though the way he held it had none of the magical, manipulative powers his teacher seemed to possess. But that did not matter much as the step called for a simple pull of the arm, and Gil had no trouble yanking as Kiku had done, though he had noticed his opponent had done something with his feet that Gil had not quite caught. Gil brought his elbow within an inch of Kiku's neck, releasing his grip with a confident smile on his face.
"That's so simple! I can totally do that the next time those bastards try something." In his excitement, Gil failed to notice the annoyed expression on Kiku's face.
"Do you seriously believe that? After doing the technique once?"
"Yeah! It wasn't that bad, much easier than I thought it would be, actually." Kiku's hands were around his throat before Gil had a chance to react. Unlike the time before, his grasp was crushing and unbreakable; and Gil found himself, once again, unable to breath. Being pushed back against the brick wall behind them, all thought of the moves he had learned vanished in the panic that ensued. Clawing at the arms that had become so inexplicably violent, Gil tried to speak, the only thing escaping him being gurgling choking sounds. Kiku stared into his eyes as his fingertips dug deeper into Gil's flesh.
"What happened to that cocky attitude of yours, baka?" When no reply was given, Kiku continued.
"It takes repetition and dedication to master a technique well enough to use in battle. Now, I'm more than willing to teach you, but you have to reign in that swollen head of yours if you don't wish to get pummeled. Have I made myself clear?" Gil shook his head frantically, desperate to get out of Kiku's iron grip. The pressure finally gone from his windpipe, Gil clutched at his chest, willing the oxygen to enter his lungs faster.
"Now, let's run through it again." Kiku said calmly as he lunged forward.
By the time Ludwig finished football practice and made his way back to the spot he had left Kiku and Gil in to train, the sun had dropped quite a way in the darkening sky; bathing the surroundings in the deep red hue of sunset. Making his way over to the pair, Ludwig noticed they were still drilling techniques. Ludwig stood a good ways off to watch his brother's progress. What he saw surprised him a great deal. Kiku would step forward and grab his neck with what looked like a painful force and, in a series of lightning-fast movements, Gil had an elbow digging into his opponent's throat, throwing Kiku completely off balance. After watching the same event repeat itself over and over for a few minutes, Ludwig strolled over to the two boys, speaking as he walked.
"That looked really sharp; good job, Kiku." Gil and Kiku both turned to face Ludwig as they were made aware of his arrival.
"Well, it should be sharp, we've done nothing but run this technique since you left." Kiku said as Gil released him form the end-result of the drill, Ludwig's eyes widened a little at the statement.
"Really? You did nothing but that set for three and a half hours?"
"Yes, and he still needs work on it." Gil just stood back and listened; if they wanted to be rude and talk about him like he was not there, who was he to stop them? Assessing his body, Gil knew for sure he would wake up stiff in the morning; his muscles were screaming at him in exhaustion, bruises throbbing on his neck and arms. Absorbed as he was in his aches and pains, Gil was unaware of Ludwig's voice calling his name; a hand on his shoulder snapping him back to reality.
"Gil!"
"Huh? What?"
"I said, how are you feeling about all of this?" Ludwig spoke slowly, as if addressing someone slightly retarded. Gil pushed his hand away, backing up and snapping hotly,
"Fine. Like Kiku said, it still needs work."
"Well, it looked like you knew what you were doing, to me." The praise did little to improve Gil's mood and he grunted his acknowledgment to the compliment.
"And if you're here training every day after school, you don't have to walk home by yourself, so that solves that issue as well."
"Yup. Speaking of home, I'd really like to take a shower so can we get going?" Ludwig gave Gil an odd look as his anger persisted. 'He's always gotten over fights quickly, what's up with him?' Then Ludwig remembered the source of the fight. 'Maybe I hit more of a nerve than I thought with the Ivan thing…' Saying goodbye to Kiku, Gil set off across the grass to the road that would lead them home, not even bothering to check if Ludwig was behind him.
The hot water stung as Gil stepped into the shower. His sore muscles relaxing to the heat, Gil rested his forehead against the cool tile. Worry was slowly consuming him and he was starting to get headaches from his brow being furrowed all the time. Yes, the lesson with Kiku had helped his confidence, but no amount of martial arts could erase the fear Ivan injected in Gil every time they met.
The day had been a very stressful one thanks to that idiot. Gil had no classes with his Russian stalker, but Ivan had followed him to every period, staying stubbornly by his side no matter how much Gil had screamed at him to get lost. At lunch time, where he usually sat by himself, Gil was now forced into Ivan's company; the boy following him like a shadow no matter where he sat. The only plus-side to this mental torture was that Francis and the gang could no longer harass Gil outside of classes; their fear of Ivan keeping them at bay. He did, however, have a few classes with Francis, but had no problems ignoring his jibes and insults; the presence of the teacher allowing for no real violence.
But all of these factors equaled out to a very occupied mind as Gil subconsciously lathered up some soap and began bathing himself. 'And after all of this shit, I still have Lud to worry about when I come home. What am I going to do about him?...' Gil had been receiving signs from his brother suggesting that what Gil thought of as "barely an extension of masturbation" may mean more to Ludwig; and that scared Gil a great deal. 'I feel like I should cut it off before it gets any more…confusing.' But Gil had no idea how Ludwig would react, or if he would ever talk to Gil again if their relationship went back to the way it had been before the boys had hit puberty. 'Gah! I don't know what to do!' Gil banged his head against the wall in frustration, a loud cracking sound echoing around the confined space as his headache worsened.
"This sucks…"