Oh, look! It's a double update. Yup. Just because I realized how much I wanted to write this whole trilogy. Among other things. And I told myself I wouldn't let me write my Otto/Rosie fic or the other Ultimate U one I have in mind until I'd made some headway. I'm mean…

Toad © Marvel. Felix © me. Um…dang, I keep talkin' martial arts here. Oh, and about Felix…my guess is his accent gets a bit thicker when he slips into Sensei mode…not sure why…or at least, I was, but then I forgot. But it made sense at the time. Oh, um, lyrics are once again from the GooGoo Doll's "I'm Still Here."


That Saturday, Brother Felix paced nervously under the rusted basketball hoop, rubbing the back of his head nervously. Would the boy show up? He doubted it. But still...still, he so hoped that this child, this Mortimer would come to him. From the little of the boy that he had seen, it had become painfully obvious that the mutant child desperately needed someone who could help him. Someone who gave a dmn about his existence. The boy looked as though he'd never been touched kindly once in his whole life. Felix's fist clenched when he remembered the way the boy had shied from his outstretched hand--he was conditioned to expect pain. Memories of Marty, fleeing to the safety of their home with a bloodied lip and bruised face came to mind, followed by ones of Felix storming out in righteous elder brother wrath to revenge his sibling, blood for blood for blood. Felix smiled grimly, then sighed and rubbed his face dejectedly. Yes, those methods were...well, not fine, but they worked when you were thirteen years old and didn't have to set an example. He could hardly beat up children, nor would he want to. And while he was fairly certain that while corporal punishment was still in effect under the old school styles of Father Anton, he was equally certain that the monks were turning a blind eye to the children's cruelty toward the little mutant boy.
He stopped pacing and peered across the dimly lit gymnasium. Fifteen minutes. He'd been waiting fifteen minutes. No. The boy wouldn't show. Felix sighed again and turned to leave. Just as he got to the doors, he heard a soft scuffling and stopped. Turning very slowly, he squinted in the general direction of the noise. Two slightly glowing eyes stared up at him from one of the shadows near the bleachers. Felix smiled. He liked being wrong, on occasion.
"Hello Mortimer." The shadow scurried away briefly, then stepped forward, hesitant but determined. Mortimer stopped a good ten feet away from Felix, glaring at him out of the corner of his eye, his slouching posture tensed, about to run at any threatening moves. Felix approached cautiously and paused when the boy flinched back. He'd closed the distance by at least half and decided that was enough. He held his hands behind his back in a nonthreatening manner and smiled kindly. "Would you like to learn?" The boy's eyes slid away and he drew a long deep breath. His gaze remained fixed on the shadows of the wall, except for brief, constant flickers back toward the monk. His hand clenched and he stood very, very still for a moment, then nodded once, shortly. Felix's grin broadened, and he extend a hand in a welcoming gesture. "Well, all right then." The boy shot him a look of fear, and Felix stopped, confused. He replayed his words carefully, trying to find the threat in them. Was the boy just certain that if anyone took notice of him, it would be to cause him pain? Felix frowned, then quickly resumed a more open expression. He stood up straighter and hooked his thumbs behind his belt.
"Well, then, y'first lesson is t' stand up straight and face th' sensei." The boy's head cocked and an expression of angry confusion played across his face. Felix fixed him with a steady gaze. "It's a matter o' respect. All o' Martial Arts is; it's about respecting others and earnin' their respect in return, an' that starts very simply by you standin' up straight an' lookin' yur sensei in' th' eye." The boy's gaze slid to the floor again and he gnawed at his lip in thought for a moment. Finally, he moved carefully, shifting his feet around until he was standing facing Felix, feet spread, holding his hands behind his back. His shoulders were hunched over and he still glared up through his filthy hair--Felix spared a quick though about trying to cut it sometime soon.
"Head up, lad. Y'stan' tall an' proud in my class." The boy immediately raised his chin defiantly, eyes blazing up at the monk. Felix nodded in satisfaction. Oh yes. There was such a fire hidden in this boy's dark, gold eyes. Did no one else see it? "Tha's right. Now, at th' start o' every class, y'bow. Feet t'gether, hands at yur side. Like this." Felix demonstrated quickly, and was pleased to see that, after a moment's hesitation, the boy copied him. "Very good. Next part o' class is the stretches, which I'm sure you've seen. They're important, even if they don't look like much. They keep you flexible and help make sure y'don't pull a muscle. So before y'do any kind o' exercise, y'stretch. Got it." The boy nodded again, that same short, jerky movement.
Felix lead Mortimer through the stretches, and was pleased to find that the boy had indeed been paying attention to the classes and remembered most of them. He was also remarkably flexible, almost able to do a full split. With a little training, Felix thought, the kid could be a regular gymnast. He couldn't help but notice that the whole time, Mortimer's eyes followed his every move with a wary survival instinct. Any time he moved too quickly, the boy would flinch away. He also noticed, even in the poor light, that below his left eye there was a purple-greenish discoloration on his already oddly colored skin, and wondered if it had been the price the boy had paid for being caught spying on the class on Friday.
"Right, I think that we're stretched enough for now." The boy sprang up at attention. "Why don't we work on blocking next," suggested Felix, eyeing the bruise grimly. Mortimer gave no indication one way or the other, merely waited for Felix to instruct him. "I want you to get into a forward stance. That's means--" he broke off as Mortimer quickly assumed the requested position, fists up as Felix had shown his class. Felix grinned. "Excellent. You certainly are a fast learner." Mortimer blinked and looked suspicious of the praise. "Now," continued Felix, circling around the boy, but keeping his distance," you want to keep your back leg straight. And spread them out a little bit more. You need a deep, wide stance so that you'll have good balance." He slid into the proper stance and Mortimer copied him. "Very good. Now, a simple down block..." The boy's right fist shot to his ear while he placed his left fist firmly by his side. Felix nodded. "That's right. It has to come from your ear. If it comes from any lower," he demonstrated weakly, "then your block won't have enough power. Now, show me a downward block." Mortimer complied silently. "Good. Again." ... "Again." ..."Once more."..."Excellent. Now, that's the official block that you would use in most basic forms, but if it were a real fight, what do you think you'd be blocking with a downward block?" Mortimer glared at him, still silent. Felix waited a moment, then continued. "In a real fight, a downward block would be used to stop a kick. And if you stop a kick with a tight arm, you'll just wind up with a broken arm. So if it's a real situation, you block with an open hand, like this." Mortimer followed the monk's movements. "Good. On the count then. One." ..."Two." ... "Three..." The only sound Mortimer made was a sharp hiss of breath as he preformed his blocks. On the tenth count, Felix stopped. "You're getting the hang of it. Do y' know how to do an upper block?" The boy nodded, this time slightly more animatedly, and preformed the move. "That's about it, but..." Felix was at Mortimer's side before the boy knew it, his hands on both the boy's arms, positioning them. "Never show yur veins, an' your top arm comes up at an angle, so the punch'll slide off t'th' side. An' yur legs've gotten a bit slack, so straighten this one up more." He moved the boy's limbs to the correct positions and paused. Beneath his fingers, Mortimer was trembling. He had dropped his head and hunched his shoulders protectively, eyeing the monk with fear and confusion. He let go, and the boy's arms dropped to his side as he just stared up at Felix, with an unreadable expression on his face. He shied away for a moment and Felix wondered if he was going to bolt. After a very long, tense wait, still never taking his eyes from Felix, Mortimer resumed his forward stance and slowly raised his arm into the correct position, his eyes clearly asking "Am I doing this right?" Felix blinked, and smiled, a slow deep grin of relief and satisfaction.
"Yes, Mortimer. Exactly like that."