samuraiwing-blog

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fashion of the mcu | iron fist (1x04 // eight diagram dragon palm) ↳ colleen wing + white tracksuit

“That’s the best you’ve got?”

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Back to Basics

[Continued from here.]   @twice-the-pryde @kochou-gakure

Once again Colleen found herself staring down the barrel of trouble, and calling upon every nerve in her body to keep her calm. No trace of strain or fear or anger on her person- except perhaps for the faint muscles working around her jaw.

In quick succession: a question, a biting retort, a brick flying across the room, her student disappearing and reappearing before her eyes.

“A fucking mutant” spat the woman in the lead.

It echoed in Colleen’s head...But lingered as a question.

“A mutant?”

She didn’t have time to ponder now. Wing was not a stranger to people attempting to break in and rob the dojo, although common sense would perhaps tell you that it was a very stupid idea.

She knew deep down that talking them down and out of a fight wouldn’t work, but it was always worth an attempt.

“There is no money here for you. You will not be leaving with my weapons. Please go now.” She gestured with an open hand towards the door, a familiar warmth boiling up inside her.

[samuraiwing-blog]

[samuraiwing-blog]

“there are people who run from the fire, and there are people who run into it.” | colleen wing aesthetic

[samuraiwing-blog]

Working with Kitty had not been as bad as Colleen had anticipated, but there was still much work to be done. As was the beauty of studying Martial Arts- there is *always* work to be done.

Wing watched the girl closely. She could feel the frustration radiating off of her in waves. Most people required a more physical, “outside-in” approach to improve techniques. However, sometimes those with Martial Arts exposure with perhaps a streak of perfectionism, needed to work from the inside out.

“I know you want to master this, but the more you relax, the easier it will be.”

She paused.

“I can see it in your face that you are checking off the boxes in your mental checklist. Your brow is furrowing-jaw is tightening. It’s too much. Pick one thing to focus on. For example-I think you’re holding your breath.”

The relaxing part was the hardest for most people. Counter-intuitive. As Colleen reached out to help adjust, the door to the Dojo opened. 

Two women and a man stepped inside.

Something felt off.

@twice-the-pryde

Back to the Basics

Impatience flickered through her. A sign that she had indeed strayed so far away from her core where she held the part of her that was a teacher.

Patience. Much like the contents of the city, one minute it was there, and the next as if it had never existed at all.

Like her sword, Wing had to find that place within her where sharpness met its necessary opposition. The harmony between striking and yielding. The balance in a crane stance. The dance between soft and hard. Light and the inevitable, inescapable dark.

This constant battle of fighting for mental homeostasis only contributed further to her exhaustion.

Maybe that’s why she was so quick to snap. Weariness was in the drivers seat.

Colleen searched the girls face as she spoke, and was not entirely surprised to find something of her own reflection there. A woman, lost and wading through her thoughts and the city -trying to find something solid to hold onto. Something palpable to ground them. Like a sword.

A beat passes.

“So- like I said. Weapons training.”

Kitty felt as though they had been at it for hours. The bokken in her hand felt as though she had given its hilt grooves with how tightly she gripped it with her fingers due to frustration.

She let out a deep breath, knowing that her anger would not provide her any help in getting it right. Kitty placed her feet in position, running through the checklist of the countless things she had done wrong previously. Though she still had not learned the ways to do it right, she had learned many ways to do it wrong. That was at least a start.

As Kitty finally finished her checklist, she felt fairly confident in her foot positioning. Next was the hands…

This checklist was shorter, though admittedly a bit rushed as she found her hands in a comfortable position at the base of the weapon.

Once in the somewhat proper position, Kitty lifted the bokken up into the first defensive position. Then to the next position, and onto the next. Only pausing long enough for her instructor to take notes of the errors made along the way.

[samuraiwing-blog]

Impatience flickered through her. A sign that she had indeed strayed so far away from her core where she held the part of her that was a teacher.

Patience. Much like the contents of the city, one minute it was there, and the next as if it had never existed at all.

Like her sword, Wing had to find that place within her where sharpness met its necessary opposition. The harmony between striking and yielding. The balance in a crane stance. The dance between soft and hard. Light and the inevitable, inescapable dark.

This constant battle of fighting for mental homeostasis only contributed further to her exhaustion.

Maybe that’s why she was so quick to snap. Weariness was in the drivers seat.

Colleen searched the girls face as she spoke, and was not entirely surprised to find something of her own reflection there. A woman, lost and wading through her thoughts and the city -trying to find something solid to hold onto. Something palpable to ground them.

Like a sword.

A beat passes.

“So- like I said. Weapons training.”

Back to the Basics

@samuraiwing

Colleen listened quietly and intently. She moved her hands behind her back as she watched the stranger trail her fingers across the swords on the wall.

She bit back a reflex to ask her not to touch them.

“Well, I’m glad amidst the chaos that the dojo’s positive reputation reached someone.”

Hesitation.

People who came in with existing martial arts experience were historically the most challenging to teach. Especially adults. They had a challenging time leaving their egos at the door. It takes a certain humility to approach something as a beginner- especially if you have an adjacent skill set.

Only one way to find out.

Colleen exhaled out of her nose.

“I’m doing my best to stay open, and so far I’ve been lucky- the Dojo stays where I leave it. I am taking new students. I’m assuming you’re interested in the weapons, seeing as all you’ve done is open hand?”

Kitty gave the women a smile, glad she seemed to be on the same page. “Moreso learning how to deter others who have had an interest in weapons for far longer than myself. It’s a problem I have ran into in the past,” the irony of her use of the word ‘past’ was not lost on Kitty. Her first run in with a sword wielding foe would not happen to her young self for several more years to come. Though, much like everything else that had occurred to her before her time jump, it was inevitable.

Kitty thought back to the first time she attempted to pick up a sword against her enemy, she had done more damage to herself than the attacker had. It was not something she was looking to repeat anytime soon.

It always seemed that people turned to more desperate measures as time went on. If words failed they turned to fists. If fists failed they turned to blades, bullets, sorcery. Kitty needed to be prepared for all of the possibilities ahead of her. The one thing that proved certain to her is that there was always a bigger fish.

[samuraiwing-blog]

Colleen listened quietly and intently. She moved her hands behind her back as she watched the stranger trail her fingers across the swords on the wall.

She bit back a reflex to ask her not to touch them.

“Well, I’m glad amidst the chaos that the dojo’s positive reputation reached someone.”

Hesitation.

People who came in with existing martial arts experience were historically the most challenging to teach. Especially adults. They had a challenging time leaving their egos at the door. It takes a certain humility to approach something as a beginner- especially if you have an adjacent skill set.

Only one way to find out.

Colleen exhaled out of her nose.

“I’m doing my best to stay open, and so far I’ve been lucky- the Dojo stays where I leave it. I am taking new students. I’m assuming you’re interested in the weapons, seeing as all you’ve done is open hand?”

Back to the Basics

Colleen had been sitting on the bench inside the dojo. Body bent over in frustration, head buried in tired and calloused hands. The silence both comforting and distressing all at once.

Taking on a dojo was a financial risk. It wasn’t a necessity in modern day life, but rather a luxury that people invested in with extra income. And that was when the world was in a normal state.

With the current chaos of the city, making money was next to impossible. The business woman in her was often drowned out by her burning desire to help those in need. And those in need were usually teenagers who didn’t have money, didn’t have direction, and desperately needed purpose in a structured activity that also provided them with a safe space to be. Learning self defense and confidence didn’t hurt either. Money was more than tight, and Wing more often than not wondered how long her lights would stay on and how long food would remain on her table.

The doors quiet tinkling bell, followed by a tentative “Hello” jolted Colleen from her thoughts. She didn’t know if sheer fatigue caused the appearance of the lights flickering, or if they actually had faltered for a moment.

A woman followed the question. As she stepped into the dojo, Colleen stood from the bench, pulling herself to full height and pulling a soft but strained smile. Hands immediately to hips. She had once been able to trust her instincts, but lately everyone was a stranger and a threat until proven otherwise. She was slowly finding her way back to being able to “feel” people out- and although she didn’t sense anything “off” - one could never be too certain.

“Hi. How can I help you?”

Kitty approached the woman who appeared receptive in nature. Possibly the first entirely friendly face she had seen since coming to the city. She was unsure just how to propose her question. “Well, with everything going on here, I was hoping I could find a place for some lessons on how to defend myself. I’ve heard this is the place to come,” admittedly she had no other options aside from this one. Any other dojo owner in the city likely would have closed down shop due to the disturbances.

Kitty paced the dojo while talking to the woman who appeared to be the only person there at the time, wondering if perhaps this too was closed. She ran her fingers across a bokken that was hung atop several others. “I’ve been trained some in hand to hand combat when I was a child, but I was looking for something a little more… specialized,” her pointer finger tapped on the bokken before she placed her hand at her side once more.

A slight redness came over Kitty’s face as she addressed her following concern. “I don’t really have a way to pay at the moment, but I could always work around here if you need extra help. I don’t live far,” Kitty trailed off as she remembered her apartment had previously disappeared upon her leaving for the dojo. She continued, “well to be honest, I’m not sure where I live now, but I’m sure I can find my way back here on occasion. Are you taking students?”

Kitty had already made her way over to where the woman stood next to the bench before she finished speaking. Realizing how quiet and serene the atmosphere inside the dojo was, she thought it best to move closer so they could speak more quietly as to not disturb the rare moment of peace.

[samuraiwing-blog]

Colleen had been sitting on the bench inside the dojo. Body bent over in frustration, head buried in tired and calloused hands. The silence both comforting and distressing all at once.

Taking on a dojo was a financial risk. It wasn’t a necessity in modern day life, but rather a luxury that people invested in with extra income. And that was when the world was in a normal state.

With the current chaos of the city, making money was next to impossible. The business woman in her was often drowned out by her burning desire to help those in need. And those in need were usually teenagers who didn’t have money, didn’t have direction, and desperately needed purpose in a structured activity that also provided them with a safe space to be. Learning self defense and confidence didn’t hurt either. Money was more than tight, and Wing more often than not wondered how long her lights would stay on and how long food would remain on her table.

The doors quiet tinkling bell, followed by a tentative “Hello” jolted Colleen from her thoughts. She didn’t know if sheer fatigue caused the appearance of the lights flickering, or if they actually had faltered for a moment.

A woman followed the question. As she stepped into the dojo, Colleen stood from the bench, pulling herself to full height and pulling a soft but strained smile. Hands immediately to hips. She had once been able to trust her instincts, but lately everyone was a stranger and a threat until proven otherwise. She was slowly finding her way back to being able to “feel” people out- and although she didn’t sense anything “off” - one could never be too certain.

“Hi. How can I help you?”

Back to the Basics

Kitty made her way out of the apartment. It really wasn’t much to look at, but she was pleased to have found help from the man only known as Daredevil in finding it. She knew it was a long shot asking the front door clerk about finding combat training within the city in the state that it was in. Luckily for the woman, he had lived in the city long enough to be familiar with nearly every aspect of it. At least prior to the time manipulation taking hold. After exchanges a quick “thank you” Kitty departed from the building. A memory darted into her mind causing a sudden panic. “The lights,” as she turned around in an attempt to reduce her electric bill, she watched the entire building suddenly disappear, moving elsewhere in the city. A problem she would have to deal with later.

Her annoyance took over as she made her way through the city trying to seek out the area the man hold informed her about. “First I don’t have a place to stay, then I do, now I don’t even know where it is,” she muttered under her breath as she scanned each building around her. Even if the city had been left constructed the way it was only days ago, she would have had difficulties finding the dojo. In its current state it would be nearly impossible.

Kitty began to feel the desire to give up on her search. She had been trained in the danger room at the Professors institute often. She was confident enough in her hand to hand combat skills, most days. The problem came from fighting those wielding some sort of metal. Her phasing made combat far easier, especially when the opponent is unaware of it, yet some metals were easier to phase through than others. Vibranium in particular was the most difficult she had encountered. Although she managed to phase through it several times, the pain associated with the metal passing through was still present.

After several hours, Kitty sat down on a bench in frustration. Fully prepared to let out a scream in a burst of anger. She felt the bench suddenly lurch, gripping onto it suddenly to brace herself. As she looked up, she was unsure if Chinatown had teleported to her or if she had teleported to Chinatown, but she did not care. The building directly in front of her had a large sign on the front that read ‘Chikara Dojo’. This was the place. With a new sense of excitement and energy she launched to her feet and quickly made her way to the building, not knowing if it would stay still forever. Opening the door let off the ding of a bell to inform those inside of somebody new entering through the doorway. “Hello,” Kitty let the question echo through the room to anyone inside who wished to answer her curious call.

[samuraiwing-blog]

“I run a dojo a few blocks from here.” 

She shifted with mild discomfort, as seemed to be her constant state lately. 

Brows furrowed, she asked,

“Uh, Jessica, right? Sorry to hear about the toaster- I think. Is this really what you’re encountering every day?”

More uncomfortable shifting.

“I think I’m so focused on my dojo and the kids, I’m not really paying attention to whats really happening around me.”

Yes, she had been focusing on her dojo to keep her grounded, and she focused on the kids because she cared about them, and knew it had become a safe(r) haven for most- but she had been so lost in her own personal turmoil, everything happening around her seemed to be background noise to the chaotic symphony that had become her world. 

A small part of her wished she had found this guy first- but Jessica most certainly had it handled.

Jessica rolled out of her building about 5 pm, she thought.

The clocks couldn’t always be trusted but the sun and the lengthening shadows looked about right. The weather was on the mild side for early spring,and if she didn’t look at things too hard she could almost pretend everything was normal in the city.

Even on the block, though, things had started to change. The signposts and some of the walls were plastered with flyers pleading for information or for someone to relay messages to missing family members. Some of them had probably just been outside the zone when it cut itself off, but who could tell? Nobody could go out to get the information. There were probably just as many posters on the other side. She’d dutifully looked at them for a while before they just became overwhelming.

At least nobody within earshot was standing on a crate screaming about the Apocalypse.

When she rounded the corner, however, she saw that a man had set up a pop up store out of their van. Where in the good old days just a few months ago he would be selling the two women in front of him fake Vuitton, now it had different implications.

Jessica stretched and cracked her knuckles in anticipation. This, at least, she could do something about.

As she got closer she could hear the sales pitch he was giving while holding up two cheap mandala necklaces. “…got these from the Sanctum Sanctorum, they’ll get you through the barrier like it’s nothing because they reverse the polarity…”

He was so intent on his sale that he didn’t hear Jessica walk up behind him and lean on the trunk of his car. “Reverse the polarity of what, exactly?”

“…the neutron flow,” he went on without missing a beat. “What they do is, they neutralize the barrier because it’s made up of dark matter and these amulets have antimatter in them.”

“Right. Dark matter. What is that exactly? I’m just a simple girl, how about you walk me through the physics?”

He started catching on “Look lady, if you’re not gonna but anything how about you keep-“

She had him by the neck against the van before he could finish. “How about you quit preying on desperate people with your worthless pieces of shit?”

@hellsguardiandevil

[samuraiwing-blog]

Running a Martial Arts School in the midst of an “apocalypse” was a both interesting and exhausting endeavor. With the way she had been feeling recently - exhausted, run down, disenchanted, empty- teaching was proving to be a challenge- as just getting out of bed proved to be a difficult feat.

On evenings like this one, when all of those feelings pressed just a little too heavy on her person, Colleen left the remainder of classes to capable assistants. On some days, she didn’t live up to the “Daughter of the Dragon” title, but lately- she didn’t care.

Sword slung across her back, she made her way out of the dojo and into the streets. Normally she’d head back home, but lately she took to wandering. Perhaps not the best move under current circumstances, but her feet carried her along anyway. 

The quiet blossoming of Spring would normally have perked up Colleen’s spirits, but there was a sour tinge to it. The state of the world had changed and the seasons all felt off in their own right. With Spring usually came a feeling of rebirth. Rather it felt more like “survival”- both for Colleen and the city’s inhabitants.

As she rounded a corner, sinking deeper into her thoughts as she walked, she spied a woman lunging for a man’s throat, his head and body slamming into the side of a van as a result. Wing couldn’t hear what was being said, but she watched as two women scurried away, apparently scared off by the unexpected appearance of the third woman. 

Colleen knew what strength and speed in a body looked like. She was around enough people to recognize what different bodies were capable of- and it seemed that the woman with her hand clenched around this strangers throat possessed perhaps a little bit too much strength. Something about it feeling other-worldly. Like her slender body wasn’t naturally capable of sustaining such output.

As she neared closer and the two faces came into focus, she recognized the woman. A brief exchange in passing in a police station. Some of the details were foggy upon recollection- but she knew her. And she knew that super strength.

Before she could tell her brain to keep her mouth shut and to keep her feet walking, Colleen found herself speaking.

“Is this a hobby of yours on your days off of work?

Jessica rolled out of her building about 5 pm, she thought.

The clocks couldn’t always be trusted but the sun and the lengthening shadows looked about right. The weather was on the mild side for early spring,and if she didn’t look at things too hard she could almost pretend everything was normal in the city.

Even on the block, though, things had started to change. The signposts and some of the walls were plastered with flyers pleading for information or for someone to relay messages to missing family members. Some of them had probably just been outside the zone when it cut itself off, but who could tell? Nobody could go out to get the information. There were probably just as many posters on the other side. She’d dutifully looked at them for a while before they just became overwhelming.

At least nobody within earshot was standing on a crate screaming about the Apocalypse.

When she rounded the corner, however, she saw that a man had set up a pop up store out of their van. Where in the good old days just a few months ago he would be selling the two women in front of him fake Vuitton, now it had different implications.

Jessica stretched and cracked her knuckles in anticipation. This, at least, she could do something about.

As she got closer she could hear the sales pitch he was giving while holding up two cheap mandala necklaces. “…got these from the Sanctum Sanctorum, they’ll get you through the barrier like it’s nothing because they reverse the polarity…”

He was so intent on his sale that he didn’t hear Jessica walk up behind him and lean on the trunk of his car. “Reverse the polarity of what, exactly?”

“…the neutron flow,” he went on without missing a beat. “What they do is, they neutralize the barrier because it’s made up of dark matter and these amulets have antimatter in them.”

“Right. Dark matter. What is that exactly? I’m just a simple girl, how about you walk me through the physics?”

He started catching on “Look lady, if you’re not gonna but anything how about you keep-“

She had him by the neck against the van before he could finish. “How about you quit preying on desperate people with your worthless pieces of shit?”

@hellsguardiandevil

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Daughter of the Dragon, Colleen Wing. Pose credit to iwaisan, over at DA.

[samuraiwing-blog]

All i want is something stable. Something i can hold on to .