Perfect School

"From the beginning. They didn't lie to me and from the start told me I was training to be an assassin. I didn't fully understand until I was eight or nine when they broke my will for the last time." I thought back over it for several moments then shrugged. "It wasn't a bad childhood. When I wasn't training or studying I had free reign to do as I pleased."

Jonah:

My eyebrows twitched when she said eight. I thought about her childhood and compared it to my own. “Today wasn't the first time I watched someone die.” I admitted after a long silence. I had to say it, it had been plaguing me all day and she was the only one I felt close to.

It hadn't been mine either but as I watched him I sighed softly, "Who was the first?" It seemed like the right thing to say. To comfort him, though my tone still lacked emotion.

Jonah:

The first. I let out a soft breath. “My mom.” I said it softly. Those two words together, I couldn't speak them without emotion. “At least, I'm fairly sure she was alive when I found her. Just barely.” I didn't look at Kira, my eyes were on the table as I picked the stain off the wood with my thumb nail. The apartment was dark now, only the moon lighting it.

"Your Mom?" I repeated softly, brows raising in astonishment. I quickly cleared my face and let my own gaze linger on the table. "Do you know who?" I asked carefully.

Jonah:

At that question my jaw set. “Yes.” I said simply. “Not at the time, I was five. But I found out a couple years later.” I paused and, though I tried to clear my emotions, a note of bitterness remained in my voice when I spoke again. “My father was responsible for two murders. My mom, and then three years later his second wife. He's rotting in jail now.” I wanted to say more, but I couldn't relinquish it, not even to her.

"At least you know who your parents were. You can take solice in that fact, though your father is...." I trailed off and just let it linger there. "Do you still have memories of your mother beyond her death?"

Jonah:

“I do. They are child's memories though. I never knew her as a person. Only that she was this wonderful, warm, soft, goddess who was the source of everything good in my world. She also made damn good grilled cheese sandwiches.” I smiled ruefully. “It would break her heart to know what has become of me.” I sighed heavily. “I don't know why I'm telling this to you, Kira.”

"You tell because you are hurt." I explained softly. "The first kill is different for everyone. This is how you are coping, and I am here to listen until you feel yourself again. It is not bad, simply necessary."

Jonah:

I looked up to meet her gaze. I wanted to tell her everything but my emotions suddenly went on lock down. Listen to me, would she? Of course she would listen, she was probably ordered to do a psych-evaluation on me. “Thank you,” I said coolly. “I think I'll cope just fine. I've handled worse. I assure you, Emily's death wont haunt me.”

In my head I went through a re-run of everything I had said to her and what could be deduced from it. I had said nothing Marie couldn't have read in my file. What my emotions had given away was my worry.

It was interesting to see the desire to tell me more die in his face before it all crashed away into the coldness of his tone. I could try and guess why, but didn't think it mattered. "So be it. That is your choice." I let it be then, turning slightly to gaze out the window.

Jonah:

I stood up and went to flick on some lights. “Hopefully I wont go crazy in here by the next time I see you. On your way out would you plead my case for some books? Or anything to keep me occupied. I would be grateful.” I stood in the kitchen looking down at her, waiting for her to leave. As much as I didn't want her to go, I had no desire to spill anything else to her, and through her Marie.

Slowly I stood, taking the dismissal for what it was. "I will do what I can jonah." I told him as I made my way to the door. "See you when your confinement is up."

~~~~

Four days had passed and now I waited for Jonah within our gym. The blood had long since been cleaned up, and even the smell of the cleaners had faded away. Still though I couldn't bring myself to look away from the spot on the floor where her body had been.

Jonah:

The past few days had been tortuously dull. I had practiced my heart out perfecting techniques from training. I had read any books they brought a few times over. And when they had given me a laptop for school work, I had completed more than one college level course and was well on the way to completing more simultaneously.

The freedom of being able to train with Kira seemed like heaven simply simply for the sake of breaking up the monotony. My mood, though not at its peak, was marginally better than it had been the last time I had seen Kira. I gave her a smile when I walked through the gym doors.

I nodded to Jonah as he entered. "Welcome back to training." I told him while sliding off the table. "We are staying light today. I broke the teachers collarbone yesterday and so we will have to wait till tomorrow for anything more intensive. How does shooting in the shooting gallery sound?"

Jonah:

I had been hoping for something more intensive after my confinement, but I took what I got. After an hour of practicing trick shots we called it quits. As we both stood at the table taking apart and cleaning the guns we had used I started asking her questions about the team, and how they were doing during training.

"I'm surprised you didn't bring me a list of what you want us to work on and strategy for the competition. You can't participate in it, but I doubt the rules say you cant tell me ideas. However, things progress well enough. My focus has been on letting Kyra work on the advanced works while I bring Paublo and Andrew to her level." I replied as I worked at a difficult bit of grime someone else had left in a glock.

Jonah:

I smiled, looking down at my own work. “I do have ideas. Plenty of them, I spent a lot of time thinking about the four of you these past few days.” I told her. “But I also trust your judgment. And I wanted to know what you have been having them do before I bombard you with instructions.” I looked up to her and gave her a fond smile.

"For Paublo it has been about confidence and foot work. If he can't move his bulk then his strength does little good. Andrew has been working with Paublo on hand to hand combat. He might not like to fight, but if you pit him against Paublo he's forced to move lest he gets hit and stays down. Kyra has been about her flexibility and agility. She can move well already, but it can be improved to lessen the hindrance of her...assets which can get in the way." I explained as we worked.

Jonah:

I chuckled, setting aside another gun and moving to the next one. “You could put Kyra's assets to good use and have her work with Paublo, I swear, she can get him to do things you wouldn't believe. He improved quicker while we were gone than he ever did when I was working with him.”

“Andrew's problem is motivation, and confidence. Honestly, he does best when he gets agitated. His family is a sore spot for him.”

“And I think whatever you do with Kyra will keep her on the right track. She looks up to you.”

"Perhaps I should try that with Paublo. And I am sure the same might work for Andrew with another in mind....but I do not know why Kyra looks up to me. I'm shorter than her." It was a poor joke, but a joke anyway.

Jonah:

I paused, staring at her, for a moment I thought she was serious. I burst out laughing a moment later. It was a bad joke, but a joke from Kira period was a rarity.

I didn't even look at him or react after my joke, simply letting it exist as it was. "So what are your ideas?" I asked after a time as I reassembled the weapon.

Jonah:

After my laugh I set my last gun aside and began to put them away as I told her a few of my ideas and what I wanted them to do. We discussed tactics to take against the other teams in certain scenarios and how they should prepare for those situations.

From the end of our practice session, we had spent almost another hour talking it all through.

I absorbed his ideas and strategy while we talked, ending up sitting beside each other in one of the shooting booths as we talked. I didn't agree with all his ideas, but over all I decided to implement them as I felt was necessary. It was kind of startling to realize just how normal it had been to have him in practices and then the four simple days had me waiting for him before it would just be me and the teacher starting.