Help Me Or I'll Hit You... (or try to anyhow)

[Rhetoric]

Back in her own clothes, Liv wandered the halls, her mind wholly focused on the problem at hand. How was she supposed to ask the older and intensely daunting Paragon for his help? Yes, the few measly times they had interacted she had come out unscathed, but Dante didn’t seem like the type of person who granted favors or appreciated his time being wasted. Actually he seemed like he’d smack a person with their own bloody stump of an arm if they crossed him. He was cold and distant, a total city boy, and Liv couldn’t help but roll her eyes. There was nothing about his persona that was welcoming or indicative that he would ever even consider teaching her, but as Liv wasn’t the type to back down, all she could do was ignore her father’s voice bouncing around her head and see how her request would be received.

Once she reached the hall that ran through the boys’ dorms all Liv really had to do was follow her nose. The scent of tobacco smoke was immediately identifiable and her eager pace slowed as she approached the open door where the smell seemed to be coming from. Leaning in the doorway, Liv had to give herself a minute to fully take in what she was seeing, her whiskey eyes crinkled in amusement.

There was Dante, sans shirt, doing up the buckle on his belt. He hadn’t noticed her yet and Liv couldn’t help but stare. Any girl in her place would be doing th same. One corner of her mouth turned up in a puckish smile as her eyes drifted lazily over her teammate… He was certainly interesting to see. Dante was massive, every angle of his broad back and arms chorded with muscle and well defined. The tattoos were hypnotizing. Many and varied, they stained his skin with a complex history that Liv could not begin to understand. She didn’t recognize all of them, not even close, but those she could identify were more than enough to knot her stomach. Her gaze moved up to his face and her smirk slipped down into something a bit more sincere. Dante may have been cold and distant, but there was something proud and capable about him, as well. Something that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. Liv shifted, the small movement finally drawing his attention but she put up a hand, discouraging any interjection on his part.

Grinning playfully, Liv nodded. “Ok, I’m done.” Stepping into the room she glanced around, her nose crinkling more at the state of things than the smell. Cigarette smoke didn’t bother her in the least, and she wasn’t going to pass comments on that. Not when she had more important things on her mind and needed Dante in a decent mood. Hanging her thumbs off her belt loops, Liv scuffed the toe of her Converse into the dirty rug beneath her feet. She still had no idea what she was supposed to say to convince Dante that he wanted to help her. She figured she might as well be direct.

“Teach me to fight.” The words tumbled out and Liv looked up at Dante hopefully, fixing him with her wide whiskey eyes. Any trace of her smirk was erased by the humbling sensation that went along with having to ask for help. “I’m a quick study, and I don’t complain, but I’m not going to be the weak link on the team. I want to carry my weight but to do that,” Liv slid a hand through her curls, pushing them out of her face only for them to spill back into place, “I need you to teach me.”

[Glitch]

A loud disgruntled sigh escaped from Dante when he looked at the new intruder in his room as he was still fresh with dealing with ridiculous notions of the allegedly intelligent Headmistress. "What the hell is it, attack of the annoying broads? I ain't even had a smoke yet and you're the second one to bug me today," he spat reaching a hand up and feeling the light stubble on his chin that he needed to shave. Since Emma left, all he did was lounge on the bed to think for a bit about her weird ass demands and the second he starts wanting to get ready to get the crap over with, in comes Curly Sue demanding that he teach her to fight of all things. "Do I look like god damn Mr. Miyagi to you? I don't teach anyone to fight so they can overcome their enemies and rise up or whatever shit like that."

Dante picked up the electric razor he lifted from some store and began using it to shave his face. He smirked in the mirror as he saw the reflection of the way that Liv was watching him from the doorway. "I can teach ya a good number things that you'll like way better Princess, and you'll have more fun learnin' too," he said smirking widely at her in the mirror as moved the circular blades over his face to get all the hair off and leave it smooth. "Just name the time and place Dolly, and I'll teach ya things you only read about. But if you're lookin' for a sensei or whatever the %$#@ you want, go ask one of the X-Men. Ain't that why they're here dealin' with us to begin with?" Dante's face lost the smirk as he started to second guess his decision to come here with the retarded demands that were put on here. Hell in prison he woulda been with a gang and wouldn't have to deal with some sorry old teacher standing there and lecturing him about shit he'd never care to know.

"Talk to Frost, let her do some nice wacko arrangement for you, I got my own shit to worry about than teaching some little Dolly how to defend herself against the big bad bullies," he said tossing the razor into the drawer and rummaging around for that damn lotion he's supposed to put on his tattoos. "Now get lost, I got shit to do." Dante didn't even look at her as he looked through his things and wanted to get on with the crap he had to do for the day.

[Rhetoric]

Well, so much for asking nicely.

Liv strode over and bumped the drawer closed with her hip, narrowly avoiding catching Dante’s fingers in the process. She wasn’t about to be put off with a few gruff words and an indifferent dismissal, and Liv stubbornly leaned against the dresser with her arms casually folded across her chest. “Oops.” Her tone was light, colored by amusement as she looked up at Dante, her large eyes glinting. Clearly there had been no ‘oops’ about it. She wasn’t done yet. Drawing in a steadying breath, Liv forced herself to stay in place and ignore the logical bit of her brain that was ordering her to beat it. She wasn’t in the habit of buckling, not ever, and she steeled herself against Dante’s sarcasm and scornful words. Words were her toys not his, smooth as he was, and he wasn’t going to intimidate her… Much.

One delicate eyebrow arched and the corner of her smile twitched, threatening immanent laughter. He hadn’t looked so tall when they were sitting in the kitchen the night before. Or so… Liv swallowed and shook her head. Dante seemed to have about a foot of height on her and Liv couldn’t help but feel rather small. She had to crane her neck back to even look at his face. And yes, his face was preferred over the patchwork of tattoos that covered his chest at her eyelevel. They were… distracting. Blowing an errant curl out of her face, Liv shrugged. “I get it. You’re edgy and dangerous and you’ve got badass hair that scares off the other kiddies and makes all the girls melt and sigh, blah blah blah. I don’t think classes, smoking, and brooding are going to take up every minute of your day.” She looked up at him, her brow knotted as her mouth ran ahead of her brain.

Liv was relying heavily on the fact that they were teammates and on the hope that he was above chucking her out the door Fresh Prince style. She also really wished that Dante would put a shirt on so she could concentrate on what she was saying. She was pretty sure Frostbite could come in dressed as a Teletubby, and Liv wouldn’t notice. It was annoying, really. The whole Tom Cody, I’m too jaded and misunderstood, bad boy, Outsiders thing was grating. “I get that you don’t really give a shit, but unfortunately for you, we’re both Paragons.” She gestured between them incase his city-boy brain was confused. “That means at some point you’re going to need me to have your back and the best I’ll be able to do is bitch our opponents to death… I’m good at that, by the way. Or we’ll need to work as a team and all I’ll be able to contribute is wet-Willies and purple nurples. See? I’m actually doing you a favor.”

She couldn’t keep the grin from spreading across her face anymore and she chuckled, shaking her head. “Ok, ok.” She got off the dresser and opened the drawer again, giving him a bit of space before she pushed too hard and wound up another one of Dante’s puppets like Jax. “Listen, you don’t have to like me or even give a shit one way or another, but you were the first person I thought of. I can’t go to Frost. She’d hand me over to Wolverine or Shadowkat and I’d be stuck learning… Chink-itsu or something. Look at me,” she slowly rotated on her toes. “I’m not a ninja. I don’t want to be. And this isn’t about rising above or… beating down bullies.” Liv licked her lower lip, feeling the scab that cut through the skin. “I want to know how to knock a person on their ass before they knock me on mine. I want to fight dirty, and I want you to show me. I’m a Paragon, dammit.” Liv crossed her arms and straightened her shoulders, drawing herself up to her full and unimpressive five-foot-three. “If I don’t have a power to offer to the team I sure as hell better be able to kick a little ass. And,” Liv set the older boy with a firm look. "Don't call me 'princess'."

[Glitch]

For a good long minute, Dante's stared hard down at the girl in front of him, not saying a word as his turquoise eyes scrutinized her the same way they did down in the kitchen the other day when she recognized his tattoos. The determination and stubbornness that were plainly projected through her own gaze was not something that he missed, and he had to say kind of admired. He didn't know if the girl was stupid or just seriously determined, or hell maybe both, but it took guts for anyone to talk to him like that after he told them to scram.

Taking out a carton of Kools from his back pocket, he pulled one out and used his zippo to light it up, his eyes on Liv the entire time. It was as if Dante was mulling over something in his mind as he took in Liv's face and body, inspecting every detail of her as the idea of this little frail doing some hardcore dirty street fighting. "Sit down," he said after taking several drags of the cigarette, gesturing to the bed and looking over at what he interpreted to be a slightly confused look. "Did I &%*@ing stutter? Sit down!" When she finally took a seat, Dante let the lit cigarette rest on the ashtray while he grabbed the bottle of Listerine took out a clean hand towel. "You can't even take care of a busted lip the right way, and you wanna know how to fight. Now hold still, this ain't gonna feel all that nice," he said taking the rag that he poured the Listerine on and dabbed the nasty looking cut on her lip that looked well on it's way to getting infected, if it already wasn't.

Dante grabbed his cigarette and took a long pull as he dabbed her lip carefully so it would kill all the bacteria in the wound. "First thing is you gotta learn how to take care of yourself after a beat down. Maybe you don't realize this, but when you're hurt or in pain cause you were stupid enough to let a cut get infected, then you're gonna be the first to go down. You got that?" He glared at her to get his point across and tossed her an really small unopened tub of Vaseline. "You're keeping that. Put it on your lip now and keep putting it on for the next two days so it won't get infected."

He put out the cigarette and began lacing up his boots while grabbing a white wife beater to throw on. "The thing about fighting is it's big on common sense. If you're too stupid to take care of your cuts right or get someone who knows how to do it for you, than you're screwed before you start. Whoever you're fighting is gonna see the wound and you can bet your ass that's what they're gonna target. There's lesson one for ya, quit being stupid," he said and grabbed her arm, hauling her up to her feet. Dante leaned down so he could see her eye to eye, studying her closely with narrowed eyes. "I don't need to babysit a frail little Dolly with a mouth when in the Danger Room or anywhere else. I'll show you how it's done, but don't expect me to say some 'encouraging give it your best' bullshit. You %@#$ up, that's on you. You better not be wasting my god damn time Dolly," he said in a harsh and cold voice, part of him wanting to scare her off while the other wondered just how much she'd take.

[Rhetoric]

Liv had been compliant while he barked and growled, ordering her about and calling her stupid. She’d pretty much asked for that, going to Dante of all people, and so she kept her mouth shut. She’d obeyed when he instructed her about keeping her injuries tended and winced, knowing full well she should have taken care of her face sooner. Just because she disliked going to medical there was no reason she couldn’t have disinfected and looked after her own small wound. Liv had even accepted his first ‘lesson’ with a lazy smile. In all honesty, it sounded like something her mother would have said to her and that, coupled with the familiar scent of cigarette smoke, had actually relaxed her until Dante hauled her up by the arm, his voice harsh and his face cold.

He wanted to get in her face? Fine. She didn’t need to know how to fight to throw someone off. Eyes wicked, Liv leaned forward and planted a quick peck on the tip of his nose. “Thanks for takin care of my lip, Tough Stuff. S’all better now.” She had to hide her grin behind her hand, biting back laughter. He was so serious! Liv looked up at his face and popped an eyebrow. “Oh, knock it off. We've been over this already. You might be a scary dude, but you don't scare me." No, what he did was confuse the hell out of her. She hadn’t thought it possible to be both considerate and a total dick at the same time and it was putting her off balance. “I’m not looking to waste your time, or mine for that matter. It’s not like I wandered in here on a whim to bother you… that’s just a happy coincidence.” She smirked up at him and absently rubbed her arm where he had grabbed her before she realized what she was doing and quickly dropped her hand. Dante clearly already thought that she was incompetent and a wimp and she didn’t need to prove him right.

“If I wanted high fives and ‘way to gos’ I’d have asked Ricki for help. Or Ian. Or… well, anyone else really.” Liv wasn’t street tough, she knew that, and the most dangerous thing about her was her mouth, but that didn’t mean she was hopeless or needed to be ‘babysat’. She was untrained, not some delicate flower that was going to wilt at the first sign of trouble. “But who wants encouragement and kindness when they can have blatant disdain and animosity?” Liv snickered and glanced up at Dante before schooling her face into a serious scowl and standing at parade rest, hands clasped behind her back. “Alright then, Tough Stuff… what’s lesson two?”

[Glitch]

The little kiss on the nose made Dante jerk back as if he'd been scalded, blinking for a moment to get himself together. This damn broad surprised him, and he didn't like it. He took her in skeptically, eyes narrowed as he looked her over and tried to work her out. She wasn't like Ricki at all, who was just so damn innocent that he didn't have the heart to break that in her. No, this girl was either naive or had a daredevil streak in her. He really didn't like that she wasn't afraid of him, or rather it just made him uneasy. He'd seen even the toughest chicks and guys have a streak of fear run through them when encountering him, but this girl's naivety was like the same kind a little kid had, where they just didn't know better, and if they did they didn't care.

The prickly little broad was making his mind whirl, and he didn't know if he altogether liked it, but he could still give her credit for having guts. Instead of saying another word, he took her arm again, this time much gentler, and his eyes narrowed even more when he saw the red that was already visible on her pale skin, the slight dark edges showing that she'd have a small bruise. Dante cursed under his breath, inspected her arm closer as he felt himself getting angry with himself. He didn't make it a point to hurt girls, and one had yet to push him to the point where he purposely would hurt them. He hadn't meant to grab her so hard, and he was angry that he didn't have better control of his strength.

Dante gently stroked the bruise, not looking her in the eye since he was too pissed at himself to focus on anything than the red welt. "We'll grab some ice for that when we go downstairs," he said in a less harsher voice. That was his way of apologizing, since he wasn't used to it and the last thing he needed was a reputation that said he was some sorry sap. "I got some shit to do for the day. Meet me tonight outside the garage, and we'll work on lesson two. Ya dig Dolly?" He looked up at her now, searching her face for a moment before putting on his wifebeater and grabbing his cigarettes. "Come on, let's get that arm fixed."