Paint the Town Red (Lucy)

[Vincent Meian]

Not too many of Vincent's students were troublemakers, surprisingly. Most of them were actually pretty good kids, and those that tended towards misbehaving were already under the careful watch of others. It was the misuse of the student's powers that often landed the trainer himself in trouble, and even those situations were few and far between. Accidents happen, and an increased training regimen was often more than enough to settle that particular drive.

However, Lucy Serrano was a bit of a different animal.

Months ago, the Australian's former trainer had stormed into Vincent's office and unceremoniously handed off her files, claiming that "if he wanted to teach the 'artist', he was more than welcome to her". It was actually quite startling, mostly because the Japanese man hadn't thought that he'd done anything wrong - the girl was in a training room, alone, throwing paint on the walls. He was going to discipline her, but considering her powers Vincent had decided instead to give her a short training lesson. What was the harm in that?

In any case, Lucy (who still apparently believed that he had an illicit relationship with a male student, regardless of what he told her) was now his student. They'd been working together for the past few months, but it had been rather sporadic before and was now even more sparse. Something had to be done, and he really didn't want to go hunting her down again as that never seemed to help anything. So, he'd rescheduled their training session for the week to today, after school hours. He'd also told her to meet him off campus, at this dance club, and that he would walk her back to the dorms when they were finished with the session.

Amusingly, it didn't even occur to him that this might be taken amiss.

Having already met with the owner of the club, the trainer stood outside, leaning against the wall by the door waiting for either the bus to come or Lucy to turn a corner and walk this way. He'd already brought the paint, as well as brushes and rollers (mostly for him, but in case his student became tired), and the tarps were laid out in the alley to the side.

It was going to be a tough session, maybe one for the whole weekend, but it would certainly be (as the saying went) right up her alley.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Lucy had been even more of a wayward individual since she got back from the Retreat. Sometimes she'd turn up time and time again in a good mood. In other instances, she'd disappear for an equal amount of time. Something had been up with her in the passing months, but what that was was something she was holding pretty close to her chest.

Nevertheless, she liked Vincent. Really, she did. Even if he had a thing for one of his students. Whatever, it was all good.

She just didn't have the energy for all this.

Dressed in the usual parka, jeans and combat boots, she opted to go to the session regardless of her mood and do what he wanted anyway. It was cool, or cold to her. And while the Australian didn't exactly like the cold, for this she supposed it was worth it.

When she saw him, she looked surprised. The eldest Serrano tucked her hands into her pockets. "What's this?" She asked, raising an eyebrow and glancing up the wall, "Community service, right? What'd I do?"

[Vincent Meian]

The fact that the first conclusion voiced was one concerning punishment almost made the trainer wryly amused. Save, of course, for the fact that it wasn't outside the scope of possibility. Instead of showing this amusement, however, the tall man pushed himself off the wall easily and shook his head. "No, this is not a punishment," he stated. "This is training. During the course of the next week, we are going to provide a mural for this establishment. What it will consist of is your concern, however I expect your best work."

Always somewhat unorthodox, this session was not a new one to Vincent. He'd had a telekinetic in the past who was an artist as well, and this sort of session was used to teach them how to maintain fine control after extreme force. Lucy's training would be different, as the entirety of her power seemed centered on detail work, but it would still be both a test of her broadest levels of control and (hopefully) a stress relief for whatever had been ailing her the past months.

With a motion to the paint buckets, the Japanese man gave his Australian pupil a nod. "They have all been opened and the colors approved. I will be your assistant in this; direct me as you would your club members. Aside from that, the task is yours, Serrano-san."

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Lucy listened as he explained the different between punishment and training. If nothing else, she could try to appreciate that he was going about his explanation in a way that would make sense to her. It simply was. But she'd need the logic. "That's what people do when they spray paint shit on walls and get caught." Her mouth twitched into a frown. God damn, it was cold.

"I barely talk to my club members, so unless you want me to tell you to fuck off outta my way, don't ask me to do that." There might have been one exception, but that hardly seemed to be worth mentioning.

At any rate, the eldest Serrano moved to stand over the allotted paint. She stared down at them, her hands on her hips, her lips pursed. It was the only downside of an open canvas type of thing. Where to start. "You do much art stuff, Vin?" Lucy asked him, tossing a glance over her shoulder.

[Vincent Meian]

"The point remains that I do not wish to punish you," he replied, maintaining that point despite her grumblings. "Given your enthusiasm for the arts, I thought you might enjoy something a bit more... original." Because as much as training was meant to be hard work, if the student enjoyed themselves they were more likely to want to succeed. With some people, this worked wonders; Sam Rixon, for example, was graduating this year. With other students, their fears or distaste for their abilities got in the way. Since Lucy enjoyed art (especially messy art, from what he'd seen), she may or may not enjoy this. "Think of it as a challenge not only to your abilities, but to your creativity."

All right, yes; maybe bringing up her club members wasn't the best example. Still, a scathing response was better than no response at all, and Vincent shrugged. "If you wish to do this alone, that is your choice. I am here to help in any way you see fit."

Not much to anyone's surprise, the trainer shook his head. His daughter was the artist, not him - he understood color theory (basically) and could certainly cover an area of space quickly should he need to. But Rembrandt he was not. "My art consists of the musical variety," he answered honestly. "However, if you direct me, I am sure I will make fewer mistakes."

The session served another purpose in this regard; from his perspective, the Australian was an out-spoken and very direct individual. She had the potential to be a good leader, if she understood how to work with other people. Not being a person to make group sessions, Vincent didn't see how she interacted with other students on a regular basis, so this would be an interesting trial run.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

"I'll let you know." Lucy replied eventually. She still wasn't even sure what she was doing, let alone if she needed help.

The ink manipulator stretched her arms up over her head, her muscles feeling tense. Lately the ink under her skin had been giving her grief - a fact she kept to herself. But still, she was apprehensive to start.

"Ah, if you've got it for something, you've got a bit of it for everything." She denoted with a small shrug. "Like, I dunno. I'm guessing you play something. How do you go about that?" Pursing her lips, she shifted her hands around a pot of paint. Whitewashing was important first, she figured. Couldn't go wrong there. "Chuck a lot of thought in or just pick up whatever it is and go with it? Make your own music or follow what someone else's giving you?"

[Vincent Meian]

A short nod showed that the Japanese man understood - if she decided that his help was not needed, then he was very certain that Lucy would tell him. Immediately and bluntly. It was something he'd come to expect of her.

A slight softening of the trainer's features denoted almost a smile at the encouraging words. The fact that she was reaching out to try and find his comfort zone (even if it was to see how much work needed to be done on her end) was a good sign. It showed consideration for others, even in its most cynical view of simply establishing technical skill.

"I can present a piece of music either by reading it or listening," he answered. "'Playing by ear', I have heard it called. I do not have the skill to compose." It was a humble statement, though an honest one; Vincent did not write music, despite being more than technically skilled enough to play. His violin may have been old, but it was certainly handled well, and the pieces that were played upon it were as eclectic as his tastes in music. All he needed was to hear a piece or read it, and he could make the string resonate.

Noting the primer in her hands, he gestured to the wall. "Shall we begin?"

The Aussie could splash the whole thing on the wall or use the tools he'd brought initially. Either way was up to her, and ultimately would reflect her own style and tastes. He would simply follow along and help where directed. And, of course, make suggestions on when and where she could use her abilities in the process.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Learning by listening... Lucy twisted her mouth to one side. What first hand experience she had creating music came from her friends. But she supposed it was a concept that made sense. "Hardcore auditory learning." She wondered. It was hardcore because, well, it just was.

"But you know how to play the notes. How they sound in succession. How to make it sound good?" She said, though she phrased it as a question. Assuming things was all well and good, but without a legitimate answer, she couldn't continue her train of thought.

Curling her fingers around the tin, Lucy felt her fingers touch the familiar substance without a flinch. It was comforting. Familiar against the backdrop of their location. True to form, the ink manipulator hurled the base coat over a direct portion of the wall, tossing the container aside and pressing her already painted hand against the wall. Direct contact. She put her weight on her hand.

"I got a point here, if I can get to it."

[Vincent Meian]

The trainer nodded with her assessment. There was indeed nothing wrong with his technical skills, and despite his generally unemotive face, he could pour a surprising amount of feeling into his violin's notes. According to the few that heard him play, he was quite good. "Yes; I have been told I play very well."

The splash did not take him by surprise, but the inherent childish exuberance did make Vincent smile a bit; a hint of a smirk that crinkled his eyes. While they didn't always flaunt his expectations, his students were all very unique and had ways of expressing themselves that were sometimes just... more than human. Bigger than life. So core to themselves that it was in a way inherently magical. Lucy throwing paint on a wall was just as true to her being as a cat's playful batting and biting.

Stooping to pick up one of the rollers and pass it between both hands, the tall man looked between the wall and the girl. He'd already offered to be directed, the rest was up to her for the moment.

[Lucy Serrano-Blaise]

Lucy nodded at the way he spoke. So he didn't suck at the instrument of choice. She'd remember that.

She briefly watched as he picked up one of the rollers. After a moment, she nodded her head towards the wall. If he wanted at it, he could go for his life. This was the seemingly unimportant part of it all, anyway. Her fingers idly tapped at the paint covered surface, the corner of her mouth twitching as if threatening a frown. But the whitewash was crawling across the surface anyway.

"So you don't suck at the instrument thing. You got a groove for it, or whatever." She waved her free hand idly. It mightn't have been the right word, but damn, it was fitting; "How come you can't apply that groove to something like this?"