Dealing With Failure [Solomon/Violet]

Violet was taken aback. Did he just get sassy? For some reason, that sort of witty attitude was not what Violet expected from him. She assumed he was going to be the same guy she initially met: hero rich boy. She was pleasantly surprised. Even if his eyes rang more seriously than she took it, she happily laughed.

"What a shot..." Violet said as her laugh calmed. "You sound like you want to train me... Would you really do that? I really do fucking suck at this... I can't even get the names down. All the German shit? I was born and raised in Texas. How am I to understand that, especially enough to incite my own powers?"

"Of course, I'd gladly train you. If this is something you genuinely wish to pursue, then yes, I will offer my assistance however time permits."

Solomon was no master of the quincy arts, but he was wholly comfortable with introducing her to his realm of expertise. That was simply the type of kindhearted man he was. He was already fairly invested in looking over her and honoring his word. Solomon pulled another cookie from the plate, chewing on the sweet with a tilt of his head. Born in Texas? There was another woman who was, in her own words, Texas Proud. One who was his superior and a capable warrior in equal measure. And she was handling herself fairly well.

"Truth be told, you don't need to. One of my coordinators is, in her words, Texas Proud. And she manages fairly well without relying on a single lick of German. One of our division's finest, in fact. You don't need to be wildly immersed in the German language to learn the basic understanding. First and foremost, the most essential step is exploring the scope of your own personal ability to manipulate reishi and how well you can manipulate it."

Violet's heart skipped a beat, though she steeled an blank face. Another Texan in the City of Lights? A pit expanded in her stomach. If she had any less control, she would have likely vomited. Instead, she convinced herself it was just a coincidence. There was no way this man knew her Aunt. And if he did, she could not let him know who she was in relation to that woman. While her Aunt was never mean or abusive in any way, Violet feared being forced to go back to Texas. Why should she go back? She had a home now, and being revealed would only mess that up.

Thank god Solomon did not ask about any relation between them. Some may have made the assumption, but the fact that Violet dyed her hair dark kept people from realizing her heritage. "Actually, I, uh... I could use the help," Violet said, nodding. There was some hesitation as she thought of running away from him. It was what she normally did. Technically, she was still in the middle of running away and being in hiding, so doing so again would be easy. "But I've never controlled reishi before..."

"It's because of that I've doubted my own heritage, ya know? It's not like I've ever been able to prove any real control, so I... Oh, well I did once, but it blew up in my face. I was little, and that's how Dad realized I might be able to do it. Unfortunately, I was young enough that I don't even remember. Doesn't feel real..."

"Generally speaking, reishi manipulation isn't something inherent only to us. It is simply our higher specialization that separates us most. The entire process is ultimately defined by recognizing your limit first and slowly working your way up from there. Of course, I'd prefer to show with my actions rather than my words."

Solomon would finish off the rest of his cookies, walking over to sit a few meters beside Violet on the couch. Motioning for the woman to observe him, he slowly lifted his hands upward. Exhaling softly, he collected the ambient reishi within atmosphere. Two small orbs of azure effortlessly weaved into creation, rotating at the center of his palms.

"It all lies in focus and allowing yourself to become one with the atmosphere in a sense. No frustration. Let your spirit be at ease, and slowly, even if it's a small particle, collect it and manipulate it's shape. Like so..."

Solomon would slowly turn the orbs into gumball-shaped balls of reishi, guiding one over in her direction. With the orb in his other hand, he slowly manipulated its shape until it slowly returned to its original size.

"Try and see if you can draw from the ambient reishi in the atmosphere. Even if it's a small set of particles, it's a start."

Violet observed quietly. As the orbs appeared, she moved over toward him and looked closely at them. She was expecting something more, but it never happened. Instead, he started schooling her with knowledge and this weirdly patient understanding she found completely unfamiliar, and a bit off-putting.

With a pouting expression, she raised an eyebrow at him. "But that's not a bow. I thought Quincy fought with bows? Dad didn't teach me any of this ball stuff. He said I have to summon a bow." There was likely a bit more frustration than she meant there to be there. She returned to her spot on the couch, arms crossed.

"I can't do anything like that. Watch." Violet held out her hands and stared at the palm, trying to create a ball like he did. There was a diminutive hint of the ability to pull on reishi, but it was worse than pathetic. She likely didn't understand the basics of what reishi really was, let alone how to use and form it into something.

"Contrary to popular belief, not every quincy fights with a bow. Some of my superiors fight with swords and guns, and I fight primarily with a blade. These balls are not spirit weapons. This is merely the result of reishi manipulation. Again, for someone who hasn't attempted it much, you cannot expect immediate results. Patience is key, Violet."

Solomon drew in the ambient particles, crushing the balls within his palms. When the ambient reishi dispersed entirely, he curiously gazed at her attempt. Nothing of note happened outside of a diminutive sign that something was present. It was clear that the father was likely a poor teacher. Before Solomon was told to form his spirit weapon, he was taken to training fields to manipulate and control the reishi within his immediate atmosphere. Forcing someone to create something without understanding the mechanics behind it was truly the height of idiocy. Reaching his hand upward, he patted her shoulder as he waved his hand.

"Instead of focusing on a spirit weapon, your first intent should be figuring out how to gather the ambient reishi within the air. Even if it's a few small wisps of energy, its a start. From there, you simply test out how much you can collect and expand your scope. Of course... I must ask, do you understand what reishi is, Violet?"

It was worth the venture. A basic question, but to someone who wasn't raised in a particularly ideal environment, it was nevertheless pertinent to ask from his point of view.

Patience... She had no patience! No one ever showed much patience with her, so it wasn't exactly a learned skill. It didn't help that her frustration meter was often on the high end, so any little thing seemed to set her off, especially when she failed herself. Not being able to summon anything just tipped her over the edge. Though she was now controlling her louder outbursts, mainly because she was trying to be a decent person in front of him. Who is rude to someone that buys them a house?

His question embarrassed her. Her face went red, her head lowered, and she hugged herself while turning away from him. "I mean, yeah..." she said without an ounce of confidence, "It's just those energy pieces that float around the air and stuff. Supposed to bring 'em in and make them solid...I don't know..."

"That's certainly one way of describing it, yes."

Solomon hummed softly, acknowledging that he was correct in his assumption. This was clearly a touchy subject for her, where her insecurities came to the surface. As he said before, there was no need to forcibly rush the process along. Doing so would only frustrate her at every attempt, and he could tell that she was visibly bothered by the weight of it all. His arms reached in to pat at her shoulders as he sighed softly, sitting beside her. She looked like she could use some fresh air. They could reserve this for another hour or day.

"How about we go outside and take a walk together, hm? I can tell your visibly frustrated, and no good comes of training or attempting to learn something with a troubled mind. I hear there's a summer fair going on in the City of Lights today."

Well, maybe she got that right? Sort of. She couldn't really tell how correct she was by that reply. It was just a lesson that was drilled into her over years, and she still never understood. Even as she watched other succeed, nothing about reishi ever clicked with her... Hopefully, with his help, that would change soon.

Violet's feelings on changing the subject were fifty-fifty. She wanted to learn more, and if she did figure this out, maybe her Dad would love her for once. However, she did only feel frustrated, so his offer to go somewhere was tempting. She looked back to him, her posture still defeated and arms still hugging herself. She gave a soft nod, "I haven't gotten my pay check for this week yet... You can't pay for everything all the time, you know? Sweet or not, it's not really fair."

"Pay me back when you get the chance if it helps you sleep at night, Violet. It's my treat. As it stands right now, I can't teach you anything with with a distressed mind weighing you down. Use some fresh air to relax. If I were to become your teacher, you'd have to follow my rules, and this is one of them. if it helps, the only thing I'll pay for is the food."

Solomon flicked her forehead as he rose up from the couch. From his point of view, it was indeed true that she would accomplish nothing here with the heavy burden of frustration weighing her down. Distracting herself from it all would at least lessen her frustration. That was the intent, at least. Fixing his sunglasses, he made his way to the door as opened it slowly. From the beginning, he learned there was a certain way to approaching someone like Violet. She was a straightshooter. Spouting needless words that he possibly wouldn't believe himself just felt counterproductive. Any form of training was doomed from the start if she approached it the way she was now.

"Enjoy yourself for a change, will you? No one's here to look down on you. There is a support system here for you to rely on, freely and without worry. Go at your own pace. There is no need to overwhelm yourself. Remember that."