Part 1

Case 30 - The Neighborhood Part 2


    Ã¢â‚¬Å“The first things we must work on are discipline and perception.”  Keiko began as she began Corey’s first lesson in the basement of his home.  That was said after she asked him to move all the furniture from the center of the room to the edges, and unroll an old rug onto the concrete floor.  After that, she asked him to sit on his knees on the rug.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Perception?”  Corey asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yes, perception.”  Keiko confirmed.  “In this house, for example, I know approximately where both of your parents are.  The floor creaks slightly when they walk around, they turn on water faucets and open and close doors, so I just remember where they last stopped.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Why is that important?”

    Keiko finally joined him, sitting on the rug directly in front of him.  “Because bullies have to surprise you.  If you see them coming you’ll go the opposite way, or hide, yes?”

    Corey nodded.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“If you know they’re coming you’ll be prepared.  You’ll learn to listen for their voices, for the distinct sound of their lockers opening or closing.  A jacket zipper, distinctive sounding boots or shoes.  Anything you can use to single them out.”

    The teen finally smiled.  “This is sounding pretty cool.”  he said.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“It is pretty cool.”  Keiko agreed with an amused smile.  “Perception is most important, Corey.  While you will use it simply to detect and avoid bullies if possible, it was far more important for me, to avoid certain death.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“What do you mean, avoid?”  Corey caught on to.

    Keiko’s smile disappeared, and she became serious.  “Corey, if you’re thinking of beating up someone larger and stronger than you...it takes years of training.  The most I can hope to do quickly is teach you how to avoid them, or how to disable them temporarily.  But you won’t win a fight...unless you’re extremely lucky.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Have you ever lost a fight?”  he finally asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No.”  Keiko replied plainly.  “But the stakes were different, Corey.  I’m highly trained, and if I lost a fight I wouldn’t have survived it.”

    A moment of silent realization passed between them, as if Corey found the whole concept of Keiko as a female ninja amusing...up until now.  Suddenly it seemed a little dark and scary.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“That wouldn’t happen to me, would it?”  he asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Very unlikely.”  Keiko replied.  “You won’t play with death as I did.  If by some unlikely circumstance your life is in danger, however, this training will help improve your chances.”

    Finally, the discussion about it was over.  Corey set aside his curiosity and sat back.  “What do I do first?”  he asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You listen.”  Keiko told him, lowering her voice to a whisper.  “You listen, and you think.”


---


    The basement had been silent for around a half hour.  Corey’s parents decided to go out for dinner, so the last sounds heard from them were the garage opening, and the car starting up.  All that was left now were the air conditioning starting up once in a while, and the distant rumbling of thunder and rain from outside.

    Corey was holding steady with Keiko’s first lesson.  He sat on the floor, remaining mostly still, and listening.  Keiko sat directly in front of him, also sitting on the floor and listening.  He wasn’t sure of the purpose of it until Keiko finally spoke up.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Now tell me something you remember from listening.”  she requested.  “Something less obvious than your parents leaving for dinner.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I heard a siren from somewhere.”  Corey replied.  “Like a fire engine, or an ambulance, or something.  Does that count?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yes.”  Keiko replied with a smile and a nod.  “That’s very good.  Most people are not perceptive of distant sirens...you’re getting--.”  She stopped talking suddenly when she heard something upstairs.  Then she slipped her shoes on quickly.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I heard it too.”  Corey whispered.

    Keiko motioned for Corey to stay put, and she went up the steps - quietly, but not slowly.  The teen was amazed to see how quickly she moved without making a sound.    She silently slipped through the door at the top.

    She breathed a sigh of relief, though quietly, when she realized what the sound was.  There was another teenage boy, this one with long hair, taller, and slightly overweight, who seemed all too confident about strolling into the kitchen and raiding the refrigerator while listening to a music.  He was in the midst of making a sandwich when Keiko spotted him.

    Keiko leaned against the doorway to the kitchen casually and crossed her arms.  “Friend of Corey’s?”  she asked out loud.

    The teenager turned white as a sheet and dropped the knife he was using to spread mayonnaise onto the floor with a pair of clangs.  One earphone dropped out of his ear.  He remained perfectly frozen.

    Corey heard what Keiko said and raced up the stairs to the kitchen noisily.  

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Hey, bud!”  he exclaimed as he slipped past the small Asian woman.  He quickly made an introduction to un-freeze his friend.  “This is Keiko, she’s teaching me how to fight.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“A girl?  Teaching you how to fight?”  His friend laughed.  He then looked at Keiko and added, “No offense.”

    Keiko patiently didn’t respond.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Mouse...dude, She’s a real kunoichi.”  Corey tried to explain in a near whisper.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“No way.”  his friend Mouse replied.  He looked at Keiko again, who didn’t seem all that threatening at the moment.  She just stood perfectly still, against the doorway of the kitchen, watching quietly.

    He finally asked, “What’s your special ninja skill?”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Stealth.”  Keiko replied plainly, as if her previous silence was evidence enough.  She looked at Corey and added, “You two can hang out if you wish.  I should go home and take care of some things.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“We could hang out with you.”  Corey suggested.

    Keiko gave him a friendly smile in response.  “I don’t think it would look too cool hanging out with someone so much older than you.  I’ll see you at your next lesson tomorrow.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Okay.”  he reluctantly agreed.  He then wordlessly walked Keiko to the front door.

    Once the door opened, Keiko realized that it was still raining.  Not the violent, driving rain that hit when the storm began, but enough to get soaked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You sure you want to go now?”  he asked again.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yes.”  Keiko replied firmly.  “I’m sorry to sound so stubborn, but I’ve been neglecting my work while here.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh.”  Corey replied.  “Well um...good luck.  I’ll seeya.”

    Practically before Corey finished that sentence, Keiko sprinted across the street, careful to follow the sidewalks so she wouldn’t end up with soaked shoes.

    When she arrived at home, she felt a little relieved.  But once she managed to change to dry clothing and put a towel over her damp hair, she also felt a little lonely.  Suddenly, she was not the center of attention any longer.  She didn’t anticipate how much she would enjoy having a student.

    Keiko walked into her small office and study, just off of the living room, and shut the door.  It was a mental cue that separated her from her house.  She sat in the leather office chair and picked up the phone to call Ron Clancy.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah?”  Ron answered the phone in his office.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Is it raining over there?”  Keiko asked him, trying to make a little small talk.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“It is.  That what you’re callin’ about?”  Ron asked suspiciously.

    Keiko sighed.  Small talk was never his strong suit.  “You know the car scam case?  The one with disappearing in-transit cars?  I’ll do it.”


TO BE CONTINUED
    


-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2008 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- World Class and all characters therein are property of 
--    Strike Two and Jason Froikin.

...where is everyone?

And I'm not going away.

> 1.  Where do you think people are going?

I have no idea, which is one of the things that concerns me.

> 2.  Do you wish the PVB was something it currently isn't?  Different kinds of stories, missing characters, etc?  Or has it gone too soft, gotten too silly, etc?

My only problems with it right now are the lack of replies (and I do apologize for overlooking your last World Class) and the bad noise that results from the same, either because of people pronouncing the board dead, or others coming out of lurking to tell those who are complaining to shut up, neither of whom do anything to improve my mood. I have mixed feelings on the long round-robins and extended epics, because while they've inspired me to move forward with certain character developments, they've also discouraged me from writing other stories, because it often feels like my characters are trapped in a holding pattern, waiting for other writers' plot developments.

> 3.  Is the PVB taking up time that doesn't exist (i.e. time from work, chores, etc) and therefore getting you in trouble you can do without?  For instance are you always close to getting busted reading the PVB at work, or taking time from work, getting you in trouble at work or with family?

Nothing like that.

> 4.  Is there someplace else, possibly an alternative to the PVB that you feel is a better investment of your leisure time?  Another message board?  Facebook?  Something similar?

I have to admit, I've been spending more time writing fanfic on LiveJournal, even though I still want to tell stories about my own characters, and one of the reasons is because I can get anywhere from a dozen to a hundred replies to one of my fanfics.

> 5.  Is the PVB itself "too silly" and you've gone on to more serious things?

Never.

> 6.  Are you afraid your chosen profession would be harmed by associating with the PVB?  Or that it will endanger your family or kids?  Is it a case of "I would have stuck with the PVB but I can't have it (bookmarked) where the kids/wife can see it"?

Never.

I'm here. I read and respond to stuff that interests me, though to be blunt there is less of such material on the board.

As for writing, since it has become work for me and the pay off in reader feedback has dwindled I decided to take a break from putting up new stories.

At least I'm not the only potentially crazy one here.



Quite a lot of people in this world are "bridge burners" - they can just one day walk away from something they've spent years working on and never turn back or think about it again. It kind of sucks that I'm not one of them, because I'm usually left wondering where all of them went. I guess that stems from my tendency to question my own decisions all the time.



I know the current main plot is kind of locked up and moving very slowly. I emailed Ian that I was worried it was causing people to take longer and longer breaks from reading (i.e. if they would only check the board once a week, the lack of tie-ins and such have made it every 2 to 3 weeks). I offered to help by taking some of the subplots off his hands to move things along, but I think my offer may have been too little and too late.



Ironically I used to write unique fanfic (posted to a Yahoo Group at the time), but I gave it up because the audience shrunk to nothing. It was fun to write for my own amusement, but not too good a use of time without an audience. I believe at one time I posted some of the Batgirl fanfic I did here.

Our community here used to be more resilient than that, though. We didn't used to be at a point where one slot-moving story line without tie-ins would kill the board permanently. We used to be able to hold out for a couple weeks until things opened up again. In fact I had been preparing for it.



I still have 3 more parts to the Saving the World tie-in stuff with Lara and Chiaki. It's waiting for a related story to be posted, which now might not be posted at all because everyone's gone. So now I'm not sure when or if I can post mine at all. That's why I've been putting up World Class lately. I have fun writing that even if nobody reads it.

Also I have a few "scrap" stories that never were posted because I wasn't entirely sure about the context or how it would be accepted. I've been writing a lot the past few weeks, it's just not all post-worthy or completed. I'm not sure what to do with those either, or whether to fix them.

I liked the kid's disappointment as Keiko revealed that she'd be focusing on teaching him how to avoid the kids causing him trouble, rather than how to take 'em down. Surely not as exciting, but probably more useful. And if the teen has to spend time quietly in his basement with a hot ninja chick, then that's the price he has to pay.

Looking forward to the next part, and happy to see a new story on the board.

It's summer so I think outside.


No. Maybe. I don't know. I just want to the PV to continue.


I wouldn't mind more stories & the return of any of the myriad of missing Characters. I want stuff from Scott (beyond Caption the Pic) but I don't see that happening anytime soon.


I have not seen softness, if it's there: I've been ignoring it/not aware of it.

I do like the silly so Silly is welcomed by me. Bring it on!


I don't get internet access at work but then I work in retail so neither do many of the people I work with. Also, I had family over for the last 2 weeks & I posted 2 or 3 stories so work/family hasn't stopped my posting.


I do have another side of my online activities & it's Micro Heroes (Pixel art if you want to get general). I try to not favor one of the other but sometimes I just get into a project & devote my time there. I'm in the middle of 2 projects, one here & one there. The split is working fine at the moment.


Yes & No. Most of older is stuff is embarrassing/silly & my more recent stuff is "more serious" but still with some sense of whimsy! I can't leave the the silliness behind it's almost one of my trademarks.


No. I doubt my work even cares. As along as I do my work in a timely manner, they need be none the wiser.

> 6a. Or that it will endanger your family or kids?  Is it a case of "I would have stuck with the PVB but I can't have it (bookmarked) where the kids/wife can see it"?

I talk to my parents all the time about what I write. I've told a few people about the Parodyverse


The only thing I've heard recently is KS is taking a break from writing but he's still around.

I've got a few different stories planned. I haven't started writing many of them but I was under the idea that there would be some place around for me to post them.

I have at least one story is an holding pattern. Yes, it involves the round robin. I want to know where the story ends up before I write my epilogue to said story. I have another story that I holding off on since I'm not exactly sure where I'm going with it/it involves people tied up in the Round Robin. I will post a story about the Cult of Chad & Ronnie soon!

I have a handful of ideas that don't have character tied up in the RR, well... Catherine kind of is but she's on the Parrodipolis side, not the Land that Common Sense Forgot side so I more leeway to where she can go & what she can do. After I finish up her adventure at the Library I have at least 3 possible stories to do with her and/or his supporting cast. I got this great idea for Grandpa Thomas that I want to do! There is a work idea that I have.

Oh.. I have another idea that I'm holding off on since it would need to take place after the round robin/I haven't called to Kirk about the idea: it would be a follow up story to Catherine's meeting with April. I kind of want Dream in it.

I have few other stories ideas floating around so I should be set until at least the Fall which then I could do holiday themed stuff (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas & Chrismahannaqwanza to name a few) So, that could take me up to the new year!

I got the time, the ideas & maybe the energy: I just need to write it all down! So I want/need the PV to be around!

Sure, how often do you have a ninja chick in your basement?



It's in progress. And I'm not ready to give up just yet.

The way you described him, he didn't sound like no mouse to me!

Can't stay outside all the time.



Me too.



Noted.



That was right in this thread.

Maybe he's very quiet. Maybe he likes cheese.

I don't have any problem waiting to see the "Saving the Future" story conclude, since HH seems to have a definite plan as how things will end.

I was talking about reviving its status as a round-robin, and taking up some of the subplots. If we're all writing pieces of the conclusion, that might encourage HH to finish it.

He said such help wasn't necessary. I suspect the reason the story isn't finished yet is because of a low number of readers, not a high number of dangling subplots.

True...but the low number of readers causing it to become low priority implies that he doesn't want to put a lot of work and time into it. If we make it take less time and work it might help improve the chances.

Again, its probably the lack of participation from the posters who have characters in the story rather the complexity of the story itself that's keeping it from being finished. Since that's the case, I doubt the 4-5 people who post regularly are going to be able to solve that problem.

However, none of that stops you from posting a story that resolves your characters' roles in the plot. In fact, if its something you want to do, you have every right to do it.

I thought it might be the time and effort it takes to write balanced against whether he thinks it's worth the time. Less story to write, less time, and eventually it might be worth it.



The issue that worried me about it wasn't whether I have the right to. It was whether this was a matter of "If Ian doesn't get around to resolving that plot point, it should die, period." In other words, whether me going to the effort will result only in making people angry.

As I said, I'm willing to contribute, but only if that contribution isn't going to be seen as an insult, I guess. I'm not saying I'll write the entire ending - I'm probably least qualified of anyone to do that. But I could take care of the fringes and my own characters, Visionary has plenty of characters involved and the experience (and he's good, too!) that he could contribute a major part, etc.

Plus maybe if we spur into action, Ian won't feel like this is all on his head, which currently makes him feel even less like writing. If we're involved knee-deep in this, he might be more willing, because if the story crashes and burns, all of us crash and burn with it.

I think part of the problem, in other words, is that right now it looks like if he writes a long story and spends hours on it, us on the board here have nothing invested in that time. Maybe we'll read it, maybe we won't. I have to tell you, it's quite depressing to write a major story arc and have nobody read it. If we're all involved, though, at least we're reading and enjoying each other's posts, and maybe attracting some outside attention too.

I think lack of replies leads to a downward spiral of less inspiration for story writers, leading to less postings, leading to less reason for people to check the board regularly and reply.
 

I wish it was more populated with posters.


I've certainly got less personal free time than ever before, and slightly less impetus to prioritise what little I have for PV writing given the slow pace and low participation. My apologies for the stalwarts who do keep the place ticking.


What is this leisure time of which you speak?


It's fine by me.


My former secretaries Zania and Anita claimed to be traumatised by me forcing them to post here.


Well, I do worry that they'll burn in hell because I write here, of course.

> Is it a case of "I would have stuck with the PVB but I can't have it (bookmarked) where the kids/wife can see it"?

Only CSFB!'s art posts.


I know Shep gets depressed when she feels people aren't being supportive of others' efforts and that in turn makes her less likely to hike to an internet cafe or library where she can post. And then she feels guilty that she's not pulling her weight and feels out of things. And then she rings me and tells me all about it.

Sorry about the delays. It's a combination of less time to write, me once again underestimating the number of chapters it would take to work out a story, and a major lull in poster participation which makes carrying these stories along easier.

I'm thinking now that I'll truncate this storyline and finish it off as soon as possible rather than playing out the full plot I'd originally envisaged.


I'm happy for people to tie up any and all plotlines they started. I'd prefer to complete the ones I set in motion myself, since I know what I've laid in place already to bring them to conclusion.


I don't expect to leave the storyline unfinished. Why would I?

That much I knew.

 

Heh.



That's the point I was trying to get across. I'm willing to do my part if I can.



Around 2 hours a day.



I already feel guilty enough.

You told me as much in an email. I was hoping to help.



Noted.



I had an idea or two that might help, if you want to use them. One of them is pretty amusing. I'll email you, if the email works.



I was a little worried about what people's expectations were. Like if I started tying up some plotlines to help, I'd be worried about the response of "why did you do that? you should have left it alone.."