The Wheel's Strongman Club

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr solemnly looked down at Loki's mentioning of his brother's death. Either he was long-over the loss, or he treated it in what Cirr was now recognizing in typical Loki fashion, which was to slough off any emotional impact of it. He wondered if that was due to the Jedi training. Sure, Lok s'Ilancy seemed aloof at times, but the felinoid had never seen the sort of fastidious mind that was paired across from him.

Instead of offering condolances, which he figured would cheapen the shared moment, Cirr respected him enough to leave it alone, and answered Loki's question.

"Not much."

He shook his head, easing the bar down to let Loki begin his set when he nodded he was ready.

"jIt's harrd to go back to the clusterr, as jI am a fugjitjive forr what jI djid. jI trry when jI can. Motherr sometjimes trravels and looks forr me. jI thjink she feels gujilty forr everrythjing, but she does so much to take carre of Sanjis and jI."

Cirr turned introspective a bit, looking away slightly.

"jI can go back, but jI can neverr...go back, you know?"

[Abarai Loki]

It was his third fling with the thirty-five kilos of metal, and this time he was comfortable, having studied Cirrsseeto's technique. He felt relaxed and his breathing came naturally with the rise and fall of the sturdy barbell. The burning in his muscles returned quicker than before but he pushed through it, focusing on the sound of Cirrsseeto's voice, which was oddly comforting. Nine, then ten. He'd exceeded his last set, thankfully, but his pace became sluggish.

"No," he grunted, the bar an inch from his chest, "You cannot..."

Despite the exhaustion caused by such physical exertion, with it there came clarity; in the minds of the enduring, complex matters of life are boiled down into vivid shades of monochrome; obstacles shrink, barriers fall, and in simplicity dwells wisdom. Another push, his chest knotted, shoulders ached. The strain was in his voice as he sucked in air, lowering the bar in trembling hands.

"Never... lower yourself... argh!"

The barbell crested for the twelfth time with a final staggering effort and as it sunk, Loki glanced up at Cirrsseeto with gnashing teeth, and nodded.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr grinned and let loose a shout of "S'ai athree!", a Cizeri congratulations. Racking the bar, he held out a big hand over Loki for him to take.

"No worrrjies. We all have trrouble jin ljife frrom tjime to tjime. jI've made peace wjith mjine. jIt jis what jit jis."

Looking again to the weight equipment and back to Loki, Cirr crossed his arms.

"Want to do otherr ljifts?"

[Abarai Loki]

Loki rolled his head and rotated his arms while he listened to Cirrsseeto, surprised by his words, he hadn't taken him to be such a pragmatic philosopher. Something about that made him seem so human. When he gestured to his collection of junkyard plunder, Loki looked dubious.

"You have more in there?"

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

"Don't need much morre."

Cirr patted the big bar on the rack.

"Actually, most ljifts you can do wjith thjis. We'rre both prretty tjirred up top, so jI thjink perrhaps squats and we'll call jit a day and maybe rrun a ljittle."

[Abarai Loki]

"I run two hours before breakfast," he blurted, as if the notion of running at any other time of day was completely unnatural. His arms folded as he eyed the barbell.

"How does one squat?"

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

"Rrunnjing eh?"

Cirr made a face. How long had it been since he did that? A long time. He was never much of a runner though.

When asked about squats, Cirr tapped the bar for emphasis, then held his fists up to each side, just above and behind his shoulders. With his feet shoulder width apart, the felinoid bent at his knees and hips, sinking to the floor as his back stayed more or less straight. His tail flipped outward acting as counterbalance as he went down, until his backside was about six inches off the ground, then he rose back to his feet.

Smiling, he gestured down from his midsection to his legs, stopping to slap at his thighs.

"Thjis one worrks almost everrythjing. You can do morre wejight, but whew, jit'll make you feel jit. May want to starrt low untjil you feel comforrtable."

[Abarai Loki]

"It looks completely undignified."

The pair of ten kilo discs unscrewed themselves from the bar and were replaced immediately by a pair of small five kilo weights. Loki gripped the bar with one hand and gave it a light tug, it juddered in its racking.

"Twenty-five kilos," he said in grim appraisal, "That's half my weight."

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

Cirr nodded.

"Good forr a starrt. Majinly want to get a feel forr what good forrm feels ljike. Frrom therre, you can go hjigherr.

Rrememberr..."

He duplicated the precise motion again, emphasizing for importance.

"Back strrajight, bend at the knees, and go as low as you can go. Don't ljift wjith yourr back, you can hurrt yourrself."

[Abarai Loki]

Loki positioned himself beneath the barbell and took a firm grip. He lifted confidently and retreated from the rack a few steps, stopping once his footing was comfortable. First, he took a moment to right his balance, adjusting the barbell to accomodate his posture and then he dipped. It was a unique sensation, almost like being gently crushed, the muscles in his thighs and abdomen tightened with the growing load. Mindful of his form, he held the squat inches from the ground as Cirrsseeto had instructed, and then rose, breathing out.

The second time he was too eager to double-check his posture and as he reached the lowest point, the barbell started to slip away. His balance compromised, all he could do was follow the weight, rolling unceremoniously onto his backside like an upended tortoise.

[Cirrsseeto Quez]

"Cha'esee."

Cirr quickly stooped down to relieve Loki of the weight, and to help the teen up to his feet. The felinoid paused, looked at the weight, and scratched at his crotch a little.

"Eh, jit's a starrt. Maybe best not forr us to overrdo jit today."

He looked back to the crowd they'd gathered.

"Plus, jI'm surre we've now got a crrowd of folks wantjing thejir turrn too. You hungrry?"

[Abarai Loki]

On his feet, Loki patted himself down, and regarded the weights with disdain. A hand outstretched then pointed briskly at the ordnance racks and the barbell snapped into place at his command. He glanced at the spectators, a pink flush in his cheeks.

"No, lieutenant, I do believe that will be all for today. My time is limited and there are matters of importance to which I must attend."

He retrieved his haori from the crates, unfolded it, then slipped his arms inside. He returned to Cirrsseeto, pausing to give a slight bow of the head.

"Thank you for your instruction today. It has been... educational."