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xp_logsIn the aftermath of the zombie mission, Gabe finds himself a) practicing his shooting and b) taking advice from a hesitant Amanda who has some questions of her own.
There was a time when Gabriel Cohuelo would never have dreamed of coming to the mansion's shooting range. He'd been appalled, and instantly skeptical, when he learned he lived in a place that had one, and he'd gone a while without knowing where it was.
Times had changed, and pulling a trigger was no longer a problem.
Gabriel was at the shooting range today, on an otherwise quiet afternoon, because emptying clip after clip into reanimated corpses in Kenya had made him uneasy with his firearms skills. They'd been on the run, and with so many targets, he was bound to hit something. But he still wasn't the surest shot, and he'd realized that he'd inadvertently been using the brief burst of speed afforded by his powers to line up shots. Those stolen seconds had been crucial, but when he was without them, he was a bit frantic.
And so here he was, eyeing a paper target but unable to shake the feeling that the zombies were all around them. He steadied his aim and tried to calm his nerves, then fired a few shots.
He wasn't the only one with extra practice in mind - while Gabe was focussing on his shots, the door opened and Amanda came in, sliding on her ear protection as she realised someone else was there. She paused in the doorway, watching him firing and wondering if she should leave him to it, since things were still awkward between them. But then again, running away never solved anything, as she'd found out as a teen. So she walked to the next booth and lay her handgun on the shelf there while she prepped and loaded it.
He didn't say anything at first, focusing instead on emptying his pistol. But Amanda's presence made him twitch slightly — anyone's would have — and so his aim was off yet again. He sighed a bit as he set the gun down and pressed the button to bring the paper target toward him. He eyed her for a second, then removed his head gear. "Hey," he said. There was a beat while he decided how to continue. "Zombies?"
She slipped off her own head gear and nodded, having read his lips enough for that one word. "Zombies." She sighed and rolled her shoulders, trying to relax them before she even attempted shooting. "I figured I could do with a few rounds of target practice after that. I'm not the only one, I see."
"Yeah." Gabriel shrugged a bit, then reached for his vape. "I dunno. That whole experience wasn't exactly... confidence inspiring." He scratched the back of his neck, then took a puff. "And honestly," he exhaled, "I think I'm kind of a shit shot."
The vape gave her an excuse - not that she needed one - to fish her cigarette pack out of the rolled-up sleeve of her t-shirt and light one with a briefly muttered spell and a snap of her fingers. She'd air out the place before she left; zombie talk needed some kind of soothing method. "It's... humbling? To not be able to use your powers," she reflected. "I mean, it's different for me since mine are so tied into where I am. But it never fails to make me feel useless. So I got Bishop to teach me how to shoot, and I've been practising when I can. I'll never be Kevin, or even Doug level, but it's a good back up."
Gabriel made a vague noise of assent. "Shit just seems to keep getting more dangerous," he said after a second. "I dunno. I feel like I just..." He looked toward where he'd set his gun again, considering. "Had a lot to learn in the last few years, and this never felt like a priority. Still doesn't, not really, but here I am."
"Well, if you like... perhaps... you could join me? When I practice?" Amanda sounded as unsure as she felt. "I just find I'm more likely to do something regularly if I have someone doing it with me," she added in a rush. "Maybe it's the same for you?"
There was a beat as Gabriel considered not just her words, but her general demeanor. He surmised exactly what it was that she wanted, and he wasn't really weighing whether to give it to her. But he was enjoying, on some level, her clear discomfort. "Yeah," he said after deeming the moment long enough to be sufficiently awkward. "I could honestly use some tips, if you're good enough to give 'em."
"Well, I know enough to hit my target more times than I miss?" If she had known his train of thought, she wouldn't have blamed him, to be honest. As it was, there was a lightening of her expression and posture, although she stopped short of showing outright relief.
"Well, that puts you ahead of me," Gabriel said, nodding to the target. He pulled it off its carrier, looking it over. He'd hit it enough, but never really in the places he'd intended. "Not my worst score," he said, mentally doing the math as he counted bullet holes. "But definitely not my best."
"Hmm." She came closer and looked at the target. "I think maybe it's your stance? Can you show me how you stand?"
"Oh, uh... yeah." He picked up the gun alone, unloading the clip and making sure the safety was on. Then, he stood, feeling somewhat stupid, and pointed it down the range. "Like this, I guess."
Amanda looked him over, remembering all the lessons from various teachers she'd had over the years. One thing was fairly obvious, however. "You're too tense in the shoulders," she commented, moving over to him and reaching out automatically. Then she stopped. "Are you okay with me touching you? I can move you into a better posture, but I don't want to be all grabby."
"Yeah. It's fine." Gabriel gave her a small nod. "I mean, don't be grabby, just be, like... whatever. I asked for help." He sighed a little. "Tense in the shoulders," he said after a second. "Can't imagine why."
She grinned, suddenly much less worried. "No groping, got it," she replied as she nudged his leading foot with one of hers into a better position and then moved his hips slightly. "Yeah, it's not like the past couple of years have been a total health spa, can't think why any of us would be tense. Problem is, it fucks with your aim." She laid her hands on his shoulders, pulling them slightly back and down. "Tho' you could probably use a professional massage at some point. Your shoulders are like steel cables."
"Yeah, maybe." He did his best to let her adjust his shoulders without instinctively flinching or twitching, and he tried to focus on the position that they were in since he knew all too well that the tension would be back sooner than later. "I'm not sure I'm much of a massage person," he admitted. "I guess it's been a while. It's just... the time goes by so slow."
"Yeah, I can imagine." She placed her hands over his as he gripped the pistol, adjusting the angle. "Actually..." She paused, not sure if she wanted to push things, but underlying concern won out. Amanda didn't seem especially clever, but she was good at seeing the bigger picture. "I meant to say to you, good bloody job with that powers thing you did at the hospital. I've been thinking about it... it might seem bleeding obvious, but you're not actually a speedster, are you? You're a time manipulator?"
"I guess." Well, this was escalating quickly. Maybe he should have been nicer to her months ago just to avoid this conversation. "It's something like that? I don't really understand it. Physics isn't my strong suit." He tried to focus on how she was moving the gun. "Honestly, the only reason I knew I could try to do something like that is because of that whole other universe thing that happened however long ago."
"It must be rough on you, manipulating forces like that. Physically, I mean." Then sensing she'd said enough, she stepped back. "All right, have another go now," she instructed, slipping her ear protection back on.
Gabriel, staying quiet, did the same. It was rough, physically — exhausting, actually. But he wasn't about to have that conversation anyway. He took a breath, trying too hard not to change his stance or let his shoulders ride up, then pulled off the safety and fired a few shots.
Amanda flinched minutely at the sound of the shots - even with the ear muffs on, it was not a sound she ever thought she'd get used to - but nodded as the grouping of holes was noticeably closer together. "Better?" she asked, when he was done.
"I guess so." Gabriel squinted at the target. "Looks better. Feels better." He put the gun down then pressed the buttons to bring the target paper back in. "I guess we'll have to see."
There was a time when Gabriel Cohuelo would never have dreamed of coming to the mansion's shooting range. He'd been appalled, and instantly skeptical, when he learned he lived in a place that had one, and he'd gone a while without knowing where it was.
Times had changed, and pulling a trigger was no longer a problem.
Gabriel was at the shooting range today, on an otherwise quiet afternoon, because emptying clip after clip into reanimated corpses in Kenya had made him uneasy with his firearms skills. They'd been on the run, and with so many targets, he was bound to hit something. But he still wasn't the surest shot, and he'd realized that he'd inadvertently been using the brief burst of speed afforded by his powers to line up shots. Those stolen seconds had been crucial, but when he was without them, he was a bit frantic.
And so here he was, eyeing a paper target but unable to shake the feeling that the zombies were all around them. He steadied his aim and tried to calm his nerves, then fired a few shots.
He wasn't the only one with extra practice in mind - while Gabe was focussing on his shots, the door opened and Amanda came in, sliding on her ear protection as she realised someone else was there. She paused in the doorway, watching him firing and wondering if she should leave him to it, since things were still awkward between them. But then again, running away never solved anything, as she'd found out as a teen. So she walked to the next booth and lay her handgun on the shelf there while she prepped and loaded it.
He didn't say anything at first, focusing instead on emptying his pistol. But Amanda's presence made him twitch slightly — anyone's would have — and so his aim was off yet again. He sighed a bit as he set the gun down and pressed the button to bring the paper target toward him. He eyed her for a second, then removed his head gear. "Hey," he said. There was a beat while he decided how to continue. "Zombies?"
She slipped off her own head gear and nodded, having read his lips enough for that one word. "Zombies." She sighed and rolled her shoulders, trying to relax them before she even attempted shooting. "I figured I could do with a few rounds of target practice after that. I'm not the only one, I see."
"Yeah." Gabriel shrugged a bit, then reached for his vape. "I dunno. That whole experience wasn't exactly... confidence inspiring." He scratched the back of his neck, then took a puff. "And honestly," he exhaled, "I think I'm kind of a shit shot."
The vape gave her an excuse - not that she needed one - to fish her cigarette pack out of the rolled-up sleeve of her t-shirt and light one with a briefly muttered spell and a snap of her fingers. She'd air out the place before she left; zombie talk needed some kind of soothing method. "It's... humbling? To not be able to use your powers," she reflected. "I mean, it's different for me since mine are so tied into where I am. But it never fails to make me feel useless. So I got Bishop to teach me how to shoot, and I've been practising when I can. I'll never be Kevin, or even Doug level, but it's a good back up."
Gabriel made a vague noise of assent. "Shit just seems to keep getting more dangerous," he said after a second. "I dunno. I feel like I just..." He looked toward where he'd set his gun again, considering. "Had a lot to learn in the last few years, and this never felt like a priority. Still doesn't, not really, but here I am."
"Well, if you like... perhaps... you could join me? When I practice?" Amanda sounded as unsure as she felt. "I just find I'm more likely to do something regularly if I have someone doing it with me," she added in a rush. "Maybe it's the same for you?"
There was a beat as Gabriel considered not just her words, but her general demeanor. He surmised exactly what it was that she wanted, and he wasn't really weighing whether to give it to her. But he was enjoying, on some level, her clear discomfort. "Yeah," he said after deeming the moment long enough to be sufficiently awkward. "I could honestly use some tips, if you're good enough to give 'em."
"Well, I know enough to hit my target more times than I miss?" If she had known his train of thought, she wouldn't have blamed him, to be honest. As it was, there was a lightening of her expression and posture, although she stopped short of showing outright relief.
"Well, that puts you ahead of me," Gabriel said, nodding to the target. He pulled it off its carrier, looking it over. He'd hit it enough, but never really in the places he'd intended. "Not my worst score," he said, mentally doing the math as he counted bullet holes. "But definitely not my best."
"Hmm." She came closer and looked at the target. "I think maybe it's your stance? Can you show me how you stand?"
"Oh, uh... yeah." He picked up the gun alone, unloading the clip and making sure the safety was on. Then, he stood, feeling somewhat stupid, and pointed it down the range. "Like this, I guess."
Amanda looked him over, remembering all the lessons from various teachers she'd had over the years. One thing was fairly obvious, however. "You're too tense in the shoulders," she commented, moving over to him and reaching out automatically. Then she stopped. "Are you okay with me touching you? I can move you into a better posture, but I don't want to be all grabby."
"Yeah. It's fine." Gabriel gave her a small nod. "I mean, don't be grabby, just be, like... whatever. I asked for help." He sighed a little. "Tense in the shoulders," he said after a second. "Can't imagine why."
She grinned, suddenly much less worried. "No groping, got it," she replied as she nudged his leading foot with one of hers into a better position and then moved his hips slightly. "Yeah, it's not like the past couple of years have been a total health spa, can't think why any of us would be tense. Problem is, it fucks with your aim." She laid her hands on his shoulders, pulling them slightly back and down. "Tho' you could probably use a professional massage at some point. Your shoulders are like steel cables."
"Yeah, maybe." He did his best to let her adjust his shoulders without instinctively flinching or twitching, and he tried to focus on the position that they were in since he knew all too well that the tension would be back sooner than later. "I'm not sure I'm much of a massage person," he admitted. "I guess it's been a while. It's just... the time goes by so slow."
"Yeah, I can imagine." She placed her hands over his as he gripped the pistol, adjusting the angle. "Actually..." She paused, not sure if she wanted to push things, but underlying concern won out. Amanda didn't seem especially clever, but she was good at seeing the bigger picture. "I meant to say to you, good bloody job with that powers thing you did at the hospital. I've been thinking about it... it might seem bleeding obvious, but you're not actually a speedster, are you? You're a time manipulator?"
"I guess." Well, this was escalating quickly. Maybe he should have been nicer to her months ago just to avoid this conversation. "It's something like that? I don't really understand it. Physics isn't my strong suit." He tried to focus on how she was moving the gun. "Honestly, the only reason I knew I could try to do something like that is because of that whole other universe thing that happened however long ago."
"It must be rough on you, manipulating forces like that. Physically, I mean." Then sensing she'd said enough, she stepped back. "All right, have another go now," she instructed, slipping her ear protection back on.
Gabriel, staying quiet, did the same. It was rough, physically — exhausting, actually. But he wasn't about to have that conversation anyway. He took a breath, trying too hard not to change his stance or let his shoulders ride up, then pulled off the safety and fired a few shots.
Amanda flinched minutely at the sound of the shots - even with the ear muffs on, it was not a sound she ever thought she'd get used to - but nodded as the grouping of holes was noticeably closer together. "Better?" she asked, when he was done.
"I guess so." Gabriel squinted at the target. "Looks better. Feels better." He put the gun down then pressed the buttons to bring the target paper back in. "I guess we'll have to see."
