The Ranch

Dance Dance Revelation (1)

Kai, eager to hang out with Tih, brings him to a place he'll know the team or anyone Tih knows will be at. Dance class. He takes Tih to the lecture hall. They haven't been here in quite a while. Everyone has long since finished their classes and has gotten jobs. Their parkour class is taught outside. There's no real reason to go there anymore.

Kai locates the room and opens the door to be blasted with hip hop, orchestral, and a jumble of other genres. The soundproofing is really good. They couldn't hear a thing until they opened the door.

Someone glances at the two unfamiliar faces," New students?" They had a burst of people come after the tournament, but it was short-lived. Most lost interest with only a few continuing to come.

These two are a little late to the party. Interest had already fizzled out. That's just how it is. It isn't for everyone and they understand that. It had always been a small and tight-knit community anyways.

Hearing the man, another turns to look at the opened door," Oh, you're the boy from the tournament. Nice effort." He comforts.

Kai grimaces at the fake consolation. He moves on," We just wanted to check it out."

Word spreads fast and over walks G-dog," Yo yo yo, if it isn't the little champions. Congratulations guys."

James steps out from the crowd," You here for somethin'? Or you interested in joining us."

"Just checking out the scene." Kai repeats with a nonchalant attitude similar to Kane but more disregard, as if trying too hard to act cool.

James nods.

"A tour?" G-dog asks.

"If you're free." Kai responds.

G-dog sticks his fingers in his mouth and whistles," Ayo, Louis! Give these guys a tour."

Tih sticks his fingers in his mouth to imitate him, but can't whistle.

The last of the three guest judges makes an appearance. "Your team was very good. Let's go, I'll show you around the place."

They follow behind Louis as he introduces different people belonging to different genres.

"Jamal." Louis calls out.

"Kaya, your foot needs to be higher, yes like that." After instructing a student, Jamal turns to look at who called him. "Louis, these two interested?"

"Nah, they wanna look around. These guys are the tournament champions."

Jamal's eyes widen," Them? They're so...small. Tho, that one has a nice aura. Intimidating. Hey, which one danced the first round?"

"Ah, he's not them." Louis corrects.

Jamal doesn't try to hide his disappointment. "We'll, since you're here, you can watch the dance battle."

"Dance battle?" Kai asks.

Louis answers," Every once in a while we'll have a couple groups spar."

The spar commenced shortly after. A medium sized crowd surrounds a make-shift circle.

"Ohhhh!"

"Hahaha!"

A burst of sound comes out of the crowd every time someone does a tricky or funny move.

"Wanna give it a go?" Louis looks at the two while pushing them to the front of the crowd.

"Uhh, I'm not very good-" Kai attempts to back out.

Louis cuts him off and pays his shoulder, "Don't worry about that. We don't care as long as you give it your all."

Because Kai is pushing back, Tih makes it to the front first. He's pushed out of the crowd into the circle.

The person already in the circle was waiting for a challenger to appear. He starts off first with a short free-style routine. He doesn't attempt to attack Tih, noticing that he's new.

Tih watches the moves completed by the other man. After he finishes, the crowd stares at Tih. Tih isn't given instructions so he starts copying the man. He replicates the man's routine from start to finish.

"Oh so it's like that?" The man feels provoked by this new type of challenge. He performs more challenging dance moves, waiting to see what Tih will do.

Tih once again copies the man. The man frowns. He tries one last time. A head spin, air flare, and multiple freezes. This combination takes years to perfect, but Tih replicates them perfectly.

The man drops to the ground dramatically," I give!" He exits the circle.

"Lemme have a go!" A jazz dancer enters the ring. He starts off with some mid-tier moves. After watching Tih complete them, he exerts his full abilities. A straight leg scorpion, barrel turn, and a stag leap. Tih completes it easily and the competitor leaves in defeat.

It now becomes a battle of the most difficult moves. Many enter, attempting to crack the copy paste boy, but leave in succession. A grand jete, scissor steps, fleckerl, enrosque, bachata, and more moves that are technically advanced and should be impossible for beginners. Tih copies everything with ease.

It has amassed a massive crowd that has gone crazy. They're louder than all the music combined. Screams, shout, whistling, hollering. Some are jumping up and down from the adrenaline. Some are rolling across the floor. Others are shaking each other with excitement. Dancers have started standing on top of other's shoulders to get a clearer look. The whole scene is wild.

Soon not a single person is willing to challenge Tih. He sees that there's no one to copy and turns back to stand by Kai's side. The surrounding crowd pats or shakes the boy, voicing their respect and amazement. It takes a while before everything returns to normal.

G-dog, Louis, and James stick by the twos side to chat.

G-dog slaps Tih on the back," That was crazy, kid! Come over here for a sec." He drags Tih away.

"You never got a chance to dance. Still want to try?" Louis asks Kai.

Kai takes a moment to think," Sure." There's nothing to lose from trying at least. Maybe he can get better at timing things properly.

James calls someone named Bulldog over. The man holds a weapon. Kai recognises it as a flail. A spiky ball reinforced to a chain. James has the two spar over music to test Kai's skills.

It's...pretty bad. Kai can't get the timing at all. His attacks are in time with the beat, much less his dodges. The lack of coordination feels unpleasant for the dancers. Kai is quickly pulled into the opponent's rhythm. The metal ball punches him in the stomach and it's considered his defeat.

He huffs while laying on the floor. He says to James and Louis," I can't do it."

"Hmm, sounds like a quitter's attitude to me?" Louis looks to James.

James nods," You giving up cuz you can't be perfect right away like your friend?"

"Well, I wouldn't call it perfect." G-dog joins the conversation. He points and the others look over. Someone's trying to tell Tih to move to the beat, but Tih doesn't understand. He copies the moves he just learned, but they're randomly ordered with no sense of balance, making the overall routine ugly. He's also completely ignoring the music as he dances, making it an overall inconsistent picture.

Louis and James are stunned into silence.

"Pfhuhaha!" Kai laughs. This is just like Tih. Kai loves how he never fails to surprise.

Tih continues hanging out with the dancers, copying moves, being taught tempo and rhythm, failing at learning either.

Kai spends his time asking for advice, spars, and teaching. He continues his efforts with an aching body and new knowledge. By the end of the day, he's a smidgen better at adapting, reacting, and body control. He might come here again to train.

"Tih, let's go back." Kai's more than exhausted. He says his goodbyes and takes Tih to eat dinner at the cafeteria before heading back to their dorms.

Author's note: Happy Halloween and Happy 200th chapter