The Things I Can Do Without [Karate Kid Fanfic]

I Started the Joke On Me

It had currently been almost two weeks since the beginning of her stay in the mansion with the two men she had thought she would never get along with. They weren't exactly at ease with each other, but it was an existence that was more peaceful than she'd ever thought could happen between the three of them. This was withstanding the fact she hadn't ever thought they'd share an existence together in the first place.

In fact, most times they stayed out of each other's ways. They spent a rare time eating a meal or two, usually when they could catch her cooking and would eat with her. Kreese, as Ter –Silver told her, was capable of cooking some things, but it was limited and so he didn't cook often unless he and...Silver were desperate to get something in their stomachs.

She knew that it wouldn't last though. There was no way the three of them could just live with each other and not collide someway or other.

"Fancy seeing you here," a slightly cheerful voice spoke from behind her and she turned from the large gym mat centered in the middle of the room. She saw Terry standing by the entrance to the room, dressed in his karate gi.

When she didn't speak to him, his grin faltered and for a moment he awkwardly stood there.

"So, um," he gestured to the mat. "How about a spar for old time's sake?" Terry tried grinning again.

"No thanks," she said coldly and moved to brush passed him, only at the last moment he seemed to have made up his mind and stubbornly stood in her way.

"Come on, don't be like that," he obstinately kept his grin in place. "I'll even let you hit me a few times."

She paused. That was almost tempting. She glanced at him again and saw he was still grinning at her. Her mouth tightened into a scowl and she felt inexplicably angry, especially seeing his familiar, almost smug at times grin.

"Fine," she said tersely and moved back to the mat at one end.

Terry moved to the other end and then stepped onto it. She hesitated a moment, before taking off her shoes and socks and then moved onto the mat herself. For a few moments, they circled around each other and watched the other warily. And then she struck first, lashing out with a punch that he swiped away from him, and went to return against her with a knife-hand.

Some minutes passed as they traded blows that didn't land on each other, but Danielle grew increasingly frustrated, more so as she knew that he was taking it easy on her. It was less like "before" and not like "old times" at all because she remembered that he hadn't been so soft on her, even though she knew now it was more to make her incapable and less abled in the tournament than to really prepare her for anything. And he still had that familiar grin on his face that she used to really l –hate. She wanted to wipe it off his face right then.

And looking into his face, seeing him and then the image of Mike Barnes superimposed on the other, Danielle snapped and just lunged at the tall man, catching Terry off guard from the unexpected move. She tackled him to the ground, and it was less a karate match and more of a brawl as she lashed out at him and he just tried to grab hold of her without hurting her.

Between seeing Barnes and Terry –Silver! Silver, damn it! –Danielle was less focused on where and how to attack, and more on being on the attack and just being able to land a hit whenever, wherever.

Strong arms wrapped around her and pulled her off of Silver, and as she was pinned down, she started to flashback to that time with Barnes and she began to flail her limbs, screaming her head off. Immediately, whoever it was let go of her as if their hands had been burned, and she scrambled back on the floor and ended up with her back against the wall. She closed her eyes and curled into a ball, clutching at her head and rocking slightly. After focusing on her breathing a bit, and hearing nothing but silence in the room, she lifted her head up and opened her eyes to see Silver still sitting on the ground and staring at her in alarm, and Kreese (having been the one who pulled her off of Silver) standing around and looking at her in shock and panic.