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tamingthemuse2008-03-29 11:56 pm
garnigal.livejournal.com) wrote in tamingthemuse2008-03-29 11:56 pm
Entry tags:
Prompt: Haste Makes Speed
Title: Method Acting
Fandom: Firefly
Prompt: Haste Makes Speed
Warnings: None
Rating: G
Word Count: 502
Disclaimer: Borrowing someone else’s toys. I promise not to break them.
Summary: The true lessons of a Companion.
*****
Elegance.
Grace.
Poise.
Beauty.
Companion.
Inara sat, silent and motionless, in her shuttle. It wasn’t exactly meditation; her mind was certainly not clear. It was… preparation. She planned her day, planned her appearance, planned her words and actions.
It was the only way to maintain the demeanor fit for a Companion.
Those outside the Guild had suspicions and fantasies of what Companion training must be. In some ways their imaginings were accurate: training in music, art appreciation, theatre, dance, gourmet food and fine wines. All the pointless but meaningful things which the wealthy dabbled in to demonstrate their superior taste. Those with scurrilous minds slavered over visions of young nubile women and men trained in seduction and prepared to satisfy every sexual desire. To a point, these low-minded deviants were also accurate, though their imagined perversions went far beyond the reality of a Companion’s education.
Though all those lessons were part of the syllabus, that content mattered far less than the more ephemeral lessons learned.
Patience.
Endurance.
Flexibility.
Silence.
They learned awareness of their bodies and the ability to control those bodies in every circumstance. They learned to adjust to any situation and any audience. They learned to maintain their personalities while presenting the appropriate façade. And they discovered that by maintaining silence they could listen and learn what was desired of them.
Above all, they learned to be slow.
They learned to take their time and consider their words. To consider how their movements affected their bodies. To consider how their slightest, slowest movement could speak volumes.
And once they learned to be slow, they were trained to translate that slow elegance into a lively, quick elegance.
And thus Inara sat, silent and motionless as she had been taught, slowly considering the situations she would face today and how she must react.
Soft smiles for Kaylee.
Wit for Wash.
Respect for Zoe.
A game of chess for Simon.
Careful and gentle touches for River.
Deep discussions for the Shepherd.
Wary condescension for Jayne.
For Mal… her daily struggle.
She had come up with many plans for dealing with Mal. Sometimes they worked, more often they didn’t. And what worked once might never work again.
She’d been trained to slowness, believed in haste makes waste and waste makes inelegance. And yet…
He’d been trained to action, believed in haste makes speed and speed keeps you alive. He reacted on emotion, on desire, without considering all the repercussions. He often slithered past danger, losing a bit of his tail as he went, but he was never demoralized by the loss. He got past it, that’s all that mattered to him.
His mind and actions were quicksilver. His temper was molten. She never knew how he’d act and could never plan her reaction in return.
He frustrated her.
He exhilarated her.
She was determined to learn him, as she’d learned every man. She went slowly, considered every word and action, fought her campaigns to understand and control him.
Her very methods guaranteed her failure.
Fandom: Firefly
Prompt: Haste Makes Speed
Warnings: None
Rating: G
Word Count: 502
Disclaimer: Borrowing someone else’s toys. I promise not to break them.
Summary: The true lessons of a Companion.
*****
Elegance.
Grace.
Poise.
Beauty.
Companion.
Inara sat, silent and motionless, in her shuttle. It wasn’t exactly meditation; her mind was certainly not clear. It was… preparation. She planned her day, planned her appearance, planned her words and actions.
It was the only way to maintain the demeanor fit for a Companion.
Those outside the Guild had suspicions and fantasies of what Companion training must be. In some ways their imaginings were accurate: training in music, art appreciation, theatre, dance, gourmet food and fine wines. All the pointless but meaningful things which the wealthy dabbled in to demonstrate their superior taste. Those with scurrilous minds slavered over visions of young nubile women and men trained in seduction and prepared to satisfy every sexual desire. To a point, these low-minded deviants were also accurate, though their imagined perversions went far beyond the reality of a Companion’s education.
Though all those lessons were part of the syllabus, that content mattered far less than the more ephemeral lessons learned.
Patience.
Endurance.
Flexibility.
Silence.
They learned awareness of their bodies and the ability to control those bodies in every circumstance. They learned to adjust to any situation and any audience. They learned to maintain their personalities while presenting the appropriate façade. And they discovered that by maintaining silence they could listen and learn what was desired of them.
Above all, they learned to be slow.
They learned to take their time and consider their words. To consider how their movements affected their bodies. To consider how their slightest, slowest movement could speak volumes.
And once they learned to be slow, they were trained to translate that slow elegance into a lively, quick elegance.
And thus Inara sat, silent and motionless as she had been taught, slowly considering the situations she would face today and how she must react.
Soft smiles for Kaylee.
Wit for Wash.
Respect for Zoe.
A game of chess for Simon.
Careful and gentle touches for River.
Deep discussions for the Shepherd.
Wary condescension for Jayne.
For Mal… her daily struggle.
She had come up with many plans for dealing with Mal. Sometimes they worked, more often they didn’t. And what worked once might never work again.
She’d been trained to slowness, believed in haste makes waste and waste makes inelegance. And yet…
He’d been trained to action, believed in haste makes speed and speed keeps you alive. He reacted on emotion, on desire, without considering all the repercussions. He often slithered past danger, losing a bit of his tail as he went, but he was never demoralized by the loss. He got past it, that’s all that mattered to him.
His mind and actions were quicksilver. His temper was molten. She never knew how he’d act and could never plan her reaction in return.
He frustrated her.
He exhilarated her.
She was determined to learn him, as she’d learned every man. She went slowly, considered every word and action, fought her campaigns to understand and control him.
Her very methods guaranteed her failure.
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I really enjoyed this!
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