Can't Teach an Old Monkey New Tricks

I is for I'm Trying

"Speed comes from familiarity," He said, "The more you go through the process, the faster you'll become, but the moment you try to force it, you throw yourself off balance," He turned and stopped, the staff pointing at his face, MK looking at him, "Take some time to get used to it before you start fighting with it,"

"You know, if you have enough brute strength, you can rush all you want and still win," Macaque unhelpfully chimed in, peaking out from behind Wukong. "Make them scared of your power!"

"Terrible advice, Macaque," Wukong chuckled, shaking his head, "This is why you're not a good mentor,"

"I think you just want to slander me to the kid!" Macaque huffed, "Because you neglected to mention that speed also comes with strength!"

"Strong hits come from proper speed!" Wukong said, "You taught me that!"

"Using my own words against me," Macaque whispered, slowly shaking his head, "Cruel, Wukong, cruel,"

"Okay, if I want faster and stronger hits, I gotta do the moves a whole lot," MK seemed just about done with those two, placing an annoyed hand on his hip, "Is there anything else?"

"You were holding the staff wrong too," Macaque said, Wukong nodding, "You were grasping the middle of it, when you need to be closer to the end,"

"What!? Ugh! Okay," MK spun the staff, "I'm ready to go again,"

"Atta boy!"

.

"Why are there so many oddly specific rules around commas?" Wukong asked, flipping through the cards MK made for him.

"Because people wanted to be difficult," Redson huffed, paging through Wukong's journal, "Why do all your sentences have an exclamation point? Those are only used when things are exciting,"

"Because everything was exciting!"

"Ah, yes, the weather is very exciting," Macaque hummed from over Redson's shoulder, "'It was sunny!'"

"I was happy it was sunny!" Wukong huffed. Mei flicked a stick at him.

"Isn't it always sunny here?"

"Not all the time!" Wukong glanced to the side, "Just, most of the time!"

"Whatever, I'm glad you've at least grasped the concept of spaces between your words," Redson interrupted, snapping the journal shut and handing it back to Wukong. "And not everything could possibly be that exciting,"

"Hey, if he's having a great time, let him use as many exclamation points as he wants!" Macaque chuckled, sitting next to Wukong and glancing at the cards, "Woah, those are elaborate,"

"Thanks, I worked hard on them!" MK grinned, "Though, I had to look up some things to make sure I got it right,"

"Wait, you don't even know all of it?" Wukong asked, glancing up at his mentee. He shook his head.

"Redson's always making fun of me for my bad grammar,"

"Because it's atrocious," Redson rolled his eyes, "But at least you use words, unlike someone here!"

"Hey! Those puppies are great for communicating!" Mei pouted.

"How do you have bad grammar when you write all the time?" Wukong asked, raising a brow, "I mean, I have an excuse. What's yours?"

"Unfortunately, grammar is the hardest thing to grasp, even for those who have been writing for years," Redson sighed, "And it certainly isn't helped by informal modes of communicating, such as texting,"

"Red, I already told you! It's faster to type 'u' rather than 'y-o-u'!" MK said, making Redson's eye twitch. They must have fought about this before. "And the acronyms do change the meaning of a sentence!"

"Macaque, what in Diyu are they talking about?" Wukong whispered, leaning over to Macaque.

"You'll find out when they decide to get you a smart phone," He chuckled, "Anyway, writing is a lot different than speaking when it comes to grammar and such. If you write like you, you'll sound like an ass,"

"Are you saying that I sound like an ass?"

"No, I'm saying that if you write things exactly as you say them, you'll come across a lot differently," Macaque opened Wukong's journal to a blank page, quickly scrawling a few sentences, "A decent writer knows how to twist the language on the page to get a certain feeling, kind of like music in that way. Some written words look sadder than others, or phrasing a sentence a certain way gives it the same meaning as another, but a completely different mood,"

"...So I sound like a ditz when I only use exclamation points?"

"Oh, incredibly so,"

.

The sound of a humming voice floated through the air, echoing from the kitchen, the sound of dishes clicking against other dishes accompanying it. Cooked food gave the humble home a mouthwatering aroma, rousing the Monkey King from his slumber. He was curled up on the sofa under a blanket. The sun was dipping below the horizon, casting a golden shine over the room, which was slowly fading as the sun floated away. With a groan, Wukong rolled over, rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning," A voice chuckled, Wukong blinking blearily as it approached. Macaque sat beside him, poking his forehead. "Did you have a good nap, peaches?"

"....My eyes hurt," Wukong grumbled, grabbing for the contact lens case and pulling the plastic away from his eyes. He blindly slapped the table behind him, grabbing a hold of his glasses, slipping them on and glancing back at Macaque. His voice caught in his throat. Macaque was bathed in the golden light, smiling fondly at Wukong, six ears fluttering in a way that left Wukong breathless.

"Are you awake now?" Macaque asked, raising a brow at him. Wukong felt his fur poof and quickly nodded his head.

"Y-yeah! What'd you make? It smells good!" Wukong pushed himself up and stumbled off the sofa, nearly tripping over the blanket. Gods, why did Macaque have to be so damn pretty!?

"Just some dumplings," Macaque hummed, tail swaying happily, "C'mon, before they get too cold,"