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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 6, 2022 23:23:17 GMT -5
Ronan blinked in, leaning to one side a little, head tilted back and eyes closed. He stumbled a little as the support vanished, barely managed to avoid toppling over completely, and straightened up, taking in the… “Oh f(oops) no, House.” Sal blinked in, reaching to the side as though to grab something and starting a little as his fingers brushed the hard floor of what looked like…a gym? He pushed himself to his feet. If the last couple rooms were any indication, he wouldn’t be alone here for long. Juuzou appeared, hopping nimbly forward, arms stuck out on either side for balance. He stopped, stepping back a little at the change. It had been a while since he’d blinked in…he wasn’t even sure when the last time had been. “So, anyway, I really don’t think - “ Varian’s voice cut off abruptly as he appeared, hands waving to help his explanation. “Oh, wow…thanks, House. You couldn’t have waited for just a second?” Kenma blinked in for the first time, sitting cross legged on the floor and gazing in front him in rapt attention, a remote controller in his hands. He froze as his game vanished. And his room. He looked up slowly, taking in the place that had replaced them… Oh. Spook appeared, holding a small coin in one hand, as though he couldn’t quite believe it was real. “I don’t think…” he started, looking up to reply, and stopped as he realized he wasn’t in his room anymore. He squinted against the sudden light, leaning back a little to make himself smaller as he realized he wasn’t alone. |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 6, 2022 23:44:30 GMT -5
Noah appeared, rubbing awkwardly at his smudge as he listened to someone in his world say something he honestly wasn’t paying that much attention to. He frowned, looking up and around at his new surroundings. It was… brighter than he had been expecting, but… that didn’t mean it was bad. Even though he was fairly certain he wasn’t good enough at sports to be here. Zuko blinked in, once again free from his cumbersome armor. He had been holding chopsticks up, about to take a bite of a bowl of noodles that had since disappeared. Cursing quietly under his breath, Zuko ate the bite that was hanging off the chopsticks, then looked around for a place to put them. He reached to pocket them., realizing after a moment that the pockets of his robe had been covered in a thin, red mesh fabric. Glancing around, he noticed that others in the room had been similarly color coded. Newt was running as he appeared, and he barely managed to skid to a stop before he ran right into Juuzou. He blinked, taking a step back and muttering a quick “Sorry,” under his breath. The House wasn’t new to him, but the past couple of times he had blinked in had all felt like dreams. It was… odd to be back. He wasn’t entirely certain it was a welcome sight. Hinata barely noticed the change in surroundings. He was already wearing a white t-shirt, his eyes narrowed as he waited for a serve that never made it over the net. His team was gone, replaced with… he frowned, looking around as though Nishinoya and Tanaka were about to leap out and startle him. It wasn’t Hunter’s first blink, but he still didn’t trust the House. It seemed like some sort of test (when in doubt, everything was a test), but that just meant he was even more determined to do well at it. He straightened up when he noticed his blink, stomping a foot experimentally on the shiny floor. It was… strange. As was the red fabric that had replaced his familiar cape. He reached up to see if his mask was still on, eyes widening as he realized it wasn’t. Well… there must have been a reason for that. Wylan blinked in as well, goggles pulled over his eyes as he made a run for it, face streaked with ash and dirt and all other manner of grime from setting up explosives in a less than savory part of town. He took in a breath, flinching as the lights suddenly changed. Blinded, he plowed right into Spook. Nico appeared a few moments after everyone else, squinting against the suddenly bright lights. He tensed as he realized where the House had thrown them. When he was younger, he hadn’t exactly been the best at sports. He was the kind of kid the bigger kids would target when they played dodgeball. He just had to hope that wasn’t what the House planned now… there were plenty of boys here who were bigger in stature and might see him as easy prey. Well… they would see how wrong they were. |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 0:07:18 GMT -5
Ronan narrowed his eyes a little as more people appeared. Actually…a lot more people. He hadn’t seen this many people at once in a long time. He turned, taking them all in. He recognized Zuko, at least, though he didn’t acknowledge him right away. And… “Hey, Noah!” There they were. Sal turned, watching as the others began to appear in different spots in the room. They were all sort of color coded…he glanced down, realizing he was now wearing a thin blue jersey over his black sweater. He looked up, catching sight of Zuko, the one other person he recognized here, wearing a red one. Oh, so that was how it was. Juuzou reacted before he realized what had happened, bouncing to the side to avoid the collision and spinning to face Newt as he did. He didn’t recognize him. He didn’t think he recognized anyone here, actually. New people, then… He moved, approaching the balls instead of replying to the other boy. It looked like a game, though he didn’t recognize it. Varian looked around, watching as the others appeared, all of them wearing different colored fabrics, red and blue. He glanced down. He was red, apparently. Too bad, he liked blue. He was tempted to approach someone. But who? He looked over, trying to catch Nico’s eye, and gave a small wave. He looked…maybe not nice, but definitely cool. Kenma stood up slowly, trying to avoid drawing attention to himself as the others realized where they were. Some of them looked as confused as he felt, he thought, but there were a few who didn’t look surprised so much as…wary? Interested? He wasn’t sure. He eased back a little. Closest to him was a boy with pointed ears and a scar, and he was one of the wary ones, but that didn’t make Kenma feel much safer. Spook breathed out, bracing himself to move. Whatever was happening…he’d come here before, he thought. If it was the same place. Maybe he should just - He yelped as something crashed into him and hit the floor skidding to the side and trying to crawl to his feet only find he was tangled up with… “It’s you!” |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 0:27:56 GMT -5
Noah turned at the sound of his name, a grin breaking across his face as he recognized Ronan. He raised a hand in greeting, eyes widening as he recognized Ronan’s jersey. He had worn these more than once in elementary school games. He gave a hesitant glance down, his grin widening as he realized he was wearing the same color. “Ronan!” he shouted, pointing exuberantly at the matching jersey he was wearing. “Same team!” Zuko hadn’t seen a room this crowded in a while, but he couldn’t say he was exactly surprised. The House liked to mix things up, and this seemed like the kind of room that required teams. It wasn’t like they could make teams with only a few of them. That said… he wasn’t sure he liked the fact that he was on the opposite team of the other people he knew. He knew Ronan could handle himself in a fight, and he wanted an excuse to spend more time with Sal. Oh well… seemed the House had it out for him. Especially since he still didn’t have a place to put his chopsticks. Ah. Newt watched as the other boy wheeled away from him, heading straight for the bin full of colorful balls. He wasn’t sure if the boy was avoiding him in particular or if he was just curious about the room, but Newt decided it would be best not to take it personally. He sat back, arms crossed as he watched the others react. He wasn’t yet sure if it was worth being wary of. Hinata was nothing short of ecstatic. He bounced forward, half running half skipping towards the balls. He picked one up, bouncing it once or twice before he bumped it into the air, watching it come down before bumping it again. He caught the ball after that, looking around him. He didn’t recognize anyone other than Kenma (the rest of the people here didn’t look like the other kids at Nekoma, but it was probably a dream, so he supposed it didn’t matter). “What are you looking at?” Hunter asked, more defensive than he meant to be as he glared at Kenma. The other boy looked… well, it was hard to tell how he looked. He looked like he wasn’t easy to read. It put Hunter on edge more than he cared to admit. But they were wearing the same color fabric, so maybe that wasn’t… the best way to meet his new teammate. “Hi!” Wylan gasped as soon as he pushed his goggles up his forehead, recognition flooding his face at the boy accidentally pinned beneath him. He rolled to the side to let Spook up, a grin crashing over his features. “Sorry, I was… I guess I couldn’t see very clearly. You okay?” Nico frowned, startled as one of the boys seemed to wave in his direction. He glanced behind him, almost convinced that there would be someone else the boy was waving at. Nope. So… it was him. Uncertainly, Nico raised a hand in greeting. He was fairly certain he had never met the freckled boy before, but that didn’t mean anything. Some people were just friendly like that. It always caught Nico off guard. |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 0:54:44 GMT -5
Ronan grinned back, barely even caring that he didn’t recognize most of the others. Zuko was wearing a different color, anyway. There wasn’t going to be time for any small talk. It had been a long time since he’d seen Noah here. He could barely even remember whether it had been a real blink or a dreamt one…he was still trying to come to terms with the fact that this place wasn’t a dream. It didn’t help that it had ended up in a few of his, lately. “You remember the rules?” He shouted back, not bothering to come any closer. Sal could tell a couple of the people here knew each other. At least…the two shouting definitely did. He looked at the two who’d crashed into each other, just long enough to make sure they were both moving, and then headed for Zuko. “The House really isn’t interested in us having a real date, is it?” He said as he came close enough, keeping his voice low enough to stop anyone else from overhearing. Not that he’d have minded, but…it wasn’t like they’d talked about it. Juuzou watched the other boy take the ball, eyes wide as he began to bounce it. He clearly knew what he was doing. He used it the same way most of the people Juuzou knew used their quinques, or whatever weapon they specialized in. He glanced back at the boy who’d almost crashed into him, still standing where he’d left him. Well… He took a ball, bounced it experimentally, and then tossed it to him. Kenma started, looking down as the boy called him out for staring. Which…to be fair, he probably has been, but he hadn’t meant to be obvious about it. He didn’t reply. The boy was his teammate, if the colors were any indication, but…where was this? It looked like he’d somehow appeared at practice, but all his teammates had been replaced. It was just… weird. He didn’t think he liked it. Color flooded Spook’s cheeks as he realized how close they’d gotten. He didn’t move for a long moment after Wylan has rolled off, trying to catch his breath from how hard he’d fallen, and then he pushed himself up, offering his own shy grin in return. “I didn’t fall hard,” he reassured him, pushing a few loose strands of hair from his face. “I didn’t…expect to ever come back here.” Varian grinned, pleased as the boy returned the wave. It may not have been the most enthusiastic reply ever, but… He headed towards him. It probably counted as an invitation, right? “Hi,” he said as soon as he came close enough, and pointed to the jersey Nico wore. “Guess we’re on the same team.” |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 1:11:12 GMT -5
Noah glanced at the balls, trying to make sure he even had the right sport in mind. It wouldn’t do to be playing basketball and think it was dodgeball or something. It had been a long time since he had played any sports, and it wasn’t like any of his friends played sports that required balls. Well… tennis, but he was fairly certain this wasn’t tennis. The balls and the net made it pretty clear. “Honestly? Not all of them. But it shouldn’t matter. How many of the other team even looks like they’re from Earth?” It almost took Zuko by surprise that Sal approached him. He supposed they didn’t have to be enemies until the game began, but he hadn’t expected them to have much time to talk before whatever the House wanted them to do. “I guess not,” he replied, just as quietly. “Between this and the room with the dragons.. Yeah, I guess we have to make our own time for that. Unfortunately.” With a quick glance around, Zuko slipped his hand into Sal’s. “Any idea what the point of this room is?” Newt blinked in surprise as the boy turned back to him, passing him the ball as though that had been his attention all along. He caught it a moment later, frowning at it before he glanced back at Hinata and the way he had bumped it. Experimentally, Newt threw it in the air and tried to pass it to Juuzou the same way the ginger boy had. The ball didn’t go exactly where he had wanted it, but it came closer than he expected. Hinata grinned as Juuzou took a ball, then as Newt attempted to bump it back. “You haven’t practiced much, have you?” he asked, his voice devoid of judgement. “I mean, that’s okay, obviously, but if we’re gonna play a set, you should probably know how to receive and all that! Your arms are too bent. You have to have your forearms flat and out, like this,” he explained, attempting to demonstrate to both boys at once. Hunter flushed, watching the boy for a long moment before offering a stilted apology. He let that hang in the air for a moment, unsure whether an explanation would be welcome or considered rude. He hadn’t spent much time around witches his own age (although… he wasn’t entirely sure they were witches. He was still getting used to the idea of seeing so many humans in one place). “Good,” Wylan breathed, a small smile touching his features again. He stood up, shaking himself off before offering Spook his hand. “I mean… that you’re okay. Not that you didn’t expect to come back.” He could feel a blush snaking up his features, turning his cheeks too obviously red. “It looks like the House wants us on the same team,” he added, noting the blue jerseys they both wore. Nico glanced down at his own jersey, frowning once again. He had a color scheme and the House was frankly ruining it. Besides, it had taken off his signature jacket, and he felt more vulnerable than he would have liked to admit. “Yeah, guess so,” he replied after a moment, not entirely trusting of Varian’s friendly introduction. “I’m Nico,” he said anyway, deciding it would be easier to just go along with it. |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 1:30:40 GMT -5
Ronan laughed, glancing at Zuko for a second before he let his eyes rest on the boy with the pointed ears. Noah had a point. It looked like the blue team had the edge when it came to players who probably at least knew what Earth was. “He’s not,” he told him, indicating Zuko with a nod. “I don’t recognize anyone else.” As far as Sal was concerned, if the House was going to pit them against each other in a sport, it was only fair to let the people from a world where that sport probably didn’t exist in on it. Besides, it didn’t look like the game was starting right away, anyway. He nodded a little, accepting his hand as though it didn’t make his heart skip a beat to be able to do it so casually. “Yeah, actually. I think it’s a game from my world. I’m guessing you haven’t heard of volleyball?” Juuzou grinned, pleased as the other boy caught the ball. He didn’t know that it meant it had been a good throw, but he'd have been glad he had responded even if he’d missed it. “Receive?” He repeated curiously, giving the boy standing near them a quick glance before he reached to catch the ball again. He had to dive slightly to the side, but he managed it. “What’s a set? Is that what this game is?” Kenma glanced up again, still slightly wary, and gave a tiny nod to acknowledge the apology. He wasn’t entirely sure how he was supposed to be reacting here…he didn’t like talking to people at the best of times, and he still had no idea what had happened. “Do you know where we are?” He finally asked, a little bit tentatively. Spook blushed again, ducking his head a little as though he thought that might disguise it. If this had been his world, he’d have probably just fled to his room, but that wasn’t really an option here, so…he was just going to have to be brave instead. “Oh…is that what the colors mean?” He asked, glancing down at his own jersey for a second before he looked back at Wylan’s. “You can still understand me,” he added after a second. He still couldn’t quite get over it. Varian nodded, trying for another smile. He couldn’t tell how Nico felt about him, but at least…he hadn’t told him to leave, so it seemed to be going alright so far. “I’m Varian! Hi!” He replied brightly, waving again before he could stop himself. “I’m kind of an experienced House member now. But I haven’t seen you around before.” |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 1:49:05 GMT -5
Noah glanced at the boy Ronan had indicated, then gave a small nod. He didn’t think he had ever seen him before - it was odd, he didn’t think he had seen most of these people before. It wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, it was just that he wasn’t used to seeing this many strangers in one House room. He wasn’t really used to seeing this many people in general. “So we’re probably gonna win no sweat,” he replied, giving a thumbs up. “Besides, that kid seems to already know how to play,” he added, pointing over his shoulder at Hinata. Having a boyfriend, it turned out, was much more dangerous for Zuko’s heart than having a girlfriend. He tried not to think too hard about that, or the way Sal’s hand felt warm and comfortable in his, and the way he wasn’t afraid it was going to be pulled away at any moment. “Volleyball?” Zuko repeated, frowning a little as he looked at the setup. “I mean… yeah, we have volleyball. It’s just not usually indoors… that seems kind of… I don’t know, what happens if someone hits the ball into the ceiling? And how do you do it without… sand?” he asked lamely. Newt followed the boy’s explanation, attempting to get into the same position he was in. It wasn’t as natural for him as it seemed to the other boy, but he had never played before. Given how at ease the ginger boy seemed, he had done this plenty of times before. “Why don’t you just… catch the ball?” he asked, throwing a helpless glance Juuzou’s direction. “That seems easier.” “If you caught it, it wouldn’t be volleyball…?” Hinata replied, frowning a little as he tried to wrap his head around people who had not only never played volleyball, but had also apparently never heard of it either. Okay… this was going to be a little more complicated, but all the more rewarding when they all played a full game together. “A set is made up of three games. Or two games, if one team wins both of them in a row. Receives are how you get the ball, and you’re not allowed to catch it. You try to make the ball hit the floor on the other side of the net, but you’re only allowed four touches on your side of the net. The most common receive is a bump, which is what I just showed you.” Hunter frowned, eyes wide as he realized he had to explain this place. He had never received a very good explanation himself… “I think it’s called the Paradox House, based on what I was told. You just sort of appear here, and then when it gets bored of you, you go back to your own world, but no time has passed. Rooms, like this one, are sort of like a test. You have to pass it in order to get back to the place where there’s not any danger. So we have to figure out what this room is for.” Wylan watched Spook for a moment, letting his blush color his face for another long moment before he forced himself to look away and try to hide it at least a little bit. “Yeah. I still don’t… really get why, other than that there’s apparently a translator, but…” he shrugged, rubbing at some of the ash and dust on his face. “I think I’d like to be able to understand you even without the translator, though.” “Experienced House member, huh?” Nico asked after a moment, doing his best to keep the humor out of his voice. The boy was clearly taking that very seriously, and the last thing Nico wanted to do was burst his bubble. “It’s nice to meet you.” He didn’t know for sure if that was true, but it was better to be polite than not. And Varian seemed eager to talk, so it wasn’t like Nico had to put forth too much effort in carrying a conversation. “Maybe the House just… never decided to blink us in at the same time. It happens.” |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 2:07:45 GMT -5
Ronan glanced over, where the kid with bright hair seemed to be teaching two of the others. At least… “He’s teaching someone from the wrong side,” he observed, eyeing Juuzou. “From the look of it, not someone who knows how to play, either.” He didn’t particularly care about winning, personally. But from how animated the ginger kid was, it seemed like he probably did. Sal has never dated before. He had come close…well. Sort of. He had thought about it, at least. It was different to actually be standing there, holding Zuko’s hand as though it was the easiest thing in the world. “Wait, you actually have volleyball?” he demanded, genuine surprise making it into his tone. “I just assumed you didn’t. I never know how to predict what your world is going to have.” Juuzou watched, fascinated as the boy launched into an explanation. He thought he’d heard of volleyball, but he hadn’t really realized what it was until now. He certainly hadn’t known any of the rules. He looked down at the ball, shifting his grip on it as he tried to picture the movement Hinata had made. “So, you try to keep it from hitting the floor? That sounds easy.” Kenma paused, eyes widening a little as Hunter began to explain. It wasn’t that he hadn’t expected him to have an explanation, it was just…Well, maybe he hadn’t. That meant this has happened before. It meant it happened enough that someone had been there more than Hunter, when he’d first appeared. He glanced at the net, and Hinata, who was still teaching the two other strangers how to play. “This? It’s volleyball.” Spook nodded a little, risking a tiny smile at the words. It didn’t occur to him to mention the ash, though it should have. He knew Wylan was from a different world. But his brain barely even bothered to tell him it was there. “It’s just slang,” he told him, giving a tiny shrug. “But I…I’m glad you can. It’s nice.” “Varian nodded, drawing himself up a little to make himself seem taller, though the other boy didn’t have a lot of height on him anyway. “Yeah, I’ve been in a few rooms, and I’ve pretty much got the idea now. But it’s nice to meet you too! I don’t…really know what this room is.” |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 2:25:26 GMT -5
Noah frowned a little, glancing back at the little volleyball lesson that was going on. “I guess that makes sense, though,” he replied, moving a little bit closer to Ronan so that they didn’t have to keep shouting across the gym. He wasn’t used to being that loud, especially not since he had died. “If he wants to play that badly, it wouldn’t really do to go against a team that doesn’t know how to play at all.” Zuko nodded, glancing down at their hands for a short moment before he forced himself away from the distraction they provided. “Our worlds are both more similar and less similar than I expect. Every single time. But I still don’t get why you would play volleyball inside and on a floor like this. The entire point is that it’s a beach sport…” he shrugged a little. “I used to play with Azula and her friends when I was little. We couldn’t get a lot of other kids to play with us. They thought we were too intense. But we were pretty good.” He squeezed Sal’s hand, competition flashing across his expression. “Get ready to be defeated.” Newt tried to take in that information, taking another ball and bumping it up like Hinata had shown him. It was easier now that he knew what his hands were supposed to be doing. It also hurt a little bit - he couldn’t imagine trying to receive it if it flew across the room with any sort of speed. It would be fine, he was tough, but he couldn’t imagine people doing it for fun. “It sounds easy,” Hinata grinned, gaze scanning the room before his eyes landed on Kenma. He was itching to show these kids what he could do… he had never spiked any of Kenma’s sets, and they wouldn’t be as crazy as Kageyama’s but… “Kenma!” he shouted, a grin spreading across his face again. “Give me a toss?” He turned his attention back to Juuzou. “Just watch.” Hunter frowned, annoyed that the other boy knew something he didn’t. It seemed like an unfair advantage, but then again… the House hadn’t shown itself to be fair yet, so maybe he should have expected this. “Volleyball?” he asked, about to ask more when he heard someone shout across the room. Okay, so the boy in front of him wasn’t the only one who knew what was going on. Annoyance flickered through Hunter, but he tried to suppress it. He couldn’t afford to let himself be thrown off guard. “It’s what you speak,” Wylan replied earnestly. “I mean… I don’t know you super well yet obviously, but the way you talk about it makes it seem like there aren’t very many people who know how to understand it, and that’s… I know what it’s like to feel like everyone else can understand something you can’t, and I don’t like the idea of anyone ever feeling that. So I want to help, if I can. I want to speak it.” Nico noticed the way Varian postured, but he didn’t say anything about it. He couldn’t help but see a bit of his younger self in the boy. Desperately trying to impress someone who seemed cool, full of questions he wasn’t sure if its as acceptable to ask; questions he undoubtedly decided to ask regardless. “It’s a game called volleyball,” he said after a moment. “I know a little about it, but I’ve never played. I’ve just seen other people play it, and that was a long time ago, so… I’m not sure I’m the best person to explain it.” |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 2:47:41 GMT -5
Ronan watched Noah come closer for a second before he turned back to the little group forming near the balls. “It’s still not gonna be an even match if half the people here don’t know how to play,” he pointed out once Noah was closer. “You think we’ll have to play the full game to get out of here?” “You have beach volleyball?” Sal repeated, nudging him lightly with one shoulder. “That’s a thing in my world too, but I’ve never done it. I guess it’s the same idea though. Places like this are usually built for all kinds of sports, including volleyball, so there’s not a lot you could break here.” He glanced over, a bit of mischief slipping into his gaze as he did, and cocked his head. “Is that a challenge?” Juuzou considered his ball, almost tossing it to see if he could copy the movement when Hinata called someone else. He turned, hopping lightly to Newt’s other side to try to see who was coming. “Who’s that? D’you know him?” Kenma paused, glancing over as Hinata called his name, then glancing back at the other boy. He still seemed irritated, but that was fair…he knew more about this place, and he didn’t recognize the game. It probably wasn’t personal. Probably. “Sorry,” he said, dipping his head to Hunter and turning to join Hinata. And pausing. He glanced back, half trying to convince himself not to say anything, half trying to decide how to invite him to come. It wasn’t like he probably wanted to…was it? “If you want to know…” he started, and stopped again. Hopefully that was enough. Spook looked up, eyes widening a little as Wylan continued. It was true, though…it was less something he didn’t understand, and more something no one else did. But it was the same concept. He knew what Wylan meant. “It’s common where I grew up,” he explained softly. “But…not anywhere else. I’m the only one who doesn’t know how to talk like…” He waved a hand. “Volleyball?” Varian asked, forgetting to sound impressive. “I’ve never heard of that. I mean…there are kind of games with balls, but they’re not really actually games. And I don’t play them. I’m too busy for that kind of thing.” He glanced over, frowning a little. “But…it looks like some people know about it a little?” |
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 3:10:24 GMT -5
Noah shrugged, putting his hands in his pocket before deciding he didn’t like the way they felt there and letting them hang at his side. “I don’t know. I kind of hope so… it would be annoying if we actually managed to have a good game out of it and then the House blinked us back. It looks like it could actually be fun.” He shrugged again, looking around at all the others gathering near the net. “Do you… wanna toss a ball around until they’re done with their lesson?” he asked, something like amusement sparking in his eyes. It didn’t mean anything. They were just two boys in a relationship and a shoulder nudge was totally normal. There was no reason for it to make Zuko’s heart feel like it was going to beat right out of his chest and run from his world straight to Sal’s. “It’s definitely a challenge,” he replied instead, lips quirking into a competitive smile. “But I’m so going to win. Even if you do have the kid teaching everyone else on your team.” Newt glanced at Juuzou, unsure if he was addressing him or the ginger kid. Considering Hinata had shouted out the other boy’s name, he had a feeling it was kind of obvious that their self assigned teacher knew the boy he was calling over. So he figured it was safe to answer instead. “Honestly, I don’t know anyone here,” he admitted, shifting a little to give the boys who knew what they were doing more room at the net. “But I am kind of excited to see whatever it is they want to demonstrate.” Hinata bounced up and down a few times as he waited for Kenma to approach, throwing the ball at the floor once, then twice. He got in place several feet away from the net, excitement and determination buzzing through him. Kenma had seen him spike now, so he should know what kind of toss Hinata liked. It wasn’t like he expected that of any setter who watched him play, but Kenma was practically a genius. The rest of Nekoma - especially Inuoka - was just as impressive, but Kenma was the one who had most of their strategy. And he knew his team well. “Ready?” he asked, before tossing Kenma the ball to set back to him. Kenma. So that was the other boy’s name. Hunter watched as he turned to go, trying to fight the prick of disappointment in his chest. It didn’t matter. He was here to… well, he didn’t know exactly why he was here, he just knew he had to pass whatever trial was in front of him. “Huh?” Hunter asked, half surprised but the way Kenma paused. An… invitation? Hesitantly, he followed the other boy as he approached the net. It seemed he was trying to get used to this situation, too. And he hadn’t been too terribly offended by the way Hunter had acted at first. Wylan watched Spook, content to fall into conversation with him rather than pay attention to what the rest of the room was doing. They could play their game. They didn’t really need the two of them, did they? “I… can’t read,” Wylan blurted after a moment, careful to keep his voice quiet enough that nobody else could hear. “And everyone else where I’m from can, so it was basically like they were all speaking a language I didn’t understand. And I know it’s not the same as nobody else speaking your language, but…” “You know,” Nico murmured, voice scarcely louder than a hiss of wind, “There’s nothing wrong with playing games. Or doing things a kid would do. Just… you have your entire adult life to be too busy for games.” He let that hang in the air - not a reproach, just as gentle a reminder as he was capable of. “You don’t have to grow up quite so fast.” |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 3:34:14 GMT -5
Ronan couldn’t say he was exactly excited for this, but at least it didn’t seem like the room was going to turn bad. Not yet, at least. And if it did… Well, he knew at least he and Zuko could do something about it. “Sure,” he agreed, shooting Noah a half smirk before he turned, heading for the balls at a jog. “Might as well.” Sal wouldn’t have exactly said he was touch starved, but this…it was so casual. How could something feel so alien and so normal at the same time? “Pretty big talk, coming from the guy who didn’t know volleyball could be played inside until like five seconds ago,” he returned, his voice light with amusement. “I guess we can skip the introduction. It looks like he’s teaching both teams, at least.” Juuzou hummed, watching the other two approach. One of them was probably Kenma…right. The one Hinata had tossed the ball too, then. “I don’t, either,” he replied dismissively, letting himself step back too. He was eager to see the game in progress, though. Kenma turned, jogging the rest of the way to Hinata as soon as it looked like Hunter was following. It didn’t mean he necessarily wanted to try to have a conversation with him. It was just that he had seemed annoyed about it. He caught the ball, slowing to a stop. This, at least…he knew how to do. He waited a moment for Hinata to get into position, and for the others to step back. And then he moved, slipping easily into the sort of toss he’d seen Hinata take the most often. Or his best approximation, at least. Spook’s eyes widened a little, but he didn’t interrupt as Wylan continued, leaning a little closer almost without meaning to. It felt like a confession, almost…the way he’d admitted to speaking slang. “A lot of the kids I knew couldn’t read,” he whispered back, keeping his voice as low as Wylan’s had been. “I know some, but…the point is, it’s hard. To feel…left behind.” Varian hesitated, expression shifting just a little as Nico spoke. That hadn’t been the answer he was expecting. Nico looked…maybe not older, but probably more capable than he was. At least, in a fight. Varian felt what that he did was plenty important, but not everyone felt the same way. “I guess so,” he replied, blinking at him. “I mean…I have my inventions. And the black rocks are getting worse. I know I can figure out how to stop them.” |
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 7, 2022 3:55:33 GMT -5
Noah watched as Ronan went to grab a ball, tilting his head a little as he took in all of the others in the room. It was his first chance to really take them all in. It was odd, not only to have this many people in one room, but also to have this many people who were all around the same age in one room. He recognized Nico from a few rooms, and he was probably the youngest looking there, but the oldest couldn’t have been older than Ronan and himself, which meant… there was something the House thought tied all of them together. Probably. Pushing the thought aside, Noah waited for Ronan to return (and hopefully not get roped into the training). “Please,” Zuko replied, shouldering Sal back. “I can hold my own better than you think. And playing on hard floor sounds a heck of a lot easier than playing in sand. You can run without any resistance here. Piece of cake.” He let out a soft snort, letting his attention drift back towards the boy teaching everyone. It seemed he was going into some sort of demonstration. Well… it was probably a good idea to get an eye for the competition. It seemed they were lucky they already had a setter on their team. Newt stood back, watching as the ball flew up into the air and was… well, these two certainly knew what they were doing. He wasn’t surprised, of course, but int was one thing to know in theory and see it in person. They moved like a well oiled machine, any mistakes too small to be noticed by someone without an eye for the sport. “Well, we won’t get that level of skill in one game,” he murmured to Juuzou. Hinata was midair, getting ready to hit the ball, and… Bam. The ball hit Hinata’s hand and less than a second later the court on the other side of the net, bouncing up a good several feet in the air before it came to a bouncing halt in the corner, stopped by the wall. Hinata landed lightly, holding out his hands as he turned around as though presenting some sort of exhibit he was particularly proud of. “See! Not too easy to hit that, when you do it right. And Kenma’s like… the best setter ever, at least for multiple different spikers and stuff.” He grinned at Newt, crossing his arms as he did so. “Don’t worry, though. You’ve got me on your team, and I’m gonna be the ace one day!” Hunter watched the demonstration, eyes widening just a little as the ball went flying with more power than he had expected. There was no magic involved, which would make it more impressive, but… it was still pretty impressive as it was. He shook off the thought, instead focusing on Kenma. The way the ginger boy had hit the ball seemed impressive, but he had a feeling a lot of that was because of how well Kenma had delivered it to him. It wouldn’t have been so flawless if it weren’t for the “toss,” as they had called it. Wylan whirled around at the sound of the ball hitting the floor. It had sounded… well, almost like a miniature explosion. Once he was sure that nobody was blowing up, he turned back to Spook. “I know there are a lot of people in my world who can’t, but they weren’t… the kind of people I was with. Where I came from, you couldn’t succeed if you couldn’t read.” He bit his lip, not wanting to say too much. He didn’t want to make Spook feel bad for him. He didn’t want to pull Spook into a conversation he didn’t want to have with personal information about someone he didn’t even know well. “I’m sure you can,” Nico replied after a moment, casting a quick glance in the direction of the others. It would be interesting to play against the ginger boy, that was for certain… “But that doesn’t mean that has to be all you do. I mean… doing the things you should do in childhood is still important, even if you feel like you need to grow up now. You don’t. Even if the rest of your world seems to imply that you do. And who knows… you might enjoy some of the things you think you’re too busy before. There are a lot of things I regret not trying.” |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 7, 2022 15:14:40 GMT -5
Ronan glanced at the crowd, taking in the two who seemed to be demonstrating, and the wide eyed people watching. The ginger kid was good, he had to admit that. He tried to follow the ball with his eyes, but it was across the court before he could process what had happened, slamming into the wall and coming to rest in a corner. He picked a ball and turned, jogging back to Noah and tossing it to him once he was close enough. “Heads up!” Sal laughed a little, doing his best to ignore the way his heart raced at the nudge. “Doesn’t mean you can win here. I’m not even talking about myself, either, we have the kid who actually knows what he’s doing on our side,” he told him, nodding towards Hinata. “Are you sure you don’t wanna give up now?” Juuzou watched, eyes very wide as the two seemed to slip into a movement they’d practiced a thousand times before. They clearly knew each other fairly well. Even if they’d both learned the game separately, there was no way it would be that smooth if there wasn’t trust there, too. He’d seen it in fights enough times. Teams had to practice together, or no matter how good they were, they would just get in each other’s way. “They aren’t on the same team, though,” he replied to Newt, watching the ball settle across the court. “So they can’t work together. It might throw ‘em off.” Kenma watched Hinata hit the ball, with all the force and enthusiasm he always did. He always looked so at home in the air, somehow, as though he really could fly so long as there was a ball in front of him. This was what had drawn his team's attention. Hinata was like a cannon on a ship. As long as someone knew how to wield him, he could probably take the enemy down all by himself. Personally, he liked Hinata because he was nice, and because he was easy to talk to, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t a little bit satisfying to see the shocked expressions surrounding them. He met Hunter’s gaze for a second, enough to realize the other boy was focusing on him instead of Hinata, and looked down quickly. Spook jumped, cringing back just a little at the sound of the ball hitting the floor with enough force he was a little bit surprised it hadn’t cracked it. He was still getting over the lack of ash, too…anything that hit the floor like that in his world would have caused a cloud of it, whether it was outside or not. It was almost unsettling not to see it happen here. “And succeeding is everything,” he murmured, drawn back to the conversation. He gave Wylan a long, searching look, trying to decide how much he was really allowed to add to that. “It matters. The people who say it doesn’t…well, it’s easy for them. They don’t know how hard it is.” Varian frowned a little, eyeing Nico for a long moment as though trying to figure out whether he was being treated like a child and told to go play, or more like an adult who didn’t take enough breaks. “I guess so,” he said finally, noncommittal. “The alchemists I read about never say they take breaks to play catch, but maybe they just left it out…” He glanced over at the crowd beginning to form by the balls. That seemed to be where most of them ended up. “Looks like it’s not really up to either of us, today.” |
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Post by Numquam on May 8, 2022 8:42:47 GMT -5
Numquam Az felt a dash of surprise when he learned his conversation partner was aware of the existence of other worlds. It wasn't common knowledge among most who populated the mortal plane, and always came as a shock when there was an outlier. And a 'Wolf Demitheian', was it? Nothing of the sort existed in the two worlds outside the mortal one (which were the only two he himself currently knew of), so her words made sense. "Likewise!" The white haired wanderer replied, following after and falling into step beside the departing Eises. Once again, when asked about something related to himself, it took a moment of silent contemplating before he replied. "Well, before I arrived here, I was currently on my way across the countryside of Scotland to try and lay eyes on the Stone of Scone. I heard tell it was connected to angels, so I wanted to sate my budding curiosity and see it firsthand." And just like before, his answer, while honest, was evasive, holding little information about himself or his background. "What about yourself? I'm sure that's much more interesting than my aimless wandering." Eises listened curiously as she continued to walk. "So, Scotland's a country? What's it like?" It had a funny name, Eises found it amusing to pronounce. "Ho, you religious?" She assumed the stone had some kind of power that was sought, or perhaps Az wanted to meet an angel. "So, do angels exist in your world?" She then realised it may have been an odd question - perhaps the answer depended on the blinker's beliefs. Eises whirled around at the snap of a twig, her ears perked and her shoulders tensed. She looked past the trees, but saw nothing that could have caused the sound. Keeping her ears straight, slowly continuing to walk once more, she slowly turned back to Az. "I was just gettin' ready to go out on a mission. We're supposed to kill some politician, don't really remember his name." |
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 8, 2022 13:04:48 GMT -5
Noah had to admit he was more than a little stunned with how fast the ginger kid was able to make the ball go. He found he was grateful to be on the same team as him. He couldn’t imagine setting to someone so enthusiastic would be that hard. Setting had always been easier for him than bumping, anyway. He didn’t know if he had the experience to make it so flawless, but he could try… the kid seemed the type to hit any ball that came his way, though. “Huh?” Noah turned, just barely in time to lift a hand up and catch the ball before it hit him in the face. “Hey!” Zuko raised his brow, glancing back in the direction of Hinata and Kenma. “Sure,” he replied, letting out a huff of air, “but do you have anyone eon your team who can set to him as flawlessly as the other kid did? He knows what he’s doing, too, it’s just not as flashy.” He crossed his arms (still keeping his hand linked with Sal’s), assessing the rest of the competition. Newt pursed his lips, crossing his arms as he considered what Juuzou was saying. It had probably taken the two of them a lot of time to get as good as they were. He had no doubt that neither of them would be able to reproduce such skill with a group of people who were much less familiar with the game. It would be more even than he had thought - he could definitely see why the House had split the two of them up, if only so that everyone got a chance to play without the two of them completely taking up the court. “We’re on different teams too,” he noted, brow raising. “You sure you want to be talking strategy and stuff with me?” Hinata landed, his grin never faltering as he looked at all of the astonished faces. Okay, so maybe not all of them were exactly wowed, but the ones who had been watching were. And he could tell that some of them are getting more excited to play than they had been before. He turned back to Juuzou and Newt, hands on his hips. “See, it’s not as easy as it seems to get the ball back in the air when someone gets in a really good spike like that! ‘Course, I couldn’t have done it without Kenma, cause he’s an awesome setter!! You can tell in games and stuff cause you can never tell who he’s gonna set to, but he always gives people the sets that best fit their strengths!!” Hunter ignored the chattering of the ginger kid, instead focusing on Kenma (although the other boy seemed slightly embarrassed that the attention was on him… was that why he had chosen the position that didn’t draw all that much attention from people who didn’t know how much skill it took? Hunter didn’t know for sure how difficult it was, but he knew Kenma was vital to the success of the other kid’s attack. Kenma, if he were a witch, would make an excellent addition to the Emperor’s Coven. It was a pity he was just a human. “Yeah,” Wylan whispered after a moment, though he got the sense his life was incredibly different from Spook’s. Succeeding in Van Eck’s household was very different from what succeeding likely meant to this strange, kind boy. Even if it was something that put others at risk for both of them. Even if it was something neither of them really wanted to do - it was what they needed to do to survive. Nico’s brows raised as he looked at Varian. “Alchemy?” he asked, interest piqued. He hadn’t been as interested in that as a child as he had been pirates or Mythomagic, but it was hard to be a small boy with a fascination in history without getting sucked into the allure of alchemy at least a little bit. “That actually exists in your world?” He supposed it ‘actually existed’ in his world too, but in a different way. “The point is, catch doesn’t have to be your thing. And maybe you don’t have a ‘thing’ other than alchemy, but… all I’m saying is there’s nothing wrong with being a kid sometimes.” |
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Post by <Raintalon> on May 8, 2022 13:08:32 GMT -5
"I did what you asked me to do!"
A tiny dragon blinked into the House - well, tiny by dragon standards. She stood a foot or two over most humans, with a wingspan to match - wings she was currently flaring furiously in the air. The ruff on her neck stood out, and red was zipping across her pink and yellow scales in a violent blush of color to match her mood as she stood in the middle of the diner, radiating pure fury.
Almost immediately though, she stopped, a rush of purple-orange-blue replacing the red on her scales as she glanced around at her new surroundings, ears pricked with curiosity.
"What?" she said, blinking around at the stranger surfaces and bright, artificial lights that felt strangely cool on her scales. "Um...huh?"
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 8, 2022 13:22:11 GMT -5
Hinata appeared, dressed in a school uniform with a sweatshirt poking out from underneath. He looked about ready to fall asleep at the table where he sat, one hand poised as though to take notes. “Hm?” he asked, blinking blearily at the very clear change in lighting. “Are we watching a movie? I thought we were supposed to be preparing…” he trailed off as he realized he wasn’t where he had been only moments before. Okay… so what the other boys had been talking about last time he’d appeared somewhere like this were telling the truth. Or he was having a very weird dream (that’d teach him to fall asleep in maths again). Oh. Oh. There was a dragon here. Okay, one point for the part of his mind that wanted to believe this was a dream. “Hi?” he asked, unsure if dragons could speak Japanese. If it was a dream dragon they could probably speak any language they wanted, right? |
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Post by <Raintalon> on May 8, 2022 13:39:13 GMT -5
"Wuhhhhhhh....." The dragon blinked at him for several long seconds, and then cautiously began to approach him, her scales continuing to shift rapidly between colors as she did. She squinted at him once she was close enough, sniffing.
"What are you?" she asked finally, her eyes wide. "Weird little talking howler monkey? What? How come you can talk? That is so weird and creepy. I am totally dreaming right now, right? Yeah. This has to be a dream."
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 8, 2022 13:44:33 GMT -5
“You’re one to talk,” Hinata retorted, crossing his arms as he looked t the dragon once again. Eventually, curiosity won out over the negligible fact her comments could be seen as offensive. He didn’t really care if he was compared to a howler monkey if it meant he got to talk to an actual real life dragon.“My name’s Hinata! I’m a person… uh… human, I guess. Since you’re also technically a person but you’re… you’re a dragon, right? That’s so cool!! Can you breathe fire and stuff? Wait… can you fly?” |
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Post by <Raintalon> on May 8, 2022 13:51:35 GMT -5
"Human? Huuuuuuumannnnnnnnnnnnnn....." Kinkajou tested out the word in her mouth, and then was immediately distracted by the fact that the human was still talking to her. She still had a LOT of questions for the weird little creature, but hey, he seemed like he was being nice to her. And any potential friend was a good thing, even if that friend was weird and furry and scaleless and walked on two legs like a bird.
"Yup, I'm a dragon," she said, drawing herself up as ripples of indigo paraded through the pink along her back. "Um, no...no fire, but I can do something totally awesome anyway. Watch this!"
She looked around, and chose her target - an innocent houseplant sitting on one of the tables not too far from them. Then she arched her neck forward, tilted her head up, and gaped her jaw wide open, sending a spray of black venom over the flower, pot, table, and even a little of the floor. The plant immediately began to sizzle as black droplets hit its leaves, and it shriveled up, crumbling into a flat, soggy dead mess in a matter of seconds. The rest of the scenery, however, remained untouched.
"Oops..." whispered Kinkajou, wincing a little. She'd meant to hit the plant, but not the rest of the immediate surrounding area. Bromeliad was going to kill her if she found out she sucked at aiming even in her dreams. She turned back to Hinata, flicking her ears. "Totally cool, right?"
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 8, 2022 14:01:03 GMT -5
“Do you control how you change color?” Hinata asked, eyes wide. He had so much more he wanted to ask, but he figured taking it one question at a time would probably be better. Besides, the dragon had never seen a human before, it seemed, so he had no doubt that she was as curious about him as he was about her. Although… he didn’t know if that was something measurable. He wasn’t sure he cared - he was too excited by the prospect of talking to a super cool dragon. He had barely even noticed their surroundings - it seemed creepy, but he’d had creepy dreams before, and he doubted there was anything too bad that could happen to him here with a poison spitting dragon at his side. “That’s even cooler than fire,” he confirmed with a solid nod. He made a mental note not to accidentally step into the venom that had landed somewhere other than the plant. He was struck for the first time with the knowledge that the dragon could definitely kill him if she wanted to. He had never been so close to something that could kill him - even the zoo didn’t count because all of the venomous or dangerous animals were behind glass or in large enclosures. “Oh!” Hinata added after a second, the pencil he’d blinked in with completely forgotten at the table, laying across a menu with Don’t let it get dark! scrawled across the front in sticky red liquid. “My name’s Hinata!! Do you have a name?” |
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Post by <Raintalon> on May 8, 2022 14:13:18 GMT -5
"Oh, this?" said Kinkajou with mock humility, raising a wing and letting the colors melt back to their usual pink and yellow. "Yup. I'm a RainWing, so I can make my colors anything I want. So I can blend in like this - " She crouched to the ground and coiled her tail at her feet, and slowly, her coloration began to melt so exactly to match the floor and walls around her that she was barely visible at all, only if you squinted from the right angle.
Then, just as fast, she went back to normal. "- or, they change with what I'm feeling. When I came here I was really mad because of Bromeliad being stupid, so I looked all like this, grrr." Jolts of violent red leapt across her scales again, and her ruff went completely red to demonstrate. She took in a sudden breath, realizing she'd run out of air, and then plunged right back into the conversation. "Oh yeah, my name is Kinkajou!! Hinata...that's a weird name. Oh, but not bad, don't be sad! It's so cool...um, what does it mean? I've never heard of a hinata before. Is it a kind of plant?"
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strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on May 8, 2022 14:28:03 GMT -5
“That’s so cool!” Hinata repeated, practically bouncing up and down as he watched Kinkajou shift colors. He blinked, tilting his head in an effort to try to see her as she blended into her surroundings. “We have animals and stuff that can change color a little bit where I’m from, but they can’t do it nearly as well! I remember being really really disappointed when I learned that octopi can change color but they can’t emulate patterns and stuff perfectly like you can! I don’t think they’re smart enough to do that, because they can’t talk. I don’t know. I don’t know much about animals.” He gave a small shrug, shaking off the thought as he focused once more on Kinkajou. “The kanji in my name translate to ‘towards the sun!’” Hinata replied proudly, puffing up his chest just a little bit. “I don’t know if it was an accident or what, but I kinda live up to it, too! I can jump really really high, which is why I’m good at volleyball but nobody ever expects me to be cause I’m short! Wait… do dragons play volleyball? Also… are all dragons named after plants? Is a kinkajou a plant?” |
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Post by <Raintalon> on May 8, 2022 17:21:55 GMT -5
"Towards the sun," she said, thinking, and then popped up, excitement radiating off her in the yellow bubbles bursting across her scales. "Oh, cool! That's such a wild accident I guess, cause like you're always jumping at the sun, right? What's volleyball?" she added, and then opened her mouth again to add more, but just then, a massive crack of thunder shook the entire diner, making the tables and signs shake. The lights flickered and went out for a second, and then came back on just as brightly as before, buzzing as if nothing had happened.
Except, something had. Kinkajou was staring at the back wall of the diner behind the server's counter, where there was now a large-lettered message drawn in shaky handwriting...DON'T GO OUTSIDE.
"Woah, that's new," said Kinkajou, putting her front talons up on the couter and eyeing the lettering curiously, although apparently she wasn't all that frightened by it. "Someone messed up the wall."
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on May 9, 2022 14:59:01 GMT -5
Ronan could tell this was going to be more interesting than he’d thought, with the ginger kid on their team. He had to wonder how many of the others actually knew the rules. He half hoped most of them didn’t. “Not my fault if you got distracted by the show off,” he told Noah, cocking his head towards the group as he came close enough to be heard again. “I didn’t say it was going to be an easy win,” Sal replied, tossing Zuko a quick glance before he looked back at the small crowd. “I just said it was gonna happen. Just warning you so don't get your hopes up too high.” He couldn’t tell how many of the others could play. He glanced around at the ones who hadn’t wandered over - a kid with a sword talking to a kid with a blue stripe in his hair, and two kids sitting on the floor near each other, apparently fairly absorbed in conversation. Juuzou glanced over, eyeing the blue jersey Newt wore for a moment before he looked back at Hinata instead. “It’s not a big deal,” he replied, shaking his head dismissively. “You’d have probably figured it out anyway. And even if you didn’t, he would have. He must’ve played enough games to know about it, if he’s that good.” He had a feeling they would both be trying to make up for that weakness as quickly as possible, too. He paused, then focused on Hinata and raised his hand, as though to ask a question in a class. “Can you teach us to do that, too?” Kenma could tell the other boy was watching him closely, though he wasn’t sure why. If they’d been on opposite sides, he would have thought it was because he was deciding how hard he was going to be to defeat, but they were working together, so that couldn’t have been it. He shifted, slightly uncomfortable under the other boy’s intense gaze, but before he could react to it he caught his name in Hinata’s explanation and glanced back at him. “A team needs all of its players,” he put in after a moment, slipping his hands in his pockets. “There’s no point in setting to anyone if there’s no one else there. Everyone has to be working together.” Spook breathed out, letting his gaze flick away. He didn’t know what this boy’s life was like, but they at least shared something…something that separated them from the people around them in their own worlds. He probably shouldn’t have been feeling any sort of connection to him. They barely even knew each other. He just…liked him. He was nice, that was all. “I don’t…know what this game is meant to be,” he admitted finally, glancing at the net. “Yeah!” Varian grinned, a spark coming into his eye as the conversation moved to more familiar territory. “I’m an alchemist, which is just about the coolest thing there is. A lot of people think it’s magic, but it’s actually a type of science, so I’m actually a scientist!” He grinned again, the room around them all but forgotten. Why toss a ball when you could talk about actual science? |
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Post by mintedstar/fur on May 31, 2022 21:24:07 GMT -5
(Hey o. Anyone around?)
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Transgender
strider
No mourners, no funerals
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Post by strider on Jun 30, 2022 14:44:18 GMT -5
Noah crossed his arms, pouting just a little bit. “Maybe not, but it would be your fault if I had been hit in the head because you threw the ball when you knew I wasn’t paying attention!” He tucked the ball under his arm as though he actually knew what he was doing (he didn’t) and followed Ronan a little bit closer to the others. He tilted his head a little as he listened, wondering if he could actually learn something from the small kid, or if he was just there to show off. Zuko scoffed, rolling his eyes competitively at Sal. “I believe you’re going to give us a challenge, because the game wouldn’t be fun otherwise, but… if you think you’re going to win, you’ve lost your mind.” He gave a quiet laugh, not really caring if his competitive banter was overheard by the others. It seemed that some of them were getting into it at least. He doubted most of them really knew how to play, but that didn’t matter. It just meant they would be able to fudge the rules a little bit. Newt considered that for a moment, then gave a small nod. He was on the same team as the ginger kid, so they just needed someone to do the job of the kid who had gotten the ball up high for him. It didn’t seem like that hard of a job, but he also knew athletic things tended to be deceptive. Running the maze certainly sounded a lot easier than it actually was, and he had no reason to believe this room was any different. The game, whether it existed in his world or not, had intricacies that none of them really had the time to learn. Newt’s eyes widening just a little as Juuzou asked the other kid to teach him. So it seemed he was trying to do the ginger kid’s job for his team. “Exactly!” Hinata replied with a firm nod, confirming Kenma’s input. “I didn’t think setters were that cool before this year, and my setter for my team is all mean and gruff and stuff, but he’s really good to. Uh… where was I?” Hinata faltered for just a moment before his eyes landed on Juuzou. Right. “‘Course!” He returned, practically bouncing with the excitement of getting to teach someone else the skill. “So… when the ball gets up high and it’s right above you, you just gotta approach and jump and hit it really really hard! But you also have to make sure it lands inside the court. And a lot of time you’re gonna have people blocking so you can’t get the ball over the net, but if you’re fast enough to hit it over, the blockers can’t catch you at all.” Hunter was content to watch and observe for now. Of course he wanted to learn how to do the jumping thing too, but he figured that could come later. He was more interested in the other kid for now. He seemed to underplay his role in the set up, which wasn’t exactly a trait that was found often in the Emperor’s Coven. He didn’t seem to have the same sort of ambition and pride that the other kid did, but it seemed to make his ability to set up the attack all the more impressive. He was confident enough that he could do it every time that he had no need to brag about it. “It seems he couldn’t have hit anything if you weren’t there, either,” Hunter commented after a moment, arms crossing over his chest. If Wylan were honest with himself, he would have much rather spent this time talking to Spook than learning how to play a game that seemed… complicated. There were a ton of rules based on what the two kids had said so far, and Wylan was fairly certain he wasn’t capable of jumping that high. He was enjoying this conversation with his friend much more than he thought he was going to enjoy the game. “I don’t either,” he said after a moment, glancing at Spook. “But at least we’re on the same team, right?” Nico breathed out. He wasn’t going to get this kid to believe that he didn’t need to be an adult yet. He supposed that was alright. He would learn eventually, and maybe he wouldn’t miss his lack of a childhood. Maybe alchemy was his childhood and he’d go into something more adult later. Or something. “I don’t think there’s as big a gap between science and magic as people think,” he said after a moment, letting himself fall into the conversation. |
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Post by ®Hawkpath® on Jul 14, 2022 16:33:29 GMT -5
The Squad | Volleyball Room | strider “I knew you could handle it,” Ronan called back merrily, his grin sharp as he looked back at his best friend. He knew Noah wasn’t really offended by him, so he was unconcerned by the accusation, not even bothering to slow to let him catch up. Normally he might have been a little less inclined to let Noah tease this side of him out around a lot of other people, but what did it matter in the House? He would probably never see any of them again. Except maybe Zuko… He shook his head, shoving the thought roughly back. They were all huddled around the ginger kid, anyway. “Yeah, you just keep telling yourself that,” Sal teased, a slightly mischievous light catching in his eye as he glanced back at Zuko. “It’ll be all the more satisfying for me when you have to admit defeat. I’d like to see you try to spike anywhere near as well as that kid just did.” He laughed quietly, warming to the idea of the competition. Against Zuko, of course, but he had to admit it would be fun to get to know a team of other blinkers, too. They all seemed to be around his age, which was…well, weird, but also kind of a nice change. Juuzou moved forward, bouncing lightly on his heels as he listened. It sounded easy enough, but he wasn’t going to make any assumptions until he actually got to try it. Of course, it wasn’t exactly going to be new to him, either, since he probably used the same sort of skills for the type of combat he excelled at, but throwing something and hitting something weren’t entirely the same. And he wasn’t used to doing it in this context. “I see, I see,” he mused, glancing over the others. They would probably need to divide themselves up into a coherent team soon, and as fun as Hinata’s job sounded, he didn’t want to claim it just yet. He bounced thoughtfully. “So the blockers try to get in the way of it before it gets past the net? That could be fun. It would take a lot of agility to get around that, but at just as much to try and pull it off.” Kenma risked another glance at Hunter, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly as he discovered he was still being scrutinized. That had happened before. The downside of being good at volleyball was that it was much harder to avoid notice when he succeeded. He almost wished he was just mediocre enough to stay on the team but seem otherwise boring and unremarkable… But as tempting as it was, he couldn’t miss any on purpose. Even if it hadn’t been Hinata here, the passion surrounding him in each game forced him to try his best every time. He wondered briefly if it was meant to be a compliment. But he wouldn’t have known how to respond to that much better, anyway. “Spikers depend on the ball reaching them in time, and setters depend on the spikers being there to hit it,” he replied, meeting Hunter’s gaze for a second as he gave in to answering him directly. “If either one hesitates, the timing of the strike will be off.” The game itself looked like it could be okay, but Spook still wasn’t looking forward to being summoned for it. He’d seen the energetic kid’s demonstration (or at least the aftermath of it) and he couldn’t help feeling like he was going to embarrass himself if he tried to do the same thing. He wasn’t Mistborn. He wasn’t even an iron or steel misting. His Allomancy wouldn’t do him any good here. And he only had one vial on him, anyway. He pulled his attention back to Wylan, giving a soft sigh as he let the thoughts fade. Maybe they could put that off a little bit longer. “At least we’re on the same team,” he echoed, managing a small smile. “Honestly, I’m…not sure I’m that good at games in general.” Varian was too focused on the idea of teaching someone alchemy (and the idea of someone from a different world, not to mention someone who was undeniably cool as hell, who wanted to learn alchemy) to realize what Nico had been trying to communicate. Besides, he had much more important things to do with his time than play. “Yes!” He agreed, nodding eagerly. “A lot of magic can be studied just like anything else. Actually, not a lot of people know about this, but some incantations and potions work on a very similar level as proven scientific studies on the relationship between sound and chemical reactions, not to mention how those things might react when they’re used together. And don’t even get me started on what that could mean for the future of molecular biochemistry, because yeesh.” |
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