Aj woke up hearing a loud ring of an alarm clock, she looked to her right side and grabs the clock and smashes the little gadget to the floor. she looked around the room with silence. it has been 3 days since she moved in with her Aunt. it was hard adjusting with them since she never new her or saw her in her life, she even never had the chance to talk to her since she leaves the house early and goes home really late. the house she was living in was a big modern mansion with 3 floors and a basement, it reminded her of their life when she was still a child. she then looks to her left side and sees light coming from the sun entering the balcony door that was opened, as she looked at it and wondered for a while she realized that it was her first day of school. it wasn't like her to worry of being late but she doesn't want to have a bad record already to her Aunt, she then stands up put on the bunny slippers that was already placed beside her bed and went to the bathroom to wash her face.

Aj walks out of the room and walked down the stairs to the kitchen, there she saw her cousin Kassel already dressed and eating her breakfast. "ms. Alexa what do you want for breakfast?" the other maid asked as she saw her standing near the entrance of the kitchen. Aj looked at her "uh... er... well anything would be fine" she said as politely as she can, she then sat in the dining table and looked at Kassel. Kassel looked at Aj and smiled "i bet you didn't like the alarm clock mom put in your room." she said and smiled, Aj then made a fake smile "oh no! i really liked the alarm clock, because of my happiness i smashed it" she said and twinkled her eyes. "really you really liked it?" Kassel asked with a big smile, Aj then raised her eyebrows before she could say how stup*d she is her egg and bacon breakfast was served. as she ate she noticed Kassel looking at her, "do you always do that?" Aj asked, "do what?" Kassel replied, "that! looking at people while they eat" Aj said with a sharp tone. "oh! sorry i just can't believe i have a cousin, its really my first time seeing a relative, well except for my mom and your mom which is then my Aunt...." before Kassel could finish what she was saying, "ok! ok! stop i get it already" Aj said Kassel then stopped and bowed her head "you see i never had a sister before, i was just hoping we could be...", Aj then looked at her "ugh! ok! we could be sisters" Aj said and raised an eyebrow as she ate. Kassel looked at her and smiled "really? i was going to say friends but sisters are better right." Kassel said and took a bite out of the carrots she was eating.

After breakfast Aj went up to her room to get dressed, she then saw the shopping bags that was set aside, it was cute pink and lavender tops and dresses that her aunt bought for her, she took and peek and felt really grossed out, she then decided to wear her usually clothes. as she finished getting dressed Kassel entered the room, "hey your ready? Jake's waiting outside" Kassel said, "uh? who's Jake?" Aj asked "he's a friend, he's going to take us to school today." Kassel replied, "uh ok." Aj said and grabs her black sling bag and went down. as they drove to school Aj looked outside the window wondering how her dad was doing, even though she hated him deep inside she still worries.

Arriving at the school Aj looked around, it felt weird for her since it was a long time since she entered a school, "hey im going to the library wanna come?" Kassel asked. "nope, i think the library is not the place for me." Aj replied, "hmm well ok then see you in a bit." Kassel said and wave at her as she leave. "well alone at last" Aj said and decided to look around.

((OOC: Kassel and Aj are approachable now.))

Thanks to Matt’s… expertise at crushing people’s ego, a lot of people knew a good reason as to why she hated him quite so much. That he dumped her, and that he did it publicly and that he went on to gloat about it; it was a severe blow to any girl’s self-esteem, right? Well, it was a plausible reason and it was fair; Natalie didn’t take well to being made a lesson out of, but it really wasn’t why she hated him. If things had been different, she knew exactly how she’d have dealt with it – she could think up ways to humiliate him to the same level that he did to her and then some and then, she’d be done with him. Truth was, contrary to what Matt’s ego hollered at him, he really didn’t mean half as much to her as he thought he did. She’d gone on that date with him for a few shallow reasons; he was cute – hell, let’s admit, he was gorgeous – he was funny, he was charming and she needed friends, she needed to have fun. It wasn’t like she actually had any deep ties to him, so it didn’t matter.

However, she hadn’t done what she would have done – humiliate him and be finished with it – and she did absolutely despise him, because he knew something that she didn’t want him – nor anyone else – to know, and to make matters worse, he actually went ahead to exploit it. She’d made a mistake, and it was something that, no matter what she did, wasn’t going to be fixed, but it sure as hell wasn’t his place to pass judgement over it. Given fair warning about how little this was any of his business, he didn’t manage to get it past his thick, well-moisturised skin and now, the gloves came off.
That said, she didn’t want anyone to know why she hated Matt quite so much and therefore, when she mulled over the ways to pitch the plan currently forming in her head, she knew that Leigh and J.D. cited the excused Matt had kindly provided her with as the reason for her odium and hence, Natalie made no move to correct them.
However, the most important thing was that they agreed; she didn’t want to put all her cards on the table for no reason at all. Though, the way they both followed her lead and leaned in to be conspirators was a positive sign.

"So he does,” Leigh conceded with a smile that matched Natalie’s current mood, thereby ensuring it to Natalie that they were in the same boat and so, she could go ahead and take a chance. Question remained, however, regarding why J.D. hated Matt enough to actually spend time thinking about it and coming up with work of art that he’d produced and why Leigh also hated him quite so much. Well, all in good time. "We're in. Right?"

Now, though Natalie kept a polite smile on her face, the way the sharp raven-head just about managed to realise that J.D.’s opinion did Matte in this after all – she really did take the reigns, didn’t she? – almost had a grin of amusement blossoming on her features. What was even more surprising, however, was the way J.D. just let it go once she had asked him that passing question. So… what was it, then, that had J.D. backing down; friendship, acceptance…? Because it wasn’t about being controlled – Leigh was outright making decisions for him and he was okay with that and therefore… it had to be something to do with emotional need.

"I guess,” he then verbalised his acceptance, leaving Natalie to feel Leigh’s scrutinising gaze on her once more as the brunette tried to keep both troublemakers in her line of sight, for both politeness and also to gauge their reactions to her plan. "Shoot.”

Right. So, the plan. Now, just because something wasn’t going to be officially sanctioned didn’t in any way mean that there was no way to get it done; pirate radios, for instance. However, it did mean that you had to be really, very careful in pulling it off, because otherwise, there was going to be a hell of a lot to pay. So, it was a fortunate thing then, that Natalie, if this plan went ahead, had the partnership of two people well-versed in the art of… less than diplomatic disturbances.

“We print hundreds of copies of it, anonymously,” Natalie started, her voice now lowered enough just for her two companions, her eyes still as bright with mischief as ever, the word anonymous itself signifying more than just that it won’t be linked back to them. “And then we spread it across the hallways, drop copies from the top of the stairs, make sure everyone gets to see.”
The way Natalie saw it, the whole school would be littered with copies of the caricature and it’d be everywhere that Matt turned to.

“Now, there are a few small glitches,” she then carried on, preparing to lay out the problems before she suggested the solutions. “One, the cameras… unless we were balaclavas or something, or try to avoid every camera in school, they’ll know it’s us. Two, the printing of the copies… we can’t do it in school, they’ll trace it back to out cards.”
Very unfortunately, the printing system in school was operated by student cards involving pre-paid credit; easily traceable.
“However,” she then shifted the tone to something far more positive. “Easy solutions available; we get it done while school's out.” And it was currently winter; they wouldn’t have to wait long before it got dark. “We need to do something to disable the security cameras and do it early in the morning so that they don't have enough time to clear it up.” She paused, letting her eyes contemplatively drink in the sight of J.D. and Leigh; “I'm hoping you guys know people?”

“That done, as for the second problem, we’ll just have to get the copies printed out privately,” she suggested. “And for something this good, I’ll pay.” A hint of mischief crept into her features as she recalled what Leigh had earlier said; "Or we can make Laramie pay for it...."
And sorted. Well… almost, because there was another insult to injury that suddenly jumped up to Natalie, only… she couldn’t see a way to go about it.

“Do you know of any way we could get Laramie's credit card?” she contemplated slowly... thinking up ways to make it work.

(((OOC: Oh, Natalie… you’ll just never change. *glomps*
Hope that works, Atropa! :D)))

Claire Whitmore zoomed through the school parking lot in the new Mercedes her father had bought her for her sixteenth birthday. As she whipped into a parking space, nearly clipping a shiny BMW as she did so, Claire thought about how she had never even asked for a car, let alone a Mercedes. For most of her life, she'd never asked her parents for much at all, knowing that they had little to give. Before her father had succeeded with his new business, he'd worked a series of low-paying, dead end jobs that barely supported the family. Her mother had never worked a serious job in her life, preferring instead to stay home with her canvasses. Of course, a few of her mother's paintings had sold, but Claire was in no doubt as to her mother's extent of talent. Sadly, Mary Whitmore was no Picasso.

Claire got out of the car, dragging her black messenger bag along behind her. After slamming the car door, she pressed the lock button on the remote that dangled from her keys. The car honked at her in response. Shouldering her bag, Claire traipsed a bit warily toward the school doors. She was new here. She knew absolutely no one, and she was more than a bit nervous at the prospect of arriving here a total stranger, like an unwelcome crasher at a party. As with every high school, there were bound to be cliques at Brooklake High. The only question was could Claire find her place in the school or was she doomed to being an outcast forever?

She felt curious eyes watching her as she roamed about the school aimlessly. She had a little while before her first class, and she wanted to get acquainted to her new surroundings. After ten minutes of roaming, however, Claire soon got bored and decided that she would leave it up to fate to decide whether or not she'd get lost on her first day at Brooklake. Upon finding the library, she decided to enter and check out her new school's supply of books. Claire was more of an artist than a bookworm, but she still enjoyed curling up with a good book on a rainy afternoon sometimes.

Claire entered the library and looked around. Shelves and shelves full of books greeted her. There were also only a few students residing in the library so early, and most of them, Claire thought, looked like geeks. She didn't have anything against geeks (it was usually the jocks and cheerleaders that tested her nerves most of the time) so she decided to go wander amongst the books herself. As she headed toward one of the bookshelves, she noticed a red haired girl close by. Determined not to start out her first day on an antisocial note, Claire decided to introduce herself.

"Hey," she said casually. "Nice library they've got here, huh?" It was a completely lame thing to say, but Claire couldn't think of anything else to say so it would have to do. She only hoped the other girl would think her awkwardness endearing rather than pathetic.

((OOC: Alissa, I have updated Claire's profile. =] I hope it's okay to post already although she isn't up on the first post yet.

Claire is approachable.))

(((OOC:
Requiem19 - your character is on the list now and yup, you're entirely free to start RPing, and also, welcome! You're off to a great start!

Everyone -
Given that lunch has gone on for a while now, shall we move on to the next lesson (Biology) in a week's time? Say, on the 24th of May. Is that too much time or too little?
Let me know )))

There is a rather famous saying that insists bad luck or bad things happening comes in threes. Why it had to be threes instead of just ones, Marie-Elisabeth had no idea but after the doozy of a one she got last night she was hoping the other two she was sure were going to follow wouldn’t be so bad.

She couldn’t really count not being able to get a hold of Matt properly as number two, since he WAS after all just acting like well....Matt. He did that every day. “ That stupid, arrogant, good looking bastard” she thought to herself, tuning out Sienna’s apologies for being late. She waved the overly tanned girl off and said “Whatever, just remember to be in the parking lot this afternoon after class so we can go. And on time, I do not want to sit around wasting gas waiting for you”. She didn’t bother saying anything else, just swept into class and took her seat with Caroline trailing after her.

Math was, like most subjects, boring to Marie-Elisabeth. It wasn’t that she was bad at it, she got a passable B- most of the time, it was just so long and tedious. She kept stealing glances at Matt, and rolling her eyes watching him go about his usual activity of flirting with anything female in a five mile radius. Growing impatient for the lesson to end, she pulled her phone out and decided to send a message to Josh, knowing she’d definitely have a lot to talk to him about after lunch. She smiled when she flipped her phone open, looking at the shot of Josh in his uniform she had as the background. She was sure she had a bit of a stupid looking grin on her face as she glanced over at him before returning her gaze to the phone.

You excited for the dance yet?
All I’m telling you is blue and strapless, but you’ll :lovestruc it I promise
Sorry we didn’t get to talk this morning, we’ll have to talk after lunch okay?
Love you,
M-E

She sent the text, shut the phone and put it in her purse.

Marie-Elisabeth then resumed impatiently tapping her newly manicured nails on the desk and ignoring her practically un-touched notebook beside her. You can only doodle M-E and J in hearts and put swirly things around it so many times before you get bored, and she was resisting the urge to pretend to have to use the washroom before she went loco and started throwing well sharpened pencils at Natalie’s head. Not that that wasn’t an attractive prospect, she just didn’t want to waste the pencils.

However, she didn’t have to come up with an excuse because horrible thing number two decided to make its’ appearance. It chose the form of a rather hideous wave of nausea that had her holding back the urge to share the fact that she had a bowl of fruitloops for breakfast with the whole class. Quickly grabbing all her stuff, she made her way up to the teacher’s desk and muttered something about feminine problems before heading out the door. Once outside she dashed into the nearest bathroom, which was mercifully empty, and into the nearest stall.

After ridding her stomach of the fruity cereal she had for breakfast, along with swearing to learn to make voodoo dolls for the express purpose of sticking pins into sensitive parts of Matt’s anatomy, she picked herself up and wiped her mouth off. She resisted the urge to kick the door as she exited the stall and pulled out her makeup bag and plopped it on the bathroom counter.

“I swear by all that is holy I am going to kill him and hide the body so f*&king far away it’ll never be found” she muttered as she went about the task of fixing her makeup and erasing any evidence of what she had spent the last several minutes doing. Being sick had put visions in her head of the eventual weight gain and other hideous things that were going to happen to her, and that only increased her resolve to dig her spikyist heels out of her closet at give Matt a well placed kick.

“Time to go face the music” she though, giving herself a final spritz of perfume and a once over in the mirror. She noted with great satisfaction that not a curl was out of place and her makeup looked flawless as always. Tossing the rest of her things into her bag, she shoved the bathroom door open just as the lunch bell was ringing.

Thankfully for her, it didn’t take Marie-Elisabeth very long to locate a familiar brunette head just outside the cafeteria. And thankfully for the owner of said head, she resisted the urge to throw something at it and just increased her pace to stand next to him instead. For once, she figured it was better to just take the proverbial bull by the horns and not dance around the subject, largely because she knew full well Matt was still going to be angry with her. And she really didn’t want him pissed off right now

“So” she said, shifting her bag on her shoulder “Seeing as you’re the school expert on places not to be disturbed, where do you want to go?”


((OOC: *sits in well covered and fortified trench with popcorn to watch the show*
It’s so funny that I can’t seem to picture ME not sweeping into a room. Probably some weird leftover relic of Vipers and her multitude of poofy gowns That and her general attitude LOL Also before you ask, yes that is my FAVOURITE perfume and I wear it all the time. It seemed very ME ish to me!
And Alissa, have I ever mentioned I ADORE your icon :D:D:D

Also, my apologies to Atropa, I've been rather absent and less than pleasant about it and I'm sorry. I'm going to do my utmost to be back more now)))

Thud.

Groan.

"I know, I know, it breaks my heart too."

The words; spoken by a lean and muscular young man in the currently rather deserted boy's restroom on the second floor. The groan; uttered by the slightly smaller senior pothead whose gut had just gotten intimately reacquainted with his fist. It wasn't the first time the two of them found themselves in this kind of situation, and Tyler suspected that sadly, it wouldn't be the last one either. Shane Baysten, the boy currently doubling over in pain infront him, with Tyler offering a steady arm for support to keep him from falling over, just never seemed to learn his lesson, even though it had been taught to him three times already, if counting this one. He would find himself short on cash, and either lend some from Tyler's employers through Tyler, or score some of his beloved weed from Tyler on credit, and then end up 'forgetting' about it, until Tyler made a point of reminding him. Then he'd try his usual sob story of an excuse, babbling on and on about how money was still tight, since his parents wouldn't give him any, or he had lost his weekend job at the mall, or his car had broken down and he'd had to get it fixed, always wrapping it all up with asking if he could please, please get an extension. All to no avail, and deep down already fully aware of it.
The only reason why they still let him borrow money, was because even though it usually took a session of roughing him up, it did take only one, since the very next day, he had 'miraculously' managed to get his hands on enough money to pay them back.

"Look", Tyler said, while giving him a light, encouraging pat on the back as he struggled to straighten back up. "You know I don't like doing this, but you gotta learn, man. If it's gonna go this far every time, I'm gonna have to stop doing business with you, because if you don't pay, it's my *ss on the line. And I like you, but not enough to take that kind of heat for you."

Still grimacing slightly from the pain, but now at least standing somewhat straight, leaned back against the cool tiles of the wall behind him, Shane gave a slow nod.

"I know, I'm sorry, Ty", he promised. "It won't happen again."

"Yeah, I hope so...", said Tyler, while studying him with a mix of criticism and concern in his dark blue eyes. "Cuz if it does, it'll be the last time."

Shane merely nodded in understanding, yet Tyler still had his doubts that it wasn't just going in one ear and out the other, in which case the next time Shane came to him for money, if history repeated itself yet again, it really would be the last time Tyler gave him a loan or even credit, because he really couldn't afford to lend money to someone with a history of not being able to pay when payment was due, and thus there being the risk of them ending up not able to pay at all. Tyler couldn't afford it, for more than one reason. Since most of the time it was up to him to decide whom to lend money to in the first place, if he didn't get it back for his employers, him roughing up the 'customer' wouldn't be the only lesson taught. The scar above his eyebrow and the small one on his chin kept him well reminded of that. It had not been a pleasant experience, and what he did to the kids that needed some 'encouragement' to cough up the money, paled in comparison.

"Alright", Tyler said, deciding that even though he had his doubts, there was little he could say to stress his point any more than the punch to the gut had already done, "well, I'll see you around."

And with that, he headed for the door, pulling it open and nearly colliding with two junior jocks just on their way in. Talk about timing. Though Tyler supposed they wouldn't have to actually have seen what had happened ten seconds before they walked in, in order to figure it out. Tyler Young exiting a fairly remote and deserted area of the school and leaving behind a notorious stoner with temporary difficulties of standing up straight... Even the meatheads would manage to put two and two together on that one. But as long as there was no actual eyewitness account, things were fine, and even if there had been, most of the kids knew better than to tell on him.

Alright, so, lunchtime. The first part of it he'd spent dealing with Shane, but a glance down at the expensive watch around his wrist - although he hardly wore brand-name clothing, or live in a fancy apartment, he did make fairly good money, and spent it on what most teen boys with money and no parental influence would; toys, such as his motorcycle, a nice watch, and a killer sound/TV system - informed him that he still had plenty of time to grab a bite in the cafeteria. And with the first horde of hungry teenagers having already gotten their food, the que to the register was almost non-existent, which left Tyler able to enter the cafeteria, buy his meal, and sit down at an empty table - unlike the preps and jocks, he wasn't the type to consider eating alone a social stigmata - in less than three minutes.
That had to be some kind of a record.


(((ooc: Most approachable. )))

Aj arrived at the school grounds, as she looked ahead she felt wind coming from outside the grounds, she then climb the stairs to the stands, she then sat down and looked towards the grounds were she saw students practicing cheer leading, football and other sports. Aj didn't really liked sports, especially Cheer leading. she sat there for about 8 minutes imagining the jocks having big potato heads and the cheerleader's looking like horses with horns. she then snapped out of it and decided to leave.

As Aj walked the hall's of the school she felt eye's looking at her like she had something big and really scary stuck at her face, she then stopped and looked back, as she looked the heads suddenly turned like they weren't even staring. trying to get out of the sight of the students she decided to enter a room.

Aj then entered the cafeteria, Aj then looked around and saw many students eating, talking, chatting and cutting in lines just to get food. as she walked around her stomach then started growling like a plane crashed into it. it was then that she felt hunger, she then decided to get some food, after a few of the students ordering it was then her turn, she then grabbed her food and looked for a place to eat, she wanted a silent more place were there were no people but she couldn't find one, she then looked for a table were there was few people as possible she then saw a table were there was only a guy seated she then decided to approach him, she then stood near him "uh! umm, hi im new here and i don't know anyone yet. so uh yeah anyway can i seat with you?" Aj asked the guy.

=================================================

Kassel arrived at the library, as she entered she saw few people reading and scanning some of the books, she felt a sudden breeze and excitement came to her. she then smiled then grabbed as many books that she can hold while grabbing books a girl then came near her and talked to her. feeling a bit weird with all the books she was holding she decided to drop them all, as the books falled to the floor she just flashed her a smile. "yeah, i know right. it reallly is. this library is one of the oldest rooms in the school." Kassel replied.

((OOC: sorry i can't post as long as you guys. so i hope it doesn't break any rules.))

((Aya, 'tis perfectly alright, and there's no rule for this RP about minimum lengths, so you're fine. If you do want to have longer posts, just think about what your character is thinking about, and their body language, and if it fits, write about that. Not only are your posts longer if you do [though that really isn't a big concern], but you and all the other RPers get to know the character better, and it gives the other layer more to react to, and that in turn lets them give you more to react to. But, as I said, longer != better. Whatever you like ))

(((ooc: Aya - You're fine, don't worry. Will try and get a response for Tyler up a.s.a.p., but it might be a day or two before I have a chance. One thing though; it's currently winter, so I don't imagine there would be cheerleaders practicing outside... )))


Time to himself... It was a luxury Matt Sidle could rarely afford. For years now, he had built close to his entire life on the social aspect of it, defining himself by what he appeared to be to others, and as such, keeping such a wide circle of friends and wannabe friends, that wherever he went, for the majority of the day and the evening, there would be people he knew to surround him. Rarely would he find a few minutes of peace to spare for his own inner ponderings, because even though he did have the choice of seeking out some remote location, or to shut himself away in his room, his social life was what kept his glorious persona of prep perfection alive, and so it had to be well maintained and nurtured. He couldn't afford to let it slip, and so time alone would usually get 'pwned' - to use that utterly ridiculous phrase that nerds would shriek when unlike the real world, their make believe one offered them a slice of brief importance - by time with others. And Matt knew it. He even expected it.
But it didn't mean that he enjoyed every single time it happened.

Although his outward appearance had now purged itself of signs of anger and upset that had clung to him when he'd left the class room, he still needed to calm down. To be left alone, and to calm down. To sort out his thoughts in peace and quiet, and then muster the energy he needed to make it through the rest of the day.
God, how he sometimes wished he smoked... That seemed to have such a calming effect on the people who did it, and he would have an exellent excuse to venture out into the cold and stand by himself for a little bit, without looking like a total freak.
Or, no... What he needed was an outlet, not a sedative. A nice, long run, just like yesterday, when annoyance over Josh and his antics had put him in such a foul mood. There was nothing better to rid you of frustrations and anger, than to take it out on the track, to let the fast pace cleanse you of it all, and the rejuvenation and blissful harmony that lowered itself over you after a good workout, to give your mind the peace it needed for you to be able to look at whatever was bothering you with fresh eyes, and help you think of the way to best deal with it.

Yes, a nice, long run was what Matt needed. And thankfully, with lunch soon about to end, there was only one class left to sit through, before he would get a chance.
Although... Oh, h*ll no! He would so not attend biology! Not after what had just happened in that other classroom, with both Josh and Dylan treating him like... like... like he just didn't deserve to be treated! After what they had said to and about him, he really didn't feel like he could stand the sight of either of them. Even the thought alone of either of them still made his blood boil, and...

"So."

A most familiar voice to his left cut through his inner grumblings, and pulled him to a halt. Stifling the irritated sigh that had threatened to spill over his lips as he immediately realized who it was, he reluctantly turned his head to look at one of the last people he felt like dealing with right now; his oh-so-lovely-ex, the Queen B*tch herself.

"Seeing as you're the school expert on places not to be disturbed", she said, apparently assuming that despite his rather dismissive text message to her earlier, he would drop everything he was doing - which, granted, wasn't all that much, but still... - and make time for her, "where do you want to go?"

Usually, that kind of comment, alluding to his popularity with the girls, would have recieved a rather self-satisfied smirk in response, or perhaps even his notorious dazzling smile. But, under the circumstances, it managed to draw only a slight eyeroll from him, since what it really was - or so he assumed - was another stab at him for having been late in meeting up with her the previous day.

"What's the difference?", he snapped back at her. "Obviously you intend to be there with me."

Though with that small opportunity to vent having appeared and been seized, he immediately continued, before she'd have a chance to practice her usual routine on him again.

"Come on", he said, and started heading towards the gym hall, glancing over his shoulder only once to make sure she was coming, instead of throwing a tantrum and trying to make him look like a fool by stalking off on his own.

A place to talk... Well, it was true, Matt did have quite a few of those, since the key to the boiler room wasn't the only one he'd gotten his hands on. Though talking was rarely what he did in the rooms he'd gotten access to. Not when they could be put to much better use.
But anyway, he supposed he could reveal one of his spots, since enough people had seen him wander out of there a few times already, followed by one of his 'love interests' at the time, so it was hardly a secret anymore. Thus, when he and Marie-Elisabeth had almost reached the the sports hall, he stopped by a door to the left - the one leading to the summer sports closet - and dug into one of his pockets while looking around to make sure the hallway was empty of teachers and other school staff. Seeing none, he then slipped a key into the lock, not waiting for Marie-Elisabeth to neither approve nor disapprove of his choice, and following a soft click pushed the door open, while motioning for her to step inside.
Once there, with the door closed and securely locked behind them, ensuring no intruders, he turned to his former girlfriend, while his arms folded themselves expectantly across his chest.

"What?", he asked.

(( Once again very very sorry for my absence. I was in France on exchange. I know I’ve been dropping off the face of the RP earth often, and I apologize. From now on I will try to be more reliable – a new thread is a good time for a fresh start, I figure. ))

The sun had come out.

Lacey Cormier gazed up at the sky through half-shut eyes, rays of sunshine peeking through her eyelashes. She imagined the sun as a girl in a yellow dress, with buttery hair blowing in the wind and a smile to light up a room. It was a nice image – a girl in a yellow dress, who brightened things up wherever she went. She liked to think that maybe, just maybe, she was a bit like the sun in that respect. Maybe the things she said or did made someone, somewhere, happy. Just maybe.

“Watch out!”

Lacey was interrupted in her daydreaming by a frisbee zooming past her head. She opened her eyes, and picked it up off the floor to throw it back to the two boys who had been playing with it. She rolled onto her stomach and watched them, one lazy hand above her eyes to shield them from the sun. This particular patch of grass at the back of the Brooklake High building was usually occupied by smokers, who littered the ground with cigarette butts, so it was good to see something wholesome take place on the field. Today, under the watchful gaze of the sun creeping out from underneath the October clouds, it seemed as though only nice things would happen.

Maths had been as dreary than usual – numbers didn’t interest Lacey. There was no creativity, no possibility, no imagination in them. They were hard facts and that was that, and usually they were hard facts that she didn’t understand.

The bell for lunch had rung quite some time ago, and Lacey had headed to the grass to listen to music and generally enjoy the small amount of sunshine. Despite frisbees soaring dangerously close to her, and Biology – which was only slightly more interesting than Math – as the next class looming over her head, she was enjoying herself.

***

"Would you watch your f*cking feet?!" Natasha Raines hissed through clenched teeth. The freshman the hiss was directed at cringed back, his mousey features screwed up in fear. His beady brown eyes were fixated on the furious girl in front of him, whose pointy black boots he had just tripped over, and who was now scowling at him. She was terrifying not just because her eyes were blazing with anger, or because she was a junior, but because there was a monstrous black mark on her cheek.

Natasha watched the boy's anxious gaze fall on the black spot, and in an instinct, flung her hair in front of it with a tilt of her head. She felt some of the angry confidence drain out of her as she realized people were looking at her. Looking at her deformed face.

Donnie's advice - start exfoliating? Seriously? - hadn't helped her one bit, and though the words silver nitrate had rung a very dim bell in her head, she still had no clue what to do. A tiny part of her longed for the days when she could solve any problem with her endless assortment of knowledge, the encyclopedia in her head - longed for the old Natasha, who would have known what to do.

Yes, but she wouldn't have cared about black marks on her skin. She would have convinced Katie to paint her cheek black too and make it seem like it was on purpose, a special token of their friendship, the sign of a secret exclusive club, or some sh*t like that.

The old Natasha wouldn't have cared, but then the old Natasha didn't care that her hair perpetually looked as though she'd had an electric shock, or that she wasn't up-to-date on the latest fashion. Wasn't it much better now?

No question.

She stepped past the freshman who had trodded on her toe so carelessly, making sure that the pointy heel of her boot bore into his foot, and moved further down the cafeteria. She glanced around, looking for any table with acceptable people at it, and could find no one. So she took an empty table, crossed her legs, and hoped desperately that another prep would join her so she wouldn't look like the freaky loner with the skin problem.

(( Both very approachable. Oh and welcome Ghanima, looks like a great character!))

(((ooc: Ghani: :elephant: :jig: :cdance: and... uhmm... :companion Okay, done now.)))


For once in her life, since moving to Brooklake anyway, Leigh wasn't looking for trouble. Having left behind the sweet, well-behaved girl she had once been, before her younger brother had come along and "stolen" her parents' attention, she had in recent years gotten herself into a myriad of different situations, none of which could be justly described as healthy and advantageous for any young lady. She'd had far more experience with sex, drugs and crime than some people did in an entire lifetime, although she had, so far, been lucky enough to manage to stay away from getting into the "heavy" drugs, or even getting hooked by the "lesser" ones, as well as managed to keep her nose out of more serious crimes such as robbery, grand theft or burglary. She still had that little voice holding her back from committing the more severe deeds common among the group that defined her, and in essence, she was still a nice girl. Not necessarily a good one, but still a nice one. She didn't get a kick out of hurting people, unless of course they deserved it, and she did still have morals as well as empathy. It was just that sometimes, they were simply forgotten in the heat of the moment, when her hot temper or even her thirst for adventure were triggered and took over. And, let's not forget, the influence of the crowd she hung out with tended to have an impact on girls in her situation as well. Although far from a sheep blindly following the rest of the herd, there was still that unspoken but very much real pressure of living up to the reputation she had made for herself, and so sometimes the softer, calmer and more sensible side of her would just have to take the backseat to her troublemaker one.

The most recent development in her young life, however, of getting to return to Brooklake only on certain conditions, posed her with the dilemma of finding a balance between behaving well enough for the adults to think that what school she went to really did matter, and still not give people reason to think she had gone soft. And with one fight already under her belt on her first day back, she had promised herself that she would try hard to keep a low profile for the rest of the week, and only get involved in things that weren't likely to get her into too much trouble, even if caught.
But... There are some things that are just too good to pass up, even when you are making a conscious effort to stay fairly well on the straight and narrow.

"We print hundreds of copies of it, anonymously", Natalie began divulging her plan to the two troublemaker friends, her words instantly planting an image in Leigh's head that tugged her lips into a widened smile. "And then we spread it across the hallways, drop copies from the top of the stairs, make sure everyone gets to see. Now, there are a few small glitches. One, the cameras... unless we were balaclavas or something, or try to avoid every camera in school, they'll know it's us. Two, the printing of the copies... we can't do it in school, they'll trace it back to out cards. However, easy solutions available; we get it done while school's out. We need to do something to disable the security cameras and do it early in the morning so that they don't have enough time to clear it up."

There she paused for moment while studying the two troublemakers, one of them - Leigh - nodding along with what she had just said as a sign of following in Natalie's minor monologue, and of agreement, while the other seemed to have found something amusing about what she had just said, as a bit of a smirk had formed on his lips.

"I'm hoping you guys know people?", Natalie added, and in doing so, drew an actual part chuckle, part snort from J.D., though he did remain silent as she continued; "That done, as for the second problem, we'll just have to get the copies printed out privately. And for something this good, I'll pay."

Another ever so brief pause, as an idea seemed to form in her mind, the smile on her lips leaving little doubt regarding it's nature.

"Or we can make Laramie pay for it...", she suggested, yet still seemed somewhat uncertain regarding the possibility of such a plan. "Do you know of any way we could get Laramie's credit card?"

As far as Leigh's approval was concerned, she had just performed something as miraculous as a slam dunk; something not achieved by many. Obvious dislike of the Prince of Preps, and willingness to mess with dean Laramie, suggesting she harboured no particularly tender feelings towards him either? Yup, Natalie Cardew was, believe it or not, alright in Leigh's book. At least for now. It remained to be seen how much of the plan she intended to carry out herself, or if she would just try to play the Chessmaster to their Elite Mooks, in which case; think again, sweetie.

"I was gonna say we are people", J.D. said, referring to Natalie's question about him and Leigh knowing 'people'. "I can fix the cameras, but I ain't stealin' no credit card."

"Hm, yeah, I really can't risk it either", Leigh said with a bit of a frown, and then added with a slight eye roll: "I'm supposed to be on 'good behaviour'."

Taking a few moments to think, she let her gaze wander the cafeteria in inner contemplation, as though she was looking for something that might inspire her, that might spark an idea of how to pull off the Laramie bit. Because really, that was sort of the icing on the cake, and far too good to pass up.
And what do you know, even though she hadn't actually expected to spot anything that would help solve the dilemma, her eyes did end up locking briefly on something across the room, and her head snapped back to face J.D..

"What about Ty?", she suggested, tilting her head slightly to indicate in which direction this 'Ty' was to be found.

J.D.'s eyes flicked over to the boy with the light ash brown hair seated at one of the tables along the opposite wall - the young man whom despite being considered part of the troublemaker clique, J.D. didn't know all that well, other than by reputation - and then back to Leigh again. A slight shrug was to be his only reply. Leigh knew the guy better than him, so then she would also know better than him both the likelihood of Tyler Young being interested, and of keeping his mouth shut. Though he supposed Tyler hadn't gotten to where he was by talking too much.

"It's worth a shot?", Leigh said, neither bothered nor surprised by J.D.'s apparent lack of an official stance on the matter, as she was quite used to it by now.

Instead, she simply turned back to Natalie.

"Know who Tyler Young is?", she asked. "I think he might be willing to help. Probably for a fee though."


(((ooc: Alissa - Couldn't help myself with the tropes. )))

(((OOC: GHANIMA! WHEEEEEEEEEEEE I missed you!!!! *tackles*

And ohhhhh lord, it's ON now *passes around popcorn and spare riot gear for everyone else whilst giggling evilly*)))

Claire watched the other girl spill her books all over the floor. She bent down and began to gather the books into her arms. Standing up, she offered the books back to the other girl with what she hoped was a helpful smile. She wasn't used to smiling all that often, and she didn't want the gesture to look forced. She honestly was trying to be approachable on her first day at Brooklake. At her old school, Claire had apparently come off as too aloof to her other classmates and so she had often been shunned for a loner. She was determined not to let that happen again. Maybe she'd never become part of the popular clique here at this new school, but perhaps she'd be able to make a few friends.

"Here you go," said Claire, handing the books over. "I'm Claire Whitmore by the way. I'm new here. Are you new too?"

It was probably too much to hope for, but if the other girl was new as well at least Claire knew she would not be the only newcomer at the school.

((OOC: I felt like making a new character. I figured the more the merrier. Hope that's all right.))

There are many different kinds of dangerous people. Psychopaths and sociopaths, with their violent tendencies and their impulsivity, their narcissism and their indifference towards hurting others. The power hungry, with a determination to climb higher and higher in social rank, be it in honest business or with crime lining their path. There are those so overly confident or reckless with their own lives, that they indeliberately though still most carelessly endanger those of others. And then there are the desperate, driven beyond reason and self-control, because of one or more among a myriad of reasons, such as lack of food, safety, money or drugs, or because a loved one or even themselves are being threatened by someone or something, bringing out those basic protective and aggressive instincts ruling us all once pushed far enough.
But, even with all these types of dangerous people already mentioned, one of the most dangerous still remains; the ones that you know are bad, but can't help but to like.

Tyler Young was widely known as someone whose bad side you, if you knew what was good for you, did not want to get on. Not because he had gained notoriety by, like most troublemakers, getting into an excessive amount of fights, or being prone to physical violence (anymore), and not because he was unpleasant or mouthed off to authority whenever he got a chance, but because of his chosen "career", and the many rumours surrounding it. Rumours that, from time to time, would prove themselves to hold quite a fair amount of truth. That, along with possessing that typical, alluring air of a bad boy, had people pegging him as dangerous.
And yet, even despite all that, despite even donning the outward appearance of trouble - with piercings and scars "decorating" his handsome features - what most saw when they looked at him, was a friendly face. Beside that semblance of a bad boy, he also had a remarkably disarming air about him, with a smile that came easy, and was as genuine as it was charming. More often than not, whenever it lit up his face, it would even seem to lighten the color of his deep blue eyes.
Yes indeed. When people looked at him, what they saw was generally a friendly face. Especially those who weren't familiar with his reputation, which, just as he was digging into his lunch of various indefinables, was aptly proven when a green-eyed, dark-haired beauty he hadn't seen before suddenly appeared by his side, holding a tray of her own;

"Uh! umm, hi im new here and i don't know anyone yet", she started somewhat hesitantly. "so uh yeah anyway can i seat with you?"

Now, while Tyler had deliberately seated himself at an empty table, it hadn't really been because he wanted to be left alone, or shunned the company of others for any other reason. He just simply hadn't seen anyone he was fairly well acquainted with, and wasn't the type to seek company just for company's sake. So he had simply plopped himself down at the closest convenient table.

"Sure", he thus said with a faint smile, while motioning towards the chairs opposite of his. "Take a load off."

Then, as the girl sat herself down, he extended one hand.

"Tyler Young, impromptu welcome wagon at your service", he introduced himself with a humorous twinkle in his eyes. "You are?"

It looks like I'll be staying in Brooklake until either my dad gets sick of me or I screw up again."

"Cool!" It was a simple trained reaction to a stimulus, something that Donnie didn't think of stopping before it was too late. Back when Donnie had known Jude, Donnie had been significantly less polished in his social skills. Now, however, the vapid noncommittal responses so popular among teenagers their age had worked their way into his vocabulary due to his efforts to more smoothly interact with his peers, and somehow it rang hollow to Donnie. Regardless of how generic his response had been though, Donnie found himself feeling glad to know that Jude's return to Brooklake was unlikely to be a temporary one.

"I also had an awkward run in with Katie this morning. I think I said something wrong."

Donnie could tell Jude was feeling uneasy because of his gaze aversion patterns, and he sympathized with his friend/junior guildmate. He wanted to provide a panacea for his discomfort, and his immediate thought was to suggest that Katie herself possessed social graces that were, perhaps, a notch or two above the autism threshold. However, Donnie doubted that criticism against Jude's object of affection or worse, the implicit suggestion that Jude's social skills might put him on par with an autistic person, would help his situation, so he merely listened and nodded.

"So, that black stuff on Natasha is silver nitrate, right? I noticed it last night when I was picking her up from cheerleading. I take it you're covering that story for the paper..."

Donnie was about to assert Jude's conclusion when his friend's characteristic propensity for babble interposed itself unto him.

"Oh, speaking of last night.... Now, I may be wrong, but isn't that Caleb's car? He tried to shove us both in the same locker the first week of school...despite our protests that it was impossible to fit one person in there, let alone two. He's not still here is he?"

While Donnie's memory was not an eidetic one, he did have an uncanny ability to recall names, faces, and other details as a direct result of his normal hyper-vigilance to his surroundings. "Yeah," he said in affirmation of all of Jude's questions. Yeah, he was covering the story. Yeah, it was Caleb's car. And yeah, Caleb wasn't here, but answering questions framed in the negative always irked Donnie because no matter what his answer was it could always be interpreted ambiguously. Caleb isn't here? Yes, he isn't here. Caleb isn't here? No, he isn't here. Idiotic idiomatic expressions, damn it all!

"He graduated last year," Donnie clarified, "but not before meeting Tim the Enchanter." He grinned as he patted the side of his bag where he kept his taser. "Didn't I tell you about it online?" Donnie continued recounting the story of how, after a particularly scathing article, Caleb had attempted to deposit Donnie into a garbage can, likely in preparation to roll him down that big hill behind the school, and how Donnie had managed to escape with help from Tim, the pet name he had given his taser.

The two made their way down the hall and came to a stop by the school store to pick up Donnie's "fan" mail and, hopefully if Nora remembered, his midday caffeine injection. Nora was a sweet girl, and part of the reason--aside from the well-balanced roast of their coffee and their free wireless--that Donnie regularly visited the Java House to finish his work. On one occasion, someone suggested that Donnie's actions might be construed as courting rituals, but it was absurd to suggest that simply because he enjoyed spending time with her, that presupposed romantic intention.

She didn't even make the 95th percentile on her SATs. Donnie wasn't even sure if she made the 80th percentile!

"Hey Nora," he said familiarly as they reached the counter. "Mail? And coffee?" Donnie viewed the exclusion of other words such as "Do you have..." or "May I please have..." as one step towards increased lingual efficiency, and he was pleased that Nora would understand him despite those eliminations.




((Hope that works for all involved. And welcome to Ghani ))

Natalie Cardew knew well of the differences between Troublemakers and Preps; after all, she had once been the regal queen of Chicago’s brand of superficial losers. Well, actually, Natalie would be the vice president of the 40-Watt club (because, in all fairness, the position of president rightfully belonged to Marie-Elisabeth) if she somehow managed to miss the differences. One sect was belligerent, while the other was self-absorbed. One sect found comfort in shunning the restrictive social rules, while the other found comfort in asserting said restrictive social rules. One sect believed in liberation, while the other group believed in “decorum” (well, a loosely defined concept of it, anyway, but let’s not judge the kiddies for trying).

However, added to that, and added to the fact that given the aforementioned 40-Watt club housed Marie-Elisabeth and her cronies – to be fair to Matt, he didn’t belong there – and therefore Natalie couldn’t stomach being a part of it, Natalie knew well of the stark similarities between the two groups; while they lived by their set of (or lack thereof) rules, neither one adhered by the normal rules of social interaction. Push comes to shove, both groups were dangerous to deal with. Both groups had a pervasive disregard – well, at varying degrees – for the next man and it showed in their actions. Both groups were trapped in their own machinations and had serious issues.
Oh, well.
It wasn’t really Natalie’s business, nor her problem and therefore all that remained in focus was the fact that she was doing everyone a favour by serving Matt Sidle his comeuppance. Call it community service, if you will.

However, the point still remained that she didn’t want to get J.D. or Leigh into trouble – though, truth be told, they probably were far more accustomed to dealing with trouble than Natalie was, given that they were far more accustomed to causing it – partly because… she just didn’t want to get them into trouble, and partly because chances were, she’d have to go down with them. Added to that was the fact that Natalie was a hands-on kind of girl. Now, yes, she was accustomed to being the queen bitch, but as nice as delegation was, when you need something done to absolute perfection, you make sure you’re out there in the field. Plus, it was damn fun and she wanted to relish every moment of it.
And so, of course she remained involved in sorting out how to put the plan into action.

"I was gonna say we are people,” J.D. asserted, in a manner that made it clear to Natalie that he was referring to her asking after people. She had noticed that slightly lofty amusement in his eyes when she’d asked the question and wondered if it was in any way an insult to him that she hadn’t immediately pointed to him as the one who’d be able to get it done. "I can fix the cameras.” Fantastic. The less people involved, the better and frankly, with J.D. in the same boat in being a partner in crime, Natalie felt a lot more comfortable. “But I ain't stealin' no credit card."
Well… that was fair. Honestly, Natalie hadn’t truly contemplated the extent of J.D. and Leigh’s delinquency she had to admit that it was easy to ask someone to do something, compared to that someone going out there and getting it done. That said, she still wanted Laramie’s wallet; for his affluent parent funded bias of the jocks, he could afford it.

"Hm, yeah, I really can't risk it either,” Leigh also rebuffed, and though it came as a disappointment to Natalie, the way a crease formed between her arched brows spoke volumes about how much she liked the plan already and therefore, even though it was smaller in magnitude, it was something of a victory. Not that the Laramie arena of the plan was a failure; they could still find a way. Meanwhile, Leigh took the time out to explain why she hadn’t been able to do it; "I'm supposed to be on 'good behaviour'."
Oh. Now, did that have anything to do with the fight she’d been talking about earlier? Or the circumstances of her return? Knowing Laramie, he was looking for an excuse to populate the school with Stepford citizens whose parents could pay a lot to keep their kids’ school atop. And furthermore… why did she feel the need to give that slight explanation?
But Natalie said nothing, instead just watching as Leigh’s determined eyes scanned over the cafeteria in search for something only she knew.

"What about Ty?" she asked suddenly, her gaze locking onto J.D., head tilted towards the direction of her inspiration while Natalie instead watched J.D.’s reaction. He shrugged. Well, that meant one of two things; lack of knowledge or indifference and right now, given that they were better than dislike, Natalie was willing to hear out the rest of the plan.
While Leigh pitched the idea to J.D., Natalie’s scrutinising gaze found it’s way to the object of the other two’s attentions, landing on the distant features of handsome Young man bathed in a casually self-assured air, in the company of a girl with her back to Natalie. Natalie had no idea who the girl was – one to find out, because she looked like trouble – and she had somewhat of a vague idea of who the guy was.

Tyler Young; the man with the connections. Now, Natalie did try to stay on the straight and narrow – she really did… it was just difficult to do sometimes – but she couldn’t deny the fact that most of the time, the nice ones finish last. That aside, in journalism, one did have to know which strings to pull to get what done and who to talk and who to shut up and therefore, Natalie did have the gist of the power players in Brooklake High. Tyler Young was one of them.
However, that said, she didn’t know much. It was possibly because Tyler didn’t do much, or because Tyler did a lot, and made sure people didn’t talk about it. Given the fact that the usually ‘roided up jocks kept out of his way, Natalie was inclined to believe the latter.

"Know who Tyler Young is?" Leigh interjected, leading Natalie to snap her gaze back onto the pretty rebel’s face, realising that J.D. lack of enthusiasm had yet again failed to even halt her in going about what she thought was best. "I think he might be willing to help. Probably for a fee though."
Hmm. Now, paying wasn’t a problem for Natalie, especially if it worked out cheaper than what it was going to cost Laramie and knowing the rates for printing, she knew it’d probably work out a lot cheaper, but she had wanted too keep control of who was involved. That said, Leigh, with her possibly – probably – tentative return to Brooklake had reason to be even more careful and therefore, if she was giving this the go ahead, then it was quite probably a safe venture. Added to that, for Tyler to keep the status he had without the spread of wild and vicarious rumours, the guy had to be skilled at discretion.

“Not as much as I’m about to,” Natalie thus replied to Leigh's initial question, her gaze flicking over towards Tyler’s direction again before focusing onto the two troublemakers in her company, giving her preliminary concurrence for the current vein of the plan; “What’s his story?”
After all, in getting involved, she did have to know who she was dealing with.

(((OOC: Hope this works )))

Loren considered lunch to be the most important meal of the day. Breakfast was like an initial free fall, dinner was the last push to get you to midnight snacking or sleep, but lunch was what held the day together. His opinion on math was partly because the subject was dry and confusing, and partly because he was hungry during that class.

So once the serious business of eating with the seniors was taken care of, and the general, but exhaustively detailed process of casting Brooklake's Rocky Horror was finished, he saw the flower, poem and artwork in his bag, and nearly coldcocked himself smacking his forehead that he'd forgotten to drop off the thing in his lady's locker.

That was what he took care of, and he figured that it would be strange to stand by her locker until she showed up. If it took him fifteen minutes and a hallway full of people wondering why he was staring at her locker, then so be it. He'd signed it, and she would probably think it was easier to bring it up, because beautiful intelligent girls like her were all about the whole feminism thing, right?

Even if he was still cooking on the lovely winter morning in his duct tape coat, the fact that soon he could have a girlfriend, and he'd get to audition for Rocky Horror was enough to put a bounce in his step, a spring in his mind, and an unconsciously whistled version of Dammit, Janet.

He wandered over to the quad, figuring it would be cooler outside, and losing the duct tape wasn't going to happen anytime soon, and saw Lacey sitting under a tree, watching some kids playing frisbee.

He plopped down next to her, not bothering to kiss her hand- after all, the whole thing didn't work out gracefully when both parties were seated- and instead just greeted her, as usual. "Hey, Lacey. How's everyone favorite lady on the whole wide earth?"*

He didn't see how she could say anything other than that the day was perfect- the sun was shining, the quad didn't smell, there were flowers blooming and the grass was comfortable, even if it messed a little on a duct tape coat.

((OOC: *in reference to the first loren/lacey posts
And Alissa, the flower and poem are in her locker now, for her to discover at your leisure. Just gimme some warning, k?
And I'll try to get a Katie post up tomorrow. Sorry for the wait!))

That was the problem with stock answers, Katie reflected as Esteban's expression went off. They didn't work outside of stock situations. At the few parties she went to where people drank, they tended to not understand and leave her alone to listen blankly to the music playing and eat potato chips.

Here though, he wasn't soused, he probably knew what hydrocarbons were in the first place, and maybe even the various functional groups, and it was stupid nerd pun. Natasha would have gotten it, and maybe a few other people would understand, but... That was one of the reasons she didn't joke very much, no one got them.

And of course, he didn't think it was the witty thing it was. That was vaguely disappointing, though Katie didn't know why. "Jesus, don't be such a nerd. You drink this s*** to get smashed, not for a bunch of hydrocarbons or whatever the f***." She hadn't been paying enough attention earliar to gauge if that was more or less swearing, or even in the few encounters to see if more swearing meant anything.

And besides which, behind the swearing, that was exactly why she didn't drink. She didn't want to get wasted. The one time she had, she'd woken up the next morning with her head pounding and the rec cheerleading coach, slightly soused herself, had brought her home wrapped in a curtain. She'd gotten into the wrong bowl of punch, was what the woman had told her parents. After she'd been chewed out for drinking what had to taste incredibly basic, and then doing something that stupid, she'd decided that her parents didn't want her drinking, and it made her head hurt, so that was that.

He probably knew both of those reasons, but maybe for him they weren't as big a deal. She didn't know. She kind of didn't care. She was back at her usual analytical and controlled self, having realized that nothing was going to happen, but she wanted to get some lunch and go running or dancing or something, and she doubted that there was much time left before the bell rang, even if the whole thing seemed to have been both incredibly fast and heartstoppingly slow all at the same time.

"Here. Don't be scared, chica--it only burns for a couple seconds." he said, not encouragingly, but not threateningly either. Almost like he was impatient. For what though? She didn't know, but she reluctantly took the bottle and just looked at it for a moment like it was a dead fish. She hadn't thought that one through really, and she didn't know quite what she was going to do with the bottle. Actually drink it? Put it back on the shelf? Wallop him over the head with it and take her chances bulling past? And then it occurred to her, which might have made her eyes flash mischievously for a second. She opened her mouth, put the bottle to her lips and tilted her head back as if to take a swig, but she clicked her teeth shut so that very little liquid actually went in. Besides which, the bottle was labeled as a gum solvent, and she doubted that whoever had cleaned it had done it to OSHA or EPA standards, and the alcohol would break down anything biological in there, but then again, so would the nitrogen compounds, which was what she was worried about.

The tiny bit of alcohol sloshed in between her teeth and her lips, and burned a little on her gums, and she wanted to hiss or do something, but she made it a point to take the bottle away and close her mouth before she did. The little bit did burn going down, and she made a face, because it was expected, and she didn't really see a reason not to.

Not bad, right?" he asked, and she wondered if he looked a little smug at that. It wasn't terrible, but it certainly wasn't something that she would drink on her own time. Was it so strange to like fruit punch for goodness sake? So, with that seed of a rant in her mind, she put the bottle back on the shelf behind her. It was very much premeditated- she was exceedingly confident that his alcohol tolerance was higher than hers, but that didn't mean that she wanted him anywhere near a threshold. The boys at the studio had made it abundantly clear that she was desirable- especially after it took one guy ten tries to let go of her within three beats of when he was supposed to- so even if he didn't want to do anything, that could change.

As she was putting the bottle back on the shelf he stepped forward and she stopped moving, hating herself for feeling a momentary spike of fear, and hoping she wasn't showing it. "Hey," he said, sounding more indignant than intimidating, "give it back." His arm came up and she put the bottle between his hand and herself. It would seem like she was being nice and cooperative, but really it was just to have something between them. So much for being in control.

So the bottle was gone, the after-taste was mostly gone, and she said, in as dry and sarcastic a tone as she could muster, "It was utterly delightful. Don't suppose I can go get some lunch now?"

Lunch, a run, a few pages in a book, and she'd be good as new. Until then, she just was acting,

((OOC: Hope that was okay with you robokitty?
ETA: Edited. Same question as above))

(((ooc: Due to a rather hectic schedule over the next three or four weeks, I may not be able to post as regularly as usual, and my posts will probably not be as long as usual either. I will still be around pretty much daily, and will do my best to not keep people waiting too long, but I just figured it was worth a mention.)))


Being part of a group where you were more or less expected to sometimes put your hide on the line for your friends, Leigh took a lot of pride in not backing away from a challenge. Whether it was about actually helping out a pal, or just causing general mischief, the young lady usually didn't hesitate to get involved, and to do her part, and she didn't shy away from the risks it usually involved, by trying to procure the less perilous tasks and positions of whatever was the plan. Heck, not even when they were assigned to her by someone else did she immediately accept it, but would instead protest and question why she was being "left out of all the fun", sometimes - though it was quite rare - even going so far as to accuse her partners in crime of underestimating her capacity simply because she was a girl. Though in all fairness, those kinds of situations didn't tend to happen all that often anymore, because she had proven herself to be most capable regardless of her gender, and so these days, very few of the people she hung out, which indeed consisted of mostly boys, made the mistake of being overbearing or selling her short. She was one of them, and she made damn sure they didn't forget it.
Which only went on to explain why now she was being so very reluctant to pass on what would probably be one of the most precarious undertakings of the plan developing between herself and Natalie (J.D. might be present, and he might have offered to take care of the cameras, but so far, the actual planning itself hadn't seen much input on his part). But since in this case, she really couldn't afford to risk getting caught, she wanted to make it clear that it was indeed a case of being unable to, rather than being too chicken to. With the prospect of getting thrown back to that dump in Lonsdale (or worse) hanging over her head, she really couldn't take the risks she usually didn't hesitate to. Not when she had claimed to parents and school officials alike that what school she went to really did make a difference to her troublesome behaviour. After all, it was up to none other than just herself to prove it to be true, and stealing the dean's wallet would land her in such a pile of trouble she seriously doubted she'd ever be able to dig herself out of it.

Hence, with her unable to, J.D. not willing to, and Natalie - let's face it - probably too inexperienced to, the only solution Leigh could think of, was to bring in yet another person. And what other person better to bring in, than the young man that despite the school officials having caught whiff of the vague rumours regarding his tendency to supply students with various substances, and therefore keeping a close eye on him, had yet to be caught dealing, or even holding said substances. Despite having had his lockers - both the regular one in the hallway as well as the one in the locker room - searched, twice. He had even willingly submitted to their request (read; challenge) of getting to search his very person. And still; nothing. Not a thing had been found on him.

Furthermore, let's not forget the incident about six months ago, shortly after the school year had started, when Mr Walker's brand new laptop had suddenly gone missing from the teacher's lounge, and never been found. The theories of whodunit had been many - and they still were, since it had caused quite a bit of excitement at the time, and left an impression on the kids as well as the staff - but what had always stood out to Leigh, was how little Tyler had had to say about the matter. When once she'd intentionally brought it up with him, in order to try and gauge his reaction, commenting how someone who managed to steal a laptop from right under the teacher's noses had to be pretty darned good, he'd just simply changed the subject. Very smoothly and very casually, leaving Leigh somewhat uncertain of whether it was intentional or if he'd just had other things on his mind and not really registered what she'd said. But it had still gotten her thinking.

"Not as much as I'm about to."

The sound of Natalie's voice drew Leigh's thoughtful gaze away from Tyler, along with her attention, and back to the beautiful editor of the school paper.

"What's his story?"

Simple question, but difficult to answer. When it came to Tyler Young, facts mixed generously with rumours based on other people's assumptions and vivid imaginations, and at times it was really hard to tell them apart. That he'd stolen Mr Walker's laptop? Rumour, as there was no evidence whatsoever to suggest that he had, even though Leigh had her suspicions. That Neville Highams, nerd extraordinaire, was paying him for protection against his jock bullies? At least part fact, because people had seen senior quarterback Zane Morris get his bullying butt kicked, when as he was giving Neville a hard time, Tyler had shown up and for seemingly no reason at all beaten the snot out of Zane, which did suggest some kind of arrangement between Tyler and Neville. And then there was of course the rumours that Tyler was working for Roy Finnegan, a name well known by anyone with even a toe on the other side of the law, or possibly for some other big crook in the area. That, that was probably fact, based on a few other things that Leigh knew from personal experience were facts; that Tyler had easy access to drugs, hard liquor and plenty of cash, which was hardly something he'd have achieved all on his own, and even though he had never mentioned anything about his supposed employer to Leigh personally, or even about having one in the first place, she knew people to whom he had.

However, that was hardly something she would tell Natalie about, least of all now, during their very first real conversation. But that didn't mean there was nothing at all to tell;

"Well", she started. "For this kind of stuff, he's the one to go to. I've seen him pick a lock in seconds, and last semester he got into several of the jocks' lockers in the boy's locker room and tossed their uniforms under the showers."

There, she paused for a moment as her lips parted slightly in a smile of malicious amusement at the memory.

"I remember that", J.D. commented. "That was him?"

Leigh glanced over at him, and nodded.

"Partly", she said, not feeling particularly inclined to elaborate and share who had been the other part of the prank, and the one to tell Leigh who had been behind it, and thus continued, once again looking at Natalie: "And last year, someone got their cell confiscated by Maltby, and they paid Tyler to get it back for them. And he did."


(((ooc: Also, Tyler is approachable, since Aya_Alexa apparently won't be on for a while)))

There’s a code of conduct in high school that most of the people unknowingly adhere to and a small proportion violate; it was an unwritten law and it was incontestable… without detrimental costs, that is and maybe it was survival instinct that left the majority choosing the right option when it came to violating said code of conduct. In fact, this code applied to the outside world too, so yeah… high school was more of an important training base. Basically, there were certain people in high school that you just do not mess with, for any reason and then there were those born to be the designated whipping boys and girls.
Considering her antics thus far, it was clear which of those Natalie belonged to.

Now, there were those in between in their shades of grey and had to assert their standing – usually on the dominant side if they were doing any of the asserting – so that everyone else got the message. Now, Natalie, finding herself on this side of the fence for now after the stint in Chicago, had to admit that she had some trouble figuring out where to place Leigh. J.D. – she could easily place him in as the sort who’d had to establish his reputation once and then only deal with those who felt a little bit adventurous in testing the boundaries, but Leigh… now she didn’t seem perpetually aggressive, as if there were buttons that needed to be pushed in order to bring that side out of her and those were the very button that could be avoided should anyone want a peaceful encounter.
So right now, the encounter between Natalie and Leigh – and she did notice how Leigh’s taking charge put J.D. in the backseat almost entirely, where he oddly seemed comfortable being… perhaps because he trusted her that much – going quite peacefully between the two of them, but quite hostile in regards to the others involved, Natalie had to wonder what exactly had prompted Leigh to test out Natalie in the first place, when she was quite sure not everyone had a test run bestowed upon them.
In any case, there was time to figure that out still.
Right now, the focus was on Tyler, because Natalie wasn’t prone to biting off more than she could chew and as badly as she wanted to get at Matt with the magnificence that she was capable of (oh, with a little help, of course…) she wasn’t going to let it cost her too much. After all, the point was that Matt paid for what he did, not that she paid for what he pushed her to. And Tyler… with his reputation (or rather the ambiguous warning cloud that served as a reputation), involvement required a bit of caution.

“Well,” Leigh started, after contemplating what exactly to divulge, because as Natalie suspected, there was a lot to divulge and as Natalie also suspected, she wasn’t about to get the full story. But fair enough, she could work on a need-to-know basis for now. “For this kind of stuff, he's the one to go to. I've seen him pick a lock in seconds, and last semester he got into several of the jocks' lockers in the boy's locker room and tossed their uniforms under the showers.”

Oh…. that prank… now, Natalie wasn’t sure what had brought it on, but she did have to admit, it was as entertaining as hell. Especially since it’d involved some of their sponsorship kits with red dye that wasn’t all that set and therefore some of the boys ended up looking quite pretty in pink. In any case, picking the locks on the lockers did take some doing and to do that to the entire team unnoticed had to take some skill.
On another note… how exactly did Leigh know this to such certainty…? Well, that was an easily answered question, because as she put it, she did actually see him do this and therefore was quite possibly the lookout on the mission, which again begged the question of why she had quite so much against the jocks and preps.... Natalie had heard a few rumours, but well… this did seem to be an interesting little mystery.

"I remember that,” J.D. interjected, cementing the notion that he wasn’t all that acquainted with Tyler… and so, given that the boys locker room incident involved Leigh and the evident amusement polishing her delicate features, Natalie had to wonder whether that prank – if Leigh had been involved – had anything to do with Leigh personal vendetta and if so, why Tyler had obliged. Money? Possibly… and then there was the fact that it’d all rendered Leigh quite willing to trust him. "That was him?"

“Partly,” she answered, leaving it at that and then moving on; "And last year, someone got their cell confiscated by Maltby, and they paid Tyler to get it back for them. And he did.”

Well, now that was more like it… being able to get into Maltby’s office did rank up high enough with getting into Laramie’s wallet and therefore Natalie was on board enough to go for it and hence she simple took a moment’s consideration to consolidate everything she’d been pondering so far.

“Pretty impressive,” she admitted with a slight inclination of her head, then her eyes locking onto the two troublemakers in her company; “Maybe he’ll appreciate the challenge.”
After all, Laramie was a… prickly character and getting his wallet did take some considerable skill. With that, she rose out of her seat, excusing herself from the company of the current two troublemakers to go proposition another. “Be right back.”
She weaved effortlessly through the maze of tables and chairs – being ex-head cheerleader, her body did carry itself with grace – slowing down as she approached the table housing Tyler before eventually sauntering her way to a standstill before him.
“Hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she began smoothly, eyes flicking momentarily to the disappearing figure of another girl before locking back onto Tyler’s blue orbs, a slight smile upturning her lips as one palm pressed down on the opposite edge of the table from him. “Can I have a few minutes of your time?”

(((OOC: Hope this works, Atropa Rushed ending but yeah…
Requiem :doh forgot to say – great new character, and feel free to start RPing, I will add him to the list as soon as I’ve updated all the links etc
Aya - so sorry, I assumed that AJ had left when Natalie made her entrance, I didn't think she'd be (outwardly) rude enough to interrupt an on going conversation?
Furry - can't wait and will let you know when she ventures near her locker! )))

Aj stood infront of the guy and smiled slightly as she waited for his reply. Aj was the type of girl who really doesn't want to be rejected, she thought of it as defeat or something were she was put to shame. she stood there thinking of what to do if ever she was rejected. will she smack the tray to the guys face? or will she just leave peacefully and not think about what will happen. her thoughts broke when the guy looked at her with a faint smile. it wasn't likely for Aj to fall for a guy, be attracted or something like that. she was more of a tomboy, a strong independent girl, one who isn't played by guys, someone who stands for herself and not needing their power or rich fathers to cover for their wrong doings. but looks like she felt something strange and different as she looked at the guy, he was really good looking despite the scars on his face which looked like he has been in many fights, the piercings and the rugged look still he seemed to be nice and friendly. "Sure, Take a load off." the guy then replied breaking Aj's thoughts of him. Aj then smiled and sat at the opposite seat facing him, she bowed her head as she removed the food out of the tray. he then extended one hand and Introduced himself, "Tyler Young, impromptu welcome wagon at your service" Aj raised her head and looked at him. "You are?" he continued, Aj smiled and reached out a hand but before she could tell her name or even shake hands with him, a beautiful brown haired girl came, “Hope I’m not interrupting anything,” she said, Aj looked at her and smiled as she pulled her hands back, she then pouted her lips sideways to the right. “Can I have a few minutes of your time?” she overheard the girl say. thinking that she might just be in the way she thought its time for her to take an exit, Aj then put everything back to her tray, "excuse me." she said as calmly as she can and stood up leaving the two alone. Aj leaves the tray in a table near the exit of the cafeteria and leaves.

======================================================

Kassel felt more a bit embarrassed for dropping the books as she saw the other girl pick it up, "Here you go," she said as she handed Kassel the books. Kassel smiled and reached for them. "I'm Claire Whitmore by the way. I'm new here. Are you new too?" she said as she introduced herself. Claire reminded Kassel of Aj with the dark hair and green eyes. she then wonders what she was doing breaking her though Kassel then smiled back at her. "Hi." Kassel replied and reached out a hand. "Im Kassel Dylan, and thanks for picking up the books" she continued. Kassel looked at the girl and smiled she then put the books down in one of the shelves and looks at her. "Hey, wanna take a seat?" Kassel asked the girl and smiled hoping she would agree since her foot hurts from being hit by the books.