Players:
Summary: Jakob and Sabina meet Teddy.
Date: May 27, 2010
Log Title Horse or Dare?
Rating: PG-13
=Barnes Academy - Living Wing
This hub for the day to day living quarters for the students and teachers continues the motif of white alloy floors and large round portholes of the transparent material looking out into the green waters of the bay. Full spectrum lights overhead simulate daylight and there are several benches and settees built into the sides of large planters containing small trees, flowers and plants, each one a carefully tended micro-ecosystem. Passages lead in different directions like the spokes from a central hub.
Late afternoon (way too hot in New York City today) has passed into a cooler evening, but down here, one might never notice the weather. Climate controls keep things a perfect 73 degrees. Passing through the hub from the staff/school foyer, a tallish, blond young man in a slightly modified Barnes uniform is discussing something on a cell phone. He stops when he reaches the center of the room, says "FINE!" into the phone, and hangs up, then pinches the bridge of his nose, clearly trying to rid himself of a tension-spawned headache.
The lobby seemed to afford some form of silence at these hours, one that was more appealing when closer to an exit. Watched by all the mechanizations or not. One of the chairs was what she occupied, her boots kicked off and left sat before it in their discard with feet tucked beneath her in the repose she had settled into while reading one of her text books. Hooray for small wins; she had actually made it to a class or two apparently and was planning on participating - somewhat with what could be retained while music was being force fed into her senses, this only told by the white wire that stood out amongst the mass of long black hair she had finally undone from a bun and let loose upon the world. Her other ear was left free of obstruction and is what caught the commotion of Teddy and his cell phone dramas. She was in all of her Barnes uniform glory, but preferred to keep her electronic leash uncharged and in a drawer in her room. Azure gaze remained upon him for a moment before it slowly tore back do
downward to her book, though interest had long been lost.
Jakob seemed to find himself walking in on an audible "FINE!" from another he'd yet to see before, least he looked normal unlike the half a dozen freaks he'd already seen. There -she- was though, the one who had decided she was going to sick ghosts on his clothing. " Mind having your spooks bring my clothes back when you get the chance, Elvira. " He says outloud while half into the room, a basketball spinning around on his left palm. He had not found anyone around here to shoot hoops with or really connect up to so he was of course shooting by himself.
Obviously having just left the court. Not wearing a uniform for once instead basic t-shirt and loose pants with tennis shoes.
The blond guy twitches slightly, turning to focus on the other two people actually present, rather than the long-suffering guard at the far door, who would clearly rather not be doing punishment duty here.
"Elvira?" An eyebrow Spocks upwards as he offers them a smile-without-teeth and he ambles over towards what promises to be either verbal foreplay, sparring tongues, or possibly a lover's spat, but anything is better than arguing with the Headmaster more.
"Hi. What's the buzz, cuz?" he says, being all cool and stuff. Sure he is.
Sabina's half lidded lazy stare at her book slowly formed into something more like a leer. With the accusatory voice of Jakob's ringing over the open area of the lobby she was half in thought and wonder and half instantly seething. Now that she was not trying to talk to him anymore it seemed to be fuel for an unknown backfire. To play along or not to though, despite her ignorance? Only two people knew the half of it from her and the thought alone had her eyes rising to Teddy once again and then looking back at her book with a focus that may have said she was trying to burn holes through it. "You lose your shit and it is my fault now? Find another scapegoat, I'm not your mother." Hearing Teddy her head did not lift but her eyes did to focus on him. "Apparently he needs "help"." Even her hands rose and made quotes for the last bit.
Obviously lacking in social mannerisms Jakob only returned Teddy's upraised eyebrow granting only a brief look that direction to size up a new person before he flips the ball from one hand to the other, his chin tipping upwards to appear as if he was looking down his nose at Sabina, " Not sure how you did it but my clothes while I was watching them all just vanished from sight, faded out of view sounds abit like you were doing your crypt keeper talk to the dead shit on me. "
"Ooh! sneer quotes, two point advantage to the lady," the blond guy says. "And an obscure insult from the gentleman that, sorry to say, only rates one point, but it's early in the quarter." He actually shows teeth in the smile that comes out after that. "So how about a time out on for a second. Hi, I'm Teddy Altman. And clothes disappearing doesn't mean she did it. There's three people here I know who could do that, probably more."
The laugh that barked out had the guard at the door a bit more alert, but only for a fleeting moment before he returned to looking death-bored. The look of the guard's was mimicked by Sabina now as she finally settled that indifference into a look upon Jakob, but the smile that lingered from the laugh was cut jaggedly across pale features. Her chin up-tilted in a near arrogance in return to his glare as she spoke. "As much as you make people instantly loathe you, Jakob, I am not one of them. Though I would like you to leave me alone unless it is something constructive." As bold as she was trying to be the flat press of her hand against the book told of what it took out of her to not just get up and leave - her normal reaction. Teddy's words garnered the return of her eyes to him with a slight tilt of her head. "Sabina Vida, But I am sure he can give you about fifty nicknames in regards to me, give it an hour or more, for you too. He's got talent. Nice to meet you Teddy."
" Don't recall talking to you wise ass. " He spoke in Teddy's direction, but what he said had him curious on who else could have been playing around with his stuff, he frowns before continuing on, " Yeah well, if it is you knock it the hell off unless you want to start something. I can play the same game back. " The ball tucks under his bicep trapped between it and forearm against his side as he looks over curiously towards the newcomer. " Who else could do this? " Not having given out his name yet, manners again failing.
"Do you REALLY want to start throwing down with me before I have a name to insult you by, dim bulb?" Teddy is fluent in the traditional language of jock-threat and posturing, but he lets his weariness with the whole concept show in his voice. "Let's try this again, but this time we use our grown-up manners. Hi. I'm Teddy. And you are?"
He doesn't ignore Sabina's response, just hasn't got time to answer yet, given that someone is demanding information without giving back.
Sabina's handiwork was by far a bit more different. For whatever reason she did not yet strike out at Jakob, but that was also because a part of her pitied him. She knew fear when she saw it; she grew up with it, whether it was expressed through anger, silence, or avoidance. Perhaps it was some odd pity she had and it was her way of expressing her understanding. But someone else did get her "affections" and attention. This was something that was on queue displayed by one of the faceless students whose voice might ring familiar as he came in through the entry.
"Whoever is doing this is going to get in trouble!" Sound familiar? But behind him was a hobbling pigeon, its neck still hanging loose and down from a break-neck impact somewhere, but it was alive and attempting to get through the door and follow the student in who was apparently disturbed by his nights company. "It's been on me all night!""
Sabina now watched with the smile never faltering, in fact it only grew a bit and she looked back to her book giving Teddy a thumbs up. "You tell him."
" Cute, dim bulb. Something you learned off watching Sponge Bob? " Jakob's head shakes as his jaw tensed abit, the ball again in motion as he popped it from one to the other then back again. " Anyways Ken, names Jakob. " His voice turning very sardonic and sour, " Nice to meet you. " His face going pale as he watches one of the students from the cafeteria wander in whining about… well, apparently he was being followed by a mangled undead pigeon. " Thats… fuckin' gross. " Being stunned enough by this enough the ball paused in it's continued hyperactive course.
"Do not disrespect the Sponge-Bob, Jason," Teddy says. "It's a bad… "
He looks over and looks over again. "WHAT is that?"
He steps back and inadvertently into the space where Jakob is standing. Fight is forgotten in the face of potentially brain-eating birds.
Sabina's chin now found home in a cupped palm. She was intently watching the student bee-line it to the corridors and away while the security guard tried to shoo off the bird that just kept pinging off his shoe as if magnetized and intent on the student and not taking no for an answer. When the guard reared back his foot though was when the bird suddenly dropped, lifeless as if there was never once that bit of animation to it. If watched for that moment Sabina had closed her eyes not only to Teddy and Jakob, but to the world. A small breath in and she slumped back into her chair, silent. Lifting her eyes to the two one brow rose and she looked back as the guard just stood there, perplexed. "Looks like a dead bird to me. Poor thing." Shrug."
Jakob without thought in it like some tandem line dancer all synced up with Teddy he moved a notch over, stepping with in the same direction that space remaining as it was between them. This strange little distraction had killed the rising aggression he had towards Teddy for the moment and redirected him towards Sabina, " You're such a freak. " He states without much conviction as he would normally have.
"Wait. This is her fault somehow?"
Teddy looks with increased interest at Sabina, unconsciously reaching for the basketball Jakob was just a moment ago playing with; he starts doing a similar form of Contact Juggling With Basketball to what Jakob was doing.
"So what is it, you're the female Herbert West?" Teddy says, grinning. Not necessarily hostile. Perhaps a little creeped out still, but intrigue is winning out.
"Freak!" She slapped the book closed and leaned forward a bit over it with forearms resting upon it as a brace instead of the tucked legs beneath. "There's another one, see Teddy. Less than an hour and I have Elvira and freak. I need to get him a plaque or something. All because I feel bad for a dead bird?" Acting ignorant would hopefully get her out of this one, no one knew about this quirk of hers save those…Who needed to know. Yes, she would likely be in trouble for it, but did they do public scorning here? She doubted it. "Your faces though, I *do* need a camera." Leaning further forward she pushed through her back pack and fished out a can of coke and leaned back. *Tss-ahh* At Teddy's words though her sip paused and the can lowered. "I don't know what you are talking about." No body had ever coined her better, her turn to be shocked.
" Whoever Herbert West is. " Jakob added in, the ball's passage ignored for the most part aside from a flex of his hand fingers closing in and out as if toying with it's ghost. Some unspoken thing had just occurred there on the 'guy' level as he snapped his fingers at Teddy indicating he pass it back, his hands opening up. Maybe all wasn't at a loss, the new guy didn't have fins, or six arms, Hobbit feet or look like Shrek, like some alien or mutant. " You play? " He suddenly asked. That tension that had been in the air all but defused, as if expecting Sabina to say something snide over witnessing this his eyes were canted off towards her while he spoke.
"Herbert West, Reanimator. It's from a movie and an H.P. Lovecraft story," Teddy explains, passing the ball back. "Varsity, basketball, wrestling, football. Didn't swim, too dense, I sink. Kinda got busy with other stuff my senior year though, didn't have time."
Not to mention that whole thing where the Super-Skrull fried his mother in front of him. Not the best of years, but it ended up turning out quite good actually. But enough of memory lane. He returns his gaze to Sabina. "Right, just remember, everyone here has something that makes it reasonable for them to be here."
"It's a story about a man who brings corpses back to life by H.P. Lovecraft. Kind of sort of has that Mary Shelly's Frankenstein feel but a bit more..Fresh." One hand rose and tilted a bit in the so-so display while she glanced to Teddy and let the hand flip to him in a silent 'see?' motion. Would she say anything about it to rub it all in? No, she knew when to walk off with a "win", and right now was it. At some point the ear bud to her MP3 player had fallen free and she reached up to tuck it back into place. Let the boys do their thing, she had a book to stare at some more until she bored herself to sleep. Hearing Teddy's final statement she only muttered. "I'm simply human and can cook a mean steak. They like my grill skillz."
" Guess she kind of is like that isn't she, a regular Herbert, names kind of more attractive on her than Elvira too. " Chuckling, he's lips quirked up as the ball dribbled around him getting the on guard agent to glare over in that library hush knock it off demeanor. "I scored expert in every qualification for every firearm the military handed me. Thats my reason. " A lie, not something they needed to know. Not like even Sabina knew what his powers were or seen them in use when he'd actually used them right infront of her, aside from being amazingly movie like agile he was apparently normal.
"We have a killer sports center here," Teddy confides, when the guard-glare is fired off. "And hall monitors from hell."
He winks at Sabina. "My special power is that I can keep these ear-cuffs from falling off. So very useful."
He puts on a confused expression. "Wait, my distraction-sense is tingling. We were talking about something. Oh. Right. Clothes. Where did you see them last?"
Sabina's nose wrinkled and she looked back up from her book to watch Jakob with a deep furrow of her brow. "I don't like Herbert as a name even on my grandpa's grandpa. Pick another name for the third for the night, I deplore of you." The look she gave Jakob was a mocking plea, but did hold some truth. Herbert…Really? The look tossed to Teddy even asked for a silent 'back me up here'. Though the statement of faux powers had her lips curling upward a bit. "He can shoot the cow, I can cook it and…you…Taste test while keeping your ear-cuffs on." As if that was that she leaned back and stretched, her legs unfolding from their tucked position to flop to the ground before the chair. Ah yes, Teddy had a valid point and now she was paying attention while wiggling off the sleep her legs took without her.
" Herby the NecRomancer has a nice ring to it… " He mused outloud, the ball being tossed up and slung off a wall to rebound back into his hand. " I already seen parts of the athletic center, rest of it still not gotten to. They like to slam you with courses here you don't recall signing up for… " He was already half spun as he toyed with the cow idea, the movie Apocalypse Now playing with images of that poor unfortunate bovine in his head. " So, we can shoot some hoops and Sabina, if you want to tag along you can hokus pokus up all the dead Globe Trotters or at least some cheerleaders. "
"Horse or Dare," Teddy offers. "In case Horse by itself is boring. That way Sabina can join in if she wants."
He grabs the ball on the next rebound and spins it on his left index finger, "Oh, did you want to discuss the clothes thing, Jakob? Or just hit up the quartermaster for replacements?"
"I refuse to acknowledge that nickname." That settled it, she might look up when freak, Elvira, Spook, or Deadsy Flufferkins even was given to her but Herb, Herbie, Herbert…She drew a line somewhere and it was right.fucking.there. "I am sure I could supply you with plenty of dead cheerleaders, we are in New York afterall." She snorted derisively and shook her head. She was still waiting to solve the case of the missing clothing. Tonight Teddy casted Holmes. Her book was slid into her backpack then and she stood, gathering her boots and shifting from foot to foot to work out pins and needles. "I'll just watch…It's cool Teddy." She sucked at sports, sports with the Dare flare terrified her.
" Horse or Dare? Weak. " He chided, " Street, no rules, one on one. " Adding in, before it struck what his original intention had been, he did need clothes and someone was really seriously screwing with him and if it wasn't Sabina maybe he'd offended some other nutcase circus act here. " Ah right, forgot all about that. " The ball lifted up to cradle beside his head before it rolled down his arm off his wrist to be turned over and spun on a fingertip. " Last place I seen them was in my room. "
"No rules, one on one? Powers or not?" Teddy grins when he asks that, and it's a slightly predatory grin, but that's for later, "OK, so, when was this? Why did you think Sabina and her alleged spooky power was involved?"
He considers stealing the basketball, but no, it's more interesting to think about the why of disappearing garments.
Simply watched once she was done fidgeting and getting the sleep out of her limbs. She had seen the entertainment she came here to see. Hearing the boys banter back and forth and the rise of challenge testosterone was getting rather thick in the room only broken by more of a clothing inquiry. "If they were just missing from your drawer and you come looking for me about it I am more apt to think you just wanted to talk to me again." The smirk was forming, twisting her lips but it was forgotten as again, Teddy brought up a valid point. Sipping her coke she peered over the aluminum rim at them. This was entertainment number two. Bonding.
" Like I said, they vanished right infront of me. That kind of shit you hear about ghosts… who else plays with that? Not like clothes just turn invisible on their own and run off. " The game for now forgotten as the ball tucked back under his arm. Not gracing her remark of wanting to talk to her again.
"Who indeed. I have a suspicion. Which room are you in?" Teddy's voice remains light and friendly but if it IS who he thinks then he's going to be putting itch powder in a certain irish boy's Crux can as a gentle warning. Threat. Promise. All the above. Just lucky that Jakob isn't in his quad, he thinks.
She must have missed that part but as he elaborated her mouth opened as if she would speak and then clicked shut. A momentary look of thought and she said nothing more. She was not going to accuse or name names. At Teddy's words one brow rose and she turned, only to peer back over her shoulder at them and call out lightly. "I am going to go wait in the gym." The rest was none of her business and she was heading off down…Which hall? Yeah, that one.
Jakob says, " Bravo quad, the second one whichever. Not met any of the others there yet or if I have they keep different hours. Probably one of them I imagine and when I do meet them…" His fist slammed into the side of the basketball with a *ptong* of air inside being bounced back and forth with impact on it's leathery shell.
Sabina has arrived.
Confirmation! Teddy muses out loud. "Well it wasn't me. And I doubt it was Travis. And I'm reasonably sure it wasn't Billy, because he didn't invite me to watch, so that means it's someone from outside. Which means I have a pretty good idea who it is. You should get some from the quartermaster for the night, and I'll see if I can't get Billy to help me deal with the culprit."
Teddy Altman, huh? He must be the "Theodore Altman" whose name is on the names plaque outside the room. One of Jakob's roomies.
" That six-armed momma's boy is in my quad? Could have been him, can he make things dissappear? Who do you think it is? " His head was shaking at this point as he tugged at his shirt with two fingers, " May as well get more clothes, just didn't want to have to explain how this happened incase they thought I was being a lunatic or more trouble. May as well get use out of these first, gym it is. "
