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Post by Shihab on Feb 23, 2011 17:52:18 GMT -5
Shihab raised an eyebrow at the new boy as well, then shrugged. "All yours, mate!"
He turned and headed over to the cooler for a drink, muttering something under his breath about the entire school being an eternal plane of one-upmanship.
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Post by William Jason Fredericks on Feb 23, 2011 19:16:34 GMT -5
Groundsman Fredericks stood well down the beach, far enough that the bonfire looked to be more no larger than a match. "Maybe....get lucky....immolate selves..."
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Post by Derek Galen Wright on Feb 24, 2011 2:33:04 GMT -5
Derek was starting to regret volunteering to fix the fire. It wasn't that he couldn't do it, or that the task was especially difficult, but he felt the eyes of the others on him, watching for the inevitable signs of either success or failure.
His hands trembled under the scrutiny as he finished rearranging the logs and dropped the stick he had used onto the top of the fire. His grey eyes closed and he took a slow, deep breath. The ocean breeze swept around him, caressing his face and tugging gently at his clothing. Silver eyes opened and Derek breathed out, mixing his breath with the wind and directing both at the flames.
The bonfire went flat, like a pile of tinder under the enthusiastic efforts of a young child. Derek's breath petered out and the fire rose up, higher than before. Mildly pleased, Derek drew in another breath... and sneezed.
The breeze rushed out, mimicking the boy's unintentional command for a moment before breaking free. Flames leapt seven feet into the air, flaring back into Derek's face. For an instant he was engulfed by the blaze before staggering out. He wobbled drunkenly, his eyes blazing golden, and waved a hand vaguely in the air.
"I'm-a gonna go... wander... out that way...for a bit."
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Post by Tane Matthewson on Feb 26, 2011 6:13:07 GMT -5
"Woah! You alright, ao?" Tane jumped up and ran over to check if Derek was alright and help him to a seat if he wasn't. "Gotta be more careful, bro! What was that? Some sorta fire maguc?"
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Post by Derek Galen Wright on Feb 27, 2011 1:45:38 GMT -5
Derek sat down heavily in the sand and looked at Tane. "I-I-I'm Okay, just... okay." He coughed a couple times. "'S not really magic, just a... family talent. I b-borrowed the wind a bit to... h-elp the fire a bit... like blowing on a pile of kindling, but bigger." He shook his head ruefully, glancing at the roaring flames. "Guess it worked."
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Post by Damien Griffiths on Feb 27, 2011 16:16:09 GMT -5
"Mh. Yah, I'm col a'right. I'm tempt'd fer something, but... no." He looked at the log Shibab was waving at his face, and grabbed hold of it with both hands clumsily. With a smooth motion, he threw the log so that the front ended up in the sand at the very edge of the fire, after which the wood tumbled into the flameson its own with its momentum. "I'll stick t' my scarves, thank you v'ry much."
He held his hands out towards the fire, trying to warm up a bit. The temptation to actually stick them in was enormous, but he wasn't entirely suicidal. Who knew what could be lurking just outside his vision, waiting for him to slip up, observing his every motion.
The sudden flare of heat drew his attention, and involuntarily he drew in a deep breath of hot air, moving closer to the fire. Only after that he looked at what had caused it. This new guy had done something odd.
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Post by Kahlen Jeanne Nox on Mar 1, 2011 13:36:20 GMT -5
Kahlen pulled off her coat, deciding it was a bit too warm. She bundled it up and sat next to the fire. Mikhail crawled out of his blanket and rested on Kahlen's knee.
"Hullo!" she said to the newcomers. She hadn't been paying much attention to what was going on, not understanding some of what was being said, anyway. She grabbed some marshmallows from the bag and busied herself balancing them on Mikhail's spines.
"Huh. This is more difficult than I though it would be," she muttered to herself.
After a few more failed attempts at making a hedgehog-marshmallow-tower, she gave up and ate the marshmallows.
Kahlen looked up when she heard one of the boys suggest that they step back. She thought it best to comply, not knowing what he might decide to do. She scooped up Mikhail and scooted back from the fire.
"Why? Oh!" Her jaw dropped as the flames rose in the air and engulfed Derek.
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Post by Less Than Beta East Tundra on Mar 1, 2011 16:19:03 GMT -5
Less padded over to the bonfire, fur dripping with seawater. His original intention had been to shake off on Shihab, since he thought the boy would appreciate the joke, but from the looks of things shenanigans were afoot. To his disappointment it was just someone building the fire up, albeit with a nicely flashy piece of magic. Idly he wondered if anyone had tried any of the smoked meat yet. It was sitting on the drying racks just waiting to be taken.
Hey, Damien was there! And new people! Less promptly wandered up to the closest stranger and began sniffing.
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Post by Verin Vetis Malphus on Mar 1, 2011 18:11:19 GMT -5
"Ha ha ha! It's been a while since I saw something like that. Of course, last time the guy didn't make it back out. I may have had something to do with it. Served him right."
Verin walked a little closer to the fire. Once again, the flames held his attention. "Yeah, I have a lot of good stories about fire." He didn't mention how distant they all felt right now. Thinking of fields bathed in flame only made him feel more contempt for this world. But there wasn't anything he could do about it at the moment, and even a contained fire like this helped keep his hate in check.
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Post by Damien Griffiths on Mar 1, 2011 18:28:13 GMT -5
From the other side, Damien glared at the demon boy. He could feel his muscles tense up, and a low growling sound started rising from somewhere deep down. It quickly cut off as soon as he noticed it though.
"No clos'r to th' fire ther'. Don't wanna end up with the beach burning."
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 1, 2011 23:11:45 GMT -5
"Hmph." A scowling young man slouched his way out of the shadows. "My first day here, and already we're burning things. I can tell this is going to be fun," he added in a thick French accent. He sat down cross-legged in front of the fire and glared around the circle, daring anyone to comment.
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Post by Verin Vetis Malphus on Mar 2, 2011 19:23:44 GMT -5
"Relax, Damien. Unless you also happen to be responsible for the fall of Malphus, I'm not going to start a fight at a celebration..."Verin stood closer to the fire. The warmth, the slow destruction of the wood... it was glorious.
At the newcomer's comment, he turned to face him. "You hate fire, huh? Perhaps I can show you something to change your mind. Firsthand experience even." He turned back towards the fire. "Later, though."
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 2, 2011 22:34:30 GMT -5
The young man stroked his chin, looking profoundly bored. "Maybe I'll take you up on that offer. But, of course, you'll have to give me the opportunity to teach you the...ah, error of your ways." He smiled rather condescendingly, and casually cracked his knuckles. They made sounds like snapping twigs. "The name's Jean-Paul de Chêne. I expect we'll get along like a house on fire."
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Post by Shihab on Mar 2, 2011 23:20:10 GMT -5
Shihab raised an eyebrow at the newcomer.
"It's a bonfire, mate. What did you expect us to be doing? You can relax, though, it's almost entirely driftwood, some detritus from the town." He paused, a bit irritated. "And if you're that annoyed about the whole deal, no one is forcing you to stay - you can always go back to the castle, I'm sure that will be more fun than sulking at us all here."
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 2, 2011 23:51:36 GMT -5
Jean-Paul smiled infuriatingly again and made an exaggerated stretching motion. "Oh, trust me, if there were any live wood in there, I'd be doing much more than annoying you." He lay back on the sand. "And I came here because I needed to get out of the castle. That place positively reeks of death," he added, in a more serious tone.
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Post by Shihab on Mar 3, 2011 0:41:41 GMT -5
Shihab smiled back, pleasantly and cheerfully and with all appearance of good friendly fun. "Actually," he said, "I meant it would be more fun for us. But if you're really so horrified by the prospect of staying for two seconds in the academy, whatever." He took a gulp of the water bottle and flicked a droplet into the fire, watching the steam hiss off the coals... and calmly ignoring the exploding new boy, and the glowering Damien, and the dragon-tickling* Verin.
*referring, of course, to his habit of trying to tick off everyone in reach, despite the fact that he was surrounded by dangerous people.
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Post by Tumult on Mar 3, 2011 0:45:05 GMT -5
Tumult lobbed a marshmallow through the upper reaches of the bonfire and at Jean-Paul's head.
"If you're done being oh-so-special, have a marshmallow."
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Post by Derek Galen Wright on Mar 3, 2011 1:08:08 GMT -5
Derek heard something approaching and turned, only to find himself face-to face with the largest... canine he's ever seen. For a moment he thought it was a dog, but even dripping wet there was something... different about the creature in front of him - the same sort of 'different' that he saw when he compared the demis to regular lizards.
He cautiously extended a hand toward the wolf. "Hello, There."
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 3, 2011 9:21:15 GMT -5
Jean-Paul did nothing to dodge Tumult's projectile, and it bounced off his head and fell in the sand. He propped himself up on his elbows and glared at it suspiciously. "What's in this thing?"
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Post by Kahlen Jeanne Nox on Mar 3, 2011 14:22:33 GMT -5
Kahlen snickered at Tumult's comment.
"Aw," she said as the poor marshmallow that was thrown landed in the sand. She rather liked marshmallows and didn't like to see them wasted. She surely wasn't going to eat it- who knew what was in the sand?
"They're pretty much sugar and other things that aren't very good for you." Kahlen stuffed another mashmallow in her mouth. "But they're very good!"
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 3, 2011 15:46:18 GMT -5
"Interesting. There's a marshmallow plant, but this doesn't look anything like one..." He picked it up and blew some of the sand off of it, examining it quizzically. "I ask only because I can't eat anything that comes from animals. You know if this is safe or not?"
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Post by Shihab on Mar 3, 2011 16:10:00 GMT -5
Shihab speared the sand-covered marshmallow with a pointed stick. "Interesting. No, you don't want to eat those, then. They're maybe... two, three percent actual mallow root, and the rest is sugar, chemicals, and ground-up hoof and bone particles*. There's a bag of vegan marshmallows over there somewhere," he said, gesturing to the semi-organized pile of foodstuffs next to the cooler.
With a flourish, he stuck the end of his stick into the fire, wondering absently how much he'd regret this in a few moments.
*ie, gelatin
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 3, 2011 17:30:51 GMT -5
Jean-Paul's face contorted in a combination of disbelief and disgust. "Ground up hoof and...? Eeurgh. Never mind." He shook his head. "I think I'll stick to vegetables, if it's all the same to you."
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Post by Kahlen Jeanne Nox on Mar 3, 2011 17:46:10 GMT -5
Kahlen grinned. "But you'll be missing out on lovely gooey goodness. They're even better roasted."
She grabbed the stick next to her and stuffed a couple of marshmallows on the end. Holding the stick so that the marshmallows grazed the flame, she said, "I brought some graham crackers and chocolate if anyone wants to make s'mores. I didn't know if anyone else was going to bring any. So. They're tucked in Mikhail's blanket."
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Post by Verin Vetis Malphus on Mar 3, 2011 19:18:33 GMT -5
"You know, back home I'd have no choice but to interpret that as a challenge. Then I suspect I'd be burning a lot more than your house." Verin put his hand into the fire as if to grab it. "But don't worry. It seems you're not expected to make good on a threat like that here. Pity. I think you'd make good firewood..." He raised his hand. The fire flared upwards into a pillar of flame, and then returned its previous height. "...Is this all? Are we just going to sit here and eat powdered bone? I admit, your conquest over the logs doesn't make for riveting tales of war or give us any deserters to deal with, but still. Surely somebody has something to say, or do."
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Post by Jean-Paul de Chêne on Mar 3, 2011 20:52:11 GMT -5
Jean-Paul hadn't move a muscle in response to the sudden blaze. However, when Verin had finished speaking, he got up, making expansive stretching motions, accentuating how tall he was. "You know, the interesting thing about fire," he began, starting to slowly walk around the bonfire as he talked, "Is that, while it's often seen as a destructive force, it's really just another part of the great circle of life and all that nonsense. Yes, really. You see, the ash that fire leaves behind is incredibly rich in nutrients. That stuff's just excellent for the plants. Yes, indeed..." As he said 'indeed', Jean-Paul made a slight flourishing motion in the air, and his eyes began to glow a brilliant shade of green. Suddenly, small green shoots began to emerge from the layer of ash ringing the firepit. "Rather poetic, isn't it?" The shoots started growing even faster than before, and began to sprout leaves and buds. "As the destructive forces over-exert themselves, they themselves die out, and from the ashes of the fallen, the hope of the future arises..." The shoots were over six feet, and the buds were as large as a person's head. "...And thrives." He made an expansive gesture, and the massive buds opened, revealing the plants to be some sort of enormous cousin of a Venus Flytrap. With the flickering firelight behind them, the gaping maws of the plants cast eerie shadows over the beach. An inordinate number of these jaws were pointed at Verin. "How powerful is fire, then? Not only does it cause its own downfall in its fury, but it strengthens that which it seeks to destroy. Flame will use itself up eventually, but nature...nature only becomes more powerful as it continues to struggle against every adversity. It will adapt to every effort to stop it, and grow stronger as it does so. Truly, an unstoppable force." He clapped his hands twice, and his eyes flashed. All the mouths of the flytraps snapped together as one. The plants withered as quickly as, or even faster than, they grew, soon becoming indistinguishable from the natural detritus around the firepit.
Point made, Jean-Paul bowed flamboyantly, then stepped back into the shadows with an infuriatingly arrogant smile on his face, as if to say, 'Your move'.
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Post by Shihab on Mar 3, 2011 23:42:48 GMT -5
Shihab threw back his head and laughed, long and heartily. He wiped tears of mirth from his face and shoved the rest of his stick into the flames. Inwardly, he compared the spark of true fire he'd seen just the other day with this showy, flamboyant display, and something in his mind clicked. Outwardly, he turned to Jean-Paul
"Hah! Really? Fire's nothing, man! You got it all wrong, lemme tell you! I mean, I know fire, and you just ain't got the know-how. When you get down to it, the real power's in the voids! Things like energy, power, fire... they be like grains in the beach, man. You just think it's hot stuff because you tree-type mages are the weaklings of the life spectrum, y'all way too easily impressed." He grinned widely at the other boy, all open smiles and twisty angles.
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Post by Prof. Michael Freeman on Mar 3, 2011 23:47:06 GMT -5
There was a quiet pop as the kid (who was probably not Professor Freeman in cunning disguise) opened a glass bottle of something alcoholic. When riding herd on this group, it seemed that sanity and sobriety were mutually exclusive options.
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Post by Mari Yamaneko on Mar 4, 2011 0:12:46 GMT -5
Mari watched from a respectful distance as the festivities were prepared, somehow going unnoticed by the other students despite her neon orange parka and bright pink earmuffs. She was starting to regret coming here-- to the bonfire, that is. She was still very new to the school, and wasn't sure if she'd introduced herself to more than two people yet. Still, the bonfire had sounded like fun.
And yet now that she was here, watching the students chat and warm themselves around the fire, she couldn't help but feel like she didn't belong. She bounced up and down awkwardly, watching the clouds formed by her breath-- weren't beaches supposed to be warm? Mari had endured some hard winters in the mountains, but this was... Well, not ridiculous, just... strange.
And now they had marshmallows. Mari had always wanted to try marshmallows.
"Ah-um..." She walked a few steps closer, trying to think of what to say. "C-can I h-have one?"
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Post by Verin Vetis Malphus on Mar 4, 2011 5:16:54 GMT -5
"Impressive display of power." Verin said as he watched the plants whither. "It's a pity your power is so... futile. However, there's a couple of things you've forgotten. Maybe a couple more you don't know. First off, plants aren't the only thing that burn. Second, I hate using my own personal strength for a spell, so I suck the life out of the world to fuel it. This world's got plenty of it. Don't see why I can't help myself. Third, I think I'd better give you a lesson about how demons think about fire." He raised his hand, and in a second it was surrounded by fire.
"Shihab's right. Fire's the least of the disciplines. The easiest one. It represents artificial destruction, so it's usually the one in power. There are two levels above that. I can use the second, as well. And I'm getting better at controlling the void. A death that leaves nothing in this world." The fire turned into a black glow around his fingers. The shadows cast by the bonfire grew. Disembodied shadows of hands reached out and grabbed at nothing. Suddenly, Verin lowered his hand and the magic stopped. "If we were in my realm,. I would show you the battlefields that will never recover. Fields of ash, valleys of flame. All my doing."
There. Verin had issued his reply. Now all that was left to do was see how the newcomer would react.
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