PREP Highschool

[Rebonack]

[Between Classes]

Haha!

These watermelons think they can take Lex on?

As if!

He manages to catch another and downs it. Gulp!

He knows that, normally, this wouldn't exactly be great for him. A human eating a whole watermelon in one sitting would be kind of rough. And how many has he had already? After snagging and munching ANOTHER the vampire watermelons seem to be getting the idea and backing off a bit, their "Brrrrl"ing growing more cautious.

For good measure he snatches the one that was pinning Asami to the ground and eats that, too.

That's... umm.

Hmm.

Yeah.

That's about his body weight in watermelons. The slime wyrmling has ballooned out to fit all the things but they're dissolving in a hurry. They'll probably all be gone in about a minute.

"That's what I thought!" Lex crows. The watermelons begin rolling down the hall away from him. "Oh now you're *urp* now you're running, huh? Cowards!"

Then he laughs his contagious, bubbly laugh. "Asami, huh? I'm Juiblex. But call me Lex, please. My parents were creeps who named me after the Faceless God."


[A New Year of Magic]

"Hah. Well, I guess that's a pretty cool rope trick. Way cooler than a wizard hiding his friends in a pocket dimension or whatever," Khannie reasons. Then her expression falls a little. "It sounds like it would be kinda lonely being on a ship all by yourself, though."

Like.

REALLY lonely.

Then?

Time to watch some dancing.

[[brackets lover]]

[Between Classes]

Asami gets to her feet, checking her clothes to make sure nothing's misaligned and her modesty's fully in tact. "Lex-senpai, huh? I'm a first-year student here, what about you? And how old are you? I'm 12. Also, are you a boy or a girl right now?"

[A New Year Of Magic]

Asami continues dancing, scatting along with the song. She looks sympathetically towards Morgan and questions, "Oh. Are you struggling with finding a new crew?"

[Down With Bullies!]

With the ongoing campaign against the bully club, Asami has essentially done her best to keep her head low. However, that was easier said than done, as her exceptional daintiness and clumsiness made her stand out like a sore thumb. Wherever she went, unwanted jeering and laughter usually ensued. The campaign didn't seem to help much either, as not many would have sympathy for her at this point. Or maybe the students really would be above that sort of thing, influenced by Mary, and limit themselves to mere uncomfortable gawking. Regardless, the situation was visibly taking a toll on her, redness usually surrounding her eyes these days.

Right now, she's just trying to speed-walk to her next class, uncomfortably carrying a heavy book in her arms.

[Ironsmith]

[A New Year Of Magic]

"...Bit, yeah." Morgan admits, the concertina letting out a dejected chord as she slowly pushes it back together. "Which be not surprisin', when ye think about it. Me last crew... aren't exactly around to speak on me behalf any more. An' the new ones see a blind young lass what plays at bein' a pirate, not the soon-to-be most feared captain on any o' the seven seas."

"...But that's why I came here!" She perks up, fiddling out a little tune with her concertina. "If I can't get me crew the usual way, I'll just have to find th' unusual way, aye? So I'm tryin' me luck at a school what's got to be burstin' at its seams with lads and lasses who won't think twice about followin' a young, blind lass like meself into an adventure." She grins and lets one hand off the instrument to wrap around Asami's shoulders. "And it looks like I might have already found meself a few, aye?"


[Down With Bullies!]

"YOU THINK THRONG NO UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU SAYING?!"

"Whoa, hey, big guy, come on, that's not what we mean by-"

"THRONG AM NOT THAT DUMB! THRONG KNOW YOU THINK YOU BETTER THAN THRONG!"

"Wait, wait, you've got it all wro-"

"STOP LYING TO THRONG! STOP IT!"

Asami will hear it well before she'll see it, but once she sees it, it'll be rather difficult to ignore. There's a large crowd of students in the middle of the hall, gathered around a three-to-five person confrontation, depending on how one counts. On the one side, PREP's resident three-headed giant stands at his full height, all three of his forehead nearly scraping against the ceiling. On the other, a pair of bird-boys, one of whom is clutching a stack of "Down With Bullies!" fliers in his arms. A few of the students out in the crowd have their phones out, and are recording the incident as it unfolds.

Asami's not getting through the hall like this without passing by. Not unless she elects to take another route to class and potentially turn up late.

[bc56]

After School
"I have a little experience with being unable to affect everyone around you," That was because Mary was possessed and trapped in her own body while Sapphira puppeted it around, rather than being incorporeal and invisible.
The "of course you know" gets a somewhat rueful expression. "Yeah, I know. Sometimes I wish they'd stop responding like that." trying to have a serious conversation with someone who's smitten is... Difficult.

Cheer Practice
"Listen, if I gave you a makeover, people would know the rumors are true and then they'd all come asking for one," Mary responds. Then she considers. "Well... It could be an interesting challenge. To do it so no one else notices that anything strange happened. But I couldn't just do that here and now. It'd take too long." Mary knows that Dandelion has a short memory; the pixie said so already. But it would be a win-win scenario. Either she gets to experiment with some of the magical techniques she picked up from Sapphira or she doesn't have to do, or risk, anything.

[Rebonack]

[A New Year Of Magic]

So Khannie is considering two things now.

First?

What happened to the old crew.

Second?

Can she potentially get Action Archeology credit from a pirate ship voyage?

Well, the second one depends. If they're raiding other ships not so much. If they're going around searching for buried treasure or whatever? Then yeah, probably. It's definitely something to consider and she might ask one of her Action Archeology teachers about it.

That first question though is probably the more important one.

"What happened to your old crew?" Khannie asks, concern in her tone.


[Between Classes]

Looks like Asami managed to emerge from the watermelon rampage unscathed. Other students nearby are fighting off the feisty fruit or fleeing and laughing. They really aren't that threatening and this is all really funny.

Lex seems to be doing pretty well with the melons, too. There's only one left at this point and it is already starting to dissolve. Over the course of this misadventure the slime wyrmling has gotten noticeably bigger as the fruit gets absorbed.

"I started here when I was eleven; this is my fifth year. And I just turned sixteen last month. PREP has been great! I'm in the Cursed Hero program," Lex replies, sitting down on his haunches since he may as well sit if he's chatting and not getting assaulted by a fruit swarm. At the trailing question he laughs that bubbly laugh again. "Haha, I'm a slime so that's a little complicated. But I'll say a boy. Obviously I'm a boy since I'm such a handsome, dashing, and plucky hero!"

He strikes a pose which he considers both dashing and handsome.

Mostly it just looks silly.

[Ironsmith]

[After School]

The poltergeist continues to stare at Mary, her eyes narrowing as the demon princess says her piece. "...I think I don't like you." She says after a moment, crossing her arms. "Which sucks, because I very much want to. I'd love to be able to talk to someone like this again. But..."

The ghost drifts forward, roiling around Mary like a cloud before reforming on her other side. "Yeah, I'm definitely getting the ick there a little bit." She shudders, as though that act had sent chills up her spine rather than the other way around. "You don't feel real."

[[brackets lover]]

[Between Classes]

Asami shoots a curious smile at Lex. "Huh. Most people enroll at around age 14. Guess we're in minority? Its kind of scary being around mostly older kids. And Agate-chan."

She tilts her head and points out, "Well, you're also pretty genki too, in a sort of feminine way. Anyways, do you have a phone? What's your number?"

[A New Year Of Magic]

"Yeah, an adventure sounds fun!" Asami cheerfully replies, gladly allowing Morgan to wrap a hand around her, "Right, Khannie?"

[Down With Bullies!]

Clearly, faced with an uncomfortable situation like this, Asami has but one option. She walks over to the nearby trash can, sets her book and bag down nearby and climbs in, submerging herself in its contents.

[Rebonack]

[Between Classes]

"Most students don't really start their schooling here, but I did! It's been one big adventure!" Lex replies with a knowing nod. "Having older kids around isn't so bad. You can learn valuable lessons from them, too."

Then?

Asami makes a comment that causes Lex to tilt his head to one side, as if inclining his head by forty five degrees would make it more comprehensible. "Genki? What's that mean? Oh wait, no, I've heard this one before! That's energetic and positive, right? Haha! There are basically THREE sorts of Cursed Hero. The dark brooding loners, the pure-hearted naive innocents, and the jolly gregarious jokesters. And I-!"

The ridge along his back splays open like a big cape behind him, its hem velvety black into a pumpkiny orange with a thing white stripe running between.

"-am definitely the boisterous type! Haha! Phone? Yeah, hang on," he says, folding his mantle closed again so he can get after the packs lashed to his hips. When you've to tentacles and things packs work better at your sides than on your back. He reaches into his pack and pulls out a phone that's coated in a thin layer of corrosion resistant material for obvious reasons with one of his tentacles. "Yeah, my number's-"

He'll share it with Asami!

Also?

Rather noticeably his experiment has been a success.

Previously he had a scent of wet moss and forest understory with a strong dose of caustic. Now he smells distinctly of watermelons and the acidic note is quite a bit less noticeable. By this time the collection of watermelons is totally gone and he is absolutely bigger than before. The glittery nucleus in his head is also looking slightly more oblong and less spherical.

[bc56]

After School
"Woah, woah," Mary is flown through. She turns around quickly.

"Not... Real? What does that even mean?" Mary questions. "Whatever happened to 'I think, therefore I am?'" She's pretty sure she's real.

[[brackets lover]]

[Between Classes]

Asami puts Lex's number in her phone, giving a wide smile afterwards. However, she suddenly freezes for a second and her smile becomes a little less wide. Her gaze wanders uncertainly and an awkward silence ensues before she timidly pipes up, "So, um, would you like to sit with me and Darko-senpai at lunch?"

[Artemis]

[Hunting Class]

"Dang, I can't catch his scent." Landon declares. "Maybe I can smell that critter he had in the cage?" The werewolf backtracks to the desk, sniffing around looking for something that stood out.

[Rebonack]

[Between Classes]

Lex totally misses the smile faltering and the staring into the middle distance.

Mostly because he's watching the students fighting off the watermelons and tapping his tail to the dramatic RPG fight music he's making up in his head as he goes because it feels like his thoughts are all racing AT LEAST twice and fast as usual and wow he just feels amazing!

But wait!

Asami is saying something else!

"YEAH! That sounds great!"

What did she ask if he wants to do?

Oh! Lunch period!

"Sure that sounds WAIT! Darko?!" he asks, giving Asami a really serious look. "I met someone one an adventure once who asked if I went to the same weird school as Darko. Is he someone famous? I don't pay any attention to school politics so if he's one of those students in the Teen Idol program I definitely don't know him."

Then the slime dragon grins wide, showing off a mouth full of teeth that look like dark colored metal with a weird CMYK iridescence to them.

"Haha but who cares right! If he's your friend then I'm sure he's a real great guy. Really, just about everyone who goes here is great! PREP is amazing and everyone's interesting!"

The oblong head-nucleus is even wider now and starting to pinch tighter in the middle, looking almost like an 8 on its side.

[[brackets lover]]

[Between Classes]

Asami gives Lex a thumbs-up, puffing out her cheeks a little. "G-great! See you there," she weakly replies, "A-anyways, my next class awaits!"

With that, Asami goes on her merry way, faintly whispering to herself, "Forgive me, Darko-senpai."

[Cafeteria]

Lunch being a period of high socialization, [Nexus Valentine's Day equivalent] became a hot topic as it rapidly approached. The tables were abuzz with gossip and love woes and the gardening club were rigorously pushing carnations to sell, same thing with the cooking students and their confections.

Asami gazed curiously at the products as she sat at her table waiting for her friends to arrive, placing down a school-provided lunchbox and opening it up. Inside was some sort of orange meat, thoroughly cooked to perfection.

[Ironsmith]

[A New Year Of Magic]

"Yargh, this one be havin' the spirit!" Morgan grins, giving Asami a little shake. "Nothin' quite like adventure an' glory on the high seas, aye?"

It's a classic for a reason!

Her expression falls a little at Khannie's question. "...Ah. Well, they..." Morgan clears her throat. "...I'd rather not say, if it's... if it's all the same to you."

Behind her, the rope has tied itself up without being given a command, slithering into the shape of a noose.


[Down With Bullies!]

"All right, people, break it up."

"But Throng am-"

"Not getting in trouble over this. These two aren't worth it. Look at them, they've already soiled themselves at the thought of having to answer to you. That's plenty already."

"...Throng am not sure how take that."

"I know. But this won't help anybody. Come on, let's get you out of here."

Asami will hear footsteps approaching the trash can, before the lid is lifted and she sees four sets of eyes staring down at her; six belonging to Throng, and two to Aiko.

"...Little star am okay?" The giant rumbles. "Throng did not mean to scare little star." "Throng did not mean it, too." "Throng am sorry."

[After School]

"Not that kind of real." The poltergeist clarifies, drifting around Mary in a circle. "Obviously, you exist. I mean that's pretty easy to prove. Boop!" The feeling of her "finger" on Mary's nose will be something like touching it to a balloon; there's some give to it, and a little crackly, tingly sensation not unlike static.

"I mean 'real' in the sense of being, you know, honest." She continues. "You just caught me trying to staple an elaborate 'kick me' sign onto your back, and your first response is to try to talk to me? That doesn't sound like the Mary Brignole I've seen around. It certainly doesn't sound like the one Madamoiselle Bloodplunder was just talking to." She crosses her arms and lists to one side. "I'd expect you to at least be mad. In fact, I know you are, considering you were just up in her face about something she didn't even do but were more than happy to guilt-by-associate her for. I'd think you'd be holding that back, maybe, if you really wanted to talk, but you wouldn't be letting it go entirely."

The ghost's brow furrows. "Everything I know about Mary Brignole says she holds grudges. And right now, you're not acting like Mary Brignole. So either you've been putting on a show or you're doing it now. One way or another, you're not being real."

[Rebonack]

[Between Classes]

At this point Lex' slime nucleus has completely pinched in half, forming two separate glittering orbs inside his head.

"Okay, see you at lunch! I should probably-"
"-get to class myself. Those solutions in chemistry won't titrate themselves!" he says, craning his neck to the right toward the door.
"-help clean up this mess. It is DEFINITELY my fault and I feel a little bad," he also says, craning his neck to the left toward the watermelon mess.

Both.

At the same time, splitting his head in half in the process. The normally firm jell of his body has turned nearly liquid all the way down his midline and he just sort of... peels in two, his magical outfit splitting along with him. The goopy middle quickly firms and hardens, growing the needed limbs that were taken by the opposite half. One of him starts searching around for a rubbish bin while the other (the one with his hip packs and thus all his school supplies) goes bounding away toward the door.

"Oh! Wait! We should decide which of us is going to lunch or this will get-" Left-Lex calls out to his double, but it's too late. The other slime dragon has already sprung out the door so he can double-time to his chemistry class before he's tardy! "-confusing..."

With a good natured sigh, Left-Lex will begin gathering smashed watermelons into a wheeled garbage can that was mercifully left in the hallway. He is, of course, tempted to just eat even MOAR watermelon but let's be real here, two Lexes is already too many.


[Cafeteria]

It had occurred to Lex well after the fact that Asami never actually told him WHICH table she would be sitting at or where in the cafeteria she would be seated. Of course, he could just send her a text message asking but PFF where's the fun in that?

You know what's much more fun?

Spider-climbing up onto the high ceiling of the cafeteria and looking down at the student body from above! Asami's magical corona is really obvious to Lex, so he should be able to spot her mingling amongst the other PREPers.

Easy!

There are, of course, other students up here. Like that ninja girl from earlier seated on a relatively small spotlight fixture eating a sandwich.


[New Year of Magic]

Khannie definitely catches the noose tying itself behind the pirate captain.

They hang pirates, right?

The only pirates that got hung were the ones that raided other ships. Typically by the people who were getting raided.

Well.

That explains that, doesn't it?

"Okay. It's gunna depend on what sorta voyage it is. I can get credit for exploring islands and stuff. Especially if they've got ancient ruins. But not for, like, pirate things. Like boarding other ships and stealing their stuff."

That sort of piracy Khannie is one hundred percent not interested in.

[quillpleasant]

Cafeteria

Between moving, schoolwork, dealing with his magic, and just being a weird nerdy loner, Darko has somehow avoided any kind of romantic entanglements at PREP so far. However, he loves the idea of love. Romance novels are a bit of a guilty pleasure for him, although he'd be loathe to admit it. So upon seeing carnations being sold in the lunch room, he immediately buys one, just for the fun of it.

And also to spread around some more of that cursed gold.

Then, noticing Asami, he heads over with a friendly wave. "Hey-o. What's up?" He sit opposite her, setting the flower on the table and rummaging through his bag. He produces-

A green apple. Which he proceeds to munch. Yes, he's sick of them at this point, but it's nostalgic.

At no point does he look up, so he doesn't notice the ceiling students. It would never occur to him that there would be ceiling students at all.

[[brackets lover]]

[A New Year Of Magic]

All of a sudden, Asami's eyes start to sparkle. "Ooh! Will there be all sorts of delicious monsters?" she asks excitedly.

[Down With Bullies!]

Asami cowered in fear for a few seconds before suddenly noticing she was being talked to. She peeks up, shyly responding, "N-no, its fine. I'm always scared."

She raises herself up for a second before lowering herself back down. "I... Think i'll just stay here for a class period or two."

[Cafeteria]

Asami doesn't notice Lex at all, especially since Darko is waving to her. She casually bows in response. "Yo, sen-" she suddenly pauses as her eyes wander on the carnation Darko set down. "Ooooh, whose that for?"

[Rebonack]

[Cafeteria]

Ah HAH!

There she is!

And some other kid is joining Asami at the table with one of those flowers the gardening club is selling! That must be Darko. Are they romantically involved? Asami seems a little too you for that so probably Darko is just one of those nice guys who likes giving girls flowers for completely non-romantic reasons.

Lex used to pick roses off this giant vine rose bush to give to one of his teachers when he was little and that was just to be nice. Or at least that was his thought at the time.

Anyway!

Not one to EVER EVER EVER let a dramatic entrance go to waste he simply releases his grip on the ceiling and spreads both his wings and mantle wide! He really hasn't figured out how to fly yet. As a matter of fact, he's pretty sure he saw Other Lex up on the roof of the cafeteria on the way in practicing via jumping off the top of the building. So since he can't fly he just sort of locks into a corkscrew spiral as he descends!

Now, he had been PLANNING on landing dramatically and gracefully behind the other two students but that's absolutely not what happens. He realizes that he's going to overshoot his landing and panics a little and just folds his wings shut and nose-dives straight into the floor. Thankfully he's practically an ambulatory gummy bear and this causes little in the way of actual harm to him.

"Hey."

Lex sits up, grabs his bent snoot, and pulls it back into its proper shape. He's a dragon. And also a slime. Most of his slimy body has a slightly leathery, darker green coloration to it, though it also has patches of metallic black scales with a CMY iridescent to them. One can easily see what looks almost like a wire-frame of the same material just under his skin, giving him a coherent dragon-y shape rather than being just a puddle of ooze. Inside his head is a glittery, almost crystalline orb that does NOT look like the pictures of a nucleus from textbooks but that's basically what it is. His head is flanked by six 'horns' that, judging from their gilled surface, are actually sensory organs, the topmost being the largest and reinforced with scales. A ridge runs down his back, his folded mantle, the hem black and pumpkin orange with a white stripe separating them. On either side of the ridge are a series of club-shaped black growth with little white-ringed orange spots. A pair of BIG tentacles are folded across his back like wings, which they serve as when he actually opens them up all the way.

In all, Lex is about the size of a wolf. A very pettable-sized dragon to be sure. He's also wearing a skin-suit with space for his various limbs to stick through and a PREP uniform over that.

"I hope you two don't mind me dropping in," he says as he climbs up onto the bench, sitting down on his haunches and curling his tail over his feet like a huge cat. One of those tentacles is already reaching into his hip-packs and pulling out a bagged lunch containing what he made at his Dungeon Cuisine class today.

[Ironsmith]

[A New Year of Magic]

"Aye, the tastiest!" Morgan grins. "And I don't just mean th' seafood! A ship like the Banshee, it can take ye anywhere... an' I mean anywhere." She grins. "If there be a tasty thing anywhere in existence, I can set a course fer it."

Convinced she's sold Asami on the matter, she turns to face Khannie again. "An' that goes fer ancient ruins an' islands untouched by menfolk, too." She cackles. "Just say the word and I'll take ye places ye ain't even dreamed of yet, savvy?"


[Down With Bullies!]

"You'll do no such thing." Aiko replies sharply, snapping her fingers. "You're going to go to class, like you would any other day. You're going to listen up, take notes, and turn in your homework. You're going to soldier on, understand?"

"...Er... boss, she-"

"And you are going to make sure she does it." Aiko snaps. "I don't want any of you lot flunking out and having to repeat the year because it happens to be a rough one. Is that understood?"

[quillpleasant]

Cafeteria

Darko grins at Asami's question. "It's for meee. I like flowers, and I doubt anyone else- what." The rest of that thought is cut off by the sudden appearance of Lex slamming face first into the floor.

Even for PREP, the slime dragon is a pretty unusual sight. But Darko is used to seeing strange entities, so he's not that surprised. He does surreptitiously glance around to make sure that other people are seeing the same thing as he is before smiling warmly and extending a hand to shake.

"Hi! No, I don't mind at all. Are you a new student? My name's Darko." He raises a hand to his nose. "Are... you okay? That landing looked kind of painful."

It's polite to ask, even if it doesn't look like this kid could get hurt by much of anything.

[[brackets lover]]

[Down With Bullies!]

At Aiko's insistence, Asami retreats further into the trash. "You're not the boss of me," she replies defiantly.

[Cafeteria]

Asami clicks her tongue as Lex arrives, bowing to him. "Yo. I don't mind a bit~" She turns back to Darko, grinning mischievously. "What kind of loser buys flowers for themselves?" she questions teasingly.

[Rebonack]

[Cafeteria]

Unusual or not, Lex has a PREP uniform so obviously he's supposed to be here. "Oh no, I've been a student for a couple years now. I just wasn't quite as eye catching before. That's just one of the downsides of being a Cursed Hero," Lex says as he unpacks his roth and slime mold souffle. "I just met Asami earlier today when I fell into the pit trap she dug outside the Culinary Arts building. Then she asked if I wanted to join you and her for lunch and so here I am!"

Simple!

"I'm Juiblex. But just call me Lex. My parents named me after the god of slime since they were both crazy," Lex introduces himself, extending one of his tentacles to shake. There's something akin to a glove worn over it so Darko doesn't have to worry about getting his hand slimy. "Oh yeah! I'm fine. I may as well be a giant dragon shaped gum drop. There isn't much that really hurts me besides getting set on fire or frozen."

Granted neither of those things are really good for anyone.

[bc56]

After School
"It can't be both?" Mary questions, "I have a grudge against Aiko, not you. And don't start listing all the things you did to me. You wouldn't have done them if not under her orders, would you?" Mary knows the correct answer is likely "no." She's well aware of bully club's policy regarding her specifically.
"Oh, I'm mad, all right, but Aiko has been on my nerves for years. I'm really nice once you get to know me," She's buttering herself up a bit, but she's not exactly lying. Mary has a lot of friends from all across Prep's programs, from caped heroics to action archaeology to mad science to cursed heroes to culinary warfare and more.

[quillpleasant]

Cafeteria

"Oh, well I'm relatively new, so that's why I didn't see you before," nods Darko. A couple years ago he wasn't even in the Nexus. He shakes the tentacle solemnly. "It's nice to meet you, Lex." He has the urge to ask more about Juiblex, because a god of slime sounds extremely cool, but he doesn't want to make this new friend uncomfortable.

Darko does have to wonder why anyone would immediately volunteer their weaknesses so abruptly. It feels like it's tempting fate, and he looks up to make sure there's a sprinkler system in the cafeteria. Just in case.

Then he sticks his tongue out at Asami. "The kind of loser who wants a flower. It's not like I couldn't still give it to someone, anyway. If I wanted to." He picks up the flower, looking around thoughtfully, as if someone in need of a flower is going to pop up out of nowhere.

[[brackets lover]]

[Cafeteria]

Asami smiles gleefully between Lex and Darko, grateful for their company. She bobs her head energetically as they converse.

She giggles a little at Darko's response, holding her hands in front of her waist and leaning towards him. "Oh yeaaah? Whooo are you thinking of, then~?" she playfully inquires, gazing curiously at him.

[Rebonack]

[Cafeteria]

"Nice to meet you too!" Lex replies, the opposite of solemn in his hand shaking. The end of that tentacle actually opens up like a starfish which makes it pretty easy to grab thins.

Like berries and hands and pencils.

"So which of the academic programs are you two in?" Lex asks the others, curious about what sorts of classes they're taking.

No fires suddenly erupt nearby, thankfully. That would really ruin everyone's lunch!

"Oh hey I like flowers too! They can make a great garnish if you need a splash of color in a dish. Assuming they aren't poisonous. Unless you're serving dwarves, in which case if the meal isn't toxic enough to cause liver failure in a human they'll complain it's bland."

[Ironsmith]

[Down With Bullies]

"Like hell I'm-" Aiko snaps, before taking a deep breath and forcing herself to calm down. Asami tends not to respond well to declarations like that, and she knows it.

"Asami. Listen. This sucks, right?" Aiko begins again, leaning over the trash can. "It's the worst. I wouldn't even wish it on Mary, as much as she doesn't seem to return the sentiment. But if you don't carry on, if you don't get up and face it, it's just going to happen again. Only next time it may well be worse." She offers her hand to the star-child. "So can you do it now? Put up with a painful experience now to avoid a horrible one later?"


[After School]

"Oh, really?" The poltergeist perks up. "Well why didn't you say so? I'm sure the people who get to know you and like you get a wonderful relationship with you, because reciprocated kindness isn't a basic tenet of morality that basically everybody has. No, no, you're just a speciale petite bebe, oui?" She cups Mary's cheeks in her hands and gives them a not-entirely-playful squeeze.

"But to answer your question... yeah, actually, probably." The ghost girl drifts back, rubbing a finger on her chin. "A lot of these pranks were my idea. I probably wouldn't have done the whole thing with the skunk to you, personally, if she hadn't pointed you out as someone who spends way too much time on her high horse, but that's about it." She shrugs. "What can I say? I'm a little stinker."

[bc56]

After School
Mary doesn't allow her cheeks to be pinched, raising her arms to interpose, and then stepping back. She knows enough French to get the gist of the insult too. "Don't patronize me," she warns, "You know what I meant."
Mary looks doubtful at the next answer. "You're saying that you would've done all those pranks against me specifically if Aiko wasn't around to prompt you? I had you pegged as more opportunistic than that." she chuckles at the last statement. "Really? Me get of my high horse? Because little miss god-empress said so? The girl who considers everyone her rightful subjects? I don't know what you see in that treacherous, domineering b****. You can't possibly tell me she treats your club like anything more than servants?"
"I should pay you back for the skunk thing, since you admitted it, but I'll be honest, I have no idea if I can hex a ghost."

[quillpleasant]

Cafeteria

"Right now I'm in Theatre, Action Archeology, Fate Escaping, and Narrative," rattles off Darko, "What about you?" He should probably be taking some magic classes, but he's worried that'll just make everything worse.

Asami's teasing makes him lean back slightly. Darko really wasn't planning on giving the flower to anyone, but now it feels like he has to. For a long moment he considers just eating it. Carnations are edible, after all. But it seems like there's someone here who'd enjoy that more than him.

"You like flowers? Here, have a flower," he says, holding the carnation out to Lex. There, now everyone should be happy.

[Ironsmith]

[After School]

It turns out, throwing up her arms to try and stop a selectively-tangible ghost from getting handsy isn't the most effective solution, but the poltergeist seems willing enough to play along that Mary's cheeks go unbothered.

"That's a rather interesting perspective." She notes, swirling herself around into a pose that probably would be a handstand if she were more solid or subject to physics. "But at least now you're being honest. I like that. It wears thin, seeing all the little ways people lie when they think they're being watched. I'm glad we can put that behind us."

"As for what I see in the throneless empress?" The ghost shrugs. "A lot of things, actually. Some flattering, some not so much. She certainly isn't the perfect edulcorante she would like people to believe she is. But..." There's a flash of something like teeth where her mouth would be, putting forward a distinctly grinlike expression. "I would have to say she's really nice, when you get to know her."