[IC] Camp Castaway

[KatherinWinter]

@Mistiel
Ivy bounced out of the cafeteria. She started toward the firepit. But it wasn't long before she got distracted. Shortly after leaving the building she saw a bird and started following it. Unlike Lin Ivy wasn't worried about her brother. As far as she was concerned he was indestructible. He had looked after her for as long as she could remember. He was the strongest person that she knew.

Kyle had thought about going to the lake but he didn't because the counselors were about to start a new activity. He wouldn't break the rules just because he was mad. He sat on the far side of the firepit and waited for the counselors to start. It looked like they were waiting for everyone to arrive. He looked around it looked most of the campers had gathered.

[Mistiel]

Lin jogged after a bouncy Ivy toward the fire pit. When Ivy's path began to stray, she followed the younger girl with her eyes. Upon seeing Ivy start chasing a bird, she called out, "Hey Ivy! Remember where we're supposed to be? There'll be plenty of birds at the fire pit. C'mon girl!" Now suddenly she was the one giving orders. The hypocrisy of that struck her. Was it really that easy to turn into Kyle, bossing somebody else around?

No, she shook her tangled blonde mane vigorously. It was all about delivery. Ivy didn't need to have a Gestapo escort; she needed to be around open-minded people with a hankering for fun. Lin stopped in her tracks and closed her eyes, concentrating on the flap of the robin's wings as Ivy chased it. The older girl traced that flapping pattern back, back....there. The robin's nest was only three trees over in a sizeable willow. Yep, she reflected mildly as she started out towards her objective. The past was definitely simpler than the stupid misty future.

Lin jogged over to the tree, then scrambled about a quarter of the way up with adroit footwork. The sharp white willow bark chafed her bare knees as she held on with three limbs, extending her right arm as far up as she could ahead of her. She didn't want to risk going too high up, so when she finally spotted the nest after a few seconds she wasn't high enough to see anything inside. Instead, she felt around with her hand and came down with a small-ish, speckled blue robin egg. She descended the tree carefully, very aware of Ivy's progress bird-chasing as well as the precious cargo.

Jogging over behind Ivy, not even winded, Lin said, "Hey Ivy, look what I found! You don't need to chase that bird! I used my power to find its nest! Want to keep this little guy warm while we head down to the fire pit? Just be careful not to get him too hot or he'll melt!" She extended her hand toward the younger girl, the beautiful egg resting in the center of her palm. No matter what Ivy decided, they needed to get a move on so they wouldn't be late.

[KatherinWinter]

@DriveEMOut @grandia20 @LiegeLord @Mangrale @LiegeLord @Blueflame @Vampy @KimmiNinja
"We will convert many types of activities this summer. But today we will start teaching you one that is very important for the woods. Today we will teach you the beginnings of rock climbing. Now this won't be the rock climbing you've done on walls in school. This is real and will be dangerous. So first everyone will be fitted with a helmet, gloges, and a harness." The counselors explained. It was natural that the kids would be curious and would want to explore so they wanted to make sure they could do so safely.

@Mistiel

Ivy had a very short attention span. She had only followed the bird a short distance before she saw a squirrel and started following it instead. But she only followed that for a minute until she saw a butterfly. Once again she followed the creature that caught her attention. This was one of the reasons that Kyle watched Ivy so closely. She never paid attention to where she was going and would easily get lost.

[Blueflame]

@KatherinWinter"sounds like fun" max said to himself even though technically he didn't need to climb. He looked around the fire pit to see if he knew any one.

[Mangrale]

@LiegeLord
"Oh, well, maybe you're right..." Cecilia blushed mildly, when she felt James' hand. Upon noting how good it felt, she also thought of how good Neric must be feeling with all the attention. She didn't want the Void to feel left out, and so told herself that she'd have her time with James later on. Somehow, she was sure he wouldn't mind. Along with everyone else, she then looked to the counselors as they revealed what they'll be doing, her hand freezing over Neric, her mind already visualizing the whole thing. "... Or maybe not..." she nervously spoke, her hand closing and pulled closer to her in an apprehensive posture. She looked down at her four legged friend and then at James somewhat anxiously, just dreading the how stressed she was going to get, let alone the activity itself.

[Sazama]

@DriveEMOut

"Rock climbing? That's interesting." Val's powers could turn useful in this endeavor but it would be better to save up her energy for other activities. She then looked over to the safety gear and then to Jack and laughed. She couldn't picture the both of them suited up in safety gear, it seemed silly. "I guess we have no choice but to wear these." And picks up 2 pairs of helmet, gloves, and harnesses for her and Jack, handing one to him. She gives him a grin, "I bet by the end of this, I can climb faster than you can."

[LiegeLord]

@Mangrale

James would look to the counselors, looking nervous as he looked to Cecilia. They may have survived on their own, but they didn't have to even come close to rock climbing. Though the Void wouldn't show emotion, in fact he looked to them. The boy looking down to Neric for a moment as he speaks. "Please tell me you had prior knowledge or training on rock climbing..."

Neric would look up to James chuckling softly without moving, though his next words may be surprising yet also strange. "Yes actually, though the prior team I was stuck with didn't use ropes about half the time in certain scenarios. One time not even having the safety ideals as they did rappel down a good amount of the cliffside into..." Neric looking up for a moment and thinking before looking at James and continuing. "Ya I know how to deal with rock climbing James. I'll help you two."

[Mangrale]

@LiegeLord
Cecilia took a slight amount of comfort from Neric, her hand coming over and resting on the back of her neck, her elbow dangling downward. "Whew, that's good. I don't know about James, but I can use all the help I can get," she said as lightly as she could to the Void, but they could probably tell from her face that she was still fairly nervous and she had a good feeling she would probably stay that way until the climb was well behind her. "Well... we should get our safety gear. Maybe we'll feel a lot better while having it on(?), heh, heh..." she mentioned, trying to sound less anxious than she actually was, but she wasn't at all convincing. Cecilia stood from her seat, and if she was the first to do so, she'd hold her hand to James to get him out of his seat. There'd be little point in doing so, she'd admit, but her mind was understandably somewhere else and he needn't take her hand if he didn't want to. She'd go on with James and Neric to the rack that had sets of gear for both of them.

[Mistiel]

Lin noticed that Ivy wasn't even paying attention to her or the robin egg whatsoever. Grunting, the older girl jogged, breathing a bit more heavily now, up in front of Ivy. "HEY! Ivy! We're supposed to go to the fire pit now, okay? You don't want to be late, do you?" Okay, I begin to see Kyle's point....but I refuse to become that bossy arse b!@$!... she thought darkly, still managing to plaster a pleasant toothy grin on her face. Lin hoped Kyle at least had the sense to mention to the instructors her and Ivy's situation. Whether or not the stuck-up punk would actually help her out like that remained to be seen.

[KatherinWinter]

@Mistiel
Ivy smiled at Lin. Time wasn't a concept that she bothered with. She headed back towards the firepit. But it wasn't long before she was distracted. Ivy was like a goldfish. She had a very short memory. It was one of the reasons Kyle homeschooled her. Once she learned something she remembered it. But getting the knowledge into the long term memories took time and patience. Mist schools, even those with special needs programs, didn't have the resources to deal with someone like Ivy.

[Mistiel]

@KatherinWinter

Okay, finally, we're getting somewhere, Lin thought as she walked side-by-side with the younger girl. The firepit's pillar of smoke was just visible through the trees. She could almost make out the flames, but it was mid-morning by now, so it was bright and hard to see. "Ivy, we're here!" she said, looking next to her. Her roving peepers only found empty space. "WHAT? She was right next to me! How does she DO that?" Lin exclaimed aloud, exasperated as she spun in a circle.

Thankfully, a set of still smoking footprints led a ways off to her left and back. Lin had no trouble following them, jogging to keep up. She was going to find that girl and bring her back to the firepit if it gave her third-degree burns. Oddly enough, the prospect of Ivy burning her didn't bother her that much. Lin always was the type of person who had to stick her hand in the soup kettle before she would believe it was hot. Then again, the memory of just putting a hand on the girl's back as she smoldered didn't seem so bad in retrospect. She could totally do this. She'd show Kyle.

Ivy was heard before she was spotted. Increasing her speed, Lin followed the sound of thumping footsteps. Sighing, she thought as she observed the younger girl from about fifteen meters away chasing a butterfly. See Kyle? She's harmless. You just need to find the right way to reach her. Even as she said that, when Ivy ran too close to a rhubarb plant, its big paddle leaves had wisps of smoke curling up from them. It was then that Lin realized her mistake. They were currently surrounded almost entirely by flammable vegetation...with an easily distracted fire girl. She could almost see Kyle's smug expression. Then a possible future flashed before her eyes.

Ivy, a whirling tornado of fiery destruction spinning out from under the forest canopy, gleefully unaware. Lin crawling out on all fours, severely burned. Kyle standing over her with an angry expression, water puddling at his feet. "Water..." Dream Lin croaked, but none was forthcoming. Instead, Kyle merely looked at her with pity...and walked away. It was Lin's worst nightmare all over again, being left alone.

She snapped out of her reverie, remembering she needed to keep a constant watch on Ivy.

[Mistiel]

.

[LiegeLord]

@Mangrale

"Oh I'll need help don't worry, I haven't done much rock climbing myself..." He would say as he looks to Cecilia, his nervousness easily showing. Biting his lip softly as he looks away, partly wishing he knew how to climb himself. There was one moment but it wasn't even that long of a drop really, more or less a kind of wall maybe bigger then the ones in schools. Well that depends on the school as well, but regardless he wished he had more training. Looking around at everyone else before Cecilia who is standing up. Smiling softly as he takes her hand, letting her help him up while he also pushed himself up. Keeping his hand in hers as he smiles softly, even if it's rock climbing. He would want her to be safe, squeezing her hand gently as he speaks. "Thank you, ya let's get our equipment. I'll do my best to make sure you come back safely, even if it means having Neric help you and me getting the broken leg... don't want anything bad happening to you..." Neric walking along with them, though he would be much faster as he is a cat at the moment. Quickly heading for the rake for the equipment and leaving James and Cecilia to mostly talk.

[Mangrale]

@LiegeLord
Cecilia smiled affectionately at James. She was touched by his sentiment, a little curious as to the oddly specific scenario he mentioned, but mostly very touched. "Th-thanks James. But if anything happened to you... well... just promise me you won't do anything reckless okay. I'll do my best not to make you worry," she said, trying to lighten the mood, not wanting the two of them to dwell on worst case scenarios all the way to the climb. Her other hand moved to the other side of his while they walked to get their gear, herself facing him as they went. "You know... I was wondering: what's your favorite food to eat?" she asked sweetly. She could have mentioned that she was considering cooking something for him, but wasn't sure if he would purposely say something simple if she did. It was an out-of-the-blue question anyway, so he possibly could have told that she was up to something.

[LiegeLord]

@Mangrale

James would smile at her words, walking along the path. Though he didn't think she would do anything to purposely harm herself, he would still want the Void to make sure she was safe. Thinking as he soon felt her other hand on his, smiling softly with a slight redness to his cheeks as he looked over at her. Her words afterwards though would seem completely out of nowhere, tilting his head a bit. Looking back forward as he looks like he is thinking on it as well, shrugging before looking at her. "Well to be honest, me and Neric aren't real picky. Anything we got was nice for us... but I would have to say that something I personally enjoyed was this noodle dish from... where was it Neric?"

The little black cat would look back at them, turning around as he speaks softly. "Oh I remember that, the Drunken Noodles from Colorado. That one truck that went around the place, we both thought it was alot for a very low price. Since we had some money you thought it would be nice to have something a little more special for once. But I think you enjoyed the pop corn chicken that one time as well for something more on the simple lines."

The little Void turning back around to continue on the path as James nods with a smile. "You really liked the spicy noodles they had, I had no spicy. I'm not a fan of spicy food, I'll eat it but I'm not a big fan. But how about you Cecilia? What's your favorite meal or type of food?"

[KatherinWinter]

@DriveEMOut @LiegeLord @Mangrale @LiegeLord @Blueflame @Vampy @KimmiNinja

"Once you have your gear on please follow us. We are going to start with the easy course. There will be plenty of foot and gand holes for you to use. You will slowly work your way up. You will go as high as you can. One of us will be on top while the other Anchors you from the bottom. Who would like to go first?" The counselors asked.

@Mistiel
Ivy was unaware that she was being watched. She was busy going from one thing to another. Nothing kept her attention long. Keeping up with her would be a challenge. In the time that Lin was in her vision to the time she returned to awareness Ivy would have wondered back towards camp. But it would be long before she saw something that would lead her away from the other campers once again.

[Mangrale]

@LiegeLord
Cecilia appeared all the more attentive to James and Neric's account, nodding a little when their favorite dishes were mentioned. She hadn't considered making something else for Neric, which she was kicking herself over, but decided that given the wide culinary selection she's seen in the cafeteria thus far, possibly making both dishes wouldn't be out of the question. Okay. Pop corn chicken and spicy noodles... got it. she repeated to herself, rubbing James' hand in between her fingers, playfully tugging at him to the safety gear, slowly letting go so they both could put theirs on and join the others. "Hmm... I haven't given it much thought. Really, I tend to enjoy the company over the meal half the time, you know? But if I had to pick... perhaps the clam chowder I had in Maine(?), though perhaps just chowder in general... nothing too fancy," she answered as she fastened the locks of her harness, looking up at him when she finished. She wasn't quite up for doing the climb first and hoped that someone else would volunteer.

[LiegeLord]

@Mangrale

"But I am curious, that was completely out of the blue. Were you planning something?" James would say with a smile, though he wouldn't look down. He was rather enjoying both her hands around his. But that thought disappeared with a slight laugh as she pulls him along playfully to the gear. Letting her hand go as he grabs his equipment.

"You two are cute together, I'll say that. I guess destiny wanted you two to meet." The Void chuckling as James throws him a glare, but his face shows it. Though he is embarassed by the comment, James was rather happy about it all. Though in his mind it wasn't just the camp, but he got to meet the girl he was just holding hands with.

Though soon James would get his equipment on, but if he had to wear any type of glove he would make sure to cut a hole on the top. Enough to expose the "wound" on the top of his right hand. Smiling as Neric collapses to his cloud form, swarming for the wound and quickly disappearing into it. The wound closing as James looks at Cecilia, even if they weren't together he had to admit he was lucky. She is rather nice and rather cute to boot. Making sure he had his gear on before speaking. "Ready to go?"

[Mistiel]

Like a puppy dog on a leash, Lin plodded along at a brisk pace following Ivy's steaming footprints. She supposed it was a good sign that she hadn't passed any flaming greenery, or worse yet, any burning bushes with voices coming out of them. God, she had spent WAY too much time at that one Christian boarding school! Still, the thought was enough to elicit a loud peal of laughter from her.

[DriveEMOut]

Jack put on his gear with the help of several skeletal men, and raised his hand. "I'll go!" He looked to Val. "I'll crush you." He stroked his chin, before making the skeletons disappear when a flick of his wrist. "I guess my powers can't help me...But they can sabotage others." He laughed. "Nah. I won't cheat."

@KatherinWinter@KimmiNinja