[IC] The Safe Haven

[Aphelion]

Lucky had watched the fight between Sarah and Cole with baited breath. The moments that Cole was trapped in the quicksand felt like an eternity, and when he finally emerged as a bloodlust-induced monster, Lucky knew her suspicions from earlier on were correct. She would figure out what the thing sharing his body was. She couldn't believe that it was just him losing control. And if it was, that was honestly more frightening.

When the teachers intervened, she finally remembered to breathe. She looked down at her hands, which were balled into tight fists and shaking slightly with adrenaline. She clasped her hands together to stop the shaking and took a deep, long breath to steady herself. She wasn't afraid of the oncoming duel, but her body was hyping itself up for the battle without her consent.

She looked up when she and Eric were announced for the next duel. Blessed sunlight filled the arena and her hair and eyes began to glow much brighter. The light was being greedily sucked into her body, fueling her powers and causing her body to vibrate with the influx of energy. She wasted no time in taking her place opposite of Eric in the middle of the arena. She tapped her foot in time with the music now blaring from the headphones hanging around her neck. Her hair began to react as if on instinct, growing out until it flared behind her in separate, seemingly sentient sections that were ready to lash out at any potential threat. At this point, Lucky closely resembled a kumiho from Korean mythology.

"Go easy on me buddy." Lucky said to Eric with a fierce smile.

[Raptra]

"It is normal to lose control..." Cole repeated in a thoughtful manner, but then continued rather bitterly. "Though, not so much to murder a couple of people while doing so, is it?"

He said nothing else as Professor Jacob helped him out of the arena, barely catching the names of the two students who were up next. One of them, the boy whom Cole assumed was 'Eric', then passed them as he made his way down. Cole managed a "Thank you," in response to his encouraging words, though, he could not help but be troubled by what was on his mind.

He was then given a choice by the teacher to either stay or withdraw to his room. His memories of that fateful night were coming back to him due to the earlier ordeal, and he knew that he would not rest, but instead continue to brood about what had taken place then, if he was alone in his room. If he stayed, there were at least things happening that could distract him from such thoughts. Furthermore, passively spectating while the other students sparred would probably be a good way to relax his mind.

He turned to the older blond. "There's no need to trouble yourself, Sir. I can rest well out here. Thank you very much, for everything."

Cole took hold of the nearest seat and settled into it. While the next pair of students took their places in the arena, he spotted Sarah speaking to Lady Jade. She had been a formidable opponent, from what he could remember, anyway. When given the chance, he had to thank her too, for the fight, as well as for her understanding and support, for that other voice he had heard while he was still a monster had been hers.

@Enalais @Dutchess Sarah @Kaesus @Aphelion

[Dutchess Sarah]

Just as Sarah was talking to Lady Jade, she saw Jacob put Cole down in a seat near the arena. It was obvious to her that Cole needed time to recover from his battle, so she decided to let him come to her. She thanked the teacher and walked back towards the other students. On her way up, she made it a point to make eye contact with Cole. She nodded at him and then sat down in the seat she'd been in before her fight.

She looked behind her, towards Kaze and Eira, and realised she understood much more about their sudden friendship. With a deep sigh, Sarah turned her attention to the next couple in the arena.

@Raptra @Enalais @Aphelion

[DELETED324324]

Eric stood on the arena grounds, he was so nervous his hands were shaking. He looked across the arena at Lucky, her hair was moving independently he could tell that much, he could also see that she was much much brighter. Thoughts begin to go through his mind, she probably has really cool solar powers that could melt him like an ant in a magnifying glass, or maybe she could control plants with herself acting like a conduit. There were so many guesses going through his mind, that he didn't realize he was grossly under skilled here.

Yeah he had used his powers to pick up some sweet moves, from martial arts movies. Spent time, on youtube learning other martial arts and absorbing the information like a sponge. But he had seen first hand how people who were top fighters, stacked against even some of the weakest ability holders. The answer was unless there was 20 of them not well, and he was only one person, alone, against someone who probably had an ability that could make him look like a pathetic weakling. It was her voice that drew him out of it, he was beginning to like her voice. But the way she asked him to go easy on her just seemed to drive home the point of how powerless he really was. "Only if you promise to go easy on me." He laughed, but he took her question as a cue to get into a fighters stance, one that he mimicked off some Krav Maga expert. "Whatever happens Lucky, I'm still gonna be your buddy." He said, and looked at her with a smile.

[Kaesus]

Lady Jade told Sarah that everything was going to be fine, as they explained earlier they were in that class to be able to reach their limit in a controlled environment where no harm could happen to them. When she finished talking with Sarah she walked towards the arena where a new battle was about to start and draw her sword from it's sheath and put in on the arena floor. "Not sure if you know how to use one of these Eric, but if you do I think it might balance things up."

Professor Jacob told Cole not to worry about that he helped him take a sit. "Later if you want you can come to my office and we can discuss that. Now just enjoy the fight"

---

Mentions:@Dutchess Sarah@Enalais@Raptra

---

[Drakey]

@Kazemitsu

EIra had lost all focus on the fight as her eyes narrowed onto Kaze. Sobering up, she responded to him, a slight frown on her face. "Bring back the dead?" Eira was a little annoyed by the dragon's comments. SHe hadn't survived the winters of new york for no reason. "Scales. I wouldn't die to you."

Sitting back down in her seat, Eira watched as that guy, the annoying one from earlier, made his way into the arena. Letting her hood fall, EIra took the earbud out of her ear. Turning her music off and shoving it in her coat pocket, the white haired girl looked up at Kaze. Her brown eyes no longer held the feral giddiness from earlier. "Do you really think you could kill me?" She asked Kaze, her tone completely serious.

[Raptra]

Cole nodded in acknowledgement at Professor Jacob before he left him, as well as at Sarah, after she had finished speaking to Lady Jade. That was when the roof opened up, letting sunlight flood into the area. Cole welcomed the warmth, especially after that rather wet battle with Sarah. He slipped his jacket off and slung it over the backrest of the seat beside him to let it dry in the Sun. Clumps of wet sand tumbled from the piece of apparel as he did so, and he shook his head and smiled to himself, amused at how he had been too distracted to have felt any discomfort from all that.

He then caught sight of the bruises that were forming around his now exposed forearms, which was an indication of how violently the monster had been struggling against the teacher's grip. It certainly was daunting, to be expected to tame such a beast, but the kind words from the teachers assured him that he would be supported every step of the way.

Cole curled up in his seat, turning back to the arena. In his current state of mind, he registered a few things. The green-haired girl, whom Lady Jade had addressed as 'Luxianne' had started glowing, while Eric had taken a fighting stance. When Lady Jade drew her sword and placed it on the ground, Cole wondered why that was so, though, he was not in the right mind to start coming up with any possible reasons for it. For now, he would just relax and watch the events unfold.

@Dutchess Sarah

[Kazemitsu]

@Drakey

Kaze kept his eyes on the much smaller girl next to him. He was noticing that she was sobering up from her battle lust, which was a good thing. Probably because he mentioned death, that was always a sobering thought for the sane people. She didn't believe she could fall to him, she was probably the biggest baddest kid on her block. Hopefully the teachers would break that mindset of hers in a constructive way.

She turned off her music player and even put it away before turning to look at him once more. He hadn't budged from his spot nor moved his gaze from her. She asked if he really could kill her. "Yes, yes I could really kill you. Would I want to? No. But in the end between our two powers, I could kill you." He stated before gesturing to the railing she shattered. "You had to make that cold enough that you could break it with your bare hands. I just have to apply a little pressure without altering its heat or coldness." He said before glancing to the two in the arena.

"I'd ask all the teachers and the principals permission before going all out in the arena." He murmured, he obviously wasn't comfortable with his level of strength. He had never actively pushed himself, but what he had done was pretty scary when you look at what humans and animals are capable of.

[DELETED324324]

@Aphelion @Kaesus

Eric nodded to Lady Jade, and took her sword. He looked at it, he had once watched someone use it, but he doubted they were as good as Lady Jade. "Perhaps you can teach me sometime teach." He said, a small grin crossing his face. He stepped away from Lady Jade and gave it a few practiced swings, before taking his fighting stance back up.

He watched his opponent wondering what he knew about her, trying to size her up. But her powers were a total mystery to him. So he would have to play defensive for the first part of the battle, dodge, and notice anything that might tip him off. He doubted he would last long in this battle, until his defeat. But maybe, just maybe he could last long enough to not feel like a loser, and not look like one to his fellow classmates. That would be hilarious, putting on this big tough guy act between two powerhouses and coming up short in his combat. The thought made him chuckle softly. "You ready Lucky?" He asked, nodding at his opponent from across the arena.

[Aphelion]

@Enalais

"Whatever happens Lucky, I'm still gonna be your buddy."

After Eric said that, it resonated within her and she felt some of the tension over the duel fall from her shoulders. She hated - nay, loathed - these classes with an intensity perhaps unmatched by any other student. She was happy to have been one of the last ones up, just to prolong her distaste for "power control". All it did was reignite bad memories within her.

She appraised her opponent when Lady Jade gave him a sword with which to fight, and she became intrigued. No one else had used a conventional weapon this far. She honestly wondered what his powers were, since he had no trouble trying to become involved in the quarrels that had happened before the class had begun. Stepping into conflict was something she preferred to avoid, and she had admittedly flinched away from the animosity Eira and Kaze had shown each other before their duel. She would treat this as a simple sparring match, which she had done at the Goju Ryu dojo she used to attend. That is, before coming to the Haven. It had been a long time.

"You ready Lucky?"

Eric drew her from her never-ending spiral of thoughts. She nodded at him, the fierce smile faltering below her brightly glowing eyes. "I'm never ready." She simply stated, and no sign of her smile remained. Without another word, she brought her arms up in a guard, and slid forward, taking the initative in combat. She didn't try any fancy foot work, and she wasn't particularly fast or dexterous. She did the simpliest thing anyone could: she threw a punch at him.

As her fist traveled through the air towards Eric, green glowing designs resembling circuitry traveled from the fist, to her shoulder, up her neck, and across the right side of her face. In an odd mimicry of her fist, a particularly large section of hair followed it up, balled to resemble a fist. The hair-fist was the size of a man-cover, and coming down with purpose at a slower speed. Two, smaller sections of hair shot out more quickly from behind her lower body, reaching out towards his legs in an effort to trip him up, so that he might be trapped so her hair-fist could pummel him into the ground beneath it's mass.

The hair-fist was imbued, just as her right arm, neck, and the right side of her face were. They would be as dense as stone, hopefully preventing the sword given to Eric from chopping through them easily. The two smaller sections, however, were not.

[Drakey]

@Kazemitsu

Eira's smile became a little more joking, with a slight suggestive twist. She leaned forward towards Kaze, stretching upwards to look him in the eyes. "Scales, why you might be able to kill me, I could certainly kill you." Her breath was colder than ice as it escaped her lips. Vapors emanated from her hands as they were pressed against the armrest that separated the large draconian from her lithe frame. Her smile, while joking and suggestive, now carried a feralness to it.

There faces were merely two inches apart. Well, his snout was two inches away from her face. "I bet you aren't that cold-proof on the inside." Winking, Eira blew air into the dragon's nose. However, a wisp of black flame followed the air, making the temperature within the dragon's nose plummet. It wasn't nearly enough to cause damage, but definitely enough to cause a lot of discomfort.

Falling back down into her seat, Eira leaned back. She wondered how serious Kaze truly was, or maybe he has a more joking personality than he usually let on. Her smile was now that of a self-satisfied child. One that was proud of their childish pranks.

[Kazemitsu]

@Drakey

Kaze remained where he was while her face approached his own. She was having the oddest little smile as she neared before she spoke. Her breath was chilly but she could feel the heat emanating from his own nose. His eyebrow raised up slowly at her words. "At this range I could snap your neck before you could freeze me." He said, his tone oddly calm. She was off her rocker and seemed hellbent on getting another fight out of him even though he kept giving her serious warnings.

When she blew a wisp of her flames into his nose he turned away and fired out the frozen mucus while steam trickled from the orifices. "It's a lot harder to freeze the core than it is to freeze the outer edges." He said before turning back to her. He took note of her smile before leaning in close and licking the side of her face. His tongue was hot on her cheek and made her hair stick up after he pulled back.

"If you really want an all out fight ask the principal to arrange it." Kaze stated while settling into his seat to watch the fight down in the arena. Hair weaponry, so odd.

[DELETED324324]

@Aphelion

Eric was confused by her response, but he had no time to process it before they launched into combat. She had some ability to manipulate her hair. He figured he would have to tank a hit to figure out her movements, something so his power could process her. So in a quick movement he held up the blade and put his hand towards the top, so the hair fist connected with the flat of it. The shock sent him backward, and the hair tripping him up made it even worse. Eric found himself on the ground with a heavy thud, the wind was knocked out of him.

Eric wasn't on the ground for long, he rolled backwards to put some distance between him and Lucky. He had to figure out what to do with her, her right side was protected. So he had to target her left side, he had to know how to use a sword in his left hand before he could probably use it proficiently, so he dropped the sword and moved up on Lucky's left. As he cleared the gap, he struck with the palm of his hand aiming for her stomach in an attempt to stun her.

[Dutchess Sarah]

It was a strange feeling, sitting here watching the next battle.
Sarah longed for someone to talk to, but so far the only people she'd had contact with were either in the arena or recovering from the pounding she'd just given him.
Another stealthy glance at Cole proved he was nowhere near ready for company.
Having heard the bickering of the others, Sarah had at first decided to stear clear of them. Her recent battle left her with a better understanding of their attitudes, however, and she decided she was tired of sitting by herself.

In an obvious attempt to mimic Eira and humour Kaze, Sarah got up, walked over to them and seated herself between them. "Move" was all she said as she sat down and turned her attention back to the fight going on in the arena.

@Drakey @Kazemitsu

[Aphelion]

@Enalais

Lucky was shocked that Eric decided to deflect her hair fist with the sword. She wasn't sure why, but he seemed like the type to try to dodge instead. She was even more astounded when he decided to drop the sword and come in for a close strike. She watched his actions in slow-mo, her eyes darting between his approaching form and the sword he had laid on the ground. She knew she could survive most attacks, so she decided in that moment to use one an enhanced section of hair to lash out for the handle of the sword and bring it to herself.

In the same instant as her hair twined around the sword handle, Eric's palm hit her stoutly in the gut. She winced in pain and the left side of her body also gained the distinctive circuitry patterns that her right side had in response to his attack. The section of hair that went to retrieve the sword came back quickly and placed the sword into her hands. She stood up straighter and her eyes flashed brightly. She raised her eyebrows at him.

"You gave up most of your advantage when you dropped the blade Lady J' gave you. Had you struck me with this," Lucky slapped the flat of the blade against her hand. "You might have dealt me a decent amount of pain. Come on now, don't hold back, Eric!" She tossed the sword back to Eric so he could catch it and gave him a brief moment of respite before four hair-fists, smaller than the one before but enhanced just the same, came at him from all directions. The only way left would be away from her or to her, unless he managed to hack one or more of the hair-fists apart. She raised her arms in a guarding stance, anticipating him closing in.

[JewelProphet30]

Serenity was late, perpetually late it seemed these days, as she ran towards the arena where her first class was being held. Her hair was braided down her back and she was wearing a long sleeve shirt and jeans as she rushed into the arena and paused seeing two of her classmates fighting in the center of the sand filled place. She saw several other students in the stands and she hurried up to them and went to sit down a bit away from the others, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear she glanced around at the other students. There was a girl with white hair who was surrounded by black flames, sitting next to a dragon? That was odd, she saw another young girl sitting with them and she wondered what they were like. There was another boy sitting by himself just a little closer to her than anyone else but he looked exhausted and she thought he must have fought already. She turned her attention to the fight, wondering if Lady Jade had seen her enter and wondering just who would be fighting next, she looked to be the odd one out at this moment.

Swallowing as she focused on the two students fighting she frowned a little as she took in the girl with glowing green hair which seemed to be moving on its own, she couldn't hear what the girl had said so she leaned forward just a little tugging on her gloves to readjust them. She was glad they looked just like her skin because it stopped her from having all the memories of the stadium seats around her, but at the same time she had a feeling that she would be required to take them off at any moment. The boy who was fighting in the arena looked a bit out of place, and she wondered what he could do, since it seemed an unfair match with a girl who could control her hair.

[Drakey]

@Dutchess Sarah@Kazemitsu

Eira gasped a little, just a little, when the dragon's rough tongue caressed her cheek. She could feel the slight increase of temperatur. Her cheeks, now flushed, went from 0 degrees celsius to 2 degrees celsius. Taking control of herself, Eira was about to retort when the water girl sat between her and Kaze. With one word, she already managed to piss Eira off. Completely forgetting that it was in the same manner that she had originally addressed Kaze, Eira responded to the girl. "Oh really? Why don't you fuck off?" Eira's cold, black flames began to rise, the temperature around the newcomer dropping steadily and quickly.

[Kaze!!! Stop Eira, please!!!]

[Dutchess Sarah]

@Drakey @Kazemitsu

Sarah couldn't help but giggle at Eira's reaction.
"I'd tell you to chill, but I think you're managing fine on your own." She turned to Kaze and smiled "I thought you'd have her warmed up to you by now."
She shivered a little and regretted not hanging on to some water. Maybe Cole would let her borrow his coat. She could wait for Eira to freeze it and then knock her out with it. Involuntarily, Sarah shifted a bit closer to Kaze, who was definitely warmer than Eira, and waited for his respons.

[Kazemitsu]

Kaze just grinned at her when she gasped and flushed. Clearly he was amused by her reaction to the simple action. Although the water girl from earlier, Sarah, made a bad move. She tried to do what Eira had done at the start, albeit in a joking manner. Her tone lacked the iciness that Eira's did and she didn't have the scowl or deadpan look. The frosty lady didn't take it to well and was already lowering the temperature of the area.

Leaning over and doing the most surprising thing he could think of. He planted a firm smooch on Eira's lips while Sarah edged closer to him for the warmth he gave off. No tongue but longer than a peck. "She was joking, Eira." He said quietly. He was incapable of blushing thanks to the scales on his face but she could hear a warmth in his tone. He could have shielded Sarah but that probably wouldn't have diffused the situation.

[JewelProphet30]

Serenity heard whispers up near the back where the dragon man was sitting and she turned in time to see the him kiss the dark girl beside him. She bit her lip feeling even more out of place now and she shrunk into herself as she turned back to watch the fight in the arena. She tugged on her gloves, anxiety over this new situation pushing its way towards the surface, she wondered if she would ever make friends here, not that she had friends at her old school but she didn't want to feel like such an outsider. Glancing over at the boy who was sitting alone she took a breath and stood up moving over towards him, sitting a step down from him, she turned and gave him a shy smile "Hi...I'm Serenity" She said softly.

Serenity was uncomfortable putting herself out there but then she didn't want to be sitting by herself either so she hoped the other would speak with her.

@Raptra