[IC] An Unusual City

[Dreamcaster]

Julia smiled and took a seat. "Ah, well nice to meet you. My father's a professor here, so I've become familiar with the staff over the years. Oh, sorry, I've forgotten my manners, my name is Julia Drake. How are you?" She gave him a wry smile. "I guess it makes sense people don't really volunteer to see a counselor, no one wants to admit they've got a problem, or they're weak, or that there's something wrong with them."

[vampiricchild]

Alex nodded. "My name is Alex, Alex Wolfe." He told her. "And I understand that, but the issue is, there's nothing wrong with having issues. People don't seem to understand that everyone has issues, and they feel that they will be judged if they admit it. It's an intriguing part of the human psyche, actually." He said, shrugging. "But I guess I'll either have to stick it out for a little longer, or start approaching professors for referrals." He added.

[Dreamcaster]

Julia shrugged. "You have a point, but some things just aren't easy to talk about. And the world just does judge, it's the way it is. But I just think practically like that. Part of it may be that you're new and no one really knows you yet. Give it some time."

[vampiricchild]

Alex nodded. "Indeed." He didn't mention that he wasn't only here to be a counselor. He was also there to keep an eye on the 'special' students. Of course, he couldn't do that immediately, as he didn't know who they were, but he would figure it out eventually.

[Dreamcaster]

Julia shrugged. "Well, good luck anyway. Do you like the campus so far?"

[vampiricchild]

Alex nodded. "It's rather excellent, in my opinion." He said, chuckling. "It doesn't beat the architecture of the university where I studied, but it's very modern and I rather like it."

[Dreamcaster]

Julia smiled. "Where did you study, if I may ask? I'm sure it must be nice. Ikebukuro will always have a place in my heart though, my father has been a professor here since I was a child, so I kind of grew up here in some ways. I'm a pre-law student though, so soon I'll be headed off to law school."

[vampiricchild]

Alex smiled. "I actually studied at Oxford. I spent a good few years in England, it was an interesting experience." He said, shrugging. "I studied psychology, which then led to counseling psychology, and then I was headhunted for this place, after getting my PhD." He said, chuckling. "I actually graduated early."

[Dreamcaster]

She nodded. "Sounds fun. England always sounded like a cool place."

[KatherinWinter]

Ivy decided that not going to school was her favorite things about living in the city. She Jew that sooner or later her brother would get around to getting her registered for school. But she wasn't in an hurry to get back to following rules. She didn't do well with rules. She wasn't dgiung to be reminding Kyle about it anytime soon.

[vampiricchild]

Alex nodded. "Oh, I would definitely recommend a visit. It's an amazing country." He agreed. "And there are so many different kinds of people there, as well."

[Dreamcaster]

Julia smiled, "One day I'd like to go." Her smile faltered, then disappeared. "But, I have too much to do here. Can't leave yet, and certainly not for a while." She shrugged, It is what it is. Her responsibilities were her responsibilities, and she couldn't get out of them. And she certainly would never leave Albert to deal with her father alone. Meanwhile, it was lunchtime at Ikebukuro High School, and the school let students go off campus for lunch as long as they had a special mark on their ID card, one that couldn't be faked, unless of course one's entire ID was faked. Albert happened to have that mark on his, legitimately, so he was off campus at one of the local pizza joints, having some pizza.

[vampiricchild]

Alex smiled. "Perhaps, one day, the opportunity will present itself. When it does, I suggest you grab it with both hands. Life is for living, not just for watching it pass by." He told her, reaching the end of the sandwich he had for lunch. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to return to my office. I need to prepare some forms for the near future." He told her, standing up. "It was very nice chatting to you."

[Dreamcaster]

"Of course, it was a pleasure to meet and talk to you," Julia said warmly with a smile. He began to leave, and she got up from the table and drifted away. She ended up at the rails at the edge of the roof, and began staring out into the horizon. The city was beautiful in its own way, especially from up here, but it held a normality and average-ness about it. It was just the same old place she had been since she was a child. She would love to just grow wings and fly away, or get picked up by the wind and carried to some new land. But she was the head of the family, the only one keeping the three of them together. She was the one that made sure her father went to work on his good days and on his bad days made sure he was taken care of and didn't hurt anyone. She was the one that made sure her little brother, Albert, was safe, happy, healthy, and going to school and getting his homework done. She didn't get to waste her time selfishly on herself. She had to watch over her family like her mother used to do. Her family would always come first. She gripped the railing. Of course she had thought about jumping, especially in the aftermath of her mother's death, but she couldn't do that anymore than she could run away. Jumping would only hurt their family even more. It would hurt them even more than running away. No, she would remain, and be satisfied with remaining. Besides, she always had to show her strength. She was what held their family together after all.

[vampiricchild]

Alex headed back to his office and sat at his desk. He ran a hand through his fiery red hair. "How am I going to do this?" He asked himself. "Kids with issues I can deal with, but how do I find the others?" He sighed, before turning on his computer. "I should never have took this job..." He turned around and grabbed some paper, putting it in the printer. He needed to print out some referral forms to leave with teachers. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to mention the others to anyone, but he might try to, he needed help identifying them, that was for sure.

[KatherinWinter]

Ivy headed to the pizza parlor. For two reason. The first being that she was hungry and not allowed to cook when Kyle wasn't home. She understand the restriction. She had come a long way when it came to control but she was still tempted to play with fire. The second reason was that she didn't like to be alone.

[Dreamcaster]

Albert looked up from his pizza and saw a girl he had never seen before. Julia had warned him about talking to strangers, but this person didn't seem dangerous. Of course, that could be a person's downfall - the Drake siblings had learned long ago that the most normal or ordinary looking people could be more than what they seemed, or worse, so much more dangerous than one thought they were. But come on - this was a teenage girl. And he had already made his choice. He waved at her. "Hi!"

[KatherinWinter]

@Dreamcaster

Ivy smiled at the boy that approached her. She wondered if he was normal or different like her. She usually couldn't tell. Kyle could it he knew what to look for. He had never told her. Probably because they spent most of their time together. He thought he would be with her if a person with abilities threatened her. "Hello."

[Dreamcaster]

"You have the look of someone who's never been to this place before. Trust me, the food here is divine. I'm Albert Drake - 'course, most people just call me Al," he said with a grin.

[KatherinWinter]

@Dreamcaster

"I am new to the area. My brother and I just moved to town. I've heard good things about this place." Ivy told him honestly. She was curious about the boy. It wasn't often that someone approached her. She usually approached them.