Welcome to Detention

[Nicky Lee Young]

(Yeah, it's Open)

She had to admit, this hadn't been one of her brightest ideas. Let's not even mention the substitute teacher was a nervous wreck who looked like she was on the verge of crying (the class frustrated her with their chattering to the brink of tears); but doing what she did certaintly didn't make the woman feel any more relaxed. As if Nicky knew the woman was terrified of rodents...

Biology class and there was a huge cage full of white, squeaking mice. What was she supposed to think? With panic filling her body and mind, Nicky would ask the sub what they'd be doing with the mice. The sub, Ms. Perry, would give the things a disgusted look before saying "Killing them all, I'm sure."
Maybe it was just bitter words towards the creatures, as Ms. Perry hadn't had the time to look at the instructions their teacher left. Unfortunately, Nicky's Save the Animals side kicked in, and she hadn't taken the time to really think things through. Next thing she knew, the cage was in her hands, then the cage was on the floor....and then all the mice were running around the classroom.

The substitute shrieked! Everyone's attention was turned towards th plump woman, before eyes fell on the rodents parading around the classroom. Climbing things. Grabbing things. Nibbling things. More of the girls (and some guy, Nicky noticed) flipped at the sight and joined Ms. Perry in the shrieking game, almost as though they were having a contest of who could shriek more loudly. Other people scrambled around trying to catch the little critters, only to be bitten or led to ram into desks. Nicky's pathetic and oh-so-smart idea to further help the situation was executed. She opened the door and all the mice ran out.
"Be free!" she's pretty sure she yelled, watching the mice leave the classroom in much of a hurry. But how was that gonna help? They were on the second floor. At this rate, it'd be like watching lemmings fall off cliffs.

["You're...You're in serious trouble MISSY."]

Nicky Lee would freeze in place, creak a sheepish smile and turn towards Ms. Perry.
"I..but...you said..."

["No buts, ifs or maybe. I'm calling the office, I'll assure you have at the very least a detention. Although, I'd suspend you, if I were in charge."]

"Yeah. Which you aren't" Nicky muttered.

---Later---

She was early for detention, mostly because Ms. Perry had rushed her outta there asap. Nicky Lee couldn't help but wonder what would happen to the poor mouseys. She heard that they'd be calling someone to take care of it...but what did that mean?
She'd sit ontop of the desk, her legs dangling off the side and she was leaned back on her hands. How did DT work here, anyway? At her old school, you sat around with whoever else had DT and you couldn't talk. You could read a book, draw, entertain yourself however (which honestly doesn't sound like much of a punishment). You just couldn't talk. Maybe here it'd be different. Perhaps she'd get like...thirty lashes.
'Actually, from what I heard, had I been here last year that could have been a possibility.'

She shuddered.

While she waited for other students to possibly show up (unless she was the only bad apple today), she began to wonder what sort of punishment she'd get. They couldn't honestly let her get away with just a DT and a phonecall home, could they? Oh she hoped so. Ms. Perry wouldn't let that happen, that's for sure...

She heard the doorknob shake.

"Ah man. Let that be another victim...It's awkward here alone..."

[John Smith]

Ouch. If you had ever been dreaming of your own little personal utopia. Well, my utopia had women wearing skimpy outfits, delicious food, and a setting that differed between a pool at the playboy mansion or a replica of the garden of eden. A good dream. But with all good dreams they have to end at some time. Most of the time they end when you are gently touched awake by a caring and loving mother. But I was not that lucky today.

Oh no.

This was a well above 250 lbs teacher who had a bad day who pulled me from my chair and dream, he pushed my back against the wall and held me there. I could only guess what had made him this angry. Perhaps it was because I had been sleeping during his class, or else it was because some antagonist (me) had decided to burn down his car in the night and he had been forced to take public transport this morning. But this bad mood resulted in the teacher making a rather rash decision of slapping me so my right cheek turned a nice pinkish color. It hurt like hell, but I couldn’t help but to smile. A slap, from perhaps the angriest teacher I had ever seen. He saw my ill-placed smile and repeated the slap, this time, it was a backhanded slap and I could feel the impact across my face and a small but stubborn line of blood came from my left nostril. He let go of my collar and spoke his words of wisdom.

I had to suppress my anger. It was hard and my body was physically shaking from the pressure of holding it all back. Before I knew it, my right fist was far inside his fat belly and he crumbled like a piece of paper. This wasn’t good publicity. So when I saw a glimpse of my classmates shocked faces, I dived down to help the poor man to his feet again.

”Sorry sir!”

Between his gasps of air I heard him utter detention. If he had been fit for a fight, he would probably have chosen that instead but I was relieved. I could leave him behind before I exploded again. I grabbed my bag and hurried out on the hallways where I paused and put my back against the wall and tried to calm myself down. While I stood there, I noticed a trio of white mice run by. With a slightly raised eyebrow I continued toward the library, with a small detour to the mens room to get some paper for my still bleeding nose. I opened the door to the library with a small sigh and entered what could be one of the most bori…-

- hot girl sitting alone–

-… interesting events today.

With a suddenly confident smile, that made my right cheek ache with pain, and erased the confident smile. I had noticed my reflection when I had been in the mens room, and a pinkish outline of his fingers could be seen on my cheek. I sat down at a desk right next to the desk the girl was sitting on. Gently placed my bag on the floor so the laptop inside wouldn’t be damaged. I looked at the girl before I spoke.

”Sooo, why are you here?”

[Valencia Donahue]

For as long as she's been doing the job, Valencia mostly enjoyed working the detention shift in Hircine's library. In her books (har har), every student had some kind of special characteristic that was worth getting to know and it was often this shift that she got to know them. The part-time librarian was late for today's shift because of her earlier shift at Paragon, but to her, she didn't have to worry about being late or early for once. Seth took care of the cameras and now the only real people who could get in the way of her Network business was “new blood”, so to speak... Like Nicky and John. Those two was the first thing the “blond” Vietnamese woman noticed when she opened the door roughly for dramatic effect. She wasn't expecting anyone new today and her silvery eyes gave the junior and senior a confused look before the library doors crashed closed on the rebound. The grace of a queen Valencia had not this afternoon. Valencia opened the doors again, this time less excitedly and with poise more associated to her reputation. She cleared her throat and nodded towards Nicky and John before making her way to the main desk.

Behind her were her favorite regulars. Ken Corleone, a deaf-mute blond freshman who had a knack for lip-reading anything within view, like private conversations between teachers that aren't meant to be heard. He was carrying his messenger bag with his typical homework assignments to do if Valencia didn't give him something else to spend his time with. Malcolm Tall, a junior with a tendency to vandalize technology in all its forms out of boredom who works with Valencia not only to clear his record but to slay the doldrums. He was carrying a box of unknown contents that may get everyone associated arrested if someone they didn't trust found out what they were. Lastly, Lorelei Spinozza is the senior who got held back due to library fines and has more common sense than everyone else here... Including Valencia. The only reason this student is going along with Valencia's schemes is because the Asian promised to clear those fines if she did. As usual, she followed behind with her arms crossed and a sour expression on her face. She let the doors close behind her before heading straight to her usual spot near the back of the room.

As Valencia's buddies set up to get ready for another wonderful day in detention, she was staring at Nicky and sizing her up. Will she get in the way? Will she be useful? There was only one way to find out before it's too late. She pointed at Nicky and spoke curtly, making it clear that she wasn't just talking to anyone.

“What're you here for? Tell me every single detail and I'll see if there's something I can do with you.”

Then, to not give off the impression that she forgot another student under her care, she sharply pointed at John without turning her gaze. By her words, it was clear that he was being spoken to as well.

“You too. Reason, details, the whole shebang. Speak up.”

Malcolm blinked at the scene as he put his box on the floor and pushed it beneath his seat. Ken didn't really care much for the commotion unless Valencia got him involved. Lorelei sighed in exasperation and felt very inclined to leave for the afternoon if she had to put up with another day with Valencia trying to “recruit” more people for the Network.

((OOC: @@; This should suffice~))

[Bix]

Tragedy

Of the After School Kind

A crinkle. The paper in her hand. Clenched within her fist. Color. Pink. Such an ungodly color. Why did all bad things have to be pink. Perhaps because it was a shitty color. Yes. Lets go with that. Pink. Is shitty. But this time. It meant something even worse. more Shitty than shitty. Was that possible? Perhaps. Today it seemed that it was.

The Witch walked down the hall. Bag moving against her side. Detention. Pink paper. Pink paper showed her detention. A sigh escaped her lips. Clad on them was a deep blue lipstick. Almost as dark as her hair. And her eyes. Blue. A good color. Nothing so gross. So disgusting. So absolutely mind numbing. Today her dress. Was much like it was always. Strange. Different. Unique. Ugly. Depended on who you asked to what adjective you would recieve.

Pants. Plaid. Blue. Green. Grey. Long sleeve shirt. Blue. Over the top? A tank top. Green. Her hair was blue. Pulled back into a pony tail. Sunglasses that were a bright orange color seemed bright against the dark blue of her hair. Seven bracelets on her left arm. Yellow and green alternating. Her bag had once been suede. A messenger bag it still was. However. Covered in patches. Pentograms. And many other things of witchcraft covered the bag.

Detention. How pitiful. Her boots pounded on the tile. Loudly echoing. The seven silver rings around the left boot jingled as she walked. Bat earings in her ears swung to and fro. She was an odd one. She knew it. But she wasn't going to change it either. Most barely got a word out of her. Those that did, often wished they hadn't. She was not your normal girl. Not your normal person. Strange. And stuck out severely. Even in a violent environment such as here.

The door. Old. Beaten. Ugly. Like most of the school. The knob was cold in her hand. She was late. Not that care had been given to being on time. But to mark the fact. It was true. Twisting she pushed the door open. Blondie finished speaking. Asking what people had done. Apparently, she wished for specifics. Mmmm. She might be shocked to learn why Bix was here. But maybe not. It depended on what the old bat had seen in her years.

A nod to the teacher. Acknowledgement and nothing else as she turned. Heading to a table. Her bag. Slammed down on the hard wood. Before Bix slumped, into the seat. Her left leg bent at the knee came up. Foot on the edge of the seat. Knee up by her chest. Her net gloved hand reached out into her bag. Took out her bag. Mmmmm Hot Tamales today for her candy. Spicy. Opening the box. Pouring a few in her hand. Munch munch. Tasty.

[Nicky Lee Young]

A boy.

Nicky's curious expression toward who entered in no way portrayed the relief she felt from seeing another victim. Of course, she wasn't going to think culprit since in prison, everyone is innocent. This wasn't prison of course, but it was similar in some small way.

Nicky would notice the brief smile, but what caught her attention most was the marks on the boys face. Her eyes fluttered at the sight of it, assuming he'd been in a tussle with someone and he'd gotten the bad end of the stick. Or the good end, and she didn't really want to know what the other guy(s) looked like. Thinking about it, Nicky hadn't quite registered that the boy took a seat 'next' to her (sort of since she was sitting ON the desk). When it finally settled in, she gave a flick of her head, passing it off as her simply trying to push her bangs out of her eyes (when in reality it had been a bit of an exagerrated flinch of surprise). When he looked back at her, Nicky Lee would give a brief but shy smile.

"Me? I well..." she began, muttering something under her breath before letting escape an embarrassed "Eheh..."

To save her from story time, the door would suddenly burst open, a little bit harsher than she would have expected, and her head would quickly wip around to look directly at Valencia. The confusion on the woman's face had led Nicky to conclude that she had accidently gone to the wrong room (not really thinking about how weird it is that someone would accidently wind up at the library). As the door would swing back to shut, Nicky's head would follow it's movement, leaning to the side to keep Valencia in her view until the door was shut completely.

"Well now..." she whispered, grinning a bit at what happened. Unexpectedly, the door would open again, albeit in a normal fashion this time as the woman entered the room followed by a few others. She'd make her way to the desk, nodding towards both she and 'the other guy', Nicky subconciously nodding back. Who was this? At first she thought it was another student, but when she sat at the main desk Nicky would grimace. Ah, authority. Depending on how things went she'd either be forced to make Valencia's life difficult, or she'd behave on her first detention. Obviously, this wouldn't be the last time she'd be here, so she supposed she'd need to get to know the blonde a bit better. Somehow.

Opportunity.
As she was pointed to, Nicky's shoulders would rise in a flinch. There was always this strange stabby feeling she'd get from being pointed at. It also made her want to snap the person's finger. Luckily, she wouldn't have to get irritated by it because she'd be occupied with something else. Answering a question. No, answering a question she really didn't feel like answering.

It took her a moment to try to figure out how to answer. Everything happened so quickly, she wasn't sure she remembered why she'd done it. And there was something in the last bit of the Vietnamese woman's phrase that caused her discomfort.

"Every single detail..." she'd begin in a mumble. "I was in biology class, the substitute freaked me out so I unleashed a rodent parade."
She'd give a crooked frown, shifting her gaze away from Valencia to the ceiling, and took in a deep breath.
"Then, when everyone started screaming and running because the mice were...well...everywhere, I decided to open the classroom door and set them free. Not my brightest idea...I forgot we were on the second floor so most of the mice were trapped in the hall...Heh. So much for my animal rescue." that last bit was said mostly for herself, but she'd gotten her story out. Not in full detail as Valencia had requested but that's as cooperative as she was going to get unless she was prodded for more.

By then the door would open, and another student would walk in. Nicky would take a look at the girl, just to satisfy her curiousity. Nothing particular about her appearance-wise. At least, not in Nicky's opinion. She'd turn around then, feeling that attention would be off her, and assuring that as she'd turned towards John and stare. This was her way of silently saying "Your turn".

[John Smith]

If you looked past the fact that she had been bad enough to be sent to detention, then she appeared rather friendly. A fact I noted in the back of my mind. When she spoke, I heard the first couple of words before the rest was below my hearing range. I opened my mouth to talk, when the door was slammed open. In a swift movement- my right hand dropped down and grabbed around the edge of whatever was at the top of my open bag. Could she be one of them? My paranoia had skipped defcon 4 and went straight into defcon 3. Nerves overloaded, every muscle in my body froze and a distant voice told me that I should let go of the power cord in my hand. I looked down at the bag, and I see that I have not pulled the makeshift weapon out of the bag yet.

Get a grip of yourself!

I blinked; and those who were very observant could see that some traces of panic had left my face and I looked much calmer. Calmer than I had seen before I had been startled. I take my hand out of the bag, now, holding a book with some sheets of paper used as bookmark. I placed in on the table and seemingly conjured a pencil out of nowhere. A magic trick (with emphasis on the trick part). It had been up my sleeve. The blonde asked a question, she wasn’t looking at me. Human protocol meant she wasn’t talking to me. I had asked the question myself, so I listened and shut up. Moments later, the same question was directed at me. I turned my head when someone opened the door. And I saw a blue-haired girl enter the room. I dismissed her right away and looked back at the blonde jail guard.

So, it was her who let those mice out of the cage. That explains that random thing. I bet she’s a good girl…. My mind trailed off and I realized she was done talking. My turn!

”Uhm, I had pulled an all-nighter and fell asleep during class. The teacher rather, uh, violently slapped me out of my sleep. I forgot the self-defense rule doesn’t apply in teacher to student beatings. So, I punched him in the guts and uh, he sent me down here. That’s pretty much what happened, I am not proud of the way I handled it… but done is done.”

I had been playing with the pencil while I told the story, it was a trick you often learned as a drummer where the ”drumstick” (here, a pencil) would make a hourglass shape swings between two fingers. For a first glance, it would look like I was spinning it between the fingers.

(OOC: When I say "Them" in the first paragraph, I do not refer to The Network!)

[Valencia Donahue]

After Valencia's rather abrupt entrance, another student joined the rather motley crew assembled in the library. The Asian didn't remove her eyes from Nicky as she told her tale, but she was able to perceive Bix and her boots on the way in. She nodded ever so slightly to indicate that though she didn't have eyes everywhere, the rest of her senses were pretty keen. It was a matter of first impressions and she was already giving one off no mater how much it contrasted her true nature. Valencia withdrew her pointing finger and brought it to her lips in thought by the time Nicky finished. For lack of better words, her reason for being in detention was... Well, “useful”.

A corner of her lip twitched and if she didn't contain herself, it would've cracked into a smile. She turned to Ken and Malcolm as John began to speak. Ken kept his eyes on the newcomers to catch anything Valencia may miss and Malcolm snickered as he headed to the library's computers and began looking up the students before them. Since Malcolm is a junior, he was actually within the vicinity of Nicky's critter liberation and if he was allowed the opportunity to speak, he would've confirmed it then and there that there were indeed mice running loose on the second floor.

Since Valencia's eyes weren't on John for the majority of their time together, she wasn't able to notice his tinge of panic. At first, she thought he was yet another average fellow who fell asleep in class and has little to contribute. That soon changed when he told her that he struck a teacher upon being awakened. Without the full details of John's background or what happened, Valencia assumed that one of his specialties included fast reflexes, intentional or not. With a lift of her brow, she had to admit--Not bad. A mischief maker and someone with fast impulses. She finally looked in John's general direction to take in his appearance before glancing at Bix.

My, ain't someone here colorful... What did SHE do to get in detention today? Or maybe she didn't do anything and was here because of health reasons?

When it came right down to height, Valencia was only taller than Nicky and Ken in this room and when it came to age, Lorelei in the back was older than Valencia by a year. That said something. Although it may appear as though the Vietnamese woman was waiting for Bix to speak, she was actually wondering if Bix had other kinds of candy with her aside from Hot Tamales. Lorelei noticed this and broke the silence.

[LORELEI]: “Seriously?! Are you going to get the show on the road and over with or are you going to hunt for aliens, time-travelers, and ESPers while you're at it!?”

Valencia blinked and felt compelled to ask if Malcolm was willing to chuck some styrofoam peanuts for dramatic effect after she cleared her throat and decided to finally start, as advised by her unhappy cohort.

“If you don't feel like staying, Lorelei, feel free to bring your slip to me and I'll let you out so long as you know my policy.”

[LORELEI]: “Yeah yeah, no talking about what goes on in detention and no getting caught on the way out, I hear ya.”

In an annoyed but grateful tone, the senior slung her backpack on her shoulder and headed to front with her slip before making a beeline to the door. Valencia signed the slip and placed it off to the side and continued once the door closed.

“Where to start... I don't know about you guys, but I've been on this campus long enough to know how it works inside and out... Especially the student-run information Network. A lot of the times, I understand how bored we can get at Hircine and resort to other means of amusement, ranging from setting mice loose, turning on the fire alarm, vandalism...”

Here, she nodded toward Malcolm and he smirked.

“To other kinds of tomfoolery like... Um... Taking people hostage, jumping out of windows, hijacking golfcarts, and creating a makeshift flamethrower.”

She shrugged as though pretending that she didn't do all the things just mentioned and someone else did them. She wouldn't be surprised if that was the case.

“As far I know, we mostly do this because we can and we're bored, not because we want to get shackled... I respect that and I personally am not going to blame you guys for doing what you guys do. I'm just doing my job... But that doesn't mean I like being bored by babysitting you guys. As you guys might've noticed, I can give folks free rein during my watch within reasonable limits. Let's just say I have a high tolerance and if you can clean up after yourselves, so to speak, anything goes as long as you don't try something stupid like blackmailing me and whatnot. I'm a part-time stunt woman, so if someone like Alexander suddenly pops in at a bad time, I am quite capable of jumping out that there window, never being seen again, and leaving you guys stuck with horrible, horrible stains on your records until some kind of incarceration because of a picky jury.”

Valencia sighed. She doesn't usually talk much, especially this clearly in her opinion, but she felt like she was in good enough company.

“The point I'm getting to is, I'm willing to make your stay at Hircine convenient and interesting if you'd like me to, even beyond detention, but that's up to whether or not you'd like to help me out once in a while to cover up tracks, if you will.”

Valencia was still curious about what Bix had to offer, but she wasn't going to force her to do anything if she didn't want to. For now, it's best to go with the rabbit in hand than the two in the bush, as they say. She waited to let everything sink in before continuing and sat in a revolving chair.

Hmm... Did I say too much? I have a feeling that if they didn't care, they would've tuned out everything I said anyhow, so I guess I'm mostly safe. It's a student thing—Hear preaching, tune out.

[Bix]

The Great Escape
Run for the Hills!

~So she let the mice go~ Bix didn't even budge. Didn't show anything. Didn't change from her nibbling on her candy. Hungry. And she always had candy with her. Hot Tamales. They were not her favorite. But they were tasty. Spicy. And red. Red was a good color. Not nearly as interesting as blue however. Blue was the color. The one that made her comfortable. It seemed. As though the Witch was ignoring them. And perhaps. On some level she was. But she listened. Her sapphire orbs however. Stayed on her candy. Acknowledging no one else. Not even the teacher.

Asian definatly. She had noticed. When she came in. The blonde didn't suit her. One word came to mind. Bimbo. Or perhaps. Wannabe bimbo. Which in the mind of one Bix. Was much worse. Regardless, Bix listened as they recounted their stories. The mice. Oh yes, Bix knew all about the mice. In fact she had sacrficed three of them. For her spell. The blood was needed. And well. Mice were nothing but fodder for other animals. RELEASE THE MICE!! Yeah... that was great. Til the witch got a hold of them. Bix had harvested what she needed. They were in ziplocs. Within her bag. The blood had at the time. Been in a cup. Filled halfway. Three mice it took to fill that cup half mark. But blood was necessary. People needed lessons. And so Bix. Decided she would teach them.

Then there was mister sleepy. Punched his teacher. Lame story. Not nearly as interesting as the mice. Though she supposed. It was because Bix had benefited. She had not needed use her own blood. But those of the animals.

It was then Barbie began to speak again. Asian Barbie. Asian Bimbo Barbie. Nice ring to it. Regardless, she began to speak. Saying that she had connections. That she could BE a connection. Bix popped some more of her candy in her mouth and put her feet up on top of the table. Slouching, in her seat, she opened her bag. Pulled out a spiral. It had seen better days. Papers. Sticking out at all angles. The metal part was filled with the little ends of papers after torn. It rustled. As she opened it. Taking out a Sharpie. She began to doodle listening to the teacher. On and on. Over and over. Talking about how she could benefit them.

"Describe for me. Interesting."

Her first speaking. Her eyes did not look up. Bangs hiding them from view at the moment. Her pen moved. Scribbling to seemingly no end. Her voice was calm. Collected. She gave nothing away. Her voice was nigh emotionless.

[Valencia Donahue]

Valencia blinked at Bix and though her perception is nowhere near a mind reader's, she was able to detect an air of derision floating her way... She wasn't unfamiliar to this aura. She got it a lot whenever people weren't aware of the story behind why her hair is dyed blond (which was very often) and whenever people assumed that looks defined character. People have also assumed the limitations of her capabilities and intellect because of the blind appearance of her eyes. She went through hell and back because of her looks, even though she never wanted them, and what people expected of her, so a couple more students not liking her wasn't going to destroy her life. She was used to it. The hard part was getting the students used to her.

'Cause honestly, soapbox standers are teh lame and being forced to listen to them is just as bad.

“Well I'm sure what I have to say might be interesting, but there're no guarantees if I don't know what you're interested in.”

She took note of Bix's scribbling and for all Valencia knew, it was blackmail in the making or just plain doodling. Bleh. As predicted, it was a risk to actually interact with new blood in detention, especially mentioning the Network in any way. Best lay the record straight-ish.

“For instance... Nicky, right? At least that's Malcolm over there is telling me with that computer monitor... I have a better chance at convincing the faculty that Nicky's substitute violated school policies. This is assuming that Nicky was forced to take that class. Unless I'm mistaken, students have to sign something prior to the dissection indicating whether or not they want to cut open cats, rats, pigs, and frogs. There's a reason why those sheets have to be signed... Lawsuits and stuff... And, as a result, this detention can be cleared from her record. Her freeing the mice in class was due to being placed in a stressful situation and her releasing the mice from the classroom was her doing her best to remedy the consequences, even though the effectiveness is questionable. Perhaps she didn't want her classmates to be harmed and she did what she thought was rational.”

Ultimately, it's up to the folks in charge if I convince them legally, but there's always the other way if things don't work out.

“Not saying she's crazy, but it's a good enough reason to explain her actions if they don't accept Nicky's excuse. In exchange of goodwill, I may request Nicky to be excused from class more often to do what she's likely best at, whatever that may be. To tell the truth, it won't always be 'legal' though.”

Valencia cleared her throat to finish up this tangent. Since Bix is the closest in age to Ken, the deaf-mute moved his seat closer to her, curious about whether or not she had the same coloring assignment he does.

((OOC: Giving more to work with, so hopefully the slight break in post order isn't too intrusive~))

[pinefresh]

(OOC: Sorry for the late entrance but there is method to my madness.)

Pine stood outside the the door of the library area where the detentions took place. He looked up at the camera and scowled. He would have preferred to have been able to stand there and listen to everything that was being said but knew he could only stand there a minute or two before his actions became suspicious. He looked over his information on Valencia one more time before he knew he could wait no longer.

~Valencia Donahue, post-secondary school student, works at both Hircine and paragon. I wonder what this sneaky little creature is up to...~ Pine thought as he turned the handle on the door and walked into the room, grimace still on his face.

The little pink card was his access to such information and the only way he would get it. Though it was made clear to him that he would not be punished for any actions taken in the course of his work there were times rules had to be enforced to be bent. His paper was enforced by no other than Principal Victoria on his request, her signature legitimate and undeniable. If it came up as to why Pine was there he had beaten up another student today and was forced attend. It also looked legitimate due to his rather late entrance. The truth behind that was he really wanted to listen in before entering the room so he had some idea what was going on.

A quick scan of the room revealed six other students. John Smith who at this distance looked very familiar. During their verbal debate in the school yard Pine was too far to notice certain familiar characteristics. As a matter of fact Pine was sure he knew him. He could not place it but sooner or later it would become clear. The next was a rather cute girl who just sat there. A senior Pine had seen around before, two boys he had no idea about, and Bix. Pine wondered what the hell she had done to get sent here. Not that it would be hard for a girl like Bix to end up in detention, he just wanted to know the reason. His eyes came to rest on his prey, a miss Valencia.

Pine's grimace transformed into a small smile. As he handed her the pink slip and went to take a seat not to far from Bix. He was even sure to nod a hello to each student there before he took his seat. "Sorry for the tardiness miss but you know how it is. Beat a person up and the office plays their own version of 20 questions."

[Nicky Lee Young]

As John recited his story, Nicky's lips with involuntarily smile in relief. There was nothing odd about falling asleep in class. She did it often. However, as the story progressed, her smile would slowly fade into a bit of a frown. Damn it. What had she expected though? Violence was inevitable. She was just glad that slowly but surely, she was learning about how to deal with it.

In the brief silence the followed, Nicky's eyes began to shift from place to place. Her left thumb would be brought up to her lips and her teeth would bite down on the nail. She was a bit nervous, but she wasn't sure why at this point. Probably everything. Or the fact she was still freaking herself out with possible punishments. Then that girl yelled. Nicky's eyes would widen for a second before she'd turn for a quick glance at Lorelei. And soon enough, the girl had been given permission to leave.
'What the hell?'

Her head would turn back to Valencia as she began to speak, Nicky pulling off a rather childish 'This isn't fair...' look. But it wasn't. So she was allowed to be as childish as she wanted. While listening, a few questions would pop into her mind. Mostly what this Network business was all about. She'd stored that thought for later because as Valencia would keep talking, Nicky would realise there was a lot to absorb.

And then as the examples rolled, Nicky's interest had been poked. In fact, it was giving her ideas. Bad ideas. Whoever this woman was, she was a bad influence. 'A vair vair bad influence...Yay~'

As she finished up, Nicky would lean back on her hands again, finally letting the nail on her thumb free from soft nibbles. It was appealing to say the least. 'This feels like some kind of sneaky organisation...Whoa. Check out the prison-guard's eyes. I bet she could pull off one hell of a Toph Cosplay. Well..if she dyed her hair black.'
And away to irrelevance world she went.

The girl who entered late spoke...strangely. But there wasn't much to know from someone who spoke two phrases. Or...well almost two phrases. An English teacher may disagree with that. The lack of emotion in her words clearly indicated that someone hadn't gotten enough happiness and sunshine today. Or ever. But she wasn't about to judge.

When she heard her name, or at least part of it, Nicky's full attention had returned. Nicky would nod as Valencia would ask if that was really her name. She almost wanted to correct her and say "Actually, Nicky Lee." But that was unecessary. First of all, she'd probably just end up asking her to call her Nicky, or Lee, or any other nickname someone can come up with.

The fact her little stunt could be excused was huge. Mostly because that meant that whatever other silly thing Nicky would do had the potential to be excused. Hell, even blamed on someone else. Which was always fun. As for not being Crazy, Nicky begged to differ. She didn't know how many times people called her crazy or insane or...what was that other one? "There isn't even a word for the amount of sanity you lack". Such nice friends she had back in Canada.

The thought of doing illegal things didn't even phase her. But she was inclined to pipe up,
"No issue with doing illegal things, Mizz. So long as you're not making me smuggle in drugs." It almost felt silly to say, but you never knew. She didn't look it, but this woman could very well be some sort of Drug lord. Or just a dealer. And Nicky wasn't about to live life like those gangster movies. Someone always got shot.

The door would open again, and as usual, Nicky's head would turn to look at who it was. He took a look around the room, and Nicky would quickly look away as Pine's eyes would glance briefly at her (as he did to everyone else). Again, trying to not be caught staring like some staring thing. Wasn't it more embarassing to look quickly away like an idiot, hoping he hadn't noticed instead of keeping up the stare and turning away casually? As if he wouldn't have noticed her.
'Damn you angsty teenage brain!'

Ah. He'd beaten up someone too. Perfect. Juuuust perfect.

[John Smith]

I would give the girl, - Lorelei - a curious glance when she had her outburst. I would trace her as she left the room, her words still fresh in my mind. I expected good things to come from this. The blonde expanded the news. I was intrigued. She said she was a part of a larger student run network. I had never seen this blonde before, but she had just invited the lot of us sitting here to her Network. Rarely had I been offered an opportunity like this. Suddenly, I found the crew behind the blonde more interesting. I gave each and one of them a look. Memorizing how they looked. They were assumed members of their network now. The blue-haired girl was the first in the trio who asked a question. The Blonde expanded upon the subject.

So… They exploit the loop holes in the system to get their members out of trouble… Interesting.

The Blonde mentioned a name in her crew, and I saw one of the boys react and assosiated a name to the mental image of the boy. Their methods were simple but effective. They could almost be compared with a corps of lawyers, well, beside the fact that they were also the law breakers. A criminal law firm. Very interesting network. I could wait to find out how it worked outside theory.

I turned my head to look at the door when it opened. Another student showed up late, and I recognized him right away. Soldier boy! (pronounced Soulja Boy). Pine. For almost 4 years this boy had been one of my enemies. But right now, he couldn’t even recognize me. My pride would have been hurt if it was not because I looked nothing like my old self from back then. I wasn’t surprised much when he explained his reason for being here. I turned my face back to the Blonde. I would keep my mouth shut for now until I had something interesting to say.

[Bix]

The Plot Thickens

And the stalker appears

So that was it. Connections. That was what she wanted. She wanted to be the connector. The little long lego piece that connected the rest. But, of course. That was if you wished to be connected. Bix supposed that may not have a choice. Very TV drama. But, that was the way some people worked. Thrusting upon people not the choice. But the connection instead. However. Bix was unsure if she was interested at all. Would she? Did she need such a thing? She was unsure that was important. Unsure it was needed. What could this woman do for Bix. The blue haired witch mused.

Tilting her head. Slightly to the side. Her hand lifted. To brush the bangs back off her face. But as the move made. The door opened. Sapphire orbs looked up. Curious. And they widened. Surprise written. Upon her normally unexpressive face. For there was Pine. A slow grin crossed her face. Eyes following him. Watching where he sat. Close enough to her. Though the other one. The one that had been here before. Quiet he was. Slid his chair closer. Forcing her eyes from Pines'. As she had made contact.

Intrigued she was with Pine. Always with her. Always there. And yet, it seemed they were never alone. Fate willed they could not have a moment. Of peace. To get to know one another. But she could not change that. Unless she asked him to meet her. Perhaps that was the way. Yet, she did not. Want to seem over eager. Sapphire orbs shifted to the one beside her. The one that had as of yet not spoke. A gentle nod in his direction. Before her attention returned to her paper. Doodling again.

"A pleasure as always."

Her eyes flashed as those words were spoken. Up to Pine's eyes. Another slow grin, allllmost a smile. It seemed. Each time that her grin warmed closer. Closer ever still to a smile. It was abnormal. For her to smile. Especially since she had long ago. Parted herself with those emotions. Yet he. This one man seemed to be .. awakening her. A slightly bigger quirk to her lips. A bit of shimmer upon her eyes. But down again they went. Back to Bix. Her eyes upon her paper. Pen doodling. Listening for further information. Either from Pine. Or from blondie.

[Valencia Donahue]

When Pine entered the room, Valencia winced as though she expected Alexander to crack down on her. If she knew what Pine was up to, it was probably just as bad. With an annoyed sigh through her teeth, the Asian wished she didn't excuse Lorelei or had another Network-established member stuck in detention so the door will be watched from the outside. There was no point in having the cameras down in the library if she was still going to feel a tad paranoid. One of these days she'll “escort” Malcolm around the campus while he “contributes to society by fixing up the cameras”... Valencia received Pine's slip and didn't know if she could trust him to continue or backtrack her explanation of the Network, so his smile was met by one of her trademark lifeless stares.

Has a familiar aura... What's his face... Malikai? Or Vince? They're both “cheerful”... And somewhat annoying despite their supposed intellectual natures... This guy, whoever he is, just got marked.

Valencia didn't want to leave Nicky Lee suddenly in the dark after revealing a glimmer of hope, so the librarian set her derision aside and continued. She'll figure something out and deal with Pine later if he poses as a threat to her undertaking. A lilt to her original tone made its way into her response.

“Oh hell no on the drugs. It's like a policy. No drugs or porn because if anyone, especially me, gets caught with any of that, we kiss our freedoms goodbye. The idea is if we have to get caught with anything, it better be small so the time is short and we can continue with our business once we serve it. Besides, sometimes we turn those people in to get in the good graces of the administration: Someone else gets caught while we're off the hook, they bust whom they want to keep the status quo, everyone is happy.”

Her gaze wandered over to John and then to Pine as he settled beside Bix. Valencia then looked to Ken continuing to curiously gaze at Bix's paper and Malcolm in the back, typing random things on the monitor-teleprompter that she definitely didn't want to read aloud. Very rude things that were deleted when Valencia gave Malcolm the “I know you have a point, but you don't have to put it THAT way” look. Still, as she returned her attention to the new blood in detention, things were getting a bit disappointing fast.

What am I, a TV!? Give me something to work with!

“If you have nothing to offer, I have nothing to offer you. Equivalent exchange, simple as that. Besides, I can't just give away everything I know for free and it says something when people aren't willing to risk speaking out at the very least. I like working with people with initiative, see, and the Network has no leaders. Like the Internet.”

As straightforward as you can get and it's true—The Network has no leaders and hell, Valencia was just one out of many who uses the Network for personal gain. Valencia assumed that Nicky was on the Network's side now, so she'll tell her the more interesting stuff some other time. The moment detention ends, Nicky's resources will be nearly limitless. At the moment though, the Vietnamese stunt woman was dealing with people who just wanted their own interests filled.

“Still, as mentioned earlier, who's to say if I do have something to offer if I don't know who I'm offering to? What are you guys interested in? What do you guys want? And have you been succeeding in your endeavors?”

Great. Now we're getting Schrondinger's Cat involved. You never know if something's there unless you check.

[pinefresh]

(OOC: wow I think I was distracted when I wrote this so if my original post makes no sense my edit should be better.)

~Why you sneaky little bitch, that is absolutely awesome.~ Pine thought as he listened to Valencia outline her guidelines before he sat down near Bix.

He was probably only a seat over from where Bix sat but he could still see her looking at him and grinning. It was as if his presence brightened up her day or something. Then again Pine had that affect on people. Especially young troubled women. They seemed to be attracted to him. Considering his current relationship with Nyra that could be a bit of a problem. He had to admit though, he was quite curious when it came to the strange blue haired girl. Bix chose to play with her language than just use a proper grammar and sentence structure. She chose to dress however she wanted. She only seemed to eat an endless amount of candy. She was perhaps the most interesting person he had met with the exception of Ein. Pine doubted that there was anyone who could top Ein's mind. Bix was definitally a close second place. When Bix spoke he returned her words before inquiring to Valencia.

"Likewise. Now if only we could meet under better circumstances. It seems that everytime we run into each other it is due to some sort of confrontation. Perhaps it is something we both need to work at." He said then looked at Valencia.

He was unsure of what to say. Had he gone to Vic with just the small amount he heard outside the door he would have been ripping out Valencia's throat right now. Not only that but Vic would make sure he got off with a slap on the wrist for it. The main problem here was that Pine had no idea how deep any of the people went. For all he knew at least four of them were here from the beginning and he doubted all four of them would fall to his abilities. He would no doubt be able to drop the computer nerd, the dude that was looking over Bix's shoulder, Bix (but he would rather not hurt her), other then that he was unsure. Those particular three were close enough to strike hard and fact to provide shock sufficient to provent immediate reprisal. Valencia and the other girl were too close to the door and John was too big to take on when there were other possible opponents. He doubted Nicky would do anything but run at the first sign of a fight. The way she averted her eyes pegged her automatically as one of the scared little lambs that plagued this school.

No, in this circumstance Pine would have to be careful. One little slip could mean the difference between walking out of this room and being found by the night janitor cleaning the room at 3am. He was unsure what he could gain from these people but perhaps he could use this entire situation to his advantage. Maybe, just maybe he could use this network and gain information for himself. He could use it to find supporters for Genaht. He could use it to fuel Genaht and bring it back to full strength.

"Well Miss Valencia Donahue from what I heard outside the door and from what I hear from you now it seems you have a little information ring going. That is quite a big stunt for a former stunt woman don't you think? You aren't playing a game where there is a safety crew to save you, you are playing with people that will kill you. However an old friend of mine, Malikai, said you could be trusted. You might remember him 5'10, Italian accent, multi-colored hair... I'm sure you get the idea. I met him the other day and he retuned this too me."

Pine twirled the arm bracelette carried by members of Genaht around his index finger. What Pine was not going to mention was that he was charged by Ein to return the gang to full strength in Hircine. He to beat back the trouble brewing here and that at Paragon. He was going to show the sheep the strength of the wolf in true form. If he played his cards right he might even end up with some useful allies.

"My question to you is, what can you offer me? I can offer you information on most of the old Varronite's. I can also offer you information that Vic has which you cannot get. She seems to think she can trust me, as if by doing so she can 'save' me and the school. Of course such things will cost you information as well." He said and leaned back in his chair.

~Oh and it may cost you your life but that is a story for another time~

[Valencia Donahue]

((OOC: @@; Well, Nicky did give a heads up~ Until she returns, I don't think we're going to have her miss too much. Pardon the whole "ignore everybody but the person being spoken to"-ness!))

“Part-time. I still do stunts, but not often as I would if I was in Southern California.”

...Valencia added when Pine mentioned that she was former stunt woman. To any other person, it's just a small correction. To others who know her or may come to know her, it's one of the more subtle yet direct ways of her expressing that she's always risking her life doing potentially life-threatening things. Either it's on a set or in a world where people are already conspiring to kill her, with and without her knowing. This is who they're dealing with. She blinked at the mention of a familiar name.

Speak of the devil.

If memory serves, Malikai was a young man of initiative and judging by Pine's aura and the way he's carrying himself, he wasn't much different. Valencia likes initiative. It shows that the person can get around and in her books, that's always, ALWAYS much better than the strongest guy in SanFran whose reputation grows stagnant with each passing month and tournament. Strength is still a plus though. She felt flattered that Malikai didn't speak ill of her during his absence, but a few other things left bigger impressions on her. Where has Valencia seen that bracelet before? That thought quickly left her mind when Pine then brought up Vic. As in Victoria. Victoria Alexander, the principal Valencia didn't like because of difference in opinion. The Asian was probably jumping to conclusions out of mental panic again, but Pine referring to Alexander on a less formal level gave her enough to assume that he had connections.

This is bad... Yet, he's offering me information? What kind of connection does he have with her, anyways? Well, at least this guy is on the same page as me. Alexander can't save this school with fairy rings and kumbaya. I have little need for information on the remaining Varron transfers at the moment... Save for like, two.

Then, after a good amount of incubation, it hit her. The bracelet reminded her of Genaht. Was Pine even aware that Genaht already has a decent foothold in the Network? Sure, they aren't as established as the school newspapers and other regulars, but for outsiders, they're more likely to access the Network's unlimited stores of information and services... If they just asked. For once since Pine's entrance, she felt reassured. She can trust Pine. She can trust Genaht. It isn't the first time she trusted that gang.

That is a good question... What can I offer you...? I'm certainly not the only “good” Network member... But...

“Of course, of course. Everything comes with a price. Information-wise, I'm currently working part time at the Paragon Institute. While I'm technically a librarian's assistant with nearly complete reign of the library and records here at Hircine, I'm a librarian over there... As well as occasional substitute. While I'm not as familiar over there as I am here, certain information is more accessible for me there than here. Service-wise, think of me a Jill of all trades. It's just a matter of who hires me first, for what deed, and for what price... Being a graduate with Network experience has perks that separate me from the competition.”

[Bix]

--OoC: Hope your back soon, Nicky. Take care
Pine, if you mind what I do, let me know, I"ll edit--

Touch

The Mind Wanders

Boredom. It seemed to permeate the room. Of course. It was detention after all. It was boredom. Boredom incarnate. However still. Pine was here. While the girl would never admit to crush. She did enjoy seeing him. It seemed they were destined to know one another. Fate decided. It was pulling their strings. Her blue eyes wandered to his. Locking there. As he spoke her grin grew more pronounced. To an almost smile. The closest yet. It seemed every time they met. Their eyes connected. She got closer to real emotion. Closer to showing him. Perhaps that someone lay behind the blue hair. The Witch. The girl that had strange answers. The vague one.

"Indeed. A rendevous, we should create."

The teacher spoke. Once more. And while Pine spoke as well. She would lean forward. Placing her spiral down. Her pen on top. Doodles for all to see. Nothing much. Random lines. thick and thin. Curved and straight. An interesting collection. Leaning closer to Pine. Her pale hand extended. It was ungloved. As she was inside now. And inside she did not have to fear sunlight. Tilting her head to the side a bit. Her bangs shifted. Leaning her body to the side. Her spare hand. The left. Rose. Placing on her neck. Letting her weight lean into it. Elbow on the table. But her right. Her right hand was Rogue.

Moved across to where Pine sat. His hand there. Close. Bored. And yet listening still. Even if she didn't seem to be. Her hand took his. Her fingers playing with his fingers. Lifting them. Tracing the lines in his palm. Reading them. The fingers. Seeing the fingerprints. Tracing them with her thumb nail. Her eyes. Were on her hand. On his hand. Playing with the callouses, scars, and anything that was on his hand. Unless he pulled it away that was. Which. She hoped he wouldn't.

[Nicky Lee Young]

(Not much of a post, sorry)

Content with Valencia's answer, she was in then. Nicky was much too impulsive to stop and think about this more. Most people would prod for more info, possibly, or even be a bit wary of joining something. All it took for her was being excused from trouble-making and she was on board. Whatever other perks there were would just be frosting on the cake. To be honest, she wasn't sure what she was set up for, but she didn't really care. She didn't even bother to think about what these sometimes-not-so-legal tasks could be. Mostly because it excused her from class and anything that stole her away from the soothing sounds of Math Class was fine by her.

When Pine and Valencia began to speak with eachother, Nicky would pull out her cell from her pocket. It'd been vibrating against her hip for a while and it was becomming uncomfortable. She hadn't tuned out what was going on around her however, but while listening quietly was something she was good at, it got boring quickly. Even if there were interesting facts and info being spoken. Her eyes read over the message she'd gotten, and her eyes widened in surprise.
'Nowey?'

U let mice loose in the school?? Naughty, naughty.

Nicky Lee would sense a bit of panic then. If anyone could black-mail her with this, her darling sister could.

Pls, don't tell mom.

At the mention of working at Paragon, Nicky's lips parted a bit in surprise. The mere mention of that place made her heart race. Not out of fear, because she hadn't had any encounters with Paragon students, but perhaps excitement? There was something about a rough 'n tough school full of kids with serious issues that was almost...fascinating. She could only wonder what the state of the school was like. Broken everything, probably.

Buzzz

1 of those things passed by me! You'll owe me big if I don't tell, you brat.

Charming.

Fine.

Send.

John had been rather quiet to this point, and Nicky couldn't help but look down at him curiously. She figured she could probably say something to him, seeing as he was nice enough to strike up conversation with her earlier. Just...what to say?
"Are you considering it?" Nicky would say rather quickly, almost in a whisper. Her eyes would be directly on him, so if John had decided to look at her to make sure she was actually talking to him, it would be painfully obvious. "Being Network-i-fied, I mean."

She'd give a smile, obvious shyness comming across. Her mind nagged at her. It told her that maybe he didn't want to be bothered. But it was too late now. The worst he could do was...what was the worst he could do? Crap. Don't start thinking about it.

[John Smith]

I'd give Pine a curious glance when he spoke. When you gave the subject some thoughts, then you would notice that old Varron students had taken some pretty heavy roles. Two students had become principals at Hircine, one had up to recently, held the title as school captain, several of his pillars were former Varron students as well. Hircine infrastructure was littered with the best of the best of Varron students.

And I know for certain, that each and one of them, have been my enemy in the past.

Despite my knowledge of Paragon, the blonde told me something new, that she was a librarian. That meant if her Network was as established as she said, then her knowledge about Paragon should be extended beyond the smallest of things. If she had the information I sought, then I might be lucky and find supporters against Tai and his title. When I thought about the things I had to do, I felt stressed. My mental to-do list was also swamped, especially now that I had been told about this secret Network.

I still stayed quiet. Knowing that I would get more information by sitting here and keeping quiet, but someone would disturb me. And I turned and looked at Nicky Lee. The Saviour of Mice. That was a good question. Would I sign up for this? I could see some benifits from it, but whenever I wanted knowledge, I would at the same time let them know what my plans concerned. It was a double edged sword.

”Network-i-fied?” I said with a minor chuckle. ”I think so. It sounds pretty interesting and it might benefit me. What about you? Nicky Lee right?” I said, with added pressure on the Lee part. ”Do you intend to free more mice in the name of the Network?” I had half of a grin on my face. Perhaps she would get the joke, perhaps she wouldn't.

[pinefresh]

(OOC: Welcome back Nicky)

~So it was that easy~

Pine was confused as to why it would be that easy. He expected Valencia to be more evasive. He expected her to get defensive and show more weariness toward him. Instead he was getting cooperation and trust. A ploy was what it seemed likely but Pine had enough information to change that very quickly. Besides, if Victoria were to ask what was going on he would simply say he was infiltrating. As he told Valencia, information cost information and that was all there was too it.

"Well Valencia, I have some information that may be of interest to you." Pine looked at each person before turning his gaze back on her. "That information is for your eyes only though as it affects only you."

As Pine finished talking he felt a soft hand take his and begin to play with it. His eyes shot to the side to see what was going on. His head did not turn but his eyes locked on the offender. It seemed Bix was playing with his hand. His eyes returned to Valencia as he was not done talking to her. He would ignore Bix and her actions for now and return to it at the appropriate time.

His mind was split between what he was to say to Valencia and what Bix was doing. In truth he had no idea what was going on and it was driving his mind into chaos. He was confused as to how to react. His original reaction was not to react. Now that his mind was beginning to process what might be going on and he had no idea what to do. Did he pull his hand away or let her continue to play with it? The better question was did he mind?

That was the ultimate question at hand, did he mind. The blue haired girl was strange and seemingly problematic. She never spoke a sentence that would be deemed proper, she showed no real emotion, she was truly a rare person. Her rarity is what made her attractive. She was like no one he had ever encountered. The blue haired girl was a mystery he really did want to explore.

There was of course that little voice in his head that always nagged him. It asked him 'what about Nyra?' The truth to that matter was he really didn't know about that one either. He was really conflicted at the moment and now was not the time for him to have such thoughts. He needed to concentrate, it was hard to do that with Bix playing with his hand.

Pine's hand snapped shut around Bix's fingers, quickly but gently. His intention was to stop her from tickling his hand but not to harm. He felt funny doing such a thing, it felt wrong and right at the same time. His attention was shot to John who had just chuckled. He knew that sound, he had heard it many times before. Only Kvist sounded like that. Pine hoped it was really just his overactive imagination and not the truth.

"What type of files do you exactly have access to?" Pine asked and released Bix's hand so she could continue playing with his if she wanted.