Sigh no more (OPEN)

Contrary to what anyone might believe, Joshua was actually fond of the rain. He didn't fear the little droplets of water, for unless there was a flood he was doubtful he would drown because of them, and so he could appreciate the way they splashed across the skin and left a strange but pleasant smell after they departed. So when he decided to go out that day and realised that it was going to rain, the Fire graduate didn't even decide to invest in an umbrella. Hell, it wasn't like he needed one. Josh had enough stamina to keep a sort of heat cloak around himself for a little while--it wasn't heavy enough manipulation to drain quickly. It wasn't useful for much but to keep the droplets from hitting his skin, it was just something he could do if it was raining and he didn't want to get soaked. Right now, however, he couldn't care less if it started raining on him. He glanced up toward the sky and surveyed the clouds curiously, deciding whether or not they looked like the kind that could produce showers. I've never been good at this, he remarked dryly to himself. It was true--he'd never be a great weatherman, that was for sure. He guessed that he'd find out when it started to rain; or, alternatively, when it didn't.

He was just taking a leisurely walk through the grounds when a scene nearby caught his attention--someone slammed into a slightly familiar figure and knocked him down, then quickly departed before anything else could occur. Not even an apology. His gray eyes flicked back to the sky and he felt the first curious drops of rain break across his skin, but he was more interested in the Earth elemental at the moment. "Leo, right?" He approached the fallen boy and stuck out his hand in a silent offer of assistance. Joshua might have been an older Fire student but he wasn't always a complete asshole. He knew this guy from a couple of times when they'd interacted in the library, but he'd never really held much of a conversation with him before. It was more friendly acknowledgement of one another's presence. He knew that this guy came into the library just as often as he did and so they had something in common if nothing else. "Should have watched where you were going." It wasn't a snide remark, more like he was stating a fact. It wouldn't have happened if the other elemental had known someone was coming, after all. That didn't mean that the other person was in the right--they should have looked where they were going--but even still.

Picking up the fallen book from the ground, Joshua passed his hand over it and the air shimmered for a moment as he let out a pulse of heat. "You should put it back into your bag," he remarked with another glance at the sky, screwing up his expression as the raindrops assaulted his face and shaking his head slightly. "Wouldn't want it to get soaked again--is it a library book?" He looked back at Leo as he spoke, curiosity in his tone. He knew that Leo spent a lot of his time in the library but it was also possible that this book was from a personal collection. Josh wouldn't be surprised, seeing as he had an entire library back home. Or... did. He supposed it belonged to his father now, and the thought made him bitter. All of his things, all of his possessions--in order to stop thinking about it, he forced himself to concentrate on conversation. "You're an Earth kid?" He used the word 'kid' lightly--it wasn't implying that the guy was immature, it was just a figure of speech. He thought that Leo was in Earth but he'd never actually asked, just heard something from a classmate and had wondered whether or not it was true. Josh never put much stock in rumours.

Well, the other boy recognised his name. Joshua didn't know whether this was a good thing or not. Sometimes people knew his name simply because they cared enough to recall it and others knew it thanks to rumours and scandalous things that spread amongst the Academy. Leonard didn't seem like the type of person that really listening to things like that but Josh was not a trusting person. He wouldn't believe that you were a good person until you'd proved it to him--usually several times before he was satisfied with his decision. "Their loss," he remarked, holding out a hand and watching as the drops assaulted his palm, little rivulets of rainwater running down the creases of his hand and down toward the centre. "It's just a little rain." Already the air smelled clearer, like the water had come to wash away all evidence of anything else. He didn't know why he liked the rain so much. Joshua didn't question his likes and dislikes all that often. If he enjoyed something then he did, and if he didn't, well, that was too bad.

Josh dipped his head in acceptance of the thanks when Leo gave it, then said, "Don't mention it." He might not have been the nicest person in the world but he had his occasional moments. No one could be an asshole all of the time, it was tiring and it really wore itself out after a while. Besides, Joshua had no reason not to lend his assistance. He had fire and he liked books just as much as Leo did, so it was really helping them both here. He didn't want the book to be ruined even if it wasn't his, even if he'd never read it before in his life. "Neat trick," he commented, gesturing to the way that Leonard had manipulated the flower. Of course, Josh was used to the students that the Academy population had nicknamed the 'flower children'. His girlfriend was practically a stereotypical flower kid through and through. And he'd certainly spent enough time around them during the war, even if he tried not to dwell too much on that. It was dying down after so long, but there were still a few residual tensions.

Chuckling, Joshua nodded. "Without a doubt." He was also a college student, which was why the heat bent to his will. To demonstrate his own power beyond just drying the book, Joshua focused his central power and let the heat spread outward, upward, encircling them like a dome. He strengthened this dome around the edges and then increased the heat around the outer ring until suddenly, it was as if the rain had stopped. It hadn't really--hissing noises and a cloud of steam revealed that he was just counteracting the little droplets with his fire. But it was a draining task, and he released his hold on the pyrokinesis after a while, taking a deep breath. He felt a bit of a head rush as the energy left him, but it wasn't enough to be detrimental.

Glancing in the direction where the other person had dashed off, he asked, "Did you know them?" It was a possibility that he did, but it was also completely plausible that he might not. Some people were just jerks no matter how nice of a person you were in return, no matter whether you knew them or not.

He gave an absent sort of nod at Leonard's question, paying more attention to the rain as it showered from the sky but still being polite and listening nonetheless. Joshua had the capacity to be nice if he wanted and it was usually the Earth students that got this special treatment over any other element. They'd been nice to him and so he was returning the favour in kind. "Yeah," he agreed verbally. It was nice. It was a bit ironic when you considered his phobia but of course as no one knew about the phobia save for Nell, there was no knowledge to consider it. He preferred it that way. Josh was a guy of few words and many secrets. He kept things to himself and allowed others to do the same and he also enjoyed the silence, which was the reason he adored the library so much and also the reason that he didn't mind how quiet Leo was being. The Earth kid was a quiet guy and Josh of all people could understand that.

Of course, their silences were of a different kind. Josh was confident and dominant in his personality. If he really wanted to speak his mind to someone he would do so without hesitation. His lack of friends was not because people saw him as a coward or some sort of nerd but because he was a very difficult person to get along with. Like all Fires he had anger issues and he was very volatile in personality. One moment he could be conversing with you as normal and the next he'd be ready to rip your head from your shoulders. Figuratively, of course. Josh was violent but not murderous. He wondered briefly what Leo thought of him but pushed the thought from his mind--Josh didn't ask those sorts of questions. He returned the second thanks with a nod. He also wasn't someone that dished out compliments so if he praised someone for something it usually meant that he was being genuine. He could also appreciate power and skill in his enemies, but of course in that case he would never tell them aloud. He did not see Leo as either friend nor foe at the moment--it was more of a neutral acceptance of presence.

He couldn't quite call it tolerance. That was a word usually used to indicate an acceptance of someone who you didn't really like but wouldn't start problems with. Leo was too good of personality to really be on Josh's bad side. He just hadn't earned the trust of the Fire elemental enough to be called friend yet. Maybe in time. Apparently Leonard didn't know who had ran into him and Joshua's eyes narrowed in the direction that they'd retreated. "Tch," he muttered, his distaste apparent. If someone ran into him and tried to run off he'd probably hit them with a good old blast of fire or at least call after them that they were a coward. He didn't like people who ran away. Of course, sometimes that was the best thing to do. If you didn't run from those stronger than you it wouldn't be surprising if you got your ass handed to you. Joshua found himself thinking of Jane and then he immediately wished he hadn't. That woman filled his thoughts with rage. She could have crushed him if she wanted to. He wondered what element the person who'd buggered off had been. Maybe they were just an asshole, rather than weak. Either way, Josh didn't really approve of their methods.

"Where were you headed?" he asked suddenly of Leo, turning away from the empty space of the grounds and arching an eyebrow in a questioning manner. He figured that the rain had caught the Earth boy a little off guard--unless he'd intended for the book to get soaked? Josh wasn't sure and that was why he'd decided to ask. It didn't seem like too much of a personal question and so he didn't have qualms against asking it.

Joshua nodded but didn't really know what else to say in response. He was not too similar to Leonard in personality--Joshua really couldn't care less about how many people there were in a library as long as they didn't disturb his studying by talking to one another in loud, carrying voices. He didn't really like crowds but it was more for the reason that he hated feeling like sardines in a can than shyness. Josh was not shy, he just wasn't social. But he could also understand that some people just didn't get along well with others because they were socially awkward. He'd never been the sort of person to bully someone just because they couldn't hold a conversation without getting flustered, nervous, or quiet. Maybe the gang had been like that but he'd never really been akin to them anyway. Joshua had tried his best to fit in with their group just so that he could have somewhere to land. Look at how well that had worked out for him. He'd nearly been in serious trouble with the law at only fifteen and he had a myriad of scars to prove that he was a snitch. Thank goodness they hadn't carved the letters into his skin or anything like that.

He was mildly surprised by the return of the question but did not show it, merely frowned for a moment as he considered how he might answer. "Nowhere in particular," the Fire elemental shrugged, seemingly at ease. He was telling the truth after all. Even if he'd been lying it probably wouldn't have been evident. He was good at lying. He might not always have gotten away with it but after lying about your past for several years you sort of got used to hiding the signs. He had no reason to fib about his whereabouts or his intended ones at the moment, though. "Just fancied some air. There's a lot of that out here, you know." His sarcastic reply was not meant as a ribbing remark toward Leo. It was almost as if he was joking but of course unless he trusted you enough to open up it was not always apparent that Joshua was trying to be friendly. Leo might take it the wrong way but then again he might be able to deduce from the simple fact that Joshua had never been too much of an asshole before that his intentions were not ill. Or, at least, not as ill as those of the guy that had banged into him and ran off into the rain.

He was not a very chatty guy and Josh was alright with that, though he couldn't help but wonder if this was his shy side coming out or if he just didn't feel like talking. He didn't know the Earth elemental well enough to make those kind of judgements. Joshua might have just walked away if it had made sense to do so at this point in time but he didn't really have anything else to do besides stand out here in the rain and talk to this guy. It was a bit of a boring pastime, even he could admit that, but at least it was better than walking out here alone. "You Earth elementals are too nice," he said almost conversationally, not even bothering to hide the smirk that indicated he was about to start teasing again. His methods of teasing were usually snide and sometimes even rude but Josh didn't mean anything (too) ill by them. "If someone did that to me I'd have chased them down and punched them in the face." Maybe not. Or perhaps he really would have. It all depended on whether or not Joshua had been having a good day. A lot of things for Josh depended on his mood.

Group projects were an area where Joshua and Leonard differed greatly. Whilst Leo did all the work and allowed his partners to take credit, Joshua did all of the work and informed the teacher that the others in the group were lazy bastards that didn't deserve their credit. Josh could be deadly in a group scenario. As long as someone did their best and pulled their own weight in a project with him he would leave them be and maybe help them out with their contribution if they asked nicely but if they thought they could slack off they were wrong. As a matter of fact, Joshua didn't work well in a group under most setting. Sports were also a huge problem. He could play tennis because it was just you versus your opponent. You and a friend versus two opponents if you played doubles. But team sports baffled and confused him. He didn't take orders well and he was a bit too selfish to always be thinking about passing the ball to other team members for a better goal. It was a good part of the reason he'd been kicked off the soccer team when he was younger. Well, that and the fact that the coach had noticed his lack of enthusiasm. Joshua was not only a loner in the Academy, he was a loner in personality and by choice. He had a few people with whom he could get along and that was about it.

Joshua blinked at the Earth boy, hardly believing what he had heard. He... doesn't get it, does he? Never before had he met someone who'd had a joke that obvious fly over their head. He understood when people didn't quite comprehend the punchlines of the stupid or complicated jokes but that one had just passed Leo by like a jet plane in the slow lane. "That's not what I--" Deciding that it didn't matter anyway, Joshua just shook his head. He wasn't going to bother standing here and explaining the joke to Leo. Josh didn't do that kind of thing, it wasn't his fault the Earth kid had a rather oblivious sense of humour. "Never mind." Besides, it was funny to think that Leo hadn't understood. He probably thinks that I'm the idiot. The thought was pretty entertaining. It was like Josh pointing out that the sky was blue or the grass was green. It was an obvious fact of life that most people just accepted. Joshua knew a lot of 'dork' jokes as well, but he wasn't going to bother with those in case they passed over Leo as well. He didn't want the guy to think he was some kind of crazy.

Blinking at him, Josh said, "Hey, I'm no hippie wanderer. I was just bored." He usually liked to have a destination or a goal in mind. Joshua was a personality contented best by having something to work on or something to occupy his attention. He couldn't sit on the couch and veg out for hours. He could go on walks and stuff like that but the destination was usually just a certain direction. He wasn't comfortable with the whole aimless thing. Joshua grinned almost sadistically at Leo and stepped forward. "What, am I too aggressive for you?" Though he was only messing with him, Joshua feinted a punch in Leo's direction, pulling his fist back before he made contact and did any real damage. For all he knew Leo might have taken this seriously as well but Joshua didn't mean any harm. He just had a bit of a violent sense of humour sometimes. He could also be rather insensitive to those he did not know well. He could adapt to peoples habits and fears overtime but he was never good at sensitivity with his acquaintances or new friends.