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Post by TAYLOR THE CANADIAN on Dec 26, 2011 23:30:50 GMT -5
You have until January 2nd to make your first posts. Failure to do so will result in the locking of this thread and your disqualification from the event.
Once the place holder posts have been made, the thread will remain until it has gone inactive naturally (one month with no posts) or it is completed.
Have fun!
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 27, 2011 19:33:21 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
How did I get myself into this? Lark stared at herself in the mirror for quite a while, feeling worn down and frustrated. It had been about a month since her mother left for Hawaii, and although life was a lot smoother without her Lark could not help but wonder what may have happened had she moved back to her home state. Although being here was nice, and she had Josh and Sam, it did get rather lonely and boring. She was not a social butterfly by any means and more often than not her aggressive personality chased away any potential friends, but even so Lark could not help but feel like she should have more people around than just Sam and Josh. They must get tired of her after a while. Heaving a sigh, she dressed up in her normal attire save for wearing her black zip-up hoodie and a billed beanie, which was her only (and favorite) hat. It was time to try and branch out, even if this was a Valentine's Day event.
After about half an hour of walking to the school, she arrived at the main doors with a rather sour expression on her face; not only was it cold as hell outside, but the fact that she actually was going through with this made the girl feel rather foolish. Only desperate people went to these blind date ordeals, right? Lark was never much of a desperate person, even when it came to the attentions of the friends she already had. Did she want to talk to them and keep track of how they were doing? Of course she did, but like her both of them kept a lot of things private and it left little room to chat and support one another the way most friends do. Lark did notice that she had changed somewhat over the past month or two--it was not too noticeable by her (probably because she refused to see it) but others around the school saw the differences. The brunette appeared to be more subdued and not as bothered by the things that used to send her into a rage. It bothered her. She hated it. No matter how hard she tried to find a sense of normalcy within herself, nothing happened. I'll just wait it out and things should go back to the way they were. Lark did not quite believe it, but it was best to hope.
Glancing around to see if any familiar faces would catch her going inside, she opened the door and felt the warmth of the academy hit her in the face. Quickly Lark adjusted her hat and walked into the mess hall--there were quite a few people inside, although not everyone was present. Her eyes scanned the room for a brief moment before seeing a few empty tables, and made her way towards them. There were place holders on each table stating the names of the two people who would sit there, and Lark grew slightly nervous. Who would they have paired her up with? What if they were an Earth elemental or a Water? Surely they would not torture her like that. Lark knew that a few of them were good people and did not mind passing them in the hall, but she could not recall having any sort of decent conversation with one. Finally, after meandering for a minute or two, Lark found her name. Next to it was the name 'Ashton', and the girl wrinkled her nose in confusion. "Who the hell is that..." She muttered quietly, shrugging a little before sitting down and staring at the table. Part of her really hoped that, no matter who this person was, that things would go smoothly. She was in no mood for fighting or arguing or being shoved away.
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 27, 2011 20:33:45 GMT -5
Ashton still wasn't entirely clear on why he was doing this. A group of his friends had talked him into writing his name down but it was not until the event loomed on the horizon that he realised exactly what he had done—he was going to have to sit with someone he might not even know, might even hate by alliance, for an hour or however long they were kept in the mess hall. Ashton was not the type of person to dismiss blind dating as stupid but he had never considered himself the 'type' for it, especially not at his own school when he had half a chance of being paired with an enemy. This was even more dangerous for him because he was a leader. As long as she's not Fire. I don't think I could handle that. Asha seemed to enjoy prancing through the many layers of his mind. He was mostly over their break-up but he knew that he'd never be able to place the same trust in a Fire elemental that he'd given her ever again. He'd given her a chance and she'd absolutely shattered it so he wasn't up for round two. Ashton realised last-minute that he didn't even know if this was a formal affair. Though not usually a shy person, he felt almost bashful as he tapped one of the younger girls on the shoulder in the common room. "Er, you wouldn't happen to know anything about that thing they're doing for Valentines, would you?" She did not immediately answer him, busy applying a thick layer of lipstick. She was certainly dressed up. Did that mean that it was?
She chuckled. "No, sorry," she replied at last. She was polite and smiling as she said it, at least. Kindness was a staple in the Earth dormitories, especially between people who were not acquainted. They generally didn't have a reason to dislike you if they didn't know you, so they didn't. He liked it that way and returned the same courtesy. "I'm meeting my boyfriend out in the parking lot, we're going out for the night." She seemed like she was both bursting with excitement and trying to hide this from Ashton by acting casual. He smiled back and replied, "Thanks anyway. Good luck with your date." She smacked her lips together and then hurried out, leaving him confused. He didn't particularly want to dress up because the only thing remotely 'formal' he owned was the suit from prom. It wasn't that Ashton hated formal wear, he just didn't have enough money to invest in it barring very special occasions. He hadn't seen anyone wearing anything too fancy, at least. Reluctantly, he backed out of the dormitories while still wearing his every day attire—an opened brown sweater over a white shirt and light jeans. His shoes were the same scuffed and worn sneakers he always wore. He hoped they weren't judged too harshly by his partner.
Now a little worried about being judged, Ash took his time heading to the mess hall. He blinked at the mass of circular tables as he finally entered through the wedged-open doors and almost considered leaving, but didn't. It's just for fun, he convinced himself. I'm sure not everyone takes this stuff seriously. He was paranoid by the idea of 'dating' anyone considering how badly his last relationship had went and so he just hoped he didn't say or do anything stupid. After perusing the empty tables for a while, he realised that none of them had his name on. There were a few girls sitting along—and guys, of course, but he'd marked himself down as 'heterosexual'. Ashton didn't want to imagine how embarrassed and flustered he would be if they mixed it up. Hesitantly he approached the table of a bored-looking redhead. She flicked her gaze toward him but said nothing as he checked the name. 'David S.' was definitely not his name and so he moved on. And on. At last he found the partially occupied table, the girl sitting at it as yet unfamiliar to him. He had a name thanks to the placeholder, but that was it. "You're Lark?" he asked. He was glad that he didn't choke on his words as he sat down and offered her a slightly awkward but still polite smile. "I don't think we've met," he said, because he certainly didn't recognise the girl or her name. He would have introduced himself but he figured the little name card did that easily enough. The 'R' could have stood for anything but he just ignored that.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 27, 2011 21:09:49 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
Theroom was slowly coming to life as other students began to file into the room; some of them appeared rather eager by the looks on their faces, and others did not seem as thrilled. She wondered why they even dared show up in the first place if they were going to walk in looking absolutely miserable, but realized she probably acted the same way. Lark still pondered as to why she was even here, but that was a moot point now. Time to suck it up and try to make at least some sort of acquaintance. Time to let Samson and Joshua take a break from her presence for a little while. As her eyes scanned the room again, a few more people walked through the mess hall doors. A couple of girls, and another guy dressed just as plainly as she was. Instantly her brows furrowed. The earth leader? What the hell was he doing here? Lark had this preconceived notion that the leaders did not really succumb to events such as this for the fact that they were required to stick with their own element and ally, but perhaps she was wrong. The girl kept her eyes on him for a few moments as though subtly eager to see who it was he was paired with.
A minute passed by and still students continued to enter the room, looking for their blind dates. Some already found their tables and were chatting it up as though they had been friends for years. Lark would probably not be able to manage that, no matter who it was that wound up in the seat next to her. Lost in thought, the voice of a male startled her. She drew her eyes in the direction in which it came, and found herself face to face with none other than the earth leader himself. What the fuck? I should have known. It would be just my luck... All shock and flurry of weird emotions aside, Lark remained stoic and nodded to him cordially, smiling a little. "Yeah, that's me." Lark replied. She felt the urge to offer a hand, but refrained. This was the Earth leader for Christ's sake! Did they not recently end another war, leaving Lark to suffer for her friendship with Josh? The thought that maybe being friends with him would ease some sort of tension--if Josh was her ally, and Ashton's, then that could make things simpler. Maybe.
"I don't believe we've met either, even though I've seen you around," She stated simply. "You are the Earth leader, right?" It was easy for Lark to keep her emotions rather level, at least in this situation. If she reacted too harshly then everyone would suffer for it. Now was no time for her to be childish. Although the darker side of her smirked at the thought of instilling a bit of concern or fear into Ashton by simply being a fire elemental--most of the earthies were not very fond of her element. Instead of jumping headlong into the awkward discussion of being an enemy element, Lark merely cleared her throat and leaned back in her chair lazily, shoulders slumped and appearing rather masculine in posture. She was not very ladylike and did not give two shits who cared or not. It was comfortable. "If that's the case, I'm surprised you're here. A leader partaking in an activity that could put them in a situation with an enemy? Pretty bold, if you ask me." Her eyebrow rose up in question, her eyes sparkling a bit as she smirked.
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 27, 2011 21:34:26 GMT -5
As Ashton had never really taken attire into much account when he was judging a girl, the fact that the one he'd been paired with didn't exactly seem like the frills-and-lace type didn't bother him at all. He was not a judgemental person and had clearly shown to himself that he was a horrible judge of character no matter what and so he'd pretty much given up and resolved to let people show their own personalities. Giving people the benefit of the doubt was in his nature. He couldn't help it. "Uh, yeah," he said quickly, chuckling. He wondered if it was a bad thing that he was the Earth leader but didn't ask. He didn't want to turn this into an incredibly awkward situation only a couple seconds into their little 'date'. This was bizarre. They'd only met five seconds ago and he knew nothing about her besides her name. He knew that was the point of blind dating but it was still a new experience for him. He'd certainly dated girls before they were close friends but he'd usually taken a couple dates to actually get to know them before he made any sort of move. "Yeah, I am." He was not ashamed of his status as the Earth leader even if some people did see his element as the 'weakest' link. They were pacifists, they didn't necessarily try for the rough and tough approach.
He couldn't help but feel a little threatened by her statement, wondering exactly what she was getting at. He wasn't a guarded guy but there was something about the words that suggested a challenge. Oh geez. He almost didn't want to know what element she was in now that she'd said this but he'd promised himself he wasn't going to botch this and so he merely smiled. The disconcerted feeling showed a little in his emerald eyes, however—he'd never been really good at keeping his emotions a secret. He wasn't exactly the definition of an open book but he wasn't stoic, either. Feeling a bit like a deer in the headlights, he tried to push his worry aside for the time being. "My friends talked me into this, to be honest." By default, Ashton was a really honest person. It was hard for him to lie and if he was going to deceive someone he would generally just avoid the subject rather than fibbing about it. He was a terrible liar. When it came to Asha, he just glossed over everything. He'd never talked about her with (most of) his friends because their relationship hadn't lasted long enough for that. "I'm not here to start a fight anyway. I'm the Earth leader, remember?" He chuckled a little to show that he was joking, using their general pacifism as a basis for humour.
The question that he did not want to bring up still floated in the back of his mind and Ashton acknowledged that it was going to get out eventually whether he asked it or not. Might as well just get it over with. "Are you the enemy?" It would be more than a little awkward if she was. They could always just leave, he supposed. No one was stopping anyone from getting up and making their way to the doors. He wondered fleetingly whether he should have bothered showing up at all. Like it or not, Lark was right. This had been a risk he'd been taking. He wondered what his counterpart would think if she knew he'd been paired with an enemy and this worried him. Suddenly things were looking a lot less sunny. He was not afraid of Lark, didn't generally panic until someone clearly threatened him, but he was more than a little concerned about what this might mean for his position if people started spreading it around. This was a bad idea.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 27, 2011 23:11:21 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
Lark raised her eyebrow a bit; although she knew earthies were rather soft, she did not expect him to be the type to let his friends talk him into something like this. She had to admit though, that it was not half as pathetic as talking herself into joining this blind date ordeal. That meant she had no friends, and even if Lark did not mind being a bit of a loner she knew that having some sort of social life was healthy. In an attempt to keep things rather peaceful, if that was possible, she merely shrugged and smiled. "Could be worse I suppose." There was not much else to say on the subject, being as she had no friends and was not about to admit that she put herself here because she was lonely. That was just plain sad. At his joke about their pacifism, she did let out some sort of a chuckle even if it was rather dry. This situation went from awkward to awkward and tense in about five minutes flat, and all Ashton had to do was sit down at the table. She raised her hands and glanced at him as though raising a white flag. "No fights here, man. There's enough of that everywhere else anyway." She replied. At least not today. I'm not in the mood.
As if on cue from her earlier question, he became rather tensed up and appeared ready to take off and run. Lark had become accustomed to such actions and forced herself to care less. If he wanted to leave, then so be it; after all, if he was that eager to label her as an enemy without knowing who she was maybe it was better for the both of them. It was not as though they locked the doors and forced the students to stay inside until the 'date' was over. Even so, Lark could not help but feel this small pang of anger--not at Ashton or anyone in general, which was surprising. No, it was more at the fact that the girl could not even make an attempt at making friends with anyone, and when she did try they fucked her over and put her with the one person who would probably gladly turn heel and leave her sitting there. What a fucked up world it was.
Quickly the brunette raised an eyebrow, attempting to keep her emotions at bay. She laughed lightly and put her elbows onto the table, glancing out over the room before eyeing Ashton with a rather thoughtful gleam in her eye. "Depends on what you would define as an enemy, Ashton." Lark spoke rather softly, her teeth worrying the inside of her lower lip. "I mean, I'm just sitting here talking to you. Doesn't seem all that enemy-like to me. But...in regards to elements, I am a fire." She could walk away now and leave this behind, and never speak of this encounter every again, but the curious part of her wanted to see what would happen if she stuck around. If he left, fine. That was his problem. If I told him about Josh...what would that do? Was she really that desperate to keep someone around? That she would talk about Josh and...god...herself? How stupid. Pathetic. Ashton probably wouldn't care anyway, and might not even change his outlook on her. If he was one of those people that assumed that every fire and thunder was exactly the same, then there was no point in trying.
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 27, 2011 23:45:11 GMT -5
Admittedly, he felt a little relieved when Lark said that she was not going to start any fights. He might not have known her element but he was always glad to hear when someone planned to keep the peace. Even when it came to the Fires, Thunders, and hostile Winds, Ashton would much rather talk things out in a civil manner or at least agree to disagree as opposed to throwing down. Especially when they were in the middle of a mess hall during a staff-organised event. There were teachers everywhere to make sure nothing got out of hand and he was sure that any arguments or physical altercations would be quickly stopped. "That's good, I'm glad," he replied. "It's nice to meet someone with that decency." He did not sound bitter as he spoke. Ash was not a very bitter or resentful person—it could almost get sickening how nice he tried to be. He believed the best in people, he liked to give them chances, he didn't like to be in sour moods. His anger at Asha upon her return hadn't even lasted that long before he'd crumpled and she had really hurt him. He knew nothing about Lark and so he had no reason to be an ass about his opinions. Hell, he probably wouldn't have been even if he hated her, he'd just have walked out. He'd much rather avoid conflict, even if it got him called a pussy.
He waved a hand to show that she'd taken his statement wrong, or at least he thought she had. "I'm not saying you're being hostile, just wondering if we're meant to be getting along." Sometimes the alliances could be a pain. He understood why they were necessary and as the Earth leader he did his best to uphold them as loyally as possible but he hated when it ripped things apart. He'd had to hide things with Asha and eventually just not speak to her in school at all in order to keep his alliance from turning on him. Nell and her boyfriend had angered the alliances just by being together. He wondered how long he'd last before he slipped up and the Earth element cast him out—or at very least stripped him of his position. He didn't know if he could live with himself, with having his title ripped from him. Even the idea was worrisome. "But you're a Fire, huh? I guess we are meant to be at each other's throats." He sighed a little, regretting this. Lark didn't seem as bad as some of the Fires he'd met but Asha had been the same in the beginning. You trusted her and look where it got you. What if they're all the same?
Not that Earth elementals were any better. Nell had lied to him and a lot of others, too, concealing the fact that she was a fugitive and a murderer. Even the forgiving Ashton had been unable to stomach a conversation with her after that. He was uncomfortable with their situation but didn't say so, tried to keep it civil and at least some sort of normal. Lark hadn't done anything to him (yet) and so it would be rude to hold her to someone else's flaws. "I'm not going to start anything with you," he assured her, reaffirming this so that Lark knew her alliance wasn't going to change his personality on a dime. They shouldn't be talking—couldn't be friends and certainly couldn't be anything more. Ashton had learned his lesson there. But he also couldn't bring himself to be a jerk. Maybe if he was just... awkwardly civil as he was now, they could get through the hour without fucking something up. "We're not the only ones who got an unlucky draw, at least," he said, glancing around the hall for a moment. "My friend over there's with a Thunder. Geez, don't they look unhappy?" Their arms were crossed and they were glaring at one another. Water and electricity did not mix. Why don't they just leave? he wondered.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 28, 2011 0:35:56 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
Decency. It was not exactly the word she thought to hear coming from someone like Ashton, or anyone else for that matter. Since when was Lark ever considered a decent person? She was harsh, abrasive, and--until recently--had a fiery temper to match. Even Lark herself knew she was not quite decent, but let it slide anyway. It was not completely unwelcome. The girl cleared her throat a bit and looked at her lap for a moment. She wondered why the faculty of the school even had the idea of mixing elements together--what were they thinking? If they knew that opposing elements would be at one another's throats, then they should have put them with their allies instead. It was surprising to see that most of the tables were getting along just fine and there was no intense hostility or fights breaking out.
At his comment, Lark raised an eyebrow and drew her gaze towards him again. Although she liked her element (minus a few of the students in it) she did not understand what the whole ordeal with the alliances was about anyway. Now, people had these assumptions that because you were a fire you were completely incapable of making friends with an earth or water elemental. Or not necessarily incapable, but they set themselves up to feel it was morally wrong to do so. Lark's gaze hardened for a moment before sighing. "I don't base my compatibility with others on my elemental standing," Lark mused. "I personally think the entire alliance thing is bullshit. Have for a long while." She was not one to voice her opinions aloud so quickly, but Lark was that eager to try and make a conversation with someone. It had been too long. It did upset her that he made this assumption that they were supposed to be instant enemies. "People aren't meant to do anything they don't want to do. Besides, even if I wanted to be at your throat Josh would not appreciate it." The girl froze up for a moment before relaxing, trying to appear as though what she said was completely intentional.
It was difficult to talk about her friendship with Josh now, even though the war was over and she was conversing with an Earth elemental. He was on Joshua's side. It still felt really strange and Lark fought with regretting it. "Well, good. Because I'm definitely in no mood for that today." As she watched some of the other couples in the hall, she allowed her chin to rest on the palm of her hand. Her mind drifted briefly to Jack, and wondered if he would ever come back. He never said where he was going or left any note. He was just...gone. It hurt. The feelings she carried in her heart towards Jack were different from every one else, and it bothered her. Now she would never get to find out what the feeling was. As Ashton pointed out his friend's struggle, her dark eyes looked over in their direction and blinked. "Wow, and I thought I was a stiff. Sometimes Thunders aren't the best at conversation...although I'm pretty awful at it myself."
And that they weren't. Samson was pretty decent at it, but it took them a while to get to the point where they could really socialize with one another. Lark was rather social but her aggressive tendencies pushed people away before they could even get past that and towards the truly loyal person she actually was. Eventually she stopped watching them, her eyes trying to find anywhere else in the room other than looking at Ashton again. It surprised her that he was still sitting here and talking to her, let alone being civil. "Well, I haven't chased you off yet," Lark joked, although she was truly shocked beneath the calm expression on her face. "So I'm curious. What exactly do the leaders do? Just sit around and...lead? It sounds like a pretty heavy burden."
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 28, 2011 1:02:38 GMT -5
It was a little confusing, trying to figure out how to feel about her comment. On one hand, they were in agreement on the fact that people shouldn't judge books by their covers—or in this case, people by their elements. At the same time, Ashton was generally loyal to his alliance and it was almost like being insulted when she said that the alliances were 'stupid'. He was a leader and thus was expected to follow them. You didn't, though. Not all the time. Asha again. She didn't go away. No matter the fact that it didn't hurt to think of her any more, he was still bitter. Maybe it was for the best that the relationship had been so fleeting. Maybe life was trying to tell him something. It might not be a good idea to place such blind trust in people. He blinked at Lark and tried to harden his personality against her, not accept that she was as friendly as she seemed right off the bat. It was a lot harder in actuality than he'd thought it would be and now Ashton found himself wondering how the Thunders managed to be so judgemental and vindictive—wouldn't it get tiring after a while? Just be careful, he warned himself. He should at least be guarded, he knew that. She was the enemy, at least by alliance. Even if she thought the alliances were bullshit, there was always a chance she could be lying. Yet Ash didn't think that she was. It didn't feel like she was. It also hadn't felt like Asha would betray him, though, so it was a double-edged sword.
Deciding, nevertheless, that he wasn't too upset by the comment, Ashton shrugged. "It's the way it's always been." He didn't see the point of hating everyone just because you could but he also didn't see the point of rebelling against almost ancient traditions. He was sure Lark wasn't the first to be sick and tired of the alliances and she wouldn't be the last, but one thing over the years had remained constant—the alliances didn't go away. He vaguely remembered there being a history class on a brief time period without alliances that hadn't worked out but he'd fallen asleep in that class and could remember nothing else about it. He'd never been very good at History. He was pretty bad at Math and Theory of the Elements as well. Math was too boring and Theory was even worse. He hated studying elemental techniques when he was not allowed to actually practice them. It was teasing. "Josh? Dale?" Ashton was surprised out of his brief reverie by the name drop. He did not know of any other Josh's in their school but wanted to clarify in case he was wrong. It was not a terribly uncommon name and so he was just double-checking. "What's he got to do with it? Sure, he's on our side, but you've got your entire element backing you if you have problems with him." Ashton was generally confused and curious, unaware that Lark and Josh were friends and not enemies as he assumed.
Ashton glanced away from the dour couple and back at Lark as she spoke. "You're not too bad at it," he disagreed. He was not the type to spout lies about people just to boost their egos. Oh, Ashton would love to do that to brighten someone's day if he could, he was just too terrible of a liar to get away with it. Besides, wasn't it counter-productive when you lied to someone in order to boost their confidence? "Thunders, though... hmm..." He thought about that for a long moment and then blinked in surprise. "I don't really think I've talked to many, other than at leader meetings. And there, well, generally everyone talks over each other or no one talks at all." He laughed as certain memories came to mind and ran a hand through his brown hair. Oh, he remembered many meetings well. The ones during war were always the worst and the ones after it were generally a mixture of awkward and hilarious. During war you were lucky if you could pick single words out of the snapping and snarling but after them everyone was generally tense and silent as they tried to avoid breaching any treaties they might have had. "Pretty much, yeah," he admitted, chuckling. "It can get bad. When there's no war we mostly just try to keep our own element in line. Luckily for me the Earths are pretty docile." He wasn't trying to insult any other elements with this comment, though.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 28, 2011 12:49:18 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
Lark sighed, as though feeling rather defeated in her stand on the element strains in the school. "Yeah...yeah I know. I just don't like it." The more she pondered as to the reasoning behind her dislike for the rift between the elements, the more she became frustrated. Lark did not make friends easily, even when she tried, and although they were supposed to be enemies here Ashton was making civil conversation with her. Had he been a fellow fire, who knew where it would have ended up? Would they have lashed out because they took offense to something stupid, or perhaps not said much of anything at all (especially if he had been Thunder)? That was highly probable. The earth and water elements were friendly and social and although she was a bit rough around the edges they seemed to shrug it off a lot quicker than her own element and ally. This is all fucked up. Now she somewhat understood why Joshua was so quick to take their side, aside from Nell. Switching sides meant exile, but was it worth it?
At Ashton's comment, her train of thought broke off completely and she allowed herself to listen in. What, did he actually think she was enemies with Josh? Oh, well, that would make sense being as Lark never mentioned the fact that they were friends. It was somewhat of a relief, but even so she was tired of pretending their friendship never existed. Ashton could at least understand that somewhat, right? Lark dropped her arms a bit and crossed them on the table, dropping her chin slightly to avoid any gazes passed upon her. "He's no enemy of mine, Ashton," She murmured, allowing some of her hair to fall into her face. A small chuckle passed her lips. "More like he's one of my best friends. No matter his loyalty he will never lose that rank with me." If anything, that proved how strong Lark felt about her relationships, and was not the type of person to let go of something she felt was good for her. Sure, the two fires clashed from time to time but they had been friends for a long while and Lark was not about to let petty squabbles ruin that. "It's put me through hell, but it's worth it." Lark eyed him for a moment, wondering what his reaction was going to be.
It was odd, having a decent talk with an opposing element. The minute Ashton sat down Lark dreaded the moment when he would find out she was a fire and walk out of the room, but that moment never happened. Sure it was close to that point, but there he was talking to her. He did not have to. He probably shouldn't be. She should have left, too. So why are we still sitting here? The girl allowed her fingers to run through her hair a little. "Well, at least we aren't glaring at one another acting like two old grumps." She replied, smiling a bit. Lark rarely used her manners, but for her that was basically her way of saying 'thank you' without actually doing so. "Thunders...they are a different breed for sure. Some are decent but even I do not deal well with most of them. If that says anything." It had to suck being the leader of an element; not only was it unnecessary stress and work, but to deal with the opposing element leaders would be annoying. Lark would definitely be stripped of her position for decking one of them, and she could be sure of that. She listened as he talked, keeping her eyes focused on the table in front of them. "I'd hate to deal with that. I don't mind fighting if I have to but...God to live on the edge with them all of the time? I'd rather not."
Lark raised her eyebrows a bit and nodded in agreement, pursing her lips slightly. The earth's, although some of them irritated her beyond comprehension, were very laid back and took most of their lives in stride. That had to be why Josh found such comfort in Nell--she was accepting of his abrasiveness and did not respond so negatively when he lashed out. That was why she and Josh would have never worked out. They would be at one another's throats. Why was it that the people who could handle the fires the best were an opposing element? How was that even right? "You definitely have it easy," Lark agreed, now looking at him. "Us...most of us...are not quite so placid. I'm a fire, got a temper, but it's being worked on. Others aren't quite so keen on working with their anger. I actually wonder if our leader ever wants to off himself after dealing with us." And boy was she working on it. Lark was sick and tired of living out her life like this. It was becoming painful. Lark laughed a little bit, however, to keep him or anyone else from noticing it.
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 28, 2011 14:09:31 GMT -5
It surprised Ashton to hear that Lark, who was not a traitor to her element by common knowledge, was friends with one of the people the Fire element hated the most. No element took kindly to their traitors but Fire and Thunder were probably the most vicious when it came to dealing with them and all those associated. Earth had produced a traitor once but even though they'd been driven out of the element and turned on by the vast majority, they hadn't gone so far as to treat them with violence and cruelty wherever they'd went. Though unable to tolerate having a backstabber living amongst them, the Earths were a peaceful sort. He knew that if they'd found out about Asha he'd have been stripped of his position and shown the door but it seemed like those that were treacherous to the more violent group had it worst. "Oh, I'm sorry. That was my mistake." He did not sound flustered or meek as he apologised, merely cordial. Leadership had at least given him some of the confidence he'd lacked a few years ago—he could now face someone and talk to them without worrying about how they were judging him. Still, he would prefer that others saw him in a positive light. He liked to be accepted, didn't think he'd have enjoyed life as a traitor. In a way, it was likely for the best that he'd not worked things out with Asha. "Put you through hell?" he repeated. "Did your element find out or something?" Though he'd held (very tense) conversations with the Fire leaders, they kept their own element's business to themselves and vice versa.
To tell the truth, Ashton wasn't entirely sure how he felt about Josh now. At first he'd been kind and tolerant because of Nell but now he and Nell had a falling out and Josh was still on their side. Ash felt no bitterness toward him but it did feel strange to think that his girlfriend was a former friend. They'd never really talked much. Still, it was nice to know that Lark had that sort of connection to their side. I'm not the only one who slips up on occasion. He almost felt guilty for delighting in another person's misfortune. He was not like that. At the same time, he couldn't erase the thought from his mind. He lived alone with the knowledge that he'd been this close to betraying Earth. Nell knows, too. This frightened him sometimes—what if she told? "Well, it's safe with me, anyway," he promised. "It doesn't cause problems for my element so I can just... pretend I never heard a thing." His lips twitched into a smile. Ashton wasn't someone that would sell another person out like that. Oh, he'd probably get some credibility for finding and selling out a treacherous friendship but it would be a nasty thing to do.
He laughed quietly, glancing to the stony couple for a moment as she spoke. It was true—he and Lark were doing a lot better than they were. Then again, it could have had something to do with the fact that they weren't kidding themselves and trying to act like a date. This felt more like a conversation between... allies, perhaps? Not friends, they weren't allowed that. Even Ashton wasn't friendly enough to think that this would be accepted by the alliances. It was fine for now because there was the cover and excuse of the Valentines event but it wouldn't be tolerated on a normal basis. "I don't think I could pull off being a grouch," he said contemplatively, shaking his head. "It doesn't look very fun." They looked miserable, actually. Either that or really angry, and was that much of an improvement? He didn't do anger and his misery was usually short-lived thanks to optimism. "With me, any decency they might have is kind of erased by their desire to bash my head in." Though he said it with humour, it was mostly true. He'd never really met a Thunder he got along with. Hadn't met a Fire until Asha and that had backfired. Now there was Lark, who he still wasn't sure about. She confused him. Friends with a traitor but not a traitor? It would give anyone a headache.
He tilted his head slightly as she spoke of fighting. It was still strange to hear of anyone speak so lightly on the subject, even though he'd dated an MMA fighter of all things. Her fighting had always threw him off a little so he'd just pretended it didn't exist. Even if he didn't like violence, he wasn't naive enough to think that people would stop just because he asked nicely. "Fighting's never really been my thing but... we all do what we have to when things get rough." Even the gentle Earth pair could be known to utilize their powers during a meeting if things got out of hand. "It's worse when the Winds are absent. We've got them to thank for the fact that there's no war ninety percent of the time." He had no problems being honest about this. If they didn't have the peacekeepers and mediators around they'd probably tear the place to shreds between the eight of them. Nevertheless, Winds were not held in any higher esteem because of it. They had their own element to look out for as well. They just had no alliance and thus no bias in their opinions.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Dec 31, 2011 1:49:47 GMT -5
OUTFIT.
"Tch, no need to apologize," Lark replied, waving him off with a limp hand to show no hard feelings. She did not expect Ashton to know of the friendship between Josh, and was actually quite glad that it had remained hidden until now. The war was over (for now) and Lark did not deem Ashton a threat now. Although he was the leader of the earth element something told her that there was no need to sit on edge and be a cold hearted bitch who strived to chase him away with words of venom. She wanted to save that for those who actually deserved it. I shouldn't feel comfortable, She told herself over and over again, trying to shut herself off and become rigid like she always did, but nothing came. Instead, Lark merely smiled a bit and shrugged. "I didn't expect anyone to know. It just means that we did decently well keeping it under wraps."
At Ashton's inquiry, however, Lark nearly closed off and remained as stoic as possible. It was none of his business what happened to her in regards to her secret friendship, but why the hell did it even matter now? It seemed that the more the days wore on, the less she gave a shit about who knew what was going on in her life. It was scaring her at how she was slowly changing, and it scared her more to know that she seemed unable to stop it. Well, there were a few things Lark was not willing to talk about, but if someone prodded too deeply they would definitely know when enough was enough. "Not exactly...a few of them saw us walking through town and tried to start something at school. They never found out our friendship actually existed but pretty damn close." A shiver ran down her spine for a moment at the thought of being removed from her element for being friends with Josh, but then was replaced by a feeling not quite understood. She didn't know what it was. "That's good. I'd hate to beat the shit out of you for spilling it." She was obviously joking, a slight smirk on her lips. Lark had a temper, but was not stupid enough to lay a hand on the earth leader. Especially since he was being nicer to her than most of the people in her own element and ally.
Her smile faded a bit at his comment about being a grouch; of course, everyone had their own view of what a grouch really was, and to Lark her image was somewhat portrayed when looking at the water and thunder elementals glaring at one another at their blind date table. But often times Lark appeared highly disgruntled and frustrated, even when she wasn't. It was a persona she displayed to protect herself from those who wanted to try and pinpoint a weakness and exploit it to the fullest extent. Appearing unapproachable was safe. "Sometimes it's okay though. Depends on what you're being grouchy about. Usually it isn't much fun, I'll agree with you there." Then thought about it for a moment. "Most earths seem pretty happy anyway though. If you wanna toss some of that our way..." What she would give to have a few more friends in her element without throwing fire balls at one another. That, and it would keep her from wanting to switch sides. She shouldn't. Loyalty was not skin deep.
"I'm sure. Although some winds aren't exactly the most friendly, they are definitely more peaceful than most of us." And she did agree with him on that point. If the fire and thunder elemental's had this school under their thumbs, it would be burnt to the ground and there would be little to no survivors. Lark knew for a fact that the earths, waters, and winds kept things in check, no matter how much her element and ally wanted to be at their throats all of the time. Lark loved the fact that she controlled fire, but it had its consequences. Like the fact that I only have two people I can thoroughly rely on. That part did truly suck, but it was to be expected. Lark tried to deal with it as best she could, and was managing decently well. At least, she was until the entire ordeal with her parents. Things were different now. She felt as though she were swept into the rip tide. "Random question. Would you be any other element, if you could be?"
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Dec 31, 2011 13:47:24 GMT -5
Apologising was practically a knee-jerk reaction for Ashton, he did it so often. He almost apologised again when Lark told him he didn't have to but he caught himself in time and kept his mouth shut to save the irony. It would probably embarrass him to say sorry for the fact that he'd apologised and she didn't think he had to but he'd probably done it before. It was instinctual. 'Sorry' was like a peacemaking word for Ashton. It was a plea for forgiveness regardless of what it was you'd done wrong. He didn't like people to be upset with him so he supposed that was why the words came so quickly. "I certainly knew nothing about it until now," he said, confirming the fact that they'd managed to keep things quiet. The leaders would have talked about it—argued about it, more like—if it was a serious concern. Fire would blame the opposing alliance for making Lark defect, their alliance would retaliate by default and it might be a whole new war again over such a ridiculous thing. He didn't think the alliances themselves were stupid but he had to admit that some of the fights they got into were a bit childish. Everyone was childish sometimes, no one could be the complete voice of maturity. That was what he believed, anyway.
The fact that their friendship had only been maintained outside of the Academy caused alarm bells for Ashton and made him doubt the decency of the ones who'd attacked them. Outside friendships were usually not meddled in quite as much. Relationships were treated with a little more severity seeing as love tended to cause complications when a war broke out but friendships were generally meant to be taken lightly unless they began to interfere. "That's practically against the rules," he said. He frowned briefly but the expression could not stay for long. Scowling and frowning was rather uncomfortable for Ashton—it felt like smiling must have done to people who didn't do that very often. Like his muscles were not meant to move that way and did so only when forced. "If you didn't meet with him on school property they should have stayed out of it." He couldn't lie and pretend he wasn't a bit worried about one of his allies maintaining old friendships but he also couldn't blame him. Look what you did with Asha. The thought kept resonating no matter how much he tried to shut it out.
He guessed that she was joking—he certainly hoped she was—and chuckled when she spoke. "You could kick my ass," he acknowledged both lightly and truthfully. She was a Fire elemental and she had said herself that she had few problems with fighting. Ashton was Earth and a pacifist so if they ever got into a real fight, he'd probably be the one ending up on the floor. He was good with defensive tactics. He could fend off blows more than he could dish them out but as long as his opponent kept up he would tire out and go down eventually. If not, a Fire elemental could easily use their powers to suck the stamina right out of him and put him down for the count. "We're not," he told her briefly when she said that they seemed happy most times, "We're just awfully good at covering it up." A lot of Earths had that loving quality and a desire to keep their friends happy. They would shove their own problems aside and wear a smile for the sake of others rather than themselves. He knew that for a fact. Every element had a different way of dealing with things, it seemed.
The question really was a bit random and caught him off guard, but even though he barely knew Lark he was not opposed to answering it. Ashton was a very open person. In his opinion, he had little to hide but the relationship with Asha. His life had been good and so there was no reason to act otherwise. "I don't think so," he admitted. "It skipped my father's generation and my mother was mortal so I didn't really know about all this growing up. Earth was the only element I knew at first. I got attached, I guess." He'd learned about his grandmother's Water abilities after his own powers had surfaced but by that time he'd been perfectly happy with his own. He knew some elementals grew up watching their parents play with their gifts and hoping for a certain one in particular. "Have you?" She had asked the question and he wondered if it was for a reason.
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Post by LARK MARIE HARPER on Jan 6, 2012 17:03:00 GMT -5
Lark let out a slow but steady stream of air; she was not exactly willing to express relief, but she did feel it. Their secret was safe, at least for now. She realized that if Ashton were to ever grow angry with the fire elementals for any reason, or her in particular, he could use it against her and sabotage everything. However the earths were not vindictive like the thunders, and for now Lark allowed her mind to rest peacefully. However she did not say any more on the matter and allowed the discussion to drift off into the abyss. If Ashton was willing to pretend it was never brought up, then so was she. Maybe he's not as bad as I first thought. Lark was always so quick to assume that the opposing element had a dark side, and especially with the leader she felt that maybe this would have gone to hell in a hand basket. For now things were cordial and she kicked herself mentally for making such harsh assumptions. The brunette would not reveal that, however.
"Yeah, I know it is." Lark replied dully, picking at the sleeve of her hoodie at bit as they talked. What those fellow fires did to her and Joshua was pretty much unforgivable, but she had to push it aside for the sake of alliances and loyalty. They could have beaten her down if enough of them showed up, but Lark was not willing to admit she could not take care of herself. She was independent, and tough enough to deal with her own problems without the aid of someone she was trying to protect. How was it that she got stuck with such assholes? Because of your temper. Your personality put you here. She wished more and more that things would have been different. Lark sighed and glanced over at Ashton, smiling faintly to try and push away the foul emotions she felt towards her element. "I know, but hey...not everyone likes to follow the rules. Their tempers got the best of them, and just could not leave well enough alone. It coulda been worse. At least it's over now, and Josh is safe." Her eyes became rather distant, but only for a moment. She had not talked to him in a while, and probably should. Make sure everything was going well. I'll give him a call later. She vowed to make an effort to keep contact with him upon their encounter several months back, and was going to hold herself to it.
The brunette could not help but chuckle at his comment; Lark could most definitely kick his ass, and that was not being arrogant. With her temper and knack for fighting, it would not take too much to try and get him down. Ashton might be able to defend himself decently well but if she pulled out an elemental attack it would probably end rather quickly. Even so, she shook her head and leaned back in her chair again. "Yeah, I could." Lark noted aloud, smirking a bit before looking out over the room to observe the other blind dates. Then she looked back at him. "But I see no reason to do that. You're alright in my book." Lark had to admit that he was one of the first earth elementals to talk to her without looking fearful or angry. It made her feel good to know that she was not all too bad, and that they weren't either. But we can't be friends. That's not possible. Would not bode well for either of us. It made her frustrated to know that any potential friendships were ruined by alliances. Oh well...there was nothing that could be done. "Well, you guys are doing better than we are then."
Ashton answered her question rather openly and truthfully, something that she did not quite expect. Then again most of her time was spent with fire and thunder students who primarily kept to themselves and were not always up for such random chit chat. She blinked a few times as she listened, nodding. "That's good to hear," Was all she could manage to say; the thought of parents made her stomach knot up. It was not Ashton's fault of course, since he did not know anything about her life. It was probably for the best anyway. However, when he fired the question back at her she tensed up and looked way from him, clearly not eager to answer. "I'm sure a lot of people have," Lark started, trying to keep the attention off of her and make it more of a universal feeling that anyone could have at a given time. Whether it worked or not she did not know. "But yeah." Her jaw locked. "Being a fire...definitely has more cons than pros. Although most of us enjoy it, the solitude can get rather...mm...lonely. I suppose. Not many I feel I can trust." She glanced at him again then sighed, willing her mouth to keep shut. Oh well. Nothing will change anyway. Might as well enjoy conversation while I have it.
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Post by ASHTON CAMDEN RALEIGH on Jan 7, 2012 13:41:24 GMT -5
It was almost funny for Ashton to think of someone being protective over a guy like Josh—Ash didn't know him well, but he'd always seemed independent and fierce from his perspective. To think that he had friends that looked out for him was a bit strange. Then again, Ashton supposed that the opposite elements could have friends just like his own element and the Waters could. The alliances drilled into them that the Fire and Thunders were all a bunch of mindless and violent assholes that only looked out for themselves and even though Ashton wasn't too judgemental a person, his alliance had made an impression upon him after so many years. It didn't help that he'd been attacked and ridiculed by a number of them and treated with friendship only by his own side. Then again, when are we ever particularly friendly to them? Now his head was starting to hurt with all of the thinking he was doing. Ashton was not a philosophical person and he did not need to find answers in everything. He was content to drop it for the sake of his poor, aching brain. "I guess you're right." The end of a war was usually met with relief for all parties. They were able to close ranks again and stop lamenting over the injured and walk the hallways without fear. Ashton didn't like war because he was not a fighter but that fear was also a large contributor to his hatred. He did not like to feel as if he was always in danger. He hated that. He was decent in defence, especially against Thunders, but the Fires who both bested him and tended to travel in groups were always the bane of his war-time existence.
Speaking of them, he was not offended when Lark confirmed the fact that she could absolutely kick his ass. He knew that, she knew that, there was no use denying it. He was a bit surprised when she said that she had no reason to. Like most Earths, it was hard for Ashton to push past the idea that all Fires were out to get him in the end. The alliances were very good and making their mark on the many students that they reigned control over. He wasn't even sure where the alliances had come from. He knew that they'd studied an entire section of Elemental History on them but he hadn't done very well on it and couldn't remember much except the fact that they were ancient and had caused a lot of problems throughout the years. Sometimes Ash was a little embarrassed by his lack of academic prowess but hey, he managed. He at least kept his grades to a reasonable level thanks to his leadership position. He might even make it to college, he figured, whereas he would definitely not have had enough commitment to make the marks otherwise. It was both a blessing and a curse. "Thanks," he said. "You're alright, too... for a Fire." A slight smile hinted to the fact that he was teasing. Ashton wasn't good at being serious when it came to joking and messing around. It was usually pretty obvious even to the most oblivious of people. "You could look at it that way, but it's a real pain when there's actually something wrong. No one admits it."
Noting her discomfort, Ashton would have retracted the question if she hadn't decided to answer it. He was very open and did not hesitate to ask people things but he was not such an idiot that he didn't notice when they were at odds. It was never in his intentions to make people feel bad. He remembered reminding Aramina about her parents. That had been upsetting. It was also a little sad to hear Lark admit she thought about being in another element at times. He didn't know how that felt because he'd always felt at home in Earth. His empathy brought about the feelings of sympathy, though. "Don't you think you would miss Fire?" It was almost like he couldn't help but to ask his questions. He liked to talk to people but holding conversation often meant asking questions and getting the other person to respond. That didn't work out with everyone. Some people were turned away by his overly friendly attitudes and the way that he tried to get to know someone within a short space of time. It made him a lot of friends, too, but sometimes it backfired. "And... solitude? Aren't the Fires close?" He knew that, to their loyalists, Fires tended to band together in groups and protect one another. Earth was similar but treated each other like family rather than just allies. It was Thunder and Wind whom he'd always heard to be the most different. Maybe he was wrong.
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