TABLES, THEY TURN SOMETIMES (tagged:marcus)

Well, he remembers my name, thought Joshua, surprised and not sure whether this was a good sign or not. Some people knew his name simply because they were good about things like that and they were nice people that didn't like to snub someone. Those folks were usually the Earth elementals, but there were exceptions both in the element and out. He'd met unfriendly Earth elementals, though admittedly those were rare, and he'd also met decent people that weren't Earth elementals. Of course, maybe Josh was a little biased in his affection for the so-called 'soft' element. His girlfriend was an Earth kid and they'd been right kind to him during the war so it was almost as if Joshua had a natural inclination to label them as good people. That only went so far, however. Josh Dale wasn't a trusting guy and it wasn't often that you got a second chance with him. It took a long time for him to really warm up to a person--he might be pleasant, but actually make him like you? It cost some an arm and a leg. It had cost Nell the hefty price of saving his life before he'd concluded that maybe she was an alright person. However, Marcus had, as far as he could remember from the few times he'd seen him around, done him no wrong. All he knew about the guy was his name and his element, true, but where there was no good thing to cement the basis of a relationship (whether it be a friend or simply a friendly acquaintance) there was also nothing to make Joshua hate him. So he was a little confused by the way Marcus quickly averted his gaze after speaking.

Not that Josh was a pushy guy. He didn't get offended just because someone wouldn't look at him and he wasn't necessarily going to make any comment until it really started to bug him. See, Joshua was a secretive person. And secretive people could hardly go around prying into the lives and businesses of others unless they had perfectly good reason to ask questions--it made them rather hypocritical, and Joshua resented hypocrisy (though of course, like most people, he was not innocent of the occasional slip-up). "I'm Joshua," he confirmed with a nod. In respect of the fact that he'd asked Marcus a question and didn't want to cut him off when he was speaking, he had waited until the other guy had finished talking before he'd confirmed this. And now, in response to the other thing the fellow sophomore had said, Josh replied, "Hardly surprising about the professor." Shaking his head, it was obvious (though perhaps not to Marcus, seeing as the Earth elemental had turned his attention to the textbook) that he was in disapproval of the professor's actions. If he was ever late to this class he was expecting the same sort of reluctant patience this man's students had with him. Aforementioned, Josh wasn't fond of people that said they hated something and then turned around and did the exact thing they supposedly did not like. This guy could not spend his mornings chattering to whomever he liked (coworker or otherwise) and then expect his students to show up to detention when they happened to turn up late for some reason or another.

As this thought crossed his mind, Joshua said dryly, "I'll have a bone to pick with him. Nearly killed myself getting up here--I'd like to give him a nice, warm wake up call." Though the venom dripping from his words was sarcastic, it was not immediately evident that the threat was empty. Joshua wouldn't actually attack a professor and anyone that was close to him would understand that, but he also wasn't an easy guy to read. The reputation he had for violence coupled by his none-too-friendly tone made it sound like he might just attack someone for the simplest matter of contradicting themselves. It wasn't that he was happy about being woken up and rushed only to wait in the room for the professor to remember he had a damn lesson to teach. Hell, no. Unlike Marcus, Josh didn't have a roommate--he'd requested a single room for 'studying purposes'; although he really did need the peace and quiet for studying, he'd really just done it to get out of sharing his space with another person. He had grown up in a mansion with a bedroom the size of several of the small dorms. He was not used to the cramped space and had resented sharing it for his first four years at the Academy. Of course, unlike some of the students that boarded all year round, Josh was lucky in the sense he could go home if he wanted to. His parents' mansion was in the Hollow. But he couldn't go home now, so perhaps it was a good thing he roomed alone else he might just get into a bit of an argument with his roommate on a miserable morning such as this one.

[Ooh, Marcus takes Biology? That's Josh's major--they've probably got a few classes together Maybe the incident that freaked Marcus out happened in another one recently or something?]

[That would work out great ]

Glancing over his shoulder in mild interest when Marcus let slip the comment, Joshua nodded a little and turned his attention to his own desk, though he was not completely unaware of Marcus' presence. He just wasn't the type that enjoyed being bitched at for not paying enough attention during a lecture. Josh was a good student and it was practically a great offence for anyone to suggest otherwise (in his mind, at least) but that didn't mean he could get away with the sort of classroom misdemeanours. When the professor called for them to take out their assignments, Joshua procured from his bag the carefully written and edited assignment that he had put the finishing touches on a night or two ago. He had always been neat and punctual with his work--it wasn't only a mark of his desire to get good grades, but due to the fact that he did not have a large network of friends. Less friends meant less pruning of relationships. He spent as much of his free time as possible with Nell, then Harlow, then divided up the rest of that time with the friends he was less close to. It didn't mean he was a bad friend, just a busy one. In fact, Josh was a pretty decent friend to have. He passed his assignment to the professor and returned the slight smile, then cast his gray gaze toward Marcus when the other boy spoke. He was a little surprised by the small talk, but not unwilling to return it. Shrugging, he said in a neutral tone, "It's part of my major. I take it because I have to, but it's not so bad." Honestly, if you managed to find a class that Joshua detested, you'd be in luck. The only things he'd ever really hated were things like physical education--you didn't learn anything there that he wanted to know, so he was uninterested. Chemistry, though... that he could deal with. "What about you?" he asked, figuring it was only polite conversational etiquette to return the inquiry.

Perhaps it was because he was distracted by the conversation that he'd had with his fellow professor, or perhaps he was just trying to sort out what he was going to do with the rest of the lesson, but the professor didn't immediately address his gathered pupils. Like Marcus, Joshua decided that it was better to fill the silence with words than to just sit here waiting for their professor to get his shit together. Glancing over at the Earth elemental and speaking in a quiet voice that was nevertheless easily heard to those nearby, he said, "Looks like we might get out of this one easy. I doubt he's got the time to set a load of work." That was the one clear advantage to a teacher being late--of course, Joshua had also seen them turn around and just assign the readings for homework and the essay along with it, actually making it the bane of a classes existence. Though Josh didn't mind work, for it kept him busy, he had enough of it with a double major that he wasn't fond of receiving more than was necessary. "Ever had him before? He's a new one to me; just got him when the semester switched." Sometimes the Academy professors taught several subjects, usually within a single major, and if you could glean a professor's habit from one class you were already prepared for it in the next. But Josh was inexperienced with this man, so he wondered if Marcus was the same. His curiosity was innocent enough--he had no reason to dislike the Earth elemental, but perhaps his overall unfriendly attitude (the way he usually carried himself when he was alone) was off-putting? He never knew how people would react to him, mainly because he was not too good with people.

Joshua was slightly confused by what Marcus meant--was he taking Chemistry as an actual major, or just as a single class to assist the major he already had? However, the Fire graduate was not the type to get too in depth with conversations. He didn't ask things that seemed too intrusive and he didn't want to get into the delicacies of why the other guy was in certain classes right now. In actuality, he was just making conversation because he was bored and didn't want to spend ten minutes examining the wood of the desk as he waited for the professor to pull his shit together and start the lecture or lesson or whatever this was going to turn out to be. "I'm only taking this one class for Chemistry," he said. "I'm a Biology major, too." Like Marcus, Joshua also had a double major. However, his secondary interest was History. He did not take a double major that complimented the first one. It probably would have been a better idea to find a subject that would aid him in his future career as a doctor, but Joshua had not wanted to drop his beloved History. It had been his favourite subject since middle school and he wouldn't have felt right giving it up just because his life was going down a different path. He didn't want to be a historian and he didn't actually plan on using it for anything, but he did not regret taking on the mass of extra work. For History didn't feel like work to him. He enjoyed it, so it was more like studying something on his own time rather than studying because he had to.

Joshua felt a spark of anger as the Earth elemental sighed, almost like he wanted to discontinue conversation. Normally Joshua would not have cared, seeing as he wasn't the most sociable person in the room by far, but Marcus had spoke to him first (after the initial query, at least). Josh was just being polite and making conversation since he had assumed that the Earth graduate wanted to pass the time. "Is making conversation with me an effort?" he asked, with a hint of irritated sarcasm. He could be perfectly pleasant enough if he had to be but this was just something else. He didn't see what the fuck it was that he'd done to make the other boy act like it was incredibly difficult to keep talking. Joshua could have said more and went into detail about why he'd bothered to open his mouth around the other sophomore but that wasn't in his personality. Josh was not long winded and he usually didn't talk more than he had to. He'd decided to give Marcus the benefit of the doubt and act friendly around him, and this was how it worked out? "By all means, sit in silence," he said icily, rolling his eyes as he turned his attention back to his own work. "I couldn't care less."