scratching at the surface [jacob]

[NELL DOE DALE]

Nell stretched her arms above her head, taking her elbow in one hand and pulling at it, hearing a satisfying crack in her shoulder. When she warmed up before practicing, whether it be in sports or elements, she always performed better. Breathing in deep and almost wincing at the chilled air slipping into her lungs, she wondered if high altitude was a good choice. That's how marathon runners practiced. While she may not have been training for a marathon, she figured that there had to be a point to the whole high altitude training method. She walked over to the edge of the cliff, peered down at jagged rocks at the bottom. It didn't worry her. Without a fear of heights or water or sharp jagged rocks, she had no concern about accidentally falling over into the frigid water. That seemed quite the feat, actually, considering she had enough room to walk ten steps without getting very close to the edge. To her right was the path she had taken up there, not too high up considering she didn't have a death wish, but enough to accomplish what she had in mind. To her left it continued, however, winding up around the mountainside. Canada seemed to be full of them, or British Columbia at least. It was strange to consider she hadn't gone far from it, barring the trip to Newfoundland and a few trips to Vancouver. It was her home country now, and she hadn't even seen half of it. The biggest country next to Russia would take a little bit of time to explore, it seemed.

Taking a few more steps back, head turning to gaze behind her to make sure she didn't stumble over any rocks and spying her red scarf draped over one, she breathed deep as a gust picked up. Her eyes focused on a small stone in front of her, and she seemed to stare at it for a few moments, brown eyes burning with intent. And then the rock flicked up, hitting her cheek -- very close to her eye -- and rebounded back to the ground. "Okay, ow," she said in a tiny voice, rubbing her eye. It wasn't uncommon for her to get injured when doing anything regarding her element or sports, it came with the territory, but she certainly didn't enjoy it. She disregarded it after a moment, but not before pressing a finger to her cheek again and wincing. Bruises on her face were always fun. Nell imagined some people may have given her street cred for that -- and hopefully didn't go to some other worse, forgone conclusion of spousal abuse -- but if anyone had even met her once they'd know that she never fought. She just got hit in the face often by rogue rocks.

She breathed again, pushing up the sleeves of her peacoat as high as they could go. Nell focused again, but it was quickly broken as the breeze picked up again and she saw her scarf winding over the ground like a snake. Scrambling over to retrieve it, she stuck out her hand, sighing when the breeze quickly carried it over the edge. She scrambled to peer over and saw the red piece of fabric hanging from a rock jutting out of the cliff side. Nell stood defeated for a moment, before she dropped to her knees and laid out on her stomach, peering over the edge. If she couldn't even get a rock to go over the edge like she wanted, it was laughable to think that she could move a rock on the cliff side to retrieve her scarf. I've had you for two years, come on... she thought, as if her scarf could hear her thoughts. She didn't want to have to buy another one, and she was determined to retrieve hers. Unfortunately, it was worrisome to see someone so close to the cliff edge, gripping the rock with her fingers.

[JACOB RYO NAGANO]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding-left:16px; padding-top:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-bottom:0px; background-image:url(http://i51.tinypic.com/2nbr3oi.jpg) ] Jacob Ryo Nagano Just Keep Swimming - - - - - - - - - - - - - - It was just sort of one of those off days for Jacob. It was the kind of day that Jacob sought out the chance to just be alone for a while. His friends were hanging out going down to the Hallow and as usual invited him. Normally he went of course to keep up appearances. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy spending time with his friends but ever since his mother died he did find himself being rather distant towards them. He tried to keep it in check as to not worry his friends or anything. He tried to relax and just enjoy the moments but every so often he'd find himself in days like this where he would rather just be alone. It was difficult to really explain or comprehend but there wasn't much he could do about the way he felt so he just went with the flow. Perhaps his little phase would past and he'd still have time to join his friends in the Hallow. Only time would tell at this point. It was a chilly afternoon. He pulled his jacket a bit closer to his body when the cool air hit him. He was walking down a path and looking out into the horizon. The water looked beautiful although he knew how cold it must be. This was the time of the season he didn't much enjoy just because it kept him out of the water. He sighed as he continued down the pathway, walking higher in elevation. It was a good thing that Jacob worked out on a daily basis because a person could get tired walking in higher elevation. As he was walking he eventually came across something he had not been expecting to find. Near the edge of one of the cliff was a young girl. She was probably around Jacob's age or perhaps just a bit older. He looked at her curiously. She was laid on her stomach and it looked like she was trying to reach for something. He couldn't help his curiosity as he walked closer to the girl to get a glimpse of what exactly she was reaching for. Finally he spotted a red streak and when he was close enough he could make out that it was a red scarf that was out of the girls reach. By the looks of it it didn't seem like the girl would be able to reach the scarf without leaning over the edge too much which was rather dangerous. He looked down at the scarf again. The water below it wasn't too far but still quite a distance. Hmmm, he had an idea but wasn't sure if it would work. He'd never really try something like what he was thinking before, at least not from such a far distance before. He walked closer to the edge and peered out at the water. He took in a deep breath and began to concentrated on the water. Slowly a small amount began to raise from its bed and work it's way towards the scarf. The idea was that if water elementals could make the water powerful enough to blast someone backwards why not to lift something up. He focused on keeping the water rising until it eventually touched the scarf. At first it seemed like the water would just pass through the scarf but with a bit more concentration his idea became reality as the water became a sort of basket that raised the scarf towards its owner. The longer and harder he focused on doing this the more energy drained. Using your power as an element was very draining and took a lot of endurance and stamina. Eventually the scarf was raised and eventually Jacob could hold it no more. He concentration broke and the water splashed to the ground but thankfully the scarf fell in front of its owner. Jacob dropped to his knees as he felt his body become a tad heavy from the strain he just put on it. He was suddenly tired but this wasn't uncommon for one to feel this way after using their power. "Sorry about getting it wet." he said to the girl as he just sat on his knees, trying to regain his composure. TAGGING. WORDCOUNT. OUTFIT. TEMPLATE BY OH SO COOPERNATURAL ! @ CAUTION.

[NELL DOE DALE]

Thankfully not a jumpy person, she merely tensed and blink when she saw the water come to lift up her scarf, the fluid working like a sentient being. If she were anywhere but Maple Hollow, and anyone but herself, she would have shrieked and scrambled away from the cliff edge. Most likely would have called Ghostbusters, as well. She was used to this kind of thing by now. Not in the jaded way from years of being at the Academy, but in the way that instead of wondering what the hell was ever going on around her, she could simply stand in awe at the display of power that was around her. Even when it came to the enemy alliance, she always felt that flutter in her stomach when she watched someone use their element. And here she could barely move a stone as a college sophomore.

Nell took the time to look next to her at the kind boy who decided to help her. However, she could feel the presence just as she could feel the cool air flushing her cheeks, her nose bright red by now. As an Earth elemental, she didn't have the best defenses against the cold, but she had her jacket and had her scarf until it decided to abscond. Nell began to wonder if she should be working in a casino, what with her luck. Maybe today was just not her day, and the universe was just trying to tell her that by flicking rocks into her face and stealing her scarf away. But as luck would have it, the brunette stranger just chanced upon her (most likely stupid-looking self) and out of the kindness of his heart helped her. She liked that, random acts of kindness. They meant a lot to her, even when it was someone holding open a door for her or helping her figure out how to work Redbox. And she always went out of her way to help people, like giving someone her change when they came up short at Timmies. It was a really simple thing to do.

She grabbed the soaking fabric when it dropped to the surface, and turned her head to thank the kind Water elemental who retrieved it for her, but wrinkled her eyebrows when she saw that he had dropped to his knees. He spoke to her, but she didn't actually respond, more concerned about his well being at this point. "Oh hey, are you all right? She moved over and rested a gentle hand on the boys shoulder. And even though she knew the likely cause, it didn't stop her chest from tightening or her eyes growing wide with concern. "That must have taken a lot out of you, huh?" she said sympathetically. "But you did really good. I mean, I don't think I've ever seen water that way before. Oh! A girl once helped me get my cell phone out of the lake, actually. You guys really are innovators." She took a moment to reflect on how she tended to have things end up in the lake. One cell phone was still at the bottom somewhere, she bet, courtesy of her husband. But that had been intentional. Losing her scarf? Not so much.

She looked at the red garment between her fingers and sighed a little, at her own insolence rather than any kind of upset. "Thank you for the help, really," she told him, wringing it out. The water dripped onto the cliff surface and her hands became even colder than they were before. In moments like these she wished Josh were around in all his Fire elemental glory. Then she decided to finally answer the student's earlier question. "It'll be fine. Nothing that a turn in the washing machine can't fix." The color would fade, she bet, but it had already been through a lot in the two years she'd owned it, so she wasn't too concerned about that, really.

[JACOB RYO NAGANO]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding-left:16px; padding-top:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-bottom:0px; background-image:url(http://i51.tinypic.com/2nbr3oi.jpg) ] Jacob Ryo Nagano Just Keep Swimming - - - - - - - - - - - - - - That had surprisingly taken more out of him than he had originally expected but then again he shouldn't have really been surprise. It wasn't as if he was just was moving water around. He had to force the water to pick up an object and then move both the water while keeping the object rising. So rather than surprising this loss in energy should have been expected. Then again he had never actually done something such as this so he didn't really have an idea of how much energy it would actually require. He barely really notice when the girl he had helped started talking due to his sudden exhaustion. He gave her a smile as he was trying to keep from passing out or anything. "I've had better days." he said jokingly. "Thanks. To be honest though that was the first I've done anything like that so I'm just thankful it worked." For all he knew the water could have just seeped through the scarf soaking it the entire time which would have been pointless and waste of energy. "I'm happy that I could help." he said happily once he regain enough energy to sit up straight and look at the girl. He gave her a smile before introducing himself. "Jacob. Nice to meet you. What were you doing that caused your scarf to fall?" he asked curiously. Jacob knew enough that this girl wasn't a water but by what he could tell about her now he'd take a guess and say she was an earth or wind. He wasn't as social as he use to be so he didn't know everyone. Nell. WORDCOUNT. OUTFIT. TEMPLATE BY OH SO COOPERNATURAL ! @ CAUTION.

[NELL DOE DALE]

The boy seemed to take it in stride, which was reassuring. It didn't completely make Nell's worry go away, but it did make her lips stretch into a smile, her eyes twinkling with humor. Water students always made her feel happy, they were like the school's jesters. She had always been drawn to them, just like she was drawn to her own element because of the familiarity. That, and she had found somewhere she could belong. He said that it was the first time he had done anything like that and she blinked. "First time?" she said in shock. "Whoa, that's even more impressive!" Even though he was a stranger, she felt a sense of pride about what he did, as if she had watched him bloom from a young student into a brilliant Water elemental. She was easily awed, and it helped that he had rescued her poor scarf from being pulled away with another gust of wind.

Nell moved back a little as he sat up, happy to see that he recovered. She hadn't expected him to fall comatose, but she had worried that he might need a visit to the medical wing to lay down and recover. Smiling when he said he was glad to help, her eyes went back down again to the garment, before looking around. Maybe she could put it underneath something... Her attention was drawn back the boy when he introduced himself. "Good to meet ya, Jacob," she said cheerfully. "I'm Nell. Some people call me Nelly. I'm cool with anything." She didn't like it when her aunt called her that, but anyone else was just fine. Especially since she knew that this guy wouldn't use it patronizingly. He seemed way too nice for that.

She looked out at the water and sighed a little. "Well, I was practicing my stone manipulation. I wanted to see how far I can move a rock and use the water to measure." The woman pointed a finger out to the lake, unassumingly freezing, she knew. Anyone who waded in there now had balls of steel. "I'd put the scarf on a rock and the wind shifted and took it away." She gave a crooked little smile, not at all irritated by that little event now that it had come to pass. Of course, with the help of a kind Water student. Some of the meaner ones might have used the Water to take it down as a prank. Luckily not many were like that. "What grade are you in?" she wondered. She figured he wasn't a graduate, but she couldn't be sure. Either way, he looked rather young.

[JACOB RYO NAGANO]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding-left:16px; padding-top:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-bottom:0px; background-image:url(http://i51.tinypic.com/2nbr3oi.jpg) ] Jacob Ryo Nagano Just Keep Swimming - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Impressive? Jacob wasn't so sure. He figured that there were a ton of waters that could do that without too much trouble. Then again they perhaps had already experience and increased their stamina. Regardless though he smiled at the girl's compliment and enthusiasm on the matter. Once upon a time he would have been just as enthusiastic. Now a days although he may feel the same inside it didn't show on the outside as much. Just one of the changes that was brought upon him after his mother's death. "Thanks. Of course it probably would have been more impressive if I hadn't fallen to my knees right after but of course we can't get everything." he played off with a small chuckle. On the bright side he hadn't used up enough energy to land himself in the nurse's office. That wouldn't have been all that fun. The school's nurse was nice and all but perhaps a bit too friendly sometimes but the guy was a water as well so Jacob got along with him well. He was a cool guy after all. Jacob just wasn't up for visiting today. At least it seemed he would be able to avoid that. In the process he made a friend. Nell. "The pleasure's mine Nell." he said warmly. The name sounded familiar but he could quite figure out why. Oh well. He'd probably figure it out later. He was more interested in hearing what her element was. She was an earth. Okay, not he knew that there was a reason why he had heard the name. Then it hit him. The earth that had fallen for a fire. So this was her. Interesting. Jacob moved his eyes to where Nell had pointed at. "Ahhh, and thus my chance to save the day." he said with a chuckle. He wasn't surprised that the scarf had flown. With this wind and the scarf itself being so light in only made sense. At least Nell didn't have to say goodbye to it. "11th." he said proudly. To think he was in his third year at the academy getting ready for his final year. It was crazy. Jacob would be staying on to study at the university level but that wasn't for another year but he did have something to look forward to. "How about you?" Nell. WORDCOUNT. OUTFIT. TEMPLATE BY OH SO COOPERNATURAL ! @ CAUTION.

[NELL DOE DALE]

Nell might have easily attached herself to people, but she really liked Jacob already. It was clear that he was Water, and she could say that because she seemed to be naturally inclined to friendship with them. So she supposed there was irony in that she married a Fire. And she was very happy with him, even if they were very different. That was something she actually appreciated. She laughed with him at the joke. "We can just pretend that never happened so I can tell the tale of the guy who was super cool and saved my scarf." Even though honestly, she really didn't have any sentimental attachment to it other than the fact that she would have to buy another one and she wasn't big on shopping for clothes. But thinking about it, she did have quite a few items that she held close to her heart because of sentimental value. Her rings, her medallion, her copy of Metamorphosis... For someone who liked to forget her past, she could be highly sentimental.

And this guy was adorable, as well. He had cheeks that were so pinchable, and she had this grandmother frame of mind where she felt the need to stretch out the skin. Or just hug him, which might have been better. Was he the type for physical affection, would he mind if she just randomly clung to him and cooed and asked him what his favorite foods were? Her smile was bright and wide on her face. She still kept very close to the edge, feeling the rush and the wind and it swept through her a keen adrenaline.

Jacob was apparently a high schooler, as she pinned him as because of his features. And with the question about her own, she said, "Sophomore. In college." She didn't say she was a late enroller because even she had some pride. She didn't want to be looked down on for it, and wouldn't mention unless someone asked. Nell looked over the edge, the height of it maybe the most beautiful part of the cliff. "I wish I were able to manipulate stone better so I could have done something myself, but that's what I'm up here wor--oh!" She wobbled a bit on the edge, her foot having slipped off before she was able to pull it back. The graduate practically threw herself at Jacob, clinging to him and using the propulsion to keep her from falling over the wrong way. She staggered, her hands clinging to his shirt to help hold her steady.

Breathing heavily for a few moments, she sighed and drew back her hands, in case he was made uncomfortable with her touching him. "Maybe we shouldn't be on the cliffs anymore," she said, retrieving her scarf once against and wrapping the moist garment around her wrist. Then she blinked, looked back at him. "What were you doing up here, anyway?" It was more curious than anything. She'd spent quite a few years with this as one of her favorite places because of the height, and maybe Jacob felt the same about it.

[JACOB RYO NAGANO]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,padding-left:16px; padding-top:0px; padding-right:0px; padding-bottom:0px; background-image:url(http://i51.tinypic.com/2nbr3oi.jpg) ] Jacob Ryo Nagano Just Keep Swimming - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Jacob couldn't help but smile. Super cool huh? Well, he wouldn't go that far but he did find it amusing and found Nell's enthusiasm just as assuming. "Super cool huh? You're making me sound like a superhero or something." he said jokingly. It wasn't a bad thing of course. After all who doesn't like superheroes. Then again though heroes didn't often show their weaknesses. Or did that? Perhaps sometimes they did just to show that they had them even if they didn't want them being revealed to the world. In this case Jacob's weakness was his stamina. Something he'd be able to work on later on. After he got some food into him. If it weren't so cold he'd go out for a swim. For now a nice run would have to do until spring time came around. Then it would be back into the water for him. Sophomore in college. That was cool. Jacob had a few friends who were older than him so this wasn't a first. It was interesting meeting students of either the same element or of the other elements who were older and see their levels of control because it wasn't as if everyone was on the same level. It definitely varied, some were quick studies and some took a bit more time than others but in his opinion that didn't make them weaker or anything. This was just one of many aspects where people varied. Jacob was going to answer back when Nell's foot suddenly slipped. She clung to him as he held onto her to keep her from falling back. That was when he realized how close they still were to the edge. Far to close for comfort to be honest as much as the rush of being on the edge this excite him some. "I think I'll have to agree with that notion." he said with a light smile as he began to walk backwards from the edge to a safer distance. "Just taking a walk. Sometimes I like to come up here when I want to be alone or to think. Maybe put in a little practice myself now and then. How about you? Were you just up here practicing?" he asked curiously. Jacob wasn't one to stick his nose in other people's business but he assumed that her asking left it open for him to ask the same thing. Jacob pulled his coat in a bit when a light breeze began. The air was chilly but that was in part from being up so high. "Do you come here often?" Nell. WORDCOUNT. OUTFIT. TEMPLATE BY OH SO COOPERNATURAL ! @ CAUTION.

[NELL DOE DALE]

Jacob explained to her what he had been doing up there. Her brown eyes sparkled with interest as she brushed her bangs back. "Oh," she said, tilting her head back, understanding crossing her face. That made sense. Some people came up for that. Jacob must have been one of those introspective types. She admired that, people who had the ability to keep to themselves. Be alone without fear. She hated being alone, it gave her too much time to think about things and she was not a thinker -- she was a doer. "Yeah, you know, I figured that the Rocky training technique would do some good." Realizing that her joke was probably dumb, she smiled and said, "It's one of the best places to practice with stone." Because there was a lot of it, clearly. She had yet to find a stone quarry in Maple Hollow.

She began walking, heading down the cliff face, trying to be careful and not trip as she had done so earlier before. At least she could prove that she was not completely inept when it came to balance. She just made...slip ups. It happened with everyone. Otherwise, she was the outdoorsy type. She liked being in the open air, wherever nature could be found. Many factors counted toward that, not just her status as an Earth elemental. "Uhm...yeah, I guess," she said, waving her hand a bit. "When I have free time. I like being up where it's high." A tree could do easily, as well. She enjoyed it as a hobby, though she rarely got to do such things nowadays. She was busy a lot, and most free time -- like now -- was spent practicing.

Once they reached the bottom, and headed back onto the Academy grounds, she shoved her hands in her pockets and rocked back on her heels. "So do you have class or anything?" she asked. "If--" She was cut off by the song Boombox coming from her phone, and she blinked before tilting her head apologetically. "I should take that. But I'll see you around sometime?" She waved as she left before picking up the phone to answer her husband.

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