What to do, what to do? [Josh and Nell]

[rosalind]

What is a girl supposed to do when she is bored, and she can not find someone to talk to? She explores of course. Well, that is, unless her brother was anywhere to be seen, but she has not seen him for days, so she started to give up on seeing him anymore. It broke her a bit, but she knew that one day, some day soon hopefully, she will get to talk and hang out with her dear twin brother again. She looked around the grounds and she could see other students walking around, but they were already in groups, and they were not of fire. That is what bugged her right then and there, she could never find another fire element student around at this time.

A sigh came from her as she sat down under a tree and looked at a small branch. She would have lite it on fire if she were to have been back at home, but of course, there were rules at school, and she may be a normal troublemaker, but she was trying, oh so trying, to stay out of trouble, and how hard it was. She also did not have her partner in crime, Jose. She closed her eyes and mainly thought of home and her mother and the old days, and she opened them just to roll her eyes.

She still did not know if her mother had been helping her and her brother, but she got the feeling that her mother knew that their father was not well, and that was one reason why he kept staying in the same chair for days on end. She shrugged then and leaned against the tree to look at the sky and she looked over at a group of people who were walking toward her and she watched them as they turned away quickly then. She chuckled lightly and picked up the branch that she had eyes earlier and stared at it contently. Soon enough, and after a short while, smoke started to come off the branch, and she was starting to be the happy and troublesome girl she always was.

JOSH AND NELL TURN IT UP! IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME TO MEET FRIENDS OR MAKE ENEMIES! I'M SO SICK OF ACADEMY GROUNDS, IT'S MAKING MY BRAIN FINISHED! I'M JUST TALKIN' 359 WORDS. I'M TELLING YOU 'BOUT THAT ROSALIND ELENA HERNANDEZ RAMIREZ. WE'RE SELLIN' KE$HA, SLEEPIN' IN WE R WHO WE R, HITTIN' ON HOT AND DANGEROUS !? @ CAUTION 2.0. HARD!

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Lunch at the mess hall had been pretty good that day, even if it had been tense the entire time thanks to the war. He'd stuck with Nell not only because they didn't get to hang out during classes but because his protective instincts tended to kick in at a time like this. His girlfriend wasn't a fighter but he was definitely one to bring out the fire and flames if someone started something, especially with Nell. Miraculously they managed to get out of the mess hall without any fights breaking out. "Looks like we've got a bit of time before classes," he mused as he checked the time on his watch. He knew that most people had their iPods and cellphones but he liked the expensive bit of ticking metal that was wrapped around his wrist. He didn't really have anything in particular that he wanted to do so he just kept up mindless conversation as he headed for the front doors.

The fact that an Earth and Fire elemental were in a relationship caused controversy during a war but Josh didn't mind being seen with her, not even out on the grounds. Everyone knew that they were dating if they paid attention to the rumour mill, at least everyone in their two elements. He had betrayed his element and Fire had made a pretty big deal of that to the point where they'd kicked him out and turned on him, calling him a traitor. That was why when they neared a tree and he spotted someone burning a stick underneath it he frowned. "Fire elemental up ahead," he said in obvious distaste. He still did miss his element sometimes, but it was more like missing the comforts of the dormitories and the sense of camaraderie rather than the people themselves. She looks young, definitely high school, but...? He couldn't pinpoint her grade.

Joshua was not afraid of the girl but he did feel an inward wariness for Nell's sake. After all, people in opposite alignments did not often get along. Earth and Fire didn't mix. There were Joshua and Nell, the glaring contradiction to this, but 'not mixing' didn't mean it was impossible for them to cooperate on occasion. It was the alliances that got in the way the majority of the time. They instilled upon a person from the beginning that to hang around a person who was not a part of your alignment was practically against the law, let alone the unspoken rules of the Academy. Plus, they were at war right now. The alliances made things tense but they were increased tenfold when there were arguments and fights breaking out left and right. Once upon a time he might have started something with someone of the opposite alignment, show off his hot-headed Fire pride, but now he just hesitated and glanced at Nell before choosing to hold his tongue. He wasn't going to put her in danger on purpose, after all.

[Short reply o.o Sorry! Stark can post after me~]

[NELL DOE DALE]

Nell never liked wars, even when it she wasn’t a direct target. They meant violence in general, and that was something she liked to avoid at all costs. Luckily, she and Josh hadn’t had any trouble in the mess hall that day, which was very good. Ever since an anonymous Fire student took it upon himself to set her plant on fire the other day, she’d been wary about carrying and projects around. She could always make them up and regrow a plant, but it was still a hassle. Not that she minded work—she’d gotten used to it, actually, enrolling late and having to make up so much. It would feel odd to have a day to herself. Not altogether horrible, because then she’d get to go out and do something other than sitting on her ass and finishing an assignment. She guessed she and her boyfriend were different in that aspect, and she respected him for his dedication.

”That’s good,” she said when Josh mentioned the extra time they had. ”I’ll be able to work on this thing.” She lifted the plant up to inspect it, and wriggled her nose. It wasn’t the prettiest of flowers, but that wasn’t everything, she knew. Still , she felt as if there was something that she could do to spice up her project. Nell figured she had a lot of time, considering that the class she owed for wasn’t until later and she wasn’t one to hold off on anything just because she was stuck in a stalemate. As they headed across the grounds, she held the plant against her chest, mainly focusing on ways to get a better grade.

This being a war, Nell was instantly on edge when he mentioned a Fire student, lifting her brown eyes to search for whoever he’d mentioned. Lo and behold, she saw a girl with a branch that looked like it was…smoking. Definitely Fire. She always liked to give people the benefit of the doubt—she wouldn’t have given Josh a chance if she didn’t—but Nell was also not stupid enough to skip up to a Fire student and ask what she was doing with a branch, no matter how much her curiosity got to her. This was war, and she’d probably get her ass handed to her, especially thanks to the fact that she wouldn’t fight back. She felt bad for Josh who served as a sort of bodyguard, but she really couldn’t bring herself to harm anyone. The girl had killed her mother, she wasn’t about to go and inflict harm on anyone else. Besides that, she was too pacifistic. So she just blinked at the other girl, wondering if the girl was going to start anything. After all, it was pretty apparent that she was an Earth student with the plant she held.

[rosalind]

Her mind was set on staying out of trouble, but seeing as two people walked over to her, one a high school student and the other from what looked like college, she stopped the flame on the branch and stared at the two. She automatically knew what the girls was, an Earth student, and the male, well he looked like who the other Fire element students were talking about, Joshua Dale, the Fire traitor. Yes, even the Earth students talked about him, for he apparently was siding with them on this war. She may not get along with many people here, but she did hear the stories, and that was one that was well known to even the newbies.

She did not look much at Josh, but her eyes were set on the Earth student. If that was Josh, then that had to be Nell. Her mood seemed to deepen then and she watched them as they stopped. She looked down at her branch and then back to them. "So, the Fire traitor and the Earthie have come to pay a visit?" Nope, good mood she defiantly was not in, and that would not change right now. She was being arrogant, like always, and there was probably no way her mood could get any worse than what it was already in.

Rosa stood up then, and she may have been short compared to Josh, but she still was her usual self, and her anger went all toward Nell. She looked at the plant that was in her hands and she smirked. "Is that supposed to be a plant? Its hideous." Yep, in fact, she was looking at the plant, and she did have half a mind to burn that one, much like a buddy of Rosa's did to the other plant that Nell had. She chuckled as she remembered that day. "You would figure that you would learn to hide those things while walking around. Just because your dating him does not mean that will stop everyone from burning things down around here."

Yep, her brain to mouth filter was gone. All she needed was that right button to be pressed, or she can press one of theirs. Hell, she might have already pressed Josh's button. She has a tendency to push buttons really easily now a days. She loved the reaction she got out of it though. She looked behind them as she saw a Water student pass by and she disregarded him. The Water student was not in her face, and she was having fun with the Earthie really. She looked to Josh then and she smiled. "Really, why do you guys bother to walk around other Fire elements? Its really stupid of you, you know. Especially if your trying to keep her safe."

Rosa knew that picking a fight with him was probably the worse idea she could make, but she was already lost in her moments of starting shit, and she was not going to stop then. But as too what he does, she was kind of scared, but she defiantly did not let it show.

JOSH AND NELL TURN IT UP! IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME TO BE A BITCH TO NELL AND WARY ABOUT JOSH! I'M SO SICK OF THE ACADEMY GROUNDS, IT'S MAKING MY BRAIN FINISHED! I'M JUST TALKIN' 532 WORDS. I'M TELLING YOU 'BOUT THAT ROSALIND ELENA HERNANDEZ RAMIREZ. WE'RE SELLIN' KE$HA, SLEEPIN' IN WE R WHO WE R, HITTIN' ON HOT AND DANGEROUS !? @ CAUTION 2.0. HARD!

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Joshua took a special interest in Nell's school work, perhaps an old habit that had yet to die. When she mentioned the plant she was carrying his gray eyes showed intrigue as he looked it over. "What are you supposed to be doing with it?" he asked. The thing with Joshua was that he rarely carried on conversation when it wasn't genuine or he wasn't really as interested as he sounded. He was generally blunt in his opinions about other people as long as those 'other people' didn't have too many connections with his parents. Of course, those days were gone now. He could run his mouth about people and not have to worry too much about whether it affected his parents and their careers. It was a small comfort when he considered the reason for this being that he'd been kicked out. "Just don't overwork yourself, okay?" He worried about her during the war, of course. If you over-exerted yourself with your powers and someone noticed you looking exhausted they might just take their chances and pounce.

He frowned slightly, a clear warning that he did not like the fact Rosalind had chosen to address them. He didn't recognise her but the fact that she addressed them by element and alignment respectively clued him in that she might know who they were. He immediately felt a sort of protective streak come over him. If she so much as lifts a finger toward Nell... He didn't do anything dramatic like step in front of Nell--that was pushy and suggested that she needed to be monitored like a child. However, he was definitely on his guard. If Rosa decided that she wanted to mess with Nell then Josh wasn't going to stand by and let that happen. "Don't flatter yourself," he said with a scathing tone. "You don't live on the grounds." They hadn't come to 'pay a visit', they'd merely been walking. He could have pulled the childish and lame 'it's a free country' but no, he wasn't going to stoop that low.

Insulting Nell's plant didn't really bug Josh as much as if Rosalind had verbally attacked the girl herself. It was just a work in progress after all, Nell had told him she was still working on it. Instead, it was more the gall of the entire situation that was nagging at him. He almost discarded his sense of restraint and blasted her--or at least made a threat--but the fact that Nell was beside him placated the Fire. She was a calm and compassionate personality, she surely wouldn't enjoy if he roasted anyone simply for breathing in their direction. Nell did not have him on a leash or indeed have any control over him at all but he at least had a little more self-control around her. "He is standing right here," Josh said when Rosa spoke as if he were part of the scenery, "and he suggests that you shut your mouth before you say something you'll regret." No, their status as being a couple could not protect Nell from everything--no matter how much he might wish it, neither of them were invincible. I could do a pretty good job of taking you on, though, he thought toward Rosa but did not speak aloud.

He snorted in what would seem to be contempt as she continued. "Keep her safe?" he echoed. "From what? You? I don't see any danger." He really didn't think that the Fire was going to be much of a threat to them. Of course, Fires were like wolves. They usually hunted in packs. He glanced around surreptitiously to make sure the coast was clear. Not seeing anyone that would immediately come to Rosa's aid he was able to maintain his casual and almost arrogant demeanour. He wasn't going to attack her just for trying to provoke them but that didn't mean he was going to be one hundred pleasant, either.

[NELL DOE DALE]

Nell gently tugged at a dark looking leaf of her plant, a small smile on her face. ”Experimenting with growth rates, mostly. It would be easier if I was just using an already plotted plant, but I’m moving on up, I guess.” When she first came to the Academy, she couldn’t do much of anything, so she was rather proud in the fact that she was at the level of a twelfth grader now. She’d worked hard for it, after all, and she was pretty sure that Josh would be proud of her too. He’s the one who’d helped her, after all. She laughed and reassured him, ”I won’t.” Nell didn’t want to be an easy target, either, so she made sure to be careful in this war. Nothing could really prevent certain situations she was forced into, but she could try to make things better.

Leave it to a Fire student to be standoffish. Don’t think like that. She didn’t like to stereotype anyone, but Fires wouldn’t be Fires without their tempers. However, this girl didn’t seem mad, just condescending. Josh said very well what she was thinking, albeit with more sarcasm than she could have pulled off. ”Nice to meet you too,” Nell said warily in response to the abrupt greeting. She didn’t have it in her to be mean, after all, even though her defense mechanisms were reliant on heavy sarcasm. The Earth girl had no qualms with defending herself verbally—physically was another matter.

Her lips edged into a small smile when the girl insulted her plant, and she wondered why she did that sometimes. Nervous gut reaction she supposed. ”Thank you for your commentary,” she said dryly. Even then, she couldn’t match Josh’s skill in sarcasm. She lifted an eyebrow as Rosa laughed, but made not comment on it. Instead, she seemed to consider the girls words and said, ”Since it is completely possible to hide a plant, I think I will.” Her voice was ever-pleasant as she spoke, but honestly, what else was she supposed to do with her projects that she needed to take to class? She sighed lightly as Josh retorted that who she was dating was right next to her. I am so sorry that Fire students like burning things. She didn’t say it out loud. Even though he’d betrayed his alliance, Josh was still a Fire.

By now, things weren’t looking too good. ”Fires tend to be a common sight, not like we’re going to avoid you guys,” Nell said hastily. If Rosa took Josh’s words as a challenge, then she feared a fight. The girl was pretty young-looking, though, so she didn’t know if she could hold her own against the graduate. ”We’ll try not to let it happen again.” She rested a hand on Josh’s arm as if to urge him along on their path.

[rosalind]

This was starting to lose joy for her. The Earthie was not getting mad, but she was pissing off Josh. She looked at them both and she watched them but kept her guard up on Josh. She rolled her eyes then and sat back down under the tree. Yes, for now, she would give, but if Josh tried to start anything new right now, she would gather her pride back up. She looked at the plant and she watched it carefully but she did not do anything anymore.

Rosa had her pride still, and she planed on keeping it. The last thing she wanted though was for someone to have to come and save her ass from Josh, but then, she could tell that Nell had a pretty good damn leash on him. Yes, she had remarks she could make,but she did not for they would cause a fight. But she still gave him credit, he protected Nell like Rosa would protect Jose.

"So, you have a damn good guy there. He will protect you from anything." She looked at them and hoped that Josh knew she meant no harm from that remark. But then, it was Rosa and she was fire, it could be determined as anything that someone wants it. "You protect her like I will protect my brother. Different alliance and all."

So, maybe she could make friends with them, but it was all up to them, not so much her. She could change her mind any day, but she cant change theirs.

JOSH AND NELL TURN IT UP! IT'S ABOUT DAMN TIME TO RESOLVE OR FIGHT! I'M SO SICK OF THE ACADEMY GROUNDS, IT'S MAKING MY BRAIN FINISHED! I'M JUST TALKIN' I DONT WANT TO COUNT THEM, I KNOW ITS A FAIL. I'M TELLING YOU 'BOUT THAT ROSALIND ELENA HERNANDEZ RAMIREZ. WE'RE SELLIN' KE$HA, SLEEPIN' IN WE R WHO WE R, HITTIN' ON HOT AND DANGEROUS !? @ CAUTION 2.0. HARD!

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Joshua was neither impressed nor convinced by her drastic change of attitude. If she was changing her mind just to avoid a fight then she was a coward in his mind and if it was for another reason then he had no clue whatsoever. At any rate, he was not the type to be flattered by a 'compliment' from someone who had just insulted his girlfriend moments before. Nell was off-limits when it came to attacks from other people. You just did not mess with Joshua Dale's girlfriend unless there was a perfectly good reason for you to be doing so and even then he'd have issues with it. Besides, Nell didn't give people reasons to antagonise her. Pacifists could be irritating sometimes but at least it meant knowing all trouble she got into was undeserved on her part.

He didn't care if she had a sibling in another element. That was her life, her problem. All Josh cared about was the fact that this girl had offended him. She was a lot younger and he was positive he could take her in a fight but that didn't mean it was suddenly 'okay' that she had inadvertently threatened and insulted Nell. "Damn right I will," he said with absolutely no hint of softening up to the Fire girl. "Especially from people like you, too much of a coward to stick to your opinions." It was antagonistic and he knew it. He could have used a better choice of words but Joshua really didn't give a shit about being careful. The fact that there were no older Fires around to jump to her aid meant that he could speak freely and coldly if he wished. It would go unpunished, just the way he liked it.

Feeling Nell's hand on his arm, he looked away from Rosa for a moment to meet her brown gaze with a subtle sort of understanding. Nell didn't want a fight, of course. Josh wouldn't have minded battling it out with this Fire girl but if his girlfriend was going to get dragged into it things were a little different. She had no control over him but in his desire to protect her he would avoid this chance to fight. If he attacked Rosa now and she went back to the common room, the Fire element might target Nell in a purposeful retaliation. He shot a last glare toward their common enemy as if to imply that she had gotten lucky and then stepped back toward the path they'd been taking before, fully intending to leave along with Nell.

[NELL DOE DALE]

Nell could only blink when the confrontation dissolved. It was like Rosa had changed her tune, and she was caught off-guard. The fact that Rosa was suddenly all good-two shoes didn’t mean that the Earth girl was any more inclined to make friends. Sure, she was friendly by nature, but she wasn’t about to go around cuddling up to Fire students just because they decided to back off. It was strange, considering the well-known temper of the element, but she figured the fact that Rosa stated she had a brother in another element explained it. Kind of.

The other girl was right though, and she was just as protective over Josh. Unfortunately, she was a less-than-stellar fighter, and would have been worthless if someone stronger than Josh decided to attack. ”Uh…okay,” Nell said, tilting her head a bit as if waiting for the girl to say “just kidding” and lash out. Before, it seemed like Rosa had every intention of starting a fight, and now she just seemed chill. It was almost ironic, considering there was a war going on and no one really needed a reason to attack someone else. It was as if people used the war as an excuse to take out their aggression on people they didn’t like.

When Josh stepped back, she was definitely relieved and she told Rosa, ”So…adios,” she said, still reeling from the sudden mood swing of the other girl. She was wary still, but more than willing to just walk away. Nell was at least glad there wouldn’t be a fight, no matter how confused she was. This war was really just too much, and it was always nice to escape a confrontation without burns or bruises to show for it. At least she could thank Rosa for that.