-- LIFE AIN'T CHESS && [ace]

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Joshua had always flourished when it came to games of logic and strategy. Perhaps it was his patience or the way his mind worked, or maybe it was just the fact that he was so accustomed to them. Whatever the case, a game of chess on a free period was never something he'd been known to refuse. The frown that played his lips was subtle as he studied the mostly-black pieces on the board, analysing the possibilities. He could move his bishop in for the kill, sure, but then the white piece would be able to make its escape in the next turn. Despite the odds being in his favour, Josh still took several moments of silence before he finally nudged one of his castles forward. "Sometimes I wonder why you even try," he remarked casually to his friend, smirking a little. It was a good-natured gesture, however, holding no real malice nor a haughty air. "Checkmate." He lifted the piece closest to the trapped king and nudged it over, the soft clatter still quite noticeable in the usually silent library. This was the perfect place for a good game of chess because anyone talking loud enough to be a sufficient distraction would be silenced by the librarian.

Stretching a little and cracking his knuckles to dispel the feeling of stiffness from sitting and concentrating for so long, Josh slid the chair back a little and opened the board so that he could deposit the collection of black (they were actually a reddish brown, to match the dark cherry finish of the board itself) and white pieces back where they'd come from. It was one of his collection and the one that he kept at school for times such as these. He knew that the library actually had a couple chess sets (as well as checkers, decks of cards, board games, and other things to entertain on a rainy day) of their own but you always risked a piece or two having gone missing. It was much easier to just substitute your own. "You should plan ahead," he remarked. "It's easier that way." Glancing out of the window, the reason the outdoor classes for the day had been cancelled was not hard to detect. The snow was falling so thick and fast that the field of vision couldn't have been more than a few feet—up here, on the third floor of the library, it was impossible to spot even the ground itself. "Fucking nightmare out there, eh? I think even I'd have trouble." He had his heat and his fire but it would be far too draining to hang around outside and constantly fend off the blizzard. That was what it was, after all. There had been all sorts of warnings on the television the night before.

Much as he loved chess, even Josh wouldn't often go for multiple games in a row. A chess match with Josh was always guaranteed to take a bit of time considering how carefully he planned his moves. Setting a time limit of a minute per turn just meant that he'd use the entire minute each time. Less than that and he wouldn't agree to it at all. In his opinion, a good match was one that was well thought out. This had just been a bit of fun with a good friend of his. Glancing at Ace now, he asked, "Well, what do you want to do now? I hear they cancelled classes for the rest of the day." He wondered briefly whether Nell was going to return home or just bunker down at the Academy, and then considered whether or not he would do the same. Though he did have fire, Josh understood that the roads were going to be an absolute hell. He knew that his friend had a motorcycle but doubted he'd brave it in normal winter conditions, let alone ones as bad as they were having. "I'm not sure whether I'm happy about that or not," he frowned. Josh didn't mind classes so he actually had to think about that. "You?"

[Couldn't resist the title. xD They're lyrics from a The Strokes song.]

[AMBER SAVANNAH JAMES AMBROSE]

The snow fell quickly, but Ace was busy thinking. His mind working hard. He needed to win, even if he knew he couldn't. Didn't men he'd go out with a fight. He'd take as many down with him as he could. Then with an 'A ha!' moment, he moved his last pawn, and took one of Josh's. Of course the move had left him wide open, he didn't even realize it. Josh as usual took his time with his next move, Ace didn't know if he did it on purpose, or was just toying with him. Then he sighed as Josh tipped his king over. "How do you do that?" Ace said groaning. Josh was his superior in nearly everything. Ace still hadn't found out what he was better at then Josh. It might have been pranks but they hadn't really done much of those together. Though Josh was clever, he was sure his pranks were probably more elaborate than Ace's.

Ace also followed suit and stretched, he gripped the back of his chair and turned several cracks sounding from his spine. "Ahh that feels good." He said as he faced Josh again. Ace watched him place the chess set back to where it belonged. It was a nice set, nicer than the cheap one he had back home. That one he bought from a flea market for five bucks. Nothing special. He was never really good at chess. He was usually always beaten when he played against someone. Of course he never actually planned ahead. "I suck at planning." Ace stated simply. It was a fact, if he planned a trip anywhere one of two things usually happened, something disastrous which was a result of his planning, or just him getting sidetracked by whatever interested him. Sometimes even both happened. So Ace grew into a more instinctual person rather than an organized one. For instance back when he roomed with someone in water dorms his side was usually the messiest.

Ace glanced out at the window because of Josh's comment. "Yea, reminds me of home." Ace said with a laugh. Back home he had a few bad snowstorms over the course of him living there. "We once had an Ice storm with that resulted in no power for a week." he noted, remembering the memory. He remembered the fireplace and how they roasted marshmallows every day that week. It was a fun, family bonding week. He guessed he had to thank Mother Nature for that.

Ace wouldn't mind going again even though the outcome of the match would still probably be him losing again. Unlike Josh Ace didn't really need much time to make his move, his plans were usually instant and didn't consider any dangers that might happen in the future. Just like in real life, he'd dive into a fight even if it was probably going to end up bad for him. If he needed to he'd do something on instinct. It was rare for him to actually plan ahead, and even rarer for those plans to succeed. "I dunno," He mulled over the options that presented themselves to him, and he still couldn't figure out what they should do next. At the mention of a cancellation of classes Ace raised a quizzical eyebrow at Josh. "Really?" Ace glanced back out the window, or tried to, the snow was rather thick and obscured most of the view. He doubted really anyone was there. "I don't mind. Gives me time to just, relax you know?" Ace again stretched, though this stretch was more for the emphasis of relaxing then doing any actual stretching.

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Joshua chuckled quietly. "I've had that planned for a good three moves or so." He answered the question honestly because he was not going to pretend that it was luck. Josh did not consider chess a game of luck—it was actually known as a game of strategy, and so he made plans of strategy to win it. He liked strategizing and figuring out solutions for things. In video games when he decided to humour his friends by playing along Joshua was either slaughtered immediately or managed to stay alive by hiding out and trying to snipe people as they came close. Of course, this usually failed as well. Video games were in no way his forte. He always misjudged how hard or soft to tap the control stick to aim the gun and fired past the heads of the opponent, who in turn managed a flawless headshot and brought up their kill count while he exhaled in mild exasperation and waited for his screen to respawn. He was a relatively good sport about it, understanding that he was going to lose going into it for the most part. He was better when he was drunk and that was only because everyone seemed to suck when they were drunk and so they were more or less on the same level.

He tilted his head slightly and listened with interest as Ace mentioned an ice storm. "Really? Where are you from?" They had known one another for years but the personal question was a subtle hint that Joshua was getting more comfortable around Ace. He did not ask questions about a person until he thought they would answer them without hesitation. He was not a perfect judge of the time he should wait and sometimes asked too early or far after they'd reached a point where his friend would be open to him but he was always careful nonetheless. Thinking of his own home and what the blizzards had been like during winters in the Hollow, he felt he could relate. They got some nasty storms of all sorts. It was mentioned in elemental scripture that some of the worse storms were caused because of the high concentration of elemental blood in the area but that mortals just regarded them as freak weather patterns that science could not explain. "Power's been knocked out a few times in the Hollow but we've got backup generators at home so it never hit us too hard." He was not uncomfortable with the fact that his family were rich and they could afford such frivolities such as expensive generators.

Joshua glanced around the library to make sure that they were not being watched by anyone nosy that might rat them out for the most minor offences and then opened the window with a bit of difficulty. He recoiled a little from the cold blast of air and bits of snow that flurried in but a single and deliberate blast of heat cleared a very brief flash of visibility down to the grounds. "Looks pretty deep," he said thoughtfully, slamming the window shut again and letting heat spread through their area of the library to counteract the cold that he'd let in. He considered his precious Lamborghini in the parking lot. It would be covered in a mountain of snow by now and there was never a time in the winter he was not thankful for his powers. They were incredibly useful. "I guess you're right," he agreed with a nod. One day of classes was alright, especially if he could hang out with a friend. "We should probably get out of this library, though. Now that classes are being cancelled people are going to start pouring in here—believe me, I'd know." He sighed to himself as he thought of a few times it had happened in the past. This place was his sanctuary but he hated when it was overrun.

Standing up, Josh straightened his shirt and messed up the back of his hair with a yawn. The heat and quiet of the place was inducing a sleepy lull of comfort that he'd need to shake off by moving around or he'd end up falling asleep. His insomnia had more or less faded lately. According to his father it was caused by periods of stress in his life and in retrospect he could definitely understand why he'd been stressed during the periods were it had been worst. It was hardly easy to sleep when you feared that a gang would soon breathe down your neck.

[AMBER SAVANNAH JAMES AMBROSE]

Ace gave another groan, "Am I that predictable?" Ace said jokingly. He probably was that predictable, and he didn't mind if Josh told him honestly, it was how he conversed. It was one of the things Ace liked about Josh. Despite being opposite elements, they were friends, something that wasn't uncommon but also not too common. Most personalities clashed if they were from opposite elements, it was cool how Ace and Josh's didn't. He wondered if they hadn't met at the hospital would they still be friends? It was a question he had thought of before, but he didn't really dwell on it too much, there was no point in wondering what could have been or what may not have happened. Ace thought about things, a lot, he could be philosophical if he really wanted to be. Ace grinned, he knew Josh wasn't great at video games, and nearly proposed it, but then remembered his roommate had a 'friend' over and he probably shouldn't be bothered. they had mutual unspoken rules, they didn't need any socks on the door.

Without hesitation Ace replied, "Pennsylvania, near the Appalachian Mountains, but not too close to redneck territory." Ace said blatantly. It was a fact, there were rednecks in Pennsylvania, it was like saying there are homeless in New York. He wasn't saying it to be mean, it was just a honest truth. "We got a lot of storms there." He didn't mind the storms, except one time a tree fell on the section of roof above his room. Luckily it didn't break through, but still it scared the living crap out of him. He still visited every Christmas, but that was his only visit home. The rest of the year he was stuck in Canada. Not that it was a bad thing, but he just missed seeing the American flag on every single house. He gave a small smile at the thought, he always wondered why everyone had to show their national pride . Ace gave josh a grin, "Lucky, we didn't get a generator 'till the year I left for the Academy." Ace knew how rich Josh was, he had an awesome lambo, and had seen, and been in, his house a few times. The place was amazing and gigantic.

Ace shivered a little as Josh opened the window. then he to looked down to see what had become of the Academy grounds. He whistled, even from here it was pretty deep. He hadn't had a storm like this in a while. Made him wonder how he'd get back home. "How am I getting home?" Ace said with a bit of a sigh, maybe he could crash at one of the dorms, he was sure no one would really mind. Ace nodded, "I've noticed." He simply nodded his head towards the door and already there were people coming in. Not like a stream of people but more like a trickle, it was of course enough people to notice as the time between people entering was not that long. "Where do you wanna go?" He asked as he watched the people, it was another thing he liked to do, simply observe people as they walked around. They did some peculiar things when they didn't think anyone was watching.

Ace also stood up with Josh. He pushed his sleeves back down to his arms and pulled his hood up so it was a sort of cowl. He liked deep hoods, it made him feel all mysterious and dangerous. It was a stupid fantasy he liked to live out. Of course it was hard to see since the top half of his vision was blocked, and he had gotten a tad uncomfortable because of the heat it trapped, so he decided to take it off. Ace cracked his knuckles and then pulled his sweater down so that it wasn't all bunched up at his waist. "Ready?"

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Rather than just laughing and confirming the fact that Ace was predictable, Joshua took his usual route of seriousness and frowned slightly as he thought of a way to answer. He didn't appear unhappy, merely contemplative. The Fire didn't often smile but his lips tugged downward on numerous occasions, mostly because he was concentrating hard on something or irked by the little things. "Hmm... well, yes and no," he said. "Everyone's predictable if you know what you're doing." He could not guess exactly which move his friend would take and so he'd consider several and his counterattacks for each. It was the reason that his turns took him so long but also the reason why he always seemed to have an air of quiet concentration during the game, of confidence. His father had taught him how to play chess. He'd always lost at first and it had frustrated him so he'd practised and practised until he knew the rules and the ins and outs of chess like the back of his hand. He could play checkers, too, but he didn't find that too fun. It was a lot more simple than chess and even though strategy was possible, it was less so. He liked chess because of the strategising it involved. He enjoyed trying to figure out what his opponent would do next and then visualising the moves on the chess board.

Sometimes it surprised the graduate how easily his friends would reply to him—they had none of the hesitation that he often possessed, no wary looks in their eyes. He did not feel jealous of their separate natures but he couldn't help but wonder what it was like not to worry about opening up to anyone. He would not change himself because of these revelations but they did make him think. "I like the mountains," he said contemplatively. He looked out the window again before remembering that the thick snow concealed their surroundings, included the great mountains that rose up around the school and the Hollow, sheltering them. He had grown up in Maple Hollow and he didn't think he'd feel at home in a flatter place like Ontario or Quebec. His lips twitched briefly at the thought of rednecks but he didn't say anything to that. Every place had its stereotypes and things you should expect. He didn't think he'd met a whole lot of rednecks. Despite the stories about lumberjacks in Canada, he'd never met one of them, either. Well, maybe he had, but he wouldn't have known their occupation unless they told him. "I'm pretty sure my father purchased the generators the first time the power went out," he said, the thought seeming to amuse him slightly. Donovan was the king of hasty and reckless buying.

Josh considered the question. Normally he'd have liked to head out to the Hollow and find something to do but it would be near impossible to drive home in the wretched weather. The snow tires on his car would stop him from slipping around the roads and crashing into things but other cars might not be so lucky and the visibility was awful. He could not concentrate both on driving and on his element to clear the air ahead. Dual concentration was nearly impossible. "The mess hall will be as bad as the library soon," he said, dismissing that idea as it crossed his mind. In fact, people were more likely to go to a warm place with food rather than a warm place with... books. Joshua thought to his car again. He had a bit of stuff in there that would be handy. And whiskey. The thought of it made him grin. "We could always just walk around. I take it the hallways won't be as congested." Joshua kept his sleeves pushed up like he usually did and wore no hood despite the winter weather. At the Academy, he didn't have to worry about people giving him strange looks. They'd probably assume he was Fire when he didn't shiver every few minutes. "So what've you been up to lately, Ace? Anything interesting?" He led the way out into the halls as he spoke, dodging around a group of girls who came in.

[AMBER SAVANNAH JAMES AMBROSE]

Ace nodded, learning as always from Josh. "You know, you'd make a great general." Ace said with a bit of admiration. "I think you'd do good at this one game I have. It's an RTS, a real time strategy." Ace said remembering the game he bought, he never really played it, it wasn't something he expected, he thought it was a first person but it wasn't. He wasn't that great at strategizing and thus a few levels proved rather difficult for him. He never beat it, didn't think he ever would, "You have to take control of this army and gather resources so you can build up your army while also defending and stuff, it seems complicated but I think you'd be able to grasp it. " Chess wasn't his best, video games was something he was good at, but when you combined the two it wasn't that great. He could come up with strategies to say, get that sniper that was picking his team off, or silently take down all the guards in a room. However, for some reason Ace couldn't really apply it to reality, he could try, but they usually didn't go as he planned.

Ace nodded, "Mountains are nice, this place reminds me of home sometimes." Ace mused. This was always a plus he never really ever felt, well, homesick. The mountains were larger than they were at home, mostly because this was still near the rocky mountains and not the Appalachian mountain chain. But it was nice, the whole place was a nice place. Some parts of it reminded him of home, like having all these tree's and living near a forest, or how there was a lake nearby that people could swim in, reminded him of the one he and Ray would visit. He was sure a few of his friends felt homesick though, like the ones from other countries must feel pretty homesick if they didn't come from a mountainous region. He knew one person who was from the plains of America, he felt homesick a lot. He used to tell Ace about the waves of wheat that he'd pass as he went places. It must have been nice though, he might visit the place. However he would rather settle down in a place like this, not too far from society though. Ace grinned at Josh's story.

Ace didn't really know where to go, he usually just walked around or something, nothing really interesting unless he sparred with someone, or flirted. At the moment however he was gonna hang out with Josh as he didn't know where anyone else was at the moment. At the thought of going to the crowded mess hall ace gave a thoughtful hum. Well there was food, but then again it would be crowded by the time that the two reached it, it wasn't an appealing thought. "Probably not, with everyone taking shelter in the warm places." Ace mused at the suggestion, he wouldn't mind the cold, he was warm in his hoodie, and he knew Josh wouldn't he's fire, they're never cold. The two started walking out, and a group of girls walked past them, Ace winked and uttered a 'hey there' before turning back to Josh. "Eh nothing of interest really. The last interesting thing I did was probably the trial." He mentioned the trial, and it was pretty stressful, his best friend might end up in jail. Luckily though the case ended in Nell's fortune.

[JOSHUA DONOVAN DALE]

Intelligent gray eyes bore a mixture of curiosity and amusement at Ace's words. "You think so?" Though anyone that disliked him for their various reasons would hardly believe it, Josh valued the opinions of his friends quite highly. He did not know whether Ace was just pulling his leg or not but the tone his friend had used was flattering nonetheless. He didn't deny the fact that he was good at strategising and he didn't try to play it off modestly, either. That was another thing about him—he was not ashamed or embarrassed to admit when he was good at something. He actually quite liked when he found something he excelled in. "I've certainly got the temper for it," he slipped in as a joke, chuckling. The movie interpretation of generals were usually yelling men with buzz cuts and anger problems. I think I'd look pretty terrible with a buzz cut. His mother had tried cutting his hair shorter than it already was when he was younger and Joshua had loathed it. He didn't know if he'd be any better with it now but he certainly didn't plan on experimenting. He tilted his head when Ace told him about the game. Used to being quite bad at any video game involving violence, Josh was intrigued by the words. "Really? I'll need to try it some time." His words were genuine. He liked strategy and he enjoyed games occasionally. Just because he was awful at video games didn't mean he'd be a bad sport and never play them.

It was sometimes strange to consider that some, including his own girlfriend, had not been born in the country where he'd grown up. He was very attached to Canada and to the Hollow simply because it was the only place he'd ever known to call home. His friends spoke of moving and some of them even went from place to place sporadically thanks to their parents getting new jobs but Josh had always been right there in the Hollow, in the same large mansion of his youth. It had undergone a few renovations over the years including the repairing of the old dock so that they could get the family a yacht but it had stayed a constant thing in his life. "They are nice, yeah." He nodded and fell silent, not sure whether he should test the waters more on the subject of his friend's home. Though Ace did not get homesick, Josh did not know this. He didn't discuss personal matters with people very often and so the process of building trust and getting to know a person tended to move at a snails pace. At the same time, that did not mean Joshua would not befriend a person. He considered Ace one of his closest and most valued friends despite the fact that he'd told the younger boy very little about himself. Ace had gotten to know him during one of the rougher points in his life, shortly after the gang had betrayed him—or, in their eyes, the other way around—and he'd first gotten scars. His face had not been scarred then. I wonder if Ace has ever wanted to know about that. He considered it briefly and then let the subject drop from his mind. He didn't talk about himself.

Josh snorted in mingled amusement and exasperation when Ace greeted the group of girls. He remembered a time when he'd been able to flirt with the ladies but now he was strictly limited to his partner. Not that Josh minded. He'd settled down quite nicely with her if he did say so himself. Speaking of Nell, Ace brought up the trial and Joshua tensed a little before relaxing. It always invoked powerful feelings in him—especially that of protectiveness over Nell. He reminded himself that Ace had been there as a friend and a support. "It was good of you to do that for her," he acknowledged. The two guys were close friends and had both met Nell after they'd already known each other, albeit separately. Now they were both close to the Earth girl. "Interesting, though? I guess you could call it that." He sighed. A lot had come from the trial, not all of it good. He was sure Ace knew all of that as well from what people had been saying about Nell. Thankfully, he didn't think Ace knew about her depression. He could have been wrong but it had never come up in conversation. Nell hid it well. I'm lucky I even noticed. He wondered what would have happened if he hadn't. Would his anger have been worse when he'd found out she had lied to him for months? He'd never know. "I don't really think I've had anything too... interesting, either." That was a lie but Ace didn't know about the things that had occurred and so Josh didn't want to concern his friend.

[Here is the new one.]