RPG Esper Jam!

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=Magenta][CENTER][IMG]http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b269/MetalSonic700/esperjamchapterone.jpg[/IMG][/CENTER]

[CENTER][B]Esper Jam![/B][/CENTER]

*sigh* Another day, another truckload of crap I had to do. Naturally. Everyone always comes to me for help, and god knows why. They say I have a personal magnetism - so why haven?t I gotten laid in over 6 months? Guess the girls know to avoid the busy ones. Ah, but I digress. This isn?t a story about me - it?s a story about Esper Hall. Well, not so much the place as a whole as it is about certain people who came here. I guess I count as one of them, but whatever. I knew it was strange - it?s not every day that 9 people come into Esper Hall at once. I remember that after I had showed them all around and to their rooms, I was asking everyone around if some idiot had released a commercial or other sort of ad, but all shook their heads. Nine people all at once could only mean one thing - something big was in our futures.

Of course, they didn?t see it - it was my over-responsible ass that had to feel all pensive about it. Naturally, though, it?s not like everything happened right away. Like any new person at Esper Hall, they were all relatively young and all had minimal knowledge of their powers. They were the essence of newbies - just kids with powers they didn?t understand looking to get a better grasp on things. I could see my younger self in their eyes - when I first showed up, asking lots of questions. Of course, since I was known as a prodigy I guess I wasn?t quite like everyone else. Maybe that?s why women avoided me?

[B]?Hey!?[/B] I snapped out of the ongoing thought chain in my head at the voice of one of the new guys. Right, I should probably tell you, this was only a day after they?d arrived. A few of them hadn?t unpacked yet, having been so tired from the ride here. Esper Hall happens to be in the middle of nowhere - don?t ask me why. No one can get directions, either - the only way here is by the bus we own. I bet the bus driver nearly thought himself crazy when nine kids of all different backgrounds stepped onto his bus.

[B]?Joe! Are you listening??[/B] I shook my head to break my trance. A person with as little spare time as myself shouldn?t be dosing off like that!

[B]?Oi. What is it??[/B] The person I was speaking to was a female by the name of Shiana Mardeis. Like me, she was a person who had a lot of work to do, being one of the most respected members of Esper Hall. Everyone always says that we?re like the wonder-team. They always tell us we should go out, but we tried it for a week once and it didn?t work out at all. I digress again?

[B]?It?s about that time they?d be waking up, right? If you see any of tem about, I?m sure they-?[/B]

[B]?Could use someone to get them acquainted with everything, right? Dear god, like I haven?t been doing this for years.?[/B]

[B]?Oh, hush,? [/B] and with that she left me alone. We?d had this conversation before, I assure you. I sighed and glanced over at my clock - 10:02. I couldn?t remember sleeping? damn these kids! Always got me running on empty?I took a look at the list of names I?d scribbled down on paper to remember them. Next to each was a highly detailed picture - thank you photocopy powers.

[CENTER][CENTER][U]The Cast:[/U][/CENTER]

[B]Clurr [/B] ---- [B]Julian Amery[/B]
[B]Wet Cement [/B] ---- [B]Levon LeVaughn[/B]
[B]Fyxe [/B] ---- [B]Shayla L'mei [/B]
[B]Caoimhe [/B] ---- [B]Dustin Aimee Johnson [/B]
[B]Hell'sMinion6676[/B] ---- [B]Dante Wilenson[/B]
[B]Darren [/B] ---- [B]Chloe Verena[/B]
[B]Premonition [/B] ---- [B]Thomas Arthur[/B]
[B]indifference [/B] ---- [B]Vanyel Ashkevron [/B]
[B]Jiazu [/B] ---- [B]Chora S. Park [/B]
and
[B]2007DigitalBoy [/B] ---- [B]Joe Deadrien[/B][/CENTER][/COLOR]

[Wet Cement]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]It was with a heavy intake of breath that Levon dropped the suitcase onto his bed. He placed his hands on his hips and took in a few more breaths; for someone who'd spend so much time living on the streets he really wasn't in terrific shape.

The suitcase wasn't his; he'd had no clothes or belongings to put in one anyway, so why bring it? He'd stolen it from the airport's baggage retrieval belt just hours before, taking the most expensive-looking and big one of the lot and slinked away with it. He'd not had a chance to look inside it until now.

[b]"Let's see what we got here..."[/b] he said to himself, drawing the zipper along the side the bag and drawing back the flap to reveal the contents. [b]"Ah, god dammit!"[/b] He muttered as he upended the bag and poured a pile of women's clothes onto the bed.

He stood back from the mess with the empty bag in his hand, and shook his head. [b]"Now that's going to be fun to explain..."[/b] He ran his hand along the inside of the bag slowly, feeling for any hidden compartments or something else of interest, but found nothing. He tossed the bag to the foot of the bed, and picked the pile up in his arms and dumped it down with the bag. He'd put it away later and give it to Salvation Army, he figured.

He lay down on the bed and propped himself up on the pillow. He was tired; it was late, anyway. He wanted to stay awake and think about his new life, but he simply couldn't pull it off. Fully clothed and with the lights still on, Levon fell asleep.
[CENTER]
[B]=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=[/B][/CENTER]

Levon's alarm rang at exactly nine o'clock. As he rolled over to smack it off the bedside table, he hazily realized he couldn't remember having an alarm clock, let alone setting it for nine. With a start, he realized that the ringing was inside his own head - [I]Man, this place really [b]is[/b] freaky[/I], he thought. The ringing stopped after exactly one minute, but it wasn't enough to get him out of bed. He was never one for being on time, and he was still tired, so he lay there awake for a time. Eventually, though, the urge to wash overcame him and he got up and plodded to the small phone-booth-of-a-bathroom in the corner of his room, disrobed, and took the first real shower he'd had in months.

Dressed again and feeling refreshed, Levon walked out the door and into his new life. He wondered whether or not this new life would have free food or if he'd have to pay for it; to this end he set out to find someone in charge.[/COLOR][COLOR=Indigo][SIZE=1][INDENT][B]Wet Cement[/B], next time use less dash's and equal signs. If you're stretching OB's layout, you need to change it. Thanks. ~indifference[/INDENT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Horendithas]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Indigo]If Vanyel had known where the bus was going, she would have never gotten on it. She had been doing as she always did, skipping town. No matter how hard she tried, Vanyel always ended up needing to move on. Once the kids or gangs in any given town realized that she was homeless she inevitably became a target. It was either move to a new place or wake up to realize that they had found her hiding place and hope to hell that she could get away without having to... She sighed as she opened up the tiny backpack that she had. Everything she owned was in it. A few changes of clothes, a pretty black dress that she had stolen but never wore. A handful of books and a small portable cd player and some classical cd's, all of it stolen.

If they weren't in the middle of nowhere she would have already left. The person who took them around the other day acted as if they had wanted to come here, as if it was somehow meant to be. But all she had done was take advantage of a bus with other kids to sneak on. Vanyel had quickly learned that the best way to move around was to stick with other kids since the bus driver always assumed they were together. She'd used that trick a lot as well as using her small ability to teleport something to steal the money to pay for a bus ticket. Vanyel had thought it was taking her to another part of town or to the next one. Not to this place.

Carefully she pulled out her only clean outfit. She had already taken advantage of the restroom to clean up before going to bed last night. She took a moment to toss on a pair of blue jeans and a plain shirt.[I] I wonder if they have a laundry mat? [/I]Vanyel hated being dirty and usually every couple of days she would wash what she owned at one of the laundry mats in the area.[I] I guess I'll have to ask. [/I] She finished pulling out her stuff and put it away in the top drawer of a tiny chest next to the bed with a lamp on it.

Then, after using her only comb to get the tangles out of her hair she resolved to try and figure out just what the hell was going on. That and she kind of hoped they'd give her something to eat. By now she would have already used her ability to steal something to eat. But if she remembered correctly the person who showed her around along with the others had indicated that the bus to this place only went into town once a week. And it was definitely too far to simply walk there. Vanyel had seen nothing else once the bus had left the town and she had no clue where they kept the food in this place.

Vanyel finished with her hair and then left her temporary room to try and hunt for the person who had showed them around, Joe was his name if she remembered correctly. She hadn't really taken any notice of the others, she'd been too tired to care. But as she started to head down the hallway, she stopped. Vanyel didn't have a clue as to where she should even go. [I]Now what?[/I]

For a moment she started to panic until the sight of someone at the end of the hall caught her attention. Instantly she switched to her indifferent facade. Taking a stance as if she didn't have a care in the world, a tactic that she had learned out of necessity during her years on the streets. Vanyel continued walking down the hallway, picking a direction to take at random. She was sure to find food eventually if she kept looking. She ignored everyone that she saw, looking for Joe. She figured that if anyone knew what the hell she was suppose to do it would be him. He had shown her to her room after all. [/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR=Navy]Thomas stumbled into his room. With a thump, he landed on his bed. With a sigh he dug his head into the pillow. He took out a candy bar from his pocket, he ate away. The chocolate crumbs rolled onto his chest. He picked them up and ate them. Without a word he got up and went to the bathroom.

After about 30 minutes of bathroom time, he got out with a towel on is body. He took out some black pants, and a black T-shirt with a white tie. He wasn?t going to a special even or anything, but he wanted to look nice. He sat back on the bed and turned on his radio.

[B]?Damn, this place is boring??[/B] Thomas complained. A small creature jumped onto his bed. Thomas had brought back his friend Chocolate from his mind. Chocolate was a catlike creature. Thomas wanted to make him bigger, but he couldn?t. Once Thomas? powers wee much stronger he could make Chocolate real. But that was far away from reach. Thomas had no friends, so he conversed with the monsters.

[B]?Tommy, what?s wrong?? [/B] Chocolate asked.

[B]?Nothing, I?m just lonely that?s all. Too bad you?re not real, otherwise I might have a friend.? [/B] Thomas sat up.

[B]?Oh, bid deal! Tommy, my man, maybe you should go out there and find some esper who can help you. It?s worth a shot.?[/B]

Thomas nodded. [B]?I can?t, I?m not a people person.?[/B]

[B]?Then why do you complain about having no friends? If you don?t like people then don?t complain that you don?t have someone there for you. It?s common sense.? [/B] Chocolate jumped up. [B]?Well, I gotta go, the others are throwing a party!? [/B] Chocolate jumped back into Thomas? head. The force was so great, he got knocked back onto the pillow.

[B]?He hits hard.? [/B] Thomas said painfully.

Chocolate said that there was a party. Inside of Thomas? mind all of the creatures he had made were living. Sometimes Thomas can even hear them. His mind was empty of love ad friendship, so they had tons of room to live in. Thomas has had nights where he couldn?t sleep even an hour because of the racket inside his head. But Thomas could also project himself inside of here using his powers. It was an ability he just learned. But he can only stay inside for 10 seconds. Not that long at all.

Thomas fell asleep, a nap would refresh him.[/COLOR]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Navy](OoC: Thomas's voice is like Chad's off of Bleach. Vey deep.)[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Skye]

[size=1][color=blue]With a groan, Dusty shouldered her duffle bag and pulled the rolling suitcase up the bus steps behind her. Looking for an unoccupied space, she slid the suitcase under her seat and dropped the duffle bag into the empty one beside her. Her mom waved happily from the bus stop bench as the bus drove off. As the bus drove off, Dusty could hear her mother?s parting words in her head. [I]If they?re anything like they were, you will be right at home.[/I]

Falling asleep with her head against the bus window, one hand clenched tightly on the duffle bag and her foot hooked around the handle of her suitcase, Dusty wished she could?ve just gone to camp like everyone else.

Upon the bus?s arrival to Esper Hall, Dusty was shaken awake by the person in front of her. She grabbed her things and followed everyone off the bus. She stared in awe at the front of the building, built in the classic Roman style. Before she could stop the thought, she heard another one of the kids think, [I]This place must have one heck of a library![/I] Dusty looked around but coulnd?t pinpoint who it had come from, so started up the steps.

Despite sleeping on the bus, Dusty was exhausted. She?d been up since the day before helping her mother landscape, and then afterwards had to baby-sit a pair of devil toddlers before getting sent home to pack. She hadn?t slept in 20 hours and the ride to the hall hadn?t been enough. Absent-mindedly she followed her guide to her room and closed the door behind her. The room was cozy, and just right. Her room at home had been way too big for her stuff, and it made her nervous to have so many corners for dust and spiders to collect.

Dumping her stuff and stacking it all rather neatly by her bed, she grabbed some random PJs and headed for the shower. About the time she started feeling like she was going to sleep standing up, she toweled off and crawled into bed.

Dusty didn?t remember actually falling asleep, but the next thing she knew her internal alarm was going off and with a groan she rolled out of bed. Literally. Hitting her head on the nighttable, she landed on her clothes and lay sprawled on the floor for a few minutes before dragging herself to her feet. Her first thought was [I]Coffee?[/I]

After that she glanced down at her clothes and then sighed. ?[b]I guess I have to get dressed first.[/b]? Throwing on a pair of bike shorts, a loose red shirt, and flip flops, Dusty managed to get her hair decent looking before going in search of something to satisfy her rumbling stomach.

OOC: Her wardrobe pretty much consists of bike shorts, boys clothes, anything comfy. She?s wearing a variation of what?s attached to my sign up. :)[/size][/color]

[Fyxe]

[size=1]Shayla's first thought upon setting eyes on Esper Hall was something like, "Wow, great design. Maybe I should sketch it later." But, well, she sort of forgot about that as soon as she saw the females in the group of new arrivals. She stayed silent, but brushed her hand against all of them as often as she could, leading her to getting apprehensive glances. She simply bowed her head slightly in apology, but a smile tugged at her lips as soon as the girls would turn away from her.

This guy. Joe. He was sort of annoying to listen to, he sounded bored and full of himself. Maybe that was just Shayla's personal take, but it grated on her nerves, and she tuned him out. She figured that since this place was so out in the middle of nowhere, it'd be peaceful. Well, if there were many more people like that, she was about to be proven wrong.

Shayla was so so relieved when she was shown to her room. She had all of her belongings in two large suitcases, and a backpack, and it had become a great inconvenience to haul it around the entire community for the tour.
She closed the door and locked it immediately, ready to make herself at home, and that only meant one thing: putting up her nudey posters. Slipping them out of one of her suitcases, she taped them to the wall. It was a very mediocre job, but she didn't care if the organization looked trashy or not. The rest of the wall space would be reserved for pictures of Shayla and her future girlfriend (which she was determined to find soon), and drawings.
Not one for much sleep, Shayla just sat on the couch in her room, and pulled out her sketch book. She'd unpack everything else some other time.[/size]

[HellsMinion6676]

[COLOR=Red][SIZE=2]Dante hadn't expected a bus in the middle of nowhere. He was very supprised when the guy named Joe knew his name and even when he found out that there was a room waiting for him when he got there.

After getting to the room he decided to shower and get refreshed after all the traveling he had done in the past months. Halfway through the shower he relized that he didn't have any other clothes or anything with him. After getting out of the shower he grabed a towel and went into the room to try and get some sleep before exploring the rest of the community. When he looked at the bed he was shocked to see a suitcase lying there. [I]This place just keeps getting stranger and stranger.[/I] he thought to himself. He threw the suitcase onto the floor and just feel onto the bed wearing only a towel and just feel into unconciousness.

_____________________________________________________________

sometime around 8:50 Dante woke up and decided to search the suitcase and see if there was anything useful in it. He pulled the suitcase onto the bed and opened it. There was the basic travel stuff in it toothpaste, toothbrush, mouthwash. There was also some clothes in it, mostly just like basic solid colors. Dante dug through the bad until he found a black shirt and put it on, he went into the bathroom and got the pants he had on before and put them back on.

Now that he was dressed and clean he decided to go and search around the place.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Claire]

[FONT=Arial]Julian hadn?t slept.

He had been fine the night before he came to the Hall, in his own bed, in his own house. Now, the insomnia that had cursed him so many times before was back. His first night in the Hall consisted of tossing and turning, and opening his eyes every hour or so to stare at the wall. His new room smelled stale, and the bed sheets were cold and stiff. Even the wall he had watched all night was uncomfortable just to look at.

Sunlight streamed through the window across the room. Squinting, he sat upright and leaned into his hand, his elbow propped on his leg.

[I]First thing on my to-do list,[/I] he thought: [I]get curtains.[/I]

He waited on the bed for a while, sitting with his eyes buried in his hands. Footsteps passed by his door, followed by the sounds of people muttering to themselves. He figured he should at least get acquainted with the faces of his new community, even though he wasn?t planning on really getting to know any of them.

He pulled black denim pants and a band shirt-today it was Misfits, dark red with an ominous reaper in front-from his suitcase and changed into them, then stepped into simple black slip-on shoes. A quick glance in the mirror on his door confirmed that his shadowy eye makeup hadn?t quite faded away overnight. He decided he looked presentable enough, opened the door, and slowly walked out of his bedroom.

The hallway stretched forever in both directions, and he sighed in sudden defeat. It was reason enough to just go back to bed. But as he turned to go back into his room, he noticed people gathering down one way.

Sighing once again, he headed down the hallway towards them. [I]Maybe one of them knows where I can get curtains.[/I][/FONT]

[Jiazu]

[SIZE=1][FONT=Comic Sans MS][i]No, Mom! Don't go! If you do, then you'll...[/i] Cho awoke with a start, her eyes wildly searching the room around her for a few moments before she remembered where she was. "Right... I'm actually here..." She looked out the open window beside her bed into the pre-dawn sky and sighed.
[i]Raj? You there?[/i] A few moments passed, then a slightly arrogant voice replied [i]Of course.. can't you see me? Really... you humans have such horrible eyesight. What do you want?[/i]

[i]Actually I[/i] can[i] see you... I think. It's not my fault you're only a bloody speck from down here![/i] Cho replied with a grin, looking up at a wee dot circling in the sky above. [i]I just wanted to ask you not to come down here unless I call you, ok? There's no telling what these people here are like, and I don't want anything to happen to you.[/i]

[i]I suppose you're right.. Thankfully, the fields around here are full of mice, so I won't have to go very far away..[/i]

[i]Oh, well, about that... You should stay a mile or two away from here too... You don't exactly blend in with the local wildlife you know.[/i] Cho said apologetically. [i]It's pretty warm here, so you should be okay staying outside. I'll come find you in an hour or so, ok?[/i]

[i]...fine then. Be careful, though; I don't want anything to happen to you either.[/i]

With that, Cho sat up and looked around her new room. She had been so tired the night before that she'd just thrown her one bag, an old backpack, down on the floor at the foot of the bed, collapsed on the bed and gone to sleep without even turning on the light.
The early morning light showed a bare room, to her left, a nightstand with a lamp on it, and a desk and chair against the same wall as the door. Past the foot of the bed was a small dresser, and a wall with two more doors in it, presumably leading to the bathroom and the closet. Her perusal of her room complete, Cho hopped out of bed and headed for the door she thought led to the bathroom, and hopefully, a hot shower.

[center]*************[/center]

An hour later, Cho, dressed in her usual outfit of a tank top; dark, skin-tight jeans; and a red leather jacket, slipped out of her room. She went downstairs and headed down the hallway in the direction of the kitchen she thought she'd seen on her way in, hoping to grab a quick meal before she went out. It was indeed the kitchen that Cho had seen the previous night, and there was no one inside, so she went inside, made herself a sandwich, and, seeing a door leading outside, decided to leave that way, instead of by the main entrance, hoping that no one would notice her go.




OOC: Do you still call it a voice when you're speaking telepathically?? Also, Cho never wears shoes unless she has to, and then only flip-flops...[/FONT][/SIZE]

[HellsMinion6676]

Dante had been wandering the halls for aout half an hour now and still hadn't found anything showing were he was. He decided to head outside and hoped he get some kind of bearing of were things might be, he walked outside and saw a few people scattered about doing various things. Dante decided to go ask one of them were he could find some food in the this place, but just as he was getting close to the first person he saw they disappeared. He was confused for a second and then someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around to see Joe standing there. [B]"Admiring the teleporters?"[/B]

[B]"Sure seems like it would come in handy being out here in the middle of nowhere. Being able to go any where anytime you wanted."[/B]

[B]"Yeah, but most of them can't go farther than about 5 meters. They are just learning. But if your interested there is a class sign up in the cafeteria, who knows you may find some other classes you are interisted in.[/B]

After saying that he started to walk off. [B]"Hey, were is the cafeteria anyways?"[/B]

[B]"Oh I almost forgot heres a map of Esper Hall so you don't go wondering around all day and get lost, now I got to go find the others I'm sure they will need maps to. See you around."[/B]

Dante looked at the map and decided he might as well go and check out the cafeteria, he was hungry. Maybe he would find some interesting classes, and teleporting would come in handy. Dante went back into the main building and tryed to figure out were he was on the map so that he could make his way to the cafetria when he suddenly ran into a large group of people gathered in one hallway.

[Darren]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=SlateGray]Chloe's alarm clock rang at a shocking seven o' clock in the morning. She was always a bit of a morning person and she never had the opportunity to decorate her room or explore the community they day before. The ride to the community was painful enough, with constant bumps on mostly gravel roads, she went stratight to bed after her tour with Joe.

She stood up, stretched, got dressed, and proceeded to unpack her several suitcases. Chloe was actually shocked that the other people on the bus ride had little to nothing with them. But she was prepared for at least a year's stay at Esper Hall. She unpacked her clothes first, finding that there wasn't enough room in her closet. [I]"Well that's something I need to have Joe fix,"[/I] she thought.
Her mother had alwasy told her of Espers who were able to bend reality in order to make small spaces bigger or big spaces appear smaller. Surly it wouldn't be too difficult to make her closet a bit bigger.

Next, she unpacked her make-up and endless morning supplies and loaded them into the bathroom. Chloe, once again, found that there wasn't enough space and so she was forced to find creative spots to conceal her toiletries.
She changed the sheets and comfortors on her bed with the ones that she had brought from home, moved her bed in front of the window in order to get more sun, put all of her fantasy books and fairy tales on the bookshelf, loaded the desk with all kinds of silly trinkets and things, put her posters of famous Japanese singers and actors up around her wall, (not to mention all of her flags and pictures of beautiful scenery) found a perfect spot on the bedside table for Xander, her gecko, and stuffed the remaining junk( that her mother insisted that she bring) underneath her bed. Then...

[B]"I'm hungry,"[/B] she said to herself. Actually, she directed it towards her leaf-tailed gecko, who responed with a brief chirp of agreement and crawled onto the door of his cage, signifying his wanting out.
[B]"Let's scour this place for some food,"[/B] she stated as she picked up Xander and placed him on her shoulder. The gecko a few more chirps of happy agreement and the pair set out in search for food.

It didn't take long before Chloe had found her way to the cafeteria. She was actually exploring as much of it as possible, trying to find the many different rooms that her mother had told her about. Once she remembered the path Joe had led them the night before, it was easy getting to the study hall, which Chloe remembered having a map on the wall. After that, it was fairly easy making her way to the cafeteria.

She was making surprising time, making it to the cafeteria at 9:35. While she was eating, she noted several of people from the day before show up there at different times. They all set at different tables, chatting away with their friends. Xander gave a few low and sympathetic chirps in her ear. He seemed to know what she was thinking about.
[B]"Don't worry, we'll make friends."[/B]

In the middle of breakfast, she was interruped by several older looking people asking if she was the daughter of Alfred and after the tenth time, she decided that her breakfast was done.

On her way out, however, she found Joe wandering the hallways.
[B]"Hey! I have a favor to ask"[/B] she called. He acted like he didn't hear her. In fact, Chloe could have sworn that he picked up his pace. [B]"Joe Deadrien!"[/B] She screamed loud enough for the entire room to turn their heads. He stopped and reluctantly turned his head.

Chloe didn't really blame him; people ususlly got bad first impressions with her. Probably because she talked too much or asked too many questions. At least she had his attention.

[B]"Ah, Chloe. I didn't see you there, I was just looking for all of our newcomers--"[/B]

[B]"Yeah okay. Can you do something about my closet?"[/B] She was very blunt, but the thought of her many outfits remaining in her suitcase, getting more wrinkled by the second really irritated her.

[B]"What seems to be the problem?"[/B] Now he'd done it. Chloe hoped he didn't have something important to do.

[B]"Well first off, it's too small; I can't fit all of my clothes in there and I remember this one time my mom told me that people can make spaces bigger. Too bad they can't make them prettier or else this place wouldn't be so drab. I mean seriously, who built this place? I bet it was some old person. The walls are pale and ugly, the rooms and closests are small,..."[/B] She went on and on, Joe seemed to be zoning out, but Chloe threw in a couple of 'are you listening,' to keep him on his toes.

When she had finished, Joe said plainly, [B]"I'll see what I can do,"[/B] and then he turned to walk off.

With another chirp in her ear, Xander meant to remind Chloe of his source of food, [B]"Oh wait, Joe? There's one more thing."[/B] She called out to him. He froze and let out a deep heavy sigh before turning back,

[B]"What is is, Chloe?"[/B]

[B]"Do you know where I can get some crickets?"[/B]

[B]"And why would you need crickets?"[/B] Joe hadn't realezed the small maroon-brown gecko resting on her shoulder.

She grabbed him off her shoulder and held him out to Joe, [B]"Well because Xander's hungry. He needs some crickets."[/B]

Joe looked like he had a million questions, but restrained himself out of fear of being talked to death. With another sigh he spoke very simply, [B]"In the summer months, we're alwasy swarmed with insects. Go outside and see if you can find some."[/B]

Chloe found it rude to suggest that Xander could hunt when he'd been bred as a pet, but when she started to protest, Joe vanished, teleporting himself to who-knows-where. Chloe hated the idea, but didn't really have much of a choice.

[B]"I guess we're going hunting little buddy,"[/B] she said and Xander gave several small chirps of fear.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[2010DigitalBoy]

[COLOR=DarkOrange][B]?Oi.? [/B] This girl, Chloe, I could already tell would be a pain; not that I didn?t have to deal with people like this anyway. It?s easier when they?re new - they tend to be far less opinionated, and if they hate you, you can avoid them quite easily.

[B]?Why hello there!?[/B] a bright female voice called to me. Unfortunately, the more experienced ones always knew where to find you. ?Not very nice are you? Though I guess she was a little annoying,? Shiana teased.

[B]?Why can?t you handle the new people??[/B] She shot me a sideways glance and a smirk.

[B]?You?re mister esper expert.?[/B] ? woe is me. How did I earn this title again?

[B]?Well, I already talked to some of them, and I might be talking to one right now.? [/B] She sighed.

[B]?Like anyone really believes you can be in more than one place at once. Only the newbies actually think that crap.?[/B] I shrugged.

[B]?Think what you want,? [/B] and disappeared.

[CENTER][B]***[/B][/CENTER]

[B]?Aloha!?[/B] Levon jumped nearly through his skin as Joe?s voice suddenly cut into his train-of-thought. He spun in his tracks in the hallway to face the older esper. As always, the same dead expression wore on his face as if it had been burned there.

[B]?Hey!?[/B] Levon replied, nonchalant. He moved forward to shake Joe?s hand. Rather than take a step, Joe?s image fizzed and in a split-second he was already standing before Levon, hand outstretched. After a second to take in the transpiration, Levon shook it gratefully.

[B]?I?m going to bet you?ll want to know where the cafeteria is sooner or later. Here,? [/B] Joe handed him the map of esper hall that he had given the other he?d met so far. [B]?I warn you, don?t be tricked too easily by the psychic tricks. There are some people who like to play with the minds of younger espers - no offense. Chow.? [/B] Just like that, he was gone.

[CENTER][B]***[/B][/CENTER]

Holding the list of names in my hand I quickly applied checkmarks next to the names of those I?d talked to. Chloe, Levon, Dusty, Dante, Julian (why did he ask me about curtains? These kids?), Cho? I only had three left to talk to. There was the older girl and the strange boy who was materializing psychic visions. I had noticed that no one else seemed to pay mind to his cat - confirmed when one of them stepped right through it. Whether they were produced by his emotions I?d need to find out later. The third girl was the biggest curiosity though. Her thoughts were quiet, like whispers. She was protecting her mind and doing a fair job of it, though I picked up enough to figure out that she wasn?t intending to come here. She couldn?t have known that it was problematic for me to not be able to find her as easily with the shield on, but hopefully she would find me.

Footsteps were coming down the hall in front of my office door at a rapid rate. Speak of the devil (erm? esper). I called out to her.

[B]?Oi!? [/B] She turned toward me and immediately diverted direction into my office, taking a seat in the chair across my desk from me.

[B]?You?re name is Vanyel, tight? Welcome to Esper Hall.?[/B]

[B]?Yeah? but...?[/B] she was having trouble putting the words in order it seemed. I hate when that happens?

[B]?You didn?t actually come here for any reason, you just happened to get here, and you?re not sure what to do?? [/B] Vanyel was a little shocked that he had figured it all out and strewn it out so quickly, but she recovered her straight face.

[B]?Right.?[/B]

[B]?Well, don?t worry about it. Half the people here didn?t even know what this place was until they got here. It?s nothing more than coincidence on a wide scale - people don?t show up here who aren?t espers, and just the same, espers tend to end up here. I assume you?re familiar with the fact that you have special powers, considering the rather well-built wall you?ve set up around your thoughts. If those were private, then I?m very sorry, and if you want, I can set up an impenetrable fortress in your head that no one here can break, but that?s off-topic for now. This isn?t the same place as it is outside. This isn?t a class system - this isn?t fascism. It?s a community in the purist sense, acting on itself. You can leave on the Saturday bus if you really want to, but I think you?d like it here. I?m not going to tell you that you have an obvious choice to make - that?s a lie. A life altering decision is never easy to make. You?ve got 2 days to make up your mind, I guess.?[/B]

I allowed her to take all of what I said in, feeling a little bad that I?d hogged all the conversation. This is why the ladies don?t like you!

[B]?But I don?t understand? what this place is exactly. What am I supposed to do?? [/B] I rose from my chair, looking out the window. This is not a speech I gave for the first time on this day.

[B]?Esper Hall means something different to everyone. To some, it?s a training ground for them to hone their skills for whatever reason they have. Some want to push their mental limits; others want to make their lives more convenient. There are some with high hopes of becoming mages and leaving our planet behind. There are those who do it for adventure and experience. Personally, I started doing it for those reasons. I?ve been all round the world at my own whim. I?ve stood on top of a pyramid - once when I was younger I dived off of Niagra Falls. The true essence of becoming an esper for me is freedom to do whatever I want.

There are some who want to make a difference in the world - meld it to their liking. There are some factionists in esper hall, and they are the ones you have to be careful of. Most importantly, though, Esper hall is home. It is a place you can be at peace - a place where you can be yourself and never be judged - where you can literally train yourself to do anything in the world.?[/B] I don?t know if she thought I was crazy or if she was in awe, but there was no reply.

[B]?In any event, here,?[/B] I handed a map over to Vanyel, [B]?now, if you?ll excuse me, I?ve got two more I need to talk to. If you have any questions, go to Shiana. She can help you with anything - she?s the red dot on you?re map.? [/B] And with that, I teleported off.

[CENTER][B]***[/B][/CENTER]

Vanyel opened the map. Where she was sitting there was a ?you are here? sign on the paper, and moving about, occasionally warping to different parts of the paper, was a red dot.[/COLOR]

[Horendithas]

[SIZE=1][COLOR=Indigo]Vanyel had not expected to find Joe so quickly or for him to confirm that he could pick up on her thoughts. For a split second she had felt the first stirrings of panic until she realized even if he could pick up on hers she could not hear anything he was thinking. And in the end, that was all she cared about. Other people's thoughts were painful, shrill and often so loud that until she finally figured out how to block them, there were times when she couldn't tell which thoughts were hers and which were others. And some of them, even now the memory of how cold and horrible some people's thoughts were was enough to give her an occasional nightmare.

Still, if he could hear them, who else could? Vanyel had thought that her shield for a lack of a better word was good enough. Obviously she was wrong. Curious about this Esper Hall as he called it she asked him a question. Something she rarely did. Most of the time Vanyel preferred it if someone else did the talking since she never knew what to say. And moments later he obliged her by explaining more. Vanyel was still wondering just what to do when he handed her a map, explained that someone named Shiana was available if she needed assistance and then he quite literally vanished.

Shocked she just sat there. [I]You can teleport yourself? [/I]The most she could do was move something that weighed around five pounds. Any bigger or heavier and she simply couldn't do it. She looked down at the map, briefly watching the red dot and then taking notice of the names of the different places in the building. Sure enough there was a community laundry room, a cafeteria and even a tiny room with her own name printed on it. And her eyes couldn't help but stop at a room marked library. [I]I wonder if they have any fantasy novels?[/I] She had a few of her favorites with her as she never got tired of reading them. But to have access to more?

Torn she sat there, still looking at the map. She didn't understand why they would let her stay here. After all she had no means to pay for anything. Her education was at best spotty. By the time she ran away from the last foster home she had been in she had only learned the most basic of math and reading. If not for using public libraries in the winter to sleep in as well as helping herself to the fantasy novels to read, she probably wouldn't even be able to read the very map he had given her. And she hadn't written something in years and years. She'd never needed to.

Still...if she did stay, she wouldn't have to hunt for places to steal food from, or find people to take money from. And she wouldn't have to use her power to steal the key to the showers in truck stops to get cleaned up. And most of all, even if someone like Joe could easily teleport around the lock to her bedroom door, she would have her own spot to call her own. Vanyel had not missed the tiny bookshelf in her room. It implied that she could have her own books if she wanted.

Confused, Vanyel got up and left the office, heading towards the spot marked cafeteria, noticing how the you are here dot moved with her. [I]Well that's useful.[/I] She thought. [I]That will make finding things a hell of a lot easier. [/I] A moment later the dot Joe had indicated was Shiana appeared not to far from her.

"[B]Excuse me.[/B]" Vanyel called out.

The woman turned to face her. "[B]Ah, you must be Vanyel, what did you need?[/B]"

"[B]I was wondering how one signs up for the classes?[/B]" Vanyel asked hesitantly.

"[B]Well there's always someone around in the cafeteria who can direct you to one. What did you want to start with[/B]?"

"[B]Teleporting,[/B]" Vanyel paused for a moment, feeling embarrassed at her ignorance since she figured they probably thought she was already educated. "[B]I don't really know how to write either.[/B]" She finally finished.

Shiana just gave her a knowing look, "[B]Homeless were you? Relax! You aren't the first Esper to end up with out a place of their own due to their powers.[/B]" She smiled kindly. "[B]For teleporting just go out to the front of the building, there's almost always some sort of class being held there. To sign up for basic education classes, just go to the library. In addition to being able to check out books to take to your room for studying, the librarian can set you up for basic reading, writing and math classes. Anything else?[/B]"

Vanyel shook her head negatively.

"[B]Well if you think of anything just come and find me.[/B]" And with that, just as Joe had done she vanished, the dot appearing elsewhere on the map.

Vanyel continued to the cafeteria and then once she had gotten something from the person overseeing it she found a table back in a corner to eat. Warily watching everyone as she ate the food, making no attempt to talk to anyone who was there. Then she took the small plate and glass back to the person who had given her the food and politely thanked them before leaving to head for the library. As much as she wanted to learn how to teleport herself, she wanted to see just what was available to read. As well as signing up for the classes offered there. She could decide if she wanted to leave or stay after she found out more. It wasn't like she could leave anyway, even if she found where the bus was parked, she didn't know how to drive it.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR=Navy]Thomas woke up a few hours later, Chocolate by his side. [B]?Hey man, bout time you got your ass up!? [/B] Chocolate yelled. Thomas shook his head. ?Can you ever be quiet?? Thomas asked. Chocolate shook his head. [B]?I don?t know- HEY, you made me loud so shut yer trap!?[/B]

Chocolate sighed as he jumped into Thomas? head. He could hear the voices of them all. It was annoying. The buzzing in his ear was unbearable. He tried to calm them down, but alas, it was no good.. [B]?well, maybe I should see what this Joe guy is all about.?[/B] Thomas said as he got off his bed. He fixed his tie and shook off all of Chocolate?s hair.

A little while later, Thomas found himself trudging the halls, looking for the office where Joe was. After a while of searching he found the door. He swung the door open. Inside he saw Joe dozing off. [B]?Umm, sir, I?m Thomas Arthur.? [/B] Tomas was nervous.

[B]?Huh, uh? wha! Oh, um? hello!? [/B] Joe scratched his head. ?And your probably the one who can materialize his mind?s thoughts, correct??

[B]?Yes sir, I am.? [/B] Thomas sat in the chair near Joe?s desk. [B]?Okay, welcome to esper hall. I?m going to give you a map of the place.? [/B] Joe handed a map over to Thomas. ?[B]So you can make your visions real, eh? I must say that?s pretty interesting.? [/B] Thomas just nodded and walked out.
[B]
?Well there goes another.? [/B] Joe said as he checked off Thomas.

[CENTER][][][/CENTER]

Thomas looked at the map, e found the cafeteria.[B] ?Well, better get some grub.? [/B] He said as he walked away. Chocolate jumped out of Thomas? ear. ?[B]Damn kid, ever clean out them things?? [/B] he asked sarcastically. [B]?Well, that guy's a charm, ain?t he?? [/B] Thomas shrugged. [B]?maybe?? [/B]

Chocolate rolled his eyes. [B]?Okay pal, we need to get you a friend. If your going to the cafeteria, you better sit with someone. Tommy my boy, you?ll never go anywhere here without friends.?[/B]

Thomas rubbed his eyes. [B]?whatever...?[/B] [/COLOR]

[HellsMinion6676]

[COLOR=SeaGreen][SIZE=4]The cafeteria was fll of people by the time Dante got there. Dante watched as everone went about looking for their friends and sat in what he assumed was there every day seats.

Dante looked around for some kind of bulletin board or sign up sheet for the classes, then he saw on on the wall near a large window with a good view of the courtyard. Dante walked over to the board and read what type of classes were offered. He finally found sheet for the teleportatio clases and saw that they meet in the courtyard every moring starting at 7:30 and they meet in the afternoon around 2:00.

[I]They sure do like to get an early start.[/I] He though to himself. [I]I guess I will go to the one in the afternoon.[/I]

He looked at the classes again and saw one that he thought he might like, it was caled controling the elements, it meet in the library every other day at 4. [I]This could be interesting. Might as well go check it out.[/I]

He went and got enough food for about three people. He turned aroun and surveyed the room looking for a good place to sit. First he saw a group of people sitting in the far corner they looked like they were all wearing te same kind oof gothic clothing, that was Dante's firts choice of seating, but as he made his way across the cafeteria he saw a girl sitting alone not to far off from where he was heading. After a moment of thinking it over he decided to be social and go sit with her. He figured that she might be new he as well so maybe she was as lost here as he was.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Fyxe]

[size=1]Shayla woke up with a throbbing headache, and it took her a few minutes to realize where she was. Apparently she'd fallen asleep on the couch, face on her sketch pad.
She hoisted herself up, throwing her plaid "lumberjack" shirt against a wall. Stretching her arms, she slid off the couch and pulled one of her suitcases toward herself. She chose a loose white blouse, and stood up, slipping her arms into it and buttoning it up. You could see her black bra thru it, but she didn't care.
Not bothering with make-up or hair gel, she left her bedroom with only two things on her mind: pain killers and breakfast. Shayla ran her fingers thru her hair briefly, attempting to style it, but without hair products, it did her hairdo no justice.

Shayla followed a few late-risers to where ever they were going. She figured it was her best bet to find like, whatever.
She felt drowsiness overtaking her again, and decided to close her eyes for a bit.
"[I]Ooof![/I]" She let out, hitting something hard. She flew back and stumbled onto the floor. Startled, she looked around. She had run into a freaking person. His papers had scattered everywhere, and he had fallen flat on his butt, just like Shalya. "Sorry, man..." She mumbled, going to pick up his papers for him.
"Good morning to you, too," [I]Uh oh[/I], Shay thought, [I]he sounds pissed[/I]. He cleared his throat as her stood back up. He scanned her appearance quickly and grabbed his papers away from her. "Shayla L'mei, I presume?"
Shay rubbed her cheek. And how did this guy know her?
"Uh, yeah... that's me..." She replied, watching him carefully. He nodded and held out something.
"I'm Joe Deadrien, in case you didn't remember from yesterday. Which I know you don't remember, so, yes. Here is a map of Esper Hall, so you don't come bother me later with questions. This should tell you everything you need to know location-wise. And before you ask, class sign-ups are in the cafeteria-,"
"I'm not really the class-going school type," Shay cut in.
"Of course not. If you have anymore questions, I probably won't be the one to answer them for you. Have a nice day." With that, he spun around and began walking in the other direction.
"I'm loving the welcoming committee," Shay muttered, glancing down at her map, and headed toward the cafeteria.[/size]

[Claire]

[FONT=Arial]Julian followed the muffled sound of conversation to the cafeteria, where he instantly wrinkled his nose in disgust. He could smell the standard breakfast foods, none of which would be deemed edible in his diet. He wasn't planning to eat breakfast anyway, however; he never had in his life and never really wanted to. He just wanted to get a good look at the members of his new community.

As he turned to leave, his shoulder collided with Shayla's as she stepped into the cafeteria.

"Sorry," they both muttered. The two locked eyes for a moment, as if they subconsciously shared some kind of understanding...or maybe a lifestyle.

Julian broke the gaze first, nodding once and continuing down the hallway. He realized he had no idea where to go or what to do. He walked towards his corridor as if he were returning to his bedroom, but decided to explore the building and turned down a different hallway.

There he saw Joe, leafing through papers on a clipboard and not paying much attention to where he was walking. Julian inched against the wall, hoping the man would keep his nose in his busywork.

Of course, he wouldn't. "Are you still looking for the cafeteria?" He asked, skidding to a stop.

"No." Julian replied, still walking away.

Joe made a curious noise, but went back to his clipboard and turned out of the hallway.

Julian walked slowly, memorizing his path.[/FONT]

[Wet Cement]

[COLOR=DarkOrange]Even though the halls were crowded, Levon didn't look up from the map as he briskly made his way towards the cafeteria. He didn't have to look up, afterall; he just had to bend the light around the map so he could see what was on the other side, something he had come to do passively.

The compound was far, far larger on the inside than it had appeared from outside; and it wasn't just a miscalculation on his part, either. Evidently, the laws of conservation of mass failed to apply in Esper Hall; what a strange, strange place, Levon thought. The map should have been huge, but it wasn't - only one floor was displayed. When one wanted to know the location of a room on another floor, you merely [I]thought[/I] about it and that floor was displayed.

But Levon had no time for such mysteries - he smelled food, and he was just one turn away from the stairs. He came to the stairs, with long and high steps that looked to be made of [URL=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labradorite]labradorite[/URL]; extravagant and spacey, fitting. Despite the daunting massiveness of the flight, a hungry man is a motivated man, so Levon made his way to the cafeteria in no time.

[b]"There's always a line... this is just like a soup kitchen!"[/b] Levon remarked, as he tucked the map into his pocket and negotiated his way to the food line. There was a definite contrast between the awe-inspiring stairwell and the white, featureless cafeteria; the tables were set up in rows, with benches stuck on the side of them, just like elementary school.

Levon waited dutifully - something you learn quickly as a vagrant is how to hold your stomach - and than filled his tray with anything and everything they would give him, another thing he picked up on the street. Fully intent on going back for seconds, he made his way to a table that seemed fairly uncrowded. There were only two people there, and something about how they carried themselves indicated they weren't veterans of Esper Hall; Levon hated being around people who knew what they were doing when he was clueless, anyway.
[B]
"Hey, I'm Levon LeVaughn, which means Levon the Vaughn in French... Er..." [/B]Levon's intro was more awkward than he'd planned. He put his tray down and sat.[/COLOR]

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR=Navy]Thomas walked into the cafeteria. It didn?t appeal much to Thomas, nothing does anyways. He went over to the food. Didn?t look good either. He went around the lunch line looking for something interesting. He was like goldilocks, except not blonde and retarded enough talk to a bear. But with his power, Tomas could talk to a bear. Thomas could hear Chocolate telling him what was good and what was crap.

[B]?Tommy, take the Jell-O!?[/B] Chocolate whispered. Thomas hit his head. [B]?Stupid fly.?[/B] he said, not trying to look stupid. Don?t you have some friends to annoy? Thomas thought.

Yes, but your much more fun! with a laugh, Chocolate disappeared into Thomas? mindless abyss.

Thomas sat at the lunch table, he checked his surroundings. A gothic esper -who was a girl but dressed as a man- sat next to him. Thomas was talking to one of his creatures. The girl had on a hoodie with leather pants and guy?s haircut. When she saw Tomas talking to what seemed to her like himself, she walked off. [B]?Freak?? [/B] she grumbled as she walked off.

Thomas walked over to the class-sign-up sheet. He looked for classes on telekinesis, and he found it. With his pen, he marked his name on the ;list. A sheet next to that one, was for the guidance counselor. It was for people that had double-dealing with people or life, Thomas checked that off too.

Thomas went back to his room. On is way there he bumped into another esper. He looked at the person and it was... Joe. He wasn?t happy.

[B]?My coffee!? [/B] he screamed. He scrambled around he hallways. He had is hand on his pants. [B]?You made me drop my coffee on my lap!?[/B] Joe hollered. He gritted his teeth together in pain.

[B]?Sorry sir!? [/B] Thomas apologized. Joe shook his head.

[B]?Fine, I?ll let you of the hook. Damn where?s your secretary when you need her!? [/B] Joe cried as he walked down the halls.

Thomas went into his room, he put his head on his pillow. [B]?Nice one there, Tommy boy. I managed to laugh my ass off.?[/B]

Thomas swatted at Chocolate. [B]?Funny to you maybe!?[/B]

When Joe got back to his office, he practically hit is head on his des. He swore. [B]?Damn, why do we always get the crappy espers!? [/B] he yelled.

(OoC: Needed to make it so Joe hated Thomas more. Sorry if it's nerdy, I'll edit at your request DB.)[/COLOR]

[Skye]

[size=1][color=blue]Sitting at a table by herself, Dusty nursed a cup of unadulterated coffee and staring at the plateful of strange brown stuff. Her mind kept telling her it was edible, it was only mushrooms cooked into eggs, but her mouth kept saying it was crap. However, her stomach was complaining that she'd better put [i]something[/i] before it cut her spine in half in protest. With a reluctant sigh, she put down the coffee and picked up her fork.

About a half an hour later, still alone and with an empty plate, Dusty slipped out of the cafeteria and began wandering the halls. They were so beautiful, so unique and at the same time full of so many inspirations of design. She could see Greek and Roman in the supports, and Italian villa in the ceiling. The stairs leading from the first floor to the second were very Spanish-like, and everything seemed to swirl with color. A wistful sigh escaped her lips.

[i]No wonder Mom liked it here... It's so beautiful and everything makes you feel royal.[/i]

Unfortunately, as she was staring at the ceiling, she didn't see the girl she ran in to. "[b]Oh![/b]"

Dusty had to look up at the girl. She was about a head taller than Dusty and - if it wasn't for the makeup - she would have guessed her to be a guy. That is, until the girl grabbed her around the waist to prevent her from falling over and she felt her chest against hers. Dusty felt an odd sensation in her chest and shivers went down her spine. Swiftly she brushed away but she couldn't shake the attracted feeling in the pit of her stomach.

"[b]Oh, I'm sorry. I was paying attention to the architecture. It's so beautiful. I'm really sorry.[/b]" Dusty knew she was blushing, but couldn't help it. "[b]I'm Dusty, nice to meet you.[/b]"

OOC: ^____^ Tag, Fyxe.[/size][/color]

[HellsMinion6676]

Dante had been sitting at the table in silence for the past ten minutes now, he was about get up and move to a table that was a bit more social when he saw someone walking towards his table. He introduced himself and sat down. Just as he did the girl that was sitting at the table grabed her empty plate and walked away.

[B]"So Levon, you new here to?"[/B]

[B]"Yeah, how did you guess that?"[/B]

[B]"I recognized you from the bus ride yesterday. By the way my name is Dante, Dante Wilkenson, nice to meet you. I have to say its kinda nice not being the only one around here thats lost."[/B]

[B]"I know what you mean. So what kind of powers do you have?"[/B]

[B]"Oh, nothing too special just some telekenisis, and I can materialize objects, nothing too big just small stuff. What about you?"[/B]

[B]"I can bend the light around myself and other people or objects, put simply I can make myself or others invisible."[/B]

[B]"Now that sound like a usefull power to have."[/B]

They continued to talk as they both finished there large portions of food, after which they both decided to go back and get more, after finishing his second helping of breakfast Dante got up and went back to his room.

Once back in his room Dante set his alarm for 1 and decided he was going to get a little more rest before his first teleporting class at 2. He threw himself onto the bed was out like a light.

[Jiazu]

[SIZE=1][FONT=Comic Sans MS]Walking back from her visit with Raj, Cho stopped for a moment to look up at the sky. It was a clear day, and only a few clouds dotted the sky. [b]"I love days like this... I hope every day is like.... What the!!"[/b] All of a sudden, barely three feet in front of her, a folded piece of paper in one hand and a clipboard in the other, was Joe.

[b]"Hi. I'm J.."[/b]

[b]"Joe Deadrien. I know. And I'm Cho. But you already knew that, didn't you? What do you want?"[/b]

[b]"This is a map of Esper Hall, so you can find your way around while you're here."[/b] Joe said, handing her the paper he'd been holding.
[b]"Now, since you don't have any questions, I'll just be on my way...."[/b]

[b]"Hey! Next time, don't just appear without warning like that! I almost had a heart attack!"[/b]

Without any sign that he'd heard her, Joe vanished.

[center]*************[/center]

By the time Cho slipped back into the Cafeteria, it was bustling with life and full of the smell of bacon and maple syrup. [b]"I knew I should have come in the front!"[/b] she muttered. [b]"I can't stand Cafeterias!"[/b] she cast her gaze around the room, her eyes finally settling on a lonely-looking basket of croissants perched on the edge of a table holding a toaster oven, some butter and jam, and not much else. [i]I guess [/i]those[i] look edible at least...[/i] She walked over to the table and grabbed a couple of the croissants, filled one liberally with strawberry preserves, and walked out of the cafeteria, eating as she walked.

As she walked by the bulletin board, a class caught her eye: "Introduction to Telepathy - M-F at 2:00 in the Informal Garden (The Rose Garden)"
[i]Introduction to telepathy, huh? I guess what I can do is telepathy... Sounds interesting.[/i] She scribbled her name at the bottom of the list, noticing that there were a lot of people already signed up. [i]Well that's good.. that way I won't draw too much attention to myself. I still have a couple of hours until then too.. maybe I'll go check out this "informal garden" place before it's overrun with people.[/i] Walking towards the door, Cho pulled the map Joe had given her earlier that morning from her pocket and shook it open. [i]That idiot...[/i] Cho thought [i]He almost gave me a heart attack showing up out of nowhere like that! I hope the other people here have better manners than he does... though I bet if I could do that I'd probably try to freak people out...[/i] [b]"Anyway.. the garden."[/b] Cho murmured to herself. [b]"What kind of place is this anyway, with an informal garden? Does that mean there's a formal one too?"[/b] Looking down at her map, Cho started in the direction it indicated. [i]I hope this thing isn't very far away.. I'm getting tired of all this walking around.[/i][/FONT][/SIZE]

[Darren]

[COLOR=SlateGray][SIZE=1]At around noon, Chloe discovered that the sun was unbearably hot, and that she had never had this much sunlight in her life, not even at the tanning salon. She'd been out in the courtyard for about an hour and already, she had grass stains on her favorite pair of jeans, she had nearly been trampled to death by the group of boys playing football, and at one point, she was literally teleported on top of! And as excited as it may have been, in a romantic comedy type of way that Chloe had alwasy hoped for, the careless teleporter turned out to be a girl. On top of that, she was so enthralled in her book that she didn't even notice she had landed right on Chloe, let alone to stop and apologize. And still, not one cricket had been caught.

Xander gave a few chirps of sadness. The poor thing hadn't gone this long without food in his entire life. Not that he needed it; Chloe spoiled him. Just then, a small black insect appeared on the surface of the rather tall grass and it was only a few feet away from her. She inched close enough and made a heroic dive to catch the critter, risking the change of ruining her shirt as well, only to miss by mere inches.

[B]"Sorry,"[/B] she looked at the little gecko. He gave a few more chirps of hunger before settling into her purse. [B]"Way to show your confidence, pal."[/B]

[B]"Excuse me, are you alright?"[/B] finally someone acknowledged Chloe and her problems.

[B]"I'm sorry, but no. I've got grass stains all over, it's really freaking hot, I've literally been walked all over, and I can't seem to catch a damn cricket!"[/B] When she turned around, Chloe came face-to-face with a woman. She looked like she was in her late 20s, she was very slender and quite pretty for her being so short.

[B]"Sorry? Why do you need--"[/B] She started to ask, but her answer came as Xander popped out of Chloe's purse and examined her with excitement as though she were food.

[B]"My name's Shiana Mardeis. I haven't seen you around so you must be with that group that arrived yesterday, correct?"[/B]

[B]"Yes. Hi, I'm Chloe Verena, it's nice to meet you."[/B] Chloe wiped her hands off on her jeans, making them even dirtier.

[B]"Wait. Verena? Don't tell me you're--"[/B]

Of course for the fifteenth time in six hours, [B]"Alfred Verena's daughter? Yes I am. Please don't tell me I look just like him, or I'll die."[/B] it didn't sound like Chloe was begging, but she truely was; it wasn't her strong suit.

[B]"Well, actually, I was going to say that you didn't look a thing like your father. Or at least the pictures I've seen; he was before my time at Esper Hall."[/B] A sigh of releif left Chloe's lips at Shiana's words. Actually, Shiana had just slipped into her mind and saw how much she hated being told that, but what Chloe didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

After a brief moment of awkward silence, when Shiana didn't leave, Chloe spoke up, [B]"I hope I don't seem rude, but what are you doing here?"[/B]

[B]"Oh, well, this is my class,"[/B] Shiana looked around; they were the only two in sight. [B]"My rather small class. I hold it once a week at 12:30 and it's called Advanced Divinatory Experimentation and Comparative Future Engineering."[/B]

[B]"I don't see anybody else here,"[/B] The title alone was enough to intimidate anyone. Chloe had no doubt why there was no one there.

[B]"They're alwasy a little late. In fact, this is considered was one of the more prestigious classes in the community."[/B] Chloe didn't even need Esper powers to see that Shiana was lying through her teeth.

Since she wasn't wanting to be rude, and secretly hoping to escape from that horrible classe, Chloe decided to cut the conversation short, [B]"Well, I don't wan to interrupt things for you. I'll just get Xander and go."[/B] She picked up her purse and started to walk off.

Chloe didn't make it 10 feet before Shiana interrupeted, [B]"Wait. I think I can help you with a few things."[/B] Shiana was reading Chloe's mind and discovering how truly upset she was about her grass-stained clothes and not having food for her gecko. [B]"I'll take care of the food for Xander and those grass stains if you agree to join my class. It's no big deal, and there's really no homework. I just need someone else to show up besides the weird teleporting girl who's alwasy reading and getting lost."[/B]

[I]"So that's who that girl was who teleported on me,"[/I] At least now Chloe knew it happened often. [B]"Well, since you're so much better at begging than me, I guess it wouldn't hurt anything."[/B]

Instantly, The grass stains were gone and Shiana was holding a Ziploc bag of live crickets. [B]"Thank you so much. You won't regret it."[/B]

[B]"With your kind of power, I don't think I will."[/B] And the two girls sat down for their first official class.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR=Navy]Thomas took another nap to ease the pain. Chocolate?s desperate attempts to wake him failed. Nothing could bring Thomas out of his slumber. The voices in his head weren?t talking much so he finally got the sleep he needed. He was also trying to train himself so he could go into his mind and walk around. Bu he knew he couldn?t do it alone. He needs to train his mind before he?s even capable of that.

He was told that without friends or love he wouldn?t be able to use his powers to the full extent. With human interaction his mind would be able to grow with his socializing skills. Talking to chocolate and all them wasn?t going to help that. But Thomas never put I the effort. He knew that he could do it, but he chose not to.

Chocolate gave up and went back inside Thomas? head. Thomas got up from his nap and went outside. As he walked the halls he could feel his head pounding and his neck was getting numb. This only happened when Thomas? powers were under development. He clenched his neck and started massaging it. He grumbled as the pain grew more intense.

[B]?is something the matter?? [/B] someone said behind him. The voice was calm sounding. It was a female?s voice. Thomas looked behind him. [B]?No, it?s nothing.?[/B] He replied.[B] ?just a headache."[/B]

The women walked over to Thomas and put her hand on is head. [B]?there you go, good as new!?[/B] She said with a smile.

[B]?What did you do??[/B] Thomas asked her. He felt completely better. ?Oh, I just used my powers of healing to help your head. Well, I fix mental wounds more than real ones. I?ve been here for 2 years now. Hey what?s your name?? Thomas shrugged.[B] ?It?s Thomas? sorry I don?t have many friends so I?m not the talkative type.?[/B]

[B]?Well you can grow out of it. I had the same problem a couple years after my brother was killed. He was the only one I had left to love. But after I discovered my powers, I used them to heal my broken heart. It took a while though, but I?m sure you can overcome it. You seem strong to me.?[/B]

Inside Thomas was having the feeling of friendship docking port in his mind. Chocolate entered Thomas? mid to talk to him.

[B]?Now?s your chance Tommy boy, she seems friendly.? [/B] Thomas sent back a message to him.[B] ?Your right??[/B]

[B][B]?Hey ma?am what?s your name??[/B] Thomas asked. ?It?s Miri. Well I got to go, see you around!? [/B] she said as she walked away, Thomas started to smile. [B]?Maybe this place is good for me?"[/B][/COLOR]

[Fyxe]

[size=1]Shayla still felt the warmth of the girl against her chest and stomach. [b]"I'm Dusty, nice to meet you." [/b]She said, to recover from her clumsy collide, but Shayla could see that she was still blushing. Shayla stayed silent for a moment, scanning over the girl. She was small, and the yellow ribbon in her hair was irresistable... yet, it made her seem like she was about twelve years old.
Dusty started to squirm at the awkward quiet, and Shayla mentally slapped herself for making this cutie wait.
[b]"I'm Shayla... you can just call me Shay, everyone does,"[/b] She said in a low, silky voice, making it so Dusty had to lean near her in order to hear her.[b] "I agree about the architecture... it's very aged, and gorgeous. I was thinking about drawing it later... you are welcome to join me..."[/b]
[b]"Oh! Sure! Do you know your way around Esper Hall at all?" [/b]Dusty asked. Shayla smiled, and held her hand in front of her face.
[b]"Like the back of my hand,"[/b] She replied. A little white lie never hurt anyone, right? Shayla L'mei's motto.
[b]"Great! Maybe you can help me sign up for some classes, too?" [/b]Dusty sounded hopeful, looking up at Shayla, a smile on her face.
[b]"No problem..."[/b] Shayla had a sudden thought, this girl...[b] "Not to pry, but how old are you, Dusty?"[/b]
[b]"Sixteen. How about you?"[/b] [I]Shit[/I], Shayla thought, [I]I'm so going to Hell... I'm resorting to pedophilism? Ah... screw it...[/I]
[b]"Seventeen," [/b]Shayla lied again, without even a flicker of guilt.
[b]"Cool. Wanna go, then?"[/b] Dusty urged, walking forward.
[b]"Of course," [/b]Shayla followed.[/size]