Greetings, Meetings and Beatings

Log Info

Title: Greetings, Meetings and Beatings
Emitter: None
Characters: Adrian, Jerry, Eshe, Sapphire, Linus and Sunday
NPCs: None of note
Place: Steranko Institute Athletics Complex
Time: Afternoon on 6/7/2010
Summary: The kids enjoy some time in the Athletics complex, people meet each other, people chat and everything devolves after a Basketball game between Jerry and Adrian.

_( Athletic Center - Steranko Institute )_

This athletic complex houses a gymnasium, an indoor running track on an upstairs level around the basketball courts, weight room, and the campus's indoor swimming pool.

The Athletic Center has a decent gathering of students for a Monday afternoon in the summer. Largely due to the swimming pool, where most of the student presence can be found. The sound of laughter and splashing echoes through that section of the building, much as the sound of a lone basketball hitting the floorboards echoes elsewhere in the Center. Dressed in gym shorts and a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off of it, Adrian is the one bouncing the basketball between freethrow shots on the otherwise empty court. Above the court, two students are finishing a run around the indoor track, their footfalls slapping in added punctuation. From the duffle bag off to the side of the court the sound of a cellphone's cheerful techno ringtone can be heard, adding to the chorus. Not that Adrian can hear any of those sounds over the blaring music playing on his iPod. He lines up another shot and tosses it at the basket. Swish!

Jerry is here to get in a little funtime, dressed in a loose New York Rangers jersey and matching shorts, swim trunks under those for later. He's heard of but not seen Adrian so of course he makes the normal mistake - he waves, see the earbuds, and gets a grin on his face. Picking up a basketball from the box on the sidelines he walks easily out onto the court, the ball being dribbled in a slow pong-pong-pong manner as he nears the other boy from the side. Then he catches up the ball and sends it at Adrian's side - not hard, but enough to get his attention. "Linus! Heads up!" he says loudly.

One of the students enjoying the pool is Eshe. She's wearing a simple gold one-piece with a nicely open back, her hair left free and her headband in a locker somewhere in the girls' changing room (she doesn't want to drown the poor dears after all). Standing atop the highest diving board available, she leaps off and instead of instantly descending into the water, she moves upwards in a graceful arc, bends over to touch her toes, then allows gravity the privelege of dragging her downwards. She straightens out as she descends, arms pointing straight ahead, legs out behind her. She hits the water and there is barely a splash as she arrests her own momentum and just sinks down into the cool, refreshing water. Not actually knowing how to swim, she's using her ability to fly to propel herself below the water and shoots out the other end, throwing her head back and laughing, her long, black hair whipping back to stick across her back wetly. Of course, as she ascends into the air, she hears the sound of the lone ball bouncing and moves to the side of the pool to grab her towel, wrap it about her waist like a faux-skirt and zoom off down the hallway to find the source. Exploring is fun!

Sapphire surfaces in a rush from the lap line side of the pool, sitting on the side with a swish-kick of her feet. Cheerfully out of breath, she glances down at the waterproof watch on her wrist, then makes a face. Wiggling, sidling, she makes to dive in again … when someone's pool toy wanders across the lane line.
She kicks it back across and hollers, "If your balls get in my way one more time, I'm going to break them!"
Abandoning the idea of swimming for now, she kips to her feet and grabs her towel, dragging it lazily across her shoulders as she pads away, leaving puddles of water behind her. Her hair is still wadded up underneath a pool cap, and she wears a regulation-style suit.

"He shoots he scor—-" And that's when he hears someone shouting his brother's name over the music and turns towards the source, just in time to take the basketball to the gut with a grunt. "Ungf!" His hands catch the ball before it hits the ground. Meanwhile, the one he shot at the basket a moment before bounces across the gym floor and rolls off towards the bleachers. Adrian lifts a hand to pull his earbuds out, the tinny sound of music still blaring out of them, "What kind of impression did my brother make on you?" he asks with a grin. The ball is tossed back to the other boy.

Jerry smiles at Adrian as he catches the ball. "Oh, sorry, so you're Adrian, then?" he says. "A good one; he's in our band - he's cool," he says, bouncing the ball, passing it back to Adrian as he closes the gap.

Following the sound of the bouncing ball, Eshe finds her way to the basketball court. She hovers, literally, just outside the door, dripping onto the ground a bit, though her rapid flight down the hall has done wonders in keeping the excess moisture down to a minimum. She watches the two boys for a moment, then laughs a bit and calls out, "Hello Jerry!" She's got a rather wide smile on her face now and she offers a wave to Adrian as well, who she has yet to actually meet.

Sapphire meanders in the direction of the basketball court as well, less with any purpose in mind than just following her feet. She pulls off the swim cap, allowing unruly hair to tumble free. She snaps out her towel with a decisive foomf of air, then ties it around her waist. A glance at Eshe, then she peers past towards the basketball court. "Something going on in there?" she wonders.

"Yeah, all my life," Adrian says, of his identity, catching the pass. Then the rest of the statement catches him. He raises an eyebrow, sounding a little surprised, "Linus is in a band? I didn't know he even played any instruments." The ball is dribbled, then tossed back so that he can unwind his iPod. Which also affords him the opportunity to notice the last few seconds of the ringing phone from his bag. He carries the iPod over and tucks it in, pulling out the phone to check who it was. He pushes the button to turn said phone OFF after this and puts it back. At the call from the doorway, Adrian grins, "I take it you must be Jerry. You play hoops, Jerry?" The cap on his Gatorade is twisted off, a quick swig taken.

Up above on the indoor track, the pair of students that were running have finished, peered down below to see what was up, and then headed off to the stairs to exit and make their way to the locker room.

Jerry waves to Eshe when he sees the girl appear, shoots her a smile. He looks back to Adrian to catch the ball as it's tossed, and he returns to dribbling it. "He doesn't, which makes him a perfect drummer," he laughs. "I would be, yes, and yes I do," he says, looking to the hoop. "Want a game?" He dribbles the ball, and switches it behind him, back to the front.

"My consort Jerry and another man are engaged in some kind of game involving that ball and those baskets," Eshe replies to Sapphire, who she regards for a moment before turning on her bright smile for the benefit of the other girl as well. She thrusts out a hand and announces, "I am Eshe Hikutpah, it is a pleasure to meet you." Though not wearing her headband or earrings she left her golden bracelets and necklace on while swimming, they're gold and not likely to tarnish in any form. Then Jerry waves to her and she uses her free hand to wave back then, copying a gesture she has recently seen on the television device, she blows him a kiss.

"Linus. A drummer?" Adrian remarks, with no little amount of incredulity. Yes, he's surprised by this. "First I find out he's got superpowers, then I get here and find out he finally has a girlfriend, and now I find out he's in a band. I swear if I didn't know any better I'd expect to wake up and find out it was all some weird dream. I missed a lot these last two weeks." The boy screws the cap back on his Gatorade bottle and drops it back into his bag. Adrian looks towards the pair of girls there now, the one that shouted Jerry's name and… "Hey! Rabbit girl!" He heads back onto the court, grinning at Jerry as his eyes light up with a spark of competitiveness, "Sure, game on."

"Drums are an instrument, too," Sapphire objects, inserting herself into the conversation. "And you have to play them correctly to get optimal sound. Though I guess a modern drumkit is probably less finicky than a bodhran." She turns back to Eshe and clasps the offered hand, her handshake a buoyant bounce of the wrist. "Sapphire Bennett, good to meetcha," she says. "And ooh, consort? Congratulations. How long have you two been hitched?" This conversation can only end in confusion. She flashes a ferocious, Valkyrie-quality scowl across at Adrian. "That's *supreme* rabbit girl to you, mister." The clouds break, and she's grinning again. Just a jest, anyhow.

Linus steps into the athletic center in a black pair of gym shorts and a white Cleveland Indians blazer (number 00). He's wearing running sneakers and looking around very carefully as he moves, well aware that one slip, one bump, one accidental collision could turn this building into a very bad place. Needless to say, Linus won't be trying out for the football team. It's when he spots his brother walking towards the backetball court that he suddenly stops moving, turning just a tiny bit pale. He peers around, looking for the exits again. Running can wait.

Jerry meets that competetive look with one of his own as he takes a few moments to stretch and limber up a bit - he has on the right shoes, at least. "Linus is a cool guy, of course," he says to the surprised reaction. "Let's do this." He shifts on the court a bit, still in control of the ball, and he shoots down towards the hoop, ready to block Adrian if needed.

"Hitched?" Eshe asks Sapphire, the idiom totally lost on her. "Jerry accepted my romantic advances last week. It is nothing formal but I asked him if he wanted my attentions and he replied yes. So, for now he is my informal consort." She watches Jerry shoot down the court and then leans back over to whisper to the other girl, "What game are they playing?" Of course, Linus appears down the hallway and she waves to him as well. "Hello Linus!" She remembers him from the other day in the Quad.

Adrian quickly runs out to cut off Jerry's path to the basket and so begins the impromptu game of One on One. For those familiar with Linus, Adrian is a bit more on the muscular side of the spectrum, making it pretty easy to tell the twins apart once one notices the differences. "He was always an anti-social hermit back home," Adrian says as he twists around and tries to steal the ball from Jerry. Ah, the perspectives siblings have of one another. His hand slaps out in an attempt to knock it away. If he succeeds, he'll make his own turn to try to dribble it successfully towards the hoop. "First one to twenty points?" That would be ten two-point baskets.

"Oh, boy, testosterone clash," Sapphire says, rolling her eyes. Then, she scowls. "What do you mean it's a necessary rite of passage?" Whoever she was addressing with that comment, the response doesn't seem to be to her liking. "Oh! You're not actually married, then." This makes a lot more sense to Sapphire. "The word consort sounded all serious to me. And the game is basketball." She 'whispers' back, but in sotto voce. Upon hearing Linus' name spoken, she cranes her head around and waves.

And so much for a clean getaway. "Oh, uh… hi, uh…" At a loss for words, Linus is. Asks he of Eshe, "I'm sorry. I really didn't get your name. You're that girl with the sword, right? The one with that glowy stuff and… wow. You're seeing Jerry? But I th…" Shut UP, Linus. The boy smiles gingerly, "It's good to meet you, though." To Sapphire he waves back, increasingly uncomfortable. He glances at the basketball court, and then back to the two girls. "What's up?"

Jerry snorts as he blocks Adrian, losing some ground to the stronger boy but skills-wise they're pretty much equal as they suss out each other's play style on the way towards the basket. "He touches anyone, it fucks him up for a while, y'know? Wouldn't surprise me." He nods at the game terms, eyes on the ball, footwork saving him a couple of times as they drive down the court. He saves the ball once, twice, but loses it in the last seconds.

"Eshe," She replies to Linus, "My name is Eshe and yes, I am seeing Jerry. I am seeing him playing this Basketball game." She does laugh a bit about what Sapphire says, "No, no, I do not intend to marry anytime soon. I avoided that fate for 40 centuries, I do not need it now." There is a wink and she responds. "Perhaps what the boys need are partners to help them. How does one play this game?"

And in that last moment, Adrian snatches the ball back again, pivots on a foot and lifts his hands to arc the ball towards the hoop. It spins off the tip of his finger and up towards the backboard. Adrian watches as it bounces off, hits the rim, does a little spin and… bounces off. Narrowing his eyes he surges forward to get the rebound, attempting to do so before Jerry does. "He'll have to get over that around here, or learn to live in a bubble," Adrian says, "We sure ain't in Cleveland any more." He's into the game. Oblivious that his twin is now part of their audience.

"Not much," Sapphire says. "Gave up on swimming. People kept tossing things into the lap lane. I didn't want to go all shark attack on them." She watches the basketball match with the occasional glance, but not particularly avid. She blinks owlishly at Eshe, then takes it in stride, "Wow, so I guess it's not just a question of not having found the right person yet, huh?" She laughs then. "Uh, beyond putting the ball into the hoop … I dunno. My brothers aren't the tallest weeds, so it was never their game."

"40 centuries, huh?" Linus casts a skeptical eye towards Eshe, "Are you timewarped or something, or do you just not age?" He looks the egyptian girl over, peering curiously at the scarab beetle figures on her hair. "I guess you're new to the school, huh? I hadn't seen you around yet until last night." The boy nods his head towards Sapphire, "God. Swimming. I don't even want to think about that. I'd be the most dangerous guy in the pool. Oh, yeah. It's a little more involved than just putting the ball in the hoop, but Jerry could teach you. He's a great teacher and it would probably be fun. Are you from ancient egypt?"

"No, no we're not," Jerry says as he shoulders aside Adrian, using the larger boys power against him. And speaking of powers, there's that flesh-to-flesh contact and Jerry feels a little tingle in his stomach, quite unlike the feeling he gets from Linus. He narrows his eyes at Adrian and pitches the ball up, tap, tap, IN! "Two points," he says, trotting to pick up the ball. He still hasn't seen Linus either, his entire world having narrowed to that mini-turf-war called basketball. "He's a good guy; he's adjusting, but this school takes.. a lot of adjusting TO, y'know?"

Eshe chuckles. "I was buried in a tomb for 40 centuries and only recently freed. Yes, I am from 'Ancient' Egypt." She listens to the talk of the game and decides against trying to help Jerry beyond calling out, "You can defeat him Jerry, show no Mercy! Aim for his ankles!" She doesn't quite get sports that don't involve physical contact. She stops hovering and land on the ground in her bare feet, landing in the tiny puddle she's been dripping from her wet hair. She offers a hand to Linus, totally unaware of what his powers are. "It' very nice to meet you formally."

Adrian's fairly agile, regaining his balance quickly as he's shouldered aside. "You can say that again," he remarks about the adjusting part. His smile is there, but around the edges it's a little forced. Jerry just scored the first point. Now the game really is on. "Check," he calls as Jerry gets the ball. The standard procedure to throw the ball to the person before receiving it back— which Adrian complies with to renew the game. And he's right back to attempting to get the ball away from Jerry with a shoulder bump of his own and a snatching of the orange sphere. "How long have you been here?" Yes, two competitive atheletes caught in their own world.

"If you swim laps, you're pretty safe," Sapphire says. "Just have to contend with being brained by stray plastic balls." She blinks at Eshe again. "Oh. Wow …" For a rarity, she's silent, though one can see her lips moving rapidly. She's apparently having quite an extended dialogue with … herself.

Linus nearly stumbles backwards to get away from Eshe's hand, which may as well be death with five fingers, "Nono… no. Don't… I can't touch you or I'll absorb your powers and then I won't be able to control them." In spite of the tension, there's a certain routine quality to his explanation, as though he's been over this with people over and over again. "I have a twin brother here and, uh, you probably -especially- shouldn't touch him or he'll turn off your powers." He has no idea if that's good or bad, but if she's been entombed for 40 centuries, you never know. Eyes peer warily at the basketball game, then return towards Sapphire, "I guess I could swing that. I'm kind of nervous about bumping into people, I guess."

Jerry turns, checks the bump with a block, pops up the ball and launches it - straight in, two more points. He's starting to build up a sweat, and gives a straight smile to Adrian as they set back up. "Last year and this year," he says, calmly, "You get used to it, especially if you're thinking about going the cape route."

Eshe pulls her hand back and nods. "Ok… no touching. I can accept that. Still, it is good to meet you Linus." She looks back to the game and grins brightly, sighing just a little as she watches Jerry. It's clear she's rather smitten with him and completely unaware she is not alone in that. "He's like a warrior born, so strong and fast and well built."

"There are better times to swim than others," Sapphire says. "And yeah, I understand that, but maybe the only way to learn not to do it by accident is to *have* accidents." She's trying to be encouraging, unfortunately. About to say more, she is interrupted by the ringing of a cellphone from … somewhere. "Oh, drat, that's mine," she says. "'cuse." She scampers away in search of it … and when she finds it, one can hear, "Hey, hot mama." For the record, the person she greets like that? Her brother.

"So, you know the lay of the land pretty well then. I don't know if a cape is really my thing," Adrian says. His competitive edge gets kicked into overdrive as the other boy scores again. Okay… that's it. Adrian is a little more aggressive about getting the ball back this time, stealing it away and making a jump shot. Swish. As he lands back on the balls of his feet he grins. That's better. "Might change my mind. Who knows? Reguardless, I'm here because Linus caught on fire. Four to two."

Linus eyes Sapphire as she answers the cell. Best not to ask, apparently. "Thanks. You too, Eshe. Yeah. Jerry's pretty cool. I guess you're pretty into him. So… how did you get entombed? I mean, were you dead, or is it something you don't want to talk about? And what do you do, anyway? You know… for powers and stuff."

Jerry trots to get the ball and drives it back toward the goal, trying a fake out, then jump shot up, bounce off, no score! He tries to recover it, keeping his eye on the other boy and matching his speed. "Really, huh? He can handle it, once he's had a couple exposures. My power was a real bitch to handle," he grins, shaking sweat from his eyes.

Eshe looks back to Linus. "Oh, I was cursed by my vengeful betrothed. I did not love him and he wanted me for his own. I was in love with another and… well, we were caught. My lover was put to death but I was not granted that mercy. I was cursed and locked forever alive in a tomb… never to die but never to truly live. Until I was freed." She chuckles. "As to what I can do. I can fly and am much stronger than I ever was before. I can also control the Scarabs that are sacred to my people."

"Really. Real big news out our way, and the folks here at Steranko got wind of it," Adrian is all seriousness about the game now. He gets the ball from the rebound and shoots again rather quickly, letting it roll from his fingers. It strikes the backboard and swish. Tied up. He's worked up a good sweat now too, since he had already been shooting hoops on his own before this little match up. "What's your power, then?" Adrian asks as he gets the ball and dribbles it between his legs. Show off.

"Careful," Jerry grins at Adrian and taps that ball hard, with it just missing bouncing up into a nut-shot, and he grabs it, pushes down the court, scores; 6-4. "Kinetic energy control; give it, take it, move it around; mainly that traslates to 'blows things up real good'."

"… oh." Linus' eyes widen a bit. "Well that sucks." He's at a loss for words, because what do you say to something like that? Really. And then it sinks in: "You've been trapped in a tomb, conscious, for 4000 years?!" He takes another step back, "Holy -fuck-. How didn't you go crazy? Yeah. You -totally- can't touch my brother. He'd -kill- you."

If that had struck him, he would've probably deserved it, but since it didn't, Adrian just grins. He swipes his forearm across his face to remove some of the sweat. He's chasing after Jerry, and shakes his head when the other boy gets another shot in. Good competition is harder to find back home and he's genuinely enjoying himself. "That, I've got to see," Adrian says with reguard to blowing things up.

Eshe's smile falters for the first time. "The curse was very specific. I was not allowed to change at all. I could not learn or get over the grief I was feeling for my lost love. I was not even allowed the release of madness to break the constant sameness. It was a living death." She swallows hard and forces a smile once more. "But that is all over. I am alive again and intend to take advatange of that now. I will avoid your brother's touch. Thank you for the warning."

"Oh." Again, what does one say to that? If you're Linus Young, the answer is: Not a hell of a lot. "No problem. So, uh, what do you think of 2010 AD, huh? I guess they didn't call it 2000 BC back in 2000 BC. I mean, what with the BC thing not making any sense and all, right?" He laughs a little nervously.

The game between the two young athletes heats up as they take each others measure. Point follows point, until at last Jerry skids on a sweat patch and Adrian scores the winning basket, 20-18. Jerry's grinning, though, and he slaps Adrian on the back as they wind down. "Good game," he says, stepping a few feet away from the other boy and attempting to do something, then stopping and frowning. "Yo, Adrian, stop with the stopping powers thing, OK? I need to get dry, here," he says, turning to the other boy.

Eshe blinks a bit and nods, she looks confused by Linus's babble. "Um… it's very different. You have so many new things here, new concepts to learn. Even your everyday lives are a wonder to me. How do you make light as you do? How do your cars work without being pulled by animals? How does the television show images of things that have happened before? It's all so new to me. I miss a few things about home but, I do not let that bother me. I have new things to learn about." She looks over at Jerry again, "And new loves to discover. I am free. Freer than I ever was before. Free of position and responsibility, free of duty and obligation. Best of all, I have newfound power and abilities. I intend to use them to help others, to help them be free of the evils of others."

Linus nods his head a few times, "Yeah. I guess that would be pretty mind breaking. Oh, have you ever played xbox? That'll -really- mess up your head. Video games, computers, air travel. Oh, just so you know, we don't have slaves anymore. I mean, some countries do, but nobody really likes them anymore." He raises an eyebrow, "Hey. Did Egypt -always- smell like trash? They burn their garbage there. Did they always do that?" Oh, Linus. It's an innocent question, at least.

Adrian bends over, resting his hands on his knees as he catches his breath. "Yeah, great game. Been a while since I played someone who could keep up," he remarks. The boy straightens and rakes his hands through his sweaty hair. "What do you mean?" he asks, raising an eyebrow, "I'm not— oh. Oh. Well, damn. Sorry. I, um, I didn't even know I was doing it, man. I can't turn it off." He shakes his head and for the first time notices Linus across the court talking to an attractive, exotic looking member of the fairer sex. Since when did Linus become a ladies man??

Eshe laughs a little, the sound is rather musical and pleasant. "I know that slaves are no longer allowed in your world. Your Warrior-King Lincoln freed them all before defeating the evil Southern forces and taking their lands by force. He is truly one to be admired." Then comes the question about modern Egypt and her smile turns into an even bigger frown. "Do not talk of that land of my birth. That… that place no longer bears any resemblance to the Egypt of old. It is a land of oppression and filth, a land that has forgotten progress and been enslaved to a foreign faith that destroyed the worship of the gods and replaced it with a system where women are treated as objects to be owned." She balls her fists and looks away, swallowing hard.

Jerry freezes, then frowns as he pushes sweaty hair out of his face. "Well, you're going to /learn/ to turn it off really fucking quick, then," he says, making fists. "Concentrate," he says. "Imagine flipping a switch or something. Just. Do. It." he says, flushing with anger.

Linus stares and listens to Eshe. When she balls her fists and turns away, there's not really much for him to do in reply. There aren't many valid followups to that which Linus can see. Instead, he swallows and allows a few seconds of uncomfortable silence. "Yeah. That makes sense. So, what are you going to do with your life now?" That he avoids mentioning how many cool movies there are about Ancient Egypt is a function of willpower alone.

Adrian lifts his hands up in front of him in a gesture of surrender, "Dude, chill out." He shakes his head as the other boy starts getting angry. He closes his eyes for a moment, attempts to, do… well… he doesn't know what to do. Opening his eyes again he shrugs. "Anything? If not, it's not a big deal… a little sweat never killed any body," he says, turning to walk towards his duffle and Gatorade. Evidently he doesn't see it as a huge priority to figure out how to 'flip the switch'. "They'll come back, eventually. Jonathan's got boobs again, afterall so it's not permanent."

"I am going to learn about your era," Eshe replies, looking back and trying to hide the tears that refuse to fall from her eyes, "I will grow and adapt and become part of it. It will take time but I have that now. I will also fight to defend the land that took me in when I had no home. A land that is not afraid to accept me for who I am and not try and change me or cage me. I will oppose all who seek to use their power to oppress others. I will be one of your heroes."

It's getting loud, now; the others might well hear it. "Maybe you didn't hear me. 'Eventually' ain't /good/ enough," Jerry says as the other boy turns his back on him. Three strides and he's right behind him. "You face me, and turn your fucking power off or I'll do it for you!" He grabs Adrian's shoulder and whips him around, shoving him, stepping and following up with a boxing punch straight to the jaw.

Linus and Eshe converse nearby, while Adrian and Jerry WERE playing basketball at a nearby court just a few seconds ago. Now, it's a fist fight, as Jerry has just taken a swing at Adrian's face. "I'm sorry, Eshe." replies Linus with a slight frown, "That was a little insensitive. A lot, really. I know it used to be a terrific place. There are a lot of movies and stories abou-Oh HELL no." Linus blinks and flat out runs towards the basketball court nearby. "Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?!?"

Eshe notices the fight as well and jumps into action. "Jerry! Stop!" She launches into the room, actually flying towards her 'consort' before stopping and realizing who he is fighting. Linus warned her not to touch his brother, it might kill her. She just hovers there, unsure of what to do, wanting to back Jerry but at the same time not wanting to get close to possible doom.

Adrian isn't quite to his duffle when Jerry catches up to him. He doesn't turn around, however, but he does raise his voice back. "I don't know how it works! Back the hell off!" Yeah, it's getting loud and is about to get violent. On the basketball court, or rather just to one side of it Jerry has come up on Adrian now that the pair have finished their game. When his shoulder is grabbed, Adrian tenses, "Calm down and back the fu—" CRACK! Jerry's fist catches Adrian right in the jaw with that sucker punch. Yeah, that's going to leave a mark. It's also enough to lay him out on the floor. Adrian crumples to the ground with a grunt. That's one way to get your powers back!

Jerry's force field BOOMS and flares to life in a bloom of violet light, pushing back the people racing at him before it contracts back to his skin. "Some call the infirmary," he says, rubbbing his knuckles despite them not hurting. Light seethes and fractals all around him, and parts of the basketball court varnish flare away into swirls of dust before he kicks off from the floor to hover three inches or so above it. "Linus, tell your bro to start wearing a body condom or something, or this won't be the last time," he growls. He's angry, angrier than he has been in a while, and things tend to go boom or simply 'away' when that happens. Just to be an ass he nudges Adrian's side with his foot, and the other boy's clothes fluff away into nothing. "Walk your naked powerless ass back to your dorm and find your God-damned off switch," he snaps as he make ready to stalk out of the gym, his force-field shaping, spiking, flickering colors and other stuff it's never done before.

o/~ I had a dream last night we.. drove out to see Las Vegas! We lost ourselves in the bright lights, I wish you could have seen us! o/~
The sound floods through Sunday Knight's black-on-pink star mix-style headphones, much as it has been for the last 30 or so minutes. Drowning out the world with music helps her focus, clear her head of all the junk in it and really think. Theraputic, really! Much like jogging, which just so happens to be the other thing she's been doing for the last 30 or so minutes. Sunday is dressed in a baby-doll Portland Trail Blazers t-shirt with the short sleaved rolled up and a tiny pair of grey athletic shorts, sports shoes on her feet and her blonde mane pulled up and back in a cheerleader pony tail. Her iPod is fixed in a band to her arm. She was running around campus for awhile before deciding to run the track and then use the swimsuit she's got on under all this to cool off in the pool. That was the plan! It's a GOOD plan, too! Which makes it all the more disappointing when it's interrupted as she spots some of her friends, and.. Jerry punching LINUS?! Her footing trips up, heart skipping before she realizes her mistake. No, Adrian. Still, she jogs over to the group wondering what the heck happened. "Uh, Hi guys. What's-" Then Jerry nudges on Adrian, the boys clothes go.. and Sunday has no time to be embarrassed. "JERRY!" Her face is /instantly/ angry as she looks up at her friend, hearing his words. ".. What the hell is your problem?!"
Sunday also pulls down her headphones before she speaks! So she can actually hear people.

Eshe, who was hanging in the air dressed in a gold one-piece bathing suit with her towel wrapped about her waist, flies off to catch up with Jerry. She doesn't say anything but follows a few feet behind, just hovering about three inches off the ground and trying to think of something. Eventually, she reaches out to touch his shoulder, reassuringly to let him know she thinks he did exactly what needed to be done.

Linus doesn't have much time to think before something's rising up in him. Or against him, for that matter. The pulse of Jerry's energy causes Linus to stumble to the ground, then blow back several feet. He's got time to think about things, now. That he chooses not to is, of course, a function of family obligation, lack of clear thinking, and just being a guy. Before he knows what he's doing, Linus is on his feet and running towards Jerry like he intends to take a piece out of his friend. His arm is up, he's ready to fight back, powers or no powers. "You ASSHOLE!" Angry Linus turns out to be a little scary, because it's not directionless rage. It's pointed directly at Jerry, as narrow as a laser beam. Of course, he never connects because Jerry blows him back several feet again, and Linus lands right on his ass.

Meanwhile, Adrian is still laid out on the floor, though with a groan he's beginning to return to coherency…

Jerry snarls to Sunday. "Don't. Start." he snaps, and shrugs off Eshe's touch. "Not in a good place right now!" he growls and stalks out the door, throwing the gym doors open with a BOOM. Jerry takes off as soon as he's clear of the gym, and there is a second window-shaking BOOM as he breaks the sound barrier before he's clear of the dimensional interface, and rockets off into the sky.

Sunday frowns deeply as Jerry snarls and rockets off. She has no idea who the girl who was going to comfort him is - how typical, Jerry has a new girl - so Eshe is ignored for the moment. Instead, Sunday goes first to the angry Linus. SHe reaches out as if to touch him, but stops short, thinking maybe that's not a really good idea just now. Does it count that she looks like she wants to? "You should find a towel for your brother. He's probably not going to want to walk back naked." Glancing to Adrian on the floor as he begins to rouse, Sunday calls, "Are you okay? Do you need to go to the infirmary?" She would go over, but.. he's naked. And she'd rather avoid 1) Seeing him fully naked, 2) Linus seeing her seeing him fully naked, and 3) Staring at him fully naked and wondering if that's what Linus looks like, which Linus will just take as her liking what Adrian looks like! Yeah. Complicated.

Hovering there and looking almost like Jerry slapped her when he shrugged her off. Eshe floats a bit lower and finally touches the ground. She pulls the towel off from around her waist and hands it to Linus. "Here, I don't need it." Then, she rockets out of the gym herself.

Adrian groans, and his eyes flutter open. "Mmpf… ow," he mumbles, as consciousness swims back into grasp. And he's greeted with… cold. Sweaty and now naked and with an aching jaw… and the game had gone so well! He works his jaw, lifting a hand to touch it gingerly as he does so. "Damn. Talk about your sore losers…" he clears his throat, cheeks turning red, "Uh… what the hell happened to my clothes?" Yeah, no he doesn't seem to need the infirmary, but the towel is muchly appreciated.

Sunday takes the towel Eshe offers, Linus already gone to try and find one of his own.. Maybe just best not to shout for him, let him cool off a little. So she goes to Adrian with the offered covering and avoids all eye-contact with his naked person while it's offered over. "Here you go." It's not until he's covered himself that she turns her head to face him, looking somewhere between embarrassed and generally displeased. "I'm really sorry. I don't know what that was about but I kind of got the idea, I think.. Jerry isn't usually such a jerk." She offers Adrian a hand up. "Wish I could say that'll be the last time somebody gets mad at you over your powers, though."

Adrian is a bit embarassed himself, but at least there's not a huge crowd gathered. No. Just his brother's girlfriend… since, everyone else cleared the room. "Everything was going fine," he says, taking the hand up now that he's a little more decent, "Then he just flipped out on me. It's not like I meant to do it. Ugh… " He rubs his jaw again, annoyance crossing over his features. "I guess that does confirm it though." He glances at Sunday's hand in his and releases it, clearing his throat. "If I… you know… I'm sorry. Just, don't hit me." Because that would just add insult to injury. "He freakin' sucker punched me… did he have to blow up my clothes? I liked that shirt." Glaring towards the doorway Adrian shouts, though he's pretty certain the other boy is well out of earshot now, "I LIKED THAT SHIRT ASSHOLE!"

Sunday had realized in offering her hand that she was potentially also offering up her powers to be zapped, but once again, there seems to be no effect. Is she immune? She looks at her hand in his about the same time as Adrian, and also releases at the same time, reaching up to turn off her iPod at her bicep. The shouting makes her wince, but only because it startled her. "You don't have to apologize. I mean, you didn't do anything," she demonstratively frosts up her hand, then lets the tiny layer of ice on it melt again. "But you still don't have to apologize. I really don't care. You can touch me when-ever." It takes a second for that to sink in, but when it does, Sunday's freckled face turns red. ".. You know what I mean."

Adrian is conscious and coherent now… and also has wrapped Eshe's towel around his waist, which the Egyptian so kindly offered before flying off. Sunday helped him to his feet and they have just released hands, both bearing a bit of color to their cheeks. Adrian smiles, "Yeah. I know what you mean." He clears his throat, noticing that his brother is gone too, "Please, tell me Linus didn't do something stupid, like go after him."

Linus runs back inside, out of breath and carrying -five- towels. All of his have an embroidered 'S' on them. "I'm back. I've got…I…" Oh. He spots the awkward body language and simply swallows, suddenly feeling uncomfortable as he walks towards them, "I got some, uh, towels. But I guess you got one already. What happened?"

Sunday turns to look as Linus hurries back, and seeing what he has in his arms puts one of those warm, fond smiles on her face. Look at this! Trying so hard to help the brother he was all grumpy about even being here. With the nastiness now past, she can't help but be a little encouraged by how Linus reacted to defend Adrian. Utoh, Linus! Now Sunday is the one who has the opportunity to fix YOUR life! "The flying girl gave me her towel before she left, right after you ran off." Turning back to Adrian, she also adds with an arched brow and a smile, "Linus can take care of himself, you know. But I'm not sure anybody could catch Jerry right now."

Adrian keeps on hand on the towel around his waist. Just to be safe! He grins as his twin returns, all hints of awkwardness quickly draining from his face. "Jerry was just a sore loser and my face had to show his fist what-for," he says, making light of the whole thing now. "What took you so long?" He glances at Sunday as she says Linus can take care of himself, starts to say something, but thinks better of it. "Yeah."

"Jerry's not a sore loser." corrects Linus with a sudden frown as he tosses the towels at Adrian. "You did something. What did you -do-?" Clearly Linus knows everything there is to know about Jerry after being here for just two weeks. He shakes his head and turns towards Sunday, still looking awkward, "The girl's name is Eshe. She's, uh, vintage." He adds with a lower voice, "Really vintage." and then he sighs, turning back to Adrian, "I… there's not, like, a towel depot around the corner. I had to, uh… well, it's probably better to leave soon, because there were some guys in the shower and…" Eyes warily peer in the direction of the men's locker room.

There is a bit of doubt on Sunday's face at the idea that Jerry only hit Adrian over the basketball game, and the whole powers thing was just some kind of excuse. Still, she's not going to say anything at first, rather pleased her statement about Linus was not argued with. She's starting to think Adrian isn't such a bad guy, and she's hate to have to yell at him in Linus's defense. Then, of course, the older of the twins gets all huffy. Sunday looks at Linus with a bit of disbelief, and when she catches his awkwardness.. she blinks. .. What did he think he walked in on?? ".. Linus, maybe Jerry was just being a jerk because he lost his powers! He's like a poster child for testosterone overload. Adrian didn't /do/ ANYTHING." A quick look is tossed towards the locker room, then back at the boys. "Yeah, maybe we should go."

Adrian just shakes his head, the smile on his face turning to a scowl. "Whatever, Linus," he says a bit gruffly, "I didn't do anything." He lets go of his towel for a moment to swat the towels Linus threw at him away, then hastily grabs it back. Abruptly he turns to head over to grab his duffle bag. And in a lower tone under his breath it's possible to hear him say, "Not on purpose anyway." Tossing his Gatorade bottle into the bag, Adrian looks up towards Linus at that last bit and stares. He closes his eyes for a moment and when he opens them, looks skywards as if to ask the heaven's 'Why?' Without further comment to either Sunday or Linus, Adrian heads for the exit— to make the long trek back to his Dorm in only a towel.

"Ok, ok. Maybe he didn't. That's really not the Jerry I…" Linus stops, something crossing his features like the dawning of the age of reason. He turns a little pale, "Look, this didn't happen, we didn't see this, he didn't hit you, everything is f-fine and if any adults come to ask, we uh.. nothing happened." He glances at the lockerroom again and nods as Adrian heads off. "Yyyeah. We should -probably- go. The guy who was singing in the shower sounded horribly off key, but I don't think he's here for his voice."

Sunday sighs deeply, brushing her bangs aside with the flick of a hand in annoyance. /Boys/. Still, Linus could be in the wrong but he's still her boyfriend, and when Adrian huffs off, Sunday stays with Linus until the boy decides now is the time to make a break. "C'mon, then." She takes hold of his hand, nudges her shoulder into his and heads for the exit, muttering to him at some point with a little grin on her lips, "That was so hot the way you went after Jerry, you big strong man you." Ahem. Anyway.

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