dreamingflowers

Young Justice

Location: Happy Harbour, the obstacle course in the forest
Interactions: Hex, Talon, Cybergirl, Rain

---

Daphne still felt sick to her stomach after watching the sparring session between Cybergirl and Rain. She had a troubled look on her face while she stood together with her team. Adding to that was the building tension between Rain and Talon. She didn't understand where it was coming from. Talon was upset Rain "let" Cybergirl win, but Daphne agreed with Rain. It wasn't about winning or losing. It was a training exercise. When Talon stared Rain down, Daphne felt herself getting anxious, heat rising to her cheeks and her skin prickled. Her eyes went back and forth between them, to predict what was going to happen. She didn't really feel like getting in between them, but her desire to keep them from fighting each other was stronger. Luckily she didn't have to intervene. Black Canary started to explain their next course of action, literally, because they were also going to the obstacle course.

She followed the blonde Leaguer into the forest alongside her team. The nerves were getting worse, if this was anything like the sparring sessions this was not going to be easy. Daphne figured a distraction would be good so she walked up to Alisa, tapping her on the shoulder lightly to get her attention. She had a soft smile ready for when Alisa turned to her, which was oddly at ends with what she was about to say.

"You know you really freaked me out back there, I thought you well....you know" She couldn't even bring herself to say it. Daphne touched Cybergirl's shoulder. Through the fabric of Cybergirl's clothes Daphne could feel the cold surface of her skin, she logically didn't have any body heat. Even though she knew that, it was still unsettling to experience it with her own senses. Instead of sap or blood Alisa was being kept alive by eletricity, light in a sense. Someone filled with light. She for sure had the personality to match. Daphne wanted to chat some more with Alisa, but before she could say something else Black Canary started to explain their limitations for the obstacle course.

Daphne listened attentively and started to panic inwardly when she heard hers. She was the only one allowed to talk.....
She had to process the gravity of that limitation for a second. That would mean....
Oh this was going to be so bad. She sighed feeling incredibly reluctant and dragged herself towards the rest. Black Canary left them standing at a set of five tires without any explanation of what they were supposed to be doing. Daphne didn't want the nerves to get to her. She tried to calmly assess their first obstacle but in the back of her mind she kept thinking how everyone was going to look at her. Thinking about it made it feel like they were staring and suddenly she was too nervous to look at any of her team members.

"Well okay so...." She started quietly. Daphne looked around to see if the others were looking into her direction. Rain had the same blank expression on his face he usually had, and for some reason it made her more nervous now. Instinctively her hair started to move to shield her face away from the prying eyes of the group. Daphne waved it away impatiently, blowing out an irritated breath.
Alright time to focus.

She put her hands on her hips so she wouldn't fall back into crossing them in front of her body, breaking her protective posture. Forcing herself to stay in this open position cleared her mind. Daphne looked at the tires and the path ahead, a good distance away she spotted a set of poles. Five each, the same amount as the tires. They were lined up straight across of each one. Her brows furrowed together in thought while she tried to figure this out. Was it as simple as it looked or?

Daphne walked up to the first tire to look at it up close. It wasn't just a regular car tire, these were the huge ones they used in physical training. They had deep ridges and were not as easy to roll, because they were going to fall of to one side due to their weight. Her first thought was to have someone help her set it up straight so she could push it herself, but that probably wouldn't work. She would end up needing Cybergirl's or Rain's strength to set it upright again. They were going to need to depend on them for this. She wasn't strong enough to flip a tire, neither was Hex and Talon she wasn't sure of.

She went back to the team, gathering up the courage to speak. Daphne didn't look directly at both Rain and Cybergirl, despite the latter being less intimidating.
"I think we need to flip those tires and put them on the poles on the other end, but I'm not strong enough to move them"
Daphne hesitated, realizing how dumb she must sound. Obviously she wasn't strong enough to lift the tires, anyone could see that.

Young Justice

_{E P I S O D E O N E : M E E T I N G T H E T E A M}

FIGHT-FLIGHT-FREEZE

S E C R E T S A N C T U A R Y

---

^{May 4rd, 2021 | 8:20a.m. | Happy Harbor, Rhode Island}

Black Canary stood with her arms crossed, observing Cybergirl and Rain's sparring session. Cybergirl won and the Leaguer found herself smirking inwardly. She wasn't supposed to be smug, but she still loved it when one of the girls could beat the guys because they underestimated her. She observed Rain's concern and made a mental note of it, he wasn't as tough as he made himself out to be. So Batwoman was right about him.

"Alright team assemble here"
She waved them over to her, waiting until they were all gathered together before continuing. Looking at each of their faces she started to speak.
"Good work today, I've seen some of you crossing their boundaries, adaptability and concern for your fellow team members. Well done Rain, Talon, Hex, Cybergirl and Nymph"

As a teacher she couldn't be more pleased. There was certainly room for improvement, but this was a great start. She put her black jacket back on and got ready to give her team instructions.
"Dinah, you gave me a team of slugs, they're still on the first obstacle"
The annoyed voice of Green Arrow complained through her ear piece. Black Canary sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in annoyance.
"You've got to be kidding me...."

She looked at her watch, they were about half an hour into training. Maybe they were having trouble with the wall? In any case, she wasn't going to let her team wait.
"Do you want me to give them some incentive?"
Dinah didn't like Ollie's tone, she knew that was going to end up making this worse.
"No Ollie, just let them figure things out on their own"
Dinah looked over at the forest where the obstacle course was located. Knowing Green Arrow he was probably hauled up in a tree somewhere taking a nap. He was never really a morning person.

"Alright here's wha..."
Black Canary was again distracted. This time by Hex who's powers seemed to be malfunctioning in a disturbing manner. Her eyes narrowed at the patch of dead grass and the particles floating in the sky around them. She positioned herself in front of the team in a protective manner.. Zatanna had given her the basics of Hex's powers, so she knew what the team was getting itself into. Along with that she'd given her a fair warning of it's potential danger.
"Hex, take back control...now"

Usually she ignored the crow, but she caught on to what he was saying and it was worrying. She wasn't satisfied with Hex's answer, but she let it slide for the moment. She was pretty sure a simple sparring session would not have tired him out. Keeping Hex in her peripheral vision she laid down the rules to her team.

"Seeing as your other team members haven't crossed the first obstacle yet this is your chance to show them how it's done. You'll be starting on the opposite end of the obstacle course."

Black Canary led the team through a different path in the forest, avoiding the first group so they could reach the end of the course, which would be their starting point.

"As far as handicaps go, Talon you can only take one piece of equipment with you, Hex you can only teleport a maximum of two meters in front of you and finally only Nymph is allowed to speak"

She was aware the sparring session had left a lasting impact on Nymph. This would add yet another layer of pressure to the situation. Dinah wanted to see how she would react. The fact that she had a breakdown wasn't unexpected, what surprised her was her resilience. She approached her former sparring partner not with fear, but compassion. The Martian Manhunter was right about her.

"Good luck"

Dinah stood a little ways away from the five tires, waiting for the team to start figuring out what they were supposed to do with them. Five short poles were hammered into the ground a good distance away from the tires. They were tall enough for one tire to be flipped on top of them, with the pole coming through the round opening.

Young Justice

Announcement! ^.^

Or more of a reminder actually. In the OOC we talked about the addition of character centric plots/episodes/arcs to the main story.
It would be great if you guys can give that some thought, since you're now a little more familiar with your characters.
It really helps if the gm's know what you have in mind for your character, so we can weave it into the main storyline. It's not mandatory however, so feel free to decline.

Currently I have two characters who will have an episode dedicated to their personal struggles/issues/backstory.
Many thanks!!

Young Justice

@Courtaud
@Shard

The timeline of my post doesn't really match up with the current IC, since it's posted after the fight between Cybergirl and Rain. I was thinking since the fight between them is pretty epic, our characters can watch and react to it, as our next move.

Young Justice

Location: Happy Harbour, clearing outside of the first entrance
Interactions: Talon, Hex

---

"Your armor. It's strong."
Daphne´s face lit up in surprise, feeling an unexpected kind of happiness and even a hint of pride. It didn´t happen often that someone spoke positively of her powers. Her father was the only one who did, from a scientific standpoint, although that didn´t make her feel proud. It made her feel like she was a rare type of animal species, maybe the only one of her kind. It was alienating at times. The study sessions often included extensive testing and there was always the danger of being locked into her plant form. It was something which lurked in the back of her mind. Because of this reason she often didn't share the excitement her dad felt when they made a new discovery. Boundaries were there for a reason and she didn't want to cross them, it was scary.

She made her peace with her powers in the short time she had gotten to understand them. She was glad she could transform at will, it made it easier to live a semi normal life too. It would have been different if her transformation was permanent. To Daphne her powers were there to protect both herself and now also others around her. Talon started to sign something to her and her attention went back to him. She focused on his hands movements, in full concentration. Sadly she couldn't make out what he was saying. Her confusion was clear from her expression. He caught on too and stopped "talking"

Daphne watched his face fall and felt sorry for him. She looked at the ground, like the answers were there. Suddenly she thought of something. Why didn't she think of this before?
Happy she found a way to keep talking to Talon, she held up her hand, signing he had to wait a second.
"I have an idea, don't go anywhere, just wait here." There was a bright smile on her face and she turned to rush to her backpack. The teen girl was worried her sparring partner would turn and leave, so she emptied out the contents of her bag on the grass impatiently. She spotted her phone underneath her notebook and grabbed it. While she made her way back to Talon and Hex who had joined them she was typing up a message.
"I thought this might work better, since I don't speak American sign language. You can say what you wanted to say to me earlier. Just type it so I can read it and we'll be good"....."I'm glad you're not hurt xoxo Daphne"

Daphne joined back up with the two boys, taking Talon's hand and placing her phone into it, nodding at him. Casper complimented them on their sparring match.
"Yes we all did pretty good, the villains better watch their backs" She laughed, only half believing her own words.

A short distance away from them Cybergirl and Rain were getting ready for their sparring match. On one hand Daphne had had enough violence for the morning, but she also recognized the valuable lessons watching others fight might teach them. Besides she was pretty sure Black Canary wouldn't settle for them lounging about in the grass making daisy chains.
"Do you guys want to go watch them?"
Daphne turned to Hex and Talon, her hands folded behind her back.

Young Justice

Location: Happy Harbour, clearing outside of the first entrance
Interactions: Hex, Talon

---

A couple of last tears trickled down the side of her face, mixing with the morning dew on the grass. Daphne had calmed down considerably. There was something about laying in the grass, in a fetal position. A light breeze brushing past, it was calming. The soft echoes of Casper's voice made her look up. She spotted him standing a respectful distance away from her. Daphne pushed herself of the ground and sat up straight so she could face him when he sat down next to her. They hadn't talked much after their short exchange yesterday. At first Casper disturbed her, but she soon discovered that underneath his ghostly appearance he was just a teen boy. Someone who was extending incredible kindness to her at the moment. Something she truly could appreciate.

Daphne smiled a small but genuine smile at his confession. It was comforting to know she wasn't the only struggling with combat, fighting and violence. It was nice to hear it was okay to be scared, to have her feelings acknowledged. The teen girl looked down at his smile. His sharp teeth didn't disturb her and she smiled back, feeling a little better. Casper was being extremely careful, even when he hugged her. She was being gentle herself too, holding him like she was holding a butterfly. Daphne pulled him a little closer to her, leaning her head on his shoulder. Her leafy hair stroked his face gently.

There was something peculiar which stirred in the air around Casper and being this close to him she could also experience the sensation on her skin. Their embrace was short. It was difficult to describe what hugging him felt like, it was far from unpleasant. It wasn't cold like she expected, even though she didn't know why she even thought it would be. He was alive, but at the same time he wasn't. A human ghost?

While his nature still raised many questions, he had an unquestionably kind soul.
"Thanks, this was really nice of you" She said, feeling grateful. It had come from an unexpected source, but it was nice to have someone there to console her after something like this.
"I've never had my own private ghost to haunt me" Daphne laughed. Her laugh was light and pleasant, part of her spirit restored.

She brushed her fingers over the grass between them, musing on her thoughts, leaving a moment of silence between them. From the corner of her eye she saw Talon standing in the grass. She lifted her head to look at him better. The way he was pacing back and forth, looking lost, it stirred her compassion. Daphne lifted herself of the grass, holding out her hand to Casper. His clawed fingers intertwined with her verdant ones and she helped him up lightly.
"I'm going to make sure Talon is doing okay, thanks again Casper" She squeezed his hand.

Daphne carefully approached Talon, the echoes of their battle tucked away safely into the back of her mind. She didn't blame Talon for her distress, she would have probably reacted like this with both Rain and Cybergirl too. It wasn't his fault and hopefully that wasn't what he was feeling. She was also pretty sure she'd hurt him too, physically for sure. The cut on her face had stopped leaking sap, but it hadn't healed yet. It would heal fast, given some time and sunlight, a cut like this could be healed in an hour or two. As far as she knew though Talon was human, and any injury he endured would be much more serious.

She turned her warm brown eyes up to his face, searching his features.
"I hope I didn't hurt you, I'm sorry for the way I reacted" Daphne looked away in embarrassment.
"I...I think I hit your leg, are you okay?" She asked, feeling guilty. It was another reason why she didn't like to fight. It wasn't only her who could get hurt, she didn't want to hurt anyone either. Daphne stepped a bit closer to him, waiting for his answer.

Young Justice

Location: Happy Harbour, clearing outside of the first entrance
Interactions: -

---

"Break it up you two!!" Black Canary called out in a sharp commanding tone, rushing to their side.
She had been watching Talon and Nymph go at it from a safe distance, but now it was time to intervene. As she'd expected the skilled Court of Owls martial artist easily bested the inexperienced teen girl. Talon helped Nymph get to her feet. Black Canary was pleased to see the boy had proper manners, despite his other shortcomings. She seized up both of her students. Talon didn't appear to be too beat up, but she couldn't be certain. His hero suit covered his entire body. This was his natural habitat, he knew his way around a fight arguably as well as she did.

The same couldn't be said for his sparring partner. Despite having a natural set of armor Nymph decidedly looked worse for wear. Black Canary focused her attention on the girl. She wanted to squeeze her shoulder but the bark made it impossible, instead she settled for a reassuring pat and a comforting smile. Daphne tried to smile back. The adrenaline was dying down and it made it very hard for her to pretend she was okay.
"I'm fine...I'm ff..ine....I'm..." The last words got swallowed up when she choked up. She started to break down into sobs. Her shoulders were shaking and she hid her face in her hands, wanting to go home.

Black Canary had a pained look on her face. She pitied Daphne. Sadly this was only the beginning. There were much tougher fights in the teams future. It was the ugly part of the hero business. Violence couldn't always be avoided. She fought the urge to embrace the girl in a motherly hug. She wiped the tears from her face. Her skin felt exactly like damp leaves. Dinah got out a bandage for Daphne to hold against the cut in her face.
"Take a breather Nymph"

Daphne took the bandage without saying anything, not trusting her voice to be able to speak. She suddenly felt extremely tired, like she ran an entire marathon. With wobbly legs she distanced herself a little from the group, lowering herself on the grass with a deep sigh. Her body was still shaking even while she sat down. Her breathing was uneven and her bottom lip quivered. The bark started to revert back, revealing the more vunerable and softer leaf like texture underneath. She was staring at the treeline. Daphne blinked a few times to make sure she wasn't seeing things, but it looked the trees were moving. Actually everything seemed to sway back and forth. She closed her eyes for a few seconds, feeling nauseous. The bandage rolled out of her hand and she let herself fall on her left side, drawing up her knees to her chest. The smell of the grass helped to settle her nausea.

Young Justice

I put up a poll to help us select a downtime activity for the team. It's what they'll be doing after they finish training.
strawpoll.com/b1rsbq2qd

Go vote ^.^

Young Justice

@canaryrose
@Mistress Dizzy
You are both approaching the one post a week mark.
Canaryrose you might be in a collab, so that's good. A post will be coming soon in that case.
Mistress Dizzy. If you need help with a post let me know. I know there isn't much for your character to react to yet. So maybe I can help you think of something.

Young Justice

Location: Happy Harbour, clearing outside of the first entrance
Interactions: Talon

---

"Its okay. I don't know how to hold back."

Daphne faced Talon, the conviction in his voice sent chills down her spine. He never spoke much, but when he did it was always impactful. At first she thought he was mute. The older teen intimidated her. He was a skilled fighter. The way he carried himself with confidence and a concentrated calmness made her nervous. Her transformation had him momentarily rooted to the spot. If Daphne had a better combat sense she could have used that to her advantage.

As it stood Daphne settled for studying her opponent. His costume was a deep black, full coverage suit. The gold details glimmered in the sun, on his shoulders there were silver feather decorative pieces. The tops of his gauntlets had metal owls on them. It was an impressive look and probably sturdy too. She looked to see if he was carrying any weapons. Almost immediately she searched for knives. The robbery had left emotional scars in her psyche and knives still frightened her. She couldn't see if he was carrying one, or multiple ones. They were probably hidden. When he walked up to her Daphne braced herself, her arms instinctively shielding her upper body. He wanted to oblige and help her activate her power. Daphne felt relieved, It would level the playing field.

His punch was forceful and calculated in it's strength and speed. She stumbled back and gasped slightly, holding her hand over midsection. The pain was dulled, it was something she still had to get used to. Her immediate reaction was still to flinch and turn away. It worked though. She looked down at the spot he hit her, the bruised skin warped into protective bark. It traveled further outwards, but at a slowed pace. Daphne needed it to be faster. She was pretty sure Talon wasn't going to go easy on her from now on. She placed her hand on the patch of bark and willed it to spread, while simultaneously recreating some distance between them.
"How am I going to do this?" She thought, feeling like she was in over her head. Normally she liked to think things through. It was her lack of combat experience which was holding her back now.

She had no idea how to use her body effectively. Did she just rush in and hope for the best?
That kind of careless action wasn't her sensibility at all. Black Canary rushed at both Green Arrow and Hex though, she acted. Maybe she just needed to be fast. Daphne took a deep breath and rushed at Talon, trying to copy what she'd seen her teacher do. Talon knew exactly what she was going to do, like he could read her mind. Rather it was her inexperience which allowed him to grab her arm and push her away, while barely moving from his spot.

Talon suddenly turned and struck her left arm. She stumbled away clumsily, catching herself on the grass and immediately rolling away to avoid a second strike. In the corner of her eyes she saw something else shimmer. She sucked in a breath and her eyes widened.
Knives
Daphne tried to reach for them. Talon blocked her hand, keeping her from his throwing weapons. He pushed her back and Daphne managed to stay standing. Talon rolled back and shot two knives into her direction with deadly accuracy. Daphne instinctively brought up her arms to protect herself. They struck the bark, one pierced through it, sticking out of her arm. The other slid past her leg, leaving a dent. The sight of a knife sticking out of her freaked her out, and she squealed, pulling it out and throwing it on the grass. Her breathing was fast and she shook in place, frazzled. Two more knives came flying, this time aimed at her head, the part of her body not protected by bark.

Before Daphne could react, her leaf like hair rustled wildly, as if possessed by a strong breeze. The leaves fluttered around her face, slowing the momentum of the knives. One still managed to slice her cheek. She flinched, the exposed skin was more sensitive. Green sap leaked from the cut, trailing down her face. Daphne was starting to panic, she wanted to stop. This was too much for her. Up close she couldn't land a hit and from far away she couldn't defend herself either.

"Don't give up, Act..."
An unfamiliar voice whispered into her mind. Daphne furrowed her brows and looked around her. There weren't any plants around, she wasn't touching anything.....or was she? She stirred the grass with her toes.
"Use the ground, slide..."
"Slide...?"

Daphne had a new plan. She rushed back at Talon, forcing him to abandon his throwing knives. Instead of going for a hit she slid over the grass, trying to force him to the ground with the momentum of her move.