Shard

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

The warm water falling down his frame would almost make him forget where he was, a public shower. At least it was the one by the dorms, not in the locker room where Blackmore had his class, so there was less people there. Well, the class managed to evolve the boy, somewhat. He never thought he’d be able to achieve what he did but the pain echoing throughout his body would only elevate tomorrow with incredible soreness. He was after all a very fragile little person.

As the warm water continued to splash against Casper’s olive skin, he kept his eyes on the floor, not wanting to look up. What to do now? Class was over, Mason had disappeared somewhere and Casper was incredibly tired. Maybe getting some sleep would work? If he slept now though, he’d have difficulties sleeping tonight. Shaking the thoughts out of his head, Casper shook the droplets from his hair as he stepped out of the stream. ‘Okay, almost done…’ He sighed, grabbing hold of his towel and dried up as quickly as he could before slipping into his clothes, a pair of jeans, a thin black sweater and a green pair of converse shoes. It was good to have some variation.

The boy tossed his bag with hygienic products, and a towel, over his shoulder and headed out of the steaming showers. There were some other people there but luckily no one bothered him. Having others up in his face anywhere else was better than in the showers.

Walking down the corridor, Casper’s mind traveled back to the class. What exactly could Adam’s class offer him? In all honesty, Casper wanted to learn how to fight because it would make him feel…more in control. Though, he’d never be able to fight up close and personal. He could already shoot things but that wasn’t going to be part of Adam’s class, so perhaps it would be a better idea to develop his mind rather than his body. Ruben had a class, didn’t he? Oh well, right now it didn’t matter. Casper just wanted to drop down in his bed and forget he ever had legs.

Upon reaching the dormitory, Casper slid his key into their door and dropped down on the bed as soon as he slipped out of his shoes. ‘Home sweet home…’ He yawned, crawling further up on the bed that was rather large for him. The boy turned to his back, his half open eyes set on the ceiling while he felt his body slowly drifting away. ‘I wonder if Mason has a cell phone…’ It would be much easier to keep in contact that way but Casper was probably getting ahead of himself. Who said Mason wanted to have Casper in the back of his head all the time? He was sure that friendship came in doses, didn’t it? Well, hanging out with others was a concept he wasn’t too familiar with, so it was probably better to let Mason take the reins on…whatever they had.

Speaking of friendship, Casper had two roommates, one of which he hadn’t even met. Turning his head slightly, he saw how his second roommate had left his things in the room, but at the moment Casper was by himself. Well, he could pick up on the sleep he was craving. If he had difficulties sleeping tonight, so be it. The boy closed his eyes for a moment but came to the conclusion that he'd rather be awake when this new roommate came back. He could be the world's biggest douche and if that was the case, Casper didn't want to lay defenceless in bed as a first impression.

Reaching for his shoulder bag, Casper grabbed his Playstation Vita and-...was that an Xbox? Who the hell had put up an Xbox in their room? Diego? No...he said that he didn't play much video games, didn't he? Oh well...Casper turned his portable console on and resumed on his quest to slice monsters into hamburger with a katana. This would probably keep him awake for a while.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

Okay, okay this was going somewhat well, wasn’t it? Casper had gotten a little further and the sweat running down his body was absolutely disgusting. He did’t mind sweating that much, it wasn't like he was unused to it. Believe it or not, Casper was actually rather used to physical activities but that didn't mean that this monster of a course was an easy go for him. The boy looked behind him and saw a few stragglers but he couldn’t quite see anyone he knew. It was only when he was pushed aside and almost fell to the floor that he woke back up to reality. “Outta' the way, shrimp!” A larger boy shouted as he dashed past him.

’Sorry…’ Casper sighed slightly as he regained his composure and moved forward. He was feeling his energy rapidly leaving his body as he climbed up yet another obstacle, his grip growing weaker by the second. He tried taking a deep breath but his rapid heartbeats would not allow such an action, rather forcing quick breaths out of his mouth. 'I hope you're doing better than me, Mason…’, the boy managed to the top before he slid down the rope on the other side. His gloves made it possible to do so without hurting his hands, too much, but once he moved another two steps he fell down to his knees. This was going to kill him before he reached the end.

’Only half the course left, you can do it Casper…’ He gulped, wiping his forehead from the sweat dripping over his eyes. His long bangs nearly sticked to his face and it was a distracting addition. Moving them out of the way, Casper took off his beanie and shook his hair loose for a moment before sliding it back on to keep all of the hair away from his large eyes.

'Alright, time to move on...' Casper continued through the obstacle course and conjured the remainder of his strength as he tried his best to get through it. Speed wasn’t anything he was relying on, but rather getting to the other side, no matter how long it took. Though, the boy was ready to give himself some credit. He was doing better than the stragglers behind him. One of them had a pink suit, who was that again? Yeah, it was the girl that Diego had been talking to on the boat. His sister? Maybe, Casper hadn’t asked. Speaking of which, Diego was also there and…Mason? Oh, yeah. Well, they would surely catch up to Casper and manage past him with ease. The kid was barely able to stand.

Turning around, he tried to continue, climbing up yet [i]another[i] obstacle and slid down on the other end. Good, this one didn’t require any effort once you had reached the top. He then fell to his knees for a moment, panting and out of breath. For the upcoming obstacle he needed to be on his knees either way as he crawled below the wooden planks above his back.

Ascending to his feet, Casper had to hold onto something as to not fall over. Only a little bit left, only a little bit. Moving on determination he barely knew he had, the boy continued, slowly managing through the final set of obstacles until he reached the end. At this point, he wasn’t able to stand anymore. He was actually ready to puke, but thank God, he managed to keep it in. Now that there weren’t anymore obstacles in his path, the boy didn’t prevent himself from falling to the floor, his eyes barely able to stay open. He couldn’t even feel his legs anymore, his arms were sore from the climbing and it felt like his fingers would fall off at any moment. He managed to the end of the course and surpassed the final obstacle but it honestly felt like he failed. Was he supposed to be this drained at the end? A push could literally kill him now. Trying to replicate something at this point would probably be the last straw, he’d faint there and then.

All he could do now was wait for Mason to finish as well. It wasn’t like Casper would be going anywhere. He’d need help to stand as it was. The boy’s legs were completely useless and they wouldn’t be carrying him anywhere for a while.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

Adam’s scolding, albeit small, caused Casper’s heart to jump and he immediately went quiet. 'Just stay quiet, Casper.’ He could talk with Mason later, but now he had class. Listening intently to what Adam was saying, Casper looked down on the floor and thought it over. Managing without his power? Well, that wouldn’t be too difficult, would it? The only thing his powers allowed him to do was get more of something, or rather, an infinite amount of something. He had honestly gotten very attached to it, especially when he wanted to conserve battery or when he was training with his airsoft pistols. Come to think of it, Casper was incredibly reliant of his powers. Adam was correct when stating that they wouldn’t always have access to them, but it was a reasonable thought. He had heard of various power suppressant methods out there and that would heavily cripple most metas.

Turning to look at the room behind them, Casper’s heart skipped a beat. What was that? He took a deep breath and tried to swallow his fears. He wasn’t allowed to use his powers, but he wouldn’t need them for this situation. They didn’t allow him to move from point A to B in any notable way. He would admit that the tactical movement exercise they were in for was incredibly intimidating.

Luckily he was small so he’d be able to move in and between every obstacle put before him, and he barely weighed anything so he’d be able to climb most towers set up in there. However, this was evened out by his lack of muscles, would he even be able to pulled his body up those things? Well, there was only one way to find out.

Casper moved towards the room, seeing other students rushing in and starting the exercise as fast as they could. It would seem like they were eager, something Casper didn’t quite share but he’d be lying if he said that it wasn’t a little exciting. Putting his foot over the threshold, the other soon followed and he breathed out. Okay, this was it. ‘Just focus on getting through this, Casper. It’s just like a video game…’

Another deep breath would leave the boy’s lips and he moved forward, starting through the course. It was rather slow at the start but after a little while, he was getting the hang out. He tried not to do it too quickly or else he’s probably fail. It was better to start out slow and then move up as he got better. The boy crawled under an obstacle easily enough followed by grabbing hold of a pew planks and thick ropes as he climb on top of another followed by climbing down on the other side. Towards the bottom, he almost lost his grip but managed to hold on tightly enough. ‘God…be careful…’ He sighed, lowering himself to the floor and let go once the distance was short.

‘Okay…’ The boy wiped his forehead, looking in front of him. ‘Only…the whole thing left…’ He gulped and continued forward. This would probably need another go after he was done, and then another after that. He wanted to master this, master himself. Despite his fears, he was eager to learn. Casper was small, but inside his heart a will to strive was beating. ‘I wonder how Mason’s doing…’ The boy looked around for his friend, hoping that Mason was managing through this.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

Collab between Tyler and Shard.

Adam Blackmore’s class, power training, what was he getting himself into? Honestly it was rather exciting but last year, Casper didn’t actually participate in this class. It seemed exciting but oh so scary. It surprised him how he had conjured the strength to participate this time but at some point, he’d need to grow a spine. He had slipped into the outfits they were presented, something that seemed like movie props and licked his skin tightly. Was he really that scrawny? Well, whatever, right? At least it didn't show how easily visible his ribs were...much.

Finding himself in front of the man was enough to encourage the boy to manage through this ordeal. He had come this far and to top it off, Mason was there! When he first saw him, part of the boy wanted to shout out ‘Mason!’ but that would be rather out of character, wouldn’t it? He had taken the liberty to stand rather close to the other boy, though.

Throughout the day, Casper hadn’t run into Mason up until now and apart from a soft wave, he hadn’t been able to speak to him. When Adam spoke, it was highly advised to stay quiet and wait until he was finished. Though, what could he ask Mason? ‘Maybe I could ask him how his day was…? I wonder if he still wants to talk to me…he seemed to like me, didn’t he? I think he did…though after a day here he might have changed his opinion. Maybe if I say hi after Blackmore’s done talking…’

Mason stood amongst the group, his body clad in the tight material. He felt incredibly uncomfortable. Perhaps it was a bout of narcissism, but it felt as though every eye was focussed on him, scrutinizing and criticising every curve of his body. The suit clung to his slender frame and really emphasised just how slim he really was, his body not hidden beneath a mass of denim for the first time in recent memory.

Adam only made him feel even more uncomfortable, reminding him of the cruel gym teachers he had been subject to over the years, and he tried his best to avoid eye-contact with the man. In doing so, he happened to glance upon a face that was much more welcome: that pink-haired waif of a boy, Casper. Mason smiled at the younger boy and then averted his gaze, not wanting to attract the unwanted attention of Mr. Blackmore.

'He smiled at me! That's a good thing, right?' Well, it must have been. Smiles were good, weren't they? Damn, this was affecting Casper just a little bit too much, wasn't it? Perhaps it was because of that outfit he was wearing, or was that was just a bad excuse? Either way, being a walking skeleton, the training outfit did not quite add any bulk to the boy at all. Showing his scrawny frame for all the see, Casper felt rather exposed but he would be lying if he didn't feel at least a little cool wearing it.

Due to his powers, Casper's gloves were fingerless but offered all the protection he'd need. The suit itself was light and easy to move in, weighing next to nothing for someone as small and weak as him to properly wear. Despite Adam's monologue, Casper raised his hand carefully and waved 'hello' to his...friend? Afterwards, he smiled slightly and looked back down. Mason was really here, it felt better than he thought it would to see that boy again.

When Blackmore suggested that questions were asked, Mason approached Casper towards the back of the group. He figured that, whilst the other students interrogated the teacher, he and Casper could catch up.

"Hey, dude," he said, forcing a smile despite his discomfort. The pleasant nature of the younger boy made it a little easier. "How've you been?" he asked, sincerely. "Are you all settled in?"

"H-hi, Mason..." Casper's smile grew wider now that they were actually speaking. "This suit's a bit..." He looked down and sighed. "...revealing..." Though, he'd live with it. If this was what it took to pass this class with a good enough grade, he'd wear it. "I-it's nice seeing you again..." Hopefully that didn't come off as too clingy. "Oh...settled in..uhm.." He looked around at the other students that seemed comfortable enough in what they wore. "My roomates are okay...I guess...I think..." Well, Casper hadn't really gotten to know either of them that much. "Diego's kinda' quiet and uhm..." He had to stop for a moment before continuing. The other boy's name didn't quite come to mind as fast. "Lenny...yeah...we haven't talked yet.."

Mason cringed a little at Casper's mention of the outfit. Was he making a subtle dig about how Mason looked? 'No,', he told himself. Casper didn't seem like the kind of guy who could be malicious even if he tried, and Mason was pleased to see that he was doing okay.

"Well that's a start!" he exclaimed, hearing the news of Casper's roommates. "At least neither of them are hostile, right? I'm sharing with this one guy, Harmon." he explained, recalling the strange man he had met yesterday. "He's kinda funky-looking. No eyes, crystals growing out of his head... But he's actually really chill. And super smart." he said, laughing a little awkwardly. "Kinda makes me feel dumb!" he said, passing the comment off as a joke. "Have you taken this class before? The whole idea of 'power training' is kind of... Daunting, to say the least..."

'Harmon! That's his name! Well, I wasn't too far off.' Casper nodded at the description of the unique individual but had an expression of 'Oh, right!' on his face. "Y-yeah...I've seen him. He was here last year..." Raising his hand, Casper reached behind his head and scratched himself slightly. "I never...said hi." Well, now perhaps he'd get the chance to at least say hello. Mason seemed to like him and that must mean that Harmon's a good guy, right? Mason wouldn't have liked him otherwise, and Mason seems like a good judge of character. "Hey..." Casper managed a soft chuckle. "You probably know a lot more than me..." He smiled. "But th-that means that...you can teach stuff, right?" The smaller boy's smile grew just a little as he spoke. He was sure that there was a lot to learn from Mason and one day perhaps he would.

Power training, that word seemed so odd. It was so unfamiliar to hear 'power' in relation to anything happening at a school. "I try to think of it as uhm..." He gulped, looking down. This would probably make him sound like the geek he was. "Airsofting..." At least he was good at that. "It can also be uh...nice to see what people can do...scary but...interesting."

Mason laughed. "Well, if you ever need to learn about colour theory, or the pioneers of surrealism... I'm your guy!" he said, in a deliberately sarcastic tone. Casper made a good point about seeing what his peers were capable of. "Yeah, I look forward to seeing what everyone has up their sleeve..." he said, trailing off as he became lost in his inhibitions. It was inevitable that he would soon have to demonstrate his abilities and expose himself as "Mr. Lame Power 2015".

His trail of thought, along with his conversation, was interrupted when Adam's voice barked in their direction.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

I see that Lenny is sharing a room with Casper and Diego. I will go in and change my post, adding another bed in there.

Wait...I share a room with TWO smokers...? Fucking hell, the smell of smoke...

---

Edited in my last post.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

“Oh…” Casper heard a pair of footsteps before he laid eyes on Diego and managed a small smile. “H-hi Diego…” For once, Casper was the one who felt sorry for some other poor guy. Diego was probably lost and afraid…okay, maybe not afraid but he seemed lost. “Y-yeah…” Casper nodded at the boy’s question. He was probably the only Casper at school all together. It was a common name but not common enough to be seen everyday. Speaking of which, Diego was probably the only Diego at school. Where had Casper heard that name before? Oh right, it was in the movie Ice Age, the tiger. He was Casper’s favourite character in that movie, actually. It could have been because he loves cats but there was a lot of things going on with that character. This Diego in real life would probably not end up being a double agent who turns around and confesses everything in the end.

“Come…” Casper continued, holding onto the strap of his bag tightly as he walked through the crowd to their dorm. He hated crowds, they made him feel smaller than he already was and some people wouldn’t mind deliberately adding to that feeling.

Walking through various corridors and hallways, Casper spotted the dormitories further in the distance and motioned for Diego where their destination would be. “There…” The smaller boy motioned with a soft nod before he kept moving. There were less people here but people all the same. Everyone here was younger and to some extent, smaller. It felt a bit better to walk around with less giants surrounding him. Casper looked at the numbers by the doors and eventually found the proper room and slid his key into the door.

Unlocking their way would reveal a rather neat and tidy little room with three beds, Casper and Diego’s new home for the year. It reminded Casper a lot of his last room but this time around, he actually had a good roommate. There were however three beds this time around. Were they expecting another roommate? Damn, that meant that there was still a risk. Well, at least Diego filled one spot well enough.

He walked in and immediately dropped down on the bed after slipping out of his converse by the door. Finally, he could stretch out his body and relax. Casper had chosen the bed closest to the wall but soon remembered that Diego was also there. “S-sorry…” He looked down, a bit embarrassed. “Which bed did you want…?” Casper had always felt safer sleeping closer to the wall. Actually, he’d prefer the bed to stand against the wall but this worked too, he wouldn’t lose sleep over it.

Yawning slightly, Casper place his hands on his stomach and fiddled with his fingers, his eyes trailing the ceiling. “Th-the shower’s in the hall…” The mere thought of it brought shivers up his spine. Casper didn’t have any issues with his body, not major ones at least, but showering together with other guys was something he was not confidant enough to do. There were several problems involved but the biggest one was the pure and extreme uncomfortable atmosphere. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea for a bunch of guys to shower together? It must have been an incredibly sadistic or stupid individual. Casper usually managed to get in and out without other people being there, most of the time.

He brought his hand to his forehead and breathed out. This is all so…fast moving. Yesterday Casper was home with his dad, having a little farewell dinner and now he was here, waiting for classes to start. It was as if everything around him was just passing by so quickly and he barely had any time to handle it. “I hope you’ll like it here…” Casper stated quietly, unsure if he said that to himself or Diego.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

"WOULD ALL STUDENTS PLEASE PROCEED TO THE RECEPTION, IN ORDER TO BE ALLOCATED THEIR LIVING ARRANGEMENTS FOR THIS ACADEMIC YEAR. THANK YOU.”

Well, that put an end to their conversation. “Bye, Diego…” Casper smiled softly as he raised his hand in a gentle wave. “Y-yeah…it was nice.” Roommates, this was the scary part. If it would be anything like last time, Casper was just about ready to throw in the towel. He would not share a room with a disgusting pig ever again. Not if he had anything to say about it! But then again…he didn’t. If he wasn’t going to live through this school, he’d have to live through another. Might as well deal with it, right?

As Diego left, Casper remained for a brief moment, just to take a breath. This was it, the real start of the school year. He felt his body shivering slightly at the thought, his hands trembling just so as he squeezed his knees and clenched his teeth. ‘This is it, Casper. Don’t fuck it up…’ Like that was avoidable. This boy attracted bullies like a vicious flame attracted moths, there was no escaping it. Though, it was rather hard to believe, honestly. Sometimes he still had difficulties believing that he was in the hole he had found himself in. This was a school for freaks. Why was he singled out? Well, that wasn’t quite true. That flesh beast that just passed by had to take a thousand times more punishment than Casper, even though he…it…was a teacher. There was that boy, as well. Casper couldn’t recall his name still, but at this point, it really didn’t matter.

Getting up to his feet, his bright red converse clad feet, Casper dusted himself off from the grass and pulled the strap of his bag to place across his shoulder. With his eyes set on the ground, he started towards the reception area. He knew the way. As he walked, the boy would look up from time to time in hopes of spotting someone he liked. That someone was one of two people, really. It was either Diego or Mason, none of which were visible through the crowd. Also, it could be nice to take a break from talking with people for tonight. Casper had spoken more this day than he had all last year. Okay, maybe that was a bit much, but he couldn’t quite remember any time where he had been so talkative.

“H-hello…” The boy looked up at the receptionist.

“Hello.” She returned, raising an eyebrow as if to wait for him to finish his sentence.

“M-my room…?” He continued, seeing her typing something into her computer.

“Name?”

“Casper Hayat...” He never really liked his surname much. It clashed quite aggressively with his first name and had a distinct, arabic pronunciation on the H. Given the fact that Casper was fluent in Arabic, he could pronounce it with ease but hearing everyone else do it was just torture. Hay-jaat, Heyett, Hay-at, he had heard it all. The boy would refrain from revealing his surname too often, simply because he didn’t like the sound of it.

“You’re with Diego Bellasquez, here’s the key.” She gave the boy what he’d need to enter his room.

“D-Diego…?” He stammered as he accepted the key. Well, that’s great! It wasn’t with Mason, but that’s okay. At this point, Mason had probably gotten a hundred other friends and had probably forgotten that Casper ever existed.

“Yes, Diego. Is there a problem?”

“N-no…m’am.” Casper gulped, taking a step back.

“There’s a line!” She raised her voice slightly, forcing the boy away from the queue that was forming behind him. Damn, she was scary.

Finally able to head to his room, Casper kept his eyes open for Diego. He hadn’t remembered seeing him before, and Diego didn’t know that Ruben was a teacher, something he should have noted if he was here last year, so he was probably new. Casper could find their room with ease, but he hoped that Diego didn’t have too many problems getting around.

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

Come share a room with us, Mason...come to the Diegsper side...

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

B-but....Mason and T-Trevor...my ship...MY SHIP IS SINKING!!!

But wait! Mason x Harmon was the original ship!!... Marmon!! SHIP'S BACK ON THE WAVES, LADS!

Academy 218: Still looking for new people to join - now is the primetime.

I'll get a post up after Allen, and maybe Gentleman