To Fly or Not To Fly? @Gryph

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

Ziggy awoke with a start, covered in sweat and drool. What the hell? Had she actually fallen asleep last night? Had she actually been dreaming? Oh lord she had drooled on herself! Gross. Wiping her mouth she sat up and pushed her sweat drenched hair out of her eyes. It was early, still dark outside but hey she isn't complaining, having slept at all is better than not at all. She peered around her quiet dark room and heard only silence. Perhaps she was the only one awake. Ziggy yawned as she swung her legs out of her bed and touched down on the cool wooden floor. She walked over to her room and peered out around the common room. It was still, nothing was moving. Good she wouldn't have to interact with anyone. She grabbed some clean clothes head out of her dorm and through the deserted common room. She slipped into the bathroom which was rid of people as well. 

It was chilly and draughty as usual in the bathroom. It was completely dark as she liked it, she showered in the darkness. A lot of people wouldn't shower in the dark but she loved everything about the dark. She spend the last couple of years surrounded by light spilling from her very skin that darkness was a pleasant change. Once she was washed and not covered in sweat and drool, she dried and dressed. She looked at her reflection in the darkened mirror and sighed. She didn't wear make-up usually and rarely needed to do anything with her hair as it dried neat and in place, luckily for her. She turned and walked away from herself once an uncontrollable glow started to appear in her face. Currently she didn't know her limits with her ability and she was quite frankly a little scared of her power. She didn't know what she could do and at the present she didn't want to know. 

Ziggy bailed from the common room she needed air, she was still shocked at the fact that she had actually slept and had a dream, even though she couldn’t remember for the life of her what it was about. She hadn't slept for god only knows how long and she felt so much better. The cool air slapped her in the face as she stepped out into the grounds. She didn't know where she was going she was just walking. Before she knew it she was on the training field and she smiled slightly and ever so briefly. The sun was starting to rise and the field was covered in a light mist. She walked around the edge of the large field. The grass seemed to be freshly mown and the smell of cut grass entered her nasal passages and make her feel light as a feather. Jez, she was weird. She looked up at the pinky purple sky and wondered what it was like to fly. The thought was gone as fast as it came and she shuddered. 

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryphon had always been a morning person. He didn't know what it was, but unlike those who awoke feeling groggy and sluggish, he woke up and felt rejuvenated, ready for the day ahead. And this morning couldn't come early enough. He had been lying in bed, wrapped around Kodi. Neither of them was pleased by the fact that they weren't going to be able to sleep in the same bed for a long while after this, so they were taking the opportunity to do so while they still could. The worry of everything going on was still mucking with his head though and he found himself waking up at awkward times and not being able to sleep for multiple hours. It wasn't fun. Right now, he was watching the curtains move gently. He couldn't sleep again. He looked at Kodi... it'd be okay, right? Just go out for a bit and come back later? Yeah, it'd be fine. He peeled himself away from his boyfriend carefully and quietly got dressed. He decided to leave a note just in case he did wake up before Gryph got back, just so he didn't freak out or something - and with that, he grabbed a camera bag he had left out of his packing and left.

The outdoors always did a good job of clearing Gryphon's mind, so he went out to the training field. He could always go flying, or take some pictures of the sunrise, or just stargaze whilst the stars were still out. Just... do something which didn't take too much brain effort. He broke outside and felt the cool morning air attack his skin, making him tense a little. Since it was the morning, and he wasn't expecting to see anyone, Gryph had worn some pretty scruffy clothes - including an old workout top. He did, however, wish he had that wing jacket Phen had given him. It was really well designed, so he could actually fly properly and not get cold... but he hadn't predicted such a drop in temperature. To counter it, he maneuvered his wings through the slits cut in his top and wrapped them around himself as he walked. His feathers did a good job of insulating, so he smiled a little as he felt the cold pull back a little.

He'd never been good at seeing in the dark, but the sun that slowly drifted upwards was casting shadows here and there, and he noticed one that was moving. He tilted his head in curiosity, picking up his pace a little so he could see them, pulling his wings behind him so that the gentle breeze brushed onto his skin. He squinted his eyes and smirked when his brain kicked into recognition, "Ziggy?" He said, to catch her attention. Ziggy was one of those people he'd met once or twice, but didn't talk to enough, which was a shame.

Then again, he didn't think he talked to half of his friends as much as he should.

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

The sun was coming up, slowly but surely it was, much to her distaste going to rise and fill the field with sunlight. Once again there was an ugly frown on her face at such a thought. Seriously she was going to look twice her age soon if she didn't stop it. You know the sun was going to rise everyday and there wasn't much she could do about it, so she should so just get over it and move on. That or go live in a cave somewhere. Sighing she straighten her face and dug her hands into her pocket and continued walking around the field in one large boring circle.

The eerie fog was still lingering around falling into elegant swirls behind her as she walked through it. Usually fog first thing in the morning meant a warm day. Hopefully it did warm up and the goosebumps on her skin would fade, her thin jacket just didn't seem to be cutting it anymore. A voice behind her, calling her name made her stop and her body stiffen, lord someone was trying to gather her attention. She didn't do to well with conversation, what did they want? She so wasn't in the mood for torment today. Slowly she turned and through to hazy light and fog she saw it was someone she knew. She relaxed slightly.

Gryph had always been nice and polite towards her in the few times they have been in conversation, he had never been nasty or hurtful, what would be different this time. She raised her freaky skeletal like left hand into the foggy air and waved, a small but nervous smile on her face. "Hey" she said with a slight croak in her voice. It seems like days since she had spoken to anyone, her vocal cords were shocked at the fact they were actually being used. She gave a small grumble in her throat to clear it. "So I'm not the only one who is out of bed at an ungodly time of the morning" she said biting the inside of her mouth nervously as soon as her lips closed.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

The shadows in the early morning and late evening where always the most dramatic and awe inspiring. They were gorgeous and usually forgotten about, which was a shame, considering the beauty of them. The only discontent brought to Gryphon about seeing the rising sun was that it was just a reminder - one day less. One day less left until he wouldn't wake up in a dorm, in a school filled with tons of amazing people, and friends. He was looking forward to going to university and meeting new people, or old friends that had moved on from Hammel before he had, but... he was still allowed to feel a small sense of loss when he thought about it.

Along with the shadows, there was this light fog that rolled between the fronds of the grass and gave the field a desolate feel to it. It moved as Ziggy turned and he smiled at her, nothing ridiculous, just a soft smile of greeting. He didn't know that much about her - the fact that she liked the dark so much was something he wasn't that aware of - but you didn't need to know someone's life story to be their friend. That was one of the reasons Gryphon would never be cruel or hurtful towards anyone he knew without a good reason. He wouldn't believe rumour, he wouldn't track down gossip, and he wouldn't attack someone for something that others looked down on them for. He just found it terrible to do so.

The winged boy caught up with her and let out a sigh from the physical work, giving a sideways smirk at her comment, "That seems t'be the case." He replied, agreeing with her. He would ask why she was awake, but it wasn't his business to snoop in her business. His hands fell into his pockets and he looked at her with a friendly smile and a tilt of the head, "You alright?" If there was anything wrong, he would do his best to help as he could. Personally, for him, even with his problems, he would prefer not to consider them, just talking about whatever else was good for him.

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

Ziggy watched the older boy walk towards her, she felt something flutter in her stomach when she seen his wings. She didn't know why but every time she sees them she feels a mixture of emotions, unease, anxiousness, happiness all roll into one. The feeling of contentment washed over her when he stopped before her. She felt as though she was safe with him that nothing could hurt her. She made a mental note to make more of an effort to talk to him and get to know him, she liked the safe feeling. She couldnt help smirk at his words, there weren't very many people in this weird world that liked to be up and about be for the sun. She started walking again, she took on a much slower pace this time.

Gryph then asked her if she was okay. She didn't know how to answer, it wasn't very often that someone cared enough to ask. She bit the inside of her mouth as she though about how to answer. She decided to be honest with him, all good friendships should start with honesty. "Yeah, no, not really" she said looking at the ground as she spoke. "It is hard to explain without sounding like I'm so hard done by" she said frowning again as she replayed herself explaining to him wht she hated being alive at the moment. It seemed like she was just being a sook. It really wasn't her fault she was this way, years of bullying and abuse have taken its toll on her mind.

"But hey doesn't matter" she said pushing her hair out of her eyes with her creepy fingers. She usually didn't show her abnormal hands to anyone, but in all honesty she didn't even realise she was freely displaying them in front of Gryph. "How's things with you?" She said smiling up at him. The sun was now poking its annoying head above the tree tops that surrounded the training field.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryphon walked with Ziggy as she began to step forward again, his wings relaxing a little more behind him. They were a bit... freakish to some people. A guy with eagle wings? That had to be some kind of genetic malfunction - not just a meta, a mutant. He had heard a comment like that in passing before, when he was out in town and decided that he wanted to have his wings out... he was a bit more careful about doing so, now. It sucked, but he preferred it over comments behind his back. But he loved his wings, in any case, and that was what mattered. Although, they had caused him his fair share of trouble, too - he was pretty sure he could see the tree from here, the one which Melanie had crashed into and cut her arm open on. Yes, it was weeks ago, but he still felt bad about it. He felt like she had been his responsibility to look after, and she ended up getting hurt. Ugh.

He tilted his head at frowned at her answer. He was glad, in a way, that she wasn't covering it up. A few people he knew (including himself) did that whenever there was something wrong, to avoid burdening anyone else - but a problem shared was a problem halved, right? He just needed to drill that into his own head. "Well, I won't force you t'talk if you don't wanna, but if you want t'talk about anything, my ears are always open." He offered, with a weak smile. He didn't like hearing that people were upset, or feeling low, but there were ways of fixing it, and he didn't want to butt himself into her issues of he didn't belong there.

The avian boy nodded as she brushed whatever was on her mind aside. He glanced at her and jolted slightly at the sight of her fingers - was that a trick of the light? They seemed... pretty thin. He didn't say anything. "Things are... interestin'." He said, tilting his head a little and sighing, "I'm gonna be leavin' soon, and... I'm not sure I'm ready, really." He admitted, looking down at her. He didn't ever want to leave Hammel, but that was something that was impossible to do. He looked up at the sky, breathing in the cool air. He wasn't sure what Ziggy thought of Hammel, but she would probably miss it when she was leaving, too.

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

Ziggy was relieved at the fact that the boy with wings wasn't one for nagging. He wasn't going to push her into talking about her bullshit life. She wasn't much of a talker as it was let alone one to have heart to heart conversations. She couldn't help but smile briefly knowing that if she was in the mood to have a cry about her hard done by life he would be the one to come to. Gryph seemed to be the only one these days that didn't silently judge her. "Good thing really, it isn't an interesting story" she said cracking small joke herself. Her issues were stupid to say the least,  she really needed to just get over herself really. She wasn't the only one that was different, Gryph had wings and she didn't hear him complaining. She sighed to herself knowing that she could tell herself over and over again that she needed to get over her bullshit and come to like her ability, it wasn't going to happen. She is damaged from her childhood.

Ziggy noticed his surprised jolt reaction to seeing her freakish hands, what was she thinking? You don't just go waving something so hideous around the place like they  were a bunch of roses. She stuffed her hands back into her jacket pockets and swallowed the retched lump in her throat. She didn't want to freak him out, any more? To her surprise though on quick obversation he didn't seem at all fussed about her hands. This made her feel a little less sick to the stomach. Ziggy frowned at him as he responded to her question. He was leaving soon, he was graduating. Her heart ached. "Well that is crap" she said disapointedly. She didn't mean to sound so upset but she felt as though shehad finally made a friend and he was going to leave in a short time from now.

"You know what you could do?" She said in a jokingly tone but secretly being serious. "You could do really bad in your exams and then you will have to stay for another year" she said smiling, her voice excited. A soft glow was now emitting from her face and any other parts of her body that were exposed.  She was still learning to control her flash light skin. Different emotions, different brightness. Right now it was a bareable soft glow.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryphon smiled weakly - a story didn't have to be interesting to have meaning, he knew that well enough. However, like he'd said, he wouldn't force her to speak more than she wanted. His curiosity was intrigued, but he wouldn't want to make her feel uncomfortable - and any issue she came to him about, big or small, he would never find pointless, or stupid. If it was worth talking to someone about, then it had meaning.

Also, Gryph would never complain about his wings, unless they caused himself or someone else harm. They could be difficult to work around at times, and awkward to those who didn't expect them, but he could never hate his ability.

He nodded slowly at her agreement that it was indeed crap. His hands went into his pockets and he thought about what was going to happen. He really wasn't ready, he was telling the honest truth when he said that. The avian boy perked at the question, and then a smile stretched across his face, a few laughs escaping him. He also noticed the light glow that began to emanate from Ziggy, which made him smile, as well. "You're not the only one that doesn't want me t'leave yet." He told her, "My boyfriend suggested that I flew in through his window and stayed with him." He crossed his arms stiffly, a glowing look of amusement on his face, but a small dullness in his eyes, "It's a shame, but it was gonna happen at some point, I guess."

He sighed, "It's not all bad though, I'll still be in Pilot Ridge." He informed her. He looked at her and frowned a little, "Just not in Hammel." It was kinda nice that people seemed to care so much about the fact that he had to leave, but at the same time, it just made him want all the more to do something so he could stay, but there was nothing left to do.

Gryph remembered about the weight that hung on his shoulder and tapped it, before facing Ziggy, "In fact, I was plannin' on takin' pictures with people, so I could remember them." The light was rubbish at the moment, but they could wait, or something, "Can I take your picture some point soon?" Just so the idea hung there. He didn't want to forget, but with his memory, the likelihood of that was pretty low.

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

Ziggy wasn’t surprised that she wasn’t the only person upset about the fact Gryph was leaving at the end of the year. She was saddened, she didn’t want to be here alone. She felt safe knowing she had one person that wasn’t repulsed by her. It was enviable though he had to graduate eventually, She herself would have to graduate and the very though made her want to cry. She didn’t know how she would go out in the wide world all alone. Ziggy couldn’t help but smile when he spoke of his boyfriend and his suggestion for Gryph to stay. “You could do that” she said thinking whether or not that was acceptable at Hammel. The sun was getting higher and brighter and it felt a lot warmer on the field now that the sun was shining higher.


Ziggy grinned, he wasn’t going far, Pilot Ridge was only around the corner. She could visit him whenever she wanted. She didn’t want to lose any kind of friendship with him, whether they become close or merely stay how they are. “I can still visit you then” she blurted out without even thinking about it. Hopefully he didn’t think her to be pushy or anything. She was surprised at herself, she hadn’t spoken so much in such a short amount of time and in the same conversation. Gryph brought the best out in her she actually liked how relaxed he made her feel. It was a nice change to feeling clammed up all the time. Being tense all the time sucked, it wasn’t pleasant at all.


A lump formed instantly in her throat when she heard the words take your picture. God she never was one for photos but really why not. It wasn’t like the whole school was going to see it. It was just for his personal use, so he can remember her. “Yeah okay” she said with a mixture of excitement and nervousness in her voice. She reached up without realising it and brushed the hair out of her face and straighten it. It must be a thing all girls did without realising it at the mention of getting their picture taken, gotta make sure their hair and makeup it in order. “Do you think I am scary looking?” she asked, looking up at him.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryph laughed, "Believe me, if I could, I would, but I don't think it would go down well with the Hammel staff." Just having some ex-Hammel student fly in through someone's window on a regular basis - he had a feeling that that was breaching some kind of rule somewhere. It wasn't a possibility, he knew that much. And whilst the mystery of the future and what might happen was causing the boy slight anxiety, it was just the idea of change that hit him the most, and he wasn't usually that affected by change; at least, not to his knowledge. It usually excited him more than anything, and now it just made him feel dull. Bleh.

Gryphon was determined to try his best not to forget anyone, or stop talking to anyone from Hammel. There would be difficulties involved, but he wanted to try at least to keep in contact with the majority. He smiled at her suggestion, "'Course you can." He wouldn't ever turn away a friend.

The winged boy nodded, "Awesome." He noticed her preening but didn't say anything. At the question, he gave her a very much confused look, "Why would you be scary lookin'?" The idea bemused him quite a bit. "You're beautiful." He said honestly, smiling at her to show his authenticity. He looked down at his bag and fiddled with the zips and such, getting out his camera and attaching a lens. He thought that everyone was beautiful, but they didn't really realize it. That might've sounded weak or cheesy, but it was what he believed. He hung the camera around his neck and looked at the sky, "It's gettin' brighter." He commented. Seemed like it would be a nice day.

[Ziggy Ida Mistral]

Ziggy felt disappointed at the fact he couldn't sneak into the school once he had graduated, it would have been pretty awesome. She thought for a moment about his boyfriend maybe she should meet him one day and get to know him as well. If he was as lovely as Gryph was then she might be able to make another friend and have someone to talk to when he left and that way she would be able to stay close to Gryphon through his boyfriend. She frowned for a second thinking that she shouldn't just be friends with someone for the only reason of staying close to someone else. But you never know his boyfriend might need a new friend once Gryph leaves. She shook the thought from her mind. 

Zig smiled broadly when he told that she could visit him Pilots Rigde. She had only been there once and she didn't feel like she liked it very much but if Gryph was there then she could come to like it. All the talk about leaving and taking pictures was extremely different converation then she is used to. Well come to think about it it was the only converation she has had in a long time. Ziggy blushed a violent shade of red when he told her that she was beautiful, she was truely touched, she had never been told she was beautiful before. "Everyone else seems to think I'm scary" she said remembering the neighbourhood kids andheer father. "Thank you" she said finding herself unable to wipe the smile from her face. This morning when she woke up she didn't expect to be feeling so happy. 

She watched his as he pulled his camera out of his bag and attaching its lense. It was a beautiful camera she thought to herself as she examined it around his neck. His words about the sun getting brighter made her look around, the mist that covered the field was gone and it was starting to warm up. "Perfect day to take some photos" she said grinning to herself she was very proud of herself she didn't think she was capable of holding down a conversation for so long. "Where would you like me" she said smiling and stuffing her hands to her pocket she didn't want her grotesque so called hands in his pictures.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

The idea of Ziggy meeting Gryphon’s boyfriend was… cute. And nice – honestly, he would like Kodi to meet the girl. But, as the assumption was made usually, Gryph’s boyfriend was not like Gryph himself, in most terms. At least, not from first meeting. Since he hadn’t around Ziggy loads and loads, he hadn’t really had a chance to talk about Kodi, but maybe if he had, her thoughts would not be so determined to meet him and become his friend. Don’t get him wrong by any means – Gryphon l-loved the boy, but he was a little rough around the edges, and he didn’t want Ziggy getting upset.



Gryphon didn’t really expect that no one had ever called her beautiful before, because she was indeed very pretty. The idea that she was scary was almost confusing; with how quiet and careful she seemed to be. Maybe it was something that she made up in her head, thinking that other people thought she was scary, when in actual fact; she wasn’t giving them the chance to tell her what they thought. “Well then, everyone else is wrong, okay?” He said, loving the sight of her smiling. People looked a lot more attractive when they were smiling, and her smile was as beautiful as she was. “Ah, you shouldn’t thank me for tellin’ the truth.” It was a cheesy line, but it was what he believed.



His smile grew at her comment, and Gryph noticed when Ziggy hid her hands away, but let her do so. If she was uncomfortable with them, he was fine with it - he didn’t want to force her to do anything to make her upset. “Um…” He gently put his hands on her upper arms and shuffled her a little. “Sorry, it’s easier t’do that than tryin’ t’explain.” He said, grimacing a little. He lifted up his camera up to his eye, “Alright… say cheese!” He said, grinning a little.