And We'll All Float On... {O}

[Henry Ballo]

Henry Ballo, 6’4” and self-proclaimed “floater” was stuck. And not in the conventional sense of, say, being stuck on a math problem, or on an English paper, or even just on how to fix something. No, this was stuck in the more slapstick fashion. Stuck as in…

Stuck in a tree.

The whole story of how he had gotten there was kind of comical, or would have been if he hadn’t been so frustrated by his own stupidity. He had just been looking for a chance to get away, maybe get some time to himself. That was a pretty impossible task when you slept in a dormitory and lived in a school. But Henry had one small advantage to some of the other students. He had more space available. Say, space on the roof and on walls and trees, all of which were pretty easy for someone who could fly to get to. Now Henry wasn’t altogether sure of his powers, so he’d been hesitant about trying it at first, but when the noise finally got to him, he’d given up, had picked a relatively tall tree, and had “drifted” up to sit on a branch. And it had been nice. Oh, it wasn’t exactly comfortable, but he’d had a lot worse. And it was quiet and he was all alone and that made it worthwhile…

Until he realized that he wasn’t sure how to get down. Up was all well and good. Up could be managed relatively well—it was just like pushing off with your feet to jump, only a little higher. Down, however, required a lot of control. And with the branches all around, he wasn’t sure he had enough clear ground to do his usual, careful descent, which wasn’t nearly as easy as it looked. And it was a tall tree, about, oh, twenty feet high? Which meant that his body could cover six of that, he reflected glumly, but there was still fourteen to survive. That wasn’t good. For a moment, he debated calling for help. A power’s trainer might be able to talk him down, or perhaps if he could find a fairly well-trained telekinetic…

But the embarrassment wasn’t worth the action. So instead of doing the smart thing, Henry instead tried to descend, and promptly froze as a branch broke under his foot and boosted himself back up to the one he was sure could keep his weight.

Okay then. He would just wait for someone…promising to come along. Right.

[Jared Park]

“ This sucks.”

The young Asian teen muttered, followed by a good number of inaudible curses. It’s the third time this week that he’s been through the grounds, walking idly while his mood’s all mopey and brooding – a stark contrast to his usual cheery and bubbly self. It’s not like one can blame him though; the boy’s current disappointment is unprecedented, something he thought he wouldn’t experience ever really.

Jared was so looking forward to coming home for the summer break. While the Institute’s been an awesome experience, all throughout the year, he’s been waiting for classes to be over so he can fly home to Vancouver, if only for a while. He wants to see the Canada Day parade. Go to Playland and ride that scary wooden rollercoaster. He wants to finally have the guts to enter the Haunted House. He wants to finally see his family after a year.

But fate suddenly decided to be quite the bitch.

First it was the announcement that Jasper signed up for the co-op program in his university and would be working in a lab in Montreal. Then something about the unrest in the Middle East affecting his father’s vacation breaks. Followed by events happening in Kocher and in Europe in general (which his mom was rather mum about) that made his mom stuck. And finally, there’s the whole thing about Jeraiah getting an internship in Ottawa. So Jared basically has no one to come back to, other than his grandparents. He would’ve gone still (he loves his Grandpappy so much), until he heard they’re out of the house since May due to a cruise. Damn.

Pilot Ridge wasn’t so bad really, and Robbie’s trying his hardest to cheer the boy up, but at the moment, it’s just not working (maybe in a week?). Groaning to himself as he remembered all the good things he could’ve done if he had went home, he threw the rock way up, to the tree, not really noticing the giant stuck on it.

ooc:
WOOOT. Finally invaded your thread. Hope it's alright Saraaaa. <3
- Jam

[Henry Ballo]

Several people had crossed through the courtyard while Henry had been waiting for the tree. The boy thought it was very strange that no one really seemed to notice him, but then, he supposed he wasn’t really standing out. Other than being stuck way up in a tree, he was pretty quiet, and wasn’t cracking anymore branches. Thankfully. If he had been, he would have been a lot more concerned and perhaps would have even made a racket.

But probably not. This whole situation was very embarrassing. If possible, he’d like to keep knowledge of it to a limited group, thank you kindly. But none of the people who had wandered away seemed like people who could be helpful, so Henry hadn’t spoken up. And to be frank, he wouldn’t have spoken up in this case either. He didn’t know the boy who had entered the courtyard, and so definitely didn’t have the desire to ask for help from him, except that the stranger just had to throw a rock right up toward him. He swore to himself and scrambled backwards so it didn’t hit one of his hanging legs, and then bent down to catch it. His eyes narrowed, and he stared down at the figure.

“Excuse me,” he said, speaking a little more loudly so his voice could carry down. “But I think you should watch where you are throwing things.” Then he leaned forward and, very deliberately, dropped the rock. He didn’t plan to hit Jared, so he let it fall just a little closer to the boy. “Now if you do not mind, I would appreciate being left alone. You can go mope elsewhere.”

[Jared Park]

Jared was rather surprised when moments have passed and the stone he threw still hasn’t returned to him (or at least close to him; he wasn’t much of a good catcher anyway). Even more so when he heard quite the booming voice suddenly erupt from nowhere, almost making him jump from where he was already. He tried to look around and found very few faces (it was summer after all), but none of them were looking at him. (He ruled out telepaths ‘cause he was rather positive that it came from his ears, not from his head). He leaned down a bit, looking up the tree in front of him, but then had to cover his forehead with his hands due to the sudden glare.

Lucky timing really, considering the pebble fell down right at his palm. (A minor ache, considering what could’ve happened if it had hit him square on the face). “Oww,” he cried, immediately dropping the stone and shaking his hand in an effort to ease the pain. “I didn’t know God could be so wrathful.” Booming voice coming out of nowhere is surely divine after all, or at least that’s what popular media tells him. It also didn’t help that Voice knows he was sulking. (Because he thinks it’s not very evident in his face, no matter how transparent he is when it comes to these things).

“Be left alone?” he asked, crinkling his nose, “That’s not a very godly thing to do, isn’t it?” So is arguing with one, but apparently the boy doesn’t care. “I know I haven’t done my daily devotions, much less pray in a while (and I may or may not have skipped a few church services already), but that doesn’t mean you’d disown me already, right?” Jasper would kill him (he’s a prude after all) but surely not Him? Not to be deterred, he sat down near the tree, snuggling around its roots as he picked the stone up again. “I’m not going anywhere. Not until you solve my problems. You are almighty after all right?”

Wrong guy Jared, wrong guy.

[/blockquote][/justify]

[Henry Ballo]

Henry sighed as the rock hit the boy and winced a little bit. He hadn’t MEANT to hit him, but apparently he hadn’t aimed right. Hm. Then again, throwing a rock down while being perched on a tree wasn’t the same as throwing a ball into a net or to a team member. He almost apologized, or was seriously considering it (whether or not he would actually do it depended on Jared either whining or being injured), when Jared spoke. And then Henry was more preoccupied by trying to figure out how his English skills had failed him.

“Didn’t know God could be so wrathful.” It seemed fairly straightforward, and Henry had seven years of speaking English that backed up his original mental translation, even if what the boy said didn’t make sense. And he kept bringing it up. Eventually, Henry’s doubt of his own English faded, and realization dawned. This boy thought he was God. His first reaction was to laugh himself right out of the tree. But that would have been bad—the twenty feet up and possibly several-broken-bones-later kind of bad. So instead he stifled the laughter and thought about what he could do.

Instinct and some degree of pity for the clearly confused man indicated that he should set him straight. Curiosity and a desire for revenge for the thrown rock said go for it.

Henry would later claim it was just the curiosity.

“Who are you to claim that God does or does not want to be left alone?” he demanded instead. Imperious tones seemed to have worked, so he kept to them, allowing his voice to boom and really hoping that no one walked in on this. He wasn’t sure who would be thought of as stranger—Jared for honestly thinking he was talking to God, or Henry for playing along. “And if you have not showed proper devotion, then why should I not disown you?”

Henry had decided to go for the Old Testament style God. Why not? It was much more fun anyways (another fact he wouldn’t ever admit—that he did actually have fun).

“But very well. What problems would you have the ‘almighty’ solve?”

Dismiss them, he thought, and send the boy on his way. And THEN find his way down. Or maybe have the almighty command the boy to fetch a trainer to this spot…actually, he rather liked that idea.

((Henry may or may not be having too much fun with this.^^*))

[Jared Park]

“Well, that’s what Sunday School told me. That You love being prayed and talked to and all that. Even if you already know what we’re going to say. Or are you saying that what Mrs. Kim told us in Sunday School is wrong?” If Jared was any more serious about his take on religion and all that, he’d say that what Henry is doing is a huge test to his faith. Then again, if he really was serious about life, he wouldn’t think of flying rocks and a voice from atop as God. Trully his naiveté knows no bounds. “Because it’s not in your nature. Or something. I forgot,” he said, his voice just a tad bit defiant. Then he remembered it was ‘God’ he’s talking to again and promptly retracted his statement, his arms protectively curling around his head. “IMSORRYIDIDNTMEANTOFORGETPLEASEDONTSTRIKEMEDOWN”

Time to find that devotional guide Jasper packed in his bag and brush through the teachings and all that. If he’s learned anything from the short time he’s been talking to Henry, it’s that he’s completely clueless about something he should known inside out. Seems Henry’s heaven sent after all.

“Well,” said the Asian boy, juggling the rock that started all his mishaps in his right hand, “My vacation’s ruined. I can’t go back to Canada. Just because my whole family’s having their life elsewhere.” He puffed his cheeks out, partly in annoyance to the whole situation he’s found himself in, partly to stop the tears from flowing. He’s quite the soft kid and he wouldn’t deny that; he just doesn’t want to tear up in public while talking to a tree (he thinks no one can hear Henry’sGod’s voice other than him right now). “I want to go home all year. Hammel’s nice, but I miss them. But then they had to have stuff to do and make me stuck in here. It’s unfair.”

His rant continued onto how they only told him of the situation just a week or so ago. And how Robbie left to join that LaRousse kid on a cruise and he’s far too shy to join since he doesn’t know him anyway.

“In short. I need to go home. And I need friends. And I need to go home. Get me home?” He tried to look up, but once more the glare got in his eyes.

Good luck trying to appease the kid Henry.

[Henry Ballo]

Henry wouldn’t really know what they taught in Sunday school. He’d never been. The only lessons he’d received on the topic of religion was from his stepmother—whom he hadn’t listened to anyways—and from his mother, who had generically said, “Do what your told, or God will get you.” So it was no wonder he had an older-fashioned view on religion and the all-knowing. Certainly it was different than this boy’s, who seemed to view God as being warm and fuzzy.

Which was probably true. How did Henry knew? He was just having far too much fun with this as it was.

“Are you accusing me of being wrong?” he demanded instead. “Which would seem more logical…” Uh oh. He didn’t know his name. “…boy?” but when Jared cowered, he decided that he’d probably gone too far. He didn’t want to give him a complex or make him afraid of lightning bolts. In all honesty, this was probably going a little too far, so he softened his next words and made them a little less…booming and imperious and “almighty.” “But no. Your Mrs. Kim was not wrong. And I am not going to strike you down.”

Like he could anyways. He could threaten to hit him with a tree branch. Or maybe just fall on him…no. That’d be counterproductive.

He listened to the boy’s words with a slightly raised brow, then sighed. He could kind of understand where Jared was coming from. Mind, Henry never went back for vacations. His father never invited, and he never asked. So pity was tempered with a healthy dose of irritation. But he reined it back and forced himself to relax.

“I cannot get you back home,” he said. “But at least you have a family who would like to—” He stopped himself. That was getting close to personal. “Is there nothing good about being at Hammel?” he asked after a moment, in exasperation. “You honestly have no other friends to enjoy your break with? Surely there must be someone. And are you unable to talk to your family, perhaps make other plans for a later date?”

[Jared Park]

“No! No! No!” Jared shook his head violently and even waved his arms out in front of him, just so ‘God’ knows he’s not undermining him or anything. ‘He’ is always right after all. “I mean, I don’t know, maybe it’s just lost in translation or something? Since it’s from Hebrew, then to Latin, then to Greek, then to English, then to Korean, then back to English.” Forgive the kid, he just doesn’t know what he’s saying now. His mind’s all in the whole being-struck-down-because-I-said-something-wrong phase that he would probably tend to blurt out a few more stuff until such a fear is satiated. With his mind going into all sorts of directions now, ask him about what he ate for lunch and he might tell you about the time he threw up while camping due to a bad yogurt he ate.

A loud sigh escaped the Asian boy when he heard Henry’s words. “Thank you Lord,” he grinned, clutching his chest. He made a mental note not to say anything stupid now. And no, Henry’s voice still sounded booming to him. A little less imposing as before, but imposing nonetheless.

“WHAT?! WHY?!”

And again, Jared is back to the whole questioning thing. Which is lucky for Henry, as the boy didn’t hear the whole snippet of his life part. “Hammel’s fun. Pilot Ridge is awesome. But I miss Vancouver.” He wants to see remnants of the riot after all. Even if it’s almost a month since it’s happened. “Well, there’s Jill, since she lives in Pilot Ridge. Tom and Francis came home for the vacation. Just like Randy and Debbie.” And so Jared began recounting the people he knew and where they went for the summer. It took some time (three rounds of going through his ten fingers, that is) but finally reached the end. “Eric’s in Kocher and Levi’s with Robbie’s phaser friend (Robbie said they’re getting it on, if you know what I mean).” Nothing like some good ol’ idle gossip, right? “And Robbie’s with the snotty rich Asian I told you about.”

“So you think I should ask maybe Aaron to accompany me to the movies or something?” A smile slowly broke through the boy’s face. Seems talking to ‘God’ is indeed very enlightening. “Aww. Thanks so much. You’re awesome.” And he promptly gave the tree a hug.

It’s not like he could hug Henry, right?

[Henry Ballo]

“Bibles are translated from Hebrew or Latin directly,” Henry said, frowning slightly. “The middle steps you are stating are pointless.” Right? Well, he couldn’t exactly say “I think” when he was attempting to play God. But there definitely wasn’t a process where it got translated from English into Korean and back to English again. That would just be stupid, and more of the message would be lost in the process. But what did he know? He didn’t know that much about Bible-making. He just thought that translating it from the original languages would be the best idea. And putting it into Greek in the middle was just pointless.

He flinched back at the boy’s yelling, and snapping was an instant reaction. “You dare to question God? Again? Have you no faith in the Almighty?”

And Henry was just getting a little carried away. Sorry, Jared. Henry doesn’t appreciate being yelled at.

And listening to Jared, he was having issues feeling sorry for the boy. He still had a lot of friends, and even if they weren’t all in Pilot Ridge, at least he HAD them. Henry could count on one hand the people he was close to. Admittedly, that had been done on purpose, but all the same…

He stared down at the boy as he hugged the tree, then sighed. Right, here he went. Problem solved, time for phase two…

“What else would you expect?” he asked, a little wryly, and hoping the real God wouldn’t strike him down where he sat. “Now, Jared, I need you to find a latter and set it against the tree. Can you do that?” And hopefully the other boy wasn’t going to start asking questions again, and just fetch the damned ladder so Henry could get out of this tree.

[Jared Park]

“Oh” was all the boy could say. It’s not like he can argue with Henry ‘God’ anyway. What he said about all the language translations were, much like Henry, based on his sketchy knowledge on languages that may or may not have been involved with the bible. Hebrew because he has this idea that Jews and Hebrew are related. Latin since it’s an old language and the Bible’s old. Greek because he’s heard somewhere that Greek is a direct descendant of Latin or something. (This coming from the guy who thinks ‘Jewish’ is an ethnicity. Just a fair warning).

In any case, he doesn’t think he’s smart enough to argue with ‘God’ about anything anyway, so he’d leave it at that.

“What? No no no no no!” exclaimed the boy, quickly retracting his statement. While he was questioning ‘God’ earlier, a change of heart happened to him with the epiphany he has. He’s all good and following now. No more doubts. “Why would I question You?”

Jared embraced the tree for a while, even snuggling for a bit before he heard Henry’s voice once more. “A ladder? Why?” Then he remembered it’s best not to question the ‘Almighty’ and smiled back up. “Never mind that. I’ll try to be quick.” And with that he rushed off to find the closest ladder he could find.

It took him a while, but after going round and round the school grounds for a bit, he stumbled upon an unlocked janitor’s closet and saw a nifty step ladder. Thinking it’d be enough, he promptly took it and dashed back to the tree, not really caring if he needed to ask permission for it before borrowing it or not. (Sorry Dylan). With a big grin he presented the ladder to the tree and asked, “Would this be enough?”

And yes, the glare hid Henry from his eyes once more. It’s getting old really.

[Henry Ballo]

Well, at least they were getting there. Jared wasn’t questioning him anymore, although he’d freely admit that not being questioned and being treated like a deity was more of a discomfort than a pleasure. So there were some pluses. For example, Jared had actually listened to what he had to say instead of dismissing it out of hand, and now seemed happier for it. No harm in that, right? But there was also the problem of actually getting help when you were the “Almighty” and therefore, by definition, never needed it. And that was very annoying indeed.

But still. After Jared had his hugging the tree moment (which was awkward even for Henry just because of how long it went on), he finally listened to Henry’s request to find a ladder and ran off. Henry sighed softly in relief and leaned back against the bark and waited.

And waited. He was sure it wasn’t actually THAT long of a gap between when Jared left and when he returned, but it certainly felt like ages for the man stuck in the tree. And, when the boy returned with the stepladder, he stared down at it and did some mental calculations.

If he actually had any confidence in his ability to get down, he would have given up on Jared and said yes, thank you very much, go away now, and then he would have just tried it himself. But he didn’t, and knew that tiny ladder wasn’t going to do him a scrap of good if he DID end up falling. That was a problem. He could have just sent him away, but he still needed the help, and Jared was the most convenient form of it at this moment. So he sighed, did a mental recalculation of what he should tell Jared based on evidence of his intelligence (or lack there of) and spoke again.

“No,” he said. His voice was flat, and he was just barely managing to conceal his lack of patience with the whole situation. “That will not be enough. I need a very tall ladder—the largest you can find and carry…without injuring yourself.” He added that because he felt this was an honest concern with Jared. “Are we clear? And please, try to be quick about it.” It was going to get dark soon, and Henry would like to be down out of the tree while he could still see.

[Jared Park]

“What? This isn’t enough?” Jared tried his best to keep his voice down and hide the annoyance in his tone; this was ‘God’ he’s talking to after all. “You could’ve been more specific earlier you know.” If Henry could see his face right now, he’d probably see a Korean boy glaring menacingly at the treehim. Which, considering how relatively small his eyes are, doesn’t seem much of a difference really. (Nope, no racism laden in there whatsoever).

With one final huff, he took his arms off his hips and folded the said step ladder, tucking it under his armpit. “So bigger than this one eh? You mean like the ones the maintenance staff use to reach the roofs whenever we get a ball stuck or something?” With coordination as poor as his, it’s no wonder that he’s asked for the janitors’ help regarding said ball accidents a dozen times over (he can hit the ball now, but control of its trajectory is something he has yet to perfect). Unfortunately for him such accidents usually happen whenever Mr. Cohen isn’t around, so he has to ask that grumpy Mr. Black for help.

He could honestly say that getting the ball back is so not worth getting snarked at by the guy.

With the step ladder returned (in the nick of time really; Mr. Black just entered the said closet a few minutes after Jared left), the boy set his sights on the shed just behind the main building he saw a while back. It looked very much like a garage (quite as big as one really) so he figured all the big equipment can be found there.

Lucky him his hunch was right. The door unlocked, Jared promptly let himself in, and after maneuvering through a number of lawnmowers, broken bikes and discarded tools, he finally saw one that he thinks will do.

Well, he hopes it will. Since the ladder’s a pain just to get out of the shed, much less carry across school grounds without attracting unwanted attention.

“Here. Would this do?” He tried not to sound too irritated as he put the ladder down on the grass. He paused for a bit, bending over and holding his knees as he tried to catch his breath. “Please tell me I did a good job.”

Renouncing his faith isn’t such a bad idea, especially if ‘God’ would make him grab another one.

[Henry Ballo]

It was difficult to tell from the position he was in, but Henry was relatively sure the other boy was glaring at the tree. Or, really, at “God”—because apparently he’d decided God was inside the tree. Or was the tree. This whole thing was giving him a theological headache, and he decided that he was going to actually go and talk to some priest or pastor or someone who knew what they were talking about after this. If this was going to happen again, he would like to be adequately prepared.

And he’d like to make sure that he wasn’t going to be struck down with a lightning bolt. That was still a bit of a concern.

“That is correct,” he said, relieved that Jared had seemed to grasp the concept of a “big” ladder this time. And that one should be able to reach. After all, he could see the roof from where he was, so that was reasonable, right? “Go and fetch it.” He resisted the urge to add a rather pathetic “please.” As far as he knew, that wasn’t a word God knew, and no matter how much he hurt from being perched in the damned tree and as much as he wanted some kind of food to fill his groaning stomach, he was not going to blow his cover just because he was tired of sitting on branches.

And now he was thinking like a spy. Ah, Henry, we need to work on your pride issues.

He waited, a mixture of anxiety and impatience swirling around in his gut, for Jared to return. And when he did with a large ladder, he thought he could have almost kissed the other boy.

Well…maybe it wouldn’t have gone THAT far.

“That will do quite nicely,” he said, still managing a calm voice. “You did a good job.” If that was all Jared wanted, then he was more than happy to offer the praise. Especially if it meant the boy wasn’t going to rant anymore. “Now set it up at the base of this tree, and you can leave to go…invite your friend to that movie.” That was what he wanted to do, right? Oh well. He didn’t care anymore. He just wanted down.

[Jared Park]

Jared’s pained and tired face was quickly replaced by a relieved and smug grin when he heard ‘God’s’ affirmation to his work. At least he didn’t have to go and grab a new one. Heaven knows his thin and lanky frame can’t carry anything much heavier than that.

“There. All done,” grinned the Asian teen as he placed the ladder against the tree, clapping to get the dust off his hands (how long since that ladder’s been taken out of that shed, or at least cleaned, for that matter?) then promptly sitting down on the grass in front of the tree in a lotus position. “Don’t be silly,” the boy laughed, neck craned slightly as he looked at the ladder, “I’m not an avid fan of Harry. I’ll invite him on Tuesday, when the tickets are sold at half price.” Or was it Wednesday? He forgot. Anyway, money saved on their tickets can go to popcorn and drinks, as well as some candy, so that’s always a plus. Besides, he’d feel out of place amidst those diehard fans and their awesome costumes.

The Canadian shook his head in amusement when ‘God’ beckoned him to leave. “Don’t be silly. I’ll be here to wait ‘till you’re finished with the ladder to return it. Whatever it is you’re going to do with it anyway.” He wasn’t going to ask why ‘God’ wants a ladder placed on the tree, but he is sure that if ‘God’ needed someone to take the ladder from the shed, he’d need another to but it back. And in any case, the ladder’s his responsibility since he’s the one who ‘borrowed’ it.

Oh screw the not asking part. His curiosity’s killing him. “Whatcha’ going to do with it anyway?” asked the boy with the wide smile, playfully rocking on his butt as he held his feet with both hands.

Sorry Henry. He just wouldn’t budge.

ooc:
Sara! I was about to ask if you'd like for Jared to go and such, but I can't catch you so I just went with this. Feel free to ask me to rewrite it if needed.^^.
- Jam

[Henry Ballo]

Henry wasn’t sure whether to be amused, irritated or just exasperated by how pleased the teen was by the fact that just by saying “well done,” the boy was already grinning. But at least he’d put the ladder up against the tree. Now if he would only leave…but instead he was chattering away, and he was forced to stop himself from edging onto the lower branch in an attempt to make it to the ladder. The boy’s lips curved into a frown, and he resisted the urge to growl at him to just go away. That was not a Godly like thing to do.

Actually, maybe it was. Old Testament Godly that was. That made sense, because that was what he’d been pretending to be for the entire time. But he seemed to have fixed Jared’s sulk and he had no desire to bring it back so early after it had left. Instead, he tried to think of something to say that would, politely, get rid of him. He just had one problem. He couldn’t think of anything polite at all. Everything that came to him was the equivalent of “bugger off” and so not nice at all.

“You are questioning God again,” he said, a little irritably. “What does it matter what I plan to do with the ladder? Thank you for bringing it, and that should be all that matters to you.”

But then, he was sure that wouldn’t satisfy him, and he sighed, trying to think of something else, something that he might actually listen to, and gave up. Fine. He wasn’t going to listen, so he might as well try not to think about it too much.

“The ladder is to…provide assistance. If you want to stay to find more, you must agree to certain conditions. Ah.” He hesitated. “You must…turn around and count very loudly to fifty. And close your eyes. If you do not do this and listen to your God, then you must go. Am I clear?”

Maybe that would work.