An Imperfect Beginning (Oriel)

[Deleted]

Yes, Oriel was overwhelmed and acting like a goof, but Kodah ought to have known what Oriel was like with people he deemed close enough to be called "frieeeeeeend". And of course, Oriel figured the kid was just trying to be cool. Because despite Oriel's ridiculous affections, they never seemed to keep Kodah away, even if Oriel pushed him to the point of getting punched in the gut. "Awww...trust me. I'll feed you, bathe you, clothe you, and make sure you have eeeeeverything you need." If Oriel really wanted to push it, he'd be pinching Kodah's cheeks by now, but even the dick-head knew when enough was enough.

While Oriel was bigger than Kodah(or used to be), Kodah was definitely always the stronger one what with all the fights he'd been in, a fact which was still apparent with Kodah showing off his biceps and scars. This was a battle that Oriel was not going to win, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to try! The other boy pounced up and flexed his goods, pushing up the opposite side of his biceps to make them bigger. Really, the past two years had done quite a number on Oriel's fitness level. Guess that's what happens when all you do is take naps and eat vending machine pastries all day. He wasn't flabby by any means, but definitely lacked the athletic tone that he used to have back when he was running the streets and being a more physical asshole than a mere verbal one.

And now for the serious answer, which Oriel listened to with growing envy, watching the other boy as he played with his knife. "Fire? Seriously!? What the fuck, man!?" That was cool! Why the hell did everyone else get such cool powers except for Oriel? That wasn't fair!! "Maaaan." He whined like a kid. "What is up with everyone else getting the cool powers. I mean, both you and Xavier, the couple of hot-heads you are, it fits, but... Oh! Xavier's another kid from NYC like us. But he got kidnapped to this place a couple of years before you showed up. He's a pyro like you, too." Oriel stopped as he flashed back to when Xavier manifested....and the horror it had been. "You're ok, though, right? I mean, you look alright." Oriel wanted to ask more but.... "Fire...that's pretty intense." He knew from experience. Well, someone else's experience.

"Take of? Noooo! You can't leave!" Now Oriel was acting stupid again. "If you leave, then who am I gonna pick on and bum shit off of?"

[Kodah Pierce]

Kodah remained silent as Oriel marveled over his power. A serious expression crossed over his face and for a few moments he was drawn into a flashback. He could remember the sweat pouring down his face as his body transformed beneath him. He still wasn't sure what had changed inside that allowed him to breath fire, all he knew was that the bodily changes were painful. When he first began transforming they had guessed he was overdosing on a drug of some sort and Kodah wished they had been right. If he had been OD-ing the worst that could have happened (other than death) was being dragged to the hospital and being sent to Juvie for a few months; but now that he was a meta, everything had to change.

When Dr. Campbell had come to pick him up he was told that Jacob would be alright, but Kodah remembered the severity of the burns. Jacob would have those scars on his face forever and Kodah would always blame himself for it. The two people he cared for most in the world would probably never talk to him again and it killed Kodah inside. How could Oriel think that it was cool? It was like he was sitting on a time bomb, he never knew when he was going to explode. He had always been at risk before, but now he had a lot more firepower behind him.

Oriel's words passed by Kodah absentmindedly as he was still trapped in his memories. In his daze he stared idly at the wall, his knife in hand. He could see the concern on Oriel's face when he asked if he was alright and suddenly Kodah felt an overwhelming urge to break something, anything. Unfortunately (or luckily) there were only a few things in his new dorm. Suddenly he snapped back to reality, Oriel's last few words echoing through his mind.

"Someone who actually has shit to bum off of," he replied half joking and half serious.

[Deleted]

Oriel, being an absolute moron, didn't seem to notice how Kodah wasn't listening. Oriel wasn't taking Kodah's power lightly, despite his stupid, child-like rantings. Again, he knew first-hand(or maybe second-hand, considering it was Xavier's power) how dangerous a fire-related power could be. As it was, he was wary of the other infamous pyro on campus, Sam Rixon, but that was for a number of other reasons that we'll not get into today.

It was when Oriel finally asked the sincere question of Kodah's wellbeing, if he was alright, that Oriel noticed that he was spacing out. "Hey, fuck-face," he said, waving his hand in front of Kodah's face like he was a blind man. "You listening?" Simple answer, no. Oriel scowled a slight. He hated being ignored, but wasn't going to push the matter. At least, not this time.

Oriel followed along with Kodah's retort, laughing like a kid but calming it down gradually. "I'm sure you'll have something to mooch from sooner or later. You always do." It would've been hard for Oriel to not notice that this kid was a klepto, and while it wasn't a practice that Oriel indulged in much(unless he deemed it necessary), he wasn't expecting that Kodah had shaken that habit. Though, Oriel had no qualms about bumming the spoils of the other kids. In this case, Kodah.

With a shake of the head, and the atmosphere getting a little heavy again, Oriel headed back to the window, leaning his forearms against the sil and looking out at the courtyard below. "Shit..." His expression was...mixed. Like he was trying to be light-hearted, but he was just trying too hard. There was just so much he wanted to say, so much he wanted to hear. Oriel wanted it to be like old times again, and while it was almost there, there was just...something keeping it away. Maybe it was the reason Kodah seemed so stressed. Maybe it was Oriel, and how much he'd changed since they last saw each other. Whatever it was, it was bugging. "Is this weird?" he asked. "I mean, us meeting again. Is it weird? Oh, god, it's too fucking weird, isn't it?" He chuckled, trying to make the serious question lighter.

[Kodah Pierce]

"Haha, maybe a pack of cigarettes and a bottle of booze," he joked. Kodah still felt partially trapped in his memories. He shook his head and shoved his knife into his pocket. He ran his fingers through his tangled hair and joined Oriel at the window. He leaned against the wall and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Calm down, man. You're thinking too much." He looked at his friend's mixed expression, trying not to fall victim to his own emotions. "Weird or not, it happened anyways. Nothing we can do about it now." A question suddenly popped into Kodah's mind. "How come ya stuck around here for so long? Seems like ya would have ditched by now"

Kodah was never really sure about Oriel's home life when they were in New York. It must not have been much of one seeing as he was a run away, just like Kodah. It was hard to imagine his old friend staying cooped up in a boarding school without at least one attempted escape. Kodah should have been viewing his enrollment as a new opportunity, a chance to turn his life around but he didn't think he needed to change. He was doing just fine before his power manifested, if not for that he could have been in New York at that very moment enjoying the company of all his other friends.

At least he wasn't alone; he hated being by himself. Without Oriel there he probably would have been more likely to take off the first chance he got once he realized he didn't belong at Hammel. It didn't matter how long Kodah would stay, he didn't think he could ever get use to how clean everything was. He hadn't met any of the other students or teachers but he didn't have the desire. All he wanted to do at that moment was hide in his room with Oriel and forget about all about the last few days.

[Deleted]

"Exactly! Exactly!" he said quickly, shooting two finger pistols towards Kodah, "I knew I could count on you!" In earnest, Oriel still hadn't had a chance to take a drink lately...and by lately, I mean, since his coming to Hammel. No, before that even. By the time Oriel had come to Hammel, he was already en-route to straightening out, spending less time with the other kids on the streets and more time helping out the old cuban guy, Rudolfo, in his tattoo shop. But he was always a street kid at heart, a trickster, a runner. One who felt more comfortable sleeping in holes, on benches, in corners, and basically wherever he could, than in the soft, clean beds that they had here at Hammel.... Oriel snarked out a smile. "Lemme know when you got something. What's that shit they alway's say? "We'll share a cold one?"" Retarded.

Kodah was right, though. Oriel thought way too much for a kid who was supposed to be street-tough. Way too sensitive too. Back in New York, Oriel had to learn how to not let people get close, because chances were, they'd disappear suddenly and he'd never see them again. He had always wondered how his old group back home were doing, whether they missed him or anything. After all, two years ago, it was him who disappeared out of the blue, without a trace. This time, it was Kodah.... Oriel wondered if Kodah even had a chance to say goodbye before the recruiter picked him up.

Being here, at this school, even for only two years, was enough time for Oriel to learn a few things about how they did their recruiting, how they classified people, how they made sure you couldn't leave, even if you wanted to jump ship. And even if Oriel did, where would he go? Back to New York? Back to the foster system and being pushed around through the foster system at the whims of some stupid social worker? Or just live on the run, constantly trying to dodge the Hammel recruiters who were intent on locking him up in this place like it was some sort of prison. And they, his wardens. Besides, Rudolfo told him to go. And that he would visit....he hadn't though. Oriel felt duped...

"I dunno...fuck knows I wanted to leave. I thought a lot of just hopping in the back of a semi-trailer heading south." He shrugged and lowered his head, watching his own fingers nervously fidget at each other. "I don't know what I would've gone back to, though. I don't got any parents. My sister is off doing who knows what with whatever family that decided to take her and ditch me. The foster system sucks ass." He shook his head free of those ancient memories. Had he ever shared them with Kodah before? Oriel couldn't remember. "You guys were the closest thing I had to a family...you know, like havin' a home. I dunno, guess I was just...tired of not having one." Oriel sighed, his shoulders relaxing with the quick exhalation, then looked over at his old friend with a complicated smile. "I know. It's stupid. Fuck me if you don't like it."

[Kodah Pierce]

"Huh, I always figured ya just went back home or got jailed." he shrugged. Every once in a while one of the kids would disappear, never to be seen or heard from again. It had yet to occur to Kodah that he was now one of those people. Not everyone on the streets were orphans, some had families they would come back to after being away for a year. Kodah had debated returning home once or twice, but he couldn't bring himself to leave. He had changed so much that he would never feel at home in Jersey with his mother and stepfather.

If he were to return to Jersey now he would only run away again. He was sure his old room had been converted to a nursery for the new baby. He had been replaced the moment that he found out his mother was pregnant, there was no place there for him anymore. Despite being in contact with his mother they still hadn't seen each other in three years. He wasn't sure if he wanted to see her again, he looked like a completely different person. She had asked for Kodah to send her pictures when they talked over the phone but he never did.

"Nah, man, it ain't stupid." Kodah said, giving Oriel a small, friendly push. "It was home for a lot of people. We're the ones that know how fucked everything is. School, family, law; the whole system is screwed up. Can't blame anyone for wantin to get away from all that bullshit. We were always the outcasts, I guess now with the meta brand it's just official." Kodah had noticed how Hammel made everyone feel safe and accepted, as if they were truly safe from the mob of people that felt that metas had no place in society. He believed it only to be an illusion, sooner or later everyone would turn on them. "But hey, if I take off I'll bring ya with me and I'll just torch anyone that gets in our way."

[Deleted]

Oriel barked out a laugh. "Like I'd let "them coppers" get me?" With a mischievous grin revealing his pearly whites, Oriel flipped the lip of an imaginary fedora to cover his brow and crossed his arms over one another, posing all slick like a 20s gangsta. "They'll nevah take me alive!" He held the position for a few moments before finally breaking character.

The boy was laughing again, despite the heavy air. It was nice to be with Kodah again, with one of his brothers from the street who knew about the hard realities of life their kind of people had to endure. They were friends back then, closer and more loyal than any real family. And that was a bond that would always be there, even when one of them disappeared without a trace. That possibility was understood amongst them all. Perhaps that was why Oriel yearned for something more permanent?

In all honesty, Oriel had hoped that Rudolfo would adopt him. He was one of the first dudes, one of the first adults that Oriel really found himself growing attached to. He wasn't sure what it was about the old guy, but it was compelling. Like he was an old wizard or something. During his last few months in New York, Oriel spent more time in that little parlor than he did either at the foster home or even on the streets with his family of friends. He'd gotten scolded so many times, for showing up drunk or bringing in a half-naked girl or for smoking in the shop(or at all). "You're only 14! Quit pretending to be an adult! A kid should act like a kid," he would say. Oriel had lashed out him more times than he could count. Then he'd just come back again the next day or next week, and all would be forgiven.

Oriel had thought...that that might be what a home was like. He had nothing but horrible people and places to compare it to but...he liked it, at least.

But Oriel didn't want to disappoint the old man, so he left for Hammel when Rudolfo told him to go, no matter how much Oriel protested.

Oriel leaned on his palm facing the no-longer-a-bean-sprout Kodah and ruffled his hair with a stupid grin. "I expect you to. Don't ya dare leave me hanging, a'right?" He wasn't sure how likely it was that either of them could get out, or even how far they'd get, but Oriel was willing to try if it came to that. He sighed and folded his arms over one another, leaning his head lazily upon them on the rim of the window sil and closed his eyes. "I'm so fucking tired....mind if I crash here a bit?"

[Kodah Pierce]

"Ya, for sure man." Kodah said, shaking his head with a small smile. He could imagine what it would be like, him and Oriel on the road together. It would never be the same as it was before but it'd be better than being stuck in a stuffy school. He wondered how different life would be now that he would be attending classes and living in an actual home. Even if it would be enjoyable, he wouldn't let himself like it. The only reason he had come was because of pure desperation and once he was able to control his fire breath he could leave.

"Feel free to sleep wherever, I don't care." he said. The only spots to sleep were either on the bed or on the floor. It would take a while for him to get use to sleeping on a bed and eating on a regular schedule. In New York you ate when you could but here in Hammel there was kitchens and food available at all times. Kodah didn't know the first thing about cooking; the only thing he could make was a grilled cheese and he usually burnt it. He'd probably just bum off whatever Oriel cooked, he knew how to cook, right? He sat down with his back to the wall and closed his eyes, suddenly feeling very tired himself. Kodah could fall asleep in anywhere and he felt himself dozing on the floor. "But really, man." he began to say, "I'm glad you're here."