Abyssus Porta *name subject to change? XD*, A Taph, Shadow and Mike production.

[Shadow Aurion]

Okay... um... ^_^'' I'm just going to go ahead and get this out of the way. This is a closed roleplay between me, Taphophiliac and GothicRedneck. It's actually going to be a re-play of the first RP the three of us ever did together on Neopets. We never finished it, and were just looking back on that RP... and we decided we wanted to do it again, but from the beginning. So... no joiners, unfortunately. You're welcome to lurk, though!

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Here in this frozen, verdant ocean… there was nothing. It was where one could almost hear the silence ring through their ears. Only the beating of a heart or inhale of precious air would break the dead sound, but it wasn’t to be. No sign of life did show, and if there were any… they were well reclused, such would anything be on a dead winter day like this. Even the wind, the ever omnipresent movement, seemed to have hidden itself away from the bitterness hanging so heavy and dark in the atmosphere. The Appalachians after a heavy snowfall… a portrait of peace and beauty, a place where few ventured once the spruce and fir turned white under the winter reign. It was… perfect.

None would wander their way up the mountainside in this weather; it would have been madness. It had been an unusually cold winter for the region, with temperatures reaching 3 degrees Fahrenheit at the nadir, and peaking no higher than 28. Even in the summers, few made their way out in this direction. Only the lost traveled this path. The lost… or perhaps… the informed. With the right information, you could find all sorts of strange, wonderful things… and the Appalachians were no different from anywhere else in the world. They too, held a wealth of secrets and treasures unlike any other.

One such treasure was nestled in the side of one of the mountains which had lost its name to the annals of time, unlike many of its sibling hills. At the end of winding, grueling “trail”, there rose a two story “building”, hewn into the granite face of the earth itself. The stone had been perfectly carven out, leaving a massive chamber inside of the solid wall. It was then that work began… building a structure inside the cavern. The stone acted as the ceiling on the top floor for this building, also proving, at times, to be walling. There was no reason to incorporate manmade wall in places that the earth had already provided for them.

The upper level of this enigmatic structure had floors of polished wood, the lower using the stone that was already there. Wooden staircasing snaked its way up to the second level, a total of fifty two rooms hiding in the hallways. What need was there for so much living space? What need was there for such a place at all? Why such secrecy? It was all because people tended to fear what they didn’t understand, even if it was nothing but a benevolent spirit. History had proven this as truth time and time again, and the ones that had let flow blood, sweat, tears and years into orchestrating the creation of this establishment refused to let any sort of fearful, ignorant bigot destroy it or the people it provided shelter and learning to.

A school for those that had nowhere else to belong, for those that society was to shun and demean… this was to be a place of hope and a place of peace, a place where the hate filled cries of “demon!” could never reach… no matter if they were true, or if they weren’t. The head of it all, a man named Donovan Agnarsson would see that there would be none of that here. This… was sanctuary, and for many, a place to truly call home. With its warm, rustic atmosphere and soothing silence… what was there not to love? The view was phenomenal, and nature had never been closer for the students and faculty that lived their lives in the Novus Spes academy.

How it was that Donovan ensured that they weren’t without was a subject of debate among the students. Just how did this man enable them with electricity, heating, running (and hot!) water… in a place so isolated? It was just one of the many mysteries circulating through the grounds. The hot rumor at the moment was one that Donovan himself had become extremely involved with. It was something that had to be addressed and dealt with as quickly as possible, lest they let panic seep out and into the mass of people living here. The man had been on the phone, making frantic calls all throughout the week… and it was strange to see him so off balance, even if he did assure that absolutely nothing was amiss.

The majority of questions came up when the small gymnasium building was found locked off that morning roughly a week and a half ago. Renovations they said… and of course, that was believable enough. It was an older little building that was once a cabin. It could have used some tuning up. There was nothing to be on edge about if that was the case. Not unless he discovered that he had spent money that he didn’t have, and was just scrambling to save himself from problems. Of course, that wouldn’t have been very interesting if that was the case, so where some, even many might have believed him… there were still those that stoked the coals of conspiracy. They said he was hiding something from them all.

There was no earthly way that they were right.

Prior to all of this happening, perhaps two to three weeks before any “odd” behavior from the headmaster had been seen, there was a glimmer in the night sky, slowly rising and becoming a deep red arch at its crescendo before fading beneath the shadow of the moon. Some caught sight of it, others did not. There were no reports of it anywhere else in the world… or even in the Appalachian region for that matter. It seemed to be a localized phenomenon… localized right in the vicinity of their little establishment.

Just what was going on? Did Donovan even know what was really going on here? Perhaps he was just as perplexed by the wave of crimson light as they were, if he had even seen it. It could have just been a trick of the light… but of course, not even a fool would believe that. Something was slowly happening at Novus Spes, something that was leaving more than just Donovan on edge. The other faculty was sharing in his apparent distress, keeping very hush-hush all throughout that week and even today... but that wasn’t to say that they all knew. Even some of the staff had been discussing theories about all of this, and with the students no less.

What kind of school had this degenerated into, where not even all of the staff was kept in the loop? Regardless of whatever the cause was, the Christmas break was carrying on as normally as it could. The break from classes was probably one of the best things that could have happened, because it was allowing people to be unfocused on other things, rather than be unfocused on their studies. Because really, who would truly be able to focus when the atmosphere had become so tense and thick, that it was almost tangible to the touch?

It was about 11:46 in the morning, and the cafeteria inside the main building was fairly dull after the early lunch rush… most had gone off to do their own things, as was the usual at Novus Spes during the breaks. It was just a shame that it wasn’t as much of a holly jolly time of year. Even the Christmas tree in the lobby seemed to be sitting a bit lopsided with concern as the lights slowly cycled through all colors of the rainbow. Faint discussion tried to take place, but being so public, people seemed to feel naked, only sparing a few words before heading elsewhere to speak. The receptionist kept their voice low when taking calls, as if they too, were afraid that someone was going to listen in on what they had to say about this entire mess when they decided to talk about it.

As the final flake of snow fell from the sky, twittering down just past the library window and into the fountain out front, tiny ripples spread out from where it had jostled the water’s surface. The smallest of things could create reaching effects on far bigger things… and while it may not have been large by human standards, what just happened at the fountain was an example of that, and perhaps… a sign of things to come.

[Taphophiliac]

Deep lavender eyes cast down an empty gaze, a gaze which whom reflects the hopelessness of the beholder. Glossy and endless like the desolate sea during the ephemeral sunset after witnessing the catastrophes during a mid-sea storm. She has witnessed far too much for a young woman her age-- even for an adult. The chaos, the inhumanity, the bloodshed! Life was and is still a raging war within seventeen year old Ira Trovato. A war that will not cease to end until the opposing side is completely dead-- every single one of them dead and into pieces before her very eyes.

Reaching up, she covers her eyes with her gloved hands for a mere second before parting a pair of her fingers as she peaks out towards the desolate wintry setting. The thought of the hacked dead brings back memories that do not make her stomach coil and twist in disgust but rather makes her want to laugh aloud in regret and mourning. For the record, she was anything but normal-- then again the majority of students on campus were the same-- anything but normal, each with their own problems, stories and personal battles either with themselves or something/someone else.

Regaining some composure, Ira pulls her hands down and away from her face allowing the wintry air to caress and kiss her warm cheeks. To her, the intimacy she has with the cold is a relationship that runs back years ago back to when she was only seven. Thirty days of close one on one time with the winter-- surely enough to bring a sense of familiarity to one whose pain was numbed by the frigidness. A sigh escapes her lips as they slowly begin to show a tint of bluish purple-- perhaps it was time to head in. Though she argues with her body-- just a little longer-- and she closes her eyes in thought.

...

"You'll catch a cold stupid child!"
"You'll get sick if you stay out too long."
"Change out of those wet clothes, you!"
"Look at yourself! You're shivering! Where the hell is your common sense? Go get yourself to the bathtub!"
"Wear your snow boots before you go out."
"Stupid, you're suppose to wear those underneath."
"If I wasn't here to watch over your helpless butt, you'd surely freeze to death by now."
"Don't lay in the snow like that! You'll get soaked!"

She remembers the voice of her mother call out from the past, a reminisce from a dream she had the night before-- her voice ringing in her mind so loudly and more vividly than any picture despite it being worth a thousand words.

Her mother was weak, she let her fears run her and lead her to be a hypocrite-- stupid weak woman... she should have ran away from it all and saved herself when she had that chance. She should have ran and never looked back!

...

Opening her eyes, she bites down hard on her lower lip bitterly which was completely numb and leans forward off the wall she leaned against. Her long locks flow over her shoulder and cascade down as the ends curl up looser than normal as the frost clumps and weighs down her hair.

Her lips, now blue than before and her skin paler than ever. A quit chatter escapes her teeth as she fights the shudders and muscle spasms. She's been outside since dawn and has been getting weird glances and condescending remarks from the students passing by, and even a comment from one of the teachers, something about being suicidal though she just blocked them out until they grew tired and left, as mid-day finally approaches. At last, she feels the tranquility she was hoping to attain-- or rather the tranquility she 'thought' she could attain by suppressing her series of thoughts with the numbing feeling of the cold.

Patting at her black coat, she loosens up the snowflakes that made little piles on her arms and shoulders. Once done, she shoves her hands into her pockets and buries her mouth and nose into the soft french lavender scented scarf of hers-- the smell often reminded her of this kid she once met as a small child, though she has trouble deciding whether she actually did meet him for real or if it was all part of her hallucinations.

Nevertheless, she exhales into her scarf to warm up a bit and then turns to head back indoors, to delve back into her book on mathematical theories applied into the world of occultism-- fascinating.

[Shadow Aurion]

It was bloody impossible to concentrate right now, even in the complete silence. No matter what he managed to do, his mind wandered off to someplace that he couldn’t even begin to describe, just a blankness that left him staring out into the monochromatic atmosphere beyond the windowpane. It was just… frustrating. Flipping the book closed, a sigh slithered out from in between his lips. All of the projects and reports he had been assigned to do over the course of the break were already done, he took care of that two days into it… so he really didn’t have to do what he was doing now, but he was trying to do it anyway.

Why?

Because… that was just how he was. Reading the book and writing the report that was scheduled for a month and a half from now seemed silly, but… he would rather have had it done, that way the smaller, more insignificant things wouldn’t build up on him as time ran by. That, and he rather enjoyed the projects that he was assigned… and if he enjoyed it, there was no sense in not doing it, right? Right. Granted, this project was a bit less interesting than the rest, he'd still do it if just to keep his mind busy... but right now, doing it was just… beyond him.

Rarely did Ragozine Rose ever burn out like this. In fact, he never seemed to burn out at all. And if he did, no one ever got the chance to see it due to the boy’s solitary nature. It was more often that he would be found associating with text on pages than other people, and he saw nothing wrong with that. Currently, he could say that he knew half of their names, mostly by passing by a conversation that wasn’t his own. Sure, he’d start a discussion (or try to) once in a blue moon, but the blond headed male often walked away from it unsatisfied. It wasn’t that he hated people… they all just… okay, maybe that was a fair assumption. On an individual level as opposed to the selfish, ignorant, debauched masses, people could be compassionate, interesting and even wise creatures. Unfortunately…

no one he had met here were any of those things.

It was getting to the point where he rarely left his room; only for food, classes or a trip to fetch a book from the library did he seem to leave much anymore. This was one of the odd occasions where he decided to take up residence in the library corner, perched at a little desk with his laptop in front of him, and the old, ragged book sprawled out to the side of it. Toying at the inch and a half wide dyed lavender streak running from the back of the left side of his head to the tips of leftmost bangs, he sighed. Just… what was this that was eating at him? It wasn’t all the stupid rumors floating around… those were bullshit.

A stressed man and a creaky building in need of fixing didn’t equate to conspiracy… it equated to a stressed man and a creaky building in need of fixing.

Although, as he couldswear that he just heard something, his head snapped back and around, heterochromatic green and blue eyes flicking about before settling on one of the empty tables. “Bah…” he grumbled. Frustration was beginning to get to him it seemed… and that was just a poor strength of will on his part. For a moment, he considered that maybe instead of using this break as a time to get more work done in silence; he could use it for what it was intended to be.

A break.

That thought quickly got laughed off as temporary insanity. Idle blood made for an idle future, or so he was always told by the man that he so looked up to in his younger years. Regardless, he found himself pinning back around to face his personal computer, deciding that he did have time to write a quick e-mail and send it off to someone. There’d probably be a response waiting for him as soon as he was starting to turn in for bed, which is no doubt when the recipient would be waking. It would be time enough for a brief exchange between the two, and that was enough to keep insanity wolf from knocking at the mental door.

Glancing back over at his book, a frown crawled on to his features, small, square, frameless glasses sliding down his face a bit. “I hope you’re burning in hell right now, Tolstoy…”

No matter how much he enjoyed reading… even Ragozine thought “War and Peace” was fucking boring.

[GothicRedneck]

A somewhat tall boy made his way around the school, bored out his mind. Bored to no end, and bored for the hell of it. There was little to be done in, now that the gym was closed up and meant to be repaired, to have its decaying features fixed so as to be usable to the students and staff once more. It drove the boy crazy, considering how much time he had spent in that gym, how much he had decided to break while he did his routine sessions in that place. And now, closed up for break, this boy had little to do since he wasn't much for knowledge, wasn't much for getting to know people, and wasn't much for sitting around and allowing anger to boil within his system.

Albezza Malika, the name belonging to this boy, wasn't very gregarious. Not in the degree that others thought of with the word. Rage consumed his entire being, it was what allowed him to function entirely and become the very being he was. Little knew of any compassion, any kindness that may have rested within him, for he never allowed that to shine out to the rest of the world. Only anger reared its red head out to the world, and he didn't care a bit. He didn't care a bit that others did not enjoy it, he wasn't out for anyone else, he was only out for himself. That's what the world tended to teach someone - pure independence.

Albezza stopped, crossing his arms and looking down at the very place he may as well have called 'home'. He wanted more than anything to just break through the doors, and start hammering away at the equipment, grinding the equipment to dust from intensity, and make himself stronger. It was a wonder that he felt he wasn't strong enough considering how often he spent in there. He closed his eyes, trying to forget about it for now, hoping that the gym would be open to the masses again here soon.

He sighed, trying to enjoy what form of break was actually given to these rats...students. Albezza wasn't the type to really study, to give recognition to the idea of studying, though granted he wasn't a complete fool. No, Albezza simply didn't see the point in wasting away at studies, when the entire society in this enslaving establishment would do. They were outcasts, left out in the cold by those normal, and forced to look in at the glamorous lives that they led. Those in the school could only hope to achieve normal, to achieve acceptance by those normal...but Albezza didn't see a point in trying to achieve the impossible. If a being was endowed with something special, why throw it away to become something that could not ascend further? Bah.

He made his way back to his room, heading back to a source of solitude so he could continue his train of thought, his philosophy of the world today and how unchanged it was. Anyone that would have seen him would notice the clothes he was embodied by. Albezza was decked out in a black jacket, a red shirt with no writing on it, black jeans held up by a black belt, and black tennis shoes of a size nine. Further, the chain wallet, and the ring on his right hand, which was silver. Then, they would look to his face with regret, his eyes being painted red, and his hair light gray leaning toward white.

"Pathetic...anyone would do anything for acceptance," Albezza mumbled on his way back, sure that he was getting many different stares, and stopped. He glared at different students, throwing at them all a glance like that of a lion saying "I dare you." Of course, what he was daring them to do was throw words out of their mouths, project them to him, and give him a reason to substitute his workout for a couple of beatings...but nothing. So...he made sure to say something before continuing to walk.

"You all are typical. But, I guess that's to be expected from idiots like all of you. Go on with your blank normality," he said aloud, and continued on.

Indeed, compassion was a rotting animal in Albezza's mind. It was near death at this point, and nearly past the point of revival. But, he didn't see that as a bad thing, that was something that needed to die, if anything.

[Taphophiliac]

Upon opening the cafeteria door, the thick heater heat oozes out and only the person. The feeling stings and her skin tingles considering how it has been exposed to the ice cold weather for so long. The smell of fried grease and other foods permeate through the air leaving a very distasteful clash of odors. She scrunches up her nose in disgust, she would rather smell the cleanliness cold winter than this grease ball of a place. Not to mention all the student's shit and trash cluttering around the seats and tables like dead sea creatures washed up to shore. Despite the vast majority of the people being gone, all their minds and emotions remain lingering a little longer, merging into one big ball of white noise in the mind of Ira. Shame on those who think empathy is a good thing, because it enables a level or sensitivity and sympathy on the person who has it -- bullshit-- all empathy is to Ira is a burden and a fucking curse that turns on and off whenever it so pleases. Her brow lowers into a very unwelcoming frown as she eyes a group of four upperclassmen with Christmas cheer and pep approach her with a Santa Claus hat. Odd that the student body decided to pass out hats to all the students, however Ira did not want to one so she turns her back to them and makes her prompt exit.

From the cafeteria and into the hallway, sure it was sufficiently less crowded--not, there were still plenty of students. As they, like her, transition from and other to the cafeteria if not the other rooms. With them, they bring a new level of noise, one rather hushed but still very loud. Despite their lowered voices, Ira could easily distinct one group talking about the gymnasium. Surely, the girl blabbering about that topic needs to learn to tell the difference between a whisper and shouting-- though it was not Ira's place to tell her-- thus keeps walking, yet tentatively listening to them from a distance until she steps out of range.

Of course she heard the rumors about the sudden renovations-- but honesty, who would want to renovate anything in the middle of winter, that gym surely got god-awfully cold, especially when some students weren't working out. Ira purses her lips in thought, maybe that's why the student body seemed so peppy, perhaps Donovan suggested them to do so just to help dismiss speculation amongst the students. Especially since most of the students are brain-dead windbags, it would probably work too.

Exiting the hall she begins up the stairs, her hand smoothly trailing the handrail as she continues to ponder. What's with the sudden renovations? Unlike before, her mind begins to take interesting on this topic-- before she thought it was one to not take interest in, however now it's becoming a very curious little thing. Reaching the top of the stairwell, she turns to face towards the direction of her dorm. the sound of an electronic keyboard resonates down the hall from the distance, and Ira needs not question who's making that sound. "...Tavia." She mutters with a grunt, her hopes for some peace and quiet are diminished as she remember that Tavia-- her roommate-- likes to practice at this time of day. Shame, it seems like her book will have to wait-- unless.

Turning about, the young woman begins down the stairs. Hopefully the library will be empty, but judging from her luck, it probably was not.

[Shadow Aurion]

His mind started to drift, the expertly crafted words on the pages slowly turning to nothing but pressed ink on blank paper. The meaning was being lost, the more that other thoughts started to push their way inside. This wasn't like him. Ragozine had tried picking the monstrous book back up to press on with his project, tried to read it and keep his attention focused, something that would normally not be a problem. But here, now, it was impossible. Sliding the crimson and black bookmark inbetween the pages and flipping the beast shut, Ragozine placed it back onto the desk.

The atmosphere felt tense, thick, like something teetering on the verge of collapse but not quite ready to fall, unsure of when it would fall, making all involved wait with their breath anchored tight inside of their lungs. Perhaps he was just overly tired again. Sleep didn't come too easily these past several nights, which is again something that moved to strike him as odd. Ragozine's mind drifted back towards the gymnasium. Why now of all times? Why in the dead of winter with four plus inches of snow on the ground? More importantly, why hadn't there been any sort of noises of renovation, no extension cables extending from a barely cracked door to let heaters work and power tools whirr?

...why the hell was he thinking about this? Was he really just as suspicious of Donovon Agnarsson and how he operated as some of the bleeding hearts and conspiracy theorists that fluttered around here? No, of course not. So why did his mind lean in that direction? It was a question he didn't have the answer to, nor did he care to have the answer to. If things got particularly peculiar or interesting, then he'd look into it further, but for now... he really needed to stop dwelling on something that was most likely a silly nothing. It was just the frustration of the report that was forcing his mind to subconsciously find something to distract him with, nothing more than that.

His index finger gently moved up and down, silently striking the desk top in a slow rhythm, trying to focus... and that was when he realized that he had opted against food when he woke several hours ago. It would have been a crowd then, at 8:00 AM, and it would be a crowd now, going on 12:00 noon. “Damn it...” he sighed, not wanting to deal with a mass of people. Crowds weren't his favorite thing, and as such, he'd suffer through his stomach pinching and wait until about 2:30 or 3:00 before venturing down to grab something and crawl back into his hole of solitude, the library. If there was anyone, they didn't stay, came to get what they came for or to return what they took and leave, which was a rare sight to see during these breaks anyway. He was the only one that seemed to stay, apart from the librarian who never really spoke to anyone, being like they were never even there to begin with. That suited him just fine. They were less than pleasant anyway, with a dull but grating voice that he could definitely do without hearing too often.

When the old oak door on its hinges decided to creak out the arrival of someone new, he couldn't help but turn around in his chair to take a look, not that he particularly cared who it was, just that he was a bit surprised that someone was actually traveling up this way. For a student body of this size, not small, but not exceedingly large, he really expected this to happen more often, but it didn't. Adjusting his glasses again, he muttered a curse, something about needing to get them fixed or replaced, he let his eyes take in the brown haired, violet eyed girl that just walked in. Something seemed familiar about her. Her eyes in particular. Had he met her somewhere before? No, of course not. Otherwise he'd remember her name, and Ragozine Rose never forgot a name. Realizing that he was beginning to stare, he casually turned his attention away from her and back to his still open laptop, hand creeping over the touchpad and mouse buttons to shut down the browser, leaving nothing but the image of the same snowcapped forest that they had come to call “home” on the screen. His wallpaper, apparently. Taken by him with a camera that had seen better days.

Better days... just like that damn gymnasium. Damn it! Why was he thinking about this again? He could only hope that this girl, the girl that had decided to stroll in with a displeasured air about her, wouldn't bother him too much. Of course, Murphy's Law dictated that she would. No, no. That wasn't exactly true. Murphy's Law would see to it that she would bother him, then someone even more unpleasant would come along. Someone unpredictable, loud, and someone that normally wouldn't even give someplace like the library a thought. That would be Murphy's Law.

No, Ragozine didn't have high expectations for the day for whatever reason. Again, he blamed Leo Tolstoy for concocting such a beautifully written, but insipid story that had frustrated him. Fucking unreadable in his mind. An unpopular opinion, but Ragozine was an unpopular boy. It fit like a glove. Just like the dark, cold day, school and allegations being thrown around... his attitude and the atmosphere was fitting for the setting. A setting that was only going to grow even darker as time marched on. The proverbial stone had already fallen into the proverbial pond, and the ripples were starting to reach outward.

… and they were closing in on them all.

[GothicRedneck]

"Hm," Albezza thought to himself as he kept his pace going, trekking the halls to find something to do, be it finding a victim for abuse, or simply working out. Both were the same to him. But, it occurred to him that he did have some work to actually get done, not that he cared, but now it seemed like something actually do. He made his way toward his room, threw the door open, and trekked inside the small, pathetic excuse of a room. It was small, meant for two people though. Yet, the headmaster was smart enough to recognize the fact that there was going to be no reconciling with Albezza. He must have known that, considering no one else was assigned to be plagued with Albezza's twisted agendas.

He gathered his things, and looked around to make sure that he had not forgotten a single thing. Once done, he made his way for the library, a black laptop bag slung over his shoulder. The boy kept his glare up as usual, ready to strike at any moment, ready to throw this laptop bag and get his work out in for the day after all. Alas, no one was willing to give him that luxury, and he merely sighed. Unfortunate, so very unfortunate.

Albezza began to think about the gym again. Surely, if Donovan wanted to repair the piece of shit, he would have had it done so by now and have it up. Surely, there would be the ability to have fast repair from student help and it being in...decent condition again, as it had been before. There was a chill in Albezza's spine, a little too convenient given what topic he was on in his mind. "I'm going to inspect it tonight. I have to see if there's more to this than meets the eyesore of a gym out there." he mumbled.

Getting into the library, being somewhat loud about it, he made his way toward a table. He wasn't sure what he'd get done, but by God, something had to be done to pass the time, lest Albezza allow his insanity to over take him from the sheer force of boredom. He'd be damned if he'd allow that to over take his system, that was the last thing he'd have as a winner - boredom. Setting himself up to begin a long process of operations to carry out his work, he looked around mid way through - deserted...like the gym.

[Taphophiliac]

The moron probably did not notice her, or he had a severe seeing problem as he boisterously thrashes his way through the library doors, cutting her off in the process. She enters soon after him as her lips curls up into a snarl momentarily as she watch the stupidly tall son of a cunt take a seat at the nearest table. If the Dean of Student's wasn't already on her ass about keeping her rage in check -- then she would have punched that good for nothing in the back of the head or something.

Taking a deep breath, she closes her eyes and takes a deep breath of the suffocatingly warm air in the library and exhales it slowly through her nose as she calms down. As she glances to the side, her eyes meet with the boy that was staring at her, but before she could even raise an eyebrow and make a 'what the fuck are you looking at?' expression, he glances back down at his book. Once more, she takes a deep breath, this time she buries her face back into her scarf and exhales into it.

Her lips were not as blue as before neither were her cheeks raw red, now that she was inside where the heater was on full blast. Surely, the sudden and severe temperature difference was going to make her extremely sick. Unfortunately, the consequences had already began as she feels a slight dizzy spell wash over her. Quickly, she takes a seat in the nearest chair and slumps back as she waits for the room to stop spinning on her.

As soon as it passes, she begins removing her jacket, now that it was starting to get too warm now. Her mind, however lingers over to a pair of students whispering to each other about the recent rumors that have been circulating around. Then again, who wasn't voicing their own suspicion about the gym. Sure, they were trying to be inconspicuous about their gossiping, only they really couldn't tell a whisper from speaking normally apart. Nevertheless, the young woman gazes passed them and towards the window as she contemplates her next course of action. She leans the chair back slightly and begins to drum her fingers against the side of the desk, loud enough to annoy people reading, yet not loud enough for her to notice that she IS being loud.

'Maybe.. I should go see what is up with the gym. I'm sure it'll be easy to break in, unless of course they set some sort of barrier around it. But if they did, that will only make them look even more suspicious.' She continues her inner conversation and leans further back in the chair and sighs rather tiresomely in the meantime.

[Shadow Aurion]

Then the other, almost albino-but-not looking fellow came. What, were they all going to converge on the place now? Now that he was frustrated, starving and not in the mood for some idiot's bullshit? That's all this would bring. A bunch of bullshit. They'd either start chatting away now that the librarian was out for lunch and destroy the small sliver of concentration he had left in him, or they'd start arguing, or they'd start trying to chat with him, or they'd start trying to argue with him. Knowing today? It would undoubtedly be all three of those, and he'd be liable to hurt someone, despite his less than muscled frame. So what if he wasn't like that white haired boy over there that clearly was one of those meatheaded workout types. Throwing a 1400 page paperback at someone's skull was still going to hurt.

Bah... to hell with them both. He'd have to ignore them, and he would ignore them, no matter how difficult that might prove to be in the end. He'd kept himself from getting frustrated and walking away from Tolstoy's work, and if he could do that, then he surely could ignore these two. Seeing the expression that the brunette gave him, Ragozine quietly muttered something under his breath, nearly inaudible to even himself. Focus on the book, Rose... he told himself, looking back to the black and white pages, flipping the one he had just finished.

Why were these two even here, anyway? The one boy didn't seem like he'd be much for studying, yet he had his laptop out regardless. Hm. Ragozine didn't doubt for a moment that the fellow would use this place to watch his pornography without the disturbance of whatever roommate he may have had. But then again, he didn't seem to be the type to give a damn what anyone saw, heard, did or thought. Something about the way he looked, and there were times that you could just tell. Since he was dressed in nearly complete jet-black, that sort of said "fuck you, I do things my way and if you don't like it, then fuck you again."

Oh dear God how he hoped that it wasn't one of those types, and he was judging a book by its cover. ...then again, he expected "War and Peace" to be a bore, and he was right. He could be right about this too. Damn it all.

The girl... he didn't know why she was here. Given that she removed her jacket and leaned back in the chair just moments after sitting down, maybe it was to get away from everyone else as well. Maybe she didn't want to deal with her roommate, didn't like dealing with her roommate, much like how he detested dealing with his more often than not.

...and then the tapping started. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. It continued on and on in a quiet, but loud enough rhythm to make it difficult for him to focus. Much like a TV or, God forbid, a stereo or computer playing music quietly in the background, it bored its way into his brain, sitting there tapping away at the shreds of his patience. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four.

One...

Two...

Three...

Four...

He counted under his breath, trying to keep himself from snapping at the girl. He was going to calmly ask her if she could stop doing that, as she was not only disturbing him, but probably the gorilla trying to use a laptop. It was only when he realized that he had begun counting along to her beat that tact got thrown out the window.

"One, two, three, four... five." He finished under his breath with a snarl, abruptly turning around in his chair to give the girl a look that crossed a scowl and a glare. "Could you please stop with that incessant sound? While you might be content to sit there and stare at the walls like some sort of mentally defective child, some of us are trying to think." It was full of bite, aggression, something that he normally didn't do unless pushed to his point. Between Leo Tolstoy, her rapping at the tabletop, the invasive thoughts of conspiracy and the gorilla in the corner, he had had quite enough.

What had Albezza done to warrant the ire? Absolutely nothing, but Ragozine didn't doubt for a second that he eventually would.

[GothicRedneck]

Five minutes in, Albezza was looking around the room, and noticed that a girl had made her way in. She didn't look like much, of course, Albezza had rather high standards that would've been a miracle to meet. In his mind, she didn't seem to have much of anything that would qualify, so he continued to focus on his work - oh, the complete solitude, it was quite maddening. Of course, that's when the tapping started. And, just as Ragozine had counted the taps, so had Albezza - boredom was insane like that.

"Hm, I wonder who'll crack from that tapping," Albezza mumbled to himself, as he stopped even trying to focus on work. Now, he was simply focused on the two "specimens", the girl and her consistent tapping, and the boy that he had felt the eyes of earlier. Indeed, Albezza had a feeling that he'd be pounding this asswipe down eventually, or receive scorn from him in some unpredictable manner. It was impossible to judge at the moment, however, Albezza tended to open his ears to the prophecies of his gut, and his gut was stipulating this right now.

And that was when the book worm, the nerd, broke and lashed out against the consistent tapper girl. This would surely be a show to watch, and thus, Albezza was intently focused on the two of them. In the back of his mind, he was shouting "FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!" simply because he wanted to see violence before the day was over, and he'd have to break into the gym and find out the truth of the situation - whether serious or not, and if Donovan was up to anything, or simply being lazy. It was funny, though, seeing that foolish nerd snap like that, as if he was trying to accomplish something dire and important - and it'd be funnier to watch him get beaten to a pulp, to absolute nothingness by the girl.

"Should be fun," he mumbled to himself.

[Taphophiliac]

From her peripherals, she notices no librarian at the counter -- an absolute key detail to know, for certain reason. Especially when the library was filled with a pair of douche bags that may need a bit of straightening or flattening out. She continues tapping her fingers and leans onto her free hand as the warm library air begins to put her to sleep. However, her peace didn't last for too long.

Her lavender eyes dart open as they glisten with a bout of rage and glances over towards the obviously rude air-headed snoot that was staring earlier. After his sarcasm and direct insult to her intelligent, which he assumed she lacked but of course she knew that he was blatantly wrong about that assumption, she gives him a look and stops the tapping for a full two minutes. With a mere wave of her hand she then flips him off during those two minutes. "Go stick your nose back into your book, Dexter. Before I stick your nose in that book for you," she threatens in a monotone voice. Sure, the tapping did stop, however, being a spiteful bitch she looks for something ten times more annoying to do. And she finds the perfect activity. Ira reaches across from her seat, where some student left a really nice pen.. of the clicking sort. How convenient and unfortunate at the same time.

Maybe this will teach this uppity snoot to think before he speaks and even offer him a lesson in being polite. Or rather, to get his facts straight about someone's intelligence before spewing out lies and stupid commentary.

Upon grabbing it, she rests the back of the pen against the table, and the young woman begins to click the pen.

Over..
and over..
and over again.

The sound was even more of a nuisance than her finger tapping. She closes her eyes as she listens to the melodious rhythm of sweet, sweet revenge. Simultaneously, as she closes her eyes, her empathy quickly scouts the area without she really noticing until she pinpoints a rather nosy and self-centered feeling, so she turns the other way and spots another ugly speck in her line of vision.

"Amused by this?" she addresses Albezza and continues to click the pen. "You probably are, the stupid fighting type generally are entertained by mediocre things, like this one."

[Shadow Aurion]

"Mmm... that certainly explains why you continue to do it, doesn't it?" Ragozine said regarding Ira's comment to Albezza. Again, this was just a situation of him calling it like he saw it. Or in this case, she called it for him. Stupid fighting types, yes... that was appropriate, given that she had just threatened to smash his nose into "War and Peace" if he didn't shut his mouth. Well, Ragozine Rose was hardly the type to just "shut up" when commanded, and certainly not when the order came from someone proving to be already so difficult to tolerate like Ira.

Really, if she was going to go somewhere to be irritating, couldn't she have picked somewhere that people weren't trying to work? For Gods' sake, it wasn't that hard to be considerate was it? Wait, of course it was in this place. Sure, he hadn't exactly been considerate himself when he snapped at the girl, but... frayed nerves certainly did that. She didn't seem so much frayed as she did foul. Of course, he wasn't the empath in the room either... so maybe she was, and just was showing it even less than he was. Hard to say, harder still to give a damn right now.

Maybe these two would push each others buttons and take it outside and leave him the hell alone. But on that same note, maybe he'd magically begin to enjoy this book and finish everything he needed done within the next twelve hours, leaving him to go and socialize and talk about the basketball games that he never watched or held any interest in. Ragozine sighed. This was going to be a headache and a half, this was.

"I'll ask you again..." he touched a hand to his temple, turning a page in the book as he spoke, sounding like he was about to get up and take that pen out of her hand and dispose of it in some way that he didn't even think that he was capable of. "Please, stop with the clicking, tapping, irritating little sounds that you're making. We're in a goddamned library, not a pre-school where they encourage this sort of behavior. Not only am I trying to work, but so is your fellow 'stupid fighting type' over there. Or at least, I would assume that he's trying to work. That, or he's been staring at the pretty default Windows background that he can't figure out how to change." No, Albezza didn't really deserve to have arrows of spite shot at him since the boy hadn't done a thing, but... Ragozine was as sour as milk left to sit out in the sun for a few days.

Goddamn, all he wanted was a bit of peace. Was that... wait. Yes, yes it was too much to ask for in this place. What was next? Was Draven going to swing the doors open, set his stereo down and start playing that damned Misfits music with the bass and treble set at opposite ends? Or was the "Conspiracy Crew" that he heard talking about the goings on around here going to bust through the door, trying to "educate" them all on the corruption that had suffused the building, how the headmaster was lying to them all, and that the broken down gym was a coverup for something entirely sinister. When it wasn't. It was an old building that needed fixing, and the old man was just stressed. How the hell did that rumor start anyway? Were people that paranoid?

...

Oh Jesus Christ, Ragozine hoped that he didn't just jinx anything. Please, please, oh please... don't let him have jinxed anything about any of those loony toons barging through the door on top of the rest of the current ilk. That would be the absolute final, final straw.

He'd have to take some drastic measures at that point. Like suddenly investing in a little squeezy stress ball, proceeding to attempt to squeeze the life out of it. Hm, he'd get the blue one with the silver specks.

[GothicRedneck]

Albezza was taking heat from both sides of this little heated moment, this battle of the minds. He was beginning to wonder just what in the hell it had to do with him, all he wanted was a show considering he was THAT bored, and the boredom was making him lazy as a result. Of course, he was ready to start his own display of violence - he didn't care if he was to prove them right. Proving them right was only half the battle if they got their ass kicked and their pride wounded. At least, that was Albezza's insight, make sure his prey never tried to start anything again.

"The tension, the animosity, it's really kinda cute," Albezza remarked to the both of them, chuckling at their pathetic attempts to piss him off. It really was funny how much tension had filled the air, all from the tapping of a mere pen. Simply amazing what small things did to the most educated minds - and though they assumed Albezza's over all intelligence was mediocre at best, Albezza was beginning to wonder if they had the intelligence levels of monkeys with their bellicose natures. That's right, a big word. So much for the mediocrity. "Why don't the both of you just shut the hell up, and either fight it out, or someone fucking leave. And, honestly, I was going to try and 'work' until this little act started. So please, amuse me, I'd rather not work."

Oh, this would be fun to hear just what they were planning to say next. Albezza wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty though, merely out of fun. Sure, he loved to fight, and these rather non-gregarious types needed to keep that in mind, so he thought, lest he prove what his hobby is. Sadly, he knew people too well, and anger controlled them all so well. Anger was such a beautiful mantra that it was probably being cast in their heads, only furthering the process of a possible fight. However, all Albezza could do was sit there, and wait for the responses that these two dumbasses would throw at him.

"Well, what the hell is going to be? Fight or flight? A show or not? Either way is fine by me." May the insults fly, he began to think to himself.

Albezza would've been more war like about the situation, and would've proved them further right by the idea of being a "fighting type", but he could not get the idea of the gym out of his mind. He didn't want to sound paranoid, but, at the same time, he had to wonder what was going on. Donovan had something in the works, something in his corrupted mind to bring some darkness upon this place - as if it wasn't surrounded by it was it was.

'...maybe I am paranoid.' Albezza began to think to himself.