Aiden Dyre's Story

"And don't forget to be polite," Aiden's mom said for maybe the dozenth time on that excruciatingly long car ride. "We don't want to hear you've been ignoring your teachers."

Aiden groaned, wishing for also the dozenth time (and counting) that his parents had flaunted the wealth a little by getting one of those limos with a jacuzzi in the back. Outside. Where he couldn't hear this. "C'mon, I know my grades aren't great, but it's not like I just-"

"Fall asleep in class, snark at your teachers, ignore your homework until the last possible moment and generally completely waste the time spent in school?" His mom finished, shooting him a disapproving look. "We're not TV parents, Aiden. We know what you get up to. The only reason you pass your classes at all is because you're actually smart enough to scrape a grade with barely any study."

Her son grinned broadly. "Exactly!" He exclaimed. "I don't need to study a lot, so I'm clear."

Miriam Ashland-Dyre sighed, rolling her eyes. "Aiden, this is serious. This is probably the best boarding school in the country, and the only one that can teach you to control..." she trailed off uncertainly, still uncomfortable around the subject.

"My super-awesome power of the storm?" Aiden supplied, still grinning. "Chillax, they wouldn't go to all this trouble and not check my record, right? They know what to expect." The car, an expensive-looking Italian model in bright, sporty red, pulled into the driveway of the school. Aiden hadn't even noticed them getting closer. Probably all the trees blocking his view.

Turning the ignition off, his mother turned around to look at him fully, eyes full of concern. "You can't just act like it doesn't matter. The time you spend here could determine your whole future-" Aiden winced. There was that word. "-and just because you got away with it at Eastside High doesn't mean they'll let you off as easy here."

The teenager sighed, pushing down his irritation at the subject coming up yet again. "Look, if it makes you feel better, I promise I'll try and pay attention this time. Who knows? Maybe the teachers won't be complete windbags."

"And if they are?"

"I'll... Also try?"

It was Miriam's turn to sigh again. "I guess it will have to do. I don't really have anymore room to try and convince you. But please, put some real effort into this, for your own sake."

Aiden nodded, uncomfortable with the serious moment. "Yeah... I will." He wasn't sure if he was being honest, and especially wasn't sure if that would be better or worse. He unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned forward to give his mother a kiss on the cheek. "Love you," he said, smiling. "See you when the holidays roll around."

With a final exchange of goodbyes he finally left the car, pulling along with him a backpack and duffel bag. He looked up at the impressive, wrought-iron gates - unlocked, he noted after a moment's testing - and drew back a step. Making sure his mom's car was well out of sight, he lifted up a foot and kicked the gates right in the middle, preceeded by a rush of wind that threw them wide open. "Congratulations!" He yelled to all those assembled, striding in. "I have arrived to take the school by..." And just then he noticed that the front yard was absolutely deserted. "...storm."

Aiden slumped, seeming to deflate - not that anyone was around to notice. "Oh, come on," he said loudly, to God or Buddha or Spongebob or whoever might be listening. "Entrance like that and there's no one around? What do you call that?" Grumbling further under his breath he strode onto the campus and looked around for the boys' dorm. This might have been easier if he knew where it was or what it looked like. He did vaguely recall there being a map on the brochure, but he also recalled using it for lightning bolt target practice.

Chuckling fondly at the memory, he entered a building at random, noting with hope that it looked pretty dorm-like and completely missing the sign that denoted it as the girls' dorm. "Hello?" He called out, looking around. "Anyone here? Awesome has entered the building! No need to be shy, I am a humble god." Aiden was a firm believer in good first impressions.

Kevin had barely gotten ten minutes of naptime in before he was awakened by the sound of copycatting as the new windbag flung open the gates and proceeded to try(and fail) to grab attention.

Okay, on the RECEIVING end, I can see how it can be kind of stupid. he thought to himself as he tailed the new guy to the girl's dorms, barely catching up to him as he encountered Mr. Blowhard getting told off by another hot chick. Seriously, is it a freaking PREREQUISITE to look good in order to have superpowers? Without thinking, Kevin put himself in the mindset of a tour guide, stepping forward to grab the guy by the arm.

"Sorry about that," he said, smiling weakly at the poster child for Perky Goth stereotype, "I was giving him a tour and he got away from me! You dastardly scoundrel, forty lashes with a wet noodle for you, eh?" Kevin began moving the kid towards the exit, now talking over his shoulder to pale, dark, and beautiful(making sure he thought that in that exact order, just in case). "I'll try and keep him away from that sort of lechery, after all, that's MY job!"

As they left the building and the door closed behind them, he exhaled and dropped the Bavarian Fire Drill, smiling widely and laughing.
"Two things, new guy. One, that is the girl's dorm, we don't go there unless we have a study group going on or want to get suspended or even expelled. Two, nice entrance, but it should have been done during the announcements earlier, perhaps with some darkening of the clouds if you could blow some this way, people eat that up. Name's Kevin, Kevin Stihl, and if my last name was any more of a giveaway to my powers, it'd metallurgize itself." Kevin's smile was much warmer and actually real now, because he saw a kindred spirit in this guy, and he was either going to be a rival or a friend, if Kevin's genre savviness was correct.

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The appearance of the hot goth girl in the door came as a completely shock to Aiden. Definitely not an unwelcome one, but still a shock. But just as he was wiping the confused look off his face and summoning a witty retort he found himself cut off by the appearance of Thor-knows-who in the doorway. "Sorry about that," said the mysterous stranger, grabbing Aiden by the arm, "I was giving him a tour and he got away from me! You dastardly scoundrel, forty lashes with a wet noodle for you, eh?" He then began pulling Aiden toward the door, adding "I'll try and keep him away from that sort of lechery, after all, that's MY job!"

Aiden honestly didn't know this guy from Adam, but he knew a save when he saw one, and a kindred spirit. He resisted just long enough to make a 'call me' sign with one hand (tricky while holding a duffel bag, but he had practice) before following his 'tour guide' out the door with his best impish smile.

Once they were outside he found his valiant savior laughing and joined in, seeing the humor in the situation easily. Before he could offer his thanks, though, the other teenager spoke up again. "Two things, new guy. One, that is the girl's dorm, we don't go there unless we have a study group going on or want to get suspended or even expelled. Two, nice entrance, but it should have been done during the announcements earlier, perhaps with some darkening of the clouds if you could blow some this way, people eat that up. Name's Kevin, Kevin Stihl, and if my last name was any more of a giveaway to my powers, it'd metallurgize itself."

Aiden was right on the money: Here was a man after his own heart. Grinning right along with his new bro, he answered right away "Aiden Dyre. Which I guess gives nothing away, but a man couldn't ask for a cooler name, right?" He paused, then added "Well, except maybe my other name: Stormlord." He hoisted his bag up onto his shoulder, rubbing his chin in thought. "Dark clouds, I can totally work with that. Y'know, my first plan was to fly over the gates on top of a tornado just to get everybody's attention. But it turns out the wind drowns out my voice. Why deprive the world of that pleasure?" He chuckled, partly to show it was all a joke and partly because this was a laughing kinda day.

"Shame I couldn't make the announcements," Aiden went on. "I would've been here earlier, but my mom insisted on driving me - you know how moms are - and she only had me to read the map." He shrugged, almost sheepishly. "It's just possible that map reading isn't one of my many talents. Or keeping track of them." He looked out over the campus. "Speaking of which, don't suppose the grand tour starts with the dorms and/or cafeteria? Once I drop this stuff off I am totally up for lunch."

And no sooner had he said it than another guy popped out of nowhere at all, seemingly focused on Kevin. "Hey Kev," he said, apparently ignoring Aiden (something he was not at all used to - it was a little surreal) "sorry about freaking out back there, you looked like a serial killer gone wild. I guess I'll see you whenever, I'll be chilling in our dorm room."

And just like that, he was gone, leaving Aiden to blink and wonder if that was some kind of bromance-induced hallucination. He turned to Kevin again. "You saw that too, right?" He asked, just to be sure.

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Interruptions seemed to be the order of the day. Well, that and awesome power stuff. But mostly interruptions, as evidenced when a hot girl (not the same one as before - this one had more of a 'fierce and fiery' style) dropped down right next to Aiden and Kevin mere seconds after the possibly-but-not-definitely-a-hallucination had left. At first this seemed like a literal gift from heaven, but then she started speaking. Or growling. It kind of sounded like both. “We haven’t been here for two hours and we’ve already got peeping toms?” I can't tell if she wants me or wants me dead, he thought. Though the way she was staring directly at him- “I don’t take kindly to horny perverts…”

Her eyes shifted right in front of his, becoming yellow and slitted like a cat's eyes. She snarled, then stood up straight, maybe a foot from his face, and roared a roar that probably shouldn't come from a human. Nope, definitely wants me dead! Somewhere inside Aiden's brain there was a primal, instinctive part of him that was screaming to drop everything, take to the skies and get as far away from that roar as possible. That survival instinct was ringing almost as loud as the cat-eyed girl, who was doing an admirable job herself of filling him with utter terror.

And so, pale as a fresh bedsheet, pulse racing like a hyperactive sprinter (almost certainly from fear) and unable to properly form a coherent thought through the mind-numbing panic, Aiden did the first thing that came to mind: "You're cute when you're angry," he said with a grin that didn't quite reach his eyes.

His survival instinct did a mental facepalm. Sometimes it didn't know why it bothered.

Relying on the sheer shock value of audacity he pressed on, "So we got off on the wrong foot. Total accident, by the way. But hey, if you ever walk in on me, we can call it even. And I can make it up to you sooner, if you like: Say, seven o'clock tonight, restaurant of your choice?"

Kevin smirked at Aiden's nickname for himself. He was getting the feeling that this guy was gonna be a great friend.

"Stormlord? What are you, a Guardian of the Galaxy? No, I'm calling you Thundergod from now on, it only seems fitting. And yeah, that was Thomas, my roommate. He caught me in the middle of telling off somebody who was being a general ass while I was using my powers to... convince him.

He didn't have much time to elaborate, as Hall and Oates' number one hit came landing down in front of them, said something about them being perverts, and roared. Kevin, knowing this was an attempt to be intimidating, once again shifted his act from happy friend to cold and swift, hushing Aiden with a gesture before he could get his throat torn out. Taking the utmost care to not let himself slip and start panicking, he let his guitar strings form into clawed gauntlets that looked like a second skin over his arms, not yet using his bloodboil ability in case she really wasn't bluffing. His voice, no longer warm, was stern and commanding, as if he were an alpha male in a pack of wolves.

"While I accept the compliment about my perversion, I am NOT a peeping tom, and I have faith that Aiden isn't that big of one either. Stand down, and we have no problems. Otherwise I'm going to have to bop you on the nose with a newspaper." Now it was Kevin's turn to roar, and he had the power of both years of singing power metal and having ACTUAL metal on his side, his choice of yell echoing and being amplified through his gauntlets five times over to create an overwhelming sound.

(OoC: What KEVIN sounds like during his command: http://vocaroo.com/i/s139gLvNbZa7 What his shout sounds like: http://youtu.be/be1waE9myCU?t=23s Just so it doesn't seem like I'm making Kevin a tryhard, this is a powervoice I myself can replicate, so Kevin, who shares my voice, has the same capacity. Problem is, apartment neighbors didn't take too kindly to my first take, so I'm making do.)

Alyss smiled at the boys word but when he grabbed her arm having them both teleport back to the courtyard, Alyss was so surprised by the sudden change that she dropped her feet to the ground causing her to shiver, the first touch of her feet to the ground was always the worst and she didn't understand how regulars could do it all day everyday. Alyss watched as the kid walked away she didn't say a word just watched she could tell when she wasn't wanted around and took in a deep breath noticing that she would still be an outcast even around people like her, the lack of social skills was too great for to get along with other people even if they shared common gifts. When Alyss came to this conclusion she decided that perhaps it was time to go but just as she was about to take off into the sky she heard a loud roar and her eyes widened in excitement. She flew up to one of the high towers of the school to get a better view pulling out her telescope from her leather bag.

She unfolded the telescope pointing it toward the source of the noise kicking her legs back and forth in excitement, when she found the group with the glass she smiled letting out a squeel of excitement unfortunately she couldn't hear what was being said but just seeing the action was good enough for her, maybe this school wouldn't be so bad after all. Suddenly something even more interesting happened and one of the guys let out a yell that even Alyss could feel making her laugh aloud. Not ever having had a tv or electronic entertainment device of any kind this was the most fun she got out of her day just watching people interact but now that they had superpowers to boot this was sure to be a good show, and she would wear a million uniforms just to get front row seats to this kinda action.

Next thing she heard another voice but it didn't come from the group and she repositioned the telescopes eye toward someone who was also enjoying a good show, Alyss bit her lower lip smiling wider now, sooo... she wasn't the only one, was all she though before going back to the group below to see their reaction to this new development, giddy with anticipation. This school was getting better and better by the minute and she wondered why she was even thinking about leaving, now she never wanted to leave.

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Andy slowly woken up from his nap. He taken off his blindfold and stretched his arms. "Ah, that's feel good", he said to himself. He yawns a bit and then looked at the time on his phone. He has been sleeping for a couple of hours and now feeling refreshed. "Well, I guess I should go explore around a bit", he said to himself. With that, he stepped off his bed.

He turned to the other bed and saw that his roommate was still asleep. Andy shrugged, though this guy is troublesome, he must admit that he really did have a long day. But somehow, Andy felt that the guy looks pretty cute when he was sleeping. Though Andy really don't want to get acquaintance with assholes who only wanted to show off and think that they're oh-so-powerful, he really couldn't hold it off when it comes to good-looking guy. He then went to Ry's bed to have a better "view".

Somehow, Andy couldn't resist the urge to touched the boy's unkempt hair. "Too bad, we could have been friends if you weren't such an ass. If you got into troubles, then don't come looking for me", Andy whispered. He then stood up and silently opened the door and got out as not to wake up the kid.

He walked around the halls. This school actually has a lot of interesting stuffs. "Maybe this school wasn't so bad after all", he thought. Suddenly, he heard as if someone was yelling and the sound was screeching. Andy frowned and covered his ears. "What the hell is that?", he said.

"Bad time for introductions!" Kevin snapped at the new guy, not breaking eye contact with Selena Kyle's sister and still expecting some sort of violent reaction.

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Aiden quickly found his fear replaced by irritation, then anger. The scary catgirl roaring at him, that was one thing. One scary thing. But now his new friend was acting like anything but: First he tried to stop Aiden responding (he didn't like when people stopped him from talking) then he went all cold and sharp. Then, completely without warning, he seemed to decide the only sensible thing to do just then was to scream some kind of super scream, nearly bursting Aiden's eardrums and obviously messing with the girl. At that the Stormlord clutched his ears, trying to shield them and only partially managing - it still hurt like crazy. To top it all off, when some other new guy showed up wondering about the noise, Kevin basically yelled at him for no reason at all.

It was around then that Aiden's patience ran out. His eyes, which had gone from cheerful, cloudy white at the beginning to the color of a rainy day when the catgirl scared him, now turned a dark gray color that promised a storm on the horizon. The moment his ears recovered enough that he could hear himself speak Aiden rounded on Kevin, glaring fiercely. "What the hell is your problem?!" He yelled, partly out of anger and partly because he was still very slightly deaf. "You nearly blew out my ears!"

It was around then that he heard (somewhat dimly) the unknown girl speaking. "I-I’m sorry…" She was getting to her feet and looked about how he felt, only less angry. "It… It was just a joke… I wasn’t going to attack you or anything… but my ears hurt now…" And now she was looking straight up at him, as if asking him to step in. She would not be disappointed.

If there was one thing Aiden couldn't stand, it was bullying. Kev might've meant well, but this was pretty clearly in that territory. "What was the point of that?" He growled at the guitarist - a human growl, this one, but there was an ominous rumble under it that sounded more like quiet thunder than any living being's voice. "To get back at her? To prove you can scream better?" He was seriously considering unloading a roar of his own, an amplified thunderclap directed at Kevin straight-up Dovahkiin style, but a tugging sensation at his hair and clothing distracted him. Looking down he saw dark clouds swirling around his legs, tugging his clothes in the twirling wind, and only then realized how mad he was.

Aiden's powers could be wild at times. When he was angry or scared they would occasionally act up on their own, even before he did something rash. Seeing that this might well happen soon, he shut his eyes, clenched his fists and took a deep breath, drawing in the clouds and winds he'd kicked up, then relaxed and let go, returning the air to normal. Getting in a yelling contest with Kevin was not only stupid, it was the exact form of stupidity he'd just been telling Kev off for. Opening his eyes again to reveal a lighter shade of gray he looked right into Kevin's eyes and spoke calmly. "You need to chill out before someone gets hurt."

Then, without another word, he turned back to the girl who had roared at him, laying a hand on her shoulder comfortingly. "Hey," he said softly, hoping not to aggravate her ears. "You alright?" For effect he added one of his best smiles - not a smouldering, winning look, but soft and comfortable. "That looked pretty bad."

Kevin was NOT pleased at himself. Closing his eyes and nodding to Catgirl and Aiden in apology, he once again, he cursed himself on the inside for going way too far. He began speaking once Aiden had asked if he was trying to be a showoff, his voice sincere, because he wasn't acting here, he seriously didn't want to lose the one friend he'd already made, considering all his old friends were gone.

"And I apologize for my actions. But truth be told, I was scared shitless that I was gonna be Meow Mix, and was only attempting to show a lack of it. If it helps, feel free to whack me upside the head, outside of Oh-god-please-don't-kill-me mode please. And again, I apologize for my actions, I've always been the kind of person who acts in defense first, thinks later, as detrimental as it can be considering we all kind of have powers that spit in logic's face." He turned to Aiden, and started speaking again, his eyes barely lidded to represent his sorrow at his actions. "And no, Aiden, I did NOT want to show I was better in that case for mere perfomance. Large cats in the animal kingdom normally perform displays to show dominance, and I was trying to do the same, again, because the thought of dying, while tempting, isn't exactly something I'd like to go for just ye-"

"You need to chill out before someone gets hurt." Kevin's mouth snapped shut in shock at that statement. he looked down at his hand, the blotchy scar recalling the memories of the first time he'd gone too far... Why couldn't he ever learn... The gauntlets melted off of his hands and pooled onto the ground beneath him as he slumped down to the dirt, tears just barely welling up...

No.

He was a Stihl. Proof that the show MUST go on. Proof that the emotions were something to move an audience, not just the person they belonged to. HE. WOULD. NOT. CRY. HERE. Taking a deep breath, his lungs shaking as he exhaled, he stood up, clenched his jaw, swallowed, and spoke again, composed.

"You're... You're right. I do need to calm down... I'm here now... And... I'm sorry. I'm gonna take off for now, I need some time alone. I'll talk to you later, if you're not still pissed at me. Same to you, Kitty, and I apologize, person who I snapped at before, my actions were inexcusable." Kevin said, turning and walking off, the puddle of metal sliding after him and onto his leg as an anklet. Once he got to the room, he calmly closed the door, walked to his bed, laid down, and let his tears flow quietly and without a sob.

Every. Single. Time. Why couldn't he just f*cking learn?

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Aiden did his level best to pretend he didn't notice how the girl was squeezing his arm hard enough to bruise it. He smiled softly as if he didn't feel like his hand was about to fall off. Well, he tried, and anyway she wasn't looking at his face so if he screwed it up she probably couldn't tell. Either way, he made sure to be comforting until she felt well enough to let go. Which should be any moment now. Aaaany moment now. Any... moment... now... Please?

Finally the moment came and she stepped back, a wave of relief signalling that she had let go of his probably-bruised arm. Luckily he was wearing long sleeves. Careful not to let his feelings show, Aiden smiled at her and was just about to say something when he was interrupted by a familiar voice. "What a show."

Both Aiden and the catgirl looked over at the source of the sound. She yelled out "Harley!" and rushed over to the latest comer, the goth girl from the dorm who had 'greeted' Aiden first, then promptly pounced into a hug. With her back turned the boy took a moment to grasp his arm and scream soundlessly, disguising nothing now she couldn't see it and massaging the aching limb fitfully. Luckily she seemed content to nuzzle her friend while he clenched his teeth and took several deep breaths, which as it turned out did absolutely nothing for the pain.

Once he felt the ache begin to die down Aiden looked back at the two girls, whose names he would have to learn pronto. He was fairly certain the goth was Harley, but calling the other one 'the catgirl' in his head was getting old. Luckily an opportunity presented itself just then: The catgirl said her head was hurting. Making sure to only use his right arm, Aiden reached into one of his bags and drew out a bottle of aspirin, which he popped open with his thumb. He held it out as he approached the girls, speaking softly but clearly to avoid hurting her ears further. "Here. This should help with your head."

The bravado was gone from his voice. He didn't hold his head as high or grin roguishly from under windblown hair (well, it was still windblown, but he didn't make a big deal out of it). In all, he didn't look or sound like a walking ego anymore, which was a little disconcerting as he'd gotten so used to it. "Listen," Aiden said slowly, "we really got off on the wrong foot. I don't suppose I get a second chance at my first impression?" He smiled sincerely, gesturing to himself with the pill bottle. "My name's Aiden Dyre. I got here kinda late and didn't know where the dorms were, so I wandered into the wrong one by mistake. After that Kevin stepped in and, well, you know the rest."

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