Private Postgame Meetup

Yojo peeled off his football pads as he sank down onto the bench of the boy's locker room, his heart racing and his body covered in sweat. He could vaguely hear the sounds of his teammates cheering as they triumphantly entered after him, a sense of jubilation ever-present amongst them all. They had had a close game tonight, and even though it was the first real match of the season, they had managed to pull off a win over their intramural opponents. There was the roar of the crowd, of the band playing in the stands, of the cheerleaders at halftime- it had fueled them to eek out a win with a rather deceptive running play. On the one hand, it all reminded Yojo of why he loved the game, of growing up playing football... and yet, it didn't feel the same anymore.

All the sound made him tired and grumpy, the bruises and shocking impacts caused his whole body to feel sore (the power nullifiers helped with that), and just standing out there in front of the school as the team's Quarterback made him nervous to the point of nausea. What the hell did anyone at the Academy care for sports, anyway? Sure for normal humans like him who had spent their whole life living in the Narrow Reality, they were a welcome escape- but for demons and dragons and vampires? Somehow, the victory felt strangely bitter to him, like none of it mattered. He didn't let it show, of course. He got up, gave as motivating and congratulatory a victory speech as he could to the team that would cap off the win well, but after that and a quick shower? He was hustling to the door.

Yojo walked out of the gymnasium and into the courtyard where some of the students who watched the game were lingering to chat and talk to friends or the players. Clad in navy workout shorts, a black tank top, and an ice pack wrapped over his shoulder, the tired looking Quarterback tried his best to weave through the crowd and not draw too much attention. He slipped his power nullification band off, instantly feeling hungry as a result, something he'd been expecting. Ever prepared for his body's increased caloric requirement, Yojo pulled out a tub of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream he'd kept in the mini-fridge, holding it with one hand and holding a large spoon in the other.

Walking along the lamp-lit courtyard, Yojo would fish out scoops of ice cream, a glazed over look in his eyes as he made his way through the moderately sized crowds. Joining the football team wasn't something that he'd been planning to do per se, but hey, it kept him out of trouble and of sticking his nose where it shouldn't have been. He eyed some of the fellow students, both the more 'human' looking ones and the truly exotic. He was getting more used to all the varies species and appearances, enough so to appreciate the occasional look of interest he received sometimes. Still, he had his priorities, and right now they were to focus on getting good grades for his Junior Cadet program, to master his powers, lead the football team to the intramural championships, and eat a shit ton of ice cream to avoid collapsing in a heap on the ground.

@Zora

Yojo was about to put in the headphones to his music player when he heard someone call his name. He stiffened up a tad at that, sniffing a bit and turning around, a bit of mint chocolate chip ice cream dripping down his chin as he scooped a new serving of it for himself and stuffed it into his face. He eyed the approaching girl over a bit, she seemed human- 'seemed' being the key word in that statement. She was a slender brunette with big ol' bright green eyess.

"Yes'um," Yojo said as he swallowed a scoop of ice cream, pausing for a moment before speaking again, "That's me." He wiped his hand on the side of his shorts before mustering the energy to try and give a smile and offer his to shake. Now that she was closer, he began to put her face more precisely with where he remembered seeing her. "Wait... You're on the cheer team, right?" He asked, tilting his head a tad as he got a better look at her up close. "You have to, I swore I saw you as the halftime show was wrapping up." He hummed, a bit of energy coming back to him as he stood there with her... or was that just the momentary sugar high precluding an even worse crash?

Yojo's smiled widened a tad, "I see you and the rest of the team practice sometimes when I'm practicing with the football team. I don't know how you do those flips and all that, it looks impossible. I'd break my neck if I tried, I swear I would." He said, looking down at his tub of mind chocolate chip as if only noticing he was holding it for the first time. "Oh, uhh, want some ice cream?" He asked, offering her an unused spoon.

"My powers cause me to need a lot more calories than what most humans do. It sounds great, but eating too much of anything just starts to make it all feel bland after a while." He said with a sigh, shaking his head a bit as he did so.

Huh, well this was a nice surprise. A pleasant conversation with someone his age that wasn't in some back alley or in a warehouse mid-drug-bust. What's more, this Bel seemed like a perfectly agreeable and approachable person! Yojo hummed to himself in thought as he let some of the cookies and cream melt in his mouth. Maybe things were starting to become more 'normal' now that he'd been on the island for a month or so now.

"Yeah, I guess most humans would be pretty clumsy compared to you and, uh, whatever the rest of your team is- I don't think I could guess." He said with a light chuckle at her comment about the plights and perils of cheerleading. The two of them nommedon some ice cream for a bit in silence before she gave her thoughts on the dilema of having a lightspeed-fast metabolism. "Yeah, it blows, no way around it." Yojo said with a shrug. He'd gotten used to it at least, for the most part anyways.

When the topic of powers came up, Yojo hesitated, if only for a split second. Thankfully, he already had another scoop of mint chocolate chip in his mouth, so hopefully the micro-expression was only miniscule. Still, that was a somewhat dubious question for him to answer. He'd learned from his recruiters and from Roldan that admitting he had time manipulation could put some people off. Hell, in a sick and twisted world someone could use a similar power to take advantage of other people, let alone harass them without them everknowing due to altering time!

"Nothing fancy. I can hit things hard and get hit just as hard. It's like football but even worse, you know?" He said with a semi-forced chuckle that looked organic enough. He wasn't wrong or lying per se, superstrength and durability were important parts of him... There was just more than that was all.

"How about you? I'd say you look human but I learned that the moment I say that is the moment some weird stuff usually begins to happen." He teased lightly, turning the tables on Bel as she helped herself to some ice cream of her own.

"OH" Yojo said, surprised, as Bel spoke more on her origins. "I... Uh... Don't know what that is." He admitted, avoiding her eyes for a moment and finding the grass growing along the sidewalk oh so interesting for the moment. "I didn't read a whole lot about mythology growing up. What's a Bell tame?" He asked, moving to sit on one of the nearby benches. He'd just played multiple hours of high-impact sport after all, he was tired as heck.

"I guess I shouldn't seem so surprised. I haven't met anyone on this island yet who just happens to be a normal human." He said. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or bad thing or what- it just felt like a lot to adjust to all at once. "Why'd you join cheer?" He asked, scooting over a bit in case she felt like sitting next to him.

"So, uhh..." Yojo started, cutitng himself off a bit as he closed his eyes and rubbed some of the sleepiness out of his eyes. "You've been here longer than me, right? How long did it take for you to get used to living here? Not just the academy and all that, but, like, leaving your old life behind and starting over on the island?" He asked, maybe a bit more bluntly and heavy handed than he should. LA seemed like a world away, along with the friends and family he'd left behind.

"A purpose?" Yojo asked in an echo of Bel's reasons for joining the cheer club. The answer made him think for a moment, his tired eyes drifting down to the ground as the words sunk in a bit. "I get what feels like... I think. It's the same feeling in my gut that made me agree to come to the academy. It's, like, this gnawing feeling that feels all empty and terrible." He thought aloud, trying to put words to what the sensation of lacking a purpose felt like. "I just hope once I graduate that that feeling won't come back. I'll be a Junior Cadet by then if I finish the MCPD courses on time." Yojo added, looking back to Bel, "What do you plan to do once you finish school? You, uhh, figured out a purpose yet?" He asked, feeling a tad awkward as he did so. Was he getting to personal? He felt like he was maybe overstepping himself a bit.

Her thoughts on adjusting to island life were honest. He appreciated that, as well as appreciated her honesty overall. He nodded as she spoke about what it was like to move here, how it could feel rough for those who lived beyond The Veil for most of their lives. It was like the whole world got turned upside down. Yojo was trying to find what rocks he could to hold on to.

"Wales, huh?" He asked after she finished speaking. He hadn't traveled outside the US often, only to visit his grandmother in Japan a few times. "I think as a kid I thought that's where all the whales in the ocean came from. It was only when I was, like, 11 that I realized it was an actual place somewhere." He recollected, rubbing the back of his head and chuckling lightly, tiredly. He looked back to Bel, putting his tub of ice cream away for the moment. "What's it like there?" He asked.