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Donnie is on his way to his last class when his phone vibrates.  He checks it and sees a text message Bring It! and a time 5:30PM.

&%$# yeah! Donnie says to himself.  I think I need this.

The roller rink has been closed down for years.  It was apparently pretty popular in the 70s and 80s, but now it was just an abandoned building on a large lot on the back end of Oak Park.

Donnie has no trouble finding the door to the basement, and by the time he arrives there are already about twenty people there.  Craig finds Donnie not long after he comes in, "Hey.  Glad you could make it.  Some of the guys from Fenwick are gonna be here and a few from a high school in the city.  This is so gonna rock."  Craig's excitement is evident, and the air is almost electric with the anticipation of what's to comne.

Donnie is nervous and shaky as adrenaline pumps through him in preparation. He has sternly warned the dragons not to come unless he calls. Likely he was gonna get beat up today, but then again, maybe not. He has been precticing with Jack for weeks.

After about fifteen minutes there is a good crowd in the room.  Donnie can spot some of the Fenwick guys, they have an air of superiority about them.  There are groups, cliques, forming.  One boy in particular, certainly a senior moves into the middle of the irregular circle formed by the kids packed in the space.  He whistles loud and gets everyone's attention.  "For those who have never been here before listen up.  Newbies have to fight the first time.  You can't turn down a challenge if someone calls you out.  Fights are until one of you concedes or can't stand up."  He walks around the room and points to a couple of new guys, who move into the center.  "Fight!"  he yells, then steps out of the way.

It's a strange thing, the cheering of the crowd and the violence.  It's a strange thing, but something primal about it resonates with Donnie.  There are a few fights, then Donnie gets pointed to and another boy. 

OOC: Give me one attack roll and one toughness.  Add the bonuses from any and all feats that might apply in a fight, even for special maneuvers.  This will give an exagerated bonus (maybe) that will be added to the attack roll or toughness accordingly.  You can opt to spend your hero point for an automatic reroll of the d20 with a minimu of 10.  There might be more then one fight in this thread depending on how things go.

Attack ROll:
Attack Roll (1d20=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=887388)

ugh. Thank goodness for Hero points.
Attack Roll Reroll (1d20=13) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=887392)

Toughness Roll:
Toughness Roll (1d20+3=18) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=887397)  

Donnie and the other boy move into the center.  The boy in charge yells "Fight" and the action begins.

Donnie realizes that even though he's not a seasoned fighter, he's been trained by someone that is.  The things that Jack has focused on seemed odd to Donnie, with everyone there.  Now, in practical application he realized that Jack had given them the quick and dirty on kicking ass.  The other boy is a little more confident, and the early moments of the fight have Donnie being o the receiveing end of quiet a few hits.  The second he threw a punch wide and left himself open though, Donnie knew what to do.  a half dozen quick body blows to his lower abdomen and then a left to the face sent the other kid to the floor.  The roar of the crowd was almost deafening, and Donnie was suprised at how easy it had been.

The ref called Donnie the winner, and then as was the tradition made him and the other boy shake hands.  There was no malice, no anger, there were smiles and handshakes.  It was sport, in a strange way, and it was a sport part of Donnie ubderstood.

Craig came over after the fight, "Nice moves Donnie."  he said, giving him a bottle of water.  Donnie accpted it by reflex, and discovered that he also consciously noted the safety seal break as he twisted the cap off.  something Jack says flashes through his head, 'It's not paranoia, it's a well honed sense of self preservation'.

"Thanks Craig, that was a rush. Are there guys who are real bad-ass that I should watch out for?" Donnie swirls the water in his mouth to clean out the blood from his torn inner cheek and spits it out. He looks especially at the kids from Fenwick.

"There are a couple.  That guy over there with the spiked hair."  Graig points to a kid that looks like he might not be fully evolved from Neanderthal, "He's pretty good, I watched him smoke a guy last week."  Craig looks around the room a few times, "And that guy, the one over by himself watching everything.  He's supposed to be pretty good.  The guys from Fenwick say he's really good."

Donnie studies each of the possible future opponents in turn.

Several more rounds occur, finishing off the newbies who have not fought here before.  There are a few challenge fights, obviously this is where the grudges come in.  Some of the fights are rematches, some are just mean fights to prove something to one or the other combatant.

Donnie feels plucky. He calls out one of the Fenwick guys, one fo the new ones, if possible. Or at least someone who hasn't fought yet.

OOC: Same procedure, 1 attack roll and one Toughness Save.

The boy Donnie called out comes into the center with a bounce like a boxer.  He's got some skill, Donnie can tell from his stance and initial moves.

Attack: Attack roll (1d20=10) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=888207)

Toughness: Toughness roll (1d20+3=9) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=888209)

Hmm.

This fight is longer then Donnie thought a fight could last.  It's like the ones form the movies where the two fighters are exhausted by the end and barely able to throw a punch.  The other boy has skill, but Donnie is tough and can take when the other kid dishes out.  Then there is a moment, something Jack taught him to look for in sword practice.  The moment of desperation, when the other guy puts all his cards down and goes for one last swing.  Donnie watched it come in, and then leaned out of it at the last second.  The other kid went past him and sprawled to the floor.  The ref stepped in and gave a count, and the other boy was struggling to get up the whole time, but just couldn't manage it.  There was a roar, and Donnie thought for a moment that this is what the gladiators of Rome heard when they had overcome something truly massive.  Then he realized he was on the floor, and a moment later someone wqas helping him up, "That was impressive."  the voice said.

Donnie vaugely heard the ref call it, and people started to leave.  The guy that helped Donnie up got him some water and stood by while Donnie brought himself back into line with reality and the natural flow of time, which had come to a painful standstill during the fight.  "You're very good."  the boy said.  Donnie glanced up and noticed something familiar about the boy's face, but wasn't sure what it was.  The boy extended a hand, "I'm Dylan, Dylan Sterling."

Donnie nods as he drinks the water, still to out of breath to answer. Once his heart has stopped racing and the ringing in his ears had faded he gave a raised eyebrow to this guy. "Dylan. Dylan from Fenwick."  Donnie shakes his head as something surges inside him, something primal and furious. He takes a minute or so, swallowing the Dragon back down and closing his eyes to keep this Dylan from seeing them change color.

Once in control of himself, for the moment at least, he asks "Dylan, do you happen to know someone named Sylvia Avery-Vaugn?"

"Yeah, that's right."


"Yeah, I know her."

"Did you happen to take her to a dance last Friday night when she told me she was spending the evening with her sister?"

"Yeah.  She told you she was with her sister?  That's wild, she told me she thought she'd made me up.  Does she have a drinking problem or something?"

Donnie give a sharp, painful laugh. Looks at Dylan, then loses it again. He is laughing and coughing, leaning over. He can't help what he says next. There's that much of his mother in him that he has to share his pain around. "Dylan, I have been dating her for just over a month, seriously. Until last night, when she revealed that she had lied to me and gone to a dance with you. That you'd visited her in her room late at night, saved her once. She thinks you're cute. God that was painful to hear. She's been running around with you for weeks and always failed to mention it to me. Her boyfriend."

Donnie was silent for a moment, watching the next bout. "Last night I wanted to hunt you down and challenge you, like two males fighting over breeding rights. Or maybe dragons, fighting over a prized possession. To be honest, there is a part of me I am desperately trying to ignore that wants to strangle you right now, even though I don't even know you. Love bites, eh"

Inside, the Dragon roars and squirms, fighting to take control and defend his claim to Sylvia.

"Ah."  Dylan says, shaking his head as Donnie continues.


"Well, I guess I can understand your feelings.  Except, it's not me you have a problem with.  I was only looking after her because you wanted to keep her safe.  You wanted it more then anything in the world.  She made you feel better then anything in the world, but you felt like you weren't strong enough to protect her.  You're only just now feeling like you might be up to the task.  In a way she's a muse, for your emotions.  Those things you've moslty ignored."

Wait, you were looking after her because I wanted to keep her safe? Man I don't even know you. How can you know my emotions?

"You know me, you just can't recognize me."  Dylan says, "We're like brothers you and I, broodmates.  I'm a reflection of you, distorted.  I can feel the things you feel, because I'm the other side of you."

"You are..what?"

Donnie suddenly feels dizzy, sliding down the wall.

"Broodmates? Like, as in dragonbroods? Other side of me? I..I don't understand.."

"I'm your counterpart.  The other.  I'm the dragon guardian of the gate."

"But..but..You're here. How can that be? I thought we had to stay on our sides and.. and you look human.  I'm so confused."

Donnie holds his head in his hands. Somehow he feels he has made a very bad mistake. "What have I done? You are nothing like I thought the Dragon was. The cold, reptilian side of me that rears up when I'm scared or angry. That shifts my eyes to green. I thought that was you. Have I been deluding myself this whole time?"

"It is me, in a way."  Dylan sits down and offers his hip flask to Donnie.  "We're connected by a thread sort of.  I get to share your emotions, and you share mine.  But Dragons are passionate beyond the scope of human understanding.  We don't have the range of feelings humans do though.  The gift I get is to have the whole range of human feelings and sensations.  Sometimes the passions of the dragons are a lot for a human to handle, eventually you'll learn to harness it better."  Dylan pats Donnie on the back, "Just wait til you finally manage to cross over.  I can be a human here.  In the Reach, you get to be a dragon."

Donnie's eyes nearly bug out of his head. "I get to be a dragon?"

He leaps up, shouting for joy. A few of the bruisers eyed him, but most failed to hear him because the match had just ended.

"I've never had a brother. Are you to be the one to teach me? My responsibilities, my duties, my powers? My grandfather said someone would appear to do so, but I haven't heard from him in like a month."

Donnie takes a swig from the hip flask, uncaring as to what it might contain.

The bite from the flash proves it's liquor.

Dylan smiles, "I'll help you.  First thing is to get that dragon temper under control.  The last thing we need is for you to have a heart attack."

"Yeah. Dead at fourteen from a heart attack is totally unappealing. How do we do it?"

"First things first, let's get out of here and get some food."

Donnie waves to Craig, shouting "Text me next time! I'll be here!"  He follows Dylan out of the defunct roller rink and into the evening air. "So. Do you know my dragons? Pip, Uther, Althea?"

"Yes.  I haven't been home since I was born into this body here, but I know them."

Dylan and Donnie go to a diner near by.  Dylan orders a milkshake, chocolate, and settles into the booth, "So, something doesn't feel right.  You and Sylvia fought.  I don't understand, you feel so deeply for her.  What happened?"

Donnie orders a plate of fries and a coke. "It's a clusterfuck, man. She had been hiding that she has run around with you, and lied to me about last Friday. She told me she was spending it with her sister, and instead she went to the Fenwick dance with you. She constantly hides things from me, fears, concerns, true feelings. Always behind a wall. I kind of lost it when she said she went to the dance with you and that you were cute. It really hurt. Going to a dance with someone else is one thing, but it felt like she was rubbing it in, that the other guy was more attractive than me. I kind of lost it a bit, accused her of lying to me."

He globs ketchup onto his plate, the squints his eyes in pain as the acid in the ketchup hits his torn inner mouth. He quickly takes a drink.

"She has some sort of emotional control power, and when my anger sparked her anger, she lost control of it. Her anger ht me like a punch to the gut, and compounded my own, until I was white-hot with fury. My rage and pain summoned Althea, and I totally fell into defensive mode, letting the cold fury of a Dragon spurned take control. I took off, leaving car alarms blaring and shattered glass."

He drains his coke and motions for the waitress to refill it.

"I took off, and halfway to somewhere, the anger just drained away, like opening the plug on a sink. Suddenly I realized I had just broken up with her, the girl I have been dreamig about ever since I discovered girls are interesting and have nice bits to stare at. Now I found out that I went into a jealous rage over my own brother, who was there purely to protect her because I couldn't. The irony is killing me."

"I can see how that might be a pain.  I wonder why she didn't tal about me.  She always seemed so uninterested in me when we talked, maybe it's because she thought I was some sort of fantasy thing."  Dylan drinks his shake and then orders another, Vanilla this time.  "They're not all so complicated.  Mopst of the ones at Fenwick want me on their arm like some kind of trophy.  She who gets the guy with the most money and looks wins, or something like that."

"Enough about me right now. Tell me about you. Do you remember your life as a dragon? You said you were born here, or reborn, and know our connection. Do you have normal parents? Do they know about you? How loing have you known of your prior life? I want to hear it all."

"My paretns died a few years ago.  I've always known I guess, in the back of my mind what I really was.  It became really clear to me a couple years ago, and I could feel you out there.  That sense of you has been getting stronger since you touched the Dragon Reach.  Some dragons, like me, are reborn from time to time.  Like the legend of the Phoenix, we die and come back.  I came back here this time.  Eventually when you're strong enough, I'll help you cross over.  After that, I may stay home.  I miss it, even though life here has it's pleasures."  Donnie can see Dylan's gaze wonder to a pair of girls in another booth.

Donnie grins. "Dude, the Fenwick girls you were tellin me about seem to think you are the second coming or whatever. Anyway, did your knowledge of your position and past life suddenly become clear, or did someone reveal it all to you?"  He polishes off the fries and holds the cold glass of Coke against his cheek. "I need to get an icepack on this."

"Dragons don't remember the same way humans do.  So it all just sort of came back to me."  Dylan nods, "The girls at Fenwick are certainly intersted, the problem is your social structure frowns on me having five or six of them at one time, so I think I'm going to have to go one at a time until I find the right one."

Donnie barks laughter, then winces. "Oh you poor guy. Life must be rough with your harem to choos from. I'm sorry your parents died. Who are you living with now?"

"My Uncle.  He's sort of like what the dragons are for you.  He takes care of me in a world that makes little sense and has entirely too many rules."

"I'd like to meet him sometime soon."

He asks the waitress for a cup of ice and replaces the coke, taking a sip. Looking depressed, he says "Jesus I messed up with Sylvia. How could all of this gone so horribly wrong? I don't know how I am going to explain this to her.."

"Actions speak louoder then words."  Dylan says.

"Maybe I'll keep away for a day or so, then we could both talk to her. She's gonna think I'm crazy if I start talking about you being my 'brother' and all. God I feel so guilty now. How do I moderate these huge swings of emotion?"

Dylan smiles, "You don't.  You revel in them."  his tone is rumbling, like a dragon, "It's your soul, and it can reach heights most people can never imagine.  Your emotions are power.  Rage so hot you could walk through fire without getting burned, Compassion so tangible it can protect the innocent, and hatred so cold it can freeze hearts."  He slams his fist against the table, "We are forces of nature."  He looks around and smiles, lowering his voice, "We don't control our emotions, but they don't control us either.  They are the fuel that drives us to do great and terrible things."  the grin on Dylan's face is filled with teeth and for a moment Donnie thinks he recognizes him as a dragon, an enormous winged serpent with horns and eyes like story seas.  "We learn to live with our emotions, and to understand where they come from.  It'll be hard for you, learning to ride them, but not be swept away by them.  Humans have so many more subtle emotions then we do, this is probably why we like you so much."

Donnie leans forward, intent. "Teach me. Tell me how to harness these emotions. I need it, if I am to function and not assplode every time I get pissed or caught up in Sylvia's embrace, if that is to happen again. Or despair when my mother escapes into the bottle again to numb herself and verbally strikes out at me. Teach me, Dylan, to merge the two halves and be whole."

Dylan smiles, "Very well, let's begin."

OOC: At this point I'm gonna close the thread and we'll move on.  Bill, I'll flash you a PM to sort some things out regarding this.

Check!