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Dave and Greg managed to grab a big table today.  After last night Dave had the impression that there might be a lot more people for lunch today.

Sarah strolls in with a lunch sack and a new magazine.  Psychicks    She grabs a couple of chocolate milks and joins her friends at the table.  "Have either of you ever been abducted?  There's a great survey in here about it.  I think it's supposed to tell you if the alien is really in love with you or if it was just a one night.. er probe." 

Sarah breaks out a prosciutto, mozzarella and tomato sandwich and starts munching. 

DAVE: "I'm waiting for an abduction, or anything that'll break the cycle of boredom here."
GREG: "If I'd been abducted, I'd have written a script about it already."

Kel strolls in, and keeps an eye out for anyone he knows.  When he spots Sylvia, he move towards her and says, "So, any ideas for what to do with the paper yet?  Do we want to look into this hole or get stuff on this new quarterback kid?"

"What about... where is Rob?"  Sarah looks at the lunch line for her friend but doesn't see him. 

DAVE: "He's talking to a girl from his math class."
GREG (milk almost coming out of his nose): "You're kidding?"
DAVE (shaking his head): "Nope, passed them in the hall, he said he'd be late and to hold a seat for him."

"My gosh... wow.  I mean, that's big!  He gets a cookie.  Do you know the girl?"   Sarah munches and keeps an eye out for Rob. 

Dave shrugs, "She's kind of a hottie, that's all that matters."

T.J walks into the room and moves over to the table with some of the people form the day before. "Hey guys, so what are you going to do about the report on the hole in the wall. Do you still want me to look into it or...." He lets the sentance trail off as he sits down and pulls out a lunch of jam sandwhiches, he turns to Dave and Grag and smiles. "Hey, I'm T.J I saw you guys in the Tasty Dog yeasterday. It was a weird night. And an interesting start to the year." He nods to himself and munches on his sandwhiches.

Dave and Greg acknowledge T.J.'s arrival with nods and continue eating.  A few moments later Rob arrives and grabs a seat.

DAVE: "So, what's the verdict?"

Rob looks up from his lunch, "She was just wondering if I'd go to the game with her Friday, and then to dinner afterwards."  As he speaks he begins to smile broadly.

Both Greg and Dave cheer for him and give him pats on the shioulder.

DAVE (making sniffle noises and rubbing his eye): "Our little boy is growing up so fast."

Seth walks in a little late. This morning he woke up a with a slightly more painful headache than usual. He had banished it with some tylonel, but waiting to eat had brought it back with a vengenance. He had stuck his head in his locker for a moments respite from the pounding sound of the student body, and once they had cleared to the cafeteria he finally had the hallway to himself. He took a moment to settle himself, and push the headache to the back of his brain.

He had almost succeded when hunger pains shot a stap of pain throughout his right temple.

Oh right. Food.

So seth walks in a little late. Gets his food, and joins the kids he met the other day...before his mom embarressed him.

"Hi. Can I sit here?"

DAVE:" Hey."  Dave says, pointing to an empty chair, "Saved you a seat."
GREG: "Hey, Seth, don't take this the wrong way bu on the ride home last night me Dave and Rob voted your mom hottest mom we've seen this year."
ROB: "I voted twice, since Sarah skipped out on us."

Uggh. Seth groaned. Invariable, he knew it was going to come to this.

Don't let her hear you say that. I'll never hear the end of it.

"She's very...I mean don't get me wrong, i love her, but she's very vain. To be fair it is her job."

Right after he said that, he regretted it. He knew there would be a follow up question to "It's her job...

"That's cool.  I would have voted for her anyway."  Sarah grins at Seth.  "There, now that you've been sufficiently embarrassed, welcome to the table of doom."

Sarah hands Rob a cookie.  "This if for talking to that girl.  Well done."

Sarah hands Seth a cookie.  'This is for having a totally hot mom."  She smiles again, "Well okay it's for taking crap from us... and for having a hot mom. "

She looks at Seth, "Wait.. it's her job.  I'm going to give you a chance to recant that or clarify your statement before the Cartman's mom jokes start flying."

ROB: "Dude, you can't mean she's like a model or soemthing?  Your mom is a model, which means she knows and hangs out with same."

DAVE:"Didn't you already score a chat with a girl today Rob.  Should you be straining yourself thinking about this too hard?"
GREG: "Thinking isn't what's causing the strain."
DAVE (shaking his head): "This conversation is going down hill at a suprising rate.  I call for an immediate change of subject."

About this time Gretchen Ross comes by the table and asks if she can join the crowd.  Dave opens his arms saying "Please, join us and start a conversation about something, fast."

Gretchen laughs slightly, taking a seat.  "Ah, okay.  Has anyone seen Kirby today?  After the principal made his announcement I almost expected to see an ambulance come and take him away."

Rob and Dave give each other blank looks.  Greg immediately begins shaking his head no without lookking up from teh script he's reading.

"Ughharumph" Seth's head falls into his hand (gripping the top part of his head and right eye. like when you lean your face into your hand)

"She's a model."  Seth says with a touch of melancholy. "Mostly print, but also some runway. She's one of the shortest model's working today. So she gets a surprising number of mixed gender ad campains. If any of you drama kids read cosmo she was in last months issue for some shampoo. I don't know which one.

Cada vez que, cada uno las cosas ella es tan caliente. Seth mudders to himself...and what passes for vegatbles on his plate.

Kel settles himself down near Gretchen with a gesture of 'Mind if I sit down?', he then hears the talk of mothers and models and just arches an eyebrow, "This sounds like a very odd topic of discussion."

T.J smiles at Rob and holds thumbs up. "Congrats on that. Good luck with her, I hope you enjoy each other." With a passive smile he waves at Seth as he sits down and continues eating. When Gretchen turns up he shurgs his shoulders. "Haven't seen him all day. Maybe he went to check on his entry for the contest. Maybe he's ill. 'Fraid I don't know."

He sees Seth looks donw and pats him on the back. "Hey, don't feel down, man. They were just saying she's pretty, it's not like they were going to call her a whore. Nothing to feel ashamed of."

"She's not a whore. She's a model."Seth said a little too quickly, defensivly. Too late he realises thats not exactly what was said...but he pushes forward.

"It's just that ever sense middleschool everyone is always obsessing over how hot she is. And when we walk downtown...the stares. Or when we go out to resturant and the waiter stares or she gets asked out for dates right in front of me and my dad. It's...Es gibt mir Kopfschmerzen gerade...Sorry, I said: It just gives me a headache."

T.J smiles lightly. "Don't worry, that's pretty impressive y'know. Being able to speak Spanish and German and apparently you can play guitar. I'm T.J by the way. I don't think I told you my name." He holds out his hand.

Sarah watches the handshake closely... cause well... who knows...   

Sarah ticks off those accomplishments on her fingers.  "Spanish, German, Guitar.. and you said a bunch of instruments besides...  gosh I feel such the underachiever.  All I ever did was some gymnastics and hang around with these goofballs since we moved out here."  She pats Rob and Greg on the shoulders.  "Not that it hasn't been a very rewarding and educational experience."

Seth grabs the hand, but not before first wipeing it on his blue jeans. "Seth"

"Well I'm a first generation american, so I speak the languages of my parents as well as english. And I've been playing instraments as long as i can remember. As far as I'm concerned most of my "talents" are really my parents. But i'll take a lot of responsibility for my music. They might have chosen it for me, or maybe i was just chosen. But it's mine now.

I'd give anything to have what you have. You guys are kinda my first friends. Social stuff and school and my music didn't really mix well. So i choose two instead of three. You know." He looks at his plate shyly. Embaressed.

"Yeah, I saw that with a few girls in gymnastics," Sarah responds,  "The parents or the coaches started pushing some towards competitions and meets and more practices... pretty soon they just disappeared.  Heck of a way to blow your childhood.  Working to get somewhere that less than one percent of the group can make it to.   Getting one chance to show your stuff, maybe two if you're young enough and you're out of the running by the time you are nineteen.  But that's just gymnasts.. musicians.. wow.. you've got a talent that you can use forever.  Besides, chicks dig guys who can play the guitar.  Get a motorcycle when you turn sixteen and you'll have your pick of the lot."   

Sarah pats Rob on the shoulder, "That is unless this guy gets to them first!"

"You know you don't talk like most other people...You're very forward." It kind of made him uncomfortable. He didn't know kids as well as he should but somehow he knew that she wasn't normal in that requard.

Sarah looks a little worried for a moment but shrugs away the notion.  "Huh, yeah... I tried out that whole mumble into my sleeve thing in seventh grade but I got tired of it pretty quickly.  I tend to say what's on my mind.  I noticed you're mom had no trouble speaking her mind... whatever she was saying...  I don't imagine she was a quiet little kid in school either.  People should be more open.  If you keep everything buried, hidden, bottled up and wrapped in paper you will explode.  Not that I don't know when to shut up.  Just tell me shut up and I'll start shutting up.  Yessiree, total silence....      Not a word...             Quiet like the grave....          yep.   That's me."

She raises her Psychicks magazine and slowly sinks behind it humming softly. 

Nervous laugh..."Psychicks? What's that?" he askes as a total non sequitor. But inside his interest is more than peaked...Maybe it has some info on his new condition...ability.

DAVE: "I call bullshit!"

Colin enters the lunch room huffing and puffing. He actually looks a little tired, as if he had little sleep. He seems to look around for someone, then notices Sarah, Gretchen and the boys sitting at a table and goes to join them.

"Hi everybody. Didn't you happen to see Bruce, or Kirby, or Sylvia and the guy she was talking to yesterday, the one that was reading comics? I'd like to have a talk with them all."

He lets himself fall on a chair, gets out his digital camera, and looks at the photos he took in the last few days.

"T.J., I was hoping we could be together at the trip to Lawson Labs this friday. I'll be taking photos for the school paper, and, if you don't mind, I'd like you to tell me which ones will be the most interesting. Then I'll have to cover the football game too. It looks like I signed up for a full-time photojournalist job.
Uhm... Greg,right? Is that the script for the musical?"

He looks at their faces wondering if there's anything else he's forgetting about... then he notices Seth.

"Oh, hi. Sorry, yesterday I was little busy, with the photo and... well, I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Colin, Colin Crow."

He mechanically offers his hand, then he has a visible moment of hesitation, but it's too late to take it back. He kinda winces, though.

Seth's attention is diverted from his question to the newcomer. Hi...I'm Seth. Seth Mondsee. And with that he takes the newcomer's hand.

((OOC: Seth and Colin make Will Saves DC 16))

((Sarah make a Notice check DC 16, you have a bonus of +5 to the roll beyond your normal bonuses.))

OOC: Colin shakes hands with Seth, Will save (1d20+2=15) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=590311)

aie aie aie  Will Save for Colins (1d20-1=1) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=590313)

There is almost an electric spark that jumps between Colin and Seth as their hands touch.  An audible 'crack' can be heard and then both boys topple over backwards as though they were pushed onto the floor.

It takes a moment for your vision to clear and the sounds of the room to actually become audible again.

Seth's headache is gone, and the tension and ache in his neck which usually accompanies them has subsided also.

Colin has the feeling like he's been chewing on tin foil.

Sylvia so wasn't paying attention.  She's been half-asleep all day after cramming for a cruel, early exam in French class.  She lets Kel's inquiry about stories for the paper slide and listens in as he finds another conversation.

[OOC:  Sorry.  Forgot to put this thread on notify.]

Kel's jaw drops as he watches the two guys fall over, he then looks at Sylvia and says, "Syl, you see this?"  He then leans over whoever is closest and says, "Eh, You ok bud?"

Colin remains for a moment on the floor, a little dumbfounded. He feels around in search of his glasses, that landed a couple feet from him, and when he finds them, he takes a good look at his hand, as if he was reprimanding it.

What's wrong with you? Twice in two days?

As he gets up he tries to help Seth, covering his hands with his sleeves.

"Seth? Is it all right? Oh, man I'm so sorry."

When they are both safely on their chairs again he tucks his hands under his arms and says, to no one in particular, "Ok. I'm beginning to think there's something wrong with me."

Sylvia squeezes her eyes shut, rubs them, and looks again.  If Kel hadn't said anything, she might have attributed the incident between Colin and Seth to her lack of sleep.


"Sometimes I get shocked in malls when I wear my mules," Sylvia says, then tries to explain.  "I shuffle."

Sarah started to hand over her magazine to show Seth when Colin's greeting blasts the conversation out of the water.

Notice (1d20+9=16) (http://invisiblecastle.com/find.py?id=590392)

A fragment of a second before they touched hands you pulled back, almost as though you expected something to happen.

For a moment you saw a flash, like a strobe light and in the light you saw someone collapsing to the floor in a room you've never seen before and all the furniture sliding up aginast the wall, then it's gone and you see Colin and Seth and the lunchroom again.

"Did you see that?!  Did you??  That was amazing!"  Sarah is grinning from ear to ear looking around the table.  Her wildest dream, at least to a small part, has just come true.  She's experienced her first psychic event.   Full on kid in a candy store mode but a small little part of her is looking around the room to see if anyone else is having the same reaction she just had...

Like current in his head. Live wire. Sparks clearing away the brushfire. Oh god the pain it was beautiful, it was terrifing, it was a roaring wind across the plains, erosion tearing away everything in it's path...it was...over.

And then all of it was gone. The feeling like electricity throughout his body...the sharp increase in pain...his headache all gone.

Cough...."I'm ok. I'm fine. I'll get up on my own thanks."

He stands and checks his hand turning it around from back to front. He wondered if that was him...The flashes of power... the things that happened but couldn't. Sean knew he was special...but the last few months.  The last few months had held new wonders. But this. This didn't feel like that at all. Seth's abilities etiher felt like a tickling in the back of his mind, intimate and kind, or something dark and powerful. This thing came from the other kid. Colin? Colin. Maybe Colin was like him. Special. He needed to talk to him.

No. He was just jumping to conclusions. Static Electricity that was it.

"You must have shuffled across all the carpet in Chicago to make that kind of static electricty....Nice trick. I like pranks. Or is there a joybuzzer or something?"

Colin's puppy eyes look at Seth, then at his hands again.

"A... joybuzzer? No, nothing like that. That wouldn't shock me as well, would it? Beside, it didn't feel like static. I'm always getting shocked when I get out of my mom's car in winter, but this felt different. My hand and my arm don't tingle. And I don't shuffle. I come to school by bike, after the paper route. I don't understand."

He's saying this to no one in particular, or to his hands, you can't quite tell. He seems utterly confused, and more than a little lost. He hides his hands under his arms again, then he realizes he can't eat this way, so he reluctantly extends one to grab his sandwich.

T.J jumps from his seat as Colin and Seth fall to the floor. "Whoa, dude!" He helps them return to their seats and looks at them quizzicly. "Well, that was odd. Colin, you really need to stop shaking people's hands." He smiles nervously and then looks thoughtful. "That was freaky. Oh, and Colin I can't be with you on the trip to labs since I wasn't picked to go this time." He shrugs. "Sorry."

He then looks at Seth. "Wow, nothing that cool has happened near me since I tried to make my own pop drink. Shame it failed." He sighs and eats his last sandwhich.

Bruce walks into the cafeteria, a banana, Reese's Pieces and a Pepsi the only things on his tray.  He looks around for the group he smoked with yesterday, all of whom are absent.  Bruce figures they're outside smoking and decides against joining them after yesterday's incident.  Scanning the room, he stops momentarily when his sister Brandi waves him over to introduce him to her stupid band dork friends or whatever dumb club she's in now.  He stands there silently while introductions are made, acknowldeging each with a nod and a grunt.

Just when he opens his mouth in preparation for a rude comment, he spots the two kids who helped him outside the Tasty Dog yesterday.  Colin and...what was the girl's name?  Who cares, it has to be better than this.

He excuses himself with a nod and heads to the table, clearing his throat in hopes of getting Colin or Sarah's attention.  The group seems abuzz over something.

"Um, hey Colin," he says, managing a weak smile toward Sarah in order to avoid saying her name.  "Can I squeeze in here?"

Colin is still quite shaken, but he makes room for Bruce. He's glad to see that he feels better today.

"Bruce, these are Sylvia, Kel, T.J., Gretchen, Greg, Dave, Rob, Seth and you already know Sarah. Guys, ladies, this is Bruce."

He tries to find something to say in his usual friendly way, but can't find any.

"Bruce... I owe you some apologies. It was me, yesterday, not you. It... it just happened again. I made you sick, and now I nearly electrocuted Seth. What if it keeps getting worse? I... passed half the night on the net trying to find an explanation, but I found nothing and... I'm really really scared, and I don't know what to do."

He lets himself down on the table, covering his face with his arms.

Dave, Greg, Rob and Gretchen welcome Bruce as he takes a seat.

DAVE: "Yeah, apparently Colin has the power to make crazt shit happen, but only where people eat."

Gretchen reaches out and takes one of Colin's hands, "That's not true.  I'm sure it's just a coincidence, right guys?"  She looks back and forth between Bruce and Seth, "Just a totally random accident kind of thing."

"Sounds like a physics thing," Sylvia says.  "Maybe the guy with the death ray can help."

Gretchen looks at Sylvia, "You mean Kirby?  I haven't seen him all day.  And, it's not a Death Ray."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure that, if you shot someone with that, they'd be dead.  Ergo, death ray."

DAVE: "I thought he said he didn't know if it hurt people?"
GREG: "Dave, it cut a hole through cinder block.  If he shoots a jock in the head, it would kill him."

Kel nods to Bruce as he settles in at the crowded table and then Gretchen says Kirby hadn't been seen all day.  Kel raises an eyebrow, "All day?  Not at all?  Well he didn't seem very sick yesterday, and I highly doubt he'd leave if his death ray was just sitting around in the school.  Sure he's just not cooped up in one of the science labs?"

Sarah is just still dazzled by the event.  "Colin, I could probably find some stuff you could read about what might be going on.  I'll bring them in tomorrow... oh wait... the field trip.  Well afterschool tomorrow then.  Meantime... good luck finding Kirby." 

Colin by nature isn't prone to be depressed and mopeful for too long. It doesn't take much time for him to forget about himself and his problems, and start worrying about the others again. The girls' reassurances do the trick. He takes a red marker out of his bag, and draws some big red marks on his hands to remind himself it's not safe to touch others until he understands what's going on, then he wipes his eyes under his glasses, and moves on to the next problem. That is, Kirby's disappearance.

"Thanks Sarah, it means a lot to me. I look forward to it. Gretchen, you don't happen to have Kirby's cellphone number? I'd like to check up on him too... Kel, you may be right. He said he hid his project in the back of physics lab. Maybe he's there trying to fix it, and he forgot about lunch. Let's take a look, I don't feel like eating much anymore."

Kel nods, polishing off his lunch as Colin speaks.  He stands and says, "It shouldn't take very long, let's go."  He then walks off cracking his neck and stretching a bit as he goes.

"Uh, he doesn't carry one.  He got his taken away over summer.  If you guys are gonna check the physics lab I'll go ask at the office.  Check with Mr. Heep too, Kirby has him for a morning class I think."

Colin nods to Gretchen and follows Kel to the lab. Then he slaps his forehead and comes back for a moment.

"Sylvia, if you see again the guy we met yesterday, the one who was reading the comic book... can you tell him I have to tell him something? Thanks! See you later!".

((OOC: Gonna start a sub-thread for this so anyone that wants to continue lunchroom chat may do so.))

Sarah finishes her sandwhich and digs out a couple more cookies.  "Hope they find young Dr. Kirbystein.  Maybe he invented an invisibility ray?  So Dave, are things starting to get interesting enough?  Exploding handshakes, deathrays, forcefields, and disappearances and we haven't even gotten to Labor Day!  By winter intercession we'll be fighting off aliens in flying cars." 

Later in the day Sarah will try and check in with Seth, Colin, Bruce or Gretchen for the development of the mysterious disappearing Kirby. 

"Uh, okay," Sylvia says as Colin rushes off.  Like she's the comic book guy's best friend or something.

DAVE: "Eh, it's not as dull as it could be."
GREG (Laughing): "Right, like aliens would have flying cars.  they have teleporters Sarah, how many times do I have to tell you."

"No silly, we'll have the flying cars!"  responds Sarah.   "They'll be in saucers or dishes or cups or something."

GREG: "I refuse to do Ed Wood.  It's not gonna happen."  with that Greg finishes his milk and heads for the door.  "See you guys after school."
DAVE: "Yeah, we need to go home today, I have to go see the dentist.  So don't be late."
Greag waves his hand in acknoledgement of Dave's statement and is out the door.

ROB: "I have to go too, I need to get to class."

DAVE (waving as Rob leaves): "Yeah, I suppose I should go too.  See you after the last bell Sarah."

"Okay... see you later." calls Sarah.  The most amazing thing in the world and nobody wants to talk about it.  Half of them just laughed it off and now I'm sitting here at the biggest table in the room without any friends. 

She smiles politely to Sylvia across the table.  "I guess that about does it for lunch?"  She picks up her empty lunch sack and wanders out of the cafeteria towards her locker. 

((If we're done here I'm gonna close this.))

*nods*