Nicotine. {Open}

[Aiden Clarke]

A pack of cigarettes never went very far with Aiden, especially when he was in one of his moods. And Aiden always seemed to be in one of those, and today was no exception. Of course, having to attend a literature class that everyone else was required to do as well was not due cause for any sort of mood, bad or otherwise, but Aiden was never one to give in to the trivialities of rationale. In fact, instead of being rational and attending class today, he had ditched in favor of lying on this cold, hard, rusty bench and smoking his life away.

Smoking his life away was what he did best.

Letting his cigarette hand drop from his mouth to dangle over the side of the bench, he breathed the smoke out of his nostrils in one thin, opaque stream of white. Nothing was ever as satisfying as the burning stench of tobacco smoke as it raced out of his body. He'd come to live for the sting it left, the heat and dryness he felt in his throat, the need for something, usually alcohol, to wash it all away.

With a sigh, he brought his hand back up, settling the cigarette between his lips and inhaling deeply. If anyone so chose to interrupt him in his peaceful day of hooky, he would give them a very loud piece of his mind. Of course, people tended not to interrupt him when he was doing things--being huge was a very good asset when trying to be intimidating.

As he inhaled, he noticed the butt of the cigarette reaching his fingertips. Silently cursing, he finished it off and pulled out his pack, already half gone, and lighter. He was determined, however, to wait at least two minutes before lighting up again, since this was his last pack and he couldn't get any more until..well, until he stopped being lazy and got off his ass to do so. Which, really, could be a very long time, though the want of nicotine drove people to do some very uncharacteristic things.

He made it through forty-five seconds before he couldn't take the silence and stillness and yanked another cigarette out of the carton, stuffing it between his lips and flicking his lighter to a flame. Rather than exuding the effort it would take the lean his face toward the lighter, he brought his hand toward his mouth, exercising [what he hoped was] his good depth perception. Once lit, a trail of smoke flew out of the tip, spiraling upwards in a white cloud.

And Aiden just watched, letting everything else but the cigarette pass by.

[Raine Abney]

A girl was entitled to one day off right? Well that is what Raine thought, she wanted to play hooky. She knew that if her father ever found out she would be pissed. She could live with that. It was her goal while here, piss him off to no end. He forced her to go here, even though she liked it here, she didn't want to stay.

She went outside to get some air. Air was good for the body, freshish air anyway. Wit hall the students she say smoking she gave up on trying to avoid it. Some of her friends were heavy smokers, mostly guys. She just went wit hit. She had never tried to smoke and didn't plan on it, she was sure she wouldn't like the taste in her mouth.

Speaking of smoking she saw a cloud of white coming from a bench. It was from a guy she didn't know at all. From the looks of it he was tall and in her mind down right sexy. But she was a sucker for blonds and tall guys. He was smoking so she didn't want to bother the boy but her curiosity on the boy was going to get her eventually. It always did. But for now she was safe with watching him smoke.

She really wasn't watching the boy now, but the smoke coming off the end of the cigarette. It would spiral in a white line. She could bet that if you touched it it would curl around your finger then vanish. She gave a faint grin at her though but soon it faded away along with the thought. She just watched the smoke come from it.

[Logan Fairfax]

Wearing this with the jacket and laptop bag slung over her shoulder. She’s also wearing a grey eye patch

“I will kill them all….” Logan muttered to herself as she wandered down the corridor. A passing student looked her way and Logan glared at him. “I’LL KILL THEM ALL!” she shouted as the student ran for his life. Logan was, of course, talking about the group of students who thought it would be funny to kill then camp her Blood Elf Priestess. To top it all off, her guild was doing a raid at the time, so no one could come help her. She had been trying to get back to town for the last half hour to no avail. Finally, she threw up her hands in defeat, logged off WoW, and packed her laptop. Logan needed a cigarette. Or a drink. Or a cigarette and a drink.

She stepped outside and made a beeline for her favorite, thankfully unoccupied, bench. Thanks to the architecture of Somnium, it was hard to get a wireless signal when not within the building. There were three benches around the courtyard that the signal just barely reached. Laptop out and powered on, Logan opened the front pocket of her backpack. She withdrew a lighter and…an empty pack of cigarettes. Logan tilted her head, as if looking at the pack from a different angle would make cigarettes magically appear within. She shook the pack, which did not magically fill. Logan closed her eye, tilted her head back, and swore very loudly. The vulgarity echoed around the courtyard before being dissipated by the wind.

Now becoming slightly desperate, Logan sat forward and scanned around. No one appeared to be in the vicinity. Logan swore again, quickly packing her laptop up. She stood and began to explore the courtyard. Classes were supposed to be in session, but there had to be some delinquent or delinquents skipping class to bum a smoke, right? This was the equivalent to a high school after all. Five minutes later, Logan spotted a cloud of smoke rising from a bench. Success! It was nice to know that high school students were the same generally no matter what country you were in.

Logan paused, taking a moment to compose herself. There appeared to be two students near the bench and she didn’t recognize either. The smoker looked like he was a 12th or 13th year. Logan wasn’t sure about the girl hovering behind him. Logan put on her best 'I'm a teacher, fear me' face and raised her voice. “Shouldn’t you and your stalker girlfriend be in class or something now?” Logan approached the bench where Aiden was lounging. “And you shouldn’t be smoking. Those things will kill you.”

Civic duty complete, Logan’s eye zipped around the courtyard looking for any other students or staff. When she got within a couple steps of Aiden, she lowered her voice and said, “I’ll trade you two pounds or a shot of whiskey for a cigarette. That’s all I’ve got on me…And no, this isn’t a bust.” Mentally, Logan sighed. Maybe Iris was right, maybe she should quit smoking once and for all. It would save her from having to bum cigs off students; which she was pretty sure was against some Somnium rule and the Headmaster would not approve of.




(( Mind if I join? ))

[Aiden Clarke]

Aiden was not a particularly observant fellow, nor was he too quick to catch onto things, so he would probably never have noticed the girl watching him had he been left to his own devices. Besides, girls watched him all the time [obviously], so there would have been no need to notice this particular girl any more than he'd have noticed any other.

He had no choice, however, but to notice the fact that there was a teacher looming over him and, while she only had one eye, he was certain that she could see everything that was going on, aka his class skipping for his nicotine fix. This, however, did not really worry him so much, since it wasn't like he was any stranger to getting in trouble or at least to getting spoken to. Really, all the presence of the teacher did was cause him to lay his cigarette arm down flat on the bench, letting the smoke run sideways instead of into his lungs.

"She's not my girlfriend," he growled, ignoring the general teacher-tone of the statement. Aiden Clarke was not to be bullied by adult supervision and he certainly was not about to have people going around and thinking that he decided to date creepy twats like that one. Or anyone, for that matter, but really, this was the more pressing issue at hand. "And thanks for the warning, Blackb--." The jab, however, died in his throat as the teacher continued to speak, saying things that he couldn't quite decide the connotations of. He sat up straighter, giving her a considering look.

On one hand, he could get a shot of whiskey, which was always welcome and, given the current circumstances in which he was apparently being stalked, he wouldn't really have minded lubricating his life with a little alcohol. On the other hand, however, that would involve giving up one of his cigarettes, of which he had precious little. The two pounds didn't even factor into this equation--Aiden had more money than he knew what to do with. Hmmmm.

Well, there was always the possibility that, were he not to hand over one cigarette, she would turn into crazy bitch teacher and take the whole pack by force, which he was far more opposed to. With a sigh, he pulled a brand new cigarette from his quickly dwindling carton and brandished it at her.

"I want the whiskey," he said, glowering in as forceful a way he could manage. Keeping the cigarette pointed in her direction, he turned to glance at his "stalker girlfriend." "And who the fuck are you, GI Jane?"

[Raine Abney]

Raine took one long look at the teacher that had just come in. Computer bag, suit, eye patch, Raine automatically knew who it was. She had hared a few talking about her. She was the computer teacher. So far Raine wasn't liking her at all. One she wasn't stalking him, two she wasn't his girlfriend, and three she had just stopped the boy from smoking so the white cloud she was watching disappeared.

She watched what was going on and gave a long sigh. She had swiped one pack off one of her friends to get him to stop smoking so she had that as a bribe. It was in her bag. The friend however unhappy with her did quit smoking like a train and is now on raisins. It worked, she could hug him without gagging now.

When the boy turned is head to her and asked who she was she was a little taken back. Before answering she stepped towards the bench. "Try asking that nicer," she smiled, "or the next time you do you will be on the ground crying." She moved closer to the bench one more and went around it. "But I'm Raine and you are?"

She gave a look to the teacher and flashed a sweet smile. "I wasn't watching him but the smoke cloud coming from cigarette." She turned back to the boy and pulled her bag up to where she could get the pack out. She figured he would have more use for them then she did. One the pack was out she tossed it in his lap. "I figure you could use those."

[Logan Fairfax]

Logan caught the first half of Aiden’s insult but let it slide. Barely. She did decide to take the entire pack by force if he didn’t offer to share. Pirate jokes were a good way to get onto Logan’s bad side. When Aiden finally made up his mind and offered a cigarette, Logan gave a mental sigh of relief. She accepted the cigarette, instantly reaching into her backpack.

“Move over.” Logan kicked the bench leg. Without waiting for Aiden to move, Logan perched on the edge of the bench. “And watch your mouth.” She lit up and took a deep drag on the cigarette. Logan closed her eye, concentrating on the taste. She held her breath for almost a minute, letting the smoke absorb into her lungs. She let a quick breath out and took another, smaller drag, this time blowing the smoke out her mouth in a long stream. It was amazing how potentially deadly things could make one’s day so much better.

Logan snapped herself back to reality with a sigh. She opened her eye, returning her attention to Raine and Aiden. They seemed to be having some kind of tiff, which was almost cute. Logan raised an eyebrow when Raine produced the pack of cigarettes. She hadn’t struck Logan as a smoker. Pity she had thrown the pack to Aiden and not her…

Logan reached into her bag, withdrawing a small flask. She held it up for Aiden to see. “A deal’s a deal.” she shook the flask gently. “What’s the whole flask worth to you?” Logan raised an eyebrow, giving Aiden a curious smile. She placed the flask onto the bench between the two of them and turned her attention to Raine. Logan figured Aiden may need a moment or two to ponder.

“Hi Raine. Sorry about the stalker crack.” Logan blew some smoke out the side of her mouth, away from Raine. “Lousy day. Getting better though.” Logan blinked a couple times, giving Raine a quick once over. “Really think you can take him?” Logan gestured towards Aiden, leaving a trail of smoke in the air behind her hand.

[Aiden Clarke]

If Aiden had been the type to roar with laughter, he most certainly would have at the nerve of this girl. As it was, at her suggestion that he be nicer, he gave a sort of derision and placed the cigarette to his lips, inhaling deeply. Before answering, he took the time to slowly blow the smoke out toward her face in one thick stream of white. When it cleared, he wasn't smiling, even in disdain.

"I don't care what your name is," he informed her in a low growl, pointing the cigarette in her direction. "And I'm not gonna be nice to you just because you've got tits." He put the cigarette back in his mouth, glowering for all he was worth. Which really, was not an uncommon occurence, considering Aiden had the tendency to glower and scowl even when he was perfectly happy. "And newsflash, Jane. If you tried to floor me, you wouldn't get very far." Aiden Clarke was not a womanbeater, but that was not to say that he was completely opposed to hitting girls. If he was attacked, he would fight back.

Had she not been annoying him, he probably would have acknowledged the fact that she had dropped some cigarettes onto his lap, other than to just close his fist tightly around them. Her answer was stupid--why on earth was she watching his freaking smoke?--so she obviously wasn't worth his time or his responses. This teacher, on the other hand, was saying some pretty nice things, if he did say so himself and so, ignoring GI Jane, he turned his attention back to her.

"The whole flask?" he repeated, making sure that he had heard right. He was, after all, not the most observant or bright of people and occasionally, he did realize this. Besides that, he sort of had a one track mind and the fact that she had mentioned alcohol before had put him on that path.

"Can you even do that?" Not that the question mattered, but the more he continued to growl things out, the longer he had to think about this offer. And it was truly something to think about, since free whisky wasn't something he came across every day, especially on the same day that a . "Whatever," he finally said, waving his cigarette nonchalantly. "I'll give you half the pack." That should be fair, right? Right.

[Raine Abney]

She rolled her eyes at the boy. Smart ass type, wonderful she had come across someone like that. He however wasn't the first to treat her like this, no he was in the line of many. She was short and didn't look like she could hurt a fly but you would have to tell that to the boy she shoved in the closet the other day. She had also tied him up too, and he was taller by about a foot.

He blew smoke in her face but no emotion crossed her face. She would deck him later. Waving her hand to get the remain of the smoke out of her face she smiled. "You have smokers lungs I don't," she started but then took the time to pause with the teacher there. "And I'm a black belt so getting you on your back wouldn't be hard. And seeing as you smoke I could last a little longer then you."

She turned to face the teacher now sitting on the bench. "That is in no offence to you," she shrugged. "But I could take him if I had to." She moved to where her wait was on one leg while the other rested. She looked at both of them now. "Oh and boy sorry about me being a art student and being able to use my imagination. At least I use mine in a area that doesn't involve undressing people."

[Logan Fairfax]

Half a pack for one flask of booze seemed like a good deal to Logan. She waved her cigarette in the air, indicating the flask. “Do what? I found this flask, for all I know its yours. You’re just a nice guy, so you’re giving me a reward for finding it.” Logan gave Aiden a rather pointed look out of the corner of her eye. The boy didn’t striker her as particularly bright. She hoped the look conveyed a general sense of “No, I’m not allowed to give you alcohol in exchange for cigarettes you moron. If we get caught I’m going to catch six different kinds of hell, which will then be transferred to you.”

Logan tapped the bench next to the flask. “Cigarettes first, boy. Then its all yours.” She watched the boy for a moment. Nicotine fix abated for the time, Logan’s mind switched into information gathering mode. Without being obvious, she sized Aiden up, drawing conclusions from his posture, attitude, and speech. Anger issues, probably impulsive, standoffish, probably loyal if you managed to scratch beneath the…thick exterior. His dream form was probably a shadow or an exact copy of himself; something unimaginative like that.

Logan shifted her focus back to Raine, giving the girl a quick once over. She wasn’t that bad looking, perhaps a little plain, not necessarily in a bad way. She seemed to be aware of it though, and at least didn’t draw attention to it. Logan gave her a point for that. Artsy, probably likes to spend time alone, keeps her mind to herself, probably has a lot of guy friends. Chances are, her dream from was an elf, sprite, or some nature themed being like the Headmaster’s.

“No offence taken.” Logan replied when Raine spoke to her. “I know perfectly well what these are doing to my body.” she took another drag, letting the smoke out in a slow stream. “All the more reason to become cybernetic.” Logan gave the girl a sly smile. “And undressing someone with your imagination is an art. There are so many different types of bodies.”

Logan held the cigarette away from her mouth. She held it in a line with Raine’s head. “I find its easiest to start with the hair.” Logan waved the cigarette, using it like a laser pointer. She began moving it slowly down Raine’s body, outlining various areas. She traced Raine’s frame, adding or removing articles of clothing, “Next you have to decide what level of undress you’d like: full, tease, partial, classy. Angles, lighting…” Logan continued moving the imaginary pen down Raine’s body. “…color, shape, perhaps you’d like to include a tattoo or embellish a little.” Logan drew a circle around her imaginary Raine drawing. “See?”