A Friend in Need

[Lone Star]

Despite the circumstances in which he was returning to campus, Blake was still glad to be back on campus. Something about it was inspiring, and during his stay at the Claremont Academy, he had made many sketches of the courtyard and buildings. There was something beautiful about Claremont. They arrived at the administration building, and he saw Quo-Dis in her business suit. So I guess she'll be supervising my execution.

Excusing herself to talk to the boys for a moment, she said, "Mr. Summers is ready for you, Blake Salazar," she said seriously. Turning to Corbin, she said, a little more warmly, "He said it's better if you wait out here, Corbin."

Blake took a final look at the two of them, and slowly entered the office. Well, whatever happens here, at least it'll all be done with. If I can't stay at the school anymore, I'll look for an art academy I can spend a few years at. If I can stay, well, then I'll count my lucky stars and study like a maniac.

He opened the office door cautiously, as if expecting it to explode. Blake entered the office. "Mr. Summers?"

[KnightDisciple]

Corbin couldn't help but smile when he saw Quo-Dis. It just wasn't in his nature to deny something like that.

"<I can't decide if I like this outfit, or your hero costume better.>"

As she explained he had to stay outside, his smile faded a bit, before he turned to Blake and clapped him on the shoulder.

"One way or another, you'll be fine, Blake."

He watched his friend walk into the office, and sigh.

"<I hope I'm right...>"

[Avenger Assembled]

"Sit down, Mr. Salazar." Mr. Summers had been terrifying with such apparent little effort during Blake's tenure at Claremont, but now there was a look of real concern on the old man's face. He studied Blake silently for a moment, something in his eyes keeping the teenager from speaking as well. There was only the ticking of Summers' grandfather clock, the grim face of Edgar Allen Poe studying the teen from a bookshelf-mounted bust, and Summers himself, his face like a cigar store Indian. "Tell me what happened."

[Lone Star]

Blake's heart sunk like a ship as Summers looked at him for a moment. Oh God he's got The Look. When Summers asked him what happened, he took a deep breath, and let it go slowly. "The fact that I have my powers back is not deliberate, just to let you know ahead of time, sir. I would never have wanted to be whatever sort of thing I was before. Having regular mystic abilities was working out just fine for me." He paused for a moment, realizing he was digressing from Summer's original question. "So about three months ago, in July, the whole event with the Deep Ones rising up from the sea, and the armored madman making his big announcement on television, I was involved. Or, The Unspeakable One tried to get me involved. I had put on my costume to go down there and helped, and I got a massive headache. I felt the Unspeakable One's presence, and he was trying to empower me to use as living artillery. I couldn't let that happen, so I fought his presence in my mind, and won. The problem is, I still have my pseudonatural powers. And, that's where I am right now."

He hoped he had explained it succinctly enough. "Mr. Summers, I'm sorry I dropped out of Claremont. It was a really stupid decision, and looking back on it, it was the worst decision I've ever made. Now I'm homeless, without money, or a job. I need to get my life back together, sir."

[Avenger Assembled]

"Mr. Salazar," said Summers seriously, "You never left the school. Your records, your files, are all still here, and any investigators looking into your records will find that you have had average marks in all the classes you have in fact missed. Classes you will retake," he added firmly, "and that you will pass with flying colors before you graduate. While you are here, this school and the magical experts at my disposal will do everything in our power to allow you to master your abilities. Whatever their source. Do I make myself clear?"

[Lone Star]

Blake felt his heart thump in his chest, and he nearly rose from his seat proclaiming his joy. However, he realized he must look professional in front of the headmaster of Claremont, so he reserved his reaction to a smile. "Absolutely understood, sir. I'll hit those books like a heavyweight boxer. And sir?" He looked into Mr. Summers' eyes, and tried to give him a look that showed he was a responsible adult. "Thank you. You didn't have to let me back in, what with...my brief leave of absence. But I want you to know that I will do my very best to get my life back on track, sir."

[Avenger Assembled]

There was a lot to talk about after that; however, the headmaster's private office wasn't really the spot for a particularly intimate tete a tete. Though Summers had prepared the paperwork for Blake's 'return' ahead of time, he made sure the boy was aware of all of it, even following him out into the front office to make sure he was set up with all the forms he'd be signing to get back into his old room. With a nod to Corbin and Quo-Dis, Summers left Blake to the work, heading back into his office and closing the door with a snap.

[KnightDisciple]

Corbin smiled and walked forward, gently clapping Blake on the shoulder.

"Looks like you're good to go, buddy. Looks like you've got a bit of "homework" to do. Guess you'll be a few minutes? Um..."

He glanced at Quo-Dis, sending a thought over their link.

"<Hey darlin'. I'm gonna go to Jessica's place and talk to her about getting Blake's stuff before she dumps it out the top window or something. You've got work anyways, so not like we could enjoy the time right now. I know there's a bit of tension between you and Blake, but could you maybe keep an eye on him while I go play middle-man?>"

Corbin then turned to Blake, his expression serious.

"No time like the present for this. I'm going over to Jessica's. I'll arrange for your stuff to come to my house, and then we'll ship most of it here. We've got space for anything extra, okay? I promise we won't throw it in the shed, either."

[Lone Star]

Blake nodded, with a smile. "Yeah, man. Nothing beats filling out papers! Oh boy, so much fun." he said with a heaping portion of sarcasm. "But thanks, Corbin. I appreciate it, buddy. I'll do better this time around." He saluted to his best friend, and started to walk to the student's common area. From there, he would be able to procrastinate signing the papers for as long as he could, and talk to his old friends he hadn't seen in months. It was good to be back, and Blake had a cheery smile on his face. He turned to Corbin's girlfriend, and gave her a small salute as well. "Quo-Dis...s'up." Corbin was one of Blake's best friends, and he wouldn't say he didn't care for Quo-Dis, but the relationship between them had a dynamic that he figured he had better not ask about.

[KnightDisciple]

Corbin smiled and gave Blake one more encouraging pat on the back before he headed out to the lawn in front of the school's office. Then, in a flash of blue fire, he was clad in his Cobalt Templar outfit, and was quickly airborne.

"<Wish me luck, love. I'm hoping this goes smoothly.>"

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It was just a couple of minutes later that Corbin was landing on an exterior balcony to Jessica's large penthouse apartment. He calmly walked up to the nearby patio door and knocked on the frame, calling out in a loud and clear voice.

"Jessica? It's Corbin. We need to talk. I'm here by myself for the moment."

[Raveled]

Jessica Parker had gotten back to bed around one in the morning and slept through until her alarm woke her. Even then she debated skipping work or at least going in late, but that wasn't very professional; besides, they were testing the boundary conditions of eka-lead. Jessica had written some ideas on how to stabilize the element, and her time on the particle smasher was scheduled early. So she was up in her kitchen, dressed in a sensible slacks-vest combo, when the big man with the ring knocked on her outer door.

She did a quick scan with the security system and confirmed who it was, then let him in. She retreated to the kitchen and poured herself some coffee, then turned to face Corbin. She took a look drink of it, eying him over the rim of the mug, before speaking. "I'd offer you some," she said, "but doesn't class start pretty soon?"

[KnightDisciple]

As he walked in, the large teenager changed back into his civilian outfit, unconcerned with someone seeing. Jessica likely valued her privacy quite a bit. He gave her a slight smile.

"Between my size, metabolism, some of the effects of my ring, and the fact I got less sleep than I would have liked, I don't think a cup would hurt. If you don't mind, that is."

He grew serious, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I'm here to arrange for Blake's things to be moved out of your apartment in an orderly fashion. I have the name and number of a discrete moving firm that will come by and take it out of here, moving some to my parents' home for now, while the rest goes to Claremont, where I'm sure Blake will be living until he's finished school. I've come by to ensure this is an orderly process, and that there are no...misunderstandings about the disposition of these materials."

His tone was dispassionate, clinical even. It was telling that he seemed ambiguous on what sort of relationship Blake and Jessica might have in the future. Further, Jessica wouldn't be able to tell his thoughts one way or the other on the whole situation, at least not for the moment.

[Raveled]

Jessica turned and busied herself with the coffee machine; on closer inspection Corbin noticed that it was a single-serving machine and quite a bit more complicated-looking than most. The young genius went through the ritual of hot water, filter, and grounds smoothly, grabbing a mug and rinsing it out in the sink before sticking it under the spout. In a few minutes she handed a steamy cup of joe to the bigger teen, before retreating to her own mug. "I'm sorry I only have the macadamia roast on hand," she said in a tone that didn't sound anything like an apology. If Corbin dared it, he would find that the brew was a step above most store-bought grounds.

The two enjoyed their coffee in silence for a long moment before Jessica spoke again, her tone growing colder by degrees. "I have no problem with getting rid of Blake's things as soon as possible," she said. "Not that there's a lot. A couple cardboard boxes of clothes and all. I don't know if he ever even unpacked his art supplies." She cut herself off suddenly and looked to the side, inhaling sharply. "I do take some offense to the idea that I would try to keep or destroy any of it. I'm trying to be an adult about this whole... everything." She paused, and added in a rushed tone, "It's good to hear that he's going back to school, anyway."

[KnightDisciple]

"Free coffee is free, and I'm not the caffeine snob Trevor is."

He sipped in silence for a few moments, considering his words as Jessica spoke.

"I see. I'll leave the card with the number here.

And it's not like adults don't get...ideas...about these sorts of things sometimes. It's probably good you guys aren't rooming together for a bit anyways. I kind of thought it was sudden, myself."

He looked at her, his eyes unreadable.

"For what it's worth, he only told me earlier in the day. I advised him to tell you ASAP, though I didn't expect a, ah, "midnight revelation". His heart's in the right place. Blake just...I think he gets hyper-focused sometimes. He got caught up in being a super-cool mystic...it felt like he'd practically ditched being a student, or a teen, or even my friend to a degree. Not saying I just want him living in my house, but...Maybe in a week or two, you and he can sit down. Talk about things with cool heads. That'll give you time to re-settle around here, and him time to get his behind situated at school. With Summers watching him like a hawk."

There was a ghost of a smile showing as he took another sip.

"He's got a thick skull, but it's part of his charm. Not telling you what to do. Just suggesting. I think Quo-Dis was even more up in arms about it than you..."

He frowned slightly at the last sentence.

[Raveled]

Jessica's mouth pressed into a thin line and she shook her head. "I don't know if that's possible, Corbin. I don't even know what to say about Blake. I was worried when he told me that he dropped out of Claremont, but okay. He was starting his own business -- lots of people do that! Most don't drop out of high school to do it, but fine. Corbin, I thought we serious. I thought we might be... I don't even know anymore. So I asked him to move in." She ran a hand through her hair, breathing deeply. "And then it all stopped. He let the ghost-hunting business fall apart. He went out patrolling, alright, but he didn't seem to be doing anything else." She shook her head again, more sharply. "I... I don't know how I feel about him, Corbin. But I don't think I'm going to want to see him again for a few days, at least." She rubbed at a finger, and for the first time Corbin noticed a thin tan line, like a ring that had been removed.

[KnightDisciple]

Corbin noticed the line, and barely managed to keep from blanching. The slight frown that tugged at his face was likely visible, though. He whispered in Hebrew under his breath.

"~Blake you idiot, I should kick your rear end halfway to California.~"

He sighed and ran a hand through his own hair.

"No, that's a fair request. I would probably have kept him busy and away anyways, for a little while. How about...how about you communicate to me when you're ready to speak with him. I'm already playing guest and go-between now; a while longer won't hurt me.

For what it's worth, I'm sorry if I inadvertently helped him along the path to...ending up where he is now. And I promise you, no matter what, I'll do everything I can to try and help him get back on track with his life. I...I think it's about all I can do for him."