The Caretaker's Ballad {Open!}

Tobias Williams was the sort of man one would see trudging along the rain swept moors. He was tall, dark and, with a mop of wild Heathcliff hair, wickedly handsome though not in the since that agencies would be jumping to plaster him across their magazines. He wore faded jeans, with a hole in the knee, forest green sneakers and a black tank-top under his khaki work shirt. He caried himself with a quiet confidence and a sort of desperation as was the Irish way.

He lit a cigarette and cranked up the volume on his old walkman as he set to work cleaning up vomit, his least favourite task in the universe (next to his monthly change), but taking the task of caretaker at a school was a low profile and that was what he needed.

He breathed through his mouth as he cleaned up the nasty pink and green sludge as it slowly trickled along the floor like a snake of sick and he quietly sang along with the radio, "hello daddy...hello mum... I'm your ch-ch-ch-cherry bomb," just loudly enough that a passerby might catch the classic Runaways tune.

Tobias dunked the mop head into its bucket and wondered why, no matter what the person ate, vomit always contained carrots or peas. After the sick was cleaned, he sprayed a heavy odor eliminator that reminded him of the smell of old candies found at the bottom of purses that grandmothers offered their grandchildren.

He stretched when finished and his back gave a series of happy pops, and he tapped the ashes of his Woodbine into the mop bucket as his pale blue eyes scanned the entrance hall for any other residue he should pick up while there. Seeing no further need of the mop, Tobias began to push the mop and bucket to the closet at the end of the hall with a sigh.

Nikolai wandered into the hallway, feeling a bit peckish for the first time in a couple weeks. He wondered if there would be students in the cafeteria this time. If so, he would have to eat in the kitchens again. Not that he minded. Less likely to have people staring at him and his strange eating habits.

The grass stains on the legs of his jumpsuit and the mingled grass blades and dirt clinging to his boots indicated that he had already been working outside. Indeed, he had started mowing and pruning in the rose garden this morning. Later he needed to go to the greenhouse to do some more work.

He heard Tobias before he saw the man. His pupils dilated with interest and he greeted the other man with a friendly, "Good morning." His sensitive nose wrinkled at the scent of vomit masked by the industrial-strength deodorizer that the school always had in stock. This place developed more messes than the average school.

Nikolai was glad he no longer did inside work. Buildings made him feel uneasy. Not like caves with lots of little hidey-holes for his hoard. Once he had been made aware that there was another janitor, he had moved all of his loot to a secret place out in the woods. His inner dragon didn't like the idea that there would be somebody else with access to the closet he'd hidden it in previously.

He approached the Tobias (he could tell the other man was not all-human, but he was still in the stages of figuring out what the other man was, exactly) and commented, "I'm surprised that the teachers allow you to smoke inside the building."

Zeke trudged out into the entrance hall as though he were in a trance. Sleep did not come easily after the events that had occurred in the Otherside. He had currently come from music that tended to sooth his body and allow him to return to his normal self. After all, Zeke had let loose a side he showed no other than those who would not desert him.

He slumped against a wall in the hall, hardly acknowledging that there other people in the hall. The Butterfly Waltz continued to run through his mind from earlier that morning. The sunlight shining brightly into the hall soon came upon Zeke's face causing his to shield his eyes.

"Wha... What's happening...?" Zeke asked no one in particular. He had changed from his zombie-like self to his usual attentive personality that most people knew him by. It was then that he heard the two other men exchange greetings followed by the foul smell of industrial strength... something, which filled the entire hall chasing away various students.

One thing that stood out to Zeke was the fairly odd appearance of Tobias, someone who was fairly new to Foresta and had acquired a job as janitor. "Good morning to you both." He quickly waved a cloud of smoke from his face as his bright, keen eyes scanned each and every detail regardless of how minute it would be. "You missed a spot there." He observed, glancing at Nikolai before pointing out a nefarious spot of what Zeke hoped was vomit hiding away in the corner.

Tobias had jumped when Nikolai spoke. "Jazus and the Twelve," he spat out, sliding off the headphone so that they rested around his neck. "Morning anyway," he said, his ice chipped eyes glancing behind Nikolai to see if any mud had been dragged in. Tobias sniffed, mentally gagging on the bag-lady-candy-vomit-odor and picked up the strong reptilian scent that came with Nikolai, but he didn't look much further into it.

He shrugged at the comment on his smoking and searched his pockets saying, as if addressing himself out loud, "Where is that rat's ass I was meant to give?" It was a light hearted comment not meant to offend and he added a decidedly wicked grin afterword. "Honestly I didn't know I couldn't," he continued. Tobias pinched off the cigarette and placed it behind his ear.

He nodded at Zeke politely when he had approached and when Zeke waved away the nicotine cloud, Tobias spritzed the air with the odor eliminator. "Better?" he asked noticing that he was starting out his early afternoon with a biting attitude. He rolled his eyes angry with himself for over looked the corner. Fantastic. At least he hadn't washed out the mop yet.

Tobias quickly cleaned up the remaining mystery peas and carrots then shoved the bucket and mop back into the closet, sloshing the dirty water down the drain and righting the mop so its head wouldn't mold.

Nikolai had not meant to halt Tobias's smoking. Indeed, he was definitely not one to scorn the smoking habits of other people when smoke typically poured from his nostrils and mouth when he was angry. Heck, he liked the smell (and rightly so, being a dragon and whatnot.) "I wasn't going to mention it to them, you know. I do not care if you smoke or not. Just don't let the learned people of this institution catch you."

His face took on a confused cast. "You found vermin in the building?" He waved his arms in alarm. "Do not give me any body parts, please. Not my job." Funny actually. He had not smelled any rat's asses.... Perhaps this chemical scent was overpowering that of the rodents.

He gave the student a cursory glance. He was sure he had seen the boy before, but he could not recall the circumstances. He nodded his greeting, his curiosity piqued by the boy's strange coloring. "Hello." He had noticed the boy's entrance... but had kept his attention low-key. The boy's behavior was something to wonder about. At first he had seemed... well, not all-the-way-here. And now, he seemed very aware of what was going on. Nikolai told himself that asking would be rude, but he couldn't help himself. "Are you alright?"

Zeke coughed quite strongly as Tobias sprayed the air in front of him because of his actions. The man seemed to be in a very unfriendly mood this morning, whether it be because of the time or his two unexpected guests he didn't know. Glancing at Nikolai, he realized why he had looked familiar to Zeke.

A flood of memories filled his mind of the night filled with insanity, a night where he had fought a dragon! The dragon had been the janitor but at the time he had no idea. "I'm alright. I could ask you the very same question. No out of control transformations lately?" Zeke smiled to show that he meant no offense, that he was merely poking fun.

He now realized how rude he had been to his new acquaintance and turned to Tobias in order to apologize. "Forgive me. I didn't mean for it to come out that way. I'm Zeke, by the way." Zeke stepped closer, holding out his hand and a smile on his face. What would happen to the school were it not for the janitors? As this was not your average school, the messes that were made were really spectacular.

The stench of whatever was put on the ground began to become stronger, if that was even possible, from smelling it for so long whether the wanted to or not. Zeke wondered how long he could remain there. "Is this stuff getting stronger or is that just me? I feel as though it's going to burn right through the ground."

Tobias smirked at Nikolai’s misunderstanding of his comment but he let it well alone. He turned off his walkman as it switched from The Runaway’s to a song he didn’t prefer, which was just as well as it was getting distracting with so many noises. He ran his hand through his hair, scratching the nape of his neck. He kept to breathing through his mouth until the nasty layered odors would settle and depart. Tobias took the last of his cigarette and relit it deciding he really wanted to finish it off.

At first he thought Zeke had been talking to him about uncontrolled shifts and it made him nervous. Tobias hadn’t shifted while at the school, but that would change before the week was out and that’s why his nerves were a bit raw, but the tension eased in his muscles when he realized that Zeke was talking to Nikolai. Tobias couldn’t help but feel a little nosey as he sniffed the air again. He had assumed that Nikolai was a type of skin walker, but those were always in control of their animal.

He shook Zeke’s hand when it was offered to him and added, “Didn’t think you were being rude.” Tobias hadn’t spoken directly to many students but Zeke seemed pleasant enough, if in want of a good nap. Tobias took out his crumpled pack of Wild Woodbines and lit a new cigarette with the butt of his old. “What’s the news?” he asked them both, tilting away enough so that they weren’t swamped with a cloud of smoke.

Oh dear. This boy had been present for that utterly embarrassing episode back during the winter. Although he sort of recognized the boy, the week before that night was gone. All he remembered now was finding himself back in the Otherside... place and apologizing for going after this boy.

He was sure there had been fighting in the Otherside as well, but that was particularly hazy. He blinked. "You... said you would spar with me." He saw the boy's smile and shrugged, finally answering the question. "The impulse comes rarely on its own. If not pushed, I should not need to for another cen- a while." He'd barely managed to catch himself there- saying 'century' would indicate just how old he was. He cautioned himself not to say anything else to this boy regarding his power.

He chuckled a little at the boy's comment about the chemical. "This old place can withstand the deodorizer. You, however, might not." The were-dragon turned to Tobias. "Have you eaten yet? I was on my way to the cafeteria. Perhaps we should let this place air out a bit before congregating in it." He remembered his manners and commented to Zeke, "You're welcome to join us, of course."

As much as he didn't like to eat with others, it was only polite to invite them. Besides, he wanted to get a better idea of who this Tobias person was. Nikolai's interest was captured and he now wanted to figure out what Tobias was. He felt confident he could figure it out in time. In the meantime, he could just... eat a little now and fill up later, when he was alone.

As he said his little comment, Zeke could tell that Nikolai began to get embarrassed about their little episode in the forest. It had been the most fun he had ever had so far and felt that the janitor had no need to apologize for letting him have something to do. It had been the first real excitement since he had first arrived at Foresta.

The details on the fight from the Otherside were hazy at best, but Zeke knew that they had traversed there with help in order to limit the damage done at the time. He snapped his fingers as the memory of requesting to spar with the strange man returned. It was very slight, but he noticed that Tobias tensed at the mention of transformations and wondered whether he also would have trouble keeping his mostly human form.

Zeke was glad that Tobias had not taken his comments the wrong way. There have been times when people misunderstood him and did something foolish. He could not help but make a face as the cigarette was relit. "Oh well, what can I do?" He quietly muttered under his breath so that only he could hear.


"That's not very comforting." Zeke replied, a playful look of fear on his face. His stomach then growled quite loudly at the mention of food. "I think I'll take you up on that offer and we can also inform Tobias here about what's been happening." He was only to happy to leave the entrance hall and escape from the horrid smell that he felt was burning through his nostrils.

“Yeah, alright so,” said Tobias shoving his hands in his pockets. He wasn’t very hungry but it was difficult to breathe and thought of no better way to avoid the smell. He wondered though how much vomit he would be cleaning up or if it was a rare offence. Mostly he had spent his days cleaning off bits of graffiti and supplying urinal cakes for the men’s room.

He had listened to the exchange between Zeke and Nikolai with slight interest but wasn’t about to pry. They were quite friendly toward one another and he hoped most the people here were equally pleasant. He had already met one who managed to get under his skin in less than five minutes. Still, what was this school if not a well decorated sanctuary for the bastards of society? Nobody had to like each other but at least they could understand all the sufferings between them…right?

“What sort of things do I need to be updated on?” asked Tobias, removing his cigarette briefly. “That is to say, I’m not so keen on learning about who’s dating who or whatever the gossip is.”

Nikolai nodded and began to lead the way to the cafeteria. His own stomach rumbled slightly, but he wasn't going to starve anytime soon. Tobias's question gave him pause. Was there anything going on at the moment?

"Nothing yet. Something will come up, I assure you. This place is never quiet for longer than a month before a crisis pops up." Nikolai sometimes could feel the trouble coming. The animals in the forest behaved funny if it was magical in nature and the behavior of some of the students sometimes changed. Detached as he tended to feel with these people, his perspective often yielded unique insights. He grimaced, "The other thing you speak of happens too often for it to be anything special."

And that was true. Young couples getting together and breaking up- it would be exhausting to keep track of even if he did know all of the students and teachers. In his life, it never paid to try to meet everybody because in the blink of a scaly eye, they were all dead and long gone.

As he put space between himself and the chemical, his sense of smell began to return. Still, he refrained from scenting the air to figure out what type of Other Tobias was. He did catch a whiff of the cafeteria food, though, and the tang of bacon made his mouth water.

Zeke's mind was on the food that would soon be in his stomach but kept an ear to the others so as not to be rude when caught not listening. "He's right. Something is always happening here whether it be big or small. I have a feeling that something BIG is going to happen soon though." He could not tell by seeing things in the future or by listening to the world around him. It was merely a "feeling in my bones" kind of of telling when something was coming.

"Bah. I try not to listen to gossip about things like that. They're not of any use to me. That's not to say that you don't learn things if you do occasionally." People got together on and off as long as they were living in Foresta. Over half the population at the school hardly did anything more than gossip. Those that didn't were the ones where it payed listen to the things they say.

They further they got from the smell of the chemicals, the better Zeke felt and the more he wanted to a taste of the smells that were wafting towards them. "I don't know how you two feel, but I'm starving! And I'm sure we can cause some trouble of our own if you'd like." Zeke smiled, half joking but also wanting to stir up some excitement in Foresta.

Tobias shrugged but said nothing. His stomach growled but he was in no mood to eat. He had lost track of the conversation because he had drifted off and started thinking about the end of the week when he would turn and he hadn't been able to have a chance to find any place suitable to shift.

Although he was surrounded by others with gifts and powers beyond human imagination, Tobias kept his wolfishness a secret still. It was like an illness and people never went around sharing with near strangers that they had cancer in a way of greeting. He finished out his cigarette with a long pull and put the butt in the Altoid tin he carried in his back pocket.

He caught the last bit of what Zeke had said and a waspish smile tugged at his mouth. Oh he would most definitely cause trouble. One way or another someone would see or worse get caught in the line of fire. "So, what sort of things then? If I'm needing to be updated?" Tobias asked in regards to Zeke's earlier comment. He tried to keep the worry from showing on his face.

Nikolai shrugged and told Zeke in all seriousness, "We're certainly due for a bit of trouble. I don't think we need to go seeking it, though." He was unsure of the idea of causing trouble.

Since he was looking over his shoulder at the boy, he didn't see the petite woman angling to open the same door he had wanted to open. They collided and she had to snatch at the book she was reading in order for it not to fall to the floor.

Nikolai frowned until he realized who it was he had run into. "Ah, Caroline. I apologize, I was not watching where I was going."

The woman grinned at him and noted, "I'm equally at fault. No worries." The grin faded and she sniffed the air. "Are you close to Turning again? I smell smoke."

Nikolai's nostrils flared, but he resisted the urge to cast a glance at Tobias. "Ahhh, no. I burned some brush I cleared from the gardens. The smell is in my clothing." The lie was delivered with ease. Nikolai was very good at lying. He changed the subject by adding, "This is Tobias, the new caretaker. And Zeke, a student. You may have met him already."

Caroline's eyebrow rose, but she shifted her weight to peer around Nikolai to look at the man he was introducing. As was to be expected from Foresta, he was attractive, but also probably dangerous. If she didn't know any better, this place could have been a modeling school for mentally unstable Gifteds. There were some exceptions, of course, but the majority of the people she had met had some kind of baggage. "Nice to meet you," she said briskly. "And... Zeke, was it? No, I don't think I've met you."

Nikolai opened the cafeteria door and a wave of delicious scents came rolling out. His mouth watered and that moisture quickly turned to steam, which started to drift out of his nostrils. He winced and tried to get a hold of his hunger before he actually did start smoking.

Zeke nodded at Nikolai's wise advise about not looking for trouble and that it would eventually come to them. "True enough, but it can't come soon enough for me. I miss the excitement around here."

Even though he had said that there were things Tobias needed to be informed of, Zeke could not remember a single event other than the Otherside and Nikolai's unfortunate transformation. "Uh... About that, it looks like I can't remember what happened exactly." He waved away the look of apprehension on Tobias' face. "Nothing to worry about. Personally, I think it's a lot of fun."

Turning back to the door, Zeke hardly had a moment's notice to comprehend the woman walking towards the door before their imminent crash. "Niko! ...lai..." He ended, realizing that he had been to late to prevent it.

Not knowing who this mysterious woman was, he back away and did his best to hide behind Nikolai. "I don't suppose you know who this woman is?" Zeke whispered to Tobias, not wanting to be rude but at the same time not wanting to disturb their conversation.

He had hardly noticed that Nikolai had introduced both of them and attempted to cover up what could have been interpreted as rude behavior. "Correct. It's understandable that we haven't met as this is a big school and I haven't even met a third of the school yet."