Mellissa
The sun was bright, the sky was blue, and Cody wished it wasn't. A 5 hour drive to the airport, a 2 hour wait at the airport, followed by an all-night-and-most-of-the-day flight and *Another* Long drive to this crazy superpower boarding school had left him absolutely, totally wiped. At this point, he was pretty sure he could just fall asleep right where he was standing. 

That's not to say he was in a bad mood, though. He wished he had gotten some caffeine earlier, so that now he might have enough energy to truly appreciate that this place actually looked kinda awesome. It wasn't the kind of building he was expecting, with the vines growing on otherwise brutal, geometric concrete, but it didn't make him immediately think "School," Which was more than enough for him. Plus, he had already chatted with other "Students" Online and made some friends!

Not that he really knew what most of his new friends looked like. Or their names. He kinda wished he had thought of that earlier, because he was really needing some navigating help here. He ducked into a hallway and pulled out his phone, desperately hoping that he could pull up some sort of map of this place. They probably sent him a map of the place at some point, right? He scrolled through old emails, squinting at his phone and not at all looking where he was going as he began to aimlessly continue down the hall.
Thomas
After being kept cooped up in his room for so long, Malus wanted to get out to stretch his legs and take a short walk. He made sure to wear his baseball cap, ghost mask, an oversized brown leather jacket with a fur trimmed hoodie. A gray hoodie and a regular white T-shirt and jeans are comfortable enough for him to walk down the hall in his steel toed boots. 

It felt all too surreal for Malus when he occasionally passed some students, ignoring their remarks, he pulled his second hood over his head. Shyly, he tried his best to pretend that he didn't hear anything. He's still new in Newton Cradle but he didn't interact with that many people from here.

He was malnourished and he was still waiting for his mother's reply for him to see if it's alright to have food here. Lately, he's been scrounging around digging in trash to find food, sometimes draining life from rats or other unfortunate small animals. He was also waiting to see what Newton Cradle had to offer for his unusual way of getting sustenance. 

With each step, Malus could feel his footfalls feeling heavier as his vision swayed from left to right. He feels so tired yet he really wants to keep moving. His stomach gnawed hungrily, hurting him, he ignored the discomfort as he kept pushing forward. And moving forward, he rounded the corner to faceplant into a solid figure. It wouldn't have felt like a big deal if he wasn't so weak. His knees crumpled beneath him as his gloved hands cling onto the other. He's beginning to sink towards the floor to only stop by the other student's knees, clinging to it, quivering.
Mellissa
Cody had moved on from trying to find a map, and was instead trying to salvage any hope of being able to do the year-round outdoor activities he was used to doing while he was here (it gets to be *What* Temperature in the winter!?). He was squinting in confusion at his phone, still, when suddenly something ran right into him, knocking his elbow and causing him to lose grip of his phone. It clattered to the ground, and in his scramble to catch it he nearly tripped over the person he had run into.

"Oh shit- Sorry dude, wasn't watching where I was going. Uh."

Cody paused, actually taking a second to register the person in front of him. They had fallen to their knees, and were sort of leaning on him, now? He didn't think they'd run into each other hard enough to knock a guy over... The guy was shaking. Okay, something was wrong.

"Are you good, man?" Cody asked tentatively, backing up a step in case the guy needed space. He couldn't really move a full step, actually, the guy actually seemed to be holding onto him for support. All Cody could do was sort of shuffle back a couple inches. He noticed, though, that the kid was wearing some kind of mask. Oookay. Maybe that's... A Swedish thing. 

Maybe the guy had low blood sugar? He'd gotten the shaky hands once or twice himself, after going too long without eating. Eager to see a solution to whatever was the matter with this guy, Cody fished through his bag. "One sec, dude. I gotcha." 

He pulled out a protein bar, one of the many he had packed for his long international flight here. Hopefully, Cody waved it in front of the guy's face. "Have a bite, my man, it's peanut butter flavor! I've got chocolate, too, I think. But they're kinda melted."
Thomas
Much as he wanted to reply, Malus shakily nodded but that was a complete lie right there. He struggles to get up onto his wobbly legs, now using the wall for support since the stranger stepped back. The healthy kid in front of him was making his mouth water, seeing how much life this person has was making him more hungry.

He hesitates, shakily reaching out to grab the bar instead of sapping some life essence from the stranger. His morals would win over him every time he values someone else's life more than his own needs. He didn't care how messed up the protein bar was, it was something to help him feel less dead. 

Malus lifts his mask up a bit to take a hefty bite out of it like he just killed a creature. The slash across his neck is more visible now when the sunlight moves along the windows as the sun slowly passes.
Mellissa
Cody's smile grew a little strained as he watched the guy- he was pretty sure they were a guy anyway, not being able to see their face and not having heard their voice -struggle to stand, leaning against the wall now. Far be it from Cody to be unfriendly, but like... This was weird. There was something off about this stranger, from the weird mask, to their sudden collapse and the fact they had scarcely made a sound since running into him. He felt like they were staring at him, but he couldn't tell for sure with the mask. Was this the shape that everyone ended up in, being here? He sure hoped not, but then again, people were talking about a kit hitting someone with a bat, and it seemed like some other stuff had gone down too...

The guy took the protein bar from him, and that at least helped Cody push some of his normally genuine friendliness back into his expression. He also moved the mask, enough to take a bite out of the food. That put a stop to the thought that had been growing in the back of Cody's mind, that it was like... Glued to his face, or attached somehow. That sorta helped, at least. Man, but whatever happened to the dude's neck looked gnarly. Cody tried not to stare at it too much, very obviously looking down at his backpack and off to the side instead with a small cough.

The guy was eating like he was starving, but at least it seemed like it might be helping. Once he stopped, Cody tried to make a second pass at conversation. "Glad you didn't totally pass out on me. I'm Cody. Totally new here, fresh meat, right off the plane. Uh." Glance at the neck wound. Look away. "Do you know if there's, like, a map somewhere I can look at? I'm totally lost here, I don't know where my dorm is at. Also, are you okay?"
Thomas
It took seconds for the bar to be demolished. It helped Mal regain some energy that gave him a bit of strength back. For now, the pain in his stomach settled as it focused on the protein bar. If Mal was more empathetically in tune with others, he would have seen how he was making the other uncomfortable. Now nearly folding up the wrapping into a square, he pockets it so he can throw it in the trash later.

From hearing the name "Cody" And "Totally new here, fresh meat, right off the plane" Made Mal glance over at the other in recognition. Now pushing himself from the wall, he stood on his wobbly legs. There was a welcoming, soft smile that peaked beneath the ghost mask. In excitement he begins to do sign language.

*"Hey! It's you! I wasn't sure if you'll make it here but it is nice to meet-"* That was what Malus was saying with his hands. He paused when he remembered that not everyone can communicate this way. Then he made a 'one second' gesture with his hand before he pulled out a notepad and pen.

*"Hi, we met before on the intranet. I'm The Quiet Guy, remember? About earlier, I would like to apologize, my health is terrible as you saw first hand. Very sorry about that."* He turned the notepad around for Cody to see while he used his other hand to push the mask up. There was that kind, gentle smile and tired pale gray eyes. His cheeks are sunken in and showed how frail and sickly he appeared. If Cody finishes reading, he'll flip a page to write on it again.

*"It is nice to finally meet you, my name is Malus. The map you were looking for is usually near the entrance. I can help you find your dorm, just need a number and I'll show you the way."*

The last question from Cody made him pause in his writing as he thought on how to reply back to him. *"I want to say I am... But I don't think I am okay?"*
Mellissa
It was nice that the guy seemed a little more energetic now. Well, at least he was standing up on his own. Again, Cody wondered nervously just how they treated the students here. The guy began rapidly signing, and Cody blinked bemusedly, unable to keep up at all with his lack of knowledge. He recognized what it was, at least- he had had a classmate once who used ASL, he was pretty sure. Not that he had really gone to school often enough to get to know them well enough to learn it. 

The stranger seemed to have realized he wasn't keeping up with the signing, as they pulled out a notebook and began to write instead. Cody took it once it was offered, flipping it around to read the quickly-written paragraph. "Oh, shoot! You're Quiet Guy?" He grinned, glancing up as he pushed his mask up, revealing the rest of his face. The guy still looked like he was in rough shape, but Cody's friendliness didn't falter. "If you're falling all over the place like this, it looks like we gotta schedule that fishing trip for you soon, huh?"

Quiet Guy motioned as if to take the notebook back, and Cody passed it back quickly, allowing him to write his reply before passing it back. "Nice to meet you too, man." Cody responded, mumbling slightly at he read the handwriting. "Oh, must have totally missed the map then. More tired than I thought I was, I guess. My dorm number was... 43, I think? Something like that? I got a key, I was kinda just gonna go try it on doors until I found it. But this place is pretty big, so I'm starting to think that might not be my best idea ever." 

Cody patted the guy on the shoulder in what he hoped came across as a friendly motion. "Don't worry about it, dude. You've got a buddy here, we'll figure it out. Were you really serious then about not eating until you got, like, permission or whatever?"
Thomas
The mask slipped over his face when he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. It made him realize that the seal-boy was serious about the whole fishing trip thing. He wobbled from the kid's friend pat on his shoulder, almost knocking him over but he kept himself standing. 

The other question made an invisible weight press down on his shoulders as if the cold eyes of his mother were staring at him. Nervously, he grabs his own forearm as he rubs it. Meekly nodding, his hand begins to scribble down another message saying,*"I come from a strict upbringing. I'm waiting for my mom to give me permission to eat from the facility. She hasn't replied to me yet so I am still waiting"*

Behind his white mask, Malus looked scared when he brought up his frightening mother into this. Then he writes again before adding,*"This is something I would rather not have everyone know about. Still kinda new and I don't think anyone would understand..."*

With that, Malus turns as he waves for Cody to follow as he walks ahead. Then he writes in bold letters on the pad saying,"Let's get you to your room, you don't have to worry too much about me." And Malus gave him a thumbs up.
Mellissa
Cody gathered up the strap of his backpack, swinging it around onto his back with one arm as he returned his other hand to the handle of his rolling suitcase. He read the new note from Malus with a creased, concerned brow. 

"Sounds... Really strict, man. Like, not good." Cody glanced sideways at Malus as they started down the hallway, before looking down and reading the rest of the note. "Oh, sure, I won't tell anyone. Won't bug you about it either if you don't want." Cody shrugged, adjusting his backpack strap a bit. 

"I really won't bug you too much about it... But, like, you can ask for help, y'know? That crap doesn't really sound good on paper." Cody kept walking in silence for a few moments, not enitrely sure how to proceed. He didn't want to scare the guy off, but he'd never been in this situation before. What did someone do when their friend's mom was stopping them from eating? Maybe he'd have to google it later. 

They had taken a few turns at this point, and had just now passed a plaque that read 'DORMS' leading to what Cody assumed was the complex that included all of the student housing. "Sheesh, I never would've found this on my own." Cody joked lightly.
Thomas
Malus walked in careful steps but was sure to not stumble when he kept a moderate pace. He was much shorter than Cody, who was at least a foot taller than him. With his back facing the other, Malus was scribbling on the piece of paper to respond to him. Behind his white mask, he was biting the corner of his lip nervously.

*"I guess it isn't on paper? It's something that I was brought up under since I was well enough to live with my parents at 9. My dad is always away at work, leaving me mostly under the care of my strict mom. That's just how things are in the household."* He pauses in his tracks to let Cody read it.

While he had time to think, Malus was looking ahead trying to recall if the seal-kid gave him the number to his door. He was looking from left to right, scratching the back of his head in confusion. Then he turns to go take his notebook back after Cody finishes reading it. *"So, do you have your dorm number? I don't think you told me yet or I just don't remember?"* And he turns the notepad around to show his message as he points his finger at the 'number' word on the page.
Mellissa
Cody had taken to humming slightly, tapping his fingers against the handle of his suitcase along with the tune he had stuck in his head. He remembered one specific part, but he just couldn't place the song... Oh, Malus was writing again. 

Rather than keep passing the notebook back and forth, and since they were on the move anyway, Cody just leaned over Malus's shoulder to read the latest note. "Oh, no, I meant like- on paper." Cody said, tapping the notebook paper with a sheepish laugh. He kept reading. 

"Well enough to live with your parents?" He asked, clearly voicing the first thought to come to his mind as he read, "Were you super sick as a little kid or something? That sucks."

"Oh yeah, the dorm number." With a quick nod, Cody fished a crumpled piece of paper out of his pocket. "Uh, hold on, I forgot it too, it was forty... Three. 43! That's to the left of here, I think."
Thomas
He glanced up at Cody with his mask already making the "Ohhh,"Expression when he understood what the other meant. Mal steps aside as he hastily scribbled on the notepad while the student is fishing for his paper. 

*"You're spot on about it. Was left behind in another country to be cared for because I couldn't be moved back to my mom's country. My grandfather mainly stayed whenever he could. I was born from a calamity when my neck got cut open so it took a lot of operations to fix it."* And he exchanged his notepad for the crumpled piece of paper with Cody. He glances at it as he scans along the hallway before gesturing to the left before giving a thumbs up.

Then he wanders to the direction where the Cody dorm should be located. Malus made sure to not walk too far as he paused by several feet in his tracks. Then he glanced at the paper again to be extra sure that it's the correct number. While he is still staring at it, he points to the direction where the door should be.
Mellissa
Cody traded the paper with his room number for the notepad, took a moment to read, it, then let out a low whistle. "Dang. That sucks. I've ended up in the hospital a couple times for broken bones and stuff, it isn't fun." 

Malus was walking at an easy pace, and Cody followed just behind him as he seemed to know the way they were heading. More focused on keeping his crappy suitcase from getting stuck on the carpet and flipping over than on looking ahead of him, he ran right into Mal when the guy stopped in his tracks. "Shit!" Trying not to fully trample the much shorter student, he stepped on his own shoe instead, then nearly overbalanced trying to keep both of them upright, one hand falling on Mal's shoulder. "Sorry, sorry, my bad. Man, and people usually say I've got great balance."

His brain caught up with what they had been doing, and Cody realized that before he nearly ran him right over, Mal had been pointing at the door they had stopped in front of. Sure enough, the number on the door was right. "Oh hey, we're here! Nice!" Cody perked up, the near-trampling already forgotten. He fished a room key out of his pocket, given to him by the office that had also given him his room assignment. With a little bit of ceremonious flair, he unlocked and pushed the door open with his arm outspread.

"So, what do people do around here anyway? Like, besides classes and junk?" Cody asked casually as he entered the space. He opened his suitcase, which was stuffed full of unfolded clothing, and dumped it straight onto his bed.
Thomas
Malus felt a sudden force abruptly bumped into him that made the healing marks on his back sting. It hurt a lot but it was manageable enough for him to just let out a grunt. Then his back straightens when he freezes up when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Realizing that he has layers of clothes on, the other wouldn't be affected by the curse.

"Urm..."Mal replied, tilting his head and shrugging. 

He isn't sure what other people do since he mostly stayed in his room minding his own business. Now back to writing, Malus scribbled on the note to make sure it has more length in his sentences.

*"I am not sure? I heard they had a field trip to the lake that most of the students missed. Most of the people make their own entertainment since it doesn't seem like it's the school's job to keep us amused. A lot of kids seem to like going into the woods, sometimes hanging out at the cafe nearby and exploring the town. So as far as I can tell, it's incredibly bland here... Well, other than the teen drama or a student losing control of their power. Not sure if it counts for anything"*

And he rips the paper from his notebook and walks inside the room to hand Cody the note as he writes on another page.

*"I'm not sure what to do since I only just do chores, go to school and work? Having fun doesn't happen often where I come from. It's weird because of the sudden change of pace. *
Mellissa
Cody shuffled through the clothes he'd dumped on his bed as Mal wrote. He was surprised to hear the guy make a sound at all, but he guess it made sense of he could only make some noise but couldn't talk. Or maybe just didn't want to talk. They could communicate fine through the journal either way, so he didn't care much. He heard a tearing sound, and glanced up as Mal walked in, taking the paper curiously when it was handed to him. Seeing that Mal had just torn it out to keep writing, not for some other reason, he shrugged and began reading. 

"There's a lake? Awesome. Well, I'm pretty good at being entertaining, so I guess I'll find stuff to do." He paused, before snorting at the mention of 'teen drama'. "Hah, yeah, guess I gotta catch up on the gossip here. I never stuck around my old schools long enough to really get involved in any crap like that... Maybe it would be fun, or something. I guess the drama probably gets way more intense when we're all kids with a bunch of superpowers. Who was the one that lost control?" Cody asked, looking up again. He had turned around to lean back on the bed as he read the first note, but stood up fully again now, turning around to look at his stuff again. All his stuff from the suitcase haphazardly dumped on the bed seemed to be perfectly acceptable to him, as he shoved the now empty suitcase under the bed and moved on to grab the backpack. 

Cody plopped the backpack down on the small desk in the room, getting it off the floor but otherwise uninterested in fully unpacking it. He took Mal's second note. Upon reading about Mal's boring sounding life, he gestured at him reassuringly. "We'll change that. Fishing trip, remember? And there's other stuff to do besides the lake, probably. I wonder if there's a movie theater nearby..."
Thomas
*'A movie theater...?'* He never thought about going to the cinema before he arrived here. Malus scratches the back of his head, causing his ribbony strands of hair to shift. Then he hastily draws a cute fish on the notepad with his sentences written below it. *"Maybe there is a theater? Fishing sounds found. I always kinda like being around water, just didn't get enough time to truly enjoy it often. My dad and sometimes my grandparents would take me out fishing in the summer."* And he turns it over for the seal boy to read. While waiting patiently for them to finish scanning the note, he felt his eyebrow twitch behind his mask when he saw the mess accumulating. It was making him a little nervous because he would remember how his mom would scold him for being untidy. Even worse if it's one of his brother or sister's mess. Cody's upbringing seems to be much more relaxed but he couldn't judge, since the seal boy could have had a rough life.

When it was time for him to write, Malus decided to start by asking,*"So what is it like to change into a seal? I've always had problems with my transformation."*