[Open] Heat Haze

[nor_iron_bars]

Who: Jail, various bystanders, and you.
What: Installation and maintenance.
When: Throughout July.
Where: Anywhere on campus.
Warnings: Jailbreak continues to Jailbreak.


I. Hot air

[Usually, Jail's own worktable in her room provided enough for her to work with. But some projects required a little extra space. And, well, if you've got the resources so generously provided by an institute as well-funded as Daybreak, you may as well make use of them while you have the opportunity. Hence why you might potentially run into Jail working on something large and complex with a lot of fiddly mechanical parts in the Anvil of Hadur.]

[Which is pretty reasonable and fine. The part that's a little less reasonable is the bit where she's also wearing headphones...]

-can tell your boyfriend, if he says he got beef, that I'm a vegetarian and I ain't fuckin' scared of him~!

[And singing along to the music. Loudly.]

[Man, the acoustics are great in here.]


II. Cool breeze

[So, interesting fun fact: up until this year, Daybreak Academy did not have an actual air conditioning system. Mostly due to the fact that the majority of the campus had been built multiple centuries ago.]

[And by "this year" we mean "literally the start of this month", because Jail is physically in the process of installing one.]

[For once she'd chosen to ask permission instead of forgiveness, and had received it for everywhere except the classrooms, library, and belltower.]

[Stupid historic building preservation codes.]

[Anywhere else, you may hear some quiet clanking and sotto voce profanity going on in a steady rhythm somewhere above your head. If so, you can look up to find Jail sitting on the ceiling and tinkering with a newly-installed air vent, defying the laws of both gravity and work safety.]

[On the bright side, if you hang around long enough, you could learn some really interesting new vocabulary.]


III. Summertime

[Wild card, offer your own prompt.]

Comments

II

[notbornguilty]

[Weiss looks up at Jailbreak like someone just told her it was Christmas, her sister came to visit, and her Father just died of a mysterious illness.]

Air conditioning? Outside the dorms? Anything I can do to thank you for this, just name it!

[nor_iron_bars]

Depends, can you help me figure out why this one goddamn bolt won't- wait, no- hah! [Jail grins triumphantly as the wrench she's being angrily hauling on finally turns, and something within the vent audibly clicks into place.] There we go, got the little bastard.

[That one's been a pain in the ass for about ten full minutes.]

But yeah, should be up and running by this time tomorrow. Not in the main classrooms and the library, though- because blah blah historical preservation means getting historically accurate heatstroke, I guess. [She rolls her eyes and does mocking airquotes while saying this.]

[notbornguilty]

Well, I'm working on something myself that should be able to handle that. Professor Anderson's classes are very interesting.

[nor_iron_bars]

A fan of rune magic, huh? [Jail grins.] Might end up seeing you in my class, then- lotta rune work in artifice.

[Who doesn't like having a magic item or two, really.]

[notbornguilty]

You just might, it would be interesting to learn how to make items like Myrtenaster.

[Yes, Weiss is one of those nerds who finds learning fun. Nerd being used affectionately, of course.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[That's not a name she recognizes... Jail tilts her head, curious.] You got an artifact already? Family heirloom, or just something that turned up one day?

[notbornguilty]

It's not an Artifact, not in the traditional sense. Myrtenaster was professionally crafted. It was expensive to make an orichalcum rune-engraved blade, even for me, but it was certainly worth it.

[nor_iron_bars]

[Low whistle.] Daaaaamn, that's some serious cash. What kinda runic set-up did you go with? [Translation: so what does it even do.]

[notbornguilty]

Myrtenaster has the highest range of ice manipulation I've ever seen outside of a master cryomancer. It can create anything from a tiny snowflake to a iceberg the size of a building.

[Jail's leaving a surprisingly good first impression on Weiss with all this shop talk.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Jail is both a trashy crimegirl and a magical nerd. She contains multitudes. Weiss just happens to have activated nerd mode.]

[She chuckles.]

Ice magic, huh? Guess I know what you were doing to make up for the lack of A/C.

Elemental stuff's a solid focus, you can get a lot of power and versatility that way if you know what you're doing. Depending on how the setup works, you might be able to get it to branch out to water manipulation, too- but that's a little more dicey, so you're gonna want to make sure you got a better idea of what you're working with, first. Don't wanna risk breaking something.

[notbornguilty]

Actually, I just brought a window AC with me.

But no, Myrtenaster is unable to control water, a sacrifice made to it's sheer range of ice manipulation. In all honesty, I'm hoping to reach a level where I'll be able to create items capable of controlling other elements to offset my weaknesses. If I'm facing an enemy that's immune to ice, I'll be limited to my sword skills and glyphs.

[Jail being Jail, I have no doubt that she's heard of the Schnees. Weiss may even be talking to the culprit behind the disappearance of some of her Father's priceless acquisitions.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Look. That vase may have been expensive and magically powerful, but it was also completely hideous. She was doing them a favor by taking it, really.]

Now that I can teach you. Gonna have to sign up for my class if you wanna, though- I ain't giving extra lectures while they aren't paying me.

[If she just went around doing things for free, what would it do to her reputation?]

[notbornguilty]

Oh, I intend to. I plan to get the most out of my time here.

[Look, Weiss doesn't care about some vase. It was tacky anyway.]

Wildcard this shit

[strings_theory]

[You know who's been working on getting her shit together and therefore bored as fuck if she's not doing something either insanely horrible or working out? Jolyne. Does she know what to do with herself? Fuck no, of course not.

Clearly the answer is to go hunt down Jail as that's clearly the best way to get an actual answer to occupy herself with. Because like fuck if she's going to ask the other professor she doesn't detest and she's already made it a habit to avoid the fuck out of another after just one damn sitting.

It shouldn't be too hard to track her down, she's pretty sure, especially since it seems like everyone and their dog has fucked off to the beach.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Admittedly, Jail has also been spending time at the beach. It's just that when your usual mode of transportation is a magical flying car, it's a lot easier to just wander off for a day and come back when you feel like it, instead of having to actually plan out a longer trip.]

[Fortunately, Jolyne will actually be able to find her on campus today. Specifically, if she walks down the hallway that leads to the cafeteria, she'll be able to hear the distinct sound of snoring... overlaid with the kind of rasp that comes from somebody breathing through a gas mask.]

[Following the sound to the source will lead her to the metal grate high up in the wall that marks one of the ventilation ducts for Daybreak's new air conditioning. Due to having a grasp of basic security, Jail went out of her way to make almost all of the vents too small to crawl through... except for this specific one, which needed to be larger for reasons she'd described as "engineering and magic being bullshit just to make me angry".]

[So, naturally, she'd been warding the heck out of it and adding some more mundane security measures instead, to make up for that. Except that, well... she's been installing the AC system for an entire university campus on short notice. It's been kind of a long day.]

[Sometimes, you just have to nap wherever the urge finds you.]

[Even if that place is inside a vent.]

[strings_theory]

[... What the fuck is that noise actually? But she can kind of get the whole gas mask thing from the snoring and purse her lips while looking for the source. Vents. Okay, cool, that's fine, no normal human can fit through that kind of shit. Luckily it's not hard to find That Specific Vent and she's not one to remotely ever let anyone do anything if she needs them.

Which is exactly why she's doing the moderately intelligent thing and just kind of using her stupid familiar's ability to sneak a few strings up there to try and poke and prod at Jail to see if that'll get her attention. She's not about to do something more and potentially risk real runes, real security, or Jail maybe trying to take her face off.

Bitch, she don't know your life and what you fucking do.

Even if she's standing not that far off from the grate to begin with.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Well, the good news is that no one attempts to take anyone's face off.]

[Instead, there's a dull clang from the inside of the vent as Jail, apparently working off some deep-seated survival instinct, rolls sharply to the left to dodge the strings. She doesn't appear to be awake at all. Somehow, she's now gripping a wrench in one hand like she's planning to use it as an improvised weapon.]

[In a soft but audible sleepy mumble:]

Five more minutes...

[And she's snoring again.]

II

[buddinghopes]

[Once she notices that Jail's there, Lia just has to watch with open amazement as the woman works.]

Is that for air conditioning?

[Please say yes.]

[nor_iron_bars]

Fuck yeah it is.

[Muttered under her breath:]

An entire goddamn council of Seers and nobody thought maybe we should install AC before summer hit.

[Okay, admittedly, she's also a Seer and didn't think to do that, but in her defense she's not supposed to be the responsible type. The rest of these people want to actually be seen as professional adults.]

[buddinghopes]

Halle-freaking-lujah.

[The way she all but flops onto the biggest available space on her work table is maybe a touch overdramatic.]

I thought I was going to end up melting before the next school year started. Summer in NYC could get pretty miserable, but not this miserable...

[nor_iron_bars]

Hey, could be worse. Could be Florida.

[...Hopefully, this isn't one of the kids who signed up for that alligator mission. Otherwise that's going to be a bit ironic.]

[buddinghopes]

[She snickers a bit.]

I wouldn't know, I've never been. Is it really that miserable?

[nor_iron_bars]

Got some good points, too- decent food, decent drinks, pretty girls... [Jail is a simple creature. She knows what she likes.]

But yeah, the weather's fucking murder. ...Also, mosquitoes.

[buddinghopes]

The food and pretty girls sound nice.

[Admittedly, Lia's pretty down for some of those simple pleasures. There's still a pause, before--]

I'm not sure they'd make the weather and the mosquitoes worth it though. [She snorts.]

[nor_iron_bars]

Depends on the girl, honestly. [Judging by Jail's expression- equal parts 'smug' and 'wistful'- this is an opinion born from personal experience.] Mostly you just wanna try to avoid going during hurricane season. Shit can get dicey.

I

[unpunchman]

[Josuke was also at the Anvil, showing a guy from Brazil the various kinds of mythical metals that you could find here. He didn't know them super well, but he was making a good show of it.

The guy was doing fine, after he got used to the idea of it all, so Josuke considered his job done and was just kind of whistling along to some song that was suddenly stuck in his head.

He realized why the song was stuck in his head when he glanced over at Jailbreak and unexpectedly made eye contract. She was ALSO singing it! They both knew the lyrics, there was no denying it at this point. The only questions was whether they would stop suddenly out of embarrassment, or break out into a terrible duet.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[There's a couple ways this could go... but the simple fact of the matter is that relying on any form of social shame to stop Jail from doing something is a doomed exercise.]

[She meets Josuke's eyes, she reaches the same realization... and while maintaining eye contact, she picks up the nearest blowtorch and starts using it as a microphone.]

She wants to touch me woo-ooo, she wants to love me woo-ooo

[Full volume. No shame. No regrets.]

[unpunchman]

She'll never leave me, whoo-ooh, whoo-ooh-ooh-ooh!

[Just loudly singing this terrible, stupid song together with no consideration for anyone else in the area. Because fuck it.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Listen. If they're going to work around here, they need to learn to accept that this sort of thing just. Happens.]

[A lot.]

[Not only is Jail still singing, she's posing as she sings into the impromptu "microphone". Because shame is for people with nothing better to do.]

[unpunchman]

[Out of consideration for our readers of delicate constitution, we won't thread this out blow for blow, but suffice to say Josuke knew the entire song. By the time they were done, everyone else had just left the area.]

[nor_iron_bars]

[Jail hits the last note and puts away the blowtorch with a dramatic flourish, finally taking off her headphones as she surveys the notably emptier lab. She shakes her head mock-sadly.]

Some people just can't appreciate art.

[unpunchman]

I don't know about art but I know what I like.

[Giving Jail a proper once over. They'd shared e-mails before but he hadn't known what she looked like.]

Josuke Higashikata. You a student?

[nor_iron_bars]

Right, right, the guy on UN babysitting duty. I remember asking you about the betting pool.

[It's said without any derision, at least- she's of the opinion that anyone handling that whole sack of cats probably deserves some respect for putting up with it this long.]

Faculty, for now. [She doesn't actually have any immediate plans to change that, but she figures it's better to keep her options open.] Name's Jailbreak.

[It doesn't occur to her, at least in the moment of introducing herself, that he might be familiar with her name. Sure, the UN could technically be put under the general umbrella of law enforcement, but she's never really caused trouble on the kind of scale that would require them to directly intervene. ...There was that one time with the launch codes, admittedly, but she never used those or told anyone about them, so it's probably fine.]