Survival Of The Fittest

SIERRA COOK - PREGAME: START

Sierra rhythmically tapped the tip of her pencil against the surface of the desk she sat at, staring intently at the blank page of her sketchbook laid out before her. She had been sitting here for some time, bouncing around ideas of what she wanted to create in her mind but yet to truly settle on any of them. She had wanted to get some drawing time in today but only found herself sitting, doing nothing while her pencil was at the ready. Normally she liked to draw things she sees, like animals or the natural beauty of the Tennessee landscape, but today she decided she wanted to try drawing an original piece.

Which she guessed was the cause of her current artist's block.

She had made a few attempts at the start, but it became very clear after a minute into these attempts she had no idea what she was drawing and ended up with an assortment of shapes. She casually tore away and threw aside these rough sketches of nothing - and missed the trash bin a few feet away from her - and refocused her attention back onto the sketch book. For a moment she wonder if she should take this outside and sit out on the bleachers in the playing fields to get some fresh air might spur her creative juices. As tempting as that idea was she pushed it aside, remembering just how cold it was right now. After all, if she went out there and still didn't draw anything all she would get out of the experience would be freezing her ass off for a blank piece of paper.

No, the warmth of the art room was good enough. She will sit here and think on what she should draw for a little while longer, contemplating what she wanted to draw and hopefully she'll get some inspiration. If not she could also give up on originallity and sketch a classmate or something...

Forrest Quin: Pregame Start...for real this time

Hunt food. Hunter for food. Wait no that was wrong. Food hunter. Yeah there you go. Food hunter, food hunter, journey 'cross the land. Guitar solo. Hit the drums. For real though, she was hungry and needed food. Why? Because people needed food to live or something. Thus she was returning to the art rooms because she had forgotten her bag, truly a fate worse than a fate worse than death. There would be no escape from hunger, not unless she wanted to use the vending machine which while it was a tempting alternative, last time she had asked if it dispensed salads the only thing she received had been a look from the cafeteria staff. Not even an answer, although the look did say 'No it doesn't now fuck off.' So perhaps they were trying to communicate with her telepathically. And even then she would still need to retrieve her bag.

So her fate was now to return to the art rooms. It was her own fault for leaving her bag behind though. Still, it was better than the time she got her tub of lunch mixed up with Bitey's food tub. If she was a snake it would have been great, alas, she was not a snake. Plus even if she was part snake she was still vegan, so it would have been awkward from that angle as well.

If she was part snake though would she need to molt? If she had scaly skin then she assumed she would.

Pushing the door open and entering she saw that a girl called Sierra was already in there.

Couldn't hurt to ask.

"Hey if had snakeskin do you think I would molt?"

Sierra's attention was drawn away from her sketchbook as she heard the art room door swing open. Glancing over to the door she spotted Forrest entering the room. Sierra had seen Forrest more than a few times around school and at various parties, but she couldn't think of a time the two had really interacted with one another. Briefly she wondered why she was here but figured it wasn't any of her concern, turning her attention back to her sketchbook and opting to mind her own -

"Hey if had snakeskin do you think I would molt?" she heard Forrest say.

Sierra looked back to Forrest in confusion, having been caught off guard by the very sudden bizarre question. Briefly Sierra scanned around the room just to be sure Forrest wasn't talking to someone else, someone who'd have an idea on what the exact context for that question was. After seeing no one else that she could possibly be addressing, Sierra settled her gaze back onto Forrest.

"Uh...Excuse me?" she asked, eyebrow arched slightly, unsure on just how to answer that question.

"Y'know if I was like a snake person," She put emphasis on the snake part by making a wavy gesture with her left arm as she crossed the room to where her backpack was.

It was made by Jansport and the pattern was called Vivid Paradise which translated to plants in bright colours and hues. It looked amazing, but that was only if you asked her, the response other people had to it tended to be a lot more reserved. Then again she could understand that there was a danger of going blind for looking at it too long. Truly it was a work of art on par with the Ark of the Covenant. Did that even qualify as art? She knew the movie did. Then again the ark did make an art form out of hide and seek.

What had she been saying?

Oh right snake person. Scaly skin. Molting. She knew about it because Bitey molted and she had to clean out his case whenever that happened, she didn't when Drake did because he would eat it for her, which did make the process easier. Spiders had to do it as well so did other insects. Oh and crabs!

In the meantime Forrest had set her bag down on free table and opened it to retrieve her rice and salad box. All fruit and veg and rice and leaves. A classic combination.

The question seemed to have caught Sierra off-guard. Always happened, she decided to explain the question in a bit more detail.

"And had scaly skin, would I molt? Because it's always looked like really itchy."

Sierra just continued to stare at her for a moment, completely dumbfounded by this question and trying to comprehend what sort of thought process could have lead up to her asking it.

Who just comes into a room and asks someone a question like that? Was she messing with her or something? Was she high? Sierra suspected that the latter might be the case given that Forrest had pulled a salad box from a truly garish looking backpack she had just retrieved. Or maybe she was one of those "furries" she's heard about. Though are you are furry if you want to be a snake, which has a distinct lack of fur?

Questions for later.

Speaking of questions, Sierra suppose it wouldn't hurt to give her an answer.

"Well..." She began, placing her pencil down next to her sketchbook as she shifted around in her seat to face Forrest so she could properly address her. "Snakes shed their skin to allow for further growth and to remove parasites that may have attached to their old skin."

"Unlike human skin, a snake's skin doesn't grow along with it." she continued to explained, leaning forward slightly, her hands gesturing as she spoke. "Eventually, a snake's skin reaches a point where it can't grow anymore. When that happens, a new layer of skin grows underneath the current one. As soon as it is done, the old skin peels away."

Once she was done with her explanation of the molting process of snakes, Sierra turned herself back to her desk, picking her pencil back up.

"So, yeah, if you were a snake lady you would probably molt."

Forrest nodded and placed one of her hands on her chin as she listened to Sierra speak.

Sheddding their skin to allow for further growth and to remove parasites. Yep so far so good. Snake skin doesn't grow along with their skeleton. Yeah. Adds up. Man Sierra was just throwing the definition and reasons snakes molted at her. Which was fine she supposed, she was sure Sierra didn't know that she had a snake and a lizard. So she knew this stuff, she had said earlier.

Wait had she?

Her eyes and head moved slightly up and to the right then left as she thought...yeah, yeah she had.

Wait had she said it or thought it.

After searching the dark recesses of her mind for the answer—and ingesting some leaves—she realized that she had only thought about it. That explained a lot. Still the explanation she had gotten had been a good one that covered a lot of the correct ground for why snakes molted. Points would be given out for the answer.

It was then she realised that she needed to be listening to Sierra.

"Ah cool yeah."

Boom. Nailed it. No one would ever know.

"So," She said between mouthfuls of salad. "What're you doing?"

(Ned Jackson continued from Hunger Beckons)

Ned had entered the art block of the school with a paper bag and a Dr. Pepper in his hands. The cafeteria had barely any seats to sit down in, so now Ned ventured into what he'd consider familiar territory for a lunch spot. He figured he could walk to the drama room for lunch, and maybe see if anyone from drama club was there for him to talk to.

But then, he heard someone talking in one of the art rooms. Inside, he saw a girls with rainbow colored hair talking with another girl with a sketch book. What were they talking about? Snakes or something? Whatever the case, Ned recognized the rainbow haired girl as Forrest Quin. It's hard to not recognize anyone with that hair color.

Ned decided to bite the bullet and take a step inside. He might have been too curious for his own good, but he liked some good company with his lunch.

"Hey you two," said Ned as he opened the door, "What's up?"

Stared expressionless at her sketchbook, fiddling with her pen as she continued to be uninspired as to what she wanted to draw. Sighing she placed her pencil down and leaned back.

"Well I-"

Just then a new arrival entered the room, this time it was guy holding a paper bag and can of Dr. Pepper. She guess he was here to eat as well, but why is it that people would want to eat in the art room of all places? It wouldn't be her first choice if she were having lunch since, ya know, there is a perfectly good cafeteria in the main building, but whatever.

Putting that train of thought aside for now, she offered the newcomer - who she really couldn't put a name to - a curt nod of acknowledge before focusing her attention back to her sketchbook.

"I'm trying to draw." she explained, grimacing slightly. "However, I've just been drawing a huge blank on what I actually want to make and have just been sitting, staring at this blank page for maybe a few minutes now..."

"Ah, okay," Ned said as he closed the door behind him. Just a case of writer's block. How exactly that lead to them to talking about snakes was beyond him, but in any case he took a seat at one of the tables.

"Well, I'll try not to disturb you too much. I just came in here cuz there weren't many seats available in the cafeteria," explained Ned.

He cracked open his Dr. Pepper and took a sip. He loves that sweet flavor and fizzy feeling in his mouth. He opened the peanut butter and jelly sandwich's wrapper and took a bite. His number was finally satisfied.

As Sierra was going to reply with the explanation of what she was doing in the art room, her money was on art. She had a way of readings peoples intentions like that. Someone else walked in. Turning her head from where she was sat Forrest saw Ned Jackson enter. She knew Ned fairly well, he was in the discord gaming server she ran, but she didn't really know him. Not really. She knew the online version of him the version that was projected to her by ones and zeroes and ones and zeroes. No twos though, never any twos.

He wasn't bad by any stretch, it was just that her knowledge of Ned the human person was limited.

"Hey Ned." Forrest offered in creating as her fork speared some veg. Meanwhile Sierra explained that she was trying to draw but her attempts were proving fruitless. Forrest knew the feeling somewhat but at the same time...she didn't draw. Her artistic ability was derived from the use of electronics, not manually drawing things out by hand. That required a degree of competence she assumed she didn't possess.

"So you're drawing a blank then?" She asked Sierra.

"That's what I said, yes." Sierra sighed.

She was honestly starting to become frustrated at her lack of progress, and getting sidetracked by conversation was only making her more irritated since it torn her concentration away from her work. She placed a finger on her pencil, rolling it back and forth on the surface of the desk as she glared down at her sketchbook. She didn't want to sit here all day looking at a blank page, she had other things to do, but at the same time she didn't want to leave empty handed. All that time she spend sitting here would have been for nothing if she just up and left.

Still, she couldn't just sit here and continue to not draw if she resolved to stay.

She looked over to Forrest and then to Ned, all while continuing to lazily roll her pencil on the desk's surface and humming in thought.

"Hey," she said. "You guys want something drawn? I normally draw things for others but I want to get something done before I leave. I've shit to do. So unless you guys want something drawn I'm outta here."

This art block seems to be frustrating the girl in a major way. Mental block happen to the best of folk, but a mind is an essential part of an artist's ability. Do artists get frustrated with that kind of thing often? Ned wasn't much of an artist. The best he could do was a stick figure. Now she's asking Ned and Forrest for ideas. Ned took a break from wolfing down his sandwich and addressed the girl.

"Well, do you draw anime?," asked Ned, "Or are you looking to draw something more realistic?"

He took a another sip of his Dr. Pepper and continued.

"If you don't like anime, that's fine. I'm just spitballing."

"Anime..." Sierra muttered to herself. She turned back over to Ned with a questioning look. "Those are those weird porn cartoons from Japan, right? Yeah, don't expect me to draw anything like that, pal."

She picked up her sketchbook, flipping the page to one she had drawn on previously and holding it up for Ned and Forrest to see.

"This is the kind of thing I tend draw on a regular basis."

The picture on the page was that of a Nine-Banded Armadillo, which was curled up sleeping. Sierra had encountered the creature during one of her nature hikes outside of the city limits and wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to draw it. Especially since it was just so cute looking. The picture was drawn with painstaking detail, even the plants and fallen leaves that surrounding the slumbering mammal were drawn with the utmost care.

"So I guess you could say I prefer more realistic stuff."

Forrest nodded as she listened to the discussion and ate the remaining bits of her lunch. Nothing worse than wanting to do something and not being able to do it she assumed. Like really wanting to eat but being stuck on a car journey with no snacks or being in a kitchen but all the snacks were gone, or wanting to get up and go get pancakes but your bed was way too comfy.

She must have still been hungry.

Picking up her bag Forrest rooted around inside it hoping to find something else, some other snack that had fallen to the deepest darkest recesses of her bag and been forgotten to time until that very moment. Her hand found something and she grasped it with one fluid motion she rescued a pack of something from the depths. On closer inspection it was a pack of peanuts. Good enough.

With a quick tug on either side of the pack the peanuts were liberated from their plastic packaging and Forrest began munching.

"Oh," She said with a smile upon seeing the picture Sierra presented them with. "That's a cute liddle armadillo friend having a nap. Is it's name Roll?"

Altan Ochir - Pregame: Start!

Altan released a frustrated sigh, rubbing his eyes out of weariness. There was no denying it. Altan Ochir was most definitely fatigued. While studying was slightly easier for him due to his memory, it was by no means relaxing. And thus, he decided that the best way to unwind was to go to the Art Rooms - He couldn't sculpt anything in there, of course, as he didn't have any of the proper tools and the room certainly didn't supply what he required. Regardless, painting could be soothing experience, and it was definitely more productive than watching the television or playing video games. Besides, he had homework to do anyway so even if he didn't actually invest any time in doing an art piece itself, he could easily just do homework in there instead. Fortunately, the art rooms were generally quiet due to the concentrated atmosphere, so he'd almost certainly be able to get a significant quantity of his work done.

Or maybe not. He was still tired, after all. Again, though, the art rooms would be a nice location to briefly rest before he continued because it would be unlikely he would be interrupted. With that in mind, Altan opened the door with a small plan - Work hard, and if he became drowsy, swiftly rest and then leave before any of his other commitments or lessons occured.

Upon first inspecting the room, everything was normal. Sierra was there, but she was nice and she wouldn't distract him that much. Despite that, after actually stepping into the room he realized he had made a crucial mistake. He recognized a girl with rainbow-coloured hair immediately, connecting her aesthetics with the name Forrest Quin. She wasn't a malevolent person, and it wasn't like he would have any issues with her, however she seemed like someone with a ebbulient personality and that didn't bode well with what had been his plans. Along with her, there was another boy he knew as Ned Jackson, another animated person. Altan could almost feel his plans shattering in his mind.

Well, he could still exit and just go somewhere else, but he really was quite tired and painting would provide him a lazing activity. He just needed to focus on the art, and ignore the others.

No, that would be rude. Still, Altan was sure they wouldn't mind. He timidly slipped into the room and quietly scurried over to the cabinet to get a easel, knowing even then that the plan was futile from the start. He would've reprimanded himself for that, but at after receiving a few minor glances from Sierra and Forrest they hadn't spoken. So, maybe he would actually fulfill his idea. The day was going surprisingly fine, considering how weary he felt.