At first Alicia gave him a look that was somewhat disapproving, but it dissipated fast enough, and she was back to all smiles.
"I would never just leave you to make your way alone in a new place. I want you to feel welcome and loved Joakim! To call this place your home as I do," she says with stars in her eyes and rainbows in her voice, suddenly so bright that Joa had to resist the urge to shield his eyes. Her hand reaches out to grab his, and almost automatically the boy with the ashen brown hair pulls it out from his pilot jacket's pocket to offer for her small grasp; the movement feels so natural that Joa doesn't even think about it until he has already done it. Immediately he frowns just how chummy he gets with Alicia, and most importantly, how fast. He has known her for less than twenty-four hours, but he feels like it's been longer. Something from the back of his mind has already accepted her as something akin to a family, like a little sister that he had always wanted. He brushed the thought away, deciding it was just orphaned kids instinct to stick together for one another, or some other natural psychological phenomenon like that. Either way, he doesn't mind too much, as he likes this little girl already a great deal.
"And you too," Alicia now speaks to Jameson as they walk towards the dining hall,
"I get the feeling you don't really like it here because you haven't had good experiences... Well I hope I can change that and that we can be the best of friends together. Let's start by heading to the dining room together and stuffing our faces and pockets with as much as we can in the few minutes we have." She says with the utmost determination, and as on cue, her stomach growls loudly. Joa can't help but snort in amusement, the timing was just too perfect.
"After all we can't go on an empty stomach to meet Mr. Powers... I'm sure everyone will understand if we sneak some food out in our coats."
They stopped by the coat closet to pick up the outdoor clothes for Alicia and Jameson; Joa was already wearing his, so he settled for judging the condition of the insides of the closet. It was kind of scary how widely and easily Alicia's power seemed to affect her surroundings. It was unsettling, but he decided to keep his opinions to himself about it lest it upset her. He if who knew how being on the end of such opinions felt like, as his own abilities with blood weren't much less stomach wrenching than her uncanny ability to rot things.
"Mr. Powers?" Jameson repeats the name after pulling his coat on and they step into the dining hall. The blond distanced himself from Alicia; it was an obvious effort, Joa observed in silence. He seemed the awkward kind that wasn't too comfortable with touching, or perhaps it was the affection behind it. Or maybe he just didn't like kids that much. Whatever it was, Joa wouldn't mind keeping Alicia all to himself, and offers her his hand again right after she's put her coat on.
"He change his name when he got to this place or is it just some ironic coincidence?"
That... was pretty good question. He had to hand it to Jameson, the irony in that one was strong. A small smile tucked his lips as Alicia seems to notice someone and waves at them from their place in line. Joa's tawny eyes follow her gaze, and she notices the platinum blonde from last night. Ann, was it? She waves back at Alicia, but also pays attention to him and Jameson too. And the light sense of awkwardness is back as he waves back at her. Joa wasn't generally good with girls his age, perhaps typical for a teenage boy like him. Ann was pretty, he couldn't deny that, but he felt this way around with basically all girls so she wasn't a special case or anything. Except maybe with little versions like Alicia, because in that puppy stage they generally weren't yet aware just how terrible creatures they were that were genetically modified by evolution to shred boys like Joa to pieces. Teenage girls were possibly the most terrifying creatures to walk this earth. So far, Joa hadn't had very good experiences with them. It's like something magical happens the moment they hit thirteen, and they turn from small innocent cuties into these nightmares that can hack men's self-confidence into small pieces by mere words alone.
Yeah, some shit went down in the past, and Joa is by far sure he will never get a girlfriend. 'Nuff said.
Once they got the food, all four of them sat by the table. Joa made sure that he got a serving large enough to fill his stomach but small enough to be devoured within the tight time frame. He also made sure to pick food items that could fit into the pockets of his jacket, like an apple and a pastries wrapped in napkins. Thankfully the pockets of his jacket were rather large, and while he kept his jacket open, they weren't bulging so noticeably.
With bacon and scrambled eggs on his plates, Joa reached immediately for his cutlery and eyes his plate hungrily.
"Now, get into my belly!" He declares and starts hurriedly shoveling the food into his mouth, not wasting time with such trivialities like manners or making it look pretty. They had probably less than five minutes now, some sacrifices needed to be made for the good of stomachkind.
It took less than two minutes for Joakim to finish his plate, and within this time Ann has left the table. He washed it all down with a glass of milk, and punched himself in the chest, letting out a small burp after eating so fast.
"Sorry," he apologizes his complete lack of manners, but doesn't seem too heartbroken over it himself.
"'Twas good, but if the breakfasts are normally meant to be this short, they definitely aren't meant to be enjoyed." Joa hoped that this was just a special day with special circumstances, and during other days he would be given the chance to enjoy his food. Perhaps even have a cup of coffee, if they served them to the minors over here. Around the this time Ann returns and sits down again with the lot of them, as silent as ever, but with a smile that passed as another greeting. Joa can't help but feel curious for the reason of her silence, wondering if he will ever find out. But then again, it was also none of his business.
"So," he starts as he pulls the apple from his pocket, and turns it around in his hand,
"mandatory question time. What can you guys do?" He eyes curiously Jameson and Ann, and then reaches to ruffle Alicia's hair,
"I already know what she can do, but I wanna know about you guys. Obviously there is a reason why all of us are here. What makes you part of the weird kids?" He finally lets go of Alicia hair, obviously pleased with himself for managing to make a bit of a mess of it, and bites down on the apple. He chews it for a second, before adding;
"I'll show mine if you guys show yours, savvy?"
