Playing Tag Open

Paul doesn't feel restless for once, nor bored, nor energetic. He actually feels like his energy has somewhat naturally excused itself and gone to the loo to powder its nose, or something. Which wasn't negative, quite the opposite. The boy usually had to spent hours running around the classroom, PE hall or football pitch in order to get rid of surplus energy that he always seemed to have plenty. Today though, he was positive he would fall asleep the moment he'd reach his bed.

And that, ladies and gents, Corrine had a lion's share in arranging.

He sighed, sitting down right next to her. He was also leaning his back against the tree trunk, stretching his legs forward.

“I wouldn’t have won if you didn’t come back after I tripped,”

Paul barked out a short laugh. "Yeah, well... I sound quite like a hero, don't I?" He joked, lying the back of his head against the tree trunk as well as his back and closing is eyes for a moment, breathing in the fresh, autumn evening air.

“Thank you, Paul. Really.”

With that, he opened his eyes with a smirk, moving his head towards her slightly.
"Any time, Athlete." He fisted his palm then, rising it up slightly, so that she could give him a fist bump.

"Athlie or... Athie." Pronounced the boy thoughtfully and pausing for a bit. "I think that's what I'm gonna call you from now on. As a reminder of today." Suggested the boy. "Which one do you like more?"

“..Do you think I need to put bandaids on my face?”

With that question, Paul let out a throaty sound, similar to laughter or a cough. He rised an eyebrow, leaning forward, to look at her directly this time.
"I think you better don't." Did he suggest among giggles. "Unless, of course, you wish to look like a mummy. In that case, please do. And let me take photos!"

He's back in his original sitting position, his eyes closed again. He sighs. "Hey... have you thought about a crazy thing you want me to do already?"

As Corrine glances over the boy, she notices something pretty quickly. Unlike before, the boy seems to have lost a majority of restlessness, which she didn’t even know was possible considering how much energy he had when they first met. In fact, now, he seemed calmer and considerably more relaxed, even going as far as to sit beside her and also lean against the tree.

It’s a good thing then, the girl thinks to herself, curious. “Maybe you are a hero,” she chuckles with a shake of her head. “You did carry me after all. I think that’s something knights do in stories, right?”

She pokes slightly at the textured scratches she could feel on her face, contemplating. “I don’t know if you should call me Athlete at all, I feel like that’s a name more fitting for you than me.” Corrine says with a raise of her eyebrow, but the smile on her face says that she’s amused. “But if I had to choose.. I suppose Athie sounds better to the ears.”

Deciding that it’s best not to poke at her scratches unless they bleed further, Corrine pulls her hands away from her face begrudgingly. For a moment, she hesitates, wanting to speak.

He’s called me multiple nicknames already, she frowns. But I have none for him. What should I do..? Would it be weird to try and decide a nickname for him too?

Paul might actually just grow tired, which, on an eventful day like the one that's almost behind them, is natural. Even a bomb of energy has to get recharged sometimes.

What Cor decides to do then, call him a hero and add some examples of his heroic behavior, Paul merely just takes as a continuation of the former jokes, smiling in the light-hearted atmosphere there is.

"Sure. King Arthur, at the world's service." Says the boy dramatically, fisting a palm again, lifting it up, as if he were holding sword and drew it. "Wait, was it... was good, old Arthie the knight who pulled the Excalibur out of the rock, or was it someone else?" Did he ask, unsure about historic events and personalities. History, with all of its information that the pupils had to learn, was certainly not one of his favourite subjects, back at Muggle school. He preferred Maths or Chemistry; those that he understood once and from that point on, usually answered correctly.

"Nah... it's accurate." Paul uttered, as she expressed her doubts about his nickname. "You're not an athlete till you suffer an injury doing a sport, Athie. You have, which makes you more of an athlete than some professional athletes." He poked her side with his elbow a little.

He notices a longer silence on her part, which is, admittedly, pretty unusual. So he moves again, to look at her profile, noticing there might be something she's going to say. She's just holding back for some reason.

"A penny for your thoughts?" Does he ask.

Location: Courtyard
Tag: @Paul Turner, Open
Date: September 9^th, 2025
Time: Late afternoon

"Really? Cool..." Said Paul when she spoke about King Arthur. "I've never really been into reading. It probably even has something to do with the fact, that I suck at writing." Grimaced the boy. "TV and DVDs worked better for me. Never would have imagined magic is real though. If I'd known earlier, I'd have started reading just to get to know more about it, 'cause it's damn cool and I'm way behind on it." He complained, frowning.

"Funny, isn't it?" Hummed the boy, a grin making its way onto his face. "How much more exciting Hogwarts is, compared to Muggle school. Besides football, of course. That one is the most exciting activity, even at a magical school. But subjects like DADA, or COMC are not that far behind."

He went silent then, endulging in the comfortable quite there appeared every now and then. There were several things Paul experienced for the first time with Corrine, one of them being that silence didn't seem terrifying for once.

“You have two nicknames for me now... and I still have none for you.”

"Well, give me some ideas to choose from." Suggested the boy.

Then though, his belly made a frightening growling sound, so Paul touched it and rubbed it, looking down at it sympathetically. After that, he hopped up from his comfortable place.

"Uhm... ya know what? Let's leave the nickname topic for later. I'm starving now. Let's go to dinner!"

Location: Courtyard
Tag: @Paul Turner, Open
Date: September 9^th, 2025
Time: Late afternoon

Paul narrows his eyes in suspicion at her, likely because he's never heard of Sailor Moon. There can be only one explanation to that.

"Never heard of that. Is it anime?" Asked the boy. "Well, I'm more of a Disney cartoon sort of a person." As he was shrugging, the idea of a film he liked most came to his mind. "My favourite film is Cars!"

Yes, Paul might have the nasty habit of comparing himself to the others. It usually didn't bring much bad humour to him, because he always managed to somehow remember at least something about the activity he got into. Then though, Hogwarts came, and Paul became... well, dumb and moreover vulnerable, 'cause he knew literally nothing about magic. A feeling he really, really didn't enjoy.

Being of Muggle origin certainly had its perks. But this thing bore none of the mere ressemblence with any of them.

As Cor pats him on the shoulder, he turns her head her way, smiling sadly.

"That's true..." Hummed the boy in reaction to her wise words about books. "Some things, you have to experience rather than read about. For example, winning a race! Yahoo!"
He giggled, clapping several times, to acknowledge her victory.

Lastly, he raises to his feet, offering her a hand to help her stand up. "Thinking about it, we could make it a race." Smirked the boy, joking. "After all..."

The rest of his monologue disappeared in the distance, as he, with his friend by his side, slowly left the courtyard.