[hr][hr] [centre][b][h1][color=firebrick]Kalinda[/color][/h1][/b] [img]https://media.giphy.com/media/Najzp1G3WDCmc/giphy.gif[/img] [b][Location:[/b]Academy Grounds [sup]Interacting with[/sup]No one… well. Every ones emotions[/centre] [hr][hr] Kalinda had chosen that morning to head to the academy, reluctantly, with her mother. Things the last several months had been tense, and she was rather looking forward to time away from her mother, who had become overbearing… even since that night… Kalinda looked away from her mother, and out the window. The drive was a load of nothing, with splotches of human habitation. She sighed heavily, resting her forehead against the cool surface of the window. She didn't like to think of that night… Emotions can drive people to act in strange and unusual ways. Love can cause you to do crazy things. Sadness can throw you into lethargy. Anger can lead you to violence. And murder. Kalinda closed her eyes tightly, wrapping her arms around her middle, her stomach hurting at the moment, the pain of that night. Her empathy… had manifested all at once… and it hadn't boded well. Even now, months from the incident, Kalinda still couldn't remember all of that night. Except for the blood and the screams… those haunted her nights, her dreams. And her abilities were what had caused the tension between her mother and herself. Her mother wanted her to go where she had trained her empathic abilities… but kalinda didn't want to go to a different dimension. And she had heard about the Academy opening. Sequestered in her room, Kalinda hadn't trusted her mother to do what was required to get her into the school. And so Kalinda had contacted the beneficiaries herself, once it had been announced who they were. Ultimately, that had lead to her enrolling in the school, being sent information about the school and what she needed, as well as what to expect and to be asked if she needed anything. Satisfied with that, she had told her mother. And they hadn't spoken for days. Kalinda had locked herself away, not wanting to… not wanting to hurt someone again. Yet she still felt the emotions of those around her, the sheer strength of her empathic ability tearing through her. Even now, away from people, she could feel emotions… weak, but as they neared the school… growing stronger. She wondered if this was a mistake, and she hugged herself tighter. She'd just have to make it not a mistake. Shifting, she opened her eyes, and looked down at her gloved hands. Black leather gloves, thick enough that even with wear, there wouldn't be holes, long enough to cover her hands, wrists, and lower arms, so that no bare skin would touch another's. Touch made things so much worse… She looked over to her mother, and gave another soft sigh. [color=firebrick]”Please don't leave things the way they are, mother.”[/color] she said softly, [color=firebrick]”I'm sorry, for what's happened, but… this is right for me. I'll be okay.”[/color] she promised her, and when there was no response, Kalinda looked out the window again, watching the Academy draw closer and closer. When the car stopped, Kalinda looked at the gates with an increasing feeling of apprehension. She slowly got out the car, gathering her things, and looking towards the school, leaving the door open. She turned back to the car, and set her gear down, before leaning into the car and giving her mother a hug. [color=firebrick]”Bye... “[/color] She said softly, picking up her things once more and heading to the gates. The press of emotions on her was daunting, but Kalinda managed to keep herself distanced for now. It wouldn’t last, she knew. For now though… she’d be okay. It was easier to let the emotions come through and sort of… have them come in then fly back out again. She slung her pack over her shoulders, and wheeled her suitcase behind her, looking about at the other students, she was afraid of approaching them… afraid of anything that might get her too close to someone else… but she’d come here for a chance, a chance at life, a chance at some semblance of normal, of control… She drew in a deep breath, and let it out again slowly. Maybe she couldn’t do this. Maybe her mother was right… but there was no way that she was walking back to that car and letting her mother feel like she had won. So Kalinda carefully scanned the students in front of her, as she stood just inside the gates. She hesitated as she saw a woman and a child, the woman struggling with the child and all her gear. She hurried over after a moment, There was no way she was going to take the kid- children, she had found, had such potent emotions-, but she’d more than happily take the bags. [color=firebrick]”Here, let me help you. I can take the bags”[/color] She offered, reaching out, she stopped realising how forward that was, [color=firebrick]”I can take them by the straps so you don’t have to shift the boy”[/color] Again, she seemed to backtrack a minute, a little flustered. [color=firebrick]”Oh, sorry, I’m Kalinda”[/color] She suddenly noticed the toy on the ground, and she moved to pick it up, offering a smile as she turned back to the girl.