[hr][center][img]http://txt-dynamic.static.1001fonts.net/txt/dHRmLjgwLjgwYTlkMS5RVzVrY21WaElGQmhjM1JsY201aFkycywuMAAA/ruthie.regular.png[/img][/center][code]Grand Ridge - Conference Room[/code] [@Surtr Inc][@Atrophy][@FernStone][@Prosaic][hr]

There was a lot going on that Andrea didn't understand, and she had sort of expected that going into this whole situation. She wasn't a part of the camping tragedy like the other students here, so she suspected some issues arising such as not being able to relate to their unique and collective struggle. She expected that maybe her being an implant or a foreigner to this state - and hell, [i]country[/i] - would set her aside from the peer group of pre-acquainted individuals, outcasted and ostracized so to speak. She wasn't expecting talk of invisible tattoos and shared dreams, or a bat magically appearing out of thin air. She wasn't expecting superpowers. That's what a number of these kids were calling them. One of them even talked as though it were normal. What could possibly be normal about it?

Her own issues and trauma, despite how profoundly they affected her, suddenly felt very small in the grand scheme of things. Part of her thought she might be going crazy, maybe she relapsed doesn't remember, and now she's hallucinating. The only problem with that logic was that felt completely sober. She has managed to stayed sober for a very long time. Even though she knew that Britney was trying to keep the situation under control, she just wished that her friend would come out with it and explain to her what was really happening. Then the pretty blonde girl spoke up.

Andrea liked to think she was able to get a good read on people, but she didn't know what her problem was. The best thing she could guess was that she and Britney already had a tumultuous relationship with one another before this brouhaha even occurred. She called her a crony, said that Brit was playing favorites - and although Andrea knew that her criticisms were emotionally charged and weren't really based on a foundation of logic or reason, it hurt her. Her words stung and they made her want to clam up and she didn't even know her.

This whole thing was her idea in the first place and it backfired terribly! It was her fault, and... gosh, she didn't even know her. She didn't even know her...

Andrea steeled her nerves and her resolve, stepping in between Britney and Penny, looking at the the latter with a pained expression on her face.

"Uh, miss? I'm sorry, but... [i]you don't even know me.[/i]" She scolded, her voice slightly trembling in her Polish accent. She looked around the room, "None of you know me, and I'm sorry that I did not make a proper introduction. To start, my name isn't [i]crony.[/i]"

She stabbed a glance at Penny and said, "Its Andrea, and it was my idea to get you all together in the first place. I wasn't there when the tragedy happened. That's why Britney was talking to me and trying to help me understand. Are you satisfied?"

With that biting remark out of the way, she continued to everyone else, "This is the first time I've been asked to help in facilitating a group, but it isn't my first time in counseling. I've visited counselors and groups like these for a long time. We're in all in college now. We're all [i]adults[/i] now. We [i]can[/i] be civil. Some of you might not agree with each other, but there's nothing wrong with that. All of you came here because maybe you either wanted to heal or feel like you weren't alone. You shared a struggle together, find unity in [i]that[/i] if nothing else. We're all responsible for our own healing. I don't understand what's going on, but it isn't too late to restart. Maybe we can begin by apologizing and then everyone can work together to get me up to speed - from the beginning."