[center][h2][i][color=#ff69b4]Veronica “Ronnie” Malcolm[/color] & [color=aquamarine]Aya Lynn Germain[/color][/i][/h2] [hr][hr][/center] [hider=Aya - Late Morning - Outside the Danger Room]Aya watched Dean Ashford and Professor Pierce stride away, the spot he’d touched on her shoulder cold in the open air. The Dean’s steady voice echoed in her mind. [i]Don’t be afraid.[/i] Aya wanted to heed him. But somehow… Her lips pressed into a line, eyebrows drawn together as she watched the two men disappear through the door. The Dean had told her not to worry. He was handling it. It was fine. [i]The Sluagh’s claws ripped through her, tearing a hole through her very soul, and a pain so consuming that Aya thought she was only fire, she was only light so blinding that it blocked out the rest of the world around her and her existence narrowed and expanded to just this single moment of white pain —[/i] Dean Ashford had said not to worry — [i]Aya dreamt of a dark man who didn’t belong, smoke billowing around him like rolling fog from a black ocean, smiling — [/i] Aya brought the palms of her hands up to press into her closed eyes. She was tired, and still sore. Clearly traumatized. He’d called her one of their best. Aya didn’t even know what to make of that. A teacher trying to quiet a distraught student? A white lie to encourage her? She didn’t feel like one of their best. She didn’t [i]want[/i] to be one of their best. Raised voices from the Danger Room pulled Aya out of her thoughts. Lowering her hands, she looked over her shoulder to see the commotion of the other students through the doorway. A girl she’d never seen before marched out of the room and Aya stumbled to the side, out of her way. Eventually other students began to trickle out. Apparently Aya had missed the big group talk. That was fine. Aya… didn’t even know what she would say. She didn’t think she was ready to unpack everything that had happened last night. Aya made her way outside along with the rest of the students, not sure what to do now. She could go back to her room — where Uná would likely go, too. That gave her pause. The library, then? Aya ran through a list of different locations to [s]hide[/s] relax — but then she froze. A tingling ran up her spine. Her gaze was pulled across the courtyard. There, with the Dean, was a group of people Aya had never seen before. A man, tall and handsome stood a full head taller than them. [i]A dark smile and rolling smoke.[/i] Aya’s blood was ice in her veins. His eyes never left Uná.[/hider] [hider=Aya and Ronnie - Night - Cafeteria]Aya sat alone at one of the long, wooden tables in the cafeteria. The yellow lights above cast a warm glow across the room, like unflickering firelight. It was a warm, Southern California night — but still, she wrapped her jacket tightly around her, a childish attempt to cocoon herself. She still wasn’t quite over the events of last night — this morning — this [i]year[/i]. Aya pushed a slow, steady breath out between her lips. She forced her eyes to focus on the textbook in front of her. She didn’t want to think about monsters and men and [i]mutations[/i]. The looming knowledge that she’d never be able to escape this new life thrust upon her buzzed through her body. But she didn’t have to think about that [i]right now[/i], did she? For an hour, after the trauma of the Sluagh, and before she had to go back to her shared room with Uná ([i]something was very, dangerously, wrong, she remembered, thinking of the not-Uná with her taunting eyes and vicious threats[/i]) she wanted to just sit in the cafeteria, eat her dinner, and study for her classes. The cooling plate of grilled chicken and French fries sat nearly untouched in front of her. Her eyes scanned the same sentence for the fifth time in a row. Aya sighed, dropping her pen on her open notebook. She pulled her phone from her pocket. With a few taps of the screen, the gentle music streaming from her earbuds grew louder, drowning out the sounds of chatter and silverware scraping against plates. Ronnie walked through the hallways. Her head bowed and eyes fixed to her smartphone. She casually thumbed through the backlog, but only one new message appeared. One from her dad, rather than those she hoped for. After living in a month of denial, her hopes began to dim to dying embers. Heidi’s venomous words poked at her pride causing her to inhale deeply then release her frustration. She lingered on her dad’s last message. He would be in the area and invited her to a casual lunch with him. Every bit of it sounded excited, but she couldn’t return the feeling. In the back of her mind, she wondered if he received mother’s approval for the outing. Of course, she knew he didn’t. All throughout her life, he had been impulsive and timid hearted. A weak fool as her mother labeled him. Her fingers tightened about the casing before she texted a quick yes. Afterwards, she powered her phone down and entered the cafeteria. The girl realized she still had a task to finish. Locating a fellow student going by the name Aya Germain, who had notes she needed for a few classes. Thankfully, the teacher had shown her a picture and directed Ronnie to the cafeteria. It didn’t take the girl long to spot Aya. Collecting a food tray with her meal, she pushed past the student groups toward the isolated figure at the table’s end. Her tray clattered louder than necessarily before Ronnie dropped into the seat beside the Asian looking student. An arm pulled up her bag to the seat beside her. The action both discouraged others taking the seat and brought it within her reach. Ronnie’s voice rang out in a direct and confident manner, [color=#ff69b4]“Aya Germain?”[/color] Aya jumped as a girl she vaguely recognized all but threw herself into the seat beside her, tray rattling against the table. Courtesy kicking in, Aya pulled at the chord connected to her earbuds. Immediately the sounds of the cafeteria came rushing back, music flowing faintly out of them. Aya glanced around, before her gaze fell back on the other girl. Her eyebrows pulled together. [color=aquamarine]“...Yes?”[/color] Ronnie studied the girl briefly. Her eyes drifted up then down, not even bothering to hid it. After waiting for a reaction, she continued in her straight forward way. [color=#ff69b4]“It’s great that I have your attention now. Right down to business.”[/color] She began to pull out her notebook, her class books, and a pencil then set them on the table. [color=#ff69b4]“I need you to get me up to speed with Chemistry, Creative Writing, and AP Calculus AB. That includes copying your notes. Also, if you’re in AP Microeconomics, and Psychology then I will need those too.”[/color] Aya blinked at her. [i][color=aquamarine]Nice to meet you, too.[/color][/i] The Danger Room. That was where Aya recognized this girl from. Tall, brown skinned, with a scowling face. She remembered seeing her storm out of the room and into the hallway, thunder in her eyes. She hadn't seen her in classes before. She was new, then. [color=aquamarine]“Well… the year just started, so there’s really not much to catch up on… I’m sorry, what did you say your name was?”[/color] She hadn't. But Aya didn’t have it in her to explicitly point that out. Ronnie’s eyebrow arched. Deciding to speed this along, she revealed her name. [color=#ff69b4]“Veronica Malcolm. Just arrived yesterday and learning first hand how weird this place is. Can’t say I’m enjoying it.”[/color] She reached for her fries and grabbed a few in her fingers. Then she dipped them in ketchup before she popped them into her mouth. Her other arm rested an elbow on the table while she continued to observe the girl. Aya had to agree with her there. Still, she found herself saying, [color=aquamarine]“It’s a transition, but there are worse places to be.”[/color] None of them came to mind at the moment, but Veronica’s dismissive personality had Aya’s defenses creeping up. Ronnie had been taught to read people and already, she could see the hesitation in Aya. Her mother’s voice crept into her head. [i]Weak. Pitiful. Sheep.[/i] The words struck a cord, but she ignored it. [color=#ff69b4]“Maybe, but I prefer my old school.”[/color] The student moved her tray to the side, getting serious. Her hand popped open the notebook with a list of notes already neatly written on them. [color=#ff69b4]“Anyways, I’m sure you want to get back to… whatever you were doing. Do you have any idea where we are in the lessons? I don’t think California and Washington have the exact same education curriculum. So I need at least some idea how far behind or ahead I am.”[/color] Aya paused for a moment. Then she sighed. This girl, as abrasive as she was, was coming to her for help. She’d never been taught how to turn people away. Closing the textbook in front of her, Aya pulled her own notebook so it sat between the two girls. It was thick, spiral-bound with a page folded here and there to work as homemade dividers. Pockets in the front and back were filled with various handouts the students had been given in class. [color=aquamarine] “I’m not in Econ, but the other classes have a few pages of notes each.”[/color] She flipped open to the first section, [i]Psychology[/i] written across the top of the page in big, purple lettering. Her notes were neat and precise, with various things highlighted or underlined in some unwritten code. The margins were covered in aimless doodles, spiraling designs or floral patterns. Aya stopped though when she looked down at her own writing - [i]Amygdala: 心配＋侵略[/i] Her notes were littered with kanji, scrawled characters used as shorthand to save either time or space. She looked back up at the other girl. [color=aquamarine]“My notes might not actually be the best for you to use,”[/color] she said, a small apology in her voice. Ronnie’s expression quickly soured when she spotted the kanji. She sighed then debated on her options. For a moment, she considered pulling up her app and just deal with the baseline meaning. Did she want to do that much work? [i]Whatever[/i] Ronnie thought, but decided to leave it alone. [color=#ff69b4]“It’s… whatever. Fits with the rest of the day anyways. I’ll figure it out on my own, just tell me what pages you covered in class.”[/color] Ronnie had decided she already had enough of this shitty school and her dad’s offer sounded better the more she thought about it. Despite herself, Aya felt a small pang of guilt at failing this girl. Looking back down at her notes, she flipped to the last page and ripped it out. Aya turned to the very front of her notebook, where she’d listed her assignments for all the classes. She took to writing them down for Veronica. When she finished, Aya folded the paper and held it out to her. [color=aquamarine]“Sorry I couldn’t be more help,”[/color] she said. [color=aquamarine]“And… the last few days haven’t been very good to any of us. But for whatever it’s worth, the teachers here are more understanding than most. If you ask, they’ll give you the time you need to get up to speed, or extra help, or…”[/color] A slim shoulder lifted in a half shrug. [color=aquamarine]“We’re all trying to acclimate. They get that, I think.”[/color] Aya wasn’t just talking about the new school or the coursework. Memories of that first meeting with Professor Everose flashed in her mind, the offer for special tutoring, help controlling her powers and coming to terms with her new reality, the calming voice and welcoming eyes, the small butterfly figurine that still sat on her bedside table. She’d nearly left that day - nearly backed out and ran back home before even giving this place a chance. Aya still wasn’t sure if staying had been the right decision, but there was no going back, now. Ronnie gave up on the conversation. She flipped her notebook close, shoved it into her bag, and zipped it close. Tossing the strap about her shoulder, she rose to her feet with her tray. Her appetite completely gone now. [color=#ff69b4]“No, I’ll get it done. It’s better to rely on myself than look weak.”[/color] Ronnie stopped herself from snapping, but her voice did heighten in volume against her will. She inhaled then exhaled. Her eyes looked to the paper than considered just leaving it, but she needed the help. Against her better judgement, she reached out and took it. [color=#ff69b4]“Thanks.”[/color] Her words were half-hearted, but at least they weren’t abrasive. As for acclimating, she didn’t want that. She wanted this to be a bad dream which she could wake up from. The longer she stayed here, the more she realized she was the only one that actually wanted that. Everyone else appeared to have accepted their fate. Without another word, she walked off to her room. Aya only watched, taken aback by the other girl’s words. Her eyebrows pulled together as Veronica marched out of the cafeteria. Asking for help with homework made her… [i]weak[/i]? For all of her bluster and confidence, Veronica seemed young - younger than Aya, at least. And she was decidedly [i]unhappy[/i]. Proud. Abrasive. Demanding. For a moment, Aya wondered how long she’d known about her mutation — she wondered if the moment of awakening had been as traumatic as her own. Aya sighed, looking down again at her bilingual notes. She flipped them closed and started to return all her belongings to her bag. They were all just ill-adjusted children trying to figure out how to cope with new, terrifying powers that they didn’t understand and didn’t ask for. Faces flashed in her mind — Drake with his tired, mismatched eyes, a demon haunting his every step. Timid Daniela, lost and on the run. Veronica, who was… a lot. And Uná. Aya didn’t know where to start, with Uná. She didn’t even know where the beginning [i]was[/i]. But despite Ashford’s reassurances, a cold, solid pit sat in her stomach, sending a steady chill through her blood. Something wasn’t [i]right[/i]. Her power — her [i]mutation[/i] — sent a buzz through her, like electricity, making her hair stand on end. She remembered the group from the courtyard. The man. Aya was the [i]last[/i] person who would be qualified to do something — she wasn’t strong, or brave, she didn’t know how to… [i]be an X-Man.[/i] She didn’t have it in her. But she knew things — things that mattered. And Uná was her [i]friend[/i]. So if there was even the smallest chance that she could help… didn’t she have to take it? Her lips pressed into a tight line. Then Aya steadied her nerves, took her uneaten food to the compost bin, and forced herself out of the cafeteria. She’d tried to avoid it for as long as she could. But it was time to finally check on her roommate.[/hider]