"Well Efnysien also tore through my armor like it was a damp kleenex, so I wouldn't feel too bad about your wings being fragile..."
***
Nothing superhuman was needed to get into Los Hermanos Hauling, or Bronwyn's own secluded spot within it, but Bronwyn made sure to chat up Jo- since it wasn't Bo's shift -to let Alexis slip through without any untoward questions.
She quickly led them through the winding paths of the junkyard, not stopping to seriously scrounge, but reminding both her guests to "Keep an eye out for any 316 stainless - the uh, really shiny chrome-y stuff like Bran's armor was made out of. It's really some of the best stuff for superheroing, but a lot of where you find it is in, like, jet engine parts so I can always use more..."
As she came to the wall of cubed metal and appliances that kept her inner sanctum from easy access, a mischievous grin flickered across her face moments before she bent down to settle Shayera across her palms and shot-putted her up the 10' or so to the top of the makeshift barrier!
The Villain day had gotten Evan out of school, but his 3:30 shift at Herrells was much more steadfast than the american education system. so he wore the uniform, because it was old fashioned enough still mandate one, smock and everything, and he stood behind the counter, and made milkshakes and sundaes and all the fun stuff. It hadn't been a dull day, that girl from AP English had come in crying, maybe she'd broken up with... who was she even dating.She'd run out pretty quick though into some weird black car. then a few friend-adjacent people from school had come by. Kyle, Ronnie, and Jacob, they'd shot the s*~* for a few minutes. lots of curiosity regarding which villain, no big release yet, but there had been a bunch of damage, and the rumour mill was buzzing about kidnapping. nothing confirmed, of course, but everybody had a "friend of a friend" story.
Evan was thinking about starting in on the cleaning, when She came in. She was not especially tall, maybe 5 inches over 5 feet. She wore a dress with honest to god lace on it, in red and yellow fabric. Her hair was long, and most of it brilliant red, but one streak was dyed indigo. her face had delicate, angular features, especially in the eyes, which were almost all iris, he would swear he could barely see the pupil or Sclera in that seafoam green field... he snaps himself out of it as he realises he's staring. Christ, Evan, what are you doing, writing a novel? who the hell uses terms like "seafoam green field". She floats over, drawing Jacob, Kyle, and Ronnie's eyes. She almost glides across the floor, eyes darting hither and yon. and she steps up to the counter, smile showing incredibly bright teeth. this shop smells of cream and sweet berries. she says, her voice almost distracting from the odd statement. I would like some, like he has. she says, indicating Kyle and his Raspberry milkshake. The girl places a gold coin on his counter as he prepares it, and makes no indication that it is a joke. but it was probably worth more than $4.... so he was pretty sure the boss wouldn't take it too hard.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lady Acrasia gives a smile and a nod to the servant boy as she collected the treat. She turns to and walks toward the trio she had been observing for some time, and casually sipped from the cup, discarding a few pieces of plastic impeding her way. Her glamour almost drops as she starts, surprised. it was beyond decadence, Would but that she could show all of the people this. she regains her composure, and uses a finger to collect the errant treat from the edges of her mouth. and she goes to approach the trio. They seemed interesting, and she was pretty sure she could get them to accept her.
"Eeeep!!" Shayera squeaks involuntarily as she's flung upward. Her reflexes take over when she reaches the top, grabbing the edge of the barrier and flipping over. There's the sound of her hitting the ground with a grunt.
"Thanks for the boost," she says flatly when Bron and Alexis make their own way over.
Shayera had been to Bronwyn's forge a few times, so she knew the lay of the grounds. She catches a familiar scent immediately, and without spotting its source she says, "Hey, Mary-Beth."
She turns to look at her, alarmed by the sudden stink of fear emanating from Bronwyn's friend. "Okay, what's up?" Her senses go on high alert, looking for the source of M-B's sudden terror.
Changing back into street clothes with the hoodie and sunglasses on, Alexis was at a wonder looking over the junkyard. It was interesting to see all of these strange derelicts around them. "Do you think they would drag those robots we fought here?" They asked Bronwyn, before watching her launching Shayera over a wall of junk.
Alexis grabbed onto the wall and hauled themself over the other side, landing on their feet. They had only a moment to really look around before distracted by Shayera calling out to someone unfamiliar to them. They turned quickly to hide their face - it wouldn't do to confuse someone about a second Bronwyn.
Kaoru looked up at the...power station? Cell tower? He wasn't quite sure what it was. Or what the odd device he had been asked to place was supposed to do. He assumed it was some kind of hardware hack to bypass whatever defenses Delphi had put up, but as expected, it was just as advanced and beyond him as every other little gift Pinky had sent his way. Whatever it was, it had been simple enough to get in and install. His target hadn't even been guarded. He wasn't quite sure if he was pleased by that or disappointed.
Whatever it was, it was the last of the set of tasks he had been asked to do, none of which had been especially difficult. Which was a sure sign that Pinky didn't live in this area or they could have just done it themself. Or hired that what's-his-face guy to do it. But then, that would probably be expensive, and Pinky had already spent more on him than he should have just by hiring the guy to save his life. Which he was grateful for even as it made him uncomfortable. He wasn't sure what it had cost but he was pretty sure it was well more than he was worth. Enough that even running these errands wouldn't make them any where near even. Especially since these errands were actually for him so he could continue to chat with his friend after stupidly getting caught by that Greek-but-probably-not a%!!~*~.
He shook his head, trying to push the anxiety out as he noticed he had a missed call. Frowning and hoping to distract himself -- or distract himself as much as he could given that he was still using the beyond-next-gen probably-a-one-of-a-kind-prototype that had also been a gift -- he listened to the voicemail.
"Hey, uh, so, you might have heard that Alexandra is um, quitting the team. Which, well, she has her reasons. You can still... be on the team? Dammit. Look, I don't know what to say here, but I understand if you want to quit too, okay?"
His jaw clenched at the words. Yes, he totally had no idea his girlfriend had quit the team. </sarcasm> And Wingblade was clearly hoping he'd quit along with her. Probably so she could be leader again.
Ugh, and he still had that stupid armor, didn't he. It would have been easy enough to drop it off at school, but given the last-minute cancellation, he didn't feel like seeking Alexis out to give it back to him. Her? ...it?
He probably should quit the team. Gods only knew the only good part of it had already left. And after Friday, he'd at least be free to do so. Sighing, he started up the car. Maybe he'd stick around the outskirts of the city until he cooled off. Try putting the car through its paces. Test its limits and then check out what was under the hood. Unraveling a puzzle like that should be enough to keep his mind off of everything else that was going on.
"I mean they shouldn't. Maybe after all the weapons and power cores or whatever are taken out... Worth keeping an eye out for though, you're right."
I told her Shayera and Alexa were coming didn't I? Crap, I'm terrible.
"Mary-Beth it's fine, it's..."
It wasn't fine.
A patch of hair was missing from the top of Mary-Beth's head, though the wound was already scabbed over. She was bruised, battered, and bloodstained. Wide eyes peered through the crazed lenses. "Oh my God, Mary-Beth what happened?!"
"I told them you weren't there, but they didn't believe me. One of them grabbed my- my hair and then..."
She screwed her eyes shut, fists clenched against her side as she fought against some vision that shimmered the air around her like a heat haze to Bronwyn's eyes.
The pain jolted her to action. Wires were jammed into her skin and an uncomfortable headset covered her eyes, ears and nose so she could only sense what her handlers wanted her to sense. She moved how they wanted her to -- swift, precise, deadly.
Her hands flew up to block an incoming attack, and as she took the blow on her forearms she pivoted and brought a kick up into her opponent's midsection. She spun to get some separation and distance, then before her foe could recover she drove several sharp jabs at pressure points and joints.
Another enemy moved in from her flank, and she twisted out of the way. More foes advanced, surrounding her. Electric jolts spurred her muscles to action, moving her fluidly, ducking and weaving, through the flurry of attacks. She jumped up as the press of bodies got too close, striking one enemy in the face before flipping over and landing on the outskirts of the mass of foes. She struck again in rapid succession, targeting soft joints in a blur of motion.
More came at her. She moved faster this time, the electric currents running from the wires into her muscles barely necessary as her own instincts begin to grow. Her strikes were harder and more precise and her foes fell away, hobbled or wracked with pain. The jolts kept coming and she pressed the attack, driving hard blows to throats, elbows, knees, and other soft points.
Finally, her enemies were all on the floor and the electric currents stopped. She stood still as she was surrounded again, but not by enemies this time. The headset was removed and light and sound spilled into her world.
The figures begun talking, but not to her. "Performance measures reached 97.5 percent. That's the highest of any subject. If I knew any better, I'd say it was anticipating the moves before the commands were input." "Shouldn't that be impossible? It can't see or hear what's going on." "Then explain to me how no other subject was able to get higher than a 77 percent match." "Gentlemen, I believe that this subject would be better served in another project." "Are you kidding? If we can use the data to get the others--" "I believe Basim is correct. A nearly 98 percent match is too great to be hoped for in this project. I have something else in mind for this subject. I believe it can... fly higher."
Lady Acrasia gestures to an empty chair, her grin widening to show too-sharp canines. Ronnie and Jacob nod simultaneously, Kyle following a moment later. She takes her seat, tipping up her cup to taste more of the ambrosia within. You may call me Eábha. I am new here she says in an almost unplaceable accent. The others introduce themselves. Unfamiliar names, in unfamiliar clothes. The woman's hand stretches out, and Lady Acrasia regards it oddly. After a moment, the Woman, Ronnie she had named herself, retracts her hand.
Are you a student at Halcyon High? The one who called himself Jacob said. A student of a location, The high... had she seen a mountain?
I am not. I am quite a new arrival. she says. she finishes her drink, and pouts a little at its absence.
Yeah, Herrels is pretty good. You should try the Mocha next time. Kyle offers. Are you going to be transferring in? he asks.
Acrasia makes a decision. Why not. Yes, I will. where is it? she asks/
Alexis felt paralyzed. They wanted to help, but didn't know if they should reveal themselves to this Mary Beth even though Bronwyn knew her. Did she know that Bronwyn had powers? What happened to her hair? Why was there suddenly a glow around her?
"What's happening?" They finally got out, confused and cowering by the junk wall.
Gae-Dearg pierced the mist of memory that hung around Mary-Beth's head and she returned to her senses with a strangled shriek, twisting away from the leaf-blade that had, to her, suddenly appeared.
"What the f*%$?!"
"Sorry! It looked like you had some kind of memory-spell on you and- Wait, did you do something with Shayera's memories?!"
"Really? Now you're blaming me?! I've still got some guy's scalp blood on me and you don't think it has anything to do with you cozying up to killing machines and pretending no one's getting hurt?
And now, what, you're just showing the spear to anyone who asks? Who even is that?!"
Shayera listens to the rapid-fire exchange between Bron and M-B, and the phrase "Shayera's memories" sparks a sudden recognition. Her stomach lurches as she thinks about her dreams and memories from that charm she wore the other night getting out.
"YOU PROMISED!!" she shouts, voice thick with hurt and betrayal. Shayera's chest heaves as she draws in and expels ragged breaths. Eyes already full of tears look desperately at Bronwyn, then she turns to regard Mary-Beth. She makes eye contact, the look in her eyes and the stink of fear confirming that she knew. She'd seen.
An anguished cry escapes Shayera's throat as she spins away. She clasps her hand around her pendant, but stops before yanking it off. She looks up to the sky for escape, her hand trembling.
She chokes back a sob, wipes her eyes and turns back around to face them. "I dream about killing, okay? My missions... my life now... they get all jumbled up in my dreams. But it's not-- I don't--" She sniffs and wipes her nose. "Dammit. You didn't need to know that."
Now there was shouting. And more confusion. And Shayera...confessing something that Alexis probably wouldn't have wanted to talk about in her place at all.
But. It was familiar.
They reached out for Shayera, grabbing her into as gentle a hug as they could. "You're not...the only one with dreams like that," They tell her, trying to lend her some comfort.
"...I'm a killer, too." It was the wrong thing to say, but realized too late to take back for them.
Shayera slips out of Alexis's attempted embrace, her face scowling. She didn't want to be comforted; she didn't need to know that the other killing machine she knew had the same kinds of dreams. It didn't make things better. It wouldn't stop Bronwyn from looking at her differently.
"Stop it," she says while putting distance between her and everyone. Her hands clench into fists as she turns to face Bronwyn and Mary-Beth. The girl's injuries told a story, that she had also been assaulted last night and managed to get away from the Balor cultists, but it didn't change the fact that M-B had looked into her dreams.
"You didn't have the right. Bronwyn promised she wouldn't look. She'd give the stone to you to erase it. I need to know. Did she let you look?" Shayera's senses focus on Mary-Beth, watching for signs of falsehood. "Did you both decide that you could look? Or did you go behind her back?"
Bronwyn stepped forward, tucking Mary-Beth behind her "Hey! If you're wondering if I broke a promise to you, maybe try asking me about it instead?" She stepped forward, still staying between her and Shayera. "And no, I didn't look, I didn't ask her to look, and I didn't let her look! I'm sure it was just an accident anyways, magic's not a science, you know?!"
"Yeah! And even if it was an accident, she's my best friend! You really think if I found out just how blissed out you get over killing people that I wouldn't tell her?! Of course I'd tell her that... Bron why do you have a murder twin? Is that why it's okay for her to see the spear?"
"Oh. They're not my twin. That's Alexis, uh, Mercy. They started looking like me after they, uh, got really hurt. And after I got beheaded as Bran... Well, I've gotta get used to doing stuff as-" "Wait - beheaded?! And 'Really Hurt?' G@*&~#nit Bronwyn! You don't see it do you? All this is too dangerous and you think ignoring it is going to make it better?!
"I'm out of here."
Shayera falls back into the shadows of the junkyard when Bronwyn steps in to defend Mary-Beth. Then of course she has to blab about how it feels to cut someone down with her wings, though "bliss" only barely covered it.
For a moment, Shayera flashes back to last night and the time when she was in the Red slicing through the Eyeblighted like so much wheat. It was sooo fulfilling; it felt sooo good. She fights her way out of that reverie. They could have been people. They were people, really.
She yanks the pendant off and collapses under the agony that immediately bears down upon her. It was no less than what she deserved. She lost control, and this was her penance. With a groan of pain, she tosses away the pendant.
While Bronwyn and Mary-Beth argue, Wingblade curls up on the ground and suffers.
"Um...Bronwyn?" Alexis looked worried. Even more so when Shayera revealed her wings. They hurried to retrieve her pendant, trying not to feel like they were useless here. That they could do something to help their friends.
"You're hurting. Hang on, let me try..." They speak to her, kneeling by the winged heroine. "You shouldn't take this off before she's ready to work on you. I think she needs time to talk to her friend..."
Alexis didn't know what to do. But they knew they weren't going to leave her here curled up alone. Even if it was just curling up next to her, shoulder to shoulder. Trying to understand. Trying to be understood. "...I'll wait with you."
Shayera pushes herself up, looking at Alexis with a face gray from the pain. She shakes her head sadly. I deserve this. Last night was my fault, she wants to say, but can't do it.
Mary-Beth stormed off down a narrow twist of empty space back towards the rest of the junkyard while Bronwyn looked on, hurt and anger flickering across her face, unseen by her friends behind her. Probably better if we talk later...
"Don't worry, Alexis. We're not waiting." This Can't wait.
She draped a broad length of chainmail over one shoulder and scooped up Shayera in her arms, trusting to her armor to at least blunt any involuntary twitches
"I really don't think Mary-Beth looked on purpose," she murmured. I did tell her not to, so- I don't think it was on purpose."
She laid her out on a large work bench and hauled over another to rest the damaged wing on. Then came the vises. "Okay, I'm gonna need to hold your wing in place, and tightly enough that you won't be able to move it. It should just be pressure, but tell me to stop whenever you want, okay?"
Shayera looked woozy from the pain, but gave Bronwyn a nod and a grunt in the affirmative.
The vises were a hodgepodge of sizes and gauges, but Bronwyn seemed confident as she moved along, eyes flickering back towards Shayera's face as she finished immobilizing her injured wing.
Shayera rolled her shoulders involuntarily to ease the sensation of her trapped wing, already imagining the heat of the welding torch.
**smek**
Bronwyn gave Shayera a quick peck on her forehead as she hustled past her to gather up the rest of her gear. She put on a pair of goggles, and carefully tucked her hair up under a cap, but didn't bother with anything heavier than her tanktop and leggings to protect the rest of her.
"Hey Alexis. Could you wheel over that cooler? If Matrix's readings were right, then we won't need any of this, but just in case her wings are a lot more conductive than we think, I want to have something ready. Just in case."
With a click and a soft whoosh she tested her torch, securing it in an odd looking custom rig that stretched down to a foot pedal on the ground near the bent feather.
"We're gonna start- Well, not 'cool', but cooler and ramp things up from there, okay? You can watch or not, but just let me know if it's too hot, okay?"
"Okay." Gently she pressed on the pedal and the acetylene sparked to life in a single tongue of yellow flame. Eyes fixed on Shayera's wing, she gradually fiddled with the valves until the yellow of the flame washed away in a brilliant blue that gradually centered back around the tip of the torch. "You're doing great sweetie. Just great."
Shayera made a strangled noise in the back of her throat. Her hands found a piece of scrap metal and she clenched it, her whole body quivering. "Not... doing... grrt..." she hissed through her teeth.
Beads of sweat that had very little to do with the heat spotted Bronwyn's forehead as the bent feather began to glow an angry red.
"Okay, okay," she breathed, relief flavoring her words. Thank God. I was afraid she wasn't going to change colors at all. Let's get a bit of oxygen in here too...
A few more tweaks of the valves and her torch's heat grew even fiercer. "We're gonna go a little faster and see if we can get from cherry to orange, 'kay?" She reached farther down the wing to a still cool patch and stroked the flats between the bladed edges. "Now I've got a better sense of what we're working with."
Shayera's feathers changed faster, lightening in color to a brilliant vermillion. "Soon... soon... Okay!"
The agony radiating from Shayera's wing began to change in sensation. No less painful, but it became a clear sensation of heat and burning. "Hot..." she croaked as her body shook. Her wing is immobile; the rest of her is not. She bit back a scream that only partially escapes her throat.
Bronwyn eased back off the pedal, cutting the flame. With a flick of her hand she gestured Alexis over to Shayera's side, but she didn't have long for her work. She snatched up a set of dull, heavy pliers and clamped on as best she could, but the angle was bad, and the feather wouldn't budge.
She switched between other tools, prybars and something that looked like a shim, even bringing out a few very oddly shaped tools that looked as though they were made right here from the junk that surrounded them.
None of them worked, and Shayera's feathers were cooling fast.
We can still go hotter but eventually there'll just be enough heat to cut through. And even if we stop before that...
"Shayera... It's not working. I think we'd need to go hotter, but... That might mean I'd have to, uh, reshape this part."
Shayera wasn't hearing her. Her eyes were clamped shut, tears streaming down her cheeks. She was hugging herself in as much of a ball as her immobilized wing would allow. In her mind, she was back at the lab, men without expression surrounding her, digging deep into her back, cutting away the flesh that kept regrowing as they operated for hours, days even. She whimpered in a childlike voice, "¿Hazlo parar? ¿Por favor? No quiero que me duela más. Solo haz que se detenga."
The pain vanished as Bronwyn fastened her charm back around her neck, but she didn't unclench, still balled up as Bronwyn held her, whispering, "Estás bien mi vida. Estás seguro. Hemos terminado. Solo vuelve a mi..."
"Mamá..."
Ghosts of pain assailed her. Locked in her flashback, she cried futilely for any respite from the agony being inflicted upon her. She didn't believe the pain was gone, since it never left. It was all she knew.
Whispers in her ear slowly, gradually coax her back to the present. Echoes of the pain finally fade and she opens her eyes. Sensing Bronwyn wrapped around her in a hug, Shayera sobs one last time and hugs her back tightly.
She stays like that for a while as her mind compartmentalizes the traumatic memories and locks them away. She finally stirs and lifts her head. "Did... did it work?" she asks, though she gets the answer when she notices the pendant around her neck.
"Oh." Shayera is quiet for a moment, then looks at Bronwyn in her eyes. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have cried... like that. My fault."
"...It's okay to feel pain." Alexis spoke up, feeling more than a little useless, even with Bronwyn giving them tasks to keep busy. They definitely wanted to give bending the feather back into place a try, but relented only because it seemed Bronwyn had enhanced strength herself. It would probably have only made things worse.
"...If we can't bend it back into place, would removing it be a better option?" Alexis asked. They were fairly certain it wouldn't grow back, but losing one feather wouldn't mean she couldn't fly, right? "What else can we do?"
Shayera untwines from Bronwyn and stands up shakily. She looks at Alexis grimly. "I don't know. Maybe. I mean, I could go see my father. He worked on the project that made me, so he might know to do something." Her head spins to look at Bronwyn in the eyes. "You could come with. You know, watch, since I know you don't trust--" She squeezes her eyes shut as the sensation of being operated on over and over threatens to crawl back from the deep recesses of her mind she keeps them.
The moment passes, and she opens her eyes with a sigh. "Something to think about, anyway." She falls silent, looking down at the ground. She kicks a piece of scrap metal with her foot, imagining Alexis's suggestion of removing the offending feather. Or worse, going back to Camila.
"I think I'm going to go back to my apartment. You need to patch things up with M-B, and I probably shouldn't be around for that. And Whip's planning on coming by, so I should get going." She looks up at Bronwyn, then closes the distance between them to give her a hug. "Thanks for trying. I won't talk to Dad about my... unless you say it's okay."
She leaves the junkyard.
============================
Shayera is floating in her pool when Whippoorwill glides in and lands lightly on her balcony. Her mentor walks over to the edge of the water and studies her protégé for a time without saying anything.
"Figure out my punishment?" Shayera asks without looking up.
"Well, Innis is on a rampage after your little escape. He's trying to link you to the attacks. I'm running damage control, since you don't deserve that -- even as punishment for losing control. But you'll need to lay low for a while. What's the status of the rest of your team?"
Shayera opens her eyes and paddles over to the edge of the pool. "What team? Alexandra quit. I haven't heard from Kaoru, but he's probably out as well -- their friendship was really the only thing keeping him around. Bran's gone, Alexis looks like Bronwyn... It's all in shambles." She's quiet for a moment, then forges ahead. "And laying low is going to be pretty easy for me."
Whippoorwill blew out a breath slowly as her mind worked that over. With the team disbanded, the kids weren't going to be protected from the SIDEKICK laws. More complications that she didn't need. Then she sensed the strain in Shayera's voice at that last statement. There was more. "And why is that?" she asks.
"My wing hurts. Where it's bent. Bad. I don't..." She trails off.
Whippoorwill frowns. "This morning? When I looked at it, you didn't mention that."
Shayera looks haunted. "Didn't want to admit it. I figured it'd go away eventually, but I could barely fly across town. The pendant makes the pain go away, thankfully. This afternoon I went to Bronwyn's workshop and she tried to heat it up, get it bent back. It only got worse."
Her mentor's head inclines, her eyes full of concern. "Shayera, you have a superhuman pain tolerance. How could a bent feather -- a metal feather -- cause you that much pain?"
"I don't know!!" Shayera exclaims, throwing her arms wide with a splash. "But it does!" She takes the pendant's charm in her hands and runs her fingers over its grooved surface. "If it doesn't go away, I don't think I can be a superhero anymore," she whispers, not looking at Whippoorwill.
Her mentor scoffs, causing her to look up. "Your wings were hurt before. You don't remember much of that time because of the memory transference, but you didn't quit then. You were determined to get back in... the air..." Whippoorwill grows pale.
After an uncomfortable silence, she takes a step back. "Sorry. No need to push yourself. You've got time, and we'll figure it out. Okay?"
Shayera nods.
"And I'll... keep Innis off you for the time being. Maybe just take it easy, focus on school. I'll consult with Matrix, and set you up a session with Dr. Brighthop."
"All right," Shayera says mutedly. She kicks herself back into the middle of the pool and starts the backstroke.
Reluctantly, Whippoorwill takes off.
Whippoorwill only made it halfway back to her own penthouse before the pit in her stomach forced her to alight on a nearby skyscraper. She hugged herself tight as compartmentalized grief mixed with dread threatened to overwhelm her. The parallels between Shayera's current injury and the one that eventually led to her sacrifice crawled uncomfortably through her mind.
She tapped her communicator. "Matrix, I need you to go over your scans and do another analysis on Wingblade's new wings. Yes, the 'current version.' Try to figure out how damage to a single feather could cause her extreme pain. Let me know. Thanks."
She paced on the rooftop, trying to put her mind at work on the problem -- problems facing her and her protégé. Innis. The Daughters of the Tiger. Balor. Efnysien. The team that may or may not exist anymore. But no matter how hard she forced her ordinarily disciplined mind in those directions, she kept going back to the moment when she had learned that Shayera had sacrificed herself for her teammates by throwing herself at a missile. Images flashed before her eyes of the twisted and bent wings that had survived the explosion.
Before she realized it, Whippoorwill was back in the air, streaking toward Shayera's apartment.
=======================
The girl was still doing lazy, relaxed laps in her pool when Whippoorwill touched down. "What'd you forget?" she asked, mild curiosity in her voice.
"Shayera, come here, please," Whippoorwill said.
"What?" she asked, clearly not familiar with the tone in her mentor's voice.
"Please."
Shayera swam to the nearest edge of the pool and pulled herself out of the water. On edge because Whippoorwill was on edge, she approached nonetheless. "Okay, what--"
With a sob, Briana hugged Shayera fiercely. Slowly, she sank to her knees without breaking the embrace, so that they were much closer matched in height. Shayera squirmed slightly in the unexpected gesture, but she slowly brought her own arms around her and returned the hug.
Briana's body shook as hot tears disappeared into Shayera's wet hair. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Shayera. I'm so sorry."
"Um. What?"
"I'm sorry I didn't train you well enough, or maybe I trained you too hard, or I didn't give you enough support... I don't know, I'm just not enough. I'm not good enough for you, Shayera."
The girl started fighting against the embrace. She pulled back, but her own eyes were full of tears. "Whip, what's going on? Why are you doing this?"
Briana sniffed, and reached up to caress Shayera's cheek. "I didn't-- I never, even after I lost you and got you back, I didn't... tell... show you." She pulls her back into another tight embrace.
Shayera trembled. After a long moment of a silent hug, she said, "Hey, I get it, okay? I'm not-- I'm not going anywhere."
Briana almost convulsed in relief. She sobbed audibly a few more times, then stood back up. Wiping her eyes, she asserted some control over her emotions. "I'm still going to expect you to do better," she said after composing herself. "You're not... not off the hook, you know." She sniffed again.
Shayera tried to look contrite, but couldn't keep a small smile off her face. "Yeah. I know."
Peaceful and Content Height... Lady Acrasia muses. Why should they call it that? she thinks as the man, he had called himself Kyle, lead her. he seemed so dreadfully in a hurry, it truly baffled her. She had wanted to see the waterfowl upon the pond as she walked, but he had said something about being late, even taken her hand. she had not yet decided if that impunity was to be rewarded, or punished. perhaps both, a kiss that turned him into a frog... no, not frog, frogs are such loathsome creatures, maybe swan, for a year and a day.
the building came into view, the sign reading "Peaceful-and-content Altitude-place-of-learning" still terribly confusing to her. The building was another behemoth of Glass and steel, not pure enough to burn her, or unmake her glamours, but enough to stink, and to unsettle her stomach. It was not particularly lofty, either to the Architecture of Tir Na Nog, or to this city, maybe a mere 14 meters, though laterally it was quite impressive, she had seen smaller castles. upon it there was a great confluence of people, some hundreds strong, walking through the front gates. Kyle drew her toward the crowd, and she resisted. He was stopped cold, and even pulled back a bit, but he barely noticed as his brain processed. Oh yeah he said, as his mind caught up to surroundings, and finished ignoring the strength of the "girl" before him. You probably have to go to the front office, let's go there!
He brings her around to a much less impressive door, which seems quite improper, is this how this new world practices hospitality? She resolves, a year and a day as a swan would be educational, she would lure him to that pond later. and he takes her to an office, where a woman before another of the boxes so oddly common here looked up, eyes going somewhat wide, unaccustomed to the Gentry no doubt. Eábha here is new, I figured she would have to stop here to get her schedule. he says nervously as Lady Acrasia stood imperiously.
Oh... Hmmm, I hadn't heard about a new transfer. It's too short notice to get Bronwyn to give her the Tour... Hmm she says. She pauses, her fingers moving across the device atop her table. Are you sure she's transfering Here? I'm having trouble finding her in the system.
I am transferring here. Eábha says, eyes locking onto the eyes of the woman before the box. SHe felt glamour shift within her, and watched they pupils of the woman dilate a little.
Oh, here she is now... I can't get her a proper tour until tomorrow, but until 4th period, she has your schedule, Kyle, could you hand her off to Kaoru... or maybe Shayera, before you go to American History Kyle, she's in their 4th period. just find her again at lunch, she has your schedule afterward
I can do that... can we get late passes to first period? he asks
Shayera steps out of her sports car in the drop-off area at Halcyon High. She'd opted for high-fashion today, wearing an expensive tailored dress with a long flowy jacket that went down to the floor. She thanks her driver, grabs her bag and slings it over her shoulder, then pivots on her heels and strides into the school.
The scent she immediately picks up is so out of place she couldn't be certain it originated on Earth. It strikes her as sylvan, putting her in mind of moss-covered menhirs, babbling streams of crystal waters, moonlit glades, and warm sun filtering through the canopies of ancient trees.
She is interrupted by her sisters, asking her animatedly in Chinese about that moment yesterday when she was in agonizing pain. Somewhat distractedly, Xiu Ying assures them she's all right, but she can't expose her wings, at least for a while. She'd woven a much stronger wire around the cord keeping her pendant around her neck so it couldn't be easily yanked off.
Yin Ying, Shu Zi and Yu Hiu all look at her sympathetically for a moment, but then Shu shrugs. <Makes it easier for us, though.>
Yu gives her a glower and then turns back to Xiu Ying. <What she means is, we operate better when we're in unison. So this does not... affect our connection.> She smiles encouragingly.
<I know,> Xiu Ying says, nodding. <I probably won't be superheroing as much, so, more free time for us,> she says with a weak smile.
Shayera immediately turns her statement into irony as her focus changes to the unusual scent. The trail leads away from the main doors, so she excuses herself from the sisters and follows it to the main office. She pushes the doors open and blinks as she catches sight of the source of the otherworldly scent.
"Whoa."
Something is wrong, as the woman writes on slips of paper. she felt the wrongness, before she could place it. one hand found the silver and glass pommel at her hip, an odd bit of shining stitching upon her dress to all but herself. She places it as the door behind her begins to open. the wrongness, the non-olfactory odour of Fomóire.
"Woah"a voice comes from behind her. Eábha turns to face the newcomer. the woman bears the stink of Fomóire and Iron, part of her like blood. A part of her longs to attack, but she knows little of her surroundings. How many here, in this room, in this building, in this world, were Fomóire. Even a Sidhe Lady could lose, badly outnumbered.
She stands to her full height (actually quite a bit taller than her full height, beneath glamour.) and looks over the newcomer.
Shayera, We were just thinking of you. This is Eábha an foamhair
Ava en foe-er Eábha supplies phonetically. She was pleased with the title.
Yes, Eábha is new, just transferred in. Kyle can take her to first, second and third periods, but she's in classes with you after. could you help her find her way today? the Secretary asks.
Eábha watches the woman's response carefully, hand not upon her blade, but hovering closely. Could she tell one of the Sidhe in front of her? was this to come to blows?
The girl that just entered is wearing a charm that obscures part of her in a veil. The magic is from a land far distant from Eire. Behind that veil is a pair of metallic wings -- likely the source of the stink of iron about her -- that move like living things. Even if their composition was not pure iron (and it doesn't appear to be), they are clearly enchanted and could cause grievous harm.
The girl that just entered has magic about her, obscuring her true nature. Whatever reason she may have to disguise herself, it is likely to hide how dangerous she is. Thus, her biggest threat is the unknown.
The girl that entered moves with a fighter's assurance. Yet, she is clad in restrictive garments and balanced upon horribly impractical footwear. For any fighter to willingly adorn themselves thusly must mean that they are truly formidable.
The... being in the school's office looks like an unbelievably attractive young girl of high school age, but Shayera only relies on her eyes for about forty percent of her sensory input. The rest of her senses scream at the impossible purity of her. Eábha's breath smells like a spring breeze though lilies. Her movements are smooth to the point where gravity seems to not touch her. Everything about her told Shayera that Eábha was not of this-- wait. Scratch that. She was of this world, it was everyone else who was trespassing.
Eábha's posture shifts ever so slightly at Shayera's entrance, causing her hackles to rise. Damn it. Every time I dress all pretty, something's going to put a bunch of holes and blood all over it. Cautious to not react overmuch -- her dress and shoes helped immensely -- Shayera smiles and inclines her head. "A pleasure to meet you, Eábha. Welcome to our school."
She extends her hand for a shake, subtly maneuvering to face Eábha squarely. Eyes on me. If something's going to happen, it needs to happen to me.
The newcomer, Shayera, hides under a veil. she almost sneers. Veils are low craft, the works of Sneak thieves and common liars, who couldn't make the art of a glamour.
The Fomóire welcomes her... it uses ownership, plurally, when referring to the School... Have the Fomor reclaimed this world before the Aos Si had even returned. she offers her hand, extended daintily, silver and opal ring catching the light. I am glad to be here. I expect the two of us shall get to know eachother well she says
Shayera, now that you've met your new classmate, what can I do for you? the secretary asks
"Espero que. Y aprender cómo supiste que hablo español," Shayera responds politely, even though her blood was turning to ice. Eábha just addressed her in Spanish, though a glance at her would have someone assuming that she speaks an Asian language. Wondering if she was dealing with a mind reader, Shayera starts thinking in Russian to throw her off.
When the secretary interrupts, she tries to think of a cover quick. "Oh, I was just coming in for..." She spies a stack of brochures of after-school and extra-curricular activities and snatches one up. "...for one of these. I'm getting some free time, and I thought I'd like to join something."
She turns to Eábha with a saccharine smile. "And since we're going to get to know each other, maybe we could pick something out together?"
"I look forward to it. And learning how you knew I speak Spanish."
"I anticipate it. and learning How you knew I talk like an Iberian" Eábha paused. Was this woman a foreigner? some Iberian Hostage. and they thought to pawn her off with this one, not one of the true members of the court. When she smiles, her teeth are too sharp, in the moment they are visible, and her sclera is all but consumed by brilliant green-blue iris. Kyle, seemingly unconsciously, takes a step back.
The Fomóire reaches for her, and then beyond her, and in that moment, she almost breaks the arm, but she restrains herself, and seeing the woman take a piece of paper, she understands.
Oh whatever are we selecting? she says, almost singsong
Shayera catches the inhuman features but doesn't flinch. She meets Eábha's eyes briefly, then shows her the brochure. "Extra-curricular activities. Something to do after school. I'll show you while we walk to class."
She signals Kyle to take the lead, then follows him out of the office alongside Eábha. "See? There's sports teams, and stuff like chess club, trivia club, cape watchers..." When they're away from the office, she drops her voice low and switches to Spanish.
"Soy la protectora de esta gente. Si estás aquí para aprender, está bien. Pero si planeas lastimar a alguien aquí, te detendré. ¿Vamos a tener un problema?"
The Woman was mad, she had to be. Her words made no sense, not even to Sidhe magic. additional-curricular was nonsense, and Clothing-watchers, Eábha tries to parse what precisely she is rambling about when it turns hostile, as she had feared.
Are we going to have a problem she asks. She supposed it was inevitable, ut she would have rather it not bee in front of one of her new friends
Butterfly wings unfold behind her, and she draws a balade of seaglass and silver from a scabbard only she can see, as she rises haf a foot to match Shayera's height. We were always going to, Fomóire SHe spits the last word and takes a swing!
Eábha obviously telegraphed her attack, so it was relatively easy to catch her arm and redirect her momentum off to the side. Shayera had noticed an empty classroom next to them just before she issued her challenge, and it was in the direction of the doorway that she maneuvered Eábha with a deft and discrete shove.
Shayera twists the knife out of Eábha's hands as she carries her further into the classroom. She closes the door behind her and locks it before turning around to face her, knife pointed down at the floor.
"This is a very nice, very expensive dress," she hisses while kicking off her heels. "So I'm going to give you one chance to stand down. Who are you, and what the hell is a Fomóire?"
The woman was strong, and fast. whatever she was, the Fomor had enhanced her. She moved The both of them into a side chamber. The male, Kyle, seemed to take this development with less surprise than she expected. She supposes that he knew Shayera was Fomóire, and knew this was inevitable. Shayera disarms her, and tosses her but that meant nothing, right? she had surprise, that was all.
As the woman behind the table said, You may call me Eábha. she spits, rising to float above Shayera. And do not feign ignorance. I can smell the stink of their vile magics on you, however you hide beneath the low craft of a veil. We slew your king and kin already once. If you and your one-eyed lord care to challenge us, we shall rise to it once more!
"Not feigning," Shayera points out. "I only understood about half of what you just said."
Shayera's mind works, trying to parse out this girl's meaning and figure out what she is. The butterfly wings scream "fairy" which seems to match her unusual scent.
More, she could sense the magic in the charm, though she couldn't see past it. Maybe that was enough to make Eábha suspicious of her, but it shouldn't be an outright reason to attack.
Obviously, this girl-fairy-person had enemies, and assumed she was allied with them. The concern was, Eábha attacked her when she told her she was a protector.
Though, Shayera didn't have just the charm magic on her. She was tied to the masks of the Daughters of the Tiger. Could her reference to king and kin be related to the Daughters slain throughout history and the empress? She tosses that aside as unlikely. Eábha was giving off a very Western vibe.
That, and she wasn't aware of any one-eyed lords in Chinese history. But she'd heard of one particular Welsh legend. And if she's against him, there may be hope for her yet.
"Okay, you can fly. Color me impressed. But your facts are way off. My magic's not vile, I don't have a king, my sisters are alive, and if this 'one-eyed lord' you're talking about is Balor? Girl, I have fought him three times. I'm kinda like his sworn enemy by now."
If you fail to comprehend, this proves only that you are Evil and stupid.
She gets ready to strike at Shayera, nails growing and Form subtly shifting to feline.
She pauses as the woman tries to deceive her. I can sense the magic all over you, permeating your being. I care not for your siblings, whatever form they are. Or for your lies. Balor rules his Fomóire with an iron grip. Unless you care to tell me your pathetic clan is at war within itself. she draws back to lung, and feints right
and uses fancy footwork to send the desk she was perched on into Shayera, and grabs for her weapon, coming just short of it before she retreats to the ceiling, all but crouching upon the top of the wall.
You would be amazed the advantages flight grants in combat. she sneers.
Shayera dodges the desk but hears a rip from one of the seams in her dress. "Dammit!!" she shrieks in frustration. She clasps her free hand around her charm about to yank, but freezes before she pulls it off. She lets go slowly and drops her hand to her side.
She takes the dagger, flips it around hilt first and holds it up to the fairy. "Eábha, you're wrong. I don't follow Balor. Would a Fomóire give up her weapon? Here. Stab me all you want with it. I won't move."
.
.
.
Eábha moves in hesitantly and tentatively, snatching the dagger, and considering the presentation of the Woman's surrender. She pauses, and then the sword to the V of her opponents neck, and moves it slightly downward, dragging the blade and drawing blood as she does.
An ivory finger trails along the blade, collecting the drop of blood, and a strawberry red tongue flicks out to accept it. Her eyes move through a number of colours as her pupils narrow to slits. Your blood... is not Fomóire. You aren't human, but you aren't them either. Whatever are you? she asks, sword back in it's sheathe, btu still a few paces away.
The switch from dagger to sword felt a little unfair, she thinks. However, Eábha didn't seem to have the strength to sever her head without a big windup, so Shayera remained still during the bloodletting. She put a hand over the cut, not that she had any concerns over the wound, but she was worried about bleeding on her jacket and dress.
After a few seconds, walks over to the teacher's desk and pulls a couple tissues. She wipes them over the spot of the cut, cleaning the blood stain off the smooth and unblemished skin.
Shayera doesn't like the accusation of not being human, but she figures they can sort that out later. "As I said, I'm a protector. But also a student here, and class is getting ready to start. You want answers? So do I. I want to know what you are, and where you came from."
She walks over and picks up her shoes. "But we don't have time. Can I have your word you won't attack anyone here at school? We can talk it out -- or fight it out, if it's gotta be that way -- at the end of the day. You're at least right that I'm hiding what I truly am. The rest of the students here don't know I'm not... human, and I'd like to keep it that way.
"What do you say?"
She watches as the woman before her heals the wound in moments. No mortal indeed.
A protector and a student. You are a creature of contradiction. she says. I will stay my hand, should the others do likewise. I will go... repair relations with my guide. she says, resuming her "merely astonishingly beautiful" guise.
it is good you study still. Any who count themselves among the Wise should recognise one of the Sidhe. she says as parting words. Upon the zenith of these heights, when the lessons end. she says
She rushes out to catch up with the somewhat perturbed Kyle. Look, I don't want anything to do with... he starts before she finally catches his eyes with her own.
That was nothing. Don't worry your poor mind with it... she whispers to him
The boys doubt and confusion left marks on her glamour as it eased them from his mind. she felt her own confidence crack, and for a moment, it struck her how vulnerable she had been, disarmed and trapped in an unknown situation.
Kyle then leads her to first period, none the wiser to the goings on of Halcyon High's hidden half.
Shayera wads up the bloody tissue and stuffs it up her nose as she leaves the classroom, feigning a nosebleed. It's enough to get her an excuse from being late to first period.
She didn't like how Eábha seemed to charm Kyle, but it saved her from an uncomfortable situation wherein she would have had to lie to cover the fight, and she wasn't sure if the fairy would have gone along with it. Now she just had to wait and hope she would keep her word.
We might not have much of a team left, but I gotta report this, she thinks as she is sent to the nurse's office for the "nosebleed." She taps on her communicator. "Bronwyn, Kaoru, Alexis, we've got a fairy being in school. Calls herself Eábha, and said she was a... shee? Xi? Sidhe? Anyway, good news is, she claims to be an enemy to Balor. Bad news is, she's prone to violence and assumptions. I've got her to promise to not attack anyone while school's going on, but I don't know if she'll hold to that. She'll be in the same classes as Kyle until fourth period, then she switches to mine. Bronwyn, you especially might want to keep a distance. She can sense the magic on me, so she'll probably know something's up with you. Let's convene at lunch and I'll introduce her to you."
"I got it." Alexis spoke into the comm. Not entirely certain what a 'Shee' was, or who Kyle was, but understood the call to head to the school nearing lunch.
After Shayera had taken off, Alexis had waited for Bronwyn, but as she seemed to be distracted and Alexis felt like they had been useless in helping at all, they took off. No way to get in touch with Kaoru for their armor - but spending the night disguised in a hoodie and getting a workout by hunting those taking advantage of the previous evening's chaos.
By the morning, Alexis was dirty, and working out extra stress on one of the old trees they'd set up in the months before meeting Shayera. The homeless camp that had been there was cleared out, giving them plenty of time to practice hitting with minimal force. Open palms meant to push instead of punch through. The thick tree swayed from every strike, and they got into a good rhythm. It was in the middle of this exercise that Shayera's call came through.
Given the direction and not wanting to delay Alexis took off towards the school on foot. They were tired and hadn't slept yet, but they figured that they could easily sneak into the locker rooms, take a shower, get a quick nap in and then meet Shayera for lunch.
It wasn't until they were on school grounds, with the hood of their sweatshirt up, that they realized how much of a problem it might make for Bronwyn if they were recognized. They had to try their best at stealth to keep away from anyone from paying any attention to them at all...
As Bronwyn hustled through the halls between classes, the look on her face cleared a path for her even more than anyone's fear of her just running them over! Mary-Beth was avoiding her, and she was annoyingly good at disappearing into an empty classroom, or the library, or an unoccupied stall when she didn't want to be found. So unless getting Shayera to sniff her out becomes an abruptly better idea, letting her cool off is probably better.
Actually, that's probably true anyways...
Admitting that this wasn't something she could fix right away should have helped her feel better, but so far this morning she hadn't been able to cross anything she actually wanted to happen off her list, and she really needed a win. If Kyle were answering my texts I'd at least know for sure if she and Kaoru were actually here today!
Her next period was free, well, not free, she was supposed to go to the office and use it to fix her schedule for the rest of the year, but this is more important! I already decided that.
So instead of heading to the office, or to Study Hall, she hustled over to Kaoru's last class before lunch, grabbing a yellow slip from her locker-stash and scrawling something illegible in the appropriate fields along the way.
"Umm, excuse me?" She forced herself to talk through the class's stares, doing her very best to pretend that she didn't look like a paint-spattered marshmallow in her borrowed sweats that had clearly seen the business end of more arts & crafts projects than they had any actual sweat. "Is Kaoru Miyamoto here, I'm supposed to bring him to the office?" Thank God office aides don't have a dresscode...
For a while, it was easy for Alexis. They hid during the class periods, and maneuvered from spot to spot during the time between periods when the whole student body was switching classes. Everyone who caught a glance at them saw Bronwyn, and reacted to Bronwyn. Most of the time, if there was any reaction at all, it was a friendly wave or smile.
But then came the break between third and fourth periods.
No one was going to be using the locker rooms during fourth period, which would have given Alexis the perfect opportunity to shower and clean up for the lunch meeting with Kaoru, Shayera, Bronwyn, and this "shee." They started heading in that direction, but ended up directly in the path of Todd Williams, Bryce MacIntyre, and Daniel Thompson, freshly back from their suspension.
"Whoa, check out the homeless girl," Todd says with triumphant amusement.
Daniel also laughs. "I'd heard the rumors she ran away from home and got dumped by her girlfriend."
Bryce chuckles, but doesn't say anything.
Todd gestures to the stained hoodie and wrinkles his nose. "God, she stinks." He glances behind him toward the gym and locker rooms. "Lemme guess: going to take a shower at school? Can you be any more pathetic?"
Daniel grabs his crotch in a crude gesture. "You know why the little Chinese girl dumped you, right? Couldn't get enough of the 'd'."
All three bray in laughter at Alexis.
What do they do?
=======================
Shayera spent first, second and third periods on edge; her senses strained for and dreading the sounds of shrieks and panic.
When fourth period finally rolls around, she heads off towards Kyle and Eábha's classroom to intercept her and walk her to English lit.
"Hello again, Eábha," she says in a forced but chipper tone. "Since you're going to be in the same classes as mine, I thought I'd lead you there. Please, come this way."
She starts walking in the direction of her gesture, though she gives Kyle a little wave goodbye. "After this class, it'll be lunchtime," she explains. "I was hoping you'd join me and some of my friends. Who are also protectors, so don't get any ideas about attacking them in case you suspect they're Fomóire. Is that acceptable?"
The first class had been... uninteresting. Numbers, was there anything less engaging? She muddled through, sharing greetings with new individuals as she meets them. Many people were quite eager to meet her.
The next lesson was more interesting, the history of this world. But the instructor had told her that she and the principal should speak on the subject, as she had asked too many questions, and apparently these were in sequence.
The third was lovely, running in the field, followed by bathing. There was no pool beneath the water, but it was steaming hot, like the pools the Dokkalfar had spoken of once. The others seemed to be unaccustomed to it however. They had stared some, though they averted their gazes. some even hid behind doors, with their own spouts of water. these people were so strange.
Then the woman found her, the Protector, with her hair still dripping some. she moved into a curtsey as the protector greets her. Hello, Miss Shayera she says. She had discovered the Honorific from her instructors. I would welcome guidance.
Midday meal, where shall it be served? she asks I have had a number of invitations. I suppose if you and these allies are an organisation in service to mine hosts, I am bound to attend.
I shall stay my hand, unless they should threaten me, or else take up arms. Should I expect them to bear the marks of black magic as well?
"Lunch'll be at the cafeteria. I'll take you there, if you can't smell it."
Shayera rankles a bit. "Number one, my magic is not black magic." It's Dad's magic, which is fine... he's not a villain, why does everyone-- She squeezes her eyes shut and takes a couple deep breaths.
"Um, where was I? Oh, yeah, one's got some magic, but it's not bad either. Magic from Wales, if that makes any sense to you. Our next class is English Literature. How familiar are you with Charles Dickens? We're reading a Tale of Two Cities."
Alexis was caught up in fear. Getting confronted as Bronwyn was the worst case scenario, and their fight instinct rose up. It would be easy to trip Daniel into Bryce, and Todd into Daniel, and they were sure that they could knock them out...
But what if they misjudged? What if they struck and broke all of Daniel's ribs? What if they cracked open Bryce's skull and he started bleeding? What if Todd took a swing and they reacted by crushing his windpipe?
They couldn't risk it, even with their training. So they backed up silently, turning and running away. The shower would have to wait. They listened to the trio's jeers as they fled, and tried to feel like they'd done the right thing. It still felt bad to let them say all those awful things about Bronwyn.
The shower would have to wait until after the lunch meeting. Hopefully no one would feel put off by them showing up so grimy.
Place of coffee she though, thinking back to the "Mocha ice cream" Ronnie had told her to buy, which she had referred to as Coffee and Chocolate, unfamiliar terms, but lovely flavours. She was excited for lunch.
Then it has a deep and rich indigo hue. she replies. It had not been pure fomor on the woman, perhaps the deeper layer was not so corrupted.
An iberian and a welshwoman. Odd company, that. she says English? Is that where we are? I am unfamiliar with the tale of Charles Dickens in the two cities but I look forward to hearing it, I am sure the tale is riveting. she says, a genuine smile on her face.
Shayera frowns, pausing just before they head into the classroom. "For the record, I'm only half-Iberian. I'm also Chinese. And... you know you're not actually in England, right? You've heard of America? The New World? Across the Atlantic?
"And it sounds like you'll be a bit behind in this class. Charles Dickens is the author of the book A Tale of Two Cities. Paris and London are the two cities, and... well, perhaps its best that you just start reading it, if you're going to start coming to class on a regular basis."
Eábha's unexpected appearance threatened Shayera's plans for the day, but she was determined to see it through. When luchtime finally arrived, she led the Sidhe to the cafeteria and got in the food line with her. She opted for the vegetarian option like she usually does.
She sets her tray down at the table she and her sisters usually sit at. "Um, Eábha, I have a real quick announcement I need to do real quick. Then I'll introduce you to the other protectors here at the school," she tells her. Then she goes to stand in the spot of the cafeteria where the most eyes can see her.
"Uh, can I have everyone's attention?" Shayera says in a clear, loud voice. When everyone's heads turn, a sudden surge of uncertainty hits her. She wrings her hands nervously, but draws in a breath and forges ahead.
"I, uh, need to make sure you all know something. I broke up with Bronwyn... I broke up with her because I thought it was what my father wanted. I was wrong. I was sooo wrong. I should've... I should've been... whatever." Her eyes moisten as she deliberately avoids looking in the direction of Bronwyn for fear of turning on the waterworks.
"I was unfair to her. She didn't need that. So... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. So, whatever happens from here... it's her decision." She swallows a hard lump in her throat, wipes her eyes, and goes back to sit at her table, eyes staring at her food.
Kaoru stood slowly, reflexively tugging at his pants before mentally rebuking himself; it was one of the few things Xan had told him to stop doing that he couldn't seem to get down. Though fortunately, it had been one of the less obvious giveaways that she had helped him work through in his attempt to get used to this new body. With her help, the best the most observant people would be able to tell was that he had chosen clothes he was starting to outgrow.
He bowed slightly to Mrs. Li. "对不起老师 " Really, he would have liked to say more, perhaps ask something that would prompt her to refuse the request, but such was thus far too complicated for him. Unless of course, he wanted to spend a lot more time to race ahead in the class. Which he didn't. He was already spending more time on this class than any of his other ones, which was admittedly a rather low bar given the courses he had picked. It just figured he'd have to get called during one of the few classes where he was actually learning something new.
As Mrs. Li nodded her acknowledgment and indicated that his practice partner should join a different group for now, he walked towards the door, face a firmly fixed neutral. As he started to head briskly towards the office, he vaguely wondered if this had been a legit summons or if Bronwyn was abusing her position for something else.