HaloInc

Megan just stood back and followed Ryju’s lead. The void whispered to her in its ancient and powerful voice to close down her powers before, she was in range of the snake’s senses. So that outwardly she was completely normal, except to those specifically sensitive to the void and its dark well of power.

As Ryju talked their way in, she stood to the side and smacked her gum, and appeared bored while the boys talked ‘shop’. Since she wasn’t directly challenged she kept her mouth shut (except for the gum chewing). Once their passage was okayed, she dutifully followed him. Once inside she quit the gum smacking, and looked around in wide-eyed wonder.

She wasn’t really all that impressed, but it gave her the opportunity to do a full circle, and she easily spotted the troll that seemed to be following them. It was too early to tell if that was his intention or not, but as they got further inside, it seemed very unlikely to be a coincidence.

Megan subtly deepened the shadows around them, at first it would make them difficult to keep track of as they wandered through the crowd, but as she feed more power into the cloak. Her irises grew as she feed the cloak, until they swallowed the dark brown in her eyes; they’d easily be lost among the hustle and bustle.

“That was pretty smooth back there…” she said to Ryju out of the corner of her mouth as she watched a confused look set itself on the troll’s face, and waited to see who he would report his failure to. “I hope that you didn’t jinx us” she smiled darkly “Got in easy, getting out…who knows” she twitched her eyebrows at the statement. She didn’t forget about Isabel, but didn’t directly check in on her yet either.

Meagan hand slid inside her overcoat, and thumbed off the safety on her Glock, as the old guy approached. Her dark powers were more powerful than the pistol, but carrying a piece made her feel better, old habits and all that, plus a girl had to have her accessories. Her dark eyes looked sharp and dangerous as the man paused below her.

The young satyr wasn’t the only young hero in search of stolen swords on Striga Island this night. However this Wicked Wench wasn’t invited to the auction. Even though her vantage point of the warehouse was far up, she pulled the collar on her leather trench coat tighter, as the sea’s mist blew across the warehouse district. Even with all of her power, cold still bothered her, although not as much as it used to. But still, it reminded her of the night she died.

She deepened the shadows around herself, for both stealth and to further pushback the effects of the cold.

She set her eyes back to the warehouse watching and waiting. Isabel was already there, probing for a way past the wards the Tsoo had in place. She knew that Isabel would find a way.

She watched as a group of Hellions disappeared inside the warehouse, counting their number as they filed though the door. She shifted her eyes to a group of Warriors that were headed to the same door. She studied each one to make sure that Derrick wasn’t in their number. The goat-boy was a strange member to have in their group. It was then she spotted the emblem on the kid’s windbreaker…

“Oh f***” she whispered to herself, recognizing her old school. Even dips***s like the Hellions could recognize that emblem. The question was what were the Warriors using the kid for?

[Christmas morning, Swann Penthouse]

Keity sat on the floor beside the professionally decorated tree in her pajamas and her robe. The Princess was nearby tentatively investigating with some of the tree’s low hanging ornaments. Keity stared at the open box sitting on her lap. She was emotionally numb, and well past crying. She shifted her gaze from the box to note. She didn’t need to read it again. It was unfortunately scorched into her brain.

Dearest Katherine,

We wish you a wonderfully joyous holiday. I am sorry to cancel our holiday plans to visit France, but Monica insisted that we spend time together as a couple somewhere warm, and promises to bring you back something special to make it up to you. Pierce and the other servants will be there to take care of you and we’ll call you on Christmas, enjoy your present, I am told it’s the latest thing.

All my and Monica’s love,
David

There were so many things wrong in the short note. Her father was the only person in the world that called her Katherine. It wasn’t her name. Her name was and is and had always been ‘Katie’, spelled Keity. The handwriting not even the signature wasn’t even her father’s. It was written and signed by his executive assistant. May be he took the time to dictate it to her.

Keity and her stepmom Monica were barely on civil terms, bring back something special? What does that even mean? She hated it when he called Pierce a servant and treated him like one as well. ‘We’ll call you on Christmas’ that was rich; she couldn’t use phones due to her ghosting. It was possible that her father’s executive assistant didn’t know about her ability when she wrote the note; her father hated to be reminded that Keity was special or different or anything other than normal. Their relationship was strained before her being transferred to Golden Eagle, now … ?

The last thing was the present itself. She looked back at the box and the shiny customized gold plated iPhone that was in it. There were even several diamonds inset into the face to shape Keity’s initials.

Her ghosting caused enough problems with a standard buttoned phone (for texting only); a touchscreen was completely useless to her.

She finally made a decision, got up, shuffled down the hall to her room, discarding the box on the hall table along the way. She took a quick shower, dried her hair, dressed in warm street clothes and pinned her hair up with some Chinese hair-sticks, donned her coat, and slung the long hard-case across her back, and made to leave.

Jocelyn, the housekeeper caught her in the hall. Keity handed her the box with the present. “Please take this, and donate it” she pressed the box in her hands, and tried a brave smile. She then turned and headed out the door

“Jes” said Jocelyn “Dinner is five” and went about her duties. She didn’t speak very good English.

…

Keity hiked briskly though the streets. A track problem at Founder’s Falls tram station made her rethink how she was going to get out of the zone. It being Christmas she hadn’t seen any cabs to flag down and she couldn’t call one. She decided to just go on foot and started jogging towards the bridge to Talos Island, but didn’t mind, it felt good to have her blood moving.

She finally arrived at her destination, the boardwalk area of Talos. She found the small temple easily, it was attached to an old dojo that was boarded up and covered in graffiti after closing years ago. But the faithful local Buddhist lovingly maintained the temple / shrine attached to it. With her heart pounding and her nose red from cold, she stepped in to the shrine, and knelt before the small alter of candles and offerings to meditate.

Soon she lost track of time, which is good because it took her ages to clear her mind. As her senses expanded, and she knew she was alone, she finally reached up and plucked the hair-sticks from her hair. She turned the sticks in her hands several times studying them. They didn’t look like anything special, just fairly ordinary black lacquered sticks with a few hand-painted flowers on them, but they were special, very special.

Pressing her thumb down sharply the lacquer cracked and the stick split open to reveal, and also ordinary looking piece of incense. Keity carefully withdrew it, and setting it into one of the special holders lit it. A tiny smoldering flame took place, twinkling with its small light, but the tiny flame gave off no warmth…in this dimension.

Keity continued to meditate and expand her senses as the incense burned away.

Until…“Hello Xiǎoguǐ*”
*little ghost

The fencer jumped startled when the voice spoke from very close behind her, she dropped quickly into a combat stance and spun to face the masked and veiled speaker. Recognizing her sensei, she immediately fell to her knees bowing deeply.

It took her sensei a fraction of a second to study her student then silently she reached down and placed a hand on her only pupil’s shoulder and the two vanished noiselessly as if they were swallowed by a shadow.

[Home, still first day of the break]

Pierce and Keity made a few other stops on the way home at Keity’s request, but without much fuss they arrived at the residence in Founders Falls. The doorman greeted them professionally and genially and helped them with their baggage and other packages. Pierce was quiet the whole ride up in the lift to the penthouse, while in contrast Keity could barely contain her excitement, for the impending trip and since she was minutes away from seeing her cat.

Once inside the apartment, Keity abandoned her bags and raced off to her room to see her kitty. Pierce watched with sad eyes for a moment his heart heavier and heavier, with what he needed to discuss with her, and soon would not be able to postpone.

Keity jingled to her bedroom, the sudden motion and noise of her arrival set her cat ‘Princess Kia’ who had been sleeping peacefully on high alert. The cat jumped up and got ready to run and hide, but soon recognized her owner, and jumped down from the bed to go rub at her ankles. Keity knelt down to receive the cat, scooped her up into her arms, and as always marveled at the cats luxurious softness of her white fur. The cat’s whole body rumbled in a purr in Keity’s arms momentarily reminding her of Ian.

After a while of fussing over the cat, Keity got up to collect her bags from the hall Princess Kia dutifully following her the whole way, was at times dangerously under foot, but the fencer was sure-footed enough to not trip or hurt the kitty. There were a number of things that she needed to unpack from school, and other things to pack for her holiday.

Pierce hearing her move about knew he couldn’t postpone things any longer and went to Keity’s room to deliver the news.

Keity had one of the suitcases up and open on the bed, and was removing items from it, while simultaneously Princess Kia was trying to nest into the suitcase and attack anything that Keity moved. She smiled at Pierce as he stood in the doorway, but her smile faltered when she saw his somber demeanor.

“What is it?” she asked hesitantly.

“Keity please sit” he waved her over to the bed, where she sat but again scooped up Kia.

“Keity, I don’t know how to tell you this” Pierce began heavily “but to just come out and say it. Your father canceled the holiday in France.”

Keity’s mouth fell open, and hung there, as she stopped petting the Princess. “What? Why?”

“He decided at your step-mother’s request, to holiday elsewhere”

“Where are we?...Where?”

“Tahiti, they arrived in the south seas yesterday”

“Tahiti?” Keity’s brain slowed and speed up at the same time and didn’t properly function at all. The hurt and disappointment, in her heart sent a tremble though her body, while her mind tried to distract her, from the news by telling her that everything she had packed was for the wrong season. “He promised that I…my mom” her eyes started to glisten; it’s been two years since she had visited her mother’s grave.

“I am so deeply sorry Keity. I did my best to convince him otherwise”

Pierce often found himself in a very unenviable position, which his employer Keity’s father, did not seem to place a great deal of emphasis in his life on his daughter. Keity and her step-mother were barely on speaking terms, and it was left to Pierce to look after the young girl’s interest and welfare. Being an employee of the family, there were some issues he could only push so far on Keity’s behalf.

If her dad took the private jet she could fly commercial to France. Tickets would be an issue this late, but it was better than not going. “You could take me to France. Couldn’t you?” she asked unable to hide the plea in her voice.

“Keity…Your father…He took your passport with him” It was difficult for him to say the words, and almost unbearable for him to see the effect they had on this young girl.

Tears flowed from Keity’s eyes, and her shoulders trembled. She couldn’t go to France, she couldn’t even go to Tahiti to confront her father, and with her ‘ghosting’ abilities she couldn’t even call him. She tipped over onto her side, and curled up as tears soaked into her pillow, the Princess sensing her owners discomfort adjusted herself appropriately curled up with her.

Pierce’s own eyes moistened, and his shoulders shook in anger, as he watched the girl’s despair.

“I am deeply sorry Keity. He left a note for you under the tree along with your present” and with that Pierce withdrew from the room. He stood in the hallway for a moment and fantasized about the day he would quit once Keity was 18, before heading down to the kitchen.

At the curbside pickup, Pierce stepped out of the Mercedes precisely on time and glanced around the snowy grounds. He was dressed casually yet respectably under a seasonal overcoat in slacks and a traditional high-necked sweater. He was somewhere in his late forties, and although mostly healthy, he did have a small paunch which could be considered normal for his age. His receding hair was conservatively short and prematurely gray, but his most distinguishing feature was his placid blue eyes. Those eyes shone with affection as young Keity appeared on the walkway. His eyebrow cinched slightly upward when he saw that she had a companion...a male one, but not in a critical manner, but more in a curious way. He waved a friendly wave as Keity flew from Ian’s side and ran jingling to him and gave him a crushing hug, and kiss on the cheek, before turning back to Ian.

“Pierce this is my friend Ian Kelly, Ian this is Pierce” she said as way of introduction, stumbling slightly on ‘friend’ her dark eyes full of hope flashed over Ian, as she bit her lip lightly.

While being introduced, Ian blinked at discovering the man's name. "Nice to meet you, sir," he greeted while shifting Keity's weighty suit case to his left arm which carried a duffel bag and her carry-on sack yet the shift in weight caused no imbalance or strain as he lifted and held them all with one arm. He then extended a firm hand in greeting. "I was just helping your daughter with her bags. I hope you don't mind me seeing her off," he added with a slight bow of his head.

“I am pleased to meet you as well Master Kelly, and no….no I don't mind at all” Pierce whose accent was a muddled European warmly returned the handshake, and then turned to Keity “Using your charms to recruit help young lady” he asked with a mock parental tone.

Keity gently elbowed Pierce in the arm, which seemed to be her standard response to teasing “He’s not my father.” She explained for Ian “Pierce is a…close friend of the family.” He was too close of a friend to introduce him as an employee, and ‘Uncle Pierce’ wasn’t appropriate either as he was more of a surrogate father figure.

As the two exchanged talk, Ian remained silent out of respect and kept a smile on his face as he maneuvered Keity's bags to the rear of the car. “Forgive me,” Pierce chuckled good-naturedly “…no I do not have the good fortune of being this jewel’s father” he humbly admitted.

"Ah, I see. My apologies," he forced a grin past his reddened cheeks. Suddenly, he felt less anxious.

“No apologies necessary. Here allow me to take those” Pierce indicated the baggage “so that you two can make your goodbyes properly” he added with a sly wink at Keity, who blushed, but smiled back none the less. He ‘popped’ the boot of the car and moved to unburdened Keity first. She relinquished the garment bag, but held onto the hard case which she placed gingerly in the backseat. While Pierce moved to assist Ian with his load which was ready near the car. Although the man requested no assistance, Ian did anyway, if only because he felt he could do it faster. But they both loaded everything anyway into the very large but rapidly filled boot.

“Thank you, young sir” Pierce closed the boot, and looked at his watch before turning back to the two teens. “We do have some time Keity” There was a hint of hidden sadness behind his blue eyes as he said this, but Keity missed it “I’ll just dash inside to see if the Head Master is available while you two…chat.” He smiled again at the pair, but forgone the wink as he strolled off to the administration building, his heart already feeling heavier.

Keity didn’t bother to analyze the uncharacteristic gift of time that Pierce granted her, but watched him for a moment before turning back to Ian, where her face glowed from the effort to suppress smiling goofily at him.

Ian crossed his arms on the hood of the car and smiled back. "And just what charms was he talking about, young lady?" Ian questioned with a crooked smirk. "Last I knew, you were pretty tom-boyish for that kind of stuff to work." Not that he meant any of that but he wanted nothing else more than for her to reach in to take a swat at him.

“Well I don’t go beating up people up at home, so they still think I’m a lady. Only people here provoke me” she smiled, while reaching out to give him a playful shove. Ian moved against the push but let the hand pass between him and his arm. In a single motion, he was behind her with her arm hooked in his and a knuckle lightly pressed on the valley between her shoulder blades. During his smooth maneuver he felt Keity’s arm reflexively the twist in the proper way to counter the hold, that he himself taught her a year ago, but apparently she decided to just go with it and trust him.

With her arm hooked, Ian could have gripped it tighter to put her in a lock but he simply kept her turned like she was. So she couldn't see the despair in his eyes or understand the misery in the sigh he breathed on the back of her neck. "So you're going to train, right?" his suddenly dry throat rasped. "...and get stronger?"

The fencer also knew the maneuver to break/escape this hold, but since it was Ian and since he was only goofing around, she wasn’t going to perform that escape in such a short dress. So she leaned back into him, as much as he would allow; her long hair fell over their entangled arms, and down his chest, while the fur trim of her Santa hat brushed aside his bangs. “Hmm you really don’t know what a holiday means do you? I could find you a tutor that could help you with your vocabulary and stuff” she jibed; he was close enough to feel the warmth of her smile. She continued more seriously “You know me, I am always training and practicing, a holiday isn’t going to change that.”

"Good. Then I won't feel so bad beating you up next time we spar because I'm going get so strong, you won't even recognize me," he jokingly taunted as he applied some pressure on her spine when she pushed back against him, but she slipped her arm free, and turned to lean lightly against the car. "But do enjoy your holiday...try to have fun despite knowing I'll be here waiting to whop ya," he ended with a grin.

“Whopping me, is a pretty good reputation enhancer around here. You do it enough then I think you get an automatic Golden Dragon invitation” She turned back to face him, stepping smoothly away from the car and gently handling his bokken to move it so that it wouldn’t poke her as she wrapped her arms around him and placed her chin on his shoulder.

He leaned in, and let his fingers dance on the small of her back. "Heh, I guess they weren't counting the ones from the beginning," he joked but didn't laugh. Instead, he ran his nose from the fur lining about her shoulders and along the side of her neck. In a whisper, he added, "but I'd turn down their offer." He let his lips brush Keity's sensitive skin before giving in to the urge to nibble at her neck.

Keity shifted her arms up to his shoulders and then draped them around his neck as he started nibbling her neck. Her reply slipped into incoherent babble and French “You better eh…mmm…merveilleux” She bit her lip to not let a tiny excited whimper escape her throat, but after a long second she pulled her neck away and released a heavy sigh. “Be careful there mister, I do have a flight to catch” she scolded in a breathy whisper, all the while blushing warmly.

"s-sorry," Ian replied in a low rumble as he pulled his head back and his eyes diverted away.

Her dark eyes drank him in, for several moments as she hugged him tighter, now beginning to fear the moment when Pierce would return and she’d have to let him go,. “I slipped a card for you under your door, so make sure Danny doesn’t take it” ‘Or read it’ she thought.

"There wasn't a picture in it, was there?" he interrupted with a smirk. "When'd you get a chance to do that?" He asked jokingly, of course.

“Noooo” she answer reddening again, and pressing her arms together to give him a small squeeze. Since she couldn’t swat or shove him from her current position. A knee would have worked, but that was a bit out of bounds. “You’ll have to wait for your present though.” She added with a smile, her color and temperature beginning to return to normal. Her dark eyes pierced his emerald eyes, and started inventing new words and descriptions for green. In truth she hadn’t gotten anything for him yet. Since he was gone from her life until two days ago, things were happening so fast. She momentarily wondered if she was dreaming. Was she still unconscious in the hospital from Katie’s ambush?

"Aww, now the suspense will kill me," he sighed with a pout but soon reverted to a smile. "Well, when you get back, maybe we can go out somewhere? Just us?" Probably a longshot to ask yesterday but he felt far more confident of the outcome this time.

Keity’s head was nodding, before her lips could utter “Yes, yes I’d like that” just proving again that she should never play poker. She was much happier with his asking this time then with the clumsy scene down by the guardhouse when he asked her to go on the mission, and even happier that Danny wasn’t here to ruin the moment. She smiled broadly staring at him trying to remember every detail of the moment. Her hand came up and gingerly adjusted a few stands of his hair and how they fell over his headband or fell right back the way they were, but still added to her memory of the moment.

Now she would have to introduce him to her father, she couldn’t play games about mission vs. date this time, so he would have to meet her father before they go out. This sent her subconscious into a panicked frenzy. The internal frenzy didn’t show outwardly except for her color paling a touch, but with all the blushing she has been doing it simply evened out her skin.

To her gentle readjustments of his hair, Ian smirked and gave his head a little shake. "What are you doing?" he laughed in wonder but brushed it off as Keity not caring for his hairstyle. Oh well, he'd fix it when the time called for it. "Well, you'd better head out before you decide to stay." He smiled as he leaned in closer for a kiss. Keity nodded slowly, as she moved her lips to his.

A few moments later, Pierce reappeared from the administration building. He set his eyes in another direction when he saw the embraced pair, and strolled slowly and casually back to the car. While wondering why there was a large tarp covering the side of the boy’s dormitory. Pierce opened the car door as unobtrusively as possible, but the sound alerted Keity to his return. She blushed again and for a moment buried her face against Ian’s chest, before pulling away.

“I got to go” she said weakly and planted a kiss on his cheek, before reluctantly stepping away. As her arms dropped away, her fingers hooked his, and she walked with him to the passenger side of the car, where she gave him a last hug and another kiss on the cheek, before slipping into the car. “Will you miss me?” she asked her dark brown eyes staring up into his.

"Maybe," he answered cryptically with a not so cryptic smirk. "But I'd rather think about plans for when you get back."

The ‘maybe’ caused the start of a tiny crease in Keity’s brow, but the ‘plans’ sounded nice and dispelled the ‘maybe’s’ effects.

“It was a pleasure meeting you Mister Kelly” Pierce said sincerely, from the opposite side of the car.

"Likewise," Ian looked up grinned as he opened the door for Keity before closing it behind her. "Merry Christmas!" He contemplated waving but simply watched the vehicle pull out with a rather awkward smile on his face as he wondered about the transition of their friendship.

As the car rolled forward Keity found strength in soon that she would be able to tell her mom all about Ian. She still talked to her mom occasionally, but it felt more real, more connected when she was at her mom’s grave and talking with her. She already pictured sitting in the mausoleum with a warm blanket and a thermos of coffee for hours telling her mom everything. She remembered her mom’s smile and laugh, and how her eyebrows synched together when she didn’t like something, and could picture her mom’s reaction to any news that she’d deliver. As much as leaving Ian and her friends behind sucked, at least she would be back at the estate in France and could visit her mom.

The Mercedes stopped at the gate briefly where Keity hopped out and signed for her weapons; which she placed in the hard-case in the backseat, before giving the school a last forlorn look and slipping back into the car.

…

Keity was practically vibrating with excitement, between the happenings of the previous night, and the prospect of going back to France for the holiday. She semi-frantically readied her suitcases, which were already ninety percent packed, then tidied up her room a bit taking care of some of the mundane details. She took a quick glance at her clock and knew that Pierce would be there very soon to pick her up. Pierce was exceedingly punctual.

Piece was considerably more than a butler. Steward of the household was a closer fit but didn’t do the man justice, to Keity he was more like family. Keity’s dad was away or busy so often that Pierce was kind of her surrogate father, and numerous times legal guardian in her father’s absence.

She took a last look around the room, and played some mental juggling games as she checked things off all of her checklists then started collecting her luggage, and heading for the door.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she opened her door, and saw Ian there, hand poised to knock. Resettling her heart and slipping the baton back up her sleeve, she smiled broadly, her eyes sparkled and her skin blushed enthusiastically “Good morning” she jingled self-consciously as she resisted the urge to pounce on him with a hug.

Ian stood dumbfounded for what he thought was minutes, glad that he managed to catch the fencer before her departure or perhaps eying her festive attire...but for his track of mind, the moment lasted just long enough to open his mouth to reply. "Good morning...that's a nice little dress there." He emphasized the 'little' part in his head which caused him to smirk a little but he kept that to himself.

“Thank you” Keity curtsied at the compliment causing another round of jingles.

"But I'm glad I caught you before you left."

“Well then you have impeccable timing” she grinned “I looked for you at your room, earlier but you weren’t there” she added a cute pout to punctuate this which Ian breathed a short laugh to.

"I don't suppose you stopped by the guys' showers. I might have been there," he said out loud but it was sort of an audible thought as he recounted where he could have been besides outside meditating.

“Oh, yeah! There were a lot of towel less and helpful guys there, but no Ian” she pouted again but this time blushed as well at her own crude humor. Well it was crude for her but it got Ian to concede to smile and laugh a bit.

Okay, now what? Thinking quickly, he responded with a naturally short pause. "Can I help you carry those?" his eyes finally leaving her athletic contours and moving on to the luggage she had collected at the door.

Keity nodded enthusiastically, at the offer, and turned over some of the luggage for him to roll for her. Her hand softly if not warmly brushed his as she turned over the luggage. Splitting the load, she left herself to carry a long hard-case that was big enough to hold her swords, and a very light garment bag. Ian quickly scooped up any other bags she had waiting and followed her downstairs.

…

[Holiday – 1st Day of the Break]

Despite a mostly sleepless night (for largely positive reasons) Keity woke up early as was her custom, but with a smile. Her body’s need/crave for exercise forced her out of bed early without the need for an alarm-clock. After getting ready she used her Junior PIT Trustee status to get into the Pit a little earlier than it officially opened. She was too excited to remember that she had her Trustee status revoked two days ago due to an incident, but still had her key so she went about her duties. She helped get the Pit ready for the day, by stocking the first-aid kits, and putting out the towels, and making sure supplies were stocked and things in their place etc. Once she had her official duties out of the way she warmed up with a run around the Pit’s indoor track, before starting her floor routine.

The fencer’s routine was an intricate kata that was partly yoga, palates, acrobatics, tai chi, other martial arts, all mixed together with a fluid dance like grace. With her MP3 player kicking out beats to her earbuds, she executed her kata vigorously for most of an hour. The fencer was more energetic than usual, and occasionally despite the exertion a smile would cross her face.

When finished she laid on the floor catching her breathe and enjoying the empty quiet magnitude of the Pit, and still smiling about last night. She did some follow up stretches, tossed her towel into the bin, and was headed back out just as other Pit Trustees were showing up to start equipment diagnostics that Keity couldn’t do.

Back in her room she showered and got ready for the day. She dressed….festively by slipping on a Santa’s Helper dress in rich stretch scarlet velvet, complete with faux-fur trimmings, a thick black corset like belt, and a few bell accents. The dress was shorter than she ordinarily felt comfortable wearing, but she had the fur edging extended a little to compensate when she had the dress fitted. After adding a few light touches of make-up, she donned the hat, and adjusted it just so, then checked herself in the mirror. Red was one of Keity’s colors, which just worked wonders for her so she was suitably pleased by ensemble. She turned with a flourish and grabbed her ‘sack’ of presents that she had prepared for the last several weeks, and headed out.

Jingling down the hall she headed to the first floor and the student mailboxes, where she proceeded to distribute cards, gifts and tokens of appreciation and friendship to her friends and acquaintances. Then off to the boy’s dorm to repeat the process at their mailboxes. She made one exception and jaunted/jingled up the stairs to hand deliver a package but was disappointed when her knock went unanswered, so slid the card under the door. Then it was off to the Administration building where she dropped off some more tokens and thanks at the faculty mailboxes. With her satchel of gifts substantially lightened, she then went to the cafeteria to attend to the needs of her stomach.

She distributed a finale batch of presents and holiday well wishes to the cafeteria staff, then got started on her typical healthy breakfast. There were very few students in the cafeteria this early so she ate quietly while trying to read though some of the spring courses syllabuses but she was way too excited to really concentrate, so after eating she returned to her room to finish her packing for the holiday.

[Sis] "I'm in. Are we picking teams, or is it just which side of the court we ended up on?"

Ella shrugged, it didn’t matter to her. She just hoped that whomever she played with didn’t get mad if she kept hitting the ball out. She stepped onto the court giving the pink racket a spin in her hand. She took a quick moment to stretch doing some quick textbook bends and then some lunges. Before standing upright again and setting herself to receive whomever server.

“I’m ready” she smiled

((No worries Pyrria, I know just how you feel))

Ella tossed her jacket aside and picked up some fuzzy balls that were lying on the court. She set one of the balls on her racket and with small taps bounced the ball into the air.

"Heads up" Once it was high enough she reached back and served the ball to Ian. It was a gentle lobe that with one bounce wound hop directly to his reach. She sent the next ball over to Sis similarly then the last ball over to Mitch.

She gave the racket a twirl "So who is in?"

[ QUOTE ]
Sis blinked. "...well, I'm not going to explain it to you. You'll have to find an adult for that. Somethings I just avoid-"

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella opened her mouth to protest or argue, but other events intervened…

[ QUOTE ]
"Sorry if Sal freaked you guys out any." he told Sis casually, but including the others in his explanation as well, "You've probably guessed by now, but she's kind of a lich. Parts come loose every now and then. Oh, and I'm Mitch..."

[/ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]
Sis nodded. "Pleasure and all that. Sis, Orchid, Ella, Ian," she added by way of introduction, pointing to the owner of each name as she did so. "Welcome to the world-famous Fabulous Nightclub 9:30....wait, wrong location." She grinned a little. "So was that a version of full-contact tennis we just saw, or something entirely different?"

[/ QUOTE ]

“Hi Mitch” Ella bobbed excitedly in-place while taking several practice swings.

[ QUOTE ]
"Aw, that's sweet, but I don't swing that way kiddo. I know some folks who do, though, if you're interested." Sis smiled lightly.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella tilted her head to the side, perplexed. “Swing what way?”. It was odd that with the wide breadth of knowledge that Ella had, some basic things she just didn’t understand.

[ QUOTE ]
[Sis, snip] “…Then again, there's no telling what patients agree to or don't, especially if memory loss is a symptom."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella slumped slightly. She was a memory loss patient, though her situation was much more complicated. She had a vague feeling of dealing with people that thought she was crazy before but the vague feeling slipped away again. She looked back to rejoining the train of the conversation.

She tossed her jacket to Kruth’T when he volunteered to sit this one out. “You’ll pick it up quickly” she smiled at him.

When she turned back, everyone was looking at the racket and arm that landed.

[ QUOTE ]
"'ey, guys!" came a shout from the general direction of the rogue appendage's flight path, a man's voice that sounded very much like the stereotypical surfer fresh off the beach calling out, "Mind tossin' that back over here?"

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella looked at the arm and the coppery owner, then back at the arm, then to the others. Who seemed stunned into silence. She walked over to the arm and racket, tucking her own racket under her arm, she easily tossed it back and smiled at the surfer man.

“Ere ya go”

((If you had a different idea for the tennis courts, Halo, I can just delete the two paragraphs with the area descriptions in them.))

[/ QUOTE ]

((Nope thats perfect!))

[ QUOTE ]
“Can I be the famous boyfriend on the second week of every month?” Ian joked through his wide grin, a spark of mischief in his eye. He laughed through his grin, as he elbowed Ella, hopefully to show he was mainly kidding.

[/ QUOTE ]

A small spark of jealousy flashed though Ella, until she got the poke in the ribs and understood that he was joking. “Oh! Only if I can be your girlfriend on the first week of every month” She smiled playfully.

Ella never really did learn how to joke. It simply wasn’t included when she was born, and when her mind was [censored] and she was ‘re-programmed’ that [censored] didn’t have a sense of humor either. So occasionally, Ella would say inappropriate things.

Ella eagerly took a racket from Ian when he returned with them. Even though it was a bit bigger than what she should use, she insisted on the pink one. She bounced lightly on her toes enthusiastic to start.

She looked around "Doubles or singles?"

[ QUOTE ]
"So how come the firing range is so far out here?" she asked. "It's pretty far from the buildings...can you shoot stuff other than arrows?" Sis grinned, thinking that maybe she could get some additional stress relief from firing a large gun or something, like in the movies.

[/ QUOTE ]

“It’s far away because guns are loud and some patients need their rest. Sure you can shoot guns….depending on your security rating. They cut down the powder ratio on the ammo, so the shots aren’t as loud or as powerful” Ella left out her actual calculations for her theory.

[ QUOTE ]
Then she looked to Ella, "I'd like to get to know you better, it's been so long since I've had a female friend to do girly things with."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella smiled happily at this. “I’d like that”

[ QUOTE ]
"Heya Ian, Ella. Waiting on the shirt for you, kiddo. I'm hoping it and a more substantial bathing suit arrive today." Sis glanced at her watch. "When's mail call anyway?" She nodded to Kruth'T, who looked familiar but whose name escaped her, and Orchid, who looked like she needed a few years in the sun. "Heylo."

[/ QUOTE ]

“SIS!!” Ella ran over to her, but stopped short just when it looked like she was about to hug her. Her smile broadened when Sis remembered the shirt.

“Mail doesn’t arrive till late…after dinner usually”

((Arrghhh thread lost my whole post :P I'll jump in later when I have time with a new post.))

Ella smiled and skipped down the path to follow Ian.

“Well they have a driving range if you don’t want to pull your…slashes” She smiled broadly.

Truth be told, Ella liked using the tennis serve machine to see how far she could drive the tennis balls. She isn’t allowed to use the serve machines anymore. She is allowed three tennis balls a week now.

[Ian] Ian asked, “So, I tried looking up more info on some of you guys but they don’t let anyone in the records department. Can you guys do any little tricks that demonstrate your powers?”

Ella knew that her records would lead nowhere. They actually changed the fake name she was booked under weekly, and that there was nothing factual about what was actually in her record.

Nevertheless, what really puzzled Ella is she figured that she displayed plenty of her powers last night.

She’d let Kruth’T field the powers question. She hadn’t figured out his yet herself, and it will give her time to see what Ian was fishing for.

[ QUOTE ]
"Very well, any ideas?" He asked, a ting of curiosity in his voice. "I'm okay for a while, just so long as it doesn't involve bodies of watter." He joked.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella frowned but only slightly. Her idea of fun was going over to the lake and seeing what there was to do there. They have paddle boats that look like fun.

“There are tennis and basketball courts” She was sure even with their overly stringent security restrictions that they’d let her have a tennis racket.

{Ian} “Should we go after her?” he sighed to the others.

“…” Ella almost said ‘I dunno’ but stopped semi-trapped in her own awkwardness at the moment. Instead she simply looked back and forth between Ian and Kruth’T, when she felt awkward at that she simply stared at the wall of the bunker and the hologram of Waires.

Her brain started deconstructing the bunker as a mental exercise. Working faster and faster though how its foundation was fabricated and then reinforced. Where the holographic projectors were placed, and how they weakened the structure for their necessary wiring. How the bunker was powered and air supplied to it….

When the hologram of Waires caught her eye and she realized that she had been staring, Ella blushed embarrassed. In the ambient light it was almost impossible to tell the white skinned girl was blushing however.

She stared back at Waires meeting his gaze. She had seen him in the cafeteria on occasion. He was actually only four feet tall and just as wide. A dwarf, like a real fantasy dwarf. It showed in the disproportion of the hologram. However, he liked to appear larger and intimidating at the range.

Ella finally looked back to Ian and Kruth’T, some of the awkwardness finally shead.

“I want to do something fun” She stated simply.

Ella silently waved bye to Orchid as she raced off.

She continued to stand off to the side awkwardly still unsure on how to act with her over abundant emotion being around Ian, so watched Orchid’s retreat until she disappeared in the trees from sight. Then as a simple exercise, she mentally calculated how long it would take Orchid to get back to the building at her current speed.

Ella turned back to watch Ian and Kruth’T. She fidgeted nervously with the zipper of her pull up as she watched them.

…

Kia had just finished grooming, after a long morning of spa treatment. Including massages and seaweed wraps.

It would take real torture for her to admit that she enjoyed it.

Having a less complicated grooming process than Hali, Kia snuck out of the room on her own, to see if there was any trouble she could find elsewhere.

((Welcome back!!! I am glad to hear that you are feeling better!))

Ella smiled in a way that resembled cheeriness, when Kruth’T welcomed Ian to join them. She bounced lightly with joy on her feet almost to the very tips of her toes.

Waires went over to the computer to check Kruth’T’s file again…

((Chotic, you can go ahead and decide if your usual weaponry falls into the safe to play with at the Clinic category, or if there is a powered down mock up for you to use))

{Ian} “Ella, I wasn’t talking ab-….I mean that’s not what-er…nevermind. I guess we can talk about it some other time.”

Ella nodded nervously. She was somewhat excited to have a chance to talk to Ian, but nervous about what he might say.

{Ian} “Heh, so….what else do you guys have planned? I’m free for about an hour or so while Ed is doing his tests so maybe I could hang out with you.”

Ella straightened up her posture and a small timid smile lightened her face when Ian asked if he could hang out with them. She looked over to Kruth’T for his approval to see if it was okay with him if Ian ‘hung out’. Her large expressive eyes swelled with hope, displaying a silent ‘Please’.