The Way You Are Now (Elyse)

[Ella Robbinson]

Ella was incredibly thankful for the public library - she didn't really buy books until knew she liked them enough to buy them. And her downtime was so rare that when she finally got it, she either used it to either finally hang out with her friends, or just sit back and do something for herself. Reading was therapeutic. The means to escape reality for a bit, some would say. But she wasn't sure if she would.

Browsing through the fiction section - because honestly, she didn't want to learn on her day off - she'd already hooked her fingers around one title suggested to her by the polite, albeit slightly sarcastic woman behind the counter. She must have been a huge twisted fairytale fan, given her extensive suggestions that circulated one Gregory Maguire. But fine. Whatever. She'd tackle the titled Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister because it'd make her feel a little smarter than the rudeness behind the front counter. And maybe it'd make her feel better.

But beyond that, she wanted something she'd actually be interested in. So she'd gone back to browsing through the various stacks until something, anything caught her attention. When she reached for a random book wedged tightly between so many others, the force behind it knocked a bunch down from the other side. "Shit." Ella whispered, cringing as she heard the books fall to the floor. But that wasn't the problem. The problem was that there was someone standing on the other side of the stack, and she'd basically rained books down in front of and maybe even on them.

And they were privy to her somewhat embarrassing failure; "Sorry..."

[Elyse Blackburn]

A late afternoon storm had ruptured the clear skies with moody grey clouds and a stubborn breeze, sweeping across the skin of Pilot Ridge like a flood. Although the spasms of wind and rain lasted for little less than an hour it was more than enough to spur Elyse out of her apartment and into the expansive confines of the local library.

This place was her safe haven, a world away from the sounds of sizzling bacon or the stench of lust, and she treated it with the highest respect she could afford it. Her library card was old and worn, frayed at the sides from the compulsive visits during days such as this. The librarians knew her to be a regular, the quiet girl who would huddle in the far back corner and read till the sun had dipped it's shining head beneath the horizon.

Today was no exception. Although her muscles ached from a rather excitable client the night before the young woman thought it best to retreat back into the expansive nest of paperbacked books and encyclopaedias. She hadn't set out any proper reading plan, it wasn't uncommon for her to simply grab the nearest book with the most interesting title and dive right in. Today's alluring genre just happened to be the psychoanalytical works of Freud and Jung, rather wordy texts that tempted the girl's morbid curiosity.

It was four books into the growing pile atop her slender hands did some shuffling in the aisle adjacent to her spark the wariness in her brain. was it just a kid playing around? Elyse did not have time to consider the possibilities when a good quarter of the psychology books came tumbling down like a musty waterfall of aged paper and tattered bookmarks.

She let out a low squeal, hopping back a step to avoid losing her own books in the cascade of psychology, only to have a rather heavy leather-bound book collide with the bony upper half of her foot. Tears sprung up at the corners of her eyes from the sudden pain and the young woman quickly dropped one arm to rub the growing bruise. Just perfect, the guys with foot fetishes weren't going to appreciate that.

"Uhh...no, it's okay. I'm fine..", she mumbled back, cringing at the stinging pain on her foot. There was no point screaming at her 'attacker', a library was no place for that.

[Ella Robbinson]

Of course someone was going to be standing there. Someone was always in the midst of her impending failure. Still, Ella knew better than to brood her way through a bad situation, especially when it was her fault. So she kicked up a smile instead as she peered through the hole in the stacks to see the face of the person on the other side.

Sometimes, the world was just cruel.

"El-!" Oh shit, what was her name again? Come on, Ella. You're better than this.

Nevertheless, she finally got into gear and made her way down the aisle, turning the sharp corner and meeting her at the other side. Immediately the knelt down to pick up everything she'd dropped, stacking the small pile up on her singular book. "Jesus, Elyse." Ha, nailed it! And her foot too, apparently. "I really am sorry." That probably meant nothing at this point. She stood up anyway, venturing to slowly place the books back where they were before she'd knocked them all over. Eye contact was not her forte in that moment - she could focus a little more when she'd redeemed herself.

"I didn't expect to run into you here." Ella started, because she could rock some decent small talk; "Well, I didn't expect to run into anyone I knew. I figured most people would be at home given how bad the weather is."

[Elyse Blackburn]

The brief moment of silence was almost palpable, an awkward weight which only heightened the throbbing pain in Elyse's foot. It was certainly far from being the worst she's received and the pain, whilst potent, would only last for another few minutes. Biting her tongue the young woman looked up at the ruins leftover, only to be met with the face of a very familiar female. Eyes widened and slight gasp escaped her peachy lips at the sight of a treasured acquaintance, an old work friend. Ella. Ah yes, the older girl who toiled away during the long nights at Hogsbreath, she was a kind and cheery girl...a lot more popular with the customers than Elyse was. It had been a while since she had seen that little smile, that melodic voice.

"Ella...!", she exclaimed, the whispery tone going an octave higher than it usually would in the library. Limping backwards, Elyse gave space to the young woman who quickly and efficiently restored the mess she had caused only a minute ago. Ella was quicker at cleaning as well, Elyse remembered that quite clearly.

"No, no...it's okay! It's nothing, really...it's just a little bruise", she blurted out, attempting to make it as sincere and fluid as possible. Her teeth quickly clamped onto her lower lip, the peculiar timing of this all shaking her out of the static shell she'd been stuck in for the past few weeks. This was the first time in a long time she had spoken to someone who was not a hungry customer or a perverted client.

Glancing away briefly Elyse hugged the books tightly to her chest, taking in a deep breath before conceiving a possible reply to this blast from the past. How weird was this?!

"I uhh...I always come here when I have time. There's not much to do at my apartment...", she mumbled, pursing her lips and rubbing the back of her calf with the tip of her shoe. It was true though, the apartment was a stagnant cave filled with second hand cutlery and peeled wallpaper, not the most engaging place for a good read. Thinking back to their old conversations Elyse forced herself to stifle a grin, pursing her lips as she tentatively returned her gaze to Ella's face.

"How's life? Are things going well and stuff?", she murmured, offering a brief shadow of a simper before hugging the texts closer to her bosom. This was awkward, but strangely refreshing...Elyse had no idea what she was doing.

[Ella Robbinson]

Ella frowned, mainly at herself for her own benefit. Despite Elyse's sincerity, she still felt bad for her own display of stupidity. She knew she recognised the other girl, and she knew from where, but she hadn't yet taken the time to stop long enough to really remember. One task at a time and all that.

"I don't do much else outside of work." She admitted, shrugging her shoulders and squeezing the last book amidst the others. She didn't even bother to double check what she might have been looking for - she couldn't remember which it was now, anyway. "Plus, y'know... I like to read." She raised her eyebrows lightly at the fact. For some reason, some people she knew thought that was a little weird. So she thought they were weird.

In truth, Ella couldn't remember ever running into Elyse since she quit being a waitress in favour of her job at Hammel. Over a year ago. She held the book in hand close to her chest, drumming her fingernails against it as she finally looked at Elyse and finally got knocked in the face by how attractive she was. Had she always looked like that? That wasn't fair.

She raised her free hand and tucked idle strands of hair behind her ear. "Good. I mean, busy too. I don't get a whole lot of time outside of work." She looked around slightly, because that was easier; "And when I'm not, I'm here. So you can imagine how entertaining the rest of my day's going to be."

[Elyse Blackburn]

Small talk was skill required to get through the mundane grey moments of life, Elyse knew it to be invaluable during the initial interactions with customers. Speak, listen and smile. Apparently that's what society expected her to do and the young woman played along, growing quite accustomed to the shallow attempts at conversation. This time however, it felt different.

Ella was as blatantly extroverted as she had been when she was just a simple waitress; beautiful, confidant and wholesome...something Elyse had a lot of trouble emulating. Back then Ella was a star of the diner, perfectly compatible with the demands of waitressing all the while keeping a smile on her face. It was no lie that Elyse felt comfortable in the older girl's shadow, knowing full well she'd stay safe remaining docile.

"Oh, that's great. Yeah, this and work is all I have at the moment", Elyse sighed, glancing away at the mention of work. There was no way in hell she was revealing that job. "What are you working as?", she asked, actually curious as to what Ela had disowned Hogsbreath for.

Fumbling with the spine of a psyche folio the girl slowly leaned against one of the massive oak shelves, her gaze flickering from Ella's face to the space around them. "I'm sure you're days are a lot more interesting than mine...", she mumbled with a self-depreciating smirk. It was probably true though.

[Ella Robbinson]

It was difficult to recall the way things were over a year ago. Given the whirlwind change that came along with switching jobs, that was to be expected. But the volley of small talk had and always would be a skill of hers. Keeping the conversation light and carefree was incredibly important, less it fall to the wayside of awkwardness or worse - personal truths.

For a moment she shifted her weight onto her back foot. It was hard to willingly divulge what she was doing for a living; some people knew the nature of Hammel and others were fooled my the facade offered. Her ability was and always had been a danger - she didn't talk about it because it made people look at her differently. And why wouldn't they? Of all things, she was graced with the ability to move and control people's blood. Because things in life simply couldn't be simple. It was always all or nothing. "Y'know Hammel, the private school nearby? I work there as a dorm monitor." She replied, exhaling a short sigh. "It's not as bad as it sounds. Really." Because the pay was awesome.

"That's a pretty big call to make. I'd say you were wrong but I don't know what else you do with your free time." Ella replied with a small laugh. She smiled, but how bad was it that she hadn't thought to volley the question back at her; "I'm sorry, what about you? Are you still working at, uhh-" Wow, names were not his forte today. "You have to have more going on than just that."

[Elyse Blackburn]

Elyse offered a small smile with Ella's admittance of working at the privileged private school on the northern side of pilot ridge. The Hammel institute was a beautiful building, Elyse had only seen it a few times whenever she happened to ride her bicycle near that area but she knew it to be a place for the next generation of the upper class, an school for the burgeoning bourgeoise. The latter half of her teenage years would occasionally get whisked away into daydreams of learning in such a rich environment. Imagine all the books, bountiful works of knowledge saved only for the children whose parents held a little more influence than necessary. The stark difference they had to her own life was a bitter pill to swallow indeed.

"That's great! Wow...well it sounds like you're having fun." She smiled, swaying on the balls of her feet whilst glancing down at the bruise that had taken on the colour of a plum. In truth Elyse was very happy for Ella, at leat the older girl had managed to do something else than cater for the misfits and ruffians in south Pilot ridge. "I bet the students are all primped and preened. Future politicians, scientists and lawyers...", her voice trailed off into a hushed whisper, praising these spoilt teens felt awkward. Very awkward.

Flickering her gaze out to a large arch window by a grand staircase Elyse gave the morose clouds a flat gaze, the drizzle wasn't going to leave for a while. Hopefully it didn't leak through her roof this time.

"Yeah...I'm uhh, still at the diner. Customers miss you, especially the guys...", Elyse murmured, not quite sure why she said that in the first place. Damnit, proper conversations were so much more harder than the standard diner talk. "I don't do much else. Maybe go out for a bike ride or prey on little children in the neighbourhood..." Good! Humour was a must, it helped avoid mentioning that other line of work. No one was to know that, not even Ella. Gently laughing at her strained attempt at humour Elyse looked over the older girl, observing the distinct beauty that had captured their customers all those years ago.

"So...what were you planning on reading today?", she asked, hoping to avoid any more questions about her working life. Treading the lines of comfort and proper conversations was a challenge indeed, but the young woman preferred to play it safe. Nothing worse than giving away unwanted secrets.

[Ella Robbinson]

"Oh yeah, they're the best." Ella replied somewhat sarcastically, though the somewhat negative quality to her voice didn't really seem to suit her. Her sweeter side was almost always at the forefront, and that made the darker touches seem unintentional. "Seriously, though. My head might explode if another person threatens me with the whole; wait till my father hears about this!"

Ella took the fleeting moment Elyse was looking towards the window to give her a quick, undetected once over. Seriously. Who got to look like that in their life? She had to be with someone. Probably someone just as ridiculously beautiful.

"I don't miss them." She said swiftly, raising her eyebrows at the thought. When people became regulars for the uncanny attractive quality of the staff, it was a little worrying. And uncomfortable. But she tried not to dwell on that too much. "I guess I miss some people though. Like you." She offered as casually as possible, raising her free hand and running it through her dark hair. That was off handed, right? She missed the company of adults - too much of her time was with younger teenagers these days. Still, she made the move to offer her own humour; "Oh, good! Preying on children. You're my kind of person. Why else would I work where I do?"

On the subject of her book choice, Ella looked down at it instinctively. The orange cover with the stark black was appealing, if only for the contrast. "Well, the oh-so polite girl at the counter suggested this." Ella explained, moving the book in her hands and offering the title for her to read. "Is it wrong to loan it out because she said I should? She was giving me that look. The uhh, I'm-smarter-than-you look."

[Elyse Blackburn]

A fleeting smile breezed across Elyse's lips as she listened to the older girl speak, thinking back to the slightly easier days when she had Ella around as some quasi acquaintance. The slender waitress knew that conversations like this were a rarity and she kept the moment high up in 'times to remember'. Regardless of whether the subject matter, talk about father's and their stuck up children Elyse knew it better to simply listen and absorb everything this special moment could bring her.

Clearing her throat and opting to glance out at the drizzle-kissed windows Elyse lightly shook her head to rid her mind of her own father, there was no need to revive that monster.

"I'm glad you've found your place." She offered gently, nodding her head in Ella's direction before allowing a sigh to wash over her peachy lips. She truly did feel some figment of happiness for the girl, but deep in those words was the smallest fragment of jealousy, a bitter strain which tainted her genuine attempt at congratulating Ella.

I guess I miss some people though. Like you.

The statement alone caught the starveling waif off guard and her eyebrows momentarily arose in surprise. Ella actually missed her? It was probably just because she was trying to be nice or something. All Elyse did back then was hover around the older girl's shadow and cover her shifts whenever it was needed. It felt rather jarring, having another human being speak so honestly with her, especially one that wasn't a lust ridden customer.

"Oh, I missed you too..." Elyse breathed, feeling a tinge of red adorn her cheeks as she fixed her eyes on the frayed edges of her psyche journals. When was conversing like a normal person ever this hard?

Blinking away her internal deconstruction of the rather sentimental statement she quickly glanced at the book Ella was clasping and what a smack of irony that was. The Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister? Seemed like a more appropriate read for Elyse than it did for the lively, fresh faced young woman standing opposite her. Damn that librarian, why was she such a sour bitch for.

Furrowing her brow the girl quickly swivelled on her feet and grabbed a random psychology book from behind her. "You should ignore her, she's not very nice to me either..." and that was true, she must of thought Elyse homeless or something, "but how about you read Ten reasons why women want domin - actually nope...definitely not that..." She fumbled, shoving the rather graphic piece of literature back where it belonged.

Cringing at the mild embarrassment she allowed a semblance to grin to cross over her face, a strange attempt at appearing collected after that failure. "Maybe...why not just take something from my pile and we can work from there?" She said quietly, motioning down at the stack of books in her skinny arms before nodding over to two seats by an arched window. "Do...do you want to sit over there? I mean...unless you're busy or something then don't worry about it!" Elyse stammered, finding her gaze drop lower with every fumbling attempt to speak like a normal person.

Damn this was a challenge.

[Ella Robbinson]

Ella almost always felt as if it were a gamble to say what was on her mind. People could react in so many different ways, and she just wasn't the type to know what to expect from people. When surprise had coloured her features, Ella found herself oddly cautious of how to proceed. Play it off as a joke... Or something? But she'd always liked Elyse's company. There was something comforting about whatever relationship they used to have - but both must have seen it differently, she suspected.

At the reciprocated admission, Ella simply smiled genuinely. It was good to know.

"Oh good, she doesn't discriminate." Ella said, somewhat dryly. And the tone didn't really seem to suit her as much as she wished it did. Or could. She raised her eyebrows slowly as Elyse read the title of the book in her hand, a blink or two emanating form her eyes. "...At least it'd be interesting." She reasoned with a short laugh, "And hey, she might get so uncomfortable that she never talks to me again."

And that, was a plus.

She'd also say just about anything to alleviate the embarrassing cloud that was suddenly hanging over them. Embarrassing and somewhat awkward, though the latter had been around for a while now. "No, I'm not busy." She said lightly. She'd much prefer the company of another person as opposed to herself. She was boring to hang out with. With a wave of her free hand, the Hemokinetic made her way over towards the aforementioned chairs and sat down. "What've you got for me?"

[Elyse Blackburn]

A tentative chuckle careened over Elyse's lips at the thought of the less-than-friendly librarian. She was a scary woman and some shred of paranoia warned the skinny young woman that the 'book bitch' may be listening to them right now. But of course, that was just her mind overreacting to the possibility of offending someone. "I think it would freak out most people..." She whispered thoughtfully, knowing full well it had freaked her out. Who wanted to be seen reading that in public?

Ella's agreement to moving to the chairs lifted some of the nervousness off Elyse's shoulders, at least she was responding positively so far. A warm trickle caressed the waitress' heart, she did not know what it was but it felt...pleasant.

Offering the older girl a smile Elyse procured the psyche books and carefully placed them on the table, rummaging through the more interesting ones. Why Love is a myth, A History of Abuse, Scissoring: A Lesbian's tale, Dreaming and its Symbolism. Were just a few of the books that the waitress had to give another once over, they were definitely not the most easiest reads and she slumped deeper into her chair thinking what Ella may think of her choice in literature.

"I...just got a few random ones..." She lied, knowing full well that all of these titles had caught her eye the instance she had walked into the Pseudo-science aisle. It was rather jarring having a third party gaze upon her reading list but the waitress knew better than to patronise the older girl, who knows...maybe something will catch her eye.

[Ella Robbinson]

"Some people like that deserve to be freaked out." Ella replied, playing it off with a laugh. Really, the snarky librarian had seemed as uptight as she was full of herself. And Ella knew the image she had. Who'd expect a book like that in tandem with someone who looked like her?

The book titles placed before her painted a very strange history when all put together. She wondered what kind of string tied them all together - her mind could place a few things, and as she wondered she glanced up to watch her face. The way she fell into her chair once they were all on offer. Relief? Or worry? No no, she shook her head. She was thinking too much about this.

"Random ones." She repeated, nodding along to the concept despite the fact that she didn't believe it. Still, at the risk of getting in some strange conversational territory she decided to work her way up to other things; "You're having strange dreams?" The hemokinetic asked, tilting her head slightly in her curiosity. The posed question about the posed book was a courtesy.

Because please, she'd only just sat down.

[Elyse Blackburn]

A sigh of relief washed over Elyse's chapped lips at Ella's direction in the conversation. Good, she had chosen a relatively safe subject. Brushing a slender hand across her brow the girl pursed her lips, thinking hard for a moment before glancing back at the older girl. There was no need to talk about anything that could derail this lucky little moment, so Elyse scoured her mind for the least offensive, controversial or worrying dream she had had to date. It was a challenge, an uncomfortable one.

Clearing her throat, Elyse straightened up ever so slightly, attempting to retain the air of normality so foreign to her in such a situation.

"Well...I have this one dream where I find a baby seal in my washing." Elyse murmured, the faintest hint of a smile tugging on her lips at the memory of the one dream which hadn't forced her to wake up in tears. "It's so white and fluffy, and...I really wish I find a baby seal in my washing one day. But...I'm pretty sure we won't find anything about that in this book..." She sighed, nodding down to the dream theory manual and furrowing her brow. Of course, use the seal dream as a cover up for the real horrors she faced during the night.

"So what about you huh? Dream of evil stepsisters and stuck up rich kids?" She teased, well...attempted to tease. Elyse wasn't exactly a master of quick wordplay or amusing quips, they were never her strength and it felt strange coming out of her mouth. But then again, it always helped to avert any possible awkwardness when the conversation was focused on her. It was simply too risky.

[Ella Robbinson]

Ella listened intently to the details of the dream offered to her. She struggled to remember her own dreams in their entirety; rather, she could recall small segments and points. She envied those who had the capacity to vividly recount their dreams. Though, she doubted hers would be interesting. As she listened she flicked passed the index page and the various installments before getting to the details.

"That's actually really cute, though." Ella replied with a small laugh, smiling to herself as she flicked through the pages. Soon enough she found what she was looking for, pointing to the beginning as she glanced up from the book. "Apparently it has to do with your... Playfulness. It also means good luck and success. Adapting to emotional situations." She detailed, glancing down again and tilting her head to one side.

Hmm... Ella pursed her lips gently; "And y'know, security in love. If that's a thing for you." Cue a small shrug with her shoulders.

"Me? Oh well... I don't really remember much of my own dreams." She started, closing the book and handing it off in her direction. "Well, I did have a dream recently that I was wandering this massive hallway and all I had was a flashlight. Except it died, or something? And then, well..." She paused suddenly, remembering where the dream left off, "The shadows sort of tried to swallow me up, I guess. I woke up pretty quickly after that." A certain shadow walker had just scared her not too long ago.