'Tis the season (Kailin)

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It had gotten colder now that the first snow was gracing the scenery of Vermont. Kiara did not mind it too much, except for the hidden layer of ice underneath the crunchy white one. Most of the times the blonde would stay in her dorm, all cuddled up in a fleece blanket while catching up on TV series that had been missed during exams. She had actually been doing that since waking up that day, until the girl decided it was time to go and get a fresh nose. Sitting around made her lazy and seemed to drain her energy even more than doing something productive would. It was why she had all bundled up with a scarf around her neck and a dark blue wool knitted beret on top of the blonde curls. Hands had been tucked in double-layered mittens and then she put on her coat, ready to head out for a small walk.

Kiara didn’t really know how to occupy her time though. It was why she opted to take a stroll in the park. It had always been the perfect location to get to whenever something was on her mind, so it did seem appropriate as well. Usually the college student would head over to the library, but it being colder out, more people tended to end up there. It was not as peaceful as it normally would be, hence the reason that option got eliminated. The park itself was rather calm. Kiara could even claim a bench (after having wiped the snow off of it) and sat down before rubbing mitten-covered hands up and down her upper legs to eliminate some of the cold.

This was nice, even though she had no idea how long it would take her to rush to The Rolling Pin for some hot chocolate and a cupcakes.

[Kailin Bishop]

School may have been out for Holiday, but that did not mean her workload stopped. Kailin was an advanced student, which usually meant her teachers provided winter packets and such so the lessons would not be lost over the break. Surprisingly, the young blonde didn't have with an issue with most of the work given. Like today's 'assignment'. It was for photography, and she was to create a visual representing what winter and Christmas represented. She had an idea for a collage, since the last one she had done went so well with the Photography teacher. Kailin did things to please, and whenever she found something that worked, the girl stuck to it. She always made sure not to overdo it, though.

It was a Friday, and a ridiculously cold one at that, but that only meant nobody would really be out and about to potentially get in the middle of her shots. She wore her favorite winter outfit, which made her blend in quite well with her surroundings, the only thing standing out being her camera. It's black base color stood out against her own light exterior.

She was snapping pictures when another blonde walked into her frame and sat down on a bench. Kailin was going to ask the girl to move, but when she looked at her frame and hair type, she figured that could easily be passed off as her. Wouldn't that be an interesting addition to the collage...

The girl stopped what she was doing and walked over to the other blonde shamelessly. "Hiya," She said, "Trying to get away from the hustle and bustle that is pilot ridge's population?" Kailin was joking, as implied by her light and airy tone, and her lips were tilted upward into a kindhearted smile.

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Kiara liked the silence… for as long as it lasted. Without too much of a warning, a voice spoke up and it made the blonde snap her head to gaze up at the person who had just approached her. Yeah, it was pretty shameless, but Ki wasn’t one to grow annoyed easily and it all seemed to be in good nature. If it were an older guy stepping over, she would not have felt at ease. Then again, not a lot of people could be trusted lately. The innocence radiating from this young girl could be misleading. Nevertheless, a smile appeared on the college student’s face, trying to mirror Kailin’s out of politeness.

“I guess you could say that.” She mused with a nod of the head. The question could easily be turned around to shoot back at Kailin, but she figured that might be a tad bit weird and a conversation killer. Kiara had no idea why this girl had stepped over, but it probably wasn’t to just randomly greet her out of nowhere.

“Taking pictures?” A mitten-covered hand motioned to the camera around Kailin’s neck, going for the next obvious topic that was not the weather. Claiming that it was cold had been an option, yet that would have been overly cliché. The fact that Ki was making an attempt was at least a good start. She could also have asked if there was something she could help the girl with, but it would just have been weird had Kailin said no.

[Kailin Bishop]

"I am. School project," Kailin admitted, though she was a bit more cautious after the girl's vague answer. She didn't think the girl was unfriendly, but with the way she held herself and eyed her with a weariness, well, it put Kailin on edge. She only had to tell Kailin to leave, and she wouldn't give the other girl a problem.

"It's a collage. I have to create a visual representation of what Christmas and the holidays meant, and well, I was just snapping some photos."

There was never a time Kailin was awkward. She just stayed with a pleasant smile on her face, unless she didn't like the person, that is. But she didn't know this girl, so she couldn't make a judgement just yet.

"I'm Kailin, by the way. Kailin Bishop."

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“Oh”, Kiara mouthed with a small nod. “It clearly means snow, huh?” It was a weak attempt at a joke, but at least it did help the young woman to put herself more at ease again. The tension diminished and she was slowly starting to accept Kailin’s presence, along with the fact that no threat seemed to be coming with her.

When the younger blonde introduced herself, a more pleasant smile appear as Kiara took off one of the mittens, mainly because they had been used to wipe snow off the bench, so it would be cold and wet. After that, a hand reached out. “Kiara. Kiara Lilien.” The girl’s name sounded familiar.

“Bishop family, huh? Must mean you’re attending Hammel.” Unless she did not have an ability, but that seemed doubtful. Features clearly lit up some more.

[Kailin Bishop]

"Exactly," Kailin gave the girl a reassuring smile. The younger blonde appreciated the fact that the girl attempted a joke. Weak or not, it was a way of saying 'okay, I'll talk to you', which was what Kales was most afraid of. As much as she craved social interaction, she never liked forcing it on anybody else. If they were uncomfortable, she'd take the hint and bid herself adieu.

The girl offered her a hand, and Kailin took it. "It's nice. The name suits you, I think." Kales knew absolutely nothing about the girl, but from her appearance, Kailin made an assumption. Whether it was correct or not, the younger blonde would soon find out.

"Yeah, I do." It wasn't uncommon for those who attended, or once attended, Hammel to recognize her family name. The Bishops had been attending since her father was a young boy, but when her parents started having kids, well, there was a bishop attending for at least the past 10 years straight.

"I'm guessing you are either going, or went to, Hammel?" She was curious now, but she didn't want to pry.

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Kiara couldn’t help but offer soft laughter at that statement. “It does?” She wasn’t sure what vibe her name might have given off, but it felt too weird to ask. It did make her wonder what kind of impression Kailin might have formed by now though. Either way, given the younger blonde still stuck around, it must at least have been a positive one. With that, Ki retrieved her hand and covered it with the mitten before tucking it in the pocket of her coat again.

The fact that her assumption about Hammel was correct didn’t really surprise her. Nevertheless, it did make her feel proud to at least know something about this unfamiliar girls. “Went to. Attended college now.” Ki mused with a little nod of the head. “Graduated more than a year ago.” Kailin probably had still been around at that time, but she had never really socialized with younger students.

This usually stirred Kiara’s curiosity as well. She tended to grow intrigued when it came to the abilities of others. “So, um, what’s your power?” Hopefully that wasn’t too personal. Given their current topic, it felt okay to inform about that.

[Kailin Bishop]

"Yeah, it does," She offered back the smile and a small laugh of her own. She did have a filter, but not necessarily with things she felt were alright to say (which sometimes they were not). She was glad that Kiara had felt it wasn't a wrong thing to say, though if it were, she wouldn't kill herself over it. She really needed the pictures, so it would definitely be inconvenient.

"Ahh, well I've pretty much stuck to my grade unless one of my siblings pulled me into the conversation. I should branch out more, I think..." The girl trailed off, but quickly regained herself a short moment after. She developed a slightly reddish hue to her cheeks after saying that. She really had to stop rambling at times.

When Kiara asked about her power, Kailin's brow shifted upward. Not out of irritation, but merely surprise. Well, she should have known, but somehow she didn't see that question coming. "Uh, Illusion Manipulation. Both Auditory and Visual." Kailin said. "And yours?"

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Kiara did not mind it when people rambled or just talked about the most random things ever. At moments she even cherished it. Like now. She didn’t really know Kailin, so the conversation didn’t have to be filled with heavy topics. “You quite probably bump into a sibling wherever you go.” The blonde chuckled lightheartedly when the other girl mused about needing to branch out. With other words, Kailin had nothing to blush about.

As for the power, it intrigued Ki. It sounded like an interesting one. A fun one. Maybe she would have been a less timid person had she been able to experiment with such power during her time at Hammel. Instead she had one that only seemed to backfire. “Probability manipulation. Not really the most active one.” Smiling, her gaze briefly drifted ahead to the snowy landscape ahead of them.

When she turned her head again, she focused on the camera. “Do you want me to take some with you in them?”

[Kailin Bishop]

"If I don't, I consider that a lucky day," The younger blonde returned a genuine laugh of her own. Kailin found that the conversation with Kiara was easy talking; there wasn't much effort needed to be put in to make the words come.

Kiara's power seemed to be interesting enough, and honestly, it was something that Kailin would probably find more useful to her. The ability to manipulate the outcome of a situation would be perfect for a girl with 9 older siblings and three younger. She'd always be right, no matter what happened. "It's fun to prank my siblings with the power in the middle of the night and at other inconvenient times. But then again, I say that because I'm a little sister, as well as an older so."

At her offer to take the picture, Kailin nodded. "Could you? I was just going to ask if you could be a stand in for me, but this makes it so I'm actually in the picture."

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Kiara only had one brother and they were living on quite some bad terms at that moment. Part of her wished to have had more siblings because it would have given her someone to fall back on, but at the same time it might have backfired if they opted to pick Everett’s side. The fact remained that she felt lonely though… but it would be weird to

“I am pretty sure you get pranked quite often as well.” The blonde mused before holding out a hand the second Kailin accepted her offer. At the same time a little chuckle of disbelief could be heard. “Me? As a stand in? I’m not really the most photo genetic person around…” And last time she posed for pictures, her life had still been flawless.

“But um, yeah… you’ll have to guide me through this. It might not be the best pictures though.” Her skills when it came to photography were no better than those of any other random person.

[Kailin Bishop]

"Everyday of my life, but they are running out of ideas. That is, my younger brothers are. None of my older siblings prank me anymore." Kailin really only had an issue with JJ, but they were also her favorite siblings. It was just their rivalry that they had that always made their relationship amusing. Out of everyone, she had to be closest with them.

With Ki's compliance towards using her as Kailin's stand in, the blonde got very excited. It wasn't often that she could use models for her pictures, and plus, it was really the lighting that needed to be right. The girl's face wouldn't be showing, anyway.

"I, uh, really need you to just let your hair fall off to one side, and you look down at your hands. No facial expressions needed, so that's a good thing?" Kailin said with uncertainty. "You don't have to do this if you really don't want to."

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Kiara knew she was quite bad at making herself very clear. Therefore it did not come as a surprise that their current interaction led to a misunderstanding. The blonde didn’t correct Kailin though. She had actually meant that she could take pictures while the younger student posed, but it kind of felt awkward to mention that fact now.

It was why Ki did as told, pulling the blonde curls over one shoulder as soft smile was given at Kailin. “As long as you’re happy with the result, I’m fine.” If she disliked the pictures, she would have to be honest about it. Kiara didn’t think she was anywhere near a good model, and she didn’t want to ruin the assignment of someone else.

Looking down at her hands, the girl tried to keep a straight face. “Like this?” She asked, not turning her head to the other, just in case a picture was just being taken.

[Kailin Bishop]

Kailin backed away slowly from the woman, her eyes glancing down at the screen every few seconds to ensure that the camera was still in a decent position; she idly cursed herself for not bringing her stand, but what was she to do about it now? Kiara had already given her the shot that she needed.

"Yes, exactly like that."

Kales snapped the first picture, and then adjusted the angle, trying to catch the light that was resting on the girl's shoulders. Another photo was taken, and this time she was content. "Thank you," she said, hoping that was indicative of Kailin's finish. She didn't need much, really, and plus, it would be put into a mosaic like collage, anyway, so the picture would hardly be seen.

"Would you like to see it?"

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That was over fast… and Kiara did not mind it one bit. She would have felt awkward had Kailin asked her to take on other positions, mainly because the girl wouldn’t be able to make it come off as natural. When the other blonde asked if she would like to see, Ki did hesitate for a second, but then nodded to agree. Normally she wouldn’t have, if only because she hardly ever liked pictures of herself. The fact that Kailin seemed to know what she was doing helped though.

Stepping over, Ki looked down at the camera as the other blonde showed the result of their brief photo shoot session. And, in all honesty, the young woman kind of liked it. Not necessarily herself, but more so the surroundings and the contrast. “I actually like it…” She stated while unable to hide her own surprise at that.

“Do you? Is it good enough for your assignment? I could take some of you instead if you want?” Self-doubt effortlessly struck, which led to the concern that it wasn’t what Kailin had been looking for.