Time Warp: D is for Dance

[Cera Lamprey]

February 2009

---

Cera had been at Hammel for all of a year now, and while she was beginning to get the hang of her power she was not getting the hang of her roommate. When she had first been recruited she had imagined an endless sleepover, something akin to sharing a room with her sister only with less adult supervision. 

Instead there were dorm monitors who performed the same function as parents, and her roommate was, in a word, disappointing. Always in her room with the door closed, never wanting to come out. She may as well have been a hermit. 

That did not, of course, mean she wouldn't try. 

"Helloooooooo?" She knocked on the door to Nora's room with rather more vigor than was necessary. "Hey! The Valentine's Day is coming up, have you gone dress shopping yet?" 

She doubted that Nora even had a date; how would she get one, when she wouldn't even leave her room? Perhaps some brave soul had asked her between classes, but if so she hadn't mentioned it. 

Still, even hermits wanted to attend school dances, or so Cera assumed. And surely even hermits enjoyed dress shopping. Perhaps this was the invitation Nora needed to break out of her shell and actually be friendly. 

[Elanora Brennan]

Nora was holed up in her room again waiting for the pain killers to kick in, it had been a hard day, she just wished she could have some control would an on off switch like other meta's have really be too much to ask? Like seriously where is the positive to never being able to turn her power off, who needed to be able sense meta's all the time! Take her roommate for instance she had been here for a year now and every single time she came into Nora's range her head head exploded with information about how she is has the power of size alteration.

Sure at first she hadn't known that, she had to get used to understanding the signals her power sent her and what power each one represented, it wasn't as easy as a little voice in her head being all you are being approached by a meta has the power of size alteration. Not that would be handy and way less intrusive, instead Nora got these feelings usually teamed with a pulsing behind her eyes that around more than a few meta's grew to be like having a jackhammer attacking her head.

As she lay in the dark with her eyes closed waiting for the latest near migraine caused by said jackhammer she felt the girl approach the door more then heard her. The signal of her power reverberated through Nora's already tender brain a few moments before the knock on the door and the girl’s perky voice. Nora groaned slightly, the school Valentine’s day dance, yeah that wasn't going to happen, Nora had tried going to a dance once back when she first started, talk about meta overload, she had ended up, blacking out and throwing up all over herself, no thanks not again!.

She didn't like being the rude recluse, she used to be the life of the party before coming here so she hauled herself off the bed and padded too the door. Opening it she looked at her roommate Cera, she was a nice enough girl and Nora felt bad for blowing her off all the time but she didn't have to deal with this power.

"I'm not going to the dance and I don't do dresses so no I haven't been dress shopping." she spoke her voice tired and strained from her headache likely made her sound bitchy as all get out to the other girl but when she felt like this she was honestly beyond caring.

[Cera Lamprey]

"You're not?" Cera's voice registered disappointment more than shock; with someone as reclusive as Nora it was perhaps to be expected that she would prefer to avoid the dance. 

But instead of accepting that Nora wanted to be left alone she latched onto the least important aspect of the other girl's rejection. 

"You could wear a suit instead," She suggested, leaning into the door frame so that her roommate couldn't shut the door without shutting her in it. "We can go suit shopping! Isn't there a tux rental place at the mall like, right next to the JC Penny? I'm sure we could find something that would look amaaaaaaaaazing!" 

She gave her roommate wide, pleading eyes. It would be fun to have another girl to go shopping with, almost as good as having Wren join her. That wasn't likely at all, since her sister was older, and Hammel had filled her in fairly quickly about what ages people tended to manifest. She missed her sister, but having a roommate-friend would have been an acceptable substitute. 

If only her roommate would cooperate with this plan. 

"Please?"

[Elanora Brennan]

Nora tried not to roll her eyes as her roommate failed to grasp the concept of her not attending the dance as it if was some sort of criminal behaviour to not want to go. Her head was still foggy from the migraine of earlier today as the girl started on with an idea of Nora wearing a suit, as if her not wanting to wear a dress was the cause of her not wanting to go to the dance. Sure if Nora had wanted to go to the dance she could have worn a suit, hell she may have even consented to a dress but the truth was she didn't want to go and she couldn't understand why this girl wouldn't get it.

She was all set to tell her a very firm no when the girl added on a very hopeful please. Nora did roll her eyes at this. "Look, I appreciate the offer but suit, dress it doesn't matter because I'm not going, you wouldn't understand" Nora said firmly. Since she couldn't shut her door on the girls face she decided to open the door wider and squeeze past her. Walking to the little kitchen area of the common room she chose a glass and filled it with water, drinking deeply, water helped, the more hydrated she was the quicker she seemed to recover from the migraines, though if miss chatty Cathy didn't give it a rest soon she could feel the headache would worsen.

Maybe if she agreed to go shopping with the girl so she could choose her dress on the provision that Nora herself didn't have to try anything on. She really didn't want to, she just wanted to go take some more pain meds and sleep the latest assault from her powers off. Turning back toward the girl still holding her glass of water she lent against the counter. "How about we make a deal? I will come shopping with you for your dress nothing for me and you don't try and drag me out in public again for at least 2 months?" She offered, personally she would have preferred to say ever but she knew that would never fly with this one and she didn't want to be mean she just wanted peace.

[Cera Lamprey]

Cera flung her arms into the air in a celebratory gesture. "Hooray! You'll come?" 

Maybe they could be the very best of friends after all! Just because she had been rejected the last 28982434735 times didn't mean that it wouldn't work out this time. She and Nora were definitely going to be friends; the fact that she had agreed to go shopping was proof. 

"Just let me grab my purse!" She darted for her own bedroom, snatching her purse from the top of her dresser. Sadly for the more reclusive of the two girls, this moment of peace lasted barely a minute before she was back in the common room again, strawberry-shaped purse flung over one shoulder, bouncing on the balls of her feet in excitement at having convinced Nora to come out with her. 

"Oooooh, this is gonna be so great!" 

And maybe Nora would end up seeing something she just had to try on; who could go clothes shopping and not eventually end up trying something on? 

This was going to be super. 

[Elanora Brennan]

As soon as she made the offer and saw the girls face light up she felt too things, first was instant regret for not just saying no, seriously that was way too much perkiness for when Nora had a headache. Second was slight guilt over saying no to her so many other times, the girl was clearly making an effort and Nora had rejected her every time. The girl ran off and was back in less than a minute with a purse over her shoulder. Nora walked toward her own room glass of water in hand and entered, crossing to her desk she popped two tablets out of their blister packaging and threw them in her mouth washing them down with the water.

She eyed her bed so tempted to just blow the girl off still, shut the door and go to sleep, she knew she wouldn't hear the end of it though so with another sigh she picked her own simple black purse up off her chair and shuffled into some slip on shoes. Rubbing at her sore head a moment she shuffled out of her room pulling the door closed behind her and looking at the still too perky girl in the middle of the common room.

"2 months, should have said 4 at least" she grumbled to herself as she held out her hand in a motioning fashion indicating that Cera should lead the way and she would reluctantly follow.

[Cera Lamprey]

"Aw, come on! It won't be that bad!" Cera chided at Nora's revision of their unofficial contract. She skipped out the door and down the hallway. "So are you sure you're not going to the dance? What if someone really cute asked? Like....liiiiiiiike...." She flailed about, trying to think of the cutest, most popular person in the whole school. "Like JD? The one with super speed?" 

His little brother was also cute, but as he wasn't interested in girls there was no reason to bring him up; he wasn't in any danger of asking Nora to the dance. (JD might not be, either, but at least he was a somewhat more realistic fantasy.) 

"Or no! Do you like girls? What about November, she's a cutie, too." 

[Elanora Brennan]

"Sure" Nora muttered with sarcasm as she followed the girl out of the door pulling it behind her, where the other girl skipped Nora trudged, she walked with enough speed to her step to keep up with the girl but her step had none of the happy skip to it. Walking along Nora rolled her eyes as the girl started on about some guy and some chick at the school, as if Nora would actually know them. She had to give the girl credit she was determined, posing options in case Nora wasn't into the guys. Her decision to go however had nothing to do with not having a date, she was so tempted to turn around and walk back up the small section of hallway back to their rooms.

Clearly she wasn't going to get away with not participating in this shopping trip like she had hoped. Nora should have known it wouldn't work with how persistent Cera could be with trying to drag her out she should have known caving in once wouldn't allow her to be a wallflower so to speak.

"It wouldn't matter if, what's his name asked me to the dance, I still wouldn't go, and I've never been attracted to girls so definitely wouldn't work if what's her name asked" She muttered as they walked, she had given up trying to explain her headaches and migraines to people, only those who had experienced them could really sympathize, most people just thought she was being over dramatic, she preferred to let them think she was just antisocial.

[Cera Lamprey]

"Oh." 

Maybe JD wasn't Nora's type. Come to think of it, Cera didn't actually know what Nora's type was. Well, she could rectify that easily enough. 

"Who would get you to go? C'mon, there has to be someone you think is cute!" 

The idea that someone might be uninterested in anyone at all was foreign to her. 

She pushed open the door to the outside, leaning against it so that Nora could pass her. Their breath was visible in the cold Vermont air, and Cera made several deliberate, delighted puffs so that she could watch. 

There were mounds of snow along the path, but the sidewalk itself was (mostly) clear of snow, although there were icy patches in places.

The landscape crew must have been hard at work that morning. 

[Elanora Brennan]

The truth was Nora had isolated herself so well she didn't know anyone enough to think they were cute or possible dating potential. Besides who wanted to try and date someone who's mere presence gave you a headache? For Nora this described every guy and girl who went to this school so even if she was bisexual or even gay not one of the people here currently interested her for that reason.

"When I get out of this hell hole and meet a nice non meta guy, I'll let you know, until then no one" She said simply wishing Cera would just drop it already but knowing she wouldn't. Nora nodded her thanks to the girl as he walked through the held open door and into the cold air. On the plus side Nora loved the cold so at least today little tryst into society against her better judgement was on a beautiful chilly day.

"Why do you care if I go so much anyway? I'm sure you have heaps of friends you don't need to be dragging me around" She asked in a way curious as to why this girl was so determined to make her participate couldn't she just be like last year’s roommate who had left. While she had been there she had given up on Nora after a week and just left her to her own devices, she missed that girl... whatever he name was.

[Cera Lamprey]

Cera allowed the door to swing shut behind her with a thud. 

"Oh, come on!" She rolled her eyes affectionately at her roommate's question and bounded down the sidewalk. "Why wouldn't I want you to come with me? You're my roommate! Roommates are supposed to be friends!" 

Reality and Cera's fantasy did not necessarily align very well in this instance. 

"So your turn to answer my question!" She chirped, carefully stepping over a patch of ice. "Why someone baseline? You really wouldn't want to date another meta?" 

If her roommate turned out to be prejudiced against other metas then Cera was going to be deeply upset. 

[Elanora Brennan]

That pretense that roommates were supposed to be friends had always annoyed Nora a little bit. Sure being friends and roommates could be a good thing but that expectation that you are supposed to like the person you have to share a room or flat with always bugged her especially in places like the school where you didn’t get to choose who you roomed with. Not that there was anything wrong with Cera she was just way too happy and pushy for Nora’s liking who had being a bit of a recluse since moving to the school.

“Right…” was all she said in response to the girls answer about roommates forcing herself to bite back her sarcastic thoughts and not let them turn into words. She focused on walking and not slipping on the ice until the bubbly girl spoke again wanting to know why someone baseline and not a meta she sighed quietly to herself she got tired of having to explain why she didn’t like being around Meta humans even though she was one.

“Why not someone baseline? When being around Meta’s causes me physical pain why would I want to date one?” she answered her response coming out a little more snappy and sarcastic then she had meant to be but she grew tired of having to explain it and wished she was back in Australia where meta’s were far and few between and she didn’t have to worry about daily headaches and migraines.

[Cera Lamprey]

Cera's eyes grew wide at Nora's explanation. 

"Physical pain?" She repeated, turning about on her heels to face her roommate. Perhaps she could have asked directly what her roommates power was when they had first been assigned together, but so many of the other students she met expressed annoyance with having to explain over and over again. It was an innocent icebreaker, but one that caused too many people upset. And, too, there were students who came from backgrounds distrustful of metas, students who hated their powers (specifically, or because they thought meta status made them lesser) and so she tried to respect this. 

She hadn't realized that Nora was reclusive because of her power. 

That made sense on the one hand, but on the other hand Cera had a maternal streak, and she felt immensely guilty over causing her roommate actual, physical pain. 

"It...it hurts you...to be out with me?" She asked, as though Nora's statement required any clarification. Her face fell as she realized this meant they weren't likely to spend evenings and weekends giggling together no matter how persistent she was. "Oh....you should stay in, then." 

[Elanora Brennan]

Nora wasn’t paying a whole lot of attention she vaguely heard the girl say something before spinning around on her heel. Nora barely managed to pull herself up in time to avoid bowling the girl over, she took a step back after pulling herself up and looked around wondering why the girl was reacting this way. She tried to think back, had she ever actually explained to her roommate why she locked herself away? She used to tell people but then she had gotten to the stage she gave up most people didn’t care either way.

She was touched by the concern in the girl’s features, maybe she hadn’t told her, which might explain a few things. “It’s okay, you got me this far we may as well go check out some dresses” she answered stepping around Cera and continued down the path they had been on, the pain killers she had taken were starting to kick in and she hoped at the very least there would be less meta’s at the shops then there were on campus.

“So have you got a colour or style in mind?” she asked as she took a few more steps not even sure if the girl was following her or close enough to hear her.

[Cera Lamprey]

Cera frowned in suspicion at Nora's reply. Given her roommates aversion to socializing she had expected her to flee back to their rooms once given the option. 

Her desire to mother people warred with her desire to socialize, but the desire to socialize won out.

Nora said it was all right, she reasoned, and why should she disbelieve what someone said about their own mental state?

"All right," She conceded cheerfully, glad that crisis had been averted. "I was thinking something wild. Maybe zebra stripes! Do you think there's anything like that?" 

Maybe not in the prom section of the junior's department, but a girl could dream. "If they don't have something maybe I can commission someone from the sewing club to make me one."