Clash of the (Would Be) Titans! {Naomi Green}

[Alice Halifax]

Alice was a young woman who had her finger on the pulse of Hammel. Like every other institution out there, Hammel had its own gossip vine and while this unknown Rumor person was doing a very good job of keeping their nose in everyone's business, Alice thought she did a fair job of gathering information herself. There were several people in the student populace who owed Alice Halifax a favor and there were others who oddly enough found themselves telling her whatever she wished to know. Generally, Alice only put her feelers out there when she was about to confront someone or was feeling pressure from someone. This someone currently was Naomi Hunter. The young woman was making a name for herself lately and while Alice might find those of such a nature useful, Naomi was going to be one of those who became a thorn in her side.

From what Alice could gather, Naomi was one of those meta-human elitists who thought their kind were top of the food chain. It wasn't a new idea, every so often some group somewhere would pop up in the world with ideas of their superiority. Alice always found that idea of one particular clique of people as superior a ridiculous one. While an elitist herself, Alice thought of herself as such because of her success rate. She was better than others because of her accomplishments in life thus far. Those like Naomi based their beliefs on flimsy standing of genetics or some other crap. For the most part, Alice steered clear of such people, but unfortunately, Naomi was stirring up too much trouble to ignore.

Emerging from her dorm, Alice looked down the hall toward the room where Naomi was bunked. They had passed one another in this hall several times but neither had ever gave the other more than a passing glance. Nothing about Naomi had ever caught Alice's attention up until now and perhaps had Alice been more alert then she might have foreseen this problem. However, Alice had been busy putting together her new 'family'. Time to shift focus for bit.

Alice dressed more casually for the moment as she usually did when lounging about the dorms. She was dressed in a pair pink satin sleep pants with a matching tank top which hung rather loosely about her. Her hair was down as usually and she wore just a hint of make-up. Her bare feet felt the cool of the floor of the hallway but Alice's mind was elsewhere. She slowly moved down the hallway toward room 406, her breathing slow to match her methodical pace. She hadn't planned on addressing the Naomi issue at the moment, but she just found herself inching toward the young woman's assigned room. Fate had a funny way of deciding things for you sometimes.

Approaching this Naomi Green alone was an expensive gambit but Alice wasn't one who responded normally to fear. Her ability gave Alice a safe boundary when dealing with others and to be honest, being roughed up wasn't something which deterred Alice. So, with an odd and curious smile on her face, Alice stopped outside room 406 and pondered whether to jump down the rabbit hole. With a small hand, Alice knocked on the door and waited to see just where fate was about to take her.

[Naomi Green]

Currently, Naomi was doing her homework. One couldn't very well work toward establishing a new government if one didn't understand the current one. Besides, Naomi had also taken to using her power while focusing on other tasks, figuring that the multi-tasking would doubtless come in handy for a future endeavor. As such, when the knock came, Naomi was nestled in a chair in her private room, the door locked and protected against intrusion. Both Naomi's roommates made her want to reconsider her personal rule about killing other metas. At least, most days.

Still, she heard the knock, and tilted her head, wondering who would bother. Neither Zoe nor Jalen was overfond of knocking, and any of their friends would be annoyingly vocal about an arrival. Which meant this person was for her.

"Ru-ru perhaps?" wondered Naomi, keeping her voice quiet. Zac had reason to bother her, after her recent promise to investigate Stella, one that she'd fulfilled. So she bookmarked her page, swung her legs off her bed, and padded to the door. A quick flick unlocked the metal, and Naomi opened it, peering outside.

Naturally she'd paused to grab a few marbles, which she simply stuck to the small of her back. While she hadn't developed any determined enemies just yet, they still existed.

"I'm afraid I don't know you," she said, looking at the other girl. "Are you perhaps one of my roommates' friends? They're out at the moment. Try their phones."

[Alice Halifax]

It took a moment for any response from Alice's knock presented itself. Alice wasn't exactly blessed with patience, but sometimes she found enough restraint to hold back her rather aggressive demeanor. Today was one of those days when she was more relaxed than usual, a mood which no doubt was about to change rather quickly. Alice was one hundred percent sure which direction this meeting with Naomi was going to go, but she had a rough idea. Alice did not take a backseat to anyone's driving and from what she had heard about Naomi, it seemed they might clash just a little. Still, some sort of action had to be taken and seeing how Naomi didn't know Alice, then it was up to Alice to take the first step. If Alice was lucky enough, she might be able to put Naomi on the back burner with some promises of money or other favors. It might seem like contrition but whatever it took to get her focus back on more important things.

A click could be heard from the other side of the door and Alice stood up a bit straighter, but on that sly smile of hers. The door swung open to reveal a face Alice wasn't exactly expecting, but then again no one ever had the correct expectations in meetings such as these. Naomi spoke first and quickly, assuming Alice was some random student looking for whomever Naomi shared the room with. Alice simply stood there smiling as she took the moment in. Naomi was British, an unexpected surprise. Foreign students were a rarity at Hammel considering the other meta schools out in the world so Naomi had to have some reason for being here. No doubt her reason was something to do with her growing reputation.

"Well, let me enlighten you to the facts then," Alice said as Naomi finished her small rant, "I'm Alice Halifax and I'm here to see you Naomi, not your roommates," she said, tilting her head to the side just a bit, still smiling. "If you don't mind, I would rather discuss the matter which concern us in private. Would you kindly allow me in so we can free ourselves from the eyes and ears around us?," she asked of Naomi, blatantly using her power, not caring if Naomi might find the feeling uninviting.

[Naomi Green]

Naomi raised a brow as Alice replied, even claiming that it was Naomi she came to visit, and not one of Naomi's other, much more social roommates. Alice hardly looked like someone who would be associating with the crowd that Naomi had recently befriended. Just the thought of seeing this woman standing next to Zac was enough to make someone laugh.

So what was the visit about? "By all means," suggested Naomi, already moving out of the way. Alice hardly needed to waste her ability upon Naomi, who was already quite willing to invite the other girl in. Now that Naomi's curiosity had been piqued, she'd want to at least know what she could find out.

"Do you perhaps know one of my acquaintances? Because, Miss Halifax, while you seem to know me well enough to drop by for a visit, I'm afraid I've never heard of you."

Pleasant smile, but tight, almost overly friendly. Explanations should be given, though Naomi had little doubt they'd be long in the delivery. Something about what Alice said, the way she said it, it struck a chord with Naomi, made her think that this was more than a simple visit. Not that Naomi would have encouraged a simple visitor. Her time was far more valuable than that.

[Alice Halifax]

Naomi allowed Alice access to her dorm room easy enough and Alice took full advantage of the moment. She passed by Naomi, not bothering to give her a look, but instead looked about the room, taking in the scene. It was sort of hard to judge Naomi's personality from the decor of the room considering she shared it with others. There was parts of the room which certainly contained parts of Naomi, but without really knowing much about Naomi, it was near impossible to tell which parts were of Naomi's contribution. The room itself wasn't as messy as some of the other rooms Alice had seen, as a matter of fact, it was pretty organized and neat.

Alice wiggled her toes as she looked about before turning around slowly to face Naomi. She listened to Naomi question Alice and her presence in her room. The tone in her voice wasn't aggressive, yet it did have a large degree of confidence in it. Alice could almost feel her and Naomi's egos pushing against one another. It was sort of refreshing to finally find someone with such determination and drive as Alice herself possessed. Perhaps Naomi might be influenced to join Alice and her newly formed Family. She might make an interesting addition, but then again, she might prove more dangerous than useful. Alice wasn't quite sure of what Naomi's meta-ability was yet, but she had heard rumor.

"Please, call me Alice," she said with a smile and a sideways tilt of her head, "and its really hard to say which of your associates I might now Naomi. I know a lot of people here at Hammel, although most of them are just passing conversation pieces," she added, putting her hands behind her back, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "I'm sorry you've never heard of me. Kind of brings the ego down a peg or two though," she said, giving a pout of sorts before shrugging her small shoulders, her eyes looking at the things behind and around Naomi. "Back to my point of being here though. I thought I might drop by so that we two ladies might get to know one another. I'm sure people such as we could have much to offer one another on our path to personal success," Alice said, arching one eyebrow.

[Naomi Green]

The dorm's common room contained very little of Naomi. Jalen and Zoe were much more open, and much more likely to leave their belongings in the room. There was a good deal of metal placed in strategic places, all decorative, naturally. She did have a few of her schoolbooks placed out, and the product she'd been working on was sitting at a table, half-finished. It appeared to be a map of Hammel's grounds, with various notations written in fine script.

"If you insist," said Naomi, her smile tight. What was with this woman? She walked about with confidence, and there was something appealing in that, but something unusual as well. Curious. She didn't outright admit to associating with Zac, which would have been Naomi's first guess. Kessler, perhaps? No, the crowd wasn't quite right.

"I'm always appreciative of help in endeavors both personal and public," replied Naomi, keeping her voice clear. She moved over to where they had a personal fridge, opening it. American tea was dreadful stuff, but certainly better than nothing. Naomi did have to work around the glut of stuff her roommates had shoved in there. Rising slightly, she looked to Alice.

"Would you like a beverage, Alice? I have a few here to offer," she said. Still polite, still cautious, but still studying Alice carefully. Just what was the other woman hinting at?

[Alice Halifax]

Well, this was an unexpected event. Alice was intrigued by Naomi's manners and etiquette. Not many young woman here at Hammel possessed the skills of a true lady and so finding someone who shared the knowledge of how to treat a guest was quite a welcome change of pace. Someone in Naomi's life had at least trained the girl properly and because of that, Alice graced Naomi with a bit more respect than she had ever intended to give her to begin with. "No thank you, but I do appreciate the offer," Alice replied, declining the drink. Alice didn't trust Naomi enough to take any food or drink from her and while that might have seemed very odd to anyone else, it only made perfect sense to Alice. Alice had made enemies in her time at Hammel and wasn't about to let her guard down. She might have only just met Naomi, but from what she had heard in the school's gossip vine, Naomi wasn't a woman to be taken lightly.

"I must say, it is rather refreshing to find another woman around here with proper manners," Alice said, smiling, "I'm afraid the girls around here are too boyish and lacking in serious etiquette. It seems that the lines between sexes are blurred these days," she added, sort of voicing her opinion on the matters which plagued the gender lines these days. "Listen at me making small talk. I think we're both beyond that little facade," Alice added, giving a small laugh and shaking her head, "Your clearly a woman who isn't fooled by fancy words or parlor conversation so I'll just get to the heart of matters. We're both women who have a very clear idea of what we want out of life and so, while we might have some difference of opinion on things, I think we have similar goals and tastes," Alice went on, sort of rambling some, allowing herself some more time to study Naomi and her surroundings.

"You see Naomi, my family and I sort of have a fragile set up going on around here and I can't have some rogue player upsetting the playing field. Now, I'm smart enough to realize that you aren't going to be bent to our will easily, so I've decided to take a more direct approach and come to make you this offer. Stay away from anything or anyone which is Family business and we'll give you the same respect in turn. A sort of 'you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours' scenario," Alice said, her gaze and tone becoming way more serious now. She was prepared to meet any threatening move on Naomi's part with whatever she could muster up. Hopefully, Naomi hadn't worked out Alice's power from earlier and if push came to shove, Alice could at least sway Naomi enough to flee safely from the scene.

[Naomi Green]

My, this Alice woman certainly liked the sound of her own voice, didn't she? Naomi listened carefully, more than willing to absorb details as the other girl laid them out. The standard talk about manners and such, which felt almost put on. In Naomi's experience, the manners had less to do with sex and more to do with the fact that most of the students at the school were boorish Americans, but she wasn't quite willing to say as much to someone she'd just met.

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you're hinting at," replied Naomi. If Alice wanted to tip her hand, that was perfectly fine. Naomi certainly didn't intend to simply inform someone she'd just met of her plans, not based on something like this. Certainly not if this person enjoyed talking so much and would forgo the more pleasant bantering about a topic for directness. Very American.

"I must say though, that threatening a person, especially one who you might consider, what was it now, a rogue agent? Yes, threatening a rogue agent is hardly the way to get said agent to behave, wouldn't you think? In fact, I would wager that instead of getting said agent to acquiesce to your desires, you would instead get an agent's defenses up," Naomi paused, then smiled. "This is all hypothetical, of course, for I am most certain that I haven't the foggiest idea what you were talking about."

Naomi was already starting to remember where she'd hid various metal objects within her room and on her person. Only a fool wouldn't prepare their own room, and if this Alice girl continued to press matters, well, Naomi was more than willing to press back. She'd find that there was more will to this girl than would at first seem.

[Alice Halifax]

This was going to be one of those discussions, a realization which made Alice roll her eyes. She had so wanted to avoid the game of cat and mouse with Naomi. She really didn't have the time to chase words and phrases about the room as there were other more pressing issues at hand. That minx Rumor had already noticed Alice and the rest of the Family meeting with one another and while that was going to happen eventually, it was a bit sooner than expected. Alice needed to find out who Rumor was and have a little talk with them, more to plant false information than anything. If Rumor and the others around school wanted something to talk about, then Alice would be more than happy to spread some ill gossip about the Family to keep everyone from noticing what they were really doing. This plan was going to have to be put on hold though as Naomi was insisting on being a little bitch. Honestly, why couldn't she just take the offer Alice was offering and be done with everything?

"Seriously? You insist on doing it this way?," Alice asked, looking a bit annoyed. She shook her head and smiled in an ironic sort of way, putting her hands on her hips. She had to look away from Naomi for a moment to try to reign in her anger. "In case you don't know Naomi, its one of those rare times when I've got some spare time for myself and I really do not feel like wasting it playing secret agent man. Enough of the 'what if' and 'could be' lingo. I know your up to something, the little map you've got on the table tells me that much for crying out loud. As for threatening you, what I've said is far from that. All I've done is laid out some borderlines and asked that you respect them. Now I'm starting to think I should have approached you in a more serious manner," Alice said, her gaze snapped back to Naomi. Inside, Alice was a bit frightened for she knew she was in the lion's den. She slipped up and it could cost her dearly. No doubt Naomi had a contingency plan for just a situation as this, after all, Alice would.

Physically, Alice wasn't going to tip the scales in her favor in a fight. Sure, she was a girl who liked things rough and thus had a wild side to her, but it might not be enough to actually win a fight. Besides, given Naomi's ability, she could put Alice down before Alice could take a few steps. The only hope Alice had in any fight was her ability to speak, quickly and with the most properly chosen words. If Alice could become vocal, then escape was almost guaranteed.

[Naomi Green]

"I do, actually," replied Naomi, keeping her voice calm. "For some of us don't want our names splashed all over blogs and schools. While I certainly have my own opinions, I'm hardly going to be divulging them to someone who simply barges into my room and begins suggesting things. Do you have any idea how to actually do this? Or are you just making things up as you went along?"

The map, a serious manner, my, my, my, was Alice tipping a lot of her hand. She really didn't understand how this worked, and her childish manipulations were almost laughable. Naomi worked hard at constructing her image, and she was hardly going to let it down for someone just because they asked so nicely and tipped their hand. Really, all Alice was doing was developing another rival, and Naomi seriously doubted that was her intention. For Naomi would have certainly been willing to ignore such a group, had she not been provoked. As it was, Alice might want to warn her family members about the prowling meta supremest with the sparkling record.

"By, the by, for the record: setting boundaries is a threat, if a subtle one," the Brit pointed out. "Though I do thank you ever so much for laying out your intentions for me. It will certainly make interacting with your group much easier on my part. Did you have anything else you'd like to share? Perhaps some more lengthy monologues to divulge?"

Naomi shifted her hand, reaching out to tug at some of the metal in the room, just in case.

[Alice Halifax]

Alice certainly should have taken her encounter with Naomi much more seriously. She had expected Naomi to be more business minded, a mistake on Alice's part. The Family was a solid unit for sure, however, the main purpose of the group was financial and social domination. Naomi on the other hand was looking for more of a sociopathic run world, dominated by her choice of meta-humans. Alice appreciated a woman with lofty goals, however, Naomi's goals were sure to contradict those of the Family. Alice had mucked up and judging from Naomi's tone, she had mucked up big. Naomi seemed to take Alice's offer of mutual respect as a threat and in turn, offered her own threat to the Family. This Alice could not and would not ignore.

The question now was who was going to be the last one standing. Alice was sure she could hold her own physically with Naomi, however, Naomi was better equipped in this situation as far as meta ability went. It would be tough to sway Naomi too far in any direction with Alice's hypnotic voice, but maybe she could sway the other just enough to buy some time to make a hasty retreat? Then again, there were other options to the fight, one nice one in particular.

Naomi's stance and sudden tenseness alerted Alice to the uneasiness of the moment. There wasn't too many feet between her and Naomi and surely Alice could close that gap quickly. She was small and nimble and worked out on a daily basis, so how hard could be taken a few small steps be. Then again, Naomi did have the entire room at her fingertips. "Not exactly the way I wanted this conversation to proceed," Alice said as she narrowed her eyes and licked her lips, readying herself for the first sign of trouble. "I've given you fair warning Naomi and despite this little protest on your part, I do hope we might be able to work together in the future," Alice said, making a tight fist with both hands and taking a deep breath. She was about to push Naomi hard with a suggestion, hopefully it would stick. "Just stay away from the Family and our business," she said, releasing her power more bluntly and blatantly than she usually did. It would be hard for Naomi to resist, but not entirely impossible.