Time Warp: The Land of Living (Alyssa)

[Alyssa Ramius]

Preference was given to words that could at least ease a little pain, but not enough for her to bend due to her own biases. The girl would shake her head.

"It feels that way, doesn't it?"

She offered the question gently. Of course he would feel that way. Noah was a kind and responsible person in her eyes. It's why Alyssa gravitated towards him. At least now he was trying to smile.

"You cannot shoulder the blame yourself like that. Don't be like me." A small giggles escapes, though she quiets any others with a clearing of her throat. Hopefully that would lighten his mood a little more.

"A person cannot help who they love." A small pause in sudden consideration, then continues. "But a person cannot be selfish either. What she did mirrors an act of not only that, but uncertainty and desperation. What she failed to consider was your feelings too, Noah. No amount of clarity would have helped."

Just a nod out of her. That's about as best as she could do for a moment. She would raise her finger now, one moment please.

Alyssa's hands flew to her face as a rush of relief swept her away. Thank goodness! There was no telling how she would have felt if Noah's relationship with Valerie had taken a hit! Did she squee a little? Probably. Noah would have to give her a second to calm herself - it wasn't too much a secret she favored the two of them.

"Sorry,sorry! I'm so glad...I would have been a sobbing mess if it had been any other way."

[Noah Washington]

When confronted with such a question, Noah barely hesitated with his answer; "Yeah, it does." And that was a sad realisation to land on.

"But I like you. Why wouldn't I want to be like you?" He asked, his smile growing wider as he opted to play along. Noah knew he couldn't afford to get stuck in the ill feelings of this situation; he had to get up and move on eventually. But when it came to blaming himself, he just couldn't help it. Still, he wasn't expecting to hear that simple comment about love that shifted his perspective slightly. He supposed he couldn't be mad at her for having feelings, but Alyssa was right - he could be mad at the act itself, not the feelings that drove it.

He waited at her request, watching her expression change the way it did. It brought a small smile, boiled down to only the genuine aspects it always carried. "You and me both. I would have been crying into your pillow, I think." He admitted, knowing it was an okay thing to say around her. And while it was laced with humour, it also wasn't.

[Alyssa Ramius]

Why would anyone want to be like me...?

It was a decidedly bitter thought from the normally gentle girl that remained only in her head. This was not about her or the dim view she had about herself nor will she let it slip through. Alyssa allowed a small smile to cross - it was nice to be liked, especially coming from the one person that had reached out to her when he never had to...and knowing what could happen at any time.

"I think the world would end if you ever ended up crying." She said once she had calmed down from her inner fan-girling, receptive to the truth veiled in humor game. It would truly be the worst sight for both herself and the pillow.

"You're fortunate, Noah. Valarie seems like a very sensible girl. I couldn't fathom that she would have faulted you for what happened anymore than I did."

See? He had such level ladies in his life! Though the "I told you so" moment must have been spectacular...but Alyssa will keep that to herself, no need to spoil a happy moment. She would tug the blanket so she could wrap herself in fluff and comfort.

"Which is why I'm super happy you two are exclusive. And I swear, if Ravyn tries any other underhanded tricks..."

The blonde pauses, visibly lost in thought. What would Alyssa, the most shy little dandelion of a girl would do? Well, maybe a well placed, pass-by blinding will do? She shook her head, pulling herself out and just laughs, leave it up to Noah to fill blanks.

[Noah Washington]

Noah had to smile at that; the way she brought him out of a potential crisis. Nope, no crying for the blonde boy. Apparently his tears would shatter the ground beneath their feet - shake the world to it's core. He never cried much, much less in front of others.

"She was just upset because she felt like she knew something was going to happen. And well... It did." He added a shrug to his words, feeling stupidly gullible for believing that everything would turn out alright. He thought his friendship with Ravyn was better than that. He thought he could have trusted her more.

He watched as she found herself lost in thought, unable to stop himself from grinning; "What, you'd jump to our rescue?" He asked, leaning across the distance between them and tapping his index finger to the tip of her nose. "Yeah, you would. In your own way. Because you're you."

[Alyssa Ramius]

Alyssa gave him a shaky smile. Could she really jump to their rescue like that? Maybe in her own way, for the sake of her friend, she certainly could make an attempt.

"You know I would. I mean, as long as I don't have to really start a physical fight." The girl's sigh is small, longing. If only she could be that amazing. All that came to mind would be handling a situation with as much finesse as her own trainer, a lofty dream certainly coming from the little dandelion.

"Almost makes me wish I had the ability to fight mercilessly or regard." Oh but good lord, that sounded so awful too! To constantly our yourself to fight? The girl shook her head from the very idea and slid her gaze to her friend again.

"So Noah...what will you do if-" Or when. "that girl, Ravyn, tries again. I cannot imagine you let the matter lie peacefully that day."

Not when involving his heart, she knew far better than most. The kind boy could be a lion when it came down to serious matters, and Valerie was now that important. Were they even considerably friendly anymore? All questions she'd like to ask...but it feels so nosy!

[Noah Washington]

Noah replied with a small nod. He knew physical altercations weren't her style. He also knew that despite how shy she could appear, she had a kind of streak in her that made her bold when she wanted to stand up for her friends. Physical altercations didn't seem to suit her anyway. And truthfully, he was thankful for that.

"If you could fight like that, what kind of person would you be?" He asked honestly. A sense of wonder filled in his voice as he'd asked; if violence were so easily attainable and accepted, how would that change a person?

He stared at her again when she started on another statement, finding it jarring when she stopped so suddenly. But the question was eventually out there for him to think about, and to answer in his own time. Noah looked away from her, towards the pillow underneath his head. "I don't think I'll talk to her again." He replied quietly, chancing a look in her direction. "So there's no real answer, because there's no way it'll happen."

[Alyssa Ramius]

The girl tilted her head in thought. “I would probably be something terrifying. Which is scary in itself…I think? Not as scary as the idea of you looking at me with horror because of something horrible I've done. But, as you said, that is not the case!”

Thankfully! Alyssa and “scary” seems far too incompatible to exist together in a sentence. Thankfully there was none to suggest aggression, not a drop of terrifying blood in the blonde’s body. The less she had to deal with physically hurting someone, the better off she could be.

“Though maybe, if I was stronger in some ways, I wonder if I would be more a match to Valentia's skill…”

The girl left the stray thought hanging for reasons she couldn't place right away. She lets the thought dissipate in favor of curling close to Noah to wrap an arm around him in a half-hug. His kindness was not built to sever roller-coaster friendships, so the fact he had such resolve in his heart could not have been easy to decide on.

“Just know I’m proud of you, Noah. You handled a worrying situation to the best of your ability and will follow through for the sake of Valerie and your happiness. You're not awful in any way for wanting that, okay?”

A pause and she releases him.

“Ah! That's right!” A change of pace in topic, anything to ease the mood. “You’re heading back home for the holidays, right? When are you going to be back?”

[Noah Washington]

"Why would you want to be?" Noah asked, though he had a feeling his question fell on deaf ears. She was off in another world. Again.

No matter.

It was comforting to know that someone was proud of him. Given how Valerie reacted, it really was good to have someone sympathise with him. And trust that he made the right decision. "I guess I know. But it's always good to hear." He explained, shrugging his shoulders at the dim fact.

"Yeah, I am. But I'll be back a few days before new years." Noah replied, feeling a small twinge of dread at the thought of going home. Sure, he loved seeing his family. But it was always difficult too leave them right afterwards. "What about you? Are you staying here over the holidays?"

[Alyssa Ramius]

Alyssa usually tried hard not to slip off into her own world, but there were times a thought could trigger her ability. It took a thought to spark more strings of thoughts, and those always causes the pulses to occur and she could fall into the altered world. All the better that she had released Noah from the earlier hug, she would've zapped one of his senses.

Again.

That's why caution must remain. The girl hid her hands into the folds of the blanket just in case. By now, he would know what such a gesture meant.

"You must be excited to be heading back home! And more than enough time for me to grab you a present too. Although...you might miss all the snow for Christmas." At least that's what the weather reports have been saying, but who knows. The weather here had a habit of being strange.

The blonde's warm smile fades at his question, but not enough for her to bow her head. The answer to that question would not be on her lap, she scolded herself.

"I, um..." Her hands clenched beneath the blanket. How could she even explain it without stirring her friend's worry? "Well, the planets did not align for me to return home this time. Just this time. I'll just go home on the next break."

Alyssa smiled at him, but it wasn't a convincing one. The girl usually spoke fondly of home and it seemed her parents were very affectionate with her. There had only been rare occasions when a palpable discomfort washes over the girl. Unfortunately, it fell upon this holiday.

[Noah Washington]

"I doubt it. Snow and water love me." Noah replied with a smile and a shrug. "And if I do miss the snow, I'll have the memory of pure blankets of white in Russia. That's enough snow for a year, if you ask me." Still, trudging through it and getting into the occasional snowball fight had been a total blast for the hydrokinetic.

Noah could tell he'd struck a nerve, but knew there was no way to backtrack from what he'd said. He should have known better. So he smiled through it anyway, bouncing her unconvincing expression back with a genuine one of his own. "Lucky I'll only be gone a week then, huh." Noah admitted, raising his eyebrows at the thought. Alyssa knew his family life wasn't the best. And she knew he found it overwhelming at times. So a week was enough for him.

"I should probably get back to my dorm though. I'm exhausted." He stretched his arms out idly. At least it wasn't jet lag.

[Alyssa Ramius]

The power of her friend's genuine smiles: infectious no matter how bad or low she felt. Alyssa brightened up, both by proxy and to not press further worry on him. He had more than enough worries span a brutally short amount of time, no more was necessary. Just a week, he would be gone and back before she even knew it.

But still, she feigned a small whine before pouncing him with a huggle.

"But I'll be so boooored with you, Noah!" Alyssa could not keep a straight face however and burst into small giggles. "I'm kidding. Please do enjoy yourself and send my greetings to your family. It's just a week after all."

The blonde lets him go from her hug and tussles his hair. "If you're too tired, you can sleep here and just sneak out in the morning. If not, take care when leaving here, I don't know how many of the girls in the building went home."

Whichever was less perilous for him honestly. She was not adverse to letting him sleep in her dorm as Noah was one of the few people of the opposite sex that didn't make wreck her nerves. But she also would rather not get him into trouble either and her floor wasn't as comfortable as his own bed. The blonde had already slipped into her blankets and fluff her pillows, all ready to give sleep another chance.

"Hey, whenever we decide to wake up, feel like going to that diner downtown for pancakes? They have started making the really good apple-cinnamon ones!" Apple cinnamon pancakes were always made of good memories, anything to replace painful ones.

[Noah Washington]

Noah let out an expressive laugh when she practically pounced on him. He was definitely going to miss her, and it always meant something when Alyssa got in happier moods like this. "You're kidding? I was really hoping you'd be bored with out." But at any rate, he'd send her regards to his family. They always seemed to like her.

"That sounds good, actually. Too lazy to walk all that way." Noah replied, kicking off his shoes instinctively. After all, there was nothing between them. So it was all good. He slipped off his jacket and made himself comfortable on the other side of her bed.

He'd more or less said his goodbye to Valerie already, so as far as he was concerned he could spend the whole day with her. "Fine. Apple-cinnamon pancakes it is. My treat."

And he'd pass out not long after that. The poor guy hadn't gotten decent sleep in a week.