TIME WARP: What I Never Did is Done[Future.Closed]

[Fifi Hart]

Ten Years from Today. 2021. Waiting for Estelle Flores

While she certainly hadn’t expected the world to end in 2012, Fiona was still shocked at where she ended up. Hammel. Still. Believe it or not, they’d kept her on board after her graduation after…

The dark haired woman shuddered and cuddled against her coffee, blowing on it and watched the steam float out over the table she was waiting to share with a school friend. So much had gone done the year she was sixteen, it still bothered her. She wrinkled her straight-bridged nose and tapped her manicured nails on the magazine in her lap. She wasn’t really reading it, just staring at the pictures.

She was one of the literature teachers at Hammel now, magazines didn’t really seem to compare to Moby Dick,Great Expectations, As I Lay Dying…they never had actually. She smiled distantly, curling her finger in her long dark hair. She’d left the pixie cut behind in favor of something softer. Plus, without the short hair, few people recognized her as their high school bully. It was amazing how many metahumans stuck around in Pilot Ridge, and how many of those had reasons to hate her.

Fiona sighed and looked out the window, squinting at the glass to try and find Estelle. She really needed to talk. Not just the girl time, but a serious heart-to-heart. Who better than one of the first people to make her realize the values of coexistence?

The little coffee shop was new to Pilot Ridge, but it was easy to find and Fiona liked the coffee. Plus, the people were friendly. Some of her students even worked as baristas, and it was even more fun to give them a little shit now and then.

[Estelle Flores]

Estelle sighed and glanced at her wristwatch. “Okay, Mikey, I’m off for an hour. You’re in charge.”

The young man at the register flashed her a thumbs-up. “Sounds good, boss. Have a good lunch. You meeting Robbie again?”

“Nope.” Estelle smiled, shrugging on her jacket, “Another old school friend. I haven’t talked about her much.” She smiled fondly at the thought of Fifi (now Fiona), and how far the other woman had come from where she had been. “Anyways, don’t burn down my bookstore, or I shall cry.”

Mikey laughed, “I promise I will return your bookshop to you in the exact same condition you left it in. Have a good lunch, boss.”

Estelle laughed and waved to the younger man before pushing the door of her bookstore open and stepping out into the cold. She was excited to meet her old friend; it had been a long time since she’d last seen her, and Estelle was eager to see how Fiona was faring. She’d heard the other woman was teaching literature at Hammel now, and she probably had Fiona to thank for the sudden influx of students buying Herman Melville and Charles Dickens. She grinned at the thought as she walked into the coffee shop that Fiona had specified. It was new, and it was cute and Estelle had already been in here a few times already. She ordered a hot chocolate and upon receiving it, she scanned the crowd, looking for a familiar face.

It took her a few seconds to recognize Fiona with the longer hair. It always did. Estelle herself had kept the same hairstyle and manner of dress she always had, and had a little trouble recognizing her old friends sometimes. She beamed and walked over to where the other woman was sitting.

“Fiona!” She smiled, setting her cup down, “Oh my gosh, it’s so good to see you! How have you been?” She grinned merrily at her old friend, rubbing her hands together, "Geeze, it's cold out there."

[Fifi Hart]

Fiona grinned when Estelle sat down her cup and stood, holding her arms out and grinning widely. She wiggled a bit, waiting to embrace her shorter friend. It wouldn’t do well to hug the poor lady and have her spill her hot drink all over both of them…especially so close to the gorgeous cream coat Fiona had worn for the trip. She’d probably cry if chocolate got on that.

“Its good to see you too~. Drink some of that before you die of cold.” She cooed when Estelle finally met her embrace. She squeezed her tightly and pressed a friendly kiss to her cheek. The once menacing gesture no longer held the same significance it used to: Fiona didn’t drug people up for fun anymore. Sometime after the age of seventeen, it had lost its splendor. Releasing Estelle and taking her seat again, she let out a long sigh. “Oh…I’ve been okay. Sort of dreading the next reunion.” She said sheepishly.

The whole truth had mostly gotten around to everyone she’d known in high school. Everything she’d done, all the dirty laundry out to dry. Frankly, she hadn’t been as bad as some of the other operative her age (namely Jesse), but people regarded her with trepidation simply for the fact that she’d stuck around. Bigger problems faced the metahuman community these days, but boy was it rough sometimes to have outed herself.

“Got some hate mail the other day.” She said after a short silence. In truth, it was the reason for the meeting. Someone had let slip to a family member of a victim that she’d been involved with the organization responsible for the death. The words weren’t pretty, and were even worse given her own degree of self loathing on the matter. Estelle had helped her a lot with that self loathing, helping her realize what could and couldn’t be fixed. The book store owner really should have become some kind of therapist…at least in Fiona’s opinion.

[Estelle Flores]

Estelle hugged her friend back, returning the kiss on the cheek. “Thanks, I will.” She grinned merrily and took a drink of her hot chocolate. Mmm…chocolate. She let the warmth from the drink travel through her body before she leaned back in her chair, getting comfortable. At Fiona’s sheepish explanation, Estelle gave her a sympathetic look, “Oh hon, I’m sure it’ll be okay. And Ruth and I are going! Or… okay, so I’m going and I’m dragging Ruth, but still! We’re here for moral support.” She reassured her anxious friend with a smile and a pat of the hand. “Besides,” The other woman giggled, “Nobody’s gonna wanna mess with my awesome powers!” She flexed her arms, showing off muscle, “Rawr.” She laughed and set her chin on her hand. She knew Fiona was getting around to the real reason why she wanted to meet Estelle. It definitely wasn’t for girl talk, as nice as those were. But she said nothing, letting the other woman get to it herself.

But that didn’t mean Estelle couldn’t guess. Fiona had had a hard time adjusting to life in Hammel after her work with that organization had been exposed. She had been regarded with contempt, fear, and sometimes outright hatred. But she’d been brave, to out herself like that. Sure, Fiona had her many, many foibles. She was still far too conniving for Estelle’s particular taste and had the tendency to manipulate a hair too much, but for all her faults, Fiona took responsibility for what she’d done. And in Estelle’s book, that was what mattered.

Estelle’s brown eyes flew wide open at Fiona’s confession. “Oh my god. Fiona, sweetie. I’m so sorry.” She considered her friend for a moment, her brow furrowed, “You wanna talk about it?”

[Event !]

Thank you for your participation, the Time Warp has now ended.