Highmauve: The Quad

Winter did see the frustration in Noelle's eyes almost immediately. She blinked, stunned. What did she do? Was it something she said? She had said that she would do some more research for her topic. So it couldn't be that right? Then she had said that Noelle was lucky. Wouldn't she appreciate that? Winter let her usually sunny disposition slip as her confusion showed on her face.

"hey! What'd I say?" She asked. "I didn't mean anything by what I said. You're cool. And your powers are cool. I saw what you did in class last week for Tobi. It was amazing!"

Noelle's eyes flare up even more and her hands start to shake. Other than that, her face is unnaturally calm and there is no sign of anger. She stares at Winter for a long time, not saying anything. She couldn't believe that she brought up her using her abilities. Winter saw how upset she was. She had to. Noelle left the room almost in tears. And also, Winter still hadn't realized something: It wasn't about the "powers". Or whose powers are cool. Or who was cool. They were at this university for a specific reason. And everyone tried to deny it.

Noelle huffs and looks back at her books. If she was pushed a little more, she would explode.

Winter saw her hands shake but the rest of her face was eerily calm. She was missing something here. She accidentally pissed her off. She held up her hands in surrender. "Hey. Look. Whatever I did or said... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you mad. It's just... I'm not used to being around other people like us. I don't know how to act." She sighed. She was lost. She didn't know what to do. She wasn't used to being around other mutants. She didn't know how to bring up these issues tactfully. Further more, she was not shy. She didn't know how to talk to shy people.

After a few more moments, she stood up slowly and ran her fingers through her head. "Sorry... I know we are all here on some intitive to be more inclusive. We're the token mutant kids at this school. I also realize that this is probably the only reason why any of us are in college right now. I'm sorry that I offended you and pissed you off."

It wasn't a completely valid response, but she respected her apology. Noelle knew the feeling of not knowing how to act. She didn't know anyone like her either before she showed up. But still- you don't look at anyone you barely talked to and say 'You're lucky.'

What really made Noelle made was the comment 'I also realize that this is probably the only reason why any of us are in college right now.' Noelle audibly clears her throat. She worked tooth and nail to be here- earning scholarships that had nothing to do with her mutation. She bites down on the inside of her lip and says, in a quiet but low voice "That's NOT the only reason I'm here."

Winter was brushing off the dirt from her legs when. She heard Noelle respond in a low and very serious voice. She recognized that tone. It was one her mother used on her when she was little when she had done something wrong. Winter bit the inside of her cheek as she contemplated, seriously thought about what to say next. It seemed nothing she said or did was right when it came to Noelle. She wasnt used to this either.

"okay. I'm sorry. I assumed too much. All I know is that I applied to multiple other schools way closer to home and they all turned me down. I'm not a bad student. It wasn't my grades. This school was the only one that actually accepted me. I'm sorry. I thought that maybe it was the same for everyone else." She scratched the back of her head, clearly no longer comfortable. Which was a strange feeling for her.

Noelle blinks and stares at Winter with her wide eyes. She was furious. But she wasn't going to say anything else. Frustrated, Noelle begins to thrust her textbooks and notebooks into her bag.

She didn't know anything about Winter-she knew she was making assumptions. But she knew girls like Winter from high school. Bubbly, beautiful, and shallow. Winter saw herself as the center of the universe. Noelle saw that when she bumped into her with her roller skates. But this- Noelle was accepted in every school she applied. She couldn't afford it. Even with her multitude of scholarships and her job, she couldn't afford it.

She walks away, angrily

Winter stood still as Noelle stuffed her bag with her notebooks and papers. Even after her apology, she made Noelle even more pissed off. She couldn't think of anything else to say. Not like it mattered, nothing she said was right. She opened her mouth to say 'sorry' one last time but decided against it. She would only make it worse.

She stuffed her hands into her pockets. "Sorry, Noelle..." She said after her. It wasn't as if she could make it worse. She rubbed her face. Maybe making friends in college was going to be harder than in high school. She didn't mean to make her mad. She couldn't do anything right when it came to Noelle.

September 21st 2008, Sunday

It’s early morning. The quad is nearly empty save for some students slowly making their way to clubs or meetings. Most are sleeping in and enjoying their Sunday lethargy, the day lazy and devoid of classes. Later, some may find themselves drawn here by the pleasant weather, but for now, there’s an equally pleasant sense of calm. The air is warm but a cool, soft breeze tempers any sort of heat one may feel if they were to stand in one spot for too long. Despite this peace, a pressure builds in the atmosphere. There’s a storm predicted for later in the day, something big.

At least that’s what the radio station said as she was driving over. Six hours is a hell of a drive just to see her other half. She understands why he went here, and damn if she wasn’t proud, but she missed him all the same. She’d gotten worried when he called her, knew his claustrophobia was acting up bad again and figured a little surprise visit was in order.

Now she stands in front of his dorm, the one she helped him move into, with a giant brown dog at her side and her phone in her hands. She holds it up, snaps a quick pic of the front door, types a message, and sends it off.

That dipshit better be up.

Noelle didn't sleep well the night before. Well, she never sleeps well. She was lucky to get 5 hours each night, spread out in small spurts. She usually just stared at the ceiling until she needed to get ready for class, but today she decided to get an early cup of coffee. So, she quickly changed into some jeans and a sweater, grabbed her bag and walked to the coffee shop, and decided to do what she did best.

Normally, it's only joggers and professors out this early. But this woman was different. Noelle watched as she stood outside the dorm. Tobi's dorm. She also eerily looked like him. It almost automatically clicked.

For some reason, Noelle felt very shy all of the sudden. She turned bright red and sipped her coffee, taking a large book out her bag, opening it.

The woman waits patiently at the front of the building with her hand loosely wrapped around the large dog's leash. The dog, a massive, chocolate brown Newfoundland, has laid down on the ground with one paw crossed over the other.

Dressed in a worn canvas jacket lined in plaid, a dark t-shirt, jeans with holes worn through them, and thick hiking boots, the only thing distinguishing the woman from Tobi is her haircut. The curls that Tobi has in abundance have been shaved on both sides, resulting in a curly mohawk. She's densely muscled like he is, the same height even with the hair, with the same piercing pale grey eyes.

Seemingly the same patience too, as it takes a full couple of minutes before she hears any response from her text, but it's hard to miss when it happens.

The earth rumbles beneath them, a sudden tremor that ends as quick as it comes. The front doors slam open soon after, revealing Tobias in a pair of sweatpants and not much else and looking absolutely delighted.

"Ness!" he yells and that's all the warning she gets before he bolts at her and tackles her to the ground. The dog's leash comes loose from the woman's hand in the crash, but it doesn't go anywhere, instead thumping it's tail against the ground happily.

Noelle feels the tremor and looks up at the reunion. She can't help but grin when he tackles his sister. It's small, but it's there. The book has lost it's interest, and Noelle decides to watch the happy meeting instead. Her eyes are glued in fascination to the twins.

Tobias and his sister hit the ground hard but neither seems to notice. They scuffle, his sister losing her jacket and Tobias losing his glasses in the fight, until she gains the upper hand. She pulls his arms behind him and pins him to the ground, grinning as she does so. Tobias winces as she does, but still seems pretty happy.

“A’ight, A’ight, you’re still the stronger twin, nah get off, Agnes.”

“You bet’cha ass.” She says as she gets off him and offers out a hand. He takes it and she pulls him up. The motion transitions smoothly into a tight hug between the two.

Almost instantly, Noelle was reminded of Joy. The eight year old scamp would always climb onto her shoulder, pretending Noelle was a giant and she was an elven warrior.

"Bows at the ready!"

Her own fantasy phase lasted until about a year ago, but Joy was obsessed with elves and orcs and fae. She was the only person that Noelle actually read aloud to show the magnificent worlds of Tolkien and Lewis and Carroll and all the others. Her sister would meet wizards and talking animals and witches every night. Sometimes they were just the basic copies, but when Noelle found an old edition, she made it her duty to use it with Joy.

Now she was back watching the Agnes and Tobi together, and it made her miss Joy even more.

Looking up from the hug, Tobias can clearly see a familiar shape sitting just a little ways away. He breaks away from Agnes to pick up his glasses and her jacket. He hands her the jacket and grabs the end of the leash, ruffling the dog's head as he does. Tobi then leads the two of them towards where Noelle is sitting.

"Noelle!" he says once he's come close enough. "This is m'sister, Agnes."

Agnes's eyes land on the freshman. They're just a touch sharper than Tobi's own and look her up and down once. Agnes stick a hand out after the once over; it's just as scarred as Tobi's own. "Agnes Gertrude Maynard. Tobi calls me Ness. A pleas're."

Noelle looks as nervous as she did on orientation. Watching Agnes look her up and down made her so anxious that she almost held in her breath. Intimidating didn't even describe it. She felt as if Agnes saw into her soul.

She says a soft "Hello. I'm Noelle. Noelle Scott. It's nice to meet you."

Taking the woman's hand with a surprisingly firm grip, Noelle locks eyes with Agnes. H

Agnes holds her grip and her gaze. She's interesting, this freshman Tobi keeps mentioning. She tilts her head up, appraising, and she decides she likes what she sees. Girl's got a strong will, at least, though she'd bet a strong enough wind would knock her over. She breaks the handshake, nods her head once.

"Yeah, you'ere right." She grins, her lips pulling back to reveal teeth much sharper than Tobi's own. "I do like 'er."

"Told you." Tobi nods. His hand is tangled in the long fur of the dog, scratching her as he stands.

Noelle notices the teeth immediately. She wasn't shocked or disgusted, but they did catch her eye. Maybe she was a mutant too.

Also, Tobi talked about her. Something about that made her chest flutter in appreciation and pride. She was worthy of someone's conversation besides her mother and kid sister.

Of course, this doesn't show. She just watches the two of them. It was uncanny how they completed each other. After it was way too long for a response, Noelle says a quiet "Thank you."

Agnes nods once more to Noelle "Polite too."

"Shove it." Tobias growls at her, but it lacks any sort of heat. There's an inside joke there, but neither of them explain. Tobias ignores his sister and steps forward with the dog. "An' this here is Sunshine. She's my pride n' joy, but a little to big t'have on campus."

"So I keep 'er with me down near Shenandoah." Agnes adds.

Tobi keeps scratching her head. Sunshine lets out a soft happy woof, content to sit and enjoy the company.

Noelle leans down and holds her hand in front of the dog. She's never had luck with dogs- ever since she was small they would frighten her. After she discovered her abilities, dogs seemed to be frightened by her instead. When her father was still around, there was talk about adopting a dog. When all of the dogs cowered in front of her at the shelter, her mother suggested that a cat might have been the way to go.

"Hello..." It's tentative and cautious.

Sunshine leans forward and gently sniffs Noelle's hand once, then again. Seemingly content, she lets out a soft 'whuf' and mushes her nose into Noelle's palm, guiding her hand up to her head to pet. Tobi slackens the leash to let Sunshine do as she pleases. She seems just as mellow as the twins in behind her, perhaps even more so.

"Was trainin' her fore I left to be a therapy dog after she turned out t'be a piss poor huntin' dog." Tobi explains. "Ne'er formally got 'er certified, though." he shrugs.

Gently stroking the soft fur, Noelle takes a deep breath, smiling just the smallest amount. Sunshine was soft and gentle and warm, and Noelle was grateful for the moment. When Tobi comments, Noelle looked up "That's really amazing."

Lowering herself on the ground, she sits next to Sunshine, petting her ever so gently.

"Prob'ly should've followed through on it, yeah?" Agnes ribs her brother. "Then she could live with you an I wouldn't be throwin' half ma'check at dog food."

"Like you got an'thin better to spend it on." Tobi drawls back. The two look down at Noelle on the ground with Sunshine, grey eyes taking in the scene. Noelle looks relaxed, almost in awe of the dog and the moment. It looks as though she expected any other outcome but this one and is supremely pleased with the result. Sunshine looks happy to just have someone pet her. She sinks to the ground, turning onto her side so that her belly is exposed.

Tobi and Agnes both look up at each other in the same moment. Agnes fixes her gaze on Tobi, deadly serious, and signs a few quick motions.

'I want to keep her.'

Tobi signs quickly back to her. 'You can't keep people, idiot.'

Noelle notices the sign language and interprets it easily, and the fluttery feeling in her chest gets bigger. She’s a balloon pumped helium- lighter than ever before

Sunshine was solid beneath her touch, and she relished the soft fluffy fur. Her eyes sparkled and she gave the smallest of smiles. She would’ve sat there all day if she could have.

The twins leave her be on the ground with Sunshine, content to stand and catch up above her. Tobias tells her about some of the freshman he's helped move in and a bit about his classes. He neatly sidesteps around the one professor and his breakdown in class. Agnes doesn't seem to mind or feel the need to bring it up. In return, she tells him about the park where she works, some of the events and guests from this year.

"Yeah, I saw. You'ere in the news." He nods at her. "Tourists low 'gain or somethin'?" Agnes shakes her head.

"Comin' up on Hallo'een. You know how it is." She smiles and shrugs. "They get excited." Tobi hums low in agreement. There's a beat of comfortable silence before they both look down again at Noelle. Agnes speaks first.

"I was gonna take this one out'ta breakfast." She motions towards Tobi. " Y'wanna join? Ain't no trouble."

Noelle hears this and looks up at Agnes, her hands still on Sunshine. "Oh, you don's have to do that... I don't want to impede on you two catching up."

She genuinely did want to go, but there is a twinge of anxiety. As much as Tobi and Agnes were similar, she was still a new person. And she really didn't want to intrude on the happy reunion.