Caroline & Jamie

[Jamie]

Erika stared in wide-eyed terror at the door, still a bit shaken from the whole exchange although not a word had been spoken to her. Her face had paled to a deathly white, and was just now beginning to return to its normal color. "Your brother?" Erika asked in a faint whisper. "He's quite a charmer..." She winced as the boy's pained thoughts pounded against her consciousness. She rubbed her temples slowly and tried to avoid passing out. "Am I causing trouble?" she asked Kadence, unsure if David's angry thoughts were a result of her being there. She was too frightened to find out. "I'd hate to be a bother, since you, y'know, let me in and offered me... water." Erika giggled weakly. "Which I am sorry for spilling, by the way," she added quickly.

[Caroline]

I leaned against the control panel wall and folded my arms while I waited for David, whose banging and clattering in frustration could be heard from the next room. Erika looked as if she had just witnessed slaughter. "Nah, don't worry about it. It's not you, he's mad at me. You're fine." I assured her, watching the door. David emerged about five minutes later looking a bit cleaner, his wounds for the most part were patched. But that didn't affect the fact he was pissed.

David trusted Kadence with his life, despite how impulsive and stupid she could be. He was sure there was at least a little white lie or two in her story somewhere; there always was. This wasn't the first time she had brought home strangers either, but honestly David didn't have the strength to argue. It didn't matter how long he shouted at her, she wouldn't listen to him. He had to admit though, Kadence didn't just bring any old stranger home, she was pretty damn good about weeding out the good people from the bad. David figured Kadence, being quite the trickster herself, could pick out other's attempts to fool her easily. Not to mention growing up in Wixham, she'd seen it all done before. David never knew for sure though, it still worried him a lot, the thought that one day someone even more clever than his sister would get the better of her. Kadence was the only reason he stayed in this hell of a city.

To my surprise, David walked right past me without lecture or yelling. He opened the refrigerator and pulled out the grapefruit juice, which he tipped into his mouth gulped straight from the carton. When he was finished he turned to face Erika. "You can manipulate water, huh?" he asked, his tone not expressing any sort of obvious anger. I wasn't sure what had changed since he left the room in a fuss just minutes ago, but he seemed to have calmed down fifty notches. My gaze shifted between my brother and Erika nervously. I really didn't want him to know I had brought a telepath home. Hoping that Erika followed up with the artificial gift I had provided her, and David didn't ask for a demonstration, I was golden.

[Jamie]

A look of relief washed over Erika's features at Kadence's reassuring words. To be honest, David scared the crap out of her. She bet he could crush her without much effort. She shivered at the thought that his gift might be superhuman strength. Crap. The girl looked up as the boy entered five minutes later. Erika was about to hide behind the sofa or something while the boy's back was turned, but he set down his juice and looked at her. "Hmm?" Erika mumbled, having only half-heard the boy's question over the sound of her brain screaming at her to run. "Oh yeah," she said quickly as she understood. "Water manipulation is my, Uh, thing." The girl groaned inwardly at her unconvincing reply. She glanced apologetically at Kadence. Normally she was much more composed, so why couldn't she stop making a fool of herself? Maybe David's power was to unnerve people to the point they killed themselves, she thought.

[Caroline]

As strong as the urge was to smother my face into my palm, I restrained myself. David raised his brows in inerest, eyes flicking to me to clarify. I sighed inwardly. "Yup. Water manipulation is definitely her thing." I agreed as dryly as I possibly could. "Hot." was all David responded with. It was clear he didn't fully buy it, but didn't pursue with questions. I wasn't sure whether to take this as an indication of his trust or not, but I hoped it was. Secondly, I guessed he was feeling merciful today, deciding not make Erika create a fool of herself by asking the girl to dazzle him with magic water tricks she couldn't physically preform. Of course it wouldn't be for proof at this point, just his own personal entertainment. And after the water bottle episode minutes ago, I was thankful he didn't. But what I had gotten into him? He was never so casual. I'd figure it out later after I had a chance to sleep on it.

"Right then. I'm going to bed. Don't let Kadence keep you up all night with her snoring." David advised Erika, scratching at his fresh bandages. "Just chuck a shoe at her or something." he said, removing his heavy boots suggestively before exiting into the back room. I glared and stuck my tongue out as he passed me, which he then grabbed between his finger nails and pinched. I yelped softly, covering my mouth. After his departure I seated myself back on the couch. "Sorry to put you on the spot like that... And, well, sorry about him in general, how about that?" I apologized. "He's a bit moody."

[Jamie]

Erika nodded dumbly at his parting words and cast a wary glance at the large boots that had been deposited near the door. She visibly relaxed as the 'giant'--in her opinion, anyway-- left the room and slumped onto the yellow, floral printed sofa. "I made a horrible mess of that," she murmured quietly, chewing her lip. She gave Kadence a smile and assured her she hadn't had a problem with nearly dying of fright before her colossal brother. "I probably could have used my telekinesis to, um, move a little bit of water," she mused. "But then I would have probably screwed it up. I'm horrible at focusing on small things. It takes too much concentration and actual skill." The girl stared moodily at a small pool of water that was the result of her water bottle episode.

[Caroline]

"Isn't that kinda like, basic stuff? Or did you just learn how to bind peoples legs and peg them unconscious right off the bat?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. Erika's gift intrigued me, I also had a great deal of respect for someone who could intelligently handle possession of that amount power. I knew I personally was much more content being a weasel. A pretty straight-forward gift, not very complicated, not much pressure, involved little responsibility... Plus it was rather suiting, I thought. There was something special about Erika though, and I got the feeling the girl had a higher level of maturity than most her age.

[Jamie]

Erika shook her head. "The basic stuff is picking up large objects, in my opinion. Not gigantic, but something larger than, well, a water bottle cap." Here she turned crimson, and it took a moment before she could continue. "I've always found it easier to use telepathy rather than telekinesis. It's just more natural to me," she said. "And yeah, basically by the first week of living on the streets I was tripping people up with their own legs and stuff. It's interesting how creative you can get when you're fighting to survive." Erika fell silent, listening to the soft murmur of the voices in the back of her head. David's thoughts were hazy, so she assumed the giant was either sleeping or trying to. She caught something about a weasel from Kadence and her eyes lit up. "You're a shifter?" she asked excitedly. Her pale face brightened as she reflected on how neat it would be to shift into an animal of any kind. Except maybe a lobster, those things creeped her out. "

[Caroline]

I was caught slightly off guard by Erika's next question. I really have to get used to this whole mind-reading jig, I thought, then shook my head. "You could say that. It's hardly a gift to sneeze at though, being a weasel isn't all that impressive." I answered, picking with my forefinger at the peeling skin around my thumb."It annoys the shit out of David when I use it to snitch from people," I chuckled, flashing my gap-toothed grin. "He says if I'm not careful I'm going to wind up in a pet shop or something."

[Jamie]

Erika laughed. "Yeah, that would be bad," she said with a nod. "But it's got to be a lot easier than trying to pull bottle caps off with your mind and stupid stuff like that." Erika's nose wrinkled at the sight of the telltale cap halfway across the room. She covered her mouth with her hand as a weary yawn escaped and then excused herself before adding, "I'd like to shift into a cat." The girl rumpled her dyed hair as she thought over the possibilities. "No one really notices them, and they're so agile. Me, I'm way too clumsy for my own good. I'm always falling down... I also wouldn't mind having nine lives. That would be wonderful." Erika shook her head at her little fantasy and looked at Kadence again. "Ah well, you just have to live with the hand you're dealt, don't you?"

[Caroline]

I smiled with amusement as I listened to Erika's cat fantasy, then nodded in agreement with her last statement. "I suppose we do. No use yearning to be something you're not." I shrugged, then stretched out of my seat and yawned. My exhaustion was catching up to me, and Erika's little yawn told me she was reaching the same point as me. I didn't know about her, but I was much too excited to sleep. I walked over to our little table that served as a counter, plugging in the electric kettle and flicking it on. The water inside bubbled a bit before it began making a faint hissing noise as it heated. "Found this little baby in the dump," I informed Erika proudly. "Still works and everything, but David had to replace the handle." I pointed to the dresser drawer handle that was glued onto the side, then began rifling through the locker-pantry again and held up three packages of instant noodles. "Chicken & 'Shroom, Savory Beef or Vegetarian?" I asked, beginning the quest for clean dishware, which was a bit more tricky. "Oh, and would you like to play a game or something? I know it's late, but if you're not too tired..."

[Jamie]

"Vegetarian," Erika replied as she stretched and then slipped off the flowered couch to inspect the kettle. It was a very nice find, handle or not. Erika brushed hair from her eyes so she could watch Kadence search for something or other. "I wouldn't mind playing a game, I suppose," Erika said as she thought the matter over. She was tired, but with David somewhere nearby she was too unnerved to sleep any time soon. "Would you like some help?" she added as Kadence's search continued. "I don't really know where you keep your silverware, but, um, four hands are better than two?" Erika laughed softly, muffling the noise with her hand. The girl yawned once again and rubbed her eyes slowly with her balled fists.

[Caroline]

I peeled the lids back on two vegetarian noodle cups and set them beside the kettle. "Yeah, if you want to check that one, I'll check the other." I replied, gesturing toward the floral couch before lowering myself onto my knees and crawling over the brown one, patting around hopefully underneath it for forks. I completely failed to see the trashiness in this, of course. "Aha!" I exclaimed, sliding an armful of various plastic dishes out. Three cups, two forks, a spoon, a plate and half a plastic knife. I stood and examined them, blowing them off. "Never mind. Hey, would you mind running in the back and rinsing these off?" I asked, the kettle in the background starting to whistle as it bubbled violently. "Theres a little sink back there filled with clean water I brought in. Don't use the tap though, it's all rusty and gross." I advised, handing the forks to Erika. "It's just inside the door to the right, behind the curtain."

[Jamie]

Erika nodded, glad to have an excuse not to go patting around the couches. She bet there was some pretty gross stuff there. Erika took the plastic dishes and followed Kadence's directions to the sink. She looked at the utensils and then bravely began to scrub them up using the clean water. After several rigorous scrubbings she was finally satisfied with her work. "They're not that bad at least," she murmured, brushing aside the curtain and walking back to where she had left Kadence. Erika showed the other girl her work, hoping it met her standards. Granted, she didn't think said standards were very high, but she was eager to win the approval of the girl who had let her stay. "Anything else I can do?" Erika asked helpfully as she set the dish ware down on the table that served as a counter.

[Caroline]

I poured the boiling water into the noodle cups and flicked the lids closed, leaving them to sit for a few minutes. Erika returned just in time, I examined the freshly washed forks and plucked one from her hand, rubbing over it with my thumb. They appeared to be as clean as when they were box-new. "Nope, that's perfect. Thanks," I said with a smile and began tapping the fork against the table while I waited for the noodles. "So, about a game-- How about you and I get to know each other a bit better?" I suggested. "Ever played 'Never have I ever'?" Erika didn't seem like much of a drinker, so I decided it would be a sober game. Not that I was willing to share my booze anyway.

[Jamie]

Erika's stomach growled loudly as she glanced at the noodles. She blushed faintly and then looked at Kadence with a small smile. "I've played it once or twice before," she said with a nod. She liked the idea of this game better than some of the others she could have come up with. "It was a long time ago," she admitted. "I'd like to give it a try though." Erika watched the fork Kadence was holding until she felt a little dizzy and had to sit down. She leaned her head against the armrest of the yellow sofa and looked at the other girl by the table. "Could you start so I can get a basic idea of what I'm doing?" Erika asked. She was too tired to go groping about Kadence's mind for the rules and wouldn't have done it anyway.