ic Buddies a-Brewing (CONCLUDED)

[Mad Scientist]

As she texted a copy of the picture to Vicki, Eileen had a dawning suspicion that her new roomie was...lonely.  She had to imagine, that moving about from base to base on a semi-irregular basis meant that it was very difficult to make or keep good friends.  She had never been in a comparable situation herself, but she could only believe that it was a harsh thing to deal with after a prolonged period.

Well -- if she could take a load off her roomie's shoulders just by being friendly, she was more than happy to do so.

"Okay, all right, not nuclear, but you get the idea," she conceded dryly.  The word had become more of a scale of energy than a specific source, these days -- there was no way of reducing radioactive material, containment, control units, and a steam turbine to something that would slip onto a phone, no matter how mad your science was.

"And you are a bad, bad girl," she said with admiring censure.  "I mean, I just find it easier to know the answer and give it when asked, but whatever little scams you need to in order to get you by," she told the other girl loftily, as if being dismissive of her capabilities -- but she was clearly kidding.

[Hestina]

Vicki blew a rasberry in Eileen's direction.  At least some noises she had the capability to make.  Like whistling, for instance.  Not that she was about to render a version of any popular song in whistle where anyone was in ear shot, but you had to entertain yourself in the shower some how!  

<"Well some of us haven't always been blessed with having the right answer all the time... perhaps because they snuck out the night before to try and thwart a robbery, or perhaps just because their bestest friend in the world managed to find tickets to a hot band.  I mean... it wasn't an everyday thing, but I just didn't want you feeling sorry for me.  I'm used to it by now and there are some unintended perks that kind of come along with the whole package.">

She leaned back, guessing that Eileen was likely joking with her, <"come on... you can't tell me that you've never bent the rules a little?">  She wiggled her eyebrows clearly already having a firm opinion on how Eileen should answer that question.

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen affected an affronted look.

"I would never!" she exclaimed, sounding huffy.  "Bent the rules a little?"  She paused a moment, then grinned.

"I shattered them into a million pieces," she admitted gleefully.  "Go big or go home, right?  Stay within the lines, or go so far over them that they look like a single point?"  She'd found that quite often got in as much trouble getting caught bending the rules as she did breaking them, so she didn't see much point in trying to hedge her bets by playing it safe.  Either stay within the rules, or go for broke.

"I've never done any robbery-thwarting," the blonde went on, a touch wistfully.  "By the way?  Thwart: good word," she told Vicki approvingly.  "I've played around a bit with what I can do, but it didn't take me long to find out that what I've got can be pretty dangerous, so I'm kinda leery about using some of it unless it's, like, super serious."  It was all too easy for collateral damage to happen, she was sure, and she'd rather not break things, or people, that she didn't mean to if she could help it....

[Hestina]

<"Yeah, being a pacifist has made it kind of hard... but I guess I'm not a total pacifist, or I wouldn't have gone out to stop some of them.  But I do feel better about it after the fact.  I mean that not really hurting them part of it."> she added nodding sincerely.  <"I think I would have been a little more leery about going out if I thought I could really hurt someone.">

Hearing that Eileen had a very similar philosophy was a good thing.  It had been hard to be a teen hero, with curfiew and all the other restrictions.  However, her dad had done all that he could to help people and she was certainly going to do the same.  She had no intention of stopping her heroing escapades, and hearing that it sounded like Eileen had a similar philosophy was a good thing.  In the next few days, they could start training, either in the structure of the school, or perhaps on their own free time.

<"So... I have one other thing to ask.  I mean, no telling about this either.  You can keep a secret, right?  I mean big secret and the kind where you totes promise to die before revealing it?">

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen shrugged.  "I gotta say, I'll make a judgment call before dying before talking, but I can promise that I won't tell anyone if there isn't an incredibly good and pressing reason to do so," she offered.  "It sure won't come up in casual conversation, or get posted 'anonymously' online or anything," she assured Vicki.

She had no idea what was being brought up that could be such a big secret, given that the big secrets that most kids in their circumstances had were along the lines of their identity and the possession of powers, and she knew that sort of thing already.

She also had to wonder why Vicki was trusting her with this 'to the grave' secret so soon, since they'd pretty much just met one another...but hey, she wanted to know what the secret was.  So she wasn't going to try to talk her out of sharing it.

[Hestina]

Vicki paused and looked at her for a moment, perhaps weighing how sincere Eileen's response was.  Of course, the stupid part was, it would come out quickly enough anyway for anyone living with her.  Unless she was about to break a habit that she certainly hadn't been able to ditch yet.  Or for that matter, wanted to ditch.  She tilted her head, and then nodded, making an internal decision as she held her fingers up and made a square in front of her, fingers burning a hole into the fabric of reality as a small shimmering portal opened up in front of her about the size of a breadbox.  She stuck her arm into it and seemed to rummage around for just a moment not even needing to look to find a well loved object.

Pulling her arm back, she also brought out a very well loved bear that showed years of care.  She held it in front of her for a moment, her thumb tracing the stitched edges and some of the worn spots along the fur.

<"Okay... I mean, you would have found out soon enough anyway.  This is Timmy, and I sleep with him.  I know.  Totes embarassing, but I don't think I could sleep without him anymore.  Dad brought him back from the UK on a training trip and I've never given him up since.  Even though he's kind of worn in spots I've never wanted another either.  It was the one thing I was worried about when I knew that I was going to room here... not really a way to hide that I still want to sleep with my bear.  I know it's totally kiddie...">

She looked over at Eileen with a look that wavered between embarrassment and hope that her childish habit wouldn't be looked down on, or worse, spread around campus.

Edited May 11, 2015 by Hestina

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen stared at Vicki for a moment, giving her a 'whaaaaaa?' face.  Why had she even had to ask?

"Uh, hello?" she demanded, tugging on the body pillow they were currently using as a backrest against the wall.  "What do you think this is?  I traded in arms and legs and a face for something bigger, but it does the same thing," she pointed out.  "Anybody who has a problem with the fact that you've got a bear that you sleep with is either in denial of the one they have, the one they wish they had, or they had a bad, bad childhood."  She stuck out a hand and made grasping motions -- a clear 'gimme gimme'.

"I won't tell anyone," she assured Vicki.  "As far as I'm concerned, it's a non-issue, and there's no reason to tell anyone anything."  She paused.

"Although I will give you a hard time about his name.  Timmy the Teddy?"  She scoffed, but had a grin on her face that took the sting out of it.

[Hestina]

Vicki let out a long sigh, releasing the worry and tension that had been plaguing her.  To be honest, that had been nearly at the top of her list in terms of things that could go wrong with school.  Although Eileen's mention of invisible boys might have been there had she thought about it earlier.  Actually, it seemed Eileen had thought of a lot of things that she hadn't really considered.  Perhaps it was all the movies that she had watched over the years?

Still she silently giggled, looking over at Eileen and handing her the faded mohair teddy, <"I don't really remember how he got his name, but it was a long time ago, like when I was four or five.  Mom seems to think I had a 'little friend' named Timmy and so my bear got the same name.  I don't really know.  I just know that I've had him forever, and you have no idea how worried I was that my roomie was going to see me going to bed with this silly old bear and think... 'what kind of baby have I gotten stuck with'.">

As Eileen took the bear, she could feel how worn he was, the mohair soft and he had a silly little expression that seemed to say, 'I know something cheeky'.

<"...and well, I like the pillow too.  It is a bit more grown up.">

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen flashed Vicki a quick grin.

"To be honest, I miss my Elmo," she admitted.  "But I'm afraid he fell apart a few years ago, and with the body pillow I've got something I can wrap my arms and legs about."  It was a lot more comfortable, and made her look forward to the day that she had someone to do the same with.  The right someone.  Someday.

She made sure to take care with the clearly precious bear, and handed him back in short order.

"Tell you what, if it ever comes down to it I'll cop to him being mine," she offered.  "It seriously wouldn't bother me -- I don't much care what people say -- and that way you get to save face.  Deal?" she inquired, one corner of her mouth quirking upward.

Hell, if the worst people had to say about her was that she slept with a teddy bear, she was probably coming out further ahead than she had any right to expect.

[Hestina]

The look on Vicki's face was complete happiness.  While she was going to refuse, that had to be one of the sweetest offers she could remember.  The girls she had known at the other schools had been nice in a lot of ways, but they also could be very catty.  She hadn't known many people who would be willing to risk ridicule for a best friend much less a new roommate.

Impulsively, she leaned over and gave Eileen a warm hug.  

<"Thank you... that is so sweet"> her mental voice quivered with emotion.  <"I mean it... It really is.  But I couldn't let you... I'd feel terrible if you got picked on because of my bear.  I mean that.  So... It'll be our secret for now and I'll keep him in the portal when I'm not sleeping.">

She let go of Eileen grinning ear to ear and set her bear in her lap. 

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen snorted, but she returned the hug in the spirit in which it was given.

"Whatever, nobody makes me feel bad, certainly not over a bear," she joked, disengaging from the hug. Of course, should the situation actually ever come up, she would try to take the heat regardless, but there was no point in pushing the issue at the moment.  It was a way-down-the-list 'what if' option that wasn't likely to ever occur.

Fiddling with her phone for a moment, she glanced back up at Vicki and set the phone on the bed.  Covering the palm of her right hand with her left, she waved the fingers of her right hand at her roomie.  >Movie?<

"Did I do that right?"  she asked, one corner of her mouth quirking.  It was a lot harder to 'do' than it was to recall things -- which was why she always did better in purely academic endeavours.

[Hestina]

Vicki looked at the sign and smiled. She always appreciated it when someone took the time to try and learn some ASL. It was like someone saying hello or thank you in your native language. Although truth be told, she could get very used to the mental communication. Still it did have its drawbacks, like not being able to communicate across the room.

Pointing with the index finger of each hand he brought them together in a short choppy motion.  Then to be able to translate the motion, she made sure her knee was bumped up against Eileen's.

<"Yes you got it. I signed back that you were right. You also have no idea how much easier this is going to be being able to communicate easily the meaning of a sign.">

She then shrugged holding her hands out and looking a little perplexed. Following that sign with the same one Eileen had used for movie.

<"That was asking you what movie. You probably have better recommendations than I do.">

 

[Mad Scientist]

Eileen thought about it for a moment, then smiled.

"Have you ever seen a movie called 'The Fifth Element'?" she inquired gleefully....

 

-= * * * =-

 

I'm thinking call it, here.  I found myself wondering last night what to post next, and that's a fair sign things have run their course.  A good getting-to-know-you thread, though -- much fun!