The idea of voices in one’s head never seemed so real until you experienced them for yourself. It was also really weird. In fact, it freaked her out so much that if she could have, Barbara probably would have jumped right out of her skin. With a small, physical jolt, her hand reflexively flew to her stomach as though she had been struck there, the defensive movement coming as more of a reflex than a sign that she had actually been hurt. An uncomfortable feeling tingled the back of her neck as she moved, trailing down her spine and over her shoulders, and she realised that she had frozen in place for several seconds, her pink pack half slung over her right shoulder, her arm bent to accommodate for the weight.

The voice itself, floating ominously through her mind, reminded her of a little devil whispering things into her ear from her shoulder, except it was louder, and decidedly more human. The words still felt alien in her own mind, human or not, but they immediately told her what the owner’s ability was and roughly, how it worked, despite him not directly saying so. He was nice, that she could also tell, but though he was certainly friendly about the fact that he was digging around up there unrestricted, it didn’t change the fact that he had almost unlimited access to any personal thoughts or feelings that she may have had the entire trip, and that was something that unsettled her more than anything. 
It was very personal, and very confrontational, and being the opposite of her current state of being, she felt an immediate dislike towards the ability. Like a metal shield being thrown up over a body, she instinctively erected a mental wall, clearing her mind of any thoughts that he’d be able to reach, and instead, as something of an exercise, started thinking about miscellaneous facts or things that she could spot around the area. As she walked blindly through the doors of the elevator and started up the hall, she found herself straining to pick out the details around her in an attempt to distract him from her private mind. Such as the way she counted how many growling faces stared at her like she was a piece of meat on legs, or what colour hair the girl in front of her had. 

To be fair, she supposed hearing someone’s thoughts was somewhat less dangerous than holding a continuously ticking, electrical time bomb inside your body, and after a few seconds she began to let her guard down, her entire attempt to fend off the intruder having spanned only a few tense minutes. As she actually thought about what he had said, the words now coming back to her, she started to feel somewhat regretful or reacting the way she did. 

Her eyes searched for the tell tale black and white attire in the crowd, the level of noise and light in the place splitting her concentration in half. It was daunting, the large amount of people – unnatural, powerful people - but she squared her shoulders and held her chin levelled, calmly staring down anyone aggressive enough to engage in a battle of wills with her. Some looked uncomfortably away when she unfalteringly met their gaze, rising no further to the challenge, whilst others paid her no mind whatsoever, finding other targets around her to heckle and abuse. 

She spotted them suddenly, some ways away, and she wormed her way through the people to get to them, her single backpack still hanging off one side of her body, a hand clutched around the strap on her shoulder. They were like two sides of the same coin. Different, yet very similar at the same time. Black and white, yin and yang, almost.
“Hi,” she greeted Matthew, briefly meeting the gaze of the brother beside him as she walked up to greet them. There was a pause as her gaze trailed fleetingly between the two of them, then she stepped up slightly, realisation striking her. 

“Oh, right. I’m Barbara.. But I guess you can call me Babs.”

As for how she was.. she’d let that slide.