Vera Meadows and Jocelyn Blackwell
With a gasp, Jocelyn's eyes popped open. Her breathing was fast paced and seemed almost irregular, like she was running some sort if race. She was sweating a whole lot as well.
Damn, that strike to the head really got to her.
Jolting out of bed she scanned the bedroom. Just a quick check to see if there were any remaining suited psychopaths in the area. Oh, and bullet holes. There should have been a lot of
buttholes bullet holes.
Surprisingly, there were none to be seen. The sheets seemed fine and the walls were anything but damaged. It was like nothing had ever happened. Like it was all just some trick, an illusion to be exact. Pretty creepy, to be honest. And Jocelyn was experiencing the full extent of it.
Once she actually managed to balance herself she saw a small piece of paper float onto the ground. Picking it up, she read:
Patricia and I wanted to stay by your bed for a bit longer but we were called back to the house by your mother. It seemed like an emergency, so we couldn't stay long. Sorry. If you need us, don't hesitate to call us, okay?
Octavia.
Jocelyn read it over again and smiled. Octavia was such a considerate person. Maybe even too considerate. Maybe even too considerate to the point that Jocelyn was worried out of her mind about the woman herself.
"Emergency?"Well, that's what it read on the paper. Placing it onto the desk the girl got dressed, picking out some new clothes for her first school day. She continued to ponder in the hallway, her face cold and serious.
"Someone was trying to take it again."
First period flew by quicker than Jo had expected, and now she found herself suffocating in the cafeteria. Being only 4'11 was bound to get her killed at some point.
"So crowded… And I thought the school was hard to navigate through…""Ah. Jocelyn, was it?"Startled, Jo spun around on her heel, almost toppling into a nearby table. She held her breath, gazing up at the tall brunette.
"O-Oh… I mean, yes! Good morning to you, Vera."The towering teen smiled.
"Good morning to you too, Jocelyn. You seem to be doing well on your first day."Jocelyn quickly nodded. This feeling again… Every time Vera was in her presence, Jo just seemed to freeze up on the spot.
What is with her… I mean, she seems nice and all, but why do I feel so uneasy when she's around?
"Are you all right, Jocelyn? Is there something on my face?""Oh… Sorry about that. I'm just a bit tired today. That's all."The little lady looked away, avoiding eye contact with Vera. Quite an impolite thing for her to do during conversation, but this time would probably be the only exception.
Smiling, Vera took a step closer.
"Maybe if you grabbed a bite to eat you would feel a little better? I strongly suggest that you try this cafeteria's food. You won't regret it, I can promise you that."After being shoved into the queue, Jocelyn had to lightly tug onto Vera's dress just so she could see where she was headed with her. Oh well, the girl was only thirteen anyway. She was still growing, of course. That's what Jo
hoped at least.
Suddenly, just before Jo could reach the glorious looking sandwiches in front of her, another student bumped in, tossing her back into Vera. Maybe it would have been better to stay hidden behind her acquaintance instead.
"Please, you really shouldn't cut into the line like that-""Huh? Since when did a small fry like you have the permission to tell me what to do? Pipe down pipsqueak, I ain't listenin' to you."Jo reluctantly drew herself back from the slightly taller boy. He was pretty average, about 5'6 at the least. A fight wasn't what she was looking for, but she had to set this one way or another. That food wasn't going to stay sparkling in all its delicious glory without her taking some.
"Look, I really don't want to cause a scene, but can you please just-"Gently placing a hand on the boy's shoulder, Vera stepped forward, leaning towards him.
"Please, you really shouldn't cut into line like that. If you're not able to follow simple instructions, then I'll assume you're brain is just as simple."Vera leant in again, this time whispering in the boy's ear so Jocelyn wouldn't be able to hear.
"Also, since when did a small fry like you have the permission to order other people around as you wish? Pipe down pipsqueak, nobody's listening to you."Then, a smile.
Her eerie voice sent shivers down the boy's spine, like a cold, ominous wind that blows across a graveyard. Her smile, eyes, voice; it was all a literal definition of creepy.
But it seemed to work well, so Vera went on with it.
That was... a bit unexpected.Taking a step forward, Vera let the boy scurry to the back of the line, dragging Jocelyn forward. The little girl eyed the mouthwatering array of sandwiches, each of them with their own exotic and unique flavour. Their high prices made little Jo's eyes widen, though. Why was picking out sandwiches such a stressful choice?
"Jocelyn, would you like to sit with me?"Snapping out of her food hypnosis, the mini mage looked up.
"Oh, yes, of course. Hold on… you bought two?"Vera held up the plastic wrapped sandwiches in her hands.
"Yep. One for you and one for me."Jocelyn gasped at this girl's undeniable generosity. Okay, she was
pretty nice. Still iffy, but nice.
"Ah, you really didn't have to buy one for me as well! If you want, I can pay you back-""Don't worry Jocelyn, that will not be needed. You deserve it for trying to stand up for yourself back there. I like people like that."It's also best if I try to be nice to you, especially after scaring the living daylights out of that boy earlier on. Wouldn't want to make a bad impression on a younger mage.The two sat at a table, biting into their
not so well deserved food. The young Jo's eyes sparkled with glee, her face much brighter than usual.
"Delicious, isn't it?""It really is! I mean, yes, it is. Also, thank you for buying this for me, Vera. I'll be sure to buy you lunch the next time we meet here."The brunette chuckled. A real chuckle. For the first time in ages her mask had been lifted. She had to admit, the girl was downright adorable.
"Oh, no, it's absolutely fine. Small things such as this don't need much in return."The little lady took another bite out of her sandwich. She gazed up at the clear blue sky, sighing.
"Is there something wrong, Jocelyn?""Hm? Ah, no, I was just thinking."Vera tilted her head to the side.
"Is something troubling you? You seem quite concerned.""Oh, no, not at all! Well… um…"Jocelyn looked away again, her lips dropping into a small frown. Flashbacks from the night before replayed in her head, making her shiver. Everything had just happened so fast, faster than Patricia could run around a football field with her blinding speed.
Jo tried her best to put up a convincing smile, which most likely failed to hide her true emotions.
"Please, you don't need to worry about me! I'm fine, really."A blast of lightning struck the ground out of nowhere, making little Jo shriek. A table was hurtled towards the two girls, blowing their expensive food off their own table, as well as sending it flying along with it.
"Wha-What was that?" Jo exclaimed, almost falling off her chair in shock.
"What… was that?" Vera muttered, eyes widened slightly at the creature that stood before them.
How can you act so calm when someone just blew your sandwich away with a table?Vera glanced at the astonished Jocelyn, trying to speak over the screams of the other students.
"Please, don't be frightened, Jocelyn. You just have to get used to things like this. I remember on my first day someone called in a giant snake in the exact same area. It wasn't all that pretty, trust me.""Greetings, humans. I, am Sorcha, Radiant King of the heavens and the Wandering Tempest of the North."The two saw someone else approach the dragon lady, or 'Wandering Tempest of the North' as it seemed to refer itself to as. Even from such a far distance Vera could tell this boy was pissed off.
Pissed off because it wasn't just Vera's sandwich that got blown away by this dragon's extravagant entrance.
The girl had to try her best to hold in her giggles. It was an expensive sandwich, yes, but getting worked up over something so little made her snort. Oh well. This was definitely an amusing scene to keep watch of.