A familiar place for respite

[Vivian Pryce]

It was the warmest and most humid of Summer evenings, trapped within a school abuzz with news of war. News Vivian never quite got the gist of and gossip that she never received personally were exchanged between students like quick, hallway glances were before. There was just so much going on.

And yet, Vivian seemed to have greater things on her mind. Unable to sleep, restless due to the tense, uneasy, and not to mention almost unbearably hot air of the school, she found her way, almost half asleep, to the stairs that led up to the astronomy tower.

Instinctively, she padded up each one carefully, her bare feet silent on the stone. Eventually, she found herself in a familiar setting.

She'd brought her sketchpad to draw without thinking, but finding the moon obscured by clouds, it was far too dark to see anything of substance. The eerie beauty of her surroundings was drowned out by shadows that seemed to shift and change into forms more frightening than then those preceding in nature. Vivian found herself oddly afraid, glancing about with wide, almost neon blue eyes that were similarly hidden by the gloom.

"Lumos," Vivian muttered, holding her wand cautiously in front of her. The light emitted by the tip flooded into the dark corners enough to calm Viv's tense nerves to a degree, but not nearly enough to set her at ease. Half of her seemed to be expecting some unwanted guest, and the rest seemed oddly distant. Instead of her usual frantic sketching, she found, that in need to hold her wand aloft to illuminate her surroundings, she reminsced instead. Vivian remembered countless nights spent sketching here, a particular meeting with someone that she'd held very dear but had since drifted from her life and into obscurity, similar to the way the corners drifted into obscurity as the light faded and darkness took hold. And even over that particular someone, another face emerged in her mind, one that sent cold shivers of raw terror down her spine.

Andrew.

This boy, her own flesh and blood, was now to her a source of greater terror than the much feared Danawi. Now a Vampire, she had no chance to fight back against him, as she'd had limited ability to do so before. She remembered Branden flooring him with a kick to the groin... The thought brought the slightest trace of a smile to her lips, though it faded quickly as more harsh memories came to light.

Looking rather terrified, Vivian took a seat and huddled in the corner, one arm wrapped about her knees, and the other holding the wand aloft, as she looked about for signs of someone else's presense.

[Carmella]

( If my post is unwelcome let me know and I'm gone)

Restless and paranoid. That's what she'd been. First because of having her wings crushed, then because she'd been attacked in her own home. She need to rest, but couldn't find peace in the sanctity of the Realm. So she'd headed out to the only other place she could feel safe at the moment.

The astronomy tower. It took her several tries to open the doors and fly to the top level, her tired eyes looking around semi-curiously. Shivering in her thin nightdress the pink haired faery curled into a tight ball, and her tattered pink wings wrapped around her form. Shadows poured over her three inch figure, dimming the light that naturally radiated off her so she was invisible to the student that entered.

Despite the lightness of the barefeet, the dim sound of footsteps caused the faery to open her eyes again. Stifling a yawn, she looked at the girl as she lit her wand and filled the area with light. Her soft gaze trailed to the sketchpad, and she realised the girl couldn't draw- at least not comfortably- while holding up the wand for light.

Standing on her feet she tiptoed over, her natural light shining brightly again. Spreading a smile on her face, she said "If you'd like I could hold your wand while you draw. That way you can see and be comfortable." She kept her voice low and warm so as to not take her by surprise or frighten her.

[Vivian Pryce]

(Your post is completely welcome. If it weren't, this thread would have been invite only.)

It took Vivian everything within her not to panic at the voice, warm and kind as it was. When she took in the figure, however, she seemed slightly less startled. Carmella wasn't a frightening figure, in all honesty, and it allowed the red haired girl to relax slightly.

The faerie's offer was all too kind, something that Viv at first instinct would deny. She began to shake her head, but thought again, regarding Carmella carefully as an artist would. After a long moment, she nodded her head slowly, looking a little bit shaky.

"Y-y-yes, I-I would l-like that, if, if it's n-n-not too m-much trouble..." A small smile melted over her face, the expression itself an unusually outgoing gesture for the shy Ravenclaw. But what could it hurt?

"I-I'm V-v-vivian P-pryce," she introduced herself, huddling beneath layers of a thick white cloth nightgown that appeared quite stifling and inappropriate for the heat, which it was. "Wh-what's y-your n-n-name?"

[Carmella]

"It's not too much trouble at all." she said easily, flying up and grasping the wand between both hands. Flying a few paces away, she made sure the light shone over the entire room.

The girl- Vivian- seemed nice, though very shy. And shy was the complete opposite of the pink haired faery. She loved making new friends, so long as they weren't sutck up and conceited. Smiling, she answered "My name's Carmella, but everyone calls me Carmy. It's a pleasure meeting you, Vivian- do you mind if I call you Viv?"

Crossing her legs indian style (still in the air), she rested the wand on her thighs holding it still with one hand. Wrinkling her nose in an expression of frustration, she said "I love to draw, and I do it pretty good. Except for the hands; I can never make the hands look right. Can you draw hands?"

[Vivian Pryce]

"N-n-nice to m-meet you, C-c-carmy," Vivian began, mustering as much courage as she could to speak, which managed to make her voice audible but didn't still the nervous stutter in her voice, and the slight rigidity in her stance.

"Y-yeah, y-y-you c-can call m-me Viv if y-you'd like," she said with a nod that was slightly jerky, which matched her overall style of movement. Looking up at the faerie, she looked thoughtful for a moment.

"I c-c-can draw al-almost anything," Vivian stated proudly, smiling a bit, her eyes lighting up. She reached down and grabbed her sketchpad and pencil, flipping through several pages of almost eerily accurate portraits and landscapes. Her bright blue eyes glanced around, but saw little that she hadn't drawn before. Again, she regarded Carmella carefully, stalling for a moment, looking rather nervous.

"W-w-would y-you m-mind if, if I d-drew you?" Vivian asked at last, slowly overcoming the shyness that typically prevented her from functioning normally in society. Somewhere, be it in her stance or facial expression, beyond the nervousness and fear, was a small flicker of courage. Not everybody was out to hurt her, and Viv was slowly beginning to learn that.

[Carmella]

Honey-golden eyes widened in shock, a pleased smile turning up the corners of her lips. No one had ever wanted to draw her before, most didn't even notice her due to her small stature. Nodding she answered "I wouldn't mind at all."

Sitting up straighter, she gripped the wand tighter. She didn't know how to pose for a drawing, had never even posed for a picture. Smiling a bit nervously, she asked "Do I stay the way I am, or would you like me in a specific position?"

[Vivian Pryce]

"D-d-don't pose... j-just act... n-n-natural..." With that, Vivian was off. Taking a good look at the faerie, she then shifted her focus to the paper for a moment. She gripped her pencil lazily with her left hand, sweeping over the pages in soft, natural lines. Her drawing was entirely different from her usual movement. Where her strance was rigid, and her motions likewise, each sweep of her hand was fluid and careless. The fear in her eyes seemed to fade into concentration as her eyes darted back and forth between her paper and the subject, making adjustments here and there.

Vivian drew exactly what she saw, for the most part, but a bit of the faerie's character was deliberately displayed in the drawing. Her facial expression, what her natural stance was like, were all recorded delicately in pencil, until Viv was somewhat satisfied with the result.

After a few more checks, she turned the sketchpad away from herself and towards Carmella, to show her what she'd done. There, in pencil, was an incredibly accurate portrait, slightly larger than life size. There was a certain warmness portrayed, be it in the stance or the expression of the faerie, or perhaps the kind deed she'd immortalized on paper.

"Wh-what d-d-do you th-think?" Viv asked, her voice slightly muffled and shy. Her artwork was her pride, but it was no exception to her shyness. Like many artists, she was very self-conscious about what she drew, no matter how great the quality was.

[Carmella]

Carmy shifted comfortably as Viv drew, watching her the graceful sweep of the pencil over paper. In this it seemed the red haired girl wasn't so nervous or tense. She seemed completely at home while drawing, concentration etched on every lineso f her face.

As the sketch pad was turned towards her, she lowered her gaze to stare at the drawing. Her mouth dropped open in shock and amazement, her eyes widened more so. The drawing looked exactly like her, though a bit bigger. It seemed to have caught her natural warmth and shine, the aura of the faery was visible in every line.

Moving her gaze to Vivian, she stared at her in awe. Her tattered wings drew her closer to the drawing, and careful not to touch it with the wand she reached out her hand. In gentle, whispering movements, she traced her fingers over the drawing.

"It's wonderful." she finally answered, her voice coming out in the same awed tone that reflected in the warm pool of her eyes.

[Vivian Pryce]

Vivian smiled and blushed crimson at Carmella's reaction to the drawing. She'd hoped that the portrait she'd rendered would be good enough for the faerie, but she hadn't expected her to be nearly so impressed. She glanced away shyly, having extreme difficulty in stopping herself from critisizing the work. Viv could point of a half dozen things that to her weren't quite right, but Carmella seemed happy, so maybe she shouldn't be so nervous about it.

"I-I-I'm g-glad you l-like it," the red-head said with a shy smile. She shifted the clothing that covered the entirety of her form from her neck down, adjusting her position to a more comfortable one on the stone flooring.

"Y-y-you c-can keep it, if-if you w-want," Vivian offered, gesturing quickly and unsteadily to the drawing with her right hand. Hit with a sudden burst of shyness, she hid her face in her hair. Who decided that Viv's work was work keeping?

After a few moments and a few shaky breaths, she raised her head again, raising one hand to quickly brush back the hair she'd let fall in her face. She couldn't hide forever, and Carmella was certainly not someone to hide from.

[Carmella]

Running her hand over the drawing again, she waited until the girl raised her head again. She was so shy and doubtful, that Carmy felt the need to reassure her of her talent. Smiling warmly, she said "I'd love to keep it, I can hang it up inside my tree."

Flying down to land on the ground, she bent to touch the floor with her index finger. After muttering some words vines sprung up from the stone floor, wrapping themselves around the wand to hold it up right. Letting go of the now-supported wand, she tilted her head and asked "Have you ever taken art classes?"


ooc: Did you ever receive the invitation to the Fiesta in the Realm?

[Vivian Pryce]

Vivian flushed further at Carmella's appreciation of her work. She was finding it easier and easier to talk to the faerie, her presense comforting in the eerie silence of the school, especially when such dire things were soon to happen. She would ideally have left the school, but something, some bond to it, kept her here despite all the bad memories that were held. Certainly, the family manor was a far more comfortable setting than a school on the verge of war, but perhaps, over the difficult things that had happened here, the good memories held greater presidence in her mind.

The vines Carmella made were certainly a good idea, and even if she lacked the eloquence to express her gratitude verbally, the expression on her face was enough to portray it. The shadows cast aside, unflickering with the steady light, Vivian relaxed just slightly, finding herself steadily more at ease. Absentmindedly she rolled up the sleeves of her nightgown.

"N-n-no, not r-really. M-m-my parents h-hired a tutor f-for a little while, b-but there r-really wasn't m-much for him to t-t-teach..." Her parents had always held Vivian's artistic skill in great pride. Almost any pureblood child could be a socialite, and though Viv couldn't, she was capable of painting portraits of the family good enough to grace the walls of the ancient manor alongside portraits done by the most skilled of wizard artists.

[Carmella]

"Wow. So all that is natural talent." she said, her tone still holding the awed aspect.

Tilting her head, Carmy regarded her through inquisitive eyes. Though she was too nervous and twitchy to be called graceful, her art more than made up for the lack of grace in her stature. Her appearance could be beautiful, with the right clothing and colors. And confidence. A little more confidence would go a long way for the red head.

Skipping slowly to the right, she counted off four steps while keeping her gaze trained on Vivian. She looked like a general surveying her troops. Counting eight steps back to the left, and two more to the right she finally stopped. Leaning her hip to the side she put her weight on her right leg, and placed her small hands on her hips.

A cheezy smile spread over her features. Taking on the accent of a texas socialite, she said "Well, well. It seems here we've got ourselves some potential. All ya need is a make over and the right kind of tutor, darlin'."

[Vivian Pryce]

Her pencil slipped out of her hand and clattered gently against the stone as she watched the faerie quizzically. Her bright blue eyes followed the steps carefully, not entirely trusting the look on her face. Viv could tell Carmy was trying to determine something, and she squirmed a little bit in her place under the pressure of her gaze.

"M-m-m-makeover?" Vivian echoed numbly, her eyes widening significantly. Biting onto her lower lip, she wrung her hands for a moment, then tugged the sleeves of her nightgown back over her wrists and a large portion of her palms.

"Wh-what d-do you mean b-by 'potential'?" she asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously and furrowing her brow. What was it that Carmella saw and wanted to bring out, and why would she bother? Potential suggested that she wanted to bring something out that was already there, but was that what she meant, or did she merely intend to change her?

Her eyes unblinking, a small nervous tic began right below the left, as she kneaded a wad of fabric from a nightgown into a ball within one tightly clenched fist.

[Carmella]

"I mean you have potential. I don't think you realise this, but you are really pretty." she answered "Though not many can notice it when you keep it hidden behind so many layers of conservative clothing and a wall of shyness."

Make up. New clothes. Hair style. Half formed thoughts such as those were running through her mind, reflected in her eyes and the smile lingering about her lips. Taking up the pacing again, she thought of how she would go about giving the shy ravenclaw a makeover.

A surprise attack was the only way.

Flying back into the air, she pointed her finger at Viv she chanted something under her breath. A light shot out of her hand towards the girl, wrapping her in it's warm embrace. Before their very eyes Vivian was transforming. Taking up the southern texas accent again, she said "This won't hurt a bit, doll."

Her clothes shifted and melted into a beautiful silk creation. Rose-pink colored silk wrapped around her upper body in a tight bodice, and fell over her lower body in flowing ruffles. Lacy ribbons spun around her arms, forming matching gloves. Her bare feet were covered by silky slippers of a pearly white.

Red hair was curled loosely and held up out of her face by butterflies. Not butterfly clips, but actual butterflies. Rose petals were braided into random strands. Pale glitter gave color to her eyelids and cheekbones, and her lips were covered in a neutral gloss. A necklace made of pearls and sea shells was now clasped around her neck.

"I do good work, don't I." she said, more statement than question. Her eyes were wide and happy staring at her makeover creation, "More than just potential."

[Vivian Pryce]

Whether she wanted to admit it or not, Vivian did know how pretty she was. It was an inherited trait, really, a trait that she'd gladly not have. When you were physically attractive, you could never be sure of the purposes of other people, especially men, when they got to know you.

But it seemed that covering that hadn't done her much good either. Even as frumpy, shy, dysfunctional little Vivian, she had still been used before. It had only reinforced and justified her fear of people, and thus, turned her into herself even more.

Her eyes looked fit to pop from their sockets as she was enveloped by the glow. As Viv looked down, her face contorted into a look of near horror. Her eyes widened almost comically as she saw her clothing changed to expose far more of her body than was comfortable, and felt, strangely enough, as her hair curled and held back. As soon as the light subsided, she tugged at the gloves lightly, her shock repressing her anger at the ambush for a moment.

Vivian stammered incoherently, shifting her feet in the slippers that now adorned them, visibly trembling. She pulled her legs up against her chest, crossing her arms across, her hands attempting to cover the exposed skin of opposite arms. All in all, she looked extremely uncomfortable.

"Y-y-y-yes..." she stammered out as an answer to the question at long last, sounding quite unsure, her voice shaking. Admittedly, Viv had some tug of a desire to get a look at herself, because, some part of her decided, she would never look like this again.