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#Post#: 530--------------------------------------------------
Zinnia's house
By: MissM Date: May 24, 2013, 3:43 pm
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Zinnia's apartment is tiny, with barely an inch to spare. The
walls are drab, only two flyers/posters from Dox's events
hanging on the walls in her bedroom, and she has a single-twin
against one corner. She is usually found in the kitchen, doing
her homework or looking through scientific papers, trying to
find a name that she remembers from the nightmare years she
spent in the lab. In place of the balcony, Zinnia has a set of
rickety stairs that she had to fix up within weeks of moving in.
The landlord still hasn't reimbursed her for this, although she
kept copies of all the receipts and reminds him every time he
comes around for rent. The only things that are hers are her
clothes and the bed-sheets/pillows, and the food. Usually she
dines in, and although she doesn't eat much, she eats well.
A pair of running shoes can be found by the door, as well as the
every-day shoes that Zinnia wears everywhere else.
HTML http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2011/10/small-apartment-living-tips.jpg
#Post#: 561--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: Mascii Date: May 26, 2013, 5:25 pm
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Reese Middleton
When a friend seemed to be having a rough day, a good friend
always notices.
Especially if he can feel that you're feeling glum as if he was
wearing a mood ring specifically designed for the frequency of
your emotions.
And as a good friend, Reese felt that pie was an obligatory
offering of goodwill and able to cheer up anyone's horrible day.
That was why he was standing on Zinnia's doorstep, holding a
homemade pie.
Unfortunately, the pie was not made by himself. But it was a
banana blueberry pie from the diner, but he could personally
attest to its deliciousness, and he was perfectly willing to
stake his life on such a fact. Reese reached up with his free
hand gave the door a happy little knock, standing there with a
ready smile on his face. "Bon après-midi!" he greeted,
butchering the pronunciation so badly that even he knew he could
barely pass. He decided to just revert back to his peace
offering. You could depend on food to never let you down.
Holding up the pie to eye level, he smiled, "I brought you pie,
because you're awesome, and I feel like you needed a little
pick-me-up. Is it cool if I come in, or should I come back
another time?"
"I got your address from Yukito to be sure, just so you know. No
creeping, I just have a pal with an eerie ability to remember
things like historical dates and addresses. He didn't even
bother to put my phone number in his cell phone for the longest
time. It was really annoying." He smirked, "So how are you
doing?" His tone was chipper and friendly, but there was a drop
at the end of his sentence that was barely detectable,
suggesting that he wanted her to answer seriously and honestly.
After all, he would know if she was lying.
#Post#: 562--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: MissM Date: May 26, 2013, 6:00 pm
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Zinnia Natter
"Bon après-midi!" Reese was standing on her doorstep, a smile on
his face and absolutely awful pronunciation. A wry smile tried
to settle on her face, but it faded pretty quickly as he
continued. "I brought you pie, because you're awesome, and I
feel like you needed a little pick-me-up. Is it cool if I come
in, or should I come back another time?"
At that, a true smile fought its way up and stuck. "No, it's ok
to come in now. Probably better now anyway." She backed out of
the doorway and into her kitchen.
"I got your address from Yukito to be sure, just so you know. No
creeping, I just have a pal with an eerie ability to remember
things like historical dates and addresses. He didn't even
bother to put my phone number in his cell phone for the longest
time. It was really annoying."
Zinnia laughed a little bit--that sounded a bit like Yukito, for
sure.
He continued with a slightly more serious tone, but the question
wasn't too demanding. "So how are you doing?"
"I'm doing fine. A little lonely, sometimes, but mostly
alright." She didn't get into what was also weighing on her
mind-- her Enhancement. She could find neither paperwork beyond
what Karl had brought to the flat the one time, when she'd first
started staying with Dox, nor could she locate a name or a face
that matched the one floating in her head, taunting her at
night. The one who had masterminded the whole ordeal, and the
one who knew how to shut down her weaponry without killing her
in the process--he remained a taunt, a figment. No real name,
nothing to give her a location to start with.
She put the pie on the counter, thrusting the frustrations to
the back of her head for now. "Do you want a slice? It must be
hungry work, carrying it here and resisting temptation." She
smiled, a genuine bubble of happiness settling in her heart for
once, calming her."Thanks, Reese."
#Post#: 582--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: Mascii Date: May 28, 2013, 2:14 pm
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Reese Middleton
"I got your address from Yukito to be sure, just so you know. No
creeping, I just have a pal with an eerie ability to remember
things like historical dates and addresses. He didn't even
bother to put my phone number in his cell phone for the longest
time. It was really annoying." Zinnia laughed a bit, which was
a good sign - Reese could still feel an air of melancholy around
her, but at least she wasn't as bad off as he had feared. He
pressed a bit, wanting to get the truth out of her by asking,
"So how are you doing?"
"I'm doing fine. A little lonely, sometimes, but mostly
alright." He watched her place the pie on the counter, sensing a
throb from her of frustration. Usually, he tried to overlook the
subtle emotional hints he got from his friends, preferring to
'ask them personally' rather than rely on his Enhancement. But
with Zinnia and Yukito, he constantly found himself making
exceptions. They weren't cold, per se, but they were really
locked up inside their heads. And he found so many discrepancies
between what they said and what they felt, so he was drawn to
matching up what he felt with what he heard.
"You could always ask someone to come hang out with you, you
know. You've got lots of friends at school and all," he said
with a warm, reassuring smile, his hands resting on his hips as
he ventured around the house. It was tiny, and there wasn't much
to it. It kind of looked like Natalie's apartment in its
run-down, overall cheapness to it, but it wasn't necessarily
bad. Just...low-cost. It had been awhile since he'd been in such
a small place, and it made him feel weird to think about his own
house with its huge kitchen and filled with its half a dozen
pets. "Hey, my house has this huge kitchen, and my brother loves
to cook. Maybe you should come over to our place sometime and
try your hand at making some of your fancy dishes with my
brother sometime. I'm sure he'd love it."
"Do you want a slice? It must be hungry work, carrying it here
and resisting temptation." She sent him a smile, a genuine one
this time. Reese found her rare smile quite contagious, and sent
back a grin of his own.
"Ooooh..yes...it was terrible!" he whined, bending over and
clutching his stomach as though he was starved. Even though he'd
stolen some of the uncooked fruits from his brother before he'd
been able to put them in the pie. "All my hard work, Z! All my
hard work! I'm famished and weak from the temptation!"
"Thanks, Reese."
He smirked, chuckling a little as he straightened up and came
over to where the pie sat, and laying a hand on her shoulder.
"Seriously, Z. It's no big deal. That's what friends are for,
right? To 'get it' when you don't even say anything."
#Post#: 584--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: MissM Date: May 28, 2013, 3:34 pm
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Zinnia Natter
"I'm doing fine. A little lonely, sometimes, but mostly
alright." But she didn't mention her frustration with her
Enhancement, or the fact that she was trying to find the last
face and name that she could remember from the lab where she'd
gotten it. It still haunted her nightmares, and she hadn't found
anything that rang any bells.
"You could always ask someone to come hang out with you, you
know. You've got lots of friends at school and all," he said
with a warm, reassuring smile, looking around her small place
nonchalantly. "Hey, my house has this huge kitchen, and my
brother loves to cook. Maybe you should come over to our place
sometime and try your hand at making some of your fancy dishes
with my brother sometime. I'm sure he'd love it."
"I'll think about it." Zinnia said, after a short pause. She DID
like to cook. Maybe his younger brother would be interested in a
few of her recipes... "What's your favorite dish?" She asked,
glancing over her shoulder before setting the pie down and
pulling out a knife to cut.
"Do you want a slice? It must be hungry work, carrying it here
and resisting temptation." She sent him a smile, a genuine one
this time. Reese found her rare smile quite contagious, and sent
back a grin of his own.
"Ooooh..yes...it was terrible!" he whined, bending over and
clutching his stomach as though he was starved. "All my hard
work, Z! All my hard work! I'm famished and weak from the
temptation!"
She laughed at Reese's antics. "Thanks, Reese."
He smirked, chuckling a little as he straightened up and came
over to where the pie sat. Then he laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Seriously, Z. It's no big deal. That's what friends are for,
right? To 'get it' when you don't even say anything."
She put the knife down. "I guess." There was a short pause as
she tried to think of what to say. She wasn't sure exactly what
he wanted, but she did remember her glumness from that day. "I'm
just.... I just don't like what my Enhancement is. It's not
something I'd have chosen, and I really didn't want it to begin
with." THAT was an understatement.
She kneaded her right arm, her glove still on but knowing what
lay beneath. She hesitated again, wanting to tell her friend who
obviously did care about her the truth as to why she was here. I
want to tell him, but I can't... can I? I don't want to have to
lie to him... She sighed, knowing she'd probably never tell
another soul what she was up to, and hoping Yukito had forgotten
her line about revenge by now.
But Reese deserves some answers... I mean, he did bring me pie.
But she couldn't bring herself to tell him. Shrugging, she
picked up the knife again and made to cut the pie, shrugging
Reese's hand off gently. "But I'd rather not discuss that at the
moment. How was your day?" She hoped reflecting the conversation
towards him would ease them off the topic.
#Post#: 596--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: Mascii Date: May 29, 2013, 4:24 pm
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Reese Middleton
He laid a hand on her shoulder, the residual mirth from his
laughter a few moments ago still slowly fading from his face.
"Seriously, Z. It's no big deal. That's what friends are for,
right? To 'get it' when you don't even say anything."
She put the knife down, as though she wanted to refute his
words. But all she said was, "I guess." There was a pause, and
he watched her face, the glumness that emanated from her like a
thick green cloud. Reese could wait. "I'm just.... I just don't
like what my Enhancement is. It's not something I'd have chosen,
and I really didn't want it to begin with." She kneaded her
Enhanced arm, and Reese thought back to the time she had allowed
him to look at it. Really look at it. He thought it was a heavy
burden to bear, having a weapon in your arm. She shrugged in a
way that made his hand drop from her shoulder, and Reese took
the hint, backing away.
"But I'd rather not discuss that at the moment. How was your
day?"
Reese smiled a little, albeit sadly. She was really not the most
subtle creature as it was, after all. "It was pretty good, all
things considered. I feel like things are getting kind of edgy
between a lot of people lately, and I don't know what I can do
to fix that. Maybe it's just that time of the semester or
something. My brother is doing well, though. He was telling me
just today how he's finally starting to make friends at the
Academy, and I'm really happy for him. He's really shy, so he
appreciates it when people take the time out for him." He
smiled, then leaned back on the counter with his elbows.
"Zinnia? Can I ask you a personal question?"
#Post#: 604--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: MissM Date: May 30, 2013, 1:08 pm
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Zinnia Natter
"But I'd rather not discuss that at the moment. How was your
day?" She tried deflecting the conversation back to Reese,
knowing it was abrupt and probably that Reese would come back to
her at some point.
"It was pretty good, all things considered. I feel like things
are getting kind of edgy between a lot of people lately, and I
don't know what I can do to fix that. Maybe it's just that time
of the semester or something. My brother is doing well, though.
He was telling me just today how he's finally starting to make
friends at the Academy, and I'm really happy for him. He's
really shy, so he appreciates it when people take the time out
for him."
"Your brother sounds like a sweet kid." She commented, a little
jealous. Everyone here- or most- still had their families. But
Reese obviously cared about his family, so that made it a little
better, at least.
He smiled, then leaned back on the counter with his elbows.
"Zinnia? Can I ask you a personal question?"
She finished cutting the pie before answering, deliberating, but
ultimately deciding to let him. He'd probably get an answer to
it eventually anyway. "I suppose." She did trust Reese after
all, and it wasn't like she could hide anything she was truly
feeling from him anyway. At the same time, she did become a
little nervous. Her heartbeat would give her away in less than a
split second if she did try to lie.
#Post#: 611--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: Mascii Date: May 31, 2013, 6:06 pm
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Reese Middleton
"It was pretty good, all things considered. I feel like things
are getting kind of edgy between a lot of people lately, and I
don't know what I can do to fix that. Maybe it's just that time
of the semester or something. My brother is doing well, though.
He was telling me just today how he's finally starting to make
friends at the Academy, and I'm really happy for him. He's
really shy, so he appreciates it when people take the time out
for him."
"Your brother sounds like a sweet kid," she commented, sounding
a little distant.
"Yeah, he is." Daniel was always the shy short, and very nervous
around new people. Sometimes it felt like living with Yukito
2.0, which made him laugh. He'd even tried getting the two boys
in the same room together, but it only happened on the rare
occasion that Yukito was free to leave the house during the
strange hours Daniel kept. The two would sit in a room for hours
without saying more than three words to each other, but Reese
could always feel a content vibe coming from each of them while
they shared a video game or Yukito watched Daniel cook.
He smiled, then leaned back on the counter with his elbows.
"Zinnia? Can I ask you a personal question?" She continued to
cut the pie in smooth, practiced movements, considering her
answer quite heavily before answering him. He knew there were
things she didn't want him to ask about, and he wasn't sure why.
He figured, with all of her talk about hating her Enhancement,
it had to do with that. But although he'd known Zinnia for quite
some time now, he still hadn't been able to penetrate the deep
wall that separated her from her friends.
"I suppose." Reese refused to underestimate the importance of
her acquiescence. He knew that decision of trust didn't come
easy.
"Who is this guy back in France that you keep going to see? I
mean, I know, he's the 'friend-not-boyfriend'," here Reese
smiled, making quotations in the air with his finger and rolling
his eyes a little, keeping the subject light, "But I mean, who
is he? I'm curious...because he seems important to you."
"Not that I'm jealous or something ridiculous like that," Reese
said, giving off a scoffing sound at the very idea, "But someone
has to play your over-protective father and probe you about your
other guy-friends, right? Like 'what's his name?', 'what does he
do for a living?', 'does he treat you good?' and things like
that?" Although she'd never said it aloud, Reese felt that
Zinnia was extremely lonely, both of her own choice and of the
choices of others. Yukito had refused to tell him much, but he
knew she had reasons for it, and he knew that she was a teenager
living on her own with few friends and no one to really talk to.
And he could fix that, at least.
#Post#: 646--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: MissM Date: June 1, 2013, 5:25 pm
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Zinnia Natter
"I suppose." She did trust Reese, after all, and given that he
had asked first made it easier to trust him. Personal questions
were never really easy to answer, but she'd give it her best
shot, for Reese.
"Who is this guy back in France that you keep going to see? I
mean, I know, he's the 'friend-not-boyfriend'," here Reese
smiled, making quotations in the air with his finger and rolling
his eyes a little, keeping the subject light, "But I mean, who
is he? I'm curious...because he seems important to you."
"Mmm." Zinnia gave a non-commital answer at first, surprised at
his choice in questions. It wasn't the question she had
expected, and although she was slightly relieved that it wasn't
specifics about her past, she was now at a loss of what to say.
"Not that I'm jealous or something ridiculous like that," Reese
said, scoffing at the idea, "But someone has to play your
over-protective father and probe you about your other
guy-friends, right? Like 'what's his name?', 'what does he do
for a living?', 'does he treat you good?' and things like that?"
The 'over-protective father' part made Zinnia smile, a sliver of
memory surfacing about her sister bringing home a 'boyfriend',
just before her parents' crash. She'd accidentally overheard
their conversation through the open door that night, about what
'overprotective' really meant. It had made her giggle, giving
away that she was there. The memory ended there, but Zinnia
didn't mind so much, her mind moving onto what she would say.
"Well, if you're so curious, Reese... He's seriously just a
friend. I don't know what made him take me in, but I would swear
until I'm blue in the face he has no other intentions. But
anyway... He's a professional fencer, he fences and gives
lessons in his spare time, and is on the National team the rest
of the time. I think he was going to the Games the last time,
but he said there was a family emergency that he had to deal
with so he bowed out." She shrugged. "I don't think he was
really looking forwards to competing in the Games, though,
because he hasn't gone back to tryouts. I don't know why but I
haven't asked. His flatmate said something about a girl breaking
his heart once, so I wasn't going to press the issue." She
paused, catching her breath and trying to calm down a little
bit. Reese didn't deserve to be snapped at.
"As for how he treats me... well, he took me in when all I'd
done is stare him down for a few minutes. He's given me a place
to stay, that is tucked away from most prying eyes... He usually
doesn't stay there himself, but lets me have my own space.
Basically the only rule is to not lock the doors during the day
and not shoot the stray cat that sometimes comes by." She
laughed a little, remembering the first time she'd met the
thing. Mae-chan had reminded her of the stray at the loft,
although Mae-chan was darker colored and a bit healthier. Her
stray had a grey eye-patch, and white fur everywhere else that
always looked straggled and torn. "He's a private person, and
respects my space, and he's fairly easy-going. Likes
hot-chocolate." She shrugged, placing a piece of pie on a plate
for Reese, and then herself. "Oh. And his name is Paradox."
"Anything else you're concerned about?"
Looking back at Reese, suddenly she wished he would come around
more often. He reminded her of Dox, in that he cared just
because she'd been a little glum. And he was certainly someone
she could trust, and he was easy to talk to...
Mascii Edit: You forgot to write her name at the top again, so I
added it. ^o^
#Post#: 667--------------------------------------------------
Re: Zinnia's house
By: Mascii Date: June 4, 2013, 1:32 am
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Reese Middleton
"Not that I'm jealous or something ridiculous like that," Reese
said, scoffing at the very idea, "But someone has to play your
over-protective father and probe you about your other
guy-friends, right? Like 'what's his name?', 'what does he do
for a living?', 'does he treat you good?' and things like that?"
"Well, if you're so curious, Reese... He's seriously just a
friend. I don't know what made him take me in, but I would swear
until I'm blue in the face he has no other intentions. But
anyway... He's a professional fencer, he fences and gives
lessons in his spare time, and is on the National team the rest
of the time. I think he was going to the Games the last time,
but he said there was a family emergency that he had to deal
with so he bowed out." She shrugged. "I don't think he was
really looking forwards to competing in the Games, though,
because he hasn't gone back to tryouts. I don't know why but I
haven't asked. His flatmate said something about a girl breaking
his heart once, so I wasn't going to press the issue."
"Hmm... sometimes, though, having something to occupy yourself
with after a breakup is the best thing to distract you." He gave
a little shrug of his own, lifting one shoulder and frowning a
little. "But it sucks that he couldn't compete that year.."
"As for how he treats me... well, he took me in when all I'd
done is stare him down for a few minutes. He's given me a place
to stay, that is tucked away from most prying eyes... He usually
doesn't stay there himself, but lets me have my own space.
Basically the only rule is to not lock the doors during the day
and not shoot the stray cat that sometimes comes by." She
laughed a little, then, and Reese smiled a bit, too.
"So, wait. You 'stared him down' and he took you into his house?
What, do you have a super power I don't know about?"
"He's a private person, and respects my space, and he's fairly
easy-going. Likes hot-chocolate." She shrugged, placing a piece
of pie on a plate for Reese, and then herself. He let out a
little whooping sound, swooping in and starting in on the pie.
By now, he felt, she had dallied long enough getting the pie,
and he was by now starving. Or as starving as a boy who had
eaten a huge breakfast two hours ago could feel. "Oh. And his
name is Paradox."
He almost choked on his pie. "Wait, what? I've never heard of
that name before..." he thought for a moment, cleaning off the
end of his fork and sucking on the end for a moment
thoughtfully. "Although, I guess I'm the last person to talk,
right?"
"Anything else you're concerned about?"
Reese considered this one with a smile, taking a couple more
bites of pie before deciding on his answer. This 'Dox/Paradox'
guy sounded nice enough, and Zinnia seemed to really look up to
him. He had to respect her forwardness with that, at least. But
she still seemed kind of cryptic as to what was actually going
on between them. He wondered if she knew herself.
"Mmm..he sounds like a great guy, I've gotta say. So...is he
like an older brother to you or something?" he asked the
question with a bit of a wrinkle to his nose, as though he
doubted that were the case. He took another bit of pie, leaning
up against her counter and sending her a smile. "And if he talks
about you the way you talk about him, then I'd say he has an
inkling of how lucky he is."
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