An Olive Branch
Who: Faith and River
Where: their room
When: after River's date with Raven
What: Apologies and bonding. D'aww.
Rating: PG, I guess PG-13 for language?
Lying on the top bunk, Faith had her headphones on full blast. The whole incident with River's girlfriend had her extremely annoyed, mostly with herself, so she'd turned to her Discman, and the most raucous music she had.
River had just parted with Raven, and entered the room with a wide grin on her face. Hearing the muffled sound of loud music coming from headphones, she approached the bed. "Faith?" she said loudly, trying to catch her attention.
Faith continued bobbing her head, staring at the ceiling. Though her Slayer hearing should have picked up on her roommate's calls, her mental distraction, not to mention way too many decibels of noisy music, kept her in her own little world.
River sighed and waved her hand in front of her roommate's face. "Faith!"
Startled, Faith rolled out of bed, suddenly all Slayer. She would have landed on the smaller girl, but River's foresight and reflexes allowed her to easily sidestep. Heart pounding, Faith finally realized that it was her roommate and not an enemy who had surprised her. Well, she wasn't an enemy yesterday, hopefully she isn't too sore about the whole pissing off her girl thing. She ripped off her headphones and tossed them onto the bed, turning back with her most supremely casual air. "Oh, hey."
River's hand was at her chest as she breathed a sigh of relief. "You alarmed me," she said, her voice a little higher than normal. "Um... I've purchased something for you," she mumbled, searching through a bag on her arm. After a moment of rummaging, she pulled out a mouse, wrapped in plastic, and held it out. "An olive branch," she explained.
Faith cocked her head quizzically, but accepted the offering. "Looks like a computer mouse to me." She checked it out, brows furrowed. "I think you made a mistake, this thing is way nicer than the one that blew up."
"It's a symbol, and I've made no error. It should be compatible... it is, isn't it?" she asked, suddenly worried. "If it's unsuitable, I can return it and buy a new one..."
"Uhm...yeah, it's compatible," Faith said, after a quick glance to the port. "But I mean, it's got a scroll button, and a thumb button, and it's shaped all fancy, and I know it's hard to tell anymore, but my mouse was pretty basic. Why the upgrade?" She wants something, duh.
"Because I could afford it, and I thought it would be pleasing," River said, her eyes widened slightly from confusion. "I find minor conveniences to be the most enjoyable."
Faith pressed her lips together in a tight line, but decided not to push it. If there was going to be some sort of payback, she'd deal with that in the future, but right now she had a kickin' new mouse. "Well...thanks, then. Never had much in the way of minor conveniences, so I guess I wouldn't know about that, but you didn't have to go to all this trouble."
"It was no trouble, as I was already going to town and needed to purchase items to repair the lock..." River trailed off, her Seer senses picking something up. "You seem displeased. I apologize for earlier. While it was inappropriate for you to listen in, you had no way of knowing that Raven would be upset to that extent. She's a very private person," she explained. "I should have stayed to defuse the situation, but empathic abilities combined with a difficulty with filtering emotions can make tense situations difficult to withstand."
"I'm not, uh...displeased...I mean, mostly I feel kinda dumb, I don't always think before I talk, y'know?" Faith gave a wry smile.
"There are different brands of intelligence," River said with a small smile as she sat on the bottom bunk. "Perhaps social skills aren't your forte? I know that mine are mediocre at best."
"Heh. Well, that's for damn sure." At the look on River's face, Faith hastily added, "Not yours, mine! Agh, see?" She plopped down in the chair at her desk, an exasperated expression on her face. "Can't even make up without fucking up. So yeah, if I've got any kinda intelligence, it's not in the fine art of conversation."
River smirked. "You remind me of Simon. Not to worry; I've lived with him for the majority of my life and have grown accustomed to it. If you can tolerate my idiosyncrasies, I have no problem with your minor blunders."
"I dunno what that word means, but...wait, Simon? The doctor?" Faith was equally confused by this revelation as by the other girl's vocabulary.
"Simon, the doctor, yes. We share a surname. Didn't you notice? Anyway, an idiosyncrasy is a trait peculiar and unique to an individual. I have a number of them, as I'm sure you'll soon learn," River explained, her smile growing almost imperceptibly sad at the end.
Faith nodded, satisfied with the other girl's explanations. "Nah, I didn't really notice...I mean, I'm not exactly on a last-name basis with either of ya. And heck, if that's what you meant, then by definition everyone's got 'em, right? So sure I can tolerate that, no problem," Faith said with an easygoing smile.
"Well, yes, but..." River glanced over to the window uneasily, unsure of how to proceed. "Mine are... considerably more extreme than average, and more difficult to live with at times."
Shrugging, Faith replied, "Well, I can take care of myself. I mean, it's not like I ever had 'ideal' living arrangements, whatever that means."
Relieved, River breathed a heavy sigh. "Many aren't as compassionate. Teenage girls tend to be roughshod. I didn't have to deal with it much until I came here. I usually did classes with individuals many years older than I was, and while they were often unkind, it was a different brand of meanness entirely. And then from 14 to 16, I... didn't really encounter anyone at all, no one with a face, anyway, and no one with social intents." She glanced over to the window again, a faraway look in her eyes. "And then I lived with Simon and a band of pirates, and the only other females were several years older, and civil at worst, for the most part."
"Pirates? Awesome," Faith grinned. There were witches and dragons and shit she never knew about, why not pirates? "I always kinda wanted to be a pirate."
"It was a difficult life at times... sometimes we couldn't get work and grew thin from hunger, and we nearly fell out of the sky more than once. Nearly died a number of times too," River said with a fond smile. "I loved that ship, though... I felt like I had a home."
"Flying pirates? Okay, now you're just sayin' shit to make me all jealous, right?" Faith could definitely sympathize with the sentiment of not generally feeling at home.
River frowned. "No. We flew on a Firefly class transport ship. Serenity. Much of our work was illegal interplanetary smuggling. I went on a few heists with them before coming here, much to Simon's dismay," she said with a laugh. "It was rather dangerous work. I loved it, though."
"Shit, it's not just magic I gotta fit into my head, but spaceships now? Goddamn, next you're gonna be telling me there's dinosaurs in the mystery meat," Faith smirked.
River stared blankly. "Dinosaurs are long extinct," she said pointedly.
"So are pirates, as far as most of the world is concerned. Well, except the downloady kind. And so are trolls and faeries and dragons and half the shit we're being taught here. How the heck should I know what not to believe at this point?"
River heaved a sigh. People could be so frustrating. "An appropriate synonym would be 'smuggler', perhaps," she offered. "It can be difficult to adjust to this life. Elphaba has green skin and comes from another dimension, Raven comes from another dimension as well... Simon and I were born and raised on a planet called Osiris, and Inara, the Health teacher, came from our solar system as well, from a planet called Sihnon, and lived with us on the transport ship. Katelyn can shapeshift. The rules change here, I suppose."
"Heh. That's for sure. I never woulda imagined half of what I've learned since comin' here." Like that whole sex-with-girls thing... Faith grinned with a touch of smugness.
River smiled. "It's always fun to take a new perspective." She stretched and yawned. "I hate to cut the conversation short, but I'm growing tired and still need to shower. Shall we continue our discussion at a later date?"
"Sure," Faith replied, standing up and stretching. "I could handle a bit more sleep myself, lately."
River stood and began to make her way to the bathroom. "Sleep well."
Faith turned her back to the departing River, and began to change into her sleepwear. "Likewise, Sunshine," she replied, over her shoulder.
Where: their room
When: after River's date with Raven
What: Apologies and bonding. D'aww.
Rating: PG, I guess PG-13 for language?
Lying on the top bunk, Faith had her headphones on full blast. The whole incident with River's girlfriend had her extremely annoyed, mostly with herself, so she'd turned to her Discman, and the most raucous music she had.
River had just parted with Raven, and entered the room with a wide grin on her face. Hearing the muffled sound of loud music coming from headphones, she approached the bed. "Faith?" she said loudly, trying to catch her attention.
Faith continued bobbing her head, staring at the ceiling. Though her Slayer hearing should have picked up on her roommate's calls, her mental distraction, not to mention way too many decibels of noisy music, kept her in her own little world.
River sighed and waved her hand in front of her roommate's face. "Faith!"
Startled, Faith rolled out of bed, suddenly all Slayer. She would have landed on the smaller girl, but River's foresight and reflexes allowed her to easily sidestep. Heart pounding, Faith finally realized that it was her roommate and not an enemy who had surprised her. Well, she wasn't an enemy yesterday, hopefully she isn't too sore about the whole pissing off her girl thing. She ripped off her headphones and tossed them onto the bed, turning back with her most supremely casual air. "Oh, hey."
River's hand was at her chest as she breathed a sigh of relief. "You alarmed me," she said, her voice a little higher than normal. "Um... I've purchased something for you," she mumbled, searching through a bag on her arm. After a moment of rummaging, she pulled out a mouse, wrapped in plastic, and held it out. "An olive branch," she explained.
Faith cocked her head quizzically, but accepted the offering. "Looks like a computer mouse to me." She checked it out, brows furrowed. "I think you made a mistake, this thing is way nicer than the one that blew up."
"It's a symbol, and I've made no error. It should be compatible... it is, isn't it?" she asked, suddenly worried. "If it's unsuitable, I can return it and buy a new one..."
"Uhm...yeah, it's compatible," Faith said, after a quick glance to the port. "But I mean, it's got a scroll button, and a thumb button, and it's shaped all fancy, and I know it's hard to tell anymore, but my mouse was pretty basic. Why the upgrade?" She wants something, duh.
"Because I could afford it, and I thought it would be pleasing," River said, her eyes widened slightly from confusion. "I find minor conveniences to be the most enjoyable."
Faith pressed her lips together in a tight line, but decided not to push it. If there was going to be some sort of payback, she'd deal with that in the future, but right now she had a kickin' new mouse. "Well...thanks, then. Never had much in the way of minor conveniences, so I guess I wouldn't know about that, but you didn't have to go to all this trouble."
"It was no trouble, as I was already going to town and needed to purchase items to repair the lock..." River trailed off, her Seer senses picking something up. "You seem displeased. I apologize for earlier. While it was inappropriate for you to listen in, you had no way of knowing that Raven would be upset to that extent. She's a very private person," she explained. "I should have stayed to defuse the situation, but empathic abilities combined with a difficulty with filtering emotions can make tense situations difficult to withstand."
"I'm not, uh...displeased...I mean, mostly I feel kinda dumb, I don't always think before I talk, y'know?" Faith gave a wry smile.
"There are different brands of intelligence," River said with a small smile as she sat on the bottom bunk. "Perhaps social skills aren't your forte? I know that mine are mediocre at best."
"Heh. Well, that's for damn sure." At the look on River's face, Faith hastily added, "Not yours, mine! Agh, see?" She plopped down in the chair at her desk, an exasperated expression on her face. "Can't even make up without fucking up. So yeah, if I've got any kinda intelligence, it's not in the fine art of conversation."
River smirked. "You remind me of Simon. Not to worry; I've lived with him for the majority of my life and have grown accustomed to it. If you can tolerate my idiosyncrasies, I have no problem with your minor blunders."
"I dunno what that word means, but...wait, Simon? The doctor?" Faith was equally confused by this revelation as by the other girl's vocabulary.
"Simon, the doctor, yes. We share a surname. Didn't you notice? Anyway, an idiosyncrasy is a trait peculiar and unique to an individual. I have a number of them, as I'm sure you'll soon learn," River explained, her smile growing almost imperceptibly sad at the end.
Faith nodded, satisfied with the other girl's explanations. "Nah, I didn't really notice...I mean, I'm not exactly on a last-name basis with either of ya. And heck, if that's what you meant, then by definition everyone's got 'em, right? So sure I can tolerate that, no problem," Faith said with an easygoing smile.
"Well, yes, but..." River glanced over to the window uneasily, unsure of how to proceed. "Mine are... considerably more extreme than average, and more difficult to live with at times."
Shrugging, Faith replied, "Well, I can take care of myself. I mean, it's not like I ever had 'ideal' living arrangements, whatever that means."
Relieved, River breathed a heavy sigh. "Many aren't as compassionate. Teenage girls tend to be roughshod. I didn't have to deal with it much until I came here. I usually did classes with individuals many years older than I was, and while they were often unkind, it was a different brand of meanness entirely. And then from 14 to 16, I... didn't really encounter anyone at all, no one with a face, anyway, and no one with social intents." She glanced over to the window again, a faraway look in her eyes. "And then I lived with Simon and a band of pirates, and the only other females were several years older, and civil at worst, for the most part."
"Pirates? Awesome," Faith grinned. There were witches and dragons and shit she never knew about, why not pirates? "I always kinda wanted to be a pirate."
"It was a difficult life at times... sometimes we couldn't get work and grew thin from hunger, and we nearly fell out of the sky more than once. Nearly died a number of times too," River said with a fond smile. "I loved that ship, though... I felt like I had a home."
"Flying pirates? Okay, now you're just sayin' shit to make me all jealous, right?" Faith could definitely sympathize with the sentiment of not generally feeling at home.
River frowned. "No. We flew on a Firefly class transport ship. Serenity. Much of our work was illegal interplanetary smuggling. I went on a few heists with them before coming here, much to Simon's dismay," she said with a laugh. "It was rather dangerous work. I loved it, though."
"Shit, it's not just magic I gotta fit into my head, but spaceships now? Goddamn, next you're gonna be telling me there's dinosaurs in the mystery meat," Faith smirked.
River stared blankly. "Dinosaurs are long extinct," she said pointedly.
"So are pirates, as far as most of the world is concerned. Well, except the downloady kind. And so are trolls and faeries and dragons and half the shit we're being taught here. How the heck should I know what not to believe at this point?"
River heaved a sigh. People could be so frustrating. "An appropriate synonym would be 'smuggler', perhaps," she offered. "It can be difficult to adjust to this life. Elphaba has green skin and comes from another dimension, Raven comes from another dimension as well... Simon and I were born and raised on a planet called Osiris, and Inara, the Health teacher, came from our solar system as well, from a planet called Sihnon, and lived with us on the transport ship. Katelyn can shapeshift. The rules change here, I suppose."
"Heh. That's for sure. I never woulda imagined half of what I've learned since comin' here." Like that whole sex-with-girls thing... Faith grinned with a touch of smugness.
River smiled. "It's always fun to take a new perspective." She stretched and yawned. "I hate to cut the conversation short, but I'm growing tired and still need to shower. Shall we continue our discussion at a later date?"
"Sure," Faith replied, standing up and stretching. "I could handle a bit more sleep myself, lately."
River stood and began to make her way to the bathroom. "Sleep well."
Faith turned her back to the departing River, and began to change into her sleepwear. "Likewise, Sunshine," she replied, over her shoulder.