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 Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 2:46 pm
Mitsuki10191 Danni shifted from one foot to another, rubbing clammy hands against jeans that were, for once, free or holes or unexplainable stains. Her hair was pulled back in a tail that fell down her back, and the shirt she wore was new, and one of the only ones in her possession that had actual buttons on it. It was necessary, she reminded herself. Disowned or not, she had a duty, and one she planned to uphold. Letting out a breath she'd been holding for more than a few seconds, she reached out and pressed the buzzer on the doorbell of the Rinaldi Island Mansion. Eleanor Rinaldi was turning thirty seven, though she'd only admit to thirty five. God help anyone who dared question her. ((Meh, I'm out of time. Gotta finish this later.)) The door was opened by the long-time housekeeper, Mrs. Abigail Benson. When Mrs. Benson saw who was at the door, her eyes visibly popped wide, her body shifting to block the entrance into the house. "M-Miss Danni! We weren't...What an...unexpected visit! I don't...ah...that is..." She trailed off, obviously shaken and unsure of what to do. Danni merely sighed, keeping her tone patient. "Mrs. Benson. You don't need to worry. I've come only to wish my mother a happy birthday. I've no desire to cause trouble." She assured her, but the older woman hesitated, studying the girl. No, she didn't look like she wanted to cause trouble. So often in the past decade, during the few occurances where Danni had shown her face, she'd always looked so angry, so impatient. But whether she wanted to or not, no matter how calm she looked now, trouble had always had a habit of following Isadora Rinaldi. But she remembered a time when a curly haired young girl had padded bare foot into the kitchen, all smiles and ribbons and overalls as she'd come looking for a bit of a treat, a bit of affection. And because she remembered, she sighed, stepping back to allow Danni entrance. "Very well, Miss. Mistress Eleanor is enjoying her afternoon tea in the den. Shall I escort you?" She offered, pleased when the girl remembered to wipe her feet. But Danni shook her head, offered a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "No, I remember the way. Thank you, Mrs. Benson." Passing by her, Danni walked down the hall, tried to remember the last time she'd been on the main floor of the house. God, a decade, maybe longer? She couldn't remember. Still, she remembered the way, and she walked by memory through the maze of halls that made up the Rinaldi mansion. She stopped at the entrance to the den, saw her mother sitting ever so properly in one of the hardbacked chairs by the fire, a cup of tea beside her and a book in her lap. When she spotted movement in the entrance, she glanced up, and Danni saw her body go rigid, watched as her eyes froze over and her lips curled into a scowl of disdain. "You would dare enter this house?" She demanded, the first words out of her mouth said with a burst of disgust. Danni didn't bother to sigh, resisted the urge to turn on her heel and walk away while she was still able to. Instead she stepped inside, stopping when she was separated from her mother by only a few feet. "I've come only to wish you a happy birthday, mother." She murmured, and watched Eleanor sneer, a nasty expression on an attractive face. "Oh, do I look like a complete and utter fool? You've no respect for me, nor any sort of affection. You've come only to pinch a few of my belongings, haven't you, seeing as you're nothing but a lying thief." Since Danni knew she'd never stolen anything from her mother, she merely slid her hands into her pockets. "Despite what you think, I've come with only the best intentions. I've no desire to cause any trouble." She said, and Eleanor rolled her eyes, slamming the book on her lap shut. "Oh, please. Trouble? You've been nothing but trouble since the moment you were conceived!" Since there had been more than a little vodka in her afternoon tea-it was her birthday, after all-Eleanor's tongue was looser than usual. "Did you seriously believed that you were ever wanted? Let me set you straight on one thing right now, girl. You were never wanted. Ever. Nothing but a fifth wheel on this family. I mean, what use would I have for you?" She demanded while Danni blinked, staring. "I had Ambrose, the son, the heir, the perfect gentleman! Then I had Lia, my angel, my perfectly obedient daughter. Then there was...you. I only had you because your father insisted on it. But you were nothing but a burden. A disobedient, ugly little disappointment. You were unwanted. Unnecessary. Unloveable. And nothing's changed." She said, and Danni's own eyes narrowed then, in anger and hurt. "You're wrong." She said, and barely winced when Eleanor whipped the book on her lap at her, merely glanced at it when it fell to the ground. The bruise on her jaw went unnoticed as well. "You would dare talk back to me? You would dare?" She demanded, surging to her feet. When Danni merely held her gaze, those gray eyes unblinking, totally blank, she screeched out a breath, picking up her cup of steaming tea and whipping that as well. Danni's hands never moved from her pockets, and the liquid hit her throat, the cup slamming between her breats. With a little sigh, Danni watched the remaining liquid seep into the carpet. "Yes, I'd dare. Happy birthday, Eleanor." She slid one hand out of her pocket then, calmly reached out and set down the small package she held. Without a backwards glance, she strode out of the room again as breakables crashed behind her, missing their aim. Eleanor had always been one to throw things. She strolled past Mrs. Benson as well, while the older woman's hands fluttered uselessly at the mark on Danni's face, the red mark on her throat. "She's not aging gracefully, is she?" She asked with a hard smile, and then she was gone, stepping through a portal and ending up back at the school. Since she wasn't as calm as she'd have wanted to be, the portal took her, not to the bell tower, but to a nearby classroom, thankfully empty. With a deep breath, she looked around, shrugged and flipped the lock on the classroom door. This, she thought, was as good a place as any to have a good venting session.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 3:19 pm
MEANWHILE...
Alec had fallen asleep on his bed after all the drama he had gone through before with Silas and Seven and Five. He had been sitting on his bed for hours going over ideas and thinking about ways that Silas could try and cheat his way to victory. There were thousands of possibilities, and thinking of them all had exhausted Alec to no end. He didn't even notice when his head hit the pillow as his eyes gave in to the heavy weights hanging from them. Before they shut fully though, Alec could almost see a silhouette of Ialo, being kept in a form of stasis in some ungodly Limbo realm. Alec could almost feel the fear that emanated from a place like that. Alec vaguely remembered mumbling something along the lines of, "Hang on Dragon Boy. We're coming for ya." before dozing off.
But Alec's nap was over, and he was currently stretching away the sleep from his body. He began to gather his thoughts, and remembered all the plans he had tried in vain to make. Alec began to rub his forehead in an attempt to relax his mind. He simply didn't know what he could do until Silas gave them more details. What Alec needed to focus on was the things he COULD control. And at the moment, all he could control was what he would be driving.
But Alec could never think straight in his room. There were too many things around to distract him. In particular the bed. So he decided to go to one of the places he could think: his classroom. Alec decided to walk there rather than teleport. It would give his body and brain time to work off the sleep that so diligently clung to him like Velcro.
It took about 15 minutes to cross the campus grounds and make it to the classrooms, but Alec wasn't worried about that. By his watch his next class wouldn't be until tomorrow, so he took his time. But when Alec reached finally reached his classroom door, he was met with a surprise. The door was slightly ajar. Alec knew that he had locked it before hand, so someone must have come in. Alec wasn't sure who it was, and he wanted to find out. But even so, he felt that he shouldn't just barge in and ask. Someone went into his classroom thinking it was empty, or that he was gone. If it was a student looking for a reprive Alec didn't want to step in on that. And if it was some kind of enemy looking to get the jump on him, Alec didn't want to let them know their cover was blown.
So with that in mind, Alec closed his eyes and focused. Gradually his eyes began to glow beneath his lids, and when he opened them, the irises had turned from their normal green to a bright yellow. Alec looked through his new eyes and could easily see through the walls into his classroom. And what Alec saw surprised him somewhat. It was Danni, standing in his class all by herself. Alec knew she was out there, but why she chose to use his classroom for some alone time was beyond him. Alec focused on his ears, and soon he was able to hear through the walls as well. Alec stood against the wall, acting as if he were deep in thought about something so that no passerby would disturb him.
Alec stood patiently out in the hallway, eager to learn what one of his favorite students was up to in his classroom. Knowing Danni, Alec expected it to be something rather unexpected.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:11 pm
"Ok..." Danni let out a deep breath, turned to the chalkboard at the front of the room. Picking up a piece of chalk, she tapped it against her palm. She needed a list. Whenever she indulged in a good venting session, she made a list of everything weighing on her. That way, nothing would be left to bother her when she was done.
At the top of the list went 'Eleanor', then 'Poopsie', and then 'Ialo'. That about covered it. At least at this moment.
Taking another breath, she slammed the chalkboard with her fist where it said Eleanor, her eyes hot, her jaw throbbing.
"I am NOT unwanted. I am NOT unnecessary. I. Am. NOT. Unlovable. Eleanor is a stone cold b***h with ice running through her veins. I am not a disappointment. I am not stupid. I am not ugly. I am not a liar. I am not a thief. I'm not, I'm not, I'm NOT!" For once, her magic wasn't exploding from her temper, wasn't seeping out of her.
No, there was no magic to increase her emotions this time around. It was only her, only Danni. She stood behind the teacher's desk, speaking as though she were addressing a class, her eyes hot with anger and pain.
"Ok...Ok, we're going to stop that now. On to the Spawn Man. What. The. Hell. Am I supposed to do with the boy?! I'm not maternal, damn it! He won't stay happy if he stays with me. He needs to go away, he needs to disappear. Doesn't he know, doesn't he see that I can't be what he needs?" She pounded a fist on the desk, shaking her head as she rubbed at the red spot where the tea had hit her.
"I can't be something I'm not. And I'm not gentle. I'm not a mother. I'm a Reaper. I'm a murdering reaper who spent most of her life drinking demon blood with fellow murdering reapers. I can't take care of him, damn it." She let out a breath, then turned to the last, possibly most important subject at hand.
"Ialo...What the hell am I supposed to do about him? He's my frigging headmaster. I'm not special. I know I'm not special. But he makes me feel special. God knows why. He never treats me differently than he would anybody else. So why does he make me feel so damned...funny inside? It's not cool! It's not...normal. I'm grateful to him, sure, but this isn't gratitude. And I'm pissed at him, but this isn't what being pissed feels like." She shook her head, paced back and forth in front of the blackboard.
"I don't know what the hell it is. Stalking him, stealing his security codes, that was all good fun. I mean, it was barely even a challenge, just a game. Wanting to see him all the time, sulking, frigging sulking when I can't...That's no damned game. That's just pathetic." She shook her head, scowled as she ran a hand through her hair, dislodging the hair band she'd put in it.
"And now he's...God, who knows where he is? And he's left me with this...this pile of slime. Where is he? Damn it, where is he?" This last sentence was said on a broken murmur, and she plopped down on the floor beneath the blackboard, staring ahead into space, her eyes narrowed as though the answer was located on the back of the teacher's chair.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:36 pm
Alec stared wide eyed at the wall that Danni was standing behind. He could barely believe half of what he was hearing. The stuff about Danni's mother was expected, sure. But a KID!? And all that talk about Ialo making her 'feel funny'?
This didn't bode well. Danni was struggling with more than a few emotional problems, and Alec hated to see one of his students this distraught over things that seemed fairly trivial. So, after allowing his eyes and ears to return to normal, Alec walked casually into the classroom, holding up his hand as if he were a student trying to answer a question. "Uh, teacher? I think I know the answer." Alec walked in and took the front seat of his classroom, sitting much like a student would, still with his hand raised like a nerdy kid who ALWAYS knew the answer.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:41 pm
Danni popped to her feet in an instant, holding back the urge to scream. Such an action was so...female.
"Ah...Uh...Alec." Since any attempt at exiting would seem so very awkward at that moment, she gave up, sat in the teacher's chair, waved a hand.
"Uh...go ahead." She managed, though her cheeks were flushed with embarassment. Jesus, had he heard all of that? Seriously? Oh, Christ.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:52 pm
Alec smiled reassuringly as he let his hand down. As he did though, he made a waving motion towards the door, closing it and locking it in one motion. Alec looked up at Danni in the teachers chair, thinking that she looked oddly right in a position like that. Alec spoke softly, calmly. He didn't want Danni to feel any more uncomfortable than she already did. "It's alright, it's just us here. And if you remember, one of my first rules when I started this year was that what happens in this class stays here, right? Well I meant it, and we're in my class. So the same rules apply."
Alec leaned back in the student's chair a bit and put his hands on the desk, quietly tapping them to an unknown rhythm. Alec kept his smile as he asked Danni, "So, first off, I have to agree with everything you said about yourself. You're not unlovable, you're not unwanted. And you're certainly not ugly, a liar or a thief."
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 4:59 pm
Danni let out a long breath, imagined she was cursing, in all those languages she'd learned. Since that would do her no good, she merely nodded, though it did her good to hear such things spoken by somebody else.
"I'd say that's a good way to start off any conversation you want me to listen to. Go on," She said, watching him carefully, studying for any sign that he was making fun of her or lying. Then she could kill him.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:04 pm
Alec could still see that Danni was apprehensive towards Alec's help. She probably wasn't used to having people listen to her bleed her heart out like she did. Knowing her she might even see it as a weakness, which Alec never understood. Alec had to comment on this, if nothing else than just to get Danni to loosen up a bit. He leaned back in the chair more and put his hands behind his head. "You're not used to having people help you, are you?" Alec leaned forward again in his chair, using his elbows to support his weight on the desk. "Look, Danni, YOU'RE the one in the teacher's chair right now. You have the power. You can tell me to shut me up if you want, or tell me to keep talking. It's your little world right now." Alec leaned back again so he was more comfortable. "...But I'm guessing that you don't want me to shut up. Not really. Right?"
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:19 pm
Danni continued to watch him, but her legs folded up under her, losing the rigidity they'd had before. She was listening, and she wanted to hear what he had to say. It was surprising to discover it mattered.
"No, I don't want you to shut up. You'd be a toad already if I did. I want you to keep talking." She said, but even though she'd relaxed, her hands clasped together, squeezing together since her fingers wanted to tap on her knee, something she knew she did when she was uneasy. And she was not uneasy, damn it.
No, she wasn't used to having people help her. So she'd stopped asking. By telling him to keep talking, she was asking him now. Whether he realized it or not, she was taking a chance. If this chance turned out to be nothing but a disappointment...Well, this was why you didn't trust people. They generally sucked.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:33 pm
Alec saw her ease up a bit, which was all that he could ask from her at this point. Danni was a proud young woman, and for her to let her guard down this much was a feat to say the least. Alec leaned forward again in the seat, holding his chin in his hand as he asked Danni the simplest and most non threatening question he could. "Danni, this kinda stuff usually works better if you're the one who's talking more. Was there something in particular you wanted to bury first? And I mean someTHING, not someONE. We're still in school." Alec smirked, hoping to get a smile out of Danni in return.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:40 pm
Danni puzzled a bit over his choice of words, but then she shrugged, her lips curving, a quick flash of a smile that was gone so quickly that it might have never been at all.
"And I was so looking forward to burying the sadist self control teacher. Just tell me this: Are you talking to me because you feel obligated as a teacher? Are you only here now because you feel it's part of your job?" She demanded, her eyes going from blank to demanding in an instant.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:46 pm
Alec's happy smirked dropped into a more apologetic one. He sighed as he chose his words carefully. "Danni, if I was doing this solely out of a sense of 'duty' I would have gone for the school's psychologist job and be getting twice the pay I am now. No, I'm here because I don't like to see people stress over things that they shouldn't be stressing over. I've seen too much drama in my life to simply let people live in agony like that. It's pointless. There's too much life to live to let other people get bogged down by stress all the time."
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:53 pm
Danni raised a brow, saw nothing but sincerity in his eyes. But then, she realized, this was Alec. He'd never lied to her. Amused her, made her think, but never lied. He could be trusted, as much as she was capable of trusting.
"All right then. You've a look in your eyes, Professor, that says you don't lie. I can respect that." As she respected very few others.
"Since we've come to that understanding, I'll tell you this: I hate being stressed. Help me, would you?" She asked him then, her eyes challenging, daring him to laugh at her for being so weak as to ask.
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 5:59 pm
Alec smiled back at Danni, glad that she trusted him. Although the Professor title was a little unsettling for Alec. "You don't have to call me professor either. In fact, I'd prefer that you didn't. It makes me feel old."
"Now, Danni. I can help you. But I need to know what's bothering you. So... what's bothering you?"
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Posted: Sun Oct 24, 2010 6:03 pm
"Ah, let's go with the top three, shall we?" She asked, and she indulged in a bit of finger tapping now, her other hand picking up a pencil, which she twirled between restless fingers.
"I just spent about fifteen minutes with my mother being told that I was unwanted, unnecessary, unloveable, etc. I've got a quareen in Cook's shack who calls me Mama and wants me to take care of him. And my headmaster makes my insides feel funny. Take your pick of which one you feel like dealing with." She said with a wave of her hand, struggling to keep her voice light.
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