Welcome to Gaia! ::

There was no time like lunch time. The cafeteria was alive with the exuberant, buzzing spirits of Meadowview students and the questionably combined scents of cafeteria food that wafted up from the buffet. Vanessa stood in line with her tray, an irritable expression on her face, with one hand on her hip. Usually, Vanessa made a point of getting there early, because she enjoyed being first and disliked waiting, but she had been foiled today- failure to finish her science homework from the night before had apparently called for a little chat with the teacher at the end of class.

Her stomach growled audibly, and Vanessa bit her cheek to keep from yelling at the other students in line to go faster. She was impatient and pushy, but her father had also taught her to be courteous. Lines were simple. Lines were fair. She had respect for the system they represented and, thus, resigned herself to the reality of waiting. It wasn't easy for her. Vanessa tapped her foot against the tiled floor and checked her watch multiple times in fifteen seconds before it was finally her turn to approach the food.

Moments later, plate piled high and steaming with at least one of everything, Vanessa was finally free of the line and scanning the sea of tables and bobbing heads for an available seat. She chose one by a window, and rubbed her hands together euphorically as she prepared to dig in. Cafeteria food wasn't everyone's cup of tea, but Vanessa wasn't picky. It didn't matter where it came from. She loved food and, she felt sure, food loved her.

On the table in front of her was a copy of the 'Destiny City Bulletin', folded open to the centre. An article in it caught her eye and Vanessa, mouth full of spaghetti and lips framed with ketchup, paused mid-chew in order to read it. Golden eyes flickered across the print at a slow (she didn't read very often), but undeniably steady pace.

Somebody had disappeared from Crystal Academy, following what sounded like a rather violent car accident. Vanessa swallowed, and stabbed at some lettuce with her fork. Some guy she didn't know, who was named Jude, had been found dead. Her heart sank a little, and she couldn't help but wonder if the two events were connected. Stranger things had been known to happen. Vanessa sighed, and made a sour face when she realized that the salad dressing she'd chosen was caesar instead of ranch.

The bulletin reported that a meteorite had landed somewhere within the park, but there was no evidence of a crash site. Vanessa cocked an eyebrow. This wasn't news. Not anymore. She had, just like every other living being in Destiny City, watched the sky that night. Although, not everybody in Destiny City was as relieved as she had been when John Jr. finally fell asleep and shut up about how it was just like the dinosaurs, and possibly meant the end of the world.

"Everybody made a big fuss for nothing," Vanessa announced loudly, to nobody in particular. Her voice boomed naturally. It carried across the cafeteria, above many of the others. "Nobody saw any meteorite. Nobody found one the next day, neither."

Vanessa was, admittedly and kind of obviously, a little bitter. She had been so excited! John Jr's enthusiasm had only fuelled her anticipation. They'd sat on the balcony of their third floor apartment together, shared a blanket and popcorn as they'd watched- and then been, inevitably, disappointed.

Generally friendly, with a mind that was more curious than it was open, Vanessa was half-delighted, half-surprised when Cassie claimed the seat next to her. She turned to greet the younger girl with a smile and, at first, listened only half-heartedly to her conspiracy theories. It wasn't like Vanessa to sit quietly or, indeed, to pay full attention to anything that wasn't blowing up, but Cassie's enthusiasm was intriguing. This topic was something that the other girl was clearly passionate about, and Vanessa could respect that.

It struck her suddenly that Cassie was very much like John Jr. Snickering inwardly at the comparison to her little brother, Vanessa took a swig from her apple juice; belched loudly after it'd gone down, and pounded gently on her chest with her fist once to help the gas find its way out.

"I don't know why anyone would want to research a stupid meteorite," Vanessa volunteered, gesticulating wildly with her hands as she spoke. It was a subconscious gesture designed to draw attention, like a moth to a flame, except it didn't always work as well. "Its just a big, stupid rock, isn't it? And what would they send out magical missiles for? I don't even think there was a meteor. I think its probably just a stupid rumour."

She grinned evilly, mind fluttering to that homework she hadn't finished, "Or maybe its some stupid plot to get us to think science is cool."

Stupid, apparently, was her favourite word- or it could simply have been that Vanessa's vocabulary was limited. Maybe it was both.

Thinking was not something Vanessa did very often and it showed; in the not-so-subtle way her brow furrowed as she considered Cassie's words, and in the stubborn frown that marked her face as she tried to keep up with the younger girl's wild train of thought. Cassie's brain, clearly, had several healthy hamsters racing each other on several well-oiled wheels, while Vanessa's own lonely wheel was rusty, and her hamster fat and almost always asleep.

Then, Cassie started complaining about science, and Vanessa felt a kinship with the other girl almost immediately. Hating science was a sensation that she could relate to on a very personal level, and she nodded enthusiastically as Cassie declared the repulsive reality of science and difficult questions to the world.

"Oh, I know exactly how you feel!" Vanessa responded passionately, "I think science is awful too. Most of the time."

If she was going to be fair, she had to admit that it wasn't always horrible.

"Its not all bad all the time, though. I like the classes where we get to build things, and combine chemicals- or, at least, I would like them, if I didn't always get in trouble for not following directions, and nobody ever wants to be my partner."

Everyone cared too much about their personal safety to let Vanessa near chemicals during class time or, for that matter, to be nearby if she happened to get her hands on them.

She cocked an eyebrow at Cassie's next speculation and, snickering, shook her head. "I don't think its possible for science videos to be fun."

Some greater power was clearly at work here. Whether or not it was a goof thing was completely debatable, but there was no denying the new sense of camaraderie that resonated between Vanessa and Cassie as they sat by the window discussing the evils of science and the obvious wisdom of impulsive decisions. Vanessa, who had not forgotten the original reason she'd come to the cafeteria, kept spooning mouthfuls of spaghetti and french fries into her mouth every now and again, but was, for the most part, preoccupied with Cassie's energetic hamster wheels.

"I'm never busy during science class," Vanessa offered conversationally. "I don't really pay attention ever- I kinda wish you were in my class so that you could be my partner, but I also don't always mind working on my own."

Working alone meant less arguments, which poor Vanessa was very good at getting into, and usually ended with some kind of physical injury.

Cassie started laughing and Vanessa simply sat there, confused as to what could possibly be so funny. Then it hit her- or she thought that it hit her. Vanessa, not exactly sure that she understood the joke, but not wanting to look stupid, laughed too. When she inhaled a noodle got lodged in her windpipe, and she coughed. She tried to speak, and found that she couldn't and continued to cough and choke. Her eyes watered.

The thumping was very helpful and the noodle, forcefully dislodged after the combined forces of a couple of particularly violent coughs and the pressure Cassie's hand exerted on her back, was successfully swallowed. Her throat felt raw, and Vanessa took the offered bottle of water gratefully.

"Thanks," she murmured, voice hoarse, and drank some. It was deliciously wet and helped, a little, to relieve the sting the noodle had left behind.

"I'm fine," Vanessa nodded reassuringly, with a wave of her hand, and handed Cassie's bottle back to her, "My name's Vanessa, by the way."

This was nice. Other than John Jr and Hairy Pete, the smiley hobo who lurked outside Big Willy's Record Store, Vanessa didn't have many friends. There wasn't much time in her life for them, between work and babysitting. She shared a number of rivalries (some good-natured, others not-so-good-natured) with the other kids at the skatepark, but none of them had ever wanted to go to the movies or have slumber parties with her afterwards. It wasn't the way she'd chosen it to be, but it was what it was, and she was okay with that.

The compliment was music to her ears. Vanessa was a sucker for them, and she was even more of a sucker for people that handed them out.

"You're very nice too, Cassie," The auburn haired girl smiled at her new friend and returned, like her father had taught her to, the compliment with genuine sentiment.

The bell rang, signalling the start of a new class period, and Vanessa looked up as the other students in the cafeteria milled out. She turned to Cassie and watched as she wrote something down, then responded casually to her question; "No, I have phys. ed the period after next. Is that the class you have to go to now, then?"

PE was, actually, Vanessa's favourite class. It was one of the very few she excelled at, and she liked it because it was fun but also because it was relatively easy. Simple- like she was.

Vanessa took the scrap of paper gratefully, smiling as Cassie handed it to her, and laughing when the other girl crossed out the third number. She may not have been the sharpest knife in the drawer, but even Vanessa new better than to call somebody else's mom for emergencies. Her own mother had passed away when she was very young, but Vanessa's father had had more than his fair share of practice dealing with emergencies. There was no one else she would ever call- except, maybe if she was in a particularly hazardous pickle and John Rae proved unreachable, Big Willy.

"I will call you," the auburn haired girl called loudly as Cassie left for class. After pocketing the number and collecting her tray, as well as the other tray that Cassie had pushed across the table, Vanessa placed them on the clearing trolley and headed for history class.

There was a spring in her step as she glided down the hallway and up some stairs, looking forward to the next time she saw Cassie. Maybe she'd invite the other girl out to the movies or something, and they could go see some awesome zombie flick or gangster film.