Welcome to Gaia! ::

Ophelia draped herself on the brick edge of the fountain. She laid on her side, her elbow propping herself up a little. Her free hand grazed the clear water as she hummed a little melody. Distracted, she counted the multitude of coins that coated the bottom of the large fountain in the town's square. Smiling, she thought of how many wishes had been fulfilled. Lifting up her hand, she let the water settle a little and looked at her reflection for a moment. Still humming the same tune, she pulled her headphones to her shoulders. She knew the rest of the song at this point and resumed playing with the water. The sun was out and shining today, and the gentle heat warmed her bare skin. Absent-mindedly, she picked up one of the coins, watching how it glistened brightly in the sunlight.

For a moment, she stopped humming and thought aloud, "I wonder what wish this one was?" before resuming the song from where she left off, still gazing at the coin and turning it back and forth.

Ophelia was startled by the voice near her. While it wasn't exactly harsh, she felt like she was being scolded and dropped the coin back into the fountain. Chuckling nervously, she turned to sit up properly and face the girl who spoke. "I'm sure it will come true either way" she said, sitting stiff as a board, "...right?" she added cautiously. She sure hoped so. What if she just crushed someone's dream in that one little instant! No, it was too much to think about.

"Have you ever made a wish in a fountain?" she asked, trying to change the subject without being too obvious. The reaper was never fond of being in trouble. Not that anyone would be...But she hated it like it was a plague.

Smiling back at the girl, she remembered to introduce herself. "My name is Ophelia, by the way."

Ophelia smiled and thanked the girl, Riba, as she reached into the bag for a cookie. "Busy with what?" she asked, before popping the treat into her mouth. She munched on it, savoring the sweet taste and mentally noting it among her list of acceptable treats.

Ophelia herself has made more fountain wishes than she could count. And for all manner of things. Grades, her parents' happiness, a boyfriend, the list goes on and on. Needless to say, most of them didn't come true, but the reaper felt it was worth trying. Each and every time.

Forcing her attention back to the witchling, she wondered, "What -would- you have wished for, if given the chance?"

"A restaurant?" Ophelia said, perking up. "That must have been fun. Busy, but fun, right?" she said. Well, she thought it would be fun. You'd get to meet new people each day! And keeping busy was something that interested the reaper. Being bored was boring! "But how does your family manage when you're here?" she asked, realizing that. But at least Riba had a sister to help out. She wondered if she was older or younger. Do they look like each other?

When asked what she'd wish for, Ophelia opened her mouth and promptly closed it again. It would probably be best not to spew out every little thing she would throw a coin in for. But her ultimate wish was similar to Riba's. "I'd wish for my parents to be proud of me. Though mine sounds a little selfish..." she said, looking away at that point.

Ophelia wondered what it was like, working in a family restaurant. Was it hard to keep family drama out of the workspace? Or were they like a cookie cutter family that always loved each other no matter what. She smiled, thinking of those retro posters of happy families and how ridiculous they looked.

She sat silently for a moment, thinking she's so lucky..to have parents that were already proud of her. But Ophelia was grateful for the subject change, directing her attention away from that personal pain.

"I do," she said at first, before realizing she should add -what- she practiced. "I specialize in debilitation magics. Weakening my foes until I can take them out easily. I'm not too strong physically. And I was never too good at, you know, throwing magic bolts and stuff. So I learned how to make my enemy slower, weaker, more susceptible to certain things, and stuff." she said, playing with the water. She was a little insecure about her choice of magic, you could say. And she chose to leave out her method of casting, as well. It could be seen as quite silly, and the reaper didn't want to look that way to a younger girl who could potentially see her as a role model! It was possible..

Ophelia nodded with a small smile. She admired strong girls. Whether it was the strength of their muscles, their minds, or their hearts. But damsels in distress still held some appeal. In fairytails at least.

"Summoning would be awesome, I think. Like always having a friend to call upon at any given time. Kind of like Alchemia, but these ones can fight with you, protect you." Ophelia said, wondering what manner of beast she would have been able to summon if she chose that field. She also wondered what Riba could summon. Her first thought was a giant fish, since the reaper's eyes fixated on the witchling's snack for a moment. She imagined Riba riding a giant fish into the sunset and giggled.

She then blushed slightly. It seemed more and more people were accepting her choice of magic these days. Even though it was only a couple years since she was in Makai, herself. Perhaps her parents and classmates were just old-fashioned. Or maybe times change quicker than she thought.

"What do you think you'll do when you graduate?" she asked, resting her head on one shoulder.

"Whatever life throws your way, right?" she said, her smile reflecting Riba's confidence. How refreshing it was to see someone unsure of what lies in store for her, but to be completely unafraid of the unknown.

Ophelia peered towards Riba, her head still nestled against her own shoulder. She grinned, "How bout you show off a little and summon something for me?" she suggested, getting a little excited at the thought. She twisted around, suddenly facing the witchling. "Maybe something cute! Definitely something harmless.." she jabbered, having a knack for prodding others to display their talents. She was really hoping for a giant fish now. Right into the fountain. In reality, anything would impress the reaper, even a candle. But the fish...the fish would really take the cake. And maybe take the crackers, too, and eat them or something. Ophelia's imagination began to run wild as she pictured how the entire thing would pan out, giggling to herself again.