Welcome to Gaia! ::

When Beth heard that there was a beach on the grounds of the Prytaneum, she promised herself that she would check it out, if not actually get out there and swim. Then she promptly forgot it existed amidst the "oh god oh god help us there's monsters and fighting and MUD" flurry of their missions. And of course when she both remembered that they were on the edge of one of the Great Lakes--ish and had the leisure time to actually visit it, winter had set in. Some days were mild with only a chill in the air--Beth was sure this was an effect of the magic that surrounded the Prytaneum--while others were brutal lessons in lake effect snow.

Today was one of the former kind of days. Beth merely needed thick socks, a draped shawl, and boots to make her black dress a winter one. It was a more casual look than she was used to, but she supposed sometimes she had to trade the lace in for wool. If only she had learned that lesson when it came to missions.

Beth made her way carefully through the sand, still stubbornly wearing heels for the extra couple of inches they gave her in spite of her increased chances at broken ankles. She held a yoga mat tucked under one arm and a book in the other hand. Nothing like a breeze and the soft lapping of waves to enhance a reading. If there were others on the sand, Beth paid no heed as she unrolled her mat and sat upon it, ready to be immersed in the land of reformed rakes and the spirited heiresses they loved.

Beth hadn't quite settled into her book when she was pulled from it by a pretty blonde woman. She blinked up at the girl, then to her sketchpad, then down to her own boots. "Thanks!" She hesitated, then marked her place and put the book down next to her. "I was going to say that I hadn't seen you around! Not that I know everyone on the grounds anything like that. I'm not a social butterfly. I mean, I have friends and stuff, you know, I'm not that awkward and...." She trailed off, frowning slightly at herself. She wasn't exactly some freshman trying to impress the upperclassman here. After all, hadn't she and Sylvia talked about being equals here at the Prytanaeum?

She took in and then let out a quick, bracing breath, then started rising to her feet, saying, "I'm Beth, it's a pleasure to--OH!" She wobbled a bit in the sand, her heels not providing the same stability that they would have had they been on, say, concrete or even grass. After a dangerous moment where she wasn't sure if she would fall or be able to stand, she sat back down heavily on her yoga mat. Wincing at the very un-smooth move she had just executed. "--meet you. I'm a Hera Chosen."

Though she wondered if Hera was beginning to regret that choice.

Beth gave Lark a grateful smile when she didn't comment on her general sporadic nature, especially since it had sent her almost sprawling. She just shook the girl's hand, and made a show of moving herself and her book over so that there was space for a second person to sit. She didn't fancy craning her neck up for long. And it looked like Lark had personal items of her own--was that a sketchbook Beth spied?--and might appreciate the ability to set down her burden.

"Pleasure to meet you, Lark!" She paused, considering her question, then said, "It's a peacock feather! He's Her sacred bird." She fiddled a bit and pulled the pin from under the folds of her jacket. She had put it on a chain to wear as a necklace when poking holes in her clothes became less than ideal. "See? They say She took the eyes of one of Her favorite servants after he was slain and put them in the tail of the peacock." She quickly ran through the litany of other Chosen she knew and could not recall a Dionysus among them. "I have to say, this is a first for me as well! I don't believe I know another Chosen of Dionysus."

Beth folded her legs half under her as she faced Lark now sitting next to her. She tilted her head as she looked at the crest. Though she knew it couldn't possibly help, she offered, "It reminds me of a dragon egg. Like, from Game of Thrones? Or maybe a pine cone." She paused, rolling her words around, then blushed a bit. "But that couldn't possibly be it." What was she thinking? The Dionysus symbol, a pine cone. Really.

If she'd wanted to impress the "new girl," she had no hope of it now.

Happy for the change of subject, Beth pressed a well manicured finger to her bottom lip as she thought. "Probably six months or so?" She wasn't sure how to answer Lark's second question. "I...guess so?" Now that she thought about it, she hadn't really left the Prytaneum except for missions. Certainly not for classes. It was a sobering thought.

"What about you? Do you have a degree or job to fall back on? Or distract you?" She giggled, to show that she was trying to keep things lighthearted and leaned her cheek on her hand, letting the sigil drop back on its chain.

Beth joined in the laughter when it became clear that she and Lark had had the same brainwave. "Yeah, totally! Grapes would have made so much sense to me! I guess that's why I'm not Dionysus!"

Beth thought back to her entrance during the summer. June and July already felt lifetimes away. "I guess I'd call it a rush. There must have been like 50 of us? I don't know. I'm bad with numbers. I also think I zoned out during the tour, to be honest. Everything was so new and strange but also the same? it was like...going off to a sleep-away camp or a new college." She gave Lark an apologetic smile. "I didn't think about it, but it makes sense that people are arriving and getting recruited all during the year. We have missions we go on, and it doesn't really seem worth it to get embroiled in a job or a degree if we'll be gone for a couple of weeks without warning." There was also the fact that facing her old life was not something she was ready for, yet, even with all the thought she'd put into it.

"An artist! That's so cool! Do you have a specialty or a preferred medium?"

Beth's expression faltered for just a moment as Lark turned her question back on her. "I, um, I got a comparative lit degree. But I also was in the Museology program at the University. I wanted to curate exhibits on fashion through time, but. Hera called." She idly pulled the pin back and forth along the chain, the grinding of metal on metal lost in the sound of the waves. It was hard, talking about the past. But, in the end, wasn't it more important for its effects on the future? "Most of my time here has been spent kind of settling in to the role. It's a huge lifestyle change. I don't think any of us were quite prepared for how much." She hoped she came off more contemplative than maudlin.

Beth's mind whirled as she tried to place the name "Rob," but she was unsuccessful. "I mean, do you really have to worry? All He can make you lose is your mind." It had meant to be a light joke, but somehow Beth didn't think her delivery conveyed the tone.

"It certainly feels packed! It's a sight to see when they have to mobilize us altogether. Not to overstate things."

"Oh, those can be so hard! My mom liked charcoal a lot, but she gave all of that--" Beth's expression became slightly panicked. Her next words came out a bit sharply. "I like coloring books myself. Just don't ask me to shade or make it look realistic or anything!" Her laugh was equal parts nervous and self-deprecating.

"I was only halfway through, so I don't think anything I could put together right now would be anything to write home about." Her smile was a bit sad and her hand automatically went to scratch at her opposite forearm. "The last couple of missions were pretty intense. We'll see what the next one brings."

Beth gave Lark a polite but distant smile, more an acknowledgement of her good intentions than an expression of mirth. Taking in a bracing breath, Beth began, "Well, our first mission took us to the Alps where we had to defend some stranded people from metal bird things." It cost her some effort to keep her hand from scratching the skin beneath, even as she felt the scars flare at her memory. "Um, and then we went to Louisiana to stop Circe from...turning people into animals, I guess? I'm not telling you the story right." She paused, casting around for something safe to tell her companion. "I got turned into a Dormouse?" She offered.

Beth was silent. Being a dormouse had been a chaotic haze of terror mixed with bright patches of warmth. But some crazy part of her had preferred it to being, well, her. "Yeah, intense would be a good way to describe it." She colored at the girl's words. "Well, I wouldn't exactly call myself a hero, but, I guess that's what we were Chosen to do, right? Save the world? Or the pieces of it that we can get to." She had the sense to keep her lips closed over the following thought: 'And hope we get there in time.' "You'll see the next time we go out. And I'm sure you'll do wonderfully."