Welcome to Gaia! ::

Athalia stayed in the bathroom long after Beck had left. There had been something she wanted to say to Beck, but she couldn't. Beck, like the others, had a view of her that was very different from the truth. What she'd wanted to do was break down in Beck's arms and tell her everything, the pain, the secret depression attacks. Athalia finally decided to step out, but not after checking her make-up again. Her appearance made her sigh deeply in dissatisfaction, someone would notice the severe lack of her usual intricate 'facial art'. Athalia rarely wore anything light, she felt more comfortable with darker colors and black eye shadow. Secrets were easier to keep in the dark. As she walked down the hall people were rushing about, some were crying, or screaming, Athalia even saw a few throwing up. Athalia looked away politely as she passed these people, it was like they'd all been infected with her own inner turmoil. It was then a group of tall, stereotypical blond types, though admittedly attractive female students approached her. One pushed her roughly into a row of lockers.

"You look different witch girl...whats the matter..run out of black shellac for your face?", One of them asked. They had circled her like predators going in for the kill. Athalia knew these girls, they were stuck-up, mean, and liked to pick on anyone who was a bit different. Athalia rolled her eyes and tried to push her way around them, one of them shoved her back. This time her shoulder caught the corner of an open locker, cutting her a bit. Still, Athalia kept her mouth shut. She'd learned the best thing to do was ignore them when they got bored enough to harass her. They liked to call her witch girl for obvious reasons, but also because they said she was as datable as the wicked witch of Oz. This was really the last thing she needed, and something important was going on, she needed to find her friends. "So, did you just get bored or did you cast some sort of spell to cause someone else pain because you're such a miserable freak?", another prompted. Before she realized it was happening, Athalia was all ready speaking back.

"I don't know what you're talking about, you ignorant bimbo", She snapped. Athalia folded her arms in front of herself. "Oh, well maybe that is giving you too much credit...someone just got whacked by a tree branch..if you hurry maybe you can ride in the coroners van with them..that would be like..a limo to you right?", one of the empty headed blonds replied in a cool sarcastic tone. Panic hammered through her heart, had it been one of her friends?! "You sound so sympathetic. Perhaps you should go use this tragedy to your advantage, as I assume you were..", she'd noted the student counselor slips clutched in their palms. "..and go home. Since obviously you aren't learning anything even from a school of this caliber. Since I actually have a heart I'm going to go and see what I can do to help", Athalia's voice was dripping with venom fierce enough even her abusers looked taken aback. She used their stunned confusion as her chance to escape. Even then, when they found the brain power to speak again, it was just to hurl more weak uninspired jibes at her back. "Why don't you go sit in a corner and cut yourself..", were the last words she heard before the babbling crowd covered up their voices. What they'd ever so conveniently forgot to mention, was that it was a teacher who died.

Her seething anger dissipated quickly as she once again remembered the danger at hand, she couldn't even feel the wicked stinging from her shoulder wound. It was replaced by a much more pressing emotion, fear. Athalia found herself running down the hall, not caring as people had to jump out of her way to keep from getting run over. Her eyes searched rapidly through the clouds of emotional students, trying to find her childhood friends. "Please..not one of them!", She chanted. Unfortunately, at the moment when it would have been rather prudent to look directly in front of her, she slammed headlong into a rather well built boy. Athalia lost her balance and fell backward, hitting the floor hard enough to knock the wind out of her. Above her was Beck, a small amount of relief washed over her, and beside her was a boy she didn't know. Athalia pulled herself into a standing position and reached out instinctively to grasp her friend's shoulder so she didn't fall again when the blood rushed to her head. "Thank god you're okay!", Athalia said, her voice was tight with worry.

"Where is everyone else...none of them were the one..were they?", She asked quickly. She didn't mean to ignore the boy beside Beck, but there were more important things at hand.

Athalia's hand covered the gash on her shoulder and for a moment her brilliant eyes burned. But then she shook her head and said, "Nothing he can do about them. Ty can't hit girls" For the briefest second a small smile fluttered over her face as she pictured Ty telling off the 'Blond Trio. Those girls wold be devastated if someone as drool worthy as Del Mauro yelled at them, especially publicly. "There was an accident, a part of a tree fell off and killed somebody...", Athalia explained. "Will you come with me to find everyone..I just want to makre sure it wasn't any of ours..", She asked. Then Athalia took a deep breath and turned to look at the new boy. Like Sky, there was something entrancing about him, but this time it didn't feel so whimsical. It felt wild, and perhaps...even dangerous! Even so, se wasn't going to be very pleasant until she knew the fate of her friends. "I am sorry for interrupting you. And for ramming into you. I apologize", Athalia said. She was dancing around in her head, waiting impatiently to go and seek the fate of the group.

She took her hand off her shoulder and looked at her fingers. They were smudge with a little blood, thank goodness she was wearing black. "My name is Athalia Foxe", Her voice was polite, but she couldn't find the energy to be both warm and welcoming and worried as hell. Her eyes kept looking down the hall, and around them, just in case someone else were to show up. What would they do..if one of theirs died? They were childhood friends, they had all grown up side by side, defending and loving one another..Athalia didn't want to imagine what her life would be like without the,.