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Elke moped.

Well, it wasn't really moping. It was more... sitting quietly in the empty theater, aisle seat around the middle, where she sat during the nearly constant flow of assemblies. Memorials, she reminded herself, they were memorials. For dead students. Dead people her age.

That sort of thing just wasn't supposed to happen! So far no one she really knew had died - Tara, the girl who had helped Giselle with the blood mystery, maybe. And everyone was aware, if nothing more than aware, of Benson Beldon. But these were all her schoolmates. Her friends, except in the rare case where they had proved themselves not friends, and even then she would still mourn their passing.

There were other people to care for, and with any luck this was the end of that outbreak. It would be, of course it would be! Elke rubbed her eyes and stood up to look around. The auditorium was almost empty, except for one green head down near the front rows...

Cautiously, Elke approached. Maybe the girl wanted to be left alone? It never hurt to ask, so she did: "Serenade? You okay?"

Oh, that was not a fine tone. It was not. Even Elke could not deny that. And it was her duty, as Serenade's Friend, to cheer up the other girl! She dropped into the seat next to Serenade and found her very best smile, because this was serious business so she needed the serious artillery.

"You're lying to me," said Elke, but it wasn't an accusation, it was more of a yeah I am going to be sitting here and talking to you and trying to help. "D'you wanna talk about it?" That was clearly Elke saying We're going to talk about it. Also unspoken was that hugs would be dispensed, and probably sage advice that Elke didn't quite understand herself, or even want to understand. But this was Serenade, who was supposed to have been going around asking people what love was.

Elke wondered if Serenade had had a crush on one of the dead students. Then she wondered which one it was, because there were a bunch of students dead and a bunch of different ways to fall in love.

She pursed her lips, then flung one arm over Serenade's shoulders. "It is no bother," said Elke, carefully directing her attention up at the stage and the red curtains and the pictures of the dead students with the flowers. The guidance counselors and nurses had been up there, all do not do anything drastic, if you feel sick or suicidal come to us, we will help you but like hell would she ever go to the nurses for anything. They were creepy as anything, with their. Blood stuff. and all that.

"I totally know what you mean," she said. "Like ten people in a week. That's too many, isn't it? It's definitely scary, but It Will Be Alright." Elke said this with the conviction only Elke Arma could possibly have. "See," she continued, "As long as they are remembered, it'll be like they aren't really gone. Or something like that."

That she had ripped from a Facebook posting.

"D'you need a hug," she asked, because Serenade looked like she totally did.

Elke patted the shoulder under her hand. "I heard about that," she said, all falsely cheerful. "Um... I guess that..." She found it very difficult to come up with an up side to death. Even in this case, she didn't think it would help Serenade cheer up if she said at least they're together.

Maybe they knew the other was dying and that's why the other one died. That would be romantic, and while not positive, better than... nothing.

"It'll be okay. I bet the school starts immunizing us soon. I heard there's one for bacterial meningitis, my parents made me get it before I came here to the States." She nodded, as if this was the Gospel Truth. "Well, the most common strain I guess, since I think maybe there are more strains, I've heard of diseases like that, but it will be fine, no one else will die. Barren Pines is good about this."

Wasn't it?

A subject change might be tactful, she thought. "How are you doing with your..." Piano? Serenade played piano, right? "...music??"

Hmmm... Elke didn't know that she was doing too well at cheering up poor Serenade. Which was rather disconcerting since normally she did okay at it. Maybe she should ask Serenade to hang out with her. That would be fun, wouldn't it?... wouldn't it?

"Hey, let's go outside," said Elke, standing up all of a sudden and offering Serenade both hands. "It's kind of gloomy but, you know, fresh air, right? And it's better than in here. It's kind of morbid in the auditorium right now."

Not the most tactful she'd ever been, but probably the best idea she could have had. "I speak languages," she reminded the green-haired girl. "Silly."

"Don't be sorry," said Elke, breezy as you please like her talent was forgotten every day. Considering it was mostly useless here in America, it probably was. "Piano skills are much, much cooler! You can probably like entertain people at parties or something, and what can I do? Nothin'. At all. It's lame!"

Actually she was really proud of her language-speaking skill. Only she wanted to make Serenade feel better for forgetting, so she'd beat it down. That was what it took sometimes... "I speak five languages," she said as she pushed open the door to outside. "English, French which is my first language, German and Spanish and Italian. I'm gonna learn Mandarin Chinese next. And maybe Russian. I bet that'd be cool."

It was a little chilly out, just a little bite in the air that was the universe's way of letting Elke know it was fall. "Thanksgiving break is soon. Are you going home?"

Elke laughed, turned a bright bright smile on Serenade. "Thanks," she said, "That means a lot to me." Her sincerity could not be more painfully obvious, and she grabbed the other girl's hand to pull her further along the path.

"Oh, lucky you," sighed the bluenette, "I bet it'll be nice to be with the family again, right? I have to stay. Maman and Papa are traveling in Asia and won't be anywhere near an airport by the time I have to get back." She slowed down again, looked suspiciously at a particular bush, and then hurried past it. "What does your family do for Thanksgiving?"

"D'you have tuuurkey?" Elke drew out the word, a wistful note in her voice. "We don't celebrate Thanksgiving, really. 'Cause we're French, sorta, only we came from America and Papa just likes being French."

Pause; a shifty look and she whispered, "We're actually half-Spanish," in a suitably horrified tone. Those crazy Spaniards, with their ripoff of Italian language! Well! It made her unhappy, it did. "Yeah, people will be staying with me. I know Giselle Petrova, she helps me with History, she'll be staying because she wants to study. You know what that means? That means she'll make me study, too. What a way to spend break!"

Elke laughed, the sound much easier in tone than it really was. She didn't want to stay at Barren Pines for the holidays. Not with blood-students and scary catthings and ladies with broken legs climbing the stairs. Only she also didn't want to distress Serenade anymore, so she would pretend she was happy about it.