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It was Wednesday, and Jada had spent most of her morning skipping class to talk to some of the lawyers about her mother's latest update to her will. Apparently Szelem had the bright idea that if something happened to her, the baby she was pregnant with would have no other guardian but Jada. Which was, technically, true. Zora and Kayley were too young, and Lucas was still a baby. Michael certainly wouldn't raise his ex-wife's b*****d child, the one that came from her ribald love affair with- who knew? Maybe the pool boy, or the mailman. It could have been anyone, Szelem loved to travel. He was probably French- maybe she was weak against guys in berets cooing foreign nonsense in her ear or something? She sure spent most of her time in France, anyway. Who knew? Jada let her purse swing as she walked over the sidewalk, heading for one of the local lunch restaurants. Something cheap and quick- there was a pretty good Italian place nearby, and she had brought a toothbrush. She had an hour before she was due back, though she knew the lawyers were expecting her to bail. What 18 year old girl wanted to think about being a mom to a kid that wasn't even hers?

She could have ridden public transportation, but she had never had a good experience with those things, and a taxi would take too long. Besides, it was an oddly gorgeous day, if a little chilly. She could have driven, but her car had been stolen and wrecked. The vehicle had been a birthday gift, and she had been shoving off Michael's attempts to get her a replacement. After all, if she let him buy her a car, he might expect her to feel indebted enough to stop slipping the bodyguards he kept trying to send her way. Especially after the last little 'injury' she had suffered. Jada was running out of good excuses for why she was being beaten up. She'd never been a violent girl, and even now she was very conscious of her appearance. When you are raised with the expectation of perfection, it really galls when you can't meet your own standards, she decided. Elysion had kicked her butt, hard-core. No one was going to try and kidnap her, hardly, right? She was a little old to be held for ransom. As for her stalker, well... okay, Zora and Marlo had been the ones to take care of that, but it had all turned out okay in the end. (Except for him.)

Jada stepped up onto the next level of sidewalk, her five-and-a-half-inch Gucci pumps clicking over the sidewalk. She was wearing a pencil skirt and a blazer, the skirt ending just above her knees. Thigh high hose, the lacy tops ending not long up her leg from where the skirt ended. It had been a long time since she'd really had a cause to dress to impress, and she had forgotten how very feminine it made her feel. It was kind of disappointing that she'd ended up dressing for the sharks. She dressed for clubs and she dressed for school, but clubs and school weren't places one dressed just to make yourself feel classy. You sold yourself at clubs, and at school you wanted to be comfortable. She hardly needed to dress up to go to the gym, and for all the nightlife that she actually got, her fuku did just fine. (She did need to figure out why she kept striking out at the clubs though. Was she that unapproachable?) Oh, there were the charity banquets, and the art opening, but they happened so rarely these days, and the last art show she'd been to ended in a youma attack.

Where was that restaurant, anyway? It was supposed to be four... or was it five... blocks up from the lawyer's office, and then take a left, and go two more blocks. Casa Dora? Casa Doro? She ignored one of the men digging through the trash can and humming to himself. It was depressing, but she didn't have any cash or any real patience today. Oh, that was gross. She sped up as he took a bite of a burger he'd gotten out of there, apologizing as she bumped into another woman. Sometimes she really hated Destiny City. Her hair was tangling- why was Downtown so windy?

More importantly, why was she lost?

Jada was maybe there? Or maybe she'd gone the wrong way entirely, because this area was starting to look terribly close to residential. This was not where she wanted to be. She wanted to be at... East Bay Street, right? This was... Ah, hell, weren't there even any street signs anymore? She was seething when she turned the corner, no longer on the hunt for Italian, but a hunt for her location. She'd gone how many blocks? And had she already taken that left? The sound of catcalls drew her attention, and she looked around. Nope, not for her. The crowd of men was surrounding someone else, a pretty redhead whose stance said that she would be spitting acid and ice chips if the guys got too much closer. She would walk forward, and they would follow her, keeping her in a loose circle. It was like, she decided, a bad nature movie, where the sharks were circling their prey, waiting until it got tired to take their first nibble. Then, knowing sharks, the prey would be left hobbled and partially digested, while the sharks fought over who got to finish it off, and then they would eat each other and the dolphin would be without a fin, or the lower half of its body.

Okay, maybe that was a little morbid. Or maybe Jada was really, really hungry.

The girl was in a Meadowview outfit, item #1 that made Jada's hackles rise. The guys should be in school themselves, but they were what- DCU age? Maybe Sovereign Heights, but judgmentally speaking they didn't look all that smart. The redhead should still be in school, anyway, but there were any number of reasons she wasn't. One of which was the creepy guys sharking her.

Now, Jada could have turned and walked away from this all, and found her way back down the street, and turned a blind eye to the guys picking on some chick. It probably happened all the time. But if her instincts were right-- and they probably weren't-- this girl might be a local. This girl might know where Casa Whatever was. Jada might get her Italian, and her delicious cream-filled Cannoli. All for the low low cost of being a human being. Her heels clicked up the sidewalk, and she peeked inquisitively past the arm of one of the taller men, beaming at the strange girl. "There you are!" She moved into the circle, saying a polite 'excuse me' to one of the guys she accidentally touched. Ugh, she'd have to wash that. "I've been looking for you, sweetheart. I'm starving." Now, Jada was dressed to kill, but there was one major, major issue with her that the girl-- and her friends-- would notice when they looked at her. She looked like she'd been in a fistfight with a bear. Her eye was black and green, still swollen and puffy, the color spreading down her cheek. Her lip was still split, her face bruised up. They could have taken this as 'she's an easy target,' but Jada was very careful to size each of them up and then look away dismissively. (She might have won against said bear?)

Her mental focus was really just focused on making sure the girl she was wrapping her arm around, resting her chin on top of the red head, didn't elbow her in her bruised ribs. "When you said we were going to be having a special lunch, sweetheart, I didn't know we were coming out to your friends." Oh yeah, her ribs were going to be hurting some more. And she'd deserve it, too.

Oh, good! This was a smart one. Jada's ribs didn't have to hurt after all. Ugh, the redhead's hair was sickeningly soft. She'd have to ask what conditioner she used later, because Jada could never get her hair to- oh. Right. The guys. She glanced back their way, watching them carefully. Some of them were leering, and if they were dogs, they might be wagging their tails. Men were gross, right. That's why she couldn't get one to stick with her. She tore apart their manners something fierce. On a date, you didn't have to respect your elders, after all. "Well if you've been telling them you don't want to be friends," Jada's voice was a surly pout, and she tightened her arms on the redhead, "Why haven't they buzzed off and left you alone?" The question was not directed at the girl encircled in her arms, but pointedly aimed at the guys in front of her. "Are you saying we could have been at the restaurant already?" Her face was decidedly unfriendly.

Her stomach rumbled loudly, as though to reinforce her words. "Baby, I'm hungry." She let go of the other girl at last, instead reaching out and taking her by the hand. "We've got to go, I'll be late from lunch. You know I don't have that long. I'm so hungry I could eat a cow." she didn't look at the men as she moved towards the edge of guys, pulling the stranger by the hand. She squeezed it reassuringly, stopping at the edge of the circle when it did not open immediately. "You're in our way." She said it politely, an undertone of steel. "I'd appreciate you getting out of our way. I have to get back to work soon."

Jada wasn't tall by any means, and the sight of her heels likely reinforced that. She probably wasn't much bigger than the other girl, after all, and much curvier. And really, who couldn't leave a bruise like that on a woman's face? It probably hadn't been a bear, just a really bad fight with her girl's ex or something. Chicks were scrappy, right? Maybe her girlfriend had left it on her-- the redhead seemed pretty scrappy too. Still, she was dressed pretty nice to just have a common job downtown. That was a suit and all. Not business casual.

If asked, Jada wouldn't be able to explain it. She would suppose presence could be another word for a sense of entitlement, which Jada had in spades. There was never a doubt in her mind they would move- why wouldn't they? So when the girl shot her the smile, Jada smiled back, easily sliding her arm around the other woman's shoulders. The Hmph made her smile, and so she bestowed it on the last guy they passed, flicking up her eyes away from where she was going only briefly towards his face. "Thanks." she said breezily.

The other girl slung her arm around Jada's waist and they walked together, Jada taking care to pace her strides to the other girl's. "I was thinking maybe Italian." she said finally. "There are supposed to be a couple places around here, right? I have about..." she lifted her hand, checking the gold watch on her wrist. Diamonds sparkled in the sunlight, and she checked the time. "Probably about 45 minutes. Technically. You know I'll be late if you want something nice." Aka- I'll make sure you get where you want to go. Who knew if the other girl would catch it? If nothing else, Jada could get a taxi for her. She knew where an ATM was, if the other woman didn't have cash.

What was the girl doing so far away from Meadowview if she sad to be back in only 45 minutes? Was she skipping? But really, who would skip in their school uniform? It invited trouble-- and *****>, as Zora would say. "Keep walking." Jada murmured back lightly. "I have a restaurant in mind, and I don't think they'll mess with us, even if they do follow. We can turn at this corner and go straight for a while." No pun intended. Finally she said, "Sorry I was so touchy. Your hair does smell good though." she gave the other girl a wry smile, trying to lighten a little of the tension.

She wasn't offended when the girl scooted away. "I promise, I'm not actually a lesbian, nor do I have cooties." The other woman couldn't have looked less thrilled about their brief interaction; Jada didn't sound mean about it when she said it, but gave the other woman a wry smile. "Anyway, Casa Doro, Casa Dora, you saw it? I've been really wanting to go there for lunch, but I think I mixed up my streets. I never could get them right when I worked down here." It had made her late from her dinner breaks when she worked at the library-- more than once. Now that the redhead had moved away, Jada went back to casually swinging her purse. "Think you could shoot me directions? And if you want to join me, I'll pay. A thank-you for the directions." Poor girl looked all sorts of stressed out.

"Jada." she said finally, and took the other woman's hand briefly in a firm handshake. Her hands were soft, well-manicured, the nails french-tipped. The wrist that was exposed as her sleeve rode up bore a small ring of bruises, almost like fingers. It was faint, as was the trace of powder on her sleeve insinuating it had been covered up with makeup.

Her back was starting to ache in the deep muscles. She'd been stepped on by rock people, less than a week ago. While Dr. Amberlin had told her it looked worse than it was, the woman had still given her some painkillers. And it was one of those pills that Jada popped now, opening her purse and pulling out a prescription bottle.

People were staring at Jada and Kirin as they walked by, mostly at Jada's face. She didn't even seem to notice, head held high. You always kept your head high, after all. Only people who had something to be ashamed of or were naturally subservient lowered their head while they walked. Jada was neither subservient nor ashamed. Was she supposed to be embarrassed by the bruises? Well, most would probably think so. Pride kept her head tilted up, eyes lingering on no one but her companion-- and that out of courtesy, since she seemed to be so uncomfortable. "How long had they kept you for?" she asked, frowning and glancing back behind them. No one seemed to be following them, but you never knew.

Jada grinned back at the other woman, some tenseness in her shoulders relaxing as she admitted that it wasn't personal. "See, I'm a toucher, myself. I wave my hands, poke people, cuddle kittens, I just love contact." she shrugged at him. "Makes it real tough in my business." In the corporate world, touching was frowned upon. Sexual harassment suits and all that. At the corner Kirin pointed out, Jada turned an obedient right. "I could consider the directions a thank you, but you taking me to food instead of leaving me to curl up and die in a dramatic ball is a real favor." Besides, what was $10-$20 more anyway? "And I could never make it back to the lawyer's office without first finding where I'd come from in the first place. I might have found myself in the 'burbs, with no bank around to pull out some cash."

Closing the bottle, she popped a single pill into her mouth and swallowed. "I'd rather get it started in my system now. I'll have food in my stomach before it kicks in." Ugh, that pill tasted gross going down, but that was her own fault. She dropped the bottle back in her purse and tugged out her cell phone, checking it on instinct. Attached to the antenna was a single octopus tentacle, blue and ceramic. No missed calls, no missed texts. On the back of her phone was the picture of a cat, being held by a

It took her only a moment to send a text to her closest friends: Audrey, Elke (she removed her name a moment later), Elzo, Fallon, Johnny, Marlo and Zora. 'Apparently, my lesbian-ness can make men take a step back. Off to Casa Doro for some ravioli (or veal) and a cannoli. Did you know they make them chocolate too?' And then she slipped the phone away, the tentacle charm sneaking away with it. "So what were you doing all the way up here?" The girl had probably known it was coming. "I didn't know Meadowview let their kids off campus for lunch."

Jada grinned at Kirin, eyes crinkling at the corners as she tried not to laugh. "Sometimes." she agreed. "But goodness no, I'm at the lawyers because of Mother." she waved her hand. "I'm in business, though I do most of my 'work' through simply going to school." After all, until she was 27 she would not have full command of her inherited assets from her grandfather. She tossed her head, curls flying out in the stiff downtown breeze. Ugh, sometimes she just wanted to chop her hair off. Still, it was one of her many vanities, and a favorite, so it stayed, though wind and through headaches. "Yes, this is my baby." she told him, and pulled back out her phone to give him a better look at the toyger. "His name is Castor."

Eyes sparkled at the brief face that the other girl made. 'Ack' was the noise someone made when they were in deep trouble and about to think up a quick story. Oddly, hers had a ring that Jada could sympathize with. "Still, you might want to think about at least attending. I hear that some teachers are allowed to fail you if you don't go. I know they can in college, too." She shrugged, to try and tell the other girl that she wasn't preaching. It would just suck to have to go a third year. "You could try and get your G.E.D?"

Pick-up line? Jada turned her full attention to the other woman, looking her carefully up and down as she asked if they had met. "Oh!" Jada said after a minute. "You came to the S.A.D. Party this year, didn't you?" Yes, she'd been the one in that adorable bluey-teal top, right? "You were wearing, kind of...a peacock color."

What kind of business could she admit to being in? The Montgomery family, mostly the wicked Victor and his son Lucian, had primarily been in the business of buying up ailing companies, chopping them into pieces, and selling the pieces for more than they were worth. Her father, on the other hand, had his hand in so many different pies it wasn't really funny. Imports, Exports, all of it carefully legal, though some of it was very close to being not. If there hadn't been careful cultivation of local politicians after Szelem jilted her fiancee to marry Michael, there could have been any number of issues. "Investments." she finally said, finding it appropriately vague. "Buying things cheap, selling it inflated. And yes, I do go to school, full time." She could have said she worked in security, since her senshi duties were at times close to being a full time job of their own. Investments sounded better, and fit her physical profile better as well.

The girl beamed at Kirin when she said that she liked Jada's cat. "Castor is my baby. We picked him up as a stray one night. He was just a few weeks old, too. Who would let such a precious cat as this one roam the streets? And Toygers are not cheap animals!" If Jada was going to be alone forever, she would probably end up filling the holes in her life with cats and adopted babies. In her hand her phone buzzed, once and then twice, and she glanced down, checking the message. Marlo. 'You know you could have called and have gotten me to make you some real Italian food right?' the first message said, followed by, 'What lesbian-ness?' The heiress grinned at her phone, dropping it back in her purse. She'd let him sweat it for a while. Her friends were fun to mess with. "Cats can be pretty low maintenance, and for a girl on her own, the company can be worth it. But if it is against your lease..." she frowned. "Maybe you could ask?"

Ah! There was Casa Doro! She reached out, taking the other girl by the hand, tugging her along. "Here it is!" She waited until the car had passed and pulled the other woman with her across the street. "I know how hard it can be, I really do. I just graduated last year from Crystal." Or she would have if she hadn't been in a coma. "Do you know they canceled senior prom?" Jada gave Kirin an outraged look. "Another reason you should go to school. Prom dress shopping. Two, please." she told the hostess, not stopping to take a breath. The restaurant was nice. Not the place for a schoolkid, but not the kind of place that would ask questions. "And yes, the Singles Party was mine." she grinned at the other girl. "It will just get grander, you know. I have nothing to do but work and plan parties until Castor beings me home a daughter-in-law and some grandbabies."