[REG] English Projects Suck (Ellie/Ridley)

[LizzyMoo]

It wasn't everyday that Ellie rode around in such a nice neighborhood. The suburbs weren't exactly the right sort of place to let you go as fast as you can in the streets. Heck, she could hardly feel the wind as it went past her as she went as the "safe" speed limit posted every few lamp posts.

However, it wasn't like she was here out of enjoyment. Oh no, that obnoxious Mr. Grenner had assigned a partner's assignment for English class, which required a poster and presentation. Ellie would have thought that a teacher for a senior-level class would have let the student decide, since a decent portion of them were now 18 and legally adults. Nope, Mr. Grenner apparently didn't feel like being so kind. Along with making such an obnoxious project, he chose all partners.

And Ellie was apparently lucky enough to not get paired up with her best friends in class. Jared made plenty of frowny faces when Ellie was in fact paired up with Max. Football scholarship jock-face Max.

As she pulled up to the sidewalk with her motorcycle, she couldn't help but curse at Mr. Grenner. She cut the engine on the Spectrum, since she was now at Max's house. With a practiced roll of the ankle, she kicked down the kickstand, then looked around, helmet still covering her face.

"Eh... safe 'nough I suppose..." It didn't exactly look like the sort of neighborhood where her prized possession would get jacked. With that, she began to make her way to the front door, pulling her helmet off of her head. The tomboy was completely unaware of the fact she was being watched.  

[chirigami]

A motorcycle wasn't terribly uncommon in the neighborhood that the Pendergasts lived in, a couple owned a pair right down the street. One, however, didn't usually park itself right outside their house. And that's what caught Ridley's attention - aside from Dodger sudden barking which could be heard behind the house - from her current activities. The small orange haired girl had been properly getting her after school clothing covered in dirt while going through the bushes in search of the neighbor's cat, Ms Pickles.

"Eh?" Ridley turned, halfway still in the bush when she finally turned to look at the amazing yellow bike now on the curb. "Is that your bike?!" She exclaimed in utter glee as the blonde girl walked up the path to their very door. "It's yellow! That's so awesome!" The nine year old flung herself out of greenery with bits of twigs caught in her hair and shirt and towards the other female, her eyes wide with amazement. "Are you here to see one of my brothers? Max said he had a project going on with some blonde girl he didn't like in class. Is that you? I'm Ridley! And you are?" It was amazing how many questions she had gotten out before she even got right to Ellie.  

[LizzyMoo]

Ellie had only gotten her yellow helmet tucked away under her arm when a high pitched voice hit her ears. High pitched and kiddish. A voice that had asked way too many questions for the blonde to respond to with a smile. As she stepped up to the front door, she turned her head slowly to face this orange haired kid.

The teen bit her lip for a moment, not answering right away. Apparently Max had a younger sister. From what she had gathered in 5 seconds was that this sister was an annoying one.

Releasing her hold of her lip with her teeth, she answered one whole question in a tone that was less than enthusiastic. "Yeah, it's mine." She lifted a hand up and knocked on the door with the back of it. Doorbells didn't have as much life to it as a good old fashioned knock. Her eyes were soon enough back on the kid. "So, Ridley, was it? Tell me what color m'hair is... then tell me what ya think th'answer is to yer question." In all honesty, the tomboy wasn't all that surprised by the fact Max didn't like her. Feeling was mutual in a sense.  

[chirigami]

"You talk funny," Was Ridley's first giggled response as she swayed on the heels of her feet. Her face was full of smiles as she looked the older girl over with wide orange eyes. It took another moment for her to look Ellie up and down again before she tilted her head to the side puzzled.

"Well, its blonde but that still doesn't answer who you are..." she trailed off, attention turning to the door as the sound of footsteps grew louder and louder.

"Ridley?" Came a call on the other side, obviously older and female, "sweetie, the door is open-" which was made apparent when it swung open without the sound of locks being released, revealing said older woman. Obviously Ridley's mother and obviously surprised with who was in front of her. "-Oh. Hello, are you here to see Max?" Obviously the Pendergasts had gotten the details that their eldest son would have a female guest over.

"Mom! She has a super cool yellow bike!" Ridley squealed, her hand pointing frantically at the vehicle.  

[LizzyMoo]

Just before the door opened up, the teen commented "And you ask way too many questions..." It wasn't exactly the most sympathetic tone to her voice. The kid was smiling as if she was just trying to show off every tooth in her mouth. It definitely was enough to grate on the blonde's nerves just a smidge.

Then the door opened up to reveal not her partner in this project, but apparently what Ellie assumed to be his mom. One brow rose up slightly as she couldn't help but take away a respect point. Max was the one expecting the company and he couldn't be bothered to open the door for his own guest? He got his mom to get the door? Somehow, it rubbed her the wrong way.

"Uh yeah..." She shifted slightly in place, pulling her helmet up against her hip slightly. Apparently Mrs. Pendergast was worth an introduction. "...Name's Ellie." With that she extended her right hand out for the classic handshake.

"Hope ya don't mind me parkin' at th'sidewalk, but I didn't think ya wanted me parkin' in yer driveway."  

[chirigami]

Was that a bad thing? Ridley had obviously missed the tone of voice Ellie had used to address her statement, but the simple notion was a little baffling. Questions were how you got answers after all!

"Aa, yes, I do believe he mentioned your name," how her son could have muttered Ellie's name with such frustration was beyond her. The blonde before her had such beautiful hair and complexion, and those eyes! Aa! "I'm Monica," she introduced herself, completing the offered hand shake. For such well maintained hands, she had herself a strong grip.

"I see you've met Ridley," she smiled almost apologetically as the little girl seemed to appear out of no where at her side. Said girl was still beaming up at the newcomer. "And your bike is perfectly fine where it is," Monica assured her, taking a moment to run her hand through her daughter's hair.

"Well, I'll go get Max, he wasn't expecting you until a little later. Ridley, why not show her the study, okay?" She seemed to flash Ellie another 'I'm so sorry,' before she disappeared into the house towards her eldest son.

Without hesitation, Ridley grabbed Ellie's larger hand with her own and gave them a quick swing before leading the blonde into the house, "Okay! Come'on Ellie, its this way!" The door was shut with a swift kick of her foot and they ventured in the opposite direction that her mother had veered off, past a few doors and into large room that had contradicting decor within. On one side seemed what looked like a home office, a computer desk with accompanying computer and organized filing systems. And the other side was bright, painted with flowers and rainbows where a child would most likely be working on art projects; cubbies filled with what looked like art and school supplies and a table in front of them cluttered with papers - which would be, if inspected, unfinished 3rd grade homework.  

[LizzyMoo]

A simple "Nice t'meet'cha," was the reply Ellie managed to squeeze between Monica's words. She also managed a simple "Yeah," to the mention of Ridley.

And faster than Ellie would have liked, she soon enough was babysitting said Ridley. The child's hand dared to touch her free hand, and rather quickly, Ellie yanked said hand back, snapping slightly with a "Look, kid... I can walk myself... jus' show me where I'm goin'..." All this touchy-feely hand-holding made her feel gay. Even more so since it was a little kid who seemed hopped up on sugar.

Making sure to keep her free hand up higher than the kid could reach readily, the stranger to this household followed the child, leaving a reasonable amount of distance between the two of them. Of course, her eyes occasionally strayed to the side, easily noting that this household was definitely much nicer than her own in many ways. Then again, the neighborhood was nicer than her own as well, so it was pretty obvious that the house should have been as well. The moment the two entered the room, the teen set her helmet on the nearby desk, then her backpack came off of her shoulders, and then the jacket came off.

Being ever the role model, the blonde asked "So, ya inta art or some sh*t like that?"  

[chirigami]

The lose of Ellie's hand gave a momentary frown to the child's face, and the way that it had been yanked out of her smaller one was a little bothersome. This girl was very, well... stubborn? She wouldn't say mean, she would never call someone mean, ever, but she couldn't think of a better word really. And, it made Ridley a little sad that she wouldn't be able to guide Ellie through the house like the other guests.

But, no matter! They were where they had intended to go anyways, and it allowed both of her arms to be free to swing along with each step that it took to get to the study. It took a great deal of effort on her part not to make a move on the helmet that Ellie had placed on the desk near them. Seeing her reaction to the hand holding, the older girl probably wouldn't want her touching her stuff. Even if she really wanted to; the helmet was yellow like the bike and it was not a common item in this household, after all.

"Nope!" Profanity had no effect on this child, she had probably heard it all having two older brothers. Ridley collected herself near the end of the table, where the vast majority of the papers were scattered. Plopping herself in the nearest chair, she continued to stare intently at Ellie, "I painted the walls though! It used to look sooooo boring!" It was like bringing out the outside in! If only she could bring real flowers though, that'd be awesome.

"What kind of project are you workin' on?" Her legs were swinging, obviously this kid couldn't sit still.  

[LizzyMoo]

"Borin' how?" casually asked as she crouched down so she could sit right next to her backpack. Grabbing the end of the zipper, she proceeded to open up her well worn bag. Her hand was soon enough on the inside, fishing for what items she probably needed to be remotely helpful with this project.

First things she managed to pull out were various writing utensils, a notebook with various notes scrawled out on it, and then out came the book. It was obviously a school copy that was worn out in need of replacement. Since it wasn't hers, the blonde took the book at hand, then slid it towards the child as best as she could against the floor.

"Shakespeare... specifically, Hamlet... it's yer olden version of a soap opera if ya ask me..." Having pulled out all objects she could have brought with her in her backpack, she zipped the bag up again, then folded her jacket up a bit. "I only like th'last part where everybody dies!"  

[chirigami]

How else would a wall be boring? "It had no colors or the flowers or the rainbows! It was just blank!" Ridley threw her little arms up in exaltation, with her legs now kicking beneath her. If this chair could swivel, you know it would have made at least one rotation.

Orange eyes glanced down at the book that was passed via the floor to her and gently picked it up in her little hands. She frowned at the cover, noting the bland and dull of it. Obviously a bigger kid's book and most likely boring inside as it was out. But, "everyone dies?" There was more intrigue in that tone than disgust as she started to flip through the worn book. The words were way too small and organized in an unfamiliar way. Ridley made a face at some of the part she tried to read. "I don't like that book, it looks hard ..." Closing the book, Ridley held it out for Ellie to take it back.

"We read Charlotte's Web! I liked it even though she dies in the end, but it still had a super happy ending! And the cartoon was really cute!" Ridley was all smiles again and more so when her attention went to the door which occupied a new figure.

Max stood in the frame, watching the two girls. It was hard to see how the two of them were related, given his darker hair and skin tone. But there was something in the facial structure that gave the hints and clues. "Hey," he greeted with a lopsided smile as he entered the room, arms filled with his own notes, book and a few other necessities for the project. "Sorry, didn't know you'd be here so soon." He explained to the blonde girl in the room as he set his things on the table and then took another look at the papers littered around.

"Ree, what is all this?" He asked, pushing some of the papers out of the bulk of the space.

"It's my homework!"

"Why is it all over?"

"Because it was boring, so I put the stuff I didn't want to do further away!" Ridley frowned, collecting the papers that her brother had pushed back to her.

"Well, you have to do it or Mom will get mad."

Ridley pouted, little hands gripping the pages. She sighed, "I know..."

Not to ignore the other female in the room. Max motioned Ellie over to take the remaining seat that he had scooted closer to his side of the table. "Let's just get this over with, right?" He offered a shrug.  

[LizzyMoo]

"That's how my walls at home look. Blank."

There was no filter to speak of when it came from her thoughts to what she said. She shrugged, and when her book was offered, the teen took it back rather easily. In a matter-of-fact tone, Ellie added "Considerin' that Hamlet's supposed t'be a tragedy, don't think there's any room fer a happy endin'! Jus' blood and guts everywhere!"

The moment her peer made his presence known in that room, golden eyes shot to him as if with the sole purpose of glaring daggers at him. In rebuttal of what he had said, the tomboy announced "I said I'd be over at 4 t'day and I was 'ere at 4 t'day." Had she looked at a clock when she got there? No, not really, but her tone seemed to dare him to try to argue with her. As the seat was offered, Ellie stepped forward, set her things on the space in front of her seat, and then made sure to spin the chair around before taking a seat. She couldn't get away with this in school, but this was not school.

Once she was situated, her eyes glanced to the child in the room. "So, is yer sister able t'work on her homework somewhere else?" Alas, subtlety was never this teen's strong suit. "We're gonna need room if we're gonna be makin' a poster..."  

[chirigami]

"Boring." Ridley responded, making a face. The walls in her room weren't as chaotic in their decorating in this room but they had just about the same color scheme going on, just more cats were involved. It was the only response she got in until Max entered the room. She'd probably have to ask her brother later what a tragedy was. Or well, would she?

"What's a tragedy?" She knew the meaning of it obviously, but did it have different meaning when it became a noun? Books were so confusing. Ridley looked between the two of the older occupants, eager for an answer as they got settled into their work.

Max had gotten up from his seat once Ellie got into hers and started shifting through one of the cubbies for a spare poster board and some markers, glue and whatever they'd need. "You're still a little early, it's not even 4 yet." It was barely now, but when Ellie had gotten to the Pendergast residence it was still a time that could not be deemed 4pm. Finding the supplies, he began tossing them on the table behind him.

"She won't do her homework anywhere else, its too distracting for her." Like this situation was any better. A new person alone was a distraction, but it was still better than her room.

"I'll be quiet!" Ridley piped up, eyes wide and hopeful that she would be able to stay. This was a futile promise however. "And take up a little bit of space!"

"Go work at the desk." Max suggested, motioning with his head once he found the poster board.

"But thats the boring side of the room!" Ridley whined.

"Ridley...." Max stressed, narrowing his eyes slightly.

Ridley let out a defeated little sound as she collected her homework in her small little hands and dejectedly pushed herself off her chair and to the colorless side of the study.  

[LizzyMoo]

Ellie was already browsing through her notes after taking a seat. Not being the sort to baby a kid, she offered "Kid... look it up in th'dictionary..." Ellie Spectre was not a walking encyclopedia and had no plans on acting like one at the moment. She did find it necessary to interject a stubborn "I wasn't early," but she suspected it would probably go ignored thanks to the little runt in the room.

Who was apparently staying in this very room. The teenage tomboy let out a heavy sigh, obviously signaling to her momentary partner that she did not approve of this whole babysitting thing. The girl attempted to reassure the teens that she'd be good, but considering the fact Ridley had yet to really shut up since she got there, Ellie called it as she saw it. "Yer not gonna shut up, stop lyin'..."

With that, she began to address legitimate business, one of her own pencils trailing along lazily upon her notes as she spoke. "So yeah... we're supposed t'do a list of th'characters in this scene, the general summary of this scene, supposed t'analyze any specifically important parts in th'scene fer symbolism, foils, an' sh*t like that... and then read a small exert from this scene." There was a pause. "I got dibs on th'list of characters and the summary." Those were the sections that probably required less brain power, especially since their teacher had done such an excellent job summarizing the scene (which she had written down word-for-word in her notes).  

[chirigami]

"Whatever," Max rolled his eyes at the futile debate. He was clearly just getting over the subject of if she was early or not, he more or less just wanted to get this project over and done with so he didn't have to deal with Ellie for that much longer.

So, he turned his attention to his own notes and overly highlighted and marked book. Unlike Ellie, who had a school copy in her possession, Max had taken the household copy of the book which had belonged to his dad from college knowing full well of the highlighted sections and small notes in the margins. Anything to get a leg up, right? Not that Jasper had minded, he kept his old books for a reason afterall. "Oh, so you're giving me the more analytical parts to do, you're so nice Ellie." He frowned.

On the other side of the room sat an unusually quiet Ridley. She was staring at the two of them as they went over their project and she was completely bothered that they were ignoring her. Not to mention, Ellie had said some unkind things to her; she still didn't want to admit that the blonde was mean ... but she was, well, mean. But that didn't entail that the orange haired girl didn't like her, Ridley liked everyone and would win Ellie over!

So, the first thing to do was to totally prove she could be quiet! Even if it was just really really hard! Her little legs swung under the seat, often kicking the middle support of the chair. She could totally do this, she chanted to herself as she spun the chair to proper position so she was facing the desk. But then she pushed off with her hand, making the swivel chair spin and she even dared to let out a little giggle.  

[LizzyMoo]

Where as Max frowned, Ellie found reason to grin. "I'd be lyin' if I said I was an A+ student in English... It'd honestly be in yer best interest if ya wrote those parts." All the blonde cared about was passing the English class. She didn't really slack off so to speak, but she just wasn't any good with the written word. Max would definitely get a better grade if he wrote the more complicated parts.

Thump

"Anyways... t'make up fer it... I guess I could do th'decoratin' fer th'poster... unless yer inta' artsy fartsy sorts 'a things." Who was she kidding? Ellie wasn't all that artistic either. The closest she could get to artistic was what work she did in a garage, not so much making posters and things.

Thump

It took a few more of those thumps to catch Ellie's attention, but soon enough the teen was glaring daggers at the child. Even when being "quiet" she was damned obnoxious.

"So Max, is that computer on? Figger I might as well type up that list of characters, since that's th'easiest part, right?"