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Alone. She was alone. Blessedly alone. Just how she liked it. She didn’t need anyone. Didn’t want anyone. Didn’t have anyone… except that wasn’t quite true anymore. At least not according to the courts. Dessie stopped her pacing to stare out the french doors in her room, studying the crappy weather and smashing the desire to fling the doors open and go running into the night. When Xander offered her the chance to be his adopted daughter the blond balked at the idea. She didn’t need help, or want it. She was fine on her own. But after months of spending more and more time with the Jacobs she came to realize that they weren't half bad. They didn’t push, they didn’t harass, they didn’t hurt her. They were good people, so she took him up on it, after all if she was officially adopted she couldn’t get picked up by cops as a runaway, truancy maybe but not by being a runaway. So here she was, pacing back and forth in the room they gave her… her room. No one else's but hers. Trying to squelch the desire to run and never look back, to keep running until the end of time.

Her belly growling gave her a damn good reason to stick around though. One she wasn't willing to just shrug off. Even after quite a few meals Dessie hadn't forgotten the way hunger gnawed on your very soul so without a word the young blond, just barely 15, turned away from the doors to the outside world and made her way out into the upstairs hall. She had plans to raid the fridge like she had done countless times but that was put on hold when she noticed light coming out of the open doorway of Lily’s room. She wasn't here. There should be no light and that door shouldn't be open.

Suspicious, yet cautiously she approached. Dessie was still trying to get true feel of the household. Trying to understand the comings and goings of everyone down to the gardner so it was possible it was just a cleaning lady or something. So when she came to a stop in the doorway she remained quiet, observing the feminine figure staring out into the darkness much like Dessie had been doing moments earlier. It was pretty clear that the person definitely wasn't dressed for manual labor, her own clothing was more expected for labor of some sort with the large worn shirt and patched jeans. Narrowing her eyes she asked quietly, “what are you doing here?” Still unsure if they really meant to be here Dessie hovered in the door, more than willing to fight if it was needed.

The voice which spoke out from behind him wasn’t one he knew, he knew Lily and Rose’s voices, so was it the niece he now had? He really hadn’t been planning on this meeting, not till everyone was home and then they could explain that he was a sibling and yet not by blood. Shaking his head, just a bit, he turned slowly. He didn’t want to spook her, or anything else.

“I was hoping Lily was home, but it seems she’s out. I’m doing what all little brothers do - poking about her room.” He stated with something of a smile twitching the corners of his lips upwards. “Though I’m not a brother by blood I might as well be.” Shrugging he took a bite from the apple, the last bite, and held the apple core in his hand.

“I’m hoping Xander, or someone, mentioned me. I’d be offended if they didn’t.” And he’d seriously pout at them and have words with them - he really would. He’d grown up with the Jacob’s family so to not be mentioned would hurt, which is why he doubted such would ever happen. “I’m Alexandre.” Alex for short, something he used to never like but he’d gotten used to. He knew his name was longer than it needed to be and while he’d always had his teachers in high school use his full name, and even in university, he had lightened up with friends and family...which was an improvement from when he was younger. Was this him growing up? Damn it...he was getting old.

Little brother? Dessie tracked the fellow’s movements, taking everything but showing nothing of the surprise she felt as the guy explained why he was here. She thought she had met all of the Jacobs. The parents, the older sister… everyone. She knew though that there were others that were close family friends, Ian was kind of like that even though he lived in the basement. Apparently this guys was like that. She frowned slightly as she tried to remember being told about a blond boy who looked like a girl but it wasn’t until she heard his name that it was like a light went off. Yes. They had told her about him. Explained that he was like a brother and that he had free run of the whole place. They had told her to expect him to be around, this just happened to be the first time she saw him so never connected the pictures she had seen with the person standing in front of her.

“Your shorter in real life,” She said before turning on her heel and starting back to the stairs. If he was meant to be here she didn’t care. She didn’t mind that he was wandering the house like he owned it. It wasn’t like she was really a part of this world. A part of this family…. Nope, not at all. Besides she was hungry and short of the world ending, food came first. What did she care if some guy wandered around, poking into places that one would think were off limits. It wasn’t like it was her room, or her bag. If it had been then it would have been a different situation.

Dessie couldn’t help the look she tossed at Alexandre, one of surprise and a touch of amusement. A brow risen due to the nickname while her icy blue eyes once more swept the figure of the guy, she could see how he got that name. Small, blonde, and pixie like. He really was like the little fairy from Peter Pan. With a silent smirk she started down the stairs, not caring that he was following. Still keeping her own counsel she strode into the kitchen and started to raid the fridge. Plenty of material for a sandwich, all of which she spread out on the counter.

She was already putting together a decent snack when the short male mentioned relationships. She scoffed and sneered at his comment. “Relationships are useless.” All they did was tie people down and give others targets, ways to cause you pain. Dessie stacked more on the bread even as she thought of how relationships could wrap you up in sticky threads like a fly caught in a web, struggling against the inevitable doom of the spider descending to suck out the life from you. If you didn’t have those ties you couldn’t be hurt, they couldn’t be used against you. That's why she didn’t care about Xander or Lily or the way they took her in when she had nowhere else to go. It was why she didn’t care why there was a strange man wandering around or why she didn’t mind sticking around a little longer. After all it wasn’t like she cared if they would get hurt if she suddenly left.

Having followed her right into the kitchen he went to toss away the apple core, and help himself to another apple. “They can be, and I had thought so to a degree. I honestly could never stand people throwing themselves at other people in public, it’s rather annoying. There is little need to flaunt a relationship for other people to see. However in private a relationship isn’t a bad thing.” He’d dated a few people by now and knew that they weren’t all that bad, though he was still against public displays of idiocy as he liked to call such public acts of affection. He also was a bit iffy on dates, he figured it depended on where and what took place.

“I’ve learned they can also teach you things, you can learn to temper certain aspects of yourself while embrace others in order to become a bit better of a person - to grow. You also learn from mistakes in how to deal with people of various personalities. There are, of course, downsides.” Shrugging as he sat himself down at the island in the middle of the kitchen. “I’d say there are downsides to most things though - comes with living.” Shrugging his shoulders he took a bite of the apple, enjoying the juice that hit his tastebuds and the crunch sound, very satisfying.

“There is a reason that some of the worst fights happen between friends or partners - you learn about them...their weaknesses. The same, or similar, can be said for people of similar personality. Deal with one closely and you know how to deal with someone else of similar personality.” Winking toward the blond as he took another bite from the apple. “You can learn to use and manipulate people if you need to.” He really shouldn’t be saying such things, teaching her such things, he knew Lily or Xander would kick his a** if they heard him right now and Rose might as well...maybe not. The other two for sure would though, and he wasn’t sure which one would be worse honestly. Oh well.

Dessie just snorted in derision, “You mean change yourself for someone else. Molding your personality into something that is no longer true just to please some person. No good ever comes from relationships.” With more force than was necessary she sliced through her sandwich before putting the sharp knife in the sink. A small part of her had pictured that knife sliding into and across something much more bloody than bread, lettuce, and meat thats for sure. “Life in general is a downside.” She returned everything to its proper place with a stiffness and a anger that most likely wouldn’t have noticed as she contemplated everything that had brought her to this place. Everything from the beatings to the injuries, from the cold nights sleeping outside to the rainy days playing until her fingers were numb for just a few dollars. Life was a hardship and only those who fought would survive and Dessie was definitely a fighter.

Scooping up half of her snack she quietly devoured it as Alex went on to talk about how relationships could be used to manipulate people. She observed him and kept her own counsel only speaking once she was done. “Yes but if you know them that well… then they know you as well. They can use that knowledge to hurt you, to use you, and abuse you. Nothing is worth that. Not even the ability to manipulate someone.” With her peace said she grabbed the last half of her sandwich and left. She didn’t care if he would follow her but she hoped he wouldn’t because she was planning on grabbing her jacket and slipping out of the house. The crappy weather wasn’t enough to keep her inside anymore as her memories nipped at her heels, demanding to be acknowledged. Every nightmare and horror she experienced in her brief life.