Cordelia dug through her drawers, tossing aside various articles of clothing. Where the hell could it be. Normally she wasn't very picky about her outfits, choosing to dress rather bland out of the fear of being ridiculed by the girls or even worse her mother. She blew out a rush of air, frustrated and to the point of giving up. It's not like anyone would steal it, she could practically hear Madison snort at the idea that the star would wear anything even remotely similar to the old, dried up headmistress. Sighing, the blonde shrugged on a blouse and tucked it into a sleek, black skirt. Mundane. She rolled her eyes at the voice in her head and decided she was being ridiculous. Why she had even wanted to wear that stupid flowery skirt she bought so long ago was beyond her. Misty. Cordelia physically shook her head as if to disagree with herself. God, she felt so stupid. Why was she talking to herself? The internal monologue wasn't her biggest worry, she mused. Not if her life was so banal that in order to spice things up, she changed the color of her skirt. Well then again Cordelia had always felt as though her personality was drawn from the people and environment around her and she had been spending time teaching Misty in the greenhouse. That must be why she felt so compelled to dress as floral as the wild swamp witch. Probably some borderline personality disorder. Cordelia let out a little, pathetic snort and decided that her self diagnosis and the loss of the skirt, assuming that she had lost it, would be dealt with another day. Slipping on some heels, she grabbed her notes and got ready for the morning meeting.
0000
"Girls be ready in ten minutes," she called walking down the hall, heels clacking on the hardwood floor. Cordelia knocked on Madison's door, knowing that the actress wouldn't actually leave her room until she was fetched. "Come on Madison, meeting in five." Rather than wait for some snarky remark, the headmistress continued walking and spreading the message of the incoming meeting one last time. She made her way down the stairs before the rest of the girls, selfishly hoping for some time alone to enjoy a cup of coffee. God knew she needed it.
Down in the kitchen Cordelia found herself leaning back against the island in the center of the room, hands wrapped around her freshly brewed drink. If only coffee could stop the girls from tearing at each others throats. Maybe it would if I splashed it on them like wine in the Real Housewives. Cordelia laughed lightly to herself, imagining how all of the girls would react. It was just too funny and she found herself giggling into her coffee despite how dumb the joke really was.
"What's so funny?" Misty inquired, sitting at the table, idly playing with the leftover cereal in her bowl.
"Hmm?" Cordelia swallowed her giggles, washing them down with a sip of coffee, and turned to see the source of the voice. "Oh hey Misty," she rested her back against the sink opposite the counter, not particularly surprised by the girls appearance. Of course Misty would be down here eating breakfast, she knew the girl was an early bird. The headmistress must have missed the girl eating breakfast at the table when she first walked in. "Sorry, I didn't even see you."
"It's okay, I was gonna say hi but ya were really wrapped up in that cup of coffee," Misty plucked a marshmallow out of her cereal, and let it dissolve on her tongue, "I'm assumin' it's coffee with a lil' somethin extra if ya are gigglin that hard at 9 am. Not to mention completely missin' someone else was in the room. Miss. Cordelia are ya drunk or just rude?"
Mortified, the color drained from Cordelia's face. "No, no, I would never, and I didn't see you and I was just thinking about the Real Housewives and Madison- wait do you even know what reality TV is? I—."
"Relax, Miss. Delia, I'm only yankin' your chain." Misty bit her lip to suppress a laugh and Cordelia sighed, trying to hide behind her cup of coffee though the swamp witch could see a little smile that mirrored her own. "You're too worked up Miss. Cordelia, maybe ya need to throw a shot in that coffee for real."
Cordelia laughed, shaking her head as she took another sip, "I'll think about it."
The short, comfortable silence that had settled around them was broken by the scraping of Misty's chair as she grabbed her empty bowl and carried it over to the sink. Cordelia nearly choked on her last sip of coffee when the girl got up and started moving over to her. The skirt. Misty is wearing my skirt. The swamp witch leaned across Cordelia, invading her space while she placed the bowl in the sink. Cordelia coughed awkwardly, fighting the blush that came from the uncomfortable, although not unwanted, close contact. Misty, generally a tactile person, didn't seem phased as she backed up and leaned against the island across from Delia. "Um, Misty?" Cordelia swallowed thickly and even debated taking a fake sip from her empty mug just to break the seemingly one-sided awkward tension, "Is that my skirt?"
Misty, not uncomfortable in the slightest, nodded and did a little twirl. "Ain't it cute?" She perched herself up on the island, crossing her legs and leaning back on her palms. "Sorry for just grabbin' it like that but I couldn't ask ya. Ya were in the shower when I came lookin' for ya yesterday to ask for some stuff I need. I don't have any clean clothes or really anythin' cause I didn't bring any with me from my swamp and with the witch hunters on the loose and all, I figured I shouldn't go back till I can bring someone with me."
"Uh that makes sense," Cordelia murmured and nodded. "We'll get you out there as soon as possible okay?"
" What do you want me to do till then? Besides walk around naked." Misty clicked her heels together, admiring her boots and laughing at her own joke.
"Um," The headmistress was at a loss of words with the invasive image of a naked Misty walking around the academy. She twisted around, placing her coffee cup in the sink to buy some time. "Uh, You can definitely borrow clothes from all of the girls, um, including myself, just make sure you ask okay?" Cordelia played with her now empty hands anxiously, grateful for the sound of footsteps making their way into the kitchen. She cursed herself for being so embarrassingly awkward.
"Kay, thanks Miss. Cordelia," Misty smiled, jumping off the counter, "I can't wait to share clothes, maybe I can't give ya a little make over or somethin', yea?" She innocently took a step closer and idly toyed with the end of the bow on Cordelia's blouse before joining the group of girls walking through the kitchen to get to the living room where the morning meeting was held.
Cordelia watched her go and took a deep breath. All of the sudden closeness was something she wasn't used to at all, even with her husband. She fidgeted with the bow on her blouse that Misty had just played with, feeling uneasy as she began to trail behind the girls. The meeting went as usual; the girls bickering angrily and spitting hurtful names at each other while she unsuccessfully tried to intervene. Her eyes flickered between each girl until she caught Misty's gaze. The older woman felt herself flush a little under Misty's watchful eye, wondering how long the girl had been looking at her. Just as she was about to look away, the Swamp witch mimicked throwing back a shot and winked causing Cordelia to smirk and roll her eyes.
000
Later that night Cordelia flopped down into bed, exhausted after staying up unexpectedly late with Misty in the greenhouse. Misty just seemed to have an insatiable hunger for botany and after being rejected and made fun of by the girls for her love of plants, Cordelia was more than happy to be appreciated. Plus it wasn't so bad being around Misty; she was kind and a big goofball. It was nice to just have company after being ignored for so long by her mother and the other girls.
A smile crept across her face as she remembered Misty dancing just an hour ago to some crazy old song, giggling and twirling and begging Delia to dance with her. Cordelia felt guilty for saying no but she had two left feet plus Misty was much more fun to watch. She let out a happy sigh, folding her hands and resting them on her abdomen as she ran through the days events in her head.
Remembering that Misty went through her drawers made Cordelia sit up in bed. Anxious to see what else Misty had taken, the older woman shuffled over to her dresser, opening up each drawer and quickly looking through it. So far, Misty had just taken a couple skirts, a pair of pants, a scarf, and a few shirts, nothing Cordelia would really miss. She reached her underwear drawer and sucked in a breath. Oh god. She wouldn't. Tense with anticipation, Cordelia opened the drawer only to sigh in relief. Nothing had been touched or moved. She laughed sheepishly, feeling like an idiot. Of course she wouldn't take underwear.
Laying back in bed Cordelia covered her face, still laughing at the fact that she thought Misty would borrow some of her underwear. She turned over, bunching the covers around her in order to get comfortable for sleep. Just as she was drifting off, the realization hit her. If Misty didn't take my underwear, that means she's probably not wearing any. The room suddenly got too hot and uncomfortable, Cordelia throwing off the covers in an attempt to sleep.