Gifts and Curses
Chapter Two: All That I'm Living For
All that I'm living for
all that I'm dying for
all that I can't ignore alone at night
I can feel the night beginning
separate me from the living
understanding me
after all I've seen
piecing every thought together
find the words to make me better
if I only knew how to pull myself apart
All that I'm living for
all that I'm dying for
all that I can't ignore alone at night
all that I'm wanted for
although I wanted more
lock the last open door- my ghosts are gaining on me
I believe that dreams are sacred
take my darkest fears and play them
like a lullaby
like a reason why
like a play of my obsessions
make me understand the lesson
so I'll find myself
so I wont be lost again
All that I'm living for
all that I'm dying for
all that I can't ignore alone at night
all that I'm wanted for
although I wanted more
lock the last open door- my ghosts are gaining on me
Guess I thought I'd have to change the world
to make you see me
to be the one
I could have run forever
but how far would I have come
without mourning your love?
All that I'm living for
all that I'm dying for
all that I can't ignore alone at night
all that I'm wanted for
although I wanted more
lock the last open door- my ghosts are gaining on me
Should it hurt to love you?
Should I feel like I do?
Should I lock the last open door-
My ghosts are gaining on me
-Evanescence
Marny turned away from the sound coming from her bedside table, her alarm was blaring and she knew her roommate would already be up and gone to the showers. Her eyes flashed white and her alarm quieted as if she had pushed the snooze button.
Garwin had driven her to the dorms last night when she had finished telling them her story. Well, all she planned to tell them for now. He had driven a blue car, she had thought it was a classic, but she didn't know cars and she had been exhausted so she still had no real idea what kind of car he drove.
She had dreamed of him and didn't know what to think of it. In her dream he had been laughing one moment, holding on to a girl's hand- someone she didn't recognize as the girls back was turned to her. The next moment the girl was gone, Reid's hand empty but red and black with blood and something that made her think of ink. Thick and sticky and dark.
He had been looking at her then, accusations in his eyes. It made her stomach twist sickly.
Another boy had been in the dream, standing, watching, with a smile on his face. Sometimes his face had been clear and she had felt some recognition, but it was like seeing someone you hadn't seen since pre-school; others blurred like he was moving in a picture, or under rippling water. His eyes were always black. She had been afraid of him.
Then he had been gone, and Reid had been there again, his hands held out to her. She had been crying.
She stretched her arms up over her head, her eyes clenched tight against any and all sunlight that might have escaped the many boundaries of fall clouds, weather, windows, and blinds to make it into her room. She didn't do mornings very well when she had eight full hours of sleep, she did mornings like a damn evil bitch from hell when she had been up till three in the morning and had to wake up at 5:30 for school.
She reached out to the warm fur of Cian. He never showed in the dorm while her roommate was in. Cian was not your run of the mill ordinary pet. He was her guardian, had been since she had been given her powers. She had done the ritual just as her book had said, if she had messed up the engravings or one word of the chant it could have cause her guardian to come kill her instead of watch over her.
Guardians could look like three different beings; hers had the form of an abnormally large dog, or a wolf. He was white, and silver, and wore a brown leather collar with a silver charm hanging from it, meaning Guardian in ancient Sumerian.
She wondered vaguely why he was here in the dorms and not at her home watching over her mother. That had been her order to him. He was only supposed to show up when she was doing immense magic, to guide her.
"What are you doing here, love?" She scratched at his ear with one hand and pulled out her three silver necklaces with her other. On them she wore three silver charms; one was for the Guardian, the other for the Covenant, and the third for the Ancients.
She checked her watch, class was in a half-hour which meant if she left that moment she would have a ten minute shower and five minutes to get dressed and do her hair before rushing to class- Doable.
Cian's upper lip lifted in a snarl, a warning. Oh.
Of course she would have seen the note beside her alarm clock if she hadn't been so exhausted when she had made it to her room, using to unlock the door her roommate insisted on locking when she didn't make it by their own set curfew, or locking it just to annoy her.
Marny turned her head slowly to look at her table, a folded piece of black paper stood undisturbed. Silver wax welded the opening, the five pointed star engraved the seal, the signal of the Covenant, The Golden Dawn branch to be more exact.
She didn't touch it. Closed her eyes and counted to five, and when she opened them her eyes were white and the black note was burning into ash, its contents unknown.
Cian growled deeply. Marny ignored him, her eyes went back to brown, she pressed the charm at her neck between her fingers tightly; the points on the star signifying the Covenant biting into her flesh.
Cian jumped off of her bed and looked up at her, his thoughts on the matter very clear, before turning his head to the door at her roommates approach no doubt, and disappearing.
Marny looked at the ashes once more, her gaze cold and hard, before puffing out a breath to blow her bangs out of her eyes. She grabbed her watch, the towel that was hanging at the end of her bed, a brush, her toothbrush, and her uniform. She would just braid her hair again today- it was easiest that way.
She almost ran into him as she swung her door open to rush to the showers. His fist was raised to knock on her door; his eyebrow raised in what she could only figure was amusement.
A mixture of panic and embarrassment warred within her. She was in old pajamas, sweats torn at the knees and a black Pink Floyd tee shirt that had seen much better days. She had bed head and had thrown it back into a messy bun, her makeup from the night before more than slightly smeared.
She tried to tell herself it didn't matter what she looked like to him.
He grinned and she wanted to snarl.
"What are you doing here?" She pushed past him, walking down the hall among other students that were going to be late to class due to excessive partying the night before.
"I was going to offer to walk you to class." Reid said innocently. He walked beside her, mildly amused at the faint blush on her pale cheeks. He noticed for the first time the three silver chains about her neck and reached out to run a fingertip over them.
She jumped and spun on her heel when his finger brushed over the back of her neck, her hand going to her necklaces. She clutched at the three charms through her shirt, glaring at him.
"I don't need anyone to walk me to class, thank you." She pushed a smile to her face and turned back to the bathrooms, her hand still clutched about the charms.
He thought it might have spooked her- that was the whole reason behind touching her. The same reason he liked to rent zombie movies to make Tyler queasy. But the flash in her eyes and the protectiveness that had come out over the necklaces had made him curious.
Caleb had asked him to keep an eye on her, Reid didn't know why, she didn't seem very threatening; and Chase, for all they could find, was either dead or very far away, so she wasn't in any danger. But Reid Garwin was a curious creature, that's why he figured he used so much; the power was a curious thing. So was this girl, curious that is.
When Marny came back out of the bathroom Reid was gone. She presumed he had gone to class, and looking down at her watch she cursed since she had only five minutes to make it before she was late as well.
"Where the hell did you disappear to last night Taylor?" Marny turned at her surname, a tall blonde called from down the hall. It was Madelyn, Marny's closest friend since moving to Ipswich. Madelyn was an artist; her father was a graphic designer and worked for companies like Pixar and Disney. He approved, unlike Marny's mother, of Madelyn's creative side. She could throw parties, dye her hair any colour she wanted. She was a 'free bird' as her father called her.
Currently she had the underside of her hair dyed black; she had to take her nose ring out while she was on campus grounds. A rainbow ribbon supporting gay-pride was pinned to her shoulder bag, and many different band and movie pins. Marny's favorite pin said, "Straight, not narrow."
Madelyn was quite the activist.
"Someone," Madelyn grinned as she linked arms with Marny, "said they saw you sneaking off with all four of the Ipswich boys. Slut." Madelyn giggled. Marny looked at her without humor.
"They practically kidnapped me."
"Lucky slut." Madelyn said playfully, her nails were red, orange and yellow today. The only part of herself she could make unique while at the school, and she took full advantage of it. Her nails were different everyday. Her room always smelled of nail polish, something her roommate complained of on a daily basis. "Don't spare any details, please. I've seen all four of them in those yummy Speedos and…" she shivered, "I have to stop there."
Marny stifled a laugh at her friend.
"Nothing happened. It was…A prank." Marny checked her watch, two minutes. She would either have to run, or be late to class.
"That's not how if happened in my eyes." Marny heaved a mixture between a sigh and a groan as her roommate, Kira, made her way towards them with a hall-pass, examining her perfect nails.
"Well, that's how it happened in the eyes of everyone with eyes." Marny barely held back the growl threatening to kick its way out of her mouth.
Kira's grin looked more like a snarl.
Madelyn smiled at her and tilted her head, lifting her middle finger in salute.
"Everyone is just dying to hear how you, who anyone even knows about because you room with me, got a ride home with all four of the sons. So very…scandalous." Kira wiggled her fingers goodbye to Marny and knocked her shoulder into Madelyn's. "Dyke." Kira snarled.
"Have a lovely day Kira." Madelyn blew her a kiss and pouted mockingly. "What misfortune to have her as a roommate. Who did you fuck over in another life? Oh, I know, you were either the guy that poked at Jesus with that spear, or you were Judas. That's the only thing hellish enough I can think of to earn her."
"She and Abbot were put here to cause me misery, I'm sure." Marny looked to her friend, "you shouldn't let her get away with spreading those rumors."
"It doesn't bother me. So some people I thought were my friends don't speak to me now. I know who my real friends are," Madelyn grinned, "and I'm not even gay so what's to worry about. A girl would have to flat out look like Johnny Depp for me to bang her."
"This just proves how straight you are." Marny laughed.
"Right. But its girls like her that fucked up my brother's life in High school. Damn if I'm going to let it effect me." Madelyn smiled and Marny slapped her hand on her back.
She was fifteen minutes late to first hour, and it was worth it to hear Kira scream when she flushed the toilet and the water sprayed up all over her clothes.
It seemed as if the day would never end. She had three classes with Madelyn which was always fun, they were studying Women's Suffrage in Debate. Madelyn could argue in the affirmative and negative equally. Her views and arguments always earned her an "A" in the class; Marny usually partnered with her and was pulled through it. Where as in History Madelyn tailed Marny whose father had taught her well in the subject. They both were equal in Art, but excelled in different areas.
English she was on her own, however. Apart from Reid, Caleb, and Pouge who had never noticed her before the Halloween Party.
"Fancy seeing you here." Reid sprawled out in the seat next to her own, crossing his arms over each other on the desk and leaning on them.
"How charming. Use that line often?" Marny raised her brow at him before shuffling through her bag to pull out The Shinning.
"Saved it just for you." He joked. "So the rumor is that you left the party last night and didn't get in until three because you were having a sex affair with the Sons of Ipswich." He paused, laughter in his eyes, "and that you sleep with the host of the party, that's a lesbian apparently."
"You're happy with yourself aren't you?" She said amazed.
"It's my duty, as a total and utter bastard." Reid shrugged.
"Mr. Garwin, I love that you've decided to grace us with your presence, but please be quiet. Did you, dare I say it, even bring your book today?" The teacher looked annoyed, and amused both.
Reid grabbed Marny's book and held it up for the teacher to see, "Right here." He grinned, pleased to have outsmarted the teacher and sat the book back down unopened. Marny snatched it back and glared at him.
"Why are you even sitting here?" She whispered opening her book to where the class had left off. Reid leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes.
"Apparently, you're not to be trusted." He grinned at her astonished look.
"Me? I'm not to be trusted. Says he who kidnaps people from parties in the middle of the night." She was scribbling the notes on the Book in fury on her notebook paper.
"I could have my own King novel," Reid joked. "Caleb is slightly paranoid about anyone with powers." he clarified, leaning forward as the teacher's gaze lingered on him in a glare.
"That's ridiculous. If I said anything to anyone you could tell people about me."
Reid thought about this, and was sure it wasn't the reason she was to be watched but didn't say anything. He didn't always agree with Caleb, hell- it was a rare thing for him to agree with Caleb, but Caleb was his friend and if Caleb was right let it not be said that Reid had let them down.
Marny tried not to be distracted as Reid thrummed out beats on the desk with his fingers, obviously bored with the class.
"Does watching me entail bugging the hell out of me in my classes, or could you possibly do it from a couple rows away?" She asked sweetly after unsuccessfully trying to follow along for three pages as different classmates read.
"Mrs. Taylor, Mr. Garwin you've had your warnings. You can either inform the class what is so interesting that you can't wait until after class to discuss it, or go to the Provost office." The teacher waited for their answer.
Reid stood from his chair and held his arm out, his body in a half bow. "Ladies first, right?"
She looked from the teacher to Reid, shock plainly on her face before throwing her book and notes into her bag haphazardly and brushing past Reid to get to the stairs and the door to the hallway.
The teacher slammed the door shut behind them. And Marny turned to Reid with murder in her eyes.
"I'll show you the way." Reid stuck his hands in his pockets, obviously laughing at her.
"I don't find it even mildly amusing." Marny continued, following him down the hall.
"Everything will be fine." Reid assured her, walking backwards in front of her.
"Obviously your definition of 'fine' is quite different from mine." She snarled in response.
"He's just going to say, 'Mr. Garwin,' or, Ms. Taylor, in your case, 'this is the third time I've seen you this week, and I'm mildly disappointed. I know you enjoy these visits, but I really haven't the time. Contrary to popular belief, I do have work to do here.' And then he'll send you on your way. Actually," Reid looked to his watch, "That should put us right at the end of the school day depending on the line at the office."
"And I suppose, you being one of the 'Son's of Ipswich' couldn't possibly have an empty night." Marny mocked.
"Are you asking me out on a date, Taylor?" Reid's smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "I knew you'd come around." She pushed his arm off from where he had wrapped it around her shoulders and scowled at him.
"No. I'm shocked you don't have a girlfriend, you know. Those suave comments, the kidnapping, its all wasted on me."
Reid clutched at his heart, "You wound me," he mocked.
They walked into the office, the seats looked (and see knew they felt) uncomfortable. Reid sat in the chair closest to the exit, relaxed.
She sat in the chair next to him looking about the office. The secretary was bent over a pile of papers, talking on the phone and nodding her head every once in a while whispering 'yes'. Marny pulled out the book she was currently reading for fun.
Reid looked over in distaste.
"You've got to be fucking me."
The secretary looked up and scowled at Reid in warning.
"It's a good story." Marny's eyebrows drew together as she looked down at the book in her hand, 'Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.' She'd already read it, but she liked to re-read them after a while.
"You, of all people." Reid shook his head. "It's bullshit."
"So is Peter Pan, and it's a work of art. Plus, I think the key-word would be 'fiction'. If you don't like it, don't look at it." Marny made a face at him and turned back to her book. Reid leaned back in his seat.
The secretary switched lines and looked up at the both of them, "Provost Higgins will see you now, Mr. Garwin." She waved him on to the door on the other side of the office. "Is this your first offense for disrupting class, Ms. Taylor?" The secretary looked over at her.
"No…" She answered slowly; the women went back to her work on the desk. Marny's eyes went white, and she pushed into the women's memories. She saw Reid and herself walking through the office door, farther back watching a child drive off to college, a marriage…She pushed through them all, some sad, some anger-inducing, others joyful or peaceful.
Marny pulled out her favorites. The secretary as a young child, the memorie's colours faint but for what she remembered best- the pure crisp white snow, her bright red scarf, her younger brother's blue winter coat and the warm yellow of the old family dog's coat. They were building a snow man.
The next memory she pulled forward was of the secretary meeting her husband, everything was clear and bright, and radiated happiness. She pulled forth the couples first kiss, the engagement, the wedding, and the day they found out they were expecting.
She pulled a memory of skipping work to go with the child and the husband to the zoo.
Marny watched with eyes outside of the women's memories to see the smile of contentment, and happiness ease the wrinkles of stress. Even a bit of mischievousness crept into her grin.
The women looked up just missing Marny's pure white eyes.
"I'll just write a warning here. Why don't you skip the rest of period," she gave Marny a kind smile, "I know what it's like to risk trouble for a handsome boy." She gave a big wink and waved Marny out the exit.
Marny spared a smirk of pride and victory towards the Provost Office door before walking out of the office, with 15 minutes left of class she would go relax before meeting Madelyn outside in the gardens to work on their art project.
Her room was unsurprisingly empty, her bed still unmade, the ashes from the letter blown across her bedside table. She smeared the majority of the ashes into a piece of toilet paper and threw it in the bin, made her bed and flopped down onto it belly down.
The boy was coming towards her, she thought she knew him but his face was shadowed. He had the mark of the Covenant, the five star pentagram tattooed onto the top of both of his hands in dark ink. She backed up from him, her back hitting something solid, when she turned she saw Reid, his hands on her shoulders.
She tried to warn him about the other boy, but when she turned to point to him he was gone. Confused she looked to Reid, his face was coming closer to hers, and she closed her eyes…
The knock on her bedroom door made her yelp. Disoriented she looked to her bedside table, her clock glowed four o'clock. She had fallen asleep for two hours, and she was sure that was Madelyn at the door ready to strangle her. Joy.
"Can I just say, 'worse best friend ever?'" Madelyn pushed her way into the room when Marny opened the door. Her arms were crossed over her chest, her face was set and she wasn't wearing her uniform which meant she had taken her time to stop at her room and change before venturing over to kill Marny.
"Sorry?" Marny ventured carefully, a half smile on her face. Madelyn's eyes narrowed. "I fell asleep."
"Well, since you were sleeping I suppose our failure will be worth it." Madelyn mocked moving to the bed. "Kira said you skipped last hour with Reid Garwin, of Ipswich Fame. Perhaps you know him?"
"Oh, I did not." Marny made her way to the bed where Madelyn was perched going through Marny's secret chocolate stash. "We got kicked out of American Literature because we were talking. It was ridiculous."
Madelyn grinned and patted the bed in invitation. "Talking to the hot-blonde-blue-eyed-hot-tempered-son-of-Ipswich enough to get kicked out of class? Do tell."
"Grey." Marny glanced over at Madelyn's perplexed look. "They're grey…His eyes. And nothing happened. He just wouldn't leave me alone."
"Oh, you poor darling." Madelyn patted Marny on the back playfully. "It must be so difficult to be you sometimes."
Marny pushed her away and they both laughed.
"So, not to shock you, but your boy's attractive. Not that I'd attack him or anything, but I wouldn't leave me alone with him, either."
"Not interested, we're just friends-actually we're not even friends." But Marny thought of the dream, and her disappointment at being woken from it.
"Which is why you got kicked out of class, and baled on me last night causing you to catch up on your sleep and bale on me again today? Yeah. Not-even-just-a-friend. Right." She grabbed another piece of chocolate. "Oh, and there's another rave in the fields, back past the woods over past Marblehead. The Dells. We're going right? I mean, I don't think its even fair that I missed the back to school one, ya-know?"
"Ah. I remember the last rave we attended. I found you face down in a puddle wearing a pointy hat and singing a song about goblins."
"That was a Potter party. You know how I do so love those books. I can't be held responsible for my behavior when Harry Potter is involved. This is just a normal rave, hardly based around a bunch of super hot witch-boys." Marny shook her head in amusement, Madelyn was very wrong. The parties always involved at least four very hot witch-boys. "Pretty brave of whoever is planning it, ya-know? I mean last time that kid died. And that new kid Chase or Chaz or Charles or something went missing the night of Fall Fest." Madelyn put her head back on Marny's pillow. "And then you were kidnapped at the Halloween party." She laughed.
Marny was quiet, she chewed thoughtfully on a caramel filled dark chocolate.
"Well, I have work you know. Just tonight and Saturday night left- I called off tomorrow so we could have some fun. Love, love, love Fridays." Madelyn leaned over and gave Marny a smacking kiss on the cheek before jumping up and dancing her way to the door. Madelyn worked in the art department of the closest theatre.
"Hello, Love. Come on it, I was just leaving." Madelyn opened the door and Marny would have sworn she was just egging Kira on.
When Marny saw Reid however she jumped up from her bed, "Maddy, wait. Don't-"
Madelyn just winked and flounced out, shutting the door behind her.
"Isn't she the lesbian?" Reid asked, looking to the door where Madelyn had exited.
"Sure, if you believe everything Kira Snider says." Marny narrowed her eyes and dropped back onto her bed; she leaned back slightly on her elbows and looked up at Reid. He had changed out of his uniform and wore a white tee-shirt, the collar just slightly beat up and jeans. The sleeves of his hoody were pushed up to his elbows, black fingerless gloves present.
He pulled out the chair she had at her computer desk and sat down. She couldn't get over how he always looked so comfortable. She had seen him at the swim meets, calmly splayed in a seat in what she considered next to naked attire, he had looked comfortable when he had caught her using, when he was in the office in trouble.
She was annoyed she didn't have that grace and confidence.
"I don't suppose you would leave if I asked nicely?" She ventured.
"Would you ask nicely?" He shot back, his fingers tapping on the chair's arm.
"No." She paused. "What do you want?"
"I don't suppose it takes a lot of power to get out of detention?" It was phrased as a question, but she wasn't sure she wanted to answer.
"A bit." She turned her gaze away, the remains of the letter's ashes, smeared across her bedside table. "To get in, to go through all the memories, pull some of them forward and remain alert at the same time…It can be…exhausting. I've gotten faster at it. Why?" She turned her eyes back to his.
"We're all going to Nicky's tonight. I'm extending an invitation." He grinned and it didn't reach his eyes, she caught the evasion.
"'We' as in the Sons of Ipswich and their dates? It's Thursday, I've classes tomorrow."
"We all have." He shrugged. "If you're worried…"
"I'm not worried." She glared at him. "I just don't feel like going."
He grinned and leaned back in the chair, "then we'll just stay here."
"Great. Wait, no. I don't feel like going. You're welcome to leave." She pushed herself up off her elbows.
"I can't. For all I know, you're an evil witch attempting to get into our good graces to steal our powers. And, since your show a couple hours ago that played on enough power to tip Caleb off to how strong you are?" He shrugged.
"Oh," Kira's face showed a moments confusion when she walked into the room, then a predatory gleam came to her eye. "I wasn't aware you had company, Taylor." She stepped farther into the room, closing the door behind her. She made a show of setting her books on her own desk, but her ears were straining for anything to use.
"I'll change then." Marny curled her lip at Reid's smug look. "I guess I'll see you in a couple of hours." She didn't phrase is as a question and looked pointedly at the door.
"You're welcome to stay, Garwin. Miranda's just being a bitch." Kira smiled politely at her roommate. Marny repressed the need to stick out her tongue. "She managed to grow up without manners."
Reid looked over at Kira and smiled back. "I would. But, you and Abbot get on my last fucking nerve." Reid took his time getting up and moving to the door, he looked to Marny, said, "See you at seven," and walked out the door, closing it silently behind him.
"Does Madelyn know your seeing someone else?" Kira said snidely, turning her back on Marny.
Marny took a deep breath and pictured the water in the ladies toilet bursting up all over Kira's uniform.
"You were right not to go in the first place you know." Kira was folding some of her clothes, placing them in her dresser or hanging them in her closet respectively.
"What?" Marny was mildly surprised; Kira seemed to be on her side. Marny had stopped paying much attention to anything that came out of the red head's mouth once Reid had left the room. She had started inwardly fretting over what to wear.
"He's way out of your league. One of the Sons of Ipswich? It's not going to work out. You're too…" She seemed to roll the thought over in her mind. "Naive."
Marny laughed and got off her bed. "Whatever you say Kira." She rummaged through her draws pulling out her most comfortable pair of jeans and an old plain black tee-shirt. A dark red pair of ballet flats would add colour, and matched her red button up blazer.
She played with the thought of wearing her hair up in a ribbon that would match but in the end kept her hair down. She didn't wear it down very often, as it was easier in a pony-tail, or a bun, or braids.
When she had found out that Kira was going to be her roommate for the year she had been afraid that she would be listening to a lot of pop or rap music, something main stream. By the end of the first week however she had found that if ever in her life someone held a gun to her head and asked her to say something kind about Kira Snider, if would be easy. The girl listened to a lot of different music, most that Marny could appreciate.
Right now she had on Led Zepplin, the track Thank You- one of Marny's favorites, on repeat.
Marny attempted to catch up on her reading for english, only taking in every other line as her gaze would stray to her clock on her table.
"Knock it off, Taylor. You're making me nervous." Kira's voice was snide- she had reading to finish as well.
"What?" Marny looked up from her book innocently. Kira just glared at her and went back to her own homework. While the party life at Spenser was grand, you couldn't enjoy the parties if you were kicked out of school for failing. Thus, even the rich kids did homework.
An hour before she had to leave, Marny left her book open on her pillow to do her makeup. She was going to go for a darker brown eye-shadow and liner, and natural colour for the rest of her face. As she leaned in close to inspect her eyebrows she caught sight of something unexpected.
She just looked at it for a moment, not quite feeling shock (it wasn't the first), but more a foreboding. The solitary white hair stood out against the head full of dark hairs. She sorted through her hairs until she had the white one between her pointer finger and thumb and examined it more closely in the mirror before yanking hard and pulling it free.
TBC
Authors Notes::
First let me say 'thank you' to all the people who reviewed. You keep me writing. Next:
I debated with a few things in this chapter, Madelyn's actual presence for instance. I wondered if I should actually have her show up. In the end it turned out to be a Quote I read that settled it though I can't think of which one now, and the character herself I fell in love with once I started putting her together. She's so fun! Then of course she actually became important to the story line and how I wanted things to happen.
Another thing I debated was Kira as the roommate. I originally thought this a tacky idea, but I really didn't want to introduce another original character after just pulling out Madelyn. So, Kira became the roommate, and it fits I like to think. Though I very well may be biased.
Ah, and Reid. He is possibly the hardest character I've ever had to get into. I think he's a total oxymoron. Sweet and creepy, he starts fights with his friends but would die fighting for them, hardheaded. He's got wretched pickup lines, but he's so cute.
Sometimes I just don't know what to do with him. Forgive me, haha.
References::
1) It does in the eyes of everyone with eyes- Red Dwarf
2) It's my duty, as a total and utter bastard- Red Dwarf.
3) Your definition of 'fine' is obviously different from mine- Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy
4) So, not to shock you, but your dad's attractive. Not that I'd attack him or anything, but I wouldn't leave me alone with him, either- My So Called Life
5) I found you face down in a puddle wearing a pointy hat and singing a song about goblins- Blackadder