Yvette, Laurie, Friday evening

[x-penance.livejournal.com]

Laurie says goodbye to her roommate.

No distance of place or lapse of time can lessen the friendship of those who are thoroughly persuaded of each other's worth. ~Robert Southey






Laurie placed the last star on the card and held it up to the light, it glittered brightly through the cut out spaces she'd covered with cellophane. Laurie had spent most of the day working on it to make sure it was perfect. She'd wanted Yvette to have something to take home with her, just in case she wouldn't be returning soon.

Reaching over, she slid the card into it's envelope and firmly attached it to the brightly wrapped paper that covered the book of poetry she'd brought. It was a compilation of modern poets rather then the classics, so she hoped Yvette would like it.

Yvette, for her part, was in conflict over the whole leaving thing. On the one hand, she'd see her mother again, after six months of separation. On the other, she had made so many new friends, she didn't want to leave... Still, there was the possibility of her returning, as an actual student rather than one of the waifs and strays the mansion seemed to collect. That was enough to make her smile a little as she came into the room and saw Laurie bent industriously over something that looked suspiciously like a gift.

Well, that and the fact she actually could smile now.

"Am I to be interrupting?" she asked, but not in the timid way she'd had in that first week. She was still shy around her roommate, but there was a hint of teasing in her tone that spoke volumes of how far the small girl had come in just a few weeks at the mansion.

Laurie started slightly, as she'd been so intent on getting the present ready that she hadn't heard Yvette enter the room. Luckily, she'd only been putting finishing touches on things, so she wouldn't have to play dumb about the gift.

" Nope." Laurie replied brightly, sliding off her bed and standing with her hands firmly behind her back. "Got a surprise for you."

Laurie had always loved giving presents, to the point where she'd often brought things home for no reason at all except that it made her mother smile to receive them. When there were so many things you couldn't help with, the ability to give someone happiness, however long that lasted was worth its weight in gold.

Yvette came forward, with another of those tiny, hesitant smiles. Facial movement, after so long, felt strange. "What is being this surprise?" she asked, tilting her head slightly. She'd already seen it was a gift-wrapped something, but she'd play along.

Laurie pulled the present from behind her back, holding it out to Yvette to take. "It's a farewell present. Not goodbye though, since I'm sure we'll see each other again."
She was sure of it, even if Yvette wasn't. If Yvette's mother was anything like Laurie's then she'd want her daughter to have the best education possible. Where else was as perfect as Xavier's for a mutant only just learning control?

Glowing eyes flared brighter, and the smile grew. "For me? Thank you!" She carefully took the package, fingers still slightly awkward. "I am hoping you are being right. You are a good friend, Laurie, and I am hoping to be seeing you and my other friends again."

"Well, even if you don't come back here, nothing says we can't come visit you." Laurie replied, sitting down cross legged as she waited for Yvette to open the present. "I think I'd like to see where you come from."

"It is... beautiful. Pristina is still being made better, after the war, but it is a very lovely city. I would be happy to be showing it to you." Yvette sat down on the bed next to Laurie, admiring the card. "You are making this yourself?"

"Yep. I have to thank the art teacher though for letting me take a bunch of supplies, especially since I don't take art class. Do you like it? I wasn't sure what your favourite colours were so I sort of just made a rainbow of them." Laurie replied, moving over slightly to give Yvette more room.

"It is being very pretty. I like it very much." Yvette moved the card, watching the light catching in the glitter. "You are being very clever. And... my favourite colour was being pink, but it doesn't look good with me any more." She sounded more annoyed than sad. "I was having a very pretty dress, but I cannot be wearing it now. My skin, it is making it look bad."

Red and pink would look hideous together, Laurie mused. Which was a pity considering most young girls loved pink. Laurie was more a fan of yellow herself but she'd had a pink period, and a ballerina outfit even. She'd made a spectacularly bad ballerina, and seemed to have two left feet with any other sort of dance as well.

She supposed, in a pinch, she could say she was performing an interpretive commentary on the likelihood of World peace.

"Well, you might not be able to wear clothes in pink but we could probably get you some kind of pink backpack, so you can carry your books around." Laurie replied.

"I would be liking that." If she came back, that was. She began unwrapping the present, carefully sliding one gloved talon under the tape and loosening it without tearing the paper. She made a soft noise of appreciate as she uncovered the book. "Oh, this is being wonderful. Thank you, Laurie!" She seemed about to hug the older girl, but remembered the razor-sharp barbs of her hair and resorted to patting her hand. "I am going to be missing you. Very much."

Laurie smiled, glad that Yvette liked the gift. It would give her something to read on the plane, as sitting in a plane for hours with nothing to do would be terribly boring. "I'll miss you too. What am I going to do without a roommate to make sure I go to bed at a reasonable hour?"

"I could be asking Sooraya to make sure instead?" Yvette said innocently, but a certain tone gave away the teasing.

Laurie sighed dramatically, placing a hand against her forehead. "I suppose Sooraya will have to do, won't she."

She paused for a second, and then took the hand away, grabbed a pillow from her bed and lightly batted Yvette against the arm with it. "You better e-mail me, you know. Otherwise I'll worry and then I'll nag the teachers and they'll get all frowny faced at me."

Giggling, the Albanian girl nodded. "Mr. Forge is giving me a small computer. A..." She frowned, trying to remember the name. "Raspberry?"

"Blackberry." Laurie corrected, smiling. "Although why they'd name something electronic after a berry, I'm not sure. It's not even really the shape of a berry. And now I'm making myself hungry for blackberry jam."

"In autumn, we are picking blackberries in the ruins of old Pristina. My mother is making brandy." Yvette made a noise that was halfway between a sigh and a soft laugh. "But yes, Blackberry. Mr. Forge is saying I can send you the emails on it. It will take a long time, so they are being short, but I will be glad to be writing to my friends."

"Short is okay, you're going to be busy getting to see your Mom again and all. Anyway, how about we go down to the dining room? I'm sure Lorna's put out dinner by now and I'm starving." Laurie replied, getting off the bed and looking back expectantly at Yvette.

Yvette nodded, carefully setting aside the book to be packed later. "This is a good idea. Maybe we could ask Tommy if he is wanting to come down and be eating with us?"

Laurie thought about it for a second, she'd gone to the same school as Tommy, although they'd never met at that stage. He'd seemed nice enough when he'd eaten with them before. Besides, Yvette seemed to like him and that was enough for her. "Of course we can. We'll see if he's in his room."