The meadow

[sephora]

In a small meadow, Sephora sat in a path of wild-flowers. She had been surprised to see this here, and had run to it in her khaki bermuda shorts, banana republic flip flops forgotten at the edge of it. Her white Guess t-shirt stretched over her flat abdomen as she lay in the grass, watching a small flower grow as her toes were stuck in the ground.

She wasn't a great singer, but she wasn't awful. Opening her lush, painted lips she sang a wordless tune that her nanny had sung to her while she was a baby. It reminded her of the meadows that she used to play in, guards close by. Now, though, there were no guards. No one here knew who she was, only that she had an armenian accent, though it belied her auburn hair and soft blue eyes. The tune rose and a soft smile covered her face. Sephora was happy.

[Corgan]

What a day, just clear skys and a gentle breeze to let one relax. I couldn't ask for much more. Corgan thought as he stretched and shifted slightly on the tree branch he had used to lay on. He was just letting himself have a little break from training and schooling for now and simply felt like kicking back.

It wasn't long before his ears picked up the sound of singing. It wasn't too far off and he was curious. Slipping down from the tree branch and landing in a crouch, Corgan took off in the direction of the singing.

He reached a meadow with several flowers and a girl. She was the source of the singing, and though it wasn't the best he had heard, her voice was still pleasing to the ears. He waited until she was done before stepping forward.

"Hello there, you have a nice voice to listen to. I admit to being surprised at not being the only one out here. I'm Corgan. What's your name?" He asked as he gave a small wave and a friendly smile.

[joar]

Carrying a small black case he walked out of the school building. Too much noise that place had, to many students messing around when he wanted peace and quiet. He brushed a strand of black hair from his face as he looked around with his mud brown eyes. He wore a black band t-shirt, dark tan cargo pants and converse all star, original converse all star, shoes, not that crappy Nike crap they had out now but old school chuck Taylors that were jet black. He had been walking for a few minutes now and looked to find himself surrounded by trees.

Good. This would be nice and quiet since it was a ways away from the school. He set his case by a tree and opened it pulling out a small bundle. He unwrapped the soft linen cloth he had put on it to protect the delicate pipes. He dusted it off of the few micro fibers of dust that had been on the cloth.

He then sat down next to the tree and looked up as a winged creature sat on the branches above his head. He smiled and shook his head. Just tell me when you hear something other then me playing alright? He thought to the creature. It looked down at him. I already do, an annoying boy who is obsessed with music It said and mentally chuckled. The boy looked up at it and glared. Piss off Gadjo, and don't make me come up there and turn you into tonights dinner. He thought and turned back around and was about to play.

Then the creature looked up and twisted its serpent-like neck around. His hearing was very acute and could pick up vibrations over quite a distance. Farther then human ears at least. Wait...I do hear something, someone is singing over there. Its not great but its decent. Sounds like a girl. The boy looked up at him wondering if this was a joke. Eh who cares if it was it would only just kill time which is what he wanted to do.

He got up taking his instrument and case with him and silently walked with while the winged creature flew to wards the sound of the voice. He soon stumbled upon a meadow with a girl in a t-shirt, shorts and flip flops and playing in the dirt with some flowers or plants, he couldn't really tell from here. But he picked up the rhythm of the girls tune and started to match it with the syrinx giving off a lullaby sound with it.

He hadn't been playing for more then a few seconds when a boy came out of the woods near the girl, he had long blond hair and wore a long sleeve shirt and jeans. The winged creature looked at them from a near-by tree branch as the events began to unfold.

[sephora]

Sephora used her Qi, growing the flower faster than nature had intended. She brushed her tan fingers across the petals, soft like a baby's kiss. As the song she sang continued, she heard someone playing along softly. It was some sort of wind instrument, she really had no idea. Sitting up, she was just in time to see a blond boy walk towards her onto the meadow. He had no instrument so she drew the conclusion that it was not him playing.

He smiled at her in a very friendly manner, "Hello there, you have a nice voice to listen to. I admit to being surprised at not being the only one out here. I'm Corgan. What's your name?"

The girl nodded her head to his compliment of her singing. "Good to meet you, Corgan," She began in her Armenian accent, "I am Sephora." She leaned back on her hands, long tan legs extended, auburn hair flowing slightly in the breeze. Her knees were dark from the dirt and she had a smudge on her nose.

[Corgan]

Corgan didn't fail to see the other boy appear and gave a small nod in his direction but his focus shifted back to Sephora. He then noticed what she had done with the plants around her.

"That little trick with the plants in pretty neat. Could that be you Qi ability by any chance?" he asked as he sat down a few feet away from her with his legs crossed.

[sephora]

The blond boy nodded in the direction of the music, then sat down across from her in the dirt. "That little trick with the plants in pretty neat. Could that be you Qi ability by any chance?"

"No, I just have a green thumb." She said with a grin and a wink. She stuck her fingers into the ground once more and a short stalk of meadowgrass that was just below him grew swiftly to nudge him under the arm. It continued growing until it was level with his nose.

"So, Corgan, I have showed you mine. Now you show me yours." She said his name musically, rolling the r with perfection and landing softly on the n.

[Corgan]

Corgan scratched behind his head for a second and then shrugged.
"Fair enough." He said with a smile as he let his Qi gather up and jolts of electricity crackled around him for a moment and he gave a smile before he let it fade away and gasped slightly.
"It drains me a little bit when I use it. I don't normally let myself use it outside of combat due to that." He said as he stretched slightly.

"So what brings you to this school?" He asked. He himself had simply been blamed for being one of the people starting a riot back at his old school, even though he had been helping out. The was where he had been sent for his high school days. he was curious as to what brought Sephora here, he didn't know if this was a reform school or just a basic boarding school.

[sephora]

Sephora grinned at him when he conceded. The air around him grew staticy and she could see the electricity crackling around him. Her eyes widened slightly as he suddenly looked drawn and the electricity ceased. "It drains me a little bit when I use it. I don't normally let myself use it outside of combat due to that."

She nodded.

"So what brings you to this school?"

Sephora smiled myscheviously at Corgan. "I came here for my protection." That was all she said, and all he would get. It was the truth, for Sephora's father was an Armenian drug lord and had decided that Japan was the only safe place for her, given her Qi. "And you, Corgan? Why are you here?" Sephora wiggled her toes farther into the dirt and the flowers bloomed around them.

[Corgan]

Corgan raised an eyebrow at her response and waited for more until she asked why he was here.
Guess she's not one to reveal much about herself. Oh well, the mystery always makes it so much more entertaining in the end. Glad I'm an open book. He thought as he gave a chuckle at her question.

"I was blamed for starting a riot back at my old school, even though all I did was help some kid from getting beaten to death while trying to get away from the whole mess. I was caught fighting and someone blamed me. So the school system sent me here after my family moved." He said. Oddly enough he bore no resentment in his voice at what happened to him. It was crappy luck and that was it.

[sephora]

The boy chuckled at her response. She grinned back at him, she did not know how much of himself he would reveal after her short response.

"I was blamed for starting a riot back at my old school, even though all I did was help some kid from getting beaten to death while trying to get away from the whole mess. I was caught fighting and someone blamed me. So the school system sent me here after my family moved."

She nodded in approval. "Very interesting, Corgan. Sounds like your good deed was punished, though. Does not that make you bitter?" It would have made her bitter, Sephora thought to herself. Bitter enough to tell her father, who could do many things to many people. Yet, in Armenia she had never been to a real school, only had tutors. It was dangerous for her to have friends, her father had always said. "Is that what American schools are like? Full of riots?"

[Corgan]

Corgan shrugged and gave a small laugh. He shook his head.
"I don't think I really have the capacity to become bitter. I'm not really happy about it, but these things happen. I just take things as they come most of the time. I think life's a lot easier if you just roll with things." He replied as he let himself lay on his back with his hands behind his head.

"So what do you think of this place? I myself find it rather closed in even if it's big. And this deal with our MACs is kind of annoying, imagine losing the bloody thing." He said.

[sephora]

Sephora nodded as the boy spoke. She sort of understood where he was coming from, though she would not have let it go as easily as he did. "I don't think I really have the capacity to become bitter. I'm not really happy about it, but these things happen. I just take things as they come most of the time. I think life's a lot easier if you just roll with things."

There was a momentary pause, then Corgan spoke, "So what do you think of this place? I myself find it rather closed in even if it's big. And this deal with our MACs is kind of annoying, imagine losing the bloody thing."

Sephora chuckled softly. "I like it alright. It is different than home, but Japan is a nice place I suppose. I was surprised to have found this haven in the opressive environment of the school." She paused to look around, "I don't mind the MACs. It is nice to have something that can keep so much organized, though I wonder who else can access it."

[Corgan]

"Solaris is one of those people that can get into them, I would bet most anything on it. And I wouldn't put it past the Doctor. That guy just gives off the feeling he could get into anything he put his mind to." Corgan replied as he looked over at her. He let his bright green eyes lock onto hers. It was actually rather odd for him to not look a person in the eyes, he normally found it disrespectful, but he kept getting distracted.

"So I know you don't seem too inclined to tell me why you came here, but how about where you came from? I myself lived in Stockton California until now." he said.

[sephora]

"Solaris is one of those people that can get into them, I would bet most anything on it. And I wouldn't put it past the Doctor. That guy just gives off the feeling he could get into anything he put his mind to." Sephora nodded as he spoke. She agreed with his conclusions, she did not trust either of the men he had mentioned. Distracted for a moment, she tucked a loose strand of hair out of her face. Looking back, she noticed Corgan's green eyes staring into her own blue ones. She did not look away.

"So I know you don't seem too inclined to tell me why you came here, but how about where you came from? I myself lived in Stockton California until now."

Sephora laughed, she had decided early on that he was from America, she had met a few in her day and could recognize the accent. It sounded as if he were speaking with marbles in his mouth. "I am from Armenia, a far distance from California." She said California with a heavier accent than usual, she had never said this word before. "So where in California is Stockton? North, south?"

[Corgan]

"Closer to the north than the south. But it's still not to close to a border of any sort. It makes sense you aren't from anywhere near where I'm from. Your accent gives you away. It's a wonderful accent by the way, It doesn't surprise me that the most popular bits of singing are done from people that don't come from my area." He said with a grin.

"Still, I have to agree with you that Japan in nice enough. I would like to get out and see more of it before long. This place just gives me the creeps at times. Particularly that Solaris guy. Something about him just gives me the heebie-jeebies." he said.