MISS Potts

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney











 




























The question immediately made Sydney tense up as this had been a sore spot from the beginning. The whole time it was a battle of if she should confide in someone and the one person she chose spilled the beans. When Mei’s hand slipped away the brunette recoiled further away as she averted everyone’s gaze by glaring in the direction of the four-wheeler Aoife was in. Mei’s voice grew louder as she repeated and clarified what she was asking. A sigh escaped and she shook her head to show she wasn’t going to answer. The movement from the agent made her head snap around to find that Mei was no longer lying down in the gurney, but had propped herself up.


“You need to lie back down!” she agreed, shaking her head in disbelief. There was a look of concern, but it drained away when she met her friend’s uncompromising expression. The subject wasn’t going to be left alone until Sydney gave in. “There is some bruising on my ribs from the other night of training, when the trainers came in with masks during dinner.” she muttered, playing down the injury. There was a small huff at the end of the sentence from admitting what happened. Not that she went in depth on the matter. Arms folded across her chest as she adjusted in her seat a bit. “It hardly bothers me.” she lied. It bothered her a lot and if hit just right she was in a lot of pain, but she didn’t want to worry anyone over it or prove to Ethan that she was weak in anyway. “Really, it is nothing to worry over.” she said, eyeing Mei and hoping that the subject would be dropped.


The brunette was clearly frazzled. Sir could see it in her body language and how she kept looking in their direction. Truthfully he wanted to tell Aoife she had nothing to worry about and that she did the right thing, but it really did seem that Sydney was upset over the breach of confidentiality. There was no real easy answer, because if he was in each of their shoes he would have reacted the same way. His eyes went back to his review mirror and he let out a sigh.


“Both of you will need to make written statements about today’s and the other night’s incidents. The facts well go to the head founders of the institute review and they will decide Ethan’s fate.” he said dryly, not sure exactly the outcome would be. The decision could go be letting him go or a stern talking to with consequences. The first he was hoping for to happen. Sir looked back in the review mirror to make sure they comprehended what he said, before following the four-wheeler that had made a sharp right turn. The ground had dropped down to make a ramp entrance to a tunnel that lead them back to the establishment.     

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

The agent was keeping a watchful eye on Mei now as if he expected her to try to get up again even though she was laying back down as she was told. Her eyes stayed on Sydney though the whole time and there was a mixture of hurt and worry in her eye. If the brunette was hurt, why didn't she say anything? Even though in the end it was supposed to be a one man show, they were a team right now. They were looking out for one another but...Sydney didn't trust them. Even as the brunette finally caved and said what it was that was wrong with her, Mei wasn't so sure that was everything. If it was just light bruising that didn't cause her any problems, then why was she trying so hard to cover it up? Mei had been watching her, she saw the way she looked towards the other car. When she finally said it was nothing to worry about, Mei slowly shook her head and turned her focus back to what was above her instead for a moment. This was ridiculous.


"If it was nothing to worry about, you wouldn't be staring daggers at the other car." Mei commented quietly though it was still loud enough for the brunette to hear her. She ended up glancing towards the other woman just to see what her expression would be on that before her gaze went up again. "Don't fret though, Sydney I won't ask anymore. This isn't the right place to put your trust in people so it's fine. I get it. We aren't really friends here anyway since it's just for a job." The tone Mei spoke in was bitter and held the hurt she felt behind it though she was trying to cover it up as much as she could. Mei let a soft sigh leave her lips before she closed her mouth as well as her eyes. She didn't want to think anymore, maybe it was just the pain becoming a bit too much for her to handle. Either way, if Sydney didn't want to confide in her about things it was her own choice. They weren't here to make friends, even if Mei had thought otherwise about the other woman. Surprisingly, it actually hurt more than her shoulder did and she just really wished she could fall asleep, pass out, something.


"We're almost there." The agent announced softly, feeling the tension hanging in the air now and not really wanting to press any more buttons. All Mei did was nod her head as her hand came up to hold her bad arm to try to hug herself. There were a lot of thoughts swimming around in her head and none of them were very good ones. She just wanted this day to be over and done with.


"She's not going to hate you, no one can hate you Aoife." Chris was saying softly but the redhead somehow doubted that very much. Despite her doubts though, she gave him a meek smile and a nod of her head anyway. She didn't say anything else on it though and instead looked back towards Sir when he spoke. Keeping things serious and business related, nothing comforting about him at all. A small pout crossed her features and a heavy sigh left her lips but there wasn't anything she could say about it either. Both her and Chris nodded their heads but both stayed silent the rest of the way down the ramp into the complex. Chris seemed to realize that Aoife was still unsettled about Sydney so he leaned a bit closer and set his arm around her shoulders in a reassuring way. The smile he gave her almost reminded her of one that her father gave her whenever she was sad, so it caused her to smile again and lean against him slightly. Even if things didn't turn out, at least she still had one person she could turn to.

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney
​

Looking away seemed to be the easiest for the both of them. The subject was being dropped just like she wanted, but not in the manner she didn’t desire. Honestly, that the other woman didn’t understand where she was coming from was a bit baffling. A scoff left her lips before they pursed together as she shook her head at Mei, listening as the other spoke.  The more she drowned on in that bitter tone the more anger filled Sydney became and she wanted to explode at the other. Her mouth opened to do so, but she quickly closed it to keep from saying anything she’d regret. Sydney licked her lips as she kept shaking her head in disappointment in the other. The fact of the matter was everything in her sentence was correct, they weren’t there to make friend, though that wasn’t why she didn’t tell anyone. This was between her and that prick.


“It wasn’t like that.” she muttered loud enough for the other to hear. “Had other reasons and none where because I didn’t trust any of you, though clearly that has come to bite me in the ass.” she spat, referring to the redhead in the other vehicle. Their surroundings were changing now and they started going underground. The secret entrance would have her jaw dropped open in awe, if not for the current circumstance. A soft hum left her lips as she acknowledged the comment from the agent. There were streams of lights along the road and they blurred together as they picked up the pace, now being a smooth paved surface.


The agent didn’t lie, they were almost there. In a matter of moments after the little spat that left tension hanging in the air, the four-wheelers were pulling off to the side. A medical team was there to greet them and took over handling Mei from the other two agents. The best thing to do was for her to be out of the way, so she stood off to the side and watched. A sigh escaped as a slender woman with small beady eyes started approaching from Sir’s side. A forced warm smile was plastered on the woman’s face and an arm, that was meant for comforting came around her shoulders to guide her inside. Sydney didn’t like being touched and flinched away, but the woman ignored the hint. X-rays were taken and some pain meds given to bring down the inflammation.


Then she was placed in a room that had multiple beds, like in a hospital, which had multiple beds. Shortly she would hear her results, but until than she was being questioned about the events the other night. Clearly, they knew quite a bit of the back story from Aofie as he pressed some issues. A few questions that he asked: When did he pull her away from the group, how aggressive did he attack, and why you?  The brunette didn’t lie or hide the truth. At this point, she wanted to nothing more than it to be over.


The results were in: Deeply bruised ribs with a couple hair line fractures. The nurse gave her a stern talking, saying that this could have led to the bone full breaking and puncturing an organ and yada, yada. Sydney was no dummy that is why she took it easy for the past few days, but there wasn’t much else to do, except to wait for it to heal. The nurse left Sydney in the room to rest, ranting on how stubborn agents where when it came to injuries. The whole interaction with the woman made things sourer and she rolled her eyes at the irritating woman once her back was turned. The only perk out of this situation, they’d be managing the pain. There was nothing else to do, but stare up at the ceiling and revisit the events of that day in her head. The click of the door turning caught her attention and she watched as the door slowly open, interested to see who was on the other side.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

Mei wasn't sure what to believe so for the time being she actually chose to ignore Sydney's words. She just kept her eyes closed and focused on the lights passing by overhead and the sound of the four-wheeler slowing down. It wasn't until the vehicle stopped that she opened her eyes again and glanced to the side to see other agents coming to get her. She tried to give them a smile but she doubted it was a very big one if it was there at all. She was taken to a room that was an off white color, with a few different beds in the room along with the one she was moved to though they were all empty. At one point she was moved again so that she could get both an xray and an MRI done of her shoulder as a precaution before she was brought back to the room to wait for the results. More pain meds were given and her arm was secured in a sling to make sure that she didn't unnecessarily move it around.


At some point Sir ended up coming to ask her about what had happened the night that Sydney was attacked but Mei really didn't know much about it. Since she hadn't been there when Aoife announced it was Ethan and Sydney didn't open up about it, the Asian was a bit more clueless about the events than the others but she still answered his questions as best she could. At least until the nurse ended up shooing him out so that way she could get some rest, which she was grateful for. That didn't even last all that long though before Sydney was brought in and situated in a bed across from her, to which Mei was quick to just pretend that she was sleeping. Her breath was smooth and even, while her heartbeat was calm and controlled. Sure she knew she couldn't pretend forever but at least for now she didn't want to deal with things.


Meanwhile, Aoife and Chris had been taken to a different part of the building so that way they could give their written statements of the two events. Chris tried his best to hold back even though he wanted to get a bit....opinionated about how he felt about Ethan. Thankfully Aoife was keeping him in check though and the two of them were able to get their statements written up and turned in within a decent amount of time. After that, they headed over to the cafeteria as Chris wanted to try to sneak in some food for Mei and Sydney to be able to eat. Aoife split ways with him though halfway there so that way she could head there first, which he didn't mind since he knew she'd want to talk to Sydney a bit more privately. After wishing her luck, he gave her a quick hug and headed into the cafeteria before Aoife made her way over to where the infirmary was. Her hand went up as though she was going to knock on the door but then she figured it was an infirmary so anyone could just walk in whenever they weren't feeling well. The nurse that she found directed her to one of the rooms in the back and honestly with each passing step, the redhead grew more and more nervous. She really didn't want Sydney to hate her when all she was trying to do was look out for her. A heavy sigh left her lips despite trying to keep it back, going against her usual upbeat nature. She had to try to keep positive though so with a quick nod to herself she placed her hand on the doorknob and opened the door without a second's thought.


"Uh, hey...Syd." Aoife wasn't expecting to have Sydney staring at the door when she opened it so it caught her by surprise. Nonetheless, the redhead still stepped inside and gave the other woman a small apologetic smile. "Chris be bringin' some food fer da two o' ya since he say it might not be da best food. Kinda like da hospitals I guess? I dunno." She shrugged slightly and brought a hand up to brush some hair behind her ear, clearly nervous now more than she was when she first walked in. "So...what did dey say 'bout it?"

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney

Who came through the door was not expected, another nurse or Sir sure, but no Aoife. The room grew even more tension full. Sydney had realized while the nurse going on about her ribs that Mei was in the bed from across of her, not that she wanted to acknowledge the woman at the moment. A frown crossed her features at the mention of food, not because she wasn’t hungry but the elephant in the room was being ignored. A soft hum left her lips to show she had heard the other woman and her gaze dropped into her lap and on her hands.


“Deeply bruised ribs with a couple had fractured hairlines.” she sighed, picking at her finger nails anxiously. Admitting it was bad was hard because she knew deep down the redhead did the right thing and if she were in the other’s shoes, she might have just done the same thing. Sydney slowly looked up to meet the other’s gaze and the anger melted away. It came from a good place, her telling Sir and she couldn’t stay upset. The whole time she had been a shoulder to lean on and supportive, it would be a petty thing to throw all of that away when the red head was just looking out for her. Room was made on the bed and she lightly tapped it for Aoife to sit beside her.


“You let the cat out of the bag, naughty.” she teased, shaking her head slightly as she was still disappointed that she had done it. The aftermath that it had caused too didn’t make her feel any better about it. Sydney’s brown eyes looked across from her and stole a glance at Mei. Surprisingly more anger bubbled in her stomach when that happened, not at Aoife, but at the other woman. The fact that kept something private, just that private was being held against was infuriating. “Please, next time give me the chance to come forward first before you go outing me?” The fact that she was going to have to retell the happenings of that night was one of the things she was avoiding. A hand ran nervously through her hair that was freshly clean thanks to the shower they had let her take after the x-ray and questioning. It was hard to let go, but she was doing her best to forgive her partner.  

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

Hairline fractures? Aoife knew it was bad but she hadn't expected it to be that bad. Green eyes blinked in surprise before glancing to the side as she wasn't sure what else she could say at the moment. 'I'm sorry' seemed like a good start but she knew it wouldn't cut it. Sydney had been glaring the whole ride back from her four-wheeler so there was no way she wouldn't be mad still. It was surprising that she was even talking to Aoife honestly. Although the moment that the redhead heard some slight shuffling, she glanced back to see the brunette tapping a fresh spot on the bed that had been made for her. Aoife stared dumbfounded for a moment as Sydney teased her before quickly walking over to take a seat before Sydney could change her mind about it. "It ain't 'appen like dat." Aoife wanted to tell her how it went down but ended up trying to say three different things at once, so her next words had all ended up sounding like gibberish. A curse in her native language left her lips before she reached up to scratch her head lightly.


"Yeah, I know I shoulda waited fer ya ta come out an' say it but Sir been askin' if der was anytin' else on Etan...Ehan...da bastard." His name was hard to pronounce sometimes due to her accent so Aoife opted to call him a bad name instead since it suited him more anyway. "Sir needed ta know fer da report 'e 'ad ta make ta da 'igher up people an' I figured dat if I say what 'appened ta ya too dat sometin might actually be done instead o' dem just fuckin' 'round. I ain't want 'im ta just get a warnin' or sometin, 'e needs ta be taught ta not do shit like dat." Aoife was speaking a bit passionately about why she had come clean to Sir about Sydney's injury but there was still an apologetic look on her feature the whole time she spoke. Carefully she reached out and took one of Sydney's hands in her own, holding it in an almost tender manner. "I be sorry dat I ratted ya out like dat, really. But 'e deserves ta be fucked over fer what 'e did ta both o' ya an' I wanted ta make sure dat 'appened. But most importantly, I wanted ta make sure ya got dat looked at. Ya far from being weak, Syd. Ya know, I know it. Mei and Chris know it. But ya still need 'elp when it comes ta stuff like dis and I be wantin' ya ta be propaly looked after. Dey can give ya stuff fer da pain and make sure it ain't gonna get any worse. If ya wanna 'ate me ya can but...I just be 'appy dat ya bein' taken care of now."

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney

A confused expression came over Sydney as the redhead just wasn’t making sense at the moment. A loud of words were mixed together to make an incoherent sentence that she couldn’t even work out the slightest what Aoife meant. The curses that were slewed out mixed right on in and the brunette didn’t know the other was speaking in her native tongue. Sydney sunk her head further into her pillow as she looked up and listened to her struggle with the name. Pronouncing it correctly was pointless. Besides, she liked that the insult, bastard, had been used instead. All Aoife’s reasons were valid, hard to argue against and just what she expected. Thus the reason she was even talking to the Irish woman.


“Don’t hate you.” she mumbled under her breathe, not liking to hear that Aoife thought she was going to hater her for telling Sir. Upset and disappointed, hell yeah, but her friend was really just going with her best judgement. “Not to say I’m happy with your choice. Really wish you’d given me a chance to come forward before you talked to him. In the future hope you do give an opportunity to do it on my terms. I know . . .w-well I’m still working on the whole weak thing, alright. It is hard to stop thinking and feeling that way and a part of me just wanted to handle it on my own.” There was a bit of a pout on her lip as that would no longer be an option. Most likely they would get rid of them with two strikes on his hand and two candidates in the infirmary. “Wanted to show the dickhead that he was wrong on my own, so I didn’t want anyone to interfere. Honestly, didn’t think it was that bad of an injury. Could have gotten worse when that lady was sitting on me” That was the first time it was sharp pains, except when she was reaching for the branch and the intimal fight. Never really dawned on Sydney that he might try and hurt someone else and there was a bit of guilt for not reporting it right away.


“This sucks.” she sighed, having everything a mess. A finger was pointed in the air to show the red head the creamy color clamp that kept track of her pulse. “I’m like on house arrest.” she said, frowning at the medical device. An alert would be sent to the nurse if it no longer sensed her pulse, keeping her in the bed. The finger bent up and down as she inched it closer to the red in a teasing matter. A sigh escaped as she scowled at her imprisonment before looking around the room for something else, besides Ethan to talk about. “I hope he brings ice cream.” she said dreamily, laughing slightly as she knew that was a pretty low chance of that happening.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

Hearing Sydney say she didn't hate Aoife brought about a wave of relief through the redhead; it spread through her whole body, even showing in the way her shoulders dropped and seemed to just relax some. In just the slightest way, for a split moment, it looked like she was going to cry even before she put on a sheepish smile as she listened to Sydney's words closely. Her head nodded now and again to show she was listening but a part of her figured Sydney wouldn't have come forward even if she had been given time. If she really was working on coming to terms with the whole 'being weak' part on her own then she wasn't wanting to rely on others, right? Or maybe she would have eventually, when it got to the point where she couldn't handle it on her own at all. The point where she couldn't function on her own so it still turned out better this way. It was a bad injury that could have just kept getting worse if it wasn't taken care of.


"Well, it ain't gettin' any worse now cuz it bein' taken care of an' so is da prick." There was a grin on Aoife's face at the thought of what might happen to Ethan. In a way she was hoping of something a little more severe than just getting kicked out but somehow, she doubted that was possible. "It's aight, I got ya back in da future. I really, really promise. But if it be sometin' dat I tink is gonna affect ya life den I'm gonna spill da beans again if ya ain't gonna do it." Aoife's voice grew serious for a moment as she held up an almost accusing finger towards Sydney's face. "Ya be important ta me and I ain't want notin' ta 'appen ta ya, none o' us do. Dat's why we be upset. Ya shoulda seen Chris when he 'eard dat it was da prick dat 'urt ya. Looked like 'e wanted ta find 'im and beat 'im down o' sometin." Since it was't just Mei that Ethan had hurt but Sydney also, that was two people that Chris held close to him in this ordeal. Aoife just hoped that Chris wouldn't try anything stupid if he came across the other man in the hall or something. "Mm, ice cream be nice. Doubt dey 'ave dat 'ere but it be yummy ta tink 'bout." As if he could read their minds, the door opened again and Chris came in holding a tray with two plates covered up by a round top. Two bottled waters were hanging from his belt and two chocolate milks were on the tray as well.


"Sorry it took so long, the cook was already gone so I had to scrounge around and make something myself." Chris looked around the room and spotted Mei, looking as though she were sleeping still. A small sigh left his lips as a worried look crossed his face but he tried to put on a smile anyway as he walked over to Sydney first. "It's not much, just a chicken salad sandwich and some apple slices since most of the food is on lock down. I kinda sorta just barely managed to sneak around to get this." The smile turned to more of a nervous one as Aoife rose a curious brow at that one.


"Ya shoulda got me, I coulda got ya in."


"It's fine....I think?" Chris actually wasn't sure if it was or not so he ended up giving Sydney an apologetic look. "It's fine for now? I promise closer to dinner I'll get you something better but you should try to eat this for now."

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney

Sydney held no blame in Aoife’s words that if circumstance were similar she’d do it again and the accusative finger directed her way only made her almost burst out giggling. The words following caused a light blush on the apple of her cheeks. But now the topic was on important things, like ice cream. The fact that it was unlikely her craving would be available caused a bit of a pout to form. That was her go to when things were crummy. Cliché thing to do, sure, but a bowl of ice cream always made people’s problem seem less.


 


“Mint Chocolate chip, chocolate, vanilla and all the other flavors, at least one scoop of them would be nice. Have like an ice-cream bar instead of a salad one. Oh my goodness, I need to stop before I drool all over the place.” she laughed, feeling her mouth water more with each mention of a different flavor. The doors opened to reveal Chris with a tray of food. A smile grew on her face as she clapped her hands lightly to show she was excited to see what he had brought.


 


“Don’t worry, it is perfect.” The apologetic look was waved away as he really hadn’t needed to get food. It was the thought that count. There was a genuine smile on her face as she could really eat about anything right about now anyhow. The chocolate milk was eyed as she wanted to gulp it down, but decided it would be a nice desert. The top bun was lifted so she could see what was all on the sandwich quickly, before picking it up with both hands. The sandwich was being brought up to her mouth and she was nearly about to sink her teeth into it but, paused for a moment. Her gaze went to Aoife than Chris quickly as the sandwich was slowly brought down. “You two go something to eat, right. . .” There was no way she was going to start chowing down on dinner in front of the two if they hadn’t eaten at all. The least she could do was share, if it were the case.  

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

Even though Sydney said that the sandwich was perfect, Aoife was grinning a little as not even moments before she had been mentioning all sorts of ice cream flavors. All of them sounded so good too and made the redhead want some. Maybe they had some hidden away? It made her want to start digging around a little but she resisted the urge to say that. "Good, I'm glad. I know it's not much but I'll still get you something better later." Chris promised before making a motion for her to eat up. When she hesitated though, he ended up eyeing her for a moment before letting out a laugh. "Yeah, I got a little something when I was prepping your guys' sandiwches so you don't have to worry about me." Which just left Aoife, who was quick to give an innocent grin as she turned her focus to Mei.


"She be sleepin', ya? Can't imagine da kinda pain she be in too." Aoife motioned with her head towards the Asian woman that wasn't actually asleep but still pretty good at pretending to be. "Da nurse prob'ly ain't gonna mind if ya leave da sandwich for 'er." Since there was a stand nearby anyway for such a thing, it worked itself out in the end. Chris glanced over his shoulder towards it before mock glaring at Aoife.


"You aren't getting out of eating that easily, missy." He pointed a finger at her face for a moment before taking the tray of food over to where Mei's table was. Instead of just setting it down and coming back, he ended up sitting down on the edge of her bed and looked her over. He was mumbling out a few words that Aoife couldn't quite hear but it caused her to tilt her head slightly.


"I be eatin' when I wanna eat." She huffed before turning her focus back to Sydney. One of her hands came up to brush some of her hair behind her ear before she gave her a smile. "Veeeeery interestin' dat he be goin' der like dat, hm?" Aoife winked a little bit as she implied something more than what was actually going on; Chris was praying for a speedy recovery for Mei and he was going to do the same for Sydney too at some point before they left. "Are ya gonna hafta stay in 'ere fer a while or are dey gonna let ya guys come back to da rooms? Prob'ly not but I just bein' curious. Oh oh! How long did dey say it be takin' ta heal?"

 

[SparkleBreaker]

 
​

Sydney


























The two arguing made Sydney grin as she found the two squabbling funny. There was no butter knife, the process was messy, but the sandwich was pulled apart into halves. One was half was placed on the side of the tray closed to the red head with some apple slices piled next to it. A quick glance was made over at Mei while Sydney had been concentrating on splitting up her food, but besides that she pretended the woman wasn’t in the room. The little feud between the two of them was being ignored for the time being so she could focus on the good things. The tray closest was tapped and a hand motioned for her to eat while she took a big bit out of the sandwich.A giggle caused her to choke slightly on the food in her mouth, but she couldn’t help it with Aoife’s little joke. A hand covered her mouth until she got it all under control. A grin was her reply to the wink. The questions caused her to pause as she finished chewing and swallowing before answering.


“Not sure when my Warden plans on releasing me and I haven’t heard the details of Mei’s injury, so that depend on how bad that turned out to be.” A deep breath was taken, no matter what was going on between the two of them; she didn’t like the thought of the other woman being hurt. Part of her feared because how much pain she was in the four-wheeler it could be worse than she previously thought. A light shrug as they hadn’t really told her any of the details of their stay, only how very disappointed they were in her for not alerting them of the injury. “My Keeper, the nurse, probably keep me longer because I wasn’t taking care of my injury properly.” The comment came out as a low grumble and a little eye roll. On cue, the nurse came in and hurriedly shooed Aofie and Chris from the room, not even giving chances for proper byes. Sydney gave a little wave and mouthed goodbye as the nurse spoke over everyone, urging them to go now.


A couple of weeks went by before they let Sydney back into the training process. Aoife and Chris were allowed to practice while they were waiting for the next exercise. The candidates had been whittled down to eight over the course of the two weeks. The nurse hovered over her every moment as she had tried to sneak off a few times and practice some combat moves and working with the varies weapons in the training room. Each time she was caught almost immediately and caught an ear full, but she had grown restless as she waited for her ribs to heal.


Renovations had taken place since the group had been cut down and now each had their own rooms. A downer and at the same time she sort of liked having a bit more privacy, but she had spent the night in Aoife’s room plenty of times, after they let her out of the infirmary, after being there for a week. Now there was a little desk with a computer and they even had some internet, not that they could get on Facebook or any social media sites. There was bit of homework Sir had them so and research and that is all they could use it for. Normal clothes were allowed during non-training hours. Today was especially different as they were allowed to dress up for the dinner party happening later that evening. A strapless purple dress that had an ombre effect going from light lavender at the bottom to a dark purple at the top was what she chose to wear. The wardrobe wasn’t anything different about today. An itch for some change was scratched early that day and she had chopped off her hair into a pixie cut. It was all in curls now and Sydney just put on the finishing touched of her make-up before doing a twirl in front of the mirror so she could get a good look at her work. Satisfied with the outcome, she snapped the cover onto the lipstick she had just put on and headed over to Aoife’s room.


“Knock, knock. How is it coming along in there?” she asked as she physically knocked on the door before opening it slightly and slipping inside. No one had seen her hair change and she was sort of excited to see everyone’s first impression. “What ya think?” Sydney threw her hands up in the air as she did a twirl to show off all her hard work. “You like it?” The Curly brown hair was lightly touched to show what she was referring to.     

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

Time passed pretty quickly, a couple of weeks that didn't even seem like it was that long. Aoife had spent quite the bit of time in the nurse's office during the first week that Sydney and Mei were still stuck there. Chris did as well when he could but he came at more random times since he had the bad luck of drawing the nurse's attention and getting them kicked out more often than not. When they weren't there, they were practicing together or taking advantage of just relaxing in their rooms. The fact that they were able to get their own rooms after the other candidates were narrowed down was pretty exciting. Aoife happened to love the privacy but more than that, she loved the computer. She'd missed her technology, not that it wasn't worth being here. It was just having a computer made it that much easier for her to try what she had always wanted to do: hacking in to the server here and seeing what she could really find out about the organization they were trying to work for. Not that it was an easy feat by any means and with Sydney spending a fair amount of time in her room, it made what time she did have very limited to try. The challenge loving part of her couldn't resist the urge though so she had to try. Of course, this was all after she finished the 'homework' that Sir had given to them.


During the second week, they found out more about Mei's injury finally since she wasn't being so hush hush about it. At first she didn't want to say anything for whatever reason she had; which Aoife assumed it had something to do with whatever happened between her and Sydney. The nurse called Chris out on putting it back in to place the way that he had since it wasn't the smartest idea but it worked itself out in the end. Mei was told it would take four to six weeks for her shoulder to properly heal and until that time came, she would need to keep her arm in a sling. The news wasn't exactly the greatest to hear but Mei seemed to be pretty positive it wouldn't take that long for her to heal. They had started her on the physical therapy she'd need and she was doing a little extra even after the nurse left as well. She knew she'd need to strengthen her muscles around her shoulder to help it heal better so doing a little more couldn't hurt. Supposedly, they were going to release her from the infirmary yesterday but Aoife hadn't seen her yet so she couldn't have been sure. When she tried visiting the day before, the nurse had kept her from going in. All Aoife knew was that Mei was going to be coming to the dinner party in the evening with the rest of them and she really needed to finish getting ready.


Aoife was already dressed in her two piece dress, one that was a light blue color with a purple beaded design around the neck/chest area and the hems. It was open in the back and gave her as much flexibility as she could ask for in a dress. She was always one to go for the things that were different or unique, ones that not many people would actually consider wearing themselves. Fashion wasn't her forte by any means, she just wore what she liked. She was finishing up with some matching make-up -the final touches of the eye shadow- when she heard a knock on the door. "Ya, come in!" Aoife called over her shoulder though her focus was still on the mirror so she could finish. Hearing Sydney's voice put a smile on her face as she put away the shadow into the makeup bag, which was tossed into one of her drawers. She just needed to finish putting her hair up into some bun or something and then she'd be all set. First things first though. "Eh??" Aoife left out a surprised sound when she turned and noticed Sydney's new haircut. The surprise was followed closely by a wide grin as she quickly walked over to the other woman. "Ya cut yer 'air, Syd! It be so cute! Suits ya face and everytin'. It be curlin' too..." Aoife trailed off a bit as her hair reached out to touch the other woman's hair, playing with it a bit with her fingers. "I like it a lot, Syd. Very, very cute." Aoife was smiling as she nodded her head in agreement about it. "Oh, oh. Since ya 'ere. Ya wanna see sometin cool?" Aoife wiggled her eyebrows a little before pointing to her computer; since Sydney knew she was a hacker, there wasn't a reason to not show her that she had just about gotten in to the security feed. Not that it would do them any good to see the cameras but the feat alone was pretty cool since it had been a goal of hers since she first got here.

 

[SparkleBreaker]

 
​

Sydney


























The curls were gently pushed up so they’d bounce lightly after the compliment. Hearing that her hair was a hit, at least with one person, made her smile so big that all her pearly whites were on display. The light blue two piece dress was taken. Aoife surly was not against showing off her bod. The beautiful beads along the neck line were stunning. Sydney’s big brown eyes rose up to meet the Aoife’s, her brows rising in answer to the wiggle, before her eyes darted over to the computer. A mischievous grin grew on her face at the purposely. Sydney had always been curious to see what her friend was capable of doing behind a screen. 


 


“Show away. I’m putting your hair up while you do though, so we’re not late.” Few clear elastic bands and a brush were taken off the vanity. Sydney went to work while on a messy braided bun, all the while looking up from her work to see what Aoife was doing on the computer. Practically all of it went over her head, so she started looking up less often until it was to the point where the red head was ready to show what she wanted. The hairstyle was actually fairly simple and done fairly quickly. That was the thing about buns with braids, look like hours were spent on it when in reality fifteen minutes at tops. A braid went around the bun like a crown. There were a few strands pulled out to give it a bit of a messier look. The bun was pinned in to place a bit better and all Aoife had to do is give it a bit of hair spray before they left and it should stay intact for the remainder of the night.    

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━-━-━┓
Aoife
┗━-----━┛​

"Ya, okay." Aoife was easy to agree to letting Sydney fix her hair, given how they didn't exactly have much time to finish before they had to leave. She moved to get comfortable in the chair in front of the computer and made sure to sit up as straight as she could. Anything to make it easier for Sydney. She began to type in some commands into the computer, a broad smile widening across her lips. "It take a bit ta get in but dey 'aven't noticed yet." Aoife started as she pulled up the screen that she was trying to show off. It was black at first but after typing in a couple more commands, several smaller screens showed up. It became apparent real quick that they were live feeds of the cameras within the facility. One in particular Aoife as quick to bring up as she thought she saw Chris; once it was zoomed in, it was clear that it was Chris all decked out in a black suit, his hair sleeked back. He was hiding away in the kitchen with a big fat sandwich in his hand that he was chowing down on. Every now and then he looked to the side as if trying to make sure no one would see him; it reminded the redhead in a way of a squirrel trying to eat.

"It be live, Syd." Aoife said excitedly, pointing to Chris for a moment before typing in another command to bring up the main screen with a bunch of smaller screens. "I got inta da security system 'ere. So I can watch what da cameras watch. It ain't what I wanted ta do but it be a good start fer me. I got an encryption working too so dat dey can't trace me eida." Or at least she hoped no one here was smart enough to break her encryption and find out she was messing with the cameras. That might not turn out so well, especially if Sir found out. She just couldn't help herself though. After a second for Sydney to watch the feeds, she typed in another command that made one of the other screens larger to fit the whole screen. It was one of the rooms for the candidates left but not just any room; Mei's room. She sat on the bed, curled up as much as she could given her arm was in the sling still. She was a white with thin black striped two piece outfit, the pants going past her feet and the shirt showing her belly button. Her hair was curling near the bottom though it was hard to tell. Her good arm was covering her face and with the way that her shoulders were moving up and down, it was fairly clear that she was crying. "Oh." Aoife stared at the screen for a moment, feeling a bit bad like she was intruding on the other woman's space now.

"Em...well, it be a nice ting in case we need ta find someone. Or...sometin'." The redhead wasn't so sure what to say about how they saw Mei so she quickly entered a command to lower the screen back so they could see all of the feed. Glancing over her shoulder to the brunette, she gave her a small smile. "What ya tink? It be a good first step ta gettin' ta know dis place a bit beda. Em..." she trailed off again as one of her hands went to lightly scratch at the side of her face. "Ya tink...maybe we should go check on Mei?"

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney​

The red head was surely full of surprises. The fact that she got pass their security was pretty nifty and the brunette watched as she pulled up all the different cameras. Chris was caught snacking on a sandwich and by the way he was holding himself and checking the surroundings, it didn’t look like he was supposed to have it. That got a light laugh out of her as it was just like him, to be scarfing down food. Leaning in closer, her head above Aoife’s shoulder so she could get a better look, she watched the male curiously until another window popped up. This was one of their rooms and Sydney half expected it to be hers as it would be strange to peek in on someone else, but it wasn’t. Instantly Mei was recognized and the disagreement the two had on the four wheelers went off in her mind. That caused inflicting feelings about the situation the two had stumbled upon.

“Definitely could come in handy.” A silence hung in the air as Sydney put some distance between her and the computer, not wanting to encroach on Mei any further. Clearly that wasn’t Aoife’s intent as the window had been closed quickly once they figured out they were intruding on an intimate moment. “We could use --” That they could use the camera system to look around for any further tests Sir had up his sleeve was going to be suggested, but the red head’s question made Sydney freeze up. What transpired between the two she never went into detail about.

“Not sure I’m someone she wants to see.” On normal circumstances the whole scenario would be ignored by the brunette, but Mei had clearly been upset over something. Even if the two weren’t seeing eye to eye on some matters, Sydney was curious to know if she was alright. “Guess we can go knock on her door. Worse that can happen is she turns me away.” There was a small shrug at the thought, it truly not bothering her at the time. Deep down though, she knew that it would hurt if they had drifted that far apart.

Though she never visited, she knew what room the other female had moved into and she went over and knocked a few times on the door softly. There was some hesitation before she spoke. Liking her lips, she softly asked “Mei? How is it going in there? Need any help with your hair?” Instantly she winced once her words were out, regretting every word. Clearly she couldn’t come out with we know something is wrong let us in. Sydney leaned against the entryway, listening to what was happening inside the room.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

Aoife tilted her head curiously when Sydney almost shot down the idea of visiting the other woman. She wanted to ask why but figured it wasn't quite her place to get between something going on with them. It was obvious they hadn't been speaking much since they had returned from the test that got Mei injured but whatever happened was kept quiet about. Mei refused to say anything about it and just pretended things were fine around them. Clearly not. "Yea, I tink it best if we go." Even if Syd or both of them would be turned away, it might be better that they try to see what was up. The computer was shut off fairly quickly after doing a quick check of the system to make sure what she just did couldn't be traced easily. With that done, she followed Sydney out of the room and down the hall to the one Mei was in. She let the other woman doing the knocking and the talking for now and waited beside her. It was hard to tell at first but some shuffling could be heard on the other side of the door, along with some sniffles that were likely just trying to be covered up. It took a couple of minutes before the door was suddenly opened and Mei eyed each of them; it was obvious she was trying to put on an air of confidence about her but the puffy, redness of her eyes told a different story.

"Oh." Mei wanted to say something to them but seeing Sydney caused her to look the woman up and down for a long moment; the new hair caught her off guard almost as much as seeing Sydney in the first place. After what happened between them, it wasn't like they hung out or even spoke much after that. Why did she care if Mei needed help with her hair? The thought caused a pang in her chest and she had to quickly swallow it down in place of smiling gently at Sydney. "You cut your hair." It was stating the obvious but it was the only thing that came to mind at first. "It's very cute on you." Seeing the redhead peek her head past Sydney brought Mei's attention to her for a moment. The questioning look in the Asian's eyes caused a small giggle to leave Aoife's lips.

"Ya need some help o' what? We be tinkin' it might be good cuz of ya arm and all." The words caused Mei to look down at her the sling her arm was in and a pained expression crossed her features for a split moment. Mei was trying very hard to keep herself together and to not let on that she was just crying.

"Well...I was just going to leave my hair down the way that it is. I wouldn't be able to pull off anything cute like you two are doing anyway. But...I could probably use some help with some make-up? I got through some eyeliner and blush before giving up." At the same time that Mei sounded confident, the negative towards herself peeked through and she almost wanted to curse herself for such a thing. She couldn't let on that what Ethan had said had actually affected her, more so because of what happened between Sydney and her. That just amplified everything and half the time she should have been training or doing physical therapy, she'd been in her room trying not to break down like she had not even all that long ago. She was starting to doubt whether she even deserved this job or not even though she knew she really wanted it. "If you don't mind helping. I know time is pretty short and we'll have to leave soon."

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney
​

Movement cold be heard from inside, along with some sniffling. An uneasy feeling came over Sydney and she spared a look over her shoulder, thinking that it would probably be best if Aoife just checked in. The door swung open before she could worm her way out of it. Tensing up at oh, she was prepared to be told off and mind her own business. However, her hair was addressed. For a bit she had completely forgot that she had chopped it off suddenly. “Thanks” A curl was gently cupped in her hand as she answered.

The usual spirit Sydney had grown use to was gone from Mei. There was something off, though she barely knew the woman when you looked at the scheme of life. Yet, a feeling in the pit of her stomach told her something was wrong. The pained look that covered Mei’s features briefly when her arm was mention worried the brunette. Cynical words towards her hair was picked up on, never before had she put herself down.

“Psssh. I’d loved to get my hands on your hair. It’s thick, long and it would be drop dead gorgeous in curls. If more time was available I would be pressuring you to let me have at it.” A small smile was forced as she popped into the room. Still a bit nervous with her interactions with Mei and not really knowing where they stood with one another, Sydney eyed the make-up that was out on the counter. “Dibs on doing her eye shadow. We’re going to go with a sultry smoky eye.” The eye shadow pallets she started rummaging through before she settled on a soft white with a shimmer and a matte black. “How have things been?” A post it note was taken off her desk and folded in half before Sydney positioned herself in front of Mei to begin working on her make-up.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

Mei honestly wasn't sure why Sydney was putting in the effort that she was to actually be here. Not that Mei was going to complain any, the truth was she did miss the other woman. Mei had thought they were close, as close as two people could be given the circumstances, but at the same time she did feel hurt still. She knew she shouldn't take it personal since this was all just a game, they weren't here to make friends; most importantly, Sydney had her reasons for keeping her injury a secret. Mei couldn't hold her accountable for that. A small sigh almost left her lips but she was quick to cover it up with a smile when Sydney stepped inside followed closely by Aoife. "Curls be looking good on ya, I tink so too." Aoife commented with a nod of her head as she followed the brunette over to the dresser. It was clear based on the mess that Mei had really been trying to work on it at some point in the day. Probably sooner to cover up the puffiness of her eyes, which was more apparent the closer they were. Aoife was skimming through the other make-up until she found the perfect lipstick and liner to go with the shadow that Sydney picked out.

There was some hesitance on Mei's features as she sat down in front of the two women and her eyes wanted to drop to the ground. More so after Sydney asked how things had been. "Things....have been all right, I guess." Even Mei's tone was hesitant and it was pretty clear she wasn't sure whether she should open up about her problems or not. "I've been having some difficulties adjusting because of the sling but I'm working around it. Having to be around the clock on meds kind of sucks though." One of the bottles on the dresser was nodded to as more of an example than anything. She was also close to admitting that she was also lonely but she thought better of it. She couldn't let Ethan's words keep her down...at least not in front of them. "How have you guys been?"

"I be good, same as always. Ain't notin' really special goin' on wit me." It was a partial lie since Aoife was stoked about hacking in to the cameras but she wasn't sure she could trust Mei with that kind of information.

"So exciting." Mei chuckled slightly, a smile slowly creeping onto her lips as it was such a typical Aoife answer. "And you, Sydney? How have you been holding up?" Mei wanted to know, she wanted to still actually be friends with the other woman but it was just so hard. She wasn't sure what the other woman wanted and with everything going on in Mei's jumbled mind, she wasn't even sure what she herself wanted anymore.

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney
​

The makeup pallet sat open next to the brunette and she got in close, almost nose to nose with Mei. The pill bottle that was gestured to was eyed briefly. Besides pain meds in the first week, she didn’t really have to deal with any of that. In a way, she lucked out. “Close your eyes please.” There was sweetness to her tone and she waited patiently for Mei to close her eyes before going to work. A smirk grew on her face, knowing very well that the redhead was probably itching to get back to the computer to further hack the system. Sydney was quite curious to see how far she could get before the institute figured out she was hacking into their system or did they already know? Sir would be one of those sorts of people to want to watch something play out instead of intervening.

“Uh.” The question she figured was more for Aoife than herself, because when they left things off Mei wanted nothing really to do with her anymore. It snapped her out of her train of thought and she pulled her hand away, looking a little puzzled. Were they just playing nice now or did she want to make amends. “Fine.” There was a little shrug added to it. The nurse that was assigned to look over her made sure that she didn’t do anything exciting. “Can’t shake off that crabby nurse, so they really don’t let me do anything around here. Chris and Aoife get to have all the fun.” A fake playful glare was sent the redhead’s way before she went back to work on the eye shadow.

“Do you want to go back to square one and be in the infirmary, Sydney.” She did her best to put on an annoying authoritative tone while she mocked the nurse. There would probably be less animosity for the woman if she had at least gotten away with it once.

“Truly, she is like a blood hound or she has me chipped.” Sydney leaned back and took a look at her work. There was a nod as she was pleased with it and the pallet snapped shut. “All done for eye-shadow. You’ll have to let us know if you want anything different.” There was a small smile before she got up to put the make-up back where she found it.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

"All da fun in da world, Syd. Ya be missin' out cuz o' dat nurse." Aoife was teasing as she spoke, even adding a wink at the end of her words. Though truthfully she really was having tons of fun now more than ever since she could really play with the tech here. It was her strongest attribute and something she got great enjoyment out of, so she really couldn't help herself. Mei's eyes stayed closed but a small hum left her lips to show she was still listening. Mei had a nurse like that too, that watched her like a hawk whenever she tried to go outside or do certain things. Sometimes she had to wonder just where the woman came from but she'd learned to just avoid certain things altogether. Maybe that was another reason why she felt so down and defeated. She knew that she couldn't stay this way much longer or it might cost her the job but...it was just so hard. More so since she knew she was alone in this; Aoife and Chris were friendly enough sure but....no, if Sydney really wanted to still be friends she would have tried talking to Mei already too. Maybe this was all just pointless and fake. The thought just added more worry to her own already frantic mind and it made a sigh leave her lips.

"Sounds like she's a lot of fun to be around. What a debbie downer." Mei played it off like she was feeling for Sydney's situation, when it was partly because of...well everything.

"She be a blood 'ound cuz dey ain't allowed ta bug us. Only our calls or da computers when we use dem." Not that Aoife really had a problem with that since she had already found the bug and made a replica of it to cover up her own tracks on the computer. Hearing that the shadow was done, the redhead practically jumped excitedly. "Dis too, it look good wit da shadow." Even as she spoke, she added the lipstick and liner as Mei's eyes opened to look the shadow over. It only took a couple of seconds for Aoife to finish what she was doing before clapping her hands together. "So cute!"

"Wow." Mei was clearly impressed with the work the two of them did and the smile she had on her face grew. "Thank you both, I...didn't think that I'd be able to look this nice." Right as she said that, a bell sounded in the room followed by an annoucement saying it was time for them to meet up with the others to leave for the party. "I guess we should get going. Hopefully your keeper won't prevent you from having a bit of fun tonight." Mei spoke in a teasing tone to Sydney before she straightened herself and motioned for the other two to go ahead first. It felt nice to be in the company of them, especially Sydney, but it also felt a bit awkward as well since it had been so long.

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney
​

A small laugh she let out at the explanation why the nurse had to be a blood hound as they were not allowed to chip. When first mentioned it was merely for light conversation and a small laugh, she hadn’t thought about the real possibility that they had the means to do it. Tapping their phones or reading emails never crossed her mind and she felt foolish that is hadn’t, though in her defense she there was no reason for it to. Sydney hadn’t done anything she wanted to conceal or hide and very few calls went out from her room. The pallets were being lightly touched while she was lost in her thoughts, only snapping out of them to get a good look at Mei, she looked gorgeous. In Sydney’s eyes she always thought the other was pretty.

“You look really pretty.” The look on Mei’s face made Sydney feel good as they had clearly lifted her spirits, unless it was a show. The alarm sounded telling them to go to the main common outside their rooms, but the air had to be cleared or she needed to know where she stood with Mei. The alarm stopped as soon as the announcement finished and the brunette fell back.

“Mei can you hold back for a sec?” Sydney’s voice was small as this was a spur of the moment decision and she was flying by the seat of her pants. “Aoife, we’ll meet you out there.” A gentle smile spread across her face as she hoped the red head would understand. Things needed to be ironed out. Once it was the two of him her gaze from Mei to the floor. “This will be quick, but I just need to know what is going on with us?” Slowly her brown eyes lifted to meet with the other’s afraid of the answer she might get from Mei.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

Both Aoife and Mei looked towards Sydney when she asked the Asian to stay for a moment. The two exchanged looks with each other but the redhead seemed to understand pretty clear what might be going on. "I be meetin' da two o' ya in da main common. Don't be takin' too long or Sir might be comin' fer ya." Aoife joked with a wave of her hand before she walked out of the room first. Mei watched her walk off and truthfully, she actually wanted to beg the redhead not to leave. Being alone in the room with Sydney just brought a slew of emotions running through her. Anxiety, fear, rejection, annoyance, just to name a few. Maybe it wasn't so much directed at Sydney like she had originally thought when they first fought but because of the outcome of things in general. Still, she did her best to swallow down how she was feeling and looked over the brunette. Clearly Sydney was just as nervous about this as she was but it was probably because of other reasons. The moment their eyes met, Mei's glanced aside with a shamed expression on her face.

"That would be a good question, one that I don't really have an answer for." Mei started softly, her good hand coming up to move some of her hair behind her ear. "I never wanted us to be so distant and closed off from one another but...since you never wanted to talk to me, and I didn't have the courage to go to you, things have been like this. I don't know what to call this. I might have been a little too excited with you before, thinking that maybe -just maybe- I had made a friend I could talk to about anything. Whether it was small or important, it never occurred to me that we were striving for the same single job and that we likely wouldn't be able to stay friends after this is over. At least not until the fight." Mei paused and readjusted her sling some so that her hair on that side could fall more freely. "I understand why you wanted to keep your injury quiet and I know now that it was blown out of proportion. I've...had a lot of time to think." Especially since she was alone most of it, which might not have been such a good thing. "I never wanted to lose you as a friend; I really like you a lot, Sydney but...maybe I don't deserve to have you close. I've done a lot of stupid things in my life because of how I grew up; stupid, reckless things that got me into a lot of trouble. Maybe it's safer that you just stay away from me." Even though she was saying that, it was clear she was about to start crying again; not just from the way her eyes were watering but also the way her body started to tremble some uncontrollably. She really didn't want to lose Sydney but these tests, this job, Ethan, they were all starting to get to her and she was thinking that she didn't deserve any of it. All because that prick got under her skin more than she wanted to admit. "You deserve so much better."

 

[SparkleBreaker]

Sydney
​

A fire in her belly that fueled her anger before was relit. Never wanted to talk, that was more on the other’s part as Mei had begun ignoring her and stopped listening to the full story back in the four-wheeler. To lose trust in someone that kept something private to themselves was ridiculous in Sydney’s opinion. Truth be told, she was going to take Aoife’s advice and tell Mei about the injury and ask for help. They just hadn’t taken a break yet and she wasn’t going to stop them from progressing further in a timely manner when they were in a race. Sydney’s features contorted into an angrier expression the longer the other talked and when the darker hair woman finally finished a sigh full of annoyance escaped without her meaning to.

“First of all, don’t say you know why I did what I did when you wouldn’t listen to me in the four-wheeler. You shut me out and stated we weren’t here to make friends, not me. Also, that was a playing factor why I left you the hell alone. Not because I didn’t want to continue the friendship. Secondly, if you did understand so much why are you still holding it against me?” A deep breathe was taken in as that was what bothered her the most. She had been a little too excited with her, like it was a mistake to get close to Sydney in the first place. Emotions were running wild and before they got out of control she needed to get the hell out of there. Nearly through the door she stopped and turned back to face Mei.

“And Thirdly, I decide who is worth being in my life and deserves my time. Clearly, since I came knocking at your door with Aoife instead not checking in, I think you’re worth it. Your past is what made who you are today. For the most part, I like what I see.” Sydney said her piece and was done with it and turned to go out to the commons to let Mei mull over it.

Sir wasn’t actually there to be found, instead the agent that had chosen them for this grand opportunity. Michael had a bit of a confused look on his face, over hearing the end of the conversation. Slowly it turned it a warm and welcoming smile, like one your grandpa gave when you came to visit. Seemed he wasn’t the only agent from the field there to greet them. Little talk was between them and he escorted her to a giant limousine that carried them out of the training facility and up to this giant plaza hotel, where the evening event would take place. The rich clearly could be the only ones to rent out the place. Sydney came from a wealthy family, though she even felt out of place.

“Wow.” she whispered to Aoife, taking in all the surroundings while they made their way up the enormous large amount of stairs that lead to the giant glass doors that lead inside. “This place is huge.” Sir didn’t stay away too long and was coming down the stairs all dressed fancy in a nice suite and sort of looked really hot. “Well the night is really full of surprises.” Sydney looked over their trainer, not used to seeing him put together or well mannered.

“Good evening.” Handshakes were exchanged between the agents and then he paused to look all of the candidates over. “Observe and report only.” he reminded, and Sydney found herself nodding slightly to show she remembered the whole spiel that they were only to watch the real agents in action and learn. Not to get in the way of things. Once he was sure they message was clear he went on to the next group that had gotten out of the limousine behind them and Sydney was sure to say the same thing.

 

[pyreshadow]

┏━━━┓
Mei
┗━---━┛​

Mei looked slightly taken aback when Sydney spoke. The brunette only stayed away because of what Mei said during the fight? That seemed a little silly to hold on to one little thing that Mei said when she was upset. At the same time that thought happened, she knew that it made sense too; even though things were said that people might not mean during fights, the other party still held on to it as if it were the actual feelings of the person. That was just how things worked. Mei never wanted to end the friendship or even regretted being friends with Sydney. The only thing she regretted was getting so worked up about everything. It was all her fault, just like everything else that went wrong. Mei's eyes shut tightly and she took in a breath to try to calm herself down a bit. Her mouth opened to say something but when she heard Sydney's voice again, it closed and her eyes opened to look the other woman over again. She honestly couldn't believe the words that came out of Sydney's mouth; her own hung open slightly as she tried to process everything that had been said. Sydney...thought she was worth it? Why? Mei didn't see anything good about herself. She knew though that it had to do with everything that went down and she was just feeling down overall. Eventually she would get out of this slump...hopefully.

Until then, Mei walked back to her dresser and opened one of the drawers to pull out a different pill bottle. She took one of the tablets in there and then put it back where it was before leaving the room. It wouldn't do anyone any good if she were to start crying while over there so the pill would help to keep her calm. Then she followed everyone out to the limousine that would take them to their destination. The ride was uneventful but by the time that they arrived, Mei certainly felt like she was in control of her emotions again. At least for the time being it'd help. She walked behind a couple of steps while Aoife stayed by Sydney's side, looking all around them with wide eyes. "Dis be totally hatchet." Aoife giggled slightly as she spoke with a growing smile on her face. "I ain't never seen a place dis nice before." At least none that she had physically been inside of; hacking was one thing but being inside a place was another all together. Sir was even more of a surprise and the redhead couldn't help but stare at him. Of course, she stole a glance towards Sydney as if silently asking if she was maybe seeing things or not. The reminder he gave was the clue that she wasn't seeing things and she quickly nodded her head to show she remembered why they were here. It wasn't all going to be fun and games. Aoife watched him walk off for a moment before she felt a nudge at her side.

"You should wipe the drool from your face before someone catches you staring." Chris teased her, to which she was quick to smack his hard. All that did was make him laugh some more so Aoife stuck her tongue out at him. "The hair looks really good, Syd." He figured he'd change the subject before Aoife did a number on him, so he turned to the brunette instead. He looked a little uncomfortable in the suit he was wearing but at least they custom made it for him so he wouldn't have to worry about it. If they gave him one that was already made, it wouldn't have fit the way that it should. "Shall we?" He offered his arm out to Sydney like a gentleman and that caused a small pout to form on Aoife's face. So she turned to look Mei over for a moment before stepping over to her good arm so they could link arms.

"Ya, dis feels a bit more official now I tink." Aoife spoke with a chuckle since most movies she'd seen where people go to these fancy places always go in with someone. If Chris wanted to take Sydney in, then she and Mei could go in together. The Asian didn't seem to have a problem with it as she just gave Aoife a smile that turned out more meek than she hoped.

 

[SparkleBreaker]

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Sydney caught herself gawking at Sir while he continued on his rounds. There was a certain appeal that wasn’t there before. Momentarily, she throught Chris’s remark was towards her and even sheepishly checked for drool with the back of her hand. Something she hoped now one caught on. The compliments kept coming in and she it made Sydney feel pretty good about her decision to chop all her hair of. There was literally a weight lifted off her and a small smile spread across her face.

“Thanks.” The curls were touched gently at the mention, but her attention was on Chris’s arm suddenly, not expecting him to offer to escort her inside. Seemed only fitting to go in with an escort of sorts. Everything seemed so fancy. “Why yes good sir.” she replied, snickering slightly as she tried to act old fashion while taking his arm. The inside was pristine and perfect. The floors gleamed from being shined and there wasn’t an ounce of dust that could be found. “Wow.” she said under her breath, not quite curious what the agents were so interested in.

“Hello, glad to see all of you.” A smooth woman’s voice came out of nowhere it seemed like. Sydney jaw dropped a little at how drop dead gorgeous the woman was and the dress she was wearing put everyone’s attire to shame. It was black and opened in the back and hugged her body perfect everywhere. She didn’t stay for very long, she was off greeting a man, who looked very rich. A waiter came up with glasses of champagne and only when her mentor of sorts took one, did Sydney.

“Thank you.” she said quietly, before turning to look at her Michael. At last it seemed like they were going to loosen the reigns a bit. He would be back for her later and told her to mingle a bit. Get a sense of the people around them. “Well where shall we start?” she asked excitedly, taking a sip of her drink.