Starting Days

How long had it been since she was nearly choked to death by one of Madison's hallucinations? A few days? A week? Maybe a month? She wasn't exactly the best at keeping track of time, but perhaps remembering the day you nearly died might be a little more important than you'd normally think. Just a little. It was an embarrassment to think that she had required help - let alone be defeated by something that shouldn't be real - and worst off, she had woken up and her friend was right next to her. Okay, sure, maybe it wasn't her room, but the entirety of it made her blood boil. She didn't even want to think about it anymore. A light breeze blew by, summer's humidity completely lost in the world.

Rosebury seemed different at night. The eerie orange glows of the street lights almost made the small town seem haunting in a deathly silence, only the more sophisticated bunch heading towards the restaurant while some were drawn in like dogs towards the bakery and cafe in their sweet aromas. Very few townspeople were walking the streets, the ones that were, only clumped up together and huddled under a tree for warmth or whatever generic and cheesy thing couples did. Nicola's hand came up to adjust her cap, striding down the street in a casual, sluggish pace before turning the corner and reaching the bright game center. From neon lights to white noise to bright screens lit up in front of people's faces, it was inviting enough that she waltzed right in, relishing the cool air that filled her lungs with a deep breath.

Blue eyes wandered around, investigating each of the colorful machines in a bored manner. All of these were lamer than she thought. It didn't take long for her to scan her surroundings and finally find what she was looking for, the booth tucked in the corner in the furthest depths of the building. Raised platforms with a metal railing behind, the pink and blue arrows on the floor, and the towering screen blinking with a list of songs and the bubbling beats sounding in the air. It was no fun to play alone, though.

Pulling out her phone, Nicola immediately pulled up the school's website, signing into her Esper account. There were two people in particular that she wouldn't mind playing against. They seemed like they'd be easy to win against, and the good thing was, she hated admitting defeat. That, and they were the only people who were online outside her brother. The message was short and simple.

To: Madison Morse, Owen Darcy
You guys should really come to the Game Center right now. It'll be super fun, I promise! c;

As soon as the message was sent, her hands slipped her phone back into the bag they came from. There was no way she was just going to sit around and wait for them as they take their sweet time heading here. Might as well have some fun in the meantime, right? Pulling out her headphones - black in color, glowing with blue, and fashioned with cat ears - she added a coin into one of the machines, taking the artificial gun provided. Zombie survival games were always cliche. As the plug of her headphones came in and the game started with the push of a red button, Nicola adjusted her position, readying herself as the supposedly horrifying cries and pleas of people rang through her ears.

Her fingers pushed the trigger with each walking corpse coming in with hollow, blank eyes, and her teeth gritted, her knuckles white from her hard grip. If she had to be honest, she would've been surprised that the device hadn't splintered into her palms yet. So close to finishing the final level.

Madison had been studying when she got the alert. It was true that she hadn't seen Nicola once since she laid her on her bed, that she didn't know how well her friend was. This hinted that she was, indeed, fine. The girl took a hand from the open page of her textbook, placing it under her phone. She invited her to the Game Lounge. Didn't she know it was nighttime? Did Nicola forget how dangerous her power was?

But she saw Owen, and knew Nicola's mindset. She thought she could bring Owen and everything would be better. Madison frowned, and started typing up a message about how she couldn't make it, until her eyes drifted to the pile of clothes above her dark mahogany nightstand; Owen's clothes. They had been folded neatly on top of it, the boxers sandwiched in the middle, because she didn't want him seeing those first. She didn't know why. She didn't want to think why.

Maybe she'd go. After all, it would be a nice way of returning the clothes, without having to awkwardly run away. Perhaps Owen really needed those clothes. Plus, she hadn't seen Nicola in a while. She slipped on her sneakers as she made her decision, even giving the silent room an affirmative nod. Yeah, she'd go.

She took this confidence all the way to Owen's door, making sure to bring her back this time, the clothes a pyramid in her hand. It immediately faded, draining lifelessly down the hall, her confidence shutting itself back in her room as she prepared to knock. Shit, this was Owen. She never talked well to anybody, much less Owen.

Owen lay on the couch in the shared space of his dorm, one arm hanging down over the side of the couch and the other resting on his stomach. He hummed to himself, the notes out of tune, and his eyes were closed. It had been a truly lazy day, and he had absolutely no plans, school related or otherwise. That was, until his phone vibrated.

It sat on the coffee table, a few inches from his hanging arm. Hardly opening an eye, Owen extended his fingers, his hand falling to the table several times before he opened his eyes in frustration, only to find his hand had been half an inch from the phone the whole time. With an impatient noise, he finally grabbed it and brought it to where he could look at the screen.

A message from Nicola? That was the last person he had expected to be hearing from. He didn't even respond, however; he stood, grabbed a coat, slipped on his shoes, and walked to the door. He pulled it open and was surprised to see Madison there.

"Hey!" he greeted her, grinning broadly. He saw the pile of clothes in her hands, and he took them from her quickly. "Thanks for bringing these back. We should probably get going, otherwise Nicola will be waiting for. . .well, too long probably." He raced inside, dumped the clothing items on his bed, and returned to Madison.

"Let's do this!"

She hadn't even knocked, hand raised in a fist, when the door opened. She stood there stupidly, letting him take them, and called after him: "Yeah. I'll need you to be my light, too, remember the power? It's still a...thing." She dare not cross the boundary into his dorm, standing there rigidly, and smiled nervously at his proposition, giving a drained attempt at enthusiasm and life with a: "Yeeah...!"

She spun on her heel and walked beside him, down the cramped stairs and to the door. She stared out into the dark campus, tense, breathing in deep, shaky breaths that sogged up the window before her. It felt later than it was; there was no one out, despite it only being 7 or 7:30. No, real people weren't there. Instead, there were zombies, purple-fleshed mutants crawling around the grass, six-legged vermin the size of bears making their way up trees. A lady with a mouth the size of a racket-head spit a trail of black along the path, while a man followed her with an umbrella made of what she could only explain as hair. There was no sign of New Mother, so that was at least something.

"Um...could you...?" She didn't know how to explain his power, how to ask him to use it. She hoped he could infer what he was asking for with that, but to be safe, she provided a hand gesture, the gesture he usually made when he conjured light, only awkward and small.

Madison needed him to be her light? Owen recalled him using his power to provide light when they had been in the stables, but he hadn't realized she needed it. He agreed, pulling the door shut behind him, ready to follow her. They made it down the steps and outside.

He glanced at her, and saw that she tensed slightly. He wondered what it was she was seeing out there in the dark. She didn't have to finish her sentence; Owen had already lit up, almost like a Christmas tree. It was a short trip, he reasoned, it wouldn't take a lot of energy for him to maintain at least a faint light on the way there. With a comforting smile, he began to walk, expecting her to follow him.

The trip was short and dreary. The rain had continued to fall, and the past few days had been miserably wet, making Owen long for home. He was getting used to being at the school, however, and it wasn't too hard for him. He had yet to visit Rosebury, but he had heard plenty about it. The Gaming Lounge sounded like the kind of place he wanted to be.

They quickly reached it. Through the glass windows, he could see Nicola, already started on a game. He dimmed his light and held the door open for Madison with a dramatic gesture.

Madison had definitely become more comfortable with her hallucinations. It was definitely easier for her to reach this mindset, having been terrified of them for years. Having been stabbed 12 times, cut hundreds of times, she'd always made a point to stay away. But she'd been visiting Lotte every now and again, and walking in the dark when that wasn't possible. It was a few days ago that she was out with Lotte, one of the few nights where it hadn't rained, and Lotte told her: "Touch it."

It was a cheery command, and didn't feel like a command so much as a suggestion, but it took Madison back. The receiving end of this touch would be a chicken-sized monster, one whose body was mostly an eyeball, it's 12 or so legs spindly and gross. "I'm not touching that." She said. Its small mouth seems trivial, but its teeth were sharp, and it hissed at her. Lotte couldn't see it; she didn't know how bad it was. Despite her plea, however, Lotte persisted. "Do it, Maddie, it's tiny. Show it who's boss." And so, after a minute of preparatory staring, she touched it. She booped it on the head. It tried to bite her, but was unsuccessful, and angrily barked at her from beyond the realm of light. And it was cute.

Along the way to the game lounge, Madison encountered another one of these outside of the influence of Owen's glow. Except this seemed to be the mother hallucination; it was as tall as she was, and as fat as a Snorlax. Madison thought nothing of it, making sure to pass it harmlessly. But her arm seemed to move on its own, and it shot quickly into the darkness like a snake, putting a hand to its furry backside. It whipped around, but her hand had already returned to safety. She pressed to Owen and laughed at nothing, as the creature stared with its one, gigantic eye in disbelief.

When they reached the game lounge, Madison could already see Nicola immersed in something regarding a gun, something she aimed passionately and hardcore, making a little bit of a production in the lounge. Madison smiled at the sight, and couldn't help but giggle at Owen's gesture. With a fast paced skip of sorts, she bounded up, tapping Nicola on the shoulder. "Boo." Well that was a weird thing to say in a crowded, brightly lit place.

Nicola's attention was drawn away from the screen when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. For the split second she had peered back and lost her focus, it was enough for zombies to pile over in a grotesque manner, splatting their hands onto the glass panels as though trying to break free. A loud hissing screech filled her ears, and she winced, pulling her headphones off, the frequency of it only making her head wish it was bleeding. The screen was filled with a bloody red logo of GAME OVER and the death sound came up. No continue? No extra lives? Fuck this game. Whipping around, it took her mind a few moments to process the person in front of her. Oh, it was Madison, and Owen was just some way behind her. With a small pout, she placed her cap back on her head, unplugging her headphones from the machine. "'ya know, it would've been nice if you waited just a little longer before messing me up." The corners of her mouth were twitched up in a half-smile.

"Looks like you got Flashlight to let you in," blue eyes turned towards the much taller boy, and she couldn't help but inwardly groan. Owen was like a giant compared to the two of them. People were notorious for getting the wrong idea when a bigger guy was with two much smaller girls. Nicola rolled her eyes, hands on her hips after she placed the gun back onto the counter. "By the way, 'boo' isn't scary to someone who slays demons." There was an amused glint in her dull gaze before she looked around a bit.

"And it shouldn't be scary to someone who deals with invisible monsters every night."

There she was. The girl that had intimidated him upon their first meeting, the girl who seemed to know a lot more about Madison than he did and made him just the smallest bit jealous. If she wasn't so much shorter than him, he wouldn't feel so bad. Despite her still being just as brash and intimidating, Owen smiled at her reaction. Perhaps he would be able to get along with her after all.

"Whoa, hold on," he said, holding his hands up. "If we insist on calling me 'Flashlight'--" he made air quotes with his fingers in midair-- "then I'm afraid we can't be friends for much longer." Although his words sounded serious, Owen continued to smile, not necessarily serious at all.

Madison looked downward with a pout. "I wasn't trying to scare you...," she said in a huff. And dealing with monsters every night didn't make her a badass. She was as much of a scaredy-cat as it got. The girl paced foreard, leaning over the interface of the game Nicola had been playing, and spinning to lean backwards on it, elbows propped up on the system. She looked up at, or more so around Owen. "I've never called you that. I've thought it, though, but, um, I think it's kind of mean, I, don't get angry at Nicola for it." She could see his smile, and tried not to sound too serious herself. But her words always lacked a tone over a soft timidity, so it was difficult to discern anything else.

The girl frowned and looked around the room. "What should we play?" She assumed that Nicola would have come prepared for a question like that, given she promised fun. But this was Nicola, and knowing her, she probably wouldn't be. Madison smiled grimly to her thought, maybe a little too apparently for something that was in her head.

"Flashlight is Flashlight, no matter what," Nicola replied simply, as though it was of common consent. "But, I guess you do have a name, so..." It was just a tease, and his obvious gesture and smile made her certain that it was alright to keep going along with the joke for just a little longer. It'll die soon enough, but hey, it happened and it was fun while it lasted. Pulling her hands in front of her into a stretch, she glanced over at Madison, who had balanced herself on the machine's counter, and she raised an eyebrow. Maybe she was just bad at telling what the other girl was saying because, after all, she was pretty quiet and it wasn't easy to tell what someone was implying if they were as silent as a mouse. Were mice actually that silent? Or did they squeak like hell at night? Not having an answer gave her a small reminder to search it up later.

When Madison asked her about what they were going to do, her smile became bemused, and Nicola blinked. What was she planning for them again? She almost forgot after getting so caught up in shooting the innards of zombies in and the thrill and--- Oh, right. The game. Propping her chin on one hand, a thoughtful look washed over her entire expression as she managed to relax herself a bit. Or at least attempt to remember. Blowing a strand of hair away from her face, it immediately clicked in her mind. "Oh yeah! Dance Dance Revolution. My brother and I used to play it a lot at our place, and for nostalgia purposes, why not?" Straightening herself, she hopped off the platform to the current game they were at, before pointing at the booth in question, almost like a little kid trying to direct their parents to the next attraction at Disneyland.

"It's never fun to play on your own, so that's why you guys are here." She broke off into a sprint, turning towards them halfway through, and beckoning to follow. "Come on!" To say that she was eager to play was an understatement. Ecstatic, excited, and immature. Once she made it to the machine, Nicola immediately inserted six coins, enough for two rounds for three people before waiting for her friends. They'd decide the song from there, right?

It was true. Owen really didn't mind all that much about the nickname. It was better than the ones the kids at school had used when he was younger, and it was being used by friends who were good-natured. He hoped he was allowed to call them friends; after all, he had been invited to hang out with them instead of knocking one of them into a fountain or getting soaked himself because the same one was a little crazy when it came to rain.

Oh, boy. When Nicola suggested Dance Dance Revolution, Owen almost immediately regretted having left his dorm at all. That was the one game that he had trouble playing. He was tall and had no coordination when it came to flailing his limbs around, and had always avoided school dances because he didn't know any of the popular dance moves that his classmates did. It made him feel awkward and self-conscious, but he also wanted Nicola to think he was cool, so he nodded and followed her over to the game center.
"I'm warning you now, I'm terrible at this," he told both Madison and Nicola as he shrugged off his jacket. He set it on the floor next to the screen and shook out his limbs, trying to loosen up a little.

Madison followed them to the machine, the girl leaning silently on the back rail, on the ground between Owen and Nicola. Truth be told, she did not want to play this. Like, at all. Her feet were as clumsy and awkward as her words, and god forbid she should reveal that in front of this public place. And in front of the judgmental Nicola. And in front of Owen! What was Nicola doing? She saw how she first moved with a sword!
She tried her best to look smiley, but there was some serious regret hanging over Madison. She had to constantly remind herself to smile, or else her face would fade to a distant frown. She should have stayed home. Maybe they wouldn't notice if she never took her turn...?

As Owen took off his jacket, her hands reached up to her hat, and lifted it away from her head, glancing at it for a few moments. It made her feel uncomfortable if she didn't have some sort of accessory on her head, but if it fell off during the game and on the dance floor, she'd wind up stepping on it or having to pause midway through to pick it up; risk her score or forfeit the hat. With a grin, Nicola tossed it over to Madison as she tapped her foot on one of the brightly colored arrows, scrolling through the list. Glancing over at the taller boy, she shrugged. "What, do you want to start on easy or something?" Her tone sounded more irritated than she had originally intended, and the fact that she wound up wincing afterwards made it all the worse. While she had invited them under the fact that she'd most likely win - bless Madison's clumsy nature -, it'd be awful sportsmanship if it was a completely unfair game. Without realizing, Nicola had wound up confirming a song and her attention snapped back onto the screen when an upbeat, bubbly voice started the countdown.

READY? SET... GO!

Music blasted through the speakers, flashing arrow keys scrolling across the screen. Truth be told, her sense of rhythm was rather awful and the only reason she managed to do decently on games like this was out of repetition and practice rather than innate ability. Maybe fighting at least improved her coordination, but that was beside the point. Keeping her eyes on the screen, her steps starting off quietly and subtle, with simple changes in her position to hit whenever the arrows overlapped one another.

MISS. GREAT. GOOD. GREAT. PERFECT. PERFECT. MISS. MISS.

As the song continued, Nicola managed to catch onto how it worked in her head, her movements evolving into crosses, twirling, and bouncing around, becoming fluid and louder as her confidence grew. Her timing improved and by the end of it, she managed to keep a decent combo before screwing up right at the end, which in turn, caused her to groan, completely messing up her dramatic finish. The game ended with a loud applause emitting from the machine, and there were a few people who had caught themselves watching their somewhat-not really-competitive match. Leaning back on the railing, blue eyes drifted back towards Owen with an amused smile, and she let out a laugh. "I'm not too great at this, myself. Did I forget to say that?" Her head leaned over the metal rail as she looked at Madison, her vision upside-down.

"So, who do you feel like playing against first?" No way Madison was going to get away with it. She spent money for all three of them to play and not for someone to sit out.

Owen scoffed.
"Easy? No way," he said. He half-glanced at her, but as he looked away, he hoped she didn't see the flash of worry in his eyes. How could he ever compete against her without an embarrassing loss if he didn't play on easy? He watched her scroll through the songs. He didn't recognize any of them, and she suddenly picked one that he hadn't even heard the name of.

READY? SET... GO!

It started off easy enough, and Owen was tapping the arrows with his feet, hardly moving anything. Slowly, it began to pick up, and he was finding it harder and harder to keep up. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Nicola doing some extra moves to get all the arrows, and he nearly panicked. He was much too occupied to notice her screen, however, so he began to push himself harder.

Miss. Miss. Great. Good. Good. Miss. Miss.

This was terrible. Owen was no longer smiling as the game ended. He managed to get a GREAT on the final combo, but it was the best move he had done all game. With a great sigh of relief, he let his arms hang down at his sides as he turned to face Madison. Leaning on the railing with his arms, he glanced at Nicola.
"Maybe you're not that good, but you're a lot better than me." He laughed.

"You might win against me, Madison," he said to the girl on the other side of the railing.

Madison had taken the hat, and through the whole match, she seemed to have put it on absent-mindedly, the loose hat adorning her head delicately. When it had ended, and she jumped a little from where she stood; she had previously cradled her chin in her hand, leaning on the railing, but abandoned that with a blink. "Oh, um..." She withdrew the hat from her head, sending strands of black hair awry with it. Great, so she wasn't getting out of it.

She would rather face Owen, but she figured she would go again who she expected to lose against. After all, no one would blame her if she did. As she said, "Nicola, I'll challenge you--erm, dance with, um, verse you," she hoped the girl would be too focused on her own game to worry about Madison's. She ignored the last word Nicola said, first. This was going to be her only time.

She stepped up, a little too avoiding of Owen as she passed him, and rubbed her arm in nervous anticipation of Nicola choosing the song, leaning her butt on the now-shorter railing.