A Visit Home [CLOSED]

Magic, Lamia and Vincent all used Magic's reward in the tournament to get to Magic and Vincent's hometown of Chicago Illinois. The flight there was nice, and it wasn't too long either. At least they weren't flying to Florida, that would have taken forever.. It was about the middle of the day when they got to Chicago, and about Three o'clock when they all got settled in a hotel room. Vincent had already disappeared to go hang out with his friends. The two winters probably wouldn't see him again for the rest of the day.

Their hotel was kind of fancy. It was nicer than any hotel that Magic had ever been in. All the other people that where there were rich in some kind of way, but they didn't bother to pay the three normal looking students any mind as they arrived in the hotel. There were two queen size beds in the hotel room they had. The room also had a nice living area with a big tv. Vincent was fine with sleeping on the couch, but he even stated that he may not stay at the hotel room and most likely would stay with a friend. So it was just basically it was just gonna be Lamia and Magic the whole time. The hotel also had a really fancy bathroom that I'm to lazy to describe. Overall it was really nice, and fancy. They could also order room service anytime they wanted. They could probably get away with drinking if they wanted but Magic was gonna stay away from that though... maybe... maybe not... who knows...

It was about three in the afternoon, Magic was messing around with some stuff in the hotel room. More specifically stuff he hadn't really seen before. He never really lived a fancy life style and some of this stuff was knew to him. At the moment he was messing with the fancy coffee maker in their room, then he remembered that he had a little bit planned for the day, and that Lamia was in the room. She was probably amused by him kind of freaking out over all the fancy stuff maybe. He looked up from the coffee maker and looked over at Lamia. "Oh yeah.. Would you like to go walk around in the city for a bit maybe?" He asked the winter girl. "I am going to have to pay my mother a visit some time today.. It would be better to go ahead get it over with so that way I can enjoy the rest of our trip.." He was really dreading it but it had to been done. Hopefully Lamia wouldn't mind.

Lamia never liked plane rides, and the one to Chicago was no different.

Throughout the entire trip there, she had felt rather uneasy about being in the air and dreaded the idea that they may have crashed on the way there. Of course, she never really said anything and kept quiet. Who wanted to go on vacation and hear someone complain the entire way about how uncomfortable they were about the flight? This was just before getting to their destination. How could people stand using public transportation? She hated it. So many people... so much noise. How did Magic even manage? She almost swore that she would've passed out from being so restless. Thank gods the trip was rather short - as short as it could get - and they never wind up getting close to anything that could potentially cause a crash-landing.

When they finally arrived at the room, Lamia had stepped in with a breath of relief and flickered on the light switch. As much as she wished to keep it rather dark, the others probably wouldn't appreciate it. Not everyone preferred the darkness and found comfort it in. She'd never admit it, but she felt in her element in the dark. As alone as she was, nobody could bother her and she wouldn't have to hurt anybody. The first thing she did, her mind filled with thoughts somewhere between excitement and apprehension, was slip off her backpack, leave her luggage at the side of the bed as she unceremoniously flopped onto it. They were finally there... a thin nervous smile slid onto her lips, and rolling onto her back, and grabbing a handful of cover. It was so soft and plush... was this what royalty felt like? Probably with a bit more service and expensive stuff.

The scenery was amazing for the place being such a big city. Her eyes had followed through and she felt herself get rather excited about everything around, doing her best to keep it in her head; there were times of course, were small squeaks of delight had escaped her and she found herself trying to point everything out to herself. It was a really nice place. Admittedly, there were places she really wanted to visit, but Lamia found herself keeping everything to herself. The clouds were so fluffy, the air crisp and fresh, the grass greener than she'd expected for a city, clear water that reflected off light in prismatic colors, and towering structures that reached for the stars. It felt so relaxing, honestly. I'd rather admire it than go outside... If ever given the choice, she always preferred being indoors rather than outdoors.

But what made her so nervous was that she was going to practically be in a room with Magic. Alone. Without any walls between them. Sure, their rooms were close to each other before, but they at least had boundaries. And now, since his brother had disappeared to somewhere, they were going to be in a big, fancy room by themselves. Goddammit. She has trouble sleeping very often, nightmares plagued her rest if she even closed her eyes and most of the time, she wound up staying awake more often. Did she talk in her sleep? That'd be embarrassing... The thought made her face turn a little red, and shaking those thoughts out of her head, she glanced over at Magic. Had he never really seen that brand of coffee maker before? Maybe not... he didn't seem like the type of person to be in the kitchen very long or do anything in it that he didn't have to.

A breathy, nervous giggle escaped her but her expression darkened immediately when he actually spoke to her. Golden eyes darted around frantically, trying to put her attention somewhere, but Lamia found it impossible when her eyes locked onto the other Winter. "U-uhm... s-sure..." she said in a rather panicked voice as if she only realized that they weren't in Beata anymore. Why was she so air-headed? "I-I d-don't mind..." At least this wasn't some elaborate prank like she originally thought...

A soft smile appeared on his face. "Lets go then. While there is still daylight. What is your favorite food by the way? I'm pretty sure, I can find a place to eat at on the way back with that food. I know a lot about this place despite how big it is." Magic said as he walked towards the door. He had the card key in his pocket for the hotel room for whenever they came back. Magic opened the door, and waited for Lamia to come join him. He liked the fact that she looked happy when they had finally gotten there. It was good hopefully they could keep a good streak going. Maybe.. Well it would be ruined by his mother, but it was a good start.

Lamia slid off the bed and walked after him, bending down to snatch her worn school bag, slinging it over her shoulder. The contents inside it rattled as she closed the door behind her, creaking as though it protested the idea of being shut, and the light inside fading away before slipping into the hallway. People seemed to flood the area, as though agreeing with what Magic said, and suddenly, she felt more aware of herself. Pulling her hoodie over her head, she found herself imagining what outside seemed like. Traffic lights, people rushing through, their steps crashing on the stone paved road, slipping past and leaving no place for the slow. She gulped, trying to shake those images out of her head and plague herself with the natural scenery. Goddammit, what did she want to do here? Actually, did she even want to tell him what she wanted to do?

"H-huh...?" That question was random. Favorite food? Oh... that's kind of embarrassing. Maybe she could avoid it? "Y-you pr-probably w-won't find it... It's a Fr-french d-dessert..." What the hell was she kidding? It was rather common, much to her own chagrin. Blueberry-Lavender Ice Cream. She just really liked how it tasted... And she used to share it with her brother all the time. It wasn't long before they were outside of the hotel, and she found herself pausing there. So many people... Did she forget to mention she was absolutely terrified of crowds? And the public in general? Fuckfuckfuck...

Magic didn't really mind the crowd. He didn't really like it either, but he lived with it for so long he found a way to deal with it. He looked around for a moment to kind of figure out where they were and how he wanted to get to his destination. The would need to go left.. then a couple more turns.. Magic turned back towards Lamia and offered her a hand. "I don't want to get separated." He stated adding a reason why he offered her his hand or arm which ever one. "The crowd should thin out the closer we get to where my mother lives.. and yes we are going there first, then I was thinking to a park. They usually aren't crowded. And I'm sure I could find a place that serves the dessert. There area lot of food places here." There was probably a food place on every corner.. Well she was going to find out more about his past rather soon anyway. They would probably find some people Magic used to hang out with.. Oh boy.. He slightly hoped that didn't happen. He would most likely be greeted with a punch to the face.

She knew he had no ill intentions or anything when she offered his hand out. It was just so they wouldn't get lost or separated... Was she that small that he was worried about losing her in a crowd? It's not like she was that short; oh, who was she kidding? Lamia was well aware that she was petite compared to practically every person at her age. Taking his hand, her cheeks turned a rosy hue of red, and she did her best to watch her feet instead of looking at him, even if it was just his back. Was it rush hour? Everyone was moving so quickly, she was almost positive she was going to trip at one point but went to her best effort to keep her balance. It's so fast... and crowded. Everything was huddled up together in really tight spaces, and worst of all, she felt uncomfortable and squeamish. People constantly bumped into her and she was always the one fumbling out apologies that they didn't seem to regard.

"U-uhm... I-I m-mean... y-you don't have to tr-try and find anything for me," Lamia stammered nervously, partially out her own discomfort for the crowd and partially because she really didn't want him to bother with her. Could he even hear her out here? It was so loud... The park would be nice... fresh and open air. And less people. Slowly, as they continued, the crowd began to shrink in size, and she found herself letting out a sigh of relief when it was practically scarce. A sharp intake, however, and she found people staring at them with rather terrifying and malicious looks in their eyes. Were they that close to his house? He got into fights often, and no offense to Magic, but she could see why he became violent. The alleyway seemed suspicious and had this creepy atmosphere to it, as though everything was crawling up your spine.

Tugging his sleeve to stop him for a bit, an action she soon regretted, Lamia whispered softly, her words unable to smooth themselves out: "U-uhm... th-those people are c-coming closer..." Their walk even gave off a bad vibe; it was like they wore neon signs that said criminal. I'm so stupid... why didn't I just not point them out? Then Magic wouldn't...

She didn't finish her thought.

Magic nodded to the girl, and started guiding her through the crowd. He did his best to avoid running into people, but it didn't always work, he found himself shoving through some people. He didn't even bother to apologize or anything. He just kind of danced through the people, helping move Lamia around as well. He heard her keep apologizing to the people the they might of slightly hit. The people wouldn't even bother responding. He knew that for sure.

He was slightly relieved when the crowd started to thin out. He slowed down a little bit, but still didn't let go of Lamia. They were getting towards the more dangerous part of their journey. He didn't bother to look at the people casting glances at them. It wouldn't have been better to ignore them, but then he felt Lamia tug on his sleeve to stop, so he did but he kept looking around at the others, giving them a dark look. He wasn't challenging them like he normally would have but he was giving them a stay away look. That didn't stop them from moving closer.

Magic rose his fists, and got into a fight stance, he was prepared to fight all 5 of them.. wait wasn't there a sixth on a moment ago? Magic looked at all of the other ones, and that when he heard fast footsteps. He wasn't able to block in time or get away in time and he took a fist right to the face. There was the sixth one. Magic was knocked to the ground because of the impact, but stood up quickly to defend Lamia. His whole expression dark like he was about to beat the crap out of the person who just hit him. Then his expression turn to something light. "Laine? Is that really you?" Magic asked lowering his fist, and his defensive position.

The boy, who was the sixth person, lower his aggressive position as well. "What..? Mason?" The older boy studied Magic for a moment before his face grew bright. "It really is you! We all thought you were dead after you suddenly disappeared for a couple months. But it turns out you were getting busy.." Laine said with a slight smirk and a glance towards Lamia's direction. The other 5 people dispersed and went back to their normal activities. "Anyway, after you disappeared I took over in your place. I was your secondhand man after all."

Magic's face grew red at the mention of him getting with Lamia. "No no no. We aren't together. She is a friend of mine. My mom sent me off to a boarding school, and I couldn't say anything to anyone before I was forced to leave. We are just here on a visit. We are were on our way to see... my mother.." Magic said mother with a slight growl. "Anyway your punches have gotten better, but you still got a while before you catch up to me." Magic said. "We really should be going."

Laine nodded. "I know I still have a long way to catch up with you, and I can guide you on the way to your.. mother's.. So that way you don't run into anymore trouble." They said mother the way they did because they were used to calling her something else. Laine started to walk away from the two then paused, and motion for them to come along.

Magic nodded to Lamia, and gave her a smile to reassure her that it was safe to follow. Magic grabbed her hand again and started following after Laine.

Her eyes had closed shut when Magic was hit. Why did she bring attention to this? If she didn't they would've made it there without any trouble and everything would've been alright. Okay, sure... she really did take martial arts and everything, but she never liked to fight. Or use it to defend herself. She played the part of the innocent bystander because she was practically useless at everything. However, there weren't any sounds of combat. No painful grunts. No hard, powerful kicks. No smashes to the ground. One eye opened slowly, and... friends?

Lamia eyed Magic nervously with slight confusion in them. Shifting uncomfortably next to him, she almost wanted to believe this was another plan to mess with her. We're not allowed to contact people out of school... And she never saw him on his phone or anything. So, this wasn't just some trick, right? It couldn't be. Or, that's what she wanted to believe. Withdrawing her hand and bringing them to her bag to play with the strap, feeling rather... awkward. She was just an outsider in this reunion. "A-are y-you al---" Her voice was cut off when the other boy talked. Laine, was it? She listened for awhile, but to be completely honest, either she was really naive or she just didn't know most of the modern terminology. Let's go with both.

And then, Magic explained it properly.

A small, breathy giggle escaped and a queasy smile etched her lips. Together? Oh, yeah... no. Haha. Very funny. Really really funny. She wasn't worth it for anyone, especially not the other Winter. Definitely not. Then why do you kind of like the idea? Lamia found her cheeks growing redder, and her eyes were focused anywhere but the two talking. Just listen... Magic had lots of friends, didn't he? Outside of school. Sure, it was a gang, but he had a group he could be with. Was it wrong that she was constantly jealous of everyone else and never said a word about her rather negative feelings?

She knew his mother wasn't exactly the greatest from what she heard at Beata. But... was it really necessary to make it obvious that that isn't what they normally call her? She wasn't a ten year-old or anything. If it wasn't bad or whatever, so be it. Lamia just never said anything about it. She wasn't going to mention something trivial. It was stupid of her to even think about it.

Completely lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize they were moving again until she felt someone grab her hand and a small tug caused her to step forward a bit with widened eyes. Why? They weren't in a crowd anymore. She wasn't going to get lost or anything. She had her own eyes and ears to see where they were going. Reluctantly, she freed her hand from his grasp, and stuffed both of them in her pockets. Sorry, but I don't want to hurt you by accident.

Lamia followed them without trying to speak another word, her gaze focused completely on the ground and where they were walking.

A frown appeared on Magic's face when he felt Lamia slip out of his grip. He liked the feeling of holding her hand for some reason, but he didn't want to make her more uncomfortable than she already was. Magic stopped when he noticed that Laine turned to say something.

"Hey Mason, can you take it over from here? I want to talk to your lady friend for a second." Laine asked. Laine was a tall boy, taller than Magic by about 2 inches. He was also older by two years. Laine did have a purpose in asking that. He wanted to know if Lamia knew what she was getting into, and he also wanted to ask her a couple things about Magic.

Magic nodded in response. He went up ahead a little ways, and Laine dropped back and walked next to Lamia. Magic trusted Laine a little. Well he trusted Laine not to hurt Lamia, but still Mason stayed in ear shot of the two, he would drop back instantly if needed.

Laine glanced over at Lamia, then back to Magic. "Yeah.. I could see it.." He muttered to himself. "I'm guessing you must be a good friend of Mason's for him to bring you along to this dark place.. Anyway. I didn't mean to scare you guys just defending territory ya know. Mason worked hard in getting this territory from the other people around here. " Laine said to the girl. Laine was smart and knew her type. He knew she wouldn't say much and would stutter anytime she did. "Look, I know I'm kind of a gang leader at the moment, but we are one of the nicer gangs you could have run into." He wasn't going to justify that. They were still a gang. "But I don't think much damage would have happened to you guys with Mason around.. speaking of that. He has changed a lot.. Normally if I hit him, he would instantly retaliate with a punch to the face. Granted, it wouldn't hurt too badly, but this time he didn't even consider it.. Whatever you did, or what ever has happened at the school must have really effected him." Laine said with a smile on his face. "It's good to actually see him care for something once."

Magic stopped in his place, when he heard more footsteps. Laine was with them? Who else would want to cause trouble for them? They weren't near a territory border...  That's when Magic saw a couple children around the ages of eight or nine come running out of the alley way. "Papa Laine! Papa Laine!" They yelled in a chorus. Laine really wasn't their father but helped them in some ways. They ran up to Laine, and started talking to him about something but they were all talking at once so it was kind of hard to tell what they were saying. Magic walked back over to join the two of his friends.

A smile grew on Laine's face as he started to hear the children chant his name. They would have just gotten out of school, so of course they would come find him. "I can't understand you guys when you all talk at once. Lacy, you get to talk first today." Laine said to the girl who looked the oldest.

The girl swallowed then began to talk. "I.. uh.. I got a-a B on my math test today!" she said in a kind of tired voice. A smile grew on Laine's face at the mention of the news. The two other children raised their hands to talk next. Laine pointed at the youngest boy. "Is... Is that.. t-that Papa Mason?" The boy asked glancing over to Mason.

Laine nodded in response. "Yep, That is Papa Mason, turns out he got sent off to school." The gang leader said to the children, who in turn, eyes grew wide. Thats when they all got excited and tried to jump on Magic. Well the younger two. The oldest one there gave Magic a stern look. "You better be trying hard in school just like we are." The girl said, "You also better treat your lady friend right." She said with a huff.

Red dusted Mason's cheeks when the young girl mentioned Lamia being his lady friend. "I'm trying the hardest I can in school, and I'm doing my best with my lady friend." That earned a cute smile from the young girl. he wasn't going to try, and say that Lamia wasn't his girlfriend because arguing with a young child was gonna be difficult. "You guys better run along now, don't you have some homework to take care of?" The three children stopped pulling on Magic in that moment, and responded in a monotone "Yeah..." and then left the three older people alone, running back to the alley way from they once came.

Magic bore a small smile. "They haven't changed at all."

Laine nodded in agreement. "They are still very passionate about school as ever. A lot of people missed you ya know. They are probably gonna go around shouting that you are back, and then more people are gonna want to see ya." Laine said speaking to Magic about it.

Magic shook his head. "Not today. I may come by again tomorrow, but my only goal coming down here was to talk to that bitch.. I plan to go to the park later. I have to get used to the crowds again.  Going to the park would do both of us some good. Got some other idea too, but I don't know about those yet." Sound man said to Laine, then looked at Lamia. "Come on we are almost there. We can take it from here Laine. We are only about a block away anyway." Laine nodded in response, and started to walk towards the alley way the the three children disappeared down. "Sorry about that.. Lets go. I want to get this over with." Magic said as he continued to walk down the road in front of them.

In the distance a tall building kind of stuck out, it looked old and run down a little bit. It was the apartment building that magic had lived in most of his life. It was also the building that held his mother. It was also the building that mark the center of the gang's territory.

No, I'm a horrible friend, she thought, her eyes fixed on the ever-extending path in front of them. I don't think I even count as one. Lamia opened her mouth to just say that she hadn't affected him or anything, and that it was not any of her effort. She couldn't do anything to help someone change for the greater good. A gang was fine. To be honest with herself, she was not quite sure why she never joined one to get rid of all of her depression and dump it on someone else; of course, she would never have had the strength physically or mentally to be a part of one of those groups. If she tried to speak, maybe it would be pretty bad on her part. So she just listened. Magic did have really good friends at home, didn't he? They seemed nice, or maybe it was just Laine. But... he had people who cared for him.

. . .

Wait, what? Lamia was positive she didn't hear him properly. Was it just a trick of sound? Magic could mess with sound, couldn't he? How did he even come to the conclusion that Magic would even care about her? What did he even say before? I'm grateful that I'm in someone's thoughts, but... Lamia's smile died slightly. "I-I d-don't th-think anyone... f-feels that w-way towards m-me..." she mumbled, turning her head up to look at Magic in front of them. He was nice to her, but that was it... right? Stiffening, hoping to God that she wasn't blushing, and quickly shifted her eyes elsewhere. Her awkwardness really seemed to shine through. Did Magic hear her over all of the noise? Was he focusing on their conversation? Actually... why did she care? Stupidstupidstupidstupidstupid... She was really being stupid.

When Magic had stopped, Lamia found herself looking around the alleyway a bit. It was exactly what one could call a sewer. Slimy, reeking, and she had to suppress a shudder of revulsion. How could anyone raise children in this environment? Speaking of children... A couple of children had dashed towards them. Admittedly, she was a sucker for kids. They were cute and didn't have to worry about much in the world. There were times where she wanted to be a child again, but for whatever reason, the thought sent sharp melancholic pangs through her heart. Because... her childhood. She ruined it for her family then, didn't she? No depressing thoughts... not now. With a tinge of uncertainty, she glanced back at the kids with a weak smile.

Magic practically had a family who cared about him, here. Did he really need anyone else? No. She wouldn't be able to replace whatever happiness there was here. Just because he was in a gang, it never meant that he didn't have any joy. He had it all, really. Minus a caring, blood-related family. Lamia wanted to be happy for him - really, she wanted to; but all she could feel was jealousy bubbling up inside her, green envy that he at least had a somewhat decent past. What was she thinking? She was being so selfish...

Lamia almost wanted to be around the younger children a bit longer. They seemed so sweet and kind - they actually tried their best in school, too. But, since Magic wanted to get the meeting with his mother over with, she never voiced any opinion besides a small wave as farewell. A hint of regret rang in her head when she realized that she never did say anything to them. Let alone speak most of the time. Was it just the trauma of being in a crowd or in public? That's what she hoped, at least. She didn't want to pin the blame on something as simple as an accident or whatever. Because then it really was her fault. No... any way she tried to put it, it was her fault.

Giving a small nod, she followed Magic with small, soft steps. Her eyes turned around to watch Laine and the children disappear before she continued on her way, picking up her pace once she couldn't see them anymore. Did he really want to do this? Couldn't he just avoid it and never think about facing his mother again? She didn't want to say anything about it, though. The other Winter seemed dead-set on doing this. And she didn't plan on stopping him.

They finally reached the entrance. The building towered over them like a menacing beast ready to get its claws onto some helpless victims.

"A-are y-you r-really o-okay with d-doing th-this...?" she whispered, biting her lip. Without waiting for answer, she added on, "I-it'll be a-alright. Y-you always do y-your best..."

Something doesn't feel right... Not at all.

She quickly dismissed it. There was no room for doubt. If she hesitated, he would worry. And he wouldn't be able to face his past. She had to try her best to support him.

She had to.

While Magic did have all these people around, Magic wasn't exactly the most caring leader before. He never really got involved with people too much before hand. It was always Laine that took care of the people issues, and organized the fights to move up ranks in the gang. Magic was the one who organized the fights against the other gangs, and lead sneak attacks. He was respected, didn't really know if he was cared for. He was nice to the children, but never as nice as Laine. Laine was more of a caring leader, while Magic was more so the aggressive leader. Well he kind of had to be to gain land from other gangs, and form a protective area around the land he already had. Laine's group was still relatively new, but it was still pretty feared. Magic made sure that it was feared before he left, and he only hoped that Laine kept that up.

Magic gave off a sigh as both of the winter stood at the door to the apartment building. This was it. This would either leave him angry or somewhat neutral. If he left angry then there was the chance that he would go talk to Laine about setting up some fights for him. Then Lamia would see a not so pretty sight. Magic pushed open the glass door and walked inside. It smelled a bit musty, but that was normal. There was a desk to their right, and a hallway to their left. Straight ahead was a stair well, and a set of back doors. There were elevators but there was no way that Magic would take it. The floor was the typical black and white checkered pattern, and the walls where coated in a white paint that slowly yellowed over the years. The stairs where a solid black with non-slip stuff that sat on the edge of them.

Magic didn't even bother to talk to the person who sat at the desk. It was just some gang member anyway, no one really important. The winter student went straight to the stairs and started climbing. He kept climbing all the way to the fourth floor. There were still more floors, but his mother lived on the fourth floor. All the way at the end of the hall. Room 412. Magic slowed down his pace a little more as he made his way down the tiled hallway. He kept looking on the doors to the left which held the even number rooms. It was like a count down for him. A count down to something that could hurt him in the end, and most likely would. Finally he paused at the end of the hallway, and stared at the dark brown door with the numbers 412 on it. He looked at Lamia his eyes not showing any of the confidence from before. He was still going to do it. He just wanted to wait a moment, to make sure nothing was going on inside..

Lamia could only look forward and stare, half-dazed, with a lopsided, uneasy smile on her face. The musty smell of the apartment building was clouding up her thoughts and staying clogged in there. Each step seemed to bring them closer to a certain doom, and dread lurched in her stomach. Half-way up the stairs, she had thought about asking to stop so she could catch a breath, cursing her own physical capabilities, but kept her mouth shut. We're almost there... we're almost there... she had to keep telling herself something so that she had the motivation to keep going. Most of all, if Magic was confident in doing this, she would have to help him follow through. She always said that he was trying his best, right? So... maybe she should try to do her best for him, too. For so long, the journey made her feel as though she was trapped between the foreboding brick walls, and her strength was failing her. Why the hell was she so weak? First floor... second floor... third floor... fourth floor. They finally stopped in front of a room.

Room 412. Did that number have any significant meaning? Maybe she was overthinking it, but... four was the number of death in Asian culture. Did that have anything to do with his bad luck? No, she was being silly. No, it can't be like that. You're just being stupid, she scolded softly to herself. If that was the case, everyone on the fourth floor must have something extremely terrible about them. The thought had crossed her mind and immediately left. How stupid could she get?

This entire trip was like a clock, passing by at a snail's pace. He didn't move to reach for the door or anything. Was he listening to what was happening inside?

Lamia spent a moment to build up a bit of courage, and then let out a deep breath. She nervously shuffled her feet and wrung her hands, unable to quell the anxiety building up in her chest. She felt rooted to the spot, regretting everything - from arriving at the hotel, from boarding the plane, from accepting to go on this trip, and somehow, she knew... she just knew this was going to end terribly. If she didn't accept, maybe he wouldn't have gone? Facing the demons they call the "past" was something she never wanted to do. No, she was just being self-centered. Magic wanted to do this. He had the strength that she didn't. So she had to help him. She decided that the moment she agreed to come.

"G-good l-luck... I-it'll be f-fine..." she whispered softly, giving him a small, encouraging smile. All the confidence he had was drained from his eyes. Was he really alright with this? I hope it'll be fine... What was she thinking, being so negative like that? That's what's bound to make it worse. She was so terrible... "I-I'm sure y-you c-c-can do this."

Magic slowly nodded in response to what Lamia said. He looked back to the door, should he just walk in? Should he knock? He didn't really know what to do. He did live there a while ago, but his mother kicked him out. He probably wasn't welcome now. He was going to knock. "Be prepared for a smoke smell, or some weird smell to come out of that room.." Magic warned the other winter student.

Magic rose a hand that was curled in a tight fist, and knocked on the door three times. His mother used to have a knocking code for costumers, but Magic was smart enough to avoid that so his mother didn't think that it was a costumer, if she even did that anymore. A raspy voice could be heard coming from the inside. You could tell the woman smoke from the way her voice sounded, but it still sounded relatively young. "I'll be there in a minute." It yelled through the door. It sounded kind of nice, but the horrible truth was about to be revealed.

Magic shifted uncomfortably, as he waited for the woman he hated most in the world to appear at the door. He tensed up a bit when he heard the door starting to unlock. His fists curled tightly in response to the tension. Finally the dark brown door opened, to reveal a woman. You could clearly see that Mason was her son. He was basically the spitting image of her except for the build and the length of the hair. He was taller than she was that was for sure, but only by a couple inches. "Helloo.. oh it's you.. What do you want?" Thats when the mother noticed Lamia. "Oh it seems you finally have a girlfriend. Come inside." The mother pushed open the door, and revealed a decent looking apartment. Magic's mother was wearing a casual outfit at the moment. Just jeans and a t-shirt, she also had a wine glass in her hand filled with some red wine.

Magic stepped into the apartment, it smelled really bad, and strongly of smoke, and alcohol. She was being rather friendly at the moment. Which was a bit strange but that was probably cause of Lamia. "Do you still work your same two jobs?" Magic asked his mother.

The woman shook her head. "Don't need two jobs anymore. I'm the manager of the Strip Club now. Still do it for a couple costumers though. Those people are just people who won't take anyone else but me, but they are gonna have to find someone else soon. I'm getting to old for that." His mother said. Magic couldn't help but sigh. At least she had somewhat of a real job now though. It was something. Magic looked back to Lamia, with an apologetic look.

"What's your girlfriend's name?" His mother asked.

Magic shook his head. "She isn't my girlfriend. She is a friend I made at the school.. And her name is Lamia." Sound man said looking away from his mother. You could tell the tension was high between the two of them. It was so thick you could probably cut it with a knife.

His mother didn't even bother to look at the two of them, and took a sip of her wine. "Ha, I knew it. There was no way a monster like you could even get a girlfriend." There it was. There was the mother he knew, and hated. Magic sighed and just ignored her comment.

Waiting for the door to open was one of the worst things she had to anticipate on this entire trip thus far. Lamia hated it. The feeling of dread lingering and unwilling to leave - apprehension from the seconds. It seemed like time had slowed down just to spite her... I mean them. Why was she so nervous? This was his fight, not her's.... God, I'm so selfish today... She kept telling herself that she was going to support him through this, but somehow... she kept doubting her ability to do anything. And it finally opened up. Maybe she was being childish, but she had been expecting a very wrinkly, slouching old lady like those witches in movies that people often called "old hags". Instead, a rather young and unfortunately attractive woman answered the door.

She was kind of jealous that Magic's mother could wear something casual and look pretty. People may say that she looked nice and such, but those were lies. Lamia never thought that she had that kind of appeal. She had an average appearance with a frail body. That's all she really was... or so she believed. Somehow, if Magic and his mother were the same age, they'd pass as twins. The same dark hair, gray-green eyes with builds appropriate to their gender. It was almost like seeing a mirror of herself and Kearn.

Isn't she kind of normal? I don't really see what's wrong... Was she judging too quickly? Probably. Just a few sentences couldn't determine what a person was like. Except... what was with everyone assuming she was Magic's girlfriend? Lamia honestly hoped that she wasn't blushing from the mere mention of that word. It wasn't like she was decent enough for him. He deserves someone who was stronger and could help him socialize better. Not someone weak and stupid like her.

Following Magic cautiously into the apartment, the overwhelming scent of alcohol and smoke rushed at her as soon as she entered, and Lamia found herself coughing, trying to find fresh air. He had warned her, but she didn't expect it to be so... strong. It was as though they were inside a bar with multiple people abusing drugs and drinking to their hearts' content. She should've taken a deep breath or something before coming in. Are you stupid? You'd suffocate yourself. Her eyes wandered around the room. It seemed like an everyday apartment - filled with cigars and empty bottles littering the floor like candy that fell out of a piñata recently.

Shifting uncomfortably next to him, she opted not to speak until she actually had to. While the two were conversing or trying to catch up, Lamia pulled her hood down lower, trying to cover her face. She was positive her eyes couldn't be seen, for the most part. Did it seem too much like she was trying to hide? Hopefully not. To be honest, the conversation wasn't something she had been listening to until the mention of a Strip Club.

Oh...

Her cheeks turned a bright shade of red and her eyes had widened in shock. Opening her mouth to speak, she quickly shut it, realizing it'd be stupid if she spoke up now. It'd be awkward and would've been the worst time to jump in. Tread cautiously. One wrong move, and she might ruin it for him. And he'd hate her for that. When he turned around with an apologetic look on his face, she flashed him a weak, nervous smile. Dammit. Why was she so scared? It couldn't get that bad.

The spotlight suddenly turned to her. Shuffling her feet nervously, shoving her hands deeper into her pockets, Lamia turned her head away, suddenly finding interest in the wallpaper used for the apartment. She really felt bad that he wound up introducing her to his mother instead of doing it on her own. What kind of friend was she? Somehow, she was half-hoping for the floor to open up and eat her.

There it was. That word. Lamia hated it when people just called others that just because they had powers and didn't know the proper way to use it. She was going to regret this. Letting her confidence build up a bit, she took a deep breath before speaking for the first time since she came into the room.

"O-oh, I'm his girlfriend," she said softly, her throat suddenly feeling like sandpaper, dry as a desert. She was kind of proud of herself that the sentence came out smoothly. "H-he's just t-too shy to admit i-it..." The words felt so foreign on her tongue; probably because she wouldn't normally be the one saying it. Take it back. You'll regret this. Maybe she would, but it was almost too late.

Walking closer to Magic, she wrapped her arms around one of his, closing the distance between them with a fake, but bright smile. The sudden burst of confidence was ridiculous, but... it always happened when she had to support someone. Speak up for them. She did her best for them. With a pang of sadness, Lamia wished that she could have that same confidence when it came to herself. But she wasn't worth it. The other Winter was. He had value in this world, and it wasn't to be a monster.

"H-he's not what you j-just c-c-called him."

Maybe he wanted to ignore this. But she didn't. Avoiding the problem was something she constantly did, running from her past. Lamia couldn't help but recall what happened after she ran from the gym. She said it, didn't she? He wasn't going down the same path as she was. And she was going to make sure of it, even if it included one small lie - it'd make it easier for her to help, to support him. Did he catch onto that?

Hopefully Magic's mother wouldn't pull her hood off. She was hiding behind a mask of darkness. As confident as she felt, somehow, Lamia had a feeling that most of it will be lost if she showed her face. How weak and pale she was. How much she struggled to actually breath in the room.

He could probably tell.

But she wasn't going to let him back off. Others before my own well-being.Everyone else before how I feel.

Magic's mother didn't even bother to look at the two of them she didn't really care. "Is that true Mason? You two are in a relationship?" She asked. The woman made her way over to the kitchen, and pour herself some more wine. The woman could drink a ton.

Magic didn't bother to look at his mom. He hated that woman with a passion, it would only make him angrier. "Y-yeah." He spat out. Luckily he stuttered a lot around his mom. It always cause of the anger. So she would most likely believe him, even with the stutter.

Finally the mother turned and looked at them both. She didn't look exactly happy, but she kept her tone from earlier. "Lamia, Sweetie, you don't understand. My son has always been a monster. Even before he started that stupid gang. Before that power of his. It's in his blood to be a monster. His father was a cruel man, and he is a cruel man. It's how things were always meant to be." Eve said, standing there with a hand on her hip, and the other holding the wine glass that she took a sip of.

Anger grew in Magic's eyes. "What do you know? You know nothing of my father! All you did was sleep with him, and get money from it! That's all you ever did! You never cared for me or Vince! You stuck us with grandmother when you weren't drinking! You never really gave us anything! Only grandmother did! You barely remembered our birthdays! It was rare if you did!" The winter student yelled at his mother, who in turn didn't look really shocked.

His mother just took another sip of her wine. "Are you done? It's the same thing every time with you. Same old words. I put you in school. I didn't have to do that. I could have just let you be killed in one of your gang fights. I didn't want your brother to be turned into the same thing as you are but you have gone and done it. You turned you brother into a monster like you." The women said with out a look of caring in her eyes.

"Vince is no monster. I don't even know how he kept his mouth shut around you, and how he put up with you for so long." Magic growled, squeezing his fist tight. He didn't know how much longer he could put up with this. It was only a matter of time before he stormed out of here.

"Because he knew how to behave. He was always a better child than you. He always followed the rules, then you had to go and turn him into exactly what you are. A monster." His mother was completely unamused by this. It was just going to be the same argument. It was the same every time they talked. It always ended up with Mason storming out, and the mother going to sleep or drink or something Magic never knew what happened after he left.

Magic clenched his teeth tight. "You never did anything.. You never cared for me. You never stopped me from fighting. You just let me do what ever I pleased. You made me lose my best friend. It because of your god damn job that I started fighting. It was because of you that I got bullied. You have always been a bitch, and always will be. No matter what I did you could never be proud of me." Magic said to his mother. He didn't even know why he tried. It was always the same, it would always be the same. He was sick of it. He was sick of his mother. He wished he never set up this building to be the center of the gang's territory. He should have just left it to the other gangs, but to late to change that now.

Magic's mother just turned away from the two, and went to go sit down on the couch. "You were always a worthless child."

And that was the last straw. A dark look grew on Magic face. It didn't take him much time to pulled the door open with such force, that it came off at the hinges. The winter student just let it fall to the floor, and stormed out of the room, and down the stairs and out the building. Yep always the same.