Warm Reunion [open]

There were a few places that he imagined his dear little sister would be. While she tended to gravitate to the most populous areas, particularly in the courtyard or in the hallways - where it was far warmer, whenever she needed to clear her head or take some time for herself, she was always with her precious stallion. It was the same even before they'd moved to Beata.

Preston shrugged on his jacket, trying to hide himself from the chilly winter winds until he finally stepped foot inside. Thank god, they kept the stables heated, otherwise he wasn't sure if he would have bothered to make the trip out there. The Autumn brushed the frost off of him, letting it fall to the dampened hay that lay scattered across the ground. "Anyone home?" He called out, shaking the snow out of his hair.

Senior year. A chapter in a book that was about to come to a close. It was terrifying. It had been a little over two years since she had first set foot on this sprawling campus. Times were so much simpler then it seemed. Before the social media sites and the pregnancy scandals. Oddly enough, it seemed like within these past few months, with the sudden influx of students, Beata had become it's own version of Degrassi. Not that Verona minded, she loved the thrill of a dramatic moment, but these new students were so different... so unpredictable. Thus, the girl had kept to herself these past few months.
Until today.

Verona hadn't planned come to the stables, but after being overwhelmed by the sheer amount snow blanketed over the campus, she had immediately made her way to the warmth of the stables. She had always liked the stables, despite the smell, something about this place was therapeutic. And with the campus being in the midst of a winter melt down, Verona desperately needed some time to unwind.
The autumn had nearly had five minutes to herself before hearing someone's entrance. "You know, I thought Mom and Dad taught you it's polite to knock before entering." Verona sneered playfully, turning the corner to face her brother head on. "Just because we're in a barn doesn't mean you have to act like you were raised in one." The girl was clad in an all back outfit, that was unarguably inappropriate for the winter wonderland that waited nearly feet outside the stable walls. Not that Verona ever dressed for the weather, but even she had to admit that maybe she had over done it when she went for heeled boots and a fur stole over the much more practical winter coat/snow boots combo. But Verona, being a girl who found subtlety distasteful, would've felt much too ordinary in anything other than her overly glamorous attire, even in the midst of a Montana winter, in the middle of a horse stable.

"So Pres, to what do I owe you this pleasure?" She finally mused, crossing her arms across her chest and patiently awaiting her brothers presumably smart-allec response.

Preston laughed under his breath, brushing the last of the snow out of his hair and peeling off his jacket. It was far too warm in the enormous room to keep it on for long. He feigned a smile of innocence, "Pardon, I had no clue this entire place happened to be yours." He sighed melodramatically, hanging his coat up on a nearby rack and stuffing his hands into his pockets. Casually, with a far more natural smile, he made his way up to Verona. "Is it some sort of crime to want to visit my dear, sweet sister?" He glanced up at her horse for a moment. The Autumn had never really gotten the appeal of the big, smelly creatures, but to each their own he supposed. "I am your big brother, you could be a little more respectful." Even as he said the words, they were laced with sarcasm.

A flicker of a smile sauntered across Verona's lips, but she forced it away. Opting instead for a much more characteristic eye roll and scoff. "Oh please Preston," Verona said, turning her back to the boy and focusing back on what she was doing before. "There's no need to get so pissy, you know I was only joking."

An old brush had been nailed to the peeling wooden wall adjacent to Baxter's stall. Verona, who was nearly ten feet away, and much too exhausted to even dare walking over there, made a sweeping look over to her elder brother before pointing at the object. "Hey Pres? Could you make yourself useful and go get that brush and bring it to me?" She smiled. The first smile she had flashed towards her sibling that whole encounter. And while to the untrained eye it looked sincere, to Verona it was merely a ploy to get what she wanted. Not that she really needed to try, thanks to her fully blossoming gift, Verona Andrews had found that she had become extremely persuasive.

A smile suddenly shown on his face and his ocean-like eyes brightened. He looked completely ecstatic that his lovely sister would ask this simple favor of him, and the young man seemed more than happy to oblique. "Yeah, of course." He called, walking over to the small wooden board, his head held high and almost breaking into a whistle as he grabbed the soft brush. It didn't take long to do her little task, several seconds or so.

Yet the moment, he had finished handing her the beauty tool for Baxter, his entire demeanor changed. The grin was instantly wiped away and he realized instantly exactly what had happened. Sadly, he was used to it. "I fucking hate it when you do that." Preston muttered, leaning back on the wooden walls and crossing his arms. Don't get him wrong, he loved his sister, but there was never a living moment that he didn't envy her gift - or their brothers. Even more-so when she used it on him. "You didn't to... You know..." Use her gift.