Room 401, Tuesday Afternoon

[ashockingbitch]

The door and window were both open to allow some of the cloud of cigarette smoke to escape, and Jenny was sitting at her desk, making a list of demands items she was going to need. Like a laptop and a PS3, for starters. And higher-threadcount sheets. Preferably silk. In the margins were chastisements to Jack about how she'd specifically requested a better world and sodding Paris Hilton (who was, as far as Jenny could tell, a completely worthless human being) was dominating the news so clearly he'd failed. Also she still didn't have her iPhone and was kind of annoyed about that.

Most of her things were either still in her bags or strewn about her half of the room, but a Union Jack had been pinned up over her bed and a photograph of seven people sat in a place of honor on her bedside table.

((Open! Come talk to Jenny and/or complain about the smoke.))

Comments

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Claire's unpacking hadn't taken that long, mostly because she hadn't brought all that much stuff. Not even a single bear had come with her: just her clothes and some books.

She had spent the day exploring the town on her own, and came back into the room just in time to get a lungful of smoke. Trying to make it seem like she wasn't coughing, she waves to Jenny on her way to her bed.

"Hey."

[ashockingbitch]

"Hey," Jenny said, turning away from her list and reaching for her packet of ciggies. "If there's anything you want, I'm making a list and can add it on. I could probably get you a pony, if you like."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Really?"

Claire sat on her bed, drawing her knee up to her chest. Her brow wrinkled in confusion.

"Why?"

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny lit a fresh cigarette with a spark from her fingertip, took a drag off it, and told Claire, "I told my teammates that if they didn't make this a better world I'd come back from the dead and kick their heads in. And then I came back from the dead just in time to go through the teen years again. And they sent me off to boarding school. So I'm making them placate me with material goods to prevent the head-kicking-in." Jenny's tone suggested this was perfectly reasonable. "If you're worried about cost I'm pretty sure they don't use actual money."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Right, cause that makes it all better."

Claire dropped the dry tone and shook her head. "I think I'm OK, but thanks."

The last word was half surprised that Jenny would offer something to Claire anyway.

[ashockingbitch]

"I don't actually care about the stuff," Jenny confessed. "I'm just being mildly evil at them so they don't forget me. But if you ever need anything..."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Thanks," Claire repeated, with a small laugh. "That's... that's really nice of you. Even if it's just to be evil."

[ashockingbitch]

"Well, I'm not being evil to you," Jenny pointed out with a smile.

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"And I appreciate it," Claire said, returning the smile brightly.

"So have you met anyone interesting so far?"

[ashockingbitch]

"A boy named Bridge, who seems nice enough," Jenny said. "And my big brother, Johnny, who's got quite the opinion of himself. Though he's really not bad-looking, to be fair. You?"

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I met Johnny," Claire agreed. "He reminds me of the football players at home."

Which wasn't all that much of a good thing, from her tone. "My big sister's Sabriel, she's really sweet. And I had about four people insisting I try out for cheer squad."

[ashockingbitch]

"I bet you'd make a good cheerleader," Jenny told her.

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Claire gave a small smirk. "Is that a compliment, or a statement about cheerleaders?"

She wasn't even sure whether she minded.

[ashockingbitch]

"Yes?" Jenny tried hopefully.

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Claire smirked again, sitting back. "I havn't decided if I'm going to try out or not," she said. "Are you going to get involved in any clubs?"

[ashockingbitch]

"Don't know," Jenny said. "I've never been much of a joiner, I'm afraid." She just always seemed to get sucked in.

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"But you had teammates," Claire pointed out, gesturing quickly to the picture. "What kind of team was it anyway?"

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny glanced over at the picture. "The Authority? Superheros. I didn't join up, I started it. Which, I know, is even worse, but when I lead teams, bad things happen, but when I don't lead teams, worse things seemed to happen, so." She shrugged.

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Superheroes, huh?"

Claire sat back against the bed head, hugging her knees. "Do you have any special powers?"

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny eyed Claire. Apparently her roommate had missed the part where she lit the cigarette with electricity from her hand. "'Course I do, I'm Jenny sodding Sparks."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Obviously Claire had. Sometimes she could be unobservant like that.

"Am I supposed to know who that is?"

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny muttered something under her breath about how you die a little and everyone forgets who you are. Although..."Possibly no?"

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Claire gave another apologetic smile.

"We don't really have teams of superheroes where I'm from," she offered.

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny sighed. "Been in enough alternate Earths, you'd think I'd recognize one by now. Where I come from's crawling with posthumans." And she'd been the biggest name listed in the phone book. Maybe anonymity wouldn't suck?

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Post humans?" Claire repeated. "Like... after humans?"

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny shrugged and tapped ash off her cigarette into a saucer. "Sort of. It's not really accurate. Some of 'em used to be perfectly normal humans, no prefix, until someone got their hands on 'em. Some of us aren't exactly human at all."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"But you're all superheroes."

Claire grinned again. "That's cool. So you're one that isn't even human, then?"

[ashockingbitch]

"Whether we bloody well like it or not. Someone has to be." Jenny told her, "I'm electricity." And alcohol and nicotine. "I mean, I'm flesh and blood, but also sort of...not."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Huh," Claire repeated, and grinned again. "Cool."

And there she dropped it. "Hey, what classes are you signing up for?"

Cause y'know, classes are more important

[ashockingbitch]

"I didn't actually do the signing up," Jenny confessed. "It got done for me." She dug through the papers Midnighter had shoved into her hand before he fled left for a moment. "Hang on, I know it's here somewhere...ah! Applied Ethics, Interdisciplinary Studies, and...How to Be a Comic Book Superhero??"

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"Oh I went for Ethics, too," Claire remarks. "Scouting's my other one.

"Wouldn't you already know how to be a superhero?"

[ashockingbitch]

"By now? One would think so." Jenny rubbed her temple. "Sodding ponce thinks he's being funny."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

Claire grinned, and exhaled quickly, almost a laugh.

"It is kinda funny," she offered.

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny shook her cigarette chidingly at Claire, but the corners of her mouth were quirked up. "You're not helping, girly."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

In return, Claire smirked and leaned forward to lie face down on her bed, head resting on hands, elbows on her bedspread.

"Oh come on, everyone's got to take a class they know already. Take the easy ace."

[ashockingbitch]

Jenny leaned back in her chair. "Guess that's true. It's been a long time since I did the school thing."

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"A century, right?"

Claire grinned widely at her.

"Don't worry. I'm as new here as you, but I know all about the high school thing. It's easy."

[ashockingbitch]

"It hasn't been quite that long," Jenny said. "Close. But not quite. So I should just stick close to you?"

[savedfornow.livejournal.com]

"If you want," Claire said with a shrug. "Or just catch me in here sometimes."