Welcome to Gaia! ::

David E. Warner
A.K.A Grizzly
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David smiled slightly. He put away the card, and looked around. "So what do you want? Mexican? Italian? French?" David began to list all the various foods from around the world. All foods that he could think of. After all, David was very knowledgeable about these things.
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Ferocity / Control

Sam thought about her choices for a moment. There really were so many to pick, but she had no idea where they would have to go to get any of it. She would have settled for a small sandwich, but she was willing to bet that David would not accept that option.

She tried to keep herself pressed to the wall as the groups of students rushed passed, knowing that they would not notice her anyway. Then one girl, who looked particularly distracted, ran right into David's back. Sam wanted at first to bristle at the rudeness of it, but the pained look on her face stopped it from passing her lips. Instead, she let her eyes linger on the retreating student. Then her eyes widened as she realized her answer.

"Oh pasta sounds heavenly right now," she said as her mouth began to water at the prospect. Practically bouncing at the prospect, she looked at David eagerly. Then she lowered her voice and held her hand near her mouth as if about to spill some secret. "But whatever we are going to do, we might want to hurry before the hall monitors realize we aren't going to our classes."

Smiling when he had accepted the idea, Sam nodded at his question. Giving one last glance to the hallway that held her class, she decided that it was ok to skip. Just for today. She could always make it up later. And if anyone asked, she could claim she was ill, or something.

"There is this one place not too far from here. Chef Piazza's. The best ravioli's anywhere." Without further preamble, Sam followed David towards the exit. There was something liberating about leaving school early. Maybe it had something to do with this new sense of independence, like finding steady ground after sliding in mud.

However, that head lifting confidence quickly dissipated when she stood in the sunshine again. For the second time that day she got that itching sensation at the nape of her neck. Something had died. It made her hate, not for the first time, this curse that plagued her. She only hoped it would let her get through this lunch outing before losing control and animating the creature without her. The last thing she needed right now was the corpse of newly reanimated roadkill to follow her around.

All the more so, because she really did not want David to see what a freak she was. He was the first person who willingly interacted with her, which she already cherished beyond anything she had learned so far in her classes. If he saw what she could do, then she feared they would not let her go to school here. Then she would be on the streets again, too ashamed to go back to the small space that nice old lady had offered.

Sitting in a booth with a large window overlooking the shopping district, Sam was happy to find that the place was not overly busy. She had been here a time or two when the place was packed to the point of having people sit in plastic chairs and foldout tables along the sidewalk. Most of the time though, the crowds were steady and the place quaint and homey.

When David asked his question, Sam took a moment to collect herself under the guise of looking over the menu. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk, just that she wondered how much to say.

"I've been here just under a month," she said, looking up to see if he had decided on a choice. "It's not surprising, really. The school is big and I do my best to stay out of the way. I'm in the library most of the time."

It sounded kind of pathetic when she heard herself say it. Before all her troubles began, Sam had been one of those kids who made friends with everyone with little effort. Now it was like she was being crushed under the necessity of being of little consequence to anyone. But it was the truth and she wasn't going to take it back.

"What about you?" she posed as she took a sip of the water left by the waiter.

"Sounds like a wonderful place," Sam awed as she tried to imagine it. "Must be nice to have a place where you can be yourself." A blush tinged her cheeks then. She thought she had gotten over this. They had left her behind.

Sam was thankful when the waiter appeared, hoping that David would be too distracted to notice her envy.

"One plate of your classic ravioli," she said bubbly when prompted.

" Still, it's better than. . . " Sam trailed off after the waiter took their orders and bustled off. She had been about to say it was better than having nothing. It was true that she had no home to go back to. Her parents had pretty much disowned her, though no such words were spoken. None need be said when they acted as if they no longer had a daughter. But she wasn't one to spout her woes to the world, so she kept her mouth shut and paid special attention to her napkin as she unfolded it.

"So what sorts of things do you study at an institute that you don't learn at the school?" she asked innocently. "I mean is it like a sports academy where they groom you for professional leagues, or something?"

Sitting in the booth alone, Sam sipped her drink and thought about what David had said. He said it was a place where people who were scared went to get help. Kicking her feet back and forth under the table, she thought about what might scare him. It would never be a question she would ask aloud, knowing it would be too personal and prying, but had a hard time thinking of anything David might be frightened of. The riddle baffled, but tantalized her brain as she watched the people that walked about in the open air. Then she saw something most disturbing to her conscience.

She had thought that David had gone to the restroom when he left, but seeing the self satisfied grins of Jake and his crew as they walked by made her still with dread. Turning to scan the room, she saw no sign of her classmate and the absence was suddenly terrifying.

"David?" she called as she slipped from her seat. When she got no immediate reply, she decided to investigate. Walking with purpose, she first went to the restroom, thinking it was only nerves. But when she asked one of the passing waiters if anyone was in the men's room and they said no, she quickly went to the front door.

Looking in the direction of Jake, she just made him and his goons out as they rounded the corner and out of sight. Food temporarily forgotten, she went the opposite direction in search of her friend. She couldn't help the cold knot in her stomach that something bad had happened to David. And it was all her fault.

Sam squeaked when she almost collided with David. Seeing him made her let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

"I was worried after I saw. . . " she started to say, but her words stumbled to a halt when she saw the smears and splatters of blood on his shirt. "Oh no. He didn't. You didn't. How could they?" she was so upset to see him hurt that she was having trouble finishing her thoughts. She was stuck between furious and hysterical. In the end she hugged herself so as not to do anything drastic and muttered, "I'm so sorry David. This is all my fault."

Her anger bubbled, barely contained by her need to save face. She didn't get angry often, but seeing someone beat up because of her was more than she could handle. Her power was not destructive, thankfully, or she would have worried about hurting those around her. As it was, she itched to hold his hand, knowing that her touch would help to heal him of whatever injuries he had. She was not doctor, but the blood had to have sprouted from somewhere.

In the same breath she was trying her hardest not to bring anything to life. It was an unstable line, from healing to resurrecting. However she was so angry that she really wanted to find out where he lived and see if he liked having his home invaded by zombie pets. It wa a horrible thought, she knew it, but sometimes she wondered if some people didn't deserve what they got.

Which made her think of David. He hadn't asked for any of this. He was just being nice to the wallflower.