♡ always the tone of surprise ♡

"Dad, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah."

"My friends are going to Lucid Cove for the day next weekend... Can I go?"

"Who's going?"

"Well, there's Lenny, James and Amanda and Constance- they are friends with Lenny."

"It's fine by me... What does mom think?"

"Well... I mean, she is away for the next month so I didn't ask her."

"Okay."

Okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine. But you have to be back by 9pm."

"Thanks for including me in your plans. I really appreciate it, Lennon."

"It's fine! I think you're really cool- Oh, and Rosie?"

"Yeah?"

"Hi, hello?"

"Huh? Hello?"

"Rose, right?"

She nodded.

"I'm Lennon. We go to the same classes."

"Yes! Hi!"

"What's up?"

"I was uh..." She looked around too ashamed to admit she was spending recess in the library so she wasn't reminded how lonely she was. "Just browsing."

"I see... So, are you free later? Would you like to hang out after class?"

"Yes, sure!"

"We can meet on the corner at 3pm and go for coffee and a snack. What do you think?"

"Sounds great!"

"Ok! See you later."

Five months in, and she hadn't properly met a single classmate. Yes, she had been introduced to the class and she had talked to some of them when they had to do group projects but she hadn't had the chance to actually talk to them, let alone make friends.

It didn't help she was quiet and shy, and probably the other kids perceived her as a snob. But it wasn't actually her fault, she hadn't had the chance to be friends with people her own age since... ever.

The last time she had been in a classroom was after she finished second grade. That's when her grandfather abdicated and her uncle had taken over Brules, when things started to shift really badly for the country and Tudor had to step in time, and time, and time again. That's when Ava chose to reduce her workload to be able to travel as a family, back and forth between home and Brules and support Tudor who reluctantly started to run the country behind the scenes.

Rose didn't particularly hate it, that's all she knew and she had gotten used to it. But now she was 17, and turning 18 in a few months, and her parents had decided she should have as much of a school experience as she could. She was surely going into college - hadn't sent her application yet but she was managing her options, and maybe Ava and Tudor thought it would be best for her to have a closer experience to classrooms and assignments to properly adjust to uni. Or maybe they needed a proper reason to settle down for good back home and set boundaries.

"Did you sleep well, Rosie?"

"Yes, although I am nervous for today."

"Understandable..."

"I could have finished this year with a tutor, you know?"

"Yeah, but it'll be better for you to actually meet new people your age, and for us to settle down for a few months."

"Well, I've been doing it like this for the past 12 years, not sure what a few more months will do."

"It will give you a sense of normalcy neither me nor dad had, and we owe it to you after travelling all these years."

"Better late than never, right?"

"Dad will be back tonight if everything goes according to plan. He is trying to get things over with at Brules."

"Did uncle Adair mess up too bad this time?"

"I guess, I haven't talked to dad yet but I guess we'll find out tonight. Now, let's go so we make it on time for the tour around school."

"Rosie! Are you ready?"

After almost two years without going in game, having to zip my entire game and then wipe the computer I was using clean, I got my own personal gaming laptop and now I am slowly reinstalling everything and I'm so excited OMG

a shift in the air

But I hope in August I’ll be able to come back and speed up my legacy a little bit so I can start playing with Rosie and her gen as I have big plans for her (and only @moshyberry knows some of them).