And it just so happened to come in the form of unappealing teacher workshops. Which is why she’s standing at the back of the room (late, of course), eyes searching for a free seat and trying not to draw attention to herself. She spots a seat near the front next to a woman with long blonde hair. Quietly, Rachel moves down the aisle of chairs before she clears her throat just loud enough to garner the woman’s attention. “I’m so sorry to bother you,” She starts in a whisper, already pointing at the seat next to her. “But is this seat taken?” 

    When Rachel learns the seat is free, she quickly settles down into it, turning slightly and offering a small smile to the rather elegant looking woman beside her. “Thank you. And again, I’m so sorry.” She whispers, resisting the urge to nervously run her fingers through her already messy hair. “I’m Rachel, by the way. And-- I’m sorry to ramble-- I’ll stop talking. I’m sorry.” Mentally shaking her head at herself, Rachel tries to tune into the woman talking up front, preparing herself for a long day. 

                   ❝        alright  ,    we’re  all  set  ,    right  ?    i  can’t  believe  you  made  me  wait  for  you  to  open  it  ,    delia  !        ❞      phone  is  placed  over  her  nighstand  against  a  portrait  ,    front  camera  directed  to  the  bed  ,    where  tamasin  set  not  very  patiently  with  the  envelope  on  hands  .      ❝        can  i  open  it  ?    we’re  all  good  ?        ❞      she  questions  slowly  ,    biting  on  her  lower  lip  as  if  any  of  that  could  supress  her  curiosity  .    delia’s  gifts  had  always  been  a  favorite      /      she  knew  her  better  than  most  people  ,    her  true  and  genuine  self  ,    and  there  was  no  way  it  wouldn’t  be  reflected  at  the  presents  .      ❝        okay  ,    here  goes  …    i’m  guessing  it’s  something  really  big  ,    right  ?    please  don’t  let  it  be  another  picture  of  us  in  our  early  days  ,    that  was  …    that  was  an  experience  i  don’t  intend  to  recall  !    i  just  …      oh  my  god  ,   delia  !      is  this  …    are  you  kidding  ,    cordelia  ?        ❞      in  a  jump  ,    she’s  on  her  knees  on  top  of  her  bed  ,    holding  the  ticket  against  her  chest  like  a  teenage  fangirl  most  likely  would  .    on  the  screen  ,    far  from  her  room  ,    she  sees  delia  laughing  at  her  excitement  ,    holding  a  ticket  of  her  own  .    ❝        are  we  really  going  ?    i  just  –    god  ,    i  can’t  believe  this  !      you  really  weren’t  kidding  when  you  said  you’ve  outdone  yourself  .   this  is  just  perfect  ,    delia  .      ❞

   —fingers wrapped in acid green mulberry slither their way around a glass of les charmois, to lift and join rouged lips in a kiss of complex decadency. the witch, a victim of her palate, cannot help but groan and smile, thoroughly satisfied by the notes of coconut that linger.   ❝   C’est merveilleux, monsieur !   ❞  she exhales in ecstacy, lifting her glass to the waiter.   ❝   I should believe this is the wine for our main course, right baby bird ? Don’t you find it absolutely refreshing ?   ❞ 

𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 ,  𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐚 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠  &  𝐮𝐩𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡 .  she smiles as it leaves her lips ,  but the usual joy finds it difficult to make its way to her features .  her face remains calm ,  but somehow disappointed   /   for she knew .  everything was about to change .  every little thing ,  the ones they loved  &  the ones they hated ,  would no longer be the same .  lying carelessly over tammy’s bed ,  both her and her witch sister could wish for the same :  could that moment ,  just that little one ,  last a little longer ?

                   ❝   you don’t have to ,  okay ?  just …  live right now ,  delia .   ❞   there’s this serious tone to her voice ,  head leaning to the side as tammy finally looks at the other .  somehow ,  all of those years had passed ,  &  what is left is the feeling of nostalgia .  wherever tammy would go now  –  and that was a huge incognito  – ,  she knew she’d be missed back at the academy .  she’s happy to leave ,  to embrace this new part of her life ,  but leaving cordelia behind still stings on her heart .   ❝   i know we’re not going to see each other as much as we do now ,  but …  i’ll still be tammy .  still be your prettiest ,  smartest best friend  –  don’t forget that .    ❞   there’s a playful undertone to her voice ,  even when she’s so genuine .  a hand moves to grab cordelia’s ,  quietly .   ❝   besides , when you finish studying here ,  you can come and visit me as many times as you want .  it’ll still be the same ,  delia .  i promise ,  okay ?   ❞  

Studying herself in the mirror, Cordelia smooths her hands down the length of her dress, lips turning up in satisfaction as she admires the way the fabric hugs her body in all the right places. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she makes a mental note to thank Tammy later - sharing both a room and a dress size with the older girl had proven to be one of life’s great gifts. As if she’d summoned her through thought, her head snaps up to find her sister witch smirking back at her in the glass’ reflection. Delia flashes her a false grimace at her quip, but it doesn’t take long before it melts into a playful grin. “What? Is it a crime to look this cute two days running?” she jokes, eyebrow cocking up at the older blonde. A musical chuckle tumbles from her lips as she gives Tammy a twirl, finishing in a wobbly, exaggerated pose to make her laugh.

 ❝      𝐨𝐟  𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞  𝐲𝐨𝐮  𝐜𝐚𝐧  ,    𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐚  !      your  legs  can’t  be  so  much  shorter  than  mine  !        ❞      high  pitched  voice  is  all  that  comes  from  her  mouth  ,    a  rather  desperate  expression  taking  over  her  features  before  tammy  can  even  think  of  calming  down  .    it’s  only  then  that  the  woman  stops  and  takes  a  deeper  breath  ,    placing  a  hand  over  cordelia’s  on  the  steering  wheel  .

                          ❝      listen  ,    all  you  have  to  do  is  trust  me  ,    alright  ?    put  your  foot  on  the  accelerator  veeeery  carefully  and  keep  your  eyes  on  the  road  .    it’s  gonna  be  fine  …    besides  ,    the  street’s  completely  empty  ,    so  it’s  not  like  you  could  hurt  anyone  ,    y’know  .      ❞      a  wink  at  the  other’s  direction  comes  as  the  cherry  on  top  of  her  sentence  ,    as  a  mocking  mask  covered  tammy’s  face  before  removing  her  hand  from  the  other  witch’s  .    the  last  part  was  just  a  joke  ,    of  course    /    she  truly  trusted  cordelia  not  to  put  any  of  them  in  danger  over  those  wheels  .    ❝      come  on  ,    take  a  shot  .    just  …   try  going  on  a  straight  line  at  first  .      ❞