Hunger Pangs (Whatever)

[Snick]

Boredom drove Cam to finally visit the cafeteria to fill the void in her stomach. She had spent the last few hours since school let out attempting to read the books she had borrowed from the library. Unfortunately for the thirteen year old, a lot of the language was rather technical.

It made her head hurt just thinking about it. Cam wasn't any closer to discovering how to rid herself of her magic. What she was however was extremely frustrated. Her hair matched her foul mood as it was currently ebony with streaks of dark purple. Her uniform at least had begun to conform to her style. Her navy pants were wrinkled and were frayed in areas, her shirt was partially unbuttoned with the sleeves up, revealing a faded band tee underneath. Her red tie was hanging loosely around her neck.

As she looked over the cafeteria's offerings she began tapping the toe of her scuffed boot. What she wouldn't give for a large pepperoni and bacon super cheese from Peppy Pizza on the beach! With a sigh of exasperation she grabbed a can of grape soda and a bag of cheetos and stalked over to a seat near one of the windows.

Ever since coming to Salem, Lex had been piling her tray with food at every meal. Until the age of six she hadn't always known when she'd have food. Though she'd never starved in foster care, she had also never been free to take whatever she wanted from the kitchen and there had been a couple families that took away food as a punishment. This was the first time she'd been able to eat however much she wanted and felt like taking. This new freedom had caused her to often take too much at school meals and not finish it all. When this happened, Lex would usually take some of it back to her room as if she thought she had to keep it with her incase she didn't eat again for awhile. Though Lex was aware of what she was doing, it was difficult to break out of the odd habit. Today was no different and the small eleven-year-old had far more food on her plate than she would be able to finish.

Lex glanced around the cafeteria briefly but didn't see the few friends she'd made so far. Making friends did not come easily to her and she was not the type of person who could go sit with an acquaintance and strike up a conversation. Iris and Kit were really the only people Lex would have been comfortable sitting with. Most of the tables were taken up by groups of chatting friends. Not wanting to stand around, Lex headed over to a table near the window with only one other girl there.

"Mind?" She asked, setting her tray down across and diagonally from the girl, not wanting to be too close. Lex had seen the girl around and had noticed the way her hair changed. Someone had said something about it being a magical ability but Lex didn't quite understand it except for the fact that the girl couldn't get into trouble for it because it wasn't dyed. The girl's meal was in stark contrast to Lex's, which didn't escape her notice.

Her gaze cut from the window to the kid and she shrugged a shoulder. "Suit yourself," she said before tearing open her bag of Cheetos. Cam didn't necessarily care for the cheese flavored puffs, but they worked in a pinch. After popping one into her mouth, she cracked open her soda with one hand.

She had seen the other kid around the school, usually in the company of Kit when Cam bothered to notice. She seemed like a fish out of water at times, but it wasn't so much different than Cam herself.

Absently she turned her gaze back out the window, though she really couldn't see much in the darkening sky. She felt like the solution to her problem might be right at her fingertips but she couldn't quite reach it. She munched on another puff and chased it with a swig of her soda. Cam made a face as the artificial grape of the soda mixed quite nastily with the processed cheese powder on the puff.

At the other girl's okay Lex dropped into the seat. The girl didn't seem all that interested in conversation and that was perfectly fine with Lex who instead busied herself shoveling food into her mouth and disinterestedly observing the other students around the cafeteria. There was a lot going on this week and Lex found it interesting to watch the different groups of students interacting. There were still things she didn't understand about both the school and the wizarding world but watching the other students was an easy way to try to figure things out. Primarily it was the legacy picks she found most compelling at the moment, the way the hopeful students were trying to get the attention of the legacy leaders. Lex found little motivation in trying for a legacy in future. She didn't like the way the students were desperately trying to win the approval of their choice legacy.

Lex hadn't been paying attention to the older girl but the face she pulled when she took a drink of her soda caused Lex to snicker. "Do those combine well? Looks delicious," she commented through suppressed laughter as she took another bite of her food. Lex found the combination of the girl looking so contemplative and serious and then the look following her drink quite funny.

She scowled at her can as though it had offended her. "Artificial grape and cheese powder apparently don't make for a win," she muttered before setting the can down with a sigh. Silence took over once more as she began picking at her Cheetos. She really had no desire to eat, and not just from the nasty taste left in her mouth. Cam just had too much on her mind. Her problem seemed to get louder in her head.

She didn't even want to think about the fact that she still had some letters to send out. She wouldn't put it passed the old biddy to be serious about that. Cam was most nervous about the letter to her father that she had written. She was sure he wouldn't care for a note delivered magically that reminded him of her condition. Soon, she hoped it wouldn't be an issue.

After the first rehearsal, Rebecca was exhausted and famished. Of course, all they did was sit on the stage in a circle and read the script through. But she'd missed her after-classes relaxation and snacky time. She would adjust, in time. So her tray was piled high with the oddest (but most colorful) assortment of foods. Pickled beets, raw baby carrots and broccoli with ranch dressing, red apple slices with a large glob of peanut butter, mandarin oranges, and a banana.

Having arrived late, she had few choices of company. There was no room around Levi (no surprise there) or Esther (she's not shocked about that either) or any of her other friends. Twisting her lips to the side, she meandered over to the tomboy and the punk-looking girl and raised her eyebrows. Normally, she wouldn't sit with junior high kids. It was either that or sit with the smelly guy that must bathe in sewage and garbage or the girl with braces and a lisp that talked incessantly about some teeny-bopper boy band that she saw in Florida over the summer.

"Room for some more sunshine and ponies over here?" Rebecca asked wryly with a half-smirk. The little punk girl looked far too serious and grumpy.

The other girl didn't seem keen to have a conversation and Lex was fine with that. Soon, however, they were joined by another girl Lex didn't know. The girl picked up on the mood at the table and Lex returned her wry smirk. "Oh, yes, please do. We're having an ever so pleasant conversation here," Lex said matching the girl's tone. The older girl added yet another bizarre assortment of food. Lex glanced over it, wondering if she was a vegetarian or a vegan. Though Lex had plenty of food on her plate as well, it was not quite so fruit dominated. Instead, she had a barbecue pork sandwich, french fries and baked beans along with a bizarre side of spaghetti and meatballs with a desert of three chocolate chip cookies.

Lex decided to leave it up to the others if they wanted to actually continue a conversation. If the new girl wanted to talk, that was fine with her and if she didn't, that was fine with her too. Lex had never felt the need to have constant social interaction like some other people did but she was in a good enough mood to not turn away the older girl. She doubted rainbow head across from her would join in though, as she seemed far to preoccupied with whatever was going on in her head.

Cam looked up as another student, this one older came to sit with them. She was beginning to wonder when people decided she was the one to sit with. It was rather irritating. The comments floating around the table made her roll her eyes, the purple in her hair darkening until it was as black as the rest of it.

"You are the one who decided to sit here, if you don't like it then feel free to leave," she shot back before picking up her can of grape soda and taking another chug. So she was quiet and lost in her thoughts, when had that become a crime around here? Her jaw tightened as her eyes went down to the bag of Cheetos as though they had offended her in some way. Cam fidgeted, crunching up some of the cheese puffs through the bag.

ACHOOOO!!!!!!!

"Don't flatter yourself. I didn't have a choice," Rebecca shrugged, peeling her banana from the bottom - like a monkey. Her expression was indifferent. The girl's attitude didn't bother her in the slightest. She'd been showered with worse poison than Cam's words - literal poison at times. Of course, in any class dealing with caustic materials, appropriate precautionary measures were taken.

"First or second year?" She asked of the girl that struck her as a tomboy (though she may not be, this is a mere assumption of Rebecca) and nibbled at the banana. Someone nearby sneezed and she covered her tray protectively, hoping none of the snot got on her or her food. Gross.

[Snick]

Though Lex herself could be very difficult and moody herself, she had little patience for other people's problems. In her first few days she had almost gotten in a shoving match with Lorccan while in the very precarious position of being in the rafters of the clock tower because he had tried to unload his problems on her. Lex had enough of her own problems to want to listen to anyone else's. She had also found that people could be rather unaware of how bad things could get and didn't appreciate what they had. Listening to people's petty family problems especially grated on Lex's nerves. She knew enough of the world to know that even her own situation could have been worse. She didn't have scars from cigarette burns up her arms like one kid she'd known. She wasn't rendered mute from some trauma like another kid who's been in the same foster family. Whatever was on the girl's mind, Lex was far from about to inquire about it.

"First year," Lex answered the girl's question through a mouthful of chocolate chip cookie (which she was taking bites of between eating real food). "You?" The girl had the kind of face that was difficult to guess the age of. "And what's your name, anyway? I'm Lex," she added, not wanting to do the back and forth of polite introductions. "I have no idea who rainbow head is over here," she jabbed her thumb at the other girl. Lex reacted similarly to the older girl when someone nearby sneezed. She had seen a few more people than usual walking around with steaming ears and didn't want to catch whatever it was that was going around the school.

There it was, her tipping point on her ever short temper. Yet another comment about something she couldn't control. She slammed her hand down hard, crushing the remainder of her Cheetos, her hair turning a brilliant crimson. "Look kid, I can't fucking control the way my hair changes, so I'd appreciate it if you keep your smart mouthed comments to yourself," she hissed.

She grabbed the bag in her fist, scooped up her soda and moved away from the table. It wasn't so much that she was touchy about the hair. If she didn't hate herself for having magic, she'd probably think it was awesome. At the moment however, it was simply another reminder that her father wouldn't accept her. She stalked over toward the counter again, tossing the bag in the garbage as she went. She downed the rest of her soda before throwing that way as well. Before she could leave the cafeteria, she went to grab a couple more cans of soda for later.

"Rebecca. Sixth, or Ju-" before she could finish, Cam went off. The only change in the expression of the older girl was a minute narrowing of her eyes. Then the girl with newly-crimson hair stormed away without giving anyone a chance to apologize or defend themselves. She obviously didn't want an apology nor a fight, so why cause such a scene? That was something Rebecca would have done just to get attention at home when she was much younger. Could be that, or simply that her hair isn't the only thing she has no control over.

Her eyes followed Cam as she made an exit tour around the caf. Not once did she look back, so it wasn't just to get a rise out of them, nor did she feel remorse about overreacting. Rebecca analyzed every action until the angst-ridden teen was through the door. She found the younger girl interesting, especially now that she knew the metamorphing was out of her control. People typically had a handle on it long before adolescence. Rebecca thought she was doing it on purpose, rebelling in a way. She almost wanted to chase her down, get her story, maybe take the bee out of her bonnet. But she was nowhere near done with her meal.

Returning her attention to Lex, she dipped her broccoli in the ranch. "I suppose this means she has no interest in being our third tenor," she smiled wanly.

Lex was very used to harsh comments and random outbursts so had lots of experience in controlling her reaction. She was not going to let the girl think that she was startled or felt bad for what she had said. She kept her face stony during the brief tirade. Lex's eyes followed the girl as she left, wanting to see if she looked back so that she could return any rude gestures or nasty expressions if need be. Once the girl finally left, Lex turned back to Rebecca.

"Well, that was eventful." She said dryly. Lex had noticed the girl before and had been interested in her abilities. Because she was new, Lex had overheard people talking about her, saying that she had some sort of rare ability that enabled her to change her appearance at will which was why she hadn't gotten in trouble for technically breaking rules. "I think that girl's got more problems than trying to control her hair color anyway," she added, continuing to eat her food.

"Definitely," she took a bite and pushed it into her cheek to talk. "I mean, go see a shrink or write a journal. Don't go around being a bitch to everyone that notices you're grumpy and anti-social."

Rebecca finished chewing her food and swallowed, then chugged her milk. That answered the age old question whether all Hippies were vegans. So maybe it wasn't an age old question, but more of an assumption of many people. "Anywho," Rebecca swirled a carrot around in ranch dressing. "How are you liking Salem Institute?"