But The Basics Of It Are Me Putting All Of My Characters Into Briar's Universe - Tumblr Posts
April Prompts Day 7 - river
Featuring Bella and Nyx @pagesofcursive character
What are you doing?” The words were slow and cold. Bella jumped out of her skin, shoving the half-finished gadget into a pocket. It tinkled as it bumped against loose screws.
Trying to cover her surprise, she asked, “I’m assuming you used your powers to sneak up on me.” Her brain teased her with just-out-of-reach knowledge; she knew this girl, knew she was somehow related to someone she was acquainted with, but her tired mind couldn’t quite make the connection. The only thing that clicked was that she had dark powers.
“Yes, and no,” the reply still echoed from one of the far corners of the room. “You wouldn’t have been able to see me if you tried, but I didn’t try to conceal my footsteps - you were very involved with whatever it is you’re doing. Also, you didn’t answer my question. What. Are. You. Doing.”
“I, uh, practicing my powers?” She cursed silently to herself. It was important to make these kinds of statements actually sound like statements. Allowing nervousness to turn defenses into questions allowed for weaknesses to be exploited, arguments to be deconstructed, and her entire facade could come crumbling down. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, unseen by the girl behind her. She needed sleep, her thoughts were turning to an unhealthy place faster than normal. Practicing with her ice during the day and pushing herself to her limits, creating new but simple inventions, at night took a toll on her.
The girl drawled, “So the glint I saw from across the room was ice, then?”
Bella swallowed the lump in her throat, trying to steady her voice. “Yes.”
“Can I see?” Footsteps approached and Bella glanced up to see a flash of blonde in the faint strip of moonlight. Her eyes widened in realization. Nyx, her dormmate’s cousin.
Hastily, Bella’s fingers twitched as she tried to summon so much as a flake. Frost covered her fingers, and the dew on the windowsill froze into delicate shapes. Her breath solidified into a mist as the temperature in the immediate vicinity of her plummeted. Biting her tongue, she tried to gain enough control to slow the unpredictable spread. Employing a psychological tactic she’d read about, she attempted to redirect her focus instead of simply taking it away from her nervousness. She took her bottle from between her legs and poured a bead of water into her hand. Concentrating, she formed it into a simple gear, finer than paper and almost as big as her palm. It wasn’t difficult, nor was it functional, but it was better than nothing. Footsteps stopped by her right side. Discreetly, Bella shifted the cup of washers and screws so it was concealed by her legs.
“So let's see?”
Her fluctuating emotions caused her to snap, “Why do you even care? What about my business concerns you?”
“Touchy. You know, from my experience, people who are this defensive have something to hide.” Nyx crossed behind Bella. Noticing too late, Bella cringed inside as Nyx’s foot knocked the cup, letting out a stream of metal. “That doesn’t look like ice.”
Rage and frustration simmered. “Maybe it’s not, but how would you know that I wasn’t using those for other things. You’ve seen my tracks? I need something to base it on. I was… studying them.”
“That seems like a pretty poor imitation,” Nyx pointed out, tilting her head toward the gear that sat unmelted on Bella’s cold leg. “Have you got anything else you’re ‘studying’?” Nyx’s hands didn’t move from her sides. She strode over to a cupboard, and Bella scrambled up to shadow her. “You wouldn’t mind if I look in here, would you.”
“Sure,” Bella ground her teeth together, “why not?”
A disorganized river of miniature screws, linchpins, circuit boards, and old tech - phones, tablets, laptops, and everything in-between - streamed out. Bella flinched minutely.
“You know this isn’t allowed?” Nyx was unreadable.
Bella rolled her eyes, knowing her fate was set no matter what she said. “Obviously. Why do you think I lied? I was working on this.” She pulled out the gadget, its sides loose and wires sticking out.
Nyx stood and walked over. She took it from Bella’s open palm, examining it. “You know,” she said, dropping it back into Bella’s waiting hand, “If you want to continue to do this, you’d have to get better at hiding your little… hobby. Do you know what would happen if someone found out about this?”
Bella raised her eyebrows in response. Duh.
“Here,” Nyx knelt on the ground and patted beside her. “I’ve done my share of dirty work. You’re going to need some pointers.”