Mayday: Drawing the metal grating closed outside the comic book store Mayday clicked the padlock into place, smiling at it, "We're clo-ooooosed!", she sang to herself, stepping back and waving at the sign.
Mayday: With a stretch she turned around, adjusting her bag and drawing her phone out of her pocket; now to find Cassie...
Cassie: The search for Cassandra should turn out much easier than expected, the raven-haired girl sitting nearby on the hood of a parked car. Her legs, once more wrapped in striped tights, dangled over the edge of the chassis and idly kicked the air, while she watched the redhead with a wry smile on her lips.
Cassie: "Need a lift home?" she asked, her body swaying slowly back and forth.
Mayday: "Oh, hey!", Mayday waved, her smile becoming a little wry as she noticed tat she was sat on a car, "C-Cassie, you can't sit on that...if you scratch it, then you're screwed!"
Cassie: "What can I say? I like living on the edge." Cassandra snickered, but nevertheless pushed herself off the car and hopped onto the sidewalk. "How was work? Met any strange nerds today?"
Mayday: Snorting, Mayday nodded, "You know, I did? This one guy asked me if I was 'CGI rendered' because he'd never met someone so perfect...", she blushed a little, "It's sweet, but borderline cringe.", she approached the other girl, pocketing her phone, "You?"
Cassie: Cassandra laughed, smoothing over her jacket and skirt as she stepped up to Mayday. "I'm quite fine, thanks for asking." She slightly tipped her head towards the other girl. "Even though I can't say I've encountered any admirers as entertaining as yours today."
Mayday: "Well, the day's still young, isn't it?", Mayday shrugged, looking around at the few people in the vicinity before looking back at Cassie, "...listen, ah...", she raised her hand timidly, gesturing to her heart, "...i-is it true?"
Cassie: "Hm? Oh, this..." Cassandra glanced down her own chest, before looking back up at Mayday. "Why yes, you can believe the rumours," she revealed, a wry smirk playing across her lips. "They're all natural."
Mayday: Mayday flushed, "Goddamnit, Cassie...", she groaned, "I meant your heart!"
Cassie: "Ah, you should have said so. Most people seem less interested in matters of the heart, but rather what lies above it." Cassandra slowly swayed back and forth, shifting her balance to her toes and back again. "Of course you're not that superficial."
Cassie: "I guess you're wondering whether the rumours are true and my heart is no longer beating, yes?" Slightly tilting her head, she gave Mayday an inscrutable smile.
Mayday: "Yeah.", Mayday breathed, "...it's...really real, isn't it? It seriously doesn't..."
Cassie: "Why not convince yourself?" Cassandra asked, not waiting for the other girl's response before she reached out to take Mayday's hand and pressed her palm against her chest. "Spooky, isn't it? Strangely enough, I couldn't feel any more alive."
Mayday: Mayday exhaled slowly, her face becoming genuinely upset after a few moments. She took her hand away, just looking down at it without a word.
Cassie: "Is anything wrong?" Cassandra blinked, her sassy smile fading and replaced by a wary look. "I didn't scare you, did I? I promise I nether plan to haunt you, not feel any particular appetite for your brains."
Mayday: "Cassie, you died!", Mayday pleaded, "Y-you...you were gone! I cried over you for days and...a-and you just came back and everyone pretends it's normal!"
Mayday: She turned away, "Cass, every single time I look at you all I can think of is that scene, that....t-that no matter how great we were, no matter all we achieved you were gone! And...and that everyone just 'got over it', I j-....", her words halted, blocked by a choked sob.
Cassie: Bereft of speech herself, Cassandra merely bit down on her lower lip and remained silent for several seconds. Eventually, she took a tentative step forward. "Thank you," she breathed, knowing how out of place her words must have sounded. "That you care so much about me."
Cassie: "And sorry, for putting you through all this." She lowered her head, her playful, immature streak having all but disappeared.
Mayday: Mayday sniffed, wiping her eyes, "I don't want you to say sorry, it's not your fault...", sniffling again, she looked back at Cassandra, "...it's just hard for me to move on. That pain was so, so real. It happened, and ever since, everyone's become so complacent!"
Mayday: She pointed off into the distance, "The new people here make jokes because they haven't lived it! They haven't lived it or they haven't suffered it at its worst. And...a-and they see you!", she gestured back at Cassandra, "They see you standing there, laughing like death is nothing!"
Mayday: Tears starting again, Mayday's eyes fell, "How long do we have, anyway? Before this happens again? Does this mean your death meant nothing? That...that my hurt doesn't matter or what? I j-..I just don't even know myself..."
Cassie: "It matters to me," Cassandra replied, a faint, uneven smile finding its way back to her dark lips. "Because it shows that you cared for me." She took Mayday's hands in hers and gave them a gentle squeeze. "That you still do." Taking a deep breath, she glanced to the side. "To think I might have been gone without touching anyone's heart..."
Mayday: "You were gone, that's my point!", Mayday let herself cry, tears streaming down her cheeks, "Y-you're one of my closest friends and you were just taken away!"
Cassie: Her friend's emotional outburst caused Cassandra's throat to choke up, and before she even thought about any answer to give, she had wrapped her arms around Mayday's body and held her close. "But I was returned to you, and that is something to be happy about, isn't it?" she whispered into the girl's ear, her face buried in her red hair.
Mayday: Mayday nodded, clinging tightly to her also, "B-but that's nothing to rely on! A-and that doesn't mean it couldn't happen again!", she stressed, "I'm trying to be better, I'm trying so hard because I'm scared of losing again! Everyone thinks I'm out of my mind, but I'm not!"
Cassie: "You lost something very dear to you, and thought it gone for good," Cassandra said, leaning back to smile at her friend, her gaze met her Mayday's. "You're right; that I somehow managed to do the impossible and return from the other side doesn't make that loss any less real."
Cassie: Reaching up, she brushed a strand of red hair out of the girl's face. "If you ask me, you're the only one not acting out of her mind."
Mayday: With another slow nod, Mayday reached up to wipe her eyes again, "I-I'm sorry, I...I didn't mean to freak out, I just...e-everything seems ok right now, just like it did back then, and that's when...", she faltered her words, just gesturing at Cassandra, "That and... Eddie..."
Cassie: "Bad things happen, Mayday," Cassandra told her friend, showing her a kind smile. "We can't always prevent that, no matter how much we try. What we can do, however, is make the best out of whatever happiness there is to be found."
Cassie: Leaning closer, she pressed a gentle kiss to her friend's forehead. "And if it's any consolation for you, I promise that I'll never let myself be taken away from you again."
Mayday: "You can't promise that.", Mayday glanced aside, "Not you, not anyone...and yes, bad things will happen, but that's no excuse to forget! Life isn't a game that you can just 'save and quit' when you feel like it or when it gets too hard.", she sighed, sniffing again, "I just think too many people honestly consider it that..."
Mayday: She looked back up at Cassandra, "It's like a school full of children and sociopaths sometimes...I honestly don't believe anyone has any idea how real this all is, or how easilly they, that everyone, can die. I don't even think they care..."
Cassie: "Are you honestly surprised about that?" Cassandra asked with a light laugh and gave Mayday a grin. "Even normal teenagers believe they're immortal and nothing in the world can bring them down. And that's before you add any super-powers and regularly saving the world."
Cassie: She tilted her head, a thoughtful look on her face, and shrugged her shoulders. "I guess the unusual has become routine to us."
Mayday: "And that's ok, huh? That's just....fine, is it?", Mayday stepped back, shaking her head, "That we live in a world where 'oh, look, someone got abducted and eaten alive but now she's back and it's fine', that is 'just so'?"
Mayday: She pointed away again, "Where...a-a man loses his mind and murders in cold blood because the voice in his head told him to? That he's condemend and can't be saved or even loved again? Or, my personal favourite, that a girl can transform into a fucking SPIDER, almost die, and then can go back to pretending it isn't real!?"
Mayday: Mayday shook her head, "I hate it! I hate it that we just ACCEPT all this! T-there's just no room for any explination anymore! I...I-I had to just ACCEPT that you were gone, and ACCEPT that you came back! Do you have any idea how absurd that is?"
Cassie: "I'm a circus girl, remember? The absurd is my life." Cassandra smiled at her friend, before she let the air flow from her longs with a drawn out sigh. "Mayday, have you ever wondered why I am the way I am? Why I always make light of anything, no matter how inappropriate, and never seem to take anything seriously?"
Cassie: "Because if I did, I fear it would break me," she admitted, her expression and voice entirely serious for once. "If I couldn't laugh over the grizzly fact that I was eaten alive, murdered horribly, and yet somehow still walk and talk as if nothing happened, I'm very much believe you would find me curled up in a padded cell, gibbering madly at the walls."
Mayday: "I....", Mayday's shoulders fell, and she nodded in response, "I know...I-I mean, I get it, but....damnit, Cassie, consider the audience...", she sighed, "...t-that's not fair, I'm sorry. It's just...it's too much sometimes, watching these new people just pretending it's a game..."
Cassie: Cassandra's smile returned, and she once more took Mayday's hands in hers. "Then let's not be in a rush to head back to them, no?" she suggested. "As appropriate as a comic store might be to talk about such things as death and inexplicably coming back to life, why not find a better place to have this heart to heart?"
Cassie: She nodded her heads in the direction down the street. "Come; I invite you to milkshakes and freshly baked cookies."
Mayday: With a little laugh, Mayday wiped her face again, "Yeah...yeah, ok, sure.", she agreed, following Cassandra, "Lead the way."
=== A little while later ===
Cassie: With a slurping sound, Cassandra sucked on the straw tucked between her lips, tirelessly working on adding a third glass to the two already empty ones on the table. "The vanilla one is my favourite so far," she commented, letting go long enough of the straw to lick her lips. "How's yours?" Mayday: "How does your stomach have room for all that?", Mayday giggled, looking over at her smaller empty glass, "Chocolate was good, but the Strawberry is better I think.", she stirred her larger shake with the straw, "Seriously, how do you manage it?"
Cassie: "I think there must be a black hole in my stomach," Cassandra replied, sitting up on her stool and giving the thick, sweet beverage a break. "No, seriously, I'm pretty sure all the stuff I eat and drink just vanishes. You know these dark portals I create? Sometimes I feel as if I am one myself."
Cassie: She frowned and made an awkward face. "Like a hole in the world."
Mayday: Mayday paused, considering the words before she spoke again, "So, you're like a dimensional edifice? That...pretty much makes you a God by most definitions.", she hummed, smiling a little, "Hey, don't say it like it's so horrible...where'd that positive streak go, huh?",
Mayday: She laughed a little, "Besides, you were dyin' to get me inside you, and apparently that's actually a possibility now, right? Hm?"
Cassie: "Hey, I wasn't trying to make it sound horrible!" Cassandra replied with a chuckle of her own. "I was only trying to be dramatic and saying that it's, well, weird." She smirked at the other girl and took another sip of her milkshake. "And better not let Cecilia hear any of that god-stuff talk, or she'll whip us both with a rosary."
Cassie: Pushing the almost empty glass aside a little, she leaned forward, her black tresses brushing over the table. "IS that an offer to let me eat you?" she asked, a wicked grin on her lips. "You're cordially invited into my dark world, but I can't give you any guarantees about where you might end up."
Mayday: "Hey, I'm a taken girl again; you snooze, you lose, Cassandra St. Commons.", Mayday grinned back, "That said....well, let's just say that Jan's a little more, ah...'liberal', I think.", she poked Casssandra's nose, "So there's a strong possibility that I might end up going down on the rabbit hole sometime...with assistance, naturally...",
Mayday: She laughed a little at herself, blushing gently - being with Janet had really made her more comfortable in situatuons like these.
Cassie: "Then should I take this as my cue to get to know Janet better?" Cassandra chuckled, swiftly craning her neck to give the poking finger a playful bite. "You can tell her I offer guided tours even for small groups."
Cassie: She snickered to herself and almost tried to bury her head inside her glass with milkshake. "And that came out soooo wrong..."
Mayday: "That's really a matter of perspective, right?", Mayday replied, placing her finger against her lips, "But yeah, I might let her know...", she grinned, sipping at her own shake for a few moments before clearing her throat softly, "So, I found out I have a brother, you know!"
Cassie: "Oh, you do?" Cassandra let the straw slip out from between her lips again and sat up, giving Mayday a curious look. She realized that she didn't know too much the other girl's family relations. Then again, nether did anyone about hers. "And you only found out now?"
Mayday: Mayday nodded, "Yeah, turns out it's a good idea to actually read the stuff you get given(!)", she rolled her eyes at herself, "But yeah, he lives here in the city, but I haven't met him yet....he ah....he was shifted around a few homes, actually."
Mayday: She smiled down at her milkshake wryly, "He's my twin. Robin Parker..."
Cassie: A frown flashed across Cassandra's features, a fleeting moment of familiarity rushing through her mind when she heard that name. "Now that's what I call a coincidence," she remarked. "And... does he know about you?"
Mayday: "I don't think so...", Mayday frowned a little, smirking all the same, "Swear I could actually hear the cogs whirring in your brain there, did y-...", she blinked, "D-do you know him!?"
Cassie: "Hm?" Cassandra feigned confusion and blinked at Mayday. "Oh, it was just that name. I met someone named Robin once, but I'm sure that was someone completely different." She laughed awkwardly. "I mean, how many strange coincidences could you possibly find in one place?"
Cassie: "Anyway, it's good that at the very least you already know about him," she continued, tilting her head as she rolled her eyes at herself. "That raises the chances your encounter with him will end up slightly less uncomfortable than when I met a long lost relative the last time."
Mayday: Mayday's eyes narrowed on her, "Cassie.", she reached over to her side of the table, hand on hers, "He's the same as me; red hair, blue eyes. Same age, too. What do you know?"
Cassie: Cassandra rolled her head from one shoulder to the other and let her gaze drift through the small cafe. "Well, there's been this one guy once, who might fit that description," she admitted. "Of course it's been several years already, so even I can't tell how far to trust my memories."
Cassie: "Anyway, it might be your this guy and I, well..." She looked back at Mayday, wearing a sheepish smile. "There's a chance I've been together with your brother in the past."
Mayday: It took Mayday a few seconds to absorb that - her growing blush seeming to act as a physical gauge to measure that absorbtion - as she sipped more of her milkshake, seemingly oblivious to the fact the beverage was done with.
Mayday: She cleared her throat again, "...huh. W-well...that's ah...hm...."
Cassie: "Yes, I think that's the best way to put it," Cassandra commented, glancing through the large front window to the street outside and chewed on her lower lip. "Of course, I might be wrong. There's no telling for sure until I've seen him in person."
Mayday: "...d'you wanna come with me?", Mayday asked, half regretting it as soon as she'd said it, "I mean, i-if it's not too awkward for you...I-I just....maybe...er..."
Cassie: "Awkward? Oh no, it's probably going to be hilarious." Cassandra laughed and picked up her glass, slurping the remaining milkshake out of it. "If your brother and the guy I once knew really are one and the same, I'm going to have so many questions."
Mayday: Mayday smiled awkwardly, "Heh...yeah. Yeah, I bet you will...", she let out a quiet sigh, poking bubbles in her glass. She felt awkward, and she wasn't entirely sure why she did, "I guess you guys have a history, huh?"
Cassie: Cassandra poked the small rest of her milkshake with the end of her straw, cocking her head before she came up with an answer. "You could say that, yes," she replied. "His foster family at that time lived in the same town as my godparents. Rebellious bad boy meets adventurous girl from next door, and that's where things turned steamy."
Mayday: Choking on the bubbles she was slurping, Mayday coughed, "O-ok! Ok, I get it. I totally...I-I get it.", her cheeks were bright red as she answered, "I-I just...that's my brother, Cass....y-you know?"
Cassie: "Well, I do know now!" Cassandra laughed. "Don't worry, I'll spare you the details." She chewed on the end of the straw. "I can tell you he's a natural redhead just like you, though."
Cassie: She eyed Mayday across the table and rolled the straw between her lips. "Of course, I still can't know for sure in your case." Her eyes narrowed.
Mayday: Mayday swallowed, "....o-oh, that is just....", she laughed a little, "Good God, Cassie....I said I'd talk to her and I will, ok? So....keep it in your pants! You're such a pest..."
Cassie: "Being a pest is what I do best!" Cassandra snickered. "Hey, that rhymed!" She looked towards the ceiling with a thoughtful expression on her face. "Maybe I should make that my catchphrase."
Cassie: The next moment she already leaned across their table and had the end of her straw dipped into Mayday's cup, stealing the rest of her friend's shake.
Mayday: Falling back in her seat Mayday stammered, "H-hey!", she managed, blushing furiously at the sudden closed gap between them, "....well, fine! I was done with it anyway.", she tutted, folding her arms, though smiling all the same.
Mayday: "That reminds me...there's one other thing I wanted to ask.", she raised a finger.
Cassie: "The secret of how my milkshake brings all the boys and girls to the yard?" Cassandra asked back and sat back in her chair, shooting Mayday a playful smirk.
Mayday: "Is it true that Jonas is technically your blood relative?"
Cassie: Cassandra made an awkward face at that. "I wondered how long it would take for that rumour to spread," she said, reaching up to rake the fingers of both hands through her black hair. "I guess even calling it an open secret would be generous at this point."
Cassie: "But yes, it's true," she revealed, slouching forward on her stool. "And not just technically. He's my great-grand uncle."
Mayday: Mayday gasped, "No way! Y-you....er...Cassie, did you...?"
Cassie: "Yep, I slept with my own uncle," Cassandra deadpanned. "After digging him out of his grave."
Mayday: "No frickin' way...", the redhead breathed, "...t-that's....er...", she frowned, "Er...weirdly kinda...kinda hot...er...", she looked up, "If you tell Jan I said that, I will bury you alive."
Cassie: Cassandra arched an eyebrow, a faint smirk playing across the corner of her mouth as she studied Mayday. "Don't worry, my lips as sealed," she assured her friend, raising a hand to place her index finger across her mouth.
Mayday: Mayday laughed again, "You think so too, don't you? Man, it feels like 4Chan in here..."
Cassie: Glancing left and right, Cassandra leaned slightly forward in a conspiratorial manner. "Well, while we're being so honest with each other..." Hesitating, she sucked on her lower lip for a moment, before she showed her friend an impish smirk. "Yes, I do, too."
Mayday: "Ok, we can literally never tell anyone about this.", Mayday snorted, "Ok? I'm trusting you here!"
Cassie: "And why wouldn't you, seeing how we both know something such delicate about each other?" Cassandra's playful grin made her look unusually excited. "Ooh, it can be our little dark secret."
Mayday: Nodding, and smiling like a schoolgirl, Mayday agreed, "Ok, but no holding it over my head, right? 'Cause that'd suck."
Cassie: "Of course not! I would never do such a thing." Cassandra held up two fingers and smiled at her friend. "Besides, what could be better to strengthen the bond between two friends than shared secrets?"
Cassie: She spat on the palm of her right hand, then offered it to Mayday. "Here's to our dark secret."
Mayday: Mayday made a face at the gesture, looking at her own hand and spitting on it. The drool connecting her mouth to her hand afterwards she poked at with a finger from her other, shaking hands with Cassandra, but all the while wearing a somewhat uncomfortable face.
Cassie: "Hey, what's with the disapproving face?" Cassandra chuckled at her friend. "That's how we used to make deals at the circus. It's worth more than any fancy contract. This is an oath bound by our honour."
Mayday: "Save that 'honour' stuff for Hisako, I like clean hands...", Mayday laughed nervously, "I don't mean any offence, it's...it's cool, just....", she shrugged, "...well, what the heck, right?"
Cassie: "If that made you uncomfortable, just imagine I sucked on your fingers," Cassandra said and gave Mayday a teasing smirk. She pulled some tissues out of the dispenser and passed them over to her.
Mayday: Mayday thanked her, cleaning her hand, "I'm not even gonna gratify that with a response....", she grinned, "...I think it'd be kinda nice to see you do that to Jan.",
Cassie: Cassandra snickered. "Says the girl who called me a pest just moments ago." She reached across the table to take Mayday's empty glass. "So, what flavour shall we try next?"
Mayday: "Surprise me.", Mayday shrugged, "Everything else tonight has, why not my milkshake?"