lost and found [addie]

[swanlake]

She was way beyond lost. Her first (official) day at Baum Academy, and already she was completely unsure of her placement. A schedule was in front of her, nestled in her hands, but so severely wrinkled that Alpha Rayne Megalos was unable to read the lettering anymore. Not that it mattered. She had already memorized the entire page by heart. Now if she could only find the locations of her classes.


It was only the first period, and frankly, already Alpha wanted to just give up on Baum Academy and return to Jersey City. Go back to her adoptive family and just continue the search the new-fashioned way: through the Internet. Hire a lawyer or a private investigator. Heck, she could post an ad in the newspaper or something, even. "SEVENTEEN-YEAR-OLD SEEKING BIOLOGICAL MOTHER."


No, she couldn't do that. Alpha wanted to do this herself, without the help of adults. If she made some friends while in New York and they offered any insight with her search, then God bless them. But it had already broken her adoptive mother's heart when Alpha decided to find her birth mother. She didn't want to cause anymore pain.


However, pain was coming in the form of a headache as Alpha maneuvered her way around the crowds of other students in the halls, all whom were either making their way to classes or talking with friends or both. For the most part, she was going unnoticed, which Alpha wasn't too concerned about. If she went unnoticed, then maybe it'd be easier to find her destination. No one would be talking with her, asking her questions about her life and where she'd come from. Because if they did, Alpha would feel obligated to answer. Which would probably only result in more questions. Which would require more answers, and ---


"Oh!" Suddenly, Alpha found herself smacking straight into another body, stumbling back slightly at the impact as her face turned to one of shock and apology. "Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't paying attention to where I was going! Are you alright?"


Perfect. Here she was, just trying to blend in and just reach her first class without too much incident - or too much tardiness - and she'd totally botched it all up. She'd possibly injured another student. Was the other girl alright? Had Alpha possibly made an enemy already?


God, please let the other person be someone kind. She couldn't take the stress of an enemy. Not on the first day.

[ADDISON ROWE]

It was only first period and Addison had a headache. She wasn’t sure how she’d be able to handle her louder classes later in the day. She was grateful that English was first, her quietest and favorite class. Surely, her headache would go away during that period. It was just that the halls were extra noisy today. They got like this sometimes, usually when the weekend was near; except that it was Wednesday. They had three days to go. Pinching the bridge of her nose, Addison pulled her textbook from her locker and waited a moment, trying to plan her day from here.

If she grabbed her other textbooks now, she wouldn’t have to worry about coming back to her locker between each class. Then again… did she really want to be carrying around more than one which she already had a headache? Shutting the locker door, she decided she’d definitely just go between classes. It wasn’t like that would make her late or anything. Addison was never late. Turning to face the crowded hallway, Addison took a deep breath. Alright, time to brave the crowds.

It was only moments after she’d stepped away from her locker that somebody ran into her. Addison stumbled a bit, catching herself against the lockers. It hurt a bit, what with the metal and the locks, but she was fine. So long as this student apologized (which they rarely did), Addison was fine. She looked to the girl who hadn’t been paying enough attention. Addison had no idea who she was. She had never seen her around school – not ever. Addison was immediately interested.

Addison smiled and waved a dismissive hand, “It’s fine. It was bound to happen with the halls this crowded.

” Addison looked the girl over, wondering whether she was new or just rarely showed up to school. There was a paper in her hand, crumpled so much that it’d clearly been read over many times. It was just this (and not recognizing the girl) that made Addison realize she was new to Baum. Addison’s maternal instincts kicked in. “You’re lost, aren’t you?[/color]” Addison carefully took the schedule from the girl’s hands and looked it over.

“My name’s Addison Rowe.[/color]” Addison smiled at the girl with her most reassuring grin. “I could help you get to class if you’d like.[/color]” It was the least she could do. Addison remembered her first day at Baum. Sure, she’d been a freshman and upperclassmen are usually willing to help freshman so she hadn’t been terribly lost. This girl looked about Addison’s age and students expected upperclassmen to know where they were going – new or not.

outfit!
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[swanlake]

Was it that obvious that she was lost beyond words? Alpha studied the other girl before her as she spoke, offering kind words instead of the rude remarks the brunette had been expecting. That was what would have happened back at her old high school, at least. You bumped into someone, even accidentally, and they would practically bite your head off. Alpha had witnessed more fights in her middle school than the average student, something she certainly wasn't proud of. High school had just been even worse.


But already, Baum Academy looked a million times better. It was only her first few minutes, and there was already a kind face. Then again, Alpha couldn't be entirely sure that this wasn't a ploy. Perhaps this girl had been dared to appear to be nice to the new girl, or wanted to get a kick out of embarrassing her. Oh, why did high school have to be so cruel?


The other girl had introduced herself. And offered to show Alpha around. Okay, so perhaps she was overreacting when it came to the other girl. Clearly, she was just getting her good deed for the day out of the way. "Um, thanks, that'd be great," Alpha responded with a tentative smile, watching as the girl looked over her crumpled schedule. How could she possibly read that paper, with all the faded ink and weathered effect it held from consistent wringing?


"Oh, I'm Alpha Megalos," Alpha said, finally remembering that she should introduce herself as well. After all, this Addison Rowe had just told her her name, and it was only polite. Plus, just in case she got trampled to death by one of these massive crowds, there could be someone around who would be able to identify her body at the coroner's.


Just in case.


Glancing around the crowded halls and biting her lip with worry, Alpha decided it would be best to start her way towards class. "Umm, I'm supposed to be heading for British Literature," she reported to Addison, her blue eyes wary as she glanced back at the other girl. There was still time for this seemingly harmless deed to turn into an absolutely cruel prank. "Do you know where room D274 is?"

[ADDISON ROWE]

Addison tried not to make it obvious that she was squinting in an attempt to read the schedule. She hadn’t expected it to be this worn. She could hardly make out most of it and when she did figure one part out, she couldn’t understand the rest. Hoping the new girl would say which class she was heading to, Addison lowered the schedule, pretending that she knew what she’d just read. That may not have been a very good first impression, though… But it wasn’t like the new girl knew Addison hadn’t been able to read the list of classes.

Alpha Megalos? What an interesting name… “That’s Greek, isn’t it?

” Addison was almost sure but it just as well could have been a guess. Besides, this was a good way to get to know the new girl. What better way to start a conversation than by discussing unique names? “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Alpha.[/color]” Addison smiled, “and welcome to Baum Academy.[/color]” She might as well be on a school welcoming committee… thing. Whatever it was they had for new students.

British Literature. Addison certainly knew where that was. In fact, it wasn’t far from her class. Then again, most classes were grouped together by subject. There were halls or buildings dedicated to Math or History or Science. “I do know where that is,[/color]” Addison said, glancing both ways down the hall to make sure it was clear enough for them to move away from the lockers. The crowd had thinned a bit since their run-in but it still wouldn’t be fun to maneuver.

Linking arms with Alpha to make sure she didn’t lose the girl, Addison started down the hall, schedule still in hand. “My class is in that general area, too,[/color]” she said off-handedly, “And I’ve heard lots of good things about British Literature.[/color]” So many, in fact, that she was still considering taking it over the summer. “So,[/color]” Addison said with a smile, glancing at Alpha before looking back ahead of her to make sure they didn’t run into anybody else. “Where are you from?[/color]”
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[swanlake]

Oh, the universe was looking down at her with happiness, it seemed. Or karma was in her favor. Or something. Perhaps she'd picked up a lucky penny or something that morning on her way to the school?


Bah. It didn't matter. What did matter was the situation at hand, where this girl -- Addison, was it? -- was offering her assistance. Well, that was certainly the kindest thing anyone had done for her since she'd stepped foot into the school. Even the secretary in the front office hadn't been this kind. The old woman had actually just told Alpha that she was supposed to "sign here and here, and then you can just go to class." Maybe it was a New York thing.


Oh, here she was, lost in her thought process, and the girl had asked her a question about her name. "Oh, yes, it is," the brunette replied with a slight stammer, feeling foolish for not realizing that she'd been spoken to at first. "Um, my entire family is Greek. Well, sort of."


She wasn't about to tell this stranger -- or could Addison be considered a new friend? -- that she'd been adopted. Was it polite to say that sort of thing when you just met someone? Her mother usually told people that Alpha was adopted when they commented on how different they looked, but Alpha herself had never had to face this ordeal herself. No, she'd keep it to herself for now. Only if someone asked would she actually spill the truth.


Oh, great. Now she was a liar. A liar by omission, but a liar all the same.


Now she was asked about her home. "I just moved her from Jersey City," Alpha responded with a small smile, feeling grateful that she could be honest about something. "Actually, I just got here last week."

[ADDISON ROWE]

It seemed to Addison that Alpha’s mind was elsewhere. It wasn’t that the new girl was taking a terribly long time to answer her questions; it was just that she had that look in her eyes. Addison of course knew that look because she got lost in her thoughts all the time. It was only to be expected with her. Addison didn’t mind; that would be hypocritical of her.

Addison grinned. “That’s so cool.

” She’d never met anybody that was Greek. Though Addison couldn’t understand how a family could ‘sort of’ be Greek. It would probably be inconsiderate of her to ask, especially since they had just met. However, she was very curious. “How do you mean ‘sort of?’[/color]” Thank goodness, it certainly didn’t sound rude when she was asking it.

Weaving around a group of gossiping girls, Addison continued leading to way to D274. She certainly didn’t want Alpha to be late to the class. First impressions were everything. “Last week?[/color]” Addison repeated, surprised. She couldn’t remember right this moment if she’d jumped into school so soon after moving. Settling in had seemed to take such a long time.

“Sorry to sound shocked. It’s just… when I first moved here, it took awhile for me to start school.[/color]” Addison shrugged, laughing a little. “Unpacking took forever and I really just wanted to help set up the house, I guess.[/color]” Realizing she’d started to talk about herself (something she liked avoiding when meeting new people), Addison looked back to Alpha.

“Have you met anybody else at Baum yet?[/color]” There were a lot of kids here. It always seemed weird to her since it was a private school and it could get pricy. For some reason, she expected there to be… less people, basically. “You could join some clubs. Or sports. Those are easy ways to meet new people.[/color]” … That was a bit obvious.
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[swanlake]

Alpha smiled tentatively when Addie began to talk about different clubs and sports. She'd never been one for either of those, but it was definitely kind of this girl to mention the possibility for her. And Alpha was all for the kindness one had to offer a new student. However, meeting new people was not something that Alpha was ever really good at. She was timid and shy, and the thought of introducing herself was actually a little scary.


And then there was the fact that Addie was asking her about how her family was Greek. Not often did Alpha reveal her adopted status, but this girl was being quite kind. It wasn't like she was going to mock Alpha for her unknown parenthood, right?


Yes, Alpha felt that this girl could definitely be trusted when it came to a matter like this. "Um, well, my entire family is Greek, but I'm not," she finally revealed, her smile fading slightly as she started the explanation of her heritage. "I was adopted. When I was a baby. I actually came to New York to look for my mom. I heard that her last address was in the city, and I figured it was a good place to start looking for her."


Never mind the fact that the last known address had been said to be from three years before. But that was only an obstacle Alpha was more than willing to take on. She would hurdle over it, and find her mother.

[ADDISON ROWE]

Perhaps Alpha liked reading? Addison had been a member of the book club since she'd heard of it. The other students were some of her closest friends and she was always sad to see one go due to graduation, transferring schools, or just being busy. Addison would suggest it later, perhaps when she knew Alpha better. Right now, it would probably be a bit much... Addison certainly understood what it was like to be new at school and how difficult it could be making new friends.

Adopted! Yes, that explained it. ... Of course it explained it, Addison. Why aren't you thinking straight today? "I think I'd like to adopt a child some day..." Addison commented, shrugging. It didn't seem like a big thing to say until it'd actually made it passed her filter. Too late to take it back now. Addison forced a hopeful smile to fight the frown she'd felt coming on. "New York is a very big place..." No, really, Addison?

Biting her lower lip, Addison glanced to Alpha before focusing again to the way ahead of them. They'd reach the classroom soon. Addison hadn't meant to sound so... doubtful? Correcting herself was a bad idea, because as soon as she started, she was stumbling over her words. "I'm sure you'll find her. This is New York. People love New York. Why would they leave?" Lie: Addison would leave. Somewhere tropic, peaceful, and inspiring. "Plus, you could probably find an agency that would help you..."

Addison paused long enough to scold herself for rambling and to figure out what she'd meant by the last suggestion. "Like, in that movie Holes. When the kid hires these people to help find his mom." Addison almost always compared to movies as opposed to the book counterpart because it was likely the person hadn't read the book anyway. Unfortunately, she hadn't read it in awhile so she almost didn't know what she was talking about.

---

004A7F

[swanlake]

As it was, Alpha was not really phased by Addison's words about the city being a big place and all. The same thought had crossed her mind over and over as she had been getting ready to move from Jersey City. New York was so vast, with the different boroughs and areas. But she had to find her mother. There was no way that Alpha was giving up on this. She needed to find her mother. The thought had become a part of her, ever since she had made the decision. There was no backing down.

And now Addison was actually giving Alpha more hope in the fact. Yes, there were agencies all around the city that could easily assist her in the search. Why hadn't she thought of that idea before? Immediately, Alpha decided that she was going to be Addison's friend, whether the girl liked it or not. She was giving the brunette some very good ideas about how to find her mother, and Alpha needed the support she could tell Addison would be willing to give.

Now she could see the classroom just ahead, and relief spread through her entire being. Alpha hadn't even realized she'd been so worried about finding the class until it left; the feelings had all but vanished when Addison offered her services. "Thank you so much for helping me," Alpha said brightly to the younger girl, giving her a warm smile. "Do you think maybe we could catch one another again later? Maybe eat lunch together? I'd really like to have someone around that I already knew..." Hopefully her request wasn't too forward or unwanted. But Alpha really hoped Addison would say yes. It would definitely put her more at ease.