Time Heals All Wounds (Rene)

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Rene shrugged. She might have called her trip many things, but productive probably wasn't high on the list. The whole thing varied so drastically between "death-defying" and "drop dead boring" that Rene couldn't help but feel a little scarred by it. At least any physical signs were well hidden underneath clothing. Well, that and the hair, but fortunately super long hair wasn't exactly something to panic about.

"I think we've all been there before," agreed Rene. She sighed as she looked at her bed, the smile sliding off again. Lately it really felt as though keeping up a smile was a lot of work. All her friends were neck deep in either trouble or happiness; sometimes both in equal measure. Rene felt like she'd missed so much that she was never going to fully catch up, and it continually frustrated her. At least nobody had seemed particularly upset that she'd come back. Then again, she hadn't found Morgana yet.

"Well, uh," Rene paused to look up at Marian, wondering if there was something else she should say. They knew enough people in common that Rene could sit there and grill Marian on everyone. But the other girl didn't seem like the type to... chat, really. Worse, Rene still couldn't quite shake the discomfort feeling. At least now she knew that it was entirely her and her situation as opposed to Marian. Curiously, Rene felt nothing toward or from Marian, besides perhaps a little bit of pity.

A pause. Rene blinked. Looked at Marian again.

"Is there anything else I should know?" seemed the most logical question, given everything.

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Now able to look past her own negative feelings toward Cimorene, finally able to put the past behind her, Marian was surprised by the cloud that seemed to hover around the other girl. She had always seemed so vibrant before, so strong and forward, forceful and nosey, but had it been Marian’s jealousy projecting all this upon her? Or had this trip home, among other things, changed her? Even as she smiled, sadness seemed to threaten to distort it.

Her brow furrowing a bit, Marian took the moment of silence to study her company. She had not apologised, but admitted to being self-pitying in the past, something she thought her former rival would have much to say about, but all she got in return was acceptance followed by more awkward silence, but not the same awkwardness as before. This was not about Robin, at least she did not think so. Perhaps this was just how they would always be.

“I am not certain,” Marian replied, unsure how else to respond to the broad question. “What is it that you wish to know?”

She thought for a moment about other common ties, about the school in general. She herself had been very distracted with her own life so she was certain there were many things that Cimorene might find important that had passed her by.

“You were friends with Robby as well, were you not?” Marian queried. “I believe he has returned to his home as well. And... in general there have been some changes with the school itself.”

For some reason she found this hard to mention, as if she knew there were differences but could not quite put her finger on what. Everything felt as if it had always been this way, yet at the same time some things felt drastically different. It was all very strange, and she had given it little thought until now. Nobody else seemed to notice; she hardly noticed herself until faced with the direct question. Easy to ignore, impossible to describe, better left unspoken.

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Rene wasn't even sure what she's entirely meant with her offhand comment. Maybe more news. Maybe that everyone had gained the ability to fly while she'd been gone. It seemed like no matter what she tried to do, the girl was always three steps behind everyone else. But it was easy enough to catch up with everything, and deal with things. She almost felt like crying. But that was definitely not an option.

"Robby, huh?" repeated Rene. she shifted. "that makes sense. Things were already awkward with him leading up to it. I'm not really surprised that everything changed. Seemed like things were always changing when I was here. Why would it be any different with me gone?"

She sighed, drumming her fingers for a few moments. So many thoughts bouncing around, each demanding attention and a means of escape. oh well. Moping about never did anything. Rene reached for a book, pulling it close. No, she wasn't just going to walk away or give up. She'd come here to study, and that wasn't going to change simply because some information had caught her off guard. what kind of attitude to have was that?

Time to start studying, and see where things went from here...

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Looking at it from that perspective, that the place was always changing, Marian could hardly argue. Of course Cimorene was thinking of it more as someone who had been away and now felt left out, but the sentiment was the same. Not only did the place itself change, but its influence, and the influence of such a diverse population, changed those that resided here immensely. Marian herself was a perfect example of this.

Deciding to leave what she saw as a rhetorical question alone, she turned her attention back to her books as Cimorene seemed to think it was time to work instead of waste more time conversing. Turning a page in her own book, Marian wrote a few words in her scribbler but she was having a hard time concentrating. This was a library, it was supposed to be quiet, but at the moment the silence felt uncomfortable and deafening. The other girl was not one of those people she she could pass a pleasant silence with; they could barely pass a pleasant conversation.

Fiddling with the wedding ring on her finger again, Marian frowned. What had Cimorene truly ever done to her? She could not blame the girl for falling for Robin any more than she could blame herself. Everything that had happened between them, any harsh words said... as proud as she was even the new Lady of Locksley knew where the blame for all that lay.

“Cimorene,” she spoke after another long moment of silence. “I... just wanted to apologise to you for how I have treated you in the past.”

The words came out quickly, as if she had to speak them fast if she was going to speak them at all, but no matter how swiftly she spoke it didn’t make them any easier to say.