give you a bad reputation {Genevieve}

[Cal Karnstein]

Cal slid next to the bookworm, leaning over her shoulder to read the book for a few lines. The half-vampire moved slinky, moved silent, and likely hadn't even been noticed, given how very into the book said bookworm happened to be. Bookworm also happened to be pretty cute in that pinch your cheeks aren't you a sweetheart sort of way, which was part of the reason Cal had slid next to her in the semi-crowded cafeteria area (which Cal usually avoided as a matter of principle. Much more fun to take meals elsewhere, particularly when you had a black card that was pretty much a "get me what I want" token at Tintagel. Yay royal parents)

"So," whispered Cal, careful to pitch her voice low, "you probably don't realize this, but this group of total snobs have been staring at you and whispering behind their hands all conspiratorial like. Been talking about how they can't believe you're a Summer, which, c'mon, look at you. So Summery. But anyway, they're all, like, that's one of the weird Summers and she doesn't even have friends and is totally not cool and whatnot.

"Hence my glorious presence. Gonna ruin your reputation a bit," she leaned over, as if she were whispering sweet nothings into Bookworm's ear. "So tell me, sweetheart: whatcha reading? Looks pretty good."

[Genevieve]

She always had a book with her, especially when going for lunch in the canteen. Other than her siblings and the brief meeting with Eddie by the lockers, Genevieve hadn't really made any friends since arriving - entirely her own fault as she was always buried in a book, and had probably made herself somewhat unapproachable. She didn't mind though; usually she was perfectly happy with her book and her headphones, sat in a quiet corner ignoring the rest of the student population around her.

Today, she had forgotten her headphones, but that hadn't turned out to be the epic disaster she had anticipated. She had still managed to snag her regular corner, and she hadn't forgotten her book; today's choice was 'Iliad'. And so, she was perfectly happy, lost in Poseidon's intervention in the Trojan War, oblivious to the existence of her fellow students and certainly unaware of whatever may or may not be being whispered about her.

So it was a bit of a shock when a voice suddenly whispered in her ear. Genevieve jumped so hard she knocked her drink off the table in front of her, and turned to stare at her new companion, eyes wide and more than a little shocked. It took a little while for the girl's words to sink in and process in Genevieve's brain - a large part of her was still in Greece - but eventually the words started to make sense, and she frowned slightly, thoroughly confused. "I... they what?" She looked around, trying to work out who was talking about her - and why.

But now the girl was asking about her book. Genevieve felt thoroughly disoriented and completely thrown. This was not how her lunch breaks usually went. She flipped the book shut, keeping her hand on her page, and showed the girl, who was incredibly close (not that Genevieve was going to complain, the more she took the girl in and thought about it), the title page. "Erm, it's Iliad. I'm Genevieve, by the way." She turned her head to look into the girl's face and felt herself blush. "Hi."

[Cal Karnstein]

"The Iliad?" repeated Cal, letting out a low whistle. She tilted her head to get a better look at the book. "That's one of those major, uh, old text things, right? Okay, yeah, I don't know much about books," Cal shrugged. "Not really my thing."

She could see the blush, and she grinned, but wiggled a bit away, giving the girl a little more space. "Nice to meet you, Genevieve..." Cal tapped her fingers. "Genny? Gen? Vivi? You look like a Vivi," she grinned almost wolfishly, displaying a pair of canines that didn't look quite normal. There was just a... sharpness about them.

"I'm Calpurnia, if you really feel like punishing me," said Cal, extending a hand. "Mostly go by Cal. Will respond to Cali, particularly if a shy bookworm's more comfortable," she winked. "And you can totally go back to reading and I can just sit here and make funny faces at the idiots if you want," she offered, already leaning over to start flashing ugly faces at the 'popular" table.

[Genevieve]

"Yeah, I erm, I like to read." Genevieve said sheepishly, putting her bookmark in place and closing the book. She wanted to ask how books could ever not be someone's 'thing' - books were for everyone, you just had to find your favourite and you were away, there were whole worlds to be discovered, so much to be learnt - but she bit her tongue, not wanting to scare away a potential friend - especially if people really were talking about her being a loner. She wasn't sure her mum would be too happy to hear that.

She flinched slightly as the girl began to give her nicknames - Genevieve really and truly hated having her name shortened. Especially to anything that sounded like her sister's name - "Genevieve. Just Genevieve. Definitely not Genny or Gen, or anything remotely similar to that." She readjusted her features, aware that she probably looked like there was a bad smell under her nose. "Really. Genevieve is fine."

She blushed again at Cal's wink, looking down at the book in her lap. She picked it up and placed it to the side on the table, away from temptation, and took Cal's hand, shaking it gently. "I'm not shy..." She said shyly, wishing she could stop blushing. It was just embarrassing. "It's ok. She turned away from the book and smiled at Cal. "I think I've read enough for one day." She picked up her fork, pushing some food around the plate in front of her. She couldn't remember what she'd picked up, but she'd been sat reading so long she'd forgotten it, and it had grown a skin. "You don't have to sit with me though, I'm sure you've got better things to be doing."

[Cal Karnstein]

"I figured,' drawled Cal as Genevieve admitted to liking reading. "What with the book and all. And hey: you do you. Screw what they say," she jerked her head back toward her new favorite targets, before leaning forward, again refocusing on the other girl. The bit about names just had Cal smiling, but she nodded.

"Got it: Just Genevieve. Bit wordy, but hey," she shrugged again, before following just-Genevieve's gaze down to her lap. That had her grinning all the wider, and she took the hand and gave it a few shakes, before lifting it up for a quick kiss on the knuckles. Might as well cover all the bases. Book went away, and out came the food. Cal shifted, pulling out a bag from one of her pockets and tossing it on the table in front of her.

"Healthy lunch," she explained, before opening the bag of crisps with her too sharp teeth, shredding it almost too effectively. She spat the bits away, popping a few truly disgusting bits of food into her mouth. "Oh, I've got loads of things I could be doing: I'm a free agent. But I'm pretty sure I get to decide which of those are better, and right now, I'm thoroughly enjoying the company of Just Genevieve." She leaned over again, careful to have swallowed her food. "You should keep blushing: I think some of the boys over there are starting to notice. I mean, they probably saw me first, but you're too adorable to ignore after a while." Smiling, Cal wiggled some fingers at the guys who were quite obviously looking their way now. And yes: they weren't just looking at the alt-punk girl. Some guys liked that whole shy demure type, particularly at a school filled with princes.

[Genevieve]

Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Genevieve smiled. She liked that phrase - 'you do you'. It was more or less what she had told Eddie, although she'd used a fair few more words. She couldn't help but glance over Cal's shoulder at the group that had apparently been talking about her, and threw a small smile their way. She could almost be grateful to them - if Cal hadn't heard them, Genevieve was pretty sure that someone like Cal would never have given her the time of day.

She felt the blush flare in her cheeks again when Cal kissed her hand. Pressing a hand to her cheek in an attempt to cool it and persuade the blush to fade, Genevieve wondered what was wrong with her. She wasn't particularly shy, she had never been one to swoon over boys (or girls) the way other girls at court had, so why was she suddenly completely incapable of controlling her blush?

Watching as Cal produced the bag of crisps, Genevieve raised an eyebrow at her explanation. "Mmm, looks it." She said with a smile, giving up on pushing her congealed slop around the plate and dropping the fork, pushing the tray away from her. "Still, looks better than whatever this used to be." She turned her head sharply as Cal started waving at the nearby guys, before grabbing her hand and pulling it down to stop her. "Oh my Gods, don't." She said, shrinking into her chair, absolutely mortified, but trying to suppress a giggle. "And I am not adorable," she muttered, rolling her eyes, "that makes me sound about twelve."

She couldn't help but glance back at the guys again. Had they really been looking at her?

[Cal Karnstein]

Cal got yanked down to the seat, flashing Just Genevieve a wide, toothy grin. "Oh, you are so adorable," Cal insisted, tossing another crispy fried something (she really should check these passages before eating them) into her mouth. She bounced her eyebrows a few times while she chewed, swallowed, and then extended the bag for Genevieve to enjoy. Because don't think that Cal hadn't noticed that halfhearted poke at her own food.

"You're thinking about it in all the wrong way, Just Genevieve," Cal insisted, giving the bag another shake, either to loosen the contents for Genevieve to grab or to further entice. "See, guys, particularly the old school ones that are all about saving the girl, and don't we have enough of those about. They sometimes dig the whole girl that they can save and protect from the big wide world," Cal chuckled. "Face it, Just Genevieve, you're a little lamb tossed into a wolves' den. You just happen to have a fox next to you."

Cal winked, then looked around again. The boys were now taking a bit more of an interest, and of course Cal was pointing at her compatriot, which had at least one of the shyer looking one among the male number flushing himself. That probably would've been enough to start Cal off on some good hearted matchmaking (Genevieve not really being her taste; despite being part vampire Cal didn't generally sup upon the innocent). Except she noticed something else. "Ut oh," whispered Cal. "Looks like the hens are clucking again." She tossed another crisp in, wiggling afew fingers there. Because obviously what Genevieve wanted was yet more attention drawn to them right now.

[Genevieve]

"Perhaps I should let my sister take me shopping, she's always telling me my look is too clean cut..." Genevieve muttered with a roll of her eyes. She really didn't want to be considered 'adorable'. She wasn't sure she really wanted to be considered anything, but since the topic had been raised, the word was bugging her. She accepted the offering from Cal, digging her hand into the bag and throwing the contents into her mouth. She was right, it was definitely better than the congealed slop.

Cringing as Cal called her 'Just Genevieve' again (she'd really left herself open for that one, hadn't she?), she accepted some more food as she listened to Cal with an incredulous look on her face. "I do not need protecting!" She cried indignantly, looking a little offended. "I'm a Summer and a LeGume, I am more than capable of taking care of myself!" It was true, there was no way her father was letting her grow up unable to protect herself against, well, against men like him, and as a Summer the whole 'independent woman' thing was sort of in the blood. "Perhaps there's something you haven't considered, Calpurnia," Genevieve began with a smirk, "perhaps this whole look is an entirely deliberate ruse, and I'm simply lulling everyone around me into a false sense of security, so no one will expect it when I strike and reveal my true colours." She had to swallow a laugh at her own presumption.

Of course, she then destroyed any belief that idea may have held by promptly hiding her face in her hands with embarrassment as Cal continued to make eyes at the boys behind her. She refused to turn around, glaring at Cal unconvincingly, trying to hide the smile that was growing on her face. She had to admit, this was definitely the most entertaining lunch break she'd had, and it did beat the 'Iliad'. She grabbed Cal's hand again as she started waving at the 'hens'.

"Oh my goodness, you are incorrigible." She muttered, reddening in embarrassment as she saw the girls glaring. "You're going to make me more of a social pariah than I already was."

[Cal Karnstein]

Cal gasped and held her hand to her chest as Genevieve kept right on going. "Kitty's got her some claws!" she said, before fanning herself a few times. "Don't worry, I won't let anyone know about your super hidden awesomeness, Kitten," Cal winked. She definitely dug Just Genevieve here, and knew they could definitely be friends in that odd sort of way that happens when two oddballs fell into each other at just the right/wrong moment in time.

Particularly when one of them was incorrigible. "I am so very incorrigible it's outrageous," agreed Cal, grinning. She noted the glared, then looked back at Genevieve. Had she said something about being a Summer and LeGume? Did that make her a peanut that liked to wear bright colors or something? Apparently it made her a Strong Independent Woman, which Cal could certainly respect. The fire was actually kind of appealing.

"Aww, don't worry, Kitten,' said Cal. Without any more warning, she gave Genevieve a peck on the cheek and scooped up her tray of jiggling food. "Since you weren't going to eat this anyway," she said, twisting. She jerked the tray and sent the contents flying toward the hens, who were soon splattered in goop. Cal let out a whoop, shooting up onto her feet, arms raised in the air. "And it's goooood!"

[Genevieve]

She laughed at Cal's reaction, well and truly expelling any pretense at fierceness that she had managed to create. And of all the nicknames she'd ever been given, Kitten was probably the best of a bad lot, so instead of correcting Cal on her name, she just rolled her eyes again.

She was slightly stunned as Cal gave her a quick kiss, meaning it took her a moment too long to realise what Cal was about to do. She watched her pick up the tray, confused for a moment, before a look of sheer horror slowly crossed her face. Cal threw the tray, and Genevieve couldn't move, completely shocked and horrified. She was going to get into so much trouble.

She stayed stock still as Cal stood up and yelled, desperate for the ground to open up and swallow her. "Oh God, oh God..." She muttered, staring at the girls who were now covered in food and looking murderous. "What have you done? I'm so dead..." She shrank into her seat, waiting for the storm to begin.

[Cal Karnstein]

Perhaps that kiss had been purposefully planted to distract Just Genevieve long enough for Cal to pull off her little trick. And by perhaps we mean here of course that's exactly what Cal was doing. She was still pumping her arms into the air while Genevieve mumbled and tried to get invisible.

"Oh yeah, that's a good plan," said Cal, reaching around for another tray someone had left nearby. She was holding it up. "They're not likely to fire back but---" sure enough, another glob of unknown paste nearly splattered Genevieve. Cal managed to intercept it with the tray, holding it solid, which actually took a bit of super-strength.

"C'mon, you gotta admit this is slightly more exciting than the Iliad," said Cal. "Bet there aren't many foodfights in there, now are there?" And that was, indeed, what was happening around them. And even a massive glob of what might have been potato hitting the side of her head hard enough to make her lean wasn't enough to knock the nearly feral grin off Cal's face.

[Genevieve]

Squealing as a lump of who-knows-what came flying towards her, cowering and covering her head with her arms. She looked up cautiously when she didn't feel anything hit her, and looking up saw Cal protecting her with the tray. She almost laughed, but her horror at the situation she now found herself in prevented anything other than a strange squeaking noise escape her throat.

She opened her mouth to reply to Cal and tell her that while this might be more interesting than the Iliad, there were still a huge number of things she'd rather be doing than getting a face-full of gloop - but before she could say any of that Cal received a missile to side of the head, and Genevieve burst into a fit of laughter.

"Ok, now that was definitely better than the Iliad!" She gasped, struggling to catch her breath as she was overcome by uncontrollable laughter.

[Cal Karnstein]

"Glad you think so, Kitten,' replied Cal, smirking. She reached up, slid a great handful of the goop from her face, and all but shoved it into Genevieve's face, laughing lightly as she did. "Gotta make sure to spread the excitement around!" she was nearly giggling herself, already getting ready to roll. More globs of food were flying as people wisely decided to use the food as projectiles, which seemed to work fairly well. Cal could hear more landing all around her.

She actually did shield Genevieve from the worst of it, using her lithe body and moving just a little too quickly with the tray. Sure, some hit Cal, but that didn't seem to bother her, just made her grin look a little more feral in the process. She was loving every moment of this, soaking it in.

[Genevieve]

She was just glad she'd had her mouth closed at that moment. She looked up at Cal in shock and surprise, her face covered in food, and wiped some of it from her face, before reaching up and smearing it across Cal's face with a laugh.

She stood up, hiding slightly behind Cal as food began to fly around them from all angles, still shocked to find herself in this situation. Reaching down, she grabbed a handful of mashed potato that had landed on their table, and stood up, looking around and picking her target carefully. The girls who'd been Cal's first target were still sitting, cowering and squealing as food flew around them, and with an evil grin took aim and threw the potato, letting out a little crow of triumph as her missile landed squarely in one of the girls' faces.

She immediately ducked behind Cal again. "I'm so dead, I'm so dead..."

[Cal Karnstein]

"nice shot!" crowed Cal, shooting an arm up into the air in victory. "Should've called you Eagle Eye or Artemis or something there," her crowing victory probably caught attention, since it seemed that a few people decided that the lanky alt girl would make an excellent target, particularly since she'd recently started things and was all but asking for it.

And Cal didn't mind getting splattered herself. But she knew she'd dragged Just Genevieve along for the ride, and already the girl was practically trembling, though that might have been excitement. Fortunately, they probably weren't counting on a little something:

speed.

Cal's tray all but flew around her as she jerked it, blocking not the shots that hit her: a few splattered, adding splashes of muck to her outfit, but managing to intercept each and every one heading Just Genevieve's way. There was a lull after a bit, and Cal twisted to look at her partner in crime. "You holding up okay there, Arty?" while a glob of something slid from Cal's grinning face.