[Nell Omix]

"I mean, it wasn't the best idea for sure. I still don't think I could have done it if I had wanted to." Nell said awkwardly, hoping she wasn't overstepping any boundaries. Truthfully she was terrified of being here, she had never had much chance to be alone, advocate for herself, or even learn a lot of the nuances of social skills, initially solely due to her parents being restrictive and then due to that and her changing isolating her from the few people she did know. She was uncomfortable in her skin in more ways than one.

Grabbing her half of the sheets, Nell went and got a music stand and set it up, giving it a quick look-over before getting her  violin and bringing it under her chin. "Yeah it is, means 'Do what you do', I was just talking to myself." With a deep breath Nell rolled her sleeves (which were a bit too long and thus rather in the way) and held her bow at the ready. Nodding to Melody, she started to play. It was very familiar, simple to lose herself in. For these glorious moments it didn't matter that she felt lost, alone, uncertain, it didn't matter what she looked like, what categories she belonged to, or that she felt like she was falling apart every day. The music was all that really mattered right now, she could simply be without worry about what she ought to be.

[Melody Newton]

Eclipse All my childhood heroes have fallen off or died + Nell Omix

Melody wishes she could be lost in the music in the way Nell clearly is. Not that she has time to wish that. When she'd said it had been a long time since she'd played, she hadn't been lying. It was one of the reasons she'd picked this piece of music. It had been one of the few she'd had in the house, and as a result she'd known it back to front, her mothers notes included. Or rather, in particular. Even so, she hasn't played it in nearly two years, and it takes everything she has to keep up with the older girl. Not that she's managing to do so very well. The moments she stumbles are not overly frequent, but they are there, and they almost make her flinch every time they happen. She tries her best to recover from each mistake, speeding up, jumping sections if she falls behind. The music stops, Melody lifts her fingers from the keys, her face reddening as she clenches her hands into fists. Her voice is harsh as she snaps. "You went too fast, can't you see the tempo on there. Maybe I should get out a metronome for you." She pushes away from the piano. Maybe this was just a mistake, she never should have come to this stupid lesson. At least the teacher hadn't been here to see the mistakes she'd made.

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[Nell Omix]

Of course it couldn't last. Nell didn't actually think this, but she probably would have if she hadn't panicked so completely upon at (least in her own mind) failing utterly at the one thing she knew she was good at. She hastily put down her violin and started backing away from it and from Melody.

"I'm sorry" she said hoarsely "I'm sorry... I'm sorry" she kept saying it, the spaces between apologies gradually increasing as she collapsed, hands covering her face. A voice in her head that sounded suspiciously like her mother was chiding Nell for being so emotional, so fragile, but she couldn't help it. Bark, this time interlaced with thin vines and large thorns, sped up her arms and neck, covering her skin completely, her eyes becoming perfectly smooth patches, still moving independently. Nell stayed like this for a minute before taking a deep, shaky breath and saying in a voice that was slightly off-pitch but otherwise the same as her normal voice had been "I'm really sorry Melody. I should've gone slower, I just got caught up in it. From what I heard of it... you're a very good piano player, but I should have accounted for you being out of practice" Nell got up, bark creeping down her face enough to reveal her reddened eyes, and slowly she retracted the thorns across her skin, in her panic she had accidently put tiny holes all over her sleeves.

[Melody Newton]

Eclipse All my childhood heroes have fallen off or died + Nell Omix

Melody isn't surprised that Nell starts backing away, she is used to being a big fish. What surprises her is what happens next. The girl's skin changes, not a slow and gradual adjustment, but a rapid one, like watching a nature video at ten times speed. Vines creep along her skin as if they are taking the place of veins, while thorns begin to protrude from her arms and neck. To Melody's shock she can see the tips of thorns beginning to penetrate the fabric of Nell's clothes. "Fuck." Melody sits back down on the piano stool, hard. Raising her hands in a placating gesture, Melody tries not to stare too hard at the bark now covering the other girl's skin, or replacing it? She can't tell. "Just calm down alright." It's a little hypocritical as only a moment ago Melody had been the one losing her temper. She's still angry, and the flush in her cheeks shows that, though for once she doesn't feel ashamed at the shift she can feel in her eyes as one fades from amber into silver, the shape of her iris contorting subtly, but unnaturally. Melody looks away for a moment and back at the piano. "Maybe we can just go a bit slower next time." Her tone is gruff as she stares determinedly at the ivory keys of the piano, it's clear that is about all of the apology she's willing, or able to issue. Turning back, the flush begins to fade from her cheeks and neck and her silver iris drinks in the light as she casts a frank gaze over Nell. She's no stranger to being ashamed of how her power makes her look, but it's clearly much worse for the older girl. "You can never meet my Dad..."

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[Nell Omix]

Nell went to her Violin, removing it from the spot she had put it, checking she hadn't damaged it in her haste to escape the situation. She smoothed down her now quite ratty looking sweater, bark receding until it was back to it's usual amount- no more than slowly shifting wispy patches compared to earlier. The feeling of heat in the room had seemed to fade a little and it released a little of the tension she had felt since first entering the room. "Alright, I'm calmed I think" she said smiling nervously, letting out a long breath as she did.

Nodding at the comment about going slower next time, Nell inadvertently caught Melody's gaze for a moment before breaking eye contact. Hadn't her eyes both been the same color before? It wouldn't be the first time she'd failed to notice something about a person by being nervous of directly looking at them if she had missed it. Nell's throat caught for a moment when Melody mentioned her dad. It was something she could understand, there's absolutely no way she'd want anybody from this school meeting her own father. She didn't consciously recognize it, and would have denied it if asked but some part of her knew, Abraham Omix could barely stand to be around his own daughter for being so different than him, even before becoming metahuman but certainly multiplied by it. It would be absurd to imagine he'd be anything other than even less cordial to other metahumans. "I get that, it... really would be a bad idea for you to meet mine either" she said solemnly

[Melody Newton]

Eclipse All my childhood heroes have fallen off or died + Nell Omix

Completely oblivious to the truth behind Nell's father issues, Melody smiles, "What is it with Dads and being dicks?" "Although I guess neither of us would be here if we had loving and supportive parents." Her attitude softens, clearly sensing some kinship in the nervous girl, however mistaken that may be. Deliberately pulling her eyes away from the fading bark across Nell's skin and up to her eyes. "You got that back under control pretty quick. I wish I was that good at not losing my shit." It might not be the only reason she was here, but her short fuse has definitely landed her in some situations that got her close to it. The having super powers as well as anger-management issues really didn't help either, those problems tended to be a lot bigger than the problems the average kid might cause if they lost their temper. Turning, she reaches out and collects some of the paper folders she has dropped on top of the piano. There are several different composers featured there, and she finds one that might be a little less challenging than the initial piece of music she'd picked. She doesn't know it as well, but it is at least slower so would give her more time to think. "Want to... Want to try again?"

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