WELCOME

[EMILY FRANCES NELSON]

a l l t h e w o r l d s a s t a g e
and men and women merely players

- - - - - - - - - -

Let it be said that Emily Nelson was never late. Never. She just arrived according to her own personal clock, which just happened to be at least five minutes after everyone else's. Which is why, dear readers, she tended to get up in the wee hours of the morning to get ready for school. Other teenage girls will tell you that they get up early to do their hair and makeup, or to choose an outfit... with Emily, that was surely not the case. She had her books all on the shelf above her desk ready, a choice of outfits laid out the night before, and she pretty much wore her hair the same way every day.

And yet, still, on this slightly blustery-but-otherwise-okay day, she was late for homeroom. It was the home printer's fault, really. She had forgotten to print off her Literature essay last night, and in her hurry to get out of the door with a slice of toast with jam clenched between her teeth, she had forgotten to print it this morning. Enter panic at the crossroads between Dawson's Road and Station Approach. Emily sped around the roundabout and back towards her house, only to find her father had just left for work. She glanced at her watch, pondering the likelihood of getting away with "I've lost my USB memory stick," for the second time running, and jammed her key into the lock of the front door. She sped upstairs, nearly tripping over the dog in the meantime, and sent the job to print from her laptop. Emily sped downstairs again and flicked the printer to life in her dad's makeshift office in the corner of the living room, and waited.

And waited.

And waited.

After what seemed like years, but was in fact only a number of minutes, her essay came shooting out of the printer. Emily flicked it off and dashed outside to her car, nearly forgetting to lock the door again on her way out. She threw everything onto the passenger seat beside her and reversed out of the drive furiously, before tearing off towards the school. But of course, if there was a God, he was obviously punishing her. The straight road leading passed the mall and to the school, which she could usually speed down like a streak of lightning and silver paintwork, was full of stationary cars, the beeping their horns and furiously swearing at one another. Bloody media crews, Emily thought as she clicked her indicator and turned right, taking the slightly longer but quieter route.

She pulled up in the school car park just as the bell rang. Emily hopped out of the car, straightening her shirt, and grabbed her bag before shoving the essay into it, hoiking it onto her shoulder and climbing the steps with the rest of the tardies. She ran down the hallway to her locker and turned the dial to the correct combination before opening it and stowing her biology and history textbooks next to her hairbrush and hand sanitiser. Emily paused to scribble her name on the top right of the pages of her essay and threw the pen into the back of the locker, probably never to be seen again. She slammed the locker door shut and whirled on the spot, coming face-to-face - or rather, nose-to-chin, with another student. Emily felt her books slide out of her arms and ducked to catch them before they landed on the floor.

"Oops! Sorry."

- - - - - - - - - -

tagged for: nobody ! it's free as a bird !
word counter: five hundred and seventy six !
outfit: cropped jeans and a black vest top with purple shoes and a purple cardigan !
notes: yeahh, its cliche, but shh !
credits: banner made by liciiii, and template from lici. credit is looooove !

[CADENCE CAMERON MACGUIRE]

"Only a few, she said! It'll take ten minutes, she said!"

Caden scowled slightly as she leaned into the trunk of a car. There was a book exchange between the local library and the high school which gave Cadence MacGuire permission to whine, park the car on the curb basically, and mumble about having to do this so early in the morning. The lovely school librarian had given her some rinky-dinky cart to help transport the various shaped and sized books, hard and soft cover alike, between the car and the library itself. Did she offer to help? Of course not. She was busy printing out these fancy little bar-code labels to slap on books, heaven forbid someone stole 'History of European Art and Sculpture in the late 1300's'. Yeah, rot in hell you bandits. You horrible scum doing the world a favor by removing that book from our educational system.

She felt like hell, but worked hard for the money anyway. Today was worse than others, she'd actually had a little bit of trouble remembering where the school, one she graduated from, mind you, was. She couldn't quite grasp the car key and turn the ignition very well, meaning she had to get a wrench from the maintenance closet, using it like a lever to turn the ignition. Of course, she had to go back to pick up more books one of the librarians had found. Heaven forbid they be organized and coordinated. Oh, well. For now, it'd just have to be. Until they found Larry and got her college funds back.

She stacked the cart high with books, pushing it into the school and muttering quietly to herself. She flexed her right hand, the tightness failing to go away as she struggled with the rolling friction and the weight. Damn gravity. Who's bright idea was that? It always got in the damn way! Ugh. For now, she'd have to suffer. She raised her gaze to see if she could spy her long time friend. A sound made her look over her shoulder. Some kid had bumped into Emily or something, Caden noticed her books had hit the ground and the kid hadn't even hesitated to consider helping her. She frowned instantly and strutted her way over, leaving the books and cart on their lonesome.

"Hello, Gorgeous!" she remarked, smiling teasingly as she bent down to pick up a paper. Struggling for a moment on getting a grip on it, eventually planting a foot down and sliding the paper against the side of her foot, arching it up and grasping it on the edge, offering it to Emily once she'd stood straight up again.

[EMILY FRANCES NELSON]

a l l t h e w o r l d s a s t a g e
and men and women merely players

- - - - - - - - - -

Ergh. The youth of today. Now, Emily wasn't exactly the most morally-upstanding young woman you could find in this day and age, but she held a certain degree of respect for her fellows. Enough, at least, to apologise for walking slap-bang into another student. As for the other person? No apology came from the scraggly-haired teen, only a grunt and a deliberate stepping over Emily as she scrambled to catch the loose leaves of her English Literature paper. She huffed, blowing a loose strand of dark hair from in front of her nose, before standing up and straightening her papers. As if this day hadn't begun well enough as it was...

"Hello, gorgeous!"

That one voice only served to put Emily in a better mood. No matter what evil the world had brought upon her so far in the day, hearing Cadence's voice put a smile on her face. At least someone was on her side.

"Hi hi, cherry pie!"

Emily swatted at the bibliography page of her essay as it escaped her grasp once more and fluttered to the floor. Bless Cade for picking it up for her; if Emily were the kind of girl to make a fuss, she'd have to say something right here and now about the fact that her friend was obviously struggling to grab the paper. All the same, albeit a little crumpled, the paper was returned to her possession after not too long a wait. Besides, what kind of friend would Emily be if she drew attention to the tiniest things? Emily knew Cade was proud and a little bit stubborn, but also very determined to rely on nobody but herself. It was little gestures like picking a paper up from the floor that provided that little confidence boost for the day and there was no way, come hell or high water, Emily was ever going to refuse her best friend that.

Emily tucked the paper safely into the back of her ring binder and ensured her locker was closed, before looping her spare arm through Cadence's.

"So, think I can get away with missing homeroom if I finish off your rounds with you? Please say yes... I think Mrs McCrostie would actually die from shock if I were to actually show my face. Come to think of it, I don't think she even knows my name..."

Emily grinned and flicked that rogue tendril of hair from earlier behind her ear. This was definite proof that rushing around like a blue-arsed fly did more harm than good; now she'd have to make a pitstop at the girl's bathroom. After all, they did have Spanish first period, and Emily was struggling with her oral report...

"Anyway, you know me, rude as ever; I haven't even asked how my favourite girl in the whole wide world is yet. Unforgivable! So what's the buzz today, Miss Macguire?"

- - - - - - - - - -

tagged for: cadie-pants !
word counter: four hundred and seventy three !
outfit: cropped jeans and a black vest top with purple shoes and a purple cardigan !
notes: yeahh, its cliche, but shh !
credits: banner made by liciiii, and template from lici. credit is looooove !

[CADENCE CAMERON MACGUIRE]

The swatting at the paper was amusing and granted, she was a bit embarrassed as always by her inability to pick up a paper, but she knew better than to start sputtering about it in front of Emily. She'd probably just get scolded and another paper chucked at her. If there was ever anything she regretted, it was that her Mother started her and her sister at school rather early. She had graduated a year ahead of Emily and now had to idle the hours that Emily was at school away at the library. Oh well, at least she managed to graduate.

Her arm was looped with Emily's and she pulled it against her body, almost locking Emily there as she move towards the cart, tugging her friend with books in tow along to the library. She listened to the request and bobbed her head in a humorous, idle fashion. "Wellllllll...." Cadence announced halting their little escapade to start pushing the heavy cart again, trying to build the momentum once again. "...you could just take the whole day off. We can do this book run and go to lunch and totally like...not do school-crap." She offered, looking over at Emily and smiling.

Okay, she was a little bit of a bad influence, just a tiny little bit. Cadence did skip school when she was there occasionally, but she never did something so bad as to shoot up drugs or get completely wasted. She'd never force anybody to do anything, but would definitely suggest it if she felt the motivation.

"The buzz? uhm. We're getting new benches outside the library." She looked over and cast Emily an unexcited look, looking forward again and placing a foot against the wheel, turning the cart around the corner with one arm. Yeah, she was getting good at this crap."I'm so sorry!" the overly affectionate Cadence proceeded to lean over and slap a big old kiss on Emily's cheek, exclaiming with humorous concern, "Not much. But now I look like an ass. Tell me, love of my life, what's new with you?" she raised her eyebrows, chewing on her lipring slightly as she waited for a response and kept the cart rolling in the general direction of the library. Cadence had always been one for affection, making people uncomfortable was, she admitted, rather amusing to her. Hopefully, Emily had just gotten used to it in the years of boundary-crossing Cadence had done. Ah, gotta love a tight friendship, eh?

[EMILY FRANCES NELSON]

a l l t h e w o r l d s a s t a g e
and men and women merely players

- - - - - - - - - -

You know, it was actually rather boring, having to sit through days and days of classes without your best friend to wile away the hours with you. Most people passed notes between their friends or say giggling at the back of the class, or even a chance to gossip at lunch... Emily and Cadence didn't often get a chance to do that any more. Still, the benefit was that Em had someone to help her out studying if she got stuck. She didn't quite know what she could offer Cadence in return, though.

"Wellllllll....you could just take the whole day off."

GASP. SHOCK HORROR. And miss an hour and a half of trying to look provocative and distract Mister Davis? Emily declared as much to Cadence with a horrified look and a gaping mouth.

"You know I'm not averse to skipping normally, Caye, but it's double Spanish this morning and this shirt is so cute..."

Emily grinned innocently and unlooped her arm just enough from Cade's to strike a pose, lips pouted and all. Honestly, if Cade thought Emily was going to pass up a chance to pout and fawn over the Spanish teacher, she really didn't know her well at all. But even after Double Spanish, they still had quite enough time to sneak out for lunch and not come back for the rest of the day. And what daddy didn't know, couldn't hurt, right?

"The buzz? Uhm. We're getting new benches outside the library."

Emily snorted. Not quite 'the buzz' she had expected, but it would do. She tucked her hair behind her ear and slipped the ringbinders carrying her classwork into the gap between the final book on the cart and its' wall.

"I'm so sorry! Not much. But now I look like an ass. Tell me, love of my love, what's new with you?"

"Hmm. Nothing new here, sweet cheeks. Same crap, different day. Did you know those bloody TV crews have blocked off Dawson's Road? I dunno what's so fascinating about that bloody statue. It's probably just rust or something."

Grumblegrumble. Emily hated this whole fuss the town had kicked up over the bloody (no pun intended) statue and the church. It was a church, things happened. It's not like God was punishing Darkness Falls for its sins. Why not Las Vegas or London? Luckily, both she and Cadence were blessed with the gift of clear sight - neither was falling for the obvious con cooked up by that old coot, Reynolds. She was one scary old woman, and Emily did her very best to avoid her, even before the town became divided.

"So, light of my soul, where were you thinking for lunch?"

- - - - - - - - - -

tagged for: cadie-pants !
word counter: four hundred and thirty nine !
outfit: cropped jeans and a black vest top with purple shoes and a purple cardigan !
notes: yeahh, its cliche, but shh !
credits: banner made by liciiii, and template from lici. credit is looooove !

[CADENCE CAMERON MACGUIRE]

"Oh. My bad!" exclaimed aloud, letting Emily go and offering her a grin. God strike her down for being so ignorant. Of course it was double-block spanish, how in heavens could she forget? She rolled her eyes at Emily, "It's only cute because it shows off your boobs." she grinned to show she was teasing, "Which I'm positive is the goal." She licked her lips and pushed the cart,

"Hmm. Nothing new here, sweet cheeks. Same crap, different day. Did you know those bloody TV crews have blocked off Dawson's Road? I dunno what's so fascinating about that bloody statue. It's probably just rust or something."

Cadence instantly groaned, rolling her eyes and looking away at some kids, nearly running some little, nerdy scuttling freshman whom cut in the way. She called him jerk under her breath and let her finish. "Hell, not Dawson's. I was gonna go home that way." she frowned deeply and clawed a hand through her hair. Eventually pushing her hips against the cart and walking so she could pull her hair up into a pony tail. "Rust? On a stone? Probably more like paint...or a sick bird." She put her hands back on the cart, Pushing it along before stepping on the right wheel, braking it to make it turn and enter the library.

"Well, babe. Wasn't sure. I think I might go grab a burger because I feel like clogging arteries today." she hesitated, "I actually have someone coming to see me after school at the library today, actually, so, I'm going to be eating lunch a bit early."

It occurred to her then they probably looked like a couple, the way they addressed each other with probably every petname in the book. Oh well. Cadence had no shame, perhaps Emily did but, she'd kiss Emily or flash her or change in the same room. She didn't care, she loved the girl to death. Weren't friends suppose to invade each other's personal space anyway? Cadence sure abused that rule. Regardless, she was still a bit nervous at admitting she would have a visitor, Emily would undoubtedly blow it way out of proportion. I mean, it was a boy that was going to be dropping by. Cadence was always a sucker for those over-confident jerks, too.

[EMILY FRANCES NELSON]

a l l t h e w o r l d s a s t a g e
and men and women merely players

- - - - - - - - - -

"It's only cute because it shows off your boobs."

Pfft. Yeah. And wasn't that always the aim with Mister Davis? Not to mention the jeans and shoe combo made her legs look fabulous. If Patrick didn't have to cancel class to take care of some urgent business, Emily was going to make damn sure he knew what he was missing for the rest of the day, and that would just serve him right for scheduling an after-school meeting and a dinner date with the head of languages.

"Which I'm positive is the goal."

"And this is why you're not only my best friend, but why you graduated a year earlier than the rest of us dumbasses."

Emily grinned teasingly at Cadence, before trailing along behind with the cart. She stepped back out of the way of a rapidly-moving freshie and pushed the sleeves of her shirt up to her elbows.

"Rust? On a stone? Probably more like paint... or a sick bird."

Emily wrinkled her nose at the very idea of a bird's regurgitated stomach contents being the reason for their little town's sudden fame. She held the door open for Cade with her hip, before heading into the near-silent room behind her best friend. There was something about this place that made Emily quite nervous. It was probably the fact that it was so quiet; being one who usually made a lot of noise, it was quite offputting to think that all eyes would be on you if you accidentally caught a book with the corner of your bag and knocked it from its shelf.

"So I'm wondering how you came to the conclusion that a bird's barf would be red enough to pass as blood..." she whispered to her friend in idle curiosity.

And then came the shocker. Cade? With after-school plans? GASP. Usually it was Emily doing the ditching for track club or to get ready for a date with Patrick, but this... this was highly unusual indeed. Emily retrieved her folders from the end of Cadence's cart and stood with a hand on her hip.

"Woahwoahwoah, you've got plans? And you weren't going to tell me? I'm so hurt, Caye."

Of course she was joking, and the pout crossing her face was only meant to be a tactic to get Cadence to spill, but every little helped. And on the day that Emily had nothing planned, too! HARRUMPH. Now what was she going to do? Clog her own arteries eating Chinese takeout while waiting for dad to return home from work at god-knows-what hour? That was no fun alone!

"So come on, tell me all the gory details! Who is he, what does he do? Do I get to meet him?"

- - - - - - - - - -

tagged for: cadie-pants !
word counter: four-hundred and fifty three !
outfit: cropped jeans and a black vest top with purple shoes and a purple cardigan !
notes: yeahh, its cliche, but shh !
credits: banner made by liciiii, and template from lici. credit is looooove !

[CADENCE CAMERON MACGUIRE]

"And this is why you're not only my best friend, but why you graduated a year earlier than the rest of us dumbasses."

"Yes! i have studied years and years in the field of Emily Nelson. I have definitely earned my degree." She remarked, nodding her thanks as she bit her lip and tried to push the cart through the doorways to the library. Using the drag method as Emily pondered what could cause a bird to produce red vomit. Cadence shuddered slightly at the thought, looking at her before pushing the cart through the study area to the far storage room. In there would be where she would trade her stacks of books in for a different one. "I dunno. Ate some bad fruit?" She suggested quietly, glancing over her shoulder as she swiped her folders off the cart and set her hands in a, mock, scornful fashion.

"Woahwoahwoah, you've got plans? And you weren't going to tell me? I'm so hurt, Caye."

"I just told you! buttface!' she exclaimed as she walked over, shutting the door to the storage room so they could have a conversation at at least a normal level without disturbing the others. She knew Emily was an outgoing person, meaning she rarely would want to, disregard she never had the time, crash at Cadence's work and get her fired for socializing. She started to slide books off the cart, only a few at a time in order to keep her right wrist from getting over worked. Her jaw dropped and mouth gaped open at Emily's words however.

"So come on, tell me all the gory details! Who is he, what does he do? Do I get to meet him?"

"When did I ever say it was a boy?" She accused, but smiled none-the-less. Although, it didn't really matter much. She wasn't sure if Emily knew or not, although figured she wouldn't care either way, that she was bisexual. Granted, she didn't date really at all, she'd often times lie to people to avoid building a relationship, tell them she was seeing somebody. Cadence would be that one friend that would always have to be set up because they wouldn't put effort in themselves. She wasn't a one-night-stand slut, oh no, it was just wasn't a priority for her. "Don't get your hopes up, the gory details? Are you serious? He's coming to help me move some shelves." It wasn't a big deal, she'd probably have her fun and terrorize him a bit. But nothing would come of it. "Don't get excited."

[EMILY FRANCES NELSON]

a l l t h e w o r l d s a s t a g e
and men and women merely players

- - - - - - - - - -

Yes! I have studied years and years in the field of Emily Nelson. I have definitely earned my degree."

Emily chuckled and fiddled with the pins falling out of the side of her hair. If there was one thing she loved about Cadence Macguire, her best friend, it was that she had the inifite ability to make her laugh. Even when things looked black (and this was starting to sound like some lame-oid, feel-good song) Cadence was there with a smile and an offer of lunch to make Emily feel ten times better. And that was a valuable trait in a friend.

"Well, now, that'd be dandy, if you could get a degree in me. I think I'd pass, too."

Their conversations were so random. Emily wasn't sure how the subject of a degree in her came up, and in hindsight, the conversation about the birds vomiting was just as random. Bad fruit? Emily wasn't even sure what kind of birds they had in Darkness Falls that would eat fruit, full stop. Didn't they all eat worms and bugs and stuff? Emily perched on the edge of the desk behind her, kicking her legs out in front of her. On the one hand, she should, really, go to class, but it was obvious that her friend needed her - or, rather, Emily needed all the gossip on Cadence's date! - and lunch was a much more tempting offer...

"I just told you, buttface!"

Emily gawped.

"No fair, that doesn't count!"

Emily folded her arms across her chest petulantly, a pout crossing her features. She was pretty sure she told Cadence about all her dates, especially when it meant they had to change their lunch plans.

"When did I ever say it was a boy?"

"Pfft. You don't have to say. I just know you. When it's a boy, your face kinda glows; when it'a a girl, you get all grin-y and pink."

Mwahaha. Of course, it wasn't true, and Emily was just assuming that Cadence's date was a boy, but it never hurt to make her friend squirm. Emily pushed her sleeves up her arms and shook her bracelets looser on her list. Soooo... gory details? Yesplease! Even though Emily and Cadence couldn't be described as the generic, popular girly-girl relationship, there were fewer things that Emily could resist than being in the know.

"Don't get your hopes up, the gory details? Are you serious? He's coming to help me move some shelves. Don't get excited."
"That's laaaaame, Caye." Emily frowned. "I could've helped you do that, but if you wanna play the damsel in distress, fine. Loser." She poked her tongue out. "I still expect you to tell me if you jump him, though, kay?"

[/color]

- - - - - - - - - -

tagged for: cadie-pants !
word counter: four-hundred and forty-four !
outfit: cropped jeans and a black vest top with purple shoes and a purple cardigan !
notes: yeahh, its cliche, but shh !
credits: banner made by liciiii, and template from lici. credit is looooove !