Morning beachcombing [OPEN POST]

[too_late4tom]

After a strange incident with his pet turtle in the wee hours of the morning, Tom tried to get back to sleep. After staring restlessly at the ceiling for a couple of hours, he decided to get an early start on his day instead

Comments

[iamsthenyaer]

Well, apparently it's the day for people out to walk around early. A girl with brown hair and a pretty, but relaxed blue dress is sipping on coffee and absentmindedly walking along the surf. When Tom (or the girl) get closer to each other, they'll both recognize each other.

"Oh, hey, Tom," Mel says. She gives him a wave and a grin, trotting over to him. "Haven't seen you in a while. How're you doing?"

[too_late4tom]

Tom blinks as Melinda approaches, initially mistaking her for Irma. "Oh... hey, Melinda." It's kind of strange seeing a familiar face on a relative stranger, especially one that smiles so easily. "I'm all right. Up a little earlier than I'd like. What brings you to Shell Beach?"

[iamsthenyaer]

Mel could be Irma's twin, albiet one that spends more time in the sun. Mel's a bit brown from the Greek weather and smells like the sea and fresh air, maybe a little floral. "I get up early, and I had some free time today, so I figured that I'd come visit Sarah and Schreber. I didn't realize it was quite so early, so I decided to go for a walk on the beach before I inflicted myself on them." Mel figures that Tom started to glower at Schreber after he hadn't proposed for a while, but she'll make sure he did before she thanks him for getting Schreber to muster up the courage.

[too_late4tom]

It helps that Mel's hair is dark, too. But really, it's her body language that really sets her apart from Irma. Still, it takes him a little while to look her comfortably in her eyes. "Yeah, it's a little early to visit those two. Sarah might be up, but if you catch her before she's had her coffee, she's not that nice." He grins a little to show he's joking. Mostly.

[iamsthenyaer]

Mel can figure why he's a little uncomfortable with her - Sarah's mentioned him and her alternate hanging out. She has no problem with it at all, and hopes Tom knows that. "I've seen Sarah mad before, but never uncaffienated. It's not something I want to experience." She takes a sip of her own coffee.

[too_late4tom]

It's also the fact that Melinda and Irma are alternates, period. He still rarely sets foot in the Nexus, and the idea of alternates is a strange one. "I don't know how she deals with all that tea," he says, half to himself. "But she's been in a good mood lately. The Doc's a little swamped with taxes."

[iamsthenyaer]

"Tea's okay, but I'm not that big on it. I'm glad she's been in a good mood. She deserves it." Mel makes a noise at the mention of taxes. "Great. Well, you know what they say about the only two constants." She rubs her chin a little. "He's taking breaks, though, right? He gets obsessed with work."

[too_late4tom]

"Neither am I," Tom replies, gesturing with his cup of coffee. He wonders if Melinda is as into coffee as Irma is, then feels a little guilty for comparing the two. He chuckles a little at her comment. "Well... most of the time they're constants, but yeah. Not a very exciting thing to be working on. Doc and Rat are bright, but they might be better off with an accountant."

Tom shrugs. "That's a better question for Sarah. I know he usually stops working for a little when I drop by, to be polite. I'm pretty sure he's still thinking about work, even when he's not actually looking at it."

[iamsthenyaer]

Mel loves coffee, but she's not addicted in the way Irma is. "Yeah. Most of the time." Mel has experience with this. It sucked. "I've never been really good at math, so if I offered to help, it'd be a bad idea."

She nods. "Like with Murdoch, kinda. They both deserve a vacation, but... Well." Mel scratches her arm a little. "How've you been? Sarah told me you were a reporter."

[too_late4tom]

Tom has had experience with this, too. "I'm not much of a math wizard, either."

He nods, understanding what's been unspoken. The city would stop if John and Schreber left it too long. He smiles modestly and rubs the back of his head. "She did, huh? I work for the paper, but I wouldn't call myself a reporter yet. Still working my way up."

[iamsthenyaer]

"Yup. She's told me a couple of things about her little brother," Mel teases. "You have to start somewhere, I guess. What kinda things do you do?" Mel takes a sip of coffee, looking curiously at him.

[too_late4tom]

Tom grins at that, a little embarrassed. "Nothing bad, I hope?" Considering how close he is to his sister, he's only joking. "I run around town, check facts, help copyedit. Sometimes I do follow-up interviews. When my writing's up to snuff, they'll probably let me create some text." He takes a sip of his coffee and adds, "There's no journalism school here. You'd probably say we're doing things the old-fashioned way."

[iamsthenyaer]

"Naaah, nothing bad. I only have a couple of good blackmail stories." Mel grins, teasing back. "Is it an interesting job? Do you like doing it?" Mel asks, curious.

At his last sentences, Mel nods a little. "They're working on it. I think my mentor can help a little, maybe. She's, well, had a lot of experience with teaching."

[too_late4tom]

Tom hmmphs. "She's lucky I'm a good brother or I'd tell you a few blackmail stories of my own." He wouldn't really. Maybe.

"People tend to fill in what they need here. There's more education, at least." He looks at Melinda curiously. He doesn't know much about her except that she lives on an island and has superpowers. "What is she a mentor of?"

[iamsthenyaer]

Mel gets an evil grin. "Oh really? I figure she's got enough on me..." She chuckles and takes a sip of coffee.

She nods. "Yeah." Then she considers. "Well... of a lot of things. She taught me a lot about fighting and strategy, and now just rather a lot. She's... very old. She's an immortal, and a priestess of Athena. We met in the Nexus."

[too_late4tom]

"Probably. Don't let her goody-two-shoes routine fool you."

Bleah, Nexus. He sips his coffee and tries to keep a neutral expression on his face. "I guess the Nexus is good for some things, then... Athena, as in the Greek goddess of wisdom?"