Claire had gone to bed early. She hadn't slept well the night before, and she wasn't sleeping well now. Actually, she wasn't sleeping at all. Annoyed and frustrated, she got up and got dressed. Ripped jeans and a peasant blouse, some sandals and she was set. Problem was, she wasn't sure what she was set for. She was craving fish, and bad. For days now, she'd been craving fish, and didn't have a clue as to why, but it was keeping her awake now. 

Sushi would be preferred, but right now, even a McDonald's fish sandwich would be better than nothing. She marched down the hall, intent on heading straight out the door - at 10 o'clock at night. Maybe not the best plan. Salem Center wasn't that far away, but she still wasn't supposed to go out alone. No one was supposed to, though she knew a lot of students still did. Still, not following the rules bugged her. 

Claire began to wander the halls, in search of someone willing to go on a fishing expedition, on a Wednesday night... She was just sure that the students were going to think the ditsy redhead was losing it this time, but if she didn't get some fish, she was surely going to die. Okay, maybe not Die, but she wasn't going to sleep well, that was for sure!

Amber rarely slept at night, which wasn't to say that she rarely slept.  If anything, she likely slept more and better than many.  Sunlight, however, had always been dangerous for her to be around, at least while in human form.  The sun burned her sensitive skin and when she did go outside during the daylight hours it was only while covered head to tow with fabric and only for short periods of time.  Well, either that or go out as a dinosaur which, while lacking any of her human weaknesses, had it's own problems.  Problems mainly involving terrifying innocent by-standards who weren't exactly used to having zombie dinosaurs running around.  As a result, the night was her time.

It wasn't too late when she wandered out of her own room in search of something to do, early enough that there were still a handful of students wandering the halls.  It might have been too late to do anything interesting.  Somewhat claustrophobic and more than a little socially awkward, she'd been trying to work on her anti-social tendencies.  She'd all ready done the whole living as a hermit dinosaur in the woods thing.  Twice.  In the short term it may have had it's perks, but long term it just didn't work.  At all.  Crushing loneliness had compelled her back into civilization and, for all that she was back among other mutants, loneliness was something she still struggled with.  Go make some friends, Ghost might have said, but how exactly did one go about doing so?  That was a very good question.

Turning a corner, she came across a young red head who seemed to be on a mission.  She smiled, fearing it probably came across more as creepy than welcoming.  "Hi.  You seem busy at this late time of night."  Awkward.  Painfully awkward.  Maybe she should just run back into the woods and continue hermiting after all.  

"Do you like sushi?" Claire blurted out urgently, her ice-blue eyes intent on her subject. She'd also stepped what was probably a little too close for comfort unless one grew up in a culture that stood real close to talk.Wait, subject?? What was she thinking?! Claire's expressive face looked quite embarrassed and she took half a step back. She was quite convinced that she must be losing her mind now. But there was still sushi to be found, and eaten! She shook her head a little to clear it and refocus her thoughts before she scared this poor girl off. 

"Sorry... let me try that again. I'm Claire, I don't think we've really been introduced. I wanted to see if I could find someone to go get sushi with" she explained with the staccato pace of a machine gun. That explanation alone probably would have sufficed, but she continued to rattle on, obviously a little obsessed with this quest. "Grilled salmon would be okay too. Heck, I'd even settle for a fish burger, but not if I can get something fresher. My treat!" she concluded. Claire was very perky; infectiously so. Of course, she was proposing a late-night snack out, not skydiving in bikinis or something. Not that she'd be caught dead in most bikinis. Not her style. Besides, why would Anyone jump out of a perfectly good airplane, much less in a bikini? For some reason, this train of though bothered her, but she then began to wonder how one would dip their sushi in soy and wasabi if they were falling towards the ground, wearing a parachute and a bikini? Time to figure that out another day she finally decided, and shaking her head a little, pressed on. 

"See, we're not really supposed to be out alone at night, right, and that whole speech we got about the buddy system, or maybe that was just me? I dunno, that was right after I got arrested by those dratted robots because they thought I was a leopard" she said with a hair flip and eye roll that proceeded on into a full body roll for added emphasis, "Or a panther. They couldn't really make up their stupid electronic minds. Anyways.... would you like to go?!?" Some of Claire's sentences spewed out for so long that one almost wanted to take a breath on her behalf. That or tell her to breath, if you could just get her to pause for a moment. 

"Sushi?" she asked, a little taken aback by the blunt question.  It took only a moment to collect her thoughts.  "I do."  Sushi was good, sushi was a food she could always eat without having to worry about getting sick because of nasty preservatives and artificial chemicals.  Sometimes it could be a challenge to find things that were safe for consumption.

The other girl continued, suggesting that she was looking for a sushi partner.  Or salmon.  Or something equally fish related.  "Oh, I don't think I've ever been invited out for dinner before."  Because she was a socially awkward, sometimes morose undead dinosaur girl.  People such as her didn't get invited out at all, really.  At least, not for social reasons and not outside Mansion grounds.  Well, except maybe her sister Aura but she didn't really count since her sister was even more socially awkward than she was.  However, the liked the thought of being invited out and even better when the 'my treat' was added to the end since she didn't really have any money to speak of.  Everything she owned was either provided by those who ran the Mansion and much of her food she hunted for herself.  "I would love to go out and find some sushi with you although I don't know where we'd go at this time of night."

"We're not supposed to go out alone at night?"  Well, that was new.  Of course, she was technically and adult so that rule probably didn't technically apply to her but she couldn't remember ever being aware of the rule back when she had been a teenager.  Maybe the rules had changed?  Or, more likely, maybe she'd just decided she didn't like that rule and conveniently forgotten it.  "We're not supposed to kill people either," she offered helpfully; that was a rule she definitely did remember.  "I'm Amber.  Nice to meet you.  Those robots are terrible"

Claire quirked a freckled smile; this girl was definitely messing with her she decided. "True, killing people is generally considered socially unacceptable. As for going out at night alone? Well, that's what they told me at least, but, hey, that was right after my run-in with the cop-bots" she said, starting to walk as she talked. "So, maybe it was more of a guideline? I'm not sure, I guess I'd have to get back to you on that." 

"You're right about the time though... And..." she said, typing on her phone to see what was nearby, "there's not a sushi place anywhere close. Darn it! There is a restaurant though - Auger Inn." Claire gave a little 'why not?' shrug, and said "let's give them a try. Says 'free peanuts' but that's all. They're easy walking distance though, so that's good!"

"I've got my purse, you need anything before we go?" Claire asked, her frenzied state seeming to have calmed a bit with food on the horizon. "It's warm enough we shouldn't need jackets or anything." 

Amber offered a smile in return.  Yes, she had a bit of a morbid sense of humour probably due, in large part, to the fact that she was basically a walking corpse.  Had to get by in the world somehow, right?  Maybe that also explained why she didn't really have much in the way of friends.  Was that something she should be working to improve?  Maybe.  "Guideline then", she agreed.  "Strong guideline maybe?  I don't know but I guess it doesn't matter if we're going together."  

Phones were such useful tools, she thought as Claire sought to see what was nearby and open.  Unfortunately, given that belongings didn't' shift with her they were more than a little impracticable for her to own.  The moment she changed, if someone came across her little pile or robes, her phone would be gone.  Clothing could be replaced much more easily.  "Peanuts are good although hopefully there are more than just peanuts." She offered a small laugh.  

"I've pretty much got everything I need.  I'm a shapeshifter so I travel light."  It was night so she didn't have to worry about covering herself from head to tow which was nice.  Probably no need to mention that jackets were rarely something she needed as the cold affected her far less than most people.  "So, lead the way."