Agnes sniffled. She actually sniffled. She didn’t want to feel this exposed and this raw over her emotions, especially after everything that had happened with her parents a few weeks back. But she could not help it. She had been managing everything very well so far, but today, today was one of those particular days where she simply could not stand to look at herself in the mirror anymore. The sun shone too bright, the birds sang too loud, and worst of all, she did not want to hear any type of music, which definitely was not like her. But today she was emotionally raw and everything hurt.

It had been weeks since she broke things off with Rhythm. It was one of the hardest experiences she had ever had, and this is coming from a girl who had been exorcized. Even now, she really could not recall everything that had happened. All she could remember was this feeling like her heart wanted to explode and the look on Rhythm’s face…god that look was seared into her memory forever.

Even now, Agnes asked herself why, why did she do it? But the answer was always the same. It was something she did not want to think about, reasons that she would forever hold to herself. But now, for right now, she needed to cry them out.

She sniffled again as tears began to well up in her eyes. She didn’t like this feeling at all, especially because it was something she had never experienced before. Too many times she had people throw her out of their lives, but she had never forcefully had to reject someone that she had once cared so deeply for. Even her parents had not been in that category. But now that Rhythm was gone, it felt as if she very heart itself had been branded.

It burned…

It hurt…

And she couldn’t make it stop…

Standing on the roof of the mansion, Agnes sniffled as she held up a picture that had both herself and the fiery redhead in it. It was one of the last photos that she had of her. She wanted to keep it, she really did, but she needed this pain to stop, and this was her last option. So, with teary, red eyes, the blue-eyed runaway, with teary cheeks, held the photo loosely in her shaky, pale fingers, and proceeded to rip it right down the middle. The sound alone caused her to clench her teeth and made more tears roll down her cheeks.

Rippp, Riiiiip, Riiiiiiiip!!

She ripped the photo into so many pieces that Agnes really could not hold the fragments in her shaky hands anymore. Gripping it tight, she let tiny pieces drift away in the coming breeze. She shivered slightly, even though she wore a deep purple turtleneck sweater and her faded blue jeans, but it was mainly because the cold was not coming from outside. Her heart…her heart was very cold right now…

Gina didn't know how to handle break-ups. It was as simple as that.

She'd never been in a relationship, even at the ripe old age of fifteen years old-- it didn't help that she had three foster brothers, either. Yeah, those kind of put a damper on dating life, even on the opposite end of the United States. Each of them always insisted on giving potential boys the third-degree, making sure that said boy was worthy of their sister's affection, wouldn't do her wrong, and the likes. Perhaps it was for the better-- that having a trio of overprotective brothers meant keeping away unnecessary turmoil. But, come on! She was a teenage girl, even if she was a mutant girl, wasn't she entitled to having at least a smidgen of fun?

It didn't take a genius to put two and two together. Rhythm had stopped coming around, Agnes had been mopey for a good week, but Gina's sister had been holding it all in rather well, much in the fashion that was typical of Agnes to do. Gina had of course kept an eye on her, but didn't approach Agnes on the subject. Perhaps she'd work through it on her own, if this was what Gina believed it to be. She had tentatively followed her sister to the roof-- of course she wouldn't go to the room, she wanted to get away, some alone time, but Gina was incapable of leaving people be.

So, she followed-- hung back, quietly trailed her until Agnes went up the only stairwell that led to the roof. Giving Agnes as much distance as Gina was capable of giving someone, Gina took the opportunity to go to the dormitory and retrieve some mandatory goods, tucking them into a bag. Then, having retrieved some sweet necessities, Gina steeled her nerves and began the trek upstairs. She didn't know what would ensue-- tears, anger, or other such things that came with hormones rampant-- because, even if Agnes hadn't told Gina what was really up, whatever it was, she was really beating herself up about it.

She reached the doorway that opened up onto the rooftop. Many late, Friday night flights had left her with the capacity to open the door silently, and Gina did so more out of habit than much else, poking her head out the door to survey her surroundings. Agnes was still up there, peering at something in her hand. Her back was to Gina, so she couldn't tell what it was. Gina's older sister sniffled back some tears, and the sound of tearing met Ginas' ears.

Even Gina winced a little. Whatever it was, it must have been tabboo, now. She watched as Agnes ritualistically tore the paper into thin shreds, before setting them free upon a breeze. Poetic, Gina thought, a faint sigh escaping her lips as she inclined her head. Gina wasn't dressed for the weather, which was cool yet not cold. She wore short jean shorts, stylistically worn and torn, and a loose, comfortable t-shirt that was covered in an artsy, bohemian print. She also toted a bag, which wielded Gina's secret weapon.

"Ouch," Gina said simply, gaze trailing after the torn paper as she finally announced her presence. She slipped out of her hiding place in the doorway, tilting her head at Agnes inquiringly. She smiled in mild concern, and her voice bore a note that paralleled her expression, "Agnes, what are you doing up on the roof? It's not safe up here." Agnes could slip, fall, and break something. Gina took the maternal approach, sticking her thumbs in her pockets. They both knew that she wasn't up there to chastise Agnes about being on the roof.

Agnes stood there on the roof, trying so hard to contain her tears. Everything was sore and everything hurt. Just breathing seemed to make her so tired. She was actually surprised that she was still up here, standing in the cool air. It irritated her skin and took her back to that night, which seemed like eons ago, when she first ventured into that establishment called “The Closet”. She could still feel that nervousness, that whipping of the cool air as Rhythm drove her back to the mansion, and finally the sensation of pushing her lips against hers. It made Agnes nostalgic…and then immediately saddened and angry.

The picture was gone, scattered to the wind and Agnes immediately felt like that pull, like pieces of her were wrapped up with each of those shards of a life that she both wanted to forget and remember forever. This feeling was so alien to her. So strange and confusing that she really did not know how to deal with it anymore.

She wanted to scream…but she hadn’t the voice.

Then, as Agnes stepped a little closer to the edge of the roof (simply to look down, not to jump), she felt the presence of someone nearby. This high up, on the mansion’s roof and in the cool air…it could be only one person. But Agnes did not turn around to face her. Oh, part of her wanted to be mad, angry that her private time was being intruded on, but there was one thing that Agnes could never do…and that was staying angry at Gina…her gargoyle little sister.

Instead the runaway continued to let tears roll down her pale cheeks as she sniffled again and stared out across the spacious lawns of the mansion. She knew she could not ignore the presence of Gina for long and, apparently, Gina was not going to allow that to happen either…

>> "Ouch…Agnes, what are you doing up on the roof? It's not safe up here."[/color]

She stiffened briefly at the voice and try as she might not to break down, Agnes only wanted to collapse and cry more. But she kept her knees strong…the the wind carry away Gina’s question for a few moments before she finally just hung her head a bit. Raising her other hand, she brushed her shaky fingers across her wet cheeks as she forced herself to keep more tears from falling.

Rubbing her sore eyes, she finally turned her attention onto Gina.

The second she saw her little sister’s caring face, Agnes lost all the composure that she had left. Shoulders shaking, eyes watery again, the runaway lowered the sleeves of her sweater over her hands and wiped her eyes before she hugged herself, tucking her hands at her sides.

She knew why Gina was her. If there was one thing about Gina, it was the fact that on top of being a sweetened ray of sunshine, she was also perceptive. So there was no need to hide what had happened anymore…

“I…I b-broke…up with her,” she whispered in a husky, raw voice. “S-She’s gone…and it’s my fault…”

Agnes's shoulders tightened when Gina spoke, and for a moment, there was a pang of guilt. Maybe she shouldn't have come up here, but-- she couldn't just leave her up here to wallow in sorrow. Agnes moved, mopped beneath her eyes with her sleeves, dipping her head low. Yup, she was crying. Agnes turned to face Gina, still pink in the eyes from crying...

And then she lost it-- enter Gina, stage right. Agnes was a wreck-- she held herself shakily, a bony hand hiding her face as she cried. Gina took the opportunity to draw closer, her chest tightening sympathetically. Had Gina not drawn closer, Agnes's voice would have been caught in the breeze, but as it was, Gina was closer now, so she could hear Agnes just fine.

>> “I…I b-broke…up with her. S-She’s gone…and it’s my fault…”

Gina frowned, pausing just in front of her sister, her thumbs still pocketted.

"You broke up with Rhythm?" she attempted to clarify, her brow stitching. Gina had never grown accustomed to her. Sure, she was polite-- pleasant, even-- but Rhythm was simply a taste that she'd never acquired. However, Gina didn't once voice her opinions of her, didn't open her mouth even once, because Rhythm had made Agnes happy. At least, that's what Gina thought. And, in Gina's mind, her sister's happiness was worth Gina's own, mild discomfort over the relationship.

"She didn't hurt you, did she?" Gina tried in a low tone, her voice tightening protectively. This was Gina's primary concern-- she hoped that the break-up wasn't messy, of course, and hoped that, either before it or amidst it, Rhythm hadn't done anything to hurt her. That was the last thing Agnes needed right now. It might have been her uneasiness about Rhythm that might have caused Gina to ask this, or it could have just been typical concern.

Gina held back the hug, for a moment. She'd already intruded on Agnes's reverie, so she might not have wanted to be hugged at the moment. It was hard not to hug her, but Gina didn't want to suffocate her-- she couldn't keep her distance, but she'd try not hugging her until Agnes initiated it.

Agnes sighed as she stood there, before the young gargoyle, and continued to hug herself. Her mind raced with what she had just told Gina. She never wanted to actually tell her, she would have rather that she handled this by herself and attempted to show that she was not bothered in the least by it. But she knew she could not get away with it for long. As much as the young runaway wanted to handle this on her own, she could only feel this over whelming need to hug her little sister, to feel that someone out there did not think of her as some malevolent being. Over and over again she had heard from her parents that she was evil incarnate but this was first time she actually felt like it.

Sniffling again, the red-eyed teen took one shuttering breath before she turned to look at her little sister again. Gina stood there, looking as compassionate as ever, yet she seemed like she didn’t want to intrude. Agnes new she was just bursting to give her a hug but she was holding back. She hiccupped as she wiped her eyes and there was the dull sound of buzzing coming from her chest again.

Her swarm was irritated and anxious. They knew something was wrong but she held them back since there really was no target for them to attack.

It seemed like an eternity before Gina finally spoke up…

>> "You broke up with Rhythm? She didn't hurt you, did she?"

Just the sound of her name made Agnes well up with tears again. But she was refusing to breakdown and cry any more. Not only was she tired, but she doubted that she had enough moisture in her eyes to keep on crying. It already felt like sandpaper every time she so much as blinked.

She took another calming breath before she turned glanced at Gina again and then turned back out to face the world before her. Her head shook “no” in response to the gargoyle’s second question.

“N-No, I just…I just figured some things out. Saw…some things…that maybe I shouldn’t have seen,” she muttered.

She still remembered when one of her classmates had shown her the video on ViewTube. That damn leaked surveillance video of a busty wanted criminal and a very familiar redheaded musician attacking a police station and kissing each other mere days before Rhythm actually came to proclaim her love for her. Agnes had no idea about it and she would have continued on blissfully if it was not for that video. But in that moment, Agnes realized that the quiet life she wanted after the ordeal with her parents would never happen with Rhythm.

“So…I broke up with her,” she mused again before casting a sidelong glance at Gina. “I broke her heart…and I broke mine at the same time…”

Agnes had the bloodshot eyes of someone who'd been crying for a while, her eyes only welling-up more when Gina had said the Name. Man, this was worse than she thought.

>> “N-No, I just…I just figured some things out. Saw…some things…that maybe I shouldn’t have seen... So…I broke up with her... I broke her heart…and I broke mine at the same time…”

A touch of sympathy tinged Gina's gut, but this was overridden by her constantly-burning sisterly protectiveness. As implied before, she hadn't ever been to keen on Rhythm, alway wary of her, didn't think very highly of her. But... everything that Agnes was saying... it souunded like what she'd done had been neccesary. "Figured some things out?" and "Seeing thing that she shouldn't have seen?" Yeah. That sounded sketchy-- like Rhythm had done something she shouldn't have, which had made Agnes break up with her-- which made Gina feel all the more protective.

Not as though Gina thought that she could take the other girl in a fight, though-- after all, Rhythm stood well over her in height, and she was pretty ripped. But Gina could give her a good verbal lashing that'd make her wish she'd never messed with Agnes. Gina rubbed her neck, as if to quell the protective instincts that surged within her. She was getting too worked up over what she'd hoped was nothing-- over what Agnes was playing off as being nothing, even though she was an absolute mess over the break-up.

"I'm sorry, Agnes," Gina said simply, giving her own heavy sigh. She was at a bit of a loss for words. Now wasn't obviously the best opportunity to voice distastes, yet she couldn't bring herself to treat the loss of Rhythm as some great loss. Yet again, she was compelled-- by her own nature-- to be some degree of sympathetic, in her sisters' difficult times, because no matter what, break-ups weren't an easy thing.

"I'm really sorry that it had to work out like that," Gina reiterated faintly. She'd never been there or done that, so to say that she knew what Agnes was going through would be a lie. The closest she'd ever come to this was when her next-eldest foster brother broke up with one of his many girlfriends in the past. But, she'd never had that sort of emotional involvement with someone. Thus, dealing with such a touchy subject was unfamiliar and uncomfortable for her, which probably showed in her lack of things to say.

What could she say? Remember the good times, forget the bad, and move on with life? Ideally, that was the message she wanted to get across, but to say that almost seemed heartless. Press on to get more details? Yet another, insensetive gesture, seeing as Agnes had a fondness of bottling these things in, however unhealthy it might have been

"Just don't-- don't bottle all of this in," Gina pleaded, seeming to skip to an entirely different subject, "You've got enough bothering you as it is without beating yourself up about this, too, Agnes." Break-up, psychotic parents finally being arrested, and all the other crap she'd been facing in of late-- it was more than any one teenager deserved to have to deal with in their young lives. Gina didn't need to list exactly what she'd meant by what had been bothering her sister. Agnes probably knew what she meant.

Gina quirked a subdued smile. It was easier said than done, but that was Gina's one request. Don't keep it in, don't beat yourself up about it.

The runaway sighed as she fought off another sniffle. She was more than a little irritated with herself that she was still feeling this upset. After all, it was not as if she had been dating Rhythm for more than a month or so, but still, the idea that she practically gave herself over to her so completely, only to have her gone now…hurt. It hurt to know that Rhythm was out there, the first person she ever developed real affections for, the first person whom she ever got so intimate with, and she was not with her anymore. But as much as it hurt to not have the fiery headed musician by her side, it hurt more than she thought back to that stupid ViewTube video.

She had not told Gina about that movie, and more than likely the young gargoyle had not heard about it yet or she would have been sure to tell her. At least she hoped that she would have.

>> "I'm sorry, Agnes…I'm really sorry that it had to work out like that.”

Her eyes grew watery once more and Agnes sniffled again, giving off a shuttering sigh. Her soft, pink tongue moistened her dry lips briefly before she turned her attention onto her pretty and younger sister. She knew that despite her mutation, Gina was a real heartbreaker. With a golden smile like that, how could she not? But she hoped that whenever Gina did finally meet someone, she was sure that they were the person that she wanted to be with. And that there were no skeletons in their closet.

“It’s…okay…” she said in a small and meek voice. “It wasn’t your fault.”

She still blamed herself. She was the one that broke up with Rhythm so suddenly. She…knew that deep down she did not give the quiet redhead ample time to reply to the accusations. But it would have been hard to defend. That video…

>> "Just don't-- don't bottle all of this in…You've got enough bothering you as it is without beating yourself up about this, too, Agnes."

Gina was practically pleading with her. Agnes could only smile a little inwardly. She could always count on Gina to be the most compassionate person she could ever come across. No matter what, she knew that her younger sister was always out to keep her safe and to protect her. She proved that amply that day when her parents showed up. The young gargoyle was so protective and ferocious that Agnes could scarcely recognize her. And she was demonstrating that same type of protectiveness today.

Her arms hugging herself close, she rubbed the palms of her hands against the sleeves of her sweater, as if she were busy attempting to comfort herself. In reality she was. Ever since she broke things off with Rhythm she had been trying to feel better about her decision. Trying to tell herself that she was right, that it was the way that things had to be. But one glance at Gina and she knew that she was failing. The gargoyle was right…she did tend to bottle things up.

Not anymore though. There was no more room in her heart for bottling…

“I…I know,” she muttered silently. “But…I…I really liked her. And then…then that stupid ViewTube video came up,” She searched Gina’s face for any recollection as to what she was talking about. When it didn’t seem that the gargoyle knew what this was about, she went in a little more detail. “T-There’s a video...s-some news station aired.” she sighed as her eyes grew all teary again. “C-Couple days…before she came to s-see me…she was…she was kissing someone else. S-Some wanted criminal. They busted into a police station together! T-They killed people…Gina. A-And…she never told me…”

And that was it before Agnes broke down again and sobbed silently into her sleeve.

>> "It's... okay... it wasn't your fault."

Gina quirked a faint smile, laughed softly in spite of herself.

"I'm just sympathising," Gina answered matter-of-factly. But of course, it wasn't her fault-- Gina was just trying to express her condolences for, as short as the relationship had been, Agnes had liked Rhythm. A lot. And boy, when Agnes fell, she sure fell hard. She drew closer as Agnes began to speak, for her voice was so quiet, the wind picked it up with ease, thus making her very difficult to hear. She gave Agnes her respect, let her speak--

>> “I…I know. But…I…I really liked her. And then…then that stupid ViewTube video came up--"

ViewTube video? Gina hadn't seen this video of which Agnes was speaking, and for face scrunched in confusion. She figured since Agnes had shown Rhythm the scars and told her the nitty-gritty of her life story, Agnes had probably told Rhythm about her mutation. Thus, it probably wasn't "the ViewTube video" that Gina had in mind. But, if it was-- ooh, that was going to make the little gargoyle seeth. Then again, Rhythm had been antsy when she'd first met Gina, back in December, thus the little gargoyle held low expectations.

Yet, before Gina could jump to conclusions, Agnes clarified.

>> "--T-There’s a video...s-some news station aired. C-Couple days…before she came to s-see me…she was…she was kissing someone else. S-Some wanted criminal. They busted into a police station together! T-They killed people…Gina. A-And…she never told me…”

That was bad news. As Agnes spoke, the politely subdued look on her face shifted into a furrowed brow and pursed lips, as if Gina was suddenly scheming Rhythm's demise. And Agnes was once again sobbing full-force. Gina didn't have any time to be indignant, though she was righteously bothered by this revelation that her sister had made. Kissing someone else, who happened to be a criminal, busting into a police station, and killing people? Not exactly something you kept from your signifivant other. Or perhaps Rhythm hadn't intended on getting this committed, Gina thought scathingly? She didn't have time to dwell on her protective discomfort, though. No, now that she was in such proximity to her sister, resisting the temptation to hug her was crippling at an alarming rate. Agnes knew how Gina was-- all hugs and incapable of not touching people no matter how hard she tried.

Thus began Gina's hugging. Gina twined her short, chubby arms around Agnes's shoulders (well, neck, really), standing up on her tippy-toes so as not drag the slightly-taller girl down to her height level. She'd resisted the urge for as long as she could, but couldn't contain it any longer. She just needed to hug Agnes, and hoped that Agnes needed the hug as much as Gina needed to hug her. Gina patted her sister's hair, and tilted her head so that she could whisper something to Agnes.

"Want me to call the cops on her?" she inquired, a smile tilting on her tone. That was Gina's attempt at humor, though it's chance of success was, at best, a 50-50. She wanted to say something profound, like something you'd hear from a relationship counselor or a self-help, relationship fix-it book. Something like, "Well, communication is the key step to a healthy relationship," but that just didn't seem apt. The last thing Gina felt like doing was lecturing her older sister about relationships, particularly when Gina herself hadn't been in one.

There. It was all out in the open. She had told Gina the circumstances that led to her breaking up with Rhythm. Though that did not mean that Agnes did not feel bad about what she had done. She felt that the world would judge her about this. “How could you break up with someone who over that? You weren’t together by that point? Everyone has secrets.” Those were just a few of the choice sentences that she was sure everyone would use against her. But despite how bad the young teen felt…deep down she felt that no matter what this is how things would have ended. As much as she liked Rhythm, the fiery redhead would have proved too…intense for her.

At least now that she thought about it, that is how she felt.

Rhythm was beautiful but her intense attraction to Agnes caused the runaway just a little bit of fear. It was always all or nothing when it came to their relationship. But…upon seeing that video, Agnes knew two things: 1) the quiet life she wanted would never happen with her, and 2) she could not compete with that level of passion. It just wasn’t in her to do so. That’s what she convinced herself of, anyways.

Finally choking back more sobbing, Agnes groaned as she wiped her cheeks and just sighed. She hated crying. She cried so much in her life already. She was surprised there were any fluids in her body at all!

But as she stood there, wiping the last of the tears from her cheeks, she caught Gina’s movements. It was an all too familiar one. She pressed close, leaned up, and wrapped her arms around her neck. Agnes, mentally, wanted to fight it. She was sure Gina had to be tired of giving her comforting hugs. Yet, she knew that was a lie. Gina simply had an endless supply of them.

So with little argument left, Agnes sniffled as she felt another small wave of tears well up and leaned down a little to hug her younger sister. The moment she felt that warmth, that familiar compassion and caring from the younger gargoyle, the tears began to freefall again. Just the feel of her arms so tightly wrapped around her, exuding a truthful undying affection for her, made the young runaway feel all the more better. She was still upset, and probably would be for a long time, but for the moment she simply wanted to bask in the warm glow that was Gina, her little sister.

>> "Want me to call the cops on her?"

The question hung in the air, Agnes tilted her head, momentarily forgetting that she was crying. Gina’s well-meaning inquiry was lost on her as she thought about it closely. It was while she searched the gargoyle’s face that…Agnes cracked a smile. Another second passed and the smile grew wider before she suddenly started to laugh. Tear still stained her cheeks but the laughter could not be helped.

Shaking her head and, in-between laughter and tearing up, she hugged Gina close and hiccupped. “N-No…Gina. Thank you, hehehe,” she sighed as she leaned back and stroked Gina’s face tenderly. “I’ll be okay. I’ll just…I’ll just let her go. But at least I still got you,” she grinned and leaned in to kiss Gina’s forehead. She loved her little sister and always would.

Agnes tensed at the hug, but only for a moment. Mentally, she wanted to fight it, and for a moment, she physically resisted it, but let's face it, who could resist Gina's hugs? Finally, she returned the hug, and the waterworks began again. It wasn't that Gina could see it, but Agnes was sniffling in her ear and the tears were soaking the shoulder of her shirt. At Gina's proposal Agnes quirked her head. Even if it didn't earn a laugh, at least it caused Agnes to pause. Gina would gladly do it, but whether or not the cops would actually take her seriously was another matter altogether.

Then, there it was, a faint and hesitant laugh. Gina released her sister, smiling contemplatively. Good she had caught on.

>> “N-No…Gina. Thank you, hehehe."

She touched Gina's face, and Gina smiled as Agnes gently touched her face. Gina smirked. Agnes knew that she would, all that her sister needed to do was to give her the go-ahead. She was willing to be quite the Hell-raiser, given the proper motivation.

>> "I’ll be okay. I’ll just…I’ll just let her go. But at least I still got you."

And then there was Agnes's customary peck on the forehead. Gina glowed at the affection, and took a step back as Agnes released her. It would take a little more work than that, but her attitude was a step in the right direction.

"Thanks Agnes," Gina smiled. She was truly flattered by the "At-least-I-still-got-you" line. Now that things, for the moment, had calmed down a bit, Gina dropped her shoulder so that the strap of her bag slipped to her hands. Gina lifted up the bag buy its strap, holding it as if presenting a boon, and she let her gaze cut implicatively to the bag before letting her eyes wander back to her sister.

"I came prepared," she explained simply, taking the bag with both hands and unzipping it. She tilted it towards Agnes, so that she could see the contents within, the compact, failiar shapes of plastic-wrapped, miniature chocolates within.

>> "Thanks Agnes,"

The smile on Gina’s face made Agnes smile as well. She just had to admit that her little sister just had this quality about her that made her complete irresistible. The girl could come in on the worst day of one’s life, offer a smile and a hug and suddenly everything felt better. Agnes truly felt lucky to call someone like Gina her sister. She was sweet, a great support, and one of the best defenders. Agnes knew that if she ever needed someone to guard her back, there would be no one that she could trust more other than Gina.

“You’re very welcome,” she beamed, though her eyes were still watery and red. The girl was saddened, and though she knew she was going to hurt, she was going to get over it.

But as their moment of sisterly affection continued, Agnes sighed as she stepped back and took another small shuttering breath. She felt a little silly acting like that. After, she had not been dating Rhythm for long. But the absence of her managed to cause her a lot of pain. It simply was not right. She had been exorcized and for some reason this hurt more.

Was she really that alien to the feeling of dating someone? Maybe all first break-ups felt like this? Was overreacting or was it harder simply because she didn’t know how she was supposed to react to this? The questions buzzed around in her mind but it seemed that no matter how many times she asked, she was never going to get an answer. Simply because she didn’t know. But…she would get over it. She knew she would.

Then Gina made a move. Agnes was a first confused, but as she watched the young gargoyle (and just now noticed that she had a small satchel with her), she witness as she held the bag open for Agnes to peer inside.

>> "I came prepared,"

Upon closer inspection, the blue-eyed, runaway could only smile as she spied the familiar glimmer of wrappers and brand names of mini-chocolates. Part of Agnes hoped those were not the same candies from Halloween (after all, they would be stale by now) but part of her really didn’t care. It was the sweetest gesture and after all, who really heard of candy going bad?

With a grin, Agnes rubbed more of the remaining tears from her eyes, leaned over and gave Gina a big, sisterly hug. God she really loved her.

“You…really are the best,” she chuckled and rubbed the last of tears from her eyes. “Ugh, god, I hate crying…” She then took a calming breath. Afterward she really did look a lot better, a little more calm, still upset, but at least she did not feel utterly alone and hurt anymore. She then sighed as he squeeze Gina’s shoulder. “Come on, I can use some chocolate milk to go with that candy…”

Candy was something that Gina tore through as an avid writer would tear through their supply of binder paper. Thus, said candies were not stale or by any means outdated. What could she say, she liked sweets? Agnes obviously approved, for suddenly she had wrapped Gina in a hug. Gina didn't even have time to reciprocate it, for she was still holdling the bag of candies. All she could do was be muffled in the skinniness that was Agnes.

>> “You…really are the best-- ugh, god, I hate crying…Come on, I can use some chocolate milk to go with that candy…"

Gina mumbled another "Thank you," into Agnes's shoulder, taking this opportunity to relish being on the recieving end of a hug (for once). And looked at her sister as she released her, studying her face. For the moment, she wasn't crying, but she still had the red-rimmed, worn-out look in her eyes from someone who'd cried long and hard. Agnes was going to crash so hard when she went to bed tonight.

"I hate it, too," Gina agreed, bobbing her head, "It gives me headaches-- monstrous ones." Gina hated crying, but even more, she hated whatever it was that lead up to the crying. Because, let's face it, she was a really happy person, which meant that, for something to truly bother her enough to send her into tears, it had to be pretty intense-- as in, "rip-your-heart-out-and-do-a-step-dance-on-it" intense. Like... getting chased by those guys at the mall, or defending Agnes from her parents, to name a few examples. Those sorts of things made Gina's heart heavy simply thinking about it, and she rubbed her chest absently, as if to chase away the bad feelings.

"Chocolate milk sounds spectacular," Gina agreed, throwing up a hand with a dramatic flourish as Agnes's hand settled on her shoulder and gave it faint squeeze. Gina moved to Agnes's side and tucker her arm around hers, so that they could saunter to the stairwell together, and she leaned her head against her shoulder. God, they were going to have so much chocolate in their system, it'd be a miracle if anyone would be able to tether them down (or, if they didn't get sick).

With her free hand, Gina replaced the bag on her shoulder and shut it while they were in-transit, it could wait until the kitchen, or wherever it was that Agnes had stashed the fixings for the chocolate milk. The two of them crossed the roof in silence, venturing back towards the door. For Gina, it was a comfortable silence, and allowed her some time to figure out whether or not she wanted to shift conversational gears, and how.

The walk down to the mansion’s kitchens seemed longer than it normally should have taken, but Agnes had merely chalked that up to the fact that they were still trying to figure out exactly what they were going to talk about. She didn’t want to spend their whole evening crying and pining after Rhythm, she wanted to move on. But wasn’t one of the steps to actually moving on was to face whatever it was that was bothering you? Agnes didn’t know. This was entirely new experience for her. Even in high school she had never really heard of her “friends” break-ups. They treated relationships as social climbing, nothing more. There were not real feelings invested.

Agnes though, Agnes allowed herself to get attached to the fiery headed musician. Maybe that was not the best course of action for her but it was far too late for her to do anything about that. She allowed herself to open her heart to Rhythm and in the process mistakes were made on both of their sides.

She sighed as he felt the weight of her situation weighing on her shoulders. Gina provided a good temporary fix, though. She knew that she would have to live with this for a while, especially since Rhythm was…her first…but she knew she would eventually get through with it. She just had to remember that this would not be the end of her life. She had to keep going she had to learn that everything was going to be okay. Thankfully, Gina was there to prove as a reminder that her life would not be over.

Step…Step…Step…

Each foot fall felt a little hallow to the very thin teenager. But she had to remember that this was a temporary feeling. And besides, she smiled a small smile and draped her arm around the young gargoyle’s shoulders, she was surrounded by people she knew loved her unconditionally.

Before the runaway knew it she was back in the kitchen, standing in front of the large fridge, trying to remember how it was that she got there. She knew that they walked there, that they had some type of mild conversation, but Agnes really could not recall any of it. Rhythm’s image was invading her head again but with fortitude she managed to shoo it away. She was spending time of Gina now and that was all that mattered.

Taking a breath, she suddenly remembered that she was supposed to be making chocolate milk for the pair of them. Thankfully the cool beverage had no connections to Rhythm so she felt no apprehension when she opened the fridge door, pulled out the heavy, cold gallon of milk and went to retrieve a pair of glasses from the cupboard. She wracked her brain, seriously so, in an attempt to find something, anything to talk about with Gina. She didn’t want to feel sad anymore and she knew part of the reason was thinking about her fallen relationship but she could not go the rest of her life simply not thinking about what happened.

She sighed as she poured some milk into a glass. “My head hurts,” she mumbled as she then grabbed the chocolate and began to squeeze some of the concoction into the glasses. She glanced at Gina as she began to mix them. “I-I’m sorry Gina. I don’t mean to look so…destroyed over this. I should know better,” she said with a sigh as she carried a glass over to Gina and smiled.

The two of them sauntered down the familiar halls of the Mansion, with the all-too-common hum of student life buzzing about them, no one paying them anymore attention than usual. Funny, how so much drama could unfold in one's life, and yet life still went on around you. They reached the kitchen in no time, Gina shuffling over to the counter and hopping up backwards, so as to sit on it, as Agnes wandered absently to the fridge. Gina watched as her sister distractedly retrieved the fixings of chocolate milk. She was glad to find that it was conveniently devoid of people, which meant that they could converse freely.

Gina also made preparations, but they were less-intensive than Agnes's-- she slid the bag off of her shoulder, opened it back up, and set it down on the counter beside her. Candy, prepared. Gina watched as Agnes poored milk into a glass, and tainted it with chocolate syrup.

>> “My head hurts."

"It's going to," Gina answered simply, fishing into her bag and plucking out a random chocolate. Ah, Snickers-- a good random pick. She fussed with the wrapper and eventually freed the chocolate from its confines, "It always does after a good, long cry." Gina balled the wrapper up and, rather than get up and retrieve the garbage can, tucked it into the satchel once more. She then popped the chocolate into her mouth, and began munching away pensively.

>> "I-I’m sorry Gina. I don’t mean to look so…destroyed over this. I should know better."

Gina inclined her head and arched an eyebrow, but was momentarily silenced by the candy that she was consuming. She couldn't speak intelligibly with the chocolate wedged in her mouth, so she chewed, swallowed, and sighed.

"You think so?" Gina countered, intently focusing her gaze upon her sister. Gina was no old pro at relationships, but to think that Agnes expected to be over Rhythm just like that seemed a bit absurd. Even if Rhythm wasn't her first love, which she was, to be over someone so quickly seemed... shallow. Gina fished out a different kind of chocolate, speculated over it for a moment.

"I wouldn't expect you to get over that quickly," Gina admitted, shaking the candy in Agnes's direction, "I mean, I know you liked her. A lot. And, for all extensive purposes, it's kind of like mourning a loss. I think--" Gina gave a one-shouldered shrug, the "I think" was a more of a disclaimer that she didn't really know, but it was simply she'd simply surmised from watching other people being in relationships and then ending them, "I'd be worried if you weren't so 'destroyed' over this, at least for a little while." But, then again, she'd be worried if Agnes wouldn't let this go over the course of a month or two. Even if Rhythm was her first love.

The two of them sauntered down the familiar halls of the Mansion, with the all-too-common hum of student life buzzing about them, no one paying them anymore attention than usual. Funny, how so much drama could unfold in one's life, and yet life still went on around you. They reached the kitchen in no time, Gina shuffling over to the counter and hopping up backwards, so as to sit on it, as Agnes wandered absently to the fridge. Gina watched as her sister distractedly retrieved the fixings of chocolate milk. She was glad to find that it was conveniently devoid of people, which meant that they could converse freely.

Gina also made preparations, but they were less-intensive than Agnes's-- she slid the bag off of her shoulder, opened it back up, and set it down on the counter beside her. Candy, prepared. Gina watched as Agnes poored milk into a glass, and tainted it with chocolate syrup.

>> “My head hurts."

"It's going to," Gina answered simply, fishing into her bag and plucking out a random chocolate. Ah, Snickers-- a good random pick. She fussed with the wrapper and eventually freed the chocolate from its confines, "It always does after a good, long cry." Gina balled the wrapper up and, rather than get up and retrieve the garbage can, tucked it into the satchel once more. She then popped the chocolate into her mouth, and began munching away pensively.

>> "I-I’m sorry Gina. I don’t mean to look so…destroyed over this. I should know better."

Gina inclined her head and arched an eyebrow, but was momentarily silenced by the candy that she was consuming. She couldn't speak intelligibly with the chocolate wedged in her mouth, so she chewed, swallowed, and sighed.

"You think so?" Gina countered, intently focusing her gaze upon her sister. Gina was no old pro at relationships, but to think that Agnes expected to be over Rhythm just like that seemed a bit absurd. Even if Rhythm wasn't her first love, which she was, to be over someone so quickly seemed... shallow. Gina fished out a different kind of chocolate, speculated over it for a moment.

"I wouldn't expect you to get over that quickly," Gina admitted, shaking the candy in Agnes's direction, "I mean, I know you liked her. A lot. And, for all extensive purposes, it's kind of like mourning a loss. I think--" Gina gave a one-shouldered shrug, the "I think" was a more of a disclaimer that she didn't really know, but it was simply she'd simply surmised from watching other people being in relationships and then ending them, "I'd be worried if you weren't so 'destroyed' over this, at least for a little while." But, then again, she'd be worried if Agnes wouldn't let this go over the course of a month or two. Even if Rhythm was her first love.