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I...Kinda see your point.

Evelyn felt her eyes narrow, sensing something dishonest in that statement. Maya was not the most guarded person with her emotions, and much of that reflected in her features. Maybe it was because of their past relationship, but Evelyn though some of her statements had unsettled the older girl. Or maybe, the entire situation had. She remembered the look Serena had when she found out Evelyn had deaged to this seven-year-old body. Was there really so much to be missed about the past her? She felt frustrated, annoyed. What goody-two-shoes had she become that no one would appreciate her clearly remarkable headstart she now had. She had new powers, and she was so much younger starting with them! Never forgetting! What could ever go wrong?

"End game? I mean, there is the short term plans with flammable liquids and possible arson, but that is more of a test than anything. Regardless, based on your current standing as a supervising adult, why would I really want to disclose any other ideas to you?" She tilted her head slightly, considering. "I mean, look at your own childhood. Did you really have the same plans then as you do now? Being a parents, raising a bunch of mutant brats and trying to, what, save the world?" She may have been mocking the older girl without knowing it. The tone did come out with a bit of a sneer. Elke was doing fine, and she was not doing anything responsible. They had fun doing art and running wild. Why would she desire to put things like that aside?

"Look at some of the brightest minds. How many reached their greatest potential following the rules? Face it, Maya, they were made to be broken. And sadly, you stand on the wrong side of me, and those rules."

She stopped very suddenly in the middle of the hallway, and Maya may have seen the warning signs before it actually happened. Evelyn released her arms, and let all of the bottles crash to the ground. Glass, gasoline, flammable materials went every direction.

And like the demon spawn she was, she bolted in the other direction.

Rules were for wimps.

For the first time, the room had an energy that was not angry. Evelyn took her ID back, staring at the details and the photo, wondering if she felt a sense of loss. How could she miss things she didn't remember? It was like another life was entirely erased, gone forever except for in the memories of the people she had known.

In some ways, it was almost symbolic to her. This was what it was like to die. What was life except an experience, to fade once the memories were gone. She looked at the date, trying to imagine any time before waking in this young body. To her, everything just melded into one cohesive string, with a tiny black bar in the middle where a life had vanished.

She went to school one day, woke up the next in a bed at an apartment she didn't remember. She looked around a room where she was surrounded by clothing that didn't fit, found cards and IDs for a her that she did not know. She would never admit the feeling of nausea she felt facing down all of that information, a tunnel of uncertainty for her small frame. Not remembering things was a feeling she had never faced. She did not go through denial, she did not try to ignore the situation, she just tried to push forward as fast as she could.

Evelyn tried calling her parents, but their number would not connect. Her cell phone was blocked, and the contacts were empty at best. Even as an adult it appeared she had few friends. Instead, she went to the police station hoping for some clues to her past life, but all she found were traces of a criminal record 6 years ago, and then she was shipped here to the mansion. In some ways, she had not had time to really panic over what she felt. Hearing the slight tremble in Serena's voice got to her. It frickin' got to her.

"I was dating someone...and I worked here," she repeated, finally zipping away the plastic card. "Something must have happened though, because I had stuff in my new apartment. I don't think I was with that person anymore. Obviously, I chose a new path." Why? What had she wanted to do? What would make her leave this, and go back to solitude if she really had accepted this life first? Why did her parents have her blocked, and how had no one known she was seven years old. How had no one...missed her.

Her jaw locked, a rebellious vein reigniting. It flared and rolled inside her, and she felt angry, so angry. "If I was quite interesting, then it wouldn't have been so easy for me to be forgotten. Just, give me the room." She turned, and the girl at the desk seemed to feel pity now, retrieving rooming information and handing it to her. She didn't offer to walk Evelyn, as if sensing the implosion of emotions Evelyn was facing. As she yanked her suitcase to leave, she hooked her foot on the wheel and tripped. She dropped the papers, snatching out for the closest thing. She caught Serena's hand, and the playbacks took the moment to jump the bridge between them.

She was back in school, arguing with another girl with dark brown hair and a massive amount of freckles on her slim face. The cold eyes glared at her, and the girl crossed her arms firmly across her chest, her skinny little legs spaced evenly apart like a barrier from the rest of the lunch room. Evelyn was cornered, and glanced from side to side for somewhere to go. Different escape routes offered their echoes, but the girl interrupted them. "Get lost freak." She demanded.

Evelyn shook her head and frowned stubbornly up at her. "No! I'm not a freak and I didn't do anything to you. Professor would have noticed you were cheating anyway, you always look---"

There was a crack of fist to face and pain exploded from her cheek as the girls punch connected with her cheekbone. Evelyn cried out in pain, falling towards the floor and landing in an awkward heap. She felt like a puddle of white hair and clothing as she burst into tears---

Evelyn wrenched away cutting off the feed. She landed on her backside, hand to her face and eyes stinging with tears, the pain so real... She...she did not remember this side of her powers. This unbearably vivid memory. Maybe that was the reason she had come here in the first place, and the reason she ran away.

What else could you do when the things you were running from were right there inside your mind?

Elke was, honest. It was a trait that adults did not seem to carry. Evelyn had heard enough from the echoes to know that people generally were not genuine with their words or emotions. They wanted to sugar coat things, pretend everything was fine, everything was great. But Elke flat out said how she would have felt about the echoes. This made Evelyn's face soften just a little, and she shrugged almost a little sadly. "The echoes aren't so bad. I've learned to tune out a lot of the unnecessary information. It's...the playbacks I do not enjoy.

"You might understand because of your clones. Feeling their pain sucks, right? I relive memories every time I sleep. Imagine the worst day of your life, and knowing you can relive it at any night." She gave a little shudder, trying to clear the very idea. Sometimes, it was enough to drive anyone mad. Maybe that was what happened to her last life? She was almost certain becoming a child wasn't just an accident, and unlike some mutants, she almost thought it was intentional. She could imagine turning 30, overwhelmed by every memory, every horrible experience she could never escape. Then, finding out there was a reset button, a way to go back in time, erase all those terrible things she thought she would face forever. Even her seven year old brain felt that was the most tempting idea someone could ever face. It had been a chance to try a different path.

That path, led here. It was darker, more destructive, but somehow felt less lonely now.

Allies in war gotta stick together.

Evelyn smiled, a genuine, real, smile. "I feel I will enjoy having you as my ally."

Elke had a look now that boasted bad ideas, and Evelyn was thrilled. She wasn't quite certain what Moose wanted to do, but she was already set on helping. "What can I help with? My echoes and I are at your disposal. Oh, and my credit cards too."

Evelyn felt a little pleased with Elke’s praise. Adults never seemed to find her ideas useful or worthy of compliments. She almost wanted to smile. Maybe she made the right choice deciding to be friends with this girl. This was someone who appreciated her talents and gave her credit where it was due. And heck, she wasn’t that bad herself. They could have a long term arrangement if this continued.

”Are you a mutant too?”

”Of course,” Evelyn answered. ”While I would love to boast that my level of intelligence is natural, it is directly tied to my mutation. The sounds, those were the echoes. They...are everywhere. Like little clues around me piecing puzzles together. I also can never forget. Faces, words, blueprints. It all stays.” for the first time, a dip of emotion pitched in. She caught it, clawing that feeling deeper into her chest. No, her powers were wonderful. The playbacks were a gift. She could do so much with them! There was nothing frightening about that ability.

”When I make skin contact I can let someone, uh, listen in on my powers. You can hear the echoes too. So I would be cautious if you don’t want the extra information,” Evelyn warned.

Evelyn did not need echoes to know how exasperated her adult companion was feeling. Evelyn knew giving her one of the Molotov probably meant it would not be returned, but considering she was not able to reach things from the ground, she had to collect what she could before climbing down from the bar-stool. Being short meant she had to take risks. Risks meant her craft project may not come back.

"We have a chemistry teacher? Is that an open course? I didn't think to look for the chemistry lab, I probably could have found some sulfur and potassium." Evelyn considered whether she could break into the storage room on her own. Probably not, given there were plenty of younger students here who could cause trouble with dangerous chemicals. Pushing the distraction away, she looked back at Maya.

That's not what I wanted to talk to you about first.

Evelyn rearranged her flammable armload, looking up at the older girl. [Discomfort. Stress. Concern.] She was somewhat fascinated by the body language she was reading. If this really was her ex, what had happened with them? Surely not just an armload of Molotov cocktails. That seemed to be a new character trait she was facing. "Well, I can only think of a number of things you and I would have to talk about. And surely one of them can't be any underlying feelings you reserve toward an oldex because, I should remind you, I'm seven now. That's definitely bordering on pedophilia." She said in in the most innocent smug way, but she would not have been surprised if Maya flat out dropped the bottle she was holding.

At the same time, this was the faintest hint of a sick sense of humor in Evelyn's tiny body. She, just made a joke. A cruel one, but a joke nonetheless. "And I wasn't setting anything on fire in the school, if that makes you feel better." That seemed to promise things would be set on fire elsewhere.

Evelyn paused, arms loaded with flammable materials. It took effort for her not to look annoyed by the constant interruptions. Frankly, it sounded like Maya was making excuses, and Evelyn was keen to call her on it. ”So, no explosives without supervision. Would you not be an adult, and therefore, given you are carrying the explosives, involved and supervising? I see no problem.” She started toward the door again, only to be interrupted. Maybe she should have used the jet hanger for this after all...

”Well, given the aforementioned flammable nature, I would think you could assume I plan on lighting something on fire.” that was the logical assumption at least. The smarter question would have been where are you taking those or even asking if she had proper supervision to light them.

No, she did not. Unless a 10 year old counted as qualified supervision. Elke was not, from what she gathered, qualified supervision.