Here I am (open)

It was a fairly nice day at the outside tables of the cafe. Yvette had her boots up on the chair in front of her as she sat slouched in a chair facing the quiet Parisan street. Her bullwhip hung from her hip over the edge of the chair in plain view for everyone to see. Stretched open in front of her face was the morning newspaper and her eyes were scanning the writing, a serious look in her brown eyes. On the small cafe table beside her was an empty plate that had held scrambled eggs and sausages, while next to the plate was a large mug of steaming coffee.

Waving a hand over her head, her eyes never leaving the paper, Yvette summoned a waiter. He took her empty plate and topped up her coffee. Nodding his eyes at the teen's quipped words he took the dishes back into the restaurant and emerged again five minutes later with a small plate of steaming, buttered crossaints. With a terse thank you Yvette took one of the crossaints from the plate on the table and ate it as she perused her paper.

Ondrea sighed. Her mother had dragged her along with her to France. Her aunt owned a small flower shop in the muggle part. The place now stank to Ondrea's nose, so she took to wandering about - anything to be outside and away from the overwhelmingly sweet smell of flowers.

The muggle world was strange, Ondrea decided, yet again, side-stepping a pedestrian trying to carry too many purchases. She sighed. At least, in muggle France, she wasn't likely to run into any of her former classmates (or would they be future classmates, now?). As close as it was to the full moon, she'd be likely to hurt anyone who referred to her by her former 'nickname'.

She was walking past a cafe when her attention was drawn to the smell of horses and... some exotic creature she could quite identify. Amber-colored eyes rested on the back of a newspaper, the owner of which being the source of the equestrian scent.

"It's rude to stare," Yvette quipped from behind her newspaper. She flipped the page and then reached over to grab her coffee mug and bring it behind the paper for a drink. Setting it back on the table she continued, "Also if you plan on blending in it works better if you at least look around before locking your eyes on something."

Folding the paper in half Yvette revealed herself to the other girl that she had watched wander up the street. "It's been a while, Montgomery," she greeted. Looking the other girl up and down she commented, "There's something different about you and it's not just your eyes. An interesting colour I might add." The cowgirl brushed a finger over her lips. "Yes, something different, but I can't put my finger on it." Gesturing to the chair on the opposite side of the table she said, "Bah, we all know I'm better with horses than people. Anyways, have a seat. Eat a croissant. Tell me what you've been doing since you disappeared."

"It's only rude to stare at people," Ondrea quipped right back. "Maybe I was reading the article on the back page. It's about a rugby player. Whatever that is. I was looking around, though I'm not terribly concerned with blending in. People -" By which she meant 'muggles'. "- are unobservant."

She recognized the other girl, of course, and gazed calmly back as she studied her. "Montmoril," Ondrea returned politely, offering as explanation, "They change." It was the truth, in any case. In about a week, her eyes would be brown again.

"How about the fact I'm not cringing away from everything?" she suggested dryly, gesturing to the surrounding rush of people. She took the offered seat, folding one leg beneath her. Resting her elbow on the arm of the chair, she rested her head in her hand. "I didn't disappear. I was transferred. And I haven't been doing much apart from studying and being dragged about to an inordinate number of social functions." Ondrea wrinkled her nose. She still wasn't fond of crowds. Mostly because of all the scents and the noise, now.

"I'd forgotten you were muggleborn." She spoke the words only when she was certain nobody else was near enough to overhear, which was easily accomplished with her hearing and sense of smell.

"I agree," Yvette replied in her casual conversation tone, flipping her newspaper back up so she could still see the other girl but was free from prying muggle eyes. "Most muggles are unobservant, especially to things they deem as unnatural or not normal. Many of them know about magic and the like but choose to believe it doesn't exist. They go around playing sports like rugby, nasty British game, to appear normal. Wizards then copy this 'normal' behaviour to blend in with muggles. Such as the rugby player in the article. He's actually an American wizard that went to Britain to play rugby for the Newcastle Falcons."

Reaching over she took another sip from her coffee mug. "According to rumors around school you were there and then you just up and left. People started talking and some pretty crazy stuff was floating around. I'm glad you're pretty much in one piece. Whatever happened to you sure gave you a big confidence boost though." Looking over at Drea, Yvette cast an evaluating eye over the girl. "Doesn't seem like you enjoyed those functions," she commented as she caught the other girl's nose wrinkle. "Not that I can say anything. We haven't had a shing-ding at the ranch for a year of more now." Looking back at her paper she drank another gulp of coffee, enjoying the smooth taste running down her throat.

"Yeah, I'm muggleborn," the cowgirl replied shrugging her shoulders and glancing up and down the street, seemingly reading an article. "My parents are getting more and more put out each year I go back to Beaux. They think I should stay on the ranch with them. I miss it sometimes when we're at school. Especially the foaling and lambing in the spring."

"I wasn't just there and gone, though," remarked Ondrea, mildly amused. "The school year ended. Then, when the next one started, my parents sent me to Hogwarts, instead. Really. Little of what's happened in my life the last couple years has been secret."

The image of a news article from the prophet flashed across her mind, bold headline forever seared heartlessly into her memory: Siblings Caught In Werewolf Attack, Only Sister Survives

The girl shifted so that both her legs were tucked underneath her.

"I'm not much of a people person." Ondrea shrugged. "Too many people. Too much noise." Too many godawful smells...

"Better than my biological parents," she quipped gaily, then grimaced. "Sorry. Not funny. You don't actually have to attend, you know. Some people refuse. Though, you've no where else to learn such things."

Penelope had just finished training and was feeling happy, her tight jeans were comfortably resting under her corset, she strode happily into her favorite cafe she obliviously walked to the counter and ordered an ice tea. She turned on her heel and saw a familiar person sitting at a table, she quickly remembered their conversation and deleted it from her memory.

She strode over with a smile on her face, she waved at the two girls saying "Hello, Yvette" and facing the other girl forcibly told her body not to curtsy and instead said "I'm Penelope, nice to meet you" then to both girls asked "May I join you?" She waited for there response as she roughly flicked her hair over her shoulder, it rested softly on her back as she again smiled at the two girls.

Yvette laughed. "You know me. I don't put much stock in anything other people say. Especially if they can't even remember what you look like. To me rumors are just the work of people who are too dumb to come up with anything else." She shot back the remaining dregs of her coffee and tapped the ceramic sharply with a knife to summon a waiter for a refill.

Waiting until the man had left again she commented, "I agree with you on the people thing. I don't like lots of people either. I'm more into being on the range. Nobody around for miles on end, just me, my horse, and 50 head of cattle." A grin spreading across her face Yvette said, "I enjoy going to Beaux. It gets me off the ranch and away from my parents. They do nothing but try and hide anything out of the ordinary that goes on. I just miss all the baby animals."

Catching sight of the person who had come up on them Yvette kept her face neutral, trying her hardest not to scowl. Didn't this slicker get it last time? There was a reason country folk didn't hang with city slickers. They were absolutely full of herself. Yvette raised an eyebrow as she had a thought. Deciding to test her theory she whispered barely more than breathing level without moving her lips, "Montgomery, how do we get rid of this Barbie girl?"

"That's understandable," Ondrea remarked. "I used to miss home all the time."

Ondrea's nose wrinkled. What in Merlin's name... She looked up at the newcomer, expression smoothing. Another one. A half... something that smelled like old feather pillows, among other strange things.

Her gaze may have flitted over to Yvette as it swept towards the other girl. "Ondrea," she responded, amber eyes studying the blonde. Had it not been the day prior to the full moon, she might have held her tongue; it was rather rude, after all.

But it was the day prior to the full moon, and she always tended be rather blunt around that time.

"Has anyone ever told you how odd you smell?"

She smiled and said "What a nice name" she put her hands on her hips and stated "No, no one has" she grabbed her hair and sniffed it looking back and Ondrea "What do I smell like?" she didn't really care she just wanted to make conversation.

Ondrea's own smile turned a bit snide. "Thank you," she replied. She gave a soft laugh at the Penelope's actions, then wrinkled her nose a bit.

"Feathery," she stated frankly. "And..." Ondrea drew in another breath. "Dusty. Like in the middle of summer when the dirt gets all dried out. Or maybe 'old store room' would be more accurate. I'm not sure. Your shampoo clashes with your perfume, by the way - or whatever other fragrance you happen to have on." She gestured vaguely with one hand, clearly not caring overly much.

She clapped her hands together saying "I guess I need to sort myself out shouldn't I?" she laughed and accepted the ice tea from the man taking a quick swig of it. Refreshing and cool, she exhaled loudly and smiled at the girls. "What a peculiar nose you have anyway, how can you smell me from here anyway?" she pretended to sniff "I guess I'm not as amazingly talented as you" a pure compliment meant for only positive reasons.

Yvette gave a very unladylike snort into her coffee cup at the words exchanged by the other two girls. The blond was denser than a fence post after the rain, and that was an insult to the fence post. Rustling her paper she turned the page and made sure that it blocked Barbie from her view. Glancing over to Drea she mimed a craziness gesture and pointed to the blond, hidden safely behind her large newpaper.

Setting her mug back on the table Yvette commented, "Feathery and dusty, eh. Sounds like someone's been hanging out in the chicken coop. Probably fits right in with the henpeckers." The teen gave a chuckle and flipped another page of her paper as she grabbed a croissant and tore the end off, crumbs falling down to rest on her dull brown shirt.

She flickered her hair out of her face and blatantly stared at Yvette she then shot "You know what, I am trying my best to be kind, and your busted ass country attitude is really frustrating... So if you could just show a simple smile or some freaking sign that your not an empty void of hate for Christ sake!" she kept her face calm and took a drink of Ice Tea.

She looked at Ondrea and quickly said "Sorry about that"

"I've got a sensitive nose," Ondrea murmured dryly.

She gave an amused smirk. "Oh, no. No, chicken coops. I'd smell the chickens." Amber eyes lit with further amusement at the blonde's outburst.

"Now, Penny," Ondrea drawled, a virtually imperceptible trace of menace coloring her tone; menace and challenge. "It isn't nice to mock a person's origins. I mean... something against country people, my, my my. One wonders who else you might have something against; who else you imagine you're superior to."

Shrugging in responded, she lightly replied. "Oh, not at all. I do believe this could get interesting."

She looked at Ondrea and replied "I'm really sorry Ondrea but we have a history and I'm just trying to be nice" she looked back at Yvette and merely sighed she didn't want to start anything she just wanted an apology, a smile anything that showed her happiness.

Yvette snorted behind her newspaper and shot an amused smirk at Drea. "Barbie doll, I am anything but an empty void. Just because I choose not to blatantly parade my emotions around, does not mean I don't feel them," she drawled, a subtle trace of amusement in her voice. "I was raised on a ranch where the animals can feel and sense your emotions. Unless you bury them deep down and not let them rule you, you'd have a full scale riot on your hands."

Tearing another chunk from the croissant with her teeth, she chewed and swallowed before giving a faint growl. "I taught myself to fear nothing. I taught myself to control my emotions. If I hadn't I'd be dead several times over. Not everyone is like you, Barbie. Not everyone has led a perfect life and is able to be nice to absolutely everyone. I see you standing there like you expect an apology for the way I behave with my "busted ass country attitude". There is one thing you should know about me. I heavily edit a lot of the things that come out of my mouth so I don't say what I don't mean. I never apologize."

Huffing out her nose in finality the fifteen year old set down her food and shot back the remainder of her coffee. Turning her head to Drea she said, "And I don't have a history with her. I was talking with a young first year on the Eiffel Tower when she joined us. It was one meeting and by the end of it I was struggling to control my volitile temper."

With a sly smirk she directed her comments back to the blond. "Oh, and Barbie, us magical folk don't believe in Jesus Christ. Not when the church decided to persecute our kind. If you need to use someone's name in vain while around the wizarding community it's better to use Merlin. Some wizards get uptight about the church." Yvette gave a wolfish grin before waving and recieving a fresh coffee.

She beamed a huge smile at Yvette saying happily "Thank you Yvette, I am so glad to here you say those things" she kept smiling as she turned to Ondrea "Sorry for the interruption" she continued to smile broadly as she curtsied to Yvette and Ondrea "So happy to see you both, Yvette so glad you explained that to me" she walked out proudly and happily her mind absorbing every word that had been spoken.

She had some thinking to do.

A low growl vibrated in the back of Ondrea's throat, inaudible, but there. She had remained quiet, but that didn't mean she wasn't irked.

"She," Ondrea bit out between clenched teeth, "patronized me." Bright amber eyes glared after the blonde. She tore her gaze away, waving her hand quickly in front of her, nose wrinkled in disgust.

"And she smells weird!"