Summer's over

[Isolde Moore]

Isolde sat on a bench fiddling with it. Why had Satine given this to her?
What was the reason.
"Why...it's her favoruite thing. Her favourite piece of jewellry. Unless of course she can't wear it because she's allergic to silver and gold..." she muttered to herself.
But how could she just suddenly become allergic to two metals all at once?
Her brow furrowed even further trying to make sense. Satine had been acting weird since Isolde had got home at the start of the summer. Actually if Isolde hadn't known her sister, she would've said it was time for her to go to the looney bin.
But was she trying to tell Isolde something?
"Ugh, I give up," Isolde groaned inwardly.
She turned around and watched the flowers blowing in the breeze while the downpour soaked them both. Isolde was actually drenched but she didn't care. She loved nature and it calmed her and helped her think.
A big rumbling sound started and then it crashed. Shw then waited for the next bit of lightnening to appear.
Then she heard a pair of footsteps coming round the corner and then they were lost after another long moan of thunder hit.

[Jude Dorrian]

So... tomorrow, then.
Orchid Hill was Jude's home, and at home, you get into habits. The thing about spending the Summer at Orchid was... these habits only grow more and more pronounced. Soon that favourite seat in Dining Hall becomes your only seat in the Dining Hall. That routine of reading before you switch off the lights wasn't habit anymore; it was law. Your favourite walk was soon your only walk. The time you got up never varied, and nor did the time you went to bed. Then there's your friends; who're seen so often the novelty of their friendship wears off, and the familiarity of them and their conversation just becomes another part of your routine.
You grow comfortable in this relaxed way of life. There's something soothing about the Summer at Orchid Hill. There's no Training, no schoolwork, and no pressure; even the enemy camps seem to lull in activity. There'd only been a couple of Spy missions, arranged by Hoodham himself in Kira's absence, and all of these had been regulation checks.
Nothing was happening.
Nothing.
Yet.
Orchid Hill in the Summer was everything great about Orchid, without the bad stuff. Orchid Hill became a leisure facility, a hotel- not a school. But now, that was all going to change.
Tomorrow... it was business as usual, as far as everyone was concerned.
And Jude, so settled in his comforting routine, was taking a final lap around the Gardens before heading inside for his last evening of homework-less-ness.
... what a word.
The thunder- the very essence of his mood- echoed behind him as he turned the corner into the Vineyard Garden, where he suddenly spotted Issie. Relieved at this chance to prolong his walk, he approached her quickly, his footsteps squeltching on the damp ground.
"Howdy," he smiled, tipping his hat to her.
The brim was soaked between his numb fingertips.

[Isolde Moore]

OK. She had to laugh.
"Hi, how are you?"
If there was one thing that she missed most of all while she was away from Orchid it had been her friends. Her summer had been long boring and the weather had been so tempermental it was unreal.
One reason she liked Orchid. The weather was nearly in sync with the seasons.
"Awk, you're hat is all wet!" she frowned.

[Jude Dorrian]

"What?" Jude chuckled, pulling the hat off his head entirely and giving his sopping mop of hair a good shake; sort of like a puppy that's fallen in a puddle. "This old thing? Nah, it's been through worse."
Saying that, it was going to stink of (appropriately) wet dog for a while now.
"Anyway, Issie, you didn't answer my question," he was happier to see her than he'd expected to be, "how are you- or maybe more importantly- how was your Summer?"
Wet, he bet.

[Isolde Moore]

Isolde smiled.
Issie.
She had forgotten about that nickname. A nickname that she only allowed him to use cause she thought it sounded weird, funny but nice with his southern accent.
"I didn't answer your question Jude, because you didn't ask me one till there, you just said 'Howdy'" she smiled.
"I'm fine thank you. My summer was.....ok, evetful. Well one event really. All in all, twas a bit boring to be honest, I'm glad to be back in a place where I feel like I belong," she laughed a bit.
"And you? how are you and how was you summer, dare I ask?" she smiled up at him.

[Jude Dorrian]

"Well, heck," Jude now turned to cautiously kneading the brim of his hat, squeezing as much water as he could get out of it, "howdy is the universal term for everything. Issie, don't cha' know that the, 'howdy', meant, 'hey, how are you, I'm great and so was my summer and I'm from Texas, and you're not, and well gee, ain't the weather crappy'?"
It was amazing how many people actually believed him when he told them that. The British just did not understand sarcasm.
Fortunately, Issie was Irish, and that whole Irish island was full of a load of sarky gits (Kira's words, not his).

[Isolde Moore]

Isolde laughed.
"Well, duh!" Isolde said jokingly, "Course, I knew that? who wouldn't?!" she looked up at the dark sky who was soaking the both of them.
"As for the weather, I think crappy would be an understatement," she glared at the sky.
"All I've had all summer is weather like this," she laughed without humour.

[Jude Dorrian]

Jude nodded. "I've been at school all Summer, and the weather's been like this the whole time. Still, every so often, a couple of rays of sunshine crept through, so we'll have to give the Summer credit for trying."
So indeed, 'crappy' was a tad of an understatement.

[Isolde Moore]

"I suppose we do," she grinned.
The rain started to fall from the sky, hitting them with the speed of a bullet leaving a gun.
Lightening brightened up the sky for a second or so and the crashing of the thunder cames seconds after.
It truly was a dismal day.
"Did it not get boring? I mean after a while being in school the whole summer?" Isolde asked out of curiosity.

[Jude Dorrian]

"Orchid Hill?" Jude raised an eyebrow. "Boring? Issie, think that statement over again, please."
He couldn't think of one day- okay, maybe that day with the English exams- he couldn't think of many days when he'd really been bored. Too many people came. Too many things happened. Too many things exploded in the corridor on a daily basis.
And Jude seemed to manage to get personally involved in more than a few of these events.

[Isolde Moore]

Isolde hung her head in shame. Her sisters had gotten to her after all.
Annoying.
"That's just great..." she muttered darkly to herself, "Sorry, I supose you're right, Orchid Hill is anything but boring," she stood up and stretched.
Well her mood didn't seem to want to lift.
"So what all happened here while I was away then?" she asked to keep the conversation going.

[Jude Dorrian]

"People came and went," Jude shrugged, stretching back, "I got a good couple of Spy missions... just the usual look-out duty. I haven't crossed the borders of the camp in weeks now... Hoodham doesn't want any drastic action to be taken without our Head present..."
He looked skywards.
"Guess that all changes again tomorrow, huh?"

[Isolde Moore]

"I'm betting on it," Isolde smiled to herself.
If there was one thing she had desperately missed asides from her friends like Jude, it was the warrior training sessions. All she had been doing over the summer besides practising some moves Maddeleine had been teaching them was her Irish Dancing.
Yes. Being home for the summer hadn't had many perks for her. Next year she would stay here.

[Jude Dorrian]

ooc: Y'all don't call her Maddie!

"Y'know," Jude turned his head to look back at Isolde, "if I'd a choice, I'd just plain live here. Texas is great, but me and Tam... we don't really belong there like we used to."
The state was riddled with pleasent connotations. It was Jude's home- Tameron's home- where they'd grown up. Jude always thought one day he'd go back, and make himself a new home there.
But for now...
No. For now, Orchid Hill was his home.
And its students were his family.

[Isolde Moore]

Isolde nodded to show her agreement in the matter.
"I don't know if I would live here.." she scrunched her face into frustration and longing, "I adore this place to bits but I also need to take care of my family. They need just as much as the school does and besides although Ireland is nothing but rain, it's home."
Both of these places where her home.
Orchid was better on the large scale.
But Ireland was where she grew up and learnt the basics of everything she knew. Her birthplace. Her home home.
If she had the choice...