"Can we sit here?" a voice asked. "This place sure fills up at dinner. There's hardly an empty table anywhere."
The voice sounded young, like a freshman. Oh, great, she thought, bubbly freshmen who would ruin the fun. She turned around and was indeed surprised. True, the two girls waiting behind her were freshmen, but they certainly weren't your typical, run-of-the-mill students. The two were unmistakably goths like her. There was no doubt about it. From the torn black clothes to some of the spiked accessories, they clearly fit in with her and her friends. Cerys mood lifted considerably.
"Sure, my friend's sitting over there, but the rest of the table's open."
Both girls sat across from her. The girl who had spoken to her continued. "I'm Tricia and this is Valerie. We met at the orientation, can you believe it? Anyway, it's great to meet someone with similar tastes."
She was certainly a little perky and upbeat for a goth, Cerys thought, but they usually came in all forms, nothing wrong with that. Of the two, Tricia was thinner and lankier one. She looked like one of those girls who hit their growth spurt way too soon, and they ended up all limbs. Valerie was the complete opposite of her friend. She was shorter and rounder, much rounder. While not the size of fat that Ember was, Valerie was a rather rotund butterball, with a large spherical gut poking out from under her black shirt, which was clearly too tight for her. In personality, she was also very much the mirror of her friend. She appeared more subdued, gloomy even, with her downcast look as she picked at her food. But, just because she looked miserable didn't necessarily mean she was. She was at least conversational, and if anything, struck Cerys as being a calmer personality than Tricia.
Cerys talked with them for a while. She learned that the two had been lucky enough to end up roommates, that Tricia used to be pretty popular in school, but just got sick of hiding behind a preppy mask all the time, and that Valerie got in on an academic scholarship. She had come up from nowhere in academic rankings; no one saw her coming.
"Oh, hey! New pals! Cerys, you gonna introduce me?" Ember said as she planted her wide rear back in her spot. Cerys had a feeling that Ember was going to be having more than seconds tonight.
"Um, yeah. This is Tricia and Valerie. They're freshmen."
"Hi!"
"Hello."
Ember was more than happy to start talking with the two newbies to their group. For the most part, she took over the conversation. Now that Cerys thought about it, she and Ember were a lot like Tricia and Valerie, though the personalities were swapped. Big, bubbly Ember really enjoyed meeting new people. She was like an excited puppy sometimes.
Ember was busy regaling the girls with tales of all the trouble she had gotten into last year. "And where was I during all of this?" Cerys asked with a reproachful look.
"Easy there, MOM," Ember said in a huff. "I knew if I did it with you watching me, there would be no way I'd get to do half of that stuff. Seriously, guys, this one may look all tough, but she's practically a goth den mother. Anything you guys need about getting used to this place, and she'll help you out. Need to find a classroom? Cerys will practically escort you there. Kids giving you a hard time in class? Mama bear here will teach 'em a lesson. Seriously, you're in good hands."
"Ember, you're going to scare them off. I'm really not that bad, guys. I just care about my friends."
"Yeah, like a mom," she said with a big, dopey grin, knowing she was pushing Cerys' buttons. "Anyway, I'm going back for thirds, and a little something sweet. You want anything?"
She shook her head. "No thanks. I've had enough." She gave Ember a look that said "And maybe you have too."
"Suit yourself. That's why I'm the sexy one."
"What does she mean by that?" Valerie asked.
Cerys rolled her eyes. "Nothing. We've just been going back and forth about...stuff." She didn't want to make the rounder girl feel embarrassed about her own size. "Trust me, you'll get used to her. She can be a bit...loud and proud sometimes."
"I kinda like her already," Tricia said. "You two look like really close friends if you can tease each other like that."
"Yeah..."
About that time, Ms. Polluck reached the podium to begin her beginning of the year speech. Cerys practically snoozed through it. It was the same old stuff she had heard last year. But, she wasn't going to be rude and just leave, not like some of the older girls, who made no attempt to quietly leave. Course, Ember coming back to the table to continue stuffing her face wasn't exactly quiet either.
"I guess we'll see you guys around," Tricia said after the dinner was over as she and Valerie stood to leave.
"Yeah, see you guys. If you need anything, just look for us," Cerys said, waving to them. "They seemed nice."
"Yeah, with them around, we're a regular crew. I hope they hang out with us more. Just, you know, cut back on the protective stuff a little 'til they get used to us."
Cerys rolled her eyes. Some things never changed.
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