Posing

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Explanations were certainly good, though Elsa wasn't sure that she was thinking of them in the same way as Riley. Again, it occurred to her that she could check, but she had already destroyed much of the mystery there. Might as well leave Riley with a little bit, like whatever it was that had reformed him, if only ever so slightly, or whatever it was that made him, well, him. That last bit did still hold some interest for Elsa, though it had become less of a pressing issue and more a passing interest.

Though it did seem like she'd at last hit something. Even more entertaining: it had been almost entirely accidental. Elsa hadn't thought she'd been doing much by throwing the name out there. "It usually does," she replied, shrugging. "That's usually how it works. People here a name and they have associations with it. The Bellefonte name means something here, and you could pretend it doesn't if that makes you sleep better at night. You're wrong, of course," now she was definitely icing up to it, smiling smugly. "Seeing as the name carries weight in the world you're in now. We're rich; we're powerful; and that's never, ever going to change, not by anything you can do. So you can act like you don't care, but you'll know that.

"So yes, I am more than just a girl, even more than just a mutant girl who can pry apart your thoughts like a bored child with a puzzle, because I'm a Bellefonte," Elsa paused for a moment, then tilted her head. "You're right though: I do have somewhat of an issue with my pride. Good call," she said this last like she was congratulating a three year old for coloring inside the lines.

[Riley Coleson]

''It has nothing to do with pretending. Call it ignorance if you like, but I really don't care,'' he said, shrugging. Though, he could easily see why some did. Maybe the name itself held some power to the world, but the girl in front of him did not. She was a student, not the headmaster, not a teacher; Just a girl with a luxurious name and hopefully a brain to use it correctly. It was however none of his business, and the 'rich people world' wasn't something he wanted to delve into. He was pretty satisfied with his commoner life, for whatever it was worth.

''It might carry some weight in and to the world, but that doesn't change the fact that it doesn't to me. You're just another student.''

Sighing, Riley shook his head; He had almost forgotten how it was to argue with someone who truly believed they owned the entire world. Whether or not she did, didn't really matter. The way she was holding it over his head as if she was better, more worth and deserved more than him was rather... Disappointing. Maybe part of him had hoped she would be different, maybe he had even started to believe that she was, but the brunette had completely shattered that image the second she decided to talk about herself the way she did. ''Duly noted.''

''So, why don't you? Pry my thoughts apart like you claim you can? Why waste your time getting the information the hard way when it's all there, just a little bit out of reach. All you gotta do is reach your hand out, and you'll get everything you'll ever need.''

[Elsa Bellefonte]

"No, no you really don't," said Elsa, shaking her head. Some people were just foolish like that. Names mattered. They would always matter. It was one of the unfortunate circumstances of the world. Elsa was who she was because she was a Bellefonte. Just like Riley was who he was because he was... whatever his last name was. It did occur to Elsa just then that they'd skipped the introductions, but she seriously doubted she could double back and ask him sweetly if he'd please tell her his last name.

He wasn't going to get it, and he was determined to keep seeing her in that way. There was an aspect of that which was almost... refreshing, considering that Elsa hadn't been able to free herself of her name. She flat out didn't think she could; that was something Erika could do, or Alexis sometimes. But Elsa? She was stuck being a Bellefonte, so she knew she had to own it as loudly and as proudly as she possibly could.

So why didn't she just pry into his head? She could do so without consequences, as she'd already pointed out. It would've been easier. He clearly had no training, so his brain would have almost literally been an open book for Elsa with her power. So why hadn't she? "Because it was more interesting to do it this way," she said, knowing that she was giving a nearly pat answer, "and sometimes I want to do it the hard way, to figure someone out without having to 'cheat' at it. You actually had some of my respect," she pursed her lips and shrugged, "though that was before you took on this very droll 'champion of the people, names don't matter' bullshit."

[Riley Coleson]

Pursing his lips, the boy nodded at her comment. Well, her lack of respect, or less of it didn't exactly strike a nerve or even hurt his feelings. He was used to, and it seemed to be common amongst whatever women he talked to. ''All right,'' he said dryly. ''Well, I suggest doing it the easy way, because I'm really not interested in being your lap dog, or whatever it is you're trying to gain from this. I'm not here to amuse you,'' he added.

Why on earth would he? It was pointless, especially if something as simple as disagreeing made her lose respect for people. And quite frankly, if he wanted his ego jabbed at, he would have stayed in California. After a while it got boring, ya know?

''Well, being put in my place by the royalty herself is always fun. Thank you kindly for wasting your precious time,'' he said as he spread his arms, bowing deeply before the brunette. He stood up again and once more patted her head; ''Stay mighty, Sparrow. The power suits you.'' With that, the boy pressed himself through the door and ventured out into the hallway.

Grinning, he lifted his index finger and swirled around, ''If you ever want to know what life is like on the other side of the fence, you know where to find me.'' She didn't. He hoped. Though, something told him she wasn't going to bother following or even waste more of her time trying to figure him out.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Lap dog? That certainly hadn't been the point, even from the start. Sure, Elsa liked to know whether someone could be useful to her, but even those people that she thought of more as tools she didn't consider lapdogs.... okay, fairly close, but still, she hadn't said or done anything that indicated that was her endgame with Riley. He kept going with the attitude though, giving back as good as he'd gotten. Now that actually impressed Elsa. Much better than his proselytizing earlier. Wasting her precious time, along with that same little petname. Elsa couldn't tell if that was supposed to be derogatory or not, nor did she know how she wanted that answer to turn out.

Know life on the other side of the fence? Elsa rolled her eyes. The only reason she'd ever want to know that is if she needed to figure out something about her sister, and even then she sincerely doubted she'd want to look up Riley of all people. Even if she did, she still didn't have a last name. She couldn't very well go hunting for all the Rileys in the school. She did, however, smile at him.

"Points for telling me off and the nickname, but you lost a bit with that other side of the fence thing. You sounded like a Disney character there," she replied, keeping her voice cheerful toward the end. He was still... challenging, maybe? Did Elsa like being challenged though? She tried to put it out of her mind, instead turning on her heel and walking in the exact opposite direction Riley had headed, not caring if that was the right route to take or not.