Back To Our Roots

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Had it been anyone else, Erika probably would have mentally slapped herself, but considering how this was Franck, the one person she truly believed she could trust with anything (apart from Elsa and Everett, anyways), she didn't see much of an issue in it. A sheepish smile formed on the brunette's lips and she laughed awkwardly. "Yeah," she said, her eyes widening a little, as if she hadn't quite realized it yet herself. "Thank you, that actually does mean a lot." Puffing her cheeks for a moment, Erika nodded slowly at Franck's words, taking a few seconds to answer.

"She is," she agreed. Elsa was a good planner. That wasn't the issue. It never had been. It just didn't feel like it was her wedding anymore. However, when Franck mentioned eloping, Erika tilted her head to the side. "I've never really thought about that..." She furrowed her brows, her brown eyes still resting upon Franck's face. "I mean... It does makes sense, because in the end, it doesn't really matter, but..." Why hadn't she thought about it? That was an exceptionally good question and it made her feel foolish. "Yeah..." she breathed, laughing.

Erika Bellefonte. Age 18. Getting married. Who would have thought? She surely wouldn't have thought that. One year ago, she didn't even think she'd meet someone, let alone fall this deeply in love. Now, almost a year later, she was getting married.

[François Laffont]

Sure, Franck wished it had come out in a better way but it was not like he thought Erika meant to keep it a secret from him. She would have told him eventually. Right? Right. After all, she couldn’t really mean to marry herself and not invite her good friend Franck. Right? Right.

Not to add that she just said it meant a lot to her that he congratulated her. He smiled brightly at her in return. For someone who would marry soon, she didn’t sound too excited. He didn’t think for one moment it was because she wasn’t sure of her love. Oh well, maybe the excitement would sink in later. It was not like she was marrying tomorrow. Then, he would worry for real that she was not more excited than this.

He chuckled as she suddenly starting to think about his idea. “Just don’t tell your sister it was my idea should she ever find out,” he said, laughing softly as he said that. He had no idea how Elsa would take it and frankly, he didn’t want to try and find out. He was pretty sure Erika already tried to talk to Elsa and tell her this was not really her thing. She said something similar just now. “Your family’s excited about it? The wedding, I mean.” All of a sudden, he felt glad he wouldn’t marry. He wouldn’t have to deal with people not entirely agreeing with his choice or anything of the like. The worst feeling would be to be excited over something only to find those he loved the most disappointed at it. Even if he knew his father was accepting of his orientation, he also knew the man wished he could fall in love with a girl someday. Yeah, in the end, maybe it was best he didn’t think too much about something this serious. For him, of course, because it was amazing for the others.

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Honestly? Erika was still in a state of shock. The fact that she was getting married hadn't sunk in yet. She didn't know what to think or feel about it, but at least she knew she wasn't making a mistake. She wanted this. She was happy. She loved Everett and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. There was not a single doubt coursing through her mind when she thought about what the future might hold for her.

And it meant even more to her that Franck actually congratulated her, because that meant that he wasn't against it. Kind of.

Laughing at Franck's words, Erika nodded. "I promise," she replied, smiling. She didn't doubt that Franck would have Franck's head (and hers) if she ever found out. Erika didn't mind keeping it secret -- after all, if they (she and Everett) actually did go through with it, it wasn't like they would actually skip the wedding, so in a way, they left everyone happy. They would get the wedding they wanted, and Elsa got the wedding she wanted. Furrowing her brows, Erika turned to look at Franck again, grimacing slightly.

"Well, Elsa is... Kind of. As long as I'm happy, she's on the same page, but like you can imagine, she's... Elsa. As for the rest of my family... Abel and Alexei are easy enough. The biggest issue are my parents; my mother wouldn't approve because Everett is just a cook," she grimaced again, rolling her eyes. "And our father goes along with whatever our mother says, so... But really. I don't care what they think. What's the worst they can do? They can't pull me off my position--" not that it would be such a bad thing... "--and what, are they gonna take the money? I haven't taken advantage of that for several years, and I get my own paycheck." She shrugged.

[François Laffont]

Franck didn’t need to be around Erika to be in shock about this. This was no small news. It wasn’t like she just told him she started dating some ex of hers, she was getting married. This was big and, once again, proving to Franck that she moved on to the adult world while he was still with the rest of the students. He wasn’t bitter about it or anything, he was stating a fact that sometimes made him feel down a little, knowing that most of his friends graduated already. Luckily, most of them also happened to be in college right now, so it wasn’t like he lost track of all of them.

He laughed with her. Elsa was not likely to appreciate his suggestion but Erika was his friend and if something didn’t please her as much as it should, well, he had to tell her that. Anyway, it wasn’t like he told her to cancel the wedding and make her sister’s hard work all for nothing. He just told her that if it wasn’t what she wanted, maybe she should have it changed a little, or make another ceremony as she dreamt of it. It was, after all, her special day.

He nodded, understanding how hard it was to describe Elsa. But he knew her too so he could figure out what she meant. He knew Elsa protected her sister, even from herself, so this idea of a wedding, coming out of the blue, might not have pleased her at first. “But she’s not against it, otherwise she wouldn’t help you. So she must know you’re happy with this and that Everett is sincere,” he replied. It wouldn’t be hard for the girl to know. Franck could tell because their emotions could not lie, she knew because she likely searched into their heads, or at least his. He really wouldn’t be surprised to find out she checked in his head to make sure her sister was not making any mistake.

He nodded again, letting a little “ah” as she brought up her parents. Franck had some parent issues too, when it came to his preferences. He knew his father would never stop loving him but he was also aware the man wished he would fall in love with a girl at some point, even a very masculine one. “The way I see it...” he began, shifting position as he talked. “You’ve got the name, the reputation, the influence, the power and the money. What more can you get from a man, other than his love?” Her parents might not see it that way. When you are high, you date high, you don’t go low. But in here, Erika was pretty much the top of the top. It was hard to get someone without dating beneath her status. “Of course, I don’t know your parents but you can’t just stop seeing Everett because they don’t like him.”

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Laughing, Erika nodded. "Yeah, she wants what is best for me, and well, clearly Everett is. I mean, I've never been as happy as I am when I'm with him and I truly believe that he makes me a better person. I've grown so much after I met him and... Yeah, no one has ever broken my heart as much as he did when he left...and left again, but..." she began, but fell silent for a moment. "I'm glad that Elsa approves, but even if she hadn't..." It wouldn't have made a different. Erika was known for being stubborn. She didn't let anyone decide what she did, or who she dated.

Not even her parents.

Looking at Franck, Erika pursed her lips. He made a point, but she already knew that they opinion didn't matter. "It doesn't really matter what they think. I've done little to please my parents in my lifetime, and being the headmistress is the one and only sacrifice I have or will ever make for them. I'm not going to lose the love of my life because they don't think he's good enough, when they don't even know him." It was one of the things Erika was the most certain about. It came right after her feelings for the same man she was going to marry.

Her family could complain and disapprove for the rest of her life and it wouldn't make a difference. She was proud, she was stubborn and her mind had been made. Nothing was going to change it either.

[François Laffont]

“I can tell,” Franck agreed. He usually didn’t point out so clearly that his power allowed him to read people’s feelings but it wasn’t as if he really needed to be an empath to know. Just the mention of Everett’s name sparked up strong feelings inside of her and even if Franck was a little envious she got someone like that, he was mostly happy for her. He couldn’t have it any other way. It would be pointless to be happy if his friends weren’t as well. “Yes, it’s not like it is her life,” he agreed with a nod. It might have caused frictions had Elsa not liked Everett but she was not the one who wanted to marry him.

Franck had a different view of his parents. Even his mother, and despite what she did, he knew he was able to try a lot to win her love back. The problem was that he needed to change who he was entirely and he couldn’t quite do this. He didn’t choose to be a mutant, just like he didn’t choose to like other men. He was ready to do a lot for his father too. He just wasn’t the type to face off his parents, or anyone else. Erika was more like that. She could fight them if it wasn’t what she wanted. If not, Franck would have likely told her that she should, even though he wasn’t doing it much himself. Then again, for love, he might put up a fight.

“I hope they’ll accept him one day. I know you shouldn’t give him up just because he isn’t good enough in their eyes but it’s a shame it causes tensions in your family,” he began to say. He couldn’t help it if family was very important to him. He raised a hand to stop her from arguing though. “I know you’re not very close to them. But that’s just it. There’s no need to add more against the two of you. I’m sure you’ll have a great wedding though.”

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

"I hope so too, but I wouldn't hold my breath." In a way, Erika didn't really care if her parents didn't agree. Elsa did, and that was the most important thing because Elsa was her family. Her parents were simply related to her by blood, which didn't necessarily make them her family. Franck was also part of her family. As was Everett. "If they don't like it, so be it. It's not going to ruin anything," she shrugged, turning her head to look at Franck for a moment before sighing.

"But enough about that--" she smiled. She pushed herself up then, cracking her knuckles as she stretched her arms out. "--It is what it is," she added. No, nothing was going to change her mind. She was marrying Everett whether or not her parents wanted her to, and if they didn't, well, they were the ones getting the short end of this whole ordeal. They would suddenly find themselves a daughter shorter.

She had already given up so much for her parents. She wasn't going to give up this as well. There was no way in hell.

"We should probably head back before one of us end up freezing," she chuckled, nodding towards the school building. "I wouldn't want your death on my consciousness," she grinned, giving Franck's shoulder a playful bump.

[François Laffont]

Franck nodded at her attitude. “That’s the spirit. It’s one thing to respect your parents and their opinion but, in the end, it’s your life and you’re the one living it and the choices you make,” he agreed with her. In a way, he did the same, by accepting who he was despite how incompatible he knew it was to what he had been told as a child. He smiled as he saw his friend so determined. After all the girl had been through, he thought she deserved to be happy at last. Which actually made him think...

“You know,” he said as he stood up, “I think I understand why Elsa might want to give you a princess wedding. Maybe it’s got nothing to do with her reasons, but still. You’ve been through enough hardships, if someone deserves to get something this...” he stopped, searching for words but couldn’t find the proper term in English. He wasn’t sure if the same term was used in English too. “grandiose, well, I’d say it’s you. I’d probably want to treat you like a princess too for the day if I was the one planning it.” Franck nodded as he was done. He had no idea if this was the same conclusion Elsa went to as she decided to help her sister plan her wedding or if it was just a family thing to make events as if they were royalty or something.

He chuckled as she said they should head back. “You’re probably right. Plus, Elsa might hate me for keeping you from your duties for too long,” he said with a smile that proved he was only joking.

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Turning, Erika looked at Frank for a moment, absorbing his words. A small, almost shy smile spread across the brunette's lips for a brief second. "Maybe," she said, chuckling. Looking upwards, towards the sky, Erika sighed. Yes, she had been through a lot the past year. From falling in love, having the love of her life bail and leave her several times, getting kidnapped and tortured, meeting Trevor, and then having Everett come back -- and then everything else, maybe she did deserve it. Maybe she didn't. She never really thought of it that way, and she wasn't sure if she ever would either.

But she wasn't going to give her sister the boot regardless. If this was something Elsa needed to do, then so be it.

Nodding, the brunette chuckled. "Wouldn't want a raging Bellefonte chase you all around campus, now would we?" She smirked a little at that, and honesty, the image probably wasn't too far off. Offering Frank a small handwave, Erika bowed her head. "Thanks again, Franck. I really needed this." And with that, the brunette grinned and started moving towards the school.