Measuring

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Strangely, Elsa didn't quite see the web in the same way her twin did. Oh, she realized that Erika's life had gotten complicated lately; so had Elsa's in a way. Literally the only person she knew who didn't have a complicated life was Frank, and no one understood how she managed that.

So there they were, trying to figure things out. Elsa heard the question as Erika asked it, heard the actual question in there. She didn't respond right away, instead mulling it over, considering.

"I'm... not sure that's actually what you need?" she couldn't help but phrase it as a question herself. She looked back at her sister. "It sounds to me like you've got most of your feelings figured out. You know what you want, you know where you need to go..." Elsa trailed off for a moment, looking away. "Though, I suppose that maybe some time away, far away, could give you perspective? Is that what you're looking for? Or are you just trying to find an easy way out of this situation?"

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

And there it was. The question. The million dollar question. Did she want to eject herself from the situation because once again, she felt the need to run, or was it simply to clear her mind. She had a long track record of choosing the easy way out whenever things became too hard for her to deal with. She didn't want to run away though. Not from this. Not this time. She knew exactly what she wanted, and she'd be damned if she couldn't make that happen.

"I'm not going to run away. I just feel like I'm drowning." Her head shook. "The past year has been so... I know I'm the reason for most of the drama in my life, and I take responsibility for that, but I just need a breather." Moving her hands, she placed them onto Elsa's shoulders. "You should come with me. We could make a weekend out of it." She smiled at that. It had been so long since they'd done anything like that together.

"Maybe this summer. Maybe we could take a few weeks off from our busy daily life and just go." Wouldn't that be nice? Just the two of them, chilling somewhere far, far away from everything and everyone. They could go completely radio silent. Maybe go for one of those backpacking trips without technology. Or go to one of those small towns who needed help building homes.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Not running, just... drowning. Elsa's expression went a little stoic at that. Yes, she could definitely understand that. She was sure that the word choice hadn't been too purposeful, but it still reminded her all too well of her attempt to drown her own sorrows. Again: she knew she needed to pull herself out of her self and focus on her sister.

"It's been--" she began, only to pause at you should come with me, arching a brow. "you really want me to tag along? I'm a horrible party pooper," Elsa had to smile at that. She let her sister continue, noting that the plan had moved from "weekend" to "few weeks" with nary a bit of hesitation in between. The idea did appeal to Elsa: a few weeks away from everyone who gave her trouble. Just with Erika, just someone who understood her so completely that they wouldn't even have to talk.

"I like the idea of the small town more, personally," she offered, flicking her fingers. She'd released her sister's hand at some point, just remaining there. "There's something about heading out to nature that doesn't quite sit well with me," she had to smile a little at that.

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

"Well... I'm hardly in a position where I want to party," she reminded her sister. Her mood was already perking up though. She let her mind wander over the several possibilities. Imagine it though, just the two of them, together. Far away from everything. It sounded rather nice. They could recharge their batteries It sounded really nice, didn't it?

Chuckling softly, Erika's head nodded. "I mean, we could volunteer and go to Africa for a week or two. Total radio silence-- okay, maybe not total, but you know what I mean." They could sign up on one of those webpages too, and do some real charity work and stuff. They could help people rebuild their homes, help them with food and water and just. It sounded amazing. They'd do something that actually meant something. They could make a difference.

Erika's brows furrowed then as she scrambled onto her feet. She turned towards her desk and started pushing the various rolls of fabrics and equipment aside until finally, she managed to dig out her laptop. Pulling it out of sleep mode, she quickly opened the browser and google. After a few seconds, she had various sites pulled up. "Lets do it."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Elsa had to chuckle a little at Erika's confession. No, she definitely didn't seem as though she were about to get up and start partying down any time soon. Elsa had to agree with that. And there was definitely something appealing about the idea. Not simply getting away, but doing so in a way that would actually help people.

Total radio silence. "We should probably at least let people know we're still alive," Elsa said, mildly amused. The more Erika spoke, the more it sounded like she was convincing herself of the situation, as though she knew this was something that they needed to do and she was determined to go through with it.

In fact, Erika was even scrambling to her feet. Elsa watched, eyebrows raising as her sister booted up a laptop. "You're serious?" Elsa pushed herself fully upright again, adjusting her clothes before walking over to her sister. "There is definitely some appeal here, and I'm willing enough to do it if you want. But this isn't something we can just throw together: we need to actually plan it."

Elsa almost laughed as the truly amusing thought came to her: "And just think of how impressive it will look on our resumes."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

"Well, duh," Erika responded, her eyes rolling. "Hence the almost part, and we'd let people know before, and I mean, it'd only be for what... One or two weeks?" Besides, it wasn't like these places had no forms of communication, even if that meant having to use a radio satellite phone thingy. Personally, Erika actually looked forward to disconnect from the rest of the world.

She tossed her sister a quick glance. "Of course I am," she responded matter-of-factly. A plan was already formulating in her mind. Well, kind of, anyways. "Yes," she replied, nodding her head absentmindedly as she clicked on a tab reading "how to volunteer" and quickly read through the information. "I mean, we'd probably have to get shots and go through some kind of training program, and..." she trailed off.

Her head turned then, eyes narrowing slightly as she offered her sister a sheepish smile. "Of course you'd think about that."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

The almost part: Elsa had to smile at that. This did sound like another of Erika's wild schemes. Except, this time Elsa kept finding that she really wanted to go along with it. It just sounded like something they both needed. A few weeks away, somewhere far away, different, with some new perspective.

She came around and stood near her sister, watching as Erika clicked through. "Make sure you find a decent organization," Elsa continued, though she knew that Erika likely would any way. "And yes, I do imagine there's training and shots and we'll have to doublecheck to make sure our passports are up to date..."

Elsa paused as Erika turned, smiling as her sister offered a sheepish smile. "Well, one of us has to," she said, nodding. "No reason not to think ahead, though I don't foresee either of us needing too much padding after 'headmistress' and 'survived an intensive combat experience at eighteen.'"

Again Elsa found herself grinning before getting up and leaning over. "And are you sure Africa? Maybe somewhere closer. Those Central American countries are always in need of help."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

"Exactly," Erika mused. No, although the process was probably tedious, it was one of those things they had to expect. Besides, it was an experience for a lifetime. She was actually getting rather excited about the idea. "I'll make a few calls around to see which is our best option," she nodded. A little research could never hurt, and it did sound as if Elsa was on board. She didn't think she'd actually do something like this without her. She probably would, because once Erika got an idea... But it would still be nice to have Elsa tag along.

"Well..." she trailed off, her brows furrowing as she closed the lid of the laptop. "Isn't that the point too? To get away, I mean?" She turned around, leaning her back against the desk as she looked at her sister. "Africa's as good as anywhere else. It's warm too, so we don't have to worry about freezing." To Erika, that sounded like the perfect plan. She wasn't overly fond of cold climates.

...which was ironic, considering where she lived.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

"I'll do some digging around too," Elsa offered. She wasn't just doing it to say it either: she wanted to prove that she was behind this, that she thought it a good idea, that she wanted to follow through and support. it really did sound like it would be good, and not just for Erika. There was something about the whole situation that just sounded good.

Erika did have a point too: to get away. Elsa had to chuckle at that. "Okay, I get it: you want to go somewhere warm and dry," she held up her hands. "I suppose there's nothing that says Africa would be any better or any worse than anywhere else. It's just different, and different is certainly what we need right now."

Elsa looked back at the screen, her attention going to the maps. She knew there was so much turmoil there, and the last thing they needed was to drop themselves back into a war zone. So she just raised a hand to gesture at the map. "Just... make sure we don't end up in a war zone. Being on the wrong side of a military force once was enough for me to last a lifetime."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

It seemed as if they finally agreed on Africa; good. Then that was settled and they didn't have to waste their time deciding on a location. Or rather, country. Continent. Whatever you wanted to call it. Pursing her lips, Erika ran through the various organizations she already knew about.

And then her sister's words brought her back to reality. "Of course," she replied. "We're planning this together." It felt important to include that. After all, Erika wasn't the only one in this. Elsa had a say too. They would have to plan everything together and read through the various information properly. They probably should have taken a day where neither of them were emotionally wiped.

"We should take a day to discuss this further and do some research together," she offered with a soft smile. "I hardly think this is something we want to plan right now." After all, Erika was wiped, and she had a feeling Elsa wasn't too far behind. All the more reason as to why they needed something like this.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Planning this together. Elsa nodded. "No reason not to split the job then," she added as verbal agreement. She smiled a little and looked back at the screen. She'd never have anticipated this particular conversation with her sister ending like this. Some part of Elsa still wondered if Erika would want to go through with this in a week or so. Though Elsa also knew that she'd already made up her mind: this was something she wanted to do, an experience she wanted to have.

"Right," she said, again agreeing and nodding. "There's a lot to do to put this together. I'll make some plans and start digging around. It shouldn't be too hard to figure something out. I can technically contact the school there, see if they know anything. Assuming that's alright with you...?"

Elsa could, after all, understand wanting to not use such ties at all, just pretend to be normal. There were benefits to going both ways, after all, though Elsa didn't see any reason not to use the easier route if it wouldn't really hurt them.

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

"Sure," Erika shrugged. She hadn't even thought about that. It made things a lot easier of course, what with there actually being a mutant school there. They had to know more about this program than what the twins did, right? Maybe they even hosted a few of those kinds of programs themselves. Erika was genuinely getting excited now too.

Though, there was still one minor detail she hadn't thought about.

"I have to tell Drew first," she said, her eyes narrowing slightly. After all, considering how the two of them were in a relationship (maybe), she felt like he needed to know about her summer plans. You never really knew what the boy had planned. "So, put the plan on ice for now. We'll both do a little research and get back to it in a couple of weeks, yeah?" 

They had more than enough time. Summer was a long time away, after all. It wasn't like this had to be decided now. All the calling around and stuff would take some time anyways, so there was little point in making up their minds now anyways. For all they knew, Africa was a total war zone, which made no where safe. Or something.

With that, the brunette stepped over to the chair and sat down, her hands folding in her lap.

[Elsa Bellefonte]

Elsa nodded again, glad to hear that Erika was thinking about this. "Yes, we probably should let him know," Elsa replied, speaking slowly, choosing the words purposefully. She kept a close eye on her sister as she said them too. This was the same young man who had taken off for Japan without giving too much warning. The same young man who hadn't thought it a good idea to approach his girlfriend's twin in the months since he'd apparently rekindled a relationship with her. There was a bit of secrecy there that was starting to make Elsa quite nervous.

But yes, they had time. Elsa again agreed with that, adding a slight bob of the head as she did. "There's a lot to research and look into," she said. Elsa watched her sister sit down, her eyes calculating.

"We can do this, you know," she said, almost as if she were, well, reading her sister's thoughts. "This is the sort of experience that could help the two of us tremendously, Erika. And if you're at all interested, then I'm definitely willing to do what it takes to help. Oh," she had to smile and raise her brows now, "and all of Africa's not a war zone," she had to pull a slightly smug expression, "it's an entire continent. There are even areas that are entirely made up of white people."

[Erika Conner (Bellefonte)]

Laughing at that, Erika's head dipped backwards. "If I didn't know any better, Elsa, I'd say you were being racist." She actually grinned at that. Though, she did see the point Elsa was trying to make - even if she didn't at all like the look her sister was giving her. There was something behind those oh so familiar eyes that didn't sit quite right with her. A plan - or something similar was forming, and Erika just hoped to god it didn't have anything to do with Drew.

Erika was already sick and tired of people butting into her relationships. She didn't need her sister to go talk to Drew. That wasn't at all why she'd told her. For once, Erika wanted to fix her own problems. Let things take a natural spin - or turn.

What happened, happened.

No matter; Elsa knew better than that. She knew better than to act like their mother. She wasn't going to worry about it. "I'll drop the dress off the night before prom," she said. "I bought you some accessories and shoes to match it, so you don't have to worry about that either."

[Elsa Bellefonte]

"My horrible, terrible secret is out. That's why I'm friends with Roxana: we're going to bring back a genetically pure world," Elsa said in complete monotone, before smiling again. She could appreciate that her sister was laughing, that they had something resembling a plan formed. The details were still somewhat hazy, still a little fogged up, but just having an outline was enough.

Though Elsa nearly recoiled at Erika's thoughts and where they went. Surely she didn't think...? "I'm not going to interfere with your relationship," Elsa pointed out. "Though I certainly wouldn't mind if Drew actually attempted to be social every once in a while, seeing as I am your twin. That,' she pointed at her sister, "has nothing to do with telling him about this plan. You can do that without my butting in. I just think it might be a good idea for him to consider actually talking to me."

Elsa shrugged and then looked to the dress. "What would I do without you?" she asked, turning back to her sister and smiling. "Really, Erika, I appreciate this, and hopefully Felix will too..." because of course, he still had yet to ask. He'd better do it soon...