Echo's Paying a Visit

Echo remembered the night before as if it was present. Lenina, plans, evil, I guess you could say it was much enjoyment to Echo. She wished she had thought of visiting the girl earlier. Getting her lazy ass out of bed was the hard part of her 'mission', the easier part would be to get Loki to be on their 'side'. She gazed at the clocked, it was past noon, a good time for most people. Most people around the apartments didn't get up too early, and to get ready for the day, almost took even longer. Well, for the girls of course. She got up, groaned, the groggy-ness of waking up still had its affects on her. Echo slipped on her slippers and shuffled over to her tiny bathroom and did what any normal girl would do Gazing in the mirror, she realized how tired she had actually been. Grey, tired eyes stung, and her face was pale and had absolutely no life to it. Why didn't her alarm clock understand the relationship she had with her bed? Was it jelous or something? Because it sure knew how to piss her off, and at a bad time too.

She skipped the showering part of her usual routine, and instead used a few sprits of perfume. She plugged in her black straightening iron into the circuit, and walked back to her closet. She grabbed a blue skirt and pink 3-quater length sweater. Very Echo-y. She didn't dress like that by choice, more like she had a reputation to up hold. She wanted to seemed sweet and innocent, not like her normal self. She didn't know why, but oddly enough, the sweaters she wore were very comfortable and very affordable, so she stuck to 'em. She changed clothes and went to back to the iron. It was hot enough. She divided her hair up into layer and straighten each piece. Now it was time for make-up. She put on her cover-up, her eye liner, and a bit of mascara. She was ready. Looking at her watch it was now almost 1:45. Lokie should be home. Echo grabbed her flats and headed out to the hall.

She looked over past her shoulders, tossed her keys in her pocket and took off.

"207." That was right, wasn't it? She shrugged and knocked lightly on the door, her knuckles in pain already. "Hello?"

D. Loki had transformed. The old Loki was gone, and this new one. Well, it would come to a shock to anyone who saw him. He still retained the bold and colorless wardrobe, while it had been changed considerably. Gone was the emo clothes with skulls, and the piercings had been forcibly removed. Holes were left in his ears, mouth and tongue. His clothes had changed into a long sleeved dress shirt, now rolled up to his elbows that had been locked deep in Loki's suitcase long ago. Along with this was a dark gray vest, that matched perfectly with his tight pants. Jeans that Loki would find repulsive. But, he guessed his parents had packed for any fashion change he might have. D. Loki had also changed his hair, washing out the highlights of blue and red. He looked like he had just walked out of church, though Loki never went to church. "You look like a loser." replied Loki from within the demon. D. Loki smiled, almost as if he hadn't heard the insult. D. Loki rubbed at his green eyes that had changed almost miraculously as he had finally broken free from Loki's mind.

That's when someone knocked on the door. A feminine voice called. "A girl, since when did girls come to your room? I guess our new look has gotten some kind of approval." chuckled the demon out loud. Loki frowned from within, looking out of the broken window that was now his mind. He couldn't even get his thoughts straight, all he felt were uncontrolled emotions. There were no memories anymore. Which was almost a relief to him. But, was it bad that he couldn't remember the face of his sister? D. Loki strutted towards the door, the real Loki could feel every move he made, and could characterize the walk easily as girly. Too much hip swaying in this attempt at 'seductive' swagger. The boy pressed a button near the door and it instantly disappeared allowing a clear view at the girl standing before them. The name was a blank to Loki but to D. Loki it came clear. "Echo, echo. My, my, you're looking pleasantly delightful this afternoon." said D. Loki, leaning against the frame of the door with the same twisted smile on his face, revealing the beginnings of his sharpened white teeth.

It was strange to see her before him. Dressed like she was ready for a date, but she didn't seem to want anything similar to that. She wore make up as well. Something Loki hated on younger girls, but D. Loki found it fetching. "And to what do I owe this fine pleasure?"

She looked up, Loki was leaning against the doorway, his smile almost blinding the girl. "Hello Loki." she spoke seriously, she was here to do business. Not anything else on his mind. Loki wore a dress shirt, a vest, and jeans, he looked like he was coming back from a family gathering or a funeral or something. It wasn't something people around the apartments would wear on a weekend afternoon. His hair seemed different too, not his evil-y self. He looked … different from what she had picture. But you know what they say about assuming. It makes an ass out of you and me. Another thing that stood out in his appearance, were his electric green eyes. They seemed to pop most out of everything, she could barely keep herself from starring. "Thank-you, and as do you." had she looked 'delightful'? This was one of her worst outfits? She shrugged it off, like she did with most things and went on to the main point.

"I need your help." she spat, she wasn't going to beat around the bush with this. "Well, not only me. Lenina too. " she added, not wanted to sound .. I don't know what the word is. "Its more Lenina." Why was she sounding so much like an idiot? She could do this ... if not, Lenina would have a spazz, and that was not something Echo found pleasant.

"See? A compliment, I'm helping your love life here." mentally spoke D. Loki. "Lenina... The girl that does the flips, right?" questioned D. Loki. "She needs... my help?" Loki may not remember this girl, but he knew that there wasn't a reason why she would ever need his help in anything. Normally, he would just lead the girl on, not even caring about how she ended up. Distressed or not. But this helpless state he was in frustrated him. No wonder D. Loki had seemed so pissed all the time. "Help... What kind, might I ask?" his tone was a smooth one, not quite seductive but not quite offensive. Truly, D. Loki was on the fence about whether he should trust this girl or not. Echo, wasn't exactly someone he revered, and he remember that Loki had hardly ever talked to her. Only the occasional glance at her in the halls. Strange human behavior.

Echo had a puzzled look on her face. Who didn't know Lenina? She was making noises in her room all the time that she thought that the Aliens downtown could hear it. "She does something like that ... " she trailed off, brushing her hair off her shoulder, she got back to the main point. " Its a long story. And one that the people in the apartments shouldn't hear." she sighed, this was going to take a while and Echo surely didn't feel like explaining the whole story in the hallway, where everyone watching TV or something could hear. It was a private matter. "Mind if I ... ?" she motioned inside the dark room. It sort of frighten Echo, she may be odd, but she still had standards. Forgetting her childish ways she looked down at her watch. She had plenty of time before she had to meet Lenina, so far, so good.

"Oh how rude of me. Of course you may come in." announced D. Loki with a wave of his hand he ushered Echo inside. "Something private to talk about... Any idea what?" questioned Loki, seeing as D. Loki was acting as the senior currently. "I'm a super genius not a mind reader. D. Loki answered, rolling his eyes sarcastically. The imposing room itself was Loki's sanctuary. D. Loki had thought it would be best to add in a chandelier to brighten up the dull atmosphere, but he hadn't had the time to put in an order. Or figure out how to order furniture in the aliens world. All he had was the dim light, one that Loki thought needed to be removed. "Don't mind the depressing atmosphere, my roommate is one for more... frightening moods." D. Loki wasn't talking about Ronny, and Loki could instantly tell. But he kept quiet. Wanting to see how this all played out.

She smiled warily, Loki's politeness was freaking her out a bit. Shaking it loose, she walked into the room. It was dimmed, and had no color, completely opposite of Lenina, who's room was splattered with multi-colored paint. "It's sort of... cozy." she shrugged, not really impressed. She wasn't here to judge his room; she was here to plan, according to her scheming friend. "Anyways," she shuffled her feet, "I need to talk," she coughed, should she come straight out with it? How? " Lenina and I have had some things going on. And we need the help of another... Another outcast." she didn't really know how to address him. He wasn't in the tight group like the others, and neither was she, so were they alike? "One with intelligence like you." She was flattering him. Working the angle she knew, very well, would work.

Fennris walked down the dark hallways with a scowl on his face. It was only tonight that he had reached Sigma. He had been on the first ship off of Earth, but they had gotten held up by some strange three headed man and his band of goons. Eugh. Every time Fenn thought of them his stomach soured a little. He hoped all aliens weren't as ugly. His mind still on the grotesque beings, he came to his apartment. Muffled voices were coming from behind the closed door. One was male, the other female. Dear Lord, he thought, do I have to share with two of them? Without thinking to knock he opened the door, letting it swing on it's hinges. "I hope I'm not interrupting something." His voice sounded scratchy, probably from disuse. He had avoided talking to the invalids on the ship as much as possible. Their loud, screechy voices had given him an awful headache. He needed a cigarette. Badly. He whipped a small, gold faceted ligthter out of his pants pocket. With another sweeping motion a fresh cigarette appeared in his hand. The flame from his lighter lit up the dim room for a moment. He surveyed the the two others' faces. He hoped they wouldn't mind him smoking the occasional cigarette. Then again, he didn't really care if they did.

D. Loki chuckled at the flattering comment. Intelligence such as his indeed. His intellect was far superb any natural born human. His mind was able to focus on six different calculus questions at once when it would take a mathematician at least a few minutes. "Outcast? Who would dare have the audacity to reject, one such as you, with your brilliant figure." If a game of compliments was to ensue, D. Loki was the one to win. It was natural for him to learn how the human mind perceived compliments. Some girls thought if you complimented their looks it was a sign of adoration. Others took it as a sign that you were a creepy weirdo. Either way, D. Loki could work around it. He had planned heavily for situations such as these, when toying with someones mind was the utmost priority, he always found a way. His current approach was a common yet at the same time formidable. But it would be a while before it completely unfolded. "You bastard..." growled Loki with in the mind of his own devil.

He laughed inwardly, not wanting to startle the girl with his strange and awkward chortling. And then his roommate appeared. Loki actually liked the boy. His 'I don't give a fuck about what you think of me' attitude was refreshing. Normal society would be afraid to even step out of the crowd. But, he was different. But there was one part of him that he disliked and D. Loki shared it just like him. "Put the cigarette away, we have a lady present." ordered D. Loki looking at the boy with no anger in his tone, just the cool and pleasant mock English accent. It made him appear older than he really needed to be.

Echo laugh-giggled. She had always taken things like that well, and she always had some sort of control; her power being intimidating or something. She had always imagined blowing someone away with her poison or something. She smiled, "Why, thank-you." Echo smiled, looking up and realizing how tall Loki was... Compared to her 5"4 frame, and 90 pound weight, he was a giant. He looked to be almost 6 foot, and almost double her weight. It made her feel a little bit uncomfortable. In the middle of her thoughts something interupted her... Fen, Loki's smoker room-mate. The smell made the girl sick and she coughed a bit, not wanting to seem weak or anything, but her past of asthma gave her the chills. "Cool lighter," she noted, no expression in her tone of voice.

Fenn raised an eyebrow. Surprisingly he obeyed the boy's order. Why not? He had already smoked one cigarette today. Although he wanted the nicotine to make his headache go away, he didn't want to risk getting truly addicted to these disgusting things. All of that beside, he didn't need to go making enemies just yet. Not with his roommate at least. "Thanks," he muttered to the girl before walking to the unoccupied bed. He didn't have that much to unpack besides clothes. Forgetting those awful foster parents would be easier without so much extra baggage. Their gifts to him, their peace offerings, it had all been for naught. They could never replace his real mother and father. A little more sadly than before Fenn began unpacking.

D. Loki turned his gaze away from Fenn and back to the tiny image of Echo. "Now, what was it that you would like to talk about. It had something to do with being an outcast." replied D. Loki, not at all hinting for Fenn. To leave. Why should he? It wasn't as if the boy had anyone to tell about this. He was more of a background type either way. And at least this way he wouldn't have to relocate to a more secluded setting again. But... If that meant being alone with Echo, it could be sort of a good thing. But with Loki inside of his head, it wasn't truly loneliness. It was like having a parasitic parent stuck on your shoulder watching your every move to make sure everything you did was cool with them. And nothing was cool with Loki. But why should he listen to the little bugger. Loki had never listen to him in the first place, so maybe it was time to repay the favor. "I can hear you think. We're the same person, remember?" Damn it.

Echo felt grateful when Fen decided to put out his smoke, but the room still had the glow of smoke to it. She sighed and went back to her story. "Uh, anyways," she continued, taking peeks at Fen, she guessed that he didn't really care enough anyways. But she didn't feel comfortable explaining her life story or something in front of him, besides, Echo didn't know if Fen was on the other side or not. She couldn't quite trust him yet .... "Lenina and I have done some talking, more like plan making, that would be a better word for it I guess. And we need you on our 'side'" she made finger quotations, " As you've seen before, Lenina has a sick and twisted mind, like myself. I guess anyways. We have some future plans that will need back up. Where you come in." she smiled, hoping this was clear enough for him. "I'm sorry if this is too conf-" she cut herself off. He should understand, shouldn't he? I though he was a genius or something "Nevermind." she smiled shyly, her cheeks gave off the slightest bit of red.

"Oh, I get it. You and Lenina have some sort of cult thing you've formed. And you want me in on it for one reason or another." D. Loki announced, nodding his head. Loki growled within his demon. 'No need to be so blunt...' but the demon ignored him. "If it means spending more time with you then of course I'm in." the boy said with a bright tone that seemed so uncharacteristic on his pale and depressing face. D. Loki identified the fact that she was blushing. It was important factor, but others would have thought it was just a minor feature on the girl. He noticed everything though. Nothing got by him. Every twitch or movement was recorded by his eagle eyes and his brain analyzed them, able to anticipate his combatants next move. Even if this friendly conversation was just a warm up for the Queen of Chess. Lenina.

Echo cursed herself for being so girly, this was all some sort of 'get her on my side' type thing. She wished she could start the whole conversation over again. She must've looked pathetic. Pathetic, pathetic, pathetic. The words hurt her every time she thought them in her mind. The girls she wanted to beat up would've acted like this, although she had never done so.. Just to clear things up … "Yeah. That what you could call it." she clarified, her voice a tad bit high, she though he would at least think it over a bit, but … no. "So we'll meet up Lenina's room?" she asked, if he refused, which he probably would to get under her skin, she would have to stay. Echo wished she could erase the part about 'Not taking no for an answer'. Echo pushed her sleeves up, and waited, would this afternoon be not as fun as she though it could be? I'm thinking so…

D. Loki smirked at the 'roll your sleeves up it's time to get down to business move'. But the inner Loki was going hysterical. 'What? That's it? You were so defiant when you were in my body, but now that you have the reins you fall for the first gorgeous girl to cross your path?' Of course Loki wouldn't understand. For all his brains he was impatient, D. Loki was almost the exact opposite. He was used to waiting. "Lenina's room? Ah, of course." The Queen's Fortress. 'Stop with the chess motif, it's frickin' annoying.' "When shall this meeting take place? That tiny detail seems to have slipped your mind." D. Loki smiled one last time before, his eyes seemed to glaze over. Loki felt a rush of air take over him, sending him to the surface of his own mind. For a moment, he caught a glimpse of himself reflected. While he frowned, the thing in front of him smiled. Good luck, kid. said the apparition before dissipating. And Loki was left standing, a numb pain behind sharpened teeth, as he stared at the girl before him. His blue eyes returned.