Thread: Clinging to Ashes (Translucentfeathers & Erebus)

Marisa checked her appearance in the mirror. Light hazel eyes peered back, flecked with green and honeyed amber with the barest touch of eyeliner applied. Her hair was soft, dyed and walked the line between brunette and blonde, pulled back into a low pony-tail. Her choice of wear consisted of a striped, monochrome breton accompanied with lace up skinnies, casual and clean. She prided herself in maintaining a simple look but one that didn't make her look like a total shut-in. All in all, she was tidy and tidy meant she was happy and satisfied. Some people might have said that she put too much effort into meeting a potential roommate but those people were wrong. There was no such thing as too much effort, especially considering she might be living with the person. She had a comfortable, steady source of income working as a career consultant for students given her relatively young age of twenty-three while also studying a little on the side. But even she couldn't afford the rent by herself. The apartment was situated in a convenient location surrounded by nightclubs, snack shops and it was close enough to the university that it wasn't a bitch of a commute. All in all, it was a great place to live and also incredibly expensive for one person to deal with. That was half the reason why she had to look for one in the first place. Her last roommate had been fed up with her, to the point where she'd simply given up and left without giving the two-week notice to their building manager - which honestly bothered her more at the time than the fact that she was roommate-less. She pulled herself away from the bathroom, double checking that the appropriate lights were on and off and that everything was clean and wiped down. She would like to believe that every corner of the apartment had been cleaned and dusted by yours truly the night before but she was convinced that she had missed something. Well, it didn't matter if the apartment awed her potential roommate. Rather, she was incredibly picky and if the applicant wasn't up to standards... well, Marisa was at a loss. She really wanted to stay in this location, but she also needed help... she could probably deal with the problem once it happened. Crunch time. The knock on her door resounded through the apartment and it was a terrifying sound to behold. She inhaled deeply and smoothed her top down before walking over to answer the door with a dazzling smile. Welcome. Please come in. The first thing she noticed was the woman's unruly hair and her choice of dress. Combat boots that looked like it'd seen more wars than she had with her vacuum cleaner and so many piercings she'd need at least ten minutes to count them out individually. She stood to the side to let the woman inside, resisting the urge to ask them to take their shoes off before going in. It wasn't looking good, that much was for sure, but Marisa had always been told to never judge a book by its cover... though with this woman's cover, how could she do anything but not judge? When the woman passed her, Marisa was aware of the smell almost instantly. Having plucked many a carton from her late mother's paws, the distinct scent was burned into her memory. She pressed her lips together tightly, not willing to say anything that might be seen as rude. Visibly wrinkling her nose, she reminded herself that it was a rude thing to do and instead changed her expression into a pleasant smile. This girl, Cara, having remembered her name at last from their talk over the phone, had been only one of the few applicants. After the other people had met her, she was described as overbearing and overly complicated. So Marisa was down to her last option and she could already tell that option was not her first one. So, would you like me to show you around? She said. Do you have any questions for me?