* WRONG SIDE OF THE TRACKS, [lark]

It was one of those rare occasions where Lark wondered what was happening to her. There she stood in her bedroom, ponytail partially curled and placed over her shoulder, black collared blouse with a white camisole underneath accenting her torso, and a pair of black slacks loose but comfortable against her legs. She even managed to find a pair of high heels in her closet—probably from a few years back when her mom tried to encourage her to be more ‘girly’. They were going to pay off today, at least, and the heels were not so infinitely high that she felt unstable when walking. Lark looked at herself in the mirror and felt as though she were looking at someone completely different. I don’t mind it… She thought to herself, biting at the inside of her lip. She was tired of seeming unapproachable all of the time; perhaps it was the way she normally dressed? Or was it the way she talked? Lark rattled her brain to try and comprehend what kept people at a distance but was not sure what could be changed to fix it. Well, aside from dressing up in a nice outfit for a night with Nell. Personalities were a bit more difficult to alter and change in and out of. If it were that easy, then life would be much simpler. Lark was comfortable with who she was, but at the same time wanted to try and be more open. At least with those like Nell, and Josh, and Ashton.

Frank was away for a week, off with his buddies doing who knows what, and he left the car in his absence. He did not say she could use it, nor did he hand her the keys, but Lark was not an idiot. It was fairly easy to find the hiding place. She used the car a few times before when he was passed out in his bed. Straightening her shirt, Lark left the room and grabbed the car keys on the way out. She even had a purse strapped over her shoulder. Nell is starting to break me down… Lark thought, though there was a smile on her lips. She hopped into the car and took off towards the Orchestra Hall, which was a fairly decent drive from home. Not that she minded; the girl spent the time thinking and listening to music. She wondered about the future, what was going to happen to her for college, for a career, with friends…would anything drastic change? Outside of moving away from Frank next year, and aside from Nell and Josh tying the knot at some point, there was not much else she could foresee that was going to be anything large. I need to start working on their wedding gift. Lark planned to do something special for them, hoping that it meant as much to them as it would to her. She could use what she knew best, and make something memorable. At least, she hoped it would be memorable.

Lark pulled into the parking lot and found a place decently close to the entrance to save her the harsh walk in high heels. High or low, any heel always made the girl’s foot ache. She stepped out and locked the car for good measure (because if something happened to the car Frank would definitely figure it out) before wandering her way inside. There were quite a few people streaming in and out, most of them dressed up nicely for the occasion as well. Lark was grateful she took a little time to put on something nice so she would not feel so out of place. Since when did I care? Since this was Nell’s place of work, and Lark refused to make a bad impression with any of her co-workers or her boss. That would not do well for Nell to have her friend show up in jeans and a t-shirt. She caught sight of her friend and smiled at her. “Aloha, Nilla,” Lark greeted back, shuffling on her small high heels as people shuffled by. Even with high heels Nell was still shorter than she, and it amused the Fire girl. She chuckled. “Almost. My heels aren’t too high so you have a bit of an advantage this time.” Her eyes glinted with amusement and happiness, something she only seemed to feel around her close friends. “Oh, I actually just got here about five minutes ago. I kinda took the drive easy to enjoy a little driving alone time.” Lark smiled, unsure if Nell knew about her situation at home. Probably not, being as Lark never talked about it. “So do I need to grab a ticket? I don’t know how much they are or anything…”

It was not often Lark was complemented by anyone. She never dressed up, never strove to impress, never made herself out to be some desirable female every guy fawned over. She liked to be simple and wear what was comfortable. Thus when she did go out of her way to look nice, even if it was just for an event, having Nell speak fondly of the way she looked was almost too hard to swallow. Lark ducked her head slightly and glanced at a few people passing by. The perfect distraction. “Thank you. I had to dig into the back of my closet to find it but…” She shrugged to try and blow it off. “I’m definitely not a heel person, but figured it would be something to wear tonight since it’s sort of a dress-up thing.” The last time she wore heels was last year during prom when she went with Jack. They were definitely higher than the ones she was wearing now, too. Surprising she did not fall flat on her face. “Ah yeah, the gas prices are a bit of a pain in the ass. But now that I’m getting a steady paycheck I’m not gonna complain too much.” The smile on her face proved how happy she was with her job and the money she was now pulling in. The hours were a bit short because of school, but that was fine. Maybe during winter break she could bust out a few solid weeks of work for more money. “Oh? Well that’s really neat! I’m excited. Though mascots would be a really nice addition.” To see an orchestra perform up close would be memorable. Lark had never really found much of an opportunity to go to these sorts of things, so she was prepared to soak it up like a sponge. She nodded to her friend and followed her inside.

“Really? Well I guess we’ll have to find a place to eat afterwards.” Lark said with a reassuring smile. Obviously she was interested in hanging out with Nell after the performance. There was no need in driving all the way out there just to watch them and leave. She sat down with Nell and watched as they set up their sections, some of them practicing and testing out their instruments before they actually slid into playing their pieces. Lark watched, entranced by their fluidity, their ability to piece every instrument together to make an awe-inspiring symphony. Once the performance was over, Lark lingered behind with Nell as people filed their way out of the room. Her hands were placed in her lap. She nodded eagerly. “Food sounds really good right about now. I could eat a horse.” Whenever she was around Nell there was an increase in her appetite, probably because she was one of the few people who enjoyed food as much as she did. From somewhere behind her, Lark heard a woman’s voice and turned to see an older woman standing there. She blinked, unsure of how to respond at first before her friend took over. She exchanged the glance with Nell before looking back up and smiling at Jane. “It’s nice to meet you,” Lark replied as sweetly as possible. She was completely unaware of how uncomfortable her friend was.

“I enjoyed it very much. I’ve never been to one before so it was a good first experience.” Receiving box seats for the orchestra was definitely a treat, and Lark could not have been happier with the view and the performance over all. Her friends were always so good to her, taking care of her even in the simplest of ways. Lark finally stood up and straightened out her slacks—a subconscious action that surprised even her—before turning to face Jane fully. She did not seem like an intimidating or rude woman, at least from the smile on her face. Lark was big on first impressions and so far she was receiving a decent vibe from Nell’s aunt. She was always on edge with people she first met, though, so kept her guard up just enough to feel safe. It was her defense mechanism. “Oh, uh, sure! I guess I have time so long as Nell is okay with it. We were going to go and grab some dinner, so I don’t want to press her time.” Lark looked to her friend for any sort of response; whether it be the ‘go ahead’ or ‘maybe later’, to which either one she was fine with accepting. She also did not want to step on Jane’s toes and sound ungrateful for the offer, either. Why was socializing so hard?

"Working at the daycare. With the three year olds," Lark replied, lifting her chin a bit in pride. Having no previous work experience she had been concerned about being hired anywhere but they gave her a chance. So far things were working out and the money made her feel very independent. Now, the only thing that was left was to get out of Franks' house, which was still a long way away. Lark was sturdy and could push through with enough determination. At least, she hoped she could. A smile cracked on her lips at the image of watching people dressed up in violin and guitar costumes, dancing across the stage. Wow, would they actually do something like that one day? She could only wonder. "So long as they don't have a bunch of skimpy cheerleaders wandering around I think I'll be okay." Lark chuckled. She was never much of a fan of girls like that so did not mind expressing that on occasion. Lark often wondered what the attraction was to people like them. They always seemed rather shallow. Perhaps it was her bad encounters before coming to the Academy, but the cheerleaders always managed to leave a rather bitter taste in her mouth. After they discussed food it was difficult for Lark to ignore the grumbling in her stomach, but managed well enough. It was a bit of a disappointment to have Nell's aunt stop them from fixing said hunger problem. She still smiled none the less. She was a confident person so it was easy enough considering her awkwardness with people.

Jane seemed surprised; was it really that shocking? Huh. Lark nodded. "It was an honor. Beautifully played." She loved music of all kinds, so even an orchestral piece was enough to draw the girl in. Whatever it was that Nell was dealing with internally, she was completely unaware of it. Had Lark known this conversation might have gone in an entirely different direction. As in the conversation might not even happened at all. Nell's well-being would come first. "I live in Maple Hollow." Lark replied simply, keeping her posture and attitude crisp and cordial. The questions were basic and generic back and forth; Ashton was far more probing so if she could handle that then she could handle this. Though she was interested in seeing the rest of the orchestra hall, she was also quite hungry and hoped it would not take too terribly long. That, and she wanted to spend time with Nell. That was always very important to her. Lark nodded to Jane and followed her willingly, glancing down at her friend with a smile. Completely oblivious. "Oh really?" Lark replied, looking up at the stage as they stepped up onto it. It was a lot larger than she realized, and felt very small. So this is what the orchestra players see. It was really neat. She shrugged. "I know about opera but never really took much time to listen to it. I'll probably need to experience it at least once for the sake of being a musician, I suppose." She smiled and chuckled a bit at Jane's input on opera singers. Was that true? An awful way to go, really.

Lark was enjoying the conversation with Jane, and was oblivious to any of what Nell was feeling. She had no idea what Jane did behind the scenes, what she was capable of doing. Had that been the case, she might not have even come to the concert hall in the first place. She was wise enough to avoid confrontation like that. Unfortunately she was none the wiser. “New York sounds like a nice place, though I’ve never been,” She replied, sticking her hands into her slack pockets with a typical Lark-like flair. Dressed up or not it was difficult for her to refrain completely. Being unaccustomed to physical contact, it took the girl a moment to find an appropriate response to Jane’s hand on her arm. For the moment all she could force was a smile. “I play the guitar,” Lark said rather proudly. “Electric and acoustic. Though I’ve considered other stringed instruments too.” She had actually been considering the standing bass, the violin, and the mandolin. However that required more money, and although she had a job it would simply need to wait. Eventually she would have one of those three. It was nice to see Nell jump into the conversation with her; lacking full social skills maybe, but taking notice of her friend’s silence was easy. She spoke, but not as much as she would have anticipated. “I’ll experience it eventually.” She smiled.

As the girl observed the stage, glancing over at Jane’s grand motions every once in a while, she absorbed everything around her. The lights, the chairs, the stand where maestro stood and orchestrated the entire ordeal. It was like a field trip. Someone approached Nell and spoke to her. “Sure,” Lark said, not even feeling the least bit anxious about being left with Jane. There was no reason to feel anything but confident at this point. “Okay.” Willingly she followed the woman towards the back, still taking in her surroundings like a child. She had been in orchestra halls before, but they were not as big as this one. Most of them were mostly used for small musical pieces and plays. Jane opened the door for her to display the instruments. At first she hesitated, the darkness causing her to halt mid-step. Her fear of the dark gripped at her chest, mixed with the memory of being lured into the classroom at the Academy with Ashton. When the light flicked on, however, she dropped her shoulders slightly and entered the room to observe the violins along the wall. “There’s quite a few of them. I guess that shipping them out can get pretty expens—“ Before the sentence could even finish, the light went out and the door shut. Lark, suddenly wheeling around to try and find her bearings, ran straight for the door (which was easy considering it was right behind her). The door would not budge. The darkness was encompassing her, making it difficult to breathe. “Let me out! LET. ME. OUT!” Lark demanded, fear and fury welling up in her chest.

No matter how tough you were, or how tough you acted, when faced with one of your greatest fears it was damn near impossible to stay calm and collected. Had Lark been with someone in the room, someone to hold on to, she might have been okay. However she was utterly alone and the darkness was suffocating. Her chest was still tight and held her stock still for a long moment before she tried rapping at the door as hard as she could. It was difficult to breathe or function. The only thought running through her head was am I going to be forgotten? Will I be left here? The instincts of a child reared their head and clutched at her heart. After a few more failed attempts at barraging the door with her fists, Lark backed up and stood still. There was no use in looking around or trying to open the door when it was not able to be opened from the inside. Trapped. Trapped like a fucking animal. Had she not been scared to death, her temper might have risen to the surface and created a terrifying monster of rage. After standing there for what felt like hours (the seconds passed by so slowly when gripped by fear), Lark finally slumped to the floor on her knees and started to shake. Ashton was not here now. No one was. No shoulder to lean on, no one to talk her down. Once again the terror tossed away logic; Lark had forgotten she was able to create a source of light to at least help calm her nerves partway. Even then being locked in a room alone would not change much of anything. She wondered if Nell would find her. If anyone cared to find her. These were the ramblings of one with a phobia of the dark.

Suddenly a stream of light reached her and Lark looked up to see Nell in the doorway. "Nell, thank God," The lights flicked on. Relief flooded her entire body, almost causing her to melt into the floor. With wobbling knees she stood up and tried to shake off her fears but it was not without great difficulty. The darkness was draining. "You should have--" Lark could not comprehend Nell's words. So she had known all along that Jane would try and do something like this? Why would this have been kept a secret? Inside a bubbling of anger rose up into her throat like bile; a sickening feeling because she never wished to get angry at someone like Nell. It did not seem right. However it was difficult to contain. "You knew she would t-try and pull something like this? And...and you left me alone...with her." Her nostrils flared, body still shaking from the onslaught of fear but tinged with anger. It was mostly anger at Jane, but Nell might not have known that. She was not exactly sure where to place her frustrations at this point. That ceased slightly when the Earth girl placed her hands on either side of her face and asked about her well-being. Lark swallowed a bit, now feeling guilty for even growing angry (though it was still spurting up in the depths of her gut.). "No," She replied curtly, staring down at her friend with the fear in her eyes. The light was on, but the adrenaline rush still coursed through her veins. "No she d-didn't hurt me. But she might as well have...shoving me in the d-dark..." Quickly Lark shook her head to be rid of the thoughts. Upset maybe, but she knew that without Nell she would still be stuck in the room alone without the light. She wanted to hug her friend, but for the moment she refrained. Right now her mind was in every place possible. "Th-thanks for finding me."

Fear, anger, fear, anger. Both of them clashed at her insides, causing Lark to feel uncertain with her emotions. One minute she wanted to lash out at Nell for leaving her alone with Jane, the next guilt struck her in the heart and prevented her from speaking out. “I just don’t understand,” Lark ground her teeth together, losing the composure she once held together so well. It did not do well when she was dressed so nicely to look like your typical tomboy Fire ready to beat someone’s face in. “Why the fuck would she e-even do that? She w-was having such a normal conversation w-with us.” And that was what pissed her off the most. That Jane wound up being a fake. A liar. And Lark could not stand people like her, people that were nice to your face but stabbed you in the back. It was enraging. She tossed her hand up at Nell. “Don’t say sorry for that bitch,” The girl demanded. It was obvious she was angry. It was slowly taking precedence over the initial fear she felt at being left in a locked room in the dark. “Next time I will not let my guard down. That won’t happen again.” She partially admitted to having let herself be in a comfortable state around Jane, something she should not have done. I figured if she was Nell’s aunt… Wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

“And why the hell not? To shove an innocent person into a closet is not exactly managerial conduct.” Lark’s body was still tense, unable to release its tight hold. Her temper sucked. “It would be different if I did something wrong but I was here to see a symphony.” Had this been any other establishment Jane would have been fired immediately. What Lark did not realize was how deeply rooted the woman was. How many contacts she had and how many were loyal to her. The girl quirked an eyebrow at Nell’s reference, obviously not taking the reference the way she probably should have. The Sopranos? She’d heard of it but never saw it. She blinked, trying to absorb this. Take care of business? That sounded like something she would have heard in one of those movies with the mafia leader and his strong New York-Italian accent. “Takin’ care’o business, as usual,” Sounded off in her head and instantly Lark grew concerned. “I’m not sure if I even want to know what you mean by that,” She said warily. All sorts of images and thoughts flashed through her mind, but kept them to herself. No sense in accusing someone of anything at this point. Lark nodded and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind them and glancing down both ends of the hallway. “I’m not so sure I want to stick around here now. Maybe we should go and find a place to eat.” Maybe then, Nell could enlighten her on what she might have done to warrant being locked in a dark room full of violins.

Lark’s upper lip tightened up into a thin line. It was hard to register all of what happened, at least right now. One minute they were having a civil, normal conversation and the next she found herself in a dark room with no way out on her own. Had Nell not shown up there would have been no escape. Unless some random janitor or worker heard her sobs on the other side of the door. Even then, would there have been much of a chance? She was glad there was no time to find that out. The anger still coursed under her skin like a hot liquid injected into her veins; all Lark could think about was marching straight up to Jane and lighting her hair on fire. Maybe worse. “How can you work for someone like her?” Lark asked, voice firm and full of anger. Now, the protective mechanism kicked in. “She…she doesn’t do that to you does she?” If Jane was as horrid as Nell claimed her to be, what was she capable of doing to her own family? She had been an innocent bystander and was shoved into a dark room for no reason other than the fact that she was affiliated with Nell. What was she willing to do to Nell when the doors had shut and the curtain had drawn? That placed the Fire girl on edge and instantly stepped closer to her friend. “And if I do, then...I don’t even know.” What would happen if she ran into Jane again? She could not even allow herself to think that far.

Power. She tried to grasp what that actually meant but there was so much waging war inside that it was hard to think straight. Anger was so hard to cope with sometimes. It was almost blinding. The protectiveness rose up again. “If you speak out against her I’m not quite sure what she will do, then, If she is the way you say she is. Don’t say a word if you think it will put you in harms’ way.” It was not a request, nor a plea. It was more of a frustrated demand. Nell could do as she wished but Lark wanted her to understand she was concerned about her well being. If Jane ever laid a hand on her friend—she did not even want to think about it. It was making her quiver with fury at the thought. Then, a shockwave of fear instilled itself in her heart. She nearly froze. “Mafia. Jane is…she’s in…the mafia?” Although Lark’s voice was quiet—angry yes, but not stupid enough to scream it at the top of her lungs—it was obvious there was a cross of anger and fear. She had seen those old shows. She’d read about Al Capone and the havoc he wreaked in the states. There was no mistaking what the mafia was capable of. Guns, murder, stealing, manipulation, control. There was a lot of it, and enough to force Lark to swallow back the large lump in her throat. If they stepped on the wrong toes, said the wrong things, they could have any number of the family on their back. They would be in danger. She was not sure what to make of all this, her mind reeling with the news.

Without as much as a glimpse of hesitation Lark followed Nell out of the building and towards the car. Her eyes were narrowed, lips tight, heart thudding in her ears. She wanted to say something, but every time the words attempted to surface her anger choked them back. Lark refused to sound bitter and angry at Nell for anything. It was difficult. Fuck my element. Fuck it so much right now. Lark was very much aware of her temper and what it could do should she let it get out of hand. Nell upset her—she purposefully allowed a woman in the mafia to go with her alone and never mentioned a word of Jane’s capabilities before hand—but there was a legitimate reason for hiding this all away, right? There had to be. Just the same when Lark hid her home life away from just about everyone she knew (except for Josh, which was unintentional anyway). The car started and jolted the girl out of her thoughts. “A diner sounds nice, yeah,” She replied, trying to shove everything away. The fear was still there, nestled in her stomach. It was one large knot. “I could go for a really good hamburger right now, with cheese and ketchup and pickles…” Her mouth started to water at the thought. It was enough to help keep her mind away from Jane and the mafia at least. The lights to the diner were neon and bright as they approached, causing Lark to blink. Damn. At least you could not miss it from the road. “Once we’re done eating I guess I should go back and get my car,” She said, remembering she actually drove herself here. “Hopefully they won’t have done anything to it.” The first thought that crossed her mind was them placing some sort of tracking device or a timed bomb underneath the car, but did not mention the images aloud. It was just those movies messing with her head.