Private Finished A guide for the newly arrived

Anna knew he was hiding something. James wasn't good at hiding things. She'd find out what it was, but for now, all she could gather was that it was something to do with him, something that made him uncomfortable. Anna loved a good mystery. Maybe spending some more time around James would get him to open up a bit more. She wasn't sure why she wanted to know, but she just did.

She watched as the holograms materialized and moved slowly around her, turning to watch them. She raised a hand and tucked her hair behind her left ear as she leaned closer to see the tablet that James brought to her. A siren whose songs could control the weather? "Whoa. I wonder if I can do that. Probably not," she grinned. "I think my music is more of a people-controlling thing. Maybe. I haven't really tried, all I know is it makes people all...what's the word I'm looking for? Fascinated, I guess?" She shrugged. "I've been so busy focusing on practicing the emotions stuff that I haven't paid much attention to what happens to other people when I sing. Miss Vanessa says that it draws people in, or something like that."​

Anna shook her head at him, "You're super talented. You can do really cool things with those portals. I can't do anything like that," she pointed out. She blinked a few times as the holograms disappeared from the room and looked around, then returned her gaze to James.

"I had a lot of fun," she told the boy, grinning. "Thanks for bringing me out and showing me around. I really needed it. The last time I went out wandering on my own I ended up getting chased by some creeps. Definitely not going wandering out by myself at night anymore," it hadn't been the best of circumstances, but that night had actually turned out okay.

"Here," she offered her hand to him. "Let me give you something in return for giving me your time today?" She harnessed the emotion of joy and let it flow through her, getting ready to transfer it to James as soon as he touched her. It was an emotion she loved to share, especially with her friends.​

Anna exhaled as he took her hand, closing her fingers on his skin and letting the emotions flow like a waterfall from her to him. She smiled as the joy wrapped around them both like a warm, fluffy blanket. Her smile faltered as he started to cry. For a moment, she thought she did something wrong, but all she'd been feeling was the joy.

Letting go of his hand, Anna stepped to James and wrapped her arms around him in a hug, switching from exuding joy to something a little more subtle: calm. "Hey, it's okay," she coaxed, letting the emotions settle into something that was probably easier for him to feel. "Just relax. Sorry about that. I didn't think it would shock you." James must have been through something. Anna pulled back after a moment and held him at arm's length. "You okay? Just breathe."​

Anna gave him a sympathetic smile, "It's okay. You're always welcome to come to me if you need some emotions," she told him, tightening the flow gradually between them until it was just a small stream of calm, almost like a slowly dripping faucet.

"Here," she guided him gently to a nearby bench and sat him down. He looked tired. "Do you want to lay down for a bit?" She kept a light hold on him, both to steady him and keep the calm flowing gently from her system to his.​

She smiled and shook her head at him, "It's totally okay. I had a great time. Here," she slid over a little and pat her thighs with her hands, "you don't look super great, I'd feel better if you'd lay down, even if it's just for a couple of minutes or something. It's not like I have anywhere else to be, I'm all yours today."

Anna made it pretty clear with her expression that she wasn't going to let this go. If it were her, he'd probably be telling her the same thing. Besides, he'd mentioned something about being comfortable here in this room, right? When he couldn't sleep, or something? She wanted him to feel better, and if a nap helped, then he should nap.​