Leila sat with her chin on her knees, her arms around her thin but muscular bare legs as she stared into the dark sea. The black sea reflected the stars and made it seem like there were diamonds in the water and in Leila's strickingly bright blue eyes as they gazed wide at the sea. She wasn't paying much attention to the sea itself, but lost in her own mind and thoughts, wondering about important and completely useless things, just enjoying the warm, salty breeze and soothing ocean.

After a 22 hour plane ride from Killysbeg, Ireland to America trying to escape from her past, the disturbed Leila found her own solace on the warm beach. She loved the night and how it was encased in shadows she could control and manipulate. She also loved how there was barely any people out at night, she never was a fan of human contact. Ever since she was small she had never easily trusted others, bad memories and experiances has come from that. But she did not let these memories catch up with her at the moment, she just sat and thought.

A noise caught Leila's ears and she quickly spun around. Her almost white, blue eyes filled with specks of violet glanced over the seemingly deserted beach. Leila didn't exactly blend with the silver sand in her tight black tank top and blue denic shorts. Leila returned her gaze to the sea but knew somebody was there with her and waited for them to appear.

Quiet footsteps on the sand, coming from behind her. Not walking... not running... not even trotting, exactly.

Perhaps the word we're searching for is loping.

There's little moon tonight, and that matters. Beth is out and about for reasons of her own, not because of the moon's call.

She wears a smooth, slinky number, a dress more designed for a fancy dance than a night on the beach. It looks like midnight, blue and black and sparkling with stars...

to use a metaphor. It's just a dress.

She's obviously been noticed.

Hello, dearie.

Leila turned and looked at the figure standing in the sand a few feet away, smiling an innocent but fake smile. A twang of caution rippled through her body as she studied the figure and Leila's surroundings. It was habit that she did this, as she did for 23 years of her hard life. She took note of where all the shadows she could use were.

Leila stood and faced the figure, the smile still on her face.

"Hi. I'm kind of new here. How are you?" Leila said kindly, her piercing almost white blue eyes staring into the strangers.

Beth smiled, eyebrows quirking at the eccentricity of the greeting.

"Howdy."

Doncha love strange greetings late at night?

"I like the dark times." Okay, obscure much? Yes. Very.

Beth likes doing that to people.

Beth's eyes, for that matter, are a strange shade of yellow-green. They shine in the right light.

"Did I disturb you?" Calm tone, as if she didn't care one way or another. Did she disturb the girl? She'd meant to.

Leila looked back quickly at the sea behind her before facing the stranger before her again. The wind picked up and her strawberry blonde hair flew around her bare neck and shoulders, the dyed burgandy mixing into the blonde.

"Dark times bring shadows, and I love the shadows." Leila replied casually as if the statement wasn't odd at all.

"I was just thinking, so it wasn't much of a disturbance." Leila stated, taking note of the tone of voice the stranger was using.

"So, who are you?"

Faint smile as she said in a sing-song voice, "I'm nobody. Who are you? Are you nobody too?" Emily Dickenson, anyone?

Bethany is an english major, among other things.