Rainbow through the Clouds (cont'd)

The morning we arrived on campus was really weird weather-wise.  The temperature was in the upper thirties, and light sleet fell from the sky.  On top of that, a rainbow managed to pierce through the dark clouds.

Sierra and I hadn't said much to each other since that big fight we had at the hospital.  And we didn't speak much on our way to the university, either.  So when I attempted to speak to her, again, for the umpteenth time...

...this time she actually acknowledged me with a smile.

Was the ice finally beginning to break?

I'm still in awe at the similarities between us.  And not just the blond hair and facial features, either.  Temperamentally she is the most like me, I think, of all of the children.

I get her because she is me. 

We like the same things.
 
She is fascinated with all things paranormal.  When I used to be a ghost hunter, she used to love hearing my stories of spooky conquests, and when we were living up in Moonlight Falls she soaked up the environment there like a sponge, hanging out at the supernatural store Aleister's and asking all the supers who worked there all kinds of questions. 

I know she studied alchemy (think she still does), and when she was a very young teen she sought the services of a psychic.  She'd rather bury her nose in a book than talk to someone.  She plays chess for fun. 

Where she is like her dad, though, is in her athletic ability and interest in and love of sports.  She LOVES sports.  Always has. 

Ever since she was little, she's hated dresses and only occasionally worn makeup.  Even when she was in her 'goth' phase, which she appears to be out of.

She is me, only younger -- and even more extreme.

That day, while we waited for the university meet and greet to start, the two of us sat in companionable silence, each with her own books we were reading.  

At the meet and greet, a perky redhead was giving a presentation on Watcher knows what.

She seemed to make eye contact with my daughter, who was watching her intently.

Sierra and two other students were at the presentation.

Next, in the sciences department, another student was giving a presentation.

Again Sierra looked intently - or was she eyeing the machines this time?
She's accused of hacking into Fort Starch's computer system and she still hasn't cleared up THAT accusation yet.

She stood next to another student as she took notes.

I can't tell you how nervous I was the next morning, when Sierra woke up.  Because that's when I would take my leave of her and return home to be with the other kids. 
But before I left, though, I gave her a checklist:  "Sierra, do you have your mood enhancing elixir?" I asked her while she ate her Haagen-Dazs yogurt.

"Sierra, did you take your allergy shots?"
"Sierra, did you get your textbooks?"
"Sierra, did you -- " It was a litany of questions I went through, going through each of her affirmative answers with a checkmark.

 

I couldn't help but wonder if she was lying to me.  

I couldn't help but wonder if all of this would eventually crash and burn and she'd end up right back where she was before.

I couldn't even trust the smile she had on her face that morning as I left.  Was she just itching to get rid of me? 

She's my daughter and I love her to pieces... but I don't trust her.