Beauty is Only Soul Deep

gin has always been a firm believer in starting the day early. unless she ended the night late, in which case she'll sleep in, because, really, she needs her beauty sleep. big hair does not look nice with dark circles under the eyes, and gin has found it tends to make her look like a drug addict, not even in the good way.

she hums under her breath, heels clacking loudly into the empty air and skirt flouncing slightly. she breathes in the air, enjoys the crispness of it before the sun can burn it away. there are worse things than hot weather; it could be raining.

she gets her usual croissants (almond, warmed, and smelling completely scrumptious), some berries, and a mug of tea, strong and black and hot. it's the perfect way to start the day, she thinks.

she's about to sit down at the aphrodite table and start sketching out some new designs for outfits when she realizes something in her routine isn't quite right; there's someone else in the mess hall.

she's grown used to early mornings alone, only occasionally being joined by aidan or sometimes taleis, but it's so rare. she's rarely spent her morning routine with anyone since leaving london that it's kind of a shock, because she'd always plan to have breakfast with her friends, and she most certainly did not remember planning this.

gin knew she had seen that face before. "yes!" she says, smiling at her half sister as she sets her breakfast down on the aphrodite table, before reaching out to shake her hand. "gin quirke," she says, smiling brightly.

there's a niggling voice in the back of her head, pointing out that she doesn't exactly have the best outfit, but gin tries to ignore it. she's a daughter of aphrodite, she has to have some style, even if gin can't tell right now. it is early, after all.

"i haven't seen you around at this time before," she comments offhandedly, irish accent strong. "i try to have breakfast early every day; you know, enjoy the peace and quiet before everyone else comes out."