It was late in the afternoon, and Tara still felt sleepy. She had partied all night, of that much she was certain, but she couldn't, for the life of her, recall in what club – or clubs. So she had just thrown on some clothes and headed out to the park, to get some fresh air after a quick cup of coffee.

Was this, she wondered as she settled down on a bench, the extend of her life now? Parties and shopping? Not that she minded. Life on Earth was still somewhat new and it certainly didn't lack in options, but something new would not go amiss. Or someone new. Perhaps it was time to start looking for someone. It wasn't like she couldn't be anyone to anyone. Shapeshifting would make it easy to pick up a guy or a girl and start something, but she had become used to the human form she had worn for the better part of three years now, and it wasn't like she disliked her human form. She was young, well-endowed, had what she thought was a nice face... No. She was probably off pretty well with the shape she now used, and most of her wardrobe had been bought to fit it anyways. A radical change would be a major hassle.

It was a stupid thought anyways. None of the people around her would ever get to see the real her anyways, not while she was on Earth, so she could just as well stick to her current shape.

Tara sighed and reached into her bag. It was probably just that time of the month that got her moody. It was one of the serious drawbacks of taking a human shape. Copying human physiology was an all or nothing deal for her, and hormones came with the package. How human women dealt with it she could never understand. Perhaps it was time to use a different form for a few days, spend the rest of the weekend as a cloud or a flower, or something that was not prone to mood swings.

“Damn.” Tara rummaged around her bag and stared into it. No smokes. She had forgotten her cigarettes at home. She really wasn't up to her game today. She rose and looked around, trying to figure out if there was any shop nearby where she could find what her human body craved.

Outfit

It was an off day for Serenity, no classes of any kind. The girl liked the big city. There was always something to get into, new people to meet, things to see. It's not that she wasn't use to big cities, but she was never use to just staying in one for so long. Picking up everything you had, the little relationships you made with those around you, it started to take a toll on a person. When you did move around that much, it was always better to just keep to yourself then try and get to know people. It never lasted. It seemed that as soon as Serenity started to get settled, they had to pick up everything and trot off once more.

The park was one of her favorite places to travel through. The people weren't exactly her thing, but as long as she managed to create some kind of distance between her and them, everything was A okay. She was starting to get some kind of control over her Spark abilities, but still when people accidentally bumped into her or she them, it still went off in full force until she could break away from them. But even with the smallest touch, a tidal wave of images and emotions flashed through her head and body. Her ability was more of a curse than anything.

Arms folded across her back, she hummed quietly to herself as she walked through the park, looking around. Normally, Serenity always paid attention to where she was going, but this time she wasn't paying attention. Instead her eyes were trained on a dog that appeared to be jumping up and down, doing flips as he ran for a frisbee that his master was tossing around. Serenity never saw the woman in front of her and accidentally ran shoulder to shoulder with her. Then it started. She let out a ragged breath and quickly hopped back, clutching the sides of her head between her hands as a rush of emotions and memories flooded into her brain.

Wearing

Tara turned around when someone bumped into her and opened her mouth for an annoyed comment, but then quickly closed her lips again. It was just a young woman, the whole thing probably a complete accident, and she shouldn't unload her own mood on a complete stranger over what was pretty much nothing.

Or was it nothing? It really had been just a small brush, not enough to cause even such a fragile creature as a human any serious pain. “Are you okay?”

Maybe it would be best to just walk away, but there were a lot of people around. She couldn't just walk away from someone who might need help and leave her to her fate. That would garner her the kind of attention she was not keen on, so she stepped forward and reached for the woman's – no she corrected herself, the girl's – shoulder. Tara could smell no alcohol or drugs on the girl's breath, and saw no sign of injury. Perhaps it was just some kind of random migraine attack. “Maybe you should sit down?” She pointed at the bench she had occupied less than a minute ago.

To be quite honest, Serenity felt as if the Spark gave her the short end of the stick, leaving her with a power that was more of a pain in her ass than anything. She couldn't even touch an object without trying to block out the past, couldn't put on a shirt or shoes without having some difficulty. Sometimes it was just better to get it out of the way, to allow the visions to pass through her brain like someone just fast forwarded a movie inside her head. Annoying. Simply, annoying.

She heard the voice, but it didn't truly register what she was asking her, not at first. Her hands still clutched at her head, taking deep breaths as she tried to to calm herself, as well as her mind. "No! Don't touch me!" Serenity yelled out, darting out of reach from the woman. She didn't want her to touch her again, never again. Of course Tara was only trying to help a person who probably appeared to be slightly loony, but that was something that the girl was use to, people thinking she was crazy in some way.

Her hands were placed back by her side, taking another deep breath in and then let out, standing straight. Serenity rubbed her hands against her pants, taking a quick look around as she noticed people looking their way. "Please, don't touch me." Was all she said, running a hand through her hair. Being touched without warning wasn't something she enjoyed and yes, the first initial contact had been all her fault. But, she could stop the second one at least, which helped. Bringing her eyes to the woman's in front of her, she gave her a glance and then looked off to the side, "I'm sorry for bumping into you. I wasn't looking where I was going." Really, it was annoying.

“Okay, okay.” Tara raised her hands, palms towards Serenity and splayed her fingers. “I'm not gonna touch you, if that's what you want. But I am pretty certain I don't have any germs or stuff you could catch from me if that's what got you worried.” At least it would be a somewhat logical explanation what might have gotten into the girl if she were paranoid about being touched for fear of catching some disease or other. Phobias weren't something Tara had any personal experience with, but it was about the only thing she could think of.

She took a step back and lowered her hands, stuffing them into the pockets of her jacket. “And no need to apologize. It happens. No harm done.” She smiled and nodded to emphasize her own words. Hopefully the girl would remain calm now. People were looking in their direction, and Tara didn't particularly like that, not when she couldn't be certain who and what they were. Would a bit of small talk be in order to defuse the situation further and distract onlookers from Serenity's sudden outburst? It was worth a try, she decided. Better that than just leaving her standing there. At least it was a diversion from the not-all-happy mood she had been in earlier.

“I don't suppose you smoke? I forgot my cigarettes at home, and I could really do with one.”