Editing Melissa Oakham

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{{Character Infobox
|Name = <!-- Actual full legal name -->
|Image =Knight-Irritant.png 
|Alias = Mel
|Age = ~14
|Gender = Girl
|Status = 
|Classification = [[Aware]]
|Affiliation = 
|Family = Mom, Dad, cousin
|Occupation = Student
|Chapter = [[Lost for Words 1.1]]
|imagecaption=Drawn by /u/Phoenica}}
'''{{PAGENAME}}''' is a student at [[Louis Riel Public School]]. 
==Personality==
Dedicated and hard nosed.

Was instrumental in persuading stragglers to join [[Class_RankR]].<ref name=":0" /> Takes liberties with her handwriting, but didn't get in trouble for it while Lucy did.<ref name=":1" /> Only got a couple of second-place likes on Class_RankR. Her avatar was her doing a ballet pose in full costume.<ref name=":2">[[Flyer & App]]</ref>   Claims she never really fit in with the Dancers, was only included because of skill.<ref name=":6">“I didn’t really fit in to begin with,” Melissa said.  “They think I’m annoying, but I tried hard, I was the smallest and lightest, so I was essential if they wanted a good flyer for the junior cheerleading team.  They ''had'' to include me.  Now they don’t.”<br><br>Lucy switched shoes.  “I think the lower you find yourself on the totem pole, the more important it is to hold your head up high and make your voice heard.”<br><br>“Oh?” Melissa asked.  “Is that your sage wisdom, as one of the three kids left over when everyone else has found a group?”<br><br>“''Woah,''” Verona said, behind Lucy.  “Talking like that is one way to tank the goodwill you have.”<br><br>“And those kids are me and Alayna,” Pam said.  “Not Lucy and Verona.  Especially not Avery.”<br><br>“Ow,” Alayna said, placing a hand over her heart, her head lolling back.  “My pride.” - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/07/18 Excerpt] from [[Out on a Limb 3.2]]</ref>
==Relationships==
====Dancers group====
On the dance team, hockey team (center), and the soccer team. Really wanted Verona to join dance and kept sending people to pester her.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">[[Lost for Words 1.6]]</ref> She wasn't naturally talented, but her stubbornness led her to practice intensely until she was quite good.<ref>“Yeah,” Matthew said, his voice soft.  “We took your friend home.  We tried to talk to her, without giving too much away.  She wasn’t willing to listen.”<br><br>“She’s kind of single-minded.  I remember her not being really great at sports or dancing or anything, but she would practice like crazy and eventually get there.  She was center on the hockey team, with Avery as right wing.” - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/10/06 Excerpt] from [[Back Away 5.2]]</ref>

After her accident she visited [[Louise Bayer]] and attempted to get information about the strange things that have been happening to her but was unable to get answers. She also stole her cigarettes.<ref name=":4" />

[[Jeremy Clifford]] gave her [[Sir]] to look after, he and Wallace helped bring it's food a litter over.<ref>“Cat stuff,” Jeremy said.  “Melissa enlisted me for help.  I carry cat food and litter, I get time with Sir.  I dragged Wallace along.”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2021/08/10/summer-break-13-3/ Excerpt] from [[Summer Break 13.3]]</ref>

[[Verona Hayward|Verona]] had a [[Alpeana|nightmare]] of being stuck in Kennet with Melissa, smoking crack together.<ref>Verona went with Melissa to a space behind old buildings, littered with decaying old chicken nuggets.  They found a seat on wooden pallets.<br><br>Melissa had the stuff.  A glass pipe.  A baggie.  A lighter.-[https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/10/06/back-away-5-2/ Excerpt] from [[Back Away 5.2]]</ref>
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==Appearance==

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Has "big" hair<ref name=":0">[[Lost for Words 1.1]]</ref> which has been crimped.<ref name=":3" /> After her injury she stopped taking care of it.

Her injury also led to her being trapped in inactivity and resulted in her putting on weight.<ref>“Do you think the huge creepy cave muscleman would give me diet tips?”<br><br>“Diet tips?”<br><br>“Being in that dream last night, my old body.  Reminded me what it was like.  I might have a janky-ass ankle for the rest of my life, but… yeah.  Was nice not hating myself for five minutes there.”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2022/01/01/left-in-the-dust-16-6/ Excerpt] from [[Left in the Dust 16.6]]</ref>
==Abilities and Art ==
Bested by Avery at basketball, and was bent over and panting afterwards.<ref name=":3" />

After her injury she was unable to continue practicing sports.
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===Tools===
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== Chronology==
===Before the Story ===
Did not like her cousins growing up.
===Story Start===
She was in the same class as the [[Kennet Trio|Trio]].

Severely injured her ankle in gymnastics at the Wavy Tree, probably [[Mess|made worse]] by [[Nicolette Belanger]]'s [[Omen|Omens]] watching the area.<ref>“Looks like it’s Melissa, from our class,” Verona commented. [...]“She hurt Melissa through her carelessness?” Avery asked.<br><br>“Hurt was set ta happen, see?” Alpeana said.  “But the minging lass might’ve made tha situation worse, stickin’ tha particular nose into thins.” - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/06/27 Excerpt] from  [[Stolen Away 2.6]]</ref> Currently wearing a large leg brace, using crutches<ref>The tenor of conversation changed as they joined Melissa, who sat on the end of the bench closest to the door, crutches leaning against the wall beside her.  Melissa’s foot was in a big black brace that extended from knee to foot.  Lucy could remember seeing her ankle snap, as they’d watched the gymnastics team from the spirit world. - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/07/18 Excerpt] from [[Out on a Limb 3.2]]</ref> and she spent a while on a lot of painkillers - enough to make her a bit groggy, but not enough to really stop the pain.<ref>“I don’t want to be a bother.  But thanks.  I think, uh, just for today, I’ll stay behind and recuperate.  I’m going to swing by the front office and see if they have any painkillers.”<br><br>“They didn’t give you anything?” Alexa asked.<br><br>“They did but it makes me too groggy for school, so I took a half dose.  It’s not really denting it.” - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/07/18 Excerpt] from [[Out on a Limb 3.2]]</ref> She put on weight and stopped washing her hair.<ref name=":6">Melissa had changed, in the past four or five weeks.  Not really eating right, or eating the way she had when she’d been doing dancing, gymnastics, and soccer, but as someone who was almost entirely sedentary now.  Doing nothing except periodic hobbling, with crutches.<br><br>She’d put on a surprising amount of weight.  She’d stopped taking care of her hair.  She hadn’t even dressed up for tonight. - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/08/25 Excerpt] from [[Leaving a Mark 4.3]]</ref>

During the end of year party she complains that she's being left out of things and that her friends are avoiding her due to her damaged leg, it's also revealed that she's not been putting much effort into reaching out to her friends herself.

She proceeds to steal Verona's bag and go off with [[George]], [[Hailey]] and [[Pam]]. Hailey takes a cassette player from the bag and then Melissa proceeds get into an argument with her after refusing to show her what else was inside.<ref>“The guy that gave George, Hailey, Pam, and Melissa a lift said Hailey went looking for bottles and whatever in the backpack they stole.  They found the cassette player, and Hailey started fiddling with it.  Melissa kept going through the bag, and when she wouldn’t show Hailey what she found, they fought.  Melissa hobbled off on crutches with the bag.”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/08/25/leaving-a-mark-4-3/ Excerpt] from [[Leaving a Mark 4.3]]</ref> She finds magic diagrams and practice materials inside<ref>“What is this?” Melissa asked, holding out a fistful of paper, covered in diagrams.  Verona flinched.- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/08/25/leaving-a-mark-4-3/ Excerpt] from [[Leaving a Mark 4.3]]</ref> and realises that the trio have been keeping things from her<ref>“Or…” Melissa said, looking down at the ground.  “Not even that?  The way my life went to such total shit, so fast… and then this?  Did you curse me or something?”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/08/25/leaving-a-mark-4-3/ Excerpt] from [[Leaving a Mark 4.3]]</ref>. In order get get the bag back [[Lucy]] challenges her to a duel and if she wins she'll take some of her pain<ref>“If you hold out for five minutes, I’ll take on a share of your pain,” Lucy said. - [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/08/25 Excerpt] from [[Leaving a Mark 4.3]]</ref>, after realising she can't win she surrenders.

During the invasion by [[Lawrence Bristow|Bristow’s]] aware she was warned by [[Charles Abrams|Charles]] against investigating further into recent events.<ref>“You, Melissa,” he told the girl.  “You stand at the beginning.  You want to be where she is.”<br><br>He indicated Clementine.<br><br>“Nobody should want to be where I am,” Clementine said.<br><br>“That’s the point, isn’t it?” he asked, his voice rougher, his tone biting, like he was calling her stupid.  “And you, Clementine.  You want the answers?”<br><br>“Please.”<br><br>“Then take a long, close look.  The answers don’t give you better.  If anything, it’s all worse.  You know what’s about to happen to you, and you’re caught up in it.  I had the answers.  I paid the price.  I would give anything, not that I have much, but I would give anything to be where she stands, again.”<br><br>He pointed at Melissa, who cringed away from the finger.<br><br>“And to walk away,” he said.- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2020/10/17/back-away-5-c/ Excerpt] from [[Back Away 5.c]]</ref>

After the trio return to Kennet she visited [[Louise Bayer|Louise]] and asked her about the weird stuff that’s been happening to her. Afterwards she runs into a [[Snowdrop|strange kid]], during their conversation together it’s revealed that she’s been stealing Louise’s cigarettes and has got a spell working.<ref name=":4">“Yeah.  Huh.  She said I could phone and ask her if I had questions or come by if I wanted to sound her out about any of the weird stuff around town.  But she doesn’t know jack.  So instead it became about me complaining and she’ll listen even though she has way worse issues, apparently.  Want one?  Or are you going to rat me out to your Auntie Louise?”<br><br>“I’m nothing like a rat.”<br><br>“Cool.  Want one, then?”<br><br>“Sure.  Cool.”<br><br>Snowdrop took the offered cigarette.  Melissa reached over with the lighter.  Snowdrop let her light it, then held it away from her mouth, burning and making smoke that made her want to sneeze.<br><br>“Stole them from her.  She had a bunch stowed away.”<br><br>“Huh.  I didn’t know that.”<br><br>“Yeah.  I don’t suppose you know anything about the weirdness?  Any idea what I’m talking about?”<br><br>“I don’t know much, no.  No idea, really.”<br><br>“Too bad,” Melissa said, bitter.  She exhaled smoke and looked skyward.  “I’m figuring out bits and pieces.  Got a spell sort of working, based on a picture I took with my phone.  Magic, can you believe that?”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2021/02/06/vanishing-points-8-8/ Excerpt] from [[Vanishing Points 8.8]]</ref>

[[Avery]] visits Melissa and her parents mention that she’s been refusing visitors and not looking after herself. They go for a walk together and Melissa explains that the magic spell has stopped working, she gets angry at Avery for not telling her how it works. As the two continue talking Avery decides not to [[Awakening|awaken]] her due of how bitter she had became and her bad attitude towards her friends.<ref name=":5">- [[Shaking Hands 9.6]]</ref>

Melissa tells Avery that she knows that [[Gabriel Necaise|Gabe]] has disappeared and that [[Reggie|something]] has come back and was pretending be him. Avery steals her phone and used the [[Computer Bug|centipede card]] to delete all the photos Melissa had taken on it from the night of the party.<ref name=":5" />

The trio eventually asked her to be their [[Blackguard]].<ref>“For Louise and Melissa, we’d like Melissa to be a blackguard.  Lying for us, helping us to manage situations,” Avery said.  “Louise as a representative for humans.  We had someone who did that before.”- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2021/12/28/left-in-the-dust-16-5/ Excerpt] from [[Left in the Dust 16.5]]</ref>

During the time skip she lost twenty pounds.<ref>She’d lost maybe twenty pounds, and looked way more comfortable sitting on a snow-dusted stair in the cold, cane in hand, than she had for a long time.
- [https://palewebserial.wordpress.com/2022/05/28/crossed-with-silver-19-1/ Excerpt] from [[Crossed With Silver 19.1]]</ref>
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