Felipe De Matteo
April 03, 2019 1:00 PM
Feliz Navidad, Zara. by Felipe De Matteo
During the first day of the term, Felipe had arranged time to chat with Zara during class, and requested she join him in the Gardens at her earliest convenience. As it turned out, her earliest convenience was the first day of the term. Classes were done, dinner was done, and the first signs of a coloring sky were marking the end of day. Felipe waited near the fountain for his friend to arrive, drawing on all of his years of training to appear casual.He wanted to adjust his hair but reminded himself that he'd already done so. He wanted to adjust his clothes, but reminded himself that that was distracting and immature. He wanted to do . . . something. Almost anything. He felt stiff and awkward and Zara was never either of those things, so it seemed to particularly stand out to him. There were plants he could spend time examining, but he was too focused on the situation at hand and didn't want to do that.
Beyond that, he was trying to be careful. In his hand, he was holding a neat package wrapped in red paper and a gold bow. He'd thought for a long time on what to get Zara for Christmas, and was rewarded with his mother's help. She was proud that he was taking the initiative to be thoughtful, a trait she apparently believed he lacked, and was happy to encourage it when the opportunity arose.
Poinsettias were a particularly important part of Christmas culture at home, but they weren't unique to his country or his people, and that didn't seem suitably special. Zara was interested in culture and travel, and he wanted something that suited that. The fact that growth was such an important part of his family's estate and culture did seem important, though, and that had been the basis for his eventual gift.
When Zara finally arrived, Felipe passed her the package with a smile. "Feliz Navidad," he told her, exercising his Spanish and smiling. It was so easy to smile around her, and to be himself. Usually, he was proud to keep his Spanish to himself, but Zara made him want to . . . what? He wasn't sure whether she made him want to tap into more of himself, including his multilingualism, or made him want to show off. In either case, the Spanish greeting seemed appropriate.
Within the gift box, Zara would not find any sign of the monetary wealth his family had a claim to. Instead, it was the riches of happiness and altruism that were important this time. Indeed, Felipe thought they might be important all the time. The lesson had finally hit home.
Made from sugar from sugarcane grown at Los Jardines de Plata, and a bit of magic, the sparkling, crystallized shape of a poinsettia lay within a neat box. Felipe's mother had provided the magic both to shape the flower to Felipe's specifications, and to put a cushioning charm in the box. Aware of the importance of religion in the local community and in his own family, each petal of the poinsettia was very lightly carved with a scene from the nativity. From a distance, it only looked like a sugar flower. Up close, Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, the angels, and the wise men were clearly carved there.
"It's good to see you again," he added, awkwardly leaning somewhere towards a hug and just rolling onto the balls of his feet. He didn't want to be indecent, after all.
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Felipe De Matteo
Feliz Navidad, Zara.
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Zara Jackson
April 05, 2019 12:15 AM
How about Felipe Navidad? by Zara Jackson
Zara had the cutest little dark blue chenille beanie, lined with satin to stop it fuzzing up her hair. The hat had been a Christmas present and she loved it. She also had a brand new scarf that looked like lightweight cotton but was imbued with fuzzy-snug soft-and-warming charms, and it was printed all over with pretty stars. She was, nonetheless, still so over winter. It was cold. It made her nose cold. It was dark and sunless and no fun.Well, maybe not no fun. She had a walk with Felipe to look forward to, although she thought that an evening indoors in front of a fire sounded better. Still, the gardens had kind of become their place and she hadn’t wanted to go against his suggestion. This time. She might suggest their next bout of exploring was to try to find an indoor bolthole. After all, Teppenpaw was where she currently got her snug fix, with its warm fire and sunny yellow interior, and she couldn’t take him there. MARS did not seem like it catered to that need - unsurprisingly enough, whilst there was a water room, the founders of the school hadn’t seen fit to give eleven to eighteen year old the power to make whatever kind of fire they wanted.
“Same to you,” she smiled, when he wished her Feliz Navidad. She was familiar enough with that phrase from her mom’s half of the Christmas record collection - and now that song was, indeed, running around her head and likely to stay there for some time. “And prospero año and something, right?” she grinned, pretty sure that came into the next line and was the equivalent of ‘Happy New Year.’
She had a small, clumsily wrapped parcel with cheerful snowman paper tucked under her arm. Zara was of the impression that clearly showing you had wrapped your gift yourself rather than resorted to a store gift-wrapping service showed that you cared. Or something. The actual truth was that she was clumsy and cack-handed at wrapping things but liked to think that was endearing or added charm or something, though she felt momentarily self-conscious as they exchanged gifts, and she received Felipe’s perfectly polished bow in return for her sorry lump. It wasn’t even like she’d had the excuse of an awkward shape to wrap. It was basically a rectangle.
"It's good to see you too," she smiled,.not thinking anything about his toe bouncing, except that he was possibly cold. She opened the carefully wrapped package, finding the contents inside to be no less meticulous and beautiful.
“Wow,” she breathed, “This is gorgeousl. It’s so ornate.” That description applied well enough to the flower itself, although she could also see that there was some further decoration to it, though it was too delicate to make out. She reached in, planning to lift it carefully from the box, but stopped in surprise as she touched it and found it slightly sticky. She had not worked out exactly what she thought it was made of but she had assumed it to be decorative and had been expecting something hard and smooth. She re-evaluated, realising that she had noticed but not really processed a vague caramelly scent when she opened the box. “Wait… is this made of candy?” she asked disbelievingly, looking up at Felipe a little puzzled but clearly finding the whole thing wondrous.
OOC - I know what she got him and will tell you in due course. I just thought they should spend some time admiring his gift first.
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Zara Jackson
How about Felipe Navidad?
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Felipe De Matteo
April 08, 2019 8:49 PM
*finger guns* I see what you did there. by Felipe De Matteo
Zara seemed like she was probably made of something fuzzy. Like if she were an animal, she'd be a baby goat or a kitten. Something you sort of want to just snuggle with, but that you also know is pretty cool and gonna be a practical little addition to your life. She was the kind of person whose contribution to her friends was immeasurable by any single measure, because she just added too much in too many ways. Felipe felt himself swell with pride that he got to be counted among her friends."Something like that," he agreed, smiling despite himself. He didn't hear very many people attempt Spanish and it was sort of hilarious in a way. Of course, he knew the song, and was sure that Zara wasn't trying particularly hard to get it perfect anyway. "A prosperous new year and happiness," he told her.
The fact that she had a parcel under her arm was not lost on Felipe and he was glad that she didn't pass it to him right away. It looked perfect. It looked like she'd done it herself and it looked like it was made from big hair and big smiles and a big heart. It was perfect, and he was utterly unsure what to do about that. Felipe's father had always made sure that his own kids received much less at Christmas than other children did, and that they gave more than they received. The latter wasn't particularly difficult when you were the richest family for hundreds of kilometers, as they could receive a normal Christmas and give an extravagant one.
Still, Felipe wasn't used to receiving things that were made up with such love. Often there was a lesson to be learned from the gifts bestowed upon children at home, and things like tutoring and travel were counted as gifts, even though there was a strong educational and service element to them. The fact that Felipe had never had a fun Christmas was something he didn't tell anyone, because he had always had a good Christmas. Wasn't that more important?
This one was turning out to be both, though, and he was positively glowing when Zara cooed over her gift. He blushed when she asked whether it was candy.
"Sort of," he said. "It's made from sugar . . . my family's estate . . . we grow sugarcane. This is made from some of the sugar harvested at Los Jardines de Plata. My mother helped me," he admitted the last with some embarrassment, but it wasn't as if Zara could've expected him to use his own magical abilities to create such a piece of art. "I helped as much as I could." He added, not sure why he cared so much what she thought. "I thought that you might like to have some part of my home." He blushed again, and it had nothing to do with the sticky nature of the flower. "I would not suggest that you eat it," he joked.
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Felipe De Matteo
*finger guns* I see what you did there.
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Zara
April 11, 2019 8:25 AM
Do wizards do finger guns? by Zara
“I would never!” Zara gasped, when Felipe made sure she knew not to eat the present. “It’s far too beautiful and special. She lifted it carefully from the box, prepared this time for how it would feel in her hands, and examined the little scenes with wonder and pleasure. They were all so familiar, so part of the world she’d grown up in, but presented in something that was totally new - something that was Felipe’s world. “I’m very happy to have a piece of your home. And… honored,” it felt like a big word to use but the right one. She replaced the flower carefully in its box, “I’ll be sure to write your mother a thank you note too,” she added.“Mine is…. Very much not homemade,” she added, holding out the parcel. She was a little bit embarrassed now, after he’d clearly put so much time and effort into her gift. She had spent a long time agonising over the choice, but that didn’t feel like quite the same thing. Still, given the state of her wrapping, maybe it was a good thing that she’d bought the gift... “But it is also from home, and as my sister got all the patience in our family, it’s probably a good thing I didn’t attempt handicrafts,” she smiled, able to see the funny side even in her own failings.
He had seemed interest in the Cultural Center, so she had got him a bookmark - a magical bookmark of one hundred non-magical people. It gave a little bitesize biography of a famous person, and was charmed to display a different one each time the reader opened their book, so they could easily learn a little bit each time. She’d also thrown in a packet of chocolate bicycles, because chocolate was always a good gift.
“Merry Christmas,” she smiled.
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Zara
Do wizards do finger guns?
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Felipe De Matteo
April 12, 2019 12:14 AM
... That's a fair question. by Felipe De Matteo
Felipe remembered to be polite when Zara commented on how beautiful and special his gift was. He wanted to beam, out and out grin, and maybe laugh. It was a warm, wonderful feeling, but he remembered to be polite and settled for a happy smile instead. He felt dopey and realized it wasn't an expression he used very often."I'm glad you like it," he said, surprised. He wanted to say that she didn't have to write to his mother, but his mother would be so pleased if she did and that was sort of nice. It would be nice when Zara came over if she already had a good reputation with his family.
Why did he think that?
When he opened his present, a little bit awkwardly because it's always awkward opening a present in front of somebody. However, his awkwardness was forgotten as soon as he opened it.
"This is perfect," he said, staring in awe at the bookmark. "I love reading," he explained. His family often got him books and things, but rarely anything more personal than that. His gifts were meant to be educational or helpful, he wasn't supposed to just have fun. This was also sort of educational, but this was special because it wasn't just to teach him stuff, it was for him because someone thought he'd like it.
He sort of felt guilty for being so grateful like that. His parents loved him, Leonor loved him, and they were all good gift givers. He felt lucky all the way around, but this was . . . different.
When he looked up at Zara, forcing his gaze away from his gift, he smiled. The chocolate that was so much the same color as his eyes had hardly caught his attention, enamored as he was with the thoughtfulness of the gift as a whole. "Thank you," he said. "Thank you so much. This is perfect."
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Felipe De Matteo
... That's a fair question.
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Zara
April 12, 2019 7:58 AM
I suspect those of total magical heritage do not by Zara
“Of course I do!” Zara smiled, when Felipe said he was glad she liked it. He seemed determined not to make a big deal of the fact that he had handcrafted (with help) some kind of crazy beautiful piece of sugar art. He was so modest, sometimes to the point of seemingly genuinely surprised by other people’s niceness or good opinion of him. “You’re really very talented,” she pointed out, knowing that he was going to be the last person to say or admit that, and deciding that she might just have to start doing it for him.“I’m glad you like it,” she smiled, not realising until she’d said it that she was echoing his own words. Except in her case, the modesty and the go to line seemed entirely fitting. He did seem genuinely pleased with it though, and it was nice to know her choice was appreciated. It felt like a gift that was personal to her as the giver more than anything, but she sort of knew that Felipe would appreciate that, which was a really nice feeling to have. Maybe if she could tease out a little bit more of him over the coming months she could start to get him gifts that suited him as a recipient more too.
“Did you want to walk and talk, whilst there’s still some light?” she asked, now that they were done fiddling with gifts. It seemed a logical assumption given that he’d asked her to meet him outside, and if they were staying out here, then moving definitely sounded like a good idea. “What did you get up to over break?” she asked.
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Zara
I suspect those of total magical heritage do not
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Felipe De Matteo
April 15, 2019 9:02 PM
When in a mixed-background, international school... or Rome. by Felipe De Matteo
Felipe looked down demurely, mimicking a gesture he'd long since been taught meant appropriate humility and grace in accepting a compliment. In this case, it also let him hide the fact that he was blushing."I love it," Felipe confirmed. "It's perfect. It's absolutely perfect." He wasn't normally one to gush, and realized his slip in decorum right away, withdrawing some of his excitement back into himself.
It was exhausting doing an etiquette waltz with himself, but it had always been important. He'd never really seen his dad have to try so hard to be nice and proper and good, but then, he didn't get to see inside his dad's head. A proper De Matteo was either so good and kind and proper that it didn't take any effort, or they were also so well mannered that no one could tell how much effort it took.
"Yes, definitely," Felipe said, glad Zara suggested walking. It was much easier than just looking at people and letting them look back. What if they found something in his face and he had to deal with the repercussions of having been too vulnerable? Of course, Zara probably wouldn't mind if he were. He gestured for her to make the first choice in their wandering, already deciding that he would choose left, right, left, and then left again. She would ask him which direction to go at some points, because she always did and because she was nice, but he didn't want to interrupt her if she were talking then, so he figured he would plan it out instead.
"We had a fairly traditional Christmas. We do the Posadas with the children from the rest of the village and usually end the celebrations at Los Jardines de Plata, as we have the most space and the most to give. That lets us also use magic more comfortably and my parents will charm gifts and wealth into the pockets of the parents who come too. Anyone is welcome, and no one leaves without more than they came with." He felt like he was bragging . . . he didn't mean to brag.
"It was nice to see my parents and my sister," he said in a more subdued voice. He wanted to say that it was nice to see everyone, and that he was happy to have spent his break working to serve others in the community, but he really was just excited to spend time at Los Jardines de Plata, where everything was beautiful and simple.
"Please," he said, changing the topic with a cheeky grin. "Tell me about your break. Does your family celebrate any holidays in that time?"
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Felipe De Matteo
When in a mixed-background, international school... or Rome.
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Zara
April 27, 2019 9:47 AM
Your hand gestures are likely to be confusing to someone by Zara
Zara’s smile grew as Felipe further enthused about her gift, although he seemed to abruptly put the lid on that. He was really sweet, and Zara appreciated knowing that she could show him whatever sides of herself she wanted and trust that he would react well.“What’s Posadas?” she asked, when Felipe mentioned his Christmas traditions. “Your family’s way of celebrating sounds lovely,” she added. And alien. And again, like they were completely loaded and the centre of everything back there. Still, Felipe was a nice person, and it sounded like his family were kind and caring. Zara was neither easily intimidated by status, nor by not knowing things - the world’s cultures were diverse, and it was okay not to know, so long as you made sure you tried to when necessary.
“We celebrate Christmas. And New Year. Christmas is a real family celebration - there’s like… a million people in my family. Ok, that’s an exaggeration, but we’re up to five generations on my dad’s side now? So, it’s always my parents, my two siblings, dad’s sister, her husband and my five cousins, minimum. That part of the family is super involved in the Center, so we basically all grew up together, but my cousins are all older than me by like… varying degrees of a lot. As in, I forget their ages sometimes, but they’re real adults and now some of them have kids. And then there’s two generations above my dad’s, so any combination of them might be around. We go to church, we open presents, we eat way too much. My mom has a bunch of siblings, so we also do a big thing with that side of the family at some point. We usually do a silly New Year party with lots of games and spray in hair glitter. The cousins on that side are more my age. Or at least, not old enough to go out partying like the other cousins do.”
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Zara
Your hand gestures are likely to be confusing to someone
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Felipe De Matteo
April 29, 2019 4:44 PM
.... fair point. by Felipe De Matteo
Zara was a good listener, which made Felipe feel terrible of course. How was he supposed to be properly selfless if she was going to make it so easy to be selfish? He wasn't supposed to talk about himself so much. But was it ruder to not answer her questions?"Las posadas is like lodgings. It's the inn where Jesus was born. The celebration takes place from the 16th of December through Christmas Eve, and children go around town, begging to be let in to stay, just like Mary and Joseph did," he said, realizing how silly this might sound. He was well aware that the wider world was not as Judeo-Christian centric as his corner of it was, particularly among witches and wizards. "It is nine days to represent the nine months of Mary being pregnant with Jesus," he added, letting his accent come out with the names in the story. He prided himself on clean, standard American English, but it wouldn't do any good to say Spanish words or names with an American accent.
"The children go around, begging to be let in, until they get to the house that's been designated as las posadas. Then they're let in and can celebrate. Each night, a different house is meant to be chosen, but not everyone in our town can host a big celebration for everyone. The last day is the biggest day because we have a Mass. That's at Los Jardines de Plata."
He considered all of this for a moment, never having had to explain it before. "I think it is good for us to remember that sometimes good things come with much suffering and much celebration for the little things along the way," he said. "Whether that is Jesucristo, or anything else."
The sudden urge to scuff his shoe on the dirt was real, which was precisely why he didn't do it. Chin up, he could imagine his father saying. Al mal tiempo, buena cara. Felipe held his head high, and made a point of looking like he was contemplative.
"That sounds like a good way to celebrate," he said of her holidays. "Spray in hair glitter?" he asked, not familiar with the concept. "Are holiday parties not always for all ages?"
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Felipe De Matteo
.... fair point.
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Zara
May 07, 2019 3:16 AM
Point fairly by Zara
"That sounds fun," Zara smiled, as Felipe explained about Los Posadas. "It's good to have things that bring people together. Christmas can be so centred on family, which is nice, but it's good to be a community too. We have carol services, which I guess are a bit like that. It's a chance to socialise with people outside your immediate family, but it sounds like you guys... I dunno, it seems a bigger part of things where you are," she mused.And then, from talking serious values like community, they were suddenly on the meaning of spray in hair glitter. Zara tried to suppress a smile because she didn't want Felipe to think she was laughing at him for not knowing something. It was more the juxtaposition that amused her, and how these tiny little things that seemed so inconsequential could be the difference between worlds.
"Well, those cousins are non-magical," Zara began, pretty sure this had come up but wanting to make sure they had the same context here, "So, no beauty charms. But you can get glitter in a can and... psshhh," she mimed a spraying motion, "and it sticks in your hair and makes it sparkly.
"Family ones usually are," she agreed regarding holiday parties, "Buy my Jackson cousins are all pretty much old enough to go out to bars or clubs, so that's what they do," she explained, "The youngest is twenty, but he goes to a big party run by some family friends. We go to that too if we're not with mom's family - it's kid friendly until midnight."
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Zara
Point fairly
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