Curiosity killed the cat, and stubbornness got the dog. on Library

Morgaine Carey

December 02, 2006 6:20 PM

Curiosity killed the cat, and stubbornness got the dog. by Morgaine Carey

The section of the library dedicated to books on Healing was a haunt of would-be Healers and Potions geeks, not the likes of Morgaine Carey. She'd been to the library often enough that her presence was unlikely to cause much comment - the maze of shelves made an even better hiding place than the Pecari-ridden Labyrinth, and it was no secret that she disliked about ninety-nine percent of the school's population - but she felt paranoid anyway. She wasn't hiding from anyone, today. Today, she was using the library for what it was intended for - research.

She'd only had two headaches, neither of them severe, over the entire summer. After the two years preceding those two months, that would have been enough to make anyone think that whatever had gone wrong had set itself right and that it was finally over. Halfway through supper, of all the times, the evening before, she had given up the idea. She had retained enough cognitive activity to realize that she had to carry on as if nothing were wrong around Ginger - she would try to take advantage if she thought Morgaine was sick - but she didn't know how well she'd done at it. Something had to give.

Going to the medic was out of the question. The...conversation Aunt Emma had insisted they have after the second summer headache had convinced her of that, as if pride hadn't already done the job. She had wanted to sink through the floor and never come up then; with a man, she might just die of embarrassment before it was all said and done. That left coming here, going through books, and hoping that she'd draw the good straw. The table she'd picked was in a corner, her back was to the wall, and six books sat in a neat pile to one side. Opening the first, she began skimming.

A few terms rang half-backwards bells: genetic abnormalities, stress, triggers, chemical imbalances, mineral deficiencies. One of her preferred groups to eavesdrop on for fun was Healers, and there had almost always been a few around. They used such terms, sometimes. Genes were a believable excuse because of all the pureblooded consanguination, but there was nothing she could do about them. Other things she could maybe do something about, depending. Smoothing a sheet of parchment out, she began taking notes, her face set with determination. \n\n

0 Morgaine Carey Curiosity killed the cat, and stubbornness got the dog. 81 Morgaine Carey 1 5

Adam Whitney

December 03, 2006 1:17 PM

So, does that mean I'm done for? by Adam Whitney

The start of term always made Adam just a little bit tired than any other normal day and this year hadn't been any different. His summer he had spent indoors under the watchful eye of his mother. He had gotten another infection and pneumonia that had caused him to be ill for most of the summer.

And being ill meant being bed ridden.

He was growing quite sick of being sick. So, he had a bad heart. Wonderful. And because it hadn't been an issue when first born, it was far too complicated now to be fixed. So, he was stuck...and it was causing him a great deal of stress. He had no freedom. Not to mention all of the potions he had to take just to keep off more illness for his weak immune system.

One of those said potions always made Adam extremely tired. The Healer told him it was to keep away the chest pains, but Adam thought it was more to knock him out and prevent him from having a life rather than help him in anyway. He wanted to find out exactly what the potion was used for and all of the side affects. He was getting tired of struggling to stay awake during his classes.

Walking through the library, Adam's fingers lightly ran the length of the spines of the books as he read the titles. As he read, he moved down the isle completely oblivious to anything else around him. Because of his lack of attention, he failed to notice the table that sat in the very corner at the very end of this isle, and subsequently knocked right into it. "Ouch, crud!" Adam hissed, rubbing his leg to relieve some of the stinging pain and looking to see what he had knocked into...only to see a girl from his house sitting at the table.

"Uh, sorry, wasn't paying attention."\n\n

6 Adam Whitney So, does that mean I'm done for? 69 Adam Whitney 0 5

Morgaine Carey

December 03, 2006 9:21 PM

Most likely. by Morgaine Carey

Tapping the dry end of her quill on the facing page of one book, Morgaine frowned past it, thinking. Heating charms, one of the recommended measures, might prove unwise - she didn't want to set her bed or her head on fire - but the scheme of turning water to non-melting ice sounded feasible, if she could work out the procedure. She thought it would fall into the foggy middle ground between Charms and Transfiguration, though it could be a matter of performing one and then the other or two straight Transfigurations. Such a pity she and Marlowe didn't get along...

The preoccupied frown turned into a scowl. Keep your mind on what you're doing, Carey. Start talking like that, and people'll think you're an Aladren! Not that there was anything especially wrong with being an Aladren - they were, as a rule, reasonably and visibly intelligent, unlike her observations of a fair few of her own Housemates - but the reputation for being fixated on books and learning to the exclusion of all else wasn't one she would want. Her own House's reputation was enough of a bad fit. She did stupid things when she got mad, true, but she had yet to find any other resemblances between herself and any of the other Pecaris. Not that she had tried very hard.

She was paying no more attention to the section's other visitor than he was to her, and the sound of him colliding with the table wasn't enough warning for her to stop writing; the note about consulting her textbooks before attempting further research ended in a jagged scrawl. The face was vaguely familiar from the common room and placed with those in the year above hers, though not affiliated with her sister. Too young, then, to already be one of the Healing students, which left a potions geek. Not the dumbest thing in the world to have a thing for - quite useful, really - but not something she had the patience for, herself.

"I noticed," she said dryly. She saw no reason to be nice; she had been there first, he had bumped into her table, and since he'd never turned up at any of the stupid parties she'd been forced to attend, the odds were against them winding up married. Unless he did something to make her do something stupid or married Gwen, the encounter would probably be forgotten inside a week. Finishing the note, she began restraightening her books. \n\n

0 Morgaine Carey Most likely. 81 Morgaine Carey 0 5

Adam

December 07, 2006 8:59 PM

Ah well, at least I was happy by Adam

Adam didn't know whether or not to frown or smile at the girl's short quip. He knew he was interupting whathever it was that she was doing, but she could at least be a bit more personable. Adam was growing tired of people always being so rude and cold to him. Calling him by the wrong name or disregarding him completely.

Watching her straighten her pile of books, Adam happened to notice on of the books dealt with healing potions. Just what he had been looking for. He pulled it from her pile without asking and flipped to the index. He located the potion that he was on and turned to the page. His blue eyes scanned the line trying to figure out what all of it meant.

"So," Adam began, as he read the book, only taking his eyes off the page momentarily from the book to look at the girl, "You like Healing or something?" He asked her. It was a logical conclusion for anyone to come up with considering she was sitting in the section with a pile of books surrounding her.\n\n

0 Adam Ah well, at least I was happy 0 Adam 0 5

Morgaine Carey

December 07, 2006 10:25 PM

If you say so... by Morgaine Carey

Gasping with indignation when one of her books was taken without explanation was properly ladylike and ridiculous, but Morgaine cut herself off halfway through doing so. Who did he think he was, anyway? She'd gotten here before he had, she had taken the books she wanted to look at off the shelves, and that meant he had no business with them until she said so. He hadn't even bothered to try asking first. She doubted she would have been gracious enough to say yes if he had, but it was the principle of the thing that mattered, now. Her jaw clenched hard from the effort of holding her tongue.

Her patience was squarely in the middle of its breaking point when he finally deigned to speak to her. "You could say that," she said stiffly. "A family trait." She wasn't even lying. Her family had any number of near-common traits, and she hadn't specified that Healing was one of them. It was hardly Morgaine's fault if the other Pecari thought the two statements were linked. She tossed her dark hair saucily, then, not for the first time, considered sneaking into the second year girls' dorm to chop all of Caedence Redoak's off so she could wear hers braided again. It was such a bother, left loose all the time.

Her father had made sure she understood that her name wasn't to be linked to any further indiscretions he might hear about. That meant being nice. It had been so long since she tried diplomacy out for size that the very thought felt odd. After the unfortunate apology at the beginning of the summer, socialization hadn't been something she had much of. She hadn't even gotten to hear the good gossip, much less sell it. Avoiding a repeat of that experience was a good reason to try staying out of trouble by itself. She forced a pained-looking smile.

"And you?" That sounded nice enough, she thought. Sweetness and sugar never entered the picture, but it was nice enough. "This isn't the most visited corner of the library." Which was why it usually made such an ideal hiding place. Her hands itched to snatch the book he'd taken right back out of his hands, but she restrained herself and began focusing on turning her notes upside-down and covering as much of what she'd been looking at as possible with her hands and lower arms. \n\n

0 Morgaine Carey If you say so... 81 Morgaine Carey 0 5

Adam

December 09, 2006 9:37 PM

I'm cool like that by Adam

It wasn't hard for Adam to pick up on this girl's animosity. It seemed like no matter what he did, and despite his apologies, this girl would just never like and/or care for his very existance. So be it. He wasn't about to make himself stressed and then sick over the fact that this girl couldn't breathe every once in awhile and have some fun.

Girls always seemed so fickle to Adam anyway. One minute they could be happy and carefree, the next they were pissed off and yelling about nothing. They were confusing, amusing, and annoying all at the same time. And even with all the problems girls caused, Adam still liked them. Liked everything about them. The way they smiled or flipped their hair. The smells of their perfumes and the way they swivelled when they walked. Adam enjoyed it all.

"Ah, no, I don't care for it myself, but I'm forced to have to deal with it on a regular basis." Adam answered the girl and set the book down. It was opened to the page where his potion was located on. None of it really made sense to Adam (hence why he was doing so terrible in the class), so he was actually hoping the girl would be able to help him out.

"I have to take this cos of the pain. The Healers tell me that it won't cause anything, but it knocks me out real good." Adam said to the girl, looking down at her with a hopeful look. "I'm trying to figure out what exactly it is that is making me sleepy and perhaps another potion that does the same thing as this one only doesn't make me sleepy." Adam explained. "Do you know how to read this stuff? It's all a bunch of rubbish it me."\n\n

0 Adam I'm cool like that 0 Adam 0 5

Morgaine

December 12, 2006 6:22 PM

Wait, you want me to <i>help</i> you? by Morgaine

Morgaine blinked incredulously when the boy corrected her assumption about why he was in the section. What kind of person admitted he was sick to a total stranger? "Ah," she said, at a loss. When her mother was ill, they put it about that she on vacation. When she took her headaches at home, she spilled something on her skirt and never bothered to come back from changing. She gave him a careful, analytical look. He didn't look like someone on the brink of dying, which was the only reason she could think of why someone wouldn't care if people knew. "I'm sorry to hear that."

In truth, she didn't feel much of anything at all about it. He was alive, and if he was dealing with Healers a lot, then there was at least a chance that he would stay that way. Healers didn't waste their time on a completely lost cause unless there was enough money to sink a boat involved. She automatically gave the potion he'd left the book open to a look, noted the title, and gave him what had to have been a very dense look when he kept talking.

Admitting he was sick was one thing. Morgaine had hit a growth spurt over the summer, but she would never be tall, and she was a thin, beskirted female a year younger than him. Add in the usually angry expression that made some people think she couldn't keep what she was thinking off of her face, and nothing about her screamed 'threat'. Asking her for help was another thing altogether. She wasn't threatening, but she certainly wasn't the kind-faced, motherly Teppenpaw type one turned to in a jam. He must have been really desperate.

"Have you ever met my sister?" she asked, then laughed shortly. "Never mind." Gwen was a little out of it, but she surely had better sense than to ask someone she didn't even know about medication. She looked at the potion in question, trying to look as competent as possible. Potions was easy, as far as classes went - all she had to do was follow orders to the letter, and what was required of her came out as desired - but she had never tried anything outside the curriculum. A good challenge, maybe. "I doubt there's anything without some kind of side affect," she said absently, looking at the list.

"I don't see anything I recognize as a sedative," she said, running a finger down the list of ingredients. Complicated, this one; all the potions she had done in class were simple. Maybe it was disorder-specific? "That's not to say there isn't something, though. It could be one ingredient reacting with another when combined or heated or consumed or any number of other things that does it, too." She sounded like one of her mother's Healers. Not a good thing - the only reason they carried on was because there was enough money involved in keeping up pretenses to sink two boats - but it was fun to imitate that tone of voice. "I don't know enough about what's here to figure out what does it if that's true, though."

That put a damper on her almost-good humor. She didn't like looking stupid, especially in front of boys and men. It was harder to get away with getting even with them. "Anyway," she said, pushing the book back towards him. "That's all I know." It didn't seem enough, somehow. "What's wrong with you, anyway?" \n\n

0 Morgaine Wait, you want me to <i>help</i> you? 0 Morgaine 0 5

Adam

December 18, 2006 2:53 PM

Is that bad? by Adam

Adam gave an inward sigh when she apologized for learning that he had an illness. He got that reaction all the time. He hated it. He wasn't looking for sympathy or pity, all he wanted to do was the necessary things in order to keep him from having to fall into bedrest again. Even more so, he was looking for the spell or potion that would cure him entirely. But, a couple of years prior, his Healer had informed him that there were certain parts of the human body that were still enigmas to both the magical and muggle world. So, unfortunately for Adam, there was yet to be a cure for him.

Her random question about her sister forced a frown onto Adam's face. Did he know her sister? He had to think a moment to remember this girl's name. It started with an M...Mary...Meghan...Morgan...ah, Morgaine. Morgaine Carey. He remembered now. So, that meant that Gwen was her sister. Adam had nothing against Gwen, but perhaps he ought to with the question Morgaine posed. Or perhaps she was telling him that Gwen would have been the better help.

The way Morgaine was explaining how one thing could combined and react or whatever, made Adam feel rather desperate. If that were the case, he would have to compare all of his potions together and see how one another would react. That would take months and too many time and experiments that he just wasn't smart enough or patient enough to do. Not to mention that he highly doubted his Healer's approval for using his potions in such a way.

"That makes sense." Adam mumbled, feeling rather defeated. "Thanks anyhow." Adam said, thanking Morgaine for at least giving it a shot. He hated potions in general, but hating having to take them and not really knowing what they were all about. Although, he was sure his Healer would be more than happy to explain it all to him if he ever asked.

Adam sighed and looked back down at the book. His blonde hair fell his eyes making him shake his head to get it out of his way. At 14 going on 15, Adam was a lanky looking boy. Summers with him spent cooped up indoors, ill with various infections, and hardly eating have kept him looking too skinny and a little awkward. He was still waiting on his next growth spurt to occur, so he only now stood at 5'7. Still, despite his pale complexion and health problems, Adam's facial features were open and always seemed to hold the look of utter amusement.

"I have a bad heart. Born with it." Adam said, nothing in his voice faultered or gave way into thinking that such a thing was a bad thing. To Adam, it simply was just...life. "It causes me to have a weaker immune system, so I'm susceptible to all sorts of infections. I get bronchitis a lot. Kind of sucks cos it usually happens around Christmas time." Adam replied, smiling at the girl as he spoke.\n\n

0 Adam Is that bad? 0 Adam 0 5

Morgaine

December 23, 2006 7:00 PM

It was definitely unexpected... by Morgaine

Something wasn't right, but Morgaine couldn't put her finger on what it was. Nothing big, nothing that would require running for her life or reputation, but something off just the same. It was like an itch between her shoulders, and nearly as annoying. She had never liked not knowing the hows and whys of situations, even if they had nothing to do with her; this one did. She tried to shrug it off, but only succeeded in reducing it to a flybuzz in her ear.

The use the word sucks was so often put to here still made little sense to her, but she had figured out at some point what people meant by it. "That sounds worse than having to attend my father's Christmas party," she sympathized. "I'm guessing it scarred some lung tissue at some point?" That was what she thought she remembered the Healers worrying about when Edmond got bronchitis the winter she was nine, anyway - something about how if the illness scarred his lungs, he'd have it on and off for the rest of his life. She glanced up, not really looking at the older Pecari, and froze. She'd figured out what was wrong.

He was smiling at her.

Morgaine had been a student here at Sonora for all of two years and was going into a third. In that time, the only person she had interacted at all with without completely alienating that she knew about was her sister. This boy should have, at the very least, have been making a pointed exit already, and trying to hit or hex her at the worst. She wasn't being properly nasty, since she was trying to stay out of trouble as much as she could for now just in case Gwen did something else stupid that required her to make herself look worse, but she had hardly been pleasant, either. It made no sense whatsoever.

She knew she was reacting all out of proportion with the situation when she realized she couldn't even tell if he was smiling at her condescendingly or nicely. The moment of silence that had come with her confusion was on the brink of becoming uncomfortable. "Your name," she said finally, grasping at the first straw that came to hand and forcing a smile back. "I can't seem to remember it." That was because she'd never heard it to the best of her knowledge, but whatever. Then, because politeness demanded it and she was neither in a temper nor covering for her sister, she offered her own. "I'm Morgaine." \n\n

0 Morgaine It was definitely unexpected... 0 Morgaine 0 5

Adam

January 04, 2007 9:57 PM

Sorry for the delay by Adam

Adam had no idea what she meant by that comment. How could a Christmas party be as annoying as his illness? Parties were fun and entertaining! At least, the ones that he had always gone too. Rightfully so, they were mainly of his family and family friends. Despite most of them being of pureblood status like Adam himself, they were also on budgets and appreciated all that they had due to having so little.

"Probably. I don't really listen much when the Healers talk. It's usually the same ol' same ol'. Stay in bed, Adam. Don't go outside unless it's absolutely necessary. Never have any fun at all if you wish to live. Blah blah blah." Adam said with a roll of his eyes. He was a fourteen year old boy, he liked to stretch his legs every so often. But, whenver he did that, he ended up in a hospital bed trying hard to breathe.

Whatever he had said must have not been what she had been looking for by the look on her face and the silence that followed. For a moment, Adam stared down at her still smiling in a serene sort of way before shrugging and looking back down at the book on the table. Her way of asking his name caused him to grin again. She was strange. "Adam Whitney." He stated, glancing at her again. "I suppose it's not very rememberable to a Carey. Don't worry, I won't hold it against you." His voice was teasing, but Adam wasn't so dense and to think a Carey would think or even know someone with the name of Whitney.\n\n

0 Adam Sorry for the delay 0 Adam 0 5

Morgaine

January 12, 2007 9:48 PM

Right back at you. by Morgaine

This guy really was strange. She hadn't thought anyone at Sonora was quite as odd as Gwen, but Morgaine was almost prepared to rethink her opinion. Morgaine knew she wasn't the best in the world at following what other people meant by anything, but the way he was talking, he didn't even want to know what was happening to him. She was fairly good at grasping tricky concepts, the best in the family, in fact, unless Edmond came out of nowhere with previously dormant intellectual abilities, but she couldn't get her head around that one at all. It didn't make sense.

Maybe it had something to do with his particular disorder being chronic. She had never been sick very often, and only once so badly that she had to have Gwen keep tabs on the Healers for her that she could remember. Maybe, when it was a constant thing that never stopped, you just got too worn down to care anymore. Or maybe males were all dense, lazy, or both. None of the ones she'd met except her weirdest stepcousin, Alban, had ever really impressed her with displays of intelligence.

She nodded when he offered his name, trying hard not to react to the way he used hers as a joke, or at least something that sounded a lot like a joke. Either her first name was more widely known than she'd thought - not that it came as a surprise, with all the trouble she and Gwen had managed to cause between them over the past three years, but she was so used to being ignored that the illogical part of her brain she thought had put her in Pecari made her think she still was - or he recognized her and had some concept of what being a Carey was, which made him a pureblood. Even with two years of socialization under her belt, she still thought she was doing well to know the major families. If Adam's family was a family in the way he was suggesting, it wasn't major.

"That's good, because I haven't heard of it," she said honestly. "Gwenhwyfar's the one who knows people - the social one. I'm sure she's heard of you." Because he was her ex-boyfriend's roommate, but that was a technicality she chose to ignore. She considered trying to talk Gwen up, maybe setting Adam up with Gwen, as a kind of revenge-slash-Gwen-reputation-restorer, but decided it wasn't worth the effort. Not right now, anyway. She glanced at her watch.

If she left within the next five minutes, she could most likely beat her roommate back and pretend to go to sleep, as usual. "I'm going to go now," she informed him, then hesitated. How did that saying she'd heard go? "I'll see you, Mr. Whitney." That didn't sound right, somehow. Of course she'd see him; the hallways weren't so extensive as all that, and they shared a common room. "Have a nice day." \n\n

0 Morgaine Right back at you. 0 Morgaine 0 5

Adam

January 21, 2007 12:36 PM

Eh, two of a kind, I suppose by Adam

The fact that this girl was so bluntly honest without having to worry about whether or not she sounded rude, was a bit of a surprise to Adam. He knew that families with loads of money always looked down on families such as his, but also always believed that they still cared what society in general thought of them. Perhaps this girl could care less either way? Not that he minded her being honest with him. He knew his surname wasn't well known amongst the higher ups, and he was quite okay with that. It gave him more room to breathe, less rules to follow.

"Gwen might know me from class or something. I don't think I've ever spoken to her though." Adam replied, glancing around for a moment. "You aren't like your sister." Adam added. He didn't really know what he meant by it. Maybe it was because Gwen had this weird reputation that Adam couldn't quite get the jist of. Of course, the girl was in Crotalus so there were all sorts of things being said anyway, but still...Morgaine didn't seem like Gwen in any way that Adam knew of. Whether that was good or bad was up to the Carey sisters to decide.

"Er-" Did she just call him Mr. Whitney? Adam chuckled. "You don't need to be so formal. But I'll see you around, Morgaine." Adam replied, grabbing the book he had been looking at and walking away. Well, he hadn't really learned much of anything about the potion from this little trip to the library, but at least he had been slightly entertained by the younger girl. If nothing else, that was enough to amuse him for awhile. Strange girl that she was.\n\n

0 Adam Eh, two of a kind, I suppose 0 Adam 0 5