Echo Elms
June 27, 2006 9:33 AM
[first day of class] Early morning breakfast. by Echo Elms
Echo got up the moment sunshine peeked through his window. He had been staring at it for ages because the whole sleeping thing wasn't working.Ten minutes later, he crept out of his room all showered and dressed in his tevas and shorts. He still wasn't sure who his roommates were or he might have waited for them or at least looked to see if they were awake. Instead, he crept down the stairs, into the common room, and out the door.
He headed toward the big hall with the waterfalls. Having only made the journey between the commons and the hall once, he made a grand total of six wrong turns and talked to three different portraits before he figured out where the food was. By the time he entered Cascade Hall he was in a soaring good mood. He'd already had an adventure and he hoped he'd get lost on his way back, too.
There were already a few other students milling around. Echo stood uncertainly in the doorway. It was one thing to eat alone if there was no one else around, it was another thing if there was.
Echo zeroed in on another student who was sitting alone and made a decision. He could do it. He'd already talked to three strange potrait's that morning. Why not a student? He walked up to the loner's table.
I must be out of my mind, Echo thought just before he opened his mouth. But it was too late to withdraw.
"Hi," he greeted the other in a voice rather too awake for most people in the morning, "Um. I'm Echo. Mind if I join you?"\n\n
21
Echo Elms
[first day of class] Early morning breakfast.
93
Echo Elms
1
5
Leo Idoya
June 29, 2006 12:03 PM
You must be blind as well as loud... by Leo Idoya
"I'll meet you in the Cascade Hall bright and early," Gil had promised as they prepared to Floo through to Sonora before the first day. "We'll have breakfast together every morning. Promise.""Promise," Leo muttered, dropping his spoon into his oatmeal with a little more force than he intended. The resulting splash splattered across his nice dress shirt, and Leo made a disgusted sound deep in his throat. He pulled his wand out of his sleeve, where he habitually kept it for easy access, and muttered an elementary cleaning charm his mother had taught him years ago. Most of the stain disappeared, but a little wet mark remained. Glowering, he cast the charm again; there was no improvement then, nor on the third time. "Mierda!"
Ah, just another wonderful day at Sonora Academy, and there was no Nikki in sight to put him back in a better mood.
Just as he was considering waiting for Gil outside the Cascade Hall -- if, that is, his brother ever showed up -- a surprisingly loud voice spoke from right behind him. "Hi. Um, I'm Echo. Mind if I join you?"
Leo stiffened and turned. The boy obviously had not recognized him, or he would have continued avoiding Leo like the plague as he had been doing since the unfortunate incident in Care of Magical Creatures.
He stared the boy up and down coldly before replying. "I was just leaving. Do as you will. I was under the impression that this was a free country."
With that and an ever-increasing urge to find either Gil or Nikki, Leo stood and motioned with overly dramatized politeness for Echo to take his chair.\n\n
0
Leo Idoya
You must be blind as well as loud...
0
Leo Idoya
0
5
Echo Elms
June 30, 2006 4:29 PM
[it's day 2 of classes, then] Not you again! by Echo Elms
OOC: This was supposed to be before the care of magical creatures class, but no harm in changing it to the next day.BIC:
"I was just leaving. Do as you will. I was under the impression that this was a free country."
Echo almost took a step backwards when who turned around but Leonardo of the California Idoyas. And he'd done so well avoiding him yesterday, too. He didn't look happy to see Echo either. For just a moment, Echo thought he saw more in Leo's manner than disdain, wariness perhaps. But then it was gone. It probably had never been there.
"I was just leaving. Do as you will. I was under the impression that this was a free country," the big mean snob said. And he got up.
"It's alright," Echo said, assuming he was reason the guy was leaving. He stepped back to let him if he wanted to, "You can finish eating. I can just take another take another table if you don't want company." He tried to say it like he knew Leonardo was the guy all along. After keeping an eye out for him all day yesterday, how did he not recognize him from all angles by now? It must be some sort of sign. The fates wanted them to talk again. He tried to go with it.
"We kinda got off wrong yesterday," Echo added, not sure what he was getting at and wanting to either run away or take a good swing at the other kid. Diplomacy, come on, diplomacy. This is crazy, he's all like, scarey and stuff. What the heck, fates? "Want to try again?"\n\n
21
Echo Elms
[it's day 2 of classes, then] Not you again!
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Leo Idoya
June 30, 2006 10:21 PM
Like taxes and rain, pal. by Leo Idoya
Much to Leo's surprise, Echo was not completely cowed by the dark-haired boy's foul mood. In fact, he replied with a level of politesse that spoke of a most respectable upbringing, even if the wording left a little something to be desired to Leo's artistic sensibilities."If you must know," Leo replied, "I was finished." Echo had stepped back for Leo to pass, and he made to do so now, the heels of his dragonhide boots tapping on the white and beige floor.
Echo's voice stopped him again, though, when the other boy pushed onward, sounding very unsure. "We kinda got off wrong yesterday. Want to try again?" he asked.
Leo turned smartly on his heels to face Echo, his countenance a study of puzzlement. "I beg your pardon?" he said, and then inwardly winced at the superfluous statement. He had heard exactly what the other boy had said, and did not need him to repeat it; it was comprehending Echo's statement that was giving Leo the trouble. Though, to be honest, Echo didn't look too certain, either. \n\n
0
Leo Idoya
Like taxes and rain, pal.
0
Leo Idoya
0
5
Nikki Ramirez
July 02, 2006 2:58 PM
Of all the people... by Nikki Ramirez
Nikki entered the Cascade Hall. She was wearing her robe open today, showing a short-sleeve shirt and a pair of capris. She looked around for somewhere to sit. Standing to her left was Leo, unmistakeable because of those boots. A scowl was at home on his face, probably caused by that boy he was talking to. As she neared, Nikki recognized the boy as the same one from Care of Magical Creatures.'Oh great' Nikki thought 'Of all the people to run into, it had to be that guy.'
Nikki walked up behind Leo. "Hey Leo," she said "Everything all right here?"\n\n
0
Nikki Ramirez
Of all the people...
0
Nikki Ramirez
0
5
Echo Elms
July 02, 2006 6:27 PM
Deja vu much? by Echo Elms
The sudden appearence of Nikki Ramirez saved Echo from repeating what he'd already said in different words and with a lot more added "I mean"s and "um"s and "maybe"s than had been in the previous wording. Seeing as he hadn't been too eloquent to begin with, this was not a huge loss. There was also a good chance he would have just said, "Forget it," and walked away, and now with Nikki there this option became even more appealing.Nikki was a girl. Nikki was out to chop him into little rumor sized bits and spread him all over the school (this was implied by her being a girl). Leonardo was a boy so there was a small chance that he wasn't -- and if he was then they would duke it out and Echo's face would get mashed in and that would be that. No nonsense. It was the girls you really had to worry about.
But what would she think if he cut out now? Would she think he was beating up on... him? The only thing that made him think it was that it was the same set up as Care of Magical Creatures. Only opposite. Nikki was saving Leonardo the way Elly had saved him. Only, not quite as nicely and Leonardo wasn't in any danger.
It wouldn't make a difference to Nikki. He had to say something friendly or something. What was the question she just asked? He couldn't remember.
"Hey Leo, everything all right here?" That was it.
But was he really going to talk to a girl he didn't know on purpose? He took a step back, clasping his hands infront of him and tried to keep them from wringing each other.
"Everything's fine. We were just--" going to have breakfast? -- to awkward, "uh, talking. I was trying to get him to join me." He waved to the table Leonardo was trying to leave and clamped his mouth shut before he could add, "And I see your both very busy and I'm going to go way over there."\n\n
21
Echo Elms
Deja vu much?
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Leo Idoya (& Gil, for good measure)
July 02, 2006 7:10 PM
...<i>much</i> much. by Leo Idoya (& Gil, for good measure)
Leo was still trying to understand exactly what Echo had said - could he really mean that he wanted to start over, as in, completely forget about his ignorance and Leo's rudeness during Care of Magical Creatures? - when a female voice interrupted his sluggish thoughts."Hey, Leo, everything all right here?"
He looked back and saw with a completely unexpected wave of relief that it was just Nikki, looking vaguely concerned. Realizing now that he'd been gaping at Echo, he closed his mouth and cleared his throat; the other boy, meanwhile, was answering her query.
"Everything's fine. We were just - uh -" the boy hesitated, apparently searching for words, "talking. I was trying to get him to join me."
Leo's eyebrows were in definite danger of disappearing permanently into his neatly brushed, chin length hair. He stared at Echo for a moment (gaping again, much to his chagrin), and then turned to Nikki. "Yes, that's it," he agreed slowly, his mind still trying to catch up with this most unexpected turn of events. "And I was just about to explain to Echo," he continued, "that I unfortunately need to go find my tw - "
"Looking for me, Leo?" asked a cheerful voice right behind the first-year Crotalus. He didn't even have time to turn around and look before Gil had slung one arm around Leo's shoulders; there was a huge, bright grin on his face as he looked at Echo and Nikki, and he obviously hadn't brushed his hair yet that morning, much to Leo's embarrassment. "Hey there, I'm Gil. Did I hear something about breakfast?"
"Echo had just asked if I would - um - "
Gil nodded, catching Leo's drift, but gave his brother a curious look that clearly said, that's not it, obviously - or at least, not all of it - and I expect a full report later. "Sounds good to me!"
He released Leo and sat down, motioning for the other three to join him. Leo sighed inwardly, but moved over and pulled out a chair. "Nikki?" he said, gesturing to the seat.
Even if Gil was going to act like the typical Teppenpaw idiot and forget all of his manners, Leo was very proud of his status as a gentleman. Unfortunately for him, pulling chairs out for girls wasn't the only requirement for that designation - a gentleman, or so he had been raised to believe, also never turned down an invitation without a legitimate excuse. And I get the feeling that complete discomfort with the whole situation doesn't count in Gil's books, he thought glumly to himself.\n\n
0
Leo Idoya (& Gil, for good measure)
...<i>much</i> much.
0
Leo Idoya (& Gil, for good measure)
0
5
Nikki
July 02, 2006 8:03 PM
Stunned by Nikki
Leo and Echo answered Nikki in what she thought was a somewhat forced way. No sooner had they answered when another boy walked up. He looked just like Leo. Except for the eyes. This boy's eyes were the same color. He introduced himself as Gil. Had Leo told her about Gil? Maybe. She vaguely recalled something about Leo being a twin.Nikki's first impression of Gil was that he was too cheery. Especially for this early in the morning. She also had a feeling that Gil ate a lot, but with two older brothers, one of which went to a Muggle school and therefore came home after classes, she was used to this. What was it with guys and food?
Gil sat down and invited the others to join him. Nikki was stunned when Leo pulled out a seat and offered it to her. This was an exhibition of chivelry that she was definately not used to.
"Th..thank you" she stammered and sat down. She really hoped she wasn't blushing, but she knew that was probably too much to ask.\n\n
0
Nikki
Stunned
0
Nikki
0
5
Elly Eriksson
July 03, 2006 3:15 AM
Interrupting again (bad habit) by Elly Eriksson
Elly yawned widely when she entered the Cascade Hall for breakfast. She wasn’t too good at getting up early (having spent most of the summer sleeping in till noon), so had even missed breakfast the first day. This morning, though, she made an effort to get up and had managed to haul herself down to breakfast relatively early.The downside, of course, was that she looked awful. She’d not yet bothered to brush her hair, so it hung in a huge tangled mass of orange curls down her back. Even as she rubbed them, her big brown eyes were still half-closed with sleep. Perhaps it was this that necessitated her peering round the hall twice before she spotted anyone she knew to sit and eat with.
Rubbing her eyes again, in case they were deceiving her, Elly frowned. There were some people she knew, but it seemed a very unlikely assortment: Echo Elms, her shy and often awkward housemate; that rude blonde girl who was also a first year; Icy Idoya, and, as far as Elly could tell, his twin. They had never met, but Elly had noticed at the sorting that there were two identical Idoyas. She sighed. Why? Why was Echo sitting with two people he didn’t like and a stranger? This was very un-Echo-ish behaviour. Elly groaned inwardly as she shuffled over – the friend in her would have to check that Echo was okay. Besides, she didn’t recognize anyone else in the hall, and she couldn’t very well sit and eat breakfast alone.
She hadn’t yet found out her robes from the previous day, so Elly was dressed in a faded green vest and faded loose-fitting jeans as she approached the unlikely group.
“Morning!” she said brightly, immediately followed by another wide yawn. She shook her head as if trying to shake off her tiredness. “How is everyone today?” she smiled as she poured herself a glass of juice.
\n\n
0
Elly Eriksson
Interrupting again (bad habit)
92
Elly Eriksson
0
5
Nikki
July 03, 2006 9:57 AM
It's Gil's Fault by Nikki
Nikki concentrated on her blueberry bagel with strawberry cream cheese. She had never been partial to breakfast foods, but this morning, for some reason, she had decided to come down to the Cascade Hall and eat. Now look where it got her. Sitting in an akward silence with the most unexpected people.There was Echo, the nervous Pecari, Leo, the ill-tempered Crotalus, herself, the Aladren who had just been trying to make sure Leo didn't bite Echo's head off, and Leo's Tepp brother Gil, who had decided to live up to his houses reputation at exactly the wrong time. So much for inter-house unity. She felt Gil should say something, after all he had gotten them into this mess, but from the sound of it, he was shoveling food down his gullet.
Nikki heard a girl's voice greeting the unlikely group. Nikki looked up. The girl looked like she had just crawled out of bed; she probably had. The girl sat, poured herself some juice, and asked how everyone was.
"Tired" Nikki said honestly, though she would have liked to have added 'and grumpy and annoyed at this ignorant Tepp, who apparently wouldn't know tension if it came up, introduced itself and proceeded to bite him on the nose.'\n\n
0
Nikki
It's Gil's Fault
0
Nikki
0
5
Gil (& Leo)
July 03, 2006 12:04 PM
I think I resent that! by Gil (& Leo)
Gil's right cheek was rounded out with about a quarter of a bagel when a second girl joined them, so he thought it prudent to hold off the salutations until he had swallowed. He took a gulp of orange juice, then grinned at her."Oh, we're all great!" he said, though he couldn't help but glance between his brother and the Pecari boy, wondering why there was such an air of animosity between them. "Come join the party! I'm Gil, by the way, first year Teppenpaw, since Leo seems too distracted to remember introductions."
At that juncture, Leo started in his seat and leveled a fierce glare at his twin. Gil just shrugged; hey, he'd only been speaking the truth. It wasn't his fault that his twin seemed to find the back of the blond girl's head so fascinating. He grinned inwardly; I always knew he had a soft side. Just wait until I get you on your own, oh brother mine... let the teasing commence.
"I wasn't distracted," Leo said a little too firmly. "You try getting a word in edgewise when your twin is an utterly prolix Teppenpaw - "
" - out to conquer the world by spreading sunshine and smiles," Gil finished neatly, though there was a hint of snideness in his voice. He turned his attention back to the new girl, and gestured for her to sit down. Interestingly enough, Leo didn't pull the chair out for this one.
"So," he said to her, "what's your name?"\n\n
0
Gil (& Leo)
I think I resent that!
0
Gil (& Leo)
0
5
Elly
July 03, 2006 4:04 PM
you'll get over it :p by Elly
Elly thought that perhaps she had been too quick to judge the blonde girl. First time they met they hadn’t been properly introduced (mainly because the blonde girl had ignored both Elly and Echo), and seeing as she was the first to reply to Elly’s greeting, perhaps she wasn’t so rude after all.More fascinating, though, was Idoya’s brother. Totally opposite. Friendly and cheerful even while his twin was glaring fiercely. “Hi Gil,” Elly said brightly, copying his pronunciation of the name she’d never encountered before. “I’m Elly Eriksson,” she said, extending her hand to him. She liked him already, simply for his apparent ease and good humour. After flashing a quick grin to Echo, she said to Gil, “I met your brother yesterday.” Elly smiled at Leonardo, still friendly and a little mischievously, but more reserved than usual as she didn’t know yet how to take Icy Idoya.
Having taken a seat, Elly forced handfuls of hair behind her shoulders to prevent it from landing in her breakfast, as had happened on many occasions before. She raised her gaze to the blonde girl. “I’m sorry,” Elly said, “I don’t know who you are.” She smiled her usual, friendly smile, the one that made her look goofy but approachable.
\n\n
0
Elly
you'll get over it :p
0
Elly
0
5
Echo Elms
July 03, 2006 4:12 PM
No, it was the fates. by Echo Elms
It quickly became clear, once Gil showed up, that there would be no escape for any of them. He sank down into his perch at the table. Leonardo made him feel like he ought to be on his very best behavior. He couldn't believe he pulled out a seat for Nikki. It was so old fashioned and even Nikki didn't look comfortable with it.He was just wondering if there was a proper spoon to eat cereal with when he saw Elly enter Cascade Hall. As though this weren't bad enough already. There was no need for her to get caught in this mess, too.
But she came. Like a mosquito to a bug light. And no amount of trying to send, "Stay away!" to her brainwaves was going to change that now. He greeted her with a halfway smile, feeling a little like he was caught with his hand in a cookie jar. Only less pleasant and more rediculus.
"That's Elly Eriksson," Echo spoke up when Gil asked. He kinda liked Gil so far. He reminded him of Elly, only completely different. They were both loud and over- friendly... but, Elly was... um. Well she was a girl, and she had a cool accent.
Well, Gil kinda had an accent too and so did Nikki and Leonardo. Echo was actually the odd one out right now because he didn't, but Gil was sort of more the odd one because he didn't seem to realize that something was wrong with this group.
For Gil's sake, he volunteered, "She's in Pecari with me," and wanted to add something like, "She's cool" to the end of that, but then thought better of it. He looked at Elly. Did the fates want all these people here. Fates were rediculus. His parents always said to trust them, and he trusted his parents enough to follow their advice... but his parents didn't know about this. This was crazy.\n\n
21
Echo Elms
No, it was the fates.
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Echo Elms
July 03, 2006 4:17 PM
ooc by Echo Elms
Right so, take that last message to be more or less good, but without Echo saying anything. :-p\n\n
21
Echo Elms
ooc
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Nikki
July 03, 2006 6:35 PM
Of course you will Gil by Nikki
Nikki laughed into her hand at the small dose of sibling rivalry between the twins. But then Gil and the new girl were off talking. She introduced herself as Elly and said that she had met Leo the day before.'Well' Nikki thought 'I think that qualifies for the understatement of the year.'
If only Gil had been there yesterday, this would be a very different morning. (Well, she was sure he'd been in the class, but he hadn't been with the rest of them.)
Now Elly was asking her name.
"Oh, of course," Nikki said "I'm sorry I seem to have forgotten my manners as well. I'm Nikki Ramirez, first year Aladren." she turned to Gil "My Abuelo is Roberto Ramirez."
(OOC: Isn't my rhyme title lame.)\n\n
0
Nikki
Of course you will Gil
0
Nikki
0
5
The Idoya twins
July 03, 2006 8:21 PM
Titles schmitles... by The Idoya twins
At this point in the conversation, Leo quite frankly just wanted the ceiling to reach down, pluck him out of his chair, and replace him far, far from any of these people (with the possible exception of Nikki). He still wasn't entirely sure what to think of Echo and his interrupted request, Gil was grating on his nerves, and he'd long since decided that he didn't like that nosy Pecari, Elly. Why had she come over, anyway? It wasn't like he was going to hex Echo - at least, not without a great deal of provocation. He was using his best manners, acting exactly as the heir to La Familia Idoya was supposed to.He could've kissed Nikki for bringing up Señor Ramirez. Before anyone else could speak, he turned to Gil, who was smiling broadly at Echo, probably trying to draw the quiet Pecari out of his shell.
"You remember all those times Abuelito told us stories about Señor Ramirez, Gil."
"Who? Oh - wait, his friend from school?"
"Yes."
"Oh, cool," Gil said, turning that dazzling smile on Nikki. "We're practically family, with the way Abuelito goes on and on about your grandfather. Nikki, was it?" Gil's eyes sparkled in a most irritating manner, and Leo had the sudden urge to kick Gil under the table. He restrained it - barely - but still wished fervently that Gil would stop turning his charm onto Nikki. The more outgoing twin already had spades of friends - and now he was going to steal Nikki away, too!
He sighed and dropped his head onto one hand as Gil turned back to the table at large and said, "So, anyone trying out for Quidditch?"\n\n
0
The Idoya twins
Titles schmitles...
0
The Idoya twins
0
5
Echo Elms
July 04, 2006 8:29 AM
Quidditch? by Echo Elms
This breakfast was turning out a lot different than Echo had hoped. He'd come down, all adventure on a promising morning, and he'd ended up here somehow. Magic had only existed for two or three days in his world now, but he barely even saw the magic around him anymore. It was too abundant to marvel at for long and most of the other students took it for granted -- like electricity at home.He'd been going to introduce Elly, but she'd beaten him to the punch on that one. There wasn't much hope in getting a word in -- and even less hope that he'd try if given a chance -- so he took a big bite of cereal and listened. Gil smiled at him invitingly, and he might have tried to say something then, but there wasn't anything to say and that was when Nikki mentioned her grandfather.
"So, anyone trying out for Quidditch?" Gil said not long after, apparently trying to involve the whole table again.
There was a sign-up sheet for the Quidditch team in the Pecari common room. Echo had gathered a little bit, but not much about it. He asked Gil, "Is that the thing people keep talking about? I mean, it's like a sport, right, but on flying brooms or something?"\n\n
21
Echo Elms
Quidditch?
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Gil & Leo
July 04, 2006 8:53 AM
Oh, no... by Gil & Leo
"Is that the thing people keep talking about? I mean, it's like a sport, right, but on flying brooms or something?"Leo's eyes widened further and further as Echo asked, and he motioned violently for the boy to stop - but to no avail. Oh, Elms had really done it this time. Leo's head, previously resting in his hand, flopped the whole way down to the table with a dull thunk. It barely even hurt, though, much less knock him unconscious - which had been his original intent.
It wasn't that Leo hated Quidditch. He rather enjoyed flying, actually. It was just that once Gil started talking about Quidditch, he wasn't likely to stop anytime soon. For the past seven years - about as long as they had been able to fully appreciate Quidditch - Leo had been trying to turn the conversation towards something else. Books. Music. Heck - the weather. And it had done no good. Seven years of nonstop Quidditch discussion among his mostly male relatives left Leo with a sour taste in his mouth.
"You - you - " Gil sputtered, staring openly (and quite rudely) at Echo. "Not - what?"
With a sigh, Leo lifted his head, leaning on his forearms and looking at Echo across the table. "What my oh-so-eloquent brother means to say," he said before Gil could regain the gift of speech, "is that, yes, Quidditch is a sport on brooms. Two teams, six goals, seven players, four balls - one for scoring goals worth ten points each, two that zoom around and try to knock people off their brooms, and one special ball worth 150 points that, when caught, signals the end of the game."
There. Quidditch in a nutshell. Gil's expression was one of sheer horror, that his own brother - his own twin - could so oversimplify a game of such innate magnificence.
"Any questions?" he finished snidely, practically glaring at his brother. \n\n
0
Gil & Leo
Oh, no...
0
Gil & Leo
0
5
Echo Elms
July 04, 2006 10:03 AM
yeah, what? by Echo Elms
Echo's attention turned back to Leonardo as his head smacked the table. It was almost funny. He was usually so... poised or something. Gil sputtered and Leonardo pulled himself up and launched into a lengthly yet abrupt description."Any questions?" he finished.
Echo had a dozen questions, starting with "Do brooms really fly?" (which sounded too doofy), and ending with "Could you explain that again using diagrams?" He'd ask someone else or maybe find a book about it or just wait and see a game with someone who knew something about it.
"I guess you'd have to see it," he said before anyone else could add more to Leonardo's already complex discription. He glanced at Elly. At least he wasn't the only one who was crazy new to everything. To the Idoyas and Nikki he said, "You guys are trying out, though?"\n\n
21
Echo Elms
yeah, what?
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Elly
July 04, 2006 10:22 AM
Huh? by Elly
Elly helped herself to some toast as she listened to the general chatter of the students around her. Considering what an odd assortment of people they were, everyone seemed to be getting on okay. Good.Elly had kept quiet at the mention of Quidditch; when she let slip to her roommate, Caedence Redoak, that she didn’t know anything about Quidditch, Elly had suffered a long and complicated description of the sport, and had had a couple of heavy reference books thrown at her. Leonardo’s description had been much simpler, and Elly guessed that Echo actually had been given a fair chance at understanding, rather than having been submitted to a rant. However, Elly had a fair idea now, and was looking forward to watching a game to see how all the different elements came together.
Elly looked up to see Echo glancing at her, and she smiled at him, raising her eyebrows a bit to signify her surprise at Leo's behaviour, so different from when they had met before. Seeing as they were both muggle-born, Elly and Echo often found themselves a bit lost in conversation. He seemed to be making good headway, though, as he asked whether the other first years had signed up to play Quidditch. Elly knew that both Meredith and Caedence wanted to play beater but that those positions were already taken.
“What position do you prefer to play?” Elly added to the end of Echo’s question.
\n\n
0
Elly
Huh?
0
Elly
0
5
Gil & Leo
July 04, 2006 1:43 PM
Yep. by Gil & Leo
Despite the fact that Leo had jumped in and completely decimated the description of Quidditch - okay, to be fair he got the facts right, but where was the passion? - Gil was still beyond happy that this topic had come up. Quidditch, for him, was life. Air. Oxygen. Chocolate Frogs. His half of their bedroom was plastered with Quidditch posters to the point that none of the original wall color showed through, and he already knew that when he went professional, he wanted to go to England to play; they were more focused on the sport there, and less on the image."Yeah!" he replied to Echo's question. "Of course I'm trying out! I was the first Teppenpaw to sign up after the captain, and he only got there first because he had to post it! I play Chaser, usually," he added, looking at Elly. "Chasers are the ones who use the Quaffle - "
"The ten-point ball," Leo interjected.
"Yeah, that. We use the Quaffle to score points." He grinned and rumpled his dark hair; his twin sighed noisily and irritably at the sight. "But Leo here," he said with a slightly mocking pout, slinging his arm over his brother's shoulders again, "he doesn't like Quidditch. Always refuses to play back at the ranch, even when we're short a Beater - "
"That's because I don't play Beater," Leo hissed, knocking Gil's arm away.
Gil laughed, amused. "Don't play, you mean," he said with a smile.
Leo didn't seem to find it as amusing. His mismatched eyes met Gil's coldly. "As a matter of fact, I prefer playing Seeker," he said from between gritted teeth, his tone icy.
This was news to Gil - and that made him somewhat uncomfortable. Leo'd never shown any interest in Quidditch before, and as his twin, wouldn't Gil be the one to know? But then again, their cousins Joaquin and Alejandro usually played Seeker - and acted as captain - for the teams at family games. "Yeah?" he said. "I didn't hear anything about you signing up."
Leo sighed again, and looked sorely like he wanted to roll his eyes. He wouldn't, of course; it wasn't polite. Not that he was usually overly amiable, anyway. "There is simply no point; the Crotalus team captain is our Seeker, and I can hardly unseat her."
The last of Gil's levity vanished, though he kept a milder version of his usual cheerful smile on his face. Leo was really and truly peeved, now - something which rarely happened between the twins, for all their differences. "Oh."
"Yes, oh. Now if you'll excuse me," Leo said, standing so abruptly that his chair scraped backward loudly over the marble floor, "I have to - I have - something to do."
"Leo - "
But the Idoya heir was already stalking away from the table, back wand-straight and chin high. Gil blushed, equal parts abashed and embarrassed, but turned back to the Pecaris and Nikki. "So, what do you guys think of Sonora so far?"\n\n
0
Gil & Leo
Yep.
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Gil & Leo
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5
Nikki
July 04, 2006 4:00 PM
Why? by Nikki
When the questin of trying out for Quidditch had arisen, Nikki had at first been too stunned to answer. Partially because Echo was so uninformed, and partially the rules of who could play Quidditch at Youmens, the Mexican wizarding school. For starters, no first years were allowed to play. Also, Muggleborns under fourth year couldn't play. She was about to comment on this, when Leo and Gil started fighting, and Leo got up and stalked off.Nikki jumped up too. "Why'd you have to go and do that?!" she shouted at Gil, not caring that the whole hall was probably staring at her. "Dios mio, you're twins, you of all people should be able to tell when Leo's uncmfortable. And Echo's got terror written all over his face. We were all just trying to be polite. But you, you just had to go and try to make friends. And as for being almost family, no we're not. Noone in my family is such an idiot. You are..." she shook her hands above her head in frustration. "Tú eres el ano más grande." She stormed off after Leo.
((OOC: Translation: "Dios mio...Tú eres el ano más grande." = "My god...You are the biggest [butt hole]."))\n\n
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Nikki
Why?
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Nikki
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5
Nikki
July 04, 2006 4:09 PM
ooc by Nikki
((OOC: I realized that message had a lot of typos, but those who read it should be able to figure it out.)) \n\n
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Nikki
ooc
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Nikki
0
5
Elly
July 04, 2006 4:43 PM
well that was exciting by Elly
Elly sat in a stunned silence. She very nearly regretted coming over. Both Leo and Nikki had left in a huff and now there was a horrible tension left between the three of them still seated. Elly tried to continue eating her toast, but it suddenly felt like chewing cardboard. She glanced over at Echo, who, as far as Elly could tell, was looking as bewildered as she was. Elly tried once again to clear the air.“Um...” she started, unspectacularly, “is your brother always like that?” she asked Gil, smiling to let him know that she wasn’t uncomfortable. Gil was the main reason that Elly didn’t completely regret joining Echo for breakfast. She was always happy to meet new people, and, despite arguing with his brother, which Elly figured all siblings did, he’d seemed nice enough. Elly wasn’t scared of Leo; in fact, she got the impression that he probably had a lot of interesting things to discuss when he could finally relax. Gil, on the other hand, seemed nice enough, but he didn’t seem too bothered about winding his brother up, and Elly was unsure yet whether or not that was bad.
\n\n
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Elly
well that was exciting
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Elly
0
5
Gil
July 04, 2006 4:59 PM
That's one way to put it. by Gil
Gil was still staring, bemused, at his brother's retreating back when the Ramirez girl lunged up to her feet and started shouting at him at the top of her lungs, in English and Spanish. He felt blood rush into his sun-browned cheeks at her last comment - really, that was rather unnecessary! It was one thing to have his brother stalk off (which he did quite often); it was something else completely to be yelled at by a virtual stranger.He was quite relieved when Elly spoke, breaking the tense silence. "Um... is your brother always like that?" she asked with a smile.
Gil laughed, and hoped it didn't sound as shaky as he thought it did. "Only most of the time," he quipped back, smiling in return. "But don't mind him, really; he'll cool off in a few days. If you see someone who looks like me but has two different colored eyes, though, you might want to run," he joked feebly.
A change of subject, he decided then, was definitely in order.
"So, Elly, Echo. What sort of things do you guys - I mean, Muggles - do for fun? I saw a movie once at the local theater, but that's about as far as my experience goes." He turned his smile on the Pecaris again, feeling the tension drain away with Leo's absence.\n\n
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Gil
That's one way to put it.
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Gil
0
5
Nikki
July 04, 2006 6:09 PM
Meanwhile... by Nikki
Nikki felt her robes flying up behind her slightly as she stormed out of the Cascade Hall. She pushed open the huge doors and let them slam closed. She looked around for Leo and found him standing a little to her left. She was sure he had been listening. Great, now he was going to hate her. She had just yelled at and insulted his twin brother in two languages. She walked over to Leo."Sorry about that." Nikki said in a small voice, looking at the floor. "I just couldn't stand any more of Mr. Happy Happy Sunshine Rainbow. Especially this early in the morning." She looked up blushing "I usually don't go off like that." \n\n
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Nikki
Meanwhile...
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Nikki
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5
Echo Elms
July 05, 2006 9:34 AM
Re: That's one way to put it. by Echo Elms
Echo kept carefully still while Gil and Leonardo argued. He admired Gil's ability to stand up to him -- but then, they were brothers. Man, I'm glad I don't have a brother, he shuddered. And then Nikki took Leonardo's side. Again with the yelling. Again with the storming off. Too much loudness.He exchanged glanced with Elly. Pushing his empty cereal bowl away, Echo slumped over, head in hands. He'd forgotten how strung up he'd been because of those two. When he looked up again he felt much more like himself. Elly broke the weird quiet, as usual, and Gil asked, "So, Elly, Echo. What sort of things do you guys - I mean, Muggles - do for fun? I saw a movie once at the local theater, but that's about as far as my experience goes."
Imagine, having only seen one movie! Echo slid over a couple of seats to adjust for the gaps Nikki and Leonardo had left behind. "I'm on a soccer team," he said, because they'd just been talking about Quidditch. It would normally have been pretty far down his list of things he did. "That's a Muggle sport. There's lots of them: uh, there's baseball, kickball, climbing -- I like climbing, but I only did it once --, um, dodgeball. There's lot's of them."\n\n
21
Echo Elms
Re: That's one way to put it.
93
Echo Elms
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5
Elly
July 05, 2006 11:27 AM
Lots of sports! by Elly
Hm, what do Muggles do for fun? Elly thought. Echo started by listing several sports, most of which Elly didn’t recognize; she guessed they were American names for sports, like the way they called football soccer. She liked sports, too.“I was hockey captain at my last school,” Elly said. “I play cricket with my dad sometimes, except there’s only the two of us so it’s not really cricket.” She shrugged. “I like climbing, too. There’s a huge tree near my Grandma’s house and I built a swing on it.” She suddenly remembered her suggestion from the opening feast about building a swing in the labyrinth gardens. She’d been so busy since she got to Sonora she’d hardly thought about it!
Elly wasn’t sure that Gil understood what she and Echo were talking about, but he seemed interested, anyway. Elly also noticed that Echo seemed more relaxed again now that the shouting had ceased and Nikki and Leo had left. Elly was more relaxed herself. What was up with that Idoya guy, anyway?
\n\n
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Elly
Lots of sports!
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Elly
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5
Echo Elms
July 05, 2006 12:28 PM
And trees! ... oh wait, hockey. by Echo Elms
Hockey, yeah. He'd forgotten that one. And he had not idea what Cricket was, other than a bug."I got a tree in my backyard," Echo grinned when Elly mentioned her swing. That tree was his favorite thing in the world. "It's an elm, and it shouldn't even be alive cause it doesn't get enough water and the soil is all wrong -- mom says anyway. But it's got this branch that's good for climbing into it. Nice and low," he held a hand around his eyes, and brought it up, "And the ones up top are nice and spaced, but not too spaced, you know? You can even get high enough that it wobbles like crazy and you feel like the whole thing's just gonna blow right over, like whoosh! It's freaky cool."
He glanced between Elly and Gil, wondering if they were avid tree climbers too. Probably not. He managed to stop himself before he started describing each climbable tree within a two mile radius of his house and showing off his battle scars and describing the horrors he'd done to every article of clothing he'd ever owned.
He took a deep breath willing himself to not dwell on the subject, "I've never played hockey -- it's this game played on ice. Two goals and a puck, which is sorta like a ball but different," he explained to Gil, "and you hit it with sticks. And all the players wear metal, uh, things -- blades -- on their feet so they can move crazy fast on the ice. That's skating," he made a face between a grimace and an apology to Elly, "I don't skate."\n\n
21
Echo Elms
And trees! ... oh wait, hockey.
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Elly
July 05, 2006 4:16 PM
*laughing a lot at language differences* by Elly
Elly listened with enthusiasm to Echo talking about tree climbing. She loved tree climbing, but didn’t get a chance at it too often. Her house was in North London, and that wasn’t really a great place to find trees. Her Grandma had a nice house in Surrey, though, with a big garden and woods near by. Whenever Elly went she’d climb the trees, and had built swings in all of them at one point or another.When Echo started explaining hockey to Gil, though, Elly burst out laughing. “I don’t skate” Echo said. Elly grinned widely and laughed brightly. Gee, Americans just gave everything the wrong name!
“That’s ice hockey! The hockey I play is on a grass pitch, and we use a ball,” she laughed again and smiled at Gil. “It’s mainly played by girls. I think that’s because boys are scared of getting their shins shattered,” she mused out loud.
Elly turned back to Echo. “I don’t skate, either,” she said. “I’m far too clumsy, I’d only break something.” She smiled and took another gulp of her juice, pushing her hair back again so it stayed out of her drink.
\n\n
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Elly
*laughing a lot at language differences*
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Elly
0
5
Gil
July 05, 2006 4:34 PM
*shakes head and laughs* Crazy Muggles... (no offense) by Gil
Well, Gil's change-the-subject-quick plan had worked like a charm. Literally, in fact. All three of them might as well have been subjected to Cheering Charms, judging by the speed with which the tension dissipated once Nikki ran after Leo. Soon Echo and Elly were engaged in a discussion of Muggle activities ranging from soccer to tree-climbing, and the differences between ice and field hockey."Really?" he asked to learn that neither skated. "One of my third cousins has a place in Colorado; we go up every winter. She's married to a Muggle, and her husband taught Leo and I how to skate a few years ago; now you can't get Leo off the ice once winter comes around," he said, not allowing his smile to fade. It really was fitting that someone with such a chilly personality had such an affinity for winter.
Suddenly something occurred to him. "Oh, I have another question. Is it true your photographs don't move? How is that possible? I mean, is it something about your cameras, or what?" he asked. He'd been given a camera a few years ago for his birthday, and it had quickly become his favorite hobby - after Quidditch, of course. \n\n
0
Gil
*shakes head and laughs* Crazy Muggles... (no offense)
0
Gil
0
5
Echo Elms
July 06, 2006 9:04 AM
Magic people are weird, too by Echo Elms
Echo hadn't been completely positive Elly meant ice hockey, but he thought it might have been floor hockey or roller hockey instead. Field hockey had never even occured to him. It was one of those sports, like Lacrosse, that was only slightly less foreign to him then Quidditch.Gil changed the topic again. He was quick at that, "Oh, I have another question. Is it true your photographs don't move? How is that possible? I mean, is it something about your cameras, or what?"
"What I don't get is how yours do," Echo said. He knew a little about cameras from his Optics and Light unit last year. He looked around for something to write on and pulled a piece of folded paper and pen from his shorts pocket and started drawing.
"Okay, so a camera is like this box, right? It's dark inside and it's got the film over here. The film has chemicals in it that change when light hits them. I did this experiment where we made a camera and it was really cool. Anyway, so you poke a hole in this box and the light waves come in and change the stuff on the film. So, the light from over here come in like this and over here comes in like this... see, it's all upsidedown and backwards! And then you put this other chemical on them and it makes the chemicals not change anymore and you can take this, it's called a negative, I think, and make it into a real picture. Crazy cool, right?"
"It's like," he added, just for good measure, "when you write stuff down the ink stays put."\n\n
21
Echo Elms
Magic people are weird, too
93
Echo Elms
0
5
Gil
July 06, 2006 12:14 PM
The beginning of a beautiful friendship... by Gil
Gil leaned over, a delighted smile on his face, to look at the drawing that Echo made. He even had a well-thought-out explanation to accompany it! The very concept of still photographs still seemed vaguely disconcerting to Gil, never having seen one of said photographs before, but the way Echo explained it, it almost made sense."Wow... so the only real difference is where you have the chemicals, we have a couple of potions..." he said, shaking his head in awe. "Crazy cool, yeah," he agreed, laughing. "I think I'm going to have to ask for one of those next Christmas!"\n\n
0
Gil
The beginning of a beautiful friendship...
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Gil
0
5
Elly
July 07, 2006 12:03 PM
How poetic. by Elly
Echo was getting back into his geeky swing of things, drawing a diagram of how Muggle cameras work to show Gil why the pictures don’t move. Elly smiled, she thought it was kind of cute how Echo always carried around pen and paper in case he should need it. She also thought it was really nice of Gil to be enthusiastic. Perhaps it was only an act to make Echo feel more comfortable, but there was also the possibility that he really was crazily interested in Muggle stuff. After all, he did say he was going to ask for a camera for Christmas.“Well at least a camera will work,” Elly said. “A lot of Muggle stuff won’t work around magic locations because the magic interferes with the electricity, or so I’ve heard. Like computer games, televisions, hair driers…” she trailed off and shrugged. “But cameras run on batteries, so that should be okay. My watch still works,” Elly said, and held up her wrist to show Gil her watch with a square glass face and pink leather strap, “and that runs on batteries.” Elly leant back in her seat and gazed around the hall, now filled with many more students sitting down to breakfast.
\n\n
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Elly
How poetic.
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Elly
0
5
Echo Elms
July 08, 2006 7:43 PM
... potions is like chemistry? by Echo Elms
"And some cameras have springs or something instead of... batteries," Echo added the last word absently. Somehow it had passed him over before, but now he realized it. Gil had said something important back there. Really important. He leaned forward, thumping elbows and hands on the table. "So," he said, "if the magic pictures use potions instead of chemicals... does that mean potions as a subject is like some kind of magical chemistry thing? Potions, I mean, like, the class we're going to be taking. Here. This year."He felt a grin crawling to to his face, and didn't remember to be embarrassed that he was excited about this. He leaned back, "That's crazy."\n\n
21
Echo Elms
... potions is like chemistry?
93
Echo Elms
0
5