Heinwick! on At Home

CJ Stones

July 12, 2020 5:45 PM

Heinwick! by CJ Stones

"When is Heinwick coming?" had been the ongoing question of the last several days. Ebewyn was back. Some new person called Ness was here too. He had introduced Ness to Keeow and Maweeke and Fionn because Ness was new here. And for a few days, that had been exciting, but then someone had mentioned Heinwick coming too!

He was coming in five days. That kept being true for ages, then it was in four days... Now it was 'today.' And ‘soon.’ He had almost been denied waiting in the living room with Evelyn because everyone else seemed to be waiting in the kitchen but she had said it was fine for him to come too. CJ sat on the sofa next to his sister, bouncing in anticipation and watching the fireplace, leaping up when it turned green.

Once the spinny blur resolved into Heinrich, CJ rushed over, flinging himself forward and, limpit-like, grabbing Heinrich around the legs.

“HEINWICK! Welcome to the house! It’s fun here!” he beamed. He let go of Heinrich’s legs, a poster pinned at his height on the edge of the fireplace catching his eye. Whoops. Too late now… But hugs were okay once you knew you were both friends, and he and Heinrich were friends, so it was probably fine. Still, he could fix it. He pulled his poster off the wall and brought it over to Evelyn.

“You choose how to say hello. You can do kisses, hugs, handshakes or waving,” he told her, handing over the chart. “For hugs and kisses and handshakes you ask first.”

13 CJ Stones Heinwick! 0 CJ Stones 1 5

Heinrich Hexenmeister

July 12, 2020 6:34 PM

That's me, yes. by Heinrich Hexenmeister

The first few days back in Utah had been . . . complex. Words had been said. Words he didn't regret and words he meant and, if nothing else, Uncle Karl at least understood now that Evelyn wasn't pregnant. So that part was good.

A lot of the other things about the near future were kind of the opposite of good, but most of those weren't until the summer, or at least the spring anyway. First there would be Christmas and the midterm gaming group meeting at the McLeods for some . . . he was going to call it 'American culture' and Heinrich himself was going early to visit with CJ and Evelyn a bit more before everyone else got there, and also to talk the McLeods about how everything was going to work out once everything else started happening. How to keep Evelyn and CJ safe. What their legal options were. What CJ's custody was going to look like after this summer if everything went well. All of that sort of thing. And to, you know, meet the foster parents of his girlfriend, who would presumably have a far different approach to him than Mr. Stones had, and while that was kind of scary on his end, it was also a good thing that Evelyn had that at least a little bit.

He stood in front of his uncle's floo connected fireplace, holding the dust and practicing saying 'McLeod' over and over again until he felt he was saying it correctly and consistently. He was still kind of nervous about this verbal-based form of travel, but he was only about seven months away from being seventeen. He didn't want to show up there being side-alonged like some little kid. He wanted to make a good first impression as very responsible near-adult.

So he said the name of his destination, threw in the powder, and stepped through the fire. He stepped out on the other side of the country and was immediately worried about the strange crushing feeling in his legs, but before he could even start panicking about some kind of travel accident, he looked down and saw the cause just as it happily called out his name.

He'd arrived at the right place.

Heinrich smiled at the kid and ruffled the boy's hair. "I am glad it is fun, CJ. That's why I came, too." CJ let him go, and then grabbed something off the wall and showed it to Evelyn. Heinrich followed, and smiled at her too. "A hug is welcome from you, too," he consented, his eyes crinkling just a little bit with humor. He dropped his overnight bag onto the floor, and opened his arms invitingly. Had there been fewer people in the room, or had it been something they'd done before, he might have allowed a small kiss, too, but this was neither the time nor the place to take that step. He was getting more comfortable with hugs and sitting close enough that they touched now, but kissing was something he was only starting to think about as a good idea. Particularly since he did not yet know what the adults of the house expected of him in that respect while he was under their roof.

1 Heinrich Hexenmeister That's me, yes. 1414 0 5

Evelyn Stones

July 13, 2020 1:35 AM

My favorite guys. by Evelyn Stones

Vermont got cold in the winter but not so cold as the Oregon coast. Without the biting Pacific coast winds, and with the much colder Atlantic far enough away still that it brought snow sometimes but not quite the same freezing temperatures, Vermont was just different. That being said, it was home. Evelyn was nervous to bring people into this space, even though it wasn't really hers to bring people into. Marijke, Fionn, Ness, Kir... everyone here had worked so hard to make sure that Evelyn - and now CJ - were comfortable here, but it felt less like home now than it had before it really had been. Perhaps it was the ticking time bomb that was a jail sentence a thousand some miles away. Perhaps it was knowing that everyone was going to know. Anyone who would be joining their winter festivities from the DnD group would know that much more about Evelyn's life and that was nerve wracking even if most of them already knew a bit about it. More and less nerve wracking all at once was the fact that Heinrich was coming.

Between that and the weather, Evelyn had donned a soft sweater dress in a rich dark blue that seemed apropos. White tights and black boots covered her legs and she felt comfortable. She felt like herself. It was nice to be away from the school robes, and it was nice to be "home," even though she missed people there too. It was odd because usually she only had Ness to miss and maybe Heinrich if she was willing to let herself admit it. Now she absolutely missed Heinrich, and she even found it in her to miss others from school as well. Soon, most of them would be gathered at the McLeods' house. Today, however, Heinrich would be arriving, and that was Evelyn's favorite.

Marijke had given her the option to greet Heinrich on her own or not and she'd decided it would be better that way. She would hate to meet everyone all at once herself and while she wasn't exactly sure Heinrich's preference, it seemed nicer to get to be just them for a moment before all the bustle of life at the McLeods began. Before the meet-and-greet began. This was much more like "introducing him to the parents" than him coming to meet her actual father had been. That had been nerve wracking for a very different reason. CJ wanted to wait with her, which was precious and also annoying, so she quickly ruled out any of her more outlandish thoughts and accompanied her brother to the room where Heinrich would be arriving.

Soon, he did exactly that, and CJ reacted amazingly fast to give the Aladren hugs. Evelyn was torn between being a little embarrassed and a little jealous; CJ expressed physical affection with amazing ease and while Evelyn was certainly capable of such displays, she rarely let them out. These feelings were replaced quickly by affection of her own at seeing the easy way Heinrich ruffled CJ's hair and spoke with him. It was a great comfort to her to know that, whatever happened, it would be okay. She had the best guy on her team.

Her embarrassment took first spot when CJ suggested that Evelyn and Heinrich entire hug, shake hands, or kiss, or just wave. Her face turned red but she remembered that this was a thing to be encouraged, and she smiled at CJ. "Thank you for the reminder," she told him accepting the post. He looked pleased with her acknowledgment and she smirked a little, amused at the speed with which the McLeod heart took root. Heinrich did not seem phased by CJ's words anyway and offered a hug, which made things easier. "A hug sounds good," Evelyn grinned, happy that this was a thing they could do sometimes now.

She thought that having her first real kiss in front of her toddler brother, standing in front of the fireplace in the McLeod house hoping no one popped in just yet wasn't exactly how she'd like to do it. Still, she was pretty sure she would like to sometime and her nerves went through the roof in realising that it could theoretically happen over winter break. It wasn't a thought that had crossed her mind before. She was also worried though - she had hoped to get some time alone with Heinrich and maybe show him around town a little. She was also happy to spend time with Heinrich and Ness both, more often than not, but she hadn't considered that it might sound like she was trying to sneak off with her boyfriend the other way. Would that be a concern?

Stepping forward to accept his hug, Evelyn buried her cheek against Heinrich's chest and took a deep, warm breath of him. It was perfect. "It's good to see you," she murmured contentedly before pulling back a little to really look at him, her arms still around his waist for a moment. Smiling, happy with what she saw, she stepped all the way out of the hug. "I also think it's fun. Ness' parents, Marijke and Fionn, are waiting in the kitchen, but they wanted to make sure we got a chance to say hi and you could take a breath before meeting people. Flooing went alright?" she asked, wanting to make sure everything was good before they went and did The Thing. "I'm glad you got here in one piece," she added with a grin, eyes twinkling.

22 Evelyn Stones My favorite guys. 1422 0 5

Heinrich Hexenmeister

July 13, 2020 6:20 PM

Glad to hear it by Heinrich Hexenmeister

Heinrich appreciated the smaller size of the greeting party as Evelyn explained how it could have been. Just CJ had been startling enough, he wasn't sure he could have been nearly as relaxed greeting Evelyn and her brother if there had been strangers present. He wondered if it was polite to tell somebody thank-you for not being around? It sounded a bit like a back-handed insult so he decided voicing it may not come across in the best possible light.

He nodded. "No trouble. I thought for a moment my legs might have got caught somewhere," he added, smiling to show he was lightly teasing and he didn't hold it against the boy, "but that was CJ hugging me while I was disoriented." He couldn't entirely gloss over all of his concern though, so he did add, "I have been practicing my accent on the name McLeod for a few days." The name did sound significantly less Germanized than it had the last time Evelyn would have heard him say it. "I am glad to have made it here in one piece."

He took a deep breath and squared his shoulder toward where Evelyn had indicated the others were waiting. "I think I have taken my breath now. I do not wish to keep my hosts waiting too long. Unless there was something else you wanted to say before we did?" They had discussed this a bit at school already, so he didn't think there would be, unless something else had come up since then.

1 Heinrich Hexenmeister Glad to hear it 1414 0 5

Evelyn Stones

July 13, 2020 7:19 PM

Dope. by Evelyn Stones

"You said it very well," Evelyn said, smiling. He'd practiced? He'd practiced her foster family's name so he could come visit and be all safe and oh goodness he was too perfect. The next bit, the part where they'd do meet and greets and it would be weird and awkward and scary, suddenly seemed less weird or awkward or scary. Life in general seemed less scary with Heinrich by her side.

It was tempting to come up with something to say just for the sake of keeping them there, just the two and a half of them, for a little longer, but nothing came to mind. She glanced over her shoulder and turned some, ready as she'd ever be to confront the next step. A thought crossed her mind then and couldn't help smiling a little at the thought. Flirting was admittedly not one of her strong suits but she didn't think she was necessarily bad at it either and she'd like to give it a try. This might not be the moment to lay it on too thick, but she was feeling good and it might not be the worst moment in history to give it a shot. She was also well aware that CJ had a good need of romantic role models in his life, although Kir and Zevalyn (that one still weirded Evelyn to hear out loud), Fionn and Marijke, Lola and Catriona, and more as the family tree widened to include more McLeod couples certainly featured many. It was a beautiful thing and Evelyn did well to see it for herself, not just for CJ's sake. Actually, Heinrich maybe did, too. He'd seen his own parents, of course, but that was a mixed bag of feelings. Perhaps this would be good for them. Finally, she decided that maybe she did have a little more to say to him before they went on.

"Only that I think you're very handsome and I'm very glad that you asked me out because you're great," she said lightly, a playful grin on her face when she glanced back up at Heinrich. "Thank you for doing this." She bent down to pick up his bag for him, aware both that he was her guest and that he was about to need his hands for shaking if he consented to it. "Shall we?"

22 Evelyn Stones Dope. 1422 0 5

The McLeod-Langes

July 14, 2020 8:01 AM

What's a lute? by The McLeod-Langes

Hugs were a good choice. Heinrich and Evelyn hugged and then kept talking and most of it was boring.

“There’s cookies,” CJ informed Heinrich, tugging his hand and leading him out through the open door of the living room across the hallway into the kitchen.

The room centred around a large pine table, which it was easy to imagine as the heart of family mealtimes. The kitchen was clean and, to anyone who knew it well, conspicuously tidy. For once in its life, every mug was in a cupboard. Normally, there was a near constant flow of them, creating a tableau of the life cycle of a cup of tea, from brewing, to drinking, to the empty mugs queuing up for their turn in the sink, and then processing out the other side where they were stacked onto the draining board. Occasionally, they made it back to the fabled resting place of the cupboard, but more often than not got snatched into reuse before that happened. Actually attempting to clear all the surfaces was a ritual that took place when guests arrived, and which forced the McLeods to confront just how many mugs they really did own, and that the storage space available actually rather relied on the system of not ever trying to return them all to the cupboard at once. The mug cupboard jutted out at an odd angle, bearing every hallmark of an Absolutely Detectable Extension Charm, and that was still minus the several that were no doubt lurking in Ness’ room (or Fionn’s office).

The four members of the immediate McLeod-Lange family were gathered at the table, trying to look friendly and like they were ready to welcome a guest but not like they were simply sitting there waiting for him. Ness was doing the most convincing job of this, seeing as the large Pathfinder manual that Zevalyn had dropped off last visit was actually more interesting to the fifth year than Heinrich’s arrival, though Ness did look up and offer him a smile before returning to the question of tripping and grappling.

“This is Heinwick,” CJ announced, tugging him towards the table, “Choose how to say hello,” he instructed the nearest McLeod, assaulting them with the small laminated card.

“I think I will offer him a handshake,” Kir smiled, holding out a hand to Heinrich, and quickly swiping the card from CJ with the other before he did any more damage. “Good to see you again,” he grinned at Heinrich. He wasn’t sure they’d ever really had a conversation at school, but at least they weren’t brand new to each other. He hopefully had never done anything to particularly piss Heinrich off. His general existence had had that effect on a lot of people but he trusted Evelyn’s judgement better than to think she’d bring such a person into their house.

Both parental McLeods also offered handshakes with just a hint of questioning intonation that invited confirmation, and introduced themselves (“Fionn MCLeod” “Marijke Lange - call us whatever’s comfortable for you.”)

“Yo,” Ness acknowledged with a salute, glancing up again from Pathfinder.

“Ness chose...waving?” CJ stated uncertainly.

“Ness chose salute,” Ness informed him.

“What’s alute?” CJ asked.

“Ancient musical instrument,” Ness smirked. CJ tilted his head, confused both because this did not make sense and it wasn’t on the list.

“What’s alute?” he asked more insistently.

“Ancient music-” Ness began.

“Sa-lute,” Kir cut in, receiving a slight huff from Ness, “Like this. It’s what sailors do to captains.”

“Salute!” CJ declared, trying it out and hurrying back across to Kir who gave him a thumbs up. That got Ness’ attention away from the Pathfinder book, watching as Kir ruffled CJ’s hair.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Fionn switched the attention back to Heinrich, “Evelyn can show you where to put your bag if you want to get settled, and show you where the bathroom is, or you can just leave it here for now. Can we get you anything - tea, coffee, juice?” he offered.

“There’s cookies,” CJ pointed out again, gesturing to the plate in the centre of the table where some freshly baked white chocolate chip and raspberry cookies were sitting.

13 The McLeod-Langes What's a lute? 0 The McLeod-Langes 0 5

Heinrich Hexenmeister

July 16, 2020 5:01 PM

Oh, nice! by Heinrich Hexenmeister

Before Heinrich could quite tell Evelyn he was ready or respond in any way (other than a faint blush - curse his fair skin) to her compliments, CJ was pulling him into the next room and informing him about cookies. Before he could meet those, however, he was first introduced to the group of McLeods and a Lange (the later of which had the most normal sounding name he'd heard since he met Fredrieke Albert).

He shook hands with Kir first, then the others, kind of glad nobody wanted a hug from him (other than, of course, CJ and Evelyn). He'd been vaguely aware of Kir when they'd both been in Sonora at the same time, in that nobody could be entirely unaware of Kir, but they hadn't really done anything together. They had been in different Houses, and Heinrich hadn't joined the ranks of prefects or D&D Adventurers until after Kir had left, and Kir had never done Dueling, Quidditch, or Academic Help, which had been Heinrich's primary activities before then.

The two parents seemed nice enough and had even asked first before shaking hands, which Heinrich was glad to do, as handshaking was never a thing he'd had a problem with, since it generally wasn't used to convey feelings nor was a gesture he associated strongly with his own parents. This short interaction wasn't enough to really get a strong sense of them, and even Mr. Stones hadn't immediately been creepy.

Heinrich watched the interaction between Kir, CJ, and Ness with a small smile on his lips. He had learned two new words today, too. He made a mental note to ask Ness more about the ancient musical instrument later.

Then the conversation turned back to him, and he looked over at the bag Evelyn had carried in, and shook his head. "I do not need anything immediately and my bag can wait. Though CJ says I should try a cookie," he added with as much seriousness as he could muster. He did wonder if he would be sleeping on a couch again, but decided that would be answered in due time when they did put his bag away. After cookies. Now that CJ mentioned it, he was kind of hungry, a little.

He looked over at the plate over them, uncertain if he should just reach over or if he should be formally invited to do so first. CJ had, but CJ was not exactly the authority of the house. Perhaps best to wait for at least a hand wave of invitation. Neither was he sure if this counted as a sufficient amount of small talk before he brought up some of the heavier topics he had arrived an extra day early to discuss. Was there a better way to get from talking about cookies to talking about people getting out of jail who shouldn't be getting out of jail already and making horrible demands on their child without just jumping off that cliff?

Maybe start on the happier, if still fraught and awkward, topic first. That was at least a shorter cliff.

"So, um. I am dating your foster daughter." He gave Evelyn a smile at that. "Are there things you want to know about me?"

OOC: I can edit if Kir has done Dueling.

1 Heinrich Hexenmeister Oh, nice! 1414 0 5

Evelyn Stones

July 16, 2020 8:58 PM

Something about being high strung. by Evelyn Stones

Evelyn followed CJ and Heinrich and a big part of her wanted to go stand by Ness because Ness was one of her favorites. At the same time, she was generally comfortable with the whole family and she didn't want Heinrich to be all alone, facing the group of them, so she stayed by his side. Plus she liked being by his side. She grinned, amused by CJ, Ness, and Kir's interaction. It was weird seeing CJ be a person. He'd never acted like this before and her heart sank horribly at the idea of how much was at stake for him now if he went back to her dad's. That, unfortunately, was less in her control than whether she herself did. But if he got stuck there for a long time because she refused . . . the stakes were high now.

She knew that Heinrich wanted to talk to Marijke and Fionn about this, and the family as a whole really, because they wanted to figure out what would happen post-graduation, and because they wanted to figure out what should happen in the more immediate future, as well. Evelyn was glad Heinrich wanted to do that and she couldn't help thinking big words that started with L when she thought of Heinrich doing all this, but she also wanted to just enjoy what may be her last 'free' winter break for a while, and not think about the life she was trying to leave behind. For now, they were talking about puns and cookies.

"Have one if you want," Evelyn smiled, taking one for herself, much to CJ's approval if his grin and happy nod were anything to judge by. She would have grabbed one for Heinrich as well but wasn't sure if he actually wanted one. Taking a bite was the right choice because she could focus on that when Heinrich's directness made her blush, and she pressed her lips together to restrain a more infatuated grin than she'd borne before, although she lost some restraint when Heinrich smiled at her himself. She beamed at him. Both the label 'foster daughter' and the straightforwardness with which he announced they were dating - even though such news was not really news - made Evelyn feel warm and happy and loved. She glanced at Ness, her eyes betraying exactly how much both those things meant to her, and resisted the urge to reach out and take Heinrich's hand. The consent card was doing its job as a reminder.

She was curious to see who would have something to say first, and she sort of wanted to speak up but decided against it. She had talked enough about Heinrich for most of the family to know he was an Aladren, prefect, played DnD and Quidditch, was German, and was wonderful. She'd tried not to gush too much about how gorgeous and kind he was, except where relevant. Ness already knew Heinrich, of course, so she couldn't imagine her best friend having a lot to ask in the moment either. Still, Heinrich hadn't always been so open and it meant more than Evelyn could put in words to see him being willing to be that way now, all for her.

CJ, for his part, narrowed his eyes and looked from Heinrich to Evelyn and back again. Evelyn watched his face and supposed she should have expected him to speak up first. He seemed unsure about some of the phrasing Heinrich used and Evelyn wondered whether it was the term "foster daughter" or "dating" that set his mind spinning. "Are you and sissy gonna get married?" he asked Heinrich, cocking his head. "Kir and Zebawyn are dating too, but they aren't married. But Fionn and Maweeke are married," he explained, nodding confidently at his understanding of different types of relationships.

22 Evelyn Stones Something about being high strung. 1422 0 5

The McLeod-Langes

July 18, 2020 7:38 AM

Relax by The McLeod-Langes

“Yes, do,” Fionn echoed, smiling as Evelyn took it upon herself to be the one to give Heinrich the go ahead to have a cookie. “Kir and CJ made them,” he added, nudging the plate a little closer with his wand, whilst Marijke flicked hers over towards the kettle, setting a range of tea and coffee making motions into actions, as she was sure most people in the room would want a brew even if Heinrich had declined.

“Do let us know if you want anything,” she smiled. Heinrich opened proceedings rather formally, and she wasn’t sure whether it was his grasp of English (which was actually very good, but nuance and subtlety were probably amongst the hardest things to learn) or just his nature. And speaking of nuance and subtlety, CJ was happily chiming in with all the typical levels a four year old possessed in those fields.

Marijke took a beat to consider how to field that one, fairly sure she should shield Heinrich from having to answer, during which Ness stepped in. Though to be more factual than helpful, as usual.

“So are Aunt Lola and Aunt Catriona,” Ness stated, sounding slightly annoyed that CJ had missed them out. CJ knew this. As far as he was concerned, he was talking about people here. Anyway, he was more interested in Evelyn and his cookie than listing more married people so he more or less ignored Ness.

“People usually make a big announcement about that sort of thing if it’s happening, CJ,” Marijke informed him, one quick eye sweeping over Evelyn to check for contradictions but not expecting to find any. “It’s the sort of thing where you just have to wait and see. Yes,” she smiled, at Heinrich, “We’d like to know lots about you, but I’m sure we’ve got plenty of time to find it out. This isn’t an interview,” she added, hoping she could make their intentions clear to him, even if it was usually the opposite way round that that was demanded. That wasn’t something they would be doing. Evelyn had made a choice, and they trusted her to have made a good one. Admittedly, people who hadn’t grown up with healthy relationships didn’t always know how to do that, but what she and Ness had both said about Heinrich had given a favourable impression, and they would be starting from the assumption that Evelyn was capable and that he was decent. “You’re welcome to tell us anything you like, and you’re not obliged to talk with us about anything you don’t want to,” she clarified. He lived with his uncle. She knew that because she had asked Evelyn how she should address a pre-visit letter. She had not pried further into that and would absolutely not be doing so without some pretty strong invitation to. Still, some people felt more comfortable with things that bothered them out in the open, so that they weren’t hanging there like secrets to be found out. They would listen to whatever Heinrich had to say for himself.

“We’ve mostly heard you’re a fearsome dragon who squishes rats, all in the name of the greater good,” Fionn added, aware that ‘tell us whatever you want to tell us’ was something of a field so open it could be intimidating. “You are less scaly than expected,” he added with a grin, hoping that humour was going to translate well enough, as it would be difficult to get through a conversation in this house without speaking that language.

13 The McLeod-Langes Relax 0 The McLeod-Langes 0 5