Time is what you make of it (tag Bonabelle, Killian and Valentine) on Magical Arts Room and Sports

Jean Wolfe

August 26, 2020 6:22 AM

Time is what you make of it (tag Bonabelle, Killian and Valentine) by Jean Wolfe

Bonabelle Row did not think much of grown ups, but she had said he was alright in spite of being (more or less) one. She had let him make a box for her to stand on to reach high books, and thanked him, even though she didn’t like help much. She had trusted him, and he had thought terrible, mean things about her. The worst part was that one tiny little corner of his brain would not let go of the notion that what he had thought was right, especially given what he was now doing. But he was pretty sure that he was doing this out of his guilt at betraying a nice person (even if only inside his own head) rather than any guilt she had deliberately tricked him into feeling. He wasn’t generally motivated by guilt. He’d been worn dry on having his emotions played like a violin, and he tended to just shut down and detest anyone he thought was attempting to manipulate his feelings. The fact that he was feeling his guilt suggested he had something to really feel guilty about. It suggested that he had done wrong, not her. Every time he thought of the sweet person he’d helped in the library and the fact that he had wronged her, and that she had had no birthday this year, he felt his stomach twisting.

He had recruited two accomplices - or rather, he had recruited one and got him to recruit the other. He did not know which small human ‘Val’ was and it was probably much less weird (and much better spelt) for a note explaining the plan to come from Killian. He was Bonabelle’s uncle, after all (and more or less spoke English as a first language). Valentine’s part was small, though it would expand to fit whatever she wanted to make of the occasion - she had been informed that they would take care of all the arrangements regarding food and so on, though if she had any ideas or wanted to bring anything to the party she was welcome to drop it off with them and they would make sure it made its way to the MARS water room. Her main task was to bring Bonabelle, as she was likely to be able to do so whilst arousing the least suspicion, and secretly bring a spare cardigan in case she wasn’t dressed for the weather. As they prepared, it struck him that he had no idea whether Killian had told the Teppenpaw first year that he - Jean-Loup - would be there, and how confused Valentine was going to be about that because it was sort of hard to explain what he was doing here even if you tried to. He had just somehow got tangled up in a birthday party exchange with both Rows and there was no escape. He also wasn’t particularly sure he wanted there to be.

Killian had taken care of most of the material arrangements. Jean-Loup had picked up a cake in town, but Killian had given him the money. He had not argued this point because it seemed reasonable and fair that, as her uncle, he should, and also Jean-Loup was broke. Tea seemed to be on the menu too, and whilst he knew quite a lot about that for someone who didn’t drink it, the first and most important lesson he’d learnt was that it was something people were very particular about. Dorian had mentioned several times that the English did harmful things to tea, which probably meant that Bonabelle’s concept of the beverage was quite different to his boyfriend’s and that it was best left to the experts. He just hoped that, much as healthy snacks had been provided at Killian’s party, there was going to be some kind of alternative here too. Or that they would all make Unbreakable Vows not to tell Dorian that his first cup of willingly consumed tea had been with someone else and had had milk and sugar in it.

Jean-Loup supposed he himself got credit for the general concept. He had also made a present. He was not very likely to be around for Bonabelle’s next birthday, which was another reason for doing this now, and also related to his gift. It looked a bit like a travel gaming board, and had in fact started life that way. It was a neat and shallow wooden box, with hinges along one end, held shut by small clasp on the other, and was small, easily pocketable. When opened out and placed flat, it would pop up into a little pair of boxy steps, like the ones he had made her in the library, just in case she needed to do anything tall in between the time he left and the time she got big enough not to need any help. When she was done, it could easily be folded back into her pocket. The spellwork was not professional grade, and he thought it might last only a couple of years before the charms went wonky, but by then she’d either be able to fix it up herself or not need it anymore. He had never given someone a handmade present before. He had tried to subtly probe the issue with Killian, painting it that he couldn’t quite find what he was looking for in the shops, and did he think it would matter if he gave something homemade? Killian had seemed to think that would count for more, and certainly had given no indication that it was in any way offensive.

Jean-Loup’s first attempt with MARS had been to conjure up the gardens at Sonora, as they had looked on October 13th this year. It had not been successful - or rather, had not been suitable. He was not sure whether it was really accurate, or whether the rooms were not capable of being that specific especially if he didn’t know what the day had been like, and thus were just offering his own subconscious projection of what he expected - or perhaps it had just been the room’s token effort to fulfil the ‘water’ part of its brief. Either way, it had been pouring with rain. The weather here is Irish, yes? This makes you feel at home? Bonabelle will like? he teased Killian. If they weren’t going to have the actual day itself in the gardens, then he thought he might as well get really creative with the scenery. He remembered some family trips, before he had started school. Memories that came with fewer knots in his stomach. They had taken weekend trips down to Vermont to see the fall leaves. He could remember burying his dad in huge piles of them, and the whole world looking like it was very gently on fire.

Thus when Valentine brought Bonabelle through the door, she would be greeted by a parkscape, the ground covered in a soft and crunching carpet, trees waving their arms in a riot of browns, golds and burning oranges, and two people who cared about her very much sitting ready on a picnic rug with tea, cake, presents, and whatever else Killian had felt was necessary.

“Hello,” Jean-Loup greeted her with a smile. “As you can see, your Uncle and I are very powerful wizards and we time-travel back to the fall. Therefore, happy birthday.”

OOC - god-modding approval gained from Valentine and Killian.

13 Jean Wolfe Time is what you make of it (tag Bonabelle, Killian and Valentine) 1506 1 5

Valentine Duell

August 26, 2020 2:13 PM

And right now it's time to party! by Valentine Duell

Valentine was in on a scheme! This was awesome! Mr. Row was going to throw Bonabelle a late, super-surprise birthday party and he wanted her to be in on it! Ever since Mama had told Bonabelle and Lavender about her birthday, she'd been working on plans for theirs when the time came. Apparently the time had come!

Well, sort of. Mr. Row said he was going to take care of the arrangements, but if she had ideas she could contribute them. Oh, she had some ideas, but she thought she may just save them for October next year. Maybe this would be a good practice run to see how her friend actually responded to surprise birthdays first. So she had agreed to the task Mr. Row had assigned her. Get an unsuspecting Bonabelle to the water room in MARS at the designated time. Piece of cake. She began her scheming.

Turns out this was trickier than she'd initially thought. Mainly because she really didn't want to lie to her friend. It may be for a fun cause, but still... there had to be another way. In the end, she decided to keep the plan simple. It wasn't nearly as much fun, but it should work.

She scheduled a study session, in the music room, about a half hour before the appointed time. It was a little unusual, but the music was actually nice to study with. A few minutes before the appointed time she excused herself to go to the bathroom. She went to the bathroom, not for any biological reasons, but because she had told Bonabelle she was leaving to go there. Then she came back and poked her head into the water room. It looked like they were all ready in there.

She left the water door open a few inches and threw open the music room door. "Bonabelle! Come quick! You've got to see this!" She motioned urgently for her friend to follow her and the disappeared back out through the doorway. In the lobby she pointed towards the water room door. "Hurry! Go look!" She then followed close behind doing her best not to giggle.

2 Valentine Duell And right now it's time to party! 1490 0 5

Bonabelle Row

August 27, 2020 4:03 PM

It literally isn't though. by Bonabelle Row

Val wanted to study! In retrospect, that should have been a sign. Okay, so sometimes Val did want to study, but it wasn't half so common as other things. Also, they didn't usually study in the music room. Weirder still was the Teppenpaw's semi-urgent summons after a bathroom break and Bonabelle being asked to 'go look'. She hoped to Merlin that Valentine hadn't wet herself in the hallway, but her friend didn't seem especially embarrassed or pee-soaked, so Bonabelle turned her attention ahead. To the water room?

"Are you okay?" she asked Val, concern creasing her brow before she did as she was told and went to go look.

It was very autumnal when she entered and she stood agape at the colors for a moment, amazed by the array. It was springtime now, so there were an entirely different set of colors visible on the grounds. Valentine came in behind her and Bonabelle would have glanced at her with questions in her eyes if she hadn't dropped her gaze from the tree tops to the two men sitting on a blanket amidst them all. Uncle Killian had a dopey grin that told her he was amused but not the mastermind behind all this. Which meant . . .

"For me?" she confirmed, although the answer was obvious. She resisted the urge to spin around in circles. Her birthday had not been half this pretty the previous fall, as it had been pouring down raining and she'd stayed inside. She was glad that they had not gone too literal with that. In her whole entire life, she'd never done anything this special for her birthday. Ice cream dates was the height of it and that tradition had continued in a small way this year, although she wasn't sure whether it would from here on out, but this was much more than that. She was pretty sure this is what family was supposed to feel like. "I've . . . never had a birthday party before," she said softly.

22 Bonabelle Row It literally isn't though. 1488 0 5

Jean Wolfe

August 28, 2020 9:20 AM

Explain? by Jean Wolfe

A small blonde head peeked in, and for a horrible moment Jean-Loup wondered how strange it was going to look that he was having a picnic with Killian, and how they were going to explain that. However, it appeared that this small blonde head was the Valentine person they were waiting for, and she was now bringing Bonabelle. She was not bringing her very subtly, it turned out. There was squealing, and Bonabelle presumably knew something was occurring. It was not the most surprising lead into a surprise, but when the birthday girl walked in, it was clear that this still had not been what she was expecting.

“Yes, for you,” he confirmed, when she asked. He watched her reaction, feeling his patronus feelings once again stirring in his chest. He supposed that made sense. They were the manifestation of pure happiness, but it was their job to protect. This might have been a very non-literal version of that, far less obvious than hitting bludgers away from his little sister, but it fed that same set of feelings - ones which didn’t get as much of a look in as they once had. Whilst he kept an easy social smile on his face, on the inside, he felt his ears pricking up, felt his fur quivering, waiting to see if he had done a good job. As she declared that she had never had a birthday before, his smile dropped. He was too well practised to let his dismay show, even as his patronus pushed its paws frantically against his chest, scrabbling at the situation, determined to make the world a better place.

“Never?” he stated. He hesitated, trying to decipher whether ‘before’ had the effect he thought it did on that sentence. “You are having one now?” he checked, glancing around at autumnal landscape. He had focussed on making the time period right, had he neglected the birthday half? “I mean, we are a party enough?” he asked. He thought she was saying that they were - that her run of not having had parties was now at end, but he wanted to be certain, because the idea had been to make up for her missing birthday. He had had no idea they were trying to make up for twelve of them. Behind him, a few of the trees began sprouting bunting.

13 Jean Wolfe Explain? 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

August 29, 2020 6:40 AM

Time can be wibbly. It's all fine. by Valentine Duell

Valentine did her best to indicate she was perfectly fine and nothing was wrong as she urged Bonabelle to go into the water room. Also, doing her best not to give anything away. Like the fact that there was a party for her in there for crying out loud. Go party! Finally her friend entered the room.

Once inside, she allowed Bonabelle to take in the scene and giggled at Medic Willow's intern's opening line. After that, she just couldn't hold back anymore. She wrapped Bonabelle in a hug with a "Happy" slightly quieter, "slightly belated," finishing loud again "birthday!" Releasing her friend from the hug, she took her hand and dragged... assisted her over to where her uncle and intern Arc..new..ex? French was a new language for her, were waiting. She wasn't really sure where the intern fit into all this, but that was fine. He was here and happily throwing a party for Bonabelle so that made him a fantastic person.

"Oh shoot." She remembered all of their stuff over in the music room, including Bonabelle's present. "Okay, you have fun. I'll be right back! I just need to get our stuff from the other room quick." Someone else may want to use it after all, and leaving their things in there wouldn't be very nice. She gave Bonabelle another quick squeeze and tossed a smile to the two men before dashing back to the other room again.

It din't take long to gather up their things. She checked the 'present' she'd made. It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. She'd made a 'Happy Birthday' card, and gotten the picture they'd taken from her party in February developed. The frame that held the picture was a double frame and in the other space was a piece of paper that said 'Reserved for Miss Bonabelle Row's birthday party picture'. It was wrapped simply and still in good condition. She shouldered their bags, checked her camera and headed back to the water room again.

2 Valentine Duell Time can be wibbly. It's all fine. 1490 0 5

Bonabelle Row

August 30, 2020 12:34 PM

You were all willing to wibble time just for me? by Bonabelle Row

"I am having one now," she repeated after Jean-Loup. She wanted to make it sound reassuring so that he knew she counted this as her first one, but she was still mostly in disbelief. All this was for her? She generally counted herself as a pretty confident person, self-assured and full of reasonably high self-esteem. But that was all based in objective fact. She was valuable because of what she had learned to be capable of, and she had learned to be capable of a lot. But birthday parties . . . she had helped with Val's and with Uncle Killian's because she cared about them for who they were, not because she was going to benefit from it all. All these people had returned the favor just because they cared? That was almost too much to wrap her head around, not least because it required a thorough self-assessment on how confident she really was.

She let Valentine pull her over towards where the picnic seemed to be happening, returning the embrace a bit weakly as her expression slowly took up a proper grin. Uncle Killian was already grinning and he looked very content here. Crazy man must be an extrovert, she realised. Val turned and left and Bonabelle looked at her uncle and her . . . friend was probably the right word. "Thank you very very much," she said softly, feeling small in a good way. Usually feeling small meant something was insurmountable, but today feeling small meant others were big enough to take care of her, and that was new.

Feeling suddenly as though she had learned a very important lesson from Valentine and she wanted to pass it on, she crouched first by her uncle, squeezing him in a big hug, and then by Jean-Loup. Careful not to choke him - since standing up hugs on someone who was sitting down always ran the risk of choking the sitting down person - she pressed her cheek against his shoulder. "Thank you," she said again.

When Valentine returned, she received her with open arms too. "And thank you," she added. "I thought you peed yourself or something," she admitted quietly, blushing and stifling a giggle. "When you run off to the bathroom and then come back telling me I have to come see something . . . I was worried."

22 Bonabelle Row You were all willing to wibble time just for me? 1488 0 5

Jean Wolfe

August 30, 2020 7:05 PM

Absolutely by Jean Wolfe

They were a party! Oh good. Jean-Loup had noticed the trees’ new ornamentation. For a second, they had increased his worry, as he wondered whether Bonabelle or Valentine was correcting him, but then he remembered that he was in charge of the room. He had tried to bring his worries and his subconscious notions of what a party was like under control before it morphed into some hideous fusion of a Vermont park and a ballroom, because he was sure that no one wanted that. He wondered how exactly MARS worked, in terms of feeding off wants versus expectations - those could be two very different things, and he didn’t have much of a template for the type of birthday he was trying to give Bonabelle. As she confirmed that she was happy though, the trees stopped spouting further decorations, and his smile relaxed slightly.

Val went off to get their stuff, and Bonabelle greeted her uncle with a hug. And him. He got a hug too. He managed to get over his surprise in time to return it. He didn’t have many people who hugged him. He had Dorian. And that was usually more kisses and snuggles than just a hug. He liked those, of course, but just hugs were a very nice thing too. His family weren’t particularly huggy people, not that he saw them anymore anyway. Quidditch was the huggiest thing he’d had in his life. The usual rules of masculinity got suspended when you won, when that exuberance needed letting out in the form of grabbing onto each other and piling in like over enthusiastic golden retrievers, all leaping around, arms around each other. But he wasn’t on a team any more. Very slowly, he was building a list of non-boyfriend hugs that he had had since he left school. He could still count them individually. He had let Mary hug him when he’d been worrying about Dorian in Greece. By the time he left, he had been familiar enough with the Merlinoses that they had given him hugs as well as la bise. He supposed there were a handful of occasions when one or other of the small children had thrown themselves around his legs, but it was hard to classify which had been hugs versus tiny attacks versus demands for attention. Killian had hugged him at his birthday party. Bonnabelle’s hug possibly pushed him into needing to use his second hand to count, if he considered the collective bombardment of the twins as one example. He thought this one might be his favourite so far.

He had made her happy, and he could feel his patronus leaping about inside his chest. It had more in common with its domesticated descendants than it would have liked to admit. It frolicked and leapt, and it wagged its tail. Though he wasn’t sure whether it was the feeling of being patted on the head and getting to hear it was a good boy, or something more suited to its wild side than that. It was the fact that he was a pack animal, and that whilst finding a mate was fulfilling, it wasn’t enough. He needed to be part of something bigger. A team. A group. A... a pack. That was a more comfortable word.

“You’re welcome,” he stated. It sounded bland and polite, the thing you just said when someone said ‘thank you.’ He was not sure how you emphasised it in English - very welcome? Lots welcome? Welcome lots? - so he tried to just do it with his voice instead.

Bonabelle turned and started chatting to her friend, and sounding like a typical, giggly twelve year old. He grinned, one that took in Killian (dang, he just wanted to snuggle him or like… lick his face or something - he was just so ridiculously pleased that he existed and was here) and the birthday girl, and the fact that he somehow got to be part of their lives.

13 Jean Wolfe Absolutely 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 01, 2020 3:28 PM

We would do so much more! by Valentine Duell

When Valentine re-entered the MARS room her heart skipped a beat. Bonabelle was hugging people! She was learning! Yes! Val set their things down by the door and was ready with a mile-wide smile at her friend when they met up and wrapped their arms around each other. "You're more than welcome! Just wait until October comes around next and we don't have to warp time to do this properly! I hope you've learned your lesson about keeping secrets." She gave her friend a wink, "It won't do any good."

Val burst out in giggles when Bonabelle told her what she had thought was happening. "I didn't even think about that." She squeezed her friend again, "And you still came to help. Now I know who to come to if that does happen!" She laughed merrily again and trotted back to the blanket and the other party people with Bonabelle.

She hadn't interacted much with Mr. Row yet, and even less with Medic Intern Arc...something french that she'd really need to learn soon. And this was mainly their party, so she asked them "What's next on the agenda now? Games? Cake?" Then she pulled out the wrapped parcel and waved it tantalizingly in Bonabelle's direction with a mischievous grin. "Presents?" She also still had her camera slung across her shoulder, ready to use. Hopefully to capture that perfect moment that would finish the present.

2 Valentine Duell We would do so much more! 1490 0 5

Killian Row

September 03, 2020 1:24 PM

We really would. by Killian Row

Bonabelle struck Killian as a very tragic sort of youth. He was well aware that there were other youth who were, in some ways, far more tragic, but Bonabelle was definitely on his list of young people he worried about. Part of that was, of course, their familial relationship, but part of that was just that he doubted she was one to talk about her feelings. In a way Killian wouldn't have expected, Bonny took neither after himself or his brother, her father. Instead, she was much more like her grandparents, and Killian thought that was probably the best thing for her. His only hope was that he could help teach her both that it was okay to ask for help, and that it was okay to be silly. When he and Jean-Loup received hugs and then Bonabelle set about giggling with her friend, Killian grinned, deciding he didn't need to worry as much as he had been. He looked at Jean-Loup with a fierce fondness, wishing very much that he knew how to thank the lad for his part in all this.

As his niece and her friend chatted for a moment, Killian leaned towards his own friend to clap an arm around his shoulders in the rough semblance of a hug - it was the best he could do given their angles and positions, sitting on the blanket. He let go as Valentine - 11, Teppenpaw, daughter of Sonora alumni, literally the bubbliest person ever - led Bonabelle to the blanket as well and asked what she'd like to do next. For her part, his niece didn't seem sure what to say.

"That sounds like the right order to me," Killian suggested, grinning. "Games, cake, and then presents." There were few things Killian loved more than cake, but games were one of them. One tradition Killian had grown up with was birthday bumping, where an adult would turn the birthday person upside down and carefully - or not carefully - bump their head into the floor once for each year they'd been alive now. That didn't seem like the best idea given that Bonabelle was probably old enough not to prefer such a thing, and that she'd worn a dress, and that she probably wasn't familiar with the Irish side of her family's traditions.

He'd considered the people he knew would be in attendance here and decided that the group was divided evenly in three ways: boys vs girls, Rows vs non-Rows, or more reserved and less reserved. Therefore, the natural thing to do was take advantage of the fact that he and Valentine seemed to think generally along similar wavelengths. Digging into his bag, he retrieved four spray cans, passing one to each person. He wasn't entirely confident of how much muggle knowledge Valentine had, but he was pretty confident in thinking neither Jean-Loup nor Bonabelle knew what silly string was. Of course, having purchased it from a magic shop meant that there was way more silly string in these cans than any muggle manufacturer would have been able to achieve.

Removing the cap from his own as nonchalantly as possible, Killian leaned toward Jean-Loup, as if to show him what he was doing. Then, he depressed the button and sprayed a faceful of green goo at Bonny, who gasped, shocked. She paused for a moment before setting her jaw and accepting his challenge, removing her own cap and returning the favor with a bit less precision; while she had presumably aimed at Killian, the string missed and blasted instead at Jean-Loup, leaving a blue mess across his chest.

Proud of himself, Killian scrambled to his feet, grabbing at Jean-Loup to do the same. "You're on," he shouted before darting off towards the woods as Bonabelle copied his motion, urging Valentine to her feet as another string of green shot for them both.

22 Killian Row We really would. 1450 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 04, 2020 6:33 AM

Like... attack you with goo by Jean Wolfe

Jean-Loup leant into Killian’s lopsided hug, smiling as he did so. Everyone being happy was making everyone else happy, and he now appeared to be part of a group that expressed that with hugging. He thought he could get very used to that.

Valentine asked about plans. Jean-Loup was definitely ready with cake and presents. Killian seemed on board with games, which hopefully meant he had prepared some because Jean-Loup certainly had not. He recalled very dim and distant past memories where such things had been a feature of birthday parties. Having a summer birthday had opened up options such as having pool parties, or racing each other around the garden having impromptu games of Quidditch, but his overriding memory of recent years was being forced into stiff shirts and being made the centre of an uncomfortable amount of attention. ‘Fun’ hadn’t been a high priority on anyone’s agenda.

Killian did seem to have a… game(?) of some kind. He had strange canisters which Jean-Loup definitely did not trust the look of. He inspected it warily, but it was the birthday girl who got blasted with goo. She then got him back for his accidental part in the ruse, or he got caught in the cross-fire - he wasn’t sure which. He grabbed his own can, grinning. His own parents would never have let him do something so messy, although they had turned a blind eye to the occasional water fight with the Quidditch team, because ‘boys will be boys.’ He’d also got into some fairly vicious snowball smackdowns on campus, especially between rival teams. The teams here appeared to be boys versus girls, which was actually two grown men against two twelve year olds, so he would have to be careful how hard he played. He didn’t doubt that the two first years were faster than Killian, and potentially sneaky and lethal assassins. He would do well not to underestimate them. But he was also big enough to seriously squash them and he would rather not ruin Bonabelle’s birthday by breaking her or her friend, nor have to explain not only that general circumstance to Katey but also this specific and highly ridiculous iteration of it. He wondered if he could form an alliance or switch up the teams at some stage because he was pretty sure that, had they not been team-mates, Killian would have been fair game for tackling and pinning down.

For now, he darted towards the woods with the guidance counselor, turning to sling a shot back at Valentine so as not to leave her out (it would have been rude to do so, right?). It was a little different doing it all on his feet instead of a broom, but he had played Beater for seven years in school - more if you counted his childhood interest in the game - so his aim was pretty good.

13 Jean Wolfe Like... attack you with goo 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 04, 2020 7:32 PM

Goo-strike! Go!! by Valentine Duell

Valentine accepted her spray can with a grin. Oh, this might be fun, she thought to herself. She popped the cap from her can when Mr. Row moved to show Mr. Arcen..ewus? how to use the cans. She wasn't sure how this was going to work out, but she wanted to be ready. Was this going to be a free-for-all? Were the Rows going to team up against...? Nope! Valentine saw the goo spray towards Bonabelle to late to warn her.

She watched her friend for a moment as Bonabelle took in the situation. She tried really, really hard not to giggle. She must have succeeded, because she blasted away at the medic. The boys? men? were off and running and Bonabelle was tugging at her arm. She got to her feet and started running, her long skirt was flapping around her legs when she felt something hit her in the back. She turned and returned fire... in a hopeless shot as they plunged into the trees.

Valentine paused to catch her breath and consider their situation. "So, it's the two grown men against us twelve year old girls." Glancing down at her skirt and then Bonabelle's dress and the the undergrowth and wilderness about them, she looked back at her friend. "We should probably give them a chance to surrender, just to be fair."

A branch snapped somewhere and Valentine brought her can up and fired a stream of bright pink goo into the trees. "We'd better get moving!"

2 Valentine Duell Goo-strike! Go!! 1490 0 5

Killian Row

September 04, 2020 8:08 PM

Goo goo power rangers! by Killian Row

"Good shot!" Killian told Jean-Loup, a little proud of himself for not being out of breath. He was definitely breathing hard, but it was distinctly adrenaline and not this-sucks-ine that was doing him in. It seemed like it had been a very long time since he'd had fun just for fun's sake. He was feeling silly and playful and warm and it was wonderful. He also felt confident in saying that Jean-Loup was his friend now and that his relationship with Bonny was at least solid enough to count for something. She would remember this birthday, even if it wasn't really her birthday. "At some point, we're probably going to be on opposite teams," he acknowledged, holding out a hand. "For now, it's a pleasure to have you on my side. Any tactical moves, Mr. Athlete? We probably shouldn't leave this up to me."

He peered around the trunk of the tree, wondering if it would be best to run at the girls or to let them make the first move. He suspected that he and Jean-Loup had a height advantage, if not a direct speed advantage on his own part, and could cover ground easily, but that also made them larger targets. "Do you think they're more likely to run on us? Or sneak up on us?" he asked, glancing back over his shoulder and wondering how well Jean-Loup actually knew the forest he'd created. His attention was brought back to the battle when he stepped on a branch and a threatening strand of pink goo just barely missed him. "Oh, I think we go in."

Doing his best not to break any more branches, he nudged out from behind his tree and towards where the pink goo had come from.

22 Killian Row Goo goo power rangers! 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 04, 2020 8:23 PM

Goo fight win! by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle was doing everything she could to stifle her giggles by the time she and Val made it to the tree line. Her face was pink and flushed and the pungent smell that came from the goo that was sticking to her only fueled her adrenaline. "I've never done this before," she admitted. She'd never had a birthday like this before at all, or any other day really. She couldn't imagine doing something messy and silly with her father. Ice cream was fun but she was, in many ways, her daddy's little princess; messes were his to make and she wouldn't dream of doing the same. Now that she was finding out how fun it was, she couldn't imagine doing anything else.

She couldn't help laughing at her friend's confidence. "Let's do this," she grinned, feeling more alive and more playful than she'd ever done before. Val led the charge, responding to a snapping branch and Bonabelle's eyes grew wide. "You're fast," she said, surprised by the girl's reflexes.

Tugging at Valentine to get her to follow without making any more noise, Bonabelle moved a bit sideways, hoping to flank her uncle and Jean-Loup rather than face them head on. She pointed ahead a little ways, hoping Valentine understand what she meant, and raised her eyebrows in a question, not wanting to make all the decisions herself.

22 Bonabelle Row Goo fight win! 1488 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 05, 2020 1:11 AM

I am too young and too Pureblood to get your pop culture references by Jean Wolfe

Jean-Loup reached out to shake the hand that was offered, glad that Killiam was suggesting switching up later. Hm, he was in charge of tactics. Admitedly, that probably was his strength rather than Killian's, even if he was used to doing this in the air.

"I am sure I have many transferable skills," he whispered, with a grin, this being a phrase Killian had taught him to use and which had come up many times in mock interviews.

In Quidditch, he preferred the defensive game but that was mostly because there was a risk of people getting hurt. This was different. Plus everyone on the field was armed. Normally, you didn't aim for your fellow beaters as there was little point...

"Make good use of the nature defence," he gestured to the trees.

"If you want to get out there, you can run to the trees there," he gestured. "You can do loudly, try to get them fire at you and I can fire to them?" he suggested, figuring that the other transferable tactic was to play to everyone's strengths. Killian was not the most subtle (or the fastest, and Jean-Loup had no idea whether he could aim) but that could be something they used to their advantage.

13 Jean Wolfe I am too young and too Pureblood to get your pop culture references 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 06, 2020 6:26 AM

Time for some learning then! by Valentine Duell

Valentine grinned at her friend, "Never?" She asked, "Well it's about time!" She wasn't sure if Bonabelle was talking about using the silly string, or about having a fun and exciting party in general. She really hoped it was the former. Just in case she was wrong though, she was going to do her best to make this as awesome as possible. All they had to do now was to cover Mr. Row and his friend in brightly covered goo.

"Lots of Qudditch practice," she responded as a response to her reflexes. With a slight blush. Valentine moved along with Bonabelle as quietly as she could. She nodded along with her friend's signals, then added a few of her own just because it seemed like the thing to do. They could be possibly interpreted as 'right behind you, moving to attack on your orders Ma'am!' She grinned happily, this was fun!

As they moved, she was sure she caught sight of someone in the trees. Hopefully those people were watching the spot they had been, and not noticing where they were now. She readied her weapon and was prepared to fire on Commander Bonabelle's order. The trap was set, would it work?

2 Valentine Duell Time for some learning then! 1490 0 5

Killian Row

September 09, 2020 8:58 AM

Well let's put a movie night on the calendar for summer then. by Killian Row

Killian raised his eyebrows, cocking his head with a goofy grin. "I'm bait?" he asked with mock incredulity. "That's all I am to you." He put a hand on his chest as if his heart has broken in two. "I should have known." Big theatric inhale. "Alright. I can do it for the team." He wanted to point out to Jean-Loup that the intern had given him the perfect fodder to switch sides this way, as he now had more incentive to fire upon him than anyone else, but he kept that to himself. Biding his time would get him farther, and his only real goal was to make sure everyone got thoroughly gooped and had a good time. The only real reason he would switch teams to make that happen was because Bonny deserved a fun uncle on her team sometimes and what better way to demonstrate the reality of that than a not-at-all-metaphorical silly string war? The other reason was that Jean-Loup wouldn't have half so much fun if he couldn't really throw himself into it and Killian knew he wasn't about to employ too much of his athleticism against children. He was going to be playing bait a number of times today, and hopefully prove that he was at least a little more in shape than the former beater gave him credit for.

Definitely not as in shape as said former beater - he was going to lose, badly - but it would be fun.

He grinned at Jean-Loup's call back to interviewing and extended a hand to shake. "You're hired, m'boy," he said in one of his most ridiculous I'll be the employer and you be you voices.

Finally, he turned to face the trees that he almost definitely wouldn't actually make it to. "Alright," he said. "Let's do this."

Checking left and right first, he did his best to dead spring to the other side. It wasn't even a bad sprint really, he was definitely in better shape than he had been and he was lanky, which helped. He was also loud, which . . . maybe helped? He just kept sprinting, doing his best not to think about whether he'd been sprayed or whether Jean-Loup had sprayed or whether goo had gone flying past his head or any other thing. It wasn't until he reached the trees that he relaxed. And then promptly un-relaxed, when he ran - almost literally - into Val and Bonabelle.

"They're here!" he shouted over his shoulder, grabbing Bonny by the shoulders - carefully, of course - and keeping her arms to her side as he ducked behind her. "Get her, Val!"

22 Killian Row Well let's put a movie night on the calendar for summer then. 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 09, 2020 9:07 AM

School of hard knocks? by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle grinned at Valentine, appreciating the girl's humility and honesty and all the things. She had a great personality and Bonabelle couldn't imagine a friend she'd rather have next to her today. They were in position quickly but Val looked like . . . maybe she heard something? Bonabelle cocked her head, trying to listen as well and finding that she did indeed hear something. Before she could open her mouth to point out what almost definitely was footsteps - if either of them was going to get a shot off that fast anyway, Val would be the one - Uncle Killian arrived. He'd run faster than she thought he could until then, but he was also a bit dewy and pink now. She gaped at him for a moment, surprised by his sudden arrival, until he suddenly grabbed her and used her as a shield!

"Hey!" she shrieked, surprised and amused, her spraycan dropping from her hand. She tried to wriggle free but found that Uncle Killian had a good enough hold and could move around behind her well enough that Val probably couldn't shoot at him. She tried to look around for something she could use as a distraction but the best she could do was stomp on some broken branches and leaves underfoot. She thought about going with dead weight, but didn't exactly want said branches and leaves on her legs and was also pretty sure Uncle Killian would react quickly enough to keep her up anyway.

If Jean-Loup approached now, she'd be a sitting duck. Or a stuck one at least. But then he'd be at Val's mercy as long as Uncle Killian was occupied with holding on to her. That gave her some comfort, although she also sort of wanted to see what would happen if Val and Jean-Loup were left to their devices. It would be a gooey, gory mess for sure.

She put her hands together as if to plead for her life. "You wouldn't do that to me, would you Val?" she asked.

OOC - Edited to reflect later OOC of can dropping.

22 Bonabelle Row School of hard knocks? 1488 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 09, 2020 7:21 PM

I prefer school of gentle encouragement by Jean Wolfe

He was bate? Probably? Jean-Loup did not know that word, but from context he was guessing it was the tasty little morsel in a trap. He had just about time to figure this out from context and to think that there was probably a joke to be made somehow about it being a compliment. However, this situation was moving too fast for him to get much beyond that.

"Yes," he agreed simply, grinning widely. He thought he could maybe try restorimg Killian's spirits by telling him that he would be a good...thing, and very tasty but he had already forgotten the word, and if he was wrong about what it had meant, then calling Killian 'tasty snack' was going to be very weird.

The guidance cousnelor made a run for it, and Jean-Loup kept watch, ready to spray anything that attacked. Killian, however, made it to the other side. Although judging by the shouting their surprise had been met with a surprise from the other side.

Keeping his spray can poised, he darted over, taking care to weave a little and make himself harder to hit. He found Killian pinning Bonabelle's arms (so it was a contact sport then) and automatically trained his can on Valentine, as she was clearly the biggest threat. Though the rest of his brain then kicked in and reminded him that he'd shot at her once already and that he didn't really know her. Everyone seemed to be having a good time, and he hoped she wouldn't mind but he preferred to err on the side of caution to ensure the fun continued. Crying girls ruined parties.

"I suppose that the goal of this game is not that I make you make the peace?" he guessed, glancing between the adversaries.

13 Jean Wolfe I prefer school of gentle encouragement 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 10, 2020 4:47 PM

How about the School of Rock! by Valentine Duell

What a predicament this was. Things had been going well, then all of the sudden Bonabelle was securely grappled and she was facing down the two grown men all by her lonesome. Mr. Row was using his niece as a shield, and encouraging her to attack the poor helpless birthday girl. Did he want to change the teams around? Him and Valentine against Bonabelle and the medic? Or the Rows versus the not-Rows?

The medic intern said something, but she couldn't quite make out the meaning behind the sentence. She knew English was not his primary language, so she couldn't fault him for it. His statement sounded possibly, mildly threatening and this standoff wasn't going to last forever. She had to act, and she had to act now. Bonabelle's can had dropped when her Uncle grabbed her, it was laying on the ground in the center of the triangle they had all formed. A thought occurred to her, and a devilish grin spread across her face as she thought of the movie she'd watched with Papa last year. Would she be fast enough? One way to find out.

Valentine lunged for Bonabelle's can on the ground and did her best attempt at a dramatic roll after she had gotten it in her hand. She stood fast, right between the Rows and the medic and began to spin around with a can in each hand, waving them up and down as she went. "Death Blossom Mode!" She shouted as bright pink and blue goo went in all directions!

OOC: Bonabelle can dropping approved by her author... possibly up for edits yet though.

2 Valentine Duell How about the School of Rock! 1490 0 5

Killian Row

September 15, 2020 9:04 AM

We will, we will, rock you. by Killian Row

Killian smirked, enjoying watching everyone's face - well everyone but Bonny, since he couldn't see her face from where he was - as they tried to decide what to do. He gaped with an expression of mock appalled-ness (appallition? appallation? disgust!) when Jean-Loup seemed to be offering a peace agreement, and was about to say something when Valentine suddenly moved. At the same time, Killian realised that his niece's can wasn't in her hand and Valentine was about to-- yep. That. He ducked behind Bonabelle with a yelp and a laugh, ensuring that his niece was sprayed very thoroughly, her shrieks and giggles making it quite clear what she thought of the whole thing.

At some point, it did seem a bit harsh though, so Killian let go fairly quickly, taking advantage of his own free hands now to spray wildly in the direction of both Val and Jean-Loup. He knew the other guy wanted to play rough because of course he did, and Killian was a bit excited to see how that might go (if not also a bit anxious because he was about to get his behind handed to him by a teenager) so he felt no qualms about spraying both of them. He notably left Bonabelle out of the mess.

"Truce?" he shouted at her over the hooplah.

22 Killian Row We will, we will, rock you. 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 15, 2020 9:08 AM

stomp stomp CLAP, stomp stomp CLAP by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle was digging Valentine's plans until it resulted in her own goopification. "Valentine!" she shrieked, giggling despite herself. When her uncle let go of her, she lunged for her can and took it back from her friend. "You got me!" she said.

There seemed to be a turning tide. An offer was on the table. It was sort of a shame because she and Valentine had only had a mild moment of being teammates, but she also sort of wanted to be able to play against her friend. It was much more satisfying to get a good shot in at val than at her uncle or Jean-Loup, although any of those were good options. As Uncle Killian backed away some and began spraying, he offered a truce and Bonabelle glanced at Val, unsure suddenly. Then she looked down at her own blue spray on her dress, mingling with Valentine's pink. "Truce," she agreed with a mischievous smile, adding her own spray to the assault on Jean-Loup and Valentine.

"Run!" she shouted with a laugh, bounding away from the site of what had seemed like a very good plan at the beginning. Uncle Killian followed behind her as best he could, the broken branches and brush of the forest making it a bit harder to dead sprint than the open clearing had. They both shot haphazardly back over their shoulders as they took a turn and popped back out into that clearing, giving their picnic area and the presents Bonabelle still needed to open a wide berth.

22 Bonabelle Row *stomp stomp CLAP, stomp stomp CLAP* 1488 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 17, 2020 12:13 AM

What is this strange war dance? by Jean Wolfe

Jean-Loup was an athlete. He was strong, he was fast, and he had stamina. He had played Beater for all seven years at school, and in little league before that. There was a reason why that, and not Seeker, had been his role. Not to say that he didn't have any observation skills. He had some. You had to track Bludgers and players, after all. But those were big, and obvious, and tended to call much more attention to their presence than other things, like a tiny winged golden ball. Or a spray can on the ground. He noticed it only when Valentine dived for it, and by then it was too late. He launched a string of goo at her but it apparently wasn't enough to act as a deterrant.

Then she screamed something about death and gooped them all. He did not understand small girls.

Jean-Loup, threw his hands up to shield himself, as colour and words whirrled through the air. It was a flurry of action, at the end of which he was left, thoroughly covered in splotches and with the tiny random attack ball by his side instead of Killian. He assumed they were now team mates and, in theory, not about to spray each other. He was aware that he had gooped her twice and that she had just...done that thing though. It seemed wise to check.

"Okay... We enough get each other?" he suggested, gesturing to the colourful redecoration of both their clothes, "Onto them?" he gestured after the Rows with a grin. "I follow you, captain," he acknowledged, letting the first year know that she could set the pace. He scambled after the Rows, letting off a few blasts whilst they were still more or less in range, but trying for now to make sure he was following whatever lead Valentine was setting.

If needed, he would pick up the pace to go after Killian. He was pretty sure the guidance counselor would get tired of running before he got tired of chasing, even if Jean-Loup couldn't keep up a sprint for as long as his regular running pace. He could let Killian tire himself out whilst he kept pace with Valentine, and then still have energy to spare. He could be the monster that came after you in a nightmare - the one that followed you slowly, but no matter how fast you ran, was still right behind you. He was also not above grabbing, tackling or pinning. But first, he would let Valentine set the pace and get a shot in against her teacher, because he was fairly sure that was the stuff of dreams. He felt slightly like he was in one, in that there was a school that allowed that sort of thing to happen.

13 Jean Wolfe What is this strange war dance? 1506 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 18, 2020 8:59 PM

The precourser to our victory dance! by Valentine Duell

Wooo... dizzzy... Val stumbled a bit as she stopped her spinning assault. The world kept on spinning a bit after she stopped, but she could hear shrieks and shouts from all around her. She grinned and tried to focus on Bonabelle as the other girl shouted out her name. The next thing she knew, Bonabelle had taken her can back and switched teams!

Valentine staggered back under Bonabelle's ruthless assault of sudden betrayal. By the time her head had cleared completely, Bonabelle and Mr. Row were crashing through the forest away from them. Mr. Medic made his intentions clear enough, the teams had changed. Valentine was now on the hunt for Bonabelle. That terrible traitorous birthday girl. Sort of birthday girl. "Yes," she smiled in her best evil, wicked type of grin... which Papa had told her looked cute. It was a work in progress. This moment may call for some drama, perhaps even some... melodrama!

"Yes, we will teach them what happens to those who turn against us!" Then she did her best maniacal laughter. Also a work in progress. "You get the big guy," She ordered, "Bonabelle is mine!" Pointing towards the fleeing pair she began running after them. "Charge!" As the branches and underbrush slapped at her and grabbed at her skirt she thought how nice it would be to have her broom right now. An assault from above would be fantastic!

2 Valentine Duell The precourser to our victory dance! 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 20, 2020 10:26 PM

Let's hit the floor by Jean Wolfe

The little first year was smiling cutely and giggling, whilst plotting violent desctruction of her foes. That seemed about average for tiny blonde girls. He was definitely glad to have been reassigned to her team, as he suspected she was the most dangerous element on the field. She could also run faster than Killian (or at the very least, he was willing to swear it if asked to take a stance on that).

For now though, it seemed that Mr. Fish Eggs was all his. Valentine seemed to take more delight in spraying her friend - or perhaps did have some fear and respect for authority after all.

Jean-Loup burst from the clearing with her, picking up the pace to a sprint as he took after Killian. He debated whether to play cat-and-mouse with him for a bit. Normally, Jean-Loup didn't like such things. He played defence more than offence, and he didn't like to get rough or power play other people on the pitch. But that was when it was serious, which - given that a rainbow of goo was constantly flowing through the air - no one could say this was. He was more than willing to go as hard as possible, punish Killian as badly as possible, when the consequence was a spray painted shirt and not a broken jaw.

He closed in on the guidance counselor, not slackening his pace in response to anything that flew in his direction. The teams had changed ao rapidly last time, he didn't want to pull his punches and miss the only chance he might get. That wasn't how you played any game. Catching up to Killian, he caught him low around the waist, throwing his weight into the move to send them both tumbling to the ground, Killian face down, with Jean-Loup on top. He grabbed Killian's collar, squirting a blast down his shirt, directly onto his back.

"Right now, I use about half my weight and strongness," he informed Killian, making sure he wasn't crushing him, but pushing a hand slightly more firmly into his shoulder to prove that he wasn't bluffing, and that Killian would want to consider any attempts to fight back very carefully.

13 Jean Wolfe Let's hit the floor 1506 0 5

Killian Row

September 23, 2020 4:59 PM

WOW okay. by Killian Row

Killian thought he was doing pretty alright until he suddenly wasn't. Giving the picnic area space made sense until he found to grass and dirt in the face was much less pleasant than a nice blanket would have been. He hit the ground with a yelp which quickly turned into a gleeful laugh and he wanted to jump up and give Jean-Loup a gold star. Killian had had one goal for the entire year with this dude: get him to live. Today, a hand on his own shoulder and knees on either side of him were proof that it was happening on some small level at least. He squirmed in surprise when there was suddenly goop down his back though; it had been a long time since he'd been an eighteen-year-old but that did seem rather on par for course after a moment's consideration. He'd have to play a bit dirtier than he might have normally. He definitely had been in better shape when he'd been eighteen but he was stronger now, and Jean-Loup was lighter than he was. Thank you, bread.

He wiggled a little, both to put up a show of it and to see how much pressure Jean-Loup was really exerting. The girls were getting into it a short distance away and he just hoped they wouldn't step on his fingers. He was torn between sort of wishing Bonabelle would come to his rescue, and sort of wanting to do this on his own. Besides, his game wasn't physical the way Jean-Loup's was. He was Killian "Not Your Mental Health Counselor" Row and he had his own games to play. Also, he was ridiculously good looking and Merlin have his soul if he wasn't going to enjoy it sometimes.

Squirming gently enough to make it clear he wasn't attempting to get up, he twisted and rolled until he was on his back, Jean-Loup sitting on his chest - and thankfully not crushing him because breathing was one of Killian's favorite things - and grinned at him. He'd dropped his can when he'd fallen, so he couldn't spray the lad in the face, but it would have been nice to do.

"Not fighting, not fighting," he promised, his hands up to make sure Jean-Loup wasn't about to spray him up the nose. He put his hands down by his sides again and looked up at Jean-Loup with the most Merlin-blessed expression he could manage (which was a pretty Merlin-blessed expression), although his concentration was on the spell in his mind and his hand waving softly by his hand. "Just getting a better view," he said with a cocky grin and raised eyebrow. He wondered briefly whether Jean-Loup was ticklish but wasn't sure this was the moment to find out, especially if he was going to find out that he was not. In any case, his spell had worked and his empty hand was no longer that; he closed his fingers around the newly reacquired spray can and shot a bunch of goop directly into Jean-Loup's face.

OOC - Use of small wordless, wandless magic approved by our resident magic theory expert. And me. Because I wrote it.

22 Killian Row WOW okay. 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 23, 2020 5:05 PM

You shall have no victory over which to dance! by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle was no fool. In fact, she was pretty sure she was generally smart on the whole. And she knew few things as well as she knew Valentine Duell. The Teppenpaw was excitable and competitive and would be coming after her with little hesitation. The girl played chaser, after all. Val also was well aware that Bonabelle was not these things, although her grin hopefully made it clear that she was enjoying it in this case. Still, if she never had to touch a Quaffle again, she wouldn't mind at all.

She kept this in mind as she veered off from her uncle - a much faster, heavier set of footsteps than what she expected Valentine's to sound like pounding up behind him were also incentive for that - and turned sharply back towards where they'd come from. As expected, Valentine was charging. Jean-Loup had also charged and Bonabelle felt a little guilty for leaving her new teammate to . . . whatever that was. Boys were weird. Instead, she braced herself and opened her mouth in the best warrior yell she could manage before sprinting dead-on at her friend. Goo sprayed wildly in front of her and she waited until she and Valentine were nearing each other to stop hard and crouch, getting a good shot up into the Teppenpaw's face and hopefully avoiding any spray herself since they were now close enough that Valentine's tenacity would serve better than her better aim.

"Traitor!" she shouted as she continued her barrage, giggling fiercely as she did so.

22 Bonabelle Row You shall have no victory over which to dance! 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 23, 2020 6:26 PM

Don't be to sure of that! by Valentine Duell

Valentine was coming after Bonabelle with little hesitation. She was going to get that psuedobirthday girl! She broke from the trees she could see Bonabelle's smile and she grinned back across the open expanse. She broke apart from Mr. Row and like a flash Val's partner dashed past her aiming for the guidance councilor. She almost shrieked aloud when the boys collided and went tumbling to the ground. Was that sort of thing allowed in a silly string fight?

In that moment of distraction, she heard a shout and swiveled her head back to where it should be looking, at her target. Ohmygosh! Bonabelle had turned and was charging straight at her! She thew up her one arm to shield herself from the worst of the incoming goo while trying to retaliate with the other. Now they were playing chicken, was Bonabelle planning on getting out of the way? Should she? She only had a moment to....

Suddenly a blast of goo caught Val from under her protective arm. She clenched her eyes shut as the stuff covered her face... and went up her nose! Gah!! Her mouth opened instinctively and some got in, she only had time for a momentary impression of how badly that stuff tasted before her legs collided with something low.. Bonabelle? and her body sprawled out throwing her forward.

Fortunately she'd fallen from a broom a time or two in her life. Despite everything else going on, she tucked her chin, arched her back and hit the ground with her shoulders and rolled to a stop on her back. Dizzy was back again. She coughed out the goo that had gotten into her mouth, and tossed her can aside. "Okay, I surrender. You win." She managed to sputter out while still lying on the ground trying to get the goo off her eyes and out of her nose.

2 Valentine Duell Don't be to sure of that! 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 24, 2020 2:57 AM

Not making things easy by Jean Wolfe

Killian yelped but then he was laughing, and Jean-Loup grinned, pretty confident he was playing the game the way it was supposed to be played. He felt Killian struggle and pressed down a little more firmly. Although he supposed he'd got a decent shot in. He had, he thought, won this round. The choices were to call the girls over to dye Killian's hair pink, or to let him up and try to take him out again. He was probably stuck here unless Jean-Loup showed him some mercy - he was pretty sure he had the weight advantage, seeing as he was both taller and because muscle was heavier than being a doughy little breadstick.

He relaxed slightly, wondering whether to make Killian beg a little, when Killian - whilst not getting entirely away from him - did something he hadn't totally expected. Slippery little fish! Killian rolled over and....and Jean-Loup suddenly found himself straddling him.

Technically, he had been straddling him before, he supposed. He had been pinning him down with a leg either side of his body. It just felt substantially different with Killian face up. It reminded him of more than one long, lazy afternoon in Greece... The fact that sport and general male bonding was pretty gay sometimes was a fact that he had long been trained to ignore. He had pushed those thoughts into very different corners of his brain. You could wrestle with The Guys. You could shower in the same changing room, and whip each other with towels and it absolutely, one hundred percent was Not Gay because that was not allowed. Almost to the extent that Sports Jean-Loup and Desperately-Wants-Boys Jean-Loup had become two entirely, carefully separated people.

And now... Now that was messy. The wall had broken down. Killian had somewhat, presumably uninetnionally, smashed it. Because it had started out innocently enough as sport, and he had grabbed and pushed and played without a second thought, and now here he was, a guy who was into guys, with another guy who was into guys, in a position usually reserved for his boyfriend. And what was the look that Killian was giving him? Jean-Loup was almost tempted to describe it as flritatious. Except, surely Killian wouldn't flirt with him?

Just getting a better view.

The sound that Jean-Loup made was small and strangled enough to be lost under the general chaos. Surely he was misunderstanding? But Maugris the position they were in, and the way Killian was looking at him and- was it him, or was it awfully hot in here for October? He could feel heat creeping up his neck, and he made absolutely no effort to repin Killian's wrists because that would involve leaning in closer, in a move that was very reminiscent of what Dorian usually did when in his current position and- and he was not thinking about that right now. He was starting to feel awfully flustered, and he really hoped he could attribute it purely to thoughts of Dorian and not to what was going on here - it was the situation that it mirrored, not the situation itself, along with the run that was making his blood pump just a little harder. And he was banishing all those thoughts because this was a children's party and because, given their relative positions Killian was going to be embarrassingly aware if-

Goop.

Jean-Loup recoiled, both genuinely taken by surprise, but also somewhat relieved by the excuse to scramble back and off Killian. Relieved but also with one trecherous part of his brain regretting the lack of continued contact. That part suggested grabbing hold of Killian and going for round two, but the rest of him was aware that was a bad idea. The very small part of him that said Killian would back off if he asked was over shadowed by the fact that that was not how sports guys worked. And this was sports. He could make it back into sports, and then it wouldn't be a problem.

"You want to do anything else to me," he stated, wiping the goo from his face, "You must catch me first," he stated, springing up quickly and darting away from Killian.

And damn it, he had meant that to be purely sport related. Was that just doomed now? He headed back towards the trees, hoping to get some cover, something against his back that would lessen the chances of Killian recreating what had just happened. Although it wasn't like the thought of pushing someone up against something wasn't appealing. When it was Dorian. And not at a children's party. And urgh, what was wrong with him?

13 Jean Wolfe Not making things easy 1506 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 24, 2020 10:48 AM

Please don't get broken though. by Bonabelle Row

Everything went sideways very quickly, including herself and Val. They both went sprawling across the grass, landing hard and all sorts of jumbled up. After a moment's hesitation to make sure she still had any breath left in her, Bonabelle heard Val speak up, and she responded by rolling over onto her side and waving a dismissive hand at her friend. "I think we both lost that one," she said, rubbing her side where Valentine's leg had made contact. Luckily, it hadn't been a hard hit, but it was still a fair bit more than she was used to considering her general lack of physical activity otherwise. Quidditch had done a number for her but nothing quite like this, as she was generally too cautious a player to really get herself hurt.

Reaching for the can she'd dropped again - she suspected the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would be disappointed at her frequent mishandling of her weapon - she gave it a shake. "Mine's empty now anyway," she added, dropping it again. She tried to give a sniff, wondering whether the hunger in her belly might let her smell the picnic but all she could smell was goop.

"How're you doing?" she asked with a grin, although there was sincere concern in her eyes. "Not too broken up I hope?"

22 Bonabelle Row Please don't get broken though. 1488 0 5

Killian Row

September 24, 2020 11:46 AM

I might've broken someone. by Killian Row

In retrospect, he probably should have considered whether it was exactly fair to play his sort of games with someone who'd only just recently been pulled out of the closet. And also who was a teenager. If nothing else, the look on his face could certainly be called confusion, and Killian doubted he'd been in such a position with other men before, as straddling wasn't exactly a common position required for Quidditch players, unless a broom was the object. There were a number of people in this world that Killian could flirt with because it was fun for everyone, not because it was meant to be more than that, and he would add most of his colleagues to that list honestly. But he probably should not have added Jean-Loup to that list. Or maybe it was a good introduction to the lighter side of life?

That being said, Jean-Loup was sort of a precious cinnamon roll of a human and Killian couldn't help chuckling at the look on his face. It was almost a shame to have to spray it but also sort of satisfying. He curled up protectively as Jean-Loup sprang away, a bit worried he was about to get stepped on. When the intern was up though, his comment made Killian pretty sure he didn't need to worry after all, and he grinned mischievously at his young friend.

Killian scumbled to his feet and after Jean-Loup. "You'll have to let me!" he admitted and taunted with a laugh as he gave chase. He slowed for a moment as he ran by Bonny and Val, not quite interrupting but definitely wanting to make sure they were okay, since they were both sprawled out on the ground. Satisfied that they were managing themselves fine and throwing a grin at them both, especially his niece who seemed to be having a good birthday party, Killian ran after Jean-Loup. The trees made it hard to find him and Killian paused, debating whether or not he could climb one. The answer was almost definitely no, but he thought he'd like to try if not for the fact that he wore shoes with no grip and his trousers would definitely rip if he stretched that far.

"There's a good chance," he called softly through the trees, looking around. "That I'm not going to be able to find you unless you help me." He took a few small steps. He was entirely vulnerable at this point, as the wildly less competent of the two men in this case, but he didn't mind somehow. There was something pleasant about the adrenaline that came with this It was the sort of thing that also made him giggly, although he tried his hardest not to giggle because that didn't seem like the right response. He felt old though, because there had probably been a time that he would have been much more likely to just go sprinting around high energy and that time was not today. "You'll have to come and get me!" he called with a hearty laugh, pressing himself into a tree and hoping it was a decent enough hiding place to give him at least one good shot before he was caught.

22 Killian Row I might've broken someone. 1450 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 24, 2020 8:26 PM

We're all a little broke by Valentine Duell

As soon as the world stopped spinning, and Valentine had most of her face cleared of goo, she sat upright. Bonabelle! Was Bonabelle alright? She had practically run over her friend! She was relieved to see Bonabelle responding in a manner that didn't indicate large amounts of physical trauma. Still, she was holding her side.

"Are you alright?" Val asked as she crawled, still just a little wobbly over to her friend. "I'm sorry, I had a face full of goo and way to much momentum. I didn't hurt you to badly, did I?"

"I'm fine," she responded to Bonabelle's inquiry. Then she did a quick self-evaluation, and it came back mostly in the green. Her stomach was the biggest complainer at the moment. "Mainly just hungry." She glanced over at the picnic area, then off to the woods where the boys had gone again. "I guess we should wait for them," she cocked her head to the side, "How long do you think they will take?" Then she giggled at a thought. "Do you think we could get all cleaned up, and have the food all ready before they emerge again?"

She grinned her (still a work in progress) evil grin. "We could have some fun chastising them for such behavior and their terrible appearance at a proper young lady's birthday party when they get back all beat up and cover in goo!"

2 Valentine Duell We're all a little broke 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 24, 2020 9:19 PM

That is a word with multiple meanings by Jean Wolfe

Jean-Loup pressed his back against the tree, taking deep, steadying breaths. Now that he had some physical distance from the situation, it was a lot easier to feel calmer. Both in the sense of telling himself that something bad was not about to happen, and that he didn’t actually want to get physical with Killian. He had read enough medical textbooks to know that he was a confusing mess over overly aggressive hormones right now. It was just a lot easier to understand when that hormonal overdrive made him want to tear down Dorian’s boundaries and get physical with him. He was allowed to want that. He wasn’t supposed to get hot for Killian too.

Luckily, Killian was currently crashing through the undergrowth with all the grace of drunk hippogriff, and it was easier to slide him back into the role of funny, rather than sexy. Mostly… There was still the cat-and-mouse element to this. The words he’d called after Jean-Loup as he left… It could all be a perfectly innocent game of hide and seek, or it could be a fantasy in which he let Killian grab hold of him and resume what they’d been doing before… He firmly pushed the second interpretation back, trying to lean into the safe, familiar territory of playing about. He wasn’t sure it went back into its place as firmly as it had before. He couldn’t stop seeing everything with more than one interpretation, but he hoped he could keep things normal enough that it felt like they were friends.

He went wide, following the route he thought Killian had taken, but trying not to plunge directly into it. He caught sight of the guidance counselor, half sheltered up against a tree, ready to be pinned and- and he kept his distance.

“Don’t shoot?” he requested. He was clearly in Killian’s eyeline, so establishing what was going on here seemed a safer bet than trying to dive right back in. He readied his own can, to show that he would fire if the ceasefire wasn’t honoured, but he was taking no action himself to assault Killian, even though he easily could have. “I am getting the idea that this is a very… non-gentleman’s game,” he gestured to his face. “Any rules at all?” he asked. It was possibly a bit late to be establishing that, but better late than never.

13 Jean Wolfe That is a word with multiple meanings 1506 0 5

Killian Row

September 24, 2020 10:23 PM

It's true. And the meanings have multiple meanings. by Killian Row

Killian put his hands up, his right still holding his spray cannister, as Jean-Loup approached. They went from aiming to not quite surrendering at the request for peace - at least temporary peace - but he didn't quite give up on the idea of spraying Jean-Loup in the face. His reflexes were certainly slower than the intern's but that didn't mean he wanted to gain advantages by cheating or being a jerk.

"You started it," he pointed out with a smirk, rolling his shoulders to indicate both the goop and the attack that had occurred there. He considered the question about rules. There were some things he thought probably didn't need clarification - no below the belt shots, don't stab each other, don't break bones or actually aim to hurt each other in any sincere way - but there were other things that he wasn't so sure. Should he clarify that they shouldn't use magic in any offensive way? That seemed like an odd thing to bring up now when neither of them had been, and so far he was the only one that used magic at all, although Jean-Loup might not have noticed that.

"Indeed, only one of us is much of a gentleman," he said with a light shrug. "And it's not me," he added for clarification since Jean-Loup's self-deprecating streak meant he'd probably get that one mixed up. "But you're also more athletic," he admitted, taking a deep breath in mock exhaustion. "So . . . I'd prefer you don't break me." He laughed again, although it was a real possibility. Bonny would probably enjoy watching him get his butt kicked by a teenager. He cocked his head though as another thought occurred to him. "If you're uncomfortable with something, though, that's fair to put in the rules."

22 Killian Row It's true. And the meanings have multiple meanings. 1450 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 25, 2020 5:18 AM

That sounds complicated by Jean Wolfe

Jean-Loup watched cautiously as the spray can was moved to a slightly more neutral position. This was followed by a very strange accusation, and he tilted his head at Killian.

“You bring these,” Jean-Loup pointed out, “And then you switch teams. I think I follow where you lead,” he suggested. Of course, he’d been the one to make it very physical with Killian, and he broke eye contact for an embarrassed second as he wondered whether that was about to be brought up but then remembered that taking his eyes off his opponent, or at least his weapon, was probably a bad move. He fixed them on the spray can instead of his friend’s face.

He took a sharp step back, spray can snapping back into position as Killian declared himself not to be a gentleman, though his reflexes meant he caught himself before he pulled the trigger when there was no similar move from Killian. There was, in fact, a possible admission that he had been hurt? Or at least didn’t want to be. And a chance to establish terms. It was an interesting reaction, and in spite of what he’d raised, not something he’d really expected to happen. You didn’t admit when other guys hurt you, or the game got too rough, or you didn’t like their behaviour. You just needed to man up or take a joke when that happened.

“I do not already break?” he checked. “I will try not to put you on the floor again,” he confirmed. “Especially here. It is not so safe,” he gestured to the more foresty area they were in, the floor of which was more liberally littered with sticks and stones – and even without knowing any convenient English sayings about those, Jean-Loup could identify them as pointy and dangerous. He considered Killian’s other suggestion. If he was uncomfortable, he was allowed to make rules against things. That was definitely a new one. Saying he would limit how physical he got with Killian solved a number of his existing worries. “Faces seems… a not great idea,” he admitted cautiously. Killian had either aimed very carefully or he had been very lucky in where it hit, “Unless you know more on this than me,” he gestured at the can, but he couldn’t imagine that it would be very pleasant to have it in one’s eyes or mouth. That felt almost reasonable. It was easy to hurt people more than you meant to if you got things in their eyes, and it was almost one of the unspoken rules just as much as not kicking someone between the legs. You usually weren’t a wimp for not wanting to be blinded. He wasn’t exactly sure how to sum up any of his other issues, especially when he thought they might only be in his head. He had guarded against them to a degree already. So, maybe he should just leave it there, and not risk any violations of the Bro Code.

“Stop can mean stop?” he tried cautiously. “And not be done for tricks,” he added It usually didn’t work that way, but then Killian didn’t seem to be like most people he’d played with before.

13 Jean Wolfe That sounds complicated 1506 0 5

Killian Row

September 25, 2020 7:23 PM

Most things are, I have found. by Killian Row

Killian grinned widely, appreciating that he was the scoundrel in all this. It was generally true anyway but it was nice to be validated nonetheless. "You did not really break me," he promised. "I don't mind roughhousing," he added with a laugh. "Just don't tackle me where I'm likely to get a stick up the . . . eye." He kicked vaguely at a branch on the ground, agreeing with Jean-Loup's comment about not doing so here. "If you're not comfortable with physical, I will stick to just spraying you," he added with a twinkle in his eye.

He grimaced though when Jean-Loup asked not to be sprayed in the face, basically immediately after Killian having done that. "Sorry about that," he said sincerely. "It's non-toxic, for what it's worth. But yes. No face shots." He nodded in stern agreement, committing to memory that he should not be a butthead about this. It was interesting playing with Jean-Loup because it was easy to forget that they were not on equal playing ground. As much as they were both adults, both guys, both in service professions, etc., there was a massive gap in confidence and experience between them. And athleticism, but that gap went the other way. Killian was a bit disappointed in himself to have gotten so caught up in all this stuff that he hadn't thought too much about it.

Jean-Loup's next request was one that made Killian's stomach do happy backflips though and he beamed at the young man. "Absolutely. Safe words are important." He hoped that was a lesson that would stick in all contexts that it may need to stick in. "And no tricks with safe words," he agreed.

22 Killian Row Most things are, I have found. 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 25, 2020 7:35 PM

It doesn't have to be as complicated as adults make it. by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle nodded, smiling at Valentine. "Don't worry about me, I'm good. Besides, I'm the one who tripped you," she pointed out before nodding in emphatic agreement. "I'm hungry too." She followed Valentine's gaze wondering whether she could spot her uncle or Jean-Loup. Surprisingly, she couldn't even hear them, which meant that her uncle at least wasn't running around anymore. Merlin knew she'd be able to hear him from across the field in most cases. She nodded again, giggling and wide-eyed, at Val's next idea.

"I think we absolutely can," she agreed, pushing herself to her feet and helpful her friend up. She took a moment to dust herself off and adjust herself to look as much like a proper lady as was feasible in the given circumstances before stooping to pick up her can. She wasn't sure what the MARS rooms' policies were on littering but didn't want to find out either. "I'm not sure about chastising," she said with a slightly tense laugh; even the little bit she knew of her uncle and Jean-Loup was enough to prove that they were absolute messes of human beings. Seriously, she had herself more together than they did and she was practically an orphan. And twelve. "But we can help them," she laughed. "Play mother in a whole new way. Do you want to practice on me? We can clean each other off first," she suggested, glancing at the mess she'd made of herself. "Tidy us and then tidy food. Although . . . we might eat it all before they're done anyway."

22 Bonabelle Row It doesn't have to be as complicated as adults make it. 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 25, 2020 8:14 PM

The same could be said for many things by Valentine Duell

Valentine smile back at Bonabelle and was sorely tempted to give her a hug in an apology for trampling her, but for one, her side was hurt a bit and for two, they were both still covered in goo. She glanced at the forest again. If they were going to pull this off, they'd have to act quickly. Luckily it looked like Bonabelle was up for this plan. She tried to straighten herself out as well, but there was an awful lot of goo, most of it blue at this point. A quick assessment of Bonabelle told he that her friend had fared much better in the fight.

"Alright, we can mother them properly once they get back." She wasn't entirely sure how she felt about that. Mr. Row was Bonabelle's uncle and that might be alright, but she didn't really know the Medic well at all. She could be nice and friendly, but motherly? Something about that made her very nervous. Well, they'd see how that went when they got there. First things first. Valentine nodded in vigorous agreement that they should clean each other. That gave her the easier task, she could do these charms, but Bonabelle was much, much better at them. She also would have a more difficult challenge. Valentine was covered in goo, grass stains, twigs and there were numerous small holes in her clothes that were there before they started racing through the forest.

With a few more waves of Val's wand than should have been necessary, Bonabelle was soon cleaned up and looking immaculate once more. Hmm... had those hearts been on her hair bow earlier? Probably, how else would they have gotten there? They were just a shade off from rest of the bow's color, she probably just hadn't seen them before. Anyway, now it was her turn, she put her arms straight out one either side and gave her friend a grin. "Good luck."

In a flash, Valentine was spotless and mended up like new. Bonabelle was good at this... maybe they should be studying instead. Nope! The cake was calling, they had no other option than to answer it's plea! "That's fantastic," she responded examining herself. "Alright, time to get the food ready. No eating any until everyone is here," she practiced her motherly chastisements. She gave Bonabelle a smile "It would be rude." Then they set to work getting everything in place and organized.

2 Valentine Duell The same could be said for many things 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 25, 2020 8:55 PM

Am I an adult? by Jean Wolfe

“Rough houses are… Some fighting is allowed but not really fighting?” he clarified. The word seemed obvious from context but he didn’t want to cross any lines that Killian was uncomfortable with or that meant anyone got actually hurt. “And no stick up the eye,” he confirmed. That was weird. He was pretty sure you got stuff in your eye, but hey, his English sucked. Maybe it was different depending on the direction the stuff was coming from? It would be very like English to have a stupid rule like that.

“It’s fine,” he confirmed, when Killian said he could avoid getting physical if Jean-Loup preferred. He took a moment to question the reflexive answer, but felt like it stood. If they weren’t going to end up squirming on the ground again together, it was probably fine. That itself might also be fine now it wasn’t a surprise. He still felt a little bit unsure about what physicality meant in this context, and what was safe and what wasn’t but it was a bigger can of worms than he wanted to take the lid off right now. “I can do little rough houses too,” he confirmed. He was, after all, allowed to stop anything he didn’t like. That, more than anything else, made him confident to say ‘yes.’ He’d long believed that Killian was good, and would not hurt him and would help him but it was interesting finding out all the new little things that trusting someone could mean. He smiled as Killian talked about safe words. He liked that idea. That was such a lovely way of putting it. Safe words, with nice safe people.

“Okay then,” he agreed. He shook his spray can experimentally. It sounded like there were only one or two shots left in there. He would have to make them count. “You have five second to head start,” he informed Killian, wondering whether he was going to try to run or just stand his ground ready to go at each other. “Four. Three. Two. One,” he grinned.

Only a matter of minutes later, they emerged from the woods, spray cans empty. Killian was now fifty percent blond from where Jean-Loup had grabbed him from behind, pinning his arms pretty effectively. That had given him time to check ‘Hair is not face, correct?’ and once this was confirmed, had dumped most of the rest of his can. He’d taken more care with his last shot, aiming for the crotch (because, hey, yellow – it was funny). It was more down Killian’s leg than right on target, though depending on how Killian was hanging that could still be accurate - it was close enough not to be a good look.

Jean-Loup was clearly hyped up from the game, and bounced and jogged as they made their way down the field. Occasionally this gave him a fair lead on Killian, who was definitely not running now he didn’t have to, but the intern had enough energy to double back every time he got too far ahead, occasionally even doing circles around Killian to kill the time whilst he ambled along.

They regained the picnic blanket, Jean-Loup bouncing in place, although he settled to just bouncing on the balls of his feet as he surveyed the very serene scene before him.

“You are both all well then?” he checked. He wouldn’t have been surprised if there were some grazed knees or bruises under the pretty dresses, but certainly on the surface, the girls looked picture perfect. He glanced at himself and Killian, failing to stifle a laugh at the sight of them in comparison to Bonabelle and Valentine.

“We maybe have been playing dirty games,” he admitted, unaware that ‘messy’ might have been a slightly less loaded word to use there. “Clearly a thing that you fine ladies would not ever do,” he smirked.

13 Jean Wolfe Am I an adult? 1506 0 5

Killian Row

September 25, 2020 9:35 PM

Depends on the situation. by Killian Row

Killian nodded at Jean-Loup's definition of roughhousing, realizing he had not been clear on that front. "Playing a little physically, a little roughly," he said, offering another way to put it. Jean-Loup didn't seem entirely opposed to the idea which amused Killian in a way. There was something about someone who could both break your bones and name them that made him want to laugh and also find someone like that who was a decade older to see if they'd like to get a drink.

"Five second--" It probably took one and a half for that idea to settle in Killian's mind, for him to grin wildly at it, and for him to dead sprint as best he could off in the direction he was facing, which put him behind Jean-Loup. It was definitely not long enough to make a lot of progress and he was promptly caught and hair-dyed. It was not an entirely pleasant thing to have his arms pinned back and he did discover that that was not a feeling he enjoyed as it reminded him a bit too much of some of the not so playful roughhousing his brother would get up to sometimes at home. Still, it hadn't gone on long enough for him to tell Jean-Loup to stop, and it gave him a great angle to grab at the bottom of his shirt and spray one of his remaining shots onto Jean-Loup's bare torso.

When they broke free and had a moment to actually aim with a bit more intention, Killian found that Jean-Loup had an immature streak too and he laughed heartily, despite his surprise at being directly shot in the crotch. He did not return the favor, instead aiming for Jean-Loup's nipples, because if they were going for immature, then cold green nipples was his best bet. It was like a bad Dr. Seuss book. I do not like green nips from cans, I do not like them, Sam-I-Am.

The walk back to the picnic made Killian feel simultaneously very old and very young. The spots where he would have bruises the next day were starting to make themselves known and he had no intention of running anywhere, but Jean-Loup's boundless energy was something he couldn't help grinning about either. It made him want to do a cartwheel, but then also he definitely did not want to do any such thing. Ever. Never ever in his life would he ever want to do a cartwheel.

Killian nodded his agreement when Jean-Loup checked on the girls, although they both looked happy and Killian was torn between grinning lovingly at his niece and grinning appreciatively at Valentine. He didn't know the girl well but he was happy to adopt her into the club of nice people if she made Bonny happy.

He chuckled some at Jean-Loup's phrasing, but decided not to point out that playing any game with safewords was inherently less dirty and more dirty and not that sort of dirty at all. Although he'd agreed that he wasn't a gentleman, so maybe it wasn't exactly wrong, either. "Clearly I won," he said sarcastically, lifting his yellow-sprayed leg up some and gesturing at his hair all at once. He siphoned the mess off himself and Jean-Loup both, at least where it was visible on either of them, since he wasn't about to shove his wand down the back of his shirt right now, and took a seat.

"Cake time?" he grinned.

22 Killian Row Depends on the situation. 1450 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 25, 2020 9:42 PM

I think I'll be a good adult. by Bonabelle Row

Their clean up efforts went well and soon Val and Bonabelle were both seated and ready for a picnic. Bonabelle worried a bit about Val when it came to their magic but she didn't see anything wrong with it taking her friend a little longer than it took herself. After all, studying magic theory seemed to be an important part of practical magical success and one of them certainly did more of that than the other. There was no judgment there; Valentine probably would be boring if she was exactly like Bonabelle, and then what sort of friendship would they have? Not a mutually beneficial one, that was for sure.

She glanced at Val with a barely stifled giggle when Jean-Loup acknowledged exactly what they'd been hoping the guys would. "Yes," she said. "We're perfect ladies. We never make messes or knock each other over or any such thing," she said cheerfully.

When Jean-Loup and Uncle Killian sat down, they were clean enough that Bonabelle didn't mind hugging them again. She leaned over to reach an arm around them each before reaching over and giving both arms to Val. "This is the best birthday I've ever had," she admitted with a small smile, feeling both very glad of that and very guilty for implying that her MIA father had ever done a not good job. "And we haven't even gotten to the cake yet," she added with a laugh, nodding at Uncle Killian's request.

It was hard to think that just a little while ago - an hour ago? Two? Less than that? - she'd been doing homework and thinking nothing of anything at all. It was weird to think it was mid-spring outside and not anything like it was in here. She thought that these three people were the best people she could ever have met and she was heartbroken to remember that Jean-Loup would be leaving. She worried a bit about whether she and Uncle Killian would still get along alright without the intern there, but she hoped they would. Valentine could maybe even come to tea with them sometimes. That would be nice. Maybe, despite everything, everything would be nice.

"Do you want to do the honors?" she asked Valentine, not thinking it was quite appropriate for her to just dig the heck in to the cake that she was practically drooling over at this point.

22 Bonabelle Row I think I'll be a good adult. 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 25, 2020 10:29 PM

I agree, you will be... later. by Valentine Duell

Valentine couldn't help but giggle as the 'boys' made their way over to the picnic area. They looked like walking disaster areas. Mr. Row moreso than the medic. He was also very kind to fall nicely onto their trap. She returned Bonabelle's glance with a very ladylike tittering sound.

"Indeed," Val agreed with Bonabelle. She suddenly realized that she needed a fancy fan to pull this off properly. Unfortunately, she didn't have one. Maybe next time. Echoing Bonabelle's cheerful innocence, she couldn't resist just a minor chastisement, "Some of us know how to behave at a proper young lady's Birthday celebration." She barely finished the sentence before the gush of giggles burst out of her.

Thankfully the boys cleaned themselves up, well technically Mr. Row cleaned them both up. The ease at which he did it made Val a little embarrassed. True he was an old, well practiced wizard and she was still in her first year of learning, but still… maybe someday she'd get there. After much more studying, yay. At this point she was just glad that they didn't need to 'mother' the boys into cleaning up.

Then there was more hugging! And a slightly sad sounding commentary on the events so far. What had Bonabelle's previous birthdays been like? Valentine was just going to need to make it her mission to ensure her future birthdays were spectacular. "Just wait until your real birthday comes around," she told the girl while squeezing her tight and giving Mr. Row a wink. They'd have to make October 13th another great day.

"Me?" Val asked after Bonabelle asked her to 'do the honors'. She looked at the cake critically. There was something missing… Ah-ha! "Well, I'm not sure how you want to do things, but where I'm from we usually light up the candles, sing and then the birthday girl needs to blow them out before we can eat the cake."

She looked at Mr. Row and the medic, "Do you have candles or are we going to skip that part?"

2 Valentine Duell I agree, you will be... later. 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 27, 2020 7:33 PM

Leave it to us for now by Jean Wolfe

A plaid flannel shirt had, it turned out, accidentally been a pretty good choice. Jean-Loup’s bright green nipples and grass stains… well, they probably stood out. But way less than Killian’s crotch stains. He hadn’t loved Killian pulling at his clothes, or rather he didn’t think that he liked the idea of it on paper, but it had been over quickly enough that it hadn’t had time to bother him. He didn’t need a rule against it. Just knowing that he could stop things he didn’t like made him feel a lot more willing to take chances.

He grinned as Killian seemed to imply he hadn’t come out of that very well.

“He shooted me in the face,” he stated, gesturing, as if the girls could not plainly see that for themselves, simultaneously enhancing and detracting from Killian’s reputation – it had been a good shot, but a scurrilous one. “What words can I use for someone who does this?” he asked them, eyes shining, fairly sure that he would get mild enough responses from two twelve year olds, one of whom was addressing someone they regarded only as a staff member.

"Some of us know how to behave at a proper young lady's Birthday celebration."

Oof. Now it felt much more like a party… Jean-Loup’s smile clicked over to its more automatic, even toothed mask at the remark. Which was a joke. Because who spoke that? Valentine immediately collapsed into giggles like she couldn’t ever imagine anyone saying such a thing. He supposed he had started it. He had, to a degree, been sending up the style in which his family spoke when he addressed them. Much like other tubs of hot water he’d dived into without thinking it through, he wasn’t sure how he felt now he was in, and he was very relieved when the remarks blew over fairly quickly.

“Thank you,” he nodded as Killian cleaned them up. Turned out he did know what a shirt without ink stains and bread flour all down it looked like, and was perfectly capable of achieving it. Jean-Loup didn’t say so out loud, aware he’d teased Killian rather a lot, and that some of his blows landed more heavily than he meant them to due to his clumsiness with English. He didn’t want to insult Killian. He sort of wanted to just smush him - though he inspected his pristine cuffs and raised his eyebrows playfully at Killian in a way that suggested surprise.

He settled onto the picnic blanket, smiling as he got another hug from Bonabelle. He liked hugs. He liked them a lot. And he liked being part of a… a group that gave them.

“Me too,” he agreed, when she declared it the best birthday ever, “I mean, the best birthday of someone else that I go to,” he clarified, lest anyone assume he was trying to steal any of the birthday girl’s thunder. Including his own birthdays in the rankings, he had to say it probably came quite high too… His seventeenth had had a particular highlight though – for all that the rest of it had been purest hell – which meant that he might not quite give the top spot to this party, although he had to admit it was very good.

“She is correct,” Jean-Loup agreed seriously with Valentine. “We do the candle and the singing, then you must make wishes and cutting.” He waved his wand, conjuring twelve flickering candles onto the cake, and joined in quietly with a rendition of ‘Happy Birthday.’ He had a passable singing voice, but he had never liked to draw attention to himself in that way. Singing ‘Happy Birthday’ as part of a group felt like about the limit of his desire to publicly perform.

13 Jean Wolfe Leave it to us for now 1506 0 5

Bonabelle Row

September 30, 2020 12:36 PM

If you insist.... by Bonabelle Row

"Buttmunch," Bonabelle supplied immediately, grinning at her uncle with a gleam in her eye when Jean-Loup asked for suggestions.

She smiled lovingly - maybe even adoringly - at Valentine when the girl promised an even better birthday for her real one. After all this, she thought that staying up all night wrapped up in bundles of blankets, reading books and drinking tea and . . . snuggling? She had the distinct thought that this physical affection stuff was nice and that she'd like to do more of it. It felt safe and warm, like the concept of family manifested as a real thing in a way that that concept never had before. She giggled some at Jean-Loup's eager agreement that this was the best birthday though, so she didn't need to think about that too much longer.

With a flourish, Jean-Loup provided candles, clearly ignoring Bonabelle's blush or wide eyes at the idea of people singing at her or her making wishes on cakes. It wasn't like she'd never done such a thing before, although it was usually a single candle stuck in the top of an ice cream cone or cupcake, but still. This felt special. And hilarious. Their collective singing was not necessarily bad, but it was a party of four different accounts, three of which were singing, and all of which were hilarious in context.

Bonabelle looked at the twelve candles. One for each year, although somehow this felt like the first year of a new life. One would have sufficed. Her gaze shifted out of focus as she considered what wish she wanted to make. Her dad had always said that the only wishes that came true were the ones you went out and made come true, but she wasn't sure about that anymore. It seemed like good things happened and bad things happened and everyone just sort of dealt with the ripples. Everyone was a leaf on the surface of a pool of water, riding the waves, not the pebbles that made the waves in the first place. Although perhaps that wasn't true of everyone; her father certainly seemed like a pebble making waves, and he was enough of a blockhead that a rock seemed like a suitable parallel for him.

When she decided, she closed her eyes, thought her wish hard and sure, and then blew out the candles, taking care not to spit or even blow directly on the cake if she could avoid it. She opened her eyes to see her handiwork and found that they were damp. Hopefully no one would notice.

"Thank you," she said, her voice thick and her eyes on the cake as she thought that maybe this would be the year her wish came true all by itself.

22 Bonabelle Row If you insist.... 1488 0 5

Killian Row

September 30, 2020 12:44 PM

We do. by Killian Row

Everything had been okay and so of course, everything had to slow down. Reality was a funny thing; the giggles and the laughter and the bright shining eyes were certainly real, but so too were the sad glances and the quiet voices and the memories that lingered in the backs of all their heads, left to stir when someone brought a spoon. Spoons were usually in the shape of important events - holidays and birthdays and such - but were also often in the shape of small comments, little looks, and other seemingly innocuous things that made everything hurt a little more than it had the moment before. It was why 'bittersweet' was a word.

There was something terribly bittersweet about Valentine insisting on candles for the girl who didn't get a real birthday, Jean-Loup grinning appreciatively about a 'the best birthday' he'd attended when he was a young man who should have had many more pleasant experiences than a twelve year old girl's silly string bash, and himself, sitting there on the picnic blanket playing surrogate for a father who couldn't be bothered. At one point, when Bonabelle was quiet and making her wish, Killian let himself be a little sad and make a wish too. Not on the candles - blowing them out himself would have been rude - but he let it go at the same time, and when his niece looked a little sad, so did he. Only for a moment. There was a birthday party to attend after all.

"Happy birthday, Bonny," Killian smiled softly, a less raucous expression than he normally granted people. He waved his wand and set off a small display of fireworks and confetti, all of which fizzled out a few inches above any of their heads. Looking up at them, he thought that maybe he was looking forward a little bit too, into a world where Bonny got to grow up and Valentine got to grow up and Jean-Loup got to grow up and dear Merlin he hoped he never grew up. But maybe he would. Maybe he'd find a nice person and be brave enough to ask them out no matter what they might think of him for it. Or maybe he'd find that he was a nice person already and someone would ask him out. That would be great.

He reached out a hand and clapped it on Jean-Loup's shoulder. He didn't say thank you but he thought that maybe he didn't need to.

22 Killian Row We do. 1450 0 5

Valentine Duell

September 30, 2020 7:21 PM

You can still practice though by Valentine Duell

The medic summoned up some candles and then the cake looked right. She gave him a big smile. "Perfect." Then the singing began and it was glorious! Valentine belted out the song with one arm wrapped around Bonabelle's shoulder. After the singing, Val could tell that her friend was deeply contemplating her wish. That was good, but she desperately wanted to know what Bonabelle's wish was, then she could work to help make it come true. Sadly, Bonabelle couldn't tell her. Everyone knew that telling someone what you wished for over birthday candles, made certain that it didn't happen.

Bonabelle's eyes were wet when she opened them again. It must have been a good wish. Valentine was just going to have to make sure that wish came true, even if she didn't know what it was. She resisted an urge to wrap Bonabelle in a hug again, and Mr. Row made a spectacular mini fireworks display! "Happy birthday." she echoed Mr. Row, confirming the sentiment. This had been a fun birthday party, and she was going to need to top it in October. She had some thoughts jotted down already, but now she knew she was going to have to get Mr. Row involved in the planning. He was pretty good at this as well.

Now it was time for her to do the task that Bonabelle had appointed her. She plucked the candles out of the cake and after making sure they were cool enough, handed one to the medic and Mr. Row. She kept one herself and gave the rest to the birthday girl. Just in case they weren't sure what to do with them, she put the bottom end of hers in her mouth to clean off the yummy icing that came off the cake with it. Traditions were good and fun.

Finally taking up the knife she sliced up the cake and distributed it onto the waiting plates. As she handed them out, it occurred to her how lucky she was to get to be involved in this. She had friends now, she got to go to birthday parties finally! In everything that had been going on this year, she'd almost forgotten how lonely she'd been before the school year had started. How much she had wanted friends. She thought of her own party with Bonabelle and Lavender, and gave in to her urges and wrapped Bonabelle up once more in a big hug and whispered in her ear. "I love you so much, you're like the sister I always wished I had." She pulled away, her own eyes slightly damp, then in her best 'motherly voice', "Now eat your cake before it gets cold." she instructed her friend with a smile.

2 Valentine Duell You can still practice though 1490 0 5

Jean Wolfe

September 30, 2020 9:31 PM

So, same time next year? by Jean Wolfe

"Buttmunch," Jean-Loup rolled the word experimentally around his mouth, arching his eyebrows a little at Killian, but very much still considering the word rather than calling it. With a nod to Bonabelle, he filed it away.

"Bon anniversaire," he echoed the others, for once glad of another language to fall back on, as otherwise it was going to get a bit repetitive.

He blinked as Valentine handed out candles, but a flicker of absolute delight flickered across his face as he saw what she did with hers. They got to lick candles! This was possibly by far the silliest and best and most improper thing so far, and that was saying something given then fight they'd had. He copied Valentine, smiling to himself at the weird mingling taste of sugar and wax.

He took the time to drink in the view again, soaking in its warm autumn colours. The bright flashes from the paint cans were fading out of his mind along with the adrenaline spike from the fight, and he just wanted to scoop… at least two of the people here into a snuggle pile and be happy that they were happy. That would probably be a little rude to Valentine though, so he settled for reaching over to offer Killian a fist bump, sharing a smile as they took in the sight of the birthday girl licking her candles and getting her cake. It didn’t quite feel like enough though, so he offered an affectionate headbutt into his shoulder, one that was soft enough to be more of a nuzzle. He knew Bonabelle was the one getting to make wishes right now, but he hoped for a friendly arm around him, and the feeling that even if he wouldn’t be here next year, he wouldn’t really be apart from them all. Valentine seemed to be doing likewise with Bonabelle, so he snuggled into Killian keeping his voice low enough for only him to hear.

“We make a good party, buttmunch,” he murmured, in roughly the tone people usually used to say ‘I love you.’

13 Jean Wolfe So, same time next year? 1506 0 5

Jean Wolfe

Time is what you make of it (tag Bonabelle, Killian and Valentine) by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

And right now it's time to party! by Valentine Duell

Bonabelle Row

It literally isn't though. by Bonabelle Row

Jean Wolfe

Explain? by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

Time can be wibbly. It's all fine. by Valentine Duell

Bonabelle Row

You were all willing to wibble time just for me? by Bonabelle Row

Jean Wolfe

Absolutely by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

We would do so much more! by Valentine Duell

Killian Row

We really would. by Killian Row

Jean Wolfe

Like... attack you with goo by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

Goo-strike! Go!! by Valentine Duell

Killian Row

Goo goo power rangers! by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

Goo fight win! by Bonabelle Row

Jean Wolfe

I am too young and too Pureblood to get your pop culture references by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

Time for some learning then! by Valentine Duell

Killian Row

Well let's put a movie night on the calendar for summer then. by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

School of hard knocks? by Bonabelle Row

Jean Wolfe

I prefer school of gentle encouragement by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

How about the School of Rock! by Valentine Duell

Killian Row

We will, we will, rock you. by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

*stomp stomp CLAP, stomp stomp CLAP* by Bonabelle Row

Jean Wolfe

What is this strange war dance? by Jean Wolfe

Valentine Duell

The precourser to our victory dance! by Valentine Duell

Jean Wolfe

Let's hit the floor by Jean Wolfe

Killian Row

WOW okay. by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

You shall have no victory over which to dance! by Bonabelle Row

Valentine Duell

Don't be to sure of that! by Valentine Duell

Jean Wolfe

Not making things easy by Jean Wolfe

Bonabelle Row

Please don't get broken though. by Bonabelle Row

Killian Row

I might've broken someone. by Killian Row

Valentine Duell

We're all a little broke by Valentine Duell

Jean Wolfe

That is a word with multiple meanings by Jean Wolfe

Killian Row

It's true. And the meanings have multiple meanings. by Killian Row

Jean Wolfe

That sounds complicated by Jean Wolfe

Killian Row

Most things are, I have found. by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

It doesn't have to be as complicated as adults make it. by Bonabelle Row

Valentine Duell

The same could be said for many things by Valentine Duell

Jean Wolfe

Am I an adult? by Jean Wolfe

Killian Row

Depends on the situation. by Killian Row

Bonabelle Row

I think I'll be a good adult. by Bonabelle Row

stomp stomp CLAP, stomp stomp CLAP by Bonabelle Row