Mortimer Brockert
October 09, 2020 8:22 PM
Opening Feast by Mortimer Brockert
Once the older students were assembled at their tables and the first years filed in, Mortimer cast Sonorous on himself and rose ."Welcome to Sonora for the new first years and welcome back for all older students. First years, you should have receieved a blank badge at the end of Orientation. You will dunk the badge in the Sorting Potion and it will turn the color representing your house which are blue for Aladren, yellow for Teppenpaw, red for Crotalus, and brown for Pecari. Afterwards, you may join your house table."After the first years had been settled, Mortimer continued."Would Nathaniel Mordue and Caitlin Pierce please come up and get your Head Student badges." He continued. "In addition I'd like to call up Sophia Priory, Zara Jackson, Jessica Hayles and Hilda Hexenmeister to receive their prefect badges. Congratulations." Mortimer did not have quite as many strong opinions on this group as he'd had last year given that none of them were his grandchildren or their friends or enemies. He did have misgivings about Miss Jackson's ability to get along with the purebloods among the group, albeit not as many as he'd had-and still did-about Miss McLeod's, which included her fellow Teppenpaw prefects. Mortimer also had some doubts about Miss Hayles' mental stability but most of the other choices were worse. He didn't quite get the lack of enthusiasm for Mr. Crosby though. Yes, the Crotalus boy was reserved, but Mortimer thought that was a plus, a sign of maturity. Also, he wasn't violent or mentally unstable or both.
Once the new prefects and Head Students had returned to their tables, Mortimer continued, "Our Midsummer event this year will be the concert. We will be having a school-wide play with a folklore theme. Participation is optional." He had made sure of the latter. Some people were quieter and more introverted and neither wanted to be on stage or forced into interactions with peers. And some just plain didn't have talents or interests that translated to this sort of thing. Period.
He continued"In addition, Giselle Duell will be joining staff as our Divinations professor. Please treat her with respect." It made the most sense to tell them that rather than to tell them to treat her with the same respect they would show their other professors, given that some people did not show professors respect in general. Nor could Mortimer say that he trusted they would treat her with respect because that also was just plain not true. Still, they needed this reminder both based on the fact that respect did not come naturally to most children and the fact that Professor Duell was teaching a subject that was ninety-nine percent horse manure. "Meanwhile Professor Brooding-Hawthorne, our Defense Against the Dark Arts professor will be taking a sabbatical this fall, in order to further her research." Young people today! Mortimer could approve of both research and needing a break from the little monsters that inhabited Sonora but one needed to honor their commitments.
"Now we will sing the school song." Well, they would anyway. Mortimer did not sing . Lyric sheets were passed around and the song began.
Every day we strive
Learning to survive
Life’s hardships and to solve its mystery.
Learning to defend
Our honour and our friends,
Flying high to meet our destiny
We will stand and face those who want to harm us.
We won’t let the world transfigure, jinx or charm us
I won’t fight alone, as long as you are with me.
Sonora be my home, my tutor and my spirit
Vasita quoque floeat; Even the desert blooms.
That done, he dug into his steak and bourbon.
Subthreads:Aladren
Sorted and settled by Lorena Abernathy with Rosalynn Tellerman
Back to it! by Quincy Wright with Mara Morales
Off to a good start by Bertie Jackson with Josephine Clyde
Oh. Okay. This is fine. by Heinrich Hexenmeister with Ness McLeod
Teppenpaw
I want to be my best me. by Freddie Zauberhexen with Philippe Delachene
New people! [Tag Tommy, Melanie and/or any other new Tepps] by Valentine Duell with Tommy Jamison, Ian Malone
Crotalus
Red on red at the red table by Wally O'Malley with Henry Spellman
Red, the blood of angry men by Martin Crosby V with Felipe De Matteo
Not too red, not too blue by Sadie-Lake Chalmers with Jessica Hayles
Pecari
Not the same by Oz Spellman with Stanley O'Malley
Wooo.. What's the occasion? by Billy Cobb with Leonor De Matteo
Staff
Let the doctor take a look [Killian] by Katey Willow with Killian Row
New school, new start? by Giselle Duell with Mary Brooding-Hawthorne, Killian Row
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Mortimer Brockert
Opening Feast
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Giselle Duell
October 12, 2020 6:34 PM
New school, new start? by Giselle Duell
She was ready for this. She was ready for this. If Giselle just repeated that a few more times to herself, she may eventually believe it. Her new living space here at the school was enormous compared to the small room that Lia had allowed her to use. It was going to take a little bit to get used to it, conveniently though it connected straight to her office. She had an office! How amazing was that? That connected to her classroom, which was as ready as she could make it for her new students. Her living area was still very sparsely decorated. She still didn't have very many things, the bed was covered with the quilt that Valentine had gotten for her at the fair. It had been a lovely surprise and her niece had been delighted.Giselle had fixed herself up as much as she was able to for this grand opening feast. After she had gotten the job it seemed like Marissa and Valentine had taken her through every shop in the area to 'update her wardrobe' as they put it. It had been a fun, very confusing, whirlwind of a lovely time with her family again. She could get used to it. Andrew had even come along, 'for moral support' he said when she asked why. Halfway through she understood, Valentine had been a non-stop ball of gleeful energy, handing her things to feel and describing their colors and patterns, telling her what would go with what. Marissa was much more controlled, but she could tell her sister-in-law was having fun as well. Andrew helped her from being swept away by it all.
So, wearing the fanciest of her new dresses... she forgot what color Val had said it was, she tied the dark blue with silver moons and stars and tassels 'divination scarf' around her waist. Valentine had insisted she get it. Now she was ready, her hat was in place, she had her glasses, everything was fine. She would now go to her first official duty as a fully employed professor of divination at Sonora Academy. She was ready for this. She was ready for this.
One more deep breath, and then she opened the door and started to make her way towards the Cascade Hall. This school was a very nice school, it had a much different aesthetic than Delphi had, but that was hardly surprising. There were only so many places that could pull off columns and marble statues so well. She only got lost once on her way, and found the hall before it was to late. She took a seat at the staff table and reminded herself to breathe again. The noise in the room thankfully wasn't overwhelming, it was the familiar sound of conversations buzzing around a school gathering. It was actually strangely comforting, she smiled slightly. For most of her time there, school hadn't been good, but it was at least familiar.
Before long Headmaster Brockert began his speech. There was a color changing badge used for sorting? Thankfully Delphi hadn't used that process, they had simply been divined into their houses. The only name she recognized from the awards was Hilda Hexenmeister, she was on her list of students for this year. The announcement of the Midsummer event came as no surprise, however she also knew of one student who would be participating. She smiled nervously and waved gently when he introduced her. She was almost positively certain she'd heard a barely restrained squeal of delight come from somewhere in the direction of the students.
Giselle listened to the school's song. She hadn't heard it before, and the words hit her harder than she was expecting. Learning to survive life's hardships, stand and face those who want to harm us, We won't let the world transfigure, jinx, or charm us, I won't fight alone.... Breathing was suddenly harder than it had been, and there were unwanted tears stinging the corners of what used to be her eyes. Nonono... not here. She was fine, everything was fine. She was ready for this. She was ready for this.
She pushed the lyrics to a back corner of her mind. She could discuss them at her next session, they could wait until then. Attempting to steady her breathing again, she noticed that the air was filled with the aromas of food that had not been there a moment ago. Hunger was not a problem at the moment, but any distraction was a good one.
OOC: Marissa, Valentine, and Andrew actions all approved by their authors.
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Giselle Duell
New school, new start?
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
October 12, 2020 7:03 PM
New something. by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
Tabitha was away, studying and researching and adventuring and totally hopefully not forgetting about Mary. Zeus had been inconsolable the first few nights she'd been gone, convinced that a parent leaving meant that the parent had died, but then they'd gotten their first letter from Tabitha and everything seemed a little better. Mary had helped Zeus pick out a new plushie dragon toy and he slept with it every night. It seemed helpful and Mary was glad for the chance to try to sleep herself. It was the first time in years she'd had a bed to herself and she found that she hated it. More often than she was proud of, she ultimately put herself to sleep on the couch, curled up with Ailuros.For all that she was sad that Tabitha was away, Mary was also very glad the woman was finally taking care of herself. It had been a trip she'd needed for a very long time and Mary had high hopes that when she came back - because she wouldn't let herself think it could be an 'if' - she would be better for it and more excited to teach again. She'd been passionate about that once, and maybe she could be again. For now, Mary needed to be a parent and a professor and not worry about Dorian or Tabitha or any other thing.
For now, it was the start of a new school year. Mary's hair had grown back out to past her hips - amazing the things consistent application of strong potions could do - and she wore a rich green gown for the occasion. Her hair was cascading as usual from beneath a too-large pointed hat and she smiled neutrally as Headmaster Brockert went on, clapping eagerly when students were given their awards.
There was a new professor, which was exciting. Mary turned to tell Tabitha that and then remembered and . . . well, she turned to the new professor instead. "Hi, I'm Mary," she said as she picked up her glass. She wasn't sure whether offering her hand to the woman would be clear as the glasses made her think the woman was likely blind, but she also didn't want to just deadarm it, so a glass of water gave her something to occupy her hands with instead. "I teach potions. It's great to have you here!"
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
New something.
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Giselle Duell
October 14, 2020 7:17 PM
New things are good, right? by Giselle Duell
Oh, someone was talking to her. A woman, the voice gave it away first, but the name certainly confirmed it. She smiled in the direction of the voice. She nearly reached for her wand to get a 'look' at who was talking to her, but she stopped short. She hadn't had time to meet up with the rest of the staff and she didn't know how much of her situation the Deputy-Headmistress had told them. Pulling and waving her wand about right off the bat could look... threatening, or at the very least very strange. So for now, she would make do. "Hello, I'm Giselle.." she sort of waved in the direction of the Headmaster, and felt herself turn a little red, "But I guess you know that already.""Thanks," she responded to Mary with just a slight, embarrassed grimace. "I.." she started, stopped, considered, sighed and plowed ahead anyway. "I was never very good at potions." Giselle tried a weak smile and gestured towards her face, "A lack of eyesight makes some parts of that difficult." That should work, if the deputy-headmistress already told them it wouldn't seem like an odd statement, and if she hadn't.. well now Mary knew. "Anyway," she continued to move the conversation along, "Have you been here long? Do you have any advice for a newcomer?"
Giselle debated asking if Mary knew Valentine, but if Val was taking potions, Mary would know her. this was Valentine. Perhaps she would come up in conversation, how many Duells could there be in the wizarding world? Instead, her nose reminded her that there was food on the table, and suddenly her stomach decided it did want something after all. "For example," she tried to smile again, "What's the best thing here to eat?"
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Giselle Duell
New things are good, right?
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
October 15, 2020 8:37 PM
Sometimes. by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
Mary smiled. "It's good to meet you nonetheless," she assured the young woman. Well, she seemed like a young woman at least. She was certainly younger than Mary had been when she'd started, and that was long enough ago that Mary might have had a decade or more on her now. How odd to be among the older staff now, although she thought that she may still be the youngest if Giselle wasn't being counted. One of them, at least. Ever since including Zeus in her life, she didn't feel very young.The sunglasses made much more sense when Giselle went on to explain her lack of skill with potions, although Mary wasn't sure whether that was strictly an excuse. "I have full vision, but you wouldn't know it from the way I cut up ingredients sometimes," Mary said, not quite laughing because it certainly wasn't a thing to guffaw about, but giving a full enough chuckle to hopefully show that it was an attempt at lighthearted humor. "Well, if you ever need a potion, I'm happy to brew things for people. Just give me enough notice if it's something that takes more time of course," she said, smiling again. She was glad such things could be heard and not just seen, because she didn't really want to verbalize I look happy right now at Giselle. That seemed rude. She did wonder though whether smiles sounded as different as they looked, and whether it could be heard that her smile was polite and sincere, but not quite genuine at the root of her mood.
"It feels like I've been here a long time and not very long all at once. This is my sixth year," she said, laughing when Giselle asked about food. "I'm partial to pasta dishes and chocolate, so that's usually my go to. My wife - she usually is here to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts - is always giving me a hard time about it, but that's why she likes to run away from monsters and I like to cook with them," she said. "Lasagna is in front of your left hand, a little to the left, and there's a baked ziti or something ahead of it. There's a salad and mashed potatoes closer to your right hand, and sliced turkey straight ahead of you," she added with comfortable neutrality. Hopefully Giselle would tell her off if she didn't want that sort of information and Mary hated to impose if she wasn't the sort to be direct, but she also didn't want to be weird about things. "I won't do that again if you don't want," she added, just in case.
She was probably talking too much but that's what anxiety and extroversion did to people, so she went with it. "As far as more solid advice for a newcomer, I think the only thing is asking for help before you're desperate for it. Kids are hard, grading is hard, curriculum is hard, and it's all wonderful, but it's a lot. Find someone to have a nice casual chat with, enjoy getting to know others, and ask for support before you're hanging off the side of a cliff," she smiled. "What got you interested in Divination?"
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
Sometimes.
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Giselle Duell
October 18, 2020 5:05 PM
Is this one of those times? by Giselle Duell
Giselle smiled at the potions professor. "Cutting isn't great," she admitted, then paused just a moment, "The tricky part is usually when the recipe says to add the next ingredient when the mixture changes color." She gave a weak laugh, trying to match Mary's. "I haven't found a way around that problem yet." This seems like one of those conversations she would have had a bunch, but she really hadn't. She hadn't had anyone to have them with, it’s only been in the past few months that she’s talked to anyone other than… Giselle dismissed the thought quickly. No point in dwelling on the past now. Now was a time for the future.Mary was being nice, offering to brew up potions for her, well for anyone from the sounds of it. Thankfully she couldn’t think of any potions that she needed at the moment, she didn’t want to plunge herself into debt with her new coworkers already. Maybe once she was somewhat established, and was capable of returning favors, then perhaps she could make some minor requests if they came up. “That’s very kind of you, thank-you. But, I can’t think of any that I need at the moment.”
Six years. In six years Valentine would be graduating. What would her own life be like by then? One year ago she couldn't have even begun to imagine where she was now. She smiled at the variable time sentiment that Mary expressed. Her smile froze, just a moment, when Mary said she had a wife. It was more from surprise than anything else, and not really from the idea that the woman next to her had a wife. It was the fact that she suddenly realized that she could, potentially have a relationship. She was free of her 'curse'. Would her peers want to interact with her? Might one of them think she was…? Suddenly it seemed warmer in here, she shook her head gently. 'Don't be silly girl. Who would see anything in you?' Lia's voice bubbled up through her other thoughts and she sighed.
"I'm sorry," she apologized meekly, "My mind wandered there for a moment. Your wife is the Defense teacher that is on sabbatical?" She wasn't quite sure what else to say on that topic, oh.. wait. "Deputy-Headmistress Skies asked if I would be interested in lending my… expertise." The deputy-headmistress had used that word, and it still didn't feel like the right one, but she was a teacher now so maybe it was? "She asked if I wanted to teach a Defense class…" Giselle's smile turned a little uncertain. "I gave her the answer any intimidated new hire would give their new boss. Since then, I've been trying to come up with a good lesson for it. " her smiled turned just a touch hopeful, "but maybe you might have some insight?" So much for not going into debt early.
She listened as Mary described the table layout, and sighed inwardly. Why did her simple existence have to make every else's life so difficult? Still, she smiled and thanked Mary. "It's fine," she added, "but I have learned a coping mechanism or two so far." She raised her wand and waved it at the table before her and an image of the table's contents appeared in her mind. Then she decided to take Mary's recommendation and transferred some of the pasta dishes to her own, in carefully defined locations.
Giselle took a bite as she listened to the potion professor's advice. Mary was right, the pasta was delicious. However, most her advice went in direct violation to everything Lia had taught her. She had to remind herself that Lia had not been a good person. 'You cant' rely on other people to solve your problems for you.' 'Get to the point, people don't care how you feel about things.' 'Don't trust people so readily, they may have ulterior motives.' She should have listened to that one better. Could Mary here have ulterior motives? The question she asked after giving her advice could be innocent enough, but it might not be. She had been offering her potions already, trying to get her into debt almost from the start. He face took on a more neutral expression.
Had she already said to much? She couldn't tell Mary that she was 'gifted' with The Sight, nor how her family had discovered that she had it. She could go with something safe though, Mary would need some sort of response. "Well..." she paused and though furiously before she finally came up with the obvious answer. "I lost my sight when I was about a year old, and I thought perhaps I could regain or learn a new way of seeing through it." She finished with her best 'I'm not at all trying to deceive you' smile. Maybe she was just being friendly, both the therapist and Marissa had helped her come to the conclusion that not everyone out in the world was like Lia, but that didn't mean that there wasn't any at all.
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Giselle Duell
Is this one of those times?
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
October 21, 2020 5:42 PM
For us? I think so. For the crying medic on her way out of the room? Eh.... by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
Mary paused, not having considered that. "I suppose that's true," she said thoughtfully. She'd gone out of her way to make her classroom accessible for students of different linguistic backgrounds but she hadn't had to think much about different abilities or disabilities. That would be something to look into now, before she had to. Probably a good distraction in her new abundance of free time too . . .Giselle seemed surprisingly easy to read and Mary watched as a number of thoughts seemed to run through her mind all at once after her revelation of having a wife on staff. She wasn't exactly sure what part of it was what made the young woman's mind whirl, but she didn't say anything negative about it so she suspected homophobia wasn't the source of it, which was points in the right direction in Mary's book. She chuckled softly at Giselle's explanation of how she got roped into teaching part of the course this Fall. "Yes, that sounds right. I'm sure you'll do amazingly, though. Tabitha would love to meet you I think," she added with a smile, imagining it. "She's especially interested in magical creatures but she's very much defense and safety oriented, so the position is a good fit. She'd probably love to pick your brain about self-defense without sight, when I know she relies so much on that herself. I don't think anything you bring to the class will be bad though," she promised. "And teaching gets a lot less scary as you work up to the point of revising your curriculum instead of building it."
Mary wasn't exactly sure what the spell did that Giselle used, but it seemed to help her make a food decision so it must've worked. That was fancy. It had always bothered her how often muggle born students and non-magical people who were associated with the magical world by marriage, etc., spoke of 'fixing' things with magic, as if the best thing that anyone could want to be was able bodied. Sure, there were benefits to that, but what if magic could tear down barriers and make all sorts of abilities and bodies perfectly functional without any of the concerns that plagued so many non-magical people. Of course, she supposed that if the best anyone had ever been able to offer her was a crutch, she'd jump at a healing potion before she'd jump at a ramp all the same.
"Oh, very interesting!" Mary said sincerely, surprised by the story, although she wasn't sure why. "I've only ever been okay at Divination, although Tabitha tells me it's because I don't drink enough tea. She's from London," she added, since the only good reason she'd ever found to drink tea was to be from a country that made you think leaf juice tasted good. She thought fondly and a little disappointedly of both her wife and Dorian in that way. Truth be told, part of why she wasn't good at Divination was because she didn't try. She had suspicions that Legilimency may go hand-in-hand with some of the mental practice required for the trade, and she wasn't sure she wanted to pursue those sorts of things. It wasn't like she ever used Legilimency but just knowing she could do so with great efficiency made her feel squirmy.
She opened her mouth to say something else when, on the other side of Giselle, next to Killian, Katey suddenly rose from her seat and left the room. The expression on her face suggested it wasn't because she was just too happy to stay for dessert. Mary instinctively backed herself out as well, putting the napkin that had been on her lap on the table instead.
Remembering herself, she put a hand on Giselle's shoulder briefly. "I'm so sorry, you'll have to excuse me. Our medic has just left the room and I'm worried she may need assistance. The guidance counselor, Killian Row, is on your other side and unoccupied now though. He makes for a great conversation partner and would be pleased to meet you, I'm sure."
She stood up. "We should definitely talk more, I'm always happy to make new friends, especially when we're all in this big school - sometimes you need another adult!" And then she followed Katey.
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Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
For us? I think so. For the crying medic on her way out of the room? Eh....
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Giselle Duell
October 23, 2020 5:44 PM
Okay... but...? by Giselle Duell
Apparently the color changing aspect wasn't something Mary had thought of before. Her voice was thoughtful, as if she was trying to solve the problem as she acknowledged it. Giselle gave her a slightly bitter smile, "It's not to bad if you have a partner that can keep watch." She did not add that most of the time no one had wanted to partner with her, and when they did… well, she would have preferred to have been alone.As Mary talked about her wife, Giselle smiled and nodded along. The woman seemed nice enough... how was she supposed to know who to trust? If she'd only had some time... no, she wouldn't have had any context and that would have been next to useless. Perhaps after getting to know them better, she could see what the future may hold. Until then... She was just going to have to trust her gut. Yeah, because that has never lead her astray before. In the end she decided there was only one way to go about this, she smiled. "Thank-you. If she is anything like you, I think meeting her would be a pleasant experience as well." Hmm... Mary may have also given her a glimmer of an idea for that class.
Yes, she was definitely warming up to the potions professor. She even let out a small, quiet titter of almost laughter at the tea comment. "Tea is okay," She responded with a genuine smile, "I generally only drink it for two reasons. One is obvious, and two..." she gestured out towards the students, "Is sitting out there somewhere, talking nearly non-stop I imagine." Valentine's parties had been a near constant thing before... and they started up again soon after they had reunited.
"London?" Giselle asked, mildly interested in the topic for no reason whatsoever, "So, I guess you met her here then?" Should she? She could, Mary seemed nice, she could ask. "Does.. does that sort of thing happen often?" The echo of 'silly girl' reverberated about her mind again and she instantly regretted asking. "Nevermin.." she began trying to cancel the question when suddenly Mary backed away from the table. What had she done? Had she crossed a line? Was Mary mad at her? Was she going to leave, just like all the others?
She felt a hand on her shoulder and Mary rattled off an excuse about the medic leaving. At least she was nice enough to say something. A medical emergency might need a potions professor to assist, but she though she would have heard more of a commotion if that had been the case. Mary stood, and there wasn't anything Giselle could do about it. She just nodded as the potions professor said some more things and left her.
Giselle poked at her food a little, suddenly not very hungry anymore. Mary had said that the guidance counselor was there and open for conversation, but if they didn't want to talk to her, she'd rather not have someone else run off on her as well. If this Killian Row actually wanted to talk to her, he could... Row? Guidance counselor? As in Valentine's friend Bonabelle Row's Uncle that worked at Sonora as a guidance counselor? Her mind drifted back over Bonabelle's summer visit. Their tea ceremony at the end stood out in her mind. She couldn't quite say what, but something had changed in Bonabelle after that party. If this was something that might affect Valentine, it was her duty to figure it out. Had it had anything to do with her fortune?
She turned to Mr. Row, "Tell me, does your niece have any brothers? What happened at the meadow?"
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Giselle Duell
Okay... but...?
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Killian Row
October 24, 2020 10:25 PM
Mary wasn't lying, except when she said I'm nice. by Killian Row
Katey left. She just . . . left. And then Mary left. And everything didn't make sense, but Killian was glad that someone other than himself would go after Katey. It seemed safer for both of them if that was the case, although he tried not to wonder what he would have done if no one had gone after her at all.His brooding (ironic as it was considering Mary's intervention) was interrupted by Giselle Duell's sudden questions, and he furrowed his brow in confusion. "Not as far as I know," he responded automatically. Dear merlin he hoped Lorcan hadn't made any other children. He'd love them, sure, but he really hoped they didn't exist. When an apparent divination expert asked you though . . . that was a bit discouraging at best. "What meadow?" he added.
Remembering himself, he took a breath and picked up his fork, ready to dive into some part of his meal. None of it really interested him anyway, but especially now. "I'm Killian, by the way. You're . . . "
Giselle Duell - divination professor, Valentine Duell's relative of some (presumed). Oh.
"You know Bonabelle?" he asked, no longer as surprised by her line of questioning. "Through Valentine, I presume?"
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Killian Row
Mary wasn't lying, except when she said I'm nice.
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Giselle Duell
October 25, 2020 6:09 AM
So you say. by Giselle Duell
Mr. Row seemed confused. Giselle wasn't sure if that was a good sign or a bad one. She sighed to herself as the man stumbled through some thought processes. Maybe Bonabelle hadn't told him anything about her summer experiences. Perhaps she was just to used to interacting with Valentine, the very idea of Val going to visit a friend and then not verbally recounting each moment of the experience to her, Marissa and Andrew afterwards just seemed downright bizarre. Perhaps Valentine was not a typical baseline to use for comparison.She decided to tackle Mr. Row's somewhat jumbled inquires in a more logical order than how they had spilled out of him. "Giselle Duell," she began affirming the connection, "Valentine's aunt. Bonabelle came to visit us over the summer." She assumed he knew at least that much, but Marissa had been the one to work out logistics with Bonabelle's guardians. If Bonabelle hadn't told Mr. Row... Killian about her tea experience, should she?
"While she was with us, Valentine wanted to have a tea party that ended with leaf readings." She began. "Valentine's was easy enough, and not terribly surprising." She wondered if she should talk to the coach and maybe the medic if Valentine decided to do a lot of flying this year. "Bonabelle's was a bit strange though, I couldn't make much of a connection to her with what I read." The much was safe enough. Perhaps Killian would be able to put some pieces together on his own at this point without her needing to say more. The morality of sharing someone's future with another person was a murky issue to begin with. From a practical standpoint, the more people that knew, the more variables were put into the mix and the more things could shift. This was why people in general didn't trust divinations, free will instinctively fought against it.
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Giselle Duell
So you say.
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Killian Row
October 26, 2020 6:49 PM
I might be biased. by Killian Row
"Yes," he agreed, remembering that Bonabelle had done as much, although he wasn't sure whether he knew that Valentine's aunt was there. It wasn't exactly his business - his parents had been good about making it clear that they were her guardians and he could play a role in that but he was not responsible for being her surrogate parent. "She was very excited to see Valentine over the break." He smiled a little, remembering the way she'd almost bounced around, showing some of the excitement she rarely let out otherwise. "We haven't really had a chance to talk since she got back so I haven't heard much about how that went."His head swam as he thought through the rest of what Giselle was saying and suggesting. "Interesting," she responded with as much of a smile as he could manage. "That must have been new for her, I doubt she's had a chance to meet someone who could really do a proficient reading. I can't say I have myself," he admitted, holding on to the cup of tea he'd been working on a little more tightly, almost defensively. "You saw something about brothers in her cup?" he confirmed, wanting to circle back to that. "Her father is my brother," he added quietly.
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Killian Row
I might be biased.
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Giselle Duell
October 26, 2020 7:43 PM
Most people are, not always in the same direction by Giselle Duell
"They do seem very close." Giselle responded to Killian's description of Bonabelle's excitement. She wondered a little more about exactly what she had seen in Valentine's mug. "From what I can remember growing up, and from what I've seen of her recently, I am not surprised that Valentine has little trouble making friends. Does Bonabelle have many friends?" The question seemed strange as she asked it, "I'm sorry," She immediately apologized. "It's just..." No, she'd better not. She tried to put on a dismissive smile, ".. nothing. It's nothing." She hoped."She did not seem... as excited about the idea as Valentine did." Giselle admitted. "I suspect she holds the same line of thought about divinations as most witches and wizards." she assumed she didn't have to explain what that line of thought was, for all she knew he held the same beliefs. There was something in the man's voice that betrayed... fear? Maybe. She thought about offering to do some form of reading for him if he wanted, but something held her tongue. If she didn't ask, she couldn't be rejected. Best let those that wanted something come to her.
Giselle nodded slowly when he asked again about the brothers, "Yes," she stated simply, that part as much was already out in the open. "I have heard that is how family relations work. Very similar to how Valentine's father is my brother." Could she use this to bypass some of that murkiness? Maybe, but she didn't really know anything about the situation. Other than a possible reunion of brothers. "Andrew and I were separated for quite some time. It was good to get back together with him again." She then gave him a knowing smile, "But then, everyone's situation is a little different." If she did offer to do a reading for him, that may shed some more light on the subject... no. If he wanted something proper to discuss, he could make that decision himself.
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Giselle Duell
Most people are, not always in the same direction
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Killian Row
October 27, 2020 9:16 PM
Touche. by Killian Row
Killian couldn't help appreciating Giselle's apparent concern for Bonabelle, even if he wasn't quite sure where it was really coming from. He supposed he was concerned about Valentine by virtue of her mattering to Bonny, but he didn't know enough about Val's relationship with her aunt to know if it was comparable. "She's less vivacious than Valentine," he said. "I think she has exactly as many friends as she wants to have, but that doesn't mean she has a lot of friends." Since Giselle was her professor now and she would see - for a given value of seeing - exactly what sort of things Bonabelle got up to, he didn't mind sharing this with her. Besides, he was pretty sure his niece would represent herself about the same way.He took a breath and breathed it out, feeling guilty as Giselle explained her take on Bonabelle's thoughts on divination. "I will admit to leaning that way myself," he admitted," although I have no doubt that there are real experts in the field, and I'm sure that you are or you wouldn't be here. I think there are too many people who claim they can do things they can't, and it gives the field a bad rep," he continued, wanting to be clear that he didn't think divination was the problem, it was wizards and witches who said they could do it that were. He released his grip on his tea cup and then closed his hand again. "It feels very personal. There's something intimidating about knowing I'm an open book if I give you my tea cup," he admitted thoughtfully, wondering, despite himself, what she might find in those leaves.
"I only meant that there are brothers in her life," he said with a smirk, finding that Giselle was perhaps more literal than he would have anticipated given her profession. "I'm not related to her mother, etc." He was surprised to hear that she and her brother had also been separated, and he wondered at the circumstances of that. It was hard to imagine they were much like his own, if for no other reason than Valentine didn't seem to show any of the heartbreaking signs of abandonment issues that his own niece did. "I reconnected with my brother this summer. I can't say it was necessarily a good to get back together."
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Killian Row
Touche.
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Giselle Duell
October 28, 2020 5:35 PM
So, now what? by Giselle Duell
"That sounds... good." Just having the exact amount of friends that you wanted. Giselle wondered what that would look like for her. They weren't talking about her, but still she wondered. She had learned to get by without friends, without... a lot of things, now that she could have friends, what would she do? She dismissed the thought for another time. Instead she put on a light smirk, "Bonabelle may be ahead of Valentine in that department then. I don't think my niece has gotten all of the friends she wants to have yet."Part of Giselle's mind raged for a moment as Killian talked about the charlatans in her field. They were a problem. You couldn't really fool someone into thinking you were a capable charms master if you weren't, potion making was easier, but it still didn't come close to divinations. She'd seen plenty of students come and go from Delphi that had no grasp of the subject at all and still... gah. In the past, that was in the past. Killian was talking again, now she had to smile, in what she hoped was a friendly way. "It is personal," she paused, "In fact, it is often so personal that while you may be an open book, it is often one written in code that only you can decipher." Bonabelle's had been a perfect example of this, but she could only get into that so far. "I read your niece's leaves and while it didn't make much sense to me, it may have to her. They are symbols and..." she cut herself off, realizing what she was doing. "I'm sorry," she said with a slightly embarrassed smile, "you are not here for a lecture and classes don't start until tomorrow."
Interesting, did the brothers have a bit of a reunion then? She quirked an eyebrow a bit at the statement. "Families can be difficult," she found herself commenting before she realized that she was talking. Her more recent memories of the Duell household did their best to shove those old memories back into the far recesses of her mind. "But, they can also be a good thing from time to time." She sighed, that wasn't really a topic she wanted to get into at the moment. Changing the topic sounded like a good idea at the moment, "How's your.." she had no idea what he was eating, "food?" she finished a bit lamely.
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Giselle Duell
So, now what?
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