Martin Crosby V
February 07, 2021 1:13 PM
Chessebel by Martin Crosby V
After a few weeks, it was no longer an uncommon sight to find Martin and Jezebel situated by the chess board in the Crotalus Common Room, deep in a chess match as their Thursday evenings snuck away. Martin had shown her a thing or two, but actually, he was finding her quite a worthwhile opponent. Definitely closer to his level than he had originally anticipated, although he still always came out victorious. But maybe part of that was on him: he was letting her take a few obvious moves here and there to show her what to do, and sometimes he found himself a little more distracted than he anticipated. There was something so transfixing about her appearance, although he couldn’t quite place what it was. In any case, she was very tolerable company indeed, and definitely a fast learner.And thus, as Thursday yet again made its way around, an observer in the Common Room would have seen Martin at the board, a little earlier than he and Jezebel had agreed to meet, just to make sure their unofficial claim of the board was being honored and to get the pieces set up preemptively. His dark eyes were set so fully on the board that he did not hear her approach, so he was a little surprised when he finally noticed her, closer to
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Martin Crosby V
Chessebel
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
February 07, 2021 2:02 PM
Martin Chessby? You're better at this than me. by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
It was nice to have routine and even nicer to have a friend, and she was pretty sure that her ongoing chess nights with Martin meant Jezebel had both. She wasn't exactly sure what the criteria were for moving from acquaintance to friend, so she tried not to throw the word around just in case, but it was nice to think that maybe that's what they were. It was the first time she'd ever been friends with a boy that wasn't Dathan, and she wasn't sure if that was because she'd never had the chance before or because she wasn't supposed to. If it was the latter though, she was pretty sure that none of the reasons her mom would be worried about being friends with a boy didn't apply anyway, which actually took some of the pressure off anyway. Or at least, some of the pressure that she supposed people probably felt sometimes.Martin was already waiting at the board when she arrived in the common room, and she paused to indulge in a moment's observation and a small smile as she watched him getting their game set up. He always did that, even though he'd taught her enough by now that she ought to know how to set it up herself. It was nice of him to keep doing though. She approached the table and took a seat, holding her hair back as she did so to keep it from knocking things over on the board.
"Good evening," she said, grinning as she always did when he started out so formally. It was still terribly amusing to her but not in the sort of way that made her want to laugh at Martin so much as sort of poke at him to see how deep his shell was. Her eyes went to the board, oblivious to Martin's discomfort at his own question. It wasn't like she wasn't aware that the two of them had different complexions, it was more that she was so used to having a different complexion than almost everyone that it wasn't something that crossed her mind until someone pointed it out. In the wizard world, it seemed, people rarely did. The sorts of comments she'd gotten at home about her race were left there as she'd slid into the magic world of being of 'lower blood status' for an entirely different, very foreign reason. And a stupid reason in her opinion, even if she couldn't help wondering if it did really make her less-than to be muggle born. "Either way," she finally decided. "I do better when you start I think, so you be white," she added with a playful, competitive grin. She was well aware that she would lose, but she'd have fun on the way.
"Did you have a good day?" she asked with a smile, moving one of her knights when it was her turn.
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Martin Chessby? You're better at this than me.
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Martin Crosby V
February 08, 2021 5:32 PM
Your name was more convenient. by Martin Crosby V
Jezebel did not seem to perceive the irony or possible insensitivity of his question, and even suggested he be white regardless. He preferred the second move and a reactionary plan, but he was not about to argue his whiteness to her. Martin had very little experience with people who did not look like him or were not raised like him, his social circle very white and wealthy and Pureblooded. He was fairly sure Jezebel was none of those things, and yet he liked her company anyway. Even her femaleness did not seem as off-putting as most others had. She was supposed to be the one learning here, though, and about chess, so he let her have her pick and took his opening move.“Did you have a good day?”
Martin had still been mostly looking at the board, but he glanced up at her now, a little puzzled. “A good…? Well, yes, I suppose so,” he replied with apparent surprise. “Fairly ordinary, in fact.” He moved out a bishop, but his eyes remained locked on her, sizing her up and evaluating her motives. “Are you trying to distract me? What technique is this?” The young wizard had showed his Housemate several varying techniques and styles over the course of their last few weeks of study, but small talk was not one he would have employed or even considered.
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Martin Crosby V
Your name was more convenient.
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
February 09, 2021 7:55 AM
Not the first time I've heard that joke. by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Jezebel resisted the urge to laugh, pressing her lips together in an amused smile instead as Martin described his day. He was funny that way - he didn't make her laugh out loud much, but she still found herself wanting to laugh around him. Most of the time, she was pretty sure he had no idea what he'd done to get that reaction, either. Sometimes he even looked at her like she was far more complicated - and dare she think far more interesting? - than the game at hand, which she found very funny because she was about the most boring person she'd ever met.She feigned shock and offense when he finished though, opening her mouth in horror (although she couldn't quite keep a smile from pulling the corners up), and moving her next piece as well. "Me? Trying whatever dirty techniques I can to win? I would never," she replied before allowing her expression and voice to drop back to something more natural. "But no, I was sincerely just wondering how you're doing," she smiled. "I'm glad your day was good, if ordinary. I think some people don't like ordinary days."
She returned the gesture, watching him carefully. He might have thought it was still all technique, but she was looking for any sign of his inner thought world coming to his face to reveal something to her about whoever he kept locked up inside. She was also curious to see whether he'd return the question or drop the conversation, in which case she'd naturally have to keep it going since she'd apparently found something he was just so thrown off by.
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Not the first time I've heard that joke.
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Martin Crosby V
February 13, 2021 6:03 PM
I would never tell a joke by Martin Crosby V
She was… she was joking, right? That was joking? Her words said that she was not deceiving him, but the over-exaggeration of her tone made Martin think she intended to imply something else. Then she reiterated that she was just asking, with a tone that was much more aligned with the contents of her speech. Was this what children did? Was she teasing him?“There is nothing wrong with ordinary,” he commented in return, not in a necessarily argumentative tone, but with strength in his convictions. “A lot of people press to be exceptional, but they simply are not. Most of us are just ordinary.” The Crotalus excluded himself from this category in his mind, because he felt exceptionally different than most people he knew. “An ordinary, predictable day is one well utilized. If you know what to expect, you can maximize your efficiency.”
He paused there, briefly. He supposed the only proper thing to do would be to ask the question in return. “Was your day acceptable?” Martin inquired. Most of the time, when he asked someone, he did not actually care about the answer, but a part of him felt an actual inclination to know what Jezebel had to say. He found her... interesting. She made him curious.
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Martin Crosby V
I would never tell a joke
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
February 14, 2021 11:32 PM
Not even if it was completely irresistible? by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
OOC: CW internalized homophobia BIC:
Jezebel's eyes searched Martin's face more seriously as he spoke. For a moment, she couldn't quite decide if he was being sincere, but it was hard to imagine that Martin was ever anything else and there was something powerful about that. For being as reserved as he was, he wasn't exactly closed off. She watched him speak and then kept her eyes on his face as she considered her response.
"Ordinary is good," she agreed, having thought the same thing about herself and her life goals many times over. A significant part of her had spent a lot of time, especially lately, wishing she was ordinary. If the alternative, however, were exceptional, then she supposed that wasn't true either. It almost felt good to know that this sort of ordinary, the efficient, well-managed, well-handled, predictable sort of ordinary, was valuable too. She could be those sorts of things, even if she was exceptional in ways she'd rather not be. "Or can be," she amended on account of her introspection. "I'm pretty ordinary I think, but I'd like to be good too."
The idea of having 'acceptable' as a standard for the day almost made Jezebel laugh and she might have if she hadn't been talking with Martin. He was, she had no doubt, completely sincere in his odd question, and probably trying very hard to be polite with it too.
"My day was acceptable," she decided after a moment's thought. "Not very efficient. I wrote my Charms homework in the Transfiguration column in my notebook and wasted time trying to figure that out. But otherwise, it was alright. And Thursdays are good," she added with a smile. "I get to play chess with you." Martin was a good friend.
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Not even if it was completely irresistible?
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Martin Crosby V
February 15, 2021 5:10 PM
Nothing is irresistible if you have any willpower. by Martin Crosby V
Ah. That was simply tragic. Martin was impressed to hear of Jezebel’s organization - how clever of her to sort her homework into sections in her notebook - but just a shame to have accidentally violated that organization process. Certainly it could be sorted, but alas, what a waste. Still, it was just one potential danger of organization, and one that remained less difficult than the alternative. It was a commendable sacrifice, indeed, to figure out the mistake and make necessary adjustments, and he respected her dedication.Then she said Thursdays were good, which seemed a bit silly on its nose because they were just another day, really, except-... Oh. Despite himself, Martin smiled a bit. It wasn’t a natural motion on him, and one side raised higher than the other. “Yes, right,” he said a bit awkwardly. “Chess is quite interesting. It is nice to have someone to play with, certainly.”
He did his best not to think too much about the rest of the statement. Jezebel did not just say that she liked playing chess. She said that it was good because she got to play chess with him. Maybe she was just being specific, which was also an admirable trait. Or maybe he was a preferred chess partner. In either case, the thought distracted him enough to place his knight in an unprotected position on the board.
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Martin Crosby V
Nothing is irresistible if you have any willpower.
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
February 15, 2021 8:30 PM
What if you will things to be irresistible? by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
It was nice to see Martin smile because he basically never did and Jezebel liked to think that he wasn't only playing chess with her to be nice. Maybe he actually thought of her as a friend too. His reply was less encouraging, since he chocked her up to any old chess partner but she thought that maybe the smile said more than his words did. That was the funny thing about people who were very sincere and also very . . . whatever Martin was. Jezebel wondered what she was like, or if anyone else ever thought she was amusing or interesting enough to think about it like that. She knew you didn't have to like like someone to find them interesting and she was okay with no one liking her that way, but she would have liked knowing someone found her interesting. Even 'acceptable' would have been okay."It is exceptional," she corrected, deciding that it was better than just ordinary to have someone to play with. Her nose wrinkled up some as her smile tipped with humor and she glanced down at the board when he moved his knight. He'd fully gone and done it which meant he couldn't take it back, but it was unusual for him to leave such a high value target unguarded like that. Unless he had a plan to take whatever piece she took his knight with . . . for all her looking, she couldn't find evidence of such a plan, but perhaps her joke about using small talk as a distraction had inspired him and he had some ace up his sleeve she couldn't detect. Just in case, she used a pawn to take his knight, and then wrinkled her face up in anxious anticipation, leaning away from the table and looking up at him. "Alright," she said. "What're you going to do to me?"
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Jezebel Reed-Fischer
What if you will things to be irresistible?
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Martin Crosby V
February 16, 2021 6:57 AM
That's quite the paradox. by Martin Crosby V
Oh sweet Merlin, now he had gone and done it.Martin had allowed himself to drop his guard, to be swept up in Jezebel’s
His instinct was, of course, to bluff, so he simply said, “You’ll see.” Bus his voice did falter slightly, perhaps the tail end of his pubescence changes or perhaps a glimpse into his unconfident psyche. That was on Jezebel to determine, and while he hated the idea of returning to that god-awful voice break stage of maturing, it was a favorable presentation in this context. He brought forward a bishop to hopefully stave off any future wounds Jezebel might aim to inflict in the coming turns. Then he braced himself, thoroughly hoping he could get things back on track, and that he had not made another grave mistake.
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Martin Crosby V
That's quite the paradox.
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