Selina Skies
January 01, 2022 7:39 PM
The Ball by Selina Skies
In many ways, the ball looked set to be the same as ever. The house tables had been replaced with small tables, draped with white tablecloths and laid with sparkling centrepieces. Chairs with bows on their backs were clustered at each table. At the back of the room was a table of refreshments, and a floral archway with a photographer. The main space of the room was given over to a dance floor. Underneath these superficial similarities, things were a little different this year. For one thing, the prefect dance was going to be a group number. There were a few non-prefects involved, those who had already been asked as the dates of existing prefects before the matter had been settled, but it had worked out to a neatly even number, so that was all well and good. For another thing, John was not the only member of Selina’s family in attendance. Not that staff routinely brought their children (unless they lived there), but they did routinely bring their partners… It was a little strange, seeing Ema at a Sonora ball, and Selina wasn’t ever quite sure how comfortable she felt with people knowing that Killian was dating her daughter. But… well, it seemed unavoidable. And they looked very happy, which helped soften any nerves she had about it. And perhaps those differences were small and inconsequential to everyone else. She was sure there had been floundering over dresses and dates, and that there were a mixture of elated hearts and slightly bruised ones, and people who felt fabulous and some who felt self-conscious, and that every other thing was just like every other teenage ball that had gone before it – for all that it probably felt like life and death matters of a totally unique nature to the students living it.The main student body made their way in. Selina gathered the prefects and their dates in the entrance hall, checking they were ready. Once she had everyone, she made her way in.
“Good evening. Welcome to the ball. The majority of the evening will be yours to do with as you wish – to dance, to take pictures, to enjoy refreshments. Later in the evening, we will announce the winners of the house cup, and provide a special treat for them. But first, I would ask for just a few minutes of your attention, as the prefects present their chosen opening dance.”
She initiated a small round of applause, stepping to the side and gesturing for the prefects to come in. The music started, and the group moved through their choreographed routine. When they were finished, she gave a brief round of applause, and then the music resumed, leaving the dance floor open to any who wished to take to it, and everyone else free to do as they pleased.
OOC: Writing for the prefects based on what was agreed in their meetings. Making the assumption that nothing goes horribly wrong with the dance, but happy to correct if need be.
Subthreads: Going through the motions by Xavier Lundstrom with Mab
Strategy in action [Jezebel] by Martin Crosby V with Jezebel Reed-Fischer
It's the ball!! [Bonabelle and Wally.. maybe Stanley] by Valentine Duell with Bonabelle Row, Stanley O'Malley
Um. Have a thing? (Tag Lorena) by Oz Spellman with Lorena Abernathy
Look out, y'all, I've got the prettiest date! [Ros] by Tommy Jamison with Rosalynn Tellerman
Is this good-bye, German Tent Girls? by Hilda Hexenmeister with Jessica Hayles, Sophia Priory
So what do we want to do, Beginner Teppenpaws? by Hansel Hexenmeister with Patience Reed-Fischer
I am a beautiful fairy princess by Dora Xavier with Janis Rosemary Silver
I wear my sunglasses at night by Phil Carson with Christopher Brockert
Well, there's less to complain about this one. by Osvaldo Alamilla with Leonor De Matteo
For our adoring fans. [Jeremy] by Leonor De Matteo with Jeremy Mordue
How does this work? [Katey] by Giselle Duell
So over this. by Bridget Ferguson with Alexei Vorontsov
Imma Princess! by Iris Cobb with Winston Randall
Well. This is different. (Bertie) by Mara Morales with Bertie Jackson
The end is just the beginning (tag Felipe) by Zara Jackson with Felipe De Matteo
In need of twirling by Verdillia Scurlock with Augustine Reed-Fischer
A ball of nerves by Sadie-Lake Chalmers with Dathan Fischer
Goodbye to the home that wasn't. by Johana Leonie Zauberhexen with Morgan Garrett
I'm a mermaid by Ellie Alperton
Texture matching! (tag Connie) by Theo Spurn with Constance Melcher
You heard me [Ray] by Billy Cobb
Why must things grow complicated? by Alexei Vorontsov
Reviewing the year that's been. by Eben Sosna
Here goes nothing (Lavender) by Graham Osbrook
Ending on a...present note by Tarquin Fox-Reynolds
I came to eat canapes and scowl at Stanleys (tag Killian) by Ema Skies with Killian Row
Princess for a song (Gabriel) by Morgan Garrett
13
Selina Skies
The Ball
26
1
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 01, 2022 8:06 PM
Going through the motions by Xavier Lundstrom
Was this mandatory? The question occurred to Xavier as he made his way into the Cascade Hall. He was here under the vague assumption that it was, and the inertia of simply going with the flow. To not go to the ball would have involved an active decision, a fight against the system, and he already had enough of those going on that he needed to pick his battles. Plus, it wasn’t like there would be anyone to hang out with if he didn’t come. He was, by nature, a social person, and the idea of sitting in his room alone wasn’t as appealing to him as it might have been to some. Of course, he might easily come and spend the night alone here. Oz had a date. A girl date. He tried to squish down the knot of anger and frustration at that. It wasn’t that Oz was on a date with a girl per se that bothered him, it was just the resultant loneliness, and the realisation that he should probably get used to it. Oz was his best friend but he was gonna date girls. And, for all that Oz whined constantly about his twin, he and Henry had been bros since they were little balls of cells. Oz could complain all he wanted that Henry was a dork, but it was also abundantly clear that he would drop everything and go running the second he thought Henry needed him. It made sense. However different they were they were always gonna have That Twin Thing. So, Oz might have come first for Xav, but he probably had to get used to ranking number three on Oz’s list of priorities. Which sucked. Especially as, whilst he had a few acquaintances, it didn’t feel like he had solid friends outside of that. He’d been too busy playing catch up (or trying to) with his studies.Speaking of failing at being a wizard and over-compensating, he hoped the hall was cool. He would have been pretty happy in a short sleeve shirt and slacks for the occasion. But given everything that was going on, he was doing his best to look at wizardy as possible. To show he was assimilating and what not. His mother had basically insisted that he get dress robes and play the part, and so he had an extra layer over his regular clothes. They were lightweight, and he was pretty used to wearing robes given that was the uniform. He just would have ditched them if given half a chance. His were black and pretty simple, though they were cut low enough for his shirt collar to show, and he had added a little rainbow bowtie.
Once the prefect dance was done, he glanced around. He didn’t want to be stuck on his own. He also didn’t want to get pounced on by Phil, who seemed to keep cropping up in his life. He decided to get some snacks because those were theoretically good, and because it probably made him look less alone and like a loser if he was doing something rather than just sitting by himself.
He surveyed the buffet, wondering whether he felt like drowning his feelings in cake or like eating absolutely nothing.
“Oh, hey, they have smoked salmon,” he commented to the person next to him, as he reached for a couple of sandwiches. “That’s my favourite.” He still wasn’t sure he wanted to eat anything, or talk to anyone or even be here. It felt a little bit like his mouth was moving entirely disconnected from his brain, saying all the small talk things it was supposed to whilst his mind was entirely shut off. But it beat being alone all by himself, or finding the energy to resist.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
Going through the motions
1529
0
5
Mab
January 01, 2022 8:38 PM
Same. by Mab
Mab was a prefect so she felt she was obligated to at least show up to the ball, and even dress relatively nice. She didn't have a fancy ball gown or anything - that was out of the question - but she was wearing a black skirt and a black blouse and black tights with black shoes. The dark and overly simple ensemble stood out a little more than she would have liked it to among all the colorful robes and dresses many of the other students were wearing, but she was sure she'd heard black was a solid formal color, and once she retreated to a shadowy corner, she'd hopefully blend well into the shadows and people would forget about her in favor of staring at Fredreike Zauberhexen or one of the sparkly girls in princess costumes.She'd refused to be part of the dance at any level or in any variation, but she could, if nothing else, stand around and stop people from spiking the punch or whatever it was prefects were supposed to do at this when they weren't performing some kind of entertainment for the masses.
The dance that she was very adamantly not a part of finished, and the other prefects dispersed around the room and gave her no better ideas for what she was supposed to do. Most of them looked like they were just enjoying the ball (or not enjoying it, in some cases) rather than actively chaperoning or anything. She guessed she could get some food anyway. This was taking place across a meal time, some something to eat was going to be necessary eventually.
Plus, she could watch the punch bowl easier from near the food table.
She was frowning at some suspicious looking sandwiches that might have been tampered with when one of the beginner Pecaris identified them as smoked salmon, which Mab hadn't known people made sandwiches with, which explained why they looked weird. Bel didn't like fish and Mom had rarely been able to afford it, so salmon wasn't exactly something that often turned up on Mab's table at home.
"Never tried it," she admitted, and hesitantly picked one up. She eyed the sandwich like she suspected it of being poisonous. "You say it's good?" Not that she had any evidence that this kid's taste could be trusted, but if it was somebody's favorite, it was probably worth at least trying once.
1
Mab
Same.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 02, 2022 3:10 PM
The wizardy wizardy motions by Xavier Lundstrom
It was that spooky, quiet older girl whose name wasn't Mags. That was about as much as Xavier knew about her, and he wasn't sure whether that was due to being wrapped up in his own issues, the gender and age gap, or because she just didn't draw as much attention to herself as most Pecaris. He suspected she was only really talking to him now cos they had been forced together by the buffet line. It wasn't exactly the biggest social win, especially as she wasn't even a cute guy.She seemed very witchy, both by appearance and by the degree of suspicion with which she regarded the salmon sandwiches. Xavier might, once upon a time, have taken this to mean she wasn't familiar with it in tiny sandwich form. He had to admit that he was more used to it on bagels with cream cheese, or on sourdough toast or an English muffin with poached eggs. But, given that it was wizards, he had been willing to pass smoked salmon plus some kind of bread as familiar, especially as he thought he could see a little frond of dill sticking out of one of the sandwiches.
"Oh yeah, it's really good," he said. "Though I love pumpkin too," he added, lest she turn him into a toad for being an outsider. "Just not quiche," he added, noticing that was the form the wizards had chosen to present it in today. The truth was, he had liked pumpkin just fine, just a normal, neutral amount when he had first arrived. It had not been something he had experienced super often outside of pie, but it had come up in the occasional salad alongside things like quinoa and cranberries. During his first year, he had found that wizards cooked with pumpkin pretty darn well, and though he'd never got the hang of the juice, he could get behind more pumpkin. But the Center had served pumpkin soup almost every single day. He was pretty sure he could handle it in a quiche, just about, but the overriding association he now had with savoury pumpkin was anxiety and isolation, so he'd rather pass.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
The wizardy wizardy motions
1529
0
5
Mab
January 02, 2022 5:02 PM
The stupid fancy ball motions by Mab
At the kid's assertion that the salmon sandwich was, in his opinion, really good, she put the little sandwich onto her plate, alongside the much more familiar lunch meat rolls of turkey and ham, and some crackers, she had already put there. She did make a face at his comment about pumpkins and quiche though. "Ugh. You fey people are crazy with the pumpkin," she complained. Before coming to Sonora, she'd thought Bel was insane for drinking it as a juice, but that had only been the tip of the iceberg. The whole magical community had a weird obsession with consuming the large orange vegetable/fruit thing.She avoided the pumpkin quiche, giving it a far worse look of suspicion than she'd given the sandwich, because she half suspected that the more pumpkin one ate, the more pumpkin one needed, due to some kind of addiction that only magical people were susceptible to, and she did not want to fall down that slippery slope because pumpkin was, quite frankly, gross.
She also took some crackers and cheese, some pepperoni, and a few pieces raw broccoli and carrots to be healthy (though she also took some ranch dip, which probably negated the effort). When she got to the drinks part of the buffet, she scowled at the pumpkin juice as if its existence personally offended her and then looked suspiciously at the punch, not trusting it since she'd had her eyes off it for several minutes now, and nearly everything she'd ever read or watched that had a school dance in it said the punch was a danger spot. (Never mind that the punch during the ball in her first year had seemed to be fine.) She took a cup of plain water.
She let her attention return to the kid to see if he would wander off and leave her alone, or if he thought they were hanging out together now that he had offered a food recommendation. Well, she supposed she could at least taste the sandwich and let him know her verdict. Though she wanted to move further away from the buffet than a few steps before she started eating anything. "You have people you need to get back to?" she asked gruffly.
1
Mab
The stupid fancy ball motions
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 03, 2022 1:20 AM
That too. Stupid balls. by Xavier Lundstrom
Fey people? Xavier was not sure what that meant. He had a vague feeling it was something kind of fairy-like, and he might have assumed it was a dig at his rainbow bowtie, except the rest of what not-Mags said made no sense on that front. Admittedly, there was a lot of gay culture that he was still very unaquainted with but he was not aware of pumpkins being a significant enough reference that most people would get it."Huh?" he said. "Fey-people? And I am not obsessed with pumpkin." Sure, he wanted to seem like he liked it, but apparently the scale was tipping the other way, and he wasn't going to put up with being insulted (he guessed from tone, though it was hard to tell) over a food stuff that he barely had positive feelings towards.
He ended up adding some of the same stuff to his plate as the girl, based on the fact he liked cheese and pepperoni, and could tolerate carrot when dipped in ranch, though hopefully it also demonstrated that he was totally normal.
The girl moved down the line, and he followed, only because he also needed a drink. He went for punch, remembering only to sniff it in case of glibbleroots or other nonsense flavours after pouring a full cup out. It smelled reassuringly normal.
The girl gave him what basically amounted to a verbal shove back towards his friends. Which really rubbed in the fact he didn't have any. He debated telling her yes and just marching up to the nearest group like he belonged. Except he didn't feel like he did. He had noticed, during the prefect dance, that a large group of his peers had come together. He hadn't noticed the common denominator that they were all Teppenpaws - only that they were with each other but not him.
"Playing it by ear," he shrugged casually, not wanting to announce he had been ditched by basically everyone. His eyes strayed against his will to Oz and Lorena. "Figured food was a good first step. You?" he asked, his tone firm as he batted the challenge back to Mags of finding a way to avoid admitting she had no friends.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
That too. Stupid balls.
1529
0
5
Mab
January 03, 2022 10:25 AM
Agree. by Mab
She should not have said fey-people. They called themselves wizards or magic folk or whatever, but not the fey, even though that is exactly what they were, she was almost entirely certain. Sure the old folk tales thought they were a different species than normal folk, but with confounding charms to confuse things and obliviate charms to make people forget them entirely, plus the entirely human nature to embellish and exaggerate, it was a wonder the old tales of the fey were as accurate as they were. Still, best to focus on the pumpkin rather than her misnaming of the culture. "Not you specifically," Mab granted reluctantly in response to the kid's objection to being obsessed with pumpkin, despite having claimed to love it completely unprovoked. "Magic people in general," she clarified, trying to correct her use of the word 'fey' in out-loud conversation in as low key of a manner as possible.She nodded in approval when she saw him sniff cautiously at the punch. That wouldn't catch all of the things potentially wrong with it, but it would eliminate some of them. They might not call themselves fey, but wizardkind did still like their tricks and traps.
Case in point. The kid turned her question back on her.
"I have no friends," she admitted matter-of-factually and without shame, and it might even have been a lie, depending on what Sadie thought of the issue, but she had an image to maintain, especially for the Pecaris, among whom she much preferred to be a loner, and Sadie had other friends anyway who she was probably closer to than Mab. Certainly, Sadie was not expecting Mab to hang out with her at the ball. "And my brother has a date." She accompanied that pronouncement with the expression of distaste that it warranted, both for dating at all, and for dating Anya in particular. "Figured I'd eat quick, then watch for mischief from the Intermediate Pecaris." If anyone was going to spike the punch, she'd lay bets it would be one of them. It did not occur to her that she qualified as an Intermediate Pecari as well. In her mind, she and Leonor and Theo had already moved up. And so had Reighleigh Mae Thorn.
1
Mab
Agree.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 03, 2022 3:13 PM
And stupid boys who go out with stupid girls by Xavier Lundstrom
Not him specifically? That sounded kinda like backtracking, because the previous remark had felt very much in his face. But whatever. 'Fey' apparently meant 'magical people.' So, she was accusing him of acting too magical? Or would have been, if she'd meant him specifically. If she had said so directly, it would have caught him so off guard that he probably would have died laughing. As it was, it took far too much untangling and guessing at her meaning. He wondered if that meant she didn't come from magical people originally. It seemed likely, but she was also too scary to make guesses like that at. If he was wrong, she'd probably take offence, and that couldn't lead to anything good.Mags openly admitted to having no friends, and Xavier took an almost subconscious half step away. He didn't want to catch whatever social life repelling cooties she had, and being seen with her was probably enough to downgrade his already subpar reputation. It occurred to him briefly that he should feel sorry for her but the bluntness with which she had stated it made that feel like it was... somehow the wrong reaction.
Apparently, she was watching for trouble. He wondered why. Surely that was the prefects' job? He had been zoned way out of reality at the opening feast, and the subject was not of enough interest to him to mentally sort through the other options in her year, or to realise that none of them had been present in the dance either. Perhaps she had nothing better to do, so had made herself a self-appointed busy body.
"Oz isn't a bad kid," he defended his friend. Okay, he was a little loud and a little raucous sometimes. He said and did a lot of stupid things without meaning to. But he was not an intentional trouble maker, and he didn't want to hurt anyone, Xavier was sure of that. If Mab was in the habit of keeping an eye on potentially dangerous Pecari, and Oz in particular, she would have noticed that he and Xavier spent a lot of time together. Excepting the time it had spilled over into a pillow fight, a lot of these were quieter little tête-à-têtes, usually amonst the quieter interactions Oz had in the common room. There were also numerous mealtimes where Xavier had been sitting staring listlessly at a space above his empty plate and Oz had... well, done something that could be described as more or less literally hitting him in the face with a bread roll until he snapped out of it and ate at least a token amount. Oz was, fundamentally, a good person, just kind of rough around the edges. Not that that probably mattered right now, other than the need to verbally defend him. "Anyway, he's busy," he added to Mags, the defeat and resentment he felt at that fact colouring his voice as his eyes once again tracked Oz and Lorena.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
And stupid boys who go out with stupid girls
1529
0
5
Mab
January 03, 2022 4:13 PM
Agreed again. by Mab
Mab followed Xavier's gaze across to where Oz and Lorena (third year, Aladren) were standing together, clearly a matched pair for the dance. The resentment in the kid's tone suggesting he wished he was in one of their spots, and given the number of times she'd seen Oz and this younger kid quietly sitting together, she was not going to make any stupid guesses on which one. He seemed to be a quiet calming influence on the third year, though, so she only held the association against the kid a little bit."Mm," she responded noncommittally to the assertion that Oz was not a bad kid. "He's not the worst," she granted. She'd probably put Billy Cobb down as the worst, though Stanley O'Malley wasn't far off. And if she was counting the outgoing second years, Reighleigh was definitely in the running. The incoming third years were an odd group where it was the boys who were calm and reasonable and the girl who was trouble.
(Not that Mab and Leonor and Anya, or even Hilda, weren't trouble either, but it was a different quality of trouble. Anya - and Theo - were the kind of trouble that couldn't help themselves from being like they were. Leonor was . . . dating Jeremy and all that that implied. And Mab was, well, Mab. Hilda, Mab was sure, would win in a fight against pretty much any two people in the school, Mab included, and also wouldn't understand why one had broken out.)
"Come," Mab ordered, inclining her head toward the side of the room were there were fewer people. "If we're going to converse, let's do it where not so many people will notice it. I'm supposed to be too scary to talk to. You can see if I like the salmon." It was as close to an invitation as she was willing to make. She moved away without checking to see if he was following and found a spot to settle down and enjoy her food that also had a spot for another person, should he choose to join her.
1
Mab
Agreed again.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 05, 2022 3:06 PM
Seems we agree quite a bit by Xavier Lundstrom
Xavier suspected that Mags regarded 'not the worst' as verging on complimentary, or as some kind of compromise, whereby they had met in the middle. As far as defending his friend's honour went, he felt he'd done an adequate job. Especially as, once Mags had moved on a step or two, he added "He's the best," under his breath, too quietly for her to hear.She had all but ordered him to follow, which made him actively inclined not to. But then she had added that she was supposed to be scary, and he absolutely wasn't scared (or at least, not willing to admit it), and that he could see if she liked the salmon. He didn't actually care. Not really. And again, he muttered this, too quietly for her to hear, as he followed her. There was some naturally Pecari curiosity in there, the desire to go poke the thing he wasn't meant to want to poke, but it had been a loud and enthusiastic burst of noise from a nearby group that had really clinched it-it been a sudden burst of happiness that he wasn't a part of. At least she wanted him around, if a little grudgingly and weirdly. And having a plate of food was a good excuse to be taking a seat, if anyone asked why he was with her, and finishing it would be a good excuse to get away.
He settled into the spot beside her, taking a bite of his sandwich.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
Seems we agree quite a bit
1529
0
5
Mab
January 05, 2022 6:09 PM
Weird. I'm normally disagreeable. by Mab
He joined her. She was moderately surprised by this. She was pretty sure other people avoided her as much as she avoided them. (Other than Valentine and Theo whom she had to work extra hard to avoid, and Leonor who didn't have a choice because they were roommates.) Still, it was okay, she guessed, not to have to sit this ball alone.The kid just sat and started eating without saying anything, which bumped Mab's opinion of him up about twenty percent. Pity they'd never share a class. He probably wouldn't be awful to sit next to. There weren't many people she could say that about.
She tried the salmon sandwich, just to get that over with in case she didn't like it, or that was the only reason he came over (why he'd care, she couldn't imagine, but he'd made the recommendation and might be very mildly curious how it went over). It was odd. Not bad, really, but not exactly what she'd been expecting, and that threw her slightly. She gave it another visual inspection, as she contemplated the bite in her mouth.
Then she swallowed and took a sip of her water. "Probably won't get it again, but I don't hate it," she offered. "It's good enough to finish. Is it French or something?" she guessed, because French food was supposed to be expensive and if Mom never served it, it was probably either difficult to make or expensive. Or maybe it just wasn't available to Boston muggles. "Or wizardly?" She took another bite.
1
Mab
Weird. I'm normally disagreeable.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 06, 2022 12:44 AM
Great. by Xavier Lundstrom
Was it French? Xavier frowned slightly, considering that left-field question. He was pretty sure it was not French, it was just... brunch. American or universal. He had had brunch in Canada and Mexico, and he couldn't recall them being really different. Okay, there was an abundance of maple syrup in Canada, and options like huevos rancheros in Mexico, but poached eggs, pancakes, granola, pastries, and smoked salmon all seemed to be present most anywhere you went for brunch (at least, if you were the kind of white middle class suburbanite that stayed in resorts catering to white middle class suburbanites when travelling). He was halfway through shaking his head 'no' to the French thing when Mags asked a different question, one which made him jolt to a stop."I don't think so," he stated cautiously. It didn't stand out to him the way the excesses of pumpkin did. Logic said that this was further evidence of Mags being like him, but alarm bells were ringing out over that, drowning out logic. Xavier just recognised that he was being backed into a corner where he had to compare the magical and non-magical worlds, and that made him panic.
I used to have it all the time at home. He could feel the words catching in his throat just from thinking them, let alone saying them. Anyway, the less he said the better, probably. He tried to wash the words back down with a gulp of punch.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
Great.
1529
0
5
Mab
January 07, 2022 9:47 AM
Yeah. by Mab
She'd said something wrong. She didn't know what she said wrong - she'd been careful not to say 'fey' again, so that wasn't it - but the kid abruptly went from very confused to almost panicked. Given when the change occurred, it had something to do with 'wizardly?' but she couldn't figure out what was upsetting about that word. It was mildly sexist, she supposed, but that shouldn't trigger such a reaction from a guy, and an offended girl should just tell her to use a different word.It shouldn't have been scary, even coming from Mab. She'd even relaxed some, once they were away from other people, her posture not nearly so aggressive or attempting to intimidate. They were relatively safe in this quieter part of the hall, with fewer eyes on them, and with no reason to pay attention to them, just two people eating their food. Her hackles had slowly lowered, and while she wasn't exactly trying to be friendly, she wasn't trying to be scary, either.
It almost looked like a trauma response, which was definitely not a good thing to trigger, and she thought the best thing to do was change the subject completely, give him some space.
"I asked Alexander to be my brother at the last ball," she commented on the first completely random thing that occurred to her. Which wasn't really random at all, as everything about this ball was reminding her of the last one, and making her grudge against Anya worse because the older Pecari was taking Alexander away from her for the event that was theirs, even if their relationship was completely non-romantic. "My foster mom agreed to take on a second foster kid, so a few days later we picked him up from his group home. Adoptions finally went through last midterm, but now he's spending the ball with Anya." The distaste, bitterness, and resentment were very present in her tone as she said the name.
1
Mab
Yeah.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 07, 2022 7:30 PM
So... by Xavier Lundstrom
The total non-sequitur was sharp enough that it somewhat jerked him from his thoughts. It wasn’t just the unrelatedness, but also the fact that he couldn’t even parse what the words meant. Individually, he knew them. But put in a sentence in that order, they didn’t make sense. Luckily Mags seemed inclined to use more words than she had previously, as she was explaining. Explaining things that made his stomach feel slightly twisty.He knew that teachers always said stuff about how whatever you were going through you weren’t the only one, or even if your problem was unique, someone else was also suffering or something. He’d never really got why that was meant to make him feel better, but he’d also rarely believed it, especially given both the seeming uniqueness of his problem and the depth of his pain. But twice now, he’d found older students who had pretty dramatic family structure stuff going on. They were all Pecaris. Was this something to do with the adaptability trait? Or were all the traumatised people in other houses just not dealing with it?
“That sucks,” he said, regarding Anya. He wasn’t sure he had enough opinion on the people involved to really think that, but he was clearly supposed to agree. And he did have some sympathy with Mags over being ditched, even if he didn’t think it was quite the same situation. “Oz is my best friend. But he got a date. And then he’s a twin so… I guess I gotta used to coming in third place.” He related what had been on his mind earlier. Partly to empathise, but partly to give him thinking time about what he really wanted to say. The fact that Mags lived with foster parents could mean a lot of things. But the panicky-brain-fog of ‘this-is-what-they-do-to-us’ was definitely making itself known. Which made it hard not to just blurt out ‘why?’ Which was probably rude or something.
“You and Alexander live with a foster family?” he re-established the topic. And Alexander had lived in some kind of group home before. “Did the wizards take you away from your parents?”
13
Xavier Lundstrom
So...
1529
0
5
Mab
January 07, 2022 8:22 PM
... buttons? by Mab
Anya was even older than Mab was, so she doubted the kid had any opinion on her other than 'the girl who sits on tables' because that was kind of what stood out most about her, but he was at least pretending he thought Anya was the villain in this story, and not the sister who was bummed that her brother had a girlfriend and was taking her to an event that was pretty much designed for bringing dates to, so she gave him props for that. She was aware it was irrational and unfair to Alexander to expect him not to take his girlfriend to the ball. Didn't mean she had to like it.Mab chewed on one of her cheese cubes as the kid explained his own lack of companion situation. "That sucks," she returned in her turn. Best friend ought to rate higher than third place, but, yeah.
"Nah, not the wizards. Apparently, changelings are just a myth. I've tried to find historical magical practices to explain those stories but haven't been able to. I didn't know there were wizards until after I'd already been taken from Mom, so it was just the boring old child welfare system. Single mom, bad housing situation," Mab shrugged, like it wasn't one of the more traumatic experiences of her life. She skipped over the even worse bad stuff and concluded, "Worked out all right in the end. My foster mom is pretty well off and she married my biological mom. Then Bel - that's my non-biological mom - adopted both me and Alexander, and my mom adopted Alexander, so it's not a foster home anymore."
1
Mab
... buttons?
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 09, 2022 3:18 PM
Something like that by Xavier Lundstrom
Xavier nodded, as Mags returned that his situation sucked. Part of him wanted to leap to Oz's defence, and explain all the ways he was a good best friend, especially as Mags didn't seem to like him much. But focusing on those things right now only made it hurt more that he'd been abandoned.He wasn't sure what a changeling was, but they were apparently a myth anyway, and then that sort of got lost under processing everything else Mags was telling him. It turned out she had something in common with Oz, by the sounds of things, not that it was exactly a commom ground he could bring up. Hey, you both come from poor, single parent families... Bond!
"That's...good?" he concluded. Other words sprung to mind like 'complicated' but the story seemed to have ended happily, and he didn't want Mags to think he was calling two women being married confusing. He wondered if this meant she knew what his bowtie meant. Technically, the story had a gay ending, in both senses of the word. He found that funny but he wasn't confident enough to share the joke with her.
"The wizards have been giving my family a hard time," he admitted, feeling he needed to explain why he'd asked what he had. " There's no reason for it, it's all just a mix up. But they've got it into their heads that my family hates magic, even though they don't, and that makes it a bad environment for me, even though it's not, so..." So they were giving them a hard time. Having looped the sentence back to where it had started, he just finished it with a shrug instead.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
Something like that
1529
0
5
Mab
January 10, 2022 6:32 PM
Thought so by Mab
"Yeah," Mab said in agreement that her family situation could now be classified as 'good'. She was even getting used to Reilly existing, and she hadn't caught her moms doing anything gross after lights out in a while, so that was a plus. Having her mom back was definitely good. And having Alexander as her brother was also definitely good. And Bel was pretty awesome, too.When the kid explained his family situation, it didn't sound good. "That sucks," she said again. She didn't know what else she could or should say about it, but that seemed moderately inadequate. Though she thought she maybe understood why he'd been so quick to volunteer that he loved pumpkins, if there were acclimation problems.
"My mom's a muggle," she offered, "but Bel's a witch, and I've lived with her since just before first year. Is there anything you want to know about magic homes that might help? I mean, Bel's got a wall full of DVD box sets of crime drama and superhero shows, and an exercise room with an actual functional crossbow mounted on the wall; she's a fifty year old woman in a roller derby league, and she reads the Inquirer like it's real news, so she's not exactly normal even by witch standards, but . . ." Mab shrugged. "She's an auror." That counted for some degree of respectability in the magical world.
1
Mab
Thought so
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 11, 2022 12:19 AM
And skates? by Xavier Lundstrom
It sucked. Yup, it did. He wasn't sure exactly what he would have said to himself either, but somehow his family trauma getting the same reaction as their favourite people having ball dates didn't quite cut it. If he was honest, nothing anyone had come up with to say or do had been sufficient. He knew they were all trying and it was complicated, but he wasn't sure how much longer he could deal with it.He poked a cheese cube around his plate, and Mags filled the silence. He gave a half shrug at whether he wanted to know anything about magical homes. He wasn't sure he had specific questions but he was a good little acclimator so sure, she could lay more knowledge of how the wizarding world was fantastic on him. Maybe someone would give him brownie points for regurgitating it later.
What she said turned out to be way more interesting than he'd thought it would be.
"That's not what I expected," he admitted, realising he was staring at her as she finished. He turned his attention back to his cheese cube, still poking it to buy himself some thinking time. He didn't think wizards did much meeting-in-the-middle with non-magical people. The ones he'd met so far definitely didn't. But such a thing was out there. That was good to know, though it also heaped extra on the frustration pile to know his family had just got stuck with some of the butthole type sticking their noses in when it all could have been avoided. "Thanks," he concluded, deciding her information has been helpful. From the wizards he had met, it hadn't really felt like compromise was possible. It had felt like a power struggle, where they wanted to force him to badmouth where he'd come from, whilst holding access to his parents over him as a threat. It didn't have to be like that. He tried to take comfort in that, even though he didn't know how to get away from the current set of wizards and make contact with some more reasonable one.
"She skates?" he added, picking up on the other most interesting bit of what Mags had said. It had almost got lost in the deluge of information, especially as Mags hadn't used that exact phrase. But skating ran so deep that the reference glittered like gold in a muddy stream. "Me too. Blades not quads though. Roller blades, not like- never mind," he cut himself off, remembering that Mags had said she had a non-magical parent, and she also seemed to speak English as her first language.
13
Xavier Lundstrom
And skates?
1529
0
5
Mab
January 12, 2022 7:08 AM
Skates, yes. Much better than balls. by Mab
Mab allowed just the smallest amount of smile to peek through as the kid expressed his due amazement at all that was Bel. "Bel Pierce is not what anyone expects," she granted, a little bit smugly. That was a woman Mab was proud to call . . . well, she called her Bel, but she was proud to consider the woman one of her moms. Mab loved her mom-Mom dearly, she really did, but it was Bel she wanted to be when she grew up.Except with a darker aesthetic. Bel either went with a fiery hot color scheme or an in-your-face purple one. Mab preferred a more simple black. Maybe some dark grays.
Mab nodded in confirmation when the kid asked about the skating. "Yeah. First thing she bought both me and Alexander when she started fostering was a pair of rollerblades. She likes to terrorize the neighborhood on them." Another glimmer of a smile snuck through unbidden. "'Good family bonding' she says, 'getting cursed at together by pedestrians.'" Plowing through a crowd of tourists in hot pursuit of Bel was one of the first times Mab remembered being happy after she'd lost Mom.
She popped another cracker into her mouth and looked around at the ball she had absolutely no interest in being a part of. "Wanna blow this joint for the MARS sports room? No pedestrians there, sadly, but I can enjoy an open park, too. You'd be with a prefect so you won't get in trouble." Mab might get in trouble for leaving the event and leading a younger student astray, but she wasn't sure she cared.
1
Mab
Skates, yes. Much better than balls.
1473
0
5
Xavier Lundstrom
January 13, 2022 12:04 AM
Yes! by Xavier Lundstrom
A rollerblading witch who terrorised the neighbourhood? It was a heck of an image, and Xavier found a smile was tugging at the corners of his mouth. It snagged slightly at the phrase 'family bonding time' which conjured up an image of him and Joel. But at the idea of Bel scattering pedestrians, he couldn't help but laugh. A real, genuine, no-choice-but-to-let-it-out laugh. It felt good."Wait, cursed... like cussed at, or...?" he made a vague, jabby wand motion with his hand.
Did he want to skating? Right now. The answer that leapt to his mind was 'yes, but...' He didn't want to leave if it meant missing out. And the way his eyes searched the room until they landed on Oz let him know what he was afraid of missing out on. If Oz did come looking for him, if he wanted to hang out, or something... Well then, he would just have to keep looking. Oz had made his choice, and Xav could make one too, and Oz couldn't just expect him to be sitting around waiting if he snapped out of being in girl land.
Mags' assertion that he wouldn't get in trouble reminded him that he should care about that. It probably wasn't very wizardly to sneak out of a ball to go skating. Except, Bel Pierce would apparently disagree. He imagined her storming in on skates, literal curses flying if anyone tried to make that argument. It was pure fantasy, of course, but it was a fun picture, and it made him feel a little braver. Professor Wright had also been decent about not writing him up in ways that would get him into worse trouble with MACUSA. He trusted him that far, anyway. And the offer of skating sounded good. Far better than any solution any adult had suggested to his problems.
"Sure," he nodded. "Why the heck not?" His expression was half smile, half grim determination as he said it.
"You do skate parks?" he asked, as they stood to leave. She had mentioned mowing down pedestrians or open parks, but there was a much better option in his mind. "Ramps, rails, that kinda thing?"
13
Xavier Lundstrom
Yes!
1529
0
5
Mab
January 13, 2022 6:55 PM
That almost sounds like enthusiasm. by Mab
"Cussed at," Mab said, but she did not sound certain about it. "At least for now. I wouldn't put it past Bel to enjoy being cursed at, too." She made the same faux jabbing wand motion as she said 'cursed' that the kid had."That's the spirit," she said with dry amusement as he responded to her offer with why the heck not? Personally, she could not come up with any reasons. She wrapped her remaining crackers in a napkin and stuck them in her skirt pocket (because of course her skirt had pockets - Bel had made sure of that), and shoved the last two bites of her sandwich into her mouth all at once, and began chewing.
She stood and willed the fairies to bring their empty plates to the nearest trash bin with just a slight pushing hand motion, and the plates magicked their way over there without need to draw a wand. Most people seemed to think that was impressive here rather than a failure to actually use her wand or cast a standard charm with any degree of precision, so hopefully Xavier would think the same.
Once she finished chewing the too-large mouthful she'd taken, she answered his question. "I've been to the one near our new apartment a few times," she agreed. "I don't have a lot of cool tricks, but I'm game to work on them. What's your best one?"
1
Mab
That almost sounds like enthusiasm.
1473
0
5
