Celebrating the 'New' Year Early PV Fin

January 3rd 2024
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
Buddy Bonding! with @Scout Fu-Hai

"You're going to love her, Auntie! She's funny and friendly and--"

Emily was practically talking to thin air as she skipped ahead of "Auntie" along the street whilst singing praises about her best friend. She could barely contain her excitement and "Auntie" knew that when they started their travels to meet with Scout and her family, no more than smiling as she helped carry a few bags in her arms. The long awaited day had come and Emily was going to ensure she dedicated every waking minute of time she would have with Scout. "Auntie" would be tagging along to make sure the bird under her wing was safe whilst also wanting to get better acquainted with the parents whose own little girl had been watching over Emily while she had been at Hogwarts. She felt like no better chance than this one to thank them personally.

She finally caught up to Emily at the next traffic junction, giving her time to reshuffle some of the bags that were starting to slip off her shoulders - to which Emily took off her and help carry alongside her duffel bag of stuff and things for the girls to do. A minor pause at some traffic lights didn't stop Emily's toes and heels rocking back and forth, anxious to keep going until they reached the address.

"Try not to swing the bags too much pet," "Auntie" gently reminded her. "We don't want the tarts to get mangled."

Emily laughed nervously as she stopped swinging the bags in her hands as they proceeded once the green man lit up at the lights. "Heh... Sorry." She had to admit she was getting a bit too energetic. One bag was packed with snack boxes containing mini chocolate and caramel tarts. In another was something Emily at first was hesitant to buy but decided to get it for Scout anyway. A new red notebook with her name squiggled on in block black lettering. Perhaps Scout might accept it in a new light now that she was in company that would never chastise her because of her fangs.

Incidentally...

"Auntie... Remember when I told you that Scout has that uh... Special condition? She might still be a bit self conscious about it, so... Maybe we should..."

"Auntie" chuckled and patted Emily's shoulder reassuringly. "Pet, I have yet to see anyone who lauds exposing someone else unfairly for what's inside them. Scout might have that "special condition" but she's still healthy and happy, is she not?" She continued after Emily nodded. "Then there's nothing to worry about. Unless she wants to talk about it, we'll say nothing. Capiche?"

Emily smiled. No one was more understanding and accepting than "Auntie". It was no mystery where Emily got her gentleness from. "Capiche."

Even if "Auntie" didn't know that it was specifically vampirism that ran in Scout's family - for the sake of Emily preserving the privacy they deserved - Emily knew that Scout and her father in particular would have nothing to fear. "Auntie" was someone who acted out of love first before intervening with firmer methods should the need arise. Even if any of them came out with the big twist, "Auntie" would want to learn before making a decision... A bit like someone else who held the same ideology.

No surprise there that "Auntie's" gift of love rubbed off on Emily, as Hogwarts will have observed by now. It was one of many tell-tale signs that "Auntie" and Emily acted more like family than Emily and her own parents ever would. Go figure when the guardian had been with her since she was two years old while the birth parents have been who knows where at that time for their work.

Several neighbourhoods later and the house popped up on the horizon. Emily sped walk with the bags as her enthusiasm grew. "Auntie" kept to her own pace as she watched her girl amusingly. She couldn't be happier for her to have someone alongside herself to be a part of Emily's otherwise quiet social life.

Emily spotted a familiar redhead and eyes poking through the other side of the front window and she gasped ecstatically.

"SCOUTIE!"

The Huffie and the guardian reached the front door and along came the ceremonious knock at the door.

_{Word Count: 754}

Stats: Stamina: 7| Evasion: 6| Strength: 6| Wisdom: 8| Arcane Power: 7| Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace

january 3rd, 2025		friday, evening
wc: 1000		dhampir | terrible presence
interacting with: @Emily Shephard		mentioning: casey

"她终于来了!" She's finally here! Scout almost fell off the couch, shouting to her parents in the other room as she flung the front door open. There she was, standing right in front of her- Emily Shephard! Her number one Hufflebuddy, her best friend, her Emily! Before she hugged her best friend in the whole world, Scout found herself grinning brightly in the open door. Emily was here! She was actually here! It wasn't school or camp, there were no professor's or anything, it was Emily at her house!

She couldn't believe she was hugging Emily at her house! It was so surreal!

"Scout, come here, move out of the way so your friend can come in," her mother's voice broke through the bubble of excitement that had grown in Scout's head. "It's so good to meet the both of you, I'm Nina. My husband is just in the kitchen finishing cooking. Scout, why don't you and your friend go play for a bit before papa finishes cooking? Let the adults talk, okay? Mrs. Shephard, please let me help you with your bags."

Well she definitely didn't need to be told twice! Scout almost jumped at the idea- no cooking, no listening to her parents talk, and she got to hangout with Emily until it was time to eat? That sounded like the whole package and then some. Plus now would be the prime time to talk about everything! The adults would be busy being adults and stuff, everything was going according to Scout's plan! Mwahaha, and nobody even knew the roles they were playing!

"Okay! Come on Emi, I wanna show you my room!" Somehow the route from the front door to her bedroom felt longer than it ever had before, each step from the stairs felt like a thousand kilometers, the railing extended to eternity, and the rug from the top of the stairs to the rest of the upstairs stretched far beyond the eye. Not the first door on the left, but the second! Specifically the one painted with freshly-painted Gryffindor colors and a sign that said 'Scout' on it that looked to be just as old as the girl herself. "Ta-da!"

Dramatically, she opened her arms and bowed to Emily as she opened the door, hadn't she seen a few movies where a butler did that? Oh man, if only she had an actual butler- that'd be awesome. She'd never have to set the table or help her dad cook ever again. That was her goal in life, become so rich she'd never have to cook!

Even though she had spent the better half of last night and this morning cleaning and organizing her room, it felt like it got messier each time she entered. Her bed was poorly made and her desk was still messy, but at least her clothes were folded in her dresser and hung up in her closet, and even though her stuffed animals and childhood toys were strewn about in the room, they had been pushed to the walls and out of the way. In Scout's opinion, this was the cleanest the room had ever been! (Aside from before she had been born and moved into it, that was probably when it was the cleanest.)

Her bedroom walls were unsurprisingly filled with posters and pictures and really any memorabilia that could be pinned to corkboard or taped to the wall directly. Some were magical pictures that moved and others were muggle images that had either been printed or outright bought, a healthy mix of magic and non-magic equally. It was organized chaos, likely only 'organized' in Scout's mind. She knew where everything was and where to find everything, so that was her idea of organization.

"I'm so excited! I can't believe I'm actually seeing my best friend outside of school." Scout sat on the floor, crossing her legs and patting the spot in front of her. "I know we only saw each other like two weeks ago and stuff, but how was your Christmas 'n stuff? How's Casey? Have you heard from him? How's Tavra?"

While the two girls talked upstairs, Nina had introduced her husband to Emily's "Auntie", she figured Baishu would know how to better interact with a muggle. She had gotten better in the last decade or so, but she had been raised pure-blood and... well, you can't erase someone's childhood. "It's so good to finally meet you, Scout talks the world of Emily." Baishu had started, taking a break from the kitchen to converse. The fish would take a little while longer to steam, anyway. "I was so grateful when I heard she made a friend, and with such a lovely young lady too."

That was probably an understatement. Scout hadn't been nervous to start at Hogwarts, but it was obvious she was a little overwhelmed of the whole 'making friends' thing, how long had it been since she had one of those that weren't exclusively family? Scout had said herself she didn't really consider anyone else in the family a 'friend' besides Asteria, and both Baishu and Tao talked about how they were still fighting over something that had happened at the beginning of the year.

Though she had kept all of the details to herself, apparently Scout had had some fight with a boy during her summer camp, and then she got in that spat with Asteria, and then she and another girl had a fight, it definitely worried him. But then the year progressed and things got better, but it definitely put Baishu through a few emotional whirlwinds. Being a dad was difficult, being a father to a child who was still struggling with her vampirism was even more difficult.

"I really was worried she was going to have trouble making friends at Hogwarts, she's a good kid, but she sure is a lot for some people." Baishu sighed, "Are you raising Emily by yourself? Scout mentioned that Emily was muggle-born, it must be hard to take care of a witch. I'm sure I put my mother through the ringer quite a few times as a kid."

There was a ding from the kitchen, ah, was the fish done already? It felt like no time at all had passed. Nina popped her head into the living room, "I think everything is ready, let me go get the girls."

January 3rd 2024
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
Buddy Bonding! with @Scout Fu-Hai

It wasn't even ten seconds after Emily knocked on the door that speed demon footsteps bounded their way back over and the thing was flung open from the other side. A single beat passed before both friends hugged each other, equally squeezing as hard as they could as if trying to meld their beings into one. "Auntie" was still standing behind them, simply watching the moment before her with the softest of expressions.

"It's so good to see you, Scout..." Emily said as the girls nuzzled into each other. After a good long minute, they finally released each other when Scout's mother came to bring everyone inside.

Ever the elegant woman she was, "Auntie" gave a small gracious bow to Nina. "Thank you so much for having us...! Oh but please, call me Nora! I'm afraid 'Mrs Shephard' is a title belonging to someone a bit higher in the familial ladder...!"

"Auntie" gave a signalling nod to Emily and soon both girls whizzed out of main hall and upstairs, hands held together as they went off on another budding adventure. Just in time for Nina and "Auntie" to respectfully try and outdo each other on who would takes the bags.

"Nina, you have enough to be getting on with. I'll take them...!"

*****

The door practically exploded open as Scout led Emily inside her bedroom. Without even getting there, Emily could feel the room in the house that radiated "Scout" energy and her intuition was proven true when she was brought in to take a look. Emily circled on the spot, admiring the Gryffindor aesthetic from top to bottom, the posters and the colour in particular eliciting a gasp of excitement from the Huffie. Aside from maybe Casey, it was nice to see someone whom she could bond with on both a magical and a Muggle level. It certainly made the whole "Keeping magic a secret from her Muggle neighbours" a bit easier if anything. She smirked when she could see some effort to keep the place nice and tidy - no doubt a firm command from her folks before her arrival - though Emily appreciated the little bits and bobs that remained scattered at her desk and along the floor. Without them, it wouldn't quite feel like it would uphold the same "Scout" charm.

"Whoa...! It's almost like it's a take on a Gryffindor dorm room...!"

While Emily was taking it all in, she could hear Scout sing off the side of her about finally being able to spend some time together over the holidays. At one point Emily just stopped and looked at her tenderly. She knew the exact feeling. The last month felt like too much was happening at once, what with dolls and racing and all matter of other forest madness. After everything, Emily didn't trust herself not to break down when she would be returning home without the slimmest chance of seeing any of her buddies again. Being Muggle-born didn't exactly up those chances by any means either when a lot of the people she was friendly with were more on the magical side of their background.

It was hard for Emily to resist throwing her arms around her best bud, and she did, holding her tight almost as if afraid she'd disappear right there. Scout may have been excited for this but Emily had been waiting for this day for so long.

"The holidays have been quiet so far... Even Christmas day felt a bit off. Though it's still been pleasant...! Even better actually now that I'm here with you!" She gave a cheek smoosh to her buddy.

"How's Casey? Have you heard from him? How's Tavra?"

Emily stretched an ecstatic grin. It was definitely a sign of good omens when Scout was asking about Casey in a positive light. Them making up after the Summer Camp Kerfuffle definitely did them the world of good. "Last I heard he was doing fine...! I think he said he was going to spend Christmas with his parents at home. As for Tavra, well... She's just as gluttonous as always!" Scout only needed to spend an hour in the Shephard household to watch the chaos unravel as Tavra would peck and dig her way into the cupboards and fridge looking for food that she knows she can't eat. On that note, Emily was hoping Tavra was being well-behaved and sticking to the "Two Meals a Day" rule while she and "Auntie" were out.

"Alright, Scoutie! You have me and "Auntie" for a whole weekend! What's first on the agenda...?!"

*****

Back downstairs, "Auntie" had the tarts organised in a round formation on a spare plate while she got acquainted with Scout's father, shaking his hand while she kept subtly trying to slide in and assist the couple. Chit-chat between them was lively as they all busied themselves in the kitchen.

"I can't begin to describe how happy I am for Emily to have a friend like your Scout," "Auntie" said, gratitude dripping from her tone. "Such different girls yet they act like sisters...!"

"Auntie" managed to sneak in and help clear some of the utensils and whatnot while the food was cooking, purely out of a force of habit to be a good person rather than to outshine the people that have invited her and Emily over in the first place.

"Yes indeed, I'm looking after Emily myself," The guardian answered, though without a shred of fatigue or annoyance on the notion. "Emily's parents work abroad most of the year. They needed a little more than a nanny to look after their only child so they approached me. I hadn't long left my old job as a Primary school teacher at the time, when Emily was only two years old, so I decided I'd fill the shoes they were looking for."

The grown-ups could hear rapid footsteps above them as the girls horsed around, with "Auntie" laughing at the noise, though not before it was quickly overshadowed by a soft sigh.

"It was very apparent from the get-go how challenging it would be for me to essentially raise that child alone. For years her parents have been engrossed in their work. They barely seem to acknowledge each other as husband and wife anymore, let alone remind themselves of the fact that their daughter is left at home without any healthy contact... Her mother is only home once a week to dominate the house with more of her work, and her father... He's a whole case of his own..." "Auntie" shook her head disapprovingly as she muttered a word or two to herself before she continued.

"Back when he first hired me, Mr Shephard gave me subsidies to keep Emily afloat with everything she needed, but it wasn't money that neither of us needed or even wanted... They have the entire rent and bills taken care of without me needing to chip in, and every penny did nothing in trying to bait me into the job either. I only wanted to make sure that child was never lonely, and Emily... She only wanted to see her folks more. All I could really do despite that is to be the next best thing... Her Auntie."

She tipped her body into another bow, her expression now relieved. "I have no words to express how grateful I am for Scout for watching over that girl... Emily already surprises me with her humbleness, intellect and gentleness... Even with her talents as a witch that I'd no idea about beforehand, I couldn't be more proud of her... And I extend my thanks to you two for being there too."

Another wave of footsteps ran upstairs followed by excited shouting. Whatever the girls were doing upstairs, they were clearly having the time of their lives.

With a laugh, "Auntie" went out into the main hall.

"Grub's up, ladies!"

"We're coming!!"

_{Word Count: 1356}

Stats: Stamina: 7| Evasion: 6| Strength: 6| Wisdom: 8| Arcane Power: 7| Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace

january 3rd, 2025		friday, evening
wc: 1000		dhampir | terrible presence
interacting with: @Emily Shephard		mentioning: casey + zy

"Is that so?" Baishu furrowed his eyebrows. Scout was practically his world, the thought of being so engrossed in any job he had ever had so much to the point where he forgot not only his child, but also his beloved wife? Internally, he cringed at the idea. He had only recently started working again, but his wife and child would always be on the top of his priority list. Maybe other parents thought differently. "Well, you and Emily are always welcome here any time." It was the least he could say, he was still kind of reeling over the idea of some parents not wanting to always be there for their kids. Why in the world would you have them if not to love them completely?

When Nina had came to him with the words "I'm pregnant", it was like a flip had been switched on him. Suddenly he wasn't thinking of himself as Baishu, but rather future father Baishu. And then when Scout was born he'd introduce himself as Scout's father. Going to school and staying with English relatives when he had gone to Hogwarts, he had never really thought of himself as the kind of guy to want kids. His personality spun 180 when Nina told him the news. Suddenly he was the kind of guy he had heard his uncles turn into, parents.

When did he get so old? Ha.

"It's a weird thing now. I always thought of myself as the kind of guy to not like kids, but here I am celebrating an early new year so my baby can have fun with her friend before she goes back to school." He loved Scout, she was such a good kid. "I hope everything I made is to your and Emily's liking. Most of it are dishes I make back home in Fengjing, but I made some other stuff if Emily isn't a fan." That only partially extended to Scout also, but not because Scout disliked the dishes he'd make, but because she'd probably eat the entire table if given the chance.

Just as Baishu is about to list off some of the things he can remember making, the thundering of footsteps coming from down the stairs cuts him off, and he chuckles. Before the chaos of the early dinner starts, he made a mental checklist of everything. Unlike Scout, he was pretty good at actually remembering everything he needed to do on the checklist.

-

"Aw, poor Tavra." Scout snickers, shaking her head. "That reminds me, I found out when Zyair was in for the Gala that he had been feeding Pebble like double treats whenever he would deliver my letters to him." Her snickers transition to a full on fit of giggling. "I was so upset! I was like "no wonder he likes going there so much!", he was totally fine with feeding him extra, too! I had to tell him to stop 'cause he's probably getting way too many treats."

Speaking of Zyair... was now a good time to tell Emily that Scout had been sitting on a letter to give him? She had plans of passing it to him when he was at Hogwarts, but he had came and gone and she still had the letter on her. It was kind of personal, the kind of letter that explained her thankfulness to him, but it was hard to hand it to him in person- the knowledge of him reading it and then seeing her again turned her off from the idea.

"I have this letter I'm trying to work up the courage to send to him. Do you think now's a good time? We probably won't see each other for a few months so I feel like it is but... I dunno, I'm kind of nervous. It's like... personal." Understatement, but the vulnerability of admitting that she was going to tell Zyair her actual feelings wasn't something she wanted to delve into on a January afternoon.

Scout opened her mouth to continue her sentence, but it was cute short by a callout for dinner from both Emily's Auntie and her own mother, oh boy, was it finally time to eat? Scout was so excited, finally! She had been waiting all year for this! This was what made studying hard at Hogwarts and dealing with drama worth it!

When she slid into the dining room, the smell of happiness and food intensified tenfold. The best part about living with her parents was that no matter how good the house smelled, the kitchen and dining room smelled fifteen times better. Food was laden on the table, fancy plates that her parents insisted were only to be used during celebration were at each seat, and the pretty silverware that she wasn't usually allowed to eat with was there too!

"Yi," Baishu snapped his fingers when Scout zoned out, thinking of all the food she was going to inhale, "don't overeat, there will be leftovers, and don't eat all the 鱼, save some for next year. Do you remember what you're supposed to say?" fish

"Yeah. 年年有余! Is it eating time?" May you have a surplus every year Scout had already sat in her seat, her knees folded under her to get a better view of the table in front of her. She intensely patted the seat next to her, a gesture at Emily. "I'll tell you what's super duper good! You can use chopsticks, right? If you can't then I can teach you! It's super easy."

Even if it wasn't eating time, it was clear that Scout had already made up her mind. Baishu pulled out the chairs for Nina and Nora, shaking his head at his daughters antics. "There are some forks in the kitchen if you have trouble, Emily." He assured, giving Scout a quick glance. A silent but clear 'don't overwhelm your friend'.

"Dad, papa, is the 长寿面 yours or is it from Uncle?" Longevity noodles, basically

"Scout, stop asking questions and just eat. And don't talk with your mouth full!" Nina gently reminded, pointing her finger at Scout and snickering under her breath when Scout groaned.

At least she could eat all the food she wanted- with her best friend in tow! This was the dream.

January 3rd 2024
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
Buddy Bonding! with @Scout Fu-Hai

Nora never felt so encouraged by Baishu's words. She never felt so uplifted by anyone at all before when it came to being a substitute parent. It was something she didn't feel one hundred percent certain of becoming when she left teaching. It was quite a jump to go from a small career like that to where she is now. Not that she would change any of that if she was ever asked. She was proud of her ward and forever felt blessed to be the one to raise her, regardless of what the circumstances behind it all were.

"Thank you both," she said earnestly, returning a grateful bow to Baishu and his missus. There was so much more she wanted to say to them to let them know just how amazing it felt to have friends in her and Emily's corner, though she refused to say them unless she was willing to tear up in public.

With the girls' arrivals at the dinner table pending, Nora stood looking at the bountiful feast laid out for everyone. All of it looked so colourful, the smell of spice was rich in the air, Nora itching to take a bit and nibble at.

"This looks lovely!" she complimented. "Oh, but do at least let me take these over for you Nina-- No, no I can do that!"

*****

Back upstairs, the sounds of giggles and snorts bounced back and forth across the room as the girls tried to contain raucous laughter.

"Tavra and Pebble should swap places one of these days... Tavra would have a field day if she got fed the amount of treats Zyair's giving Pebble...!" Emily laughed. And that owl was like a hoover with feathers when it came to snacks as it was.

Talking about Zyair suddenly brought a change in face with Scout, her own laughter dying down as her mind went elsewhere for a second. Emily had seen that face enough times to know what it meant, yet she always asked the same question like it was a self-fulfilling prophecy.

"What's up...?"

Then the reveal followed. Emily couldn't help the small smile that curved up the side of her mouth. Scout had a fondness for Zyair and she couldn't be more obvious. It was just a pity about the Autumn Ball where she couldn't tell him everything she wanted to say. Emily had heard her rehearse to her several times about all she wanted to tell him. How infuriating it must be for Scout to still hang on to all of it months later.

"You've been waiting so long to tell him everything you think he deserves to know... I say go for it. Get it out there and let it settle in the air between you two. Even if he doesn't end up fully understanding everything, he'll at least have heard what you have to say...!"

When "Auntie" called the girls down, the energy between the girls were uplifted, enough for Scout to take Emily's hand and race down the stairs with her behind her, the frays of Emily's hairs splaying outwards as the wind breezed through them with Scout's excitable speed.

Everyone sat down at the table, Emily sitting with "Auntie" like the little chick she really was. She picked up the chopsticks handed to her, already trying to work out how to hold them properly after hardly using them growing up. The fork did look tempting but she never gave up a challenge... Except Transfiguration.

Emily's face reddened at the doting attention. "Heh... Thank you. I think I've got it..." Although "Auntie" did notice her ward doing the strange pinkie gesture she tended to do when she would hold chopsticks. A graceful finger snuck over to tuck it to where it should be, though that only made Emily flare into more embarrassment.

"I've got it...!" she laughed off nervously. She managed to pick up a sweet smelling bun of some kind and bit into it, it's juicy contents going down smoothly in her throat.

Whoa!

Whatever they were meant to be, they were dang good! Second mouthful however, Emily clamped her mouth shut as she concealed a giggle with her mouth full after watching Scout speak with a mouthful of food in her, the sight of her full cheeks cracking Emily up. "Auntie" shook her head, smiling at her.

"Say it, don't spray it, kiddo...!"

_{Word Count: 770}

Stats: Stamina: 7| Evasion: 6| Strength: 6| Wisdom: 8| Arcane Power: 7| Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace

january 3rd, 2025		friday, evening
wc: 950		dhampir | terrible presence
interacting with: @Emily Shephard		mentioning: @Eugenia Karageorgiadi

Initially Scout had been a little sad at not being able to eat with the rest of her family. Sometimes she found the loudness of all of her aunties and uncles and cousins in the same room a little overwhelming, but nothing was as fun as being able to sit around the table and listening in on everyone's stories and thoughts. She liked the connection she felt to her family (and more importantly being able to eat all of the yummy food they made).

But this was nice, it felt like Emily and Emily's Auntie were stepping in for the rest of her family. She was excited for the rest of the weekend to come, too. Nothing was going to be more fun than having Emily for the entire weekend. Two whole days (on top of Friday!) where they could hangout just like Scout had seen in the movies she watched. And then on Sunday they'd get to go back to Hogwarts, she would be a little sad at having to worry about schoolwork and studying again, but honestly that was fine! Hogwarts was always fun, even if Scout got moody or sad.

There was always something to do.

"Oh man, Emi, we have so many stories we could tell!" Politely, Scout waited to start her sentence until after she had finished shoving another bao bun into her mouth. "My auntie always starts dinner by telling this super dramatic story about her work. What was it last time, didn't she say she got fired and then rehired the same day or something?"

"Auntie Fen, yeah, something like that." Baishu waved his hand, a similar manner to the way Scout usually does. "But I don't think telling a story about your auntie is very interesting, is it? You're going to Hogwarts, Yi, you must have tons of interesting stories. What about that Gala you went to, wasn't that fun?"

Scout had kept the details of the entire Gala pretty secret- obviously her parents knew about the whole carriage explosions and craziness that had happened, but she wasn't too keen on letting them know about her kerfuffle with Sabrina or (and more embarrassingly), how she had ended the night in a conversation with Casey. Scout still wasn't entirely sure how she wanted to feel about the situation.

On one hand, Casey had been so sweet that night that she couldn't just ignore that it made her heart flutter. On the other hand, it felt weird to say she liked him. No, she didn't even want to think about entering that territory! It was too scary, especially with someone who's dripping in mystery like Casey is. There was something scarily similar about Casey to her own existence, maybe that was why she got more nervous interacting with him than with Zyair. Zyair was unbelievably different to Scout, it'd take a real idiot to not see that.

"Oh yeah, it was super fun." She lied through her teeth, looking at Emily. "I remember going into the Forbidden Forest with Emily and our friends! We were totally going to go ghoul-hunting, but then there was this girl- I forgot her name, Eugene or something- and she like totally went kerblam, boom! And then we all dispersed like woosh!" One of her hands held the chopsticks that were hovering in front of her mouth with noodles on them, and the other was dramatically waving in tune with her words. "Uh, what else did we do? I don't really remember the Gala too much since I was only there for a little bit. It wasn't that fun. Did you dance with someone, Emi?"

Redirecting the conversation towards Emily gave Scout several moments to shove noodles into her mouth. The action wasn't graceful, but she was spared from getting sauce on her lips or cheeks, a real pro. Any time her plate would get even a tiny bit close to looking slightly empty, Scout would pile on more food. Spring rolls, buns, noodles, dumplings, really anything that looked a little appealing. Nothing was off the table for Scout (literally).

"Oh, oh! This reminds me, I was thinking- okay, papa, you remember that muggle restaurant that's like... close...?" She tilted her head, shrugging, "the length isn't important! I was totally thinking we should go there with Emily and her Auntie. 'Cause like, don't they have those huge chocolate cake slices? And like huge slices of pizza? Did I get pizza last time? I wanna try something new!"

Nina thoughtfully taps her chin, "We could go. Maybe for lunch, I thought you wanted to take Emily shopping out that way too. Isn't it closer to London, though? That's an awfully long drive, if papa will even take you out that way." Scout pouts, eyes growing wide, "Noo! Is it that far? Could we floo? Is it in the muggle district, I don't remember...! Oh, oh! But if we're going to London then we could go to Diagon Alley! I need some books for the new semester."

Suddenly she turns to Emily, clasping her hands together. "We could go school shopping together! Wouldn't that be fun? Please papa, I'll help you clean so much! Won't ever complain again! 我保证! Please! 我发誓！不再抱怨!" I promise! I swear! No more complaining! She puts on her best puppy eyes, crumbling when her father only laughs in response.

"I'll think about it, you need to make sure Miss Nora and Emily want to even go along with you. You never know, maybe they'll think you're not a good shopper and leave you behind!" Baishu snickers when Scout dramatically collapses in her chair, shaking her head theatrically.

Okay, maybe this was just as fun as dinner with her family.

January 3rd 2024
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
Buddy Bonding! with @Scout Fu-Hai
Mentioning: @Colin McCoire and @Emmanuel Bourne
OOC Note: Now everyone knows that to get to Em's heart, you have to go through me (her writer!) But seriously though, my interest in Em being in love has a 1/1000000 chance of actually happening IC. Just warning yous all now .

Half a cup of water later and Emily managed to settle herself down before she would laugh-barf food over the table, releasing the air trapped in her out through a satisfying exhale. Scout was unashamedly the same as she was back at Hogwarts and quite frankly, Emily was glad. Even if at the behest of her parents' light scolding.

For being no different from "Auntie" both her and Emily thought it was nice to see Scout's father be so invested in his daughter's time at Hogwarts. If this was what Scout was like back home here then of course there would be an odd tale or two to share... Though Scout may have oversold it a bit with her theatrics.

"Did you dance with someone, Emi?"

"Hmm?" Emily blinked before she hurried to chew her food and swallow. "Yes I did! With Casey actually. He's really not bad of a dancer he claimed to be! Though he could do with having more energy in his shoulders more... I thought it'd be fun if he tried spinning me around but he kept trapping me under his arm...!"

Emily laughed as she thought back to that night. Casey was entitled to be as broody and silent as his persona often painted him, but he wasn't incapable of having a good time. It just took people like Emily and Scout to break him out of his shell and embrace the silliness of it all.

"I'm glad Casey was there with me... I would've asked Emmanuel to come along too but I haven't seen him all year so far..." Emily glanced down shyly. Emmanuel was her first friend at Hogwarts. They were pretty similar, from books to spells to upbringing... even their names felt like they mirrored each other. Emily didn't expect to miss running into him, but she did. In her attempt to lift her mood a bit, "Auntie" playfully bumped Emily's shoulder.

"You're quite fond of that Emmanuel fella, aren't you?"

"As a friend, yes." If "Auntie" was implying anything more then she couldn't be any further than the truth. In any case, "Auntie" looked satisfied with her ward's answer.

"So... No desire for a boyfriend yet?" "Auntie" asked. Emily read her eyebrows. She was challenging her for the right answer. Emily affirmed just as hard.

"No!" Emily buried her face in her hands after the outburst, which was a bit louder than she meant it to be. Scout and her family didn't need to hear any of this! "I don't want a boyfriend. Not at all. I don't need one. I feel much more comfortable just being the friend everyone needs. Besides, isn't the whole teenage romance shtick a bit... I don't know... Cliché? Like, some hand-holding later and then it's off to the next girl or whatever?" For heaven's sake, she wasn't Colin.

Emily was a little softer in her tone, reminding herself that Scout's mother and father were sitting at the same table as her. "Having inside jokes and playing in the forest--" She looked at "Auntie". "--Safely... And just being together as friends without feeling like it's a dangerous commitment... That's all I want! To me, that's more precious than wasting time trying to find love and then getting disappointed later. With love, you're only delegated to one special someone. But for me, I want to be friends with everyone because everyone is special to me!"

She turned to Scout with a determined gaze. "And that means I want to go round to every shop and restaurant with you before the weekend ends, Scout!"

Because any time spent with Scout, Casey or any other of her friends at Hogwarts meant more to Emily than they could ever understand. Judging by the stunned expression on "Auntie's" face, she was getting a teeny taste as to what that felt like.

_{Word Count: 702}

Stats: Stamina: 7| Evasion: 6| Strength: 6| Wisdom: 8| Arcane Power: 7| Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace

january 3rd, 2025		friday, evening
wc: 750ish		dhampir | terrible presence
interacting with: @Emily Shephard		mentioning: @Colin McCoire

Scout grimaced at the thought of Emily and Casey dancing. Poor Emily, having to be close to someone like him for so long! Plus dancing, ew, ew, ew! Scout definitely didn't blame her friend for not wanting to get a boyfriend, especially if her only close male friends were anyone like Casey! Or Colin... actually, Scout didn't know which option would be worse.

At least Casey had been sweet at the ball, Colin... was Colin.

"Well, Emily, there's no need to rush into something like that," Nina gently reminded, "you're still a young girl, there will be plenty of opportunities to find someone you really like." She offered the Hufflepuff a small smile, before turning to give Scout a stern look. "And I'm sure my sweet girl has not been mingling with any young boys, has she?" Scout flushed red, shaking her head so fast she thought it might fall off.

"No way mama!" She insists. "The only guys I know are stupid and wouldn't even know if I liked them if they got hit with it! Especially Casey- ugh he makes me so mad!" Maybe a little dramatic, but she was projecting just a little bit. Casey did in retrospect make her mad, but it wasn't really because of Emily anymore. He made her feel weird, and that was totally not cool. And she didn't even want to think about Zyair, he was so smart but so stupid at the same time! Ugh!

Baishu shakes his head, pointing at Scout with the spoon in his hand. She almost winced, he always got onto her about not pointing with chopsticks, but he gets to swap his out for a spoon? So unfair. "Now, now, let's not forget that you're the product of a school crush." He hums. "I don't think I was much older than you and Emily when I first met your mama..." When he starts telling the story, Scout groans- once he starts talking about him and her mom's love story, he never stops! "Don't be impolite, you know Miss Emily and Miss Nora might be interested!"

"Noo they're not papa! I know the story, I'll tell it- ok!" She turns to face Emily and her Auntie, sitting her utensils down before she gestures wildly with her hands. "Okay, okay! So my papa went to Hogwarts during his third year, right? And he then he met my mama when she was a fourth year I think, and then he totally got a huge crush on her! But then, but then he totally didn't tell her for three years! But they were really good friends and stuff- until she was a seventh year and was about to graduate, and then my dad finally told her and boom- she liked him too! Like say what? And then, and then they graduated and had me a few years after. Boom, and I did it in less words than you!"

He huffs, "I personally would have used more words to describe how I felt about her. Your mother was a dashing young lady, if I dare say- 美女." Pretty lady He gives Nina a quick glance before leaning in a bit towards Emily and Scout, loudly whispering, "Don't tell her, but I still have a crush on her." And he chuckles when Scout giggles. "Anyway, I'm sure your parents would tell you the same thing, Emily. You're a sweet girl and you have time to find the right one."

"I hope the right one isn't Colin." Scout mutters under her breath, crossing her fingers under the tablecloth. "I mean I'd support Emily no matter what..." but Emily was a really pretty and nice girl and so... not chaotic.

When Emily finishes her mini-tirade about teen romance and romance in general, Scout really only hones in on one point. "And that means I want to go round to every shop and restaurant with you before the weekend ends, Scout!" Yay, Emi wants to spend time with her! Obviously she knew Emily loved her and stuff, but it was always reassuring to hear it from her best friend! Plus if Emily suggested doing something, her dad would be far more inclined to actually do it- even if Scout knew she would eventually wear him down anyway.

"Yay! So can we go? Please?"

"You don't ever quit, Yi, do you?" He responds, before shrugging. "I mean I don't see why not, as long as you both will be ready to go to school by Sunday, we can swing by a few places. As long as that's okay with you, Miss Nora."

"Yay!"

January 3rd 2024
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
Buddy Bonding! with @Scout Fu-Hai
Mentioning: @Colin McCoire

After her teenage tirade, Emily had resigned herself to being the mood killer of what was a peaceful and enjoyable afternoon. To her surprise however, Scout's parents took it like champions. That didn't stop her from going red as a tomato though as the embarrassment of her outburst worked its way through her body.

"Sorry... I know..." Emily responded quietly in a half apologising tone to Nina. "I guess I just don't like how unpredictable love is..."

She felt "Auntie's" hand stretch over and pat her on the back.

"The magic of adolescence," she said, chuckling. "Emily here isn't a big fan of not knowing things." She craned her head towards the Huffie. "But those two are right... You're still a young gun with their whole life ahead to find and understand love for yourself. It's not really something you can learn from a book or predict using those corny romantic comedies and dramas. It's something that you'll know when you feel it, for yourself."

"Auntie" really made sure to put emphasis on that last bit and Emily caught on. She knew what she was trying to say and Emily could do nothing but sigh in defeated agreement. For a while "Auntie" had been telling her, her views on romance may have been warped and influenced by the lack of romantic fervour between Emily's folks, with both sides showing more love to their work than to their own marriage, sometimes forgetting that said marriage led to a daughter later on. Emily loved her parents deep down... Somewhere... But she had waited long enough to see some love between the two of them. So even when she was genuinely in awe over Scout's family and when Baishu offered the reassurance "Auntie" had been trying to remind her all these years, Emily could only return no more than a weak but well-meaning smile.

"Thank you..."

She cheered up some when she nibbled more of her food and at Baishu's story, giggling when he and Scout did and outright laughing at Scout's continued contempt for Colin.

"Don't tell me you're still chancy about him, are you?" she said to Scout, eyebrows creased. "I keep telling you he's a nice guy! He helped fix my nose up nice and good when it was bleeding... Even if he was the one that roughed it up in the first place by accident..." She laughed sheepishly at the memory. Colin wasn't really known for doing one thing without another in a very 'Duality of Man' type of way.

Chaotically sweet. That's probably as good a description as it would get when describing Colin.

"He is a good guy to be fair," Emily said. "He's got remarkable energy, a keen sense of humour... The one thing I'd change about him is maybe get him to take a bath more often...!"

It was ridiculous the amount of times Tavra had eyed his hair like it was a new place to nest. That was before Emily even mentioned the stains on his shirt when he would come tumbling into the scene with half of Mother Earth with him and the smell of whatever he would drag himself through that day. It was hard not to giggle over the sight of him sometimes. Like Scout, he was a good friend and proved to be a blessing for company.

Though it was obvious it would take some swaying before Scout would see him the same way she did. She was much more invested in the list of shops she no doubt had planned for her and Emily to go around before the weekend's end.

"Auntie" naturally supported the idea, always feeling a sweet sensation when she sees her ward being social with kids her age. "I've most of Emily's things bought for her going back to school, so we're ready if Scout and yourselves are."

_{Word Count: 678}

Stats: Stamina: 7| Evasion: 6| Strength: 6| Wisdom: 8| Arcane Power: 7| Accuracy: 6
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace