Study, Eat, Sleep, Repeat PV A. Gray

"You never been to the beach??" if the girl had any pearls to clutch, let it be known they would've been. Running off to the beach, even on days where it was far too cold to actually swim, was one of her favorite places to be. The estate could become so suffocating at time, being out by the sea with the wind whipping around her sometimes felt like that might be the only place with real air. What a pity that anyone should be deprived of it for their entire lives!

Taliesin was attentive when Avery tried to explain her current living situation, and it sounded... complicated. Why was she going home to her grandparents if she lived in London with her actual parents? Then again, wasn't her situation not that different? She lived with just Nanny and Madame most of the time while her own parents would be off in London or where ever they'd decided they should be that wasn't an island in the middle of nowhere. It was still strange and complex, but at least to a degree she could understand.

"I kinda get it." she spoke, offering a small smile, "My parents travel a lot, so its usually just me with my Nanny and governess at home. I really only ever go with them if they need to bring me. And its... interesting, sometimes," 'interesting' was a choice word. Really it was almost always agonizingly boring, however beggars shouldn't be choosers, "But it is always nice to come back to where it feels like home."

She nodded along with the older girl's thoughts, "Trust me, I've been asking my tutors that for years!" it really was exhausting, listening to the endless lists of families, their ranks and statuses and achievements throughout history; and then having to listen about who sits above who in some weird, macabre hierarchy dictated by the upper crust of wizarding society, "According to my tutor, it matters because one must know who is worth engaging with in every context." she quoted, mocking her tutors dramatically posh accent, "Be that in business, political alliance, or amity." she finished with a roll of her eyes. It all boiled down to 'be close to the right people' for the sake of posterity and social climbing'.

As Avery explained that her father was an Aruror, it made sense now why that profession was on the other girl's radar. It made sense to follow in your parent's footsteps after all. Beyond that, it seemed like it was more then just following after her father; but more like it had been a dream of her's for quite some time. There had been thought put into her future. Which was much more then Taliesin had done when the question was turned on herself.

Taliesin had never really given the matter much thought. Like everything else, she imagined one day her parents would just tell her what it was they wanted to do and set her down that path to get it done.

If anything, she imagined she'd do whatever it was that her father did. While she didn't exactly know the details, she knew their family was pretty high in the instep. Her father was involved with a lot of different people that he did business with. Investments, political dabblings, managing whatever businesses and properties were under the family name. That was probably what she'd have to do one day. Or alternatively, she might expect to be like her mother, who handled all the household affairs and maintain their social standing while her husband handled the important things. Taliesin wasn't exactly sure what they planned for her life.

"I-I... I don't really know yet." she replied softly, her eyes nervously falling away to her long forgotten textbook. The longer she stayed at Hogwarts, the more aware she became of how strict and traditional her family was, even by Pureblood standards. If she were a better Pureblood, she might've been proud of that; but it was becoming embarrassing more then anything, to be made to realize how narrow your world actually is, and how limited you are in your freedom. But that was how it was, and there wasn't much she could actually do about it, "I guess, as long as I'm good at it, I don't really care."

Interacting with: @Taliesin Annwyn Mentioning: N/A Date: N/A

Word Count: 300

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Avery smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. No beach for me. I was more of a woodsy girl growing up. I think the closest I ever got to a beach was whenever my family boarded boats to travel across the English channel. Then again, that's not exactly a beach." She let out a light laugh. It was true. Her parents had always been so busy when Avery was younger. That meant little time for vacation they deemed 'unsuitable' and a waste of money. The only vacation she ever got when she was little were the trips to her grandparents' house in Swansea, Wales. Her hometown. Those trips made up for her lost time of traveling the world. Though she had the feeling that she would get to see the world soon enough. She had already seen France and visited another school, so it was only a matter of time before she got to visit another school. "It is." Avery commented when Taliesin mentioned it was always nice to go home. And home for Avery didn't mean the apartment she shared with her parents in London. No. It meant her real home in Wales. Avery laughed again at Taliesin's mocking tone of her tutor. Avery felt the same way. Being pure blood was an exhausting job. One that she would have never asked for in a million years. Especially if she knew what it was like before she got the choice if she ever had the choice. Which she didn't have the choice. Avery listened to the girl as she explained that she didn't know what she wanted to do yet as a profession. "Hey, that's completely fine! Not everyone knows what they're doing at first. I'm sure it'll hit you eventually and I'm sure you'll be great at whatever you choose!" Avery smiled.

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OOC Note: So sorry how late this is!

It was simply unfathomable to imagine living someplace where one couldn't go to the beach; even more unfathomable was the idea of having never been to a beach, "That's just not acceptable. No, you have to go to the beach. A real one. You come to my house and I'll take you if that what has to be done." she decided, albeit a bit dramatically. Never mind if her parents or her's would even allow for such a trivial little trip, but this was a grave sin that demanded correction. Even if she had to contrive how to achieve that herself.

Parents always seemed to Taliesin to be the crux of most troubling things. Even small, troubling things like what to study or wear, all the way to the big things like vocations. Parental input was so essential for direction; but it also seemed, as she experienced more and more of the world outside of the Annwyn Family bubble, limiting. Taliesin wasn't even completely sure was she was being limited from or what options or experiences might be being robbed from her, which made it difficult to be completely disappointed. After all, how can you miss what you never knew was there? If a tree falls in the wood and nobody is around to hear it and all that.

Taliesin chewed her lip a little, her nail picked at a fraying bit on the cover of her textbook as she thought a moment, "Well... if I were to think about it," she started slowly, "Wh-what kinds of things could I do? Normal things. No like, politics or business stuff, but... other things." things outside of Pureblood norms was what she wanted to say. Something about asking that felt blasphemous though. Like deliberate disobedience towards her own rearing.

Interacting with: @Taliesin Annwyn Mentioning: N/A Date: N/A

Word Count: 302

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Avery grinned as she tried to cover her laugh. She loved Taliesin's enthusiasm. It sparked Avery back to life again. It reminded her that there was light even in the darkest of days. And that light was the friends and family around a person. They were the light that meant someone could survive. That she could be happy even if things weren't going well. "I would happily defy everything just to see the beach. You've convinced me easily that it's worth seeing for sure!" Avery smiled. It was true. Avery had always wanted to see the beach. Pictures and reading a description in books was one thing, but actually experiencing it was a whole other. One that Avery desperately wanted to live through. Avery thought deeply about Taliesin's question. There were many things the girl could do if she wished. Avery just hoped the girl could see past the politics, the superiority, the convoluted mess of pure blood heritage and just see the beauty of the world for how it was. That was what Avery hoped for everyone, but unfortunately that wasn't always the case. Especially for pure bloods whose parents including hers just wanted her to uphold their bloodline. Maybe that was part of the reason she loved her relationship with Mikey. She was not only happy when she was around him, but she also had her own small rebellion. She could be with him even though he was born of muggles. Even if her parents didn't accept it. "Well, there's many things you could do. I always start with what I love about the world. Once you find that, you can branch and see what piques your interest. If you love something, nothing should get in the way of your chance to do it." Avery smiled. Yes. This was it.

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The child couldn't help but grin, "Then that's that, and once it's warm again, you must come to Beaumaris, and we will have a beach day." Taliesin declared excitedly. She'd figure out the details of how to make that happen another day. That was a Future Taliesin problem to solve, "And I'd bet Nanny Morgan would even make us up a treat to take along with us. Nanny's treats are nothing short of the best." she bragged.

What Avery said about starting with what you love about the world to find what she could do, that felt tricky. Taliesin realized that she really didn't understand all that much about the world outside of Pureblood society, and the things she liked within that seemed trivial compared to the vastness of the world at large. In her little bubble, she loved music and piano, and she loved reading and hiding, climbing trees and running around the woods. However, she wasn't sure any of those things could realistically become vocations. Not real ones anyway. Those were more like hobbies made into faux jobs to appease those who have too much time and money on their hands to be of any real use to anyone. Like some of the character in her books, bored to tears with their own idleness, but having no real inclination or drive to do anything better. Taliesin wanted to do something useful. She wanted to be useful.

So she'd have to think harder.

She loved helping Nanny in the kitchen sometimes; or in the greenhouse and in the potions lab. That could be something useful she could do. Those were two of her favorite classes that she did well in, even if she wasn't sure what she could actually do with those things. But they had to be better suggestions than climbing trees, "I love potions class..." she offered, "and plants. Even the ones people think are awful. I've been told I'm good with plants."

Interacting with: @Taliesin Annwyn Mentioning: N/A Date: N/A

Word Count: 255

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Avery's eyes widened in excitement. This was actually happening. She couldn't wait for the day she could return to her home country and see the beach for the first time. That would be a dream come true! She would finally see another piece of her home country she had never known existed. "That would be wonderful! I can't wait to see that part of Wales! I've only seen the mountains, so seeing a real beach will be incredible!" Avery was excited. This was finally her chance! Avery let the silence fall between them for a moment. It was not an uncomfortable silence. No. It was a silence of two girls pondering the words spoken between them. Avery was thinking and daydreaming about Wales. It had felt like an eternity since she had last been there and she couldn't wait to return. Even only temporarily. She knew that someday she would return for good. Never looking back at her 'home' in London. She needed to be free. Avery's eyes lit up. She loved anything science as well. There was just something about mixing specific ingredients together in a specific order at the exact right time that intrigued her. Then there were plants. Avery had loved her old Herbology professor, Professor Toussant-Fleischer. The woman seemed to have a magical way with the plants around her. "Those classes are both amazing! I love them! There's just something special about plants and how they work and how you add certain ingredients together to make something new." Avery commented thoughtfully.

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