Taking Root in Change PV Willow A. Finished

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interactions @Willow Anderson
word count 757 | text colour #274E13
abilities terrible presence
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Astrea could not help but hear the nervous exhale of breath coming from Willow as she closed the booklet, could not help but spot the protective hand placed over the leather cover from the corner of her eye and wonder if she overstepped. Perhaps it was a test, an offer that was not truly genuine and Astrea had done something just on that side of unwanted to cause such a strange reaction from Willow. Her grip on her own book tightened slightly, the familiar limestone smooth cover and deckle-edged pages grounding.

As strange and unfamiliar this specific type of 'witchcraft', she was genuinely interested in the mere concept; without the direct influence of the Wizarding World, how exactly did muggle witchery come to fruition? The sceptical and fearful attitude to the magic centuries of Sparkless held toward was strong enough to drive the Four Bloodlines and many other high pureblood lineages into hiding generations ago and develop in isolation, so how did they condone their own kind practising a mockery to the same ideas? What hypocrisy.

Then again, witch-huntings of the Holy Roman Empire had long involved both real magic-wielding and accused muggles. It mattered not if the purged actually claimed a magical bloodline or not- because Astrea truly doubted that all the victims had been only Sparkless or only magical- the fearful were practically driven mad with paranoia and misdirected rage.

"Oh, um... I guess I could start with the basics."

Astrea's mind refocused on Willow as the blonde spoke, her head tilting over to look over and a single sweater-pawed hand pressing idly against the fountain's rim while the other held at her forgotten book.

"Rosemary is a pretty good herb to have because it's kind of all-purpose. If you don't have a specific herb for a spell, rosemary can be used as a replacement. You can also burn rosemary to cleanse spaces. Chamomile is lovely, not only for tea readings but it's really good for health spells and it's associated with the sun. Lavender is another basic one, it has a lot of purposes revolving around calming energy."

Astrea nodded in understanding at that particular tidbit- while she knew of all of the particular herbs, the associations with them were surprisingly fitting, lavender in particular. The gardens surrounding the Four Bloodline's estates were bursting with foodstuff and flowers and one of her earliest memories was of uncorking a bottle of lavender sprigs and watching the Sleeping Draught potion turn a vibrant purple.

"Mint is another kind of all-purpose herb like rosemary. Basil is good for protection or purification. Rose is lovely because it's not only beautiful but the thorns can be used for protection and negative energy, and the flower is used in love spells. Except, I don't do love spells because I think that love can't come from a spell it has to come from the person."

"Ah. I see. I would not have thought of it previously, but now that you've explained it, I can see the associations. Thank you." Her tongue felt somewhat heavy in her mouth, a nagging part of her mind reminding her that she had bought an amortentia spritzed card just a week before to help clear a spat between Lord Moon and Lady Rikita. The potion had worn out before she had any chance to send it and the glaring couple had subtly made up- and thank god for that, Astrea had heard that the tension in the manor had spiked Sauron's tension to high heavens.

"What about you?" Astrea hummed in question, setting down her novel on her other side. "Did you grow up knowing about Hogwarts or are you a muggle too?"

"Oh- hm." With another of her kind- another that knew exactly the type of upbringing she was given- the answer would have been so much easier. "I am pu- wizard-borne. So yes, magic- and Hogwarts- were something I grew up with." Astrea hesitated and stumbled over the familiar term. Willow had specifically avoided the very definition of her.

Pureblood. How very considerate, just in case she shared muggle blood. Internally, she cursed herself out. Her mother was a natural at getting her way, a master manipulator who learned and perfected the ways of becoming exactly what she needed to be for whatever she wanted- a very subtle and useful trait in higher society. Just wait. Just wait a few more years- wait a few more years and the skill will be hers, passed down from generation to generation and cultivated like spun gold.

Interacting with @Astrea Soleil Neptune

There was a tenseness in the air that Willow wasn't exactly sure where the origins of it came from. Did Astrea not like her art? Was it the mentioning of muggle magic that threw her off? Was it her own insecurities of inadequacy peeking out and projecting onto someone who seemed to be the opposite of her? She had always heard the opposites attract, but wondered if it might be different in this case.

She removed her hand from her journal, there needed to be an element of trust established between them. Leaving her journal open to her to collect and run was probably the most trustworthy action she could do, even if Astrea didn't see it. In Willow's personal experience she found trust to be the foundation of a relationship, without a mutual trust and care there would be no future for a friendship. She had learned over her life that it might be naive to trust so easily and willingly, but she also felt like it was naive to be distrusting of everyone around her. She wanted to give people that chance, even if it crushed her every time she did it.

Her gaze returned to Astrea as her soft voice spoke again, thanking her for the sharing of knowledge. Truthfully she could talk all day about this and was actively fighting against going off on a tangent that they would never return from. "Ah, it's no problem. I could really talk about it all day, I should thank you for letting me share it with you. When I first came here someone told me I should be careful talking about it in case people... took it the wrong way I guess." She was now friends with the boy who told her, and she actually hadn't received any backlash from talking about it. People continually lifting her spirits with their curiosity and understanding.

An eyebrow was raised as Astrea stumbled through her words for the first time. It wasn't lost on her that she started to say pureblood and then changed. Had she offended her by not saying it? She was still learning wizard politics and just this simple interaction just proved to her how little she still knew. Maybe honesty would go over the best, to show she didn't mean ill intent despite her feelings about the word itself. "So, pureblood is what they call it right? I never knew if that was like... an offensive term to use or something. The difference between the words muggle and pureblood is very dichotomous don't you think? One sounds a lot more regal and profound than the other." She wondered if she might be overstepping her boundaries and returned her eyes to the sky and leaned back a bit to accommodate her gaze. "Coming here I feel like I'm constantly running to catch up to those who have grown up in the wizarding world already, you all know about a lot of the history and politics, how to act and behave. I suppose there are pluses to being a muggle, but here it feels like the minuses are stacked up against us."

She took a deep breath, already feeling regretful of her words. It was too late to take them back and it felt like a weight off her chest to finally talk about some things that had been bothering her about the adjustment to Hogwarts.

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interactions @Willow Anderson
word count 818 | text colour #274E13
abilities terrible presence
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Astrea's gaze flickered downwards where Willow had retracted her hand from its protective shield over the sketchbook, right after it had stationed there. Strange, but distinctly not unwelcome. It made her feel- strange. Strange because Willow had allowed her to open up the book, the book that she probably kept a careful possessiveness on. Open it up, stare into the depths of what beauty the other could create, and then leave it vulnerable right in the middle of them. The other trusted Astrea- for that, she did not know why, but Willow looked like she knew what she was doing.

"Ah, it's no problem. I could really talk about it all day, I should thank you for letting me share it with you. When I first came here someone told me I should be careful talking about it in case people... took it the wrong way I guess."

"Ah, I see." Astrea nodded once in sympathy, recognition sparking in her eyes at the other's words. But- how strange to take such things 'the wrong way'. The concept of muggle witchcraft was an interesting thing to look into, and Astrea was already growing on the idea- perhaps it was because it brought Willow joy to speak about, it was important to the girl in front of her and so part of the Slytherin's brain made the subconscious note. Sometime, she should gift Willow with a flower, a flora that Willow liked.

"So, pureblood is what they call it right? I never knew if that was like... an offensive term to use or something. The difference between the words muggle and pureblood is very dichotomous don't you think? One sounds a lot more regal and profound than the other."

It was true. Her head turned away from Willow, gaze roaming everywhere except for her companion before they landed on a curling vine creeping its way up the stone wall, the new-spring green colour of it shockingly bright against the slate gray. Her tongue felt heavy, for that was the whole point of the word 'pureblood'- especially to a her, born and raised the perfect aristocratic heir-, to feel superior to the others, the ones who had looked upon their society with scorn again and again until the magical society became reclusive and hateful.

"It's supposed to." Her eyes flickered to the side back at Willow, stormy eyes resigned before they went back to their spot staring at the wall across the courtyard. "My family calls them 'Sparkless', or 'Sparkless-blooded.' I've heard some refer to muggles as 'Mundanes'. 'Mudbloods'. It's on purpose."

The Bloodlines would use Sparkless in frightful stories just as much as real beasts, daft and unsophisticated. Upon some of her first history lessons did her governess explain to her about the phrases, claiming that they were because muggles outnumbered them like roaches- foolishly doing everything by hand, foolish beings without the gift of magic to help them along and trying to rectify that with machines. They were everywhere, all crawling with ignorance and fear that would only endanger the magic that flowed through pureblooded bodies. If not endanger, use them.

"Coming here I feel like I'm constantly running to catch up to those who have grown up in the wizarding world already, you all know about a lot of the history and politics, how to act and behave. I suppose there are pluses to being a muggle, but here it feels like the minuses are stacked up against us." Astrea's attention tilted back towards Willow with a low hum of understanding as she mulled it over. If the action seemed somewhat hesitant compared to before, she did not wish to acknowledge it herself.

"Well. That's a normal feeling though, correct? It takes time to figure things out. If you were to reverse the situation and place-" Her mind ran through the people in her life, trying to imagine them all living like a Sparkless, their entire life unknowing of the gift of magic. It did not work- no matter what she tried to imagine with the ideas of book settings from muggle America, muggle Britain, anywhere, she couldn't see the hardiness of Sparkless and only the magic that coursed through their veins. "Myself, for example, in muggle society, it would be much the same."

Even imagining herself in the throngs of ignorance, like the people who sent off their children on Platform 9 3/4 proudly confused about the life their offspring would live, she could not do it. But that did not matter, because at the moment she did not matter and reassuring Willow was her primary objective.

"And- Magical history and politics, they are complicated- slightly frustrating at times, boring at others. At least in regards to aristocracy." Her words were laced with a hint of amusement, a slight smile gracing her as she attempted to diffuse the heaviness of the situation for even a second. What an understatement.

Interacting with @Astrea Soleil Neptune

The conversation easily melted into a discussion about the different between muggles and purebloods. In her first semester at Hogwarts, it was something that was an obvious difference once she learned that the labels existed. It wasn't something that occupied a lot of her time as she focused on adjusting and figuring out how to keep up on classwork and the new routine, making friends, and navigating this new identity and life of hers. It was now as she settled into her duality of muggle and new witchcraft and how they mixed and mingled that she started to give more time to her place within the wizarding world as a muggle. It almost felt like something she should be ashamed about with just the sound of the gargled word in her mouth.

An eyebrow was raised at all the different names for muggles, all sounding so lifeless and just... sad. She knew it wasn't Astrea's personal labeling of muggles, it was obviously something stemming in history, and she just had to be the one to learn about it. Still, Willow couldn't help but feel... angry? Frustrated? She couldn't tell. "Mudblood? That's not very nice, it feels wrong. And Sparkless... there's nothing about me without a spark of life." A deep sigh came with the heavy thoughts of wondering if that's how the wizarding world would always see her. She tucked her hair back behind her ears as she looked to Astrea, she wanted her opinion on it. Not what her family had taught her. "So, do you think that I'm sparkless? Especially now that you've seen how dazzling I can be?" She giggled, wanting to bring a little light to the heavy conversation it had turned into. The nice day suddenly didn't reflect the stormy onslaught of thoughts that had been brought upon her.

Astrea was trying to comfort her, she could see that she was trying. Putting herself in the situation of being in muggle society, something about it seemed off. Willow couldn't imagine Astrea wandering in a grocery store in her town. She would seem out of place, too regal and beautiful for something as bland as grocery shopping. Was she putting herself in a lower position than purebloods already? She couldn't help the implicit thoughts of a dichotomy that seemed so deep rooted. At the same time, in Hogwarts she saw Astrea as an equal. Both students navigating the corridors of Hogwarts and trying to do their best in classes. That's what really mattered, right? But still, Astrea didn't have to go into muggle society. She had the wizarding world, but Willow would forever walk the border of both forever wondering what her place was. "It is a normal feeling, but it doesn't make having to deal with it much easier. Sometimes I miss home especially, just the normal day to day things like... even going on a car ride with my mum. Playing video games with my dad after school once he returned home. I don't doubt that you miss home too though, just in different ways." A warm smile was directed at Astrea, more for her than Willow. She didn't mean to prattle on so much about herself, and she knew that home could be a sensitive topic for some but it seemed hard to not bring it up in their conversation.

Willow traced a seemingly secret pattern onto the stone bench as she faced Astrea, watching a small smile grow as she talked about the bore of history and politics. Willow could understand that, but for her history had become more fun than ever. "Maybe the politics isn't a great time, but history is so much more fun. Especially lining up wizard history and muggle history. It creates a whole new perspective of the world that one of each can't quite match. Together it's beautiful." She paused for a moment, thinking about her next words carefully. "I understand the need to hide, but I guess I still like to think that someday we could merge together." The urge to hold Astrea's hand for some reason was almost too much to resist. Her hand twitched to grab hers, but she refrained and played it off as if she saw something on the bench and pretended to brush it off. She only hoped Astrea wouldn't notice her poor attempt at covering up the urge.

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interactions @Willow Anderson
word count 813 | text colour #274E13
abilities terrible presence
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From the corner of her eye, Astrea was silently dismayed to see the wordless judgement Willow exuded at the names she had heard for muggles for as long as she lived. It waxed and waned with every family she met in severity, yet it was always still there- either lingering under the surface or obviously there. "Mudblood? That's not very nice, it feels wrong. And Sparkless... there's nothing about me without a spark of life." The blonde looked- frustrated? Angry? Perhaps a mixture of the two- a mixture that made Astrea somewhat uneasy even as Willow did nothing to confront it physically.

"You see- Mudblood is a word that historically talked about the muddiness of muggle blood- like dirty blood, not like 'pureblood'. It's not as prevalent now, because muggleborn and half-blooded had caught on and pushed back, but it's still used within the more scornful. And Sparkless-"

The distantly stern voice of the governess that had taught her the history of Sparkless namecalling echoed through Astrea's head and matched the leather-bound textbook that had been sat in front of her like a reflection. "Sparkless doesn't speak about life, it is used to refer to people with blood that traces back to a lack of magical spark. Magic is powerful. Coveted. Required." A young and pitifully ignorant Astrea had been levelled with a steady glare and gotten a ruler to the knuckles for the confused question she had asked. Do not ask questions, it simply is what it is.

"So, do you think that I'm sparkless? Especially now that you've seen how dazzling I can be?"

A framework of a slight smile graced Astrea at the jest, the bubblegum sweet sounds of Willow's giggling taking a bit of the heaviness off of the conversation. "No, you're proving to be lot brighter than a lot of people I've met- wizard born or not." The blonde was like a star, so bright that it seemed unreal and yet there was no way Astrea could think of parting. Astrea could barely keep up- Willow will burn her right up from the bottom up.

"It is a normal feeling, but it doesn't make having to deal with it much easier. Sometimes I miss home especially, just the normal day to day things like... even going on a car ride with my mum. Playing video games with my dad after school once he returned home. I don't doubt that you miss home too though, just in different ways."

She nodded in gentle half-understanding at the confession, her arms pulling back to brace her as she leaned closer to the cool water jetting high overhead with a cool shimmering mist. She hadn't the slightest of a clue in the experiences Willow described- she probably would never- but- Hm. Homesickness had been luring her further and further in as the days began to lengthen and heat up, a siren call of reluctant longing. She did not specifically feel lost love for Lord Neptune or Lady Chou, her every remembered interaction with her parents stilted and somehow timeless- and yet a part of her felt- ashamed. Guilty, that she did not hold the same longings as Willow for her lineage. To want for home was something that was familiar to her, usually under the veil of night, but it was the vague partly familiar things that she was so intimately surrounded with back home- the scent of fresh parchment paper and lingering incense, budding sprigs of lavender and the sight of a vivid sunset against deep water.

But she was getting too ahead of herself, getting too deep. She shifted her weight onto one hand as she fiddled with the hem of her dress, the soft fabric familiar even as Astrea cleared her head by observing Willow. The other was someone who was easy to get lost with, forget the world and build up their own story tale- as short as it was- to fit what they desired.

"I understand the need to hide, but I guess I still like to think that someday we could merge together."

A sudden motion in Astrea's peripheral vision attracted her attention that intrigued as it confused. Willow's strange twitch-turned sweep of the fountain rim bellied some aborted instinct- Willow didn't seem the type to push down things as much as Astrea, full in emotion and prone to such pretty blushing- Ah. Astrea saw now, a warm feeling building in her chest.

"Hm-" Unwilling to subject herself to the voices in her head screaming at her to backtrack and leave the scene- if only to spare Willow her awkwardness- Astrea took the first move impulsively, one pale manicured hand jerking out to rest upon her companion's. The young aristocrat turned her head away to the side once more as nonchalantly as she could muster even as her ears began to colour shyly.

"Perhaps one day."

Interacting with @Astrea Soleil Neptune

Willow listened attentively as Astrea spoke, really she had been doing it the whole time. Something about Astrea pulled her in, never wanting her afternoon with her to end. Even if they weren't talking about the most pleasant topic. There was another piece of Astrea that seemed to push her away at the same time. Willow had chalked it up to her being nervous about meeting a new person, even though she really never had that feeling before.

It confused her.

A lot of this interaction confused her. She had never blushed this much, felt so simultaneously shy but also wanting to speak and pull the siren sweet laugh of Astrea emerge as much as she could. A smile from Astrea felt like a gift that she could receive a thousand times over and still never tire of. Maybe this is what someone felt when they just really wanted to be friends with someone? This didn't seem to be the way that everyone talked about making friends, which she really didn't have any experience in. So why did this feel so different?

She forced herself back down to earth with Astrea, for now she should be happy just to spend time with her. Willow could be a mudblood, she loved the dirt. In a way the earth filled her veins, it was her lifeforce. But, she supposed it was in a much different way than Astrea was describing. "Mm, I guess magic could be seen as required in life. I've lived my whole life thinking I was sparkless. I think I could live without it even now knowing about it, but I don't think I could live without the people I've met here. That's the spark that is required and coveted to me." Ultimately, she shrugged the thought off. "I appreciate you taking the time to educate me about this. No one really talks about it, even though the feeling of difference is definitely there."

Astrea's response to her question once again threw her off. She felt incredibly unbalanced in trying to take the seemingly continuous compliments as they came, but it was hard. The blush had never left her face during this whole interaction and it felt like it would just become permanent at this point. She had always been considered a bright sun, that's what her parents would compare her to growing up. But once again, it just felt different coming from Astrea. She absolutely didn't know how to respond, a small "Thank you." stumbled clumsily from her mouth.

Willow's attempt at hiding her want to hold Astrea's hand hadn't gone over well. But Astrea had not only caught on to her intentions, but followed through with them. Taking up the initiative when Willow ultimately failed, which isn't something that normally happened. Astrea's soft hand covered hers, a warmth spreading through her as the contact was made despite the chill breeze flowing around them. Willow's eye stayed stuck on their hands, as if if she looked away the contact would disappear. Slowly they traveled up to meet Astrea's face, she had turned it away as if being embarrassed of the contact. Willow mirrored her reaction, her face turning to face in front of her once more gazing over the courtyard that somehow seemed a lot brighter now. "I'm glad I came to talk to you, Astrea. Maybe we can meet again, next time on purpose rather than coincidental?"

With how strongly Willow wanted to be near Astrea, she assumed this was the start of an intensely strong friendship. If only she knew how wrong she would turn out to be about the reason behind her feelings.

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interactions @Willow Anderson
word count 948 | text colour #274E13
abilities terrible presence
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"Mm, I guess magic could be seen as required in life. I've lived my whole life thinking I was sparkless. I think I could live without it even now knowing about it, but I don't think I could live without the people I've met here. That's the spark that is required and coveted to me."

A warm noise of acknowledgement left Astrea as she took in the words, inclining her head upwards towards the brilliant blue sky- it reminded her of the Hufflepuff's eyes. So cheesy. It was clear that Willow held her relationships dear and idly the aristocrat wondered how different it would have been if Willow had lived her entire life ignorant, confined only to the human capacity chained with whatever muggles viewed as 'reality', how different it would have been if Lord Neptune sent her way to Beauxbatons instead of Hogwarts like Sauron and Virgil.

No. Astrea had no doubt that dear Willow would be able to survive excluded from magic, to thrive in the Sparkless world without a hitch- the other had done so up until now, after all- "I appreciate you taking the time to educate me about this. No one really talks about it, even though the feeling of difference is definitely there."

"Of course, I'm happy to be of service." Perhaps someday that difference would fade, wizard and muggle alike would become a single entity, no blood purity, old money vs new money, none of that. A single entity, simply human. But alas, as idyllic as the idea seemed, there seemed to be no grand upheaval of ideals in the near future- the Four Bloodlines had clung onto the same ideas for decades at a time, there was no hoping people to change their ways.

Willow embarrassed as easily as new wood thrown into a burning fireplace, a constant flush colouring the other's creamy skin from the neck up that came and went with the conversation's tides. It was strangely endearing- and yet it threw Astrea's own emotions for a loop. It was as if someone had cast a rictusempra from within her stomach, shortening her breath as her heart squirmed, capturing her entire attention until space was only the courtyard and time was honey. She had never felt this way before- whatever emotion that had painted the scene with surreal strokes of watercolour bliss was foreign, a first introduction holding hands with the bright comet of goodness that sat next to her. The Slytherin could feel practically feel Willow's eyes trailing up, a sense of stubbornness the only thing that kept her from looking over until the other also turned away.

"I'm glad I came to talk to you, Astrea. Maybe we can meet again, next time on purpose rather than coincidental?"

A smile pulled at her at the pleasant thought. "Hm. That would be nice." To interact with Willow was like stepping into a fairytale, a censored Brothers Grimm book with some of the pages ripped out before you got it so you never knew how it ended. A breath of fresh air, a beautiful flower of surprising fondness that bloomed within the corners of her mind and sang hopefully of friendship.

But the idea edged too close to a chance of a picturesque fairytale for Astrea to be truly as comfortable with the idea away from her blonde companion than with. It left a bitter taste in her tongue- she needed to leave. Her mind was a mortar and the situation was the pestle- did that even make sense? The point is that Astrea was having a sexuality freakout and needed to retreat in order to collect her wits. "It was a pleasure to meet you today, Willow, truly. I would love to stay, but I'm afraid I'll have to take my leave." She let go of the other's warm hand regretfully and stood up, smoothing down the skirt of her dress and brushing the imaginary dirt that had collected on the pale yellow wool of her cardigan even as she attempted to will away the steady warmth that burrowed deep into her chest and flared upwards.

The other would burn her down. She's already said that before but the Slytherin would say it again. Willow was going to burn her down one day from the bottom up, a fire of passion and kindness that Astrea could never amount to.

"Thank you for the company, I hope you enjoy the rest of your day." Astrea sent Willow one last coy smile before grabbing her book and walking towards the high doorframe corridor that looped around the courtyard, mind. Astrea stopped for a second at the threshold, free hand coming up to drag along a newly green vine that crept up and curled around the brick-like a serpent.

She took a purposeful look back toward Willow, taking a selfish moment to appreciate the scene she was leaving behind- from the way that the sun made the Hufflepuff's hair shine like spun gold and the rare peace that had taken over the area for just long enough that it felt like a dream, a turning of pages and happy ending. But happy endings were not all they were made up to be.

She lingered only for a moment, dark hair shielding her bittersweet expression and calming skin before continuing on down the corridor and away into the castle. And though she did not look back again after that, Willow became the forefront of her thoughts as shiny leather boots thumped lowly against the cobblestone.

There were no happy endings. Because endings were often the saddest part.

She would be content with a happy middle.

And an even happier start.

﹤⳾ ⳾ ⳾﹡Astrea leaves the thread.﹡⳾ ⳾ ⳾ ⳾﹥