22 Feb 2022, 20:30
The King of the Castle
Days passed by and she still felt torn apart from the castle and the magic world. The homeschooling was fine, but she never thought she'd turn so detached from what seemed to be her second home. She had Xailah, of course. She had Pericles, of course. If not for them, she wouldn't probably return to the school at all.Participants:
@Meenauh Silmataurea
@Galton Lansdale
The 17th of January, 2022
Afternoon
But the rest of the school seemed so cold and so unwelcoming. She couldn't comprehend it fully — whether it was always like that, or the events of the past were too haunting and her mind was refusing to re-integrate into the students' society. From what she was learning both before and after she returned, nothing explicitly dangerous or disturbing happened during her absence. Which was good. But also threw her into a cycle of self-analysis — what if it was her, who brought the bad luck to Hogwarts and everything started to finally get better once she left? But then the bad things would follow her home, right? And the time she was homeschooling was the quietest and dullest time ever. Which was just fine and just what she needed, really. But nothing hurt more than missing her friends.
At the end of the corridor, she notice a figure from behind — she couldn't fail to recognise the guy even if she'd try her hardest. The King of Sweets, her duelling ex-partner, Galton the Great was standing there, doing something. Probably, chewing into some infinitely delicious snack right before lunch.
She felt like she needed a nice interaction. A nice conversation. And Galton was the warmest human being she ever met, actually. Despite having the classes together, they never got to talk after she was back. And she heard he became a duelling captain. She finished the corridor, swirling between the rows of students on their way to the Great Hall and tapped the boy on the shoulder.
"Greetings to the King!" she proclaimed and would do both serious and sarcastic royal bow once he'd turn to face her.
Meenauh Silmataurea | STA: 9 | EVA: 10 | STR: 2 | WIS: 25 | ARC: 13 | ACC: 13
23 Feb 2022, 06:33
The King of the Castle
Interacting with: @Meenauh Silmataurea
It always felt as though the gap between breakfast and lunch was unbearable. To cope, Galton had taken to nabbing an extra bun or two to snack on between classes (or in class if he could sneak it). And today was no different. He stood idly by in the hall peering out of a window as he sank his teeth into a sweet bun. It was almost like a meditative trance - focus on the flavor and nothing else. A moment of bliss in a hectic day.
A tap on his shoulder snapped him out of it. His brows furrowed in response. What could it have been. He wasn’t late to a class, and he was pretty sure eating in the halls was allowed. What was it?
But his brows would immediately loosen as he turned to see the disturber of the peace. One Meenauh the Mighty would greet the small teen. A smile took over his face. His ex-dueling partner had be a moving force in his third year; encouraging structure in the otherwise unstructured life of Galton Lansdale. Not to mention awakening a fierce passion for the sport they’d met through. And her absence had left Galton with a bit of a void that would go partially unfilled.
Watching her bow in jest only made his smile grow wider. How she was able to flatter. His mind began racing. There was so much to tell her! He would wait for her to finish her bow before opening his arms wide. She was going to receive a hug. There was no way for Galton to slow the force that had taken hold of him. So, with open arms and half-eaten bun in hand he would spring forward for a hug.
“Greetings!” He’s tighten his hug before letting his friend go. “I’m so glad you’re back. Oh Merlin where do we begin?” He would ask, moving a hand to stroke his chin like he’d seen other smart people do when they needed to look like they were thinking. Galton wasn’t really thinking though, he was just pausing before a torrent of information would be let loose.
“Okay, first, I’m a dueling co-captain now. Isn’t that crazy? I had to when you were leaving. As the only direct pupil who studied under Meenauh the Mighty I couldn’t let your knowledge go to waste. I even, studied spells this year, like before exams! Who am I? I don’t know. Oh and have you even tried jelly slugs? They’re pretty good to be honest, I’ve grown quite fond of them this year.” He would trail off for a moment before remembering what it was he wanted to say next.
“Wait, how have you been? Where were you?” He had remembered his manners in the end. And he was genuinely interested - he’d just forgotten it was best to lead with interest in others to not look too vain.
23 Feb 2022, 19:10
The King of the Castle
The boy's smile illuminated the corridor brighter than a strong Lumos. She quickly glanced at the unfinished bun and smiled in the satisfaction that he was still the same Galton she used to know.Interacting with @Galton Lansdale
What she didn't expect naturally was the hug — quick, strong and warm. Galton was becoming a bit tighter and stronger as he was growing up. She awkwardly patted him on his back and he finally released her from his friendly embrace. And then the torrent of information got loose.
He confirmed the captaincy, joked about The Knowledge of Meenauh the Mighty, which was surprisingly pleasant to hear. From how he talked about it, it seemed really convincing that she had her impact on him over the previous year. The burst seemed unending and unstoppable and Meenauh just kept smiling at him as he continued until the entered the narrative about the sweets, which totally stopped his brain from continuation, which she immediately took advantage of:
"You can breathe now, Your Jelly-Slugness," she smiled at him, and he asked his questions about Meenauh.
"Oh, I've been great, Galton. Really great," she hid the painful flinch in a smile as it turned out to be difficult to conceal her sorrow of the missed days at school with her friends. "I was homeschooled since the beginning of the year. Spent a lot of time outside, and among muggles. Read a thing or two, you know," she grinned wildly as a thing or two actually meant a range in between one hundred and two hundred, which would still be an underestimation, "The muggles kids are funny, but it was an intriguing and interesting experience to find out a thing or two about their world. Can't say I didn't look like a weirdo when they were talking about their social networks," she realised that Galton might not be as insightful about the muggles world as well, "But never mind. It's actually a miracle that I'm back here because it seemed like I wouldn't return at all," another painful smile, "But enough of me! A duelling co-captain, wow! How do you like it? How did the first stage go, btw? Who did you play against?"
They had one of the few common interests, and Meenauh was genuinely interested. At some point, she'd get herself back on the team.
Meenauh Silmataurea | STA: 9 | EVA: 10 | STR: 2 | WIS: 25 | ARC: 13 | ACC: 13
22 Mar 2022, 06:37
The King of the Castle
Interacting with: @Meenauh Silmataurea
Galton listened with intense interest as Meenauh told her epic tale of the past semester. One spent amongst muggles and books. There were a few things mentioned that Galton wasn’t quite sure of - like a social network - but he wasn’t one to admit his own ignorance. He wouldn’t want to look stupid to anyone, let alone his former dueling partner. In that way his vanity still showed.
When it was once again time for him to begin talking again, a boisterous smile would once again take hold of his mouth. “Whatever miracle it was, I am thankful for it!” He was, Meenauh was not the type of talent that Hogwarts could go about losing. “I like being a co-captain, I get to bring a bunch of candy to practice and not need to hide it in my pocket. I just say it’s a snack for everyone else, and boom, all you can eat between spells.” Galton would leave out how he enjoyed having people listen to him. “It also nice to discuss strategy with so many, and give a bit of advise.”
Galton’s smile would fade for a moment as he thought of the first stage duels. It was the second year now that he had lost to Ravenclaw. “Well… we lost. It was going soooo good, and then, Phaedra cast this insane Protego - like - textbook perfect, and Alan and I hurt ourselves bad. After that I was so close to feinting that it was a bit of a blur. Alan fought so hard though. When I woke up in the hospital they even said that the duel was still going!” Galton’s eyebrows would furrow. “They didn’t let me leave to go watch though. Something about head trauma - really so annoying.” A small grin would return where there had been anger. “Merlin just didn’t have us in his favor.”
Thinking about Meenauh returning to the team made the grin transform into a smile. “You gotta join the team! You have to! Wait… oh no, then I’d be your co-captain. That would be crazy. That doesn’t feel quite right… the apprentice teaching the master? I don’t know.”
27 Mar 2022, 18:31
The King of the Castle
Meenauh kept nodding at everything Galton was spitting out for her. Smiled at his snack comments as being the most memorable piece from his whole co-captaining experience.Interacting with @Galton Lansdale
As they got further to the duel (the one she missed) with Ravenclaw, Galton's face became as pale as an ancient muffin. It seemed it was against Phaedra and despite Alan being in the same year with her; she was quite a caster.
"Don't worry," she consoled him, "I'm not sure we could have done it better with our powerful duet," she meant him and herself, "I'm sure you did your best."
Then her ex-partner (for duelling) invited her to join the team. Which she, of course, considered. I meant, which she already decided and started to practice. It seemed Galton didn't know yet, so Meenauh decided to play around a bit.
"The team again?" she started, "I don't know... You see, I returned to the school under one condition — to stay safer and as far from trouble as possible," she continued and then made a thinking face with a finger tapping her chin, "I used the 'as possible' for a reason, though, it still implies the possibility and doesn't deny the possibility in general. So, in theory, I can join, but tell Alan that I'm only to join if I'm getting you as a partner! Otherwise, I don't think I'm joining."
Meenauh Silmataurea | STA: 9 | EVA: 10 | STR: 2 | WIS: 25 | ARC: 13 | ACC: 13
29 Mar 2022, 21:45
The King of the Castle
Interacting with: @ Meenauh Silmataurea
Galton was very good at spitting out words as fast as his body allowed him to. Processing incoming words though? Not nearly as good. Especially when it came to formulating a calculated reply as he would need now. Things tended to kept jumbled up, points were missed.
Meenauh first consoled him. Very nice of her, her words would keep the grin on his face. She would also get a few nods in reply to them. He had certainly done his best. Then came the part that started turning the rusty cogs in his large head. Dueling strategy? Easy. Candy acquisition and rationing? Easy! Why couldn’t she have asked him something like that. But no, Meenauh had posed two challenges to Galton. How to side step parental worries and Alan. Galton’s grin would fade. He would attempt to not look deep in thought while he contemplated what she had said, but ultimately it was probably pretty easy for his old partner to discern.
First the parental issue. She had said it first, so it was the obvious starting point. Galton had been shaving Toad for 4 years now to avoid his parents anger… Maybe if they shaved Meenauh her parents would think she was someone else? It seems like a solid enough plan, his mouth even began to open, words about to escape when a red flag went up. How would they replace her? She was a bit too old to be swapped with a gullible 1st year who would go along with the scheme…
But with age came wisdom! Meenauh would surely know the spell that had led to his defeat last duel. “Protego! Yeah! You just gotta use protego a bunch. Then, nothing can touch you. Not a hair on your head!”
But then the final cog clicked into place. Meenauh hadn’t actually ever expressed that danger was an issue. Why would Meenauh the Mighty be scared? She had just used some funny wording - complicated really (listening was hard).
No the issue with the team was returning to Might and Glory. The powerhouse duo of their third year. But Galton had no idea how to broach the issue. He did not like the thought of letting two people he considered friends down. “Umm..” his voice would trail off as a bead of sweat began developing on his forehead.
“I- I can tell him. Yeah I can tell him… he’s the Captain now though you know? Well you were captain… I can tell him. Totally.” In all the mental anguish he’d been sifting through he had overlooked how flattering of a proposition it was. Maybe his ego really had shrunk. A year ago that would have been all he’d been concerned with.
“Wait- you think I’m that good a duelist?! I totally am, no question.” His smile was back in full force now. This was a compliment he would not soon forget. While he gave himself compliments often, receiving them from anyone else was a bit more rare. “You are too! I mean there isn’t a doubt that Meenauh the Mighty or Galton the Glorious are. You gotta join! You have to join.”
14 Apr 2022, 20:42
The King of the Castle
Protego was quite a spell. Learning that was sort of mid-term goal for Meenauh as it was the number one spell in any real combat against a spell caster. No surprise they failed against Phaedra (who was a decent spellcaster even without Protego).Interacting with @Galton Lansdale
Galton seemed to be falling for Meenauh's friendly play and got all serious at Meenauh's request to talk to Alan. It suddenly seemed he was growing up into a decision-maker and treated his position seriously. Which was a very good thing for development and increasing the opportunities to become more responsible for whatever it was in life. It all went further with a second of pride (he was a Gryffindor anyway) and then circled back to their find duelling duet names, which sounded way cooler when it was Galton pronouncing them rather than Meenauh.
"Relax, relax, lion," she patted him on the shoulder as if sweeping the dust off them and darting her eyes behind him, "I've already applied to get back on the team," she looked back into his eyes and smiled, "Alan will tell you soon, I'm sure," she put a relieved face as she didn't need play around anymore, "It was one of the first things on my list after I got everything else in order first. I confess, I missed duelling. Probably more than any other activities at Hogwarts. Including reading, and you can imagine how hard that is..."
She laughed at how crazy that may have sounded, but only those who knew her closely enough could understand the gravity of it.
"Will you accompany me to the Great Hall, mister? I think it's lunchtime," she said elegantly, knowing that she didn't need Latin for this spell, as for Galton this last word was even a stronger spell than Imperius.
Meenauh and Galton leave the thread and head for lunch. Godmodding of Galton approved by Galton.
Meenauh Silmataurea | STA: 9 | EVA: 10 | STR: 2 | WIS: 25 | ARC: 13 | ACC: 13