Messages from Home PV Elrich Shulz Closed

Green watched Elrich silently as he spoke and paced, nodding at certain points, eyes strangely soft for a boy who has spoken with such vehemence not too long ago. They darkened by the time Elrich was done. He pushed off from the wall, approaching Elrich with hard green eyes set. "I believe you will," he said, voice low. "And I'd like it if I were of assistance to you in that matter. I believe my instinct about you was correct - that you are an individual of ambition and intelligence, of lasting drive. I believe that we could accomplish things together. Substantive things."

There was a soft crackling in his mind, a memory from long ago - one of heat, and ashes, and awful, flickering light. He recalled the thrill as the flames grew higher, the beating of his heart as sirens sounded in the distance. That was really the thing: the blaze had brought people in, and he wasn't sorry.

That was why he set it in the first place. "I do believe that's nearly five. But I had promised to tell you my name," he murmured, nodding. "I go by Rainier Green, and my last question is this: how much further do you think we could go if there was an allegiance between us?"

Rainier Green, he repeated in his head. He had never heard of the Green family, though he had never heard of most other families before, even if they were of blood purity. And now this fellow was proposing they work together to achieve their goals. Elrich was never much of a team player, but he was experiencing quite a few firsts that day. First time divulging as much about himself as he just had, first time meeting somebody his age with even more ambition than he himself held. It was also the first time his spirit had been shaken by anybody besides his father, too. He’s confident in his abilities. Is it arrogance…or does he have as much potential as he seems to have? he wondered.

The question still stood: how much more could they accomplish with an allegiance between them? Elrich supposed it wouldn’t hurt to give it a chance, though he would have to keep his guard up. It was clear that Green was capable, but also extremely cunning. Maybe even diabolical.

“I think it could be mutually beneficial. I suppose getting help from somebody like you could speed my efforts along quite a bit, and I could help you excel to the point that your father would disclose those family secrets to you,” he said rather matter-of-factly. “Does that answer your question, uh… Rainier, was it?”

"Succinctly," said Green, the corners of his lips turning up, tight but amicable, reaching up to his eyes. There was still a bit of darkness there, a bit of the jack-knife in that smile, but there was something more human, too, boyish and surprisingly warm. "Grades will be of lesser importance in that, so if it comes down to a competition between us for top scores, I'd be happy to bow out. And if someone else is in our way... I'm sure we can find some way to surpass them," his grin twitched.

"Please! Call me Green," smiled the boy, approaching to a friendly distance now. "I've never much cared for Rainier. Sounds like a nickname for someone you don't want to invite to picnics," he murmured, eyes sliding away. "Do you prefer Elrich, or Schulz, or something else...? he asked, eyes scanning up and down the boy curiously. He was tall, wasn't he? Good. People would make favorable assumptions. "I do wonder how people approach you, generally. You keep a very cool countenance," he observed. The corner of his lip curled. "Frankly, it's hard to imagine what your father finds fault in. Is he a fair man?" he asked, frank.

That smile. It was all Elrich could look at while he listened. He wasn’t one for ‘weird feelings’, but that smile gave him just that. Friendly and warm, but with something else there, too. He shrugged it off, assuming that it was just nerves. “Green, okay. Elrich is fine for me. And that’s understandable. High marks are nice, but they will not lead us to attaining our goals on their own,” he said after a brief pause, after recovering from his daze. They would need more than grades, and he didn’t even know where to begin.

At hearing Green’s question, Elrich shrugged and nonchalantly said, “For better or for worse, people around here tend to take pretty well to me. I guess a benefit of having a Ministry politician as a father is that you learn how to get people to trust you. Though I suppose it’s also because some people around here are a tad too trusting.”

At the mention of his father, Elrich immediately looked away and scowled. Yeah, cool countenance as long as I don’t have to think about him, he thought to himself. “My father is… fair, yes, on the outside. On the inside, however, he’s a twisted, two-faced, manipulative, secretive, wretched being with a heart as cold as ice,” he said, clearly becoming more agitated as the list went on then, then forced a return to a more neutral display with a large inhalation of air. “And your father? Is the alchemist fair?"

Green listened attentively to Elrich, hands folded, head tilted; his body leaned loose against the wall, calm. "He sounds equal parts useful and insufferable," he huffed. "Which has to be one of the most vexing situations there is, for a family member. May he usefulness exceed his insufferably until the day you no longer need him," he wished.

"My father?" Green breathed in reply, looking away with furrowed brow. His eyes flickered back and forth in thought, lips tensing and untensing as he considered.

The largest emotion he felt towards his father was gratitude, but surely he couldn't reveal that. The fact was, Anthony Green could very well have left him in that orphanage to rot. It wasn't quite the orphanage itself was so bad; he was largely ignored there, as anywhere else at that point in his life. It had been the sense of predation, the fact that there were so very many people larger and stronger than he was, and the knowledge that there was nothing left to protect him if some other child should choose to make a game of his misery. Anthony had hardly been warm or attentive, but there had been an immediate sense of being his, since he had been chosen. No one in the orphanage really expected to be chosen. No one over toddling age seemed to be what anyone had in mind.

"I suppose he is as fair as this wretched world allows, Green murmured, staring at the window. "He's busy, primarily. But when I've asked to be taught something, he tends to teach me, so long as I can make myself useful with it. There are simply some things adults won't tell people our age," he sighed.

Elrich nodded in agreement at Green’s sentiment about usefulness and insufferableness. “Indeed, it is a bit of a rough situation. Even if he isn’t the ideal fatherly role model, I can still learn a lot from his example… for now,” he admitted. Still being young meant that he would have to take everything and everyone at his disposal to forge himself into the wizard he wanted to grow to be, even if that meant acknowledging the usefulness of the man he hated most.

The moment Green began speaking of his father, Elrich sharpened his attention. He had been interested in hearing about the alchemist since he learned about the supposed secrets of the Green family. Any bit of information could be useful. As fair as this wretched world allows…, he played Green’s words over in his head. The boy obviously had a gloomy view of the world, but who could blame him? Elrich knew that the world was far from a perfect or even a happy place, and something told him that this other boy knew that even more so than him.

“So, he teaches you things as long as it helps you be useful to him? I suppose that’s better than not being taught at all. Are you an alchemist as well, then?” he speculated. Based solely on appearance, Elrich had originally pegged Green as rather ordinary, and not all that strong. One thing he had learned in his short time at the school was that very few things fit the role of ordinary. The most unsuspecting characters could prove to be the most powerful. "I mean, how skilled do you fancy yourself, exactly?"

"Skilled?" Green scoffed, shaking his head, eyes rolled to the ceiling. "With underage magic laws being what they are, how could I possibly tell? I only just got my wand on the way here," he sighed, exasperated. Paused, thinking. "I suppose there are some things I can claim. I've read a great many books, of course, and watched things done quite a few times. I can reasonably predict what outcome might from from which variation on a somewhat familiar formula, and accurately guess at how variations such as substitutions or reagent freshness might affect a finished result. Laying ingredients out, stirring properly, regulating the heat on a cauldron or producing this or that color at the appropriate time... all this, I'm quite good at. But actual skill?" He hooked his thumbs in his pockets, gave a long, pained sigh. "The fact is, I don't know yet. No matter how many books you read, exercises you do, or drills you take, there's no way to tell whether you're a skilled swimmer or not before you hit the water. And they just let us into the pool," he shrugged, sighing.

Tilting his head, he looked back at Elrich. "You're wise to take from him what you can; it's the best revenge. Do you think you might follow his path, then? Use what you learn to become influential in politics?" he asked.

He’s right, gauging talent at this stage isn’t easy to do. Our magical potentials haven’t really been put to the test yet. It could be years before probable guesses can be made about who is talented and who isn’t…, he remarked to himself, then glanced at his fragmented reflection in the mirror. He wanted to believe that he had potential to be an amazing wizard one day, but in truth he had no idea. He didn’t have a whole lot of practical experience in any field of magic, and the first-year courses he was enrolled in did not give the best measurement of skill past basic competency. He was never one for self-doubt, but even he couldn’t escape some of these anxieties sometimes.

“You’re right, I suppose we can’t really tell just yet. All we can really do for now is continue working hard and hope the pieces fall in our favor,” he agreed, looked back at Green.

His question was one Elrich had pondered for entire nights at a time. Many would find it silly for a boy as young as he was to put so much thought into what he wanted to do as an adult, but to he was always forward thinking, maybe even to a fault. His father never said anything straight out, but it was clear he wanted his son to follow his path and join the Ministry in some department or another. Sure, Elrich felt like such a career path wasn’t the worst one to aspire for, but the fact that his father was the one pushing him in that direction only made him want to steer clear of it.

“Yeah, I’ve thought about pursuing it. The thought of having too much in common with my old man makes my skin crawl, though. Plus, I’d hate to give him the satisfaction of thinking I look up to him or something,” he conferred with a bit of disdain. “And what about you, Green? You always wanna be a professional alchemist like your father?”

Green grunted in thought, fingers splayed across his chin as he followed Elrich's gaze to his broken reflection. H had a point. No matter what he wanted, he might always be plagued by his father's shadow. "A difficult situation," he sighed. "If you go into it because that's what you want, he'll no doubt be smug; but if you want to go into it and avoid it, you might have the sense that he's run you off, which would be equally vexing. I don't suppose you have any other interests, like medicine, or research?" he asked, head tilted.

Green blinked at Elrich's question, humming quietly. "You know, I always imagined it," he said. "But come to think of it, I'm not certain how much want came into my the picture. It feels like some sort of need," he sighed, as if displeased to discover this, himself. "At least I know my interest is genuine. The art of turning lead to gold - not just literally, but metaphorically - is something I'm deeply passionate about. There's a spiritual element there, rigorous and demanding, a cleansing fire," he breathed, eyes alight with the thought of it. "Frankly, I'll do just about anything that doesn't make me sick for money. It doesn't need to be anything specific," he concluded, looking back at Elrich. "But alchemy is something I must pursue. Now, about your interests...?"