Closed Insomnia PV Seren Yong

It was an interested - and sudden - transition. One second Seren had been ready to enter low earth orbit at the sound of any unexpected noise, the next she seemed perfectly fine. It wasn't stone-faced but there wasn't much of an expression on it at all. Bubba didn't want to presume - not that that stopped him - but he was pretty sure it was a mask, and at the slightest noise she'd clear the upper atmosphere in about 3.6 seconds. Still, calming down enough to at least pretend to be calm was progress, and he'd take what he can get. As she talked he could tell that she was still holding back but he wasn't going to push her.

"Don't worry about it," he said in her response to his humor, "I'm..." he searched for the right phrase, "I'm an acquired taste. Which is really a polite way of saying I can be a pain in the ass." He didn't think so but the term had been used, he thought of himself as more of a loveable rogue. "Still, sorry again for getting you all fatootsed."

He chuckled warmly at her comment about not hearing many muggle musicians, "I've gotten that one a lot since I came to Hogwarts. I'm happy in the wizarding world but I still like to celebrate the muggle part of my heritage. Also, sorry, I think I may have zoned out before, this is my parents' wedding song, and my mom..." He then proceeded to zone out again, but only for a few seconds this time, "Hey I did it again - sorry, my mom's not around anymore and well... yeah when I think about her that happens." He put on an awkward smile but entered into an embarrassed silence at that point. He supposed it wasn't really something to be embarrassed about, missing your mom, but still, he wasn't used to not being able to finish his thoughts. "Still, if you want to learn about muggle music, I'm your guy. Got my trusty phonograph here and a modest collection."

@Seren Yong

Seren's eyes went very wide at his casual description of himself as a pain in the ass. She did not think she had ever met anyone who would do that, let alone so casually drop the word in public. She was rather more used to polite words used to say less kind things, in a way that gave a veneer of respectability to behavior that was truly purest crap. And then he said a word that had her mask breaking, because her nose wrinkled and her brows scrunched together, an expression of the purest befuddlement. "Fa...Fatootsed? What in Merlin's name does THAT mean?" She had, in fact, forgotten her polite mask so thoroughly that she let herself sound almost appalled... As if she thought it might mean something ever so rude.

Which, to be fair to the slender young lady, was entirely possible. She had never heard this most bizarre word, and it could mean anything at all, in her opinion.

Her mask came back up, though, shortly after, as she refocused on the rest of the conversation currently going on. When he openly informed her (if in a slightly indirect way) that he was a half blood, she gave a small smile, genuine but not so big it would be indiscrete. She was always happy to meet someone with such a different world experience than the one she had, after all. She listened to him, and when he mentioned the song being for his parent's wedding, her expression softened... Just a little. When he zoned out once more, she tilted her head and then her brows rose when he mentioned that his mom was no longer around. Her expression went sympathetic, and she softly whispered "I am sorry to hear that... Losing those we love is never... Never easy."

She found herself thinking of her Grandmama and Grandfather, wishing they were still alive today, but then she refocused on Bubba. "I am most certainly interested in learning about Muggle Music... Music in general, really, but Muggle Music especially. I have no access to it, at all, at home, other than those moments of passing sound. Is there a lot of Muggle Music?" The question was asked with the innocence of one who had no idea how vast the world she was unfamiliar with truly was.

Bubba could tell from Seren's widening eyes that cursing probably never happened in her family. What he'd said wasn't particularly controversial, just what it is, he could definitely be a pain and he knew it. His family had always been very direct, if they didn't like something they just said it and that was that. Bubba would rather know someone was mad at him rather than them using a bunch of 20 galleon words that sounded nice and acting like everything was fine. The bigger the smile, the sharper the knife.

Bubba chuckled at her confusion of the word fatootsed, he supposed not many people in the wizarding world had heard it, let alone would know what it meant. "Fatootsed (fuh-TUTST), it's a Yiddish word, well more slang than a proper word. It means bewildered, flustered, disoriented, trust me you were definitely fatootsed."

She was definitely more under control now, her mask faltered at fatootsed but it came right back up. He knew people put on masks for a lot of different reasons, he just hoped hers might come off sooner rather than later. When he talked to someone he wanted to talk to someone, not some brave, sad, stoic, whatever front they might be putting on. He may be a pain but what you see is what you get, he would never not be himself. Still, the mask slipped a bit again when he talked about his mother's passing. Well at least there was some emotion buried deep down there, that was progress. "Yeah, it's been hard, she passed the day I got my letter." He said sadly, his mind trying to go back to that day, he had a little more self-control this time. "My dad says she would want us to get on with our lives and not dwell. It's been hard but... I'm getting there. I think being at Hogwarts actually helped, if I'd been at home in the house without her..." He trailed off again but this time it was more natural, he was just choosing not to complete thoughts that were best left unsaid.

Then she started talking about muggle music again and he thought he might have an opening. He was happy to talk about the music anyway but she seemed interested in that, so at least that might let her drop her guard a little more. He wanted her to relax and be able to have a normal conversation, which until she took her mask off and actually relaxed, probably wasn't going to happen. "Oh wow," he began with a sheepish grin, "There is a ton of muggle music. I genuinely don't know where to begin." It was true, he didn't. How do you coalesce centuries of musical history into a single conversation? He quickly realized you didn't. "So, there's too much to even scratch the surface in one conversation, but a lot of cultures have their own unique sounds. Those sounds developed in isolation and then eventually other cultures started to hear them and started putting their own twist on them."

That was a good start he thought, he could probably go a little further. He sat quietly for a moment as he tried to organize his thoughts. "For instance, Billy Joel, for the most part, plays rock and roll. Rock and roll started in the 1950s, but in the 1940s you had rhythm and blues, and before that you had gospel - that's religious music - and jazz, and all those started in the African-American communities, but once they spread they evolved." He tried to find a way to best explain it, it was tough, "Okay so, so in our world, wizards and muggles are separated. A century ago in America, white people and black people were... separated." He had a general idea about segregation but most of his history had been learned in Ireland so he couldn't give the best explanation. "In the 1950s that started to change and they started to be exposed to each other's cultures." He realized he'd gone off on a tangent, off music and onto general history. "Sorry, that might have been more than you wanted to know, but the short answer to your question is best put as more than you could ever imagine."

@Seren Yong

"Yi...ddish? What is Yiddish?" Her expression was, again, confused. "I acknowledge that this word fit how I was behaving, certainly." She might not WANT to admit that this was the case, but she was also terrible at lying and did not want to be the kind of person who lied anyways. As such, she was not going to bother attempting the lie on this situation.

His short explanation about the loss of his mother did break her mask enough that she showed honest compassion and sympathy at what he had been dealing with this school year. "I hope... I hope she got to see you receive your letter, to share in that joy. I hope that your grieving has not been making it hard on you, even if you are trying your best not to dwell. Grief is... Challenging."

Her mask came up, again, but not as hard. Her expression was a little more relaxed, and her posture was not so stiffly upright. She was not showing her emotions as openly as she had been when freaked out, but she might be relaxing around Bubba, if only out of sympathy for his loss.

When he began to talk about music and how many kinds there were, her eyes went wide again, because it had never begun to occur to her that there could be so many different musical styles, let alone that the origins could be that utterly complicated. She listened, expression becoming one of intense concentration as she absorbed all the information he was providing her. The information on the segregation made her face contort with distaste and displeasure, making her think a little too much about the way Squibs and Muggleborns were often treated by Purebloods. But the information on the music was clearly absorbed, and when he finished, she gave a soft and thoughtful sigh. Other than that, she was silent for a long moment, before nodding.

"I see. Well... I would love to learn more about the Muggle musics you have with you. I do not think I will have a better chance to learn, honestly, for many years to come." Not until she was seventeen, for sure, unless something very strange happened. There was no way that her parents would ever allow that, she knew.

"Yiddish is the language spoken by Jewish people, comes from Europe, a lot of them were wiped out in World War II but it's still spoken today." Much like segregation, he hadn't gotten to the point in muggle school where they'd study World War II and the Holocaust but he'd taken it upon himself to read about it on his own, but it wasn't really something he wanted to explain. "Boston, where I'm from, is mainly Irish Catholic but there were a few Jewish families in our neighborhood. They spoke English though, they would just use words like that here and there."

"Thanks," he said at her apology for his mother, "it's hard but," he shrugged his shoulder in a 'what can you do' manner, "it is what it is, part of life." His mind ever so briefly went back to that day and a small smile flashed across his face as he thought of the one vaguely funny part. Why not? He might as well share, "Unfortunately she didn't, the letter came about two hours after she passed." As he told the story his voice didn't have its normal flow to it, it sounded almost clipped in its stop-start manner. "Because she was pretty young and it was unexpected, the muggle coroners had to come and take her away - figure out what happened to her. So - we're sitting there while they do, well whatever they do - and that's when the owl comes," he said with a chuckle. "We were expecting it because mom and I had been talking about how it'd be there any day. The muggles, however, did not know what to make of it. Their reactions provided the one little bit of humor on that day."

He could see her eyes light up as he talked about music. Bubba thought music was one of the things that was a true unifier. Almost everyone loved music (he didn't understand people that didn't like any music, like really? you can't find a single thing you enjoy?) and music could at least start to bridge the deepest divides and bring people together. He also loved talking about it, so if Seren was willing to learn he has here for it.

Bubba picked up the record and flipped it over, starting the other side of the album, before continuing. "I'd be happy to tell you about muggle music. I love music because there's music to suit every mood, and the right piece of music speaks right to the deepest parts of you. I was telling someone else at camp that music is really its own type of magic." Now that he had the idea to talk about music, he was back at the issue of where to begin, he settled for what was in front of him. "Billy Joel is a decent starting point for someone new to muggle music. I think he's one of the best to ever do it. His music is all about the experiences of everyday people, so everyone can find something to identify with. A few years ago he got a Kennedy Center Honor - it's a really big deal back home, only the people who have had a profound influence on our culture get it." He didn't want to ramble or overload her but decided to add, "Billy Joel is what a lot of people consider 'middle of the road' meaning there's music that's harder and softer."

@Seren Yong

"World... War Two?" She said, sounding more than a little confused. She had read about big Muggle Wars happening that affected the Wizarding World, but the books had not had a lot of detail... Partly because the household library had less History Books from the past century, and the ones they DID have tended to focus on the last decade of the twentieth century, and on British History specifically. It was not that she was uneducated, perhaps, but that her education had been very lopsided, and mostly handled via self study and the portraits at home. "I do not think I have been taught about that. I am sorry. That sounds... Very terrible. I am glad, though, you got to know them, and learned some of their culture."

The part about his mom not even getting to see him get his letter made her want to hug him. She did not, as she barely knew the boy, but oh how she wanted to hug him, show him that she sympathized his loss more effectively. Instead, she just listened, and gave a soft laugh at the funny part, but still... She did not know how to respond to that... But she reached over, very shyly, and patted Bubba's hand as sympathetically as she could manage, trying her best to convey her understanding of what it is like to lose someone that was loved. After some thought, though, she finally said "I am glad that your Owl provided a moment of humor, even if it was at the hardest of times. Laughter can... At least help keep us going."

She settled back and once again began that intense listening she had done before, as if she was trying to absorb every word he had to say on the subject of music, especially muggle music. She ran her fingers along the braid of her hair, not realizing as she did that streaks of color were following her fingers. It was something she did to sooth herself, sometimes, and it had become a bit of a habit when studying in private, and apparently her subconscious found it helpful for her ability to focus on new things. When he finished talking about it, her mask fell again as she gave him a suddenly very bright smile, showing gratitude and happiness at all this new knowledge he was giving her. "Oh that is fascinating! Do you have examples with you of other kinds of music, such as these 'soft' and 'hard' rocks?" She clearly misremembered just a little bit, about the rock and roll part, but it was just as clear she was truly interested and trying to learn it all.

"Ummm..." Bubba wasn't really sure how to put it, he didn't expect to be giving muggle history lessons in the middle of the night. He didn't mind, it was just very unexpected. "So back in the 1930s there was this guy... kind of like V--err You-Know-Who but in the muggle world. He took over most of Europe, and then Japan invaded my country as well and it was just, really bad, lots of death." That was about as simple as he could make it, he didn't want to get further into it at this hour, it would just be really depressing. "I dunno I guess they might cover it in Muggle Studies or something, or I have a couple of books I can get my dad to send from home if you want to borrow them."

Bubba was nearly shocked by Seren's response to the story about the owl. All Seren did was reach over and pat him on the hand but he was pretty sure that was as good as a hug coming from her, at least in her current state. It was something, he supposed, maybe he was actually starting to get through. He hadn't been trying to engender sympathy with his story really, it was just part of his story and it made sense to bring it up. "Laughter is good. Picks us up a bit even in the darkest of times."

And then before his very eyes the mask finally came off. She stopped sitting so rigidly, and started running her fingers through her hair - he got the impression that her hair was subtly changing color as she did so - maybe she was one of the metamorphs that Alan had told him about. He decided he'd ask later, she finally seemed at ease and he didn't want to risk her clamming up again. She had a very pretty smile and he was very happy to finally actually be seeing it. "Well, soft rock isn't really my thing but I can tell you what it's like and a couple of people that play it." He had to really rack his brain for a second, soft rock really wasn't his thing but he did like a few of the artists. "Soft rock is generally played with acoustic guitars, can be slower than the 'normal' stuff, but doesn't have to be. I just personally like my music with a little more energy, but... back from the 60s and 70s, Simon and Garfunkel, they were really famous for that sound. Paul Simon went on to have a really successful solo career. James Taylor's another one, He's actually from where I'm from, has a lot of really catchy songs. I don't have any of them with me though."

Bubba was ready to switch gears to harder rock though, much more his speed. He enjoyed the energetic, heart-pounding beats and how they really got your heart going. He could've literally gone on for hours talking about it. He'd have to restrain himself. "Harder rock is more my thing, it's faster, louder, and sometimes has a harsh edge to it. You've got your rock that's just harder in general, The Who and Led Zeppelin - they're both from over here. The Who have a couple of albums that are literally rock operas - they tell an entire story, - Tommy and Quadrophenia - I have both of those with me, in my tent though, they're soooo good. And Led Zeppelin practically invented heavy metal. It's even faster, it's loud as hell. And once you get into heavy metal you have Metallica, Megadeth, and then there are different types of metal." He finally stopped himself because he realized he'd been rambling, pretty badly. "Sorry, when I start talking about it I just keep going and going, I don't mean to overload you."

@Seren Yong

Seren's expression as he talked about World War Two was filled with horror and sadness, and she shook her head, as if she did not know what to say or do in response to his explanation. When he stopped, she said "I... I. Oh gods that is terrible. I do not th... Think I am ready for that, reading about it." She shook her head again, her eyes closing for a long moment, before she continued. "M...Maybe later, when I'm older, I'll be better able to handle this. It sounds ever so horrible."

She drew her hand back, uncertain still if she had been too outgoing, too personal for a stranger, but she did not say anything. She figured if he had been bothered he would have said something. Beyond tat, she nodded quietly, watching him as he finished talking about laughter. She was not sure if she should say anything more on this issue, given everything. She rather thought it might be best if she let this topic gently slide to a close, unless he wanted to talk more about it.

"Soft rock... Paul Simon... Simon and Garfunkel..." She mumbled under her breath, clearly mentally taking notes. She then spoke normally, as if she did not realize she had been speaking out loud moments before. "So it's more... Melodic, perhaps? Or am I misunderstanding the differences? If so, I do apologize. I suppose I just associate a gentler, softer sound with something more... Melodic focused. At least, from what I've heard on the WWN, when I have had the chances to listen to it."

His energized, excited discussion about this 'harder' music had her eyes widening, as did some of the band names he mentioned. 'Megadeath'? Surely that was a mistake, who would name their band something so disturbing sounding? And yet he seemed so very certain of himself on this issue. She was not sure what to make of that. Her hand had stopped stroking her hair, and whatever colors had last been there stayed, as if settled for the moment. "I... These names all sound. Um. Aggressive, almost? I do not know how else to put it, and I do not wish to seem rude! I just am a little surprised by it. I certainly do not mind giving some of it a try but I wonder if it is for me? I... Would like to learn, though. But if it is as loud as you are saying, it is definitely NOT appropriate for this time of the night, yes?"

Bubba was quickly starting to get concerned. He had just been trying to give her a general overview of some of the history, being careful to omit the gory details. Unfortunately, even that seemed to be a bit too much for her to handle. This was not going at all to plan she looked absolutely horrified just from hearing about the most basic details. He would have to save this history lesson for another time. "Yeah, I'm sorry," he said apologetically with a worried look on his face, "For someone who's never even heard about it this is a little bit too much, I didn't mean to upset you."

When he started to talk about music again he noticed that she seemed to get more comfortable again. He made a mental note to himself just to stick to music for now, that seemed a much safer topic. She seemed interested in the softer stuff at least, from what he'd heard that seemed a bit more in tune with what they played on the WWN, based on the little he'd heard. "Melodic is a good way to put it," Bubba agreed, nodding, "I haven't heard much of WWN but what I have heard does kinda have the same light, melodic quality." He tried to think of another person to give her since she seemed interested. It took a moment but he finally did, "Oh, John Denver. He played soft rock, folk rock, some country. He made some music that's really beloved, even long after he's been gone."

He realized he'd gone too far the other way in his eager discussion of hard rock and metal. He could see her eyes widening in, may not have been shock but certainly surprise. Oh well, he thought, metal's not for everyone. "Well, metal is definitely aggressive, fast, and loud. Definitely not for everyone. To be honest it's something I have to be in the mood for." He then smiled warmly at her concern for rudeness, "It's certainly not rude, everyone has their own tastes. I would certainly say don't foreclose on the idea without hearing it but you're quite right, it's too late for that. We can save that for another time."

He thought for a moment, he was weighing whether it was worth the risk of sneaking to his tent to grab a couple more records. He certainly wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon. He would just have to hope he could avoid anyone out on patrol looking for curfew breakers. Before he would even consider doing that he needed to think of something to grab. Something quieter, better for the middle of the night. Maybe a bit slower too, introduce Seren to something a bit different. She seemed very keen to learn provided it wasn't metal. Then he had it, something that combined history that wasn't too horrifying but really cool that combined history and music. He smiled over at her and said, "Do me a favor and wait here, I'm going to go grab another record."

Bubba quickly and quietly got up, heading back towards his tent. He had been lucky, there was no one lurking between him or the tent. He crept through until he reached his bunk and, a bit slowly so as to not make any noise, opened his trunk. He didn't want to risk making any light so he had to fumble around in the darkness trying to find what he was looking for. As he did he felt something furry making a figure eight between his legs and rubbing against them. Kalle had obviously come back from, well whatever he'd been doing in the middle of the night. He reached down and scratched him on the head. After another minute he'd found what he was looking for. He tucked the two records under his arm and silently closed his chest before reaching down and picking Kalle up, holding him in the other arm. He silently crept back out of the tent and back towards where he and Seren had been talking.

He walked back in slowly and sat down, not wanting to scare her. He put Kalle down on the table next to the phonograph and scratched him behind the ear, which caused him to lie down almost immediately and start purring loudly. "Thanks for waiting," he said with a smile. He removed the The Stranger and put it back in its sleeve. He picked up a thicker sleeve and took out the first record, putting it on the phonograph and carefully setting the needle to the start of the right song but didn't start it. This lack of attention had caused Kalle to get up and start pacing the table for a moment before gently headbutting Bubba to get his attention again. Bubba picked him up and held him to his chest, gently stroking his fur while he talked to Seren.

"I think you'll find this interesting," he began as Kalle started to purr again, "This isn't rock, it's blues, by a guy named Blind Willie Johnson, he only recorded about 30 songs." He paused gave Kalle a quick kiss on the forehead, "He was blinded when he was very young, barely received any fame in his life. Then his house burned down, but he couldn't afford to move anywhere else." He paused again, carefully omitting his ultimate fate for now, "In the 1970s America made a probe - Voyager 1 - it's a spacecraft but without people - that would leave the solar system. They put a record in it with things for aliens to listen to, that would show them what humanity was." He turned on the phonograph and Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground started to play, "He died penniless, in the burned-out ruins of his home, but in 2003, Voyager 1 crossed the termination shock at the edge of the solar system, and his music went to the stars."

Interacting: @Seren Yong Mentioning: N/A

"No. No, it's not your fault. I just... Had no idea about that." She looked away, sadly. "My parents are... Not very open-minded, sadly." She chose that word carefully, and tried not to put any heavy emphasis on the words, not trying to make it too obvious that she was talking about a pair of Pureblood racists, because she did not want him thinking that maybe SHE might be like that. The last thing she wanted was anyone to get that idea about her, honestly.

She let herself stay focused on the music, from this point, because she wanted to get away from that topic as much as she could. She kept listening and murmuring under her breath as he talked, repeating certain words and concepts back, her eyes deeply focused on his face... Though not in a weird, or disturbing, creepy kind of way, of course.

When he suddenly gotten up and said to wait, she blinked, and sat up. "I... Alright, I'll wait here." She watched him head off. It was still chilly and PART of her wanted to run back to her tent to change, but she did not want him to think she had actually run off on him. As such, she simply tucked her robe even tighter around her, and turned her eyes up towards the skies above. She wished the stadium was not IN London, because she wished she could see more stars in the skies above. However, she enjoyed everything she could see, even if it was ever so limited. She found herself longing for the days when she had access to the family property in Wales she had inherited... But that would not be until she was seventeen, and as such, she made do with what she had access to.

When Bubba returned, bearing a cat AND the record, she sat up straight, in surprise, but also looked delighted. She tried to hold her fingers out to the cat, in hopes that he would approach and she could give him a nice rub. When he ignored her, and instead went straight to demand more attention from Bubba, she looked a tad disappointed, but she simply said "And who's this handsome gentleman, Bubba? You can't just bring out a lovely fellow like that and not introduce me."

When he began to play the new record, and tell her the story of the music, her eyes went wide again, because that was a heckuva story. It was sad to hear what happened in the life of that poor man but the idea that there was HUMAN things out in space? She stared at him in shock. "Wait what do you mean a spacecraft without people, Bubba? You mean PEOPLE have been to space? What? I thought that was only something that existed in silly books! And his music... Made it to space... Oh wow."