25 Sep 2023, 02:57
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
Date: August 14, 2023 | Time: 8:00 AM | Language: French – English | WC: 2126
Interacting with: | Mentioning:
Celeste - Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Interacting with: | Mentioning:
Celeste - Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
On August 8th, 2023, a letter was delivered on the doorstep of the Schwartz family home. It was addressed to "Stephen Schwartz and family" and reads as so:
August 14, 2023August 7, 2023
Dear Schwartz Family,
Hello. My name is Victor LaChance. My daughter, EmmaLee, has become very good friends with your son, Stephen. As it happens, our family, including my wife, Celeste, and my youngest daughter, Chlo, and our family friend, Kiernan, will be spending a day in San Francisco on August 14th, 2023. EmmaLee has asked me if Stephen may join us, since your family lives in the San Francisco area.
We plan to see a few of the city's tourist attractions and also visit the wizard shopping district. We will provide everything Stephen will need for the day, if he is allowed to join us. We could also shop for his school supplies while we're there if that would be convenient for you, but you may want to do that with him yourself, so I understand if you decline.
Please meet us at the carousel in the Golden Gate State Park at 10 AM or, if you prefer, we would be able pick Stephen up by car from your house or workplace. Whichever you are more comfortable with and able to arrange. We intend to have him home by 10 PM if that will suit you. Otherwise let me know.
Please send a prompt reply by owl or by USPS.
Thank you for you time,
Victor LaChance
CEO of Lenape Remedies
5*41 Broadway
New York, NY 10034
On the morning of August 14, EmmaLee practically floated down the stairs to breakfast. Well, to be more accurate, she floated in much the same way that a fighter jet plane floats over the country on it's way to a rescue mission. Her parents both laughed as she dragged them and her friend, Kiernan, out of bed and rushed them to get ready.
The group had landed in San Francisco late the previous evening, ate dinner, and checked into their hotel, after spending two weeks in New York with Kiernan, and their other friends, Alura and Grace. The three girls had even gotten to see a few of the New York no-maj tourist attractions while they were there with a new friend they met at Ebbingdales Wonders for Wizards.
That adventure capped the fact that EmmaLee had had such a great time at the Hogwarts summer camp. She had been able to bring her cat, Minx, this year and have a good time with her, she had met a bunch of fun, new people and had a good time hanging out with them, and she had been able to spend a wonderful amount of time with a particular friend, Stephen Schwartz. This time at summer camp was almost the complete opposite experience of last year and EmmaLee was glad that she had given it a second chance.
Stephen Schwartz was, in fact, the main source of her excitement this particular morning. Her stepfather, Victor, had arranged with Stephen's father for Stephen to join then on their sightseeing day here is San Francisco. They were going to meet him at the carousel in Golden Gate State Park.
EmmaLee had dressed today in the same yellow sundress that she wore to the Gnome races, cute, white sandals with lace flowers on the straps, and a floppy straw sunhat with white scarf material tied around the crown. She smoothed her skirt over her pale knees as their server brought their food and placed EmmaLee's bacon, over medium eggs, and toast in front of her. She ate her food as quick as possible for such a small girl and raised an almost invisible white eyebrow as her parents chuckled at her excitement. Her friend, Kiernan, a taller, tan, athletic boy with a crop of wavy black hair and a scowl to curdle milk, stabbed at his own scrambled eggs as if they had insulted his mother and shoved them around his plate to torture them.
"Mon Etoile, you need not rush so." EmmaLee's mother, Celeste, said in between chortles as EmmaLee's sister, Chlo, tugged at the spoon in her mother's hand. Celeste was a thin, elegant woman with EmmaLee's pale skin, but lacking her white hair. Celeste had long, midnight black hair that was turning more of a soft charcoal with age and a medium sized white streak sectioning what would have been bangs into one- and two-thirds. This black mass was tamed silkily into a French knot at the nape of her neck. "Giving yourself a stomach ache will not make time go any faster and we are far from late to meet your friend." Celeste finished, gesturing to a clock on the wall that showed 8:00 AM on a beautifully gilded clock face. Celeste popped the yogurt-filled spoon into her youngest daughter's mouth, with one more chuckle at her older daughter. Chlo was 8 months old and looked like EmmaLee's miniscule copy with a cloud of fluffy, curly white hair, wide, sapphire blue eyes, and pale skin. Chlo though, had a small starburst birth mark just under her left eye.
"Oui, Maman." Yes, Mother. EmmaLee said, visibly trying to slow down her eating, but not having much success. As EmmaLee tried to slow down, Kiernan seemed to speed up, wolfing down his food like a demon and shoving a cleared plate away from him with so much force that it chinked against Victor's plate on the other side on the table.
Victor, EmmaLee's stepfather, was a mountain of a man. Easily 6'4 with broad shoulders, he towered over the woman and children sharing his table even though all were seated. He had close cut red hair and a short, full beard and mustache to match. Victor LaChance was the kind of man who would not look out of place in a biker bar, but also easily blended in in the board room. Today he was wearing a black T-shirt, under a casual, stylish black jacket, dark wash blue jeans, and black running sneakers. He looked over his San Francisco with a raised eyebrow.
"Something the matter, Nan?" He asked, folding the paper and setting it beside his plate, before reaching over to stack Kiernan's plate on top on his own empty one. He began collecting empty plates and exhausted silverware and stacking them on top of his own. "I would think some food would lighten your mood, not make it worse."
"I'm fine." Kiernan snapped as a server brought over clean plates and a large tray of various breakfast breads, including chocolate croissants, raspberry croissants, small pancakes, and French toast. He snatched a chocolate croissant and munched on it grumpily. "Sir." He added as Victor raised his red eyebrow even higher.
"Oooooo-kay then." Victor said, handing his stack of dishes to the server without taking his eyes off of Kiernan. "Maybe you'll feel better once we've gotten started." Kiernan made no comment about this, but definitely seemed to be less violent as the group completed their breakfast. After they had had their fill, Victor paid and they headed out into the lobby of the hotel. Celeste, with Chlo on her hip, put a hand on Victor's shoulder to stop him.
"I think Chlo and I would rather stay 'ere this time, Victor. San Francisco is a lot to drag a baby around when she won't 'ave a lot of interest in what you are doing and we will slow you all down." Celeste said, with a smile. Chlo wrinkled her nose a little, as if beginning to understand the direction this conversation was going. "Six people also make for a large group to be traipsing around the city."
"Are you sure, my love?" Victor asked, almost pouting as he turned to his wife. It wasn't that he didn't want to be alone with the children, but he was loathe to do anything without her, including work, which was why he took her everywhere he could get her to go. Such was the still love-struck puppy Victor LaChance.
"I 'ave seen this city many times and I shall see it many more times. Go 'ave fun with the older children, and I will keep Chlo 'ere. Also, your plans would interfere with her afternoon nap and that would be a nightmare." Celeste said with a laugh. As soon as she said "Chlo" and "here", said child began to whimper and reach for her sister, making sounds like "Lehleh, Lehleh". EmmaLee laughed and hugged her mother and sister, then took Chlo's hands in hers and nuzzled the baby's nose.
"It will only be for the day. We will be back very soon. 'Ave fun with Maman." EmmaLee said, kissing Chlo on the forehead and moving back over to stand next to Victor. Kiernan was scowling next to the door, contained, but still clearly in some sort of bad mood.
"Well, alright then." Victor said, almost whining himself with a pout as big as his youngest daughter's. "Have fun you two." He and EmmaLee waved as Celeste turned towards the hotel elevator. Chlo reached over Celeste's shoulder for EmmaLee, large tears rolling down her cheeks but only small gaspy whines escaping her mouth. Victor chuckled.
"You'd think you were her mom instead of Celeste." He said to EmmaLee, turning around and walking with EmmaLee towards Kiernan and out the door. "Well, I guess we're down to four then. Won't need such a big car. I'll be right back." He walked over to a small stand that said "Valet and Car Rental" over it and was manned by a well dressed man in a suit and cap. EmmaLee turned to Kiernan.
"What's got you in such a knot this morning, Nan?" EmmaLee said, moving so that she was about an inch from his face. Kiernan scoffed, rolled his entire face, stepped back from her with one overlarge step and crossed his arms.
"Better to stay here with the baby than hang out in this smelly city." Kiernan scoffed, almost turning his nose up in the air, but apparently resisting the urge. EmmaLee's mouth dropped open.
"You 'aven't even been 'ere yet!" EmmaLee said, obviously shocked at his behavior. What had gotten into him this morning? Kiernan was never this rude. He wasn't exactly the picture of polite company and tact, but he certainly wasn't one to insult people or things out of the blue like that.
"You 'aven't even been 'ere yet." He mimicked, rolling his face again. "I don't need to be here to know I don't want to be here. I did not sign up for this little adventure with your dippy little friend."
"Alright, that sounds like enough out of you, young man." Victor interjected before EmmaLee could respond herself. He knelt down to look Kiernan in the face, his own face stern, but not punishing. "Look, I know that this was a bit sprung on you, but it was on the way and I thought it would be fun to show you guys a city I am particularly fond of. Then E mentioned that her new friend lives nearby. Indulge an old man his reminiscing for the day and we'll be eating sushi and playing video games in Japan before you know it." Victor offered, putting a hand on Kiernan's shoulder and smiling wide at him, still managing a stern look that said, "You will behave or there will be consequences."
Kiernan stared at him for a long moment with a calculating look on his face, like someone who's principal had told them that they have to be on the school dance committee or repeat math. "Ok, Mr. LaChance. I'll try to give it a shot." He said, crooking his arm with his thumb up and swinging it across his torso with a definite sarcastic attitude.
"That's my boy." Victor said as he patted him on the back and stood up as a black Toyota Crown pulled up next to them and the valet from earlier stepped out. He held out the keys the key to Victor and said, "Your car, sir." before opening the back seat for Kiernan and EmmaLee. Kiernan silently gestured for EmmaLee to enter first before sliding in next to her. The car ride was silent except for Victor playing Billy Joel on the radio of the car. EmmaLee looked out the window excitedly as Kiernan slumped in his seat, resigned to his fate, but determined to not have a good time, at least for now.
The black car sped them through the city, as fast as your can get through San Francisco on a Monday morning at 9AM, and soon they arrived at Golden Gate Park, parked their car, and headed towards the carousel.
Reducio
@AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz
Last edited by EmmaLee LeDames on 10 Oct 2023, 21:24, edited 1 time in total.
Fearless | Calming Presence | E.L. | Prodigal Transfiguration
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
2 Oct 2023, 00:01
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
On the morning of August 8, 2023, Stephen was coming back from his run. As he reached the driveway, he stopped and did some stretches and breathing to cool down before entering the house. As he was stretching in the shade, he looked over and saw a letter resting just above the door handle, wedged into the door jamb just a bit. A pink sticky note in the neighbor's handwriting stated that this had been mistakenly delivered to their mailbox instead of to the Schwartz's.
Stephen thought nothing of it and was going to just walk inside and place it on the mail butler with the other mail until he looked at the return address. Victor LaChance! That was EmmaLee's step-father. He knew the letter was addressed to his father, but Stephen ripped into it immediately and lapped up every word as his eyes moved back and forth across the page, typewriter style. The only thing missing was the dinging sound as his eyes came to the end of each line.
He knew he and EmmaLee had talked about the possibility of meeting up in San Francisco before her trip to Japan, but he did not really expect it to happen. Now he had confirmation and he pulled his phone out of his pocket and immediately dialed up his father.
Walking down the hallway and into the laundry room, he grabbed a folded hand towel and began to wipe himself down before he dripped all over the floors. Mrs. Tramel worked too hard to keep things in order for him and his father for Stephen to make unnecessary work for her. As he heard the drone of the third ring hum in his ear, Stephen was feeling certain he would get the all too familiar voicemail message, but it was a morning for surprises apparently. Instead of a fourth droning hum, he heard the click on the other end as his father actually answered.
"Everything okay, son? I have, at best, two minutes. I'm about to head into a meeting." His father did not sound irritated or even concerned, regardless of his question. In fact, he didn't even wait to hear that Stephen was actually okay. What he sounded like, as he always did, was rushed and distracted.
"Yes, Sir. Everything's fine. We received mail from the father of one of my friends from Hogwarts, and -..."
Hogwarts? What's a Hogwarts?" he interrupted by asking, while not listening to Stephen give his answer. As if his mouth were now two feet from his phone, Stephen heard David Schwartz's distant, " Oh. Right, right. That Scottish scho-...," and he cut off his own sentence before continuing with his personal assistant. "Hey, Karina, be sure to reach Clements before 1 pm this afternoon. I need time to look over and finalize the contract before the courier picks it up. The last pick up time is 4:30. That is priority one, understood? Stephen heard Karina in the background but no crisp details as to what she said. She had worked for his father for years, so Stephen just took it for granted that she did, in fact, understand. Stephen knew their time was short so he interjected before his father completely shut him down and hung up on him.
"Dad, they're coming to San Francisco, on the 14th, and they've invited me to spend the day with them? May I, please? I can ride into town with you and then BART over to Golden Gate Park or, better still, you could drop me off and meet them. I'd love for you to meet my... my... friend."
Let me think about it, Stephen. You're certainly free to see your friend and his fam-...."
"Her family, Dad. Her," Stephen interrupted, punching the stack of folded towels in front of him out of frustration. "Her name is EmmaLee. EmmaLee LeDames, Dad." Stephen had told him this a number of times. If LeDames had been the name of a golf resort or some hoidy-toidy day spa, Stephen had no doubt his father would've remembered everything he'd been told about her after one sitting.
"Right, right. Her family. You may go. I'll see if I can drop you off at the park. I'll be heading down to Santa Cruz for a luncheon that afternoon, but it may be cutting it close. I can meet her and her family then if I'm not feeling too pressed for time, okay?" And without waiting for an answer, he ended their conversation abruptly with a "I'll see you tonight."
Click.
Stephen brought his phone down from his ear and looked at it in disbelief. His father actually said he might come. This was nearly unprecedented behavior. He doubted it would happen, but it was surprising to hear at any rate.
He picked up the towels and folded them so Mrs. Tramel did not have to. He then ran upstairs to his bedroom and jumped into the shower before calling EmmaLee. He was happy to tell her he would be there, one way or the other, on the 14th and that he was looking forward to it. He did not mention anything about his father meeting them because he still felt that was an unlikely scenario, but getting to spend time with her was the main thing anyway. He knew from EmmaLee that her folks were going to want to speak to his father, even if over the phone, so Stephen told her he would contact Karina directly and get her to put it on his father's calendar. It was the only fail proof method he could think of to make sure that much, at least, happened.
===========
August 14, 2023
The car pulled up and, unbelievably, they managed to get a terrific parking spot. David Schwartz pushed the button and the motor turned off. He looked over to Stephen and smiled and then he looked at his watch. "We made excellent time. We're even early. Maybe they'll be as well. Come on. Let's go."
He didn't have to ask Stephen twice. He hopped out of the BMW and hurriedly moved to the front of the car. "Did I ever tell you I proposed to your mother in this park?" It was a rhetorical question. He had told him. Only about 12 times 100 times. David Schwartz was now looking off in the distance, in the direction of the Japanese Garden. He shook his head and just kept moving. Stephen remained silent. His father was thinking of his Mom and Stephen had his own thoughts swirling in his head.
Looking towards the carousel building, Stephen could swear he saw her up ahead. White hair. Check. Yellow dress? Double check. "She's here. I mean, they're here already." As the father and son drew closer, he waved to EmmaLee who waved back.
The kids said their hellos to each other first while the fathers introduced themselves to each other. Then EmmaLee introduced her step-father to Stephen and both shook hands. Nice to meet you, Sir, and thank you for the invitation to spend the day with you. And then he turned to his father before quickly turning his gaze to EmmaLee. He was not certain what the etiquette rule was for introductions, but it felt more gentlemanly to introduce EmmaLee to his father than the other way around.
Grinning widely, he presented her to his father. "EmmaLee, this is my father, David Schwartz. Dad, this is EmmaLee LeDames. She goes to Hogwarts. We met last summer at camp in London."
Stephen was trying so hard to make a nice impression that he had completely overlooked the scowling boy standing not too far from Mr. LaChance. Had Stephen seen him, he would have recognized him from his own school, but he would not have been able to tell a soul anything about the kid. He was not then, nor had he ever been, a second thought in Stephen's mind.
That would soon change.
------- ----------- -------
The magic is real.
16 Oct 2023, 16:41
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
Date: August 14, 2023 | Time: 9:45 AM | Language: French – English | WC: 734
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Thankfully, whether due to the day, the time of the day, or some happy miracle, the park was not exceptionally busy today. So it was easy for a very expectant and watchful EmmaLee to spot Stephen and his father coming into the park. EmmaLee beamed as she saw Stephen wave and waved back. She couldn't help but rush towards them in excitement, jogging a few yards to meet up with them as she heard Victor chuckle behind her and follow at a much more calm pace.
"Just leave me here then." Kiernan called as she took off, but as his jab went unnoticed by both Victor and EmmaLee, one on purpose and the other in her excitement, he scowled and followed reluctantly at an even slower, begrudging pace.
"It's good to meet you, David." Victor said with a wide, genuine smile after a firm handshake and introductions. "Thank you for letting Stephen join us and taking the time to meet us. EmmaLee has grown very fond of Stephen and says nothing but good things about him." EmmaLee blushed and clasped her hands behind her back in an embarrassed way at having been outed, so to speak, talking about Stephen, but Victor took no mind and continued on after Stephen's introduction.
"It is good to meet you, as well young man." He said, as he shook Stephen's hand. "Good grip." He then turned to drag Kiernan into the group by his shoulders as the boy sloughed up to them and EmmaLee curtsied to Stephen's father.
"I am very glad to meet you, Mr. Schwartz." She said, politely, then straightened up and turned to gesture towards Kiernan. "My mother and sister, Chlo, decided to stay at the 'otel, but they will be meeting us for dinner, and this is my childhood friend, Kiernan. 'E is a year younger than Stephen at Ilvermorny and is in the Thunderbird 'ouse." Victor gave Kiernan a small poke in the back when he didn't move at first and the despondent boy stepped forward to shake Mr. Schwartz and then Stephen's hands, grasping both like a particularly slimy toad he had been forced to interact with.
"Nice to meet you." He said, deadpan, before stepping back to stand almost behind Victor, effectively ejecting himself from the group. EmmaLee gave an almost indiscernible huff of exasperation before turning back to Stephen and his father, beaming.
"Papa Victor is 'ere often for business, but this is my first time in San Francisco. I'm very excited to see it. It is a beautiful city so far." She said brightly. Kiernan gave a very discernible huff in clear disagreement and EmmaLee shot his a motherly look as if to silently tell him to behave before turning back to the native pair. "What is your favorite part of the city, Mr. Schwartz?"
"I thought it would be a good moment to show her the city. Nan here is a tag-a-long to Tokyo." Victor explained, with a chuckle, nudging Kiernan as he mentioned him. Kiernan rolled his face and stepped out of Victor's reach.
"Not that this isn't the best time of my life, getting poked at, but I'm going back to the carousel until you all are done with whatever this is." He said, crossing his arms and stalking off before another word was said. "And don't call me Nan." He shot back over his shoulder. EmmaLee blinked for a moment in stunned surprise before she shot an angry look at his back, then turned apologetically to the Schwartz'.
"I'm very sorry for 'is rudeness. I'm not sure what 'as gotten into 'im today. 'E isn't usually this surly." She said with a slight bow of her head. Victor put a comforting hand on her shoulder
"Don't worry, E. He'll come around." He assured, turning his attention back to David. "Would you like us to pick up Stephen's school supplies while we're out? Or would you rather do that yourself?" He offered. As the adults conversed and made arrangements for Stephen to get home and when, EmmaLee turned back to Stephen, a slight blush on her cheeks and hands clasped nervously.
"I know it's a bit childish, but would you like to ride the carousel with me while our fathers talk?" She asked, looking up at his shyly though the fringe of her white bangs. "I can go on my own if you don't want to." She added sheepishly.
Last edited by EmmaLee LeDames on 13 Nov 2023, 01:20, edited 1 time in total.
Fearless | Calming Presence | E.L. | Prodigal Transfiguration
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
22 Oct 2023, 23:59
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
[quote]He may have grinned just a little more than usual when Mr. LaChance mentioned that he had a good grip. It was one of the things his father and grandfather had instilled upon him from an early age - the importance of a firm handshake. Check. It seemed to have made a bit of a favorable impression already, and for that, Stephen was grateful.
He then scrutinized his father's face and every intonation of every syllable he uttered upon meeting EmmaLee. His father tended not to be very present in such things as introductions when they didn't impact his business life, and this little gathering wasn't likely to reap any benefits on that front for him, but Stephen was happily surprised to hear a great deal of enthusiasm from his father while meeting EmmaLee. His eyes tracked her curtsy and a smile sparked in his emerald eyes instantly.
"EmmaLee, I'm charmed - utterly charmed," and the smile in his eyes could actually be seen on his face and heard in the lightness and gaiety of his voice. David Schwartz shot a glance to his son and the smile grew even wider as he stepped closer and put a strong hand on his son's right shoulder. "I can say in all honesty we've both been looking forward to today. Stephen probably even more than me, naturally," and he chuckled as he squeezed his son's shoulder and then released his grip, stepping back.
Stephen, under normal circumstances, would have been embarrassed that so much of his feelings had been so easily given away, but he was in too much shock at what he was experiencing of his father in these moments. He'd seen this side of him only a few times, but it had always left him wishing for more. He turned to EmmaLee and smiled at her, grateful that everything seemed to be going so well. So he was in a wonderful mood by the time she made her introduction of Kiernan.
Stephen was surprised he was there. Had she mentioned that Keirnan was coming and he had forgotten? It was entirely possible. He'd been rather singularly focused on other things for the past week or so. He had, of course, heard so much about her friends at Ilvermorny, and so it was with that commonality in mind that he immediately shot his hand out to shake hands with Kiernan. Even in his euphoric state it didn't escape Stephen's notice that EmmaLee's friend was out of sorts. Way out of sorts. It was on the tip of his tongue to ask him how he was enjoying being a Thunderbird, but the boy had slunk his way behind her father.
EmmaLee huffed at Kiernan which caught Stephen's attention. The boy could be hungry or bored or shy or any number of things that had nothing in the world to do with Stephen, but he was not acting like she had described him. Perhaps they had had a squabble before they'd gotten to the park. It was possible. As he heard his own father respond to EmmaLee's statement that San Francisco was indeed a beautiful city, Kiernan let out an audible scoff. Stephen turned his full attention to the boy in that moment and everything was suddenly clear, well not everything, but quite a lot. It was Stephen and his father that had him out of sorts. That and being called "Nan". Stephen couldn't blame him there. He himself detested nicknames, well, any nickname for his own given name at least, and Nan was a particularly effeminate one for a boy in the Thunderbird house. As Kiernan made quite a little scene and left their group, EmmaLee looked equal measures surprised, angry, and confused.
He smiled at her and said simply, "It's okay."
Ignoring the jab at what Stephen knew to be his father's favorite city in the world as he watched Kiernan walk off in a huff, he heard his father reply to EmmaLee that the Japanese Garden in this very park was his most favorite place, not only in this city, but anywhere. Mention of that immediately dimmed the joy and lightness in his father's demeanor, but did not snuff it out entirely. Stephen knew he just missed Stephen's mother. After 13 years, the man was still in love with his dead wife.
The adults began to turn the talk to itinerary and EmmaLee asked him if he would like to go to the carousel with her. "Sure. I haven't been there in years. It'll be fun." He caught his father's attention and told him he was going to head over to the carousel and would see him later that evening. Then he wished him a safe drive down to Santa Cruz and was off with EmmaLee.
They could have caught up to Kiernan, but Stephen nixed that idea with his question. "Did you two have a disagreement before getting here this morning or is he peeved about me in particular for some reason?"
When they got to the door, Stephen opened it up for her. He bought their tickets and was glad to see that while it was not too awfully busy, it was not just the three of them. That would have been awwwwwwkwarrrrd. The music was loud enough that it gave him a reprieve from having to talk to the kid who clearly did not want to talk to him. As they moved up in the line just behind Kiernan, waiting for their turn to get on once the music stopped, Stephen leaned down and had to yell a bit as he asked EmmaLee what she wanted to sit upon? "A traditional carousel horse or something more exotic, like a badger?" and he laughed.
He didn't care what she wanted to sit on or where. He knew already he'd be sitting next to her, going up as she went down and vice versa. The second go around, however, he would take an outside seat as he knew he'd want to be grabbing for the brass ring for the ring toss.
Competition. It was in his blood.
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@EmmaLee LeDames
The magic is real.
13 Nov 2023, 01:24
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
Date: August 14, 2023 | Time: 9:45 AM | Language: French – English | WC: 1455
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
EmmaLee frowned and sighed as she and Stephen walked away from their fathers and he posed the inevitable question about Kiernan's mood. It was becoming quite clear, despite her stepfather's optimism, that this trend would not be changing any time soon.
"I really don't know what's gotten into 'im, but I don't think it 'as a lot to do with you particularly." She said, putting a knuckle to her lip in thought as they walked. "'E was really grumpy about not going straight to Tokyo, but it didn't seem to bother 'im this much last night or when we told 'im about it." EmmaLee watched her other friend as he charged ahead of them towards the carousel house, arms crossed.
When Kiernan opened the door, he turned to look at them, rolled his face, and stomped inside. EmmaLee frowned deeper. She could see through the windows at this distance as he paid for his ticket and joined the line of people waiting for the next ride. While he was clearly irritated, one could see through his body language that he was respectful to the person giving out tickets, giving the adult a polite nod as he said 'thank you', and that he was sure not to bump into or run over anyone as he got in line. It seemed his rudeness was reserved for his companions only and he was at least capable of not taking his anger out on strangers.
"Alura and Grace 'ave said that 'e's been increasingly short tempered ever since 'e didn't make any of the school sports teams, not even dueling or quodpot. 'E 'as also been very short in responding to my messages all year." She continued with another sigh. "Admittedly, I was 'oping to use our vacation to see if I could figure 'im out. I promise that 'e's not usually like this, or 'e 'asn't been. I was actually excited for you two to meet, as you 'ave a fair bit in common and I thought you'd get along rather well." She finished apologetically and bowing her head in thanks as Stephen opened the door for her and they headed inside.
As the pair entered the carousel house, EmmaLee marveled at the huge, elaborate ride. Sure, she had seen it from the outside while waiting for Stephen, but seeing it on this side of the window was a different story. It was a magnificent sight. A great, leaping menagerie of horses, of course, but also frogs, cats, dogs, ostriches, pigs, and even roosters, which actually made EmmaLee giggle a little. Her attention was drawn away from the twinkling lights and animals as Stephen paid for her ticket and guided her over to the line behind Kiernan, who was staunchly refusing to turn around and speak to them.
"I was supposed to buy that, you sneaky. Papa Victor gave me money to spend for us to do things, but thank you." She commented with a playful smile, pretending to be offended about his paying her fare. She giggled as he suggested a badger to ride. Oh, if there was one.
"Just because I am a 'Ufflepuff doesn't mean that I am obsessed with badgers and yellow, y'know." She said, faking offense once more before sending him a playful smirk. "But I mean, I would definitely take a badger, if I 'ad seen one. There are a couple of roosters and some frogs, though, which are amusing." She said, gesturing to a rooster on the second row as it glided past and a frog further down the ride. "When will I ever possibly 'ave the chance to ride a gigantic rooster." She said with a wide smile and another laugh at the idea or riding a rooster in real life, or a frog for that matter.
When the carousel slowed down to a stop and the gate swung open to let them on, Kiernan turned abruptly, seized EmmaLee's hand, and ran with her in tow to the other side of the carousel where her poultry steed awaited, leaving Stephen in the dust. EmmaLee called out in surprise and tried to grab Stephen to pull him along as well, but only succeeded in grazing the back of his hand with the tips of her fingers.
Once they were at their chosen animals, Kiernan attempted to help EmmaLee onto the rooster, but she pouted at him and refused to get on the ride until Stephen caught up with them. Her scolding was falling on deaf ears as Stephen came up to them and EmmaLee finally climbed up on the animal, apologizing once again. Kiernan, for his part, wordlessly took the black goat on the outer row next to her, leaving Stephen the horse to her left, and set his sights on the ring prize.
During the first go around, EmmaLee laughed as they progressed going up and down and she waved to her stepfather as he finally appeared in the carousel house also, having finished his conversation with David Schwartz. He leaned against that railing to watch, having to bend almost to a 90 degree angle due to his height. Kiernan tried unsuccessfully to grab the precious golden ring, and became more and more frustrated with the task for every failure. There was more than one utterance that it was a "stupid child's game anyway" but when the ring came around again, he made another, useless grab at it.
During the second go, EmmaLee moved to the white horse in front of Kiernan to have her own go at the ring, but just had to laugh at her completely useless attempts as her arms were too short and her timing way too off to even come close. Even she couldn't get mad when the target was so far out of her reach. At least Kiernan could graze the thing a couple of times, however futile that seemed to be.
The moment the carousel started to slow down, Kiernan wrenched himself off his goat and charged towards the exit gate in a fury, vaulting over it and stalking out of the carousel house. The attendant didn't even have time to ask everyone to please remain seated until the ride came to a full stop before the door clanged shut behind the boy. Many riders looked on at the scene as the ride grinded to a halt and EmmaLee herself looked from the door and Kiernan's retreating back to Stephen's own bewildered face. She looked back and forth from Stephen to the door until she finally squeaked out an apology. Again.
"I'm sorry, Stephen." She said, a pained look of her face as she was ripped between her duty to her 'guest', the person she had invited on this adventure, the person she had seen a mere two weeks ago but was bubbly with excitement to see again, and her duty to her apparently suffering friend. Was she risking her friendship with Stephen by going after Kiernan? What if Kiernan was just being a possessive brat and she should stay to teach him a lesson? What if he wasn't? What if something was really terribly wrong with Kiernan that he was acting this way? Would she be able to forgive herself if she ignored it and found out the truth later?
"I need to go after 'im and settle what this bad attitude is about. Forgive me. I'll be right back." She said, sliding off the horse and patting his hand apologetically as she turned and, as politely as possible with the urgency, pushed through the crowd of other people exiting and followed after her other friend. She gave one last, worried look towards Stephen and then Victor, who was making his own way around to the children and the exit, before pushing out into the sunshine once more.
At this point, EmmaLee was equal parts worried and furious at her old friend. In all her time of knowing Kiernan, he had never acted this disrespectful and rude. Sure, he could be selfish, self-absorbed, and even a little obnoxious sometimes, but never outright purposefully rude. Better manners were expected of him than that. Maybe if EmmaLee could weed out the problem, they could deal with it and all three of them could have the fun day the EmmaLee had originally planned. She had even hoped they could find a place to play a little Quodpot, the only reason EmmaLee would purposefully get on a broom.
Back at the carousel house, Victor caught up with Stephen at the door and guided him to follow after EmmaLee and Kiernan at a much calmer pace. "We better go after them and not get too split up." He said, oddly calm as they walked after the two.
Fearless | Calming Presence | E.L. | Prodigal Transfiguration
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
5 Dec 2023, 08:30
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
[quote]One moment she was standing there and in what seemed but a few blinks of the eye, Kiernan had whisked her off. Stephen felt her fingers glance off of his hand as she was pulled away and he looked down briefly before charging right after them. He smiled when he saw Kiernan had led EmmaLee over to a rooster. Good. That is what she had wanted to ride. He looked on in bemused silence as Kiernan attempted to help EmmaLee onto the rooster, but his sly fox gambit had not paid off in the least. She, like her chosen ride, was no hen to be bullied.
Stephen just smiled and started to move forward from the edge of the carousel, but Kiernan was a boy on a mission. He simply could not get on the outer carousel animal next to EmmaLee fast enough. Stephen snorted a little laugh when the dawning realization crossed Kiernan's face that he'd be riding a goat.
It was a handsome goat, no question about it, but not nearly as handsome as the black steed Stephen would be seated upon next to EmmaLee's other side. As he easily mounted it with an elegant hop, he grinned over at EmmaLee. "This fine specimen, also made of wood, reminds me a bit of my faithful broom-steed, Onyx, during the Knight's Tourney at the last Spring Court Ball. Remember him, EmmaLee? I bet good ol' Onyx was a lot faster though, if I'm being honest," and he laughed just as the music started and round and round they went.
He went up and she went down. She went up and he went down. And Kiernan? His goat was just along for the ride and stayed still. The kid tried a number of times to get the ring for the toss, but he never quite got his aim or his timing right. The music made it hard to hear each other, so there was no talking, but Stephen could see the frustration written all over his face.
When the carousel finally came to a halt, Stephen was quicker on his feet this time than his younger counterpart. He deftly hopped off to his right and offered his hand to help EmmaLee down. She giggled and raced off to the black and white horse in front of Kiernan. Stephen followed behind and once she was settled, he hopped onto the camel directly in front of her. It was much lower than the previous steed, and was static, so it would not move up and down like the interior animals did, but that was fine. He was tall and lanky for his age, so reaching for the brass ring was not going to be too much of a challenge, or at least he hoped it would not.
The next few minutes, Stephen was all about the gathering of the rings. EmmaLee was behind him so he couldn't easily see her or talk to her anyway, but he didn't feel guilty about it at all. Each time he got to the dispenser, he managed to grab at least two rings. One time he even grabbed three. He tossed them at the target during each revolution and was pleased his aim was on point each time. He knew the rings could not leave the carousel enclosure, but he reserved one for EmmaLee to toss on their way out after their final dismounts, just in case she was unable to reach them herself. Unlike Stephen, she was quite petite, so he could easily imagine her getting no rings to toss.
When the revolutions began to slow, he heard a very disgruntled Kiernan exclaim his displeasure about who knew what and was then surprised to see him hop off the still moving carousel. This kid was determined to make the day miserable for whatever reason. Stephen really did not care but for the fact that it put EmmaLee on edge and made her unhappy.
He watched her watch Kiernan, and he just kept trying to reassure her that all was well, with them at least. She apologized one last time and headed after her friend. He watched her maneuver through the crowd and out the door, hot on his trail and more than a little hot under the collar.
As Victor LaChance made his way over, Stephen was unknowingly playing with the ring he had reserved for EmmaLee. He snapped out of his thoughts and tossed it at the target from a good 20 feet away, using a well practiced basketball aim and release shot that hit its mark perfectly. "That's what I'm talking about," he enthused to no one in particular as he pumped his hand in the air in some imagined victory.
When Mr. LaChance spoke about keeping EmmaLee and Kiernan somewhat near, Stephen nodded obligingly. It was becoming increasingly more difficult to ignore whatever was going on with her friend, but he had a shot at getting some answers here, so he would try.
"Have you any idea what is going on with Kiernan, Sir? Is he just generally upset or is he upset in particular with me? The last thing I'd want to do is create a rift between the two, so if you know of anything I can do to ease some tensions, I'm all ears."
------- ----------- -------
@EmmaLee LeDames
The magic is real.
7 Jan 2024, 03:40
City Rivalry or Shall I Leave My Heart in San Francisco?
Date: August 14, 2023 | Time: Late Morning | Language: French – English | WC: 1882
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Interacting with: @AngelFyre McCubbin as Stephen Schwartz | Mentioning:
Victor - Kiernan
EmmaLee speaks with a light French accent.
Victor chuckled in a sad sort of way and casually put his hands in his pockets as they headed in the direction of the other two. He seemed to be a weird mixture of both bothered and unbothered by the situation at hand.
"Oh." He started thoughtfully. "I think you are merely the last straw. You could have been anyone." After a moment, EmmaLee's white hair swinging behind her as she ran and Kiernan, sitting curled up under a tree with his dark head between his knees, came into view.
"If I have your father pegged right, you may understand a bit of his problem. A busy man who loves his son but has high expectations of him." Victor raised a questioning eyebrow in Stephen's direction, giving the boy a moment to confirm his assumption before continuing. "Kiernan, though, comes from a very old and powerful pureblood family, think the Rockafellers or the Kennedys. His family doesn't just have high expectations, they expect perfection and up until now, Kiernan has met those expectations." Victor sighed ran a hand through his hair, then stroked his beard thoughtfully.
"Kiernan is the type of person who is good at everything he tries without practice or effort. He has a small social circle, so he has rarely, if ever, encountered any real competition. Going to Ilvermorny and finding out there are people out there who are better at a lot of things than him, on top of not meeting the athletic expectations his family had for him, has tipped his self image a bit. He had a plan and a course set for his life and his year has not gone according to plan." Victor continued, stopping just out of earshot of the pair and watching as EmmaLee crouched down and started talking to Kiernan. She reached forward and lifted his head up to talk to her and even at this distance, his cheeks sparkled with tears. The girl took her thumb and wiped his cheeks as they started to discuss.
"The last thing in his life that needs to change right now is his best friend and she has changed so much. He didn't necessarily want her to be alone at Hogwarts, he wanted her to make friends and be happy there, but he didn't consider that he would ever have to share her with those new friends." Victor finished a little wistfully. For a moment, when talking about EmmaLee, one could swear his eyes looked misty. Then abruptly he chuckled a little and wiped his eyes.
"I'm sorry, my boy. I got a little deep there. I didn't mean to dump that all on you so abruptly. Both of those kids mean a lot to me, so I think about them a lot, y'know." He said, turning to Stephen and grinning widely. "I can pretty much assure you that this is nothing truly personal, in fact, he will probably be embarrassed by his behavior when he finds his head. I'll let him go back to the hotel and we can enjoy the rest of the day." He stood and watched the other pair converse for a while until EmmaLee stood up and offered her hand to her friend, who took it and let her help him up. Kiernan wiped his eyes with the heels of his hands, pat EmmaLee on the head with a begrudging, small smile, and finally looked up to notice that Stephen and Victor were standing nearby. His smile immediately fell into a deep frown and he turned around to hide his face in his hands. EmmaLee moved around him and pulled his hands from his face, giving him a scolding but gentle look, then looked to her father and friend, smiled brightly, and waved.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EmmaLee rushed after Kiernan, but as always he was far faster than her. At least he had the decency to leave in a straight line, so he wasn't hard to follow. After a few minutes, he walked right into a tree and hit it a couple of times with his fist before collapsing to it's feet, pulling his knees up to his chest, and sticking his head between his knees with a loud yell of frustration.
A wave of indignation ran through the small girl as she watched her friend throw what she amounted to a temper tantrum. Of all the days. Why today? Why be a moody brat when she was trying to do something fun with everyone? Why couldn't he just grow up and be friendly for five minutes? As she approached him, she took a deep breath and shoved her anger down into her stomach. Anger met with anger was not going to help make this day any better and clearly ignoring Kiernan's feelings until he sorted them out himself wasn't helping either.
She squatted down and gently lifted Kiernan's face from his knees and her anger completely vanished as he hiccupped and tears streamed down his face. She hadn't seen him cry since Amelia Vane had broken his nose for protecting EmmaLee from her bullying when they were 8.
"Nan, what has gotten into you?" She said, frowning and wiping at his tears with her thumb. "You aren't acting like yourself at all." Kiernan took a deep breath and glared at her.
"How would you know if I wasn't acting like myself? You've been gone for twelve months! You didn't even come visit for Easter and the last thing that I wanted to do when you finally came back was spend the whole damn day in this smelly city with a wimp from Wampus!" Kiernan bit, bitterly. A dragon of anger surged in EmmaLee once more at not only being yelled at about things she had mostly no control over, but also Kiernan's insulting not only her friend, but his entire house. She took a deep breath again to reign it in and let it out hard, not that Kiernan noticed her own anger as he swam in his own boiling sea. Again, anger was not going to help here, she told herself.
"We were supposed to spend the whole month together! Just us and Grace and Alura. Then I had to go to that stupid funeral and now I have to waste my time here!" Kiernan continued. "No body ever cares or asks about what I want to do or where I want to go. It's always do this, sit here, be a good boy! I'm sick of it. I don't even get anything out of it. Just leave me alone and go hang out with your new friend." He spat, burying his head in his knees again. "Leave me to rot."
Oh... Shoot. EmmaLee had been so excited about making a new friend that she had forgotten Kiernan's temperament. He didn't want any new friends. He was perfectly happy with their little group for the rest of his life. If he had been in a better mood, he would have endured Stephen politely for EmmaLee's sake, but he wasn't in a better mood, and she had known that from the start this morning. She should have listened to him this morning instead of rushing them out the door.
"I'm sorry." She said quietly, lifting his head again. "I didn't know that Easter was so important to you. I also didn't know this summer was so important to you." She continued, pulling a handkerchief out of her pocket to clean his face. "I'm sorry for not listening to you this morning."
Kiernan's face softened and he wiped after her with the heel of his hand. "It's been so hard. I missed you so much. We missed you so much, and you didn't even care." He said, with a little less bite and fire than before.
"I did care. I missed you so much too. You know that aside from Stephen, who was at Ilvermorny with you all, I didn't really make friends at Hogwarts. Plenty of friendly people to talk to, but not a lot of people I would consider friends yet. It was terribly lonely." EmmaLee said, resting her head on her hand with her elbow on her knee.
"On top of that, I just suck at everything and grandfather is mad about it! Everyone is so disappointed in me." Kiernan said, letting his knees drop into a more comfortable and open, cross-legged position and covering his face with his hands. "The only thing he tells me any more is to practice my flying and make sure I make the team next time there is an opening. He doesn't care that my grades are perfect or that I'm trying so hard." EmmaLee frowned and hugged Kiernan tightly.
"Oh Nan. I'm sure that your parents are very proud of you. Your father and mother love you." She said, quietly. "Even if your grandfather is a grumpy old man." She puffed out her cheeks at this, making a funny face and prompting a small chuckle out of her friend. She poked him in the side which got another chuckle. "And even so, the rest of us are proud of you. Stupid broom sports or no stupid broom sports."
"You take that back." Kiernan said with a small smirk.
"Broom sports are stupid. Brooms are stupid. I wish everyone could apparate at, say, 6." EmmaLee said, letting the conversation get ridiculous because it was cheering Kiernan up.
"Yeah. Whatever." Kiernan said, waving her off with a dismissive hand. EmmaLee nudged him and stood up, offering a hand to help him up.
"Feel better?" She asked, as he took it and let her help him up.
"Yeah. Whatever." He said, righting himself and wiping the last stray tears with the heels of his hands.
"You don't have to stay and hand out with us if you really don't want to." EmmaLee conceded, digging her toe a little bit in the dirt sheepishly and clasping her hands behind her back. "I'm sorry for being so pushy about you coming."
"I really don't want to. Especially at this point. I'd really like to just go back and play with Chlo." Kiernan admitted, looking up and seeing Stephen and Victor watching them. He groaned loudly and turned around. "God. He's fricken everywhere! Couldn't they have just left?" He snapped quietly. EmmaLee came around and pulled his hand back down from his face.
"You really are rude sometimes, y'know that?" She scolded. "Where were they supposed to go?"
"To get ice cream. To the moon. I don't know. Anywhere but here!" He said, irritated but not really angry any more. His cheeks flushed pink, showing his embarrassment at being caught having a moment. "Yeah. I'm gonna go back to the hotel. Have fun with your friend. I really mean that. I'm sorry I was such a tool."
"Don't let grandpa hear you using that language." EmmaLee scolded jokingly before turning to her stepfather and waving, indicating that, for the moment at least, everything was alright.
Victor lead Stephen over to Kiernan and EmmaLee. When they came closer Kiernan turned around and stiffly held out his hand. "I'm sorry for my behavior. It really wasn't becoming. I'm Kiernan." He said, just as stiffly and looking at Stephen's left shoulder, rather than his face. It would have to do.
Fearless | Calming Presence | E.L. | Prodigal Transfiguration
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.
ST: 9 | EV: 9 | STR: 3 | WI: 8 | ARC: 9 | ACC: 11
Caretaker: A. P. Finch | iNPC: Yasha V.