Of Comfort and Guidance PV: S.Clairmont Finished

banner by ulysses drake

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect

Sereia jogged down the steps towards the Great Lake, one hand in her puffer jacket and the other on the stone walls acting as a railing. Running was one of her favourite hobbies and what better way to learn the Hogwarts campus than to take a lap of it? It was her sixth day on the job (almost a week now!) and while most of it was spent in her classroom, she was starting to come out and see Hogwarts for what it was. This was the school her dad attended, after all, even if it was only for a short while.

The puffer Sereia was wearing was doing its job of keeping her warm. Her leggings were... thin, but the cold didn't bother her much since she was moving around. She needed better shoes, though. Her toes were numb and had been for a while.

Sereia looked up from the stone stairs to see someone flying down on their broom towards the lake. She mentally reviewed the rules in her head. Flying outside of the designated sports areas was not allowed, no? Sereia grimaced. She hoped this was one of her colleagues and not a student; a detention before her one week anniversary was not something to be proud of.

Once she reached the bottom of the stairs, Sereia approached the flyer while stuffing her hands in her pockets. Upon closer inspection, this was definitely not one of her colleagues. Definitely not Professor Lin or the caretaker. Sereia deeply sighed. "You do know that flying outside of the designated sports areas isn't allowed, right?"

Note: outcome has been predetermined prior to this thread. Please do not interfere.

Interactions ❯❯ @Sereia Clairmont | @ | @
Mentions ❯❯ @ | @ | @

❂《 ⌜ February 12, 2024 ▎ Late Afternoon after classes ⌟

▛▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

Flying had never felt this good, so liberating, even though she is breaking one of the rules right now. Who knew that her love for flying would develop. From a student hating her flying lessons and swearing that she won’t be flying on a broom outside of class into this, someone who had actually learned how to handle it, even take good care of it. It’s just saddening that she couldn’t make herself switch into a broom sport, preferably broom racing. She still loves duelling, even though her lack of skills for it are showing. Not only that but she has her own reason for doing so.

It was freezing but luckily, her jacket is good enough to keep her warm, only doing small movements just over the frozen lake, circling around, nothing dangerous for now. When she was just about to go faster, a voice interrupted her. She stopped, eyes back on the shore. Someone was there and from what she could see, not a prefect, not even a student. It was an adult, a professor. The new Divination Professor. Not like she has Divination yet but she had seen her around, heard things about her from the older students that she passes by the corridors.

“Tch.” In a way, she was annoyed that she had been found, much more, by a professor. If it was a prefect, it probably would’ve been more fun trying to escape. Well, her misfortune certainly contributed to this encounter. The universe sure loves seeing her suffer. “Yes, I know but really? Can't have a bit of fun?” she uttered before shaking her head.

But why do you care if I break the rules?

She would’ve added that but she knows better than to provoke a professor so she did what a good student does, stopping whatever she was doing, hovering back to the shoreline where the ground isn’t frozen lake water and getting off her broom. Would've been better if they were this good at finding rule breakers among their colleagues. Surely they would know who is treating their students unfairly. Maybe even after finding out, they wouldn't do anything about it. Again, why would they care. “Well? Happy?” Raizel asked now that she's back on the ground, giving Sereia a shrug, a bored and unimpressed look present in those brown eyes of hers. “I supposed that means detention? Since I broke the rules?”

Surely getting caught isn't the only reason why she is pissed off. It's just because it was a professor. Although she does realize that she is kind of letting out her anger on someone who had nothing to do with her horrible experience, especially when it was another professor who wronged her. In a way, she did feel bad, shown by how she looked away with a hint of guilt on her face for a brief second. “My apologies, Professor.” In the end, she still apologized even though she had already been caught. Well, it was more so for her pissed off behavior and unintentionally letting out her anger on her.

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▟

⌜ Of Comfort and Guidance ⌟ | ⌜ WC: 512/200 ⌟
««««« Dialogue | #800000

INVENTORY

Outfit Reducio

Items Reducio Enchanted Satchel Wand Broom Potions: See Inventory

banner by ulysses drake

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect

Sereia rolled her eyes. Oh, so this was how they were going to play it? Had the girl been a bit nicer in the way she asked, Sereia might have considered turning a blind eye. But nope. This girl was giving attitude and she wasn't going to have any of it.

She crossed her arms and waited for the girl to come back to the ground. Sereia pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. "Yes, quite ecstatic." She couldn't help the annoyed tone she spat out. Why did she take this job again? Her previous job working in nurseries and spending the days teaching toddlers basic skills was never this much of a nosebleed. Oh, right, her boyfriend convinced her to apply and she miraculously got the job.

But Sereia's mood softened as the girl talked. She knew flying outside of the designated sports areas was not allowed and apologised. The annoyance bubbled away and Sereia was left confused.

She cleared her throat. "What's your name?"

Once Sereia had a name, she continued, "Yes, it would mean a detention... but..." She took a deep breath. "You know the rules."

Sereia didn't mean it like the girl was going to get a detention issued right then and there. It was more solemn, questioning, like a disappointed parent. Teenagers were much more complex than children; a cry couldn't be solved by just giving them more food or cuddles. A lot of problems were much more than they looked on the surface.

"You alright?"

Interactions ❯❯ @Sereia Clairmont | @ | @
Mentions ❯❯ @ | @ | @

❂《 ⌜ February 12, 2024 ▎ Late Afternoon after classes ⌟

▛▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

It was no surprise that the professor seemed to be annoyed at Raizel, it was an expected reaction with how she responded to her earlier and she is willing to take responsibility as that is her own fault. If the professor decides to give her a grueling detention, then she’ll just have to bear it. And yes, she did break the rules and deliberately too so she won’t argue with that. She just wished she was caught after doing a couple of rounds at least. It’d be so lucky if she was not caught at all but knowing her luck, that’s highly unlikely.

“It's Raizel, Professor. Raizel Voltrouz.” She introduced herself when asked for her name but she can bet the professor will forget about it immediately after she dealt with her. Heck, even someone from a class that she’s attending everyday had completely forgotten her existence. Not only was that frustrating but it also felt insulting, disrespectful.

Are you alright, she asked… for a second, that made Raizel pause, looking back at Sereia. “Yes Professor, I’m fine.” She shrugged. Not like she’s lying, she’s fine, physically and if you ignore the inner turmoil that’s caused by her piled up misfortunes and self-doubts. “Didn’t fall off… surprisingly enough considering my… luck.” she added with a wince. “Saves another trip to the hospital wing.” She is a one of the regulars, and she won’t even question it if the people working in the hospital wing already know her. At least they acknowledge her existence.

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▟

⌜ Of Comfort and Guidance ⌟ | ⌜ WC: 247/200 ⌟
««««« Dialogue | #800000

INVENTORY

Outfit Reducio

Items Reducio Enchanted Satchel Wand Broom Potions: See Inventory

banner by ulysses drake

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect

Sereia pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. Okay, she couldn't blow up on this kid right here and now. But she specialised in early childcare so her knowledge on adolescents was incredibly rusty.

So, naturally, she turned the question on herself. If I was a teenager breaking rules I knew about, what led to that and what comfort would I want to hear? As a girl, the rule she frequently broke were sneaking out of the house without permission, especially in the middle of the night. Why did she do that?

Escape was the first word on her mind. Her family house back in Wellington had been a minefield. First, it was her mother being shaken up by the existence of magic. Then, it was the realisation of her father that she wasn't a Seer like he wanted to her to be. Escaping expectations and having freedom. That was what she wanted by sneaking out.

Now that Sereia could attach a name to a face, she pondered on the idea. Did Raizel want the same? Escape from expectations? Freedom?

Of course, leaving the girl without her name and continuing on would be rude. Sereia nodded and cleared her throat. "Professor Clairmont," she offered Raizel, "I teach Divination." Sereia knew she had never seen this girl in her classes, so they were either a first or second year student. She wanted to place her hunch on second since the girl could fly decently and was aware of the rules.

The mention of the hospital wing made Sereia furrow her brows. Who was the school nurse again? "Well, I think broom sports are based on luck. The actual act of flying is a skill that you can develop, and not a difficult one, I imagine, with Professor Lin in our school," she chuckled.

Sereia paused. It was hard to separate herself from her previous life. At least she wasn't talking to them with a high-pitched voice and lots of questions. They could handle some small talk, however awkward it was.

"You're welcome to say nothing, by the way," Sereia began. She paused for a second to consider her next words and thought back to her younger self. How would I want to be addressed when going through a tough time?

A difficult question to answer. "But I just want to know, if you know the rules, why are you still flying here? It's incredibly cold out, too."

Interactions ❯❯ @Sereia Clairmont | @ | @
Mentions ❯❯ @ | @ | @

❂《 ⌜ February 12, 2024 ▎ Late Afternoon after classes ⌟

▛▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

Divination, what was it about again? It was a subject that she's still yet to take and she can't say that… she was that interested in it, especially now. She doesn't need to have an insight on what the future holds for her. Her luck is enough to tell that she has nothing but a wave of misfortunes, days of suffering and all she could do is struggle despite how futile it'll be. “Luck… plays a major part in most of our lives.” The Gryffindor uttered, having a grim look in those eyes of hers. “Not just in sports. Most of the time, skills… aren't enough. It all depends on luck.” One can hone their skills over and over again but one bad luck can ruin it, kind of like how her duels are. She had been practicing all day, always making sure she is in top condition for duels yet the results she had were failures.

She doesn't understand what she was doing wrong but she does know that it's her endless misfortunes doing. The same goes for her Astronomy. Why was it only her that got such treatment from a professor that she didn't even do anything wrong to? Don't get her started on that cookie decorating event too where she got beat up by a giant gingerbread man. That was horrible.

Raizel let out a dark chuckle when she remembered those, looking down. “Would be nice to be lucky… just for once…” those words were uttered in a whisper like manner. Whether Sereia heard it or not was unknown to this unfortunate child. Once she turned her attention back to Sereia, she began to ponder about her question.

Distraction… from everything. She doesn't want to think about anything aside from flying around and zooming past through trees and whatever is before her. Even the bitter cold was nothing for someone that's desperately trying to hold onto the only time they could get a peace of mind. Will she say that to Sereia though? She thought about it. “Just for fun I guess.” She answered, which isn't entirely a lie. While the main reason remained unsaid, there is still a part of her that's trying to liven up her already disappointing life. Duelling wasn't doing it and so does casting spells. Broom riding was her only choice left and it sure is doing a good job. “Never really liked riding a broom before. Now I do. It sure feels refreshing.”

That made her wonder why Sereia was taking her time to talk to someone like her. She isn't even her student to begin with. Usually, people would catch someone breaking the rules, tell them off, dismiss them and let them wait for the detention owl. Sereia however, was taking her time to communicate with her. What was the term again? Ah, making small talk. But that is intriguing in a way because that's certainly new for Raizel, especially with an adult aside from her parents.

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▟

⌜ Of Comfort and Guidance ⌟ | ⌜ WC: 497/200 ⌟
««««« Dialogue | #800000

INVENTORY

Outfit Reducio

Items Reducio Enchanted Satchel Wand Broom Potions: See Inventory

banner by ulysses drake

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect

Sereia hummed. "Luck plays a major part, yes, but you're also born with pre-determined fates." She smiled, though not a happy one. Her being born a carrier of the Seer talent wasn't bad luck, but instead a genetic lottery she never had a chance of winning. Sure, one could say her father had a hand in those odds but it wasn't like you could control the genes of another person.

She tilted her head. "I'm sure you've had good luck somewhere," she said, "Good luck isn't just winning something or getting good grades. It can be as small as accomplishing a small task uninterrupted or having the last serving of your favourite dish."

Gosh, when did she become so cheesy? She was only twenty-four and she was dishing out cliché life advice as if she was in her mid-life crisis. Sure, her quarter-life crisis was later this year, but this was just off the charts. This was all she had to offer.

Sereia raised an eyebrow at Raizel's answer. "And what made you pick by the lake instead of the broom racing field?" It was the middle of winter, still, so there would be no crashing of waves against the shore to listen to. Sereia liked the sound of water; she had grown up close to it her whole life, after all. The New Zealand beaches, the Wellington wharf. All year round, she could calm down to the sound of the waves. Here? Waters could freeze and all she had in the winter was the sound of fire crackling.

She sighed. "Again, if you don't want to answer, you don't have to. I just want to know if everything's okay. How are you?"

Interactions ❯❯ @Sereia Clairmont | @ | @
Mentions ❯❯ @ | @ | @

❂《 ⌜ February 12, 2024 ▎ Late Afternoon after classes ⌟

▛▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

Predetermined fate, she says, not something Raizel wanted to hear right now but that just proves further that perhaps she won't be able to break away from all the bad luck that seems to surround her. In the end, no matter how much she struggles, she would end up drawing the short end of the stick, such is the thing that Sereia mentioned, predetermined fate.

How unfortunate.

“Somewhere? Wherever that is… it's not here. Can't remember the last time I got lucky.” Raizel sighed, gaze trailing onto the broom that she's holding and briefly staring at the castle just beyond the frozen lake. When was the last time she got lucky? The time that something actually went her way? Not a single thought came into mind, making her frown as her eyes trailed down towards the ground. It just shows that it has been so long since she was graced with what one can call luck.

“The lake is peaceful, that's all there is to it, professor. It's a nice place to hang around.” She answered the question as she turned her head back to the older woman. Truth be told, she came here almost out of instinct. The moment she flew away from where they were keeping the brooms, the first place that came into her mind was the lake and she immediately flew here. She has been hanging around here whenever she feels troubled or at least needs some time to herself. Not like this time is different. She has a lot of things in mind.

With that said, she was hesitant to open up to the adult before her. A professor was one of the sources of her problem after all. They can't be trusted. Sereia, however… was different. She is showing full concern basing it on her questions, questions that usually, Raizel can quickly answer. All she had to do was say that ‘everything is fine' and this conversation will be over

Yet… she couldn't.

“I-” There was a long pause as her mind went to search for an answer, hand gripping tight onto the broom that she's been holding, eyes on the ground and then s heavy sigh. It's okay, right? It's okay to be vulnerable for once. For all this time… she had acted so strong like she had everything under control in front of her friends, her family. In truth, she was already crumbling, wanting to at least seek some guidance, some comfort yet she couldn't for she is afraid of looking so weak. She felt safe… for once to embrace such vulnerability despite only meeting this new Professor. There's just this air around her that is telling her… ‘It’s okay.’ (Sereia's Calming Presence)

“Nothing is okay really…” and there, she said it. “As much as I want to keep saying I feel alright, I'm already reaching my limit.” A sad smile slowly formed on her lips, her gaze still fixed onto the ground as she didn't want anyone to see the disappointed look on her face the moment the smile faded. “But it's fine… I guess, I just have to grin and bear it.”

▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▟

⌜ Of Comfort and Guidance ⌟ | ⌜ WC: 519/200 ⌟
««««« Dialogue | #800000

INVENTORY

Outfit Reducio

Items Reducio Enchanted Satchel Wand Broom Potions: See Inventory

banner by ulysses drake

Sereia's Calming Presence is in effect

Sereia hummed and looked out to the water's surface. Had it not been frozen over, she could hear the flow of water and the crashing of tiny waves on the shore in her head. Sereia missed the smell of sea salt and the wind nipping at her face gently. Now, the wind was relentless and snow quickly piled onto her puffer jacket. The lake certainly was a peaceful place to be, although it would be better if you could hear it.

"In New Zealand, it never snows unless you live all the way at the bottom of the South Island. So, I go to the beach all year round just to listen to the water. It's nice."

How long had it been since she started living in the UK now? Almost five years since the year before the pandemic. You know that saying, "distance makes the heart grow fonder" or something? Sereia certainly had those moments. This was one of them. Five years felt like a fever dream; had those five years really happened? She was always going to be a Kiwi at heart.

Sereia waited and watched as Raizel considered her next words. Oh dear, she hadn't overstepped the girl's boundaries, right? She couldn't feel the air suddenly turn tense around them [Sixth Sense]; she had plenty of experience to guess when it would. It was when Raizel admitted to things not being okay that her world view shifted.

She frowned. Informative communication. "Just because it's affecting you negatively doesn't mean it's only your issue to fight. When you're overwhelmed, people will feel it one way or another."

Whether or not the girl noticed her deliberation, Sereia spent a few minutes contemplating her next move. Ultimately, she decided on, "Would you like a hug?"