Fun filled wagon ride time! [Bonabelle] on At Home

Valentine Duell

March 03, 2021 6:12 PM

Fun filled wagon ride time! [Bonabelle] by Valentine Duell

Valentine sat in the wagon and stared at the letter. The summer had been fantastic, the concert had gone well, she'd had time at home with Mama and Papa and Aunt Giselle (without her being a professor). It had been wonderful to just be at home again, even though she missed everyone at school so very much. Then she and Mama had left for Ireland! They had gone to visit Bonabelle and see her house and spend time with her family! It was great!

Bonabelle had come back with them since there was only a day or two left before they had to catch the wagons back to school again. They'd get to ride to school together! Because of the timing, she and Mama had taken care of all that 'back-to-school' shopping and preparations before they had left. Mama had made a wise decision, most of the time back was spent trying to readjust to the time difference. Aunt Giselle had already gone back to get her class things ready and Papa had done everything to get things ready for their trip. It had only been as the wagons were about ready to leave that he remembered something. He snapped his fingers and summoned the letter that had arrived while they were gone and he'd nearly forgotten about.

After waving good-bye until she couldn't see her family anymore, Valentine turned around and opened the letter. She had easily recognized Stanley's handwriting on the outside, she hadn't heard from him all summer which was mostly her fault for being away. She felt a small thrill run through her at seeing him again, she had missed him a bit. Sure he'd been... well, as Wally had agreed, a bit 'Pecari' but it hadn't been so bad... had it?

The words inside the letter however, made her stomach sink and she caught her breath. He... he didn't want her anymore? Had she done something wrong? True, she hadn't been very nice at the picnic... a feeling of misery was welling up inside her. She sniffed, closed her eyes and tried to fight back the surge of emotions. What was she going to do? She was going to see him again soon... she never got the chance to reply, what will he think of her?

Valentine slid slowly sideways until her head was resting on Bonabelle's shoulder. Still fighting back tears she offered the letter to her friend along with the quiet question, "What is wrong with me?"

OOC: Marissa and Bonabelle's actions approved by their authors.

2 Valentine Duell Fun filled wagon ride time! [Bonabelle] 1490 1 5

Bonabelle Row

March 03, 2021 8:50 PM

I will literally kill people. by Bonabelle Row

OOC: CW Unsubstantiated threats of murder and pain. BIC:

Bat-Bogey Hex.

Twitchy-Ears Hex.

They weren't bad enough, but they ran through Bonabelle's mind faster than a Firebolt when she was given a letter from a very very stupid, very very soon-to-be dead boy. She was torn between whether she wanted to jump out of the wagon and fly around until she found the wagon Stanley was in and then blow a hole in it and watch it smash to bits, or whether she wanted to hug Valentine until she forgot all about him in the first place. Well, she wanted to do both, but she wasn't sure which one she wanted to do more. Or first.

"Nothing is wrong with you," Bonabelle promised, feeling shaky. Who the heck had the right to make Valentine feel this way?! Not a stupid boy, that's who. Or not who. Or whatever. She wasn't strictly angry that Stanley had broken up with Valentine, both because she hadn't liked them together in the first place and because she generally thought that people should be with people who made them happy and if Valentine didn't make Stanley happy then that was fine. But Stanley hadn't just broken up with Valentine, he'd made her feel bad about herself and so he basically should just be turned into a bug and stepped on.

Knee-Reversal Hex.

Instant Scalping Hex.

Bonabelle was glad that Valentine had taken up real estate on her shoulder because it made it easy both to hide her scowling face and to put a loving arm around her friend and wrap her up in as big a hug as she'd ever seen Uncle Killian offer Jean-Loup. Both of these beautiful people needed to feel loved and perfect and wonderful because they were and stupid people who made them feel small should not be allowed. There had to be something illegal about being an absolute dungbomb, right?

Horn Tongue Hex.

Toenail-Growing Hex.

She sighed inwardly, knowing that violence was probably not the answer and also that it wouldn't help Valentine at all. Instead, she hugged her friend a little closer and rubbed her hand on her back as gently and lovingly as she could. "Not being the right person for someone doesn't make you a bad person," she said, relying on logic since that was the only thing that made sense because clearly emotions rarely did and boys never did and they were both stupid and logic was better and ugh. "There's nothing wrong with you, I promise. I'd never lie to you, Val."

22 Bonabelle Row I will literally kill people. 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

March 04, 2021 3:34 PM

That's not very nice.... by Valentine Duell

Valentine sniffed and snuggled in closer as Bonabelle wrapped her arms around her. Her friend was once again being super wonderful while she was a horrible mess. What had she ever done to deserve someone like Bonabelle? 'Nothing is wrong with you', Bonabelle's words echoed in her mind, and seemed to go to war with the words entrenched there from the letter. 'It's not you it's me,' and 'we can still be friends', they were just the hollow cliche words that seemed to her to say 'I don't want you around and I don't even want to bother to say why'. The emotions had gotten into her throat and it was making her breathing unsteady.

Would any one else like her? If Stanley didn't want her, would anyone else? 'Nothing is wrong with you' echoed again. There was though... Stanley had seen it even if Bonabelle hadn't. He must have. Had it been the picnic? Or because she hadn't gotten the chance to see him after the concert? She'd just gotten caught up with Esme and her parents and Bonabelle's family... She'd been a terrible girlfriend! Another swell of emotion nearly pushed her into tears, but she really, really didn't want that here on the way to school. Val tried to take in a few deep breaths to calm herself and failed miserably. They were merely shallow sniffs doing their best to hold back the dam.

"Not being the right person for someone doesn't make you a bad person,"

Valentine finally raised her head to look at Bonabelle as she said the words. Then her friend reiterated her previous statement with a promise. That did it. The dam cracked and Val buried her face into Bonabelle's shoulder and sobbed as quietly as she could against the warmth her friend offered. She wondered again how she'd gotten so lucky to have Bonabelle as a friend.

After a few moments the raging emotions seemed to calm a bit once more. She took a ragged breath and exhaled slowly. Then still clutching onto her friend she whispered, "I'm sorry."

2 Valentine Duell That's not very nice.... 1490 0 5

Bonabelle Row

March 06, 2021 10:47 AM

Ugh fineeeee by Bonabelle Row

Having someone cry on her was pretty much the weirdest thing ever because all Bonabelle could do was offer some arm and hope it helped. Meanwhile, she sat there feeling a whole range of emotions that she mostly threw out a mental image of Stanley, like darts. Since that was probably not a helpful thing to do with her feelings, and since Valentine probably wouldn't appreciate knowing Bonabelle's thoughts in this case, Bonabelle forced herself to try to think of other things. Like how soft and sad and sweet Valentine was and how much she wanted to just make everything all better. That, at least, was a bit more productive than running through the most poisonous ingredients she thought she could sneak from the potions storeroom.

After some time, Valentine seemed to regain her ability to breathe normally again, although Bonabelle wasn't about to let her go just in case. Val had the prettiest sad eyes Bonabelle had ever seen. She was one hundred percent sure she didn't look that nice when she cried, although she hadn't spent a lot of time looking in a mirror at those points either. Val whispered an apology and Bonabelle had the distinct urge to shake her, and also to go shake Stanley much much harder.

Instead, she made a gentle shooshing noise and rubbed Val's back with one hand. "You don't have to be sorry," she said. She thought that she'd seen people offer smiles here but she couldn't quite manage that many emotions at once so she maintained a serious comportment instead. "You're perfect and I'm happy to be here for you right now." That was what people were supposed to say, right? It was true too but getting from the truth to words about the truth was rarely a straightforward, linear process. "Can I do anything to help you?" she asked, feeling more than a little out of her depth. "I'm happy to just keep hugging you," she added quickly, in case that came off as her trying for an out.

22 Bonabelle Row Ugh fineeeee 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

March 06, 2021 12:10 PM

Good, be good my good friend by Valentine Duell

Valentine sniffed and tried to wipe her eyes, but the nearest thing that could accomplish the job was Boanbelle's shirt and she'd already done a number on that. She didn't want to ruin it any more than she already had with more tears and snot. But snuggled within Bonabelle's embrace, she couldn't reach anything else and she didn't want to leave it right now. It wasn't quite Mama but it also didn't seem as different as... oh. Thoughts of the news in the letter momentarily vanished from her mind as she noticed something about Bonabelle that she hadn't before. Bonabelle was apparently growing up more so than she was. Physically anyway, then as Bonabelle's words continued to pour over her, she realized that perhaps Bonabelle's physical aspects may finally be catching up to the rest of her maturity levels. Unlike herself, still just a weeping small girl... just like that cookie incident so many years ago.

Instead of resisting though, Val gave into it. "Hugging is good." She sniffed quietly. "I'm... I'm sorry about your shirt." she feebly attempted actually apologizing for the state of Bonabelle's shirt and trying to make her friend feel better by maybe working some humor into the comment. She wasn't sure if it worked though. She was finding talking easier now, as much as she hadn't wanted to do that, she felt a little better now. "You don't think it was anything I did?" she asked still just above a whisper. "He..." she stopped and tried again, "If he doesn't want me, will anyone?" She felt like that was the real question that scared her. She had some friends, but after last year with Stanley, she felt like she did want something more. And after that little incident during training with Heinrich.. she could feel an embarrassed blush try and add itself to the rest of the emotions coursing through her. "What should I do?"

OOC: References to Bonabelle's physical maturity approved by her author.

2 Valentine Duell Good, be good my good friend 1490 0 5

Bonabelle Row

March 09, 2021 12:54 PM

I strive to be good to you. by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle shrugged, giving a soft chuckle when Valentine apologized for any damages to the shirt. "That's why we wear robes at school," she reassured her playfully.

The rest of Valentine's comment was harder to address. Bonabelle very much wanted to reassure Valentine that it was not only not her fault but also that Stanley was stupid. However, that seemed unlikely to make her gold-hearted friend feel better and Bonabelle was not foolish enough not to know that. She also wasn't sure she could quite get her lips around any words that contained compliments or justifications defending Stanley either.

"I don't think it was anything you did," Bonabelle began, echoing the sentiment back to Valentine and starting with the easy part. "Think of your game you you play," she suggested, hoping she'd paid good enough attention over the years to get any of this right. "A barbarian halfling and a ranger stealthy elf person start dating and it doesn't work out . . . that doesn't mean either of them is bad, right? It just means they weren't a good match." And it was clear to Bonabelle that Valentine wasn't the barbarian halfling, although she wasn't actually sure whether either of those words were insults in the world of DnD. They sounded like insults for sure. "They could both be really good at their own role and just not be a good pair. Is that . . . does that make sense? Is that good?" she finally asked, caving into her insecurities as she realized (or remembered) she had no idea what she was doing. Or talking about. "I don't know how your game works really, I don't think you said the characters date but it sounds like it makes sense to me and I don't know if it makes sense to you."

Her heart clenched fiercely as she moved on to address the most heartbreaking thing she'd ever heard Valentine say, and she'd heard the girl say some pretty heartbreaking stuff. "I promise you beyond all doubt that someone will want you," she said, the future tense feeling odd in her mouth for some reason. "I am one hundred percent sure about that." And if her arms tightened a little more lovingly and a little more protectively around her friend, she didn't think much of it.

What she thought Valentine should do and what Valentine should actually probably do were dangerously different things, she suspected, and the temptation to suggest some of those hexes that had been coming to mind earlier was strong. Pretty sure that such things were best left to her own hand, not because Valentine couldn't do it but because Bonabelle would enjoy it so much more, she took a breath and suggested something much more wholesome.

"I think you should keep being you and living life and throw yourself into whatever makes you happy," Bonabelle said softly. Then, thinking of her summer and the time she'd spent with Ema, she added: "And I think I know how to paint nails and stuff pretty good now if you want to do that too."

22 Bonabelle Row I strive to be good to you. 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

March 09, 2021 5:36 PM

You are succeeding by Valentine Duell

Valentine tried to giggle at her friend's comment about the school robes, but wasn't sure it came out right. Bonabelle had sounded like she was joking. But… what if she wasn't? What if she often hid a tear stained shirt under her robes? What if… no. Bonabelle was trying to make her feel better, and it… it was working.

She sniffed again and managed a weak smile while Bonabelle tried to wrangle some gaming ideas into a metaphor. It made her think of the time Stanley had come to play with the group. He had tried to be interested in her interests. She could see what Bonabelle was saying, or trying to say, but.. "A group needs that sort of diversity," she murmured quietly. "They work together so everyone's strengths can make up for someone else's weaker areas." This was all said in a sad, almost whisper.

She knew that Bonabelle was right, that she and Stanley were different… but in that context, they should stick together. Should she try and talk to him? Try to see if she could fix things? She could be a better girlfriend.

That thought seemed to get lost though in the whirl of Bonabelle's next words. Something in her friend's voice ignited a warmth in a part of her that she hadn't realized was cold and empty. 'Someone will want you'. She let out another quick sob, not one of misery but longing. The hope of something good on the horizon that wasn't here yet, and couldn't be rushed.

Bonabelle's suggestion followed that feeling. Now she found herself able to give her friend an almost proper smile. "You make me happy." She replied as she stayed resting on Bonabelle's shoulder. "You are an amazing friend." She sniffed one last time. "Thank-you." There was still a sadness settled down in her, she could feel it, but it was okay. Things would be okay. Bonabelle had said so and she was very smart. "Do you have pink?"

2 Valentine Duell You are succeeding 1490 0 5

Bonabelle Row

March 09, 2021 6:35 PM

Then maybe there's a little good in me. by Bonabelle Row

Bonabelle pulled back some to look at Valentine a bit more sternly, her expression scoffing for her where her throat did not. "Valentine," she said, disappointed in her friend's terrible logic, although only a little. "Stanley and I are really different too. That doesn't mean we should date, does it? Can you imagine?" Her lips quirked a bit with humor, unable to help it since it was frankly so ridiculous. "Good diversity on a team doesn't mean going out together, it means you should both exist in the world and you can work together and stuff. Being different can be good sometimes - you and I are really different too - but if you're going to be with someone, you can't be so different that you just aren't a good match. It's okay not to be a good match; you can still play in the same team." She was pretty sure 'team' was the wrong word for DnD but that metaphor was a bit hazy at this point anyway.

Her chest felt squirmy and wriggly as Valentine said she made her happy and Bonabelle smiled with a little blush at the compliment. "I'm glad. I really like being your friend," she said, putting the side of her head against the side of Valentine's again in a continued hug. It was nice being this close to someone for so long, even if it was relatively unfamiliar to her. She felt an entirely different kind of squirmy when she realized that she didn't actually have any varnish at all. "Yes," she said determinedly. Because she was going to ask her uncle to ask Ema literally tonight if they could get her some. "What kind of pink do you like best?" she asked, smiling.

22 Bonabelle Row Then maybe there's a little good in me. 1488 0 5

Valentine Duell

March 10, 2021 3:17 PM

You have lots of good in you by Valentine Duell

Val looked up at her friend as she pulled back a bit to give her 'a look', and wilted a bit. She was right as usual, but still… Stanley hadn't been that bad, had he? She thought back, perhaps a bit more clearly now than a few minutes ago, and had to agree that Stanley perhaps wasn't 'the one' for her. As long as Bonabelle was sure that there was someone for her, now that the idea had settled into her heart, she couldn't ignore it.

"No," she agreed with just a hint of her mischievous smile, "I can't see you and Stanley together either. Besides," she seemed to draw out the word. "Wally likes you. He got you flowers and everything." That had been a good revelation from the picnic. "I think you two match up better than Stanley and I." As much as she couldn't see Bonabelle and Stanley together, she thought her friend and Wally may just fit together about right. She would have to do what she could to help them both out.

Especially if Bonabelle was starting to want to start doing nails and things. Maybe she already wanted a certain someone to notice her more. This would also need to be encouraged. "You know me." She replied a bit distractedly. Her mind was already beginning to weave plots that should be guaranteed to bring the two of them together, her own problems almost completely forgotten.

2 Valentine Duell You have lots of good in you 1490 0 5