You are cordially invited . . . [Jeremy] on Quidditch Pitch

Leonor De Matteo

June 15, 2021 6:30 PM

You are cordially invited . . . [Jeremy] by Leonor De Matteo

Leonor had really thought about burning the letter from her father but there was no way he wouldn't follow up and at least this way she was responding instead of reacting. She had brought it to Felipe though, both as a warning and as a plea. He'd assured her that her fears weren't outlandish, although he seemed a little less disturbed by the idea of this particular boy getting zapped off the face of the earth than he had been about . . . well, that didn't matter. Still, Felipe had been as reassuring as could be expected for someone who was kindhearted, naive as heck, and terribly awkward. Unfortunately, he'd been reassuring about keeping the letter and going through with it, not with burning it, so Leonor brought it with her to one of the last Quidditch practices of the school year. It remained tucked in her bag - and back of her head - during the actual practice and she changed quickly afterwards, grabbing it and lingering until an opportunity presented itself. Jeremy was alone leaving the Pitch tonight and she deigned to engage in a faint jog to catch up to him, walking in step as she drew up beside him.

"Hello," she said as neutrally as she could manage. Holding up the letter as proof of her request, Leonor resisted the urge to grimace. This was the sort of encounter she had been trained for and even if she hadn't been trained up as long as Felipe had been, she was still capable of it. "My father would like to pass on his apologies for not having been able to arrange something sooner, and an invitation for you to spend a week with us this summer at Los Jardines de Plata, my family's estate," she said formally. The word 'week' nearly made her gag. In another lifetime, she would have really liked to spend that much time with Jeremy. In another lifetime, she would've been thrilled to find ways to spoil the gardens with some pretty fierce makeout sessions. Now, on the invitation of her father, it was a courting event and not at all like she'd have liked it to go. She would have to be proper. That was not to mention the fact that this lifetime also included having seen Jeremy throw a tantrum, having seen her father react horribly to the misdeeds of other boys she'd spent time with, and that making out was almost definitely not something he wanted anymore. In another lifetime, none of this would have been an issue. "He already sent a letter to your family home to inquire of your guardians as well," she added quietly.

22 Leonor De Matteo You are cordially invited . . . [Jeremy] 1471 1 5

Jeremy Mordue

June 19, 2021 8:56 PM

Lucky you by Jeremy Mordue

OOC: Nathaniel's reactions approved by his author BIC:

Jeremy wasn’t surprised to find Leonor waiting for him after practice. Besides the whole thing with their families, Jeremy was pretty sure she had to miss him, as being seen with him had done way more for her social standing than it had for his. He wasn’t really pleased to see her, he decided in that moment. He would never admit to the fact that he wished things could have gone back to how they had been, but he definitely did. However, Leonor had made him feel a whole host of things he didn’t enjoy feeling. Humiliated. Unwanted. It wasn’t like he’d ever fully let her in, but it was sure as heck the closest he’d ever got to being vulnerable with anyone just putting himself in a position where he could be rejected. He didn’t want her back—he wanted her never to have broken up with him.

He kept his face neutral, even as his stomach turned at the prospect of a week at Leonor’s family home—or rather, the implications that went with it. Nathaniel thought this was a terrible idea. He hadn’t said anything, but Jeremy knew he thought it was a terrible idea based on the fact that a) he’d kind of made a face when it had been mentioned and b) Nathaniel thought everything was a terrible idea. Jeremy didn’t know what to think. It seemed to make Leonor uncomfortable, and that soothed the angry, thrashing beast that had been fed by her dumping him. When he thought of it as marrying Leonor, he felt sick with anxiety. When he thought of it as punishing her, it felt entirely different.

“Lucky you,” he cocked an eyebrow. “So long as it doesn’t clash with any important Quidditch camps, I can probably do you the honour,” he shrugged, sounding almost bored by the notion.

13 Jeremy Mordue Lucky you 1443 0 5

Leonor De Matteo

June 19, 2021 9:10 PM

Excuse me, which one of us is royalty? You're welcome. by Leonor De Matteo

Leonor could sort of understand the appeal of conking Jeremy with a bludger just then. What, so she was less important than a Quidditch camp? What was there to even gain at Quidditch camp? First of all, the whole concept was stupid. Second of all, it wasn't like Jeremy friggin' Mordue would ever be a professional Quidditch player. Whether it was his skills or his name that would hold him back wasn't something Leonor was going to do him the honor of thinking too much about but either way, his future had more to gain with a week at Leonor's house than at some stupid camp. Her face was a cold, blank slate when she replied.

"I'm sure my father would be happy to arrange a week that doesn't conflict with your schedule," she assured him, since she was meant to be making this happen. "Though it may do you well to find place on your priority list for someone other than yourself," she added, smiling sweetly. She was pretty sure she had no say in any of this; Jeremy and her father were going to get together and decide if she was going to marry him and the best she'd be able to do was make him miserable in the meantime. Whether or not that made marrying her more or less attractive to Jeremy was yet to be seen but at least she could have some fun with it. 'Fun'. At least she could make someone other than herself miserable for a moment. There was another lifetime there too, one where she'd experienced fun, even fun with Jeremy. That lifetime felt especially far away now. "I'll let him know you've accepted then. Unless you'd prefer to do him the honor yourself?" she offered, pretty sure there was no winning between those two options.

22 Leonor De Matteo Excuse me, which one of us is royalty? You're welcome. 1471 0 5

Jeremy Mordue

June 19, 2021 9:26 PM

Whatever by Jeremy Mordue

Someone other than himself? That was rich. Firstly, why should he be selfless if she was just going to be selfish? Quidditch had been a part of Jeremy’s life a heck of a lot longer than Leonor had. He had put years of hard work into honing his skills, and it was the one thing where he truly excelled. He remembered a Leonor who’d been impressed by that, who had followed him to training and admired that about him. That Leonor had seemed to understand that she would need to support him. Secondly, he wasn’t even being selfish. Did she not know the piles of money his family had poured into this career? Or the amount of time, networking with the right people, securing the best coaches, opening doors to opportunities others didn’t get? He had a good chance at going pro, and whilst he wanted to say it was down to his pure talent, he knew he had to give his family some credit, even if it was just for footing the bill.

“I don’t think swanning off to Mexico without a second thought for my career would come across as very responsible, actually,” he corrected her, taking the chance to score a point as she’d made it so very easy.

“I’m sure my family will take care of the scheduling,” he answered. “But yes, you may pass on my thanks and so on.” Like he would put pen to paper himself when he could get her to do it for him. And, even though he wouldn’t see the letter, she would have to do it properly and politely. She would have to write nice things about him. Or, if she didn’t, maybe her father would call this off. Win-win either way. For just a second, he considered raising that possibility. He wondered whether they could conspire together to say exactly the wrong thing and, whilst not being outright offensive, put Ilefonso off. The two of them, scheming together like the old days, to royally annoy members of her family. But she wasn’t his ally anymore. He couldn’t trust that she wouldn’t just make him the villain, or that it wouldn’t end up looking bad for him and his family. He would just have to keep going with it, and hope there was a chance to jump off this moving train before it became a complete wreck.

13 Jeremy Mordue Whatever 1443 0 5

Leonor De Matteo

June 24, 2021 5:45 PM

Which means I won. by Leonor De Matteo

"Your career," Leonor said blankly. She wanted to laugh at the very idea but couldn't quite manage such gestures in the moment. The fact that Jeremy would obviously never be a professional player wasn't laughable because he was a bad player - on the contrary; if anyone at Sonora could do it, Leonor supposed it would be him - but because it was just such a stupid idea at all. Why would anyone want to make a living sitting on a stick chasing a winged walnut around? Quidditch was fun, sure, but so was making out and throwing tantrums - both of which Leonor was quite good at - and she wasn't about to make a career out of those. "Your future," she emphasized, "will benefit from the trip." She made it sound like a promise, like a sure thing, but she instantly regretted it. The last thing she wanted was to convince Jeremy that he should come to Mexico so he could marry her and yet here she was, wanting to win an argument with him badly enough that she was promoting the idea. "Connections and all that," she muttered to cover up the possibility.

He was going to let her write the letter herself? Well alright then. No concerns that she'd lie? Make up an excuse that would make him look bad? Say something veiled and mean? Say something accurate and mean? She didn't like the idea of playing servant to him, writing letters on his behalf, but she couldn't help be a little disappointed in him for making it necessary anyway. She raised her eyebrows in surprise as her mouth formed a small, bitter smile that didn't reach her eyes. For a moment, she even considered calling him out on being impersonal and rude about this, but she didn't want to give him the opportunity to say how little this meant to him or how little attention it was all worth.

For a moment, she forgot that she was supposed to be mad at him though. Plans were in place to see each other over the summer now and that was almost an exciting possibility even if she didn't want it to be. "I might suggest a week Felipe will be away," she said quietly, her eyes soft as she looked at just Jeremy, not the Mordue boy. "If you wanted."

22 Leonor De Matteo Which means I won. 1471 0 5