We need to talk. (Second year boys' dorm) on Aladren Commons

Desmond Brockert

October 01, 2023 12:34 AM

We need to talk. (Second year boys' dorm) by Desmond Brockert

Desmond really needed to talk to his roommates. Much to his disgust, thoughts of the Ball kept recurring in his mind and he was angry with himself for it since it was such a trivial frivolous thing that didn’t matter. It wasn’t even going to be a classy affair like the society balls his parents attended and that were such a point of contention between Mother and Liesl that involved meeting the right people.

Here he was sort of afraid it would be brought down to the lowest common denominator to pander to people who were less…cultured. He’d once heard of a Ball here where people had come dressed in ways that were not appropriate for the situation. Not just unusual like Liesl but as in, someone came in a leotard when people were supposed to be wearing formal clothing! Why, that was just appalling . Liesl, at least, would be wearing a ball gown, regardless of whether or not it was one that he or Mother really approved of. Although Desmond guessed that was less important at a Sonora Ball since it wasn’t like the Teppenpaw was going to embarrass him since he was pretty sure most of the people who mattered liked him already.

However, that wasn’t the biggest issue. The biggest issue was that the Aladren was worried about whether or not he was going to have to find a date.It did not in this case matter that Liesl had a date because that was not something Desmond where he thought he needed to save face by doing as well or better than her like prefect or even the Challenges was. It did, however, matter that Alexander had asked Ida and while neither Nicholas nor Quillan had asked anyone yet, Desmond actually still wondered if the latter was going to ask Charlotte. Which he would absolutely support, but if Quillan did that still would mean he and Nicholas would either both have to ask someone or both not do so. If it was the former, then Ursula would be Desmond’s best option and he would encourage Nicholas to ask Alma. Which would be nice for the Crotalus too. However, he would have to make sure Quillan would be okay with him asking his sister. Or he could ask Cecily.

Either way, Desmond neither wanted Nicholas to be left out nor for himself wanted to be the one left out. After all, the appealing company here was rather limited to his roommates, Alexander, Ida, Charlotte and the three first year girls. Maybe Nausicaa. Olaf would probably sit in a corner with a book and ignore everyone or leave early and read.There were others that he felt fairly neutral towards but he would prefer his friends. Or at least a girl who seemed proper and from a good background. (The two were not the same thing, at least in that someone could be from a good background and not act properly. Liesl was proof of that. However, Desmond was unsure that one could act proper and not be from a good background. They didn’t know what to do to be so since they did not have the training or understand why it was important. In some ways, it wasn’t their fault. Just as long as they acted with decorum and moderately normal.)

At least though thinking about the Ball kept him from worrying about that whole prefect thing. Honestly, Desmond should not be in this position where he felt like he had to get it. He should not have to be in a position where he had to beat his friends in order to save face so Liesl didn’t look better than him because she should not have gotten that unless it was by default. Honestly, he didn’t know what was wrong with Patience Reed-Fisher but it must have been something pretty terrible to lose to Liesl . Maybe she had done something awful like disrupt class by playing a prank like Leo had? Other than getting pregnant or being a danger to herself or others, that was the only possible reason that the second year could think of to justify losing to Liesl.

Anyway, once they were done for the day and were settled in their dorm,Desmond opened his mouth. “So, about the Ball…” He looked directly at Quillan “Are you planning to ask Charlotte? Because if you are, then we” He turned to Nicholas “have to decide whether we’re both going to ask someone or if we’re just going to hang out. I’d hate to be left high and dry and I don’t want to do that to you either.”

11 Desmond Brockert We need to talk. (Second year boys' dorm) 1572 1 5

Quillan Arcadius

October 12, 2023 5:19 AM

We do? by Quillan Arcadius

Quillan was feeling sleepy and contented. He was full of warm stew, and it had been a particularly good one, after a chilly Quidditch practise and a day that had felt like it beat his brain up. The stew had done a lot to smooth out his various gripes with the day, and he was looking forward to curling up in bed to finish the process.

Desmond had other ideas though. He wanted to talk about the ball. Quillan tried to shift gears, wondering why Desmond was sounding so serious about something that was a fluffy piece of fun that fundamentally did not matter. And then Desmond presented his reasons. And they were perfectly reasonable reasons. But that didn't quite eradicate the fact they had been prefaced with an incredibly personal question, and one which Quillan didn't entirely know how to answer. He was also pretty sure that his face hadn't got the memo that this was pragmatic rather than personal. He could feel himself getting hot, which almost definitely meant he was going red, and he had an immediate desire to both deny ever even having spoken to Charlotte and to check that neither Desmond nor Nicholas wanted to take her away from him.

All of which should probably have been a clue as to how he was feeling.

"Uh... Is it that sort of thing?" he asked. "I mean, I know prefects have to-but are people our age doing that? Not that I'm saying I won't," he added hastily, lest Nicholas took this as an invitation to swoop in. "Just... Have you heard something? Is that what she's expecting?" Desmond had a lot of relatives, including an older sister, so he'd probably been exposed to more ball gossip than the rest of them.

13 Quillan Arcadius We do? 1570 0 5

Desmond Brockert

October 12, 2023 9:03 AM

Yes. we do by Desmond Brockert

Quillan was turning red and Desmond instantly felt a little bit bad. He had not meant to cause his friend distress. Truth be told, he never meant to cause anyone distress, not even Liesl. With his older sister it was more of a thing where he just wanted her to act normal. It would have made her life easier, at the very least because there would have been less conflict with Mother.

It never would have occurred to Desmond that his mother was the one in the wrong and that Liesl was perfectly fine the way she was. And that other people thought so too. Even though it was easy to dismiss the opinions of at least some of those people, For example , Uncle Cory was way too nice to the point of being a pushover. Besides, according to his parents, his uncle was a loser who had failed to achieve to a certain acceptable standard.They hadn’t used the word loser, but that was the gist of it. Uncle Corty basically worked retail for a family member. While wandmaking was plenty respectable, selling wands that someone else had made was far less impressive.

And Desmond didn’t really know Hans Hexenmeister but he…seemed to really like snakes. And Liesl. So he has questionable taste and didn’t exactly scream proper young man. The second year could even dismiss Krisalyn’s fondness for the fifth year,as he expected her to grow out of that once she was old enough to understand the way things were and needed to be. Right now she was a nine year old with the makings of a proper young lady, she just had to grow up and realize that Liesl would only drag her down if she didn’t change.

Anyway, this was not the case with Quillan.He was not trying to change a behavior of his friend’s that society-and therefore, Desmond-found unacceptable. (After all, if the other Aladren behaved in unacceptable ways, he probably wouldn’t be Desmond’s friend). He was just trying to figure out how things stood with the Ball and what everyone’s plans were so nobody would be left on their own.Desmond had certainly not been trying to embarrass him or make him feel bad either.

So, the second year did something that he rarely did. “I’m sorry, Quillan. I did not mean to be so blunt and make you uncomfortable.” Although Quilan said that it didn’t mean that he wouldn’t ask her? Interesting. ‘And well, some people our age are asking people. Alexander asked Ida.” He stated what they all knew.” And Donovan asked Misty. I don’t know if Charlotte is hoping you’ll ask, but I don’t know why she wouldn’t want to go with you.” After all, if Quillan met Desmond’s high standards as a worthwhile person, he probably met most people’s.

11 Desmond Brockert Yes. we do 1572 0 5

Nicholas Pierce

October 12, 2023 11:35 PM

Couldn't it be about something trivial, like religion or politics? by Nicholas Pierce

“So, about the Ball…”

Nicholas wanted to fall back on his bed, cover his face with his pillow, and groan out loud at the mention of the Ball. He restrained himself, though, and was therefore subjected to the sight of an interaction between Desmond and Quillan which appeared to leave the latter wishing he could die on the spot.

“He’s got a point,” he offered when Desmond, apparently trying to be conciliatory, said there was no reason why Charlotte O’Malley wouldn’t want to go to the Ball with Quillan. “You’re a good guy, and you two get along, right? And I don’t know much...at all about girls, but my parents didn’t seem to think it was weird that Alexander had asked someone...for whatever that’s worth.”

Nicholas really hoped that nobody asked him what he thought that was worth, because he wasn’t really sure when it came down to it. After all, his parents weren’t exactly like other people, were they? They’d married each other because they’d wanted to, not because there had been more advantages than disadvantages to doing so, and they had to know about how much Alexander wanted to at least perfectly match Dad’s accomplishments and preferably even exceed them. Of course, Mom and Dad might not see that story as one of the ones their sons were supposed to take example from – but then, just as Nicholas had no reason to think that Mom and Dad wanted Alexander to imitate the famous school feast marriage proposal feat someday, he also had no real reason to think that they were opposed to Alexander doing that, either. It didn’t seem likely - when she’d somehow wrung everything he’d ever known, heard, seen, thought, or even imagined about Ida Stanford out of him over midterm, he...hadn’t exactly gotten the impression she was thrilled with the idea that she might basically already have a daughter-in-law – but it was possible.

“And Mother told me to remember that going to a school dance doesn’t mean getting engaged or anything, but I think that might have been a joke,” he added. “There was only one Ball when she and Father were here, and they went together, so. But she’s not wrong even if she was joking...if you want to ask Charlotte, anyway.” He was pretty sure the color of Quillan’s face answered that question okay, at least along with what he’d said to Desmond, but he was also pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to add any commentary along those lines with anything even vaguely resembling a straight face and so he kept that thought to himself.

16 Nicholas Pierce Couldn't it be about something trivial, like religion or politics? 1565 0 5

Quillan Arcadius

October 16, 2023 6:05 AM

Yes, more of that, please by Quillan Arcadius

"Oh, it's okay. Thanks," Quillan said, when Desmond apologised. It was decent of him to do so, and Quillan wanted to accept it gracefully, whilst simultaneously wishing for the conversation to vanish into the ether without a trace.

Nicholas was chiming in too though. In true Nicholas fashion, he was making any number of reasonable points. Quillan couldn't quite help but feel though, that the two people discussing whether he and Charlotte were going to the ball together ought to be him and Charlotte. Admittedly, he did appear to be dragging his heels compared to Alexander, and his roommates did have valid reasons for wanting to know.

"Can I let you know by the end of the week?" he said, deciding that both if he was going to ask her, he'd rather she was the first to know, and that also that if he did ask and she said 'no,' he didn't want to have committed to the plan to go with her in front of his roommates. "Do you have someone you want to ask?" he checked, mostly with Nicholas but slightly with Desmond too. It sounded like Desmond didn't, or he presumably would have led with that, and wouldn't be so desperate to confirm Nicholas' lack of a plan, but Quillan wanted to be sure any delay on his part had the minimum impact on them possible. If neither of them wanted to ask anyone, then the only thing they were waiting on was whether or not he'd be joining them.

13 Quillan Arcadius Yes, more of that, please 1570 0 5

Desmond Brockert

October 16, 2023 1:13 PM

That would be more interesting but this is unfortunately necessary by Desmond Brockert

Quillan accepted Desmond’s apology, which the latter was a bit relieved about. He didn’t do so very often, because he rarely thought that he had done anything wrong. He had probably said worse to people, mostly Liesl. At least from some people’’s perspectives, but not from those of his parents and for better or worse, people often took their cues from their parents, at least until they reached an age where they developed better critical thinking skills. Of course, Desmond thought his were just fine. And he was obviously quite good at being critical of others.

In this case, though, the Aladren had actually felt that he owed his friend an apology, even though it had been a necessary question to ask. However, since he didn’t apologize to people very often, he did not really have a lot of skill with them. Which normally would bother Desmond, since he liked to be skilled in things, but not being skilled in apologizing meant that he normally didn’t feel he needed to do so and that he was usually right. So, therefore, he was glad his apology was sufficient and that Quillan had forgiven him.

Nicholas also chimed in with encouragement for Quillan asking Charlotte. “Those are valid points.”Desmond agreed. Although he wasn’t sure that saying his mother might have been joking was helpful.Still, what did it matter if she was? While Quillan’s world view might have been influenced by his own parents, it shouldn’t necessarily matter what Nicholas’ mother thought. “Lots of people go to the Ball with people they don’t marry. Like, my cousin Isla’s friend went with this guy and then they dated briefly and broke up. Sometimes prefects go to the Ball with someone just so they have someone to do the opening dance with. Still, if you want to go with her, you should ask her.”

Personally, Desmond sort of thought he should, just because he thought they would make a nice respectable couple. Someday, of course. Just because he got slightly annoyed when Charlotte beat him at the practical side of Transfig didn’t mean that she wasn’t a perfectly proper and respectable young lady of good breeding. “Of course.” He replied. It was, after all, Quillan’s decision regardless of Desmond’s very valid and often correct opinion.

The other Aladren then turned the question around on him, which was fair enough though he seemed mostly to be asking Nicholas. “No, nobody in particular. Either your sister or Cecily would be the most proper options since Alma is my cousin and all.” Merlin, he hoped that he didn’t have to apologize for bringing up Quillan’s sister in that context. Sometimes, people could be protective of sisters, which obviously wasn’t the case with Desmond. Maybe to a degree with Krisalyn, but not Liesl really. Possibly because she was older than him and possibly because all he wanted her to really do was behave herself properly. Yes, she could have been worse-after all, she wasn’t dumping frogs on people-but still.

He continued “I just wanted to make sure that none of us is left on our own without company. Considering the lack of valid options for worthwhile company otherwise.” Desmond was, after all, really selective about those whose company he kept, to say the least, and while he could probably tolerate some people, he definitely wanted to keep the odds in his favor. He might have been an Aladren rather than a Crotalus, but he still preferred to not take chances on some things.

Arguably, Quillan hexing him at some point tonight was apparently not one of them.

11 Desmond Brockert That would be more interesting but this is unfortunately necessary 1572 0 5

Nicholas Pierce

October 16, 2023 3:47 PM

Because none of us had anything else to be a little stressed about already.... by Nicholas Pierce

“Not specifically,” said Nicholas, shrugging. “I’ve half-thought about just...asking someone so Alexander can’t add this to his list of reasons why being six minutes older than me makes him older and wiser, but not anyone specifically.”

He said this lightly, not least because it really was an incredibly minor concern, as far as it went. It was just more rational than his real concern, which was that he’d somehow end up as good as married before he even took his CATS, when the thought of someone else in the family was still sort of weird and uncomfortable to contemplate. It was a superstitious sort of concern, beneath him really, but his family had a tendency to settle their lives early – or at least, his dad’s family did. Nicholas didn’t know much about his mother’s family, and that was so for a lot of reasons, but he did know that his mother’s siblings hadn’t settled down like she had. He didn’t have first cousins, at least that he knew about: his father’s only siblings had died (or “died”) before he was born, and before either of them had married.

For himself...he didn’t want to be like Aunt Rachel and Uncle Isaac, he knew that much. It was difficult for him to grasp how they even functioned, since they didn’t even like each other, either, and thus didn’t even have much in the way of emotional support from their siblings. The problem was, he didn’t especially want to be exactly like his parents, either. He thought he probably could get as close to perfect as they were, if he tried as hard as they did...but while he didn’t want to disappoint his parents, the idea of being a workaholic who spent his whole life no more than a few feet from a ledger just...didn’t appeal at all. He didn’t know what did, but it wasn’t that.

All of this, however, was rather too serious for discussion with his roommates, at least without Alexander present as well. And he’d frankly, if he had to discuss it at all, rather just discuss it with Alexander, though he wondered if even his brother would really understand. He thought Alexander would grasp being afraid of failure, of not being good enough to match their parents; he didn’t know if Alexander – everyone’s favorite person; Mom’s carus, Precious One - would be able to get his head around the idea of just not wanting to, because the rewards just didn’t seem proportional to the effort for him.

Luckily, the conversation turned in a distracting direction – specifically, toward how two of the ‘suitable’ girls were related to the other two people currently in the room. ‘Cousin’ was a broad term, but ‘sister’ was more specific (or had been, anyway, before Alexander had first said Ida Stanford was apparently their sister now last year but was now going to a formal event with her as a companion). Family was a tricky topic, at least in contexts like this, and that, in a way, went for Desmond almost as much as Quillan right now: he and Alexander and Desmond all managed to avoid, for the most, acknowledging that Desmond was related somehow by marriage to the Other Side of the Mountain, and this was the way Nicholas preferred it. He needed to pay attention to the present before he worried too much about the vague possibilities of the future.

16 Nicholas Pierce Because none of us had anything else to be a little stressed about already.... 1565 0 5