Author Topic:  up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]  (Read 901 times)

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169 Posts 25 played by Lee
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« on: May 29, 2022, 04:26:29 PM »
 
the three broomsticks | october 2004

There had not been a Hogsmeade weekend during Mavis’s actual birthday (Michael assumed that even the seventh years weren’t raring at the bit for a weekend out when school had only been in session for three days) so they had to celebrate her birthday a month late. He suspected she didn’t mind; surely Mavis had spent her actual birthday with, like, her friends.

Almost seven years ago, Michael’s dad had taken him out on New Year’s Eve as a (month-early) seventeenth birthday present. They’d left early so Michael could puke in an alley, and then they’d spent the rest of the night sitting on the step out back with a bucket, watching the fireworks. His dad had apologised over and over. Michael had tried fruitlessly to guilt his dad into buying him cigarettes. His dad had not let him. Easily it was one of Michael’s favourite memories.

No way was Sandra doing anything of the sort for Mavis, though, so it fell to Michael. He knew for a fact that Mavis had already tried alcohol – he’d taken her to that party, hadn’t he, and he’d been offering her sips of whatever he was drinking since he was seventeen – but he also owed it to her anyway, since he’d also been telling her since he was seventeen that they could both be sent to Azkaban for that. (He honestly had only wanted her to not tell their mum. Unfortunately for her, she’d believed him.)

He got them both sweet, fruity cocktails – he wasn’t a fan of them but suspected Mavis would be – and shot Mavis a glance as Madam Rosmerta moved aside to start making them. “I don’t need to tell you this,” he said, “but Sandra’ll slaughter me if you get sick, so, don’t.”

Their drinks came with little paper umbrellas in them – Michael stuck his into Mavis’s drink instead (another thing he wasn’t a fan of but suspected Mavis would like) and held his glass up to clink against hers – “Cheers, Mae.” Drink. (Eugh, it was sweet.) "So how was your real birthday?"

@Mavis Nandamuri


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #1 on: May 29, 2022, 06:04:10 PM »
 "I can keep some secrets, you know," the teenager said with a scowl that didn't quite reach her eyes. A smile broke on her lips before she couldn't put any effort into the frown, anyway. Mavis was seventeen, and she was in a pub (a pub!?!!) with her brother to have a drink. (Sure, this pub was The Three Broomsticks, and she'd been here before, but still!)

“Cheers,” Mavis repeated her brother’s words with no shortage of excitement. The second of two umbrellas fell from her glass as she enthusiastically clinked it against Michael’s. To Mae, the pretty drink she held just a little too tightly – like someone old might snatch it from her at any moment – was more than a simple right of passage. It was a statement, she was seventeen now, and she was turning over a new page in the Book of Mae. And that meant she was older and wiser – Okay, well, at least the first thing was wholly true.

The newly minted “adult” witch sipped her pretty “adult” beverage through a straw that paled compared. Next to the soft pink-orange gradient of the liquid, and the cute umbrella topper, she decided a fun bendy straw would have been a better compliment. Then again, she wasn’t going to complain. The drink was sweet, but a little tangy, Mae expected that was the alcohol in it. She’d had liquor before, but only sparingly or entirely too much all at once. Never the right amount to really understand the flavor of it. “This is delicious,” she confessed, smiling up at her brother.

“Brill-lli-ant,” she offered a one word stretched into more syllables than necessary as an answer in between sips. Her real birthday, as he had named it, had happened a few days into the term, and Mavis realized she didn’t hate that as much as she once had. When she’d been younger, having summer vacation end right before her birthday had always been a drag. There was a serious lack of pool parties in her personal history. Now, it meant she got to spend it with her friends and not feel guilty about not wanting her parents around.

“What’s in this?” she asked, and because one subject was never enough to keep her satisfied, Mavis continued his conversation too. “Magnolia gave me a little cupcake in potions – tasted dreadful, the witch can not cook to save her life, but it was super cute.”

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #2 on: June 05, 2022, 01:47:32 PM »
 Mavis said with (mock?) indignation that she was capable of keeping some secrets, but she was a little too pleased with this whole affair to pull it off, so Michael just grinned: “Aye, I’m sure.” Having a mother as nosy as Sandra would make anybody good at keeping secrets.

His paper umbrella toppled out of Mavis’s glass and landed on the bar, leaving a trace of liquid on the polished wood. Mavis liked it – quelle surprise – and wanted to know what was in it – naturally – so Michael closed the tiny umbrella, wiped the bar dry with the side of his sleeve, and placed the tiny umbrella carefully on a cocktail napkin. “Juice, mostly.” Cranberry and grapefruit; he’d picked this drink for the colour more than the flavour. He didn’t know what Mavis liked to eat, other than that the entire Nandamuri family ate more varied and healthy food than Michael had grown up on, but he did know that she liked pink.

He did not, but it wasn’t his seventeenth birthday, so he had to suck it up. Last year when he’d taken Esther out for her birthday, he’d lucked out and she’d wanted brandy. He’d already known not to expect the same from Mavis – the two sisters were so dissimilar in taste that Michael swore it was on purpose.

“Magnolia –” Hawkins, he remembered, he’d dated her older sister for about two weeks when he was thirteen – “Well, it was sweet of her. Did…” He trailed off. If memory served, the other members of his sister’s little crew at school were Josie and Killian Buckley, and both Sandra and Esther had told Michael that (a.) something had happened between Mavis and Killian, and (b.) not to ask.

Michael’s breakups had never been cataclysmically bad, but they had mostly ruined his ability to remain on speaking terms with his exes, so he wondered how that entire group had coped. Sometimes he thought it was a good thing he’d never really made friends with girls. He finished lamely, “Did Mum and Ray get you anything good?” They’d gotten him a watch; he’d been annoyed about it, angry at them for assuming Doug wouldn’t, and angry at Doug because they’d been right. He hadn’t actually worn the watch until his twenties, when he’d grown up enough to admit they’d meant well.
 


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #3 on: June 12, 2022, 10:51:42 PM »
 “Yeah, but, like, what sort of alcohol is in it?” Mavis wasn’t satisfied with his answer that it was mostly juice. It was pretty sweet, and after a moment of reflection, she realized he’d probably ordered her something lighter on the liquor scale because she was new to drinking. The younger sister part of Mavis appreciated him looking out for her, but the Gryffindor took it like a challenge.

Mavis told him about the cupcake Magnolia had made with a smile, nodding when he repeated her best friend's name, and then tilting her head to the side at his false-start. “Did, what?” she said quickly, still chewing on the end of her straw. He asked another question, and she nodded. “Yeah, the jumper I asked for, it's super cute.” From a stranger’s perspective, Mae figured the idea of getting the clothes she asked for for her birthday didn’t sound all that appealing. Most of Mae’s friends got records or a new broomstick for their birthdays; surprise gifts. Mavis hoped her brother would understand why she was so happy to get exactly what she asked for; hoped he would see it for the accomplishment it was.

The young witch had been trying to get her mother to let her go clothes shopping alone for years now, and had been failing. This year, the two females had reached a compromise: Sandra took her shopping for the beginning of term, but Mavis got to pick one thing for her birthday, and her mum couldn’t refuse. She had considered asking for something inappropriate, just because power made her hungry, but Mavis hadn’t pressed her luck.

She realized she should have worn that jumper tonight – so that she could show it off, and because it was only useful during Hogsmeade Weekends – but she’d forgotten. Mavis took another sip from her drink, she was halfway finished with it already and smiling. “Oh, and we did a little sleepover thing in the Gryffindor dorms.” Mavis chirped, adding more to the story of her birthday. “Pushed the beds together, had snacks, nail polish, -- you know, the works.” Not all of her dormmates wanted to participate, but with Nola and Josie on her side, Mavis was happy to be in the majority.

“Do boys have sleepovers?” Mavis asked the question quickly, she had a drink to get back to, and waited for the answer. She was too young to ever remember Michael having friends over, Jae never seemed the sleepover type, and Mavis couldn’t help but wonder if Killian ever talked about her the way she had about him at two am with her roommates.

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #4 on: June 23, 2022, 04:56:32 PM »
 “Vodka,” said Michael. “We can get you something darker later, if you want to try.” She’d have to drink a glass of water or two first, he gauged, looking at her: she was young, unused to alcohol, and small. Dating Cordelia had made him rather aware of his high tolerance – his girlfriend was no slouch when it came to drinking, but he still had several years and seven inches on her, and he had a rather greater advantage over Mavis.

Luckily Mavis didn’t catch how close Michael had come to asking about her ex-boyfriend; she was too cheerful about some jumper she’d made Sandra buy her. (Michael got it; their mother was a passive-aggressive gift-giver at the best of times, and if Michael could pick up on the messages she was sending through the very dull avenue of mens’ clothing, he couldn’t imagine how obvious it was to the girls.) “Cool,” he said. “I should try that, see if it’ll get her to give me things I actually need.” Or even things he wanted, though that was a long shot.

At least Mavis seemed to have enjoyed her birthday. It helped that she had a group of friends hell-bent on enjoying their entire adolescence. Even Michael had never gotten up to the nonsense they pulled on a regular basis, and Michael had joined a student militia.

“Fun,” he said.

Did boys have sleepovers? “Sort of,” he said. There was nothing he’d ever described as a sleepover, he didn’t think, but he and his friends would sleep over at each others’ houses once in a while, and on one or two occasions (extenuating circumstances) they’d all stayed up together in their dorm talking. (Still not a sleepover so much as a conference or business meeting.) “Not so much to-do as all that, you know – whenever we were over at Doug’s we’d all just kip on the floor by the telly, there weren’t room anywhere else for it. Never had my mates to Sandra’s, obviously.”
 


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #5 on: July 16, 2022, 10:56:07 PM »
 “Oh, what sort of things do you actually need, then?” Mavis asked, cupping her chin, her hand, and resting her elbow on the table to look up at him. There was a shimmer in her eyes, mischief mixed with good will, because Michael was ridiculously difficult to shop for. Every January, Mavis navigated the tightrope between realizing that she didn’t know her older brother as well as she’d like, and that it wasn’t entirely her fault because Michael was difficult to get to know.

Mae had no qualms about stealing gift ideas he might have been reserving for their mum. Christmas was around the corner, and she was closer to desperate every day.

The teenage went back to sipping what was left of her drink and told him all about her birthday. The thought of boys having sleepovers stuck with her though, even after Michael had answered and she’d nodded about his lack of hosting at Sandra’s. “So that’s all you did? Watched the telly?” Every sleepover Mavis had been to (in the dorms, at home, at friends) had always included no less than four activities.

The activities varied, but it all came down to a simple set of if/thens – Mavis loved conditional statements. If Magnolia was there, they gossiped. If Killian was there, they messed around with Muggle contraptions, not even Mae understood (or talked about whatever Lord of the Rings was). If Billie was there, everyone’s voices were at least seventy percent quieter.

“Sounds…” Dreadful, she thought. “Kind of boring.” Mavis finished her drink and shrugged at her brother. She expected there was more to it, but also assumed she wasn’t going to learn the secret of boys by scraps of information gleaned from this conversation, so she didn’t press Michael too hard.  

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #6 on: July 17, 2022, 05:40:16 PM »
 “Dunno,” said Michael. He was difficult to shop for and he knew it – last year Anthony had bought him, like, a star for his birthday, what the hell had that been about? – but whenever he tried to think about things he might like to have, he pulled a blank. “Like, books.” He’d read anything he was given, at least, and he liked having something to read, even if it was duller than dirt.

He shrugged in response to her question – “‘Course not,” he said, “We ate and talked, whatever. Hung out.” Doug let Michael drink on his own, but he’d never let him drink when he had friends over, which Michael knew now was because he’d worried that their (far more responsible) parents would stop letting them come over. Mavis thought this sounded kind of boring, which Michael was instinctively offended by, but couldn’t exactly argue with. “It’s only boring if you got nothing to talk about,” he said.

Without revealing any of the (disgusting boy) things they’d talked about, he had nothing else to say about having his friends over as a teenager, so he rubbed his nose self-consciously and said, “I thought you were friends with boys, anyway.” She’d definitely had more boy friends than he’d ever had girl friends – the only girl friends he’d had for ages were girlfriends.

He changed the topic: “So you’re back on the team, then?” She’d been back on the team since last year, but she was probably bursting to tell him she’d been made co-captain.  


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #7 on: August 31, 2022, 12:47:15 PM »
 In any conversation, there was always a sort of push and pull – Mavis tended to push, more than pull, and then wondered later if she’d been annoying about it. Asking Michael what he might like for his birthday was a push, but when he said dunno – (a very weak pull) – she got the feeling this topic was nearing its natural end. Having seen enough of the books he’d left around the house over the years, Mavis imagined she could pick something he’d like, though.

“I mean, like, I am friends with some boys—” Could she still qualify Ki as a friend? Jae was a mate, so long as he wasn’t being a jerk. There had been Freddie too, but he’d asked her to hang out at Hogsmeade two Septembers ago, and she’d been so nervous that pretending he didn’t exist seemed more rational than going. Mavis had done an ace job avoiding him last term, despite having nearly all their classes together and sharing a common room, but it wasn’t exactly a proud achievement. It was all very complicated, and Mavis decided she didn’t have time to explain all the details to Michael right now (a.k.a. her behavior embarrassed her, so she pretended it never happened instead).

“But I feel like it's probably different when it's all girls or all boys, you know?” She toyed with the straw in her glass, pushing the little bit of fruit that had fallen off the rim early on. (She hadn’t noticed before now). The chunk of soaked fruit rose to the top as she pushed it with the straw, and then sunk slowly when she stopped spinning. She felt like she was on the brink of some big revelation, but couldn’t quite reach it. Like whatever she was trying to say was important, but it kept sinking to the bottom, just like the chunk of wet fruit.

Multitasking in a way she was simply not skilled enough to, Mavis half listened to her brother while she leaned over to inspect the state of her Wellingtons beneath the table. It was October, and there hadn’t been any snow on the ground when she’d walked from the castle, but it had rained a few nights ago, and that moisture had created one of her most long-lived nemeses: mud. The teenage witch frowned at the buildup of brown goo on her sparkled pink wellies that had nearly dried by now, which was almost worse. The optimist in her was thankful that the streets of Hogsmeade were partially paved with stones, which meant she’d kick a lot of the dust off on the walk back. But the pessimist frowned upon realizing she’d not be able to pull her feet up on the chair.

She’d been debating the merit (and civility) of removing her boots in the pub when Michael mentioned Quidditch, and she popped up again. Despite being seventeen (like an adult, or something), she was still a little too short for the chairs at the Three Broomsticks. And as she sat up again, the rubber boots fell slightly to the floor, still on, but the gap usually between the top of her foot and the inside of the Wellie was now underneath her foot. It felt strange, but she ignored it, favoring the Quidditch conversation. She had a lot of push to offer on this topic.

“Yep, first string,” she said it with her head tilted, as if to say naturally, and smiled. “And guess what, I’ve been named Co-Captain as well.” It was the sort of news that wasn't as fun to deliver via Owl Mail. Letters never conveyed the tone right, even when she used an exuberant amount of exclamation marks (which, naturally she did). And despite trying to bribe her owl with treats, she was certain Spice never delivered her messages with enthusiasm. “Can you believe it? Co-Captain! I bet Jae was soooo jealous,” she didn’t know if that was true, but she imagined it was. Mavis had finished her drink, and the tingling feeling had begun to settle into her limbs. Her features brightened, and the enthusiasm she usually felt about Quidditch seemed to multiply.

“I’m still scared sometimes, but, like, I’m happy I got back on the broom.” Mavis had thought she would give up Quidditch for-ev-er, but forever hadn’t lasted nearly as long as she’d thought. A couple of months, barely.

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #8 on: September 18, 2022, 06:31:52 PM »
 “Probably,” said Michael. In his experience men talked a little more frankly when there were no women there, but then he thought it might have something to do with comfort and closeness, too – there were plenty of things he’d only be comfortable talking about to Tony and Terry, plenty of things he’d only have talked about with his dad and thus didn’t talk about at all.

Their mum had already told him that Mavis had been made co-captain, but Michael nodded and said, “Oh really! Well done that,” as though he were hearing the news for the first time. He wanted nothing less than to be pulled into whatever pettiness she’d brewed up lately with Jae-the-neighbour-kid (hadn’t she had about fifty fallings-out with him already?) so he just shrugged – he’d only ever met that kid in passing, anyway, and had no idea if he was the jealous sort. Frankly he suspected that Mavis was a far, far more jealous personality than Jae.

(This was one of a few areas where Michael and Mavis really differed, but then Mavis was young. Maybe she would outgrow it a little.)

“I’m glad too,” he said, sort of wishing he hadn’t brought it up now. He stirred his ice with the unused straw in his glass and added, “and, you know, it gets less scary. I think. You’re not thinking of going professional, are you?”


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #9 on: October 25, 2022, 09:18:28 PM »
Mavis beamed when Michael said good job; smiling because she felt she had earned the spot, and proud of herself for sticking it out even when flying had become terrifying. Michael had played a part in getting her back on the broom, and she owed him for it. She shrugged, “Yeah, it’s easier every time I go up there.” Mavis loved being in the air, and then she’d gotten hurt, and lost that joy along the way. Over time, though, she was getting it back. Enough that she’d rejoined the team and been surprised with the co-captain’s position.

And she had every intention to make it count.

Gryffindor was going to crush it this term.

This drink was pretty great.

And Mavis was maybe a little drunk.

“Professional? Oh, no, don’t think I will.” Mavis wasn’t selling herself short, but she didn’t think she had what it took to make a career out of Quidditch. Maybe if she worked hard, she could have enough skill, but she wasn’t as dedicated to the sport as some of her teammates. She loved Quidditch, but she didn’t live for it.

“I think I want to do something else…” She looked away from Michael, eyes slowly going around the room and then to the ceiling as she considered her words. It took a bit longer, thanks to the alcohol, but after a slight pause, she returned to finish her sentence. “Not sure what, but something.” Yeah, maybe a little bit drunk after all.

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #10 on: November 26, 2022, 07:45:21 PM »
“That’s good, now,” said Michael, still stirring his ice with his straw, like he would die if he stopped. He cleared his throat. “Aye, well, professional’s not for everybody,” he added, after Mavis went on. “I think a few in the year below me ended up on professional teams –” his ex-girlfriend, for one – “but it always seemed a bit – well, most industries don’t care about their people as much as money, and sport’s no different. ‘Slike the entertainment industry, same thing.”

Mavis blithely carried on as though Michael wasn’t being a massive doomer, so for a moment he admonished himself for being depressing on her nonbirthday. “Aye, something else,” he said, as though she had been at all specific. It wasn’t like he’d had anything in mind as ‘something else’ or even a first-choice ‘something’ when he was her age, so…

He registered suddenly the way she was talking and looked over and down at her, his mouth slowly curving into a smile – she was starting to look a little scattered. Well, a little more scattered. “How’re you feeling?” he said, prodding. “You good? You want another?”


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #11 on: January 27, 2023, 02:39:31 PM »
“Would be cool to be sponsored, though,” Mavis added, because of course she wanted all the free stuff. “Imagine having a room full of brooms, your pick, top of the line, totally free,”. If Mae was a cartoon character, her eyes would have turned to hearts (or money signs). She sighed, resting her elbow on the table and her chin on her palm.

Being a professional Quidditch Player would be a lot of work, sure, but it wasn’t without its perks. And it was something she was sort of good at naturally. It had never been something she really saw herself doing in the future. Like most young witches, Mavis had big dreams of what she’d do in the future, but the closer that future got, the less vibrant and easily pictured those dreams began. Sometimes she felt like all her grand plans were slowly turning to sand, sifting through her fingertips, lost.

“I have to pick something.” She said suddenly. “Yeah, I feel good, can I have more?” Mavis had no idea what her limit was, but right at this moment she felt spectacular. Like she had the motivation to make good on all those colorful childhood dreams. Like if she had a bit more alcohol, she might figure out what she was supposed to do with the rest of her life. “I do not want some boring job, no paperwork, no menial tasks.”

Mavis twisted the straw in her empty glass, shifting topics chaotically. “Do we go to the bar for more of these, or do they bring them to the table?” She’d been to the Broomsticks before, but had no idea if alcohol consumption came with its own rules.

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #12 on: February 19, 2023, 11:25:24 PM »
Well, who wouldn’t want to make buckets of gold off celebrity sponsorships?

Michael had been focussed mostly on rolling his straw between two fingers and watching it shift the ice around, but he chanced a glance up at Mavis, who had her chin in her hands and was staring with concentration at her drink, like it was mesmerising her. He wasn’t too surprised by her answer – Yeah, I feel good. Yeah, so she was feeling it. She even wanted more.

“Sure,” he said, but he was too amused to actually get up and go back to the bar for her. Besides – he wasn’t done with his yet and he knew he should be trying to encourage Mavis to pace herself. In the first place, she was about half his size; in the second place she was newly seventeen, and he had about ten years’ more experience more than she did with drinking.

He was now regretting bringing up prospective careers, mostly because he had the boring job (paperwork and menial tasks) she was describing. “Ain’t so bad,” he told her fairly. “Honestly, the job is less important than having a good work-life balance. Cordelia, she has a job she’s passionate about and it looks like hell.” A hell he envied, sometimes, but a hell he was nevertheless grateful he didn’t have to take home at the end of the workday.

Mavis didn’t seem interested in this topic anymore (figured.) Michael glanced over at Madam Rosmerta: “I’ll go get more,” he said. “Unless you want to pay.” She wasn’t paying even if she wanted to – it was her birthday. He finished off his drink and slid off his stool and went back to the bar to get them a second round; Madam Rosmerta, without his even asking, poured a little extra vodka into his (he didn’t like fruit juice.)

“I’m cutting you off after this,” he said, when he returned. Fair warning.


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

132 Posts 17 *:・゚✧ still figuring it out✧゚・:* she/her played by Samm
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #13 on: April 20, 2023, 03:17:08 PM »
Mavis should have been more careful with her words, but she was impulsive, a little bit drunk, and far too comfortable talking to her brother. “Yeah, but what Cordelia is doing will make a difference, right, so it will be worth it?” Mavis did not know enough about Cordelia’s job or Michael’s to understand who would make a bigger or better difference. In her head, Michael did paperwork and fixed elevators all day, but she didn’t know there was more to it than that. She didn’t know that without those elevators and redundant forms, their whole ministry might grind to a halt.

Michael’s question made her laugh more than she might have normally, and Mae covered her mouth to avoid snorting out loud. “No, I don’t,” she answered, partly because she didn’t know how expensive their drinks were, but mostly because getting out of the booth seemed like a lot of work under current circumstances. Mavis played with her hair as she waited for Michael to return, twisting the ends around one finger, and watching them untwist and fall flat again.

“I’m fine,” she explained, reaching for the drink, “You don’t need to cut me off.” Mavis took a big sip and then sat back against her seat. “I could probably drink like seven of these and not even feel it.” In her mind, Mavis was speaking completely coherently, but she was becoming more unclear by the moment. She reached for her drink, holding it above her as she leaned against the back of the booth, as she circled back to the earlier conversation. “I like math, maybe I could do something with that.”

169 Posts 25 played by Lee
Re: up on the hill across the blue lake [mavis]
« Reply #14 on: August 08, 2023, 09:22:02 PM »
"Okay, she's a travel and culture writer, she's not Helen Kirkpatrick," said Michael, though he hastily lifted his drink back up to hide his grin; the straw collided with his nose and the ice slid threateningly toward his face, and so he even more hastily put the glass back down. "And every job makes a difference," he thought to add, once the drink had been managed, though this sentiment was slightly too trite to commit to, and he decided quickly against putting more effort behind it.

Mavis, shockingly, did not want to pay. "No, I thought not," he muttered, reaching with one hand to scratch, very delicately, at his eyebrow, before returning his hand very carefully to the table, rapping his hand once decisively before departing to the bar.

There was absolutely, positively no way Mavis could drink seven of these and not feel it; pretty clearly she couldn't drink just one without feeling it. Michael rolled his eyes as he transferred his second paper umbrella to Mavis's second drink. This time, with a full glass, it was easier to press his amused smile into the rim of the goblet to mask it, though it was still twitching at the corners of his mouth when he set the drink back down.

"Arithmancy, or real maths?" he said. "Maths are one of the most uncelebrated pillars holding up society, I think you'd find plenty of work there, and less competition than there should be. Although --" he tapped his fingertips on the tabletop, "-- I s'pose it depends on the kind of math. If you want to study the intersections of maths and magic or some shite, that's tough, that's proper Unspeakable stuff."
« Last Edit: November 07, 2023, 10:41:30 PM by lee »


okay, first of all, it's cree-tin

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