Catching Lightning (Will)

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Edmund was pissed. Yes, he knew he had a tendency to get emotional and overreact to things, though he also felt like he'd done a much better job at that lately. His recent improvements in his relationships with his siblings was proof of that ... well, it should have been proof of that. He thought it was until his sister involved him in a stupid matchmaking plot because she couldn't bloody well stay in her own life and then his brother had to go out and freaking make out with the girl who was staying in their apartment. He had half a mind to just ditch his family and go find somewhere else to stay where he wouldn't have to deal with them anymore, but at the same time he knew he couldn't. It would break his mother's heart and worry her almost to death, with all the crazy attacks that were going on. 

The second he left the apartment he apparated to the Windsor grounds. There was this one tree- a weeping willow- that he went to sometimes. It was actually his favorite place on the grounds, but he didn't want his siblings to know that so he only went there occasionally and only when he knew no one was paying attention to him. It was right beside the pond where he grew up skipping rocks with his father. Today he wasn't in the mood to skip rocks though. He looked around carefully and then strode to the tree, sitting down by the trunk and hugging his knees, trying to take deep breaths and calm himself from his anger. It wasn't working.

@will

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Will and Andy had just kissed, but had not planned on Edmund walking in and getting upset. So what if he was kissing Andy? Okay, okay, Will had kind of been pursuing Finn for the past few weeks, and his other siblings new that... so maybe that's why Ed was upset. But Will hadn't asked Andy to kiss him and it didn't mean anything. And he'd told Andy afterward not to do it again, so things were basically good, right? Hopefully he could explain that to Ed.

He followed his brother, catching up to him right when he apparated. It took some searching, too much of it, and he finally found his brother back at Windsor grounds, by the pond. He was sure Edmund had been sitting there for at least ten minutes before he walked up, breathless. "Ed, hey. That was nothing -- Andy just got confused for a second. She misses Phil," he explained quickly. "Did you need me?" he asked, his voice soft.

@edmund

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Edmund heard someone approaching as he sat under the tree, but he hoped desperately that it was just a groundskeeper. He didn't want to talk to anyone right now. He was too angry and annoyed at all of them and even more at himself for losing control of his emotions. He was doing so good at managing his emotions lately that it was annoying that something so stupid as a blind date and seeing his brother kissing someone could upset him so badly. 

He heard heavy breathing and then Will's voice and Ed sighed softly. He didn't want an explanation or anything. He didn't deserve one. Will still came up saying that it was nothing and Andy was confused and Ed bit back his retorts. It sure didn't look like "nothing". Either way, it was none of his business. He looked out at the pond, not acknowledging his brother at all until he asked if Ed needed him. Part of Ed wanted to say no and be done, but ... he still didn't know what to do. He felt so confused. He awkwardly reached into his pocket and drew out the letter that started it all and held it up for his brother. "Here," he said, wondering what Will's reaction would be to seeing that Edmund had a blind date soon. Ed wasn't sure anymore if he wanted to talk about Addi with his brother.

@will

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Will prepared for anything from his little brother, ranging from a hug to a full on slap across the face with brass knuckles. What he got was a piece of paper, and one word. Will's eyebrow raised as he pulled the paper toward him, reading it. His eyes widened and he looked back at Ed with a confused face, "you... you wouldn't sign up for this," he said, stating the obvious. "Hey, maybe it'll be fun," he suggested, handing the letter back to his little brother. "If anything it's another friend, and friends are a good thing, right? Like your friend..." holy crap, he had forgotten her name! The blonde one, with the curly hair,Claires little sister. Oh my gosh, Claire would mock him endlessly for forgetting her sisters name. "You know, Claires sister," smooth save, your highness, smoooth saave.

@edmund

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Edmund wasn't looking at his brother. He actually closed his eyes the moment Will took the paper out of his hand. He didn't want to see the look on his face, was a little bit unsure if he wanted to talk about this will Will anyway. The two were never super close ... did he actually want to admit his feelings about Addi to a guy who just kissed a girl and then said it was nothing? Will said that Ed wouldn't sign up for this and Ed grunted, muttering bitterly. "Susan." That was all it should take for Will to understand. He opened his eyes and turned to his brother when he said it might be fun, taking the letter back. "I don't need to get set up on pity dates just because my sister doesn't think I have anyone I care about," he retorted, his mood darkening by the moment. Then Will started talking about friends and how they were good and Ed should be happy to have more and blah blah blah. Then he mentioned Addi, except he didn't ever know her name. Ed felt his heart grow hard and he rose to his feet, wishing he hadn't gone looking for Will in the first place. Will didn't care. "Nevermind," he grumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he walked away. He'd work on his feelings on his own, since his brother didn't care.

@will

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Edmund guessed that it was Susan and Wills eyes widened slightly. He looked down at the paper and read it again, sighing and nodding. This could have been Susan, that was clear. Then he looked back up at Edmund as he took the letter back and said that he didn't need to get set up on 'pity dates' because Susan didn't 'think he had anyone he cared about'... which to Will translated that Edmund did have someone he cared bout. Edmund stood, though, as Will so stupidly forgot the girls name, he's friend - Claires sister, and said nevermind. He started to walk away, hands in his pockets and Will followed, but at a safe distance. "Hey! Please, tell me about her," he said, trying to keep his tone soft and not rise to anger and annoyance, like he could feel burning in his chest already at the thought of Edmund walking away from him. "Your best friend. Please. Remind me," he added.

@edmund

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Will didn't say anything as Edmund commented about Susan setting him up on the date and Ed decided to take that as agreement. Not that he cared if Will agreed with him in the first place. Why did he ever think that he should go to his brother about something like this? It wasn't like Will ever helped him with things he was struggling with before. Why did he think that that would change now, just because he got set up on a stupid blind date? Ugh. He was walking away, convinced that his brother would just go off in some other direction and not concern himself with his stupid, annoying younger brother. Ed didn't care. Then he heard Will's voice behind him, calling to him and asking for Ed to tell him about her. About who? Addi? Why did he even want to know? It wasn't like he cared. Still, he slowed his pace as his brother continued, asking him to remind him about his best friend. Ed thought a moment and then decided to give it a go. He was still beyond annoyed with his brother, but he could give him one more chance before he blew him off entirely. It wouldn't hurt Ed. He turned around and gave his brother a look. "Her name is Addilyn Slater. Addi. She's been my best friend since first year. Ringing any bells?" Ed knew he was being a snob, but he also didn't care. "Why'd you bring her up anyway? I just showed you that stupid letter." He groaned internally when he thought of the blind date. Honestly, he did want to talk to Will about Addi, but he didn't exactly know how ... and since his brother wanted to snog everyone he wasn't entirely sure how much he wanted to get advice from him.

@will

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Ed turned around and the look on his face made Wills eyes widen for a moment. Lord, Will really should not have forgotten that girls name. Addilyn! Addi. Okay, that was it. Edmund was clearly angry, and Will was just going to let him do so. Then Ed asked why Will brought her up and Will shrugged, holding his hands up in surrender. "I just wanted to remind you what a good friendship looks like. Yes, like with Addi. And yes, I know she's been your best friend since first year," calm, Pete, calm, he told himself. "But you and I don't talk much - didn't talk much, and... anyway, there is no good excuse for me lapsing on her name. Since she's so important to you. I'm sure you hadn't forgotten Claire's name, either," he said, letting out a sigh of relief that he had somehow managed to get those words out. "Dates can be a fun way of getting to know someone. You don't have to marry them," he said, trying to sound encouraging.

@edmund

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Edmund felt himself calming down as Will started explaining that he brought up Addi to demonstrate a good friendship. Ed knew she was a good friend. Addi was his best friend. The fact that he was pretty sure he felt more for her than friendship now ... well that was honestly probably why he got so angry at Will so quickly. His brother couldn't remember the name of the person outside of their family that meant the world to him. He nodded as Will spoke, then mumbled. "Sorry." He could go on to explain that he was apologizing for getting so angry, but he didn't want to. So he let Will figure that out. Then he shrugged, "Claire is Addi's older sister. She'd kill me if I forgot her." He grimaced at his brother's explanation of dates. What if he didn't want to know someone? What if the whole thing just stressed him out? "I know that ... but what if the girl feels more interest in me than I feel for her?" That was the least of his worries at the moment, but a decent place to start.

@will

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Ed said one word, 'sorry', and that was all Will really needed by way of apology. Really, Will didn't need an apology at all, but the fact that one came, albeit small, meant a lot to him. Edmund said that Addi would kill him if he had forgotten Claires name, which made Will chuckle. "Claire wasn't as talkative about her siblings, really. Or about much at all. She's a very... physical being," okay, that sounded weird. "She just prefers to only speak when she really thinks it's necessary, I think," he tried to explain.

Edmund said that he was worried that the girl would feel more interest for him than he did for her, and Wills brow furrowed. "Hmm... well, that does get difficult sometimes," Will had been there before, though not often. Usually he was the one liking the girl first and more-so. "I think honesty it always the best, in these situations. They can handle it. Even if it bums them out for a while, it'll eventually be in the past, you know? Though, I'm not sure I know much about girls your age. Never did," he admitted.

@edmund

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Edmund's lips curved into the tiniest of smirks when Will said that Clair was a physical being. Oh really? He wasn't going to say anything about it though. He didn't want to make this conversation more tense than it already was, even though he was aware that it was mostly tense because of him. He nodded after Will tried to explain more about Claire. "All right," Edmund said, more to try and get his brother to stop talking about Addi's older sister. He didn't want to hear any more about that relationship. 

He started listening more carefully when Will started talking about what he could do. Be honest. Well, that wasn't too hard, Ed just found himself a little nervous that the girl would take his honesty the wrong way. After all, she'd probably think that he wanted a relationship since she wouldn't know he didn't sign himself up for the date. Then again, that's what Will was saying, wasn't it? That being honest could help clear all that up. He nodded slowly, "So I should just tell her I didn't sign myself up for this?" His face showed his hesitation. "Or ..." he sighed in frustration. "I'm not good at wording things like this," he admitted, grinding his teeth and looking down at the ground. With his luck, he'd try to be kind and honest and it would come out wrong, making the girl mad at him. Great.

@will

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Edmund seemed to be okay with Will's excuse for not knowing Addilyns name. Then, as they talked about girls, Edmund asked if he should tell Addi he didn't sign up for it. He seemed more concerned about Addilyns feelings then Will had originally realized. That made Will smile a little, and he was lucky Edmund looked down at the ground at that moment so that he didn't see the smile. "Addilyn seems smart. I'm sure she knows you well enough, right?" Will guessed, even though he really wasn't sure. Any sister of Claires had to be pretty smart, right? "If it comes up just say it in the first sentence like, 'so someone signed me up for this blind date thing,' and introduce it that way, so that right off the bat it's clear it wasn't your idea, you know?" he suggested. He assumed Edmund would tell Addilyn about it no matter what, since they were best friends and all, so that seemed the safest route.

@edmund

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Edmund was pretty sure he was giving himself away with this conversation, but wasn't that the point? Didn't he come to Will for advice because he wanted to know what he should do with Addilyn. The problem was, he needed to actually come out and tell his brother that he thought he cared for her and he wasn't sure how exactly he was going to do that. He nodded when Will talked about Addilyn being smart and knowing him. "Yeah, you're probably right about that. It's just ..." he trailed off, struggling to admit his true feelings to his brother. Luckily Will was talking again, so maybe he wouldn't notice. "That's a good idea," Ed nodded, figuring Will was more experienced at this than he was. Telling her straight out would work. He bit his lip and then it just slipped out. "I wish I didn't have to though because I, well, I think I care for Addi." There. Now it was out in the open. He'd have to see how Will responded.

@will

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Edmund said Will was probably right and then trailed off a little, but Will waited. He knew interrupting could disrupt a very good moment for them. Then, Ed said it was a good idea and said that he wished he didn't have to talk to Addi about it because he thought he cared for her. It seemed like that came out of Ed's mouth involuntarily, but Will was glad it did. He decided not to make a comment about the powers of the Slater girls, knowing Ed wouldn't find it funny, but instead nodded. "Well, then you definitely should just be as honest and calm about it as possible. She'll understand. And, if she cares for you too, she'll probably just laugh it off with you," he hoped.

He stepped forward and held a hand out to his brother, "let's go have a snack, I heard mum talking about scones with Lus," he said.

@edmund
(you end it pls! so proud of these too!)

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Will didn't say anything else, until Ed made his confession. The moment his secret was out of his lips, he started biting them. Blast it all, he wasn't sure he even wanted Will to know any of that, and he just told his brother the most important part. To his great surprise, no teasing or jokes came his way. None whatsoever. Relief coursed through him. He nodded slowly as Will explained that he should tell her. The nerves were back, but for an entirely different reason this time. Ed was worried that Addi would decide she didn't feel the same way as him. "Thanks," he said softly to his brother. "I hope she does." Obviously. If he wasn't hoping she'd understand, he wouldn't feel as worried about this as he did. 

To his surprise, Will was suddenly holding a hand out to Ed, inviting him to come have a snack. Ed nodded and took it to help himsel fto his feet. "Well how can I say no to scones," he teased his brother. He couldn't believe how well this conversation between them went, all things considered.

@will

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