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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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May 23, 2017 18:31:30 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on May 23, 2017 18:31:30 GMT -7
Oh why did he bring up the Yule Ball in the first place? Ed didn't really want to talk about it, but there was no way Xan would know that, unless he was completely honest with her about that. As a general rule, he was against that idea, but with Xan ... well, maybe he could tell her and she wouldn't think he was an idiot. He shrugged, "It was alright," he answered and then paused. "I liked the first bit, but I left early," he added, not sure whether or not she would ask questions about that, but proud of himself for being honest. He smiled a little when she asked about the food. "I did. They had lots of stuff, but I'm not very good at trying new things so I went with traditional foods." Though really the item he ate the most was bread pudding, a personal favorite. "What did you do?"
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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May 27, 2017 18:54:13 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on May 27, 2017 18:54:13 GMT -7
Edmund said that he left the Yule Ball early, and Xan nodded. Something about the way he said it made her certain that he wasn’t interested in talking about why he had left. If it had been because he was feeling ill, she would have seen him in the hospital wing, right? Or maybe not – she and Hugo had danced in the back corner, away from prying eyes, so it was possible that Edmund had left because he wasn’t feeling well. Until she got more information, Xan couldn’t possibly know. Edmund said that they had lots of food, but he wasn’t good at trying new things, and Xan giggled. “I would have thought that they trained you to like a lot of different foods at your castle.” She said. Wouldn’t it be rude if he refused to eat a foreign dignitary’s meal? Or not, because he was still practically a child? “Hugo and I danced, and then we ate a picnic, and then we danced some more. And we talked some, too, I guess.” Just saying what she did sounded boring, but it was more than that to Xan. It was just… hard to explain.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 3, 2017 22:38:43 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 3, 2017 22:38:43 GMT -7
Edmund smiled when Xan made a comment about how he should like a lot of different foods because of his upbringing. "They can make me eat all sorts of foods, but that doesn't make me like them," he told her honestly. Most of the food was fine, but that didn't mean that he would eat it every night. "Besides," he added, "No one was supposed to eat anything specifically at the Yule Ball. We got to eat what we wanted to eat ... and I didn't want those foods." Hopefully that was enough of an explanation because Ed really didn't know of another way to tell her what he thought. He nodded when she explained her activities. "I'm glad you and Hugo had fun with one another," he answered honestly. He was glad. Glad that not everyone had as rough of a night as he did during the Yule Ball. He was glad that others enjoyed it immensely. That made the Ball worth it, in all, even if it hadn't been worth it to him.
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 12, 2017 12:41:13 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 12, 2017 12:41:13 GMT -7
A laugh bubbled out of Xan’s mouth when Edmund said that for all his parents and others could do to make him try foods, they couldn’t make him like them. She could see why some people would think that Edmund was crochety, with a statement like that, but it was all in good humor and she wasn’t going to hold having food preferences against him. Xan only wished that Edmund had a better reputation among their year mates, so that others could see his unique sense of humor. “I think it would be a poor Ball if you were forced to do something you didn’t like.” Xan agreed. She didn’t think there was a single food that the entire school could agree upon, so mandating a menu wasn’t a smart idea – which was why it hadn’t been done. “I think anyone can have fun with anyone.” Xan mused when Edmund said that he was glad she and her boyfriend had had fun. Xan and Edmund’s friendship was proof of that, since some people would consider them an odd couple. “Shame that not many people want to try it.” People got so stuck in their own state of mind that they hardly considered that there might be something bigger and better beyond it.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 13, 2017 19:46:03 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2017 19:46:03 GMT -7
It was nice to have someone around that understood his sense of humor. Xan laughed at his semi-joke and Edmund smiled back, glad that he hadn't just gotten reprimanded for it. He hated when people got angry at him because they took him seriously when he was only joking around. It put him into those bad moods he was famous for. He nodded at her comment. "Yes, it does make for a poor Ball." He would know, as he'd hinted earlier. Balls had gotten easier the older he'd become, because then he was allowed to choose his own foods and didn't have to eat a little bit of everything. "I agree, so long as they're willing to try. If you force two people together and they're both not happy about it, they're mush less likely to have fun." Which was probably why Ed didn't have that many friends. Most of the time he wasn't in the mood to make friends with people. He nodded when she said that was a shame. "Sometimes they grow out of that," he commented, hoping that he was one of those people. He still had his bouts of bad humor, but that was something that Ed was working on. Hopefully it showed. He wanted to say something else, to keep the conversation going, but Ed didn't know what else to say. He wasn't particularly good at conversation, which was showing now.
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 13, 2017 20:03:19 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2017 20:03:19 GMT -7
Edmund said that he agreed that any two people could be friends, on one condition – that they both actually tried. That was true. Sometimes Xan forgot that not everyone was like her and always into making new friends and having new experiences. It was hard to remember that how she had felt when she was first diagnosed – angry, upset, and scared – was how some people felt all the time, for no particular reason. Feeling like the world was against you… Xan couldn’t imagine living an entire life like that. Even a month of it had been exhausting. “That’s why you give them something fun to do!” Xan suggested. “Imagine all the good we could do if we set two random people up and gave them a picture to paint.” It would certainly be a nonconventional way of making friends, but Xan thought herself a rather nonconventional person, so it worked. And she liked to spread happiness… So the idea actually sounded like something that she would maybe pursue, when she had more time. Edmund said that sometimes people grew out of not being happy to be with other people, and Xan nodded. “Sometimes I wondered if all it takes is the right person.” She mused. “To bring them out of their shell, I mean.” She added. Xan hated the idea of there being a right person to make anyone do anything contrary to their nature (like making someone date against their romantic preference) but there were some personality traits that some people were better at teasing out than others.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 13, 2017 22:29:26 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 13, 2017 22:29:26 GMT -7
She started talking about how the best way to help people try to become friends was by giving them something to do. Ed smiled and nodded at the suggestion. That idea would probably work better than anything he could come up with. When she suggested painting specifically, he started to chuckle. "You know, not all of us are as good at painting as you are. Some people might not want to even try." If he wasn't already friends with her, he would definitely be among the group that wouldn't want to try. Edmund wasn't really one for putting himself out there and trying new things. Now, if it was a rock skipping contest, he would definitely try doing that to make friends. In fact, he already had done that once. "But the idea is solid. Giving them something to do would help people open up and become friends." He didn't want Xan to think he was entirely shutting down her idea. In fact, he liked it quite a bit. Then she mentioned "right people" helping others come out of their shell and Edmund found himself nodding yet again. "I think right people or right circumstances. Sometimes, no matter how much you're trying to help or you want to be someone's friend, they won't be open to it." Like him, though he wasn't going to come outright and say it. "But I think it says a lot for the people that are always reaching out and trying to be friendly to others." Those were the kinds of people that helped people like Ed come out of their shells and actually make friends. "You just have to be ready to change according to their needs when they are ready." He was musing now, not really meaning to speak to Xan, just thinking out loud. He didn't even realize everything that he'd said out loud, he was so lost in his thoughts.
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 14, 2017 8:10:59 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2017 8:10:59 GMT -7
Xan cocked her head at Edmund when he started to chuckle at her, unsure exactly why he was laughing, until he spoke. “It wouldn’t have to be painting!” She exclaimed. “That was just the first thing that came to my mind, because I’m an artist.” She explained. “Any collaborative, slightly-creative activity would work. We could ask people their preferences or something.” Xan continued. Obviously not everyone was going to be good at painting, but the main thing was having something to distract them from the fact that they were alone in a room with a stranger. Edmund then said exactly what she was thinking – that giving people something to do would help them open up and make friends. She was going to have to think of more activities that would fall under that umbrella, so that she could have something to do when she got out of the hospital wing.
Edmund said that both the right people and the right circumstances needed to be present in order to coax someone out of their shell, and Xan nodded in response. It was true that she was more adept than most at getting people to talk to her, but if she and Edmund had never met in the corridor that one day, she would have never even considered approaching him just to make nice. “Sometimes people don’t even realize that others are reaching out. I think that’s really sad.” There were people who would complain their entire lives about how there was no one there for them, and it was just because they were too blind to see the ones who were making an effort to reach out. “Change within reason.” She added, though she assumed that Edmund wasn’t really talking to her anymore, with the way his stream of consciousness was going. Advocating for people to change for someone else was never a good thing, even if it was with the best intentions.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 15, 2017 21:07:42 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2017 21:07:42 GMT -7
Her indignation at his comment that painting might not work for everyone was hilarious. Edmund tried to not laugh again and ended up smiling quite a bit. "I know, I know. I was teasing you," he explained, not sure if she actually caught that, but wanting to make sure he didn't offend her. He actually felt pretty good about his developing friendship with Xan and didn't want to mess that up over something so unimportant. "I think it's a good idea. Using activities to help people make friends. It could even be fun to do something like that as a group, instead of just one-on-one," Ed suggested casually, now thinking about the idea more seriously.
Edmund shrugged, "It is sad, but I think it happens more often than we think it does." He didn't just think that, he knew it. Ed was positive that during his first few years at Hogwarts, people reached out to him, but he didn't notice. He had been too focused on his own problems and thoughts to really pay attention to others and now it was too late with most people. His reputation for being unapproachable was already there. He nodded when she added the within reason to his comment. That was true.
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jun 19, 2017 19:49:33 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jun 19, 2017 19:49:33 GMT -7
Ed said that he was teasing her, and Xan blinked at him. “Oh. Right.” Normally she was better about being able to pinpoint when people were teasing her, but she was still getting a feel for Ed’s sense of humor, so she didn’t think it was that bad of a thing – she had, after all, laughed at one of his jokes earlier, so she wasn’t totally off-beat. Ed suggesting doing activities to make friends in a group, and Xan nodded enthusiastically. “It’s hard to find whole groups of people that don’t know each other, but it would still be fun!” She enthused. Besides, it didn’t have to be total strangers. Maybe activities could also work as team-building things? Quidditch teams were always looking for more ways to spend time with each other out of practice, she was sure.
“I know it does.” Xan agreed when Edmund said that people ignored the others in their lives more often than people thought. Xan was lucky to have an amazing family and awesome friends and a wonderful boyfriend that were good about sharing their feelings with her, but she hated that there were people that didn’t have that, and didn’t realize they had that. “Sadly, that’s not something that painting – or any other activity – will solve.” She said with a sigh. Xan wished she could solve what was wrong with the world, but she was only one girl.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jul 7, 2017 9:36:47 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2017 9:36:47 GMT -7
He smiled and nodded when she registered that he'd been teasing. It was fine, most people couldn't tell that with Ed, but at least Xan was trying. She seemed to want to be his friend, which was definitely something that Edmund appreciated. He smiled, "Even if some of them know one another, I think it would still be fun." Really though, doing things with a group made having fun easier. If you didn't get along with someone that was involved, there were other people you could turn to. It was a good idea.
He nodded when she agreed with him. All in all this seemed like a surreal experience. Someone he didn't really know very well was agreeing with him on topics that were ... somewhat deep. He didn't normally get into deep conversations with anyone, much less strangers. He nodded, "True, but maybe being invited to do activities with others could help people notice others around them,"he commented. This conversation was a little more depressing than intended, but it wasn't bad. It was ... interesting.
@xanthippe
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jul 7, 2017 9:42:44 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2017 9:42:44 GMT -7
Edmund was being extremely supportive of this idea, which made Xan wonder if it really was a possibility. She had been telling herself that she would do it when she was less busy, but really, she wasn’t going to be that busy at all, since she was still supposed to limit her magic exposure when she got out of the hospital wing. Besides, it would be a good way for her to connect to her classmates again, after being sequestered off in the hospital wing for so long. “Fun…” She repeated, the gears in her brain already whirring. She hoped Edmund didn’t think that she was ignoring him, but it did take quite a bit of mental capacity to try to work through all of the details she wanted to.
“When people are intent on being lonely, I think they will be no matter how many invitations they have.” Xan said quietly. There were some people who didn’t realize that there were others reaching out, but then there were other people who saw the helping hands and decided to ignore them. And those were even sadder, because they knew they were dooming themselves to being alone and did it anyways.
@edmund
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last online May 9, 2024 16:52:13 GMT -7
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Jul 7, 2017 9:54:16 GMT -7
Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2017 9:54:16 GMT -7
Xan seemed to have gone off in her own little world, but Edmund wasn't upset about that. She was probably thinking about what kind of activities she could plan. When she muttered "fun," he was sure that he was right. He chuckled quietly, unable to help himself. It was good that she was thinking of this. Making plans to have fun were always a good idea. He nodded at her next question, "That's true, but sometimes all someone needs is an invitation to pull them out of it." That's how he was, anyway. He went off in his own world sometimes, determined not to bother people unless they reached out to him. The nice thing about Xan was that she was good at reaching out. "Thanks for reaching out to me, Xan," he said with an easy smile. Then he heard the clock chime. "Oh, I've gotta go. I'll see you around later, alright?" He smiled at her and waved as he turned around. He'd lost track of the time and now he had a paper to write, but he was glad he'd been able to spend some time talking to Xan. --- the end --- @xanthippe
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