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Post by jaredblack on Aug 28, 2009 2:03:55 GMT -5
Pausing as Astrid stepped into her room, Jared leaned idly against the doorframe and folded his arms, waiting for her to come back out. He wasn't surprised that she changed, though it was an improvement that he didn't have to argue with her again to get her to do it. Making no comments - uncharacteristically of him - he continued up to the third floor and went into his room, leaving the door open so she could walk in after him. "Don't know what to suggest to you to do, I've had to entertain myself today. Rather lax on ideas." Sitting down at his desk chair, he retrieved the abandoned tennis ball from the wastebin and regarded it, smirking a little as Cocoa seemed to come alive again - ears perking up because of Astrid's presence.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Aug 28, 2009 20:21:34 GMT -5
Astrid trailed after her brother, not bothering to close the door after her. She gave Cocoa a gentle pat as she walked past her, then flopped face down on his bed, her gray ballet slipper-esque shoes hanging off. "Your's is more comfy," she stated, her voice muffled against the pillow. She didn't care what they did, as long as she wasn't alone.
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Post by jaredblack on Aug 28, 2009 20:25:34 GMT -5
"So I noticed." Leaning back in his chair, Jared glanced over with an amused smirk, before starting to toss the ball up into the air and catch it - repeatedly. Always good at amusing himself, it was when his sister was around that it became a little tougher, especially during bouts of bad weather.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Aug 31, 2009 14:17:34 GMT -5
Astrid watched the ball go up and down in the air, falling silent. She was, for once, actually thankful for her brother. She seemed lulled by the sound of the rain on the outside of the house now instead of frightened, and the soft breathing of the dog and her brother made her feel peaceful.
"Hey Jared?" She asked suddenly, not even raising her head. "Can I ask you a question?"
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Post by jaredblack on Aug 31, 2009 19:36:19 GMT -5
"You just did, but ask away." Offering the teasing a bit lighter than he usually did, Jared glanced over, then resumed his little game. It took very little to amuse him, but that was no wonder - out of himself and his brother, he was actually the most easy-going.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Aug 31, 2009 19:39:15 GMT -5
"Why are you being so nice to me?" Astrid asked bluntly, raising her head off his pillow and staring at him. "There's times you can be so mean, and then others... really nice. It gives me whiplash." That wasn't really the question Astrid had wanted to ask, but the minute her mouth opened, she found she couldn't force the words through. Better to keep things simple, and leave those other thoughts for the dark of night, hiding under the covers of her own bed.
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Post by jaredblack on Aug 31, 2009 23:03:06 GMT -5
Jared simply stared for a long moment, almost as if seeing his sister for the first time. The way his brow furrowed signified that he had to think before he answered - not that that would be much of a surprise, considering the question. "Why shouldn't I be nice? The way I act sometimes.." He sighed and set the tennis ball down for the time being, glancing across the room at the far wall.
"I know I can act like a real git a lot of times, but I'm not doing it because I hate you or anything. I do it because I used to think that's the way I should act." He gave what amounted to a dry smile - albeit a forced one. "And now I'm tired of that act. It's that simple."
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Sept 3, 2009 11:39:16 GMT -5
Astrid stared at him in bafflement for a moment, rising to sit on the bed. Though Jared wasn't as bad as Astrid would have others believe, she was frankly surprised he admitted to being a jerk. It was pretty much a Black family trait to be a git and then never admitting it.
"Well, I'm glad that after eleven years, five months, and three days you finally admit to not hating me. Such a relief, it was keeping me awake at night." She teased lightly, offering her brother a seldom used genuine smile. Astrid slid to the floor and stroked Cocoa's ears, silent again for a moment.
"Do you think... all of us..." She waved her hand broadly to encompass the entire Grimmauld house. "Will survive the war?"
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Post by jaredblack on Sept 3, 2009 15:45:36 GMT -5
Taking her return teasing in stride - for once - Jared sat in silent thought for a bit longer than he might have wanted, brought back to reality only when he caught the word 'war' at the end of her question. It was a mark that he wasn't paying attention when he looked over at her with a furrowed brow. "War? What are you-" Belatedly getting what she had meant - he'd somehow seen the hand motion - he sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Honestly..I can't say that I know what's going to go on. I'd like to think that we're all going to make it through, but..I don't know. I really don't." Whether he would ever admit to it or not, that was one of the things weighing the most heavily on his mind of late. In spite of the usual way the Black family behaved, there were genuine ties of care and love..though deep under clashing personalities.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Sept 3, 2009 20:12:00 GMT -5
Astrid nodded, pulling her knees to her chest as she continued to pet the dog, her long bangs falling her face to shield her eyes. Though they were pureblooded, it was no longer something that would save them from anti-muggle sentiment. Her parents had taken a stand against the rising opposing forces when they had joined the Order of the Phoenix, and they weren't exactly quiet about their thoughts about the other side. Astrid didn't think that she or her brothers were in any immediate danger (except as possible collateral damage) mainly because they weren't on any sort of line front or otherwise. Her parents, however, Astrid wasn't so sure of. Her mother was an auror, and her father, well, he had a big mouth and a sense of recklessness that tended to get him in trouble all throughout his life. Astrid knew that she should be worrying about school and clothes at her age, but she was more worried about her family.
"If something happened to mum and dad... would we live with Remus and Cora?" She mused. She had heard James say something about Sirius getting parental rights over Harry, should something happen to he and James, but Astrid had no idea what would happen to them if something happened to the elder Blacks. She would much prefer going to live with her godparents than some relation she didn't know, or even worse, being split from her brothers as much as they drove her crazy.
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Post by jaredblack on Sept 3, 2009 20:23:26 GMT -5
"That's something I don't even want to think about." Momentarily reverting to his usual blunt nature, Jared stared blankly at the nearest wall. It was a morbid conversation to be having and was definitely something he didn't want to think about..but somewhere deep within, he knew it was a valid possibility. It was almost enough to make him feel queasy.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Sept 4, 2009 22:02:09 GMT -5
Astrid nodded slowly and got up, going over to her brother and putting her arms around his neck in what had to be the first hug she had given him since she was three. Astrid wasn't big on hugs from anyone. She smelled like dandelions and parchment, a surprising, but fitting, mix.
"I really am glad you're my brother." She said quietly in his ear. "Even if you can be a prat."
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Post by jaredblack on Sept 4, 2009 23:17:45 GMT -5
Oh, I can't believe this.. "Are you actually hugging me?" Jared had to ask incredulously, though that was ridiculous - she hadn't started trying to choke him yet, a miracle in and of itself. As absurd as it seemed, the healthy rivalry they kept up had been forgotten..at least for the time being. "Do you have a fever or something?" Being called a prat at least kept him grounded and told him that she wasn't entirely cracked yet.
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Post by Astrid Lorelei Black on Sept 7, 2009 20:40:00 GMT -5
"Shut up." Astrid said, pulling away. Her cheeks flushed as if she had just then realized that she had hugged her brother, and she turned away, turning her attention to a spot that only she could see on her shirt. "It's not that big of a deal." She mumbled, considering smacking him in the back of the head to even her niceness back out with their usual taunts.
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Post by jaredblack on Sept 8, 2009 2:33:18 GMT -5
"Whatever you say, Lorrie." Using one of the first nicknames he'd ever dubbed her with - the first had earned him a resounding punishment from both his mother and father - Jared watched her, then decided it hadn't really bothered him. "Let's just not make a habit of this kind of thing around other people. We both have reputations, y'know."
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