Bad Timing (Open)

[Celina Jedynak]

February 20, 2008

Good timing? What’s that? Celina was finding more and more that the Jedynak’s had none of that. Finally, when she was getting everything all together again, everything started to shift. It was almost unbearable in the teen’s mind. No, she hadn’t seen her brother since Raynor had told her of his existence at the school, but she had thought about it. The first time they met up anywhere within the grounds, would be one that Celina would fret until it’s happenings. What would she say? How would she address him?

She leaned up against the stonewall in the courtyard, trying to breath and think of things other than her older brother. It really was too bad that that was all she could think about. Celina had tried to forget multiple times, but in a few days the articles would be out about his acceptance of a position at Hogwarts and then the whole school would know….what then? Would she then too be in another spot light because everyone would realize that a professional Quidditch player was amongst them…or would they think of him as the Deva that Brady called him out as?

Celina feared the worst, but when didn’t she? And worst of all, she had no friends that she could turn to, to talk about it and Mike could have been anywhere at that time. She’d have to tell him the next time she saw him. He’d want to know for sure, and not only that, but Celina was sure that he’d help calm her down. Mike always did that for her, maybe it was just because he seemed to understand more than what those she would have normally turned to, would have.

Celina looked around trying to remember all of what Raynor had told her, and sighed a bit to herself. What would happen now? Was she ready for such a change? An alteration on a life that already had such bad timing with things? If there was anything worse that could have happened, Celina didn’t know what it was. It wasn’t that she didn’t want Alfonz there at the school, it was that she was afraid now more than ever for his safety. He never thought about his own well being, and Celina feared that this time, he may have gone too far out on a limb to be there for her.

(Open)

[Deaf Crevice]

Deaf saw a girl leaning up against the wall of the courtyard. She looked very preoccupied and since he had nothing really better to do he decided to go over and see what was up. As he drew closer he recognized her as a girl from his own house and casually veered off course as an idea came to mind. He walked around until he was out of sight and then fished in his cloak for a minute until he found a roll of kite string and his wand. He ripped up some grass and broke off a few twigs from the nearest tree set to work. A short while later he had made a little bird out of grass and twigs and a little help from his wand. The doll bird sort of resembled a raven and was about as long as a hand. He smiled and hid it away. He also picked a few flowers and hid those away as well. He had no idea what was wrong with her or if she would want company but he hadn’t done any ‘real’ magic in a while and thought this was a good opportunity.

So he walked back around to where she was and approached. “Hello!” He said cheerfully.

[Celina Jedynak]

Celina, by the time of the young boy’s unknowing return, had found herself a seat on the fountain in the courtyard staring at the designs that her brother had found so interesting during the invasion. Something about how the designs resembled their own plan and their own playing field. Celina wasn’t sure that her brother hadn’t completely lost it, but still she sat and starred wondering if her brother was going to come out and find her. Did he even still visit the fountain? Celina caught herself wandering in thoughts as the voice of a young boy appeared into her spectrum of thought.

Celina gave a weak smile, but it grew as she found that it was someone that she had seen once or twice around her own bustling in the common room. She hadn’t had the time lately to speak to anyone really, and immediately felt bad for not taking the time to introduce herself to the boy. It was weird, the feeling she had about it. Celina was never one to feel bad for not knowing someone, maybe it was just because of all that had happened or maybe it was just because she was becoming more sociable since Felicity and Drew.

“Why, hello there…how are you on this lovely afternoon?” Celina asked the young boy, noticing how cheerful he was. He must have been having a good day, and just in that knowledge, Celina was a bit more at ease with her own.

[Deaf Crevice]

“I am quite alive and fully here.” He said thinking that it didn’t matter if she understood this statement or not. He sat down on the bench facing the opposite way she was; but he leaned back and dangled over the edge and grinned up at her. “And how are you?” he asked as he pulled a blue rubber ball small enough for him to make a fist around out from his pocket and began to toss it from hand to hand. In his mind he was going over what items he had hidden away in his cloak, taking stock of his surroundings, evaluating the older girl, or simply deciding what magic tricks would me most impressive and easiest to perform. He had a pack of card so perhaps if the mood went that way he could perform a few card tricks. His head was already starting to throb from being upside down so he sat up and spun around so he was sitting next to her in the normal fashion. “Because you look like you are not entirely present.”

[Celina Jedynak]

Celina giggled as the young boy seemed very enthusiastic and very lively. “I’m glad to see your doing well,” Celina said, still laughing at the young boy a bit more when he sat down and leaned over, looking at her upside-down like. He was a cute kid, and Celina could see why in just him Felicity liked to talk about how great the younger years were. Celina couldn’t stop smiling just by speaking with him, but maybe that was his point.

The boy then flung around and sat next to her normally, making mention that she didn’t look as if she were fully there. It was true, Celina’s mind had been wandering all throughout their meeting and even before it about her brother and everything that was going on. It had been the longest month and a half since she had first started at school, and Celina had only smiled a few times, and when hanging out with certain people. She found as of late the younger students were the ones keeping the spirits up, though, when she had met Ann and played their pirate game.

“I’ve just been thinking about a lot of stuff that sits heavy on my mind,” Celina explained vaguely, not really knowing if the young boy would understand. “What’s your name?” Celina asked the boy, thinking that she was probably being rude by not even giving her own. “I’m Celina,” she said, finally.

[Deaf Crevice]

"I'm Deaf, very nice to meet you." He extended a sideways hand to shake while putting the ball back into his pocket. He thought about it for a moment then pulled the ball out of his pocket and tossed it back and forth.

"Well a lot of things are really heavy." He said and casually pulled the ball out and tossed it back and forth. "Like this ball." He twisted the ball between his thumb and pointer finger before grinning and offered her the ball, which was not actually the original ball but one that was about five times heavier. A moment after she had taken it he took it back and made a fist around it. “Pretty heavy, yeah? But if you really want to you can make anything lighter.” He spun his other hand around his closed one as he spoke. He tapped his hand lightly a few times and then opened his hand and offered her the ball again, this time it was again switched with the lightest ball he had that was identical to the one he had started with.

[Celina Jedynak]

Celina cocked her head, a bit confused as the weight of the ball was now a lot different than what it had been. “How…?” Celina trailed off in a question a bit perplexed. She hadn’t seen him take out his wand to make the ball lighter, and as she examined the ball it seemed to be all there. She grinned. It was amazing. Did Deaf have control over unsaid magic that could be used without a wand? Celina would have argued that not even the most specialist of aurors had that kind of control, but then what had just happened.

She offered the ball back to the boy and looked him over skeptically. There was something tricky about this cheery kid, and Ceilna smiled brightly as she wondered just what it was about him that made her go ‘hmmmmm’. “So then, how do you make things lighter?” she asked of him. Deaf was young, and Celina wasn’t sure if he could indirectly help her with her problems, but she could at least find out how he had made the ball different. Maybe, that is…just maybe.

[Deaf Crevice]

Deaf was very pleased with her reaction. He laughed as he took the ball back and twisted it through his fingers a few times before putting it back in his pocket as he answered "Well that’s the tricky part, now isn't it?"

He thought about it for a moment, “Well, you know I’ not to sure on how you make things lighter. But me, I just see the bright side to things then deal with it. Usually the first thought because it’s easier, I mean if you look for a bright side it’s always going to be there.” He brought his fist out in front of him and pulled a flower out of it. Inside of his loosely closed fist he actually had all four flowers which he had placed there when he had put his ball away. “And when you can see the good side of things then they just keep getting better and better and better.” He pulled each flower out as he said ‘better’ then opened his palm and held out his hand so she could take them to examine and see they were real. “And then all the heaviness has gone away its easy to deal with whatever it was because by that time it’s light as a feather.” With his other hand he produced a feather with a flourish, held it up high, and dropped it. He smiled at her and then watched the feather float to the ground.

[Celina Jedynak]

Deaf made a lot of sense, but Celina wished secretly that she could find it as easy as he did to find and look at the brighter aspects of every situation. What was the brighter side with not speaking with Drew or Felicity? Well, she hadn’t gotten into any trouble, nor was she slacking on her homework by having unnecessary fun. Ok, so there was sort of a bright side, but it still felt her feeling lonely at the end of the day because she didn’t have them around. Celina sighed, but still tried her hardest to retain her smile.

As he produced the flowers and then the feather and spoke about the bright aspect of situations through analogies, Celina could tell why this boy had been chosen to be in Ravenclaw. He was very bright, and from what Celina could see, very resourceful. Now where he was getting all of these things that he was pulling out and using as visual aids for her, she had no idea, but it made her smile brighter all the same.

And then there was her brother’s recent employment at the school; where was the bright side of that? Sure he was closer and she really needed him to be so, but they hadn’t found each other or talked yet, and frankly Celina was now more afraid for him than ever. What if he was found out as being one of those faceless? What if they who found out didn’t understand that he was only there to protect her? But then again, where was he when she and Felicity were made examples of? What was the bright side in that?

“And if the bright side is hard to find or justify, what then, my good sir?” Celina said as if she were talking to a teacher of sorts. “What then should I do to ease my heavy heart and soul?” As she asked, Celina watched as the feather hit the ground, and a gentle wind started to blow it in circles.

[Deaf Crevice]

“Everything is going to be hard.” He said taking one flower and twirling lazily. “The important thing is to not give up. Some people find that talking it out makes looking for the good side of things easier, some people find an outlet for their troubles, and then some bottle it up inside and that’s never good because then all of the weight grows until it crushes you.” He folded his hand around the flower, crushing it in the process. He looked up from his hand and grinned at her. “But what would I know about what would make your burdens lighter? I only know how to make mine lighter, and that is by changing them into something better.” He opened his hand. Now instead of the squished flower was the small raven-doll. He reached down, plucked up the feather and stuck it in the doll like it was really a wing feather and the offered it to her.

[Celina Jedynak]

Celina looked away from the boy and thought as he spoke. It was incredible how insightful he was. “What year are you in again?” she said with a smile on her face, which she turned back towards him. She watched him with the flower, and as he reopened his hand to show the raven-doll, Celina’s mouth gaped a bit and she just couldn’t grasp how the doll had managed it’s way into Deaf’s hand where the crushed flower was. “How…?” she asked as she took from him gently the raven offered to her. It was magnificent, and yet so simple.

“Thank you…your words make sense and though I can only put them into perspective now, I’ll remember them.” She smiled brightly as she looked at the young boy and didn’t really know what to think. He was truly amazing, but she wouldn’t say it out loud. Celina didn’t know him from anytime before, and therefore didn’t know what she could and could not say with him, but respected him all the same. Celina thought of who this boy’s inspirations must have been for him to be so knowledgeable. “Did you figure all of this out on your own?” Celina asked Deaf, wondering how this boy was able to know and put into practice so many optimistic views.

[Deaf Crevice]

He smiled, enjoying her complement and the bit of wonder he was able to bring to her with his magic. He leaned back a bit and laughed, “I’m only a first year.” He thought about what she said next for a moment before replying. “Mostly on my own threw experiences and from what I have gathered from talking with some very wise people. Of course I am not from here so…yeah. I’ve got a lot more experience than you might think.” He grinned. He was actually thoroughly convinced that he was not supposed to be here, that he was born into the wrong family and that he had also retained experiences from a previous life or several other theories similar to that.

He laughed though and said, “But I am very glad that I was able to help you.” He pulled out his ball again and began to bounce it thinking of another trick he could show her. It was a basic rule you never preformed the same trick twice for the same audience and he had already done several version of one trick.

[Celina Jedynak]

Celina smiled. It was true, Deaf seemed very wise for only being a first year. Almost if he should already be out of the school; it was a great concept for Celina. This boy would surely make something for himself later in life, and Celina was inertly happy for the boy. Not many could accomplish or even had the energy to accomplish as much as Celina could already tell that Deaf could do. "You're amazing, and yes, you've helped lift my spirits." Celina gave Deaf another smile and sighed.

"So, where is it that you are from? I'm not from here myself. I live in the outskirts of London," Celina commented, purely thinking that Deaf was talking about places he had been from literally and not a concept of the wrong time of being born.

[Deaf Crevice]

“Well, that’s the thing, I haven’t the faintest clue.” He told her, paused, and then went into a brief explanation realizing how she thought he meant mealy places on Earth. “I am fairly certain though that my birth was years off schedule. See there was a mix-up at the Station and I got sent here and here must be a very long way in distance and time from where I was supposed to go because it seemed to take half of forever to get here.” It all made so much sense to him he at the moment he didn’t even realize how puzzling it must have sounded to anybody else. “I think that’s why I understand a lot of things. I had a really long time to think about anything and everything that I could remember from before I left the Station.” He paused again, and chuckled to himself a little as he realized that it all must sound strange. “But you won’t remember the Station, will you?” He asked, half-thinking aloud. His soft laughter died away but his eyes still flamed laughter. He seemed to be the only one at the entire school who could remember part of his part life or the time in between lives. Of course already those memories of his last life were fading and only because he thought about it daily and had written down everything he could remember did he still have an idea on who he had been.

[Celina Jedynak]

Station?....born years off schedule?

Celina hadn't the faintest of clues what Deaf was going on about, but she continued to smile at him sweetly and nod. "No, I really don't know..." she trailed off. "Do you mean station like, platform nine and three quarters?" she asked him not really understanding what the younger raven was trying to get at. How could one be born years off schedule? To Celina it didn't make any sense at all.

"I'm sorry, I guess I don't quite understand..." she trailed off, not trying to be mean or rude.