POV Narrator:
Monday 1 June 2020, Luna Nova
The days were passing in Luna Nova and until then there was no news from the boss, as Hellene and Marianne decided not to do anything about the letter that Mary sent and they were still a little suspicious, leaving to cook to go some time in the tower of Arcturus, in the middle of these days they were having a closer approach to each other, with McLaren understanding better what she felt after the serious conversation she had with her mother, as well as Leclerc has been noticing how her friend has been acting differently throughout these days.
POV Marianne:
I wake up, I see that the room is empty, I think Hellene has gone for her morning walk and workout, I imagine that's it, I go to her bed, I see that there is a t-shirt on top of the bed, it must be the one she used to sleep, I take it in my hand and look around, still a bit embarrassed, I decide to take a sniff.
"It has your little smell Hellene" I say all delighted, I hope she's not here, I think I've done too much, then I let go of the t-shirt and go looking at more things.
I think my head is full, I think I'd better take a shower as it could be a very busy day today, Hellene said she might give Mary a chance today, so we might be able to find out who the boss is if it's true about the note, anyway it's good to be a bit careful.
I go to the bathroom, start to take off my clothes, get into the shower, which only makes me think of the things going on in my head.
"Hellene..." I say thoughtfully, in that beautiful body of hers, imagine how it must be to dominate all that, for sure that would be wonderful.
My head is already thinking about too many things, I'd better not be in neuron activation mode, but there's no way not to think, that body, that smile, that hair, all that, it's the best set, Hellene McLaren you're letting me think about too many things, I think the bath might take a little longer than expected, Hellene... My head is full of you.
After the bath...
I'm relieved, I think that if I didn't do this I would end up jumping on my friend and more things could end up happening, not that this is bad, on the contrary, it's even what I want the most, I leave the bathroom already changed and I find Hellene arriving, a little sweaty wearing a top and a pair of leggings with the drops of sweat running down her body especially on that defined belly, which made me hypnotized and drooling as if I were overheating.
"Wow what a hot day it was today, it seems like summer only gets hotter every year" She said as she wiped a wet cloth across her forehead and then her stomach.
"Tell me about it" I say half dizzy.
"Time to take a cold shower, today's practice was pretty good" McLaren said as she walked into the bathroom and I just melted as she walked past me towards the bathroom.
Easy Marianne Leclerc, it's just a girl, a muscular girl, with a big body like that with those muscles, you've just relieved all the tension inside you it's time to play and distract a little, I even turn on my Gamecube and decide to put a Smash Bros Meele to distract, I think this is better than thinking about Hellene, this is much better.
Wow, it's been a long time since I played Smash, I think later I'll call Hellene to play with me, ahhhhh, she doesn't get out of my head, what the hell, I need to concentrate, without activating my neurons, without more things going on, control Marianne, control above all.
"Now go, today I finish one more phase and unlock one more" I say talking to the game, I think this could be a good distraction.
Hellene is taking a cold shower, she's crazy, I don't know how she does it, it might be hot today, but it's nothing compared to the summer in France, here it's even bearable, which is wonderful, she's different and can take a cold shower, even in winter she does it, that's the only way for her to be so resistant like that, it's like any other shower, it gets to be very strange.
Soon she gets out of the shower wrapped in a towel, as I imagined she takes a quick cold shower and gets some clothes from the wardrobe, I try not to look at her changing, but it's hard not to resist the temptation, for the nine witches because it's so. I see she's on her back and what a body, she's putting on boxer shorts as always, then a pair of shorts and a top, besides fitting a tank top and looking at me seeing that I was watching everything.
"Do you like what you see?" She never talked to me like that before I'm going to explode.
"I, uh... I..." She approaches me and sits down on the pouf next to me.
"Playing Smash, dat's cool, I'll get de controller, let's play the two of us versus" She said and I was just swallowing my saliva half embarrassed.
"Sure, you can grab a controller, let's play" I tell her who gets a little smile on her face.
"What do you dink about playing another kind of smash" She stood right on top of me and I see a different Hellene than she was a few weeks ago, I think that conversation with her mother made things different, she even gets a laugh afterwards, but if she wants to play I know how to play too.
"I... I don't think you have any idea who's going to play smash here" I climb my thigh between her legs and I could see her reaction change to a complete gay panic, but our moment was interrupted when we heard someone knocking on our door.
POV Hellene:
Just den Finnelan comes knocking on de door, I know well it's 'er because she would be de only one to do dat, so I already use a spell on dings to hide de technology and with dat I'm already getting up, dings were getting good, but she stalled everything, I get up and see dat Mari got de same frustrated face.
"Who is it?" I ask the person at the door.
"It's me" de voice is Anne's.
"You just don't give up, do you?" I say to 'er goin to de door and open de wind with a kind of poor face.
"You know I just want my great-granddaughter's forgiveness" She said and I rolled my eyes.
"Ahhhhhh, you want again to convince me to forgive you, after what happened in de last days I already confirm dat I won't go, you only made things worse, I'm not blind, I know dat you mistreated my friend dese days, so go well" I say closing the door, but she puts 'er foot in front blocking de entrance.
"Please it is important, I had reasons for acting this way, Miss Leclerc do you mind letting me talk to my great-granddaughter alone" Anne said being ever insistent.
And den I open the door, because I don't 'ave much choice, it's either dat or have to put up with 'er annoying me, I see Mari leave de room and all I could dink about was de moment I missed with 'er, it was so good and now comes Finnelan as always getting in de way of my things, all dat's left is wanting to say she did it out of impression and de boss still dinks she's one of dem, it's quite de type I expect.
"Okay Mari left, you can open your beak, what do you want with me?" I tell 'er with my arms crossed.
"Wow, is that how you address your great grandmother? I won't complain, anyway, I did all that so the boss would think I was still on her side, I'll find out her identity that way, and it might help you forgive me, I'm not sure if you understand me, but that's it, I'm on your side, I understand what you were fighting for and the nuances that lead magic to be in the situation it's in today, your mother wrote an excellent book" she said even more appealing than before.
"Well anyway I can not trust you, but I can say dat de boss is one of de witches 'ere, can be de director or one of de teachers, if you want to help, make us recover de Fluit An Neart, it should be in Luna Nova, one of de most important items for de witches' revolution, since it can bring de best for us, do it and who knows dis way you can really show to be with us" I say to 'er already thinking of de plan to cook 'er.
"And what is Fluit An Neart like? I've never heard of it, it must be something special to ask your great grandmother to retrieve" She said and I just rolled my eyes.
"It's a flute, it's magical, it can do extremely powerful spells, like controlling time, teleportation, weather control and other dings we're still going to find out, but we can't because de boss took de flute during Chariot and Croix's escape from Arcturus prison, but you can find it around 'ere, it's a bluish flute with golden details, it can also be inside some box or something" I explain to 'er, but I know she won't find it.
"I can help with that, you can be sure I'll be useful, I bring the witch revolution to you, I do it for Isabella, I want her forgiveness for everything I've done, I don't want to die knowing that I was such a... You know, I wasn't one of the best people at those times, I was actually pretty rotten, but I seek to improve" And I find dat hard to believe, I prefer to imagine flying pigs.
"Anyway, it's not by doing dis dat you're going to earn forgiveness or our trust or whatever you dink you're going to earn with dis, you're just doing dis expecting me to stand by with open arms, but I won't, you 'ave to genuinely repent of your actions and improve de person you are, even if it's in front of other people, not just in front of me, you 'ave to genuinely be de person you want to change, not because of de boss's impression, You're eating yourself up because what you thought all your life was in vain, now you want to find a new meaning, not because you dink you made mistakes dat destroyed lives, but because you want to feel better about yourself" I said to 'er very clearly.
"You are too cruel Hellene, I thought you would be heavier with Diana, but even you are like that with words, it seems that the McLaren gene is very much alive in both of you to talk that way to me, I know I made a mistake and I am doing everything to fix it, don't think I am only doing this for myself, I am doing this for Isabella" As I imagined.
"My dead great-grandmother? You'd think so, but what can I say... Well, anyway, understand dat I don't want to forgive you for all de suffering you've put us through, and it's not just for me dat you should ask dat, Diana, my mother Laura and especiallyAkko, were de people most affected by your way of thinking and your actions against dem.
De teacher gets up from de pouf she was sitting on and walks to de door, which I breathe a sigh of relief, she even looks at me and walks out of dere, den Mari comes in and I lost all will to do anything, we soon turn dings in de room back to normal and she hugs me which helps take all de tension out of me.
"Oh Hellene, I can imagine how it must be for you" Leclerc said calming me down.
"Seriously I can't stand dis damn ding, she keeps pestering me, I lost all will to... Leave it" I say a little angry.
"Do you want to play? We can de-stress a bit" She always knows how to calm me down and she turns on de Gamecube, putting on a Smash dat we were playing before.
"Just dat to calm me down from green, thank you Mari" I say smiling at her.
"I know it's de best way to calm you down, let's let go of dat old lady and enjoy de day together, drink a soda, eat some pringles, play smash, just de way you like it best" And I nod my head in agreement dat's how good it really is.
We're starting to play and I'm with you at least to relieve my head, at least now I'm feeling a little less angry, looking at Mari's face and also at de game screen helped me to forget what happened now, I really hope dat Anne won't disturb us anymore, imagine if she shows up when dere's a moment between me and Leclerc. By de way today she looks beautiful, I love when 'er hair is loose like dis drying, with dese red locks, she is so cute, I feel like squeezing 'er, I dink I'll end up connecting 'ere, I better not let my hormones take over 'ere.
POV Finnelan:
I walk along the corridors until I see Miranda walking around, I wave to her and accompany her to my room, where we enter and I start offering her tea, as always maintaining cordiality and good etiquette, after all it's not every day that we receive the visit of such an illustrious director of this place.
"So Miranda what brings you here?" I ask her.
"You've been going to the purple team dorm a lot, after you found out she's your great-granddaughter you're really wanting to make amends for all the years you've spent away from them," said the headmistress.
- I just want to do the right thing, I neglected my daughter all along, her descendants, Isabella was a victim of it all - I say half touched.
"And what about you? You were a mother so early in this situation, Isabella was 4 years older than you, yet you got pregnant with her first child when you were 18, by sheer lack of consequence, you so early at 14 you ended up having these things rolling around with you, I remember how you were a troublesome teenager around here and I never knew why, it took years for you to behave and it was all worth it in the end" And I'm even going to giggle a little.
"They were different times, but I have to admit I made a lot of mistakes, but it was my idiotic adolescence acting out, I thought she was the best in the world, but I was wrong when I learned the truth, but she suffered anyway, she was a single mother for all those years, I just kept denying she was Clarie's mother" Mrs Holbrook kind of understands that.
"Well in the end it was worth it, you are the most disciplined person in this place and I am afraid that this influence with Laura McLaren's daughter might make this side of you worse" I will not make it worse it is just a matter of becoming better with myself.
"I'm not going to weaken, I just really want to understand better how things work, are we not being the bad people" I say to Miranda who stands up.
"Let me tell you something Anne, you have seen what happens to magic if it mixes with modernity, things like Victoria McLaren and Croix Meridies happened, magic could die with them, they say that is the best, but in reality modernity passes over tradition and when you least realize it is when magic really died, those wonderful practices that we studied being replaced by machines, all the charm that the nine witches built, All that Jennifer did, that's why I am sure that tradition is more important, is the preservation of the art of magic, it is not our fault if the world does not accept our practices, we have to show what the true magic is, being boring or not, the fault of all this is the society that oppresses us so much, those revolutionary witches are actually witches blind to the truth and even believe that they are paid by the system, look how much Croix did? For sure she was well paid to try to kill magic, but she couldn't, at last, think about it, I am experienced, I am not a 48 years old woman who does not understand how things work, I have 156 years of experience in what concerns magic, I saw the industrial revolution bursting and making people lose interest in magic, I saw that some witches were trying to change, but luckily the daughter of the great witch Jennifer helped to keep magic as we know it, I'm going now, reflect a lot on what has been happening, a coin always has two sides" said Miranda turning back and leaving the room.
She left the room, but it's weird, Miranda is much more vocal about this than before, she's never been one to open up that much to me, coming out I get really reflective, this thing of thinking on both sides, McLaren's book talks about this, it talks about how the conservative side will try any way they can to justify the extermination of magic that they're doing and that it's possible for the two things to work together.
"Oh Isabella, if you were alive I could ask your forgiveness now, but things are different, I have made so many mistakes in my life" I say as I look up at the sky.
What would be the right thing to do? Help the revolutionaries or help Miranda and this so-called boss? Hellene said that she's around here, she can't be such a nice person, since she's responsible for the deaths of people, very different from what the revolutionaries did, so far no person died because of them, but because they were killed for being who they are.
I look at myself in the mirror, I see my face all finished, the depression eating me up, I'm not the same as before, the bitterness I've lived my whole life took away all that beauty I possessed, then I take a picture that I was with Isabella
"So young, but at the same time so foolish... I acted immature" Some tears of mine fell on the photograph.
To think that if I accepted the truth and didn't doubt Isabella the future could be different, Clarie wouldn't be so horrible to Bernadette, maybe the threat of Daryl wouldn't exist and she would just be a normal girl, my actions were indirectly responsible for the death of everyone there, Bernadette, Daryl and my daughter Clarie, even Isabella dying of cancer, she surely must have sunk into smoking because of what I ended up doing to her.
This is all because of my way of thinking, if tradition is so good, why has it been killing everything that is different? Because I lost a whole family, then I take a deep breath and try not to think about any of that, I think I should take a holiday.
"That's it! I'm going to take a holiday and see my family, it might help me cool off" I say going to the cupboard.
I'm starting to pack, I think it's good that I go to see how my daughters, my grandchildren, my husband are doing, it's been years since I left Luna Nova, I dedicated myself so much to my studies that I forgot about them, I'm even looking a little bit more excited, maybe I can make the most of this holiday, my head is full of things, it's the best I can do, although we are in the pandemic, but I'll try, even if it's just for a day, then I'll go back to Luna Nova.
In the purple team's room...
POV Marianne:
Wow I feel sorry for Hellene, she has to put up with a great grandmother like Finnelan, mine are all dead by that point, well from what I remember at least they were good people when I was a kid, her finally smiling is good to see, so much so that she soon becomes more relieved, I can see how much lighter her mood has become.
"Hah! I won another one!" She said celebrating with her arms up.
"You see I told you that playing smash always improves" I said smiling at her.
"You're always right Mari, now I want to see you playing, I'm tired of playing, I'll see if my mum and my lettle sisters sent me something" she said and I'll get my Resident Evil 4 and play it on the GameCube.
I'm starting to play, I think I'm going to start another save from scratch, put it here just to have some more fun, I love this game, you can see that Hellene is letting out some really cute giggles, she even snores once in a while, how cute, I think she must have seen something really funny, I'm starting the game and just to amuse her more I even give a cough.
"I arrived here in this very strange place, with these two guys from the police, rescuing a witch and all... Oh, my nobleman, would you like a cigarette? No thanks, I don't like those things... Urine noise" I dub the lines of the game and she goes laughing because I dub the parts with a voice trying to pretend to be thick.
"Urine noise hahahahahaha, ah Mari is de official Capcom dubbing now?" She was laughing so cute and I'm imitating the car noises in the funniest way possible.
"Hey man goes to that house to get some noodles for us, we'll be waiting here" And the game begins.
"Ah Mari, dis is too creative, where did you get the idea of dubbing?" she asks.
"I thought it would be a good one to liven up the moment, I know you've been stressed and tense lately, I used to do this when I played at home, but I was embarrassed to do it here, it's one of my silly talents" I say rubbing the back of my neck.
"Please do more of that" I will soon, when I get into the house.
I'm still sharp on RE4 gameplay here, it's been a while since I've played it, the last time was at home, I think I played it the last time here in Luna Nova when I was still in the first year, soon I get home and it's time for more dubbing, I even cough and see Hellene's smiling face.
"Oh my nobleman, come on, don't be shy... Have you seen the picture of this witch here? Oh come on, get out oh, what are you doing there? I'm going to make you a little bit smaller and show you the magic... Oh my nobleman, stay calm and I'll shoot, don't come close what's up" I dubbed another part and saw that Hellene was laughing because of the way I can thicken my voice all wrong, I had to have a voice so thin like that, she could do better.
"It's really good you with your cat voice pretending to be thick" She said laughing, how jealous I am of her voice all strong and powerful, imagine moaning, I mean... Without thinking about those things.
"Jumping on the window" I talk in an all dramatic way after getting the pistol ammo, she goes on laughing at my nonsense.
"Hahahaha, ah Mari, please do more of those" she said laughing all cute to the point of snoring.
I play normally as I always play, shooting in the head, kicking and stabbing everyone, basic stuff, I've played this game so many times that I know everything, I take the opportunity to pick up things around and follow the path, shooting the bird that has grenade, saving the dog and then giving a miss with the laser.
"You will reach de village part, I love dis part" Hellene said.
"Do you want to see me pass this part in the blink of an eye?" It makes me laugh.
"How? You only 'ave a pistol and some grenades, unless you're going to get the shotgun from de house where de guy with de chainsaw appears" she said.
"I would like his ruby, but I'll pass it on very quickly, you see" I say, arriving at the villa.
I'm calling the attention of the goons and then I use the glitch of the grenade on the fence and with that it works enough to start the cutscene of the beginning of the game, this one I do not dub because it has the wonderful part that I love talking along with Leon.
"Where's everyone going? Bingo?" We spoke together, it was a whole moment of having the same neuron, I even looked at her face half blushed.
"Heh, it was in sync Mari" She said laughing.
"It seems that we have the same brain cell" I tell her and she nods her head in agreement.
"It must be de only possible reason, gee I dedn't know dere was dis glitch on de fence, it makes it go by so fast, I always used to go after de guy with de chainsaw at de gate, kill him and den de other one because I'm so greedy, gee dey drop rubies, you can't resist one, it's nice when you get dat Leon mafia outfit" yeah I love that, heh, it's really nice to talk to her about these things.
"I just wanted to do some speedrun techniques, have you seen Striker's Glitch, soon I will arrive at the castle and I will get her to show you how that is the best twelve of the game" I say to McLaren who agrees with the head.
"De one dat goes fast? I know a lot, I always use it when I start de new game plus, it's been a long time since we talked about RE4 together, de last time was when you finished it 'ere last year, it's been a long time, we spent all day watching you play, it's really nice to see your ability" Hellene said and I'm blushing a little.
"I just played it a lot, it was one of my favourite games on the Gamecube" I say scratching the back of my head.
And we keep playing, I get to the part of the stone where I do one more glitch that I can stretch the stone race, I would even think of doing the glitch grenade, but I do not want to mechucar me, I want to save grass until I need more ahead, I'll soon get to the interesting part of the game, I love shooting those dynamite guys, because I get them right when they play, but the only loot I'm interested in is the treasure in the nest, heh, I know everything in this game from so many times I've played and tried speedrun.
"I would pass straight through and not notice de nest" Hellene said.
"So, hardly anyone notices heh, time for another dubbing, it's ready" I say smiling a bit.
And I'm already getting inside the house where Luis Sera is, I shoot the lasers, get the money and now the cool part will begin, I open the wardrobe and it's time for dubbing, I even cough a little to start, I'll groan a little just to add a few more elements.
"Ahhhnnnn, which one is slower... Who are you, trout? Oh fuck, look behind you, the big guy's here... Big shot... ahnnnnnnn... Mwahhahahahaha, now I'm going to pass the bizarre evil AIDS that will make him run out of magic... Oh man, I wanna give my ass... Have you woken up, my nobleman? Where are we and who are you? I'm Luizito, and you talk to me... I came to find this witch, do you know her? She's really hot... What's up, kid, it's an important mission... Important is our heads being cut off. Come on, it's a joke. Fierce kicking... Ohnnnnnnn" I still give a little moan and Hellene goes laughing at my dubbing the moans in the middle, I'm very good at it.
"Dese lettle moans hahahahahaha, de special effects being narrated, I can't stand it, you're too creative Mari, I know you don't moan like that" she said laughing and I blushed a little at the end.
"How do you know? I mean... I didn't say anything" I blush.
"I don't know anything, groan, your dubbing is as always very good, I dedn't say anything" She also blushed.
"This part I love to get the rifle, if I had the striker it would be perfect, I could pass by the guys with a huge tranquility, but now I have to be attentive, I hope the RNG is good, our bursting the heads is very good" I say while I was playing.
And gee, it's really wonderful to go through when you know what to do, before I was really coward and just waited for the guy to drop the bombs and kill the goons, but now I just go straight through and the best thing is just to get the things that really matter, like weed and munção, I got the medallions and went through yay, it's really good to see Hellene's smile, she's loving all this.
POV Narrator:
Finnelan's insistence never comes to an end, by all means she wants Hellene and the Cavendish family's forgiveness for the things she has done, somehow trying to redeem herself, but McLaren is very resistant to accept this mere forgiveness from the teacher, just as the suspicions of who is the boss are increasing, little by little she was giving her face and this holiday of Finnelan could eat a good time of this search.
See you, teacher witches...
Anne Finnelan
Date of birth: 7 September 1938
Place of birth: Norfolk, England (English)
Height: 1.76m
Weight: 61 kg
Sexuality: Secretly Bisexual
Gender: Female (cis)
Occupation: Teacher (Luna Nova 1980/ Edinburgh Magic Institute 1963-1979)
Measurements (bust / waist / hip): 90/58/93
Hair colour and appearance: Brown, wavy 2B. Long reaching to the middle of the back, usually tied up with a bun
Eye colour and shape: Brown
Physical appearance: Caucasian pale skin, tall, some wrinkles on face, white roots apparent in hair
Likes: Class, tradition, order, etiquette, secretly Isabella Cavendish
Dislikes: Disorder, poverty, lack of class, modernity
Anne Finnelan is the great-grandmother of Diana Cavendish and Hellene McLaren, who had a relationship in the past with Isabella Cavendish, but due to closed mindedness and internalized homophobia ended up abandoning her lover and running away from responsibility believing to have been betrayed upon discovering Cavendish's pregnancy, running away and just abandoning everything, which was corrupted to a homophobic rhetoric, much by resentment of that relationship and by influence of her boss ended up being even more sure of her way of thinking. Only her discovery was what made her question more if it was right the way she used to think until then, trying to get affinity with her great-granddaughters.