Friday 8 December 2006, Luna Nova
"Well, my relationship with Daniella Parker had really blossomed, while the one with Croix was in decline, Ihad been giving Parker more chances since she treated me well and even after we had sex that day wewere still the same friends as always, without changing anything with the exception of a little more contactand perhaps greater intimacy when we were changing or going for a shower, we weren't so embarrassed todo these things together anymore, I was kind of letting myself go and trying to enjoy a good relationship,except that Croix tried and tried all these days to change things between me and her, to redeem herself insome way and I, as silly as I was at the time, didn't take long to forgive her."
Training was coming to an end for the day, I'm well used to it now and as a witch I'm much more skilful, I can feel quite confident for the next word and even show the more complex spells when I present myself.
My mum came over to talk to me some more, I think it must be the results of the training, I did what I could today, it wasn't so hard and I even managed to get a few things right that I couldn't even get close to before.
"You're making a lot of progress physically, I can see your agility increasing, your movements are much lighter and go with the wind, it's going to be a huge improvement by the time you perform, but I didn't come here to talk about that" I even cheer up a bit.
"Ah, I'm training with the best" I say to Mum Laura, who pats me on the shoulder.
"To see beyond, patience is important Chariot" I didn't quite understand.
"What do you mean, Mum?" I ask her.
"You'll find out why, but it's good to remember what I said, I've seen how relations are between you and Croix and between you and your friend, things seem to have changed a lot, you've become more bitter towards Croix, was there something you discussed that day that really got to you?" I nod my head in agreement.
"She said horrible things about me, I felt like I was an object, like I wasn't a person, like all this was just a game for her to achieve her goals and I was an accessory for her to achieve them, it was because of that" I say to Mum who nods and understands everything, it's good to see that someone is going to help me a lot.
"Well I understand how it must hurt, I've also said a lot of hurtful things to Bernadette and I've said them without thinking, I think Croix must be at that stage, she still loves you very much Chariot, I see her saying it every day to me and to April, I think you should give her a second chance to come round, maybe then you can get along again, as well as helping her with her career" Ahhhhh, I don't know if this is going to work.
"Give Croix a second chance? After everything? Didn't you hear how furious and devastated I was that day, Mum?" I'm even a little angry that she made a decision like that.
"I know it was quite unexpected and that you were also in the heat of the moment, but trust me, it's good to get back together with Croix, even if things didn't work out, at least the friendship can work out and you can invest more in a closer relationship with your roommate" I snort.
"I get it Mum" I turn round and head for the bedroom, I'd better get changed instead of thinking about it, today's going to be a busy day.
I'm a bit too devastated to really think about these things, I don't want to keep Croix in my head too much, besides everything is going marvellously with Daniella, I can even talk to her about things and sort things out in the best way, but even so, why forgive Croix right now? I know forgiveness is good, but if she messes up again? Well, I think I'll be patient about it, then maybe things will get better.
[...]
It's lunchtime, I see that Croix isn't even here, so I'm going to go and talk to Daniella about the situation, she might be able to help me a bit, maybe in a more intelligent way, even though my mum has more experience, she's the one who has more contact with Croix, and I don't know, I think she's managing to understand me a lot.
"You've been out of it all day, Chariot, have you been thinking about something? Is it Croix in your head again?" She already made a point of questioning that part.
"It's a bit on her part, my mum said I should make up with her, but honestly, should I? After the horrible things that have been said to me?" I ask her.
"Go back to being friends, she can help you with your career and with your mindset perhaps, be patient, now she realises what she's lost, you've taught her a good lesson" Even the person I least expected was supportive.
"You're the one who supports it" I say strangely.
"It could be good for your wellbeing Chariot, I've already told you I want to see you well and happy, I don't care who you're in a relationship with if it's me or Croix, what matters is that you're well and happy, besides her friendship could be vital to your career, no one knows more about Shiny Chariot than the person who's worked by her side for so long, trust me it could be worth it" I think Parker is right, even after last week when it happened, she still supports everything.
"Thank you for your words Daniella, you really help me a lot" I say smiling.
"If that girl abuses you again, we'll sort it out later" said Becca.
"There's no need, I can cope on my own, it's not as if my training doesn't leave me vulnerable, even my body has got used to all this and this load" I tell them, shrugging.
Well, to see beyond patience is important, maybe that's the advice Mum gave me, I need to look beyond what Croix has in order to understand her better, maybe that will help me understand how to get the fourth word and make further progress towards becoming a more advanced witch, I'm getting closer and closer. When Croix turns up after school today, we'll talk again.
[...]
And so the end of a school day arrives, now I have the weekend off, I think I can take advantage of the free time to do something, maybe when I make up with Croix she can play a bit with us, it always works like this, we leave the classroom, walk down the corridors, go to the dormitories, which I'm already trying to rehearse in my head what to say, there are so many thoughts that really come.
We reach the corridor to my dormitory and there I see Croix leaning against the wall, she's coming to talk to me, which I even roll my eyes at a little, honestly I want to refuse again and enjoy the weekend, but I'm going to be patient, I want to see what she's going to say again.
"Chariot, I know I'm being very annoying by insisting on this, but whether you like it or not you're vital for us to continue, we can't stay apart, I say this in the context of Shiny Chariot, we need each other to leverage and bring about the witches' revolution, fighting won't solve anything, it will only slow things down and make people even more prejudiced against magic and that's why I want to ask you, even if it's difficult, I ask that we make up" Wow, that was a very complex request.
"And why do you think she should forgive you? You say horrible things and then you come up with this? Talking as if nothing had happened, it's like this is all a video game to you" Becca said.
"Let her talk, Rebecca" I was surprised to see that the reaction came from Daniella herself, helping me.
"Parker? You coming to defend me, you?" Croix said.
"So, Croix, you've really screwed up with me, you've said some horrible things, but you've really come here with a straight face thinking that maybe I'll go back into your arms and tell you with all my heart that I'll take you back, but it won't be like that, I'll forgive you for what you said, but that's not a sign that I'm going to go back to the way things were before, we're just friends and that's it, if you screw up again, I won't want to look at your face" I say as I clench my fists and face her, that was harder than I thought.
What followed was a hug with everything, at a time like this the girl thinks of a hug, but I'm even feeling like a weight has just come off my body, feeling good for having rekindled the friendship with Croix, despite everything I missed this girl, what I see her crying, are genuine tears of someone very moved that everything worked out.
"And apparently I'm not going to say anything Chariot, it's up to you to get back together with that girl, just don't invite her into our room" said Becca with her arms crossed.
"I can bring us some Pringles and a soft drink, as well as some pizza. We can celebrate this day a bit and go to the blue team's room for a sleepover, what do you think?" She'll try to convince us.
"You can't convince me, you're not going to buy me off with rubbish like that" She even turns her face away.
"Not even for a photo album I made taking pictures of the Appleton boys? I even took it of their locker room" Her expression quickly changed when Croix pulled an album out of her hands.
"Give me this" By the nine witches, she was thirsty, she was flicking through it with her gaze even growing, how disgusting.
"She's not convinced by anything, but all she has to do is pass round an album with pictures of naked men and Becca can't resist" said Daniella.
"Look, I just want to make a fresh start for all of us, I want to be well, bring the quartet back together, we can enjoy the moment again, what do you think? I even managed to convince Holbrook to use the blue team's room, which is empty again, there can be enough space for everything, I spent the whole week getting everything ready, making food, decorating, it's my way of asking for forgiveness, you'll like it" And apparently the girls are being convinced, but I kept the same fearful expression.
And so we followed Croix, up the stairs, to the blue team's room, it's a good chance to enjoy the weekend, after such a boring week, at least we'll have fun too, I'm sure, I'm just a bit sorry that it's Croix in such a short space of time, I've only just got back together with her and she's already at it, she's trying to convince me that she's not the same as before, but my head is already well vaccinated for that.
We arrived, the door was opened and I felt as if a flash had gone off, but in reality it was just the blue team's room, which was beautifully decorated, even had some little signs saying "I'm sorry", she'd done all this just to apologise, really, so we walked further along and there was a huge television, one of those really nice plasma ones.
"Look at the size of this television, I've never seen something this big up close" said Becca, impressed.
"I told you you'd like it, it's the perfect television for playing Ree, the best thing is that it works with other types of cable, not just the usual coloured ones we know, I've arranged a special input that gives a practically perfect image, plus we can eat to our heart's content" said Meridies.
She showed us the table with food and there was everything, she made pizza, she made calzones, she made chicken wings and you could see the steam coming out of each one of them, all warm, then she opened a fridge, all this being spent just for our amusement, I think even for an apology it wasn't so bad, the friendship can be re-established, but I'm not going to let myself be carried away by my desires, it's still not the best thing, I have to be tougher about it, not let myself be carried away and convinced by every single thing she does.
"Look at this, she's done everything and thought of us, look Chariot, it's not for nothing, but if Croix does this more often I won't think it's a bad thing" said Becca as she picked up a calzone in her hand.
"Her apology wasn't bad at all, but you can tell that someone isn't easily bought off by it, can't you" Someone understand me here.
"It's not going to be good food and a giant telly that's going to convince me of anything" I say confidently to myself.
"I'm not trying to convince you of anything, my apology to you is in my heart and not in the way I'm acting, I only did it so we could enjoy the weekend off, look at all the stuff, when are we going to have a pyjama night like this?" Now the question arises, what pyjamas? We only came here in our school clothes.
"And where are the pyjamas?" I ask her.
"Now the magic is in something else, I've made a point of providing something unique for the day" said Meridies as she led me to another part of the room.
As I open a huge wardrobe, my eyes glaze over, they're those full-body pyjamas, not our normal clothes, there's dinosaur ones, there's kitten ones, there's dog ones, there's lots of animal ones, my eyes glaze over, but don't get carried away by a pardon like that Chariot Du Nord, don't give in because of that, it's a child's pyjamas, only the other two delighted girls are already grabbing their pyjamas and running off to change.
"I wanted to do everything I could to enjoy this pyjama party, we're not just going to have video games, good food and pyjamas, there are lots of good things to enjoy, it's not just going to be Friday to Saturday, we're going to stay here until Sunday night to have fun" Well, now we're alone to talk.
"All this to try and get a Croix pardon? Did you think you were going to convince me?" I look right into her eyes.
"No, I've said it before and I'll say it again, I just want you to enjoy the day, I even thought it might help, but real forgiveness will only come when I demonstrate my actions towards you, when I show that I value my feelings for you, your feelings, when I stop being so selfish, it's not that rubbish, I just wanted to have an excuse to have a good time in a relaxed way" And put relaxed in that.
"Well, that's up to you, I don't care about any of that, but I'm going to enjoy it, I know how our relationship can be something that the future holds" I pat her on the shoulder.
"I knew those pyjamas were easy to open" she even looks different.
"We're not going to do anything tonight, Croix, or next night" I turn my face away.
"Look, I'm going to dress all loose, with nothing on under my pyjamas, I think it might even attract a bit of your attention" Chariot Du Nord controls herself.
"It must be very uncomfortable to have everything loose in there, especially if you get excited" I say just being sarcastic and my head is filled with things.
I go and get the kitten pyjamas and Croix does the same thing, so we go to one of the bedrooms, and I don't get embarrassed, I take off my clothes, she stares at me, all delighted, as if she hasn't seen this more often, a pity that Daniella has seen it a lot too.
I keep my knickers on and put my pyjamas on by zipping them up, and it's really easy to open up my whole body in them, as well as having a kitten cap
By the nine witches, she's going to wear this with nothing on underneath. I even try to avoid looking, but it hypnotises me and makes me thirsty, until she puts on the grey kitten outfit and approaches me.
"I know you loved the sight" she said, full on into me.
"Don't stuff it Croix, I've already seen your cock several times" I say blushing.
"And you miss it, don't you?" She comes closer and I push her.
"Don't give me that Croix, I'm not into it, let's get back to the girls" I say as I leave the room and she gets a little frustrated.
By the nine witches, how can this girl think I'm going to convince myself like this, but well I look cute in my kitten pyjamas, so much so that the four of us get together in front of a mirror and take a picture with the pyjamas with the hoods on, it looks really cute, I even feel really excited when I see how I look, really.
Then I get a very warm calzone and it's nice that it's inside a stove so it's still warm for us to eat as I sit down while Ree is switched on and the sound quality is also very good on the speakers next to the television, not to mention the picture is so perfect, it's beautiful.
"Look at that, the graphics, imagine in the future when there's Mahoutendo Ree 2 or whatever it's called, imagine if they make something that has a controller with a screen and you can play on the screen when they're using the telly" I say impressed.
"This is too much of a trip, Mahoutendo likes to innovate with something different, but it's not that big a deal, I think their consoles are great fun, I can't wait to see what's coming in MagicStation 4, I only didn't bring 3 home because I wanted to play something here that we could all play" It makes sense.
"Or imagine something like you put a screen in a space, then you can detach the controls from that screen, play in compact mode or console mode, it would be a great idea for Mahoutendo" I'm full of ideas.
"You're thinking too much Chariot, it would be impossible, the Ree is already too much, I imagine that in the future it won't even have controls, just imagine a motion detector that we can move our hands and do everything" it would be very boring.
"I'd like it better if I had a controller, to be honest, but the idea of playing without one could be a bit interesting, especially in dance games. I wonder if Mahoutendo is planning this for the next console" I say thoughtfully.
"I don't know, but take the wheel, let's see who can drive better" I even put my calzone on a plate and put the wheel in my hand.
We're all positioned to start the race and it's going to be really interesting, I just want to see how it unfolds, I'm starting to race and wow it's really satisfying to play on this television, you can see everything and it's beautiful, the graphics in this game are marvellous, even more so on this television, Ronaldo Kart Ree is just perfect to play.
It's like I'm in a cinema, right in front of this huge TV, I thought I'd never see a TV bigger than those 32-inch tube TVs I used to play on in the Cavendish mansion, it was so much fun to watch, but now it's something else.
"Oh come on Chariot, don't wear the blue" that's up to you.
"That's an excuse for me, surrender to the power of the blue hull now!" I say as I skid round the bends and realise that I'm simply a little behind due to the fall I suffered at the start, but we're going to beat Croix.
"Chariot, we've barely spoken to each other again and you're already being mean" I laugh.
"Friendship only lasts until Ronaldo Kart, here in the race it's every girl for herself" I say very determined to win the race.
"So that's it? I'm not taking it easy, girl" I just want to see.
"My mum never took it easy on me and I still won one race or another" I say as I play.
"Mrs McLaren is too competitive, my mother always taught me by letting me win and even then I learnt to be as good as you" Let's see which of the two mothers taught better.
We're even sitting up straight, everyone's concentrating, this is just the beginning of this pyjama party, I can't believe I was able to have so much fun, it wasn't so bad that I got back together with Croix, if I have more fun weekends like this it'll be great, I can see that even Daniella is smiling at me and I'm returning the look.
It's good to see that everyone's happy again, I just want to see what else there's going to be when it gets dark, it's certainly not over here, I know that Croix is full of surprises, it's not possible that it only has tellys, pyjamas and good food, there's a lot more
[...]
And it really was, we stopped playing after a while, it got dark outside, in those beautiful windows where you can see everything, we followed Croix and she opened a box and it was full of Nerfs, that's marvellous, I didn't think I'd see something like that before, they're weapons like that, I wanted to play with something like that so much.
I take one and get two pistols, I'm going to shoot them with a lot of style and we start positioning ourselves in the room, starting to shoot each other like crazy and it's really cool to keep reloading and shooting it, it makes these little noises, I feel like I'm in the Matrix.
"You can't hide forever, I'm armed and ready to shoot" said Croix.
"That's no good, you've got an extra gun in there" said Daniella.
"Come on, Parker, she doesn't even shoot" said Meridies, and I kept laughing as we got together and shot at each other.
"Take shots! I'm the best shot in all of Luna Nova!" I shout confidently and run towards everyone who goes in the same direction until we're on the bed staring at the ceiling.
"Wow, that was a childhood dream come true, I wanted to play like that a lot, but I never had any friends or toys like that, my parents always said it was a boy thing and I couldn't have fun like that" said Parker.
"I only had one friend when I was a kid and I used to play with her sometimes with what we had, but after I fled to Ireland my fun was restricted to my mum and Chariot's mum, we'd see each other when they were free, school friends I never had, even more so since I used to be seen more as a boy than I am now, It's precisely when I'm more easily perceived as a girl that I've stopped caring and being happy when people call me that, it's just become commonplace" I then take a shot that hits Meridies in the face and laugh.
"Those were your last words, Croix Meridies, a beautiful and moving speech, but I still have bullets in that gun" I say, already playing the sniper.
"That's right Chariot Du Nord, get ready for war!" She came all over me with her gun firing more bullets.
I just dodged the shots and then we got out of bed and went back to playing with the nerfs, I can't believe I'm playing with these things, I've always wanted a toy gun like this, but I've never had friends, it wasn't so bad spending time and giving in here, I'm sure it was all planned by the mums for this to happen.
[...]
We're exhausted from all the running and shooting, there are darts thrown everywhere, we've really thrown everything, it's like a war scene if you think about it, so we followed Croix around the room and she showed us an inflatable castle where we threw ourselves into it to lie down and looked at the ceiling together, it was another dream of mine as a child to do it.
"Wow Croix, I really didn't think it would be a big deal, but you've brought a whole day of celebrations, it's like it's my birthday" I say looking up at the ceiling.
"I know I've been a bit of an arsehole these days and I want to make up for it, I want to show that I can still be the same Croix as before and help you" said Meridies.
"Thanks for everything Croix, but look, the bouncy castle is marvellous, I've always wanted to jump on one, do several somersaults" I say as I sit down.
"I feel like a child again, this kind of thing was what I most wanted to do, but as I was a rich child I had to stay at the parties in a dress and accompany my parents, I even had an etiquette teacher for this, while I watched from afar the children having fun at parties in other houses, I would ask my parents and the answer was always the same: "That's poor people's business", "You have to be a mature lady and know how to behave like one", "As the eldest daughter, show yourself to be a lady", it was always like that, and I couldn't even enjoy it in the slightest, it was always lessons and lessons in etiquette" said Daniella.
"I used to enjoy these a lot as a child, my parents would always take me to the parties they had, I loved it, every friend I made at school we'd make a cow and get everyone together to rent the bouncy castle, it was the most fun thing in the world, thank you for bringing it Croix" They really enjoyed themselves.
I left the bouncy castle and walked a little way to the window, reflecting on all this, should I really forgive Croix? She's been tempting me all this time, and I was even followed by her who stayed by my side and soon we saw the bouncy castle moving, it seems the girls have started playing again, they never tire of it.
"They seem to be having a lot of fun" said Meridies.
"It's good that you're having fun, but what about you Croix, are you having fun with all this, are you genuinely forgiven, or do you still resent Claiomh Solais?" I make a point of asking and she takes a deep breath, puts her hand on my shoulder and then hugs me.
"No more thinking about it, I don't care if you've been chosen, if you're going to dedicate yourself to the staff or not, I've just been silly and immature, I want to make up for it, I want to start things again Chariot, I want to be a better friend to you" She even looks me in the eye, it's genuine, she's not lying, it's all real.
"Croix... Are you really going to change for me?" I ask her.
"It's not for you Chariot, it's for myself, I want to change things, become a different person, be a better friend, above all I've seen how I only alienate people by being like this, that's why I just don't want to call Claiomh Solais any more and push you into anything, you know you're dedicating yourself and I see that, that's why I'm proud of you" I even get emotional seeing this maturing.
"Croix, that's marvellous, you've really grown up, I'm the one who's proud, it can't have been easy, but let's enjoy it, I really forgive you, no hard feelings, I trust you Croix" I say hugging her and we even get closer.
"Well, there's a castle waiting for us, what do you say we try a hand-to-hand deathmatch, or even the four of us doing a deathmatch?" I nod my head, it'll be great fun.
We walk to the bouncy castle and there the girls are jumping around like crazy, until I arrive and start trying to do the back flip, something I learnt from mum Laura in wrestling training, the best thing is that I know how to do both the slow and the fast flip and that's wonderful to do.
"Wow, I had a great time that day, we played nerf, we played Mahoutendo Ree, we even played truth or dareat nightfall, we played in the bouncy castle and something else almost happened, but I was pretty sure of myintentions with Croix that day and we didn't do anything, she understood a lot, the food was also marvellousand always hot thanks to the greenhouses, so there was only good stuff, it was a remarkable weekend thatmade me put my head together, feel much better, even for a short time have a good relationship with Croix,what I wanted most at that time."
See you, sleepover witches...