Deirdre (hopeinside) wrote in carpediem_rp, @ 2015-09-13 09:53:00 |
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Entry tags: | character: esperanza mendoza (dropped), character: laertes sinclair, thread: complete |
Who: Laertes and Esperanza
Where: Hospital Ward
When: September 12, late afternoon
Warning: Nothing too bad
Status: Closed, Complete
Laertes was used to spending time in the hospital ward. Even though his sister insisted on making his primary potion herself most of the time, he still maintained a closer relationship with Morris, his healer at St Mungo's and Mendoza here at Hogwarts. It caught his attention then when he saw a new face in the ward with what seemed to be the same regularity he had.
Esperanza was checking out the various things present in the ward. Not that she doubted Miguel, but she wondered what they had here that she wouldn't have seen back home. Her eyes closed as she inhaled deeply to take in the smells of the place. A sound behind her brought a smile to her face as she turned around, words on her lips- she expected her brother. "¡Hola Miguel! Como es-- no estas Miguel. ¡Perdóname!" *Hello Miguel! How are - you're not Miguel. I'm sorry!
Laertes frowned at the torrent of words… that were not English. It took a brief moment for his mind to shift from the English he expected to Spanish instead. He was grateful at least that he was able to shift languages relatively easily. "No soy Miguel." He agreed. "Me llamo Laertes," it was only polite to introduce himself, he thought. Even if this young woman referred to him informally, he would maintain his manners. "Y usted?" specifically using the formal you in his reply.*No, I am not Miguel.*My name is Laertes*And you?
Esperanza quirked her brow at the formality. It wasn't something she was used to back home in the least. Everyone tended to be very open and laid back, though she guessed they were all family there. It made for a different dynamic. "It is pleasant to meet you, Laertes. I am called Esperanza." She didn't know why he had come up, as he didn't look injured, but she supposed like at home, there were some other reasons. "Miguel... Healer Mendoza is my brother. I am la profesora asistente de Encantos." *the assistant professor for Charms
She spoke English then, even if it was not her native language, Laertes noted. He wondered idly as she switched back to Spanish if their every conversation would be in a mixture of languages. Likely so, unless he himself perpetuated the Spanish exclusively. "Podemos hablar español," he offered politely, "si prefiere usted.."*We can speak Spanish if you prefer
"I should be working on my English." It was true that she should, though her mind tended to work much better in Spanish since it had been her first language. "¿Puedo ayudarle usted con algo?" Because she did need to. But at the same time the English was not as easy. *Can I help you with anything?
She switched to the more formal, Laertes noted, as he persisted in its use. Perhaps he should have gone informal? They had just barely met however. And although she indicated a need to practice her English, her question was again in Spanish, so he continued to answer her in kind. "Usted no necesita. Conozco bien el hospital."*You don't need to. I know the hospital well.
Esperanza tended toward informal with people her age - typically that was the norm, at least in her life. She smiled a bit at the fluency. It was intriguing to have someone outside of her brother that understood her normal speech. "Si necesita usted algo dejarle una nota de Miguel. El debe estar de vuelta pronto."*If you need anything just leave a note for Miguel. He should be back soon.
Laertes shook his head. "Es bien…. No es importante." He was here often enough. "Se dice una profesora, pero puede usted ejecutar el hospital también?" She certainly seemed to be making herself at home here, if she was directing him to leave notes for Miguel. She was apparently his sister though. "Preveo vamos a ver mas de uno al otro en este lugar. Usted créeme si necesito algo, puedo conseguirlo."*It's fine, not important. *You say you are a teacher, but you can run the hospital ward as well? *I foresee we will see more of each other in this place…. Trust me, if I need anything, I can get it.
""Somos curadores en mi pueblo." It was all Esperanza knew and so she was used to being the one people came to. It wasn't that she was the best, but anyone in the family could manage to heal on the same level, at least to some degree. She was talented like the rest of her siblings and it made her happy to know that. *We are healers in my village.
"¿Debo anticipar que usted me cure también? Laertes asked, brow arching slightly. If she was a healer, even if she only acted as Miguel's apprentice, she would need to know his history. For that, he did not trust his fluency. "Puedo hablar Inglés?" *Should I expect you to heal me also? *May I speak English?
"No, no es mi trabajo.". Because it wasn't her place to take part in the healing of students. She was here to teach, learn, and possibly find a husband to return home with. "I am largely fluent, though we rarely used English except con turistas." *No, that's not my job.
Laertes was largely fluent in multiple languages, but that was his gift more than any purposeful use. "Even if you are not, there are a few of us with chronic conditions you should be aware of, since they occasionally interrupt classes or study halls." Laertes was prosaic about his illness. "I am a hemophiliac, generally controlled, but occasionally something happens."
"Ah, yes. That is true. If Miguel is occupied it is likely that I may be called upon." She didn't have any problem being helpful if she was needed. Healing was her first love, after all. She nodded at his explanation and offered a small smile. "Do not worry. We all are trained from when we were young to deal with various conditions. It is traditional in my family, so while I am not as old as my brother, I know much more than students who would have attended traditional schooling."
"I was not worried." Laertes knew his own health. "But should I be incapacitated, when Miguel or Ophelia is not around, it is good for some with skill to be aware. As I said, I am generally well controlled." He had to be; his condition could be fatal, and historically resulted in young deaths. "There are various students with chronic conditions too, although most are less dramatic than mine and just mean they are more prone to getting sick or injured than the risk of bleeding out for stubbing my toe."
A small smile and she nodded. "I shall make a note then. We are careful to ensure that Laertes does not stub his toe." She brushed back her hair and offered a tiny shrug. "If you are well controlled and in my brother's care, I have no doubt that you will be fine." She looked him over quickly, with a practiced glance to any stiffness that might indicate discomfort. "I also solemnly swear that there shall be no food fights around you. Well, unless Miguel decides to misbehave and it is deserved."
Laertes wasn't entirely sure what a food fight had to do with bleeding, but there were some questions one did not ask. "I can hold my own in most fights. I was in dueling club when I as a student." His parents didn't know he'd been part of that club, and Professor Donovan fussed over him about it.
"Ah, but I cannot imagine being hit with an orange would be a positive point in your day. Though I suppose students are not very near the staff table?" Because she didn't know he wasn't a student yet, and his words implied that that was his status within the school.
"An entire orange?" Laertes made note - she did not play gently. "Food fights are intended to create chaos and mess, not concussions. Although as a professor, even an assistant, in order to encourage an end to a food fight it might be permissible. I bias towards a good Petrificus Totalus myself."
"I may have been five at the time and angry because I wished to be allowed a wand like my brothers." Even the youngest other than her had a wand when she was that age and so she wanted to use magic too. "I am not terribly bad at defensive magic though I much prefer curative spells."
Laertes arched a brow at her explanation. "So you are not one to be crossed. I will take note." It was a little Slytherin of him perhaps, but as a pureblood, it was important to keep track of things like that. Minor details could be important.
"I can have something of a temper." An understatement, for sure, but at least she was willing to admit that much. She offered a smile at him and shrugged one shoulder a tiny bit. It was true and she knew it. But it was her and so she accepted it.
"Noted," Laertes tended to assume most people did - although it was likely a product of his own family as much as anything else. "Beware your ire." Not that Laertes went out of his way to piss people off, but sometimes it happened anyway.
Esperanza smiled slightly. "So, did you need to grab something? Am I distracting you from your purpose?" Because he had to have some reason to have come up even if it was something he could do himself and not something he had to wait for Miguel for.
Laertes shook his head. She was distracting him, but not from any great purpose. "I have developed the habit of stopping in here when I am nearby such that the monitoring is an ongoing thing and not in inconvenience." It was just part of his life. "Nothing more."
Esperanza gave a slight nod at that. It made sense for him to keep on top of things that he could. Preventing problems made things easier than having to fix them after the fact. "For one so young you handle this very maturely. In my village the adolescents are often the hardest. They believe they cannot become ill or be harmed."
"How young do you think I am? I am not a student anymore." He was almost as close to it as it was possible to be, but he was an adult - and had been for more than a year by wizard standards. "I work here too."
Esperanza’s eyes widened slightly. “I am sorry. I just assumed that you were because so many of the professors and assistants appear to be my age or older.” She had guessed she was the youngest but perhaps she was wrong in that assumption. “You perhaps look younger than you are and are closer to my age than I thought?”
"Misha Meru and I elected not to really leave upon completing our NEWT exams and convinced Headmaster Emrys to employ us instead." Laertes explained, offering a kind of compromise so as to soften his earlier question. "So I admit that I am not significantly older than some of the seventh years."
Esperanza smiled a bit at the slight concession. “It is good to be young and have a job here. Perhaps when the professor you work under wishes some time off, you can take over. Or you will be employable in other places. I understand Europe recently had something of a shortage in hiring.”
When his parents died, he wouldn't have to work at all, but that was for the future. "I do not know if this will be my career for life." It was safer to phrase it that way. "But it allows me to continue my studies at least another year." Whether he remained after this year or not depended on Ophelia more than anything else. "And you… is this your goal? To be a teacher?"
Esperanza shook her head. "I am a healer. My village is small though. We are sent to find love, and then return to what we know." Except Miguel had found love in a different way and would not likely return when she did. She just needed to have experiences and then she would go back to the world she knew and was comfortable in.
"Romantic." Laertes didn't expect love in his life, although he wanted something of that for his sister. "It must be a small village if West Virginia seems like the bigger world. At least we are educated though, here."
Esperanza shrugged. “Practical. It would be unwise to risk losing the magic of our line by marriage to muggles.” She understood that some people accepted that intermarriage, but her family had always thought it would cause issues in the future, so wizards and witches were brought in for marriage purposes. She liked muggles, yes, but she would not ever think to marry anything less than a wizard. “We are educated where I am from, but there is likely a different focus in many ways.
Laertes knew little of how she was raised and educated. Obviously her brother was a capable healer. And she was here to teach. His reference had been as much about the fact that she was looking for love at a school as much as anything else. He appreciated too her desire not to dilute her bloodline. "Every school has its own strengths."
Esperanza nodded again. “I am hoping to find someone in my time either here at Hogwarts or in Marble City, where I will live during the summers.” She would not return back home until she found someone to go back with her, and then she probably would not leave except to travel from then on.
"And then you will return home." He couldn't imagine most of the pure gentlemen he knew who would be so eager to leave their own inherited lands for a small village on another continent, but then the current trend among the pure families seemed to be idiotic arranged marriages. Someone might wish to leave the country to escape familial disappointment for breaking a troth, even one arranged without consent. "Hopefully you will enjoy your time here at least."
"Miguel does not intend to. Perhaps something else will call to me as well. Two brothers remain in our village that are not as interested in time away, so I suppose we shall see." Life sometimes took unexpected courses and so she would not plan for something she wasn't sure would come to pass. "I believe I will. Everything is so different, it is truly fascinating. I honestly have never seen some of the things that are around in Marble City. Did you know they have a shop simply dedicated to sweets? It's not something we have back home at all."
"There is a similar shop in Hogsmeade, the village just outside of the castle." Laertes offered. Hogsmeade was smaller than Marble City, but at least it was suitably magical in nature. "If you have not explore our local village yet."
"I have yet to visit. Perhaps I should though?" Because she didn't know much at all about what was around and she supposed she could just as easily meet someone who would wish to go to her village in a smaller location. "I could not imagine having grown up with so much. We are not poor, and I have travelled, but to live with this all the time? It is... Astounding to me."
Laertes shrugged. It was the life he lived with. "It is nice to live separate from them. It allows us to truly embrace what we are. Really there are few purely wizard places, even here." Laertes would have carved an entire state out of America during its founding, but he could do what he could at least to create more pure settlements and protect the pure towns that existed.
Esperanza had clearly not explained the place she lived very well, as she had lived with muggles her whole life. It was just unheard of to actually marry them. As she understood it though things were different outside of her home, and things were much more hidden outside of her village. Back home she didn't hide her magic from muggles and they accepted the family as special.
"I am getting too political." Laertes said, this tone apologetic. He took note of that fact. "My apologies. I should let you get back to what you were doing."
"It is not something to worry about. We do not truly live under any ministry where I am, so things are a great deal different. There is not fear or distrust between my family and the muggles around. We simply do not mix blood." A small shrug. It was the way she had been raised and she could no more imagine marrying a muggle than she could marrying her cat.
It sounded entirely strange, living as she described, but at least she didn't see muggles as viable mates. "And yet you would not marry them." He pointed out as she discussed the lack of fear and distrust. "Most muggles react with fear and distrust… if many of our muggleborn students are any indication."
"There is the risk of dilution of our magic. I would not risk that. None in my family wishes that." She shrugged one shoulder and offered a small smile. "The village is very much isolated from others. The muggles are families that, like mine, have been there for centuries. The Mendoza family has always been, and we have always healed. It is what we do."
"Clearly if you would move to another continent." Laertes could not entirely imagine being that isolated - or being that close to muggles. He preferred separation, although he could admit it was in part what he knew. Still the idea of being in service to a muggle community sat ill with him.
"It is a change but Miguel is here as well so I am not alone." Esperanza shrugged slightly. She had always known it would be something she would do. She and Miguel often followed the same paths just like her middle brothers did. "I am excited to learn what this place has to offer me."
Laertes was here for his sister as well, so could appreciate that. "You are fortunate then that you can be together with him when you are away from your home."