Chloe Wilkes has crossed the Rubicon. (nopanacea) wrote in find_horcruxes, @ 2009-10-08 16:01:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | chloe wilkes, florence corner |
RP Log: Florence Corner and Chloe Wilkes (backdated)
Who: Florence Corner and Chloe Wilkes
What: Friendly visit.
When: Backdated to 27 September 1979
Where: The home of Florence and Jonathon Corner
Why: Because they haven't seen each other in awhile.
Rating: G
Status: Complete!
Florence was glad to have Chloe over for tea. Unlike many of her older (more like former) friends, Chloe still still seemed to be a genuine friend to her. She knew the reasons behind the distance between her friends. What did it matter that she married a muggleborn? At least she had not completely disgraced everyone by marrying a muggle, although there were times she somewhat wished she had. However, talking about that was something she did not want to come up during her tea with Chloe. Today, she wanted to be happy and talk about happy things; like work, her pregnancy, or whatever Chloe wanted to talk about. She had spent the morning making a variety of biscuits and found all the tea they had. Florence didn't know what Chloe liked, but hoped that she did have something to offer her. Glancing at the clock in the kitchen, Florence noted that it was almost 2 and knew that Chloe would be there soon. Chloe was a bit nervous approaching the Corners' home. She hadn't mentioned where she was going to Olivia, and she was quite certain that her sister wouldn't have approved. On the other hand, Chloe approved of very little to do with Olivia at the moment. Much of her nervousness had simply to do with being invited to anything as an individual rather than as the younger Wilkes sister. At least tea with Florence should be less formal than some events. Punctuality had been ingrained into Chloe early. She knocked on the door precisely at two o'clock and waited for a response. As soon as she heard the knock, Florence headed for the door. A smile on her face, she answered. "Hello, Chloe! I'm so glad that you could come. Come right in!" She moved aside to allow Chloe in. "We'll be in the kitchen so follow me." Florence led the way to the kitchen where the table was already set for tea. "It seems like it has been a while since I've really talked to you. How have you been?" Florence laid out the selections of tea she had. "I didn't know which kind you liked. I have a variety." Chloe smiled in answer, if not quite as widely or as brightly, certainly moreso than when she'd approached the door. "Good afternoon, Florence," she said quietly enough that it might have been missed as Florence led the way to the kitchen. It was not quite what Chloe was used to, but the bright room seemed much more - 'friendly' came to mind even if it might not be the best word - than the parlor when Olivia usually held court at the townhouse (Nearly three years later, the London residence was still not and would never be home in Chloe's mind; that title was reserved for St Ives.). "I've been well." It was essentially true. Chloe had no physical pains to speak of. She had even been sleeping most nights, or had until the potion ran out. "Working." Her smile brightened a bit more. Work was fairly safe to speak of, what she could say of it, at least, and nearly always pleasant. "And how have you been?" Chloe added as her eyes dropped to the selection of teas that Florence had laid out. It may have been spoken quietly, but Florence was able to hear it. "That is good to hear. How do you like working and your job?" Seeing Chloe's smile, Florence thought she probably enjoyed what she was doing. She knew that if she talked about work, she was usually happy to talk about her own work. Before she sat at the table, Florence grabbed the plate of biscuits she had sitting on the counter and set it on the table. "I have also been well. And working. My pregnancy seems to be agreeing with me, for the moment anyway." Florence was starting to enjoy being pregnant, but she still couldn't wait for the day she was due. "I like it very much." Chloe loved talking about her job, at least as much as she was able. "I have an excuse to study almost anything I choose." Lately, that had meant pouring through astronomical journals and star-gazing. "I am glad you've been well." Chloe's knowledge of pregnancy revolved mainly around the fact that it had always been difficult for her mother and had yielded less than the desired result. "Darjeeling?" she asked a bit tentatively, looking up from the teas and sitting as well. "That is wonderful! What sort of things do you study?" Florence thought it would be nice to study anything she wanted. In a way she was with training to be a Healer. She was really enjoying what she was doing. "I'm rather glad myself. Sort of caught me off guard when I found out." Florence smiled. "All right. I'll get that going for you. And help yourself to a biscuit. They are delicious." It didn't take too long to fix up the Darjeeling for Chloe and she came back to the table and handed the cup to her as she sat down. Florence had not been the only one caught off guard by the pregnancy. Chloe still found it a bit strange in a friend only two years older than herself. Granted, if Olivia had her way, it might not be that much longer for Chloe. She took one of the biscuits from the plate, preferring not to think about pregnancy and marriage and betrothals at the moment - at least as related to herself. Her studies on the other hand . . . Chloe found herself smiling more than she had - with the exception of a few foolish hours last week - more than she had since early August. Not that she hadn't enjoyed herself at the picnic, but she was always better one on one than in a group, and besides, her enjoyment had been shadowed by the journal conversation immediately preceding it which she was not going to think about just now. "I've found some beautiful pictures of the stars that way." She couldn't say precisely why she was looking for them or what she was doing with them, per the Department's rules, but they were available for anyone who looked in the right places so she could say that much. More than that, with Florence she could share some of her excitement about the subject that was best not brought up with others. "Did you know that Muggles have walked on the moon? A few of them?" Chloe didn't really know Florence's husband Jonathon or if he would have cared about such things, but she did have some confidence that Florence wouldn't immediately dismiss the subject due to the Muggle connection. "It's said to be nearly like floating. I would love-" Chloe caught herself. It was hardly polite to run on like that. She remembered the biscuit in her hand, and took a bite. "They are delicious," she said more quietly. "Thank you," she added, accepting the tea, and searched for an addition to the conversation that would not be rambling about herself. "Have you finished painting?" "I saw the ones you shared in the journals a couple weeks ago. They were fascinating." Florence had enjoyed looking at the stars in Astronomy, but the class itself hadn't been for her. Even now, from time to time, she liked sitting outside to look at the stars. "No, I didn't know that. Really? Muggles have really walked on the moon? I can't imagine what the must be like. It's like floating?" She didn't mind that Chloe was talking so much, Florence rather liked hearing about it. "What would you love? To go to the moon yourself?" Florence smiled. "You're welcome. No, we are not finished painting. Apparently you have to have a couple of layers and not just one of paint. We do have the base layer on so we'll start painting it green sometime soon. I rather like painting despite it being rather messy." "Yes," said Chloe, still a bit subdued. "The camera passed by Saturn at the beginning of the month. It made its closest approach on the first." She would not think about that now. "I suppose it's silly, but I would enjoy knowing what it's like. The first moon walk was actually ten years ago, and most of the wizarding world knows nothing about it. We never heard a word of it in Astronomy." Chloe's expression did not reveal her exact feelings about this. She'd loved her astronomy professor, and she was no particular fan of the non-magical world, but it did not seem quite sensible to ignore such advances simply because they had been made by Muggles. "The painting sounds as if it's a lot of work, but I'm glad that you enjoy it. I'm afraid I don't know much about painting. I don't know much about decorating of any sort, although," Chloe kept her tone neutral, but her expression showed she was restraining a smile. "Olivia does her best to educate me." If only her sister's attempts at molding her into a proper socialite were Olivia's worst faults. Florence shook her head. "That is not silly, Chloe. If Muggles can do it, I think we should be able to as well. There are a lot of things that Muggles have that I think would be a great addition to our world. It would have been nice to hear such things in Astronomy." She was still fascinated with a lot of the Muggle technology, even though she didn't understand it no matter how much Jonathan tried to teach her. "It is a lot of work, though I've heard it will definitely be worth it once we're done." Florence smiled. "I don't know much about decorating either. I've found books though. They are quite helpful in giving hints on what to do. The ones I bought are more specific to baby rooms." She was rather glad that she didn't have an older sister, and she knew that Chloe's sister was only fulfilling the role that her mother would have had. "I'm sure she does. Not that I don't like her or that life, but in my opinion, that life isn't for everyone. It is definitely not for me." "I'm quite sure she does it because she cares," said Chloe quickly. She hated to criticize Olivia too publicly. Not that a conversation with Florence was exactly public, but Chloe didn't want to give the wrong impression. Whatever the wrong impression might be. "I don't dislike everything about it." "She probably does. I'm sure if I were in her position, I'd do the same." Florence told her. "There are some good things about it." "There are," Chloe said, and meant it. Even with her frustration with the trivialities of society and her knowledge about the more sinister undercurrents, and she couldn't seriously entertain the idea of leaving as Florence had. Perhaps if Chloe had had her friend's inducement. "You seem very happy," she said tentatively. Florence smiled at Chloe. "I am very happy. I wouldn't change a single thing because I am happy. I'm married to the love of my life and I'm having a baby. Can't imagine anything better than this." |