❝Switching off all the noise

I've been sold❞

? w.

Michael Holden Parkinson

outfit

Date: 10th of September, 2015
Location: The Goldbrick Café

    Emilia had just started her third year of university and she could frankly say that everything was progressing as it should. The last two years had been fine, both with perfect grades at college, both with enough relaxation in her free time. Everything was good, even if she had decided to quit Lufkin's news publication this year. Peter and Blake would understand, she wanted to actually find an internship that would interest her this year. She needed the free time for that and since she didn't think she would be pursuing journalism (hint: she was studying law instead of that) she had decided to prioritise. After all, she had yet to decide what kind of law she wanted to practice and that could take some time. It was only two years left before graduation and Emilia wanted to have her decision made by then.
    She hadn't decided where to intern just yet, she was still looking at her options and weighing the pros and cons. Maybe she would take a few and decide during the first semester, use the second semester to specialise properly and then use next year to secure a job in the area she wanted. That should work fine, really. She really just needed time outside what she spent on her studies. Considering the academic year had barely started, she wasn't all that stressed just yet. She was just reading ahead and summarising some of what she needed to study. It was all fine. Would all be fine. She would recover this time soon enough. What time? The time she usually spent during her lunch break, working ahead so she could go out on Friday and not feel guilty about not getting any work done on Saturday morning. Normally she would go to the library and get things done, but not this time around. She'd gotten a message from MJ saying that he wanted to meet up for lunch, which was rather confusing. Sure, she loved her little brother and enjoyed spending time with him, but it was always more of an impromptu thing rather than scheduled. Admittedly, he might have felt the need to schedule something, what with how busy she'd been lately. He had also been busy, it was his first year in university. That was special.
    Em had come out of class in a bit of a hurry, popping home to switch her books for what she would need later on and coming back to the café in less than two minutes. It was always so packed during lunch time that getting a table was mostly just the thing of professors, but she had managed. It might've involved some bribery and blackmail from her part towards the waiters and the security guards, but she had secured a table in the back corner of the place. After all, she knew that MJ preferred to stick to the down low of everything. Maybe he would appreciate staying out of such a scrutinised area. Who knew, she just knew that if she didn't arrive within the first five minutes of the break, the deal was up. Thankfully, she made it in time and sat down. Smoothie by her hand, she looked over her small notebook, making a few marks in her day's to do list while she waited for MJ to show up. Not ten minutes later, though, he dropped into the seat across from her. So Em put the fountain pen away and closed her notebook, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "So what's this about?" 

© SETHANIEL OF adox 2.0 + WW.

Sometimes, if felt as if the universe was conspiring against him. No, seriously. MJ- he was a chill guy, okay? Didn't need all that much, never cared about how famous mum's side of the family was. In fact, he very much liked to fly under the radar and the longest it could keep, the better. With a scary mother, an almost as scary sister and the other being hella talented, it wasn't easy to be the youngest child in this family. Dad was the most normal of them all and yet- he and MJ didn't have all that much in common when it came to it. It would've been easier if they had, honestly, because then he wouldn't have felt like he was...alone. Wouldn't have felt so different from everyone else. Mum- maybe she was the one MJ related the most but also...the least. Because she was never satisfied, always striving for more, never stopping, never really saying enough. And, yeah, he could see it in himself too. MJ was a Slytherin and that wasn't out of the blue. He had ambition, he was cunning and he had to admit that his morals might be a little wacky sometimes.

But he never really craved recognition and the spotlight like mum did. It wasn't...fame, not exactly. But she had a reputation and she was proud of it, she wanted to maintain it. Just like Em wanted in the future, just like Esme wanted with her music. They weren't content with staying the the shadows, with succeeding from there. And MJ- he really hated it when people remembered that he was a Shacklebolt-Lindquist. Not because he hated his family, far from it. He loved them to death. But when they heard his name, they expected things. Because of his mum and his uncles and aunts. And he didn't want that for his life, never did. Made a goddamn art of being unnoticed in the right measure, back at school. And he was still doing it, in a way. It was just...easier. He did his thing without being compared to anyone, it didn't poison the great relationship he had with his sisters and parents, everyone went their own way and nothing was wrong. Or it wasn't, until two days ago. Because, see, part of not calling attention to yourself was also not doing some things that were definitely fun but also were 100% guaranteed to put the focus of someone on you. So MJ had refrained from being that guy who slept around in school, hadn't made himself remarkable in any way - and had mourned the opportunity of sleeping with some really hot people for the sake of his sorta anonymity.

He was tempted, now. MJ was so fucking tempted and he's never been so, before. All because of that goddamn hot TA of his, with lush curls and a smile that was just so - only gotten better from the days he'd been at school with Em and MJ had lusted after him from afar. MJ didn't think that he was the only one who noticed but it wasn't like he had paid attention to anyone else during three bloody days to check. He'd stared at Peter and- well, he was embarrassed to say that it was one hell of a throwback to his teen days. Just that now he wasn't the little brother of Peter's friend. He was just another student. Damnit. And Peter- he was so helpful. Solicitous. Fucking charming and suave like he was- okay, MJ. Cool down. He needed- Em couldn't even suspect that he had anything but the purest of intentions towards the TA. He'd kept it under wraps for years at Hogwarts, he could play it cool for a single lunch date with his sister. It was going to be fine. From the three of them, MJ was the one with the best manipulation skills. It started with the feigned casual way he'd dropped into his seat in front of her, face tired but happy - exactly what it should be for the first few days of uni. "Ouch, Em. Can't a brother want to talk to his sister without the heavy accusations?"

tags: @ em

outfit

words: 695

❝Switching off all the noise

I'VE BEEN SOLD❞

x w.

@ MJ

outfit

    Emilia loved her family, but while she had a good temperament, she wasn't exactly one for needless chatter. Unless needless chatter was the purpose of whatever activity she was doing. Mostly, she met up with her family a few times a week for dinner or went out drinking and dancing with Esme, and spent the rest of her time working or studying. There were places she wanted to get to and she wouldn't be able to if she didn't have certain results. Beyond it all being to get a position in the future, her efforts were made in order to achieve things for herself. Because she wanted to prove to herself that she could. It was important and as such, she didn't like wasting time when it wasn't exactly allotted to be wasted. If that made sense. It made sense to her, wasn't that what mattered?
    "Sure you can, though usually it's a planned thing." Not like today, which had been a spur of the moment invitation on behalf of her brother. For coffee or tea or something. He had just started at Lufkin, which could mean a lot of things. Mostly, she expected it to be something in the order of acclimatising himself to the new surroundings. New people, new building, new requirements, all of that. MJ had done wonderfully in school. Not in the same way Em had- MJ had done exactly what he wanted to achieve and that was what she was proud of. Her little brother didn't want to be like the rest of them, which was fine. In fact, it was great, because it meant that he thought for himself and didn't let expectations from anyone define his future. So yes, he'd done wonderfully at Hogwarts because he'd fulfilled his own goals. Back then, he'd rarely conferred with her, since it would draw attention to him. How she loved her little brother and his... extremism.
    "But alright- how's the start of term been for you, baby brother?" If he wanted to focus on that, then they would. She was in no hurry. Right now, she would push her studying back an hour or two and spend time with MJ. Em loved him enough to do that, yes, and since she was technically studying ahead there was nothing she really lost. Double majoring in different universities was tough but she could manage it. Herbology at Bangor, Law at Lufkin. It would've been hard if she were anything less than fully passionate about both studies. Granted, she wasn't going to do an apprenticeship and become a herbologist, but she loved Herbology. She was going to do environmental law, either at the ministry or freelance or something. She knew that already. 
    Smiling, Em took a sip of her tea before pouring another cup from the tea pot she'd ordered. Handing it over, she looked him over carefully. Yes, tired but happy. Deep in thought, but then he always was. Nothing new here, other than the obvious. At first glance, at least.

© SETHANIEL OF adox 2.0 + WW.

[googlefont="Wire One"]

Ban All The Music

They're tryna take it from me
Got this, this is it
Won't let them take it from me

It amused MJ sometimes, how different people were in his family. Him and his parents, for one. Then he and his sisters. They all had that underlying quality that MJ thought it was likely a very Shacklebolt thing, something that he easily saw in his mother and uncles. It was the drive to succeed, to not accept anything other than the best, than being the best. They all took it in different ways, granted, but MJ didn't think that any of them was any less ambitious than the other. Esme and mum were the easiest to spot, with how high profile they were to say the least. With two opposite approaches but using their best qualities, they'd managed to make themselves household names in their chosen fields - and considering how public such fields were, they were pretty well known to the general public as well. Unlike Em, who was making a name for herself but wasn't in a field that was of that much public interest.

In the end, they were all trying to be the best, to be on the top. MJ thought that trying was even the wrong word, really. Because their family didn't do trying. They succeeded. No matter what they put their minds to, they succeeded and likely would always succeed. It wasn't in their vocabulary to fail. And some would say that MJ was failing because he hadn't achieved anything noteworthy in school, he hadn't been prefect or quidditch captain or anything like that. It just proved that they didn't know him at all. Success, in the end, wasn't measured by accolades and titles. At least not for him. He had clear goals in mind and as long as he achieved them, it meant that he was in the right path. No one but his family needed to know and that was how MJ liked it, honestly.

Which was the main difference between him and the rest of them.

At his sister's words, MJ shrugged a bit, casually. "Most of my planning goes towards study plans and making the most of my pitiful breaks, these days," and it was true, he'd arranged his schedule in a way that gave him the evenings free but it also meant that his day was packed to hell and back. It wasn't exactly pleasant but he didn't like being busy in the evenings. They were for relaxing, for writing for pleasure and unwinding. "Besides, is your calendar so busy that your own brother needs to make an appointment, Em?" He laughed, accepting the menu from the waitress. Lunch, yes, but he'd never eaten here. Maybe he should ask Em for recommendations because he was a surprisingly picky eater. Okay, not a picky eater but MJ was a bit of a food snob, sue him. The only food he ate without questioning was whatever was served in his parent's home.

How strange...it wasn't his home anymore. It was and it wasn't, really. Because the Estate was not where he went after his day was done, not anymore. Living alone had been parts freeing and parts terrifying and MJ wasn't yet sure if he liked it or hated it. He'd end up getting used to that, more likely. A small scowl made its way to his face, even if it was mostly playful. Mostly because- well, being Em's baby brother was the last thing he wanted right now when he was panting after her school friend. It was another reminder that Em's baby brother was likely all that he was to Peter. "Don't call me that, you," accepting the tea with a half smile, he sipped the hot liquid and pretended to ponder over what he wanted to say. As if he hadn't rehearsed it plenty in his mind before coming here. "It's...less strange than I thought it would be. For all it's differences from Hogwarts, it's also full of similarities," his lips twisted a bit. "The familiar faces help, though."

@ sister dearest ⁂ outfit ⁂ 660 ⁂ notes

❝Switching off all the noise

I'VE BEEN SOLD❞

1234 w.

@ MJ

outfit

MJ was all grown up now, in a way. Living by himself, going to college, all that jazz. Emilia was proud of him for it. True, he had never really followed the whole traditional Shacklebolt way of things. He wasn’t competitive like most of them and he wasn’t all showy and flashy about it. He didn’t want to be well known and he didn’t crave success. She thought it was nice to be like that, it made things so much simpler. It also meant, though, that he wasn’t often seen in public with them. Being associated with the rest of them would only make more attention fall on him which was exactly the opposite of what MJ wanted. Emilia understood that, which was why she was surprised to be asked to go to tea. Somewhere public. In fact, she could perfectly well have gone over to his place, or made lunch at her own house and had it ready for him to join her. But no, they were here. It was… weird, but not a bad weird. Just interesting. It made her curious and she thought that there was something he wanted. And if it was something that he didn’t think he could just come out and ask, something he had to ease her into… well, even better. Em might seem disinterested and placid, but she was ready to pounce.

"Well, that’s the life of a student. Studying, studying, and fifteen minute breaks in between that you use for napping and showering. I don’t advise combining the two." Smirking, she offered him a wink and reached for her cup of tea, sipping it slowly. Her eyes still took him in, analysing every bit of him. There was something… different. As if there were something under MJ’s skin that she should be seeing but wasn’t. She couldn’t for the life of her figure out what it would possibly be. "Course not, I always got time for you, Michael Josef." Emilia gave her little brother’s leg a teasing poke with her food before looking around. They had all the time in the world, despite it being very crowded. She wasn’t the type to be pressured by these things.

"Alright, alright-" and then she froze. Not abruptly, because she didn’t want to be obvious, but there was something about that last comment… "Familiar faces?" For a second, she didn’t know what he could mean. Yeah, there were plenty of kids from Hogwarts here. Most students were people that MJ must’ve seen at least in passing at some point, somewhere. The magical society of Britain wasn’t all that large, especially when it came to people their age. But it sounded far more specific than just some vaguely familiar faces in a crowd. It sounded like he meant that he knew someone… maybe in his classes? Maybe between his classmates or something like that? Or- "Oh, Peter? He’s your TA, right?" Could that possibly be it? Yeah, MJ would know her old friend. Pete had seen him often, interacted with him in passing. He’d been head boy and prefect too, so there were many times in which they would’ve been in contact. She’d almost forgotten that he would be giving MJ classes this year, though she shouldn’t have. He’d been very excited about being given his TA position back this year. As if he would’ve lost it in the first place. He was a far more valuable student than he gave himself credit for, they wouldn’t want to lose him. "He's a good teacher, or so I've heard. You'll learn lots from him."

© SETHANIEL OF adox 2.0 + WW.