What is Love? (Alexei & Elenore)

Subject: Re: What is Love? (Alexei & Elenore) Sun Dec 10, 2017 6:55 pm

As Alexei moved from his seat, Elenore looked back down at her letter, now encased in it's envelope. Carefully, the witch picked up her quill once more and addressed it with total care, Lady Lynnette Clement, before placing her quill down in place with a finality about the whole piece. It should, hopefully, not take too long for her Grandmere to write back, but Elenore knew she was going to have to be patient in everything that she did.

By the time that was done, Alexei had joined her at the table, and Elenore gave him a small smile at the thank you with which he had presented her only a few moments ago.

"You're welcome," Elenore replied softly, waiting for the older male to settle before her before she presented the question she'd been meaning to ask.

"If I might be so bold," Elenore ventured carefully, checking they were still alone. "But, most boys... men, of your age, would not think twice about taking another up on a date. Yet... you said no. Why would you do that?" Elenore asked, though her tone denoted what she meant. Why, as many other men would, had Alexei not taken up his chance of being with someone for a day, if it were only one day.

To her credit, though, a light hue touched Elenore's cheeks. She was, after all, a lady, and ladies didn't speak on such topics.

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The question from the fifth year made Alexei pause and inspect the woman before him. Her tone of voice didn't sound as if she was prying just to get blackmail on him but as a lady of the Clement house, Alexei wasn't sure if that's what she had in mind. But then again, Elenore had proven herself to not be the type of person to blackmail someone for their past, at least from what he had gleaned of the interactions between her and her classmates as well as the whispers that he heard about the young witch in the Slytherin common rooms.

Pondering on the question, the Italian wondered how to answer. Give her the full truth or just half-truth? Either one was undesirable to the young man but Alexei knew that lies would get nowhere with Elenore. She would probably be able to call him out on it, however, half-truths may be just the way to go for the moment.

"During my childhood... I was abused, badly." He replied cautiously, studiously watching the woman in front of him though ignoring her embarrassment, for which, he was sure, she was thankful for. "My... father, if you can even call him that, is a, if you would pardon the language, my lady, bastard. I'm the illegitimate son that was thrust upon him by a mother who didn't want me, or at least I think she didn't want me."

His past was a sensitive topic for him and he had no plans of divulging the entity of it to the woman, at least not while they were in these halls, where portraits listened in on every topic of conversation and every move was studied thoroughly.

"My father broke me... you can say, or at least he thought he did. I was, still am, nothing more than a burden to him. However, I am still his son and his parents acknowledged me as the third heir." An heir to the mafia that is. To his grandparents, Alexei had more claim to the Mafia than his half-brothers purely for the fact that he wasn't tainted by his step-mother's words and actions and his grandparents, well, they loved him even if they didn't show it.

"He stunted my emotional growth and made me fear what... positive feelings could do to me."

Subject: Re: What is Love? (Alexei & Elenore) Sun Dec 10, 2017 8:42 pm

What Elenore had meant, and the answer she had been given didn't entirely marry up. It wasn't to say that Alexei hadn't answered her question, because in a manner, he had, but this personal route that he had all but flown down was one that Elenore found herself cautious of.

Abusive situations were not something that Elenore came across very often, mostly because even if people in her circles experienced some kind of abuse, they never spoke of it. Therefore, this conversation stream was quite... unique in the youngest Clement's eyes, and therefore did not have a conversation that had been played out a million times before it to compare with.

The French witch's expression remained polite throughout Alexei's explanation, waiting for him to finish fully before she spoke up in fear that she might spook him in to leaving prematurely. The witch did not jump the gun when Alexei had finished, clearly taking a moment to think of her response, which came out with utmost sincerity in the next moment.

"I am so very sorry to hear of your... situation." Elenore replied softly, not knowing how to describe the abusive childhood without using the word 'abusive' or a variation of the word. As to what had happened, Elenore could not bring herself to pay another comment on it, too fearful of saying something that would cause offence, she instead turned her attention to the Slytherin's final sentence.

"You know... fear is only irrational thought, irrational thought that can be worked upon, and corrected, over time. Should you wish." The Hufflepuff said, not in a condescending manner, but in a manner that said she would not judge him if he did not wish to fight, but that fighting was always a possibility if you were brave enough to take a leap of faith.

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The question hadn't been answered fully, he knew that perfectly well; however, he wanted to give Elenore chance to either ask him to develop his answer or just make a conclusion based on that. Not many people would be able to put two and two together to get four after all. And if Elenore was smart, which he knew she was, the girl should be able to put abused and broken together to get stunted emotional growth and unwant for relationships. Because that's what basically him agreeing to go to Hogsmeade with someone would lead to. A potential relationship and he did not need that.

"I am so very sorry to hear of your... situation."

Situtation, that was a mild way of looking at his abusive past. Then again he already came to terms with it so he didn't see it as something horrible, mostly he was just seeing it as a part of his past that showed him that familial connections meant nothing to his father when abusing and breaking him.

The brunette male looked to the side and let a small but soft smile appear on his lips at the female's words, finding himself quietly agreeing with them. He should fight that feeling, he knew that, but he was still frightened and that fright would never leave him, this he knew for sure.

"The fear will still be there though." He commented. "No matter how much we fight it, it will still be there." He murmured quietly.

Subject: Re: What is Love? (Alexei & Elenore) Tue Dec 12, 2017 7:44 pm

It had been a nerve wracking experience, waiting for Alexei's reaction to what she'd said. Elenore had not meant it in a condescending manner of 'oh, you only have to fight it', she knew enough about fears to know that if you did not work to beat them, to control them they could easily overcome you, and the consequences... well, thankfully Elenore had not yet gotten to the point where the consequences were severe.

"For a time," Elenore replied to the older male with a reassuring smile. "Until we break ourselves from it's bonds. It's not... an overnight fix." The youngest Clement explained, though she was not free from fears, she knew that she could overcome them, with time.

Then, Elenore fell quiet, not knowing what else to add to the conversation in that moment that would help her or Alexei to move further in to the subject. So, instead, she changed the direction of the conversation. "Was that the last of your homework?" She asked instead, because homework was a safer conversation, and the young Hufflepuff was quite obviously changing course because she did not know what else she might say in that moment.

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Watching the Hufflepuff witch, the Slytherin male couldn't help but wonder what was going on in that mind of hers. The Clement female was one of the more fascinating people Alexei had ever had the pleasure of knowing and considering that he knew many people, some that he wanted to forget, that was saying something. Fighting his fears was what he should do but he was frightened of the consequences that would lead to as that meant that he had to face his father head on and he didn't want that, at least not yet. Not until he was of age and able to use magic freely to get away if necessary.

"No, it's not." Alexei agreed to that. Fixing himself was something that was far in the recesses of his mind, for now, he was happy to just deal with things that came at him instead of the things that were in the past. It was easier on him at least. His past, for now, could wait.

The quiet that enveloped them let Alexei take the time to catalogue the woman in front of him; how she sat, how she behaved, how she looked. It all spoke of harsh upbringing yet at the same time there were some tells that showed him that she hadn't been broken by the upbringing she had and that made him smile and think that maybe, sometime in the future, he would be able to look on the past and think on how it made him a stronger man. "I've just got Ancient Runes left but that's not due in until the end of next week." He replied and flicked his eyes down to the parchment in front of her. "And you? Any homework you have to finish off?"

Subject: Re: What is Love? (Alexei & Elenore) Sat Dec 16, 2017 9:27 am

Elenore gave Alexei a small, reassuring smile when he agreed with her, her hand moving up to brush her hair behind her ear before resting back in her lap. It was not in a flirtatious manner that the witch did this, it was something of a small quirk in that moment that Elenore felt like she needed to do something with her hands. Alexei had been watching her -- she knew when someone was doing this -- and she felt a little subconscious.

Was there something not quite right with her appearance?

Finding Alexei only had Ancient Runes, Elenore smiled back at him. "That assignment was quite fun, I think you'll enjoy it. Challenging, but good fun." Elenore told the older boy, she liked how Professor Kessler taught them in something of a quirky fashion when it came to Ancient Runes, the previous professors had been much too dull with the subject.

"No, I'm all done for this weeks homework, I don't like to get behind." Elenore said, a light hue touching her cheeks as she admitted to that much. "I was just writing to my Grandmere about... family matters. Nothing that you would find interesting, I'm sure." Elenore explained, waving away that subject because he didn't wish to divulge her correspondence with Grandmere Lynnette with anyone else.

After another pause -- one laden with internalised questions she wished to throw at the boy before her -- Elenore returned to the homework. "Would you like any help with the homework?" She offered, because even if they didn't talk about Alexei, sitting together, and working together would build a bond that both of them needed.

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» She Will Be Loved {Elenore and Alexei}
» The Start of Something New {Elenore and Alexei}
» Catching Up with Sports (Alexei & Elenore)
» To Elenore, With Love
» From France, with love (Elenore)