Altair was so happy for meeting people near his age, and he was laughing when Valeria countered his statement. "Still meant you're older!" he repeated with a large smile brightening his boyish face. He ignored her stammering about what to call her ex-step father, seeing as how he didn't really care much about anyone significantly older than him.
He swore Valeria was about to say Hogwartsโwhat other school would be there? Or maybe there were, so Altair wasn't sure. He was about to say something about going to school together due to Simon's late birthday, but a kid from the ice cream truck caused a bit of commotion and Altair swore Simon's hands turned bright green! "Are you-" he started, knowing this time that it wasn't a trick in the light and he saw his skin change colors before being shoved into pockets. Then it clicked that if Valeria and Simon were going to school together, with Simon obviously being magical and one of the meta-something wizards, then that meant everyone was magic! "I'll see you all at Hogwarts," he excitedly whispered, winking at Simon's pockets even though it looked weird. "I'm not muggleborn, by the way."
I scream at myself when there's nobody else to fight
I don't lose, I don't win, if I'm wrong, then I'm halfway right
All you said to do was slow down
But I was already gone
Valeria pouted when Simon said he'd be in the year below her, but she supposed that was okay, because like she said one year wasn't a big deal. They'd still see each other and could go to clubs and stuff together. They just wouldn't have classes together. She was excited either way. And there was the fact that she would obviously make friends with all her classmates as well. Because she was determined to have friends and not completely screw up her life like her mother had. She wasn't bitter or anything.
Suddenly a boy ran into the ice cream cart, nearly knocking it over, and causing a huge band and a bunch of commotion. Simon's dad called his name, and she caught sight of his green hands, right as he shoved them into his pockets. He was one of those appearance changing people... she'd forgotten the name, but that was an even cooler superpower.
It seemed Altair had noticed too, because he got all quiet and said he'd be seeing them at Hogwarts too. She grinned. He was magical too! And he mentioned not being muggleborn, which was obvious since muggleborn kids wouldn't know about Hogwarts until they turned 11 duh! It didn't matter though. "Yay!" She squealed. "We'll all be going to school together! Though you two get to be in the same year. Lucky ducks." She stuck her tongue out at the two boys, before smiling. "I'm a pureblood," She offered up. "Well at least my mom says I am." She didn't really care about blood, but Altair had mentioned not being muggleborn, so she figured it was something to talk about. She had doubts on if her mother was being honest or not, since she refused to tell her who her dad was, but she figured she'd go with it. Since it didn't really matter anyways.
After everything settled down a bit, Simon knew that his secret was blown. He'd become Rapunzel, locked up in a tower, forbidden from going out to see muggles ever again.... until Altair had a dawning moment of realization. There was no way in heck Simon had accidentally stumbled on two other magic kids, right? The odds were stacked so hard against the situation.... but magic was finicky and weird, he'd come to know.
Simon hesitantly nodded at the other boy, glancing up at his papa to make sure all was well. Yet again, a warm, comforting hand rested upon his shoulder, bringing an almost immediate wave of calm over the boy. After a second, Altair stated the name of their school, earning a shaky smile from Simon. A wink.... happened, making the meta feel a little more awkward about his ability. Valeria commented that at least the boys were to be in the same year, which got a small nod. Then Altair noted that he wasn't muggleborn, followed by Valeria stating she was pureblooded, then noting that's what her mom claimed. Si glanced over at the woman, who seemed to have missed everything.... luckily his papa was paying close attention.
"I'm magic too, but I'm not sure where my blood is.... as long as it's in my body, it's fine with me." He grinned at his own joke, hoping papa would tell it right (otherwise it'd be very dumb, after all). "Simon says 'I'm magic too, but I'm not sure where my blood is-'" the man paused to stifle a laugh, "'as long as it stays in my body, it's fine by me.'" Luckily, everything worked out in such a way that Gid wasn't going to need to panic... at least yet. And according to Simon's body language (and his color choices), all was calming down, which was good, because it easily could've escalated to a pretty massive panic attack.
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ โฏ Wสแดสแด แดแด I? London Zoo - Bears Enclosure โฏ Wสแด ษชs แดกษชแดส แดแด? Papa, Altair, and Valeria โฏ Wสแดแด's ษขแดษชษดษข แดษด? Zoo Day! โฏ Wสแดแด'สแด แดส แดสแดแดษขสแดs? That was a close call โฏ Wสแดแด's แดส Cแดสสแดษดแด Mแดแดแด ? Relaxed โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
It was such a coincidence to meet two magical kids in London Zoo, especially when there's so few children Altair's age that he knew of or even talked to. This was such a huge moment for him, feeling like a progress into the main quest of his adventures. After all, Harry Potter was with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. The number of boys to girls were similar, and Altair couldn't help but feel like his story was just about to start with meeting Valeria and Simon. "I still can't believe we're all magic," was all that he managed to say, his body shaking with energy and excitement, which was no doubt nothing new.
"You're funny, Simon!" Altair chortled, unable to help himself because his humour was easy to tickle and it looked like Simon liked to joke around. If only he spoke on his own so Altair wouldn't have to admit that he had to rely on an adult in order to know what the other boy was saying... "I can't wait to go to school with you two! Ahhhh! The excitement is too much!"
Altair essentially jogged in place, unable to hold in the excitement. There was so much to talk about and he didn't want to waste any time, but he felt so happy for meeting friends that he'll go to school with that he just couldn't help himself.
I scream at myself when there's nobody else to fight
I don't lose, I don't win, if I'm wrong, then I'm halfway right
All you said to do was slow down
But I was already gone
Valeria grinned and giggled at Simon's joke. It was pretty funny honestly, and although she was hyper, she wasn't easy to laugh. Came with a ridiculously messed up past she figured. But Simon could apparently make her laugh pretty easily, which was nice. Altair liked the joke too, laughing along with them, and then mentioning how excited he was for school. She nodded in agreement, grinning as he ran in place. He might just have more energy than her. "What are you guys most excited about school?" She asked.
She personally could not decide what she was most excited for. She of course was excited to learn magic, and meet friends, and she was thinking she might even play quidditch... It was a lot of things to be excited about. "Honestly," she paused, glancing at her mom. The woman was staring off at the bears, and had even wandered a few steps away to get a better look. Val rolled her eyes just a little. "Honestly, I'm really excited to live away from home." She almost said, live away from her mother, but figured that would come off badly in front Simon's dad.
She shrugged awkwardly, and offered a small smile. "I just think the freedom will be nice," she added quickly, glancing slightly towards Simon's dad. She might have a lot of issues with her mother, but she didn't particularly want to be taken out of her care. She figured even a slightly neglectful family was better than no family at all.
Gid sighed softly when Altair happily exclaimed all the kids magical. "It is fascinating, but you may want to keep that bit down, seeing as we might be the only ones. I'd hate for anyone to get in trouble this morning." Simon looked up at his papa, then over at his new friends. "If it helps, just pretend to be me! Nice and quiet!" He grinned, earning a chuckle from his papa, which made sense, because he was the only one who could understand his signing. "He says 'if it helps, just pretend to be me; nice and quiet'"
When the other kids noted that he was funny, Simon blushed a bit, eyes turning an electric blue and a cheery yellow, betraying his playful mood. It was then that Valeria posed an all too important question about the most exciting thing for school. The boy pondered, not sure what answer he wanted to provide. Valeria continued, noting that she was excited to live away from home and have a taste of freedom. He tapped his chin, eyes changing to a darker blue and a more orangey-yellow. "I'm excited for all the things there are to learn. Plus my cousin goes to school there, so I can see him every day!"
"This time he said he's excited for all the things he can learn. He also said his cousin - Reggie - goes to school with you, and he's excited to see him. Reggie's a good kid, though he's a few years older than you are." Gid was honestly proud of Simon, both for making friends, and for not panicking when his secret came out. The man offered a grin, rubbing the sore muscles of his back. It was hard some days to stand, but he'd gladly endure the pain to see his son happy.
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ โฏ Wสแดสแด แดแด I? London Zoo - Bears Enclosure โฏ Wสแด ษชs แดกษชแดส แดแด? Papa, Altair, and Valeria โฏ Wสแดแด's ษขแดษชษดษข แดษด? Zoo Day! โฏ Wสแดแด'สแด แดส แดสแดแดษขสแดs? That was a close call โฏ Wสแดแด's แดส Cแดสสแดษดแด Mแดแดแด ? Relaxed โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
Altair rolled his eyes when the adultโhe can't even remember his name, oopsโlightly scolded him to keep it down. He didn't say anything after that, though he did huff a laugh when Simon said to just be like him: nice and quiet. "I can't be that, if you can't see!" he laughed, being loud and completely the opposite of nice and quiet.
"I'm excited about anything! It's a new adventure," Altair grinned at Valeria and Simon, even after she said that it was mostly for the freedom. He understood. Adults were stuck up and hated freedom for children. He understood. Living away from home was the only way for him to live a life of adventure and fun. Of course Simon would like learning, he seemed the type. But Altair didn't judgeโlearning was also fun if the professor was a quirky one. "Maybe Valeria and I can be friends with Reggie, too."
I scream at myself when there's nobody else to fight
I don't lose, I don't win, if I'm wrong, then I'm halfway right
All you said to do was slow down
But I was already gone
Valeria almost snorted when Simon's dad scolded Altair, and she definitely snorted when Altair rolled his eyes. She was pretty sure that kid had more distaste for adults than herself. She hadn't thought that really possible... but she supposed her distaste was mostly just for the adults related to her, not all adults. She'd always liked spending time with Oliver before her mother had screwed that up, and she liked Simon's dad so far.
She giggled again at Simon's joke about being like him. "I don't think I'm very good at quiet. Though... I definitely need to learn sign language! Maybe then I will be able to do quiet." She laughed at her own joke and pushed her hair behind her ear. She wasn't as funny as Simon, but she was pretty funny she thought. She nodded when Simon said he was excited to learn and mentioned his cousin going there. She had cousins at school too, but she didn't really talk to them. Apparently her grandparents had a falling out with her cousins' parents. Which seemed silly but whatever.
When Altair said that they could be friends with Reggie to, she nodded. "I don't know about you, but I can make friends with anyone." She bragged. She didn't care if it was true or not. She could make it be true.
Simon grinned when the other two both claimed that they couldn't be quiet. They probably wouldn't like his house, then, since it was often very quiet. "You should learn, it's pretty easy once you get the basics down. I learned when I was only little... I can teach you your names?" He looked up at his papa, excited to see his friends' reactions. "He said you should learn, but that it's pretty easy once you get the basics. He said he learned when he was little, then offered to teach you your names in sign."
Altair proclaimed his excitement for adventure, which seemed appropriate him. Of course, Simon knew very little of his personality, but hopefully they'd have time to get to know one another. After mentioning Reggie, the younger boy mentioned becoming friends with Reggie as well, then Valeria said she could befriend anyone. Simon grinned brightly, glad to think his cousin might be able to help. "He's super awesome! He can help us with homework and make sure we don't get lost! I'm sure he'd really like you guys!"
Gid laughed quietly when the other two kids expressed excitement for Reggie. Honestly, Reggie would probably be a proud mama duck wandering around with his ducklings if he met these kids as well. "He notes that Reggie is 'super awesome', and says Reggie can help you with homework and making sure you don't get lost. He also says he thinks Reggie would quite like you, and I have to agree." Honestly, he figured Reggie would be the best person to care for the kids, especially since he'd be a fifth year by the time Simon - and Altair - joined in.
โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ โฏ Wสแดสแด แดแด I? London Zoo - Bears Enclosure โฏ Wสแด ษชs แดกษชแดส แดแด? Papa, Altair, and Valeria โฏ Wสแดแด's ษขแดษชษดษข แดษด? Zoo Day! โฏ Wสแดแด'สแด แดส แดสแดแดษขสแดs? That was a close call โฏ Wสแดแด's แดส Cแดสสแดษดแด Mแดแดแด ? Relaxed โโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโโ
"Valeria and I can't be quiet," Altair nodded to himself, maybe nodding a bit too much and stopping a bit too late. It was near comical, the way he was still jogging in place. He did note the snort the girl gave when he rolled his eyes at Simon's dad, wondering if she disliked adults as well. She probably did, seeing as freedom was one of the things she liked to have once they get to school.
He nodded again, giving Simon a thumbs up. "Yeah we'll learn sign too and gain a superpower like you!" When there was the offer of learning his name in sign language, he almost jumped in glee. He's learning a superpower the first day of encountering it! He doubted Harry Potter knew how to sign language! "That's great! Learning my name is such a great start to having a superpower!"
Talking about Reggie, Altair was glad to potentially know someone that already knew the castle and the courseload. It would surely be a big help to anyone! "Yay Reggie!" was all he exclaimed, feeling like there was no other way to demonstrate his excitement with the entire thing even though it would be two years later that he and the older guy would meet.
I scream at myself when there's nobody else to fight
I don't lose, I don't win, if I'm wrong, then I'm halfway right
All you said to do was slow down
But I was already gone
Val nodded along with Altair when Simon offered to teach them their names in sign language Yes please! Teach us! Teach us!" She said in a sing songy voice. She was all about learning this new language. Especially if it meant being able to communicate with Simon by herself. Not that she minded his dad, but when they got to school, there would be no dad to interpret for him, so he would need his own special interpreter at school.
Valeria liked how Altair kept calling it a super power. She was sure that made Simon feel really good about his differences. She was sure a lot of people weren't as nice about it. She knew how people could be. She'd overheard her mother talking to her aunt and uncle about some horribly mean people and things that happened to her when she was in school. Not that she was supposed to have been listening, but she had to eaves drop. It was the only way she could maybe potentially figure out who her dad was.
Altair still hadn't stopped running in place, and she had to wonder if he was ever going to get tired. She had energy, but not that much. She wasn't sure she knew anyone with that much energy. She also had to wonder where his parents were. There was no way they had let him come to the zoo all by himself right? She glanced around, but she figured with the way he acted towards Simon's dad and her mom, he wasn't a big fan of adults. She shrugged it off and nodded. "What house is Reggie in?" She asked curiously. She was always curious about the houses, and where everyone ended up. It seemed like a big indicator of where you were going to end up in life.
