Closed Shakespeare on the Lawn

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

If Kyousuke loved one thing it was acting. It breathed life into him, pretending to be someone else. It was refreshing, and he was a bit disappointed to learn there wasn't exactly a theatre class or club he could join. There was the conglomerated arts club, but that was slightly different. It happened to be a nice day so Kyousuke took to the lawn, finding it a nice and relaxing place. He walked to the shade of a tall oak tree, and took out his small book of Macbeth. He loved Shakespeare, even though he couldn't always follow what was going on. The language was invigorating, and as he thumbed to the right page, he felt a sense of excitement in himself. He'd half-memorised a particular monologue, and decided to practice what he'd learned. "Is this a dagger I see before me, the handle towards my hand?" Kyousuke said out loud, projecting his voice and pretending to see an imaginary dagger in the air before him. "Come, let me clutch thee." He tried to clutch the dagger, but obviously nothing came of it. "I have thee not, yet I see thee still." Kyousuke paused, trying to remember the next line. "Um...oh! Art thou not, fatal vision...fatal vision...sensible! To feeling as to sight?" Kyousuke looked down, checking the book that the line had been correct and not noticing someone approach.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria Styx did not explore for long. At least, she did not want to because she had time. She had a good, long seven years. But she decided to memorize where all of her classes were before she would start attending them. It did not take her long to find the greenhouses. That would be for her Herbology course in the future. She was not sure if she would like it, but it was in her blood. Her father once taught that a long time ago. The Ravenclaw continued to explore a little bit, but there was something on the lawns that caught her attention. It was another first year that she did not catch the name to - though she did not listen to most of the other names when they were sorted. The thing that made her approach was not that she knew his face or that she thought he was interesting. He was talking to himself. So, she approached from the side, and put her hands on her hips. She glanced at the book that he was holding, and raised an eyebrow. "If you are trying for a one-man show, you might need to memorize your lines first. Otherwise, you look silly for talking to yourself." Makaria did not smile or even smirk. Her face was blank, as what was taught to her growing up - never show emotions.​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke was surprised to be interrupted, but not annoyed. He didn't really care if he looked silly - what others thought didn't really matter to him too much. But he appreciated what the girl had to say. "I was just practicing," Kyousuke said matter-of-factly. Her voice was hard to read - hard to tell if there was a joking tone in there somewhere. "Still learning this one. I thought outside would be a nice place to practice," he said with a slight shrug. "I could show you one I already know though, if you're interested." He didn't know if she would be, but he thought he might as well offer.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria wondered why in the world would anyone be practicing something that looked and sounded silly, but then again, Makaria did not have much appreciation for the ancient arts such as Shakespeare. She nodded as he said that he was just practicing, though that much was obvious. "It is a nice place to practice. Not many interruptions will occur, with the exception of myself," Makaria adjusted the tie around her neck, indicating that she was indeed a Ravenclaw. The blue went well with her skin. "Honestly, I would not mind some entertainment, but I cannot guarantee I will know or enjoy it." Makaria brushed her skirt down, and then sat down on her knees, not minding the grass. She was his audience, with no prior knowledge.​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke noted her tie, seeing she was Ravenclaw. He didn't have any strong opinions on the houses - other than that he thought Slytherin must be the best one. The sorting hat had more or less confirmed that for him, in his opinion. "I don't mind the interruption," Kyousuke said matter-of-factly. He watched as she sat down - an audience for Kyousuke. He adjusted himself, getting into character. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." Kyousuke spoke with a projected voice, confidently, his body in a slightly laisse-faire stance. "They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts..." Kyousuke went through the full monologue, gesturing with his hands and getting into the element. There was something amateurish about his performance, but at the same time a potential there, a passion that was coming through. He didn't stumble on his lines, but slowed down once or twice. He reached the end of the monologue, finishing it: "Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second childishness and mere oblivion; Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything." He let the ending rest for a moment with a dramatic gesture, then relaxed his body. "So, what did you think?" Kyousuke was excited to hear her response, but he didn't quite show it, just naturally playing his cards closer to his chest.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria thought that this lad had an interesting view of the world. The world, as a stage. And everyone is a player. There were obviously better players than others, but she would not voice her opinion on that necessarily. She clasped her hands together as she listened to the Slytherin start off with his monologue. She did see that he was not a professional, but he was not fumbling over every line either. Some were slower than others, but what could one expect from a first year? Needless to say, Makaria was impressed with the event. It certainly brought her entertainment, though she would not choose to go out of her way to experience it again. "You are talented in ways that I never knew existed amongst our peers. I do not see how anything at school can benefit you unless you take private lessons while on break." Makaria stood back up to her feet, and she dusted off her legs from any of the blades of grass that stuck to her. "Do you plan to incorporate magic into your shows?" Makaria asked, to see how far ahead this boy thought.​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke blinked, taken aback at the feedback. He was used to teachers telling him he had talent, but not so much his own peers, and he secretly wondered if teachers were simply flattering him to be encouraging. "Um, thanks," he said, a little sheepish suddenly. "I plan on taking lessons during school break. Otherwise I'll get rusty, even with practice," Kyousuke said matter-of-factly. He was intrigued by the idea of including magic. "That's a great idea," he said, though his voice remained fairly level. "I'll have to look into it." He paused, a little curious to know more about the girl in front of him. "I'm Kyousuke, by the way. Do you have any interest in things like art? Or what sort of things do you like?"

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria raised her eyebrow as her compliments might have made him sheepish. Did he not receive compliments often? She did catch some mistakes, but she was sure she pointed them out when she was initially talking to him. It was hard to say one way or another. But at least he was going to continue to take lessons. He might need it otherwise. "Magic will make anything trivial much better." Makaria liked seeing it so she was biased. She was from a magical background. His name was definitely not familiar to her, and she had never heard such a name. "I am Makaria Styx. My interests don't include art. I much rather mix potions and read. I am sort of a bland person, you could say."​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke nodded, though he wasn't sure he'd call what he just did trivial. He also still didn't know much about the magical world. He'd been raised in a muggle household, but he wasn't necessarily keen to share that fact. "I guess it'd be cool if I actually had a floating invisible dagger when I do the Macbeth monologue," he half-said to himself, wondering how he'd accomplish that. What would be possible with a Hogwarts education? He had no idea. He didn't recognise her surname, but found her first name interesting. "Oh, right," he said, a little disappointed she wasn't an artistic person but he didn't mind too much. "Books can be interesting. What kind of books do you read?" He didn't know much about potions and he didn't want to show his ignorance so he ignored it altogether.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria thought about having a floating, invisible dagger, though she wondered what the point of a play prop when no one could see it. She asked to get some clarification, "Why would you use an invisible prop? No one could see it. But if you wanted to go thar route, you would need... The disillusionment charm and the hover charm." Makaria realized that she might have sounded a bit like a know-it-all, and added, "My siblings and family do a lot of magic, so I have knowledge. Not the ability to cast the complex spells." She smiled gently so that she didn't make herself to be something that she was not. He mentioned how books could be interesting, and asked what kind she read. Makaria put her hands together behind her back as she rocked on the balls of her feet. "I like history, fantasy, thriller and horror. I love not knowing what is going to happen next. Romance novels seem to be a bit predictable, especially a princess trapped in a tower with a dragon, waiting on her prince to come and save her. If it were me, I'd tame that dragon and conquer a kingdom for myself."​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

"Oh," Kyousuke said, flushing a little, seeing his mistake. "I meant...well, it's invisible in the sense that it doesn't really exist - it's a hallucination," he said, sounding the word out carefully. "But the audience should be able to see it." He didn't quite want to admit he was wrong, so he didn't. "You know your stuff," he said, impressed. "Disillusionment charm and hover charm..." He trailed off, thinking to himself. He wondered how difficult they were. He didn't want to let off how little he knew, not really. Being half-blood Kyousuke always felt like he should know more than he really did. Kyousuke listened to her talk about books she read, thinking her opinion did sound interesting. "I like history too," he said, "it can be really cool. I like hearing about battles and stuff like that. And yeah, romance isn't really my thing either. Much better to tame the dragon and conquer the kingdom," he said with a slight smile, liking the idea a lot.

 

[Makaria Styx]

That clarification really put things to perspective to the Ravenclaw. A hallucination. Makaria could not think of a hallucination spell. She did not think that was in her knowledge base at all. "Hmm, I do not know a spell that could do something like that. I can ask my dad, if he knows one. He's the upper years Transfiguration professor." Makaria knew that they would learn the hover charm this year, but the other one was highly difficult. That would be upper years. She did not know exactly when. Fifth year? Maybe sixth? Somewhere in that ballpark. "I like reading about wars and battles. You can see the horrific of it all, and the source of where it all began. From what I've seen, it is normally, always something petty." Makaria smiled and added, "I would love to tame a real dragon, but I doubt my family would approve. It is very dangerous. Interesting career, but doubt there are kingdoms one can conquer. A good idea at least."​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke's eyebrows shot up, surprised at the revelation that Makaria's father was a teacher at the school. That was the second student he'd met who was a daughter of one of the professors, he noted. "That'd be interesting," he said, curious what spells he'd have to master to make his performances really stand out. He thought about what Makaria said, finding it intriguing that he'd found someone with a similar interest. Kyousuke nodded. "When you put it like that, it usually is petty, isn't it? So many lives lost, and so often for hardly a good reason at all. It comes down to land a lot of the time. It is interesting - and...sometimes gruesome." Kyousuke didn't mind the gruesome, usually. He had his limits though. "Has anyone ever tamed a dragon?" Kyousuke asked, not knowing much about dragons at all. "Hmm, that's true. Maybe there are other things worth conquering though," he added.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria nodded and then added, "My roommate has a mother that is the History of Magic professor for our year. I'm not sure if any other professors have children currently attending." Makaria did not know if Kyousuke would know of Miranda, but the first year group was not that big at all. The Ravenclaw certainly knew things and was judgmental on how petty things were. Voldemort was an obvious case himself. He could have done so much, but he just focused so hard on a teenager and ultimately led to his downfall. Pride and such got in the way of what he could have ultimately done. Grindelwald might not have been more powerful, but he was just so smart. "It is very gruesome, but stories like that are fun to read." Makaria's family were dark and the stories could make some of the strongest warriors shiver. Makaria only knew a handful, but none were super inappropriate. Kyousuke asked if anyone tamed a dragon, which made her cock her head to the side. Was he new to the magical world? "There are dragon tamers. They won't be as docile as common cats, but they don't go around burning every city." Makaria did think about what could be conquered, but she could not think of anything. Families? School? Neither sounded fun. She would need to think hard for that.​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

"Oh, really? History of magic...I met someone who's the daughter of one of the herbology professors," Kyousuke noted, curious that that was now three known children of professors in their year alone. "Must be the year for it," he commented idly. He then nodded at Makaria's assessment of gruesome stories. "Yeah, I agree. I like reading about the darker side of things. My dad always says I'm too young for some of it though," Kyousuke said. He appreciated his father and respected him, but sometimes he thought he could be overprotective. He was eleven, after all. Old enough to wield magic. "Oh, right. I knew that," Kyousuke said, unconvincingly, not really knowing much about dragons at all. He was torn on whether he'd ever want to see one - just how dangerous were they? But if people could tame them, even if not to a perfect extent, maybe they'd be okay to at least observe.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria did not know that Kyousuke was not talking about Miranda at all. He mentioned a Herbology professor instead. Her eyes blinked a couple of times, as that information was new to her. "Oh, small world. All three first year children of professors are girls. I have an older brother but that isn't as interesting as this." Makaria would have to look to see who had the last name Carter or Castillo. Carter seemed to be a more common last name, and she swore that she heard that during sorting. She smiled at Kyousuke as he revealed that his father said that he was too young for the darker stuff. "Your father isn't here now to oversee you. You can read all you want over what subject you want." Makaria wondered if this boy came from the magical world. He seemed like he might have come from the muggle world. She cocked her head to the side, "Were you raised in the muggle world, Kyousuke?"​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke gave a small grin at Makaria's words. It was true; his father wasn't here to watch over him. "You make a good point," he said, though he still felt a little uneasy about disobeying his father. But maybe what his father didn't know couldn't hurt him. "It's annoying that the library has a restricted section though. Have you noticed that?" Kyousuke was curious what was so off limits that not all students were allowed to read about it. Kyousuke then felt put on the spot. She'd seen through him. He swallowed thickly. "Maybe," he said noncommittally. He then shrugged. "I'm not a muggleborn," he then said a little defensively but didn't offer anything else up. Usually Kyousuke wouldn't care what people thought, but when it came to his upbringing, he had a bit of a complex about it.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria liked it when she could bring up outside perspectives. It might be a good thing that his dad might not be able to read minds - but she was making assumptions. Makaria was just glad that she could help someone out, and bring out more greatness if that were possible. “Oh, I have. I am thinking about asking for permission to go there in my third or fourth year. I don’t know what explanation I could come up with now. I doubt curiosity would suffice.” If only, since she thought that it would be too often that people could just stroll in there with no need to ask for permission. And then Kyousuke seemed a little defensive when he said that he was not muggle-born. Her eyebrows raised and she gave a small smile. “I didn’t ask that, but you sort of confirmed it.” She rolled on the balls of her feet as she shrugged. “I don’t mind. My blood might be pure, but if you stuck me in the muggle world, I’d be a lost child. It is the same concept if you think about it.”​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke nodded along, thinking that was a smart idea. It was a long waiting game though; Kyousuke couldn't help but think that. "Sucks that we have to wait that long just to attempt to see what's in there," he said. But he supposed a lot of things were a long game - him being the best at his studies definitely was one. He thought he was doing well so far. He then crossed his arms. "I'm not. I'm half. I've just been raised by my dad, and he's the muggle." Kyousuke didn't want to go onto the subject of his mother so he didn't even bring her up - still bitter that she had left at all, and from what his dad said, for very little reason. He couldn't care less about her. That's what he told himself anyway. He was a bit intrigued to hear that Makaria was a pureblood though, and he felt his guard lessening somewhat when he heard her say she didn't really care if he wasn't purely magical. "I hadn't thought about it like that," Kyousuke said, though he still felt a sting at the idea of being a lost child - it was almost too apt for how he felt sometimes, during his darker hours struggling with the magical world. "It's not like I was raised not knowing magic existed, but my dad just didn't really know that much," Kyousuke admitted with a shrug. "What's it like being pureblood?" Kyousuke asked, at the age where he didn't quite realise that was a bit of a pointed question.

 

[Makaria Styx]

Makaria could relate to what he meant. It did suck that they would have to wait as long as they did, but it would be worth it in the end, she felt. Makaria would love to see the restricted area of the library. “Patience is key,” Makaria smiled, even though it was a bit awkward on her face. Now, she just needed to figure out what subject to justify it, and go from there. It might take a couple of years, but she would do it. There had to be loads of information in there that could give her some more power in the future. Even if she was not going to do anything good with it. Who else had to know that, right? Makaria had some ways of twisting things, and making others see the way she thought about things. From how she figured, Kyousuke’s mom must have been magical, and the father not, and the mom was no longer in the picture. Honestly, that was sad. Makaria had both of her parents, and never had the sting of divorce or loss of a parent. “That is better than being surprised with it like muggle-borns. But what is it like being a pureblood? The answer sort of varies depending on what family you come from. My family is pretty ancient, so we have certain expectations of us. Some hate the muggle world. My grandfather is prejudiced against anything non pure. But some members of my family don’t care. My pureblood brother married a muggle-born man. And I don’t see a problem with it.”​

 

[Kyousuke Kurosawa]

Kyousuke nodded, agreeing that patience was key. He knew he'd be intending on taking all subjects, so surely he'd find a way to get an excuse to get into the restricted section. But it was years away, and he was still considered young by wizarding standards. He didn't feel like that - he felt like he was eleven, no longer a child like he had been at five or six, or even nine. But adults didn't see it the same way as him, he knew. "I suppose that's a point," Kyousuke conceded, knowing being a muggle born would be worse in terms of the surprise and how lost he'd feel. He listened to her explain being a pure-blood - it was interesting to Kyousuke. It felt odd to know that even a relation of Makaria would be prejudiced against him, even if he didn't really understand what that prejudice would entail. It was good to know Makaria didn't share the same feelings; it made Kyousuke feel a bit more free, less encumbered by his own insecurities. "I see," Kyousuke said slowly, taking it all in. "Expectations to be good at magic?" Kyousuke asked, curious. He guessed that's what Makaria meant. "My family has expectations, but it wouldn't matter if I was magical or not, my dad just wants me to do well," Kyousuke said truthfully.