Forrester Terrace Apartments - Apartment C 402

The whistle of the kettle broke Marietta's reflections.  The latest letter from her daughter lay crinkled upon the kitchen table.  It had posed a question unfamiliar to the much learned Unspeakable.  She had spent the entire day finding other things to do while conspicuously avoiding the small square table and its contents.  As she poured the water into the aged oriental teapot, Marietta wondered once more about the letter.  The books from Flourish & Bott's had only muddled the subject further for her.  In frustration, she had owled her sister to visit and decide the matter for good.  After all, if she was to educate her daughter on the matter, Marietta wanted to know the ins and outs for herself.  Her daughter had already proved herself adept in asking difficult questions and Marietta hated the idea of turning Evie to research, particularly for such a personal and inherently maternal concept. 

Marietta left the tea to steep as she fetched the large tote of books into the main room.  Having found the bookstore inadequate, Marietta had been forced to turn to the Ministry's library.  She had been forced to wait until the librarian's back was turned to sneak into the medical section, muffling her shoes against the cold clickable tiles.  She had grabbed five of the most promising titles, squirreling them away in her dark robes before leaving the library.  Now the tomes stared menacingly back at her, daring her to crack their pages and discover the most primal of mysteries.

Returning to the tea, Marietta poured the herbal brew into the two mismatched teacups.  As timely as ever, Marietta heard the front door of the apartment creek open.  With her sister's presence, the topic of procreation seemed infinitely more feasible.  She was ever grateful to have someone to share her frustration with, as well as her naivety on the subject.  "Opie!" she exclaimed with a brilliant smile, "I've missed you!" She quickly ran to embrace her young sister, glad to have the apartment occupied by someone other than herself, Duana and Duane as well.  "Tea?" she asked, gesturing to the two charming teacups and the small wisps of rising steam.

Teapot
Marietta's Teacup
Ophelia's Teacup

Outfit

The small heels gracing Ophelia's boots clicked against the cobblestones arrhythmically as she half skipped, half wandered, towards her sisters home. Whistling, almost in perfect tune, a wizard ballad, Opie ignored the stares she was receiving from passing Muggles. They seemed intrigued by her tall hat and old fashioned clothing, whispering about the possibility of some sort of festival being in town or that Gypsy's were infiltrating that part of town. Ophelia remained blissfully oblivious and continued her stroll, her eyes fixed on a pretty cloud she had been watching for the last several minutes.

SCREEEEECH "Get outta the way you lackwit!" Her attention caught, Opie glanced over to see a great beast of metal only inches away, it's eyes glowing and heat puffing from it's great metal jaws. Blinking, and ignoring the hand (or rather the finger) waving from the window, Opie recalled her mother reminding her as a child that these metal monsters expected to cross the streets without trouble, and that standing in their path could be disastrous. Someone must have been watching over her that she had managed to survive it's attack. Smiling softly at it, she pulled a biscuit from her bag and placed it on it's broad metal head "I do apologize. Please continue"

With that, she hurried out of it's path an back onto the sidewalk, ignoring the sputtering of the beasts owner as he tried to figure out why there was a slowly melting chocolate chip cookie on his hood. Licking the bits of chocolate off her fingers, Opie danced up the steps to her sisters apartment complex and made her way to Apartment C 402. She didn't bother to knock before opening the heavy oak door, entering into the dark and rather crowded abode of her sister, niece and nephew.

"Opie! I've missed you! Tea?"

"Mari... You look lovely..." Ophelia greeted, looking her elder sister over in an admiring way. Marietta's skin was pale and her eyes bore the tell tale dark circles of one who spent most of their nights working by candlelight. Positively lovely in Ophelia's opinion. "I will have chamomile with agave juice please..." She smiled, removing her hat and placing it on a nearby skull.

Looking around the room, she nodded approvingly "Did you get some more shrunken heads? I haven't seen these ones..." She studied a nearby pair before her eyes wandered to a strange plain fronted book sitting on the table that she did not recognize. Picking it up, she cocked her head to the side and read slowly "What is... Kaaah-mah-suuu-traaah?" Blinking, she held it up to Marietta "Does this have to do with why you called me here today???"

"Mari... You look lovely...I will have chamomile with agave juice please..."

"As do you," Marietta returned before heading back to the small kitchen.  She opened a small oak cabinet and retrieved one among several canning jars on the shelf.  A friend in California had quite a crop of agave plants, and Marietta was often the recipient of its products. Marietta retrieved a spoon from it's drawer and measured two spoons of the syrup into her sister's teacup before giving the object to Ophelia.

"Did you get some more shrunken heads? I haven't seen these ones...What is... Kaaah-mah-suuu-traaah?"

"I'm not sure, but it sounded fascinating.  Bourgin's had a sale today, I think the Fang tribe is at war again.  Go look in the corner, though," she continued, pausing only for a moment to take a  sip of her tea, "Rowena sent me a new didgeridoo after Elijah broke the last one.  It's from one of her franzosini hybrids."  Her son had been engaged in an epic duel, which would have been quite entertaining if there had not been such a casualty.   

"But I suppose we should get to the matter at hand.  I had picked up a few books from Blott's but none had seemed to express any information, they were all about setting boundaries and being firm, but I don't know what it is I'm supposed to be so firm about.  Do you?" she asked, somewhat frustrated.  All the books had pointed to some big 'talk' that it was the pivotal moment in a young woman's life.  Yet, aside from her mother instructing them on how to communicate with spirits and to not eat the yellow snow, she couldn't remember any other important conversations.  It was quite confusing.

"I'm not sure, but it sounded fascinating.  Bourgin's had a sale today, I think the Fang tribe is at war again.  Go look in the corner, though, Rowena sent me a new didgeridoo after Elijah broke the last one.  It's from one of her franzosini hybrids."

"Bourgin's had a sale? Why did you not tell me?!" Opie cried as she closed the book and placed it back on the table. It looked like it had something to do with the ancient roman wrestling, or other nude sports. Funny, she didn't know women were included in those sports. She glanced over the heads, toying with the strings tying their mouths shut. Obviously they were not magically shrunken heads, since they didn't speak, but they were still beautifully done. Nothing like good old muggle handcrafting. She could almost smell the charcoal ash rubbed into the skin to keep the spirits in.

"I have been looking for a few more shrunken heads to decorate for this Christmas... Mum is thinking of hanging them on the tree and teaching them to sing 'Jingle Bells'..." She chuckled as she reverted her attention to the Didgeridoo, running her hand over it appreciatively. "She does do beautiful work..." she marveled before turning her attention back to her sister.

"But I suppose we should get to the matter at hand.  I had picked up a few books from Blott's but none had seemed to express any information, they were all about setting boundaries and being firm, but I don't know what it is I'm supposed to be so firm about.  Do you?"

Opie blinked and fell silent, her eyes focusing on one of the tribal masks on the far wall. She didn't remember their mother or father 'being firm' about anything about boys. But then, neither Marietta nor Opie had ever been interested in boys while in school. Unless they were ghosts or mummified, or in Mariettas case, the undead, they didn't interest the girls. Since there was not very many of any of these at Hogwarts, sex had never been brought up. The only thing Opie could remember was one of her young charges asking her about 'the birds and the bees'.

"Er... Maybe it has something to do with the birds and the bees..." Opie offered weakly, shrugging slightly. Frowning, she tried to think what to add to this, since the answer seemed weak at best. After a moment it dawned on her "OH! I know... What if it has something to do with crossbreeding the two species to make a super Birdbee hybrid? It's illegal so I am assuming that you should be firm on that. Has Evie shown any sudden inclination towards animal husbandry?"

"Bourgin's had a sale? Why did you not tell me?!  I have been looking for a few more shrunken heads to decorate for this Christmas... Mum is thinking of hanging them on the tree and teaching them to sing 'Jingle Bells'..." She chuckled as she reverted her attention to the Didgeridoo, running her hand over it appreciatively. "She does do beautiful work..."

"Because then you would know what your Beltane gift is!" Marietta teased back, putting the agave syrup back in its resting place and tidying the kitchen.  "I'd offer to lend some of mine, but someone gave them a new vocabulary last summer," she added.  While it didn't bother her so much, she was certain it would confuse their mother.  Practical jokes had a way of...sticking to her.

"Er... Maybe it has something to do with the birds and the bees...OH! I know... What if it has something to do with crossbreeding the two species to make a super Birdbee hybrid? It's illegal so I am assuming that you should be firm on that. Has Evie shown any sudden inclination towards animal husbandry?"

Marietta's smiled as she took another draught of her tea.  That was why she had invited Opie, she knew her sister would solve the puzzle in a heartbeat.  "She is pursuing Care of Magical Creatures at the NEWT level," she responded, curious if such a simple thing as illegal crossbreeding was the source of all the fuss.  "To be honest, though, it sounds rather exciting.  Maybe if I join the activity, we can find a way to make it legal?"  Perhaps she should ask her own father about illegal genetics, because the more she thought about hypogriffs with mermaid tails, the warmer her skin grew underneath her black robe.

"Perhaps we should speak to someone at the Ferris clinic about this?" she pondered aloud, fantasizing wild combinations as she spoke.

"She is pursuing Care of Magical Creatures at the NEWT level, To be honest, though, it sounds rather exciting.  Maybe if I join the activity, we can find a way to make it legal?"

"Marietta!" Opie gasped, shocked at her sisters sudden interest in illegal crossbreeding "I will admit that a bird and a bee cross would not be much of a threat, but what if she starts to get interested in the bigger ones, like dragons? We don't need her going around thinking that bigger is better... It could be disastrous. It is best to be firm now"

As she said it, she had to admit to herself that it sounded pretty fun. She had heard that Dragons were hard to tame, but once you got them under your control, you could simply take a horn in hand and jerk in the right direction and you were off, riding the dragon like it was a flying pony. At least that is what she had heard, having never tried it herself. She would have to give it a go sometime.

"Perhaps we should speak to someone at the Ferris clinic about this?"

"Hm?" Opie was pulled from her day dreams about riding dragons and stared at her sister blankly for a moment before what she said dawned on her "... OH! No no no... I mean... I am sure Mr. Ferris knows all about the birds and the bees... but I would feel awkward asking him about something ... you know.... illegal." She pondered their options. "... We could ask Covi maybe... I mean, she works for the Ministry but I don't think she would turn us in for just inquiring..."

For all of their intelligence, Marietta and Ophelia were completely oblivious about matters of love and lust. If you asked them where babies came from, they would admit that a man and a woman would have to have intercourse. Ask them what was involved in intercourse, and you would be met with blank and blinking expressions. Apparently Mrs. Grimlish had been too much of a lady to broach such subjects and Mr. Grimlish found them to be of little interest, despite having produced 3 children of his own. The only other family member with any experience was their brother Dmitri, who refused to talk about anything pertaining to love. So they were at a loss.

"Marietta!  I will admit that a bird and a bee cross would not be much of a threat, but what if she starts to get interested in the bigger ones, like dragons? We don't need her going around thinking that bigger is better... It could be disastrous. It is best to be firm now"

"Oh, Opie," Marietta sighed, "We could always miniaturize them."  While she would prefer to gain more knowledge in the field of dragomancy before any such breeding, Marietta was delighted at the idea.  As the idea of a bat/owl mix flitted across her mind, Marietta noted Duana suddenly leave her perch and hide in the nearest cupboard.  In all honesty though, Marietta could see how most of society would view such breeding as illegal, and something to warn all young children against trying their hand. 

"Hm?... OH! No no no... I mean... I am sure Mr. Ferris knows all about the birds and the bees... but I would feel awkward asking him about something ... you know.... illegal... We could ask Covi maybe... I mean, she works for the Ministry but I don't think she would turn us in for just inquiring..."

She could understand her sister's hesitancy to involve outside politics.  Illegal breeding was a tricky topic, and she had seen people go to Azkaban for less. "I invited Dreogan over, maybe he'll know something?" The Grimlishes' middle-eastern counterpart was quite a well of knowledge.  Muggles seemed to have a fetish for experimenting on sheep; perhaps Covi or Dreogan had their own experiences with illegal breeding.  She hadn't come across any herself, but there was always a first time for everything.

Returning to the kitchen table, Marietta flipped open the large book her sister had previous identified.  As she gazed at various illustrations, Marietta allowed herself to muse aloud. "Funny, it doesn't show any creatures I know of," she spoke, before turning to her sister with a puzzled expression. "Opie, what's a lingam?"

"I invited Dreogan over, maybe he'll know something?"

"Did you? I hope I made enough cookies for everyone..." Opie mused as she pondered over some of the other books that Marietta had discovered. They all seemed to focus on puberty and growing up, and parenting. Maybe they weren't reading deeply enough into it? What could animal breeding have to do with budding bosoms and strange hair?

"Funny, it doesn't show any creatures I know of, Opie, what's a lingam?"

Opie put down the book and walked over to her sister, pondering the question. She knew a smattering of Sanskrit from their mother, who had a love for ancient and defunct languages, and had an idea of what the word could mean. "... well... If it is Sanskrit then it means... spot... or sign... something like that..." Staring off into space, she recalled her brief time in India. "Ah.. ah... It was an ancient way to worship Shiva... "

Beaming, since her knowledge of Hindu was slim, Opie wrapped her arms around Marietta's waist and rested her chin on her sisters shoulder, looking at the book in her hands. As Marietta turned a page, Opie's eyes went wide at the rather graphic picture on it. "Oh my. That doesn't look like any sort of worshiping I have seen...Maybe Dreogan would know..." Pulling away, she yawned lightly, regretting her choice to stay up last night to study her horoscope. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she looked over her shoulder at Marietta "When is he due?"

Dreogan had gotten the owl from the Grimlish sisters saying that he had been wanted to discuss some things. Usually, being wanted was a very good thing--particularly by old friends--and Dreogan was happy for the opportunity to make a social call.

But it was the Grimlishes. So chances were very slim that this was a social call of the standard sort, though it would not doubt involve some sort of tea or cookies and chatter . . .

But the words had been a bit circumlocutive, a bit vague and as Dreogan now stood upon their doorstep, he tugged at his coat awkwardly after pulling on the bell-pull, wondering what, exactly, he was wanted for and what might be in store.

The well-timed chime of the bell-pull brought a further upturning to Marietta's lips.  "Speak of the wizard," she sang, making her way towards the door to let in their dear friend.  "Dreogan," she spoke warmly, inviting him inside.  There was something about the young man that always made her desire to sit at his feet and listen to a story.  He had the most delightful story-telling voice, in her opinion.  Leaving him to reacquaint with Opie, Marietta returned to the kitchen to prepare another cup of tea.  "Aha," she muttered to herself, having happened upon the matching cup to her own. 

As she poured the hot liquid in, Marietta suddenly remembered the reason for his coming.  "Oh yes, Dreogan," she began, handing him the cup of tea, "Did you father ever warn you about the birds and the bees?"  It was an innocent question, she supposed.  And if, according to the book, every parent had discussed the matter with their child, surely Dreogan's father would have done so.  Realizing though, that different areas of the world might address illegal animal crossbreeding through different subjects, Marietta attempted to readress her question.  "Or would it have been the dragons and the hippogriffs?  Evie's been asking about it at school, and I'm not quite sure how to answer her."

"Hello, Mari," Dreogan said brightly, looking about. It seemed Marietta always had something new and interesting in her apartment. Dreogan wondered what today might have in store.

As he sat himself, greeting Ophelia with the same cordiality, and lifted the green tea to his lips, he realised he wouldn't have to wait long to find out this week's mystery. He nearly sputtered the drink, but managed to swallow the hot liquid perhaps a bit too fast. He cringed as it went down.

"Well, yes. He did," Dreogan said candidly, lowering the teacup to rest it against his knees. "I don't think it was a warning so much, however," he said with a sly smile. An unexpected burst of laughter bubbled from his throat at her new coinage. "Well, that's . . . another way of putting it. Maybe a better euphemism. I never did understand why it was called that," he continued nervously, clearing his throat and rubbing the back of his neck in a momentary silence.

He tried to imagine Evie actually asking fellow students at school. "If she's asking, it's best that she know, I'd say." He wondered if this was why he had been called over. A momentary pause, as something occurred to him. "Mari . . . Opie . . . did your parents tell you about the birds and the bees?"

Dreogan leaned back now to look at Opie for an answer.

"Speak of the wizard,"

Opie had just taken a seat at the table when Dreogan entered. She gave him a gentle smile and went back to the book, trying to figure out the pose on the page. It took turning the book upside down and at an angle to figure out that it had to be a worship dance of sorts. Something acrobatic and involving a couple. Fertility dance? She sighed a little and turned the page, revealing yet another vibrant and rather... puzzling... picture. She had just started to turn the book in circles to make sense of the image when Dreogan addressed her by name.

"Mari . . . Opie . . . did your parents tell you about the birds and the bees?"

"I do not believe so. I think I would recall such a vivid tale of interspecies breeding..." Opie replied automatically, but her voice was distant, as was her gaze. She was trying to remember for sure if they had ever talked about it. She remembered that her father had once expressed an interest in illegal crossbreeding, but she wasn't clear on whether it was regarding birds and bees. Knowing her father, it would have been something much larger and probably more dangerous. She certainly hoped that Evie wasn't following in her grandfathers footsteps.

"... Hm, I suppose you are right about warning her about the dangers though... I mean, isn't it illegal?" She was sure it was, but then she hadn't been keeping up with recent law changes. Dreogan would probably know better. She smiled sweetly at Dreogan and took a long drink of her tea.

A faint ting, ting, ting was heard as Dreogan anxiously flicked his fingernail along the edge of the teacup's handle as he listened to Opie's response. He attempted a smile, but his composure wavered, resulting in an expression that wavered between grimacing and grinning. Of course not. Of course them. After all, why should they know? And of course him -- to be landed in a situation like this. He caught a glimpse of one of the pictures of Opie's books and flushed darkly. What a mess.

"Ah. Interspecies . . . Had you ever considered, perhaps that the 'birds and the bees' had been allegorical as well as euphemistic? It's not so much cross breeding as much as, well, just breeding. Human breeding." He wet his lips anxiously and decided this was a convenient time to be very engrossed in his tea as he took another sip to buy him some time. He was nearly through the cup and suffering from a burnt throat by the time he dared come up for air.

"As for the legality of it, it's very legal once the humans have reached a certain age . . ." He looked to Mari, now. Desperately. Please "Do you have any sugar?" he asked in a voice that had gone a bit dry, despite having just taken a rather long sip. "And . . . more tea?"

((I can't help myself... I am sure Pammie won't mind if I jump in here :3))

"Ah. Interspecies . . . Had you ever considered, perhaps that the 'birds and the bees' had been allegorical as well as euphemistic? It's not so much cross breeding as much as, well, just breeding. Human breeding."

"Yes yes... I suppose so..." Opie murmured distantly, her expression strangely serious. Her eyes were staring over his left shoulder in thought, oblivious to the expression of incredulity he was struggling with. She failed to comprehend what he was alluding to. Why would someone use the allegory of birds and bee's to describe intercourse? It seemed frighteningly anatomically incorrect at the very least. Humans were nothing like birds and bees, unless, of course, it was referring to a female giant mating with a dwarf who died after 'stinging' her. What a traumatic and disturbing way to describe the act of human love. Frankly, she was appalled.

"As for the legality of it, it's very legal once the humans have reached a certain age . . .Do you have any sugar? And . . . more tea?"

"Me as well...." She nodded to her sister, holding up her empty mug. As Marietta busied herself with the tea, Opie sat in silence, still trying to make heads or tails of the explanation. "... So you are telling me... that the birds and the bees that our dear little Evie is inquiring about..." She paused for a second to take a sip of her tea before adding "... is in regards to sex?"

Marietta had known from the start that their little quandary stemmed from ignorance of one little fact.  She was certain Dreogan would have possessed it, and was glad to see that suspicion confirmed.  Allegories were nonsensical prattle that limited the mind, but she was glad Dreogan had not overlooked the philosophical device.  The idea of cross-breeding was far more fascinating.

Collecting the teacups, Marietta busied herself refilling their contents.  After adding two teaspoons of sugar, Marietta replaced the sweetener and took out a small jar of crushed skullcap.  Dreogan had always been a little nervous, although blame might have belonged more to the situations the friends found themselves in rather than his central nervous system.  She added the crushed herb to his tea before returning the vessels back to the table.

"... So you are telling me... that the birds and the bees that our dear little Evie is inquiring about... is in regards to sex?"

Marietta paused for a moment, her mind running through all her knowledge of the term 'sex.'  It passed in the blink of an eye, a slight hesitation before she set the teacups upon the small table.  The twins, during their toddler years, had occasionally asked of their origin.  Marietta had always given them the truth: they were given to her by the spirits.  While Eli had always enjoyed running around the cemetery screaming, "I'm a Spirit! Boogaboogaboo!" before jumping off a headstone (unfortunately he never was able to fly without a broomstick), Evie seemed to ruminate quietly upon her spirit blood.  It seemed all her reflections had bubbled back up to the surface. 

For the Grimlish family, sex had never entered their education as it was never required.  Holding hands, small kisses, and embraces beyond familial affection were unknown to Marietta.  She had often seen couples sneak into broomclosests during her years at Hogwarts, and after exploring one on her own, Marietta found it held no interest at all other than the unusual number of spiders.  She wasn't quite sure why Evie would be asking about 'sex' unless it was merely another request to hear of her own origin. 

"I wonder whether all this nonsense about 'sex' is over some nasty little child calling her an orphan again," Marietta mused aloud.  Being a Grimlish went hand in hand with being the object of others' taunts and grievances.  Marietta couldn't remember how many times the Slytherins had projected their anger onto her small form.  It fell two-fold on the twins until Marietta reached the conclusion that a vampire father was not a socially-accepted parent.  "Why else would Evie ask?" she added, posing her question to Dreogan before she took a sip of her own tea.