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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 22, 2023 23:52:17 GMT -8
Heather quickened her pace as she rounded the corner and the Three Broomsticks was finally in sight. "Oh thank goodness," she whispered to herself. It probably wasn't the healthiest thing to want to escape to a pub so badly after a very long week of classes, but she just needed an escape from the business of the castle and the mounting pile of homework that she was still working her way through, even though she'd stayed up late every night this week. She just needed a break. Some time to herself. To have a butter beer and unwind and hear about the mindless chatter from the other pub patrons.
The door tinkled as she entered. The early afternoon crowd was still lingering. Things hadn't yet switched over to the night crowd. Several tables were still open, as were a few seats at the far end of the bar. She scooted around a table and a tray that flew itself back into the kitchen. She plopped her bag onto the bar before her before she crawled up onto the stool.
"One butter beer please," she requested of the bartender. As soon as it was in front of her, she took a sip and sighed. She rested her chin on her palm, looking around the bar, her. mind finally quieting from the last week as she observed everyone around her.
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 23, 2023 22:05:57 GMT -8
Wesley rarely finds himself alone. He thrives in the presence of others, but that is also how he finds himself failing his assignments. It was hard to take time to study when there are people around worth talking to. The common room was a no-go for him, too many friends, and too much goofing off. He's tried both the library and study hall but even there he always finds some way to avoid the actual purposed visit of studying or homework. Somehow, he found that it works out if he heads to the Three Broomsticks early enough that, that he can hide away in a corner booth and stay rather hidden from other patrons. This, he decided begrudgingly, needed to become his end-of-week routine. He taps his quill against the half-completed sheet of parchment before him. This essay on undetectable poisons wouldn't write itself, but as he sipped his nearly empty now butterbeer, he amused himself by wishing perhaps for some undetectable poison of his own. At least then he wouldn't need to finish this paper.
The entrance door chimed upon the entrance of another patron and as always Wesley couldn't stop his eyes from fleetingly glancing over to see who walked in. Mostly it was adult wizards looking to relax in the pub as the night creeps closer, nothing worth paying any attention to. That's what made this routine work for him. This time however a flash of long red hair captures and holds his interest.
He watches the girl set her bag on the bar, take a seat, and order a drink. She seemed to visibly relax with that very first sip. She looked around but didn't quite glance as far back as to where he was seated, somewhat directly behind her. Wesley forces his eyes back to his paper, determined to focus. He reads... re-reads, and... and then re-reads one more time the last sentence he'd written but it was pointless. His desire to start a conversation was nearly overwhelming. With an internal, 'oh well,' he put his quill down and turned to her, his body facing out of the booth in her direction.
"You should try ordering one with extra cinnamon," Wesley speaks in her direction, "It's particularly good that way." He offers the girl a warm smile. If she wants to engage, the door is open, if not, he will leave her alone and be forced to return to his homework.
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 23, 2023 23:30:45 GMT -8
She turns at the voice behind her, not expecting it. She glances at him to ensure he was speaking to her and not anyone else, and then she swivels back toward the bar to pick up her drink and then swivel back to face him.
“Cinnamon, huh?” she asks. She glances down into her mug. “I don’t know how I haven’t thought of that. Perhaps my next round.”
She takes him in for a moment. She couldn’t place a name, but he was familiar- did they have potions or charms together at some point? Her eyes flick over to his nearly empty cup.
“Would you like another one?” she asks. “On me.”
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 23, 2023 23:43:36 GMT -8
Wesley cannot help the grin that spreads across his face and so he lifts his hand, gesturing to the open space across the table from him, "I would absolutely accept another one... if you'd care to join me over here?"
Wesley knows that the girl is familiar, but he cannot place her. She's not a Ravenclaw, he's fairly certain of that. He spends a lot of time socializing in the Ravenclaw Tower and he would be shocked if she was a fellow house mate and he'd not met her before. He tries to run through all his classes in his head, tries to match this face to his daily routine... now he's kind of hoping that they do share a class or two because that would be a great way to get to see her again in the future. Wesley smiles in spite of himself, there he was going and getting ahead of himself again...
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 23, 2023 23:54:50 GMT -8
She thinks it through just for a moment before she nods and says, “Sure.” She swivels back around toward the bar to order his drink. As she waits for it, she pulls out her wand and sends her bag over toward the booth. It settles itself onto the seat.
She slides off her stool and grabs her own drink and his drink and walks over to his booth. She places the new butterbeer in front of him, freshly topped with cinnamon, as she assumed he’d want, given their conversation moment’s prior.
She’s just about to sit down when she pauses and looks at the parchment on the table. “Essay? Which class?” She pauses. “Sorry. Should probably tell you my name is Heather.” She laughs.
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 24, 2023 12:02:52 GMT -8
Wesley accepts the fresh Butterbeer thankfully, "Guess I owe you one, next. He says with an genuine, charming smile. "Well, Heather..." He follows her gaze to his work and, although he'd rather talk about anything else, this is a good segue into conversation. "Unfortunately, He grimaces, "Potions essay... do you know much about the complexities and remifications of undetectable poisons?" He asks which a chuckle.
Wesley moves to clear away some of his books and stray items to rid the table of clutter. He'd rather put it all away and give Heather his full attention, that felt like a better way to kick off the weekend... but then the new week will inevitably start and the paper will be due. Quite the conundrum.
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 24, 2023 13:20:21 GMT -8
"I...do happen to know a few things," she answers with a smile and then slides into the booth. "I used to find Potions really complicated, but you know what book I found really helpful? One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi. There's a whole section in the back that talks about uses for potions. When I started to look at what does what, it became a clearer. They're kind of like cocktails, right?" She raises her glass as though to cheers, then sets it back down. "You mix a bunch of ingredients together to make something new. It's easier to understand when you break down all the ingredients." She glances over the parchment. "I would maybe start with that book? I know there's a section that discusses how things become undetectable and why."
"I also heard," she continues, "That they've been trying to create a potion that will detect this poisons. That would be pretty cool, wouldn't it? Although I'm sure very frustrating for the inventor of the poison." She laughs. "Sorry, I'm rambling now." Her cheeks flush and she lifts her mug to take another sip to shut herself up.
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 25, 2023 0:44:21 GMT -8
Wesley listened intently to Heather speak. He has always been drawn to social settings, but that didn't mean he was always one of those people who only loved the sound of their own voice. He was a good listener and was intrigued by what she had to say about the subject, especially because it sounded to him like it was something she excelled at. "I believe I ran into just the right person."
Wesley lifts his refreshed mug to cheers and takes a sip, "You really do know your poisons..." He pauses with his mug still lifted and pointedly stares into the liquid that she'd given him, and he delivers a skeptical, mock horrified look. "I hope to never get on your bad side," He adds, pretending to inspect the mug for poisonous tampering.
Wesley chuckles and sets down his drink, leaning back comfortably and stretching his arms out, glad for the writing break. "But in all seriousness, I will check that book out. I do well in my classes, believe it or not," He chuckles again because most people don't believe that, "But when it comes to essays , I am utterly useless. When he shakes his head his hair flops back in forth with the motion. It was on the longer side again, draping slightly to his ears. He runs his fingers through it nonchalantly.
He waves his hand to dismiss her seeming embarrassment, "No, please, ramble away... honestly. I'm loving it." He smiles at her again, genuinely glad for the company.
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 26, 2023 11:04:48 GMT -8
She giggles. "I guess you're lucky that I only know how to detect poisons, not implement them into drinks." She blushes again as he tells her he loves her rambling. She watches him run his hands through his hair and chews the inside of her cheek. She had a thing for guys with good hair. She glances down at her drink and turns it back and forth. "You know, you still haven't told me your name." Her gaze flicks back up to him, the corners of her mouth turning up into a smile.
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 26, 2023 22:44:19 GMT -8
Wesley raises a brow and pointedly looks around. He props his elbows on the table top and interlocks his fingers, allowing him to lean closer as if to tell a secret, "That's exactly what someone who is skilled at implementing poisons would say? No?" He asks jokingly then leans back again, "But I don't think I've done anything to earn myself a laced drink, yet, so I'm not too worried." Wesley smiles broadly.
He contemplates for a second how best to proceed, "Why don't we...play a game to get to know each other? Question for question— " He reaches one hands across the table for a handshake, "Wesley Thorsen."
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Feb 26, 2023 23:21:10 GMT -8
"I love a good game," she says and reaches out to take his hand. She shakes it. "Pleasure, Wesley." He sure was intriguing, wasn't he? Okay, calm down, Heather. Don't get ahead of yourself. "First question then... you said you haven't yet done anything to deserve getting poisoned. Does that mean sometimes you do act in a way that would cause someone to poison you?" She arched an eyebrow. This could be a good test for any red flags.
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Feb 26, 2023 23:46:12 GMT -8
Wesley nodes his head a few times in appreciation, "Going straight for the interesting questions, I like it." A girl who likes to play games but not beat around the bush is a girl worth getting to know, in Wesleys opinion. This night is getting better every second. He wanted to word his answer the right way, and not sound too much like a villain. "My best friend-" Wesley rephrases, "Er, an old friend of mine... probably wouldn't mind seeing me choke a little." He rubbed the back of his neck vaguely. That didn't really answer her question though, so he forged on, "It's simple really. There was a girl... He liked her, she liked me. I chose girl over friend and," He laughed in spite of himself, "...in the end she chose someone else all together so, it was all for naught, really." Sure, Wesley left out some details, but he did not feel the need to shed light on the whole thing. It's a regret but one he stands by.
"What is the most spontaneous thing you’ve ever done, Heather?"
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Mar 1, 2023 22:08:05 GMT -8
"Oh, wow," she answers, surprised. "That's unfortunate. Live and learn, I guess?" she suggested to him.
She took a sip of her butterbeer as she thought of an answer to his question. "I once skinny dipped in the Black Lake. After a long night of drinking. Nearly froze to death." She laughed. "Not something I'd recommend doing." She said to him. "Especially not in the middle of winter." She tucked her hair behind her ear.
"Hmmm... What's the craziest excuse you've used to get out of trouble?"
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Post by Wesley Thorsen on Mar 2, 2023 21:43:19 GMT -8
Wesley nodded, swirling the liquid remaining in his mug. The Cinnamon was good, but some vanilla vodka would really make this beverage the best it could be. "I definitely did some living and learning... He remarked, taking another sip of this sweet golden drink. Wesley was earnestly surprised by Heather's admission. She didn't seem like the skinny-dipping type— let alone in the black lake of all places. Maybe there was a wild side to her yet to be seen, and Wesley was interested in learning more.
He let out a laugh, "That is bold! He gave her a quiet applause. "It's brave enough to venture near those waters at all, in my opinion." He chuckles again, "Any girl willing to encounter any of the unusual inhabitants of that lake is worth knowing. The giant squid? A village of merfolk? The grindylow? And you were up for the task...au naturel...Bravo." He smirks.
Wesley tilts his head back a little in contemplation. He didn't often need excuses, because he didn't often get caught. "There was one time when I was young... I took home a stray cat. This pudgy black-and-white thing." Wesley laughs in memory and dives fully into the story:
"My mum said no. She's allergic... but I thought I could sneak him home and it'd be ok. I also thought If I gave him a bath it would make the allergies go away... well, the cat scratched me up real good, as you could imagine." Another chuckle, "When my mum saw me, I went into a full panic mode and made up a whole thing about being attacked by a whole donsy of Gnomes. I basically told her it was a full-scale attack and I won. I told her I was the best de-gnomer around after that." Wesley shakes his head. He remembers how proud he was of himself for making that story up on the spot.
"Must have been too good of a story because our neighbors had a terrible gnome infestation in their garden and mum volunteered me to do the de-gnoming... those bites hurt way more than the cat." Wesley remembered the best part of the story, "Turns out, mum saw me sneak the cat in and knew exactly how I'd gotten those scratches!" He laughed, realizing his excuse to get out of trouble was actually the thing that got him into it. Mum didn't like the lying.
Feeling tired of the sound of his own voice and wondering if he was talking too much, Wesley turns the focus back to Heather, it was her turn. "What would constitute the “perfect” day for you, Heather?"
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Post by Heather Nicholson on Mar 10, 2023 22:34:16 GMT -8
Heather bursts out laughing. "That is the best thing I've ever heard! Oh Merlin!" It takes over a minute for her to get her giggles under control. Little giggles slipped out as she continued to picture it. She takes another sip of her drink to distract herself and allow herself time to think about his question. She leans back in the seat and runs a hand through her hair. She looks up at the ceiling as she thinks.
"My perfect day...One in which I don't have to set an alarm. I don't sleep in super late, but just the luxury of being able to sleep as long as I need to is important. A nice coffee outside somewhere where I can read... then getting a port key to travel to different countries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Then dancing the night away until the sun comes up," she says to him.
She chews her lip as she thinks of a question for him. "What's the best secret you've discovered about Hogwarts?" Her eyes sparkled. He seemed like he was one to figure out all kinds of secrets.
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