hannah & mark (woodenfans) wrote in valesco,
@ 2013-09-23 19:30:00

Entry tags:

delilah spinnet, elliot alderton, ellsinore alderton, elphias doge, galvin gudgeon, glenda prewett, grail yates, group, henry wadcock, iwan quigley, marissa macfusty, mark wood, matthew summerby, max fancourt, melania comstock, phoebe smethwyck, richard house, savannah davies, scarlett rabnott, seth wadcock, therese bonaccord, victoria cadwallader

Posted for this Friday!

It had been a long, long year for St. Mungo's.

Mark stood with a long flute of champagne in one hand, taking slow, deep breaths. The rearing of the ugly virus' head had given the year a bad, bad start, but here they were. Lives had been lost, but so many had been saved. Mark felt bittersweet about celebrating the year, but he knew events like this needed to be held to keep the hospital running. The donations were used to buy new supplies, potion remedies, and to provide for better training for their healers. Everything was being spun into a positive manner, Mark just wished that it didn't have to be such a lavish event to do so.

"Do you think it's too much?" he said to his wife, looking down at Hannah with a worried smirk. If anything, the night provided a reason for his wife to doll herself and look even more fantastic than she normally did. They deserved a night out, especially now that their trio of children was complete.

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a_bit_twisted
2013-09-28 01:45 am UTC (link)

Grail couldn't help the once over he gave her once she was turned towards him. She really did look amazing in that dress, and she was even prettier than he remembered her being at the wedding. His eyes were back on hers soon enough, extending his own hand out to her. "Grail," he clarified, though he couldn't help but snicker at the quick apology that came after.

"Not quite sure there's anything to apologize for, just yet. We haven't even made it down the stairs." He teased, trying to make light of the situation. He then gestured towards the staircase. "Shall we?" He offered, and once she was ready he turned, allowing her to wrap her arm around his so he could escort her.

"You look amazing, by the way."

Grail Yates was not a man who could be classified as a gentleman, but he wasn't a complete pig, either. When he spoke, his words didn't seem forced; it didn't sound like he was only saying it because he had to. He was a man who spoke his mind, which was what got him in trouble most of the time. He had never really been one to go along to get along.

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rabastans
2013-09-28 04:15 pm UTC (link)

This was an official, real, fancy date. Scarlett could honestly say she had never been out with someone at this lavish of a scale, and she barely knew him. Well--she did, Scarlett knew who Devon was speaking of when relating stories, but it wasn't---this---

She didn't know how to behave in a manner that wouldn't make him completely regret accepting this invitation. Did she want him to find her agreeable and tolerable? Tolerable? Did she really just think---she was more than tolerable, she didn't need a bloke to think so! She was...successful, she was accomplished, so why was it so bloody hard to accept that someone might have an honestly good thing to say about her?

A faint blush swept across Scarlett's cheeks as he complimented her. She ducked her head away for a brief moment before turning back to Grail with a subtly pleased smile. "Devon will be very happy you think so."

It was the best she could manage. Scarlett straightened her shoulders and let out a long breath, feeling as if she'd been forgetting to breathe. The ballroom was majestically decorated and it seemed like the entire room was bustling with excitement.

"What--would you like to do?" she asked. "Eat, drink, dance..."

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a_bit_twisted
2013-09-28 05:11 pm UTC (link)

He found her bashfulness endearing, seeing how she didn't look like the kind of person who wasn't used to compliments. When she once again referred to the fire haired troublemaker, the corners of his lips lifted into another amused smirk. "I'm sure she will," he replied through another chuckle, turning away from her for a moment in order to take in the room. He wasn't used to any of this, having never been a man who lived above middle class, so he was acting more comfortable with his surroundings than he actually was. When she asked what he wanted to do, he turned towards her again.

""I'd like to try not to think about what brought us here...or more specifically, whom." He turned more towards her, finally addressing the situation - best to get it out in the open early on, seeing how they were both probably thinking the same thing. "What matters now is that we're here; so we can either make the best of the situation, or we can walk on eggshells the whole night just because we feel obligated to get along." Again, he was a man who spoke his mind. He just thought it was better to be honest than play pretend all night.

"So I say we get a drink - because we could both use one - find a seat, and take it from there." That was his offer, and he hoped she accepted it.

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rabastans
2013-09-28 10:32 pm UTC (link)

Scarlett supposed that it would prove a bit insulting if she continued to behave like she was only here to please Devon. Her best friend did have good intentions behind this setup, no matter how uncomfortable Scarlett felt about it. Devon had found happiness with Darren even after all their tumultuous years. Maybe there was something to search for in life other than a quidditch cup and a place on the all-star team.

"I'd like a drink," she accepted, silently agreeing to keep Devon out of their conversation for the rest of the night. Scarlett wasn't sure how to particularly hold a conversation on a date, as her last rendezvous with a man ended up in bed within a minute of meeting each other (she had been spellstruck), and her last relationship had been with Michal Conway Lynch and everyone knew that a 'relationship' with him consisted of lots of snogging and not much talking.

She played it safe and allowed Grail to order their drinks and she kept herself from seeming too nervous as they found a table. Did he dance? Did she dance? Scarlett couldn't promise herself that she wouldn't trip over the hem of her dress. After a few painstaking moments of silence, Scarlett straightened her shoulders.

"My favorite color isn't red," she said, looking down at her fingernails, "it's blue. Everyone assumes red. Now you tell me something. Things you might find out a first date." It wasn't the most conventional of approaches, but Scarlett wasn't a conventional kind of girl.

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a_bit_twisted
2013-09-29 12:05 am UTC (link)

She wasn't the only one who was out of their element. Grail couldn't remember the last time he had been on a date - he didn't really know how to do relationships, which was why they normally didn't last for him on the rare occasions he had himself a legitimate girlfriend. Most of the time it was casual hook ups with women he had no intentions of seeing ever again, though there were a few exceptions - Prisca had been more of an extended fling than an actual relationship, but Cas had been something else. He didn't know what, but what he had with her had definitely been different - maybe it was because she had a kid, but he felt like he had done a significant amount of growing up while he was with her. He had become responsible - almost paternal. Cassandra and Pansy were like the family he always wished he had, but he wasn't ready to settle down just yet. He wasn't ready to have some little girl calling him 'Dad'.

He still couldn't get over the fact that Darren was a father. It was still mind blowing.

Once they had their drinks (he got her a rum and coke; a beer for himself), they found a vacant spot at a table before taking their seats.
He took a sip of the ice cold beverage that had been poured for him, sitting with her in the uncomfortable silence. When she finally spoke up, he lifted his brows a little. He snorted at her request, bringing one of his hands up to rub at the back of his neck.

"Things you might find out on a first date..." he repeated, as though it would help him come up with something. "Well my favorite color isn't red either, though I can't say many people have ever assumed otherwise. I never really put much time into thinking about whether I have a favorite. Maybe green, if I had to choose." He leaned back in his chair, trying to think of what other bit of information he could tell her. "I don't have any pets, but I think I may be allergic to cats. I had a dog once. I get the feeling you're more of a dog person, too." He wondered if that assumption would be correct, taking another sip of his drink as he waited for her reply.

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rabastans
2013-09-29 01:26 am UTC (link)

Oh, thank Merlin he'd just laughed at her ridiculous suggestion of a conversation. Scarlett let out the breath she had been involuntarily holding and cracked the first genuine smile of the night. Instead of waiting for someone to ask the first question, she'd gone and made a bit of a joke of it. See, she could make jokes. Even if it hadn't intentionally started off as a joke, but it had turned out to work that way.

"I have a labrador," she said with a nod, wondering what about her made her seem like a dog person. Scarlett resisted the urge to pull the picture she had of the dog out of her purse, as that might be deemed strange. "His name is Percy."

Scarlett took a sip of her drink, expecting to recoil, but it was surprisingly easy to swallow so she drank a bit more. This continued between their question and answering session, and soon she found herself creating a halo over her head with her hands.

"And my teammate Rose, love her, she's so pretty," Scarlett said, hands still head over her head, "she makes these flower crowns when we win, when we lose, and I tell her I hate them, but she knows I don't." Scarlett's hands dropped to rest on her head, indicating how the flower crowns laid. Just the thought of them brought a smile to her face.

She leaned toward Grail, who'd steadily grown more handsome and fuzzy over the night. "I think she's sleeping with a Kestrel, though," she whispered. "But don't say anything! She might deny it, but---I see the way she looks at Spinnet."

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a_bit_twisted
2013-09-29 06:14 pm UTC (link)

He decided she was even prettier when she was smiling, though he wouldn't tell her this in case it prevented her from doing it for the rest of the night. He had already come to the realization that she didn't take compliments very well, so he'd have to pick his moments with her if they wound up seeing each other again. From the short time he had already spent with her, he could already tell that she was practically a 180 from Devon, who loved being showered in praises, and liked dressing up in fancy gowns and going to balls. Scarlett seemed to not know what to do with herself, but then again neither did Grail.

He sipped at his beer as they continued to exchange random bits of information, falling into a more comfortable string of conversation now that she had gotten the ball rolling. He wasn't even remotely buzzed as he finished it off, though Scarlett's mix drink seemed to have hit her right away. She was certainly entertaining, now that she wasn't wound like a top and treating this as though it were some sort of arranged marriage that had been set up between the two of them.

When she leaned in towards him to whisper her suspicions about Rose, he was unable to suppress his grin.

"I'm no gossip. Your secret's safe with me," he assured her with a wink. Really, he could care less whether or not her team mate was sleeping with Charlie Spinnet, but he wasn't about to tell her that. He looked out to the dance floor again, pausing a moment before he turned to look back at her. "Did you want to dance?" He questioned, though there was definitely some sense of dread that came along with the question. He really hoped she said no, seeing how he was sure she would regret accepting the offer the minute they stepped onto the floor.

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rabastans
2013-10-01 12:02 am UTC (link)

Scarlett blinked in surprise. Dance? Did she want to dance? She had promised Devon she would dance at least one song. But...she had also told Grail that she would stop talking and thinking about Devon, because it wasn't her friend that was on this date. Scarlett didn't think she was a very good dancer, but Grail was offering.

Decisions. She was having a pleasant night, he was a pleasant companion. Did they need to follow the predictable formula of one of these evenings to deem their blind date successful. Her dress was rather long, she'd been stepping on it all night.

"I'll dance," she said, lightly patting her hair down. She smiled, but instead of shyly there was a bit of mischief in her stare. "Unless you have a better idea."

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