alicia spinnet + silas capper
23 August - New Zaland
"Clothes and wine. I like the way your mind works, Spinnet."
WARNINGS - None
đłđż - TWO CHARACTER EACH wakes up in New Zealand today with someone else. It's up to you to figure out how you're going to get back!
There were a lot of things that Alicia expected when she woke up, to have one or all of the dogs looking at her, hearing one of her housemates singing, the birds outside chirping or even the faint sounds of her neighbours. What she wasnât expecting was the cool water lapping over her legs and the sound of water being well, not meters away but right next to her.
Bolting upright, she sat up, feeling the sand beneath her shift as she did. Looking around it didnât take more than half a second to register that she wasnât in Scotland any more, no this was far from it.
It was a little bit chilly and she wished she wasnât in a pair of sleep shorts and a tank-top. Luckily her wand was next to her, but that was all she had. Pushing up, she looked around curiously. It was stunning, wherever the heck she was. As she turned the other direction she saw someone familiar.
âWhat did you do Capper?!â She let out trying to keep a serious expression.
Silas barely heard the sound of Aliciaâs voice as he was still asleep. It wasnât until he too felt the cool water wash over his bare legs that he jolted awake and sat up. Rubbing his eyes, it took him a moment to realize that this 1) wasnât a dream, and 2) wasnât his bedroom. The water splashed up again and his eyes widened, finally seeing Alicia there and her words beginning to register.
âWait, what?â He called out in surprise, looking from her to the water and back again to her confused and serious expression. He pointed back and forth and let out a nervous laugh. âHaha no. No, no, no. Not me. This was so not me,â his eyes drifted back to the water in confusion.
âWhere the hell are we?â He asked her, as if she was magically going to know what was happening. The air felt cooler than that at home, and he shivered now that he was wet. Looking down at himself, he realized he was still in the clothes heâd slept in: an old, faded Weird Sisters t-shirt and a pair of boxers. âAnd why am I not at home in bed?â
Biting her lips between her teeth, she tried really hard not to laugh, but her shoulders shook a little bit with laughter. She took a moment to watch his confused expression before letting out a sigh.
âHavenât a clue, but it isnât home.â She said, knowing it was obvious. âSo, this wasnât your big master plan?â She asked sort of hoping heâd say heâd done it so it made a bit more sense, but she knew he wouldnât.
âWell, come on,â she said, reaching out offering him her hand. âWe might as well go explore and figure out where the bloody hell we are. Unless you want to hang out with the tide coming in.â
Silas still didnât have an idea in hell what was going on or where he was, but he had a sinking feeling that was another one of the townâs tricks. Theyâd have to find their way out of something or solve a puzzle of some kind, right? Thatâd be all and then theyâd wake back up at home.
He sighed but stood and brushed off as much sand as he could and laughed, âIf this was my master plan, we would have woken up in lounge chairs, not sand. And someplace warmer.â Silas didnât mind the cold so much, but if he was going to be on a beach, he preferred a warm sun.
He nearly suggested that they find more clothes, but if this was all in their heads or theyâd wake back up soon at home, there would be no need for those, right? They walked a little ways off the beach and found a small row of shops. A sign in one of the windows advertising a charity drive showed a dropoff address ofâŚ.. âTe Koko-O-Kupe, New Zealand?!â He pointed to the words and looked at Alicia. âWeâre not actually here, are we?â
âThatâs Cloudy Bay,â Alicia said pausing as she looked at the sign. âWhich meansâŚâ She spun around in a circle. âOH! This must be Rarangi, and weâre close to Blenheim.â Alicia jumped up and down a little bit.
âWait, do you think we are actually here?â She paused her jumping and looked back to Silas. âBecause if we are, weâre going to have to figure out how to get clothing, get some muggle money and go to Cloudy Bay.â She tilted her head. âThe winery, do you have any idea how good it is?â
Silas wasnât expecting the sudden burst of excitement from Alicia. At first he just stared at her, wondering what in the world she was going on about but soon he found himself smiling and raising a brow at her. âYouâre familiar with the area then, I take it?â
Were they really here? Silas wasnât sure, but it looked that way. It was like an unwitting apparation gone wrong. âLetâs work on clothes first, winery second.â Since neither had any money with them, this might end up being harder than expected but at least both still had their wands.
There was a group of people up ahead of them. They were either tourists or a few local kids not paying much attention to what was going on around them. âWe could⌠âborrowâ some money to buy clothes.â At her look, he just shrugged. âHey, itâs better walking around like this,â he motioned to his boxers.
"Well, sort of, I haven't actually been here yet, but I've read about it." She paused, blushing a little bit. "A lot." She admitted. "Alright, so when I can't sleep I research wine vacations, no judgement from you Rapunzel." A stern look crossed her face for only a moment.
"Wait, are you suggesting what I think you are suggesting?" She asked with a mildly shocked look on her face, but it faded quickly. "I suppose we could always figure out how to pay them back."
Alicia looked down at his boxers and laughed softly, not that she was dressed much better in her tank top and short PJ shorts. "Alright, let's hop to it."
Once Silas realized he wasnât going to have to work to convince Alicia of his idea, he nodded and agreed something about finding a way to pay them back once they were able. Frankly, he was more concerned figuring out how to get home than repaying Muggles who were helping them out when they were clearly in need of some help.
âAlright, Iâll strike up a conversation, you lift one of their wallets,â he said to her in a low voice as they approached and then immediately put on a smile to address the group. Morning!â Silas called. He wore a sheepish smile, mostly put-on but considering his appearance, part of it was real. He could tell by their expressions that they had gotten a good look at them; clothes that were still wet from waking up in the surf.
He moved past them all a little, purposely, so that they had to turn to look at him and Alicia could easily stand behind without being noticed too much if she wanted to use her wand. âHave any of you seen a dark blue car around somewhere close by?â He asked. âMy girlfriend and I, well, we got a little carried away last night, fell asleep on the beach, and nowâŚ.â He trailed off with a laugh. âWe canât seem to remember where we parked the car.â
"Leave the heavy jobs to me. I see how it is." She teased, but she let him take the lead. Once he started talking, she smiled sheepishly and stayed slightly awkward behind him. As the well-meaning, Kiwi's started asking about the night, and if they really were okay, Alicia made sure to carefully Accio a wallet she saw and was about to pull the cash out of it and send it back when she heard the woman ask if they needed clothing.
She stuffed the wallet awkwardly in the side of her shorts and laughed softly. "I think we just need to find our car, it has, well, we didn't arrive here dressed like this." She blushed and wrapped an arm around Silas following with his lead of dating.
âI did lose my jacket somewhere during the night after this one decided I didnât need it any longer,â Silas remarked once Alicia was by his side. He grinned at her and âboopedâ her lightly on the nose with his finger. He was probably going to pay for that one later.
âThereâs a parking lot up that way,â one of the blokes told them and pointed off to the left.
âBrilliant, thanks. I bet thatâs where we parked.â He gave a nod of thanks to the group and waved goodbye while he and Alicia headed off in that direction. Heâd watched her lift the wallet, so they should be set for a way to get out of there. Or at least to get some proper clothes. Silas turned back to make sure they were out of earshot and unwrapped himself from Alicia. Hopefully the group wouldnât check their pockets until they were long gone. âHowâd we come out?â
The moment he let go of her she swung and hit his arm with the wallet sheâd just stolen. âThis one?â She repeated as she glanced over at him with a mild glare. Alicia opened the wallet to find a few credit cards, a drivers licence of sorts and a bunch of colorful bills. She counted quickly and smirked. âWeâve got about 500 here, so not too bad.â Although she did have a twinge of guilt.
âWeâre going to have to pay the poor bloke back when we get home though,â she hadnât thought about getting home and still wasnât too worried about it, she knew she probably should be, but first things first, wine and clothing.
âWe are going to have better luck with clothing in Blenheim the town.â She told him and pointed to a bus stop. âBesides, thatâs where we need to go to get to the wine.â
Silas laughed at her tone. âDamn. Good thing Muggles carry around plenty of cash.â The cash would get them further than if theyâd had to resort to cards given they could be tracked and traced. âDonât worry, weâll pay him back,â he assured her and tapped the license. âWe have his address, so sending the whole wallet back through their post will be easy enough.â Once they were back in the UK.
As much as he didnât want to bother riding the bus, he knew they didnât have much choice and walked with her over to the stop. He couldnât help but laugh at her priorities. âClothes and wine. I like the way your mind works, Spinnet.â He smirked at her. âWhile weâre here, we might as well have ourselves an adventure of sorts before we find our way back, right?â
"At least this one does," she looked down at it, it was an odd amount of cash, but she shrugged and didn't worry too much about it, even if she still felt guilty. She smiled softly when he assured her that they would pay the guy back.
"How often do you randomly wake up in one of the worlds best Sauv Blanc regions when you didn't even plan a trip to the other side of the world?" Alicia asked as if it were a no brainer. "Exactly!"
The bus arrived, and Alicia took care of paying for their two tickets. The bus driver chuckled when he saw the way the two were dressed and made a comment about a fun night. Alicia smiled and headed for a seat towards the back.
"Oh! Look!" She said, pointing to one of the vineyards they were passing. "Maybe we should rent bikes." Alicia looked at him with a puzzled look. "Do you know how to ride a bike?" Not all witches and wizards had that skill.
âKnowing that would mean Iâd know where this was a prestigious Sauv Blanc region,â said Silas. He wasnât nearly as knowledgeable about wine as Alicia was - or as most of the other Spinnets were, in fact. âBut who am I to say no to a tour and a tasting?â He could think of worse ways to spend an impromptu New Zealand vacation.
âI havenât ridden a bike in years, but I should be able to manage.â The bus ride wasnât a terrible one and not too long, thankfully. Once theyâd gotten off and were in town, they started attracting more onlookers because of their appearance. âSee any shops thatâll work?â He asked. âAnd that wonât turn us away at the door?â
âWell, worse comes to worse, Iâll ride a bike and get one of those little things that drags behind the bike for you,â she teased. She pointed out a couple of other things to him about different vineyards during the rest of the ride.
Alicia laughed at some of the looks they were getting. As they rounded a corner, she caught sight of a thrift shop, but one of those that clearly was more about the fashion than not. âWhat about that?â She offered.
As they entered the shoppe, an older man glanced up from behind the desk and chuckled. âYou two need clothing.â She said, looking back down at the paper he was reading ignoring them.
Alicia saw a pair of bright pink men's pants and held them up, offering them to Silas, mostly jokingly.
âWe sure do,â said Silas to the shopkeeper, not bothering at all to show much embarrassment. âI guess we had a little too much fun.â He started looking around at the different items. The suggestion from Alicia made him raise his eyebrows and laugh. âI think those would look better on you.â
The selection was decent, and soon Silas picked out two pairs of pants and a combo of shirts. âWhich goes best with a wine tour?â He asked, holding up a pair of navy slacks and then a pair of dark jeans. The two shirts were gray and somewhere between crimson or dark red. âI need the Spinnet approval.â He had an eye on a couple of light jackets hanging up on the wall, but heâd check those out next.
Alicia laughed putting the pants back and wandered away for a bit finding a nice, flowing pair of off white cropped pants, a comfortable flowing tank top in light green, and a light jean jacket, all currently resting on her right forearm.
âUh,â she paused tilting her head and looking at the clothing he had picked. âNavy, with the grey.â She said decisively. âWell, donât stand around all day!â She teased pointing to two changing areas that were a little awkward but would work.
After paying and purchasing their clothing, Alicia also got a cross-body purse they could use to carry anything they might want to carry and a pair of sandals they found a map and a place to rent some bikes.
âWell, Mr. Capper, do you want to pick the first location?â She asked pointing between Wairau Wines, Clayvin Vineyard and Eradus Wine which was the furthest away but she had pointed out how each had its own set of places they could check out before ending at Cloudy Bay.
âYes maâam,â he agreed quickly and went inside the changing room to change into the new clothes. As comfortable as his boxers and old t-shirt were, he did feel much more comfortable with actual clothes on to walk around town. Silas ended up with what he had on plus a darker gray light jacket that heâd been eyeing earlier and ending with a pair of shoes. Once outside and set with the bikes, he took a look at the map she held out with the vineyards.
âWe could start there,â he said, pointing to Wairau Wines. âIt says thereâs a restaurant, and Iâm starving.â It was still morning back home, but by now it had to be nearing dinner time here, didnât it?
âWhat do you say? A tour, some time, and a bite to eat?â He pulled out a few bills of the Muggle money and smirked. âMy treat.â
"I see how it is. Everything is about your stomach," she teased but nodded all the same until he brought up that it was his treat and she scoffed.
"I think you mean, it's my treat, seeing as I did the heavy lifting," she shrugged. "So to speak." She laughed all the same and gave a bit of a wicked grin. "Try and keep up yeah," she didn't even wait before jumping on her bike and heading towards Wairau. The tour was fantastic, and Alicia asked almost endless questions about the wine until she heard a stomach grumble and relented. It didn't seem to take either of them long to order food, the conversation was easy, some laughing, perhaps some teasing before the waiter asked if they wanted anything else.
"Well?" She asked, glancing across the table.
âWell,â repeated Silas. âThatâs a deep subject.â His eyes showed amusement while taking a sip and looking at her over top of his glass. Theyâd finished up lunch or dinner or whatever meal it was for them with the time zone changes, and he was surprised with how relaxed he felt. The tour had been enjoyable, and the meal and company even better. He knew they probably should be focusing on trying to get back to Cuaditch, but why bother just yet when there was plenty to do here?
âOn to the next?â He asked, grinning. Soon they were on their way and had completed not one but two vineyard tours. Heâd had more different tastes of wine in the last few hours than heâd had in quite a while. This time they were back on their bikes and headed towards the main event according to Alicia Spinnet: Cloudy Bay. Also, thankfully, he hadnât managed to fall off of his bicycle yet.
âIâll let you lead the way,â he told her once theyâd arrived.
Grinning, Alicia almost felt like a kid on Christmas morning, that silly excited that infected your whole body with joy. She practically leapt off of her bike when they got to Cloudy Bay. She did make sure they locked their bikes before they started towards the sign that said tours and tastings.
As they approached, a young man came out to greet them. Alicia explained they wanted a tour and tastings. The tour was standard, look at the grapes, all the steps between growing the grapes to harvest to the actual winemaking. Alicia asked more than a few questions which seemed to please the tour guide who chatted animatedly about all of it. After the tour they were directed to a table that was outside under a muggle heater, two benches lined the table, and it looked over the vineyard. Taking a seat facing the vineyard, Alicia smiled.
"It's so pretty here," she let out a sigh as she relaxed. "I wonder how difficult it'll be to bring some bottles back with us."
âMmhm,â Silas murmured. He was looking out over the vineyard from their table. She was right; it was rather nice here. It was easy to see why sheâd expressed such excitement for coming and taking the tour. He took a swallow of his wine and turned to look at her.
âIt is. Saved the best for last?â He smiled and raised his glass in a cheers before taking another sip. He thought about her question, but he didnât see how it would be too difficult. âThat may all depend on how we manage to get home. Apparating is likely a ânoâ since otherwise it would have been too easy to get back. If anyone knows of a portkey in the area, that would work.â He smiled a little. âJust make sure to secure those bottles.â
If they couldnât find a portkey, it would be a bit harder. âOr thereâs muggle transportation,â he offered. âMore complicated, takes a hell of a lot longer, but a possibility. Although, Iâm not sure if we still have enough money for both of us to make the trip.â
Nodding, Alicia for a moment wondered what itâd be like if they didnât leave for a while but knew that wasnât logical. Theyâd need to figure out how to get home and thatâd be a bit of a trick.
âProbably shouldnât add wine to the already complicated travel,â she admitted. âExcept for maybe one bottle.â Alicia couldnât help herself. The idea of not bringing something back seemed a bit well, odd to her.
âWeâll have to find some witches and wizards to see about getting a portkey. Iâm sure we could get to Wellington at least from here on what weâve got and the ministry here might be able to help.â She said glancing over to Silas. âThat or there might be an outpost in Christ Church.â She glanced up as the bloke who had given them the tour came out with some small bites and another wine to try.
"One each," Silas added. "And maybe a little something extra from the shoppe that isn't breakable if they have something small." A token or some such to remember their wacky New Zealand adventure together. He thought about their travel options and agreed that a port key would probably be the easiest option if they could manage to track down the local wizarding community. She was more familiar with the area than he was, so he wasn't worried about being able to find someone or not that could help them.
"Worst comes to worst, we can Muggle our way back, but I doubt we'll have to resort to that." Plus, as much as Silas liked the feeling of flying around on a broom, riding in an airplane wouldn't be his favorite way to travel back home. Not to mention it took far too long sitting there in a cramped airbus.
"Something we can worry about later when the time comes," he said, thanking the tour guide and took the next wine to taste. There was always the option of staying here for an extended period of time, but logically he knew that wouldn't be feasible. Tempting, especially on his part, but they both needed to get back before one of their friends thought they'd disappeared for good. "Cheers," he said, catching her eye and took a sip of the wine. Who knew an impromptu trip to New Zealand would be just what both of them needed right about now?
There was a part of her that didnât want to go back at all, but she was pretty sure her captain and best mate wouldnât be too keen on one of his chasers vanishing to New Zealand wine country forever. She nodded at his assessment of the travel opinions. âAnd something small from the shop.â She agreed with another nod. Alicia was completely alright with that, and she was sure they could find some witches and wizards, how hard could it be to find the Ministry of Magic down here?
âRight, we can enjoy the wine, the view, and company isnât so terrible,â she teased right before he had said cheers but smiled all the same as she took a sip herself. Worrying about how to get back to Cuaditch Town was a worry for later, besides wine this good deserved to be savored.