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Tweak says, "Wannagoballwime?"

Gwenog Jones, Beater Wales (gwenjonesy) wrote in afreshrpg,
@ 2012-01-30 22:18:00

Entry tags:

character: gwenog jones, character: oliver wood, time: 1998-01

WHO: Gwen and Oliver
WHEN: Monday, late evening
WHERE: Esmeralda's Cafe, Holyhead, Wales
WHAT: A chance encounter.
RATING: We'll see.
STATUS: In-progress.

Nearly every night after practice, Gwen stopped in at Esmeralda's for a cup of chamomile tea before heading to her flat. The cafe was a hole-in-the-wall wizarding place, catering to those magical folk who were brought into Holyhead for various reasons, usually because of the Harpies. Gwen just loved the atmosphere of the tiny cafe, and she loved Esmeralda. There was loads of Harpies photos and paraphernalia all over the small space. Gwen felt right at home.

She paid for her overly large cup of tea and took it to the table by the window, where she liked to sit even when it was dark and dreary outside, like it was the night. With both hands wrapped around the cup, she lifted it to her face and breathed in deeply.

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keep_wood
2012-01-31 03:45 am UTC (link)

James had been helpful, even if not probably in the way he had intended. Oliver wanted a pep talk in how to woo Gwenog, and while James was supportive, he seemed to indicate the Oliver ought to back off a bit. And Oliver was definitely taking that to heart. Or, taking it under advisement at least. He couldn't give up going after her, though, and he couldn't really think about toning anything down in FACT, but he COULD do it in appearance.

So, that day he headed to Holyhead, and after some inquiries, he found out the common haunt for Harpies players and hoped he would find her there. Spotting her at a table with an overlarge cup, Oliver smiled and ordered his own tea, keeping his eye on her the whole time. Tea in hand, he casually made her way over, making sure she didn't spot him. "Well, well, Gwenog Jones. Fancy seeing you here."

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gwenjonesy
2012-01-31 03:49 am UTC (link)

Gwen looked up at the sound of her name, ready with a smile, but it immediately turned into a frown when she recognized the voice. "I'm fairly certain that you don't frequent Holyhead, Wood," she said, sitting back in her seat and arching an eyebrow at him. "In fact, you don't even frequent Wales."

Was he seriously stalking her? Gwen wondered. "You know, sometimes a no actually means no."

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keep_wood
2012-01-31 04:08 am UTC (link)

Oliver's smile faltered for only a moment before he casually pulled out the chair across from her and sat down. "I was in town visiting friends," he said truthfully. His best friend DID work for the Harpies this year and he did plan on dinner with her later, but of course, that wasn't his design in being in this particular cafe.

"You may know her, Angelina Johnson? I am meant to have dinner with her."

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	gwenjonesy 2012-02-01 12:12 am UTC (link)
	"You're having dinner with Ang," Gwen echoed. "Uh huh. Am I supposed to believe that?" She wasn't intentionally trying to sound like she was completely sure he was really there to find her, but really, with the amount of attention he liked to lavish on her, it seemed very unlikely that this little meeting was, in fact, a coincidence. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

keep_wood
2012-02-01 12:30 am UTC (link)

Oliver gave her a withering look. "Of course I have dinner plans with her. I just popped in for a cuppa before meeting her, and I understand that it's not unknown for Harpies to come here. I don't see her, but I did see you, I thought I might be friendly," he said with a casual shrug.

"You know, I am a nice bloke, and am capable of normal speech, if you can risk it."

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	gwenjonesy 2012-02-01 02:40 am UTC (link)
	"I imagine that it's more your risk than mine, to try talking to me like a normal person. Considering that you've never done anything normal around me before, have you?" Gwen cocked her head to the side and shook her head a bit. "Look, you might be a nice bloke to other girls, but to me you're completely mental." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

keep_wood
2012-02-01 02:45 am UTC (link)

He set his mug down and crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair to give her a considering look. "If you're willing, I could manage to risk it. I wouldn't mind attempting, at the least." He picked back up his cup and took a long sip, thinking. "You know, do you think, perhaps, we could ignore for a moment that I've enjoyed flirting with you to painful failure for the last couple years and instead pretend we're two adults who are in the same profession and could enjoy a spot of tea together of an evening?"

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gwenjonesy
2012-02-01 03:05 am UTC (link)

"Why?" Gwen asked, challengingly. "So you can go back and tell all your mates that you had a date with me? Because, really, I can see you spinning it so that a spot of tea together in an evening really meant something completely different."

Really, Gwen thought, if Oliver hadn't been so insistent and maddeningly annoying, she might have been tempted to go out on a date with him. She found him annoyingly attractive, if she was being honest with herself. But instead she consistently lied to herself. And reminded herself he was so much younger than her.

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keep_wood
2012-02-01 03:15 am UTC (link)

"When have I been known to lie, Jones? I'm an honest bloke, if not an especially intelligent one. Well, at least when it comes to you. So while it would be lovely to enjoy an evening with you, I DO, after all, already have dinner plans, and I think my actual date might be miffed if I lied about it in the journals. So, I think we can say you're safe from my spreading false reports about the Wizarding World about us. I think I'd prefer if you went on a date with me it were a real one, and not a fake one I tricked you into," he said, giving her a wide grin.

"How was practice, then?" he asked, looking at her over his cup.

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	gwenjonesy 2012-02-02 03:25 am UTC (link)
	She narrowed her eyes at him but nodded and let herself answer his question. She decided not to respond to his 'but I'm honest!' comment and instead focused on what she knew she could talk about with him: Quidditch. "Practice was great. It usually is, especially on game weeks. I'm sure we won't have a problem winning this go around." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

keep_wood
2012-02-02 03:38 am UTC (link)

Oliver nodded, relieved that at least they could manage a civil conversation about Quidditch. He gave her a wide grin. "I imagine not, though tell me who you're playing again? We have Falmouth this week, which should prove interesting. Nothing like a rival match to keep you on your toes. Game's already sold out, so it should be a really interesting match!"

He set his cup down, empty, and folded his arms over his chest again. "I know someone who could get tickets though, if you were interested."

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	gwenjonesy 2012-02-04 04:02 pm UTC (link)
	"The Wisps," Gwen said with a light shrug. "Really shouldn't be much of a problem at all. We're already ranked higher than them, and we've beat them before. I'm not too concerned." And even if she was concerned, she certainly wouldn't voice it to him. Gwen laughed when he blatantly asked her to go see him play Quidditch. "Thanks, but no thanks." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

keep_wood
2012-02-04 09:16 pm UTC (link)

"I'm sure you're not. You lot are posed to do quite well this year. You ought to be very proud," Oliver said giving her an appreciative smile. "I've thought of watching a Harpies game or two this season. When they don't conflict. Always good to have a handle on your competition," he said shrugging his own shoulders.

He set his cup down, and considered her. Her laugh stung more than he would like, but he shrugged it off. "Just thought you might want a heads up on the competition yourself, but I guess we think differently. But, let's not dwell on differences. I bet if we tried hard enough we could find at least two or three things we have in common," Oliver offered, eyebrows raised.

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	gwenjonesy 2012-02-06 12:12 am UTC (link)
	Gwen shook her head. "Besides Quidditch? I don't think we have much else in common, Wood. Besides the fact that we both quite like me. I mean, I like myself well enough of course, and apparently you can't help but like me. The only problem there -- and it's a big one -- is that I don't much like you back." (Reply to this) (Parent)