Tweak

InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Oh, sweet mystery of life..."

Hunter Dale (loyal_hunter) wrote in noctemrp,
@ 2012-11-07 11:31:00

Entry tags:

character: hunter dale, character: natasha romanoff, location: great hall, thread: complete

Who: Hunter and Natasha
What: Talk over the Hufflepuff table
When: Weds. Nov. 7, lunch
Where: The Great Hall
Warnings: None

Hunter couldn't believe how quickly the school year was flying by. In less than two months, they would be on Christmas break, and he could hardly wait. All that time at the Serenity Village House, just him and Fawn. Dinner with the parents would be expected, but short, and it was usually tolerable, since mother didn't agree with arguing on Christmas.

Of course, that also meant that the coursework was getting harder, which was why Hunter had his nose stuck in a book, even as he sat at the Hufflepuff table, his lunch sitting untouched in front of him.

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-12 05:43 am UTC (link)

It was a valid question, and one which Hunter had asked himself several times, in those hours before he could find sleep. He had never really found an answer for himself, so he didn't expect to find one for Natasha, in the next five minutes.

"I don't know," he replied, honestly.

"Most of the time, I just want to experience everything, to see places I haven't seen, and do things I've never imagined. It doesn't matter whether that's in a museum in New York, or a cottage in the middle of nowhere. Either way..."

Hunter looked around, making sure that no one was within ear shot.

"Either way, I would follow wherever she goes."

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ms_fortune
2012-11-13 08:30 pm UTC (link)

She nodded. She could understand that sort of feeling, but she wondered if it was for the best. "As sweet and noble as that is," she started, thinking the warning was the best thing to say now, "don't forget your own desires and dreams.

"If someone fell in love with you because you had those big aspirations, try to include them if you can. If you just blindly follow, you might lose yourself and you might become someone different."

It was definitely hard to talk while omitting her name and any instance of who that 'someone' was, but Natasha thought she was doing a pretty good job. If anything, she started to think about what she was saying. "Though I guess change is inevitable. I guess don't let your feelings blind you is what I'm saying."

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-14 03:47 pm UTC (link)

Hunter shifted uncomfortably in his seat. As much as he trusted Natasha, he wasn't used to talking about his own desires and feelings. It all felt foreign to him, especially in such a public space.

"I appreciate your concern," he said with a half smile, recognizing Natasha's words for what they were.

"You needn't worry. If I can stay strong under my father's thumb, I certainly think I can under the love of a woman."

It came out more plain than Hunter had intended, and he couldn't help but blush.

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ms_fortune
2012-11-14 06:07 pm UTC (link)

"You can, yes, but you and I have read more than enough stories to see just what one will do because of that very same love. It can drive a man to do crazy things."

She couldn't help but chuckle at his blush. She started to see why Clint liked it when he caused her to blush. There was something about rosy cheeks that was oddly appealing, especially if you were the cause of them.

She cracked a smirk and told him, "I'm glad I don't need to worry. I don't want something to happen to the first friend I made here."

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-15 05:01 pm UTC (link)

"Should I give you the same warning then? That you mustn't get lost in pleasing someone else, and forget yourself?" Hunter asked, his heart tight in his chest, as Natasha pronounced him to be a friend. He knew that she cared deeply for Clint, even if he couldn't understand why, but Hunter had no idea just how deep in she was.

"After all, it took you less than a month to make your first real friend at school, but it took me six years. I would hate to loose that."

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ms_fortune
2012-11-15 07:02 pm UTC (link)

"You won't loose that, but maybe I should be given that warning." She chuckled softly, thinking on what he said and her past. She briefly glanced down, her memories flickering in her mind. Her smirk was tight as she looked back up at him.

"Oh, it took me five years to make my first real friend back at my old school, but that didn't end well." The more she remembered of him, the more any trace of a smile or smirk disappeared. She frowned as she remembered him. "You'll only lose me if you betray me and the consequences for that are not pretty."

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-15 08:05 pm UTC (link)

Hunter immediately regreted what he as said, as the smile faded from Natasha's face. He reached across the table, taking her hand in his own, in a rare physical gesture.

"I would never do anything to betray you," he said, with a small smile that he hoped might bring hers back. Hunter gave her hand a small squeeze.

"I swear to you I woudn't."

A burst of laughter from the end of the table quickly reminded Hunter where they both were, and he pulled his hand back, his back straightening into a defensive posture.

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ms_fortune
2012-11-15 08:28 pm UTC (link)

Natasha was surprised by the sudden gesture. Her breath was caught in her throat and she couldn't help but return the small smile back to him. Even when he pulled his hand back and straightened up, her smile remained.

"I know you wouldn't. I should explain myself; Back at my old school last year, I made friends with an older student that lost his arm. He was my first friend." Older student, the son of one of the top mafioso's in Moscow, he didn't need to know that detail. "The arm was soon replaced with a magical, metal arm, and it acted like his old limb. Everyone thought he was a monster, but I was the only one who went close to him. I liked him, a lot, and I thought he liked me in return. He said I made him feel human again.

"My old school taught us... darker arts of magic. One thing led to another and we were forced to duel. I wasn't going to and I tried refusing. He... struck me down with a painful spell. I was shocked. Distraught, I struck him down and tortured him until he conceded. After that, I kept to myself. I was bitter, but I like to think that I've changed since coming here. You're one of the reasons why, so thank you." She didn't mind telling him another secret. She didn't even mind telling him there. She was sure no one was listening to them or even paid them any attention.

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-16 01:38 am UTC (link)

Hunter stayed silent, as Natasha told her story. It confirmed some of what he had suspected, that her old school had been much darker than Hogwarts, and that she hadn't always had the best experiences there, but the sharp betrayal of her friend stung and surprised him.

"That's horrible," he said softly, when she was done.

"He obviously didn't deserve your friendship, though I'm sure that's true of many people. I hope that I can prove to be deserving. I think you've changed me too, Natasha."

The room bustled around them, ignoring the Slytherin and Hufflepuff, deep in conversation.

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ms_fortune
2012-11-16 01:50 am UTC (link)

"You've been more than deserving," she told him with a smile. "I'm glad to be your friend and I'm glad I met you."

It was true. She had grown a bit softer after meeting him. And because she had met him and visited him, she was also able to meet Clint and earn her new nickname. If she hadn't talked to Hunter during the 4th of July, she knew her present school year would be vastly different.

"I think a good friendship does that - it'll change someone and help them grow. I hope we continue our friendship even after Hogwarts."

She looked at her hand, then brought her pinky out to him. "I think friends promise to stay friends through a 'pinky promise.' They shake with their pinkies, I believe. That is how it works, correct?" It was the only thing she could think of. She never heard of friendship bracelets or bff necklaces or other little things like that.

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-16 02:54 am UTC (link)

Hunter stared blankly at Natasha for a moment, trying to process exactly what it was she was suggesting. He had certainly heard of a pinky swear before, when Fawn was about ten, and had picked it up from a few of the girls living in Serenity Village. It wasn't something that he, as a sixteen year old boy, had expected to be confronted with. Then again, their whole conversation had been about what they were willing to do for friendship.

"I... yes, of course," he stumbled over his words, linking his pinky through her own.

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	ms_fortune 2012-11-16 03:13 am UTC (link)
	"Good. I've never done it before. You Americans have some of the strangest customs." She folded her hands in front of herself again. There was something about his reaction that was confusing, but she wondered if it was because she was the first to ask him to do such a thing. "Is everything okay?" she asked, tilting her head a bit. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

loyal_hunter
2012-11-16 03:20 am UTC (link)

The absurdness of it all suddenly hit Hunter, and he couldn't help but laugh softly. Somehow he had gone from discussing Nabokov and Walden, to making pinky swears over the Hufflepuff dinner table.

"It's... it's just a bit of a teenage girl thing to do," he answered honestly, trying to wipe the grin off of his face.

"It's fine, I don't mind at all, but I'm sure it would look ridiculous to anyone else. Luckily, no one seems to give a damn about anything either of us do."

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ms_fortune
2012-11-16 05:38 am UTC (link)

He was grinning and laughing? When he mentioned it was a teenage girl thing to do, she thought about it. The longer she thought about it, the quicker her cheeks turned pink. She had seen it through some media and read about it in some books. She thought she made a mistake thinking it was the norm.

"O bozhe moi! Prastee meenya pozhalosta!" She cursed in Russian under her breath, still flustered over her misunderstanding. She briefly glanced down, then back up at him. He was laughing and seemed to have the biggest grin on his face. It wasn't often he was like that, so maybe it wasn't so bad.

Glancing around the table, she saw no one really was paying them any attention. She chuckled, amused by it and the situation, and turned to him with a good-natured smile. "Everyone's wrapped up in their own little world. I apologize again. I didn't realize it was the 'teenage girl' thing to do." Her smile turned into a smirk then. "I hope you didn't forget, I am a teenage girl."

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loyal_hunter
2012-11-16 02:44 pm UTC (link)

If Hunter admitted it to himself, he did sometimes forget that Natasha was a teenage girl. Teenage girls were supposed to be scary, shallow, and not worth his time. Natasha was none of those things. Well, perhaps she was a little scary, but that was by way of sheer magical talent and her history with darker magic, not her gender.

"And you shouldn't forget that I'm not," he replied, still smiling , and gathering his books as the lunch hour neared its end.

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ms_fortune
2012-11-16 08:44 pm UTC (link)

"Are you teasing me?" She had a playful tone and a raised eyebrow with a smirk on her face. "I'm not sure I should listen to a sentence with a double negative in it," she replied, teasing back to him as well. She had her bag at her side, ready to go.

"Don't worry, with that height, that voice, and those hands, it's hard to forget you're anything but male. It's your maturity that makes it hard to remember you're a teenage boy. Keep teasing me and that'll change... or I'll just make sure you change into an otter instead of a buck." She grinned and giggled then, remembering how his face looked when she mentioned the furry creature.

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	loyal_hunter 2012-11-17 05:05 am UTC (link)
	Hunter flushed a bright pink, from tip to tail. His voice, his hands... it shook him to think that anyone would notice things like that about him, never mind that it was Natasha. "If I do finally manage it, and happen to be an otter, I'm putting the blame squarely on you," he replied, stepping away from the table. "I'll see you later on then?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

ms_fortune
2012-11-17 05:15 am UTC (link)

"Of course. Make sure you bring those papers and I'll see you later," she replied, nodding at him. She chuckled at his coloring as she stood up. With a small wave, she walked from the table and left for class.

If people were too wrapped up in their own little world, she decided that maybe she should try to sit at the Hufflepuff table again. She could sit and talk with Hunter and, with the right chance, she could slip in next to a certain archer.

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