bill weasley (primus) wrote in reduxpitch, @ 2016-08-08 19:24:00 |
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Entry tags: | !thread, character: bill weasley, character: fleur delacour, location: godric's hollow |
who: bill weasley & fleur delacour
where: #36 godric's hollow
when: 8 august, evening
what: dessert and an invitation
rating: tbd, probably c for cute
status: complete
It had been a late day at work, and Bill had only managed to grab some food in breaks away from his desk. Thankfully it had been enough to keep him from being hungry, since it was too late for dinner, but that also meant he hadn’t had the normal opportunity to have dinner with Fleur - his usual evening plan. Still, he felt like he should go over even without dinner in hand, especially after the owls from his sister. He took the time to change into more comfortable clothes than what he’d been wearing all day at work, but then made his way over next door with a bottle of wine and a bag containing dessert. Knocking on the door felt silly, but he was aware Fleur wasn’t the only one who lived there so he didn’t like to simply barge in, so he knocked and waited on the doorstep. -- Fleur was used to her summers being warmer than this, but there was a quiet charm about the English summer. It was cool and fragrant and seemed to vibrate with magic. Fleur was taking advantage of this still evening to enjoy her back patio with a thick novel and wine of her own. She was curled in a wooden chair when she heard the knock. She waited a moment, listening for the sounds of her sister going to answer, but hearing nothing, she rose and went to the door. Her curious expression blossomed into one of delight when she spied Bill on the other side. “Ah,” she said brightly, “there you are.” She stepped back to beckon him inside and then, after a not-so-brief kiss of greeting, she took his hand to lead him out to the back. -- An easy smile spread across Bill’s features when he saw Fleur, and even more when she greeted him. Stepping inside and greeting her more properly with a kiss made him feel like the stress of the day melted right off him, and as if that hadn't done the job, settling out on the back patio with her would have done the trick. “I brought dessert,” he said, holding up the bag before setting it on the table. “Unless you don't want cake, in which case I don't know what to tell you.” -- Fleur gave Bill an incredulous look as she conjured a second wine glass. “In what strange, twisted universe would I not want cake?” She could not keep the expression and soon she was beaming at Bill as she poured the remainder of her bottle of wine into the new glass. Yes, he had brought a bottle, but hers was already open and there was not much left. Might as well. “I’m glad you came,” she said, dropping into her seat and picking up her own glass. “It was entirely too quiet out here by myself.” -- “Well I don't know, which is why I brought it,” Bill replied with a grin, setting the bottle of wine off to the side since she already had one and pulling out the boxes holding the pieces of cake he'd picked up from a bakery. He waited for her to get settled before handing one over with a plastic fork from in the bag, then moved into his own chair and gladly took a sip of the wine she'd poured him. “Speaking of places kept from being too quiet, do you have any plans this Saturday evening?” He leaned back in the chair and tilted his head to look over at her, raising an eyebrow. “If you do, I understand.” -- Fleur set her glass down and reached for the cake, eyes going large as she examined the piece she’d been given. “Oh, you do know the fastest way to my heart,” she said with delight as she took the fork and jabbed it right into the fluffy mound. She was already tucking in when he asked her the question and so she held up a finger until she was able to speak again and then set the plate on her lap. “I have no plans,” she replied, “why?” -- Bill gladly waited for her to be able to speak, enjoying a few more sips of his wine in the meantime. “There's quite the party in the works,” he started, before pausing to rub his hand over his face. “My sister’s engaged, and her birthday is coming up, so there's an… engagement-slash-birthday party happening.” It was still a bit to wrap his head around, but he was getting there. “I'm sure it'll be loud, and crowded, and fun, though there may not be a food fight since its at home and mum might murder us all, but…” -- Well, this was quite a lot of information in a small span and Fleur was quite glad that she had nothing in her mouth on which to choke. “Engaged?” She asked, surprised. “She is… Very young, yes?” There was no judgement here, she’d known many to marry immediately after school, she just knew so very little about Bill’s only sister. “I can live without a food fight,” she replied with a playful grin, “which may be for the best, I would hate to meet your parents covered in potato. I don’t think that would give the right impression, do you?” She paused to sip her wine, studying Bill’s manner. “Are you okay with this? Your sister, I mean, not inviting me.” -- In hindsight, Bill thought perhaps he should have eased into that. He hadn't really thought much about it since he was used to the idea of Ginny being with Marcus and he'd known for a few days. And it had been in the papers - though it wasn't often the gossip column reported something accurately. “She's young, yes,” he confirmed with a nod. “Youngest in the family.” She seemed more grown up than she had a right to, sometimes, but that didn't change her age. “And honestly, covered in potato have a good impression to Ginny so who knows, maybe that's the best way to do it.” He paused, taking a bite of his cake. “I can't exactly… object? She's an adult. It's an engagement, not like they ran off and eloped. Our parents married young… Percy’s the only one of us who’s managed to so far but in fairness, the rest of us are hopeless idiots most of the time…” -- “You, at least, are a very charming idiot,” Fleur said with a wink as she reached across to gently pat the back of Bill’s hand. “And no, I don’t suppose you could tell her no, but you are allowed your opinion. But I am glad to know that she is going about things properly.” She settled back and twirled her wine glass idly in her hand. “I would love to go to the party with you, though I will definitely pass on the potato accessories. It would be nice to see more of your family.” -- “I'm glad I manage to be that at least some of the time,” Bill replied with a chuckle, shaking his head. “I suppose… I have to trust that she knows what she's doing, and if for some reason she doesn't, know that I'll be there for her should it fall to pieces. I don't want that to happen, and I certainly hope it doesn't. She's happy, and I can't argue with that.” He offered her a smile. “You'd look beautiful in potato, but I can't begrudge you wanting to leave it off. I'm sure it'll be a debacle, because I don't even know how many have been invited, but even if it were Weasleys alone it would be a lot. I’ll be glad for your company.” -- “Spoken like a true elder sibling,” Fleur replied with a smile and a slight raising of her glass. “It is difficult watching those so much younger than you making their way into adulthood. There are times when I feel I will always think of my sister as a child, no matter how independent or strong she becomes.” She laughed at a brief mental picture of herself being introduced to Bill’s parents with bits of potato in her hair. “It gets to be very crusty and difficult to get off,” she said with a shrug, as though this were the only reason she might want to avoid being covered in it. “And I think debacle may be a strong word, yes? This is a gathering of family coming together to celebrate, where will there be failure?” -- “I have a lot of practice,” Bill said wryly, mirroring her toast before taking another sip of his wine. That was his approach with all his siblings, after all. He had to trust they knew what they were doing but at the same time be ready to catch them if they fell. And be the voice of reason. “And I suppose debacle might not be the right word, but I'm also not sure how it will go,” he mused. “Ginny said it’s just Marcus’ siblings coming for his side of the family, but there will be friends… and who knows who all that will bring. It's bound to be interesting, at least.” -- “Well,” Fleur said, “I am looking forward to this. I do love a chance to get to know your family.” She tilted back her glass and drained the remainder of her wine before settling in to finish off the cake. It was excellent cake and excellent company. An excellent evening. “How many people do you think will be there?” A pause as she considered the sheer numbers of family members and significant others and potential friends. “...Is the venue going to be big enough?” -- “I'm glad to hear it, otherwise you'd be in for a bad time,” Bill replied teasingly, setting his empty plate off to the side. It made him happy that she was so at ease around his large and potentially overwhelming family. Then again, she'd survived the twins’ birthday party. “I'm sure it'll be some ridiculous amount,” he added after a moment. “Even if it was just siblings and plus ones that would put us near twenty, but then add in friends… it's at mum and dad’s house, so I'm assuming it'll be in the backyard. It's fairly spacious.” -- “Outside, I think, would be preferred with that many,” Fleur replied, though she worried a bit about the weather cooperating. This was a much colder and wetter country than she was used to, and she wasn’t sure she trusted the sky to remain clear long enough for that many people to enjoy themselves. She set her finished plate aside and reached for the wine Bill had brought. She opened it with a tap of her wand and poured some into her glass. Settling back with this, she took a moment to swirl the liquid. “Well. I think this will be a marvelous time. I cannot wait.” |