Rufio Atwood likes pie. (huffliestpuff) wrote in reduxpitch, @ 2016-09-30 09:41:00 |
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Entry tags: | !thread, character: celia wood, character: rufio atwood |
WHO: Celia Wood & Rufio Atwood
WHEN: 11 AM, 30 September 2002
WHERE: Camden Lock Market
WHAT: Hanging out
RATING: TBD
STATUS: Completed in Docs
X marked the spot on the map where Rufio's mum had set up her stall. He knew that Celia couldn't really eat any of his mother's pastries, but he felt it was a good place for them to meet, in case she was hungry. Also, he liked watching the people start to walk by his mum, stop, and literally walk backwards to figure out what it was they'd smelled. He was proud of her. She was doing well, but that was no surprise.
Despite the lingering Summer heat, Rufio wore his customary layers with the sleeves of his plaid shirt rolled up for comfort. He leaned casually against a barrier, arms crossed, as he watched the people. He was keeping an eye out for Celia, careful not to miss her in the crowd. He'd called this a date on the journals, but he wasn't sure if she would actually want it to be one. So there were no expectations. They would hang out, wander the stalls. If he saw her linger on something, he would likely buy it for her if he could.
The only real motivation behind this was for Rufio to get to know Celia better. He liked her spark and her daring. She didn't know him, but she accepted ice cream from him, and she'd jumped at the opportunity to be the first to try one of his experiments. He dug that. He wanted to know her. Spotting Celia coming towards the stall, Rufio pushed away from the wall and met her. "Olá. D'you want a pastry?"
--
Celia was nervous. Again. Somehow she'd gone from no dates for months to two in a week, and with two different people. To be fair, the first one had been a setup and it hadn't really been a date - they'd decided that within the first few minutes, but still. Rufio had called this a date, and she didn't exactly know how it would go.
She dressed up accordingly, though it was eleven in the morning so it wasn't anything fancy, and went to meet him where he'd indicated on the map he'd sent. There were a few less butterflies in her stomach than had been there when she'd gone to her Lonely Hearts Club date, but at least she knew who she was meeting this time. That was helpful.
Seeing him there waiting, Celia smiled and raised her hand in a little wave, closing the distance between them easily. “Hi!” At the mention of the pastries, she glanced past him to the food there in the stall. “Oh! I don't know - they all look so good! Are you having something?”
--
She looked nice, and he felt a bit like an oaf for not having tried a little harder. Rufio made himself look at his mum's pastries. She had several Brazilian options, made from recipes she'd gotten from her grandmother. She also had British favourites. Waggling his brows at Celia, he popped around a couple of people and picked up two beijinho. "I'll be back later to help you close up," he called to his mother as he returned to Celia's side.
The cakes were little. He easily fit both of them in the palm of his hand. "I know you have a Quidditch diet," she told her, grinning. "But one little cake won't put you completely off track. And I promise to help you behave after this."
Someone pushed past him, and Rufio realized he was standing in the middle of the path, so he turned to face the way Celia was and offered her his arm. "Shall we wander?"
--
Celia knew she shouldn't have anything there, but it seemed like it was rude to say no. Plus the cakes looked really good, and once he was holding one right there in front of her, she really wanted to try it. “Okay, I’ll have one,” she agreed, grinning mischievously. “But you can't tell anyone.”
She took one of the cakes, quickly stepping out of the way when people started to move past them. A soft smile spread across her features when he offered his arm, and she brought her hand up to take it. “Sure! I've never been here before.”
--
Rufio pretended to zip his mouth and throw away the key, though he quickly grinned. "You're secret's safe with me." He was elated when she took his arm. It felt proper. He needed a top hat. "There are stalls around with healthier foods where we can get lunch later. I won't be a bad influence all day."
He walked them in one direction. It didn't really matter where they went. There were stalls of every kind, selling everything from vinyl records to books to clothes. "It's pretty great," he said. "You can get anything here." He paused. "Muggle things," he amended, so only Celia would hear him. "Make me stop if you see something you want to explore."
--
It was nice that he understood about her diet without her having to say more about it, because not everyone was so understanding. Then again, Celia wouldn't expect Rufio of all people to try and push her off of it, since he was the one who’d made Quidditch diet friendly ice cream. He was pretty much her hero for managing that.
“Everything looks so fun,” she said, taking in the stalls at a glance as they walked along. She wasn't completely at a loss when it came to muggle things, but she wasn't the most familiar either. “Have you ever been on a trampoline?”
--
Rufio watched Celia look around and tried to remember what he'd been like the first time he'd visited this market. He'd been a kid then, and everything was new and exciting. There were lots of sounds and smells--including one that made his dad cuff him round his ear for asking about too loudly.
The grin he gave her at her question was a little lopsided and goofy. Tilting his chin, he pointed to a faint scar on his jaw. "I tried to do a backflip and landed on the metal frame. Had to get six stitches." He smiled down at her. "They're still safer than pogo sticks, though, due to their size." He leaned closer to whisper conspiratorially. "More room to bounce, you know?"
As they cleared a group of tourists, Rufio spotted something wonderful. Something amazing. Something he had technically just warned her against. He stopped her just before they reached the stall and spun Celia to face him. With his hands on her shoulders, he looked at her seriously. "I want you to keep calm," he said. "Don't be alarmed, but there's something calling your name." Slowly, he spun her until she faced the pogo stick.
--
Celia’s eyes widened a little at the scar, her brow furrowing at the explanation. She'd thought they would be much safer, what with the lack of stick, but she supposed there was still a good chance to get hurt either way. “I thought they looked like fun - easier to bounce and you could get much higher than with a pogo stick.”
She stopped abruptly when he spun her around, blinking owlishly up at him. “Wh…” Celia stared up at him as he spoke, then easily let him turn her, her eyes searching for what he meant before landing on the pogo stick. “Oh!”
Grabbing his hand, she pulled him over to the stall, letting go once they were there so she could actually take in the pogo stick properly. “It's a real one!”
--
"They are," Rufio assured her. "You just have to know where your feet are and where you'll land so you don't hit the edge if you flip." He wondered if there was an indoor place in London where they could bounce to their heart's content. They'd never had a trampoline at home, and he was pretty sure he couldn't go to the Peterson's and ask to use theirs now that he was grown. He would make this happen. "I think they're making them without springs these days. Same bounce. Much safer."
Letting Celia drag him the short distance to the stall with the toy, Rufio laughed at the way the owner rolled his eyes, as if to say Youths. He raised a brow at the man. "Can we try it?" The man's voice was gruff when he spoke. "You gonna guy it?" Frowning, Rufio found the price tag. He wanted twenty pounds. "I'll give ten." The man looked like he was going to counter, but something crashed behind him, and he stuck out his hand. "Sold."
Handing over the note, he smiled triumphantly at Celia. "There's a clear spot by the grass over there."
--
It wasn't like getting hurt was too much of a deterrent, considering magic made it easier to get better, but the prospect of an even safer trampoline was best. Celia thought perhaps if they could find one of those, she might not ever want to leave. That might be a problem considering there wasn't room for any such things at her apartment.
She looked hopefully at the man when Rufio asked if they could try out the pogo stick, frowning softly when he didn't just say yes or no. Considering she hadn't ever tried one, she didn't expect to buy one, and especially not for Rufio to buy it for her, but that was what he'd done before she'd had a chance to say anything about it.
Celia picked up the pogo stick, holding it close to her as she looked over to where Rufio had indicated. “Let’s go!” She wove her way through the crowd to the clearing, carefully setting the end of the stick onto the ground and giving a few cautionary pushed against the handles to test the springiness. “Okay, so I just… stand on these sticking out bits and jump?”
--
Rufio followed her closely and easily, and was just behind her when she reached the green. The grass would be easier to land on than concrete, but he would also try to catch her if she fell. He would feel like an ass if she got hurt because of him.
Nodding, he made sure it was straight up and down. "I don't know if you've ever ridden a bike, but it's kind of like that. You want to be in motion before you're fully on." Holding the stick steady for her, he tapped one of the foot rests with his toe. "One foot up, firm grasp on the handles. With the foot that's still on the ground, you'll jump and get your other foot on the rest as you come down, jumping again."
He stepped back but didn't go too far. "I'm right here. If you start to tip, lean in the opposite direction."
--
Celia listened attentively to his directions, her brow furrowed in concentration. No, she hadn't ever ridden a bike, but she'd seen them and how they worked. That counted, right? Except it didn't really help her much when it came to what he was saying about it.
“One foot up, firm grasp on the handles,” she repeated with a nod, her hands tightening in where they were gripping the handles. Her gaze was fixed on the middle of the handlebars, like that was where the secret to being good at a pogo stick was. She set her right foot on the footrest and drew in a breath before trying what he'd said.
She tipped over almost immediately, and she quickly put down a foot to keep from falling. “Oh! That's not… it's harder than I thought.”
--
Rufio was ready to catch her, but she got her foot down before he was needed. He didn't laugh, but his grin was wide yet encouraging. "It's not easy, but at least the spring on this one is good and not rusted." He took it from her and compressed the spring a bit to test it. Even when she managed to get it to bounce, she wouldn't whack herself in the chin with it.
"Dad always said you have to keep it straight up and down and jump with conviction." He shrugged. "He also laughed his arse off the first time I tried and fell. Until he saw the blood." Rufio grinned sheepishly at Celia. "I was accident prone as a kid."
He held the stick out to her, deciding not to actually give it a shot. Chances were he'd make a huge fool of himself since he hadn't played with one of these for years. "Wanna try again?"
--
“Jump with conviction,” Celia repeated, taking the stick from him and looking at it as though studying it would help. She was determined to do it, because one didn't just not when they were presented with a real life pogo stick. Besides, if she got good at it, she would show her siblings, because - pogo stick!
She put her foot on the rest and held the handles as she had before, a little more steady from the get go since she’d experienced that part already, and managed to get a few good bounces in before everything started to go sideways and she stumbled a few steps to keep her balance, giggling.
--
When she managed not one but several bounces, Rufio cheered, his fists thrown in the air. He didn't even care that it made people turn and stare. "Well done," he crowed, hugging her in celebration. He didn't let the embrace linger. Just because he was a hugger, it didn't mean others were, and he probably should have asked first. So it was a short hug. "You'll be an expert pogo-er in no time," he said, grinning as he stepped back.
"Just don't hurt yourself. Your team and your brothers will probably kill me if you get hurt because of this." He probably wouldn't forgive himself if she got hurt, either, but he kept that to himself. "Celia Wood, you have just pogoed. What are you gonna do next?"
--
Celia laughed a little more at his exclamation, unable to return the hug because she was still holding onto the stick - but she would have if she wasn't. She hugged the pogo stick to her chest as she beamed, glad that she'd managed to do it at least once without some kind of disaster happening.
“My brothers wouldn't hurt you,” she said, shaking her head. “They're the nice ones.” She figured if she did manage to hurt herself, at least she had her Mediwitch training. “Now that I’ve pogoed, I soon hope to trampoline! But that will be another day.” She grinned at him before holding out the pogo stick. “Are you going to pogo?”
--
Rufio lifted his chin and looked down at her, trying not to grin through his fake skepticism. "Deus, they must be saints if they're the nice ones." He eyed Celia. "I would have pegged you as the nice one, or are looks deceiving?" He didn't really think there was a mean bone in her body, but he also didn't know her that well yet.
His assessing look was broken by a grin and he took the offered pogo stick. "Yeah, okay. I warn you, it's been half my life since I last did this. So only cackle a little bit when I land on my arse. Or my face." Taking a deep breath, Rufio got into position, and jumped. It was kind of like riding a bike in that he managed a couple of hops before losing control. He weighed more than Celia, so he was able to compress the spring more. That meant he went higher. When he came down the second time, he forgot to lean away from the tilt and just barely managed to get his feet under him before gravity could have its way with him.
Chuckling, he handed the stick back to Celia. "You should take this before I hurt myself."
--
“Well I am nice,” Celia said, not wanting to say she wasn't because she certainly was. “But I’m pretty sure I’m the scariest one.” She nibbled at the inside of her lip in thought. “Only when it comes to my siblings. Or Quidditch. Though… different kinds of scary, I think. I'm just really intense when it's Quidditch.”
She took a step back to give him room to pogo, watching him carefully in case there was some special technique he had that she could pick up on. When he got a couple bounces in she clapped, beaming at him when he was done - and all without falling down or getting hurt. “Good job!”
Taking the pogo stick, she held it carefully and gave a thoughtful hum. “It might take a bit, but I think I could get the hang of it.”
--
He nodded, wearing his thinking/listening face. "Mhmm, mhmm. So what you're telling me is that I should never anger you. I won't like it when you're angry." He new the Incredible Hulk reference would be lost on Celia, but he made it anyway. With a shrug and a grin, he continued. "You're passionate about Quidditch. Which is good. Passion is important. As a Latino, I know about passion. And when it comes to family." He sighed and thought about his twin, nephew, and parents. "I don't think there isn't anything I wouldn't do for mine. So it's not scary. It's protective and admirable."
Rufio beamed at Celia. "Practice makes perfect and everything, yeah? I wager in a week or two, you'll be pogoing all over. It will be your new mode of transportation. And when you go past people, they'll wonder, 'Who's that girl? She's interesting. She's pogoing.' Everyone will live in awe of you."
He gave his companion and her pogo stick a measuring look. "You need a way to carry that so your hands are free." It wasn't heavy, but it would quickly get in the way. "I bet we could make a harness for it." He tilted his head towards the stalls again. "Wanna see what we can find? Then maybe get some lunch?"
--
Celia laughed lightly. “Right, don't make me angry. Though I don't think my anger lasts… long. Burns up fast, I think. Or maybe I get too overwhelmed by it? I don't know, the last time I was mad at someone I just started crying when I wanted to yell at them.” She scrunched her nose. “I did tell Lottie’s boyfriend to watch it, though. So hopefully he doesn't do anything to make me mad.”
She looked down at the pogo stick in her hands. “Can you imagine? Pogoing all over the place! It could be the new thing - we’d be trend setters!”
A way to carry it sounded perfect, and Celia glanced around where they were standing. “I bet if we found a few belts or something we could make a harness. That would be easy! Maybe some colorful ones, so it's pretty. And then lunch,” she agreed with a nod.
--
"Don't ever cry around me," Rufio said, looking concerned. "I won't know what to do, so I'll hug you till it's awkward and tell very bad jokes until you stop." He hated seeing women in tears. It made him want to fix things that he likely couldn't fix. "I told Rosa's boyfriend the same thing. I would hate to have to get my jokes from a different shop."
Rufio could and did imagine it. "It would be kind of amazing. I've seen people traveling by unicycle, but pogo stick? It would be new and unheard of." He grinned broadly at Celia and turned her towards the stalls. "You'd be the trendsetter. I'll be the guy who tells everyone, 'I knew her when'."
He listened to her suggestion, nodding. "That could be pretty badass." He looked around the stalls as they walked, all while keeping an eye on Celia to make sure he didn't lose her in the crowd. He spotted a display of scarves, neckties, and, just behind those, belts. Pointing them out to her, he wondered briefly if she had any Muggle money, but quickly shrugged that thought away. He had plenty, and he wasn't worried about the prices. He paid for her selections, promising to let her pay him back whenever she could.
After they had the belts, Rufio led the way to some of the more organic food stalls. There was one vegetarian cook who made things that were within Celia's diet. Food in hand, they found a place to sit. "So. Your first visit to Camden Lock. Thoughts?"
--
Celia felt bad that Rufio kept paying, but she hadn't thought about it being a muggle place. Maybe she should have, but she hadn't. She would definitely pay him back though, for everything. It was easy to make a harness for the pogostick with the belts they found, and it didn't even clash too much with what she was wearing! All in all, a successful adventure all before lunch.
Sitting down with her food, Celia smiled over at Rufio. “It’s quite nice! I didn't know what to expect, but it's fun. It's also a very nice place for your mum to have a shop! Lots of people wandering to find her out and try her food.”
She pondered for a moment over something he'd said before, her brow furrowing as she chewed over a bite. “You said something about a joke shop. What joke shop was it?”
--
"Mum had her own shop for a long time. She sold it a few years ago, but she's been missing it." He bit into his fish taco and chewed thoughtfully as he watched the people come and go. "I agree. This will be great for her. She loves people, and she likes talking to them, especially about Brazil. If she can get one Brit to try something with spice and like it, she feels accomplished." He winked to show he was mostly teasing. His mum did enjoy introducing people to new things, though.
He took a sip of his smoothie before replying. "My sister is dating Fred Weasley. He, George, and I worked together at Fortescue's until they bought their shop, and I like it better than Zonkos. But when I learned he's dating my twin, I had to lay down the law then tell him I'd be sad if he did anything to mess up me being able to visit triple dubyou." He'd be pissed if Fred did anything to hurt Rosa.
"So. You threatened your sister's boyfriend? I hope he took you seriously."
--
Celia mulled over everything he'd said, both about his mum and her shop and the Weasley his sister was dating. It made her sad that Oliver and Charlie had broken up, especially after it had taken them so long to get together, but she supposed there wasn't anything to be done but continue to love them both as she always had. “I know Fred and George,” she said with a nod, before tilting her head. “Well, through Charlie. I’ve always known Charlie, then Ginny and I played together some at school.”
She paused to take a few bites of her lunch before laughing. “If he didn't take me seriously, he'll be very sorry should he do anything wrong. I will mess him up!”
--
Rufio thought back to school. "I didn't have a Weasley in my year. You brother was. Arran. But I didn't really know the Weasleys through anything but reputation until we worked together." He finished his tacos and sat back, looking over at Celia, wondering exactly how old she was and if he was being creepy. "They're good people. So are you Woods."
"You know," he said, pushing his hair out of his face. "I believe you. What's that quote?" He had it on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't remember what it was from or how it went. "She's little but fierce." Rufio grinned. "Anyone with brains between their ears wouldn't mess with you, Celia Wood. That's plain to see."
Cracking his knuckles like he was about to start a large and important project, Rufio leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "So you've pogoed. We'll figure out how to get you on a trampoline. You need to experience Saturday morning cartoons, video game arcade, bumper cars, and roller coasters." He waggled her brows at Celia. "So when you have more time off, we should go to Thorpe Park."
"Are there any other Muggle things you want to know about? I'd be honored to show you."
--
Celia brightened a bit when he mentioned that Arran had been in his year. “Arran’s who first told me about pogo sticks!” It seemed like so long ago he'd done that, but it was definitely something that had stuck in her mind. She nodded at his proclamation that the Weasleys were good, and smiled when he said her family was too.
“Though she be but little, she is fierce,” she said, the quote more than familiar to her. “My sister made me a thing that says that that's hanging on my wall, actually! Maybe I should get a badge that says it to wear so people know what's up right away.”
Her eyes widened at his list. “What are bumper cars? Are they fun?” They sounded fun, even though she didn't know for sure. She didn't think Rufio would suggest something not fun. “I don't know any specific things but I’m always up to learn!”
--
"That's the one." He gave her a thoughtful look. "I don't know. The badge is a good idea, but I think it'll be something people have to see to believe. You don't exactly look like someone who can rip a person to shreds. I would never underestimate you. I have a sister. I know how tough women are." Rufio grinned at Celia. "But you have the innocent thing working for you."
Rufio explained what bumper cars were. He hadn't done them for a few years, but there were his favorite attraction at the amusement parks. Roller coasters were great, too, but the bumper cars were interactive. "You don't have to know how to drive to do them. And it's only dangerous if you get out of your car before they turn off the electricity."
"I would be honored if you allow me to be your Muggle world guide. You could call me Yoda." He paused, backtracking with his hands. "Do you know Yoda?"
--
Celia nodded a little. She liked the badges Evan had made for her - particularly the punch one, but that was also because it was clever and not exactly that helpful to anyone who might need an actual warning. As Rufio explained about bumper cars, she finished off her food and listened attentively, trying to picture it all in her head. She knew it might seem silly to some that she was so interested in muggle things, but she couldn't help it. They had so many fun things - like pogo sticks!
“Oh, um, no?” she replied to his question, her brow furrowing a little. “I don't know Yoda.”
--
Rufio inhaled his smoothie in his surprise, causing him to cough, but, luckily, not causing any of the fruit blend to come out of his nose. "We have to fix this. I mean, if you want to, I would like to introduce you to the universe of the Star Wars film franchise." He wasn't going to ask her if she knew what films were. Pretty much everyone these days knew, even if they'd never been to the cinema. "They're basically westerns in space, but, cinematically speaking, they were ahead of their times. Like, okay, so the puppetry does look a little dated, especially on the VHS copies I have because they are dated. And the stories follow your basic tropes of heroes, villains, and damsels that aren't really in distress." He gave Celia a measuring look. "I think you'll like Leia. She's another little but fierce person who looks like she needs saving, but, really, you shouldn't get on her bad side." He forced himself to take a drink, to stop himself from babbling and going on and on about the movies. But they were on his list of favorites, and his nerd heart liked talking about them.
In his excitement, he knew he looked a bit like a puppy: excited, hopeful. Pushing his hair out of his face, he smiled broadly at Celia. "I can lend you the videos, if you have something to play them on. If not, and you want to, I invite you over to my place when you have six hours to spare to watch them all back to back."
--
Celia’s eyes widened slightly when Rufio started going on and on, but it all sounded exciting - or maybe that was slightly due to how excited he was about it, but she didn't think that was a bad thing. She knew that was how she got sometimes, mostly about Quidditch. So she listened, taking in what he was saying so she could try and remember it for the future.
“We have a television and things,” she said proudly, because not everyone did after all. “But it would probably be better to watch them with you, because I’d understand them better that way, I think. So we’ll have to find a day when we both have six hours free at the same time! If that's okay, I mean.”
--
Without knowing it, Celia was completely right. He was a good person to watch new things with because he didn't mind pausing things to answer questions. He didn't understand some of the guys at the comic shops he frequented who were all exclusive with their knowledge. Rufio preferred to spread the love and introduce people to new things. "Yeah. That's okay with me," he replied, grinning. "I won't know my work schedule until next week, but we can figure out when later."
He'd finished his food, and she looked about done. Standing, Rufio brushed his hands on the seat of his pants before offering her one to help her stand. "Ready to wander some more?"
--
With a smile, Celia took his hand and got up to her feet, brushing off her dress before getting her pogo stick harness fastened securely around her. It was much easier to wander around with it that way, and they certainly had a lot more ground to cover if they wanted to see even half of what was there.
“Let’s go!”