Fletcher Bowman (kingfletcher) wrote in wingardiumrpg, @ 2011-01-13 17:03:00 |
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Entry tags: | anna bobbin, fletcher bowman |
13 August 1975
In spite of himself, Fletcher was fidgeting. He wasn't even sure why he was suddenly fidgeting over a date, except that he'd never actually been on a proper date, and especially not one where he thought to bring the girl a rose. But here he was, rose in hand, waiting for Anna Bobbin at what was easily the nicest restaurant he'd ever taken a girl to. Or met a girl at, as was the case tonight.
Anna was regretting her agreeing to a date with Fletcher, but Francis was off in South America with Meredith, doing who-knew-what, and so she'd agreed. She fixed her skirt, ensuring that she looked passable - he'd picked a ridiculously pricey restaurant - and stepped inside, nearly running into him right inside the doors. "... Fletcher."
He was glad he'd taken the step back a few seconds before. "Anna," he said with a charming smile, handing the rose to her. "You look nice," he said. An understatement as far as he was concerned, but he didn't want to overdo it.
She took the rose and just held it, startled. "... thanks," she murmured, belatedly. "For the flower, I mean." Oh god, this was bad. Another pause. "And for saying I look nice, too."
He took a deep breath. "Yeah. No problem," he replied, wondering if he'd gone ahead and done too much already. After an awkward pause, he said, "Because you do-- not just now, I mean. Most days."
Too much. "Is our table ready, do you know?" She tried to smile, to soften her words.
In his head, Fletcher was banging his head against a wall for his sudden inability to be smooth. "Yeah. Probably," he said. He wasn't all that sure. "I'll check," he said, and went to do just that.
Anna tapped her foot and glanced at her wristwatch, antsy and anxious and getting worked up. "So?" she asked, upon his return. "... long day at work, I just want to sit," she explained.
Just as he was about to tell her it would be a few more minutes, the host came up behind him and announced that he'd bring them to their seats. "…Looks as though you're in luck, then," he said, raising an eyebrow at the host.
She smiled and followed the hostess, seating herself in a hurry and trying to settle in. "You picked a lovely place," she told Fletcher, looking around. "Really."
"Thanks," Fletcher said, sitting down after she did. "I was hoping you'd like it," he said. He'd only ever been inside it once, for his mother's birthday a couple of years ago, but remembered it was rather fancy and had the best cake he'd ever tasted. "I've, ah, heard it's good."
"You've never been here before?"
"Yeah, once, I guess. A few years ago," he admitted. "It was good then, at least."
"Who'd you take?" Someone easy.
"My mum," he told her.
"Oh." Oops. "Well. I'm sure she loved it, it's ..." She trailed off and looked around again. "Thank you for bringing me here."
I'm surprised you came. "Yeah, thanks for coming with me," he returned.
Anna smiled faintly. "Sure." She toyed with the edge of the menu. "So, um."
"Yeah." He paused. "You said you had a long day, I hope it wasn't that bad."
"Oh." This was just getting bizarre. "Well, during the summer, my sister helps keep the shop. So it was us."
Fletcher had met Anna's sister a few times before. But he had to say he was surprised that she would help-- Bracer wouldn't sit still long enough. "At least it's nearly September."
"Well, it'll be weird not going back to school with her, and she's not awful at the shop, but I have to pick up after her somewhat. You have a younger brother, you should understand."
"You would have to close the shop to pick up after my younger brother," Fletcher said. "About every five minutes or so. It sounds like she's a bit easier to handle."
"Well, he never made much of a fuss at school," Anna pointed out. "We never heard, at least."
"It's more a matter of curiosity than causing a lot of noise," he added.
"Is he a Ravenclaw, then?" She honestly didn't remember.
"Surprisingly, no. Hufflepuff," he told her.
"Really? So with Dorothy - Eve, sorry. With Eve."
"Yeah, I suppose?" he said quizzically.
"Interesting." Anna tapped her chin. "Just surprising, and all, you know. I guess they aren't friends."
"Or just haven't thought to mention it. I can bring him by sometime and we'll find out?"
"We'll see," she decided, immediately guarded. "I can just ask. No need to come out of your way."
"It's not," he said nonchalantly. "I'm nearing the end of my store of Pepperup potions." And Bracer never says no to the promise of ice cream no matter the detours.
"And you couldn't get some from the Ministry?"
"The quality isn't the greatest," Fletcher sighed.
"Right." She shrugged. "Well, you could likely pop in this weekend." When she wasn't working. "Not too busy."
"No, not this weekend. Auror training doesn't exactly take weekends off. Tuesdays, however…" he trailed off, joking.
Days she always worked. "Right, well. Whenever's good for you, when we're open, all of that." She eyed her waterglass and took a drink. "So. Uh."
He honestly just wanted to see her again. "Yeah. Have you been doing anything else aside from working?" he asked, interested.
Anna could feel her cheeks prickle just slightly, and she hoped it didn't show. "Oh, no, not really. I have to work all of the time to afford my flat, so. I work every day, I have the evenings off, that sort of thing. Kept an eye on Do - Eve all summer. You must be the same," she said suddenly, changing tracks. "I mean, Auror training."
He nodded. "That takes up about 90 per cent of my time, saving the other ten for sleep. And taking you out like this." He smiled. "They say it gets worse."
Oh, wow, the guilt. "Well, I guess you shouldn't have taken me out, it sounds like you have better things you could be doing."
Fletcher grinned. "Maybe, but nothing I'd want to be doing. I'll sleep when I'm dead, that's how it goes, yeah?" He'd heard that a lot in the recent couple of months.
"Well, that's ... morbid?" Anna shifted in her seat. "Are you sure there's nothing else you'd rather do? I'd understand," she added in a rush.
Fletcher shook his head. "Nothing at all," he assured her.
Not the answer she wanted. "Because, you know, all I hear is how busy you lot are in the MLE. I wouldn't want to be taking you away from anything." Or anyone.
He raised an eyebrow. He wasn't exactly sure how he should take what she seemed to be insisting. "Can I ask you something?" he started, leaning back in his chair. "Why'd you say yes?"
Oh good lord. Anna took her time taking a drink of her water, and then pushing her hair back over her shoulder. "You asked so many times," she started, and then stopped, and then restarted. "I thought it was the polite thing to do, to say yes. Give it a try."
He nodded slowly, and then smiled at her. "It must not be going very well for you."
"What?"
"The way you keep saying that I should have better things to do. Either you didn't believe me when I kept asking you, or you're not actually all that interested."
She swallowed. "Well." There was nothing she could say, here. "I thought you were just bored."
He took a drink of his water to keep from laughing. "I'm sorry if I gave you that impression." I guess saying repeatedly that I'd rather take you out than sleep or do anything else must mean I'm bored.
"Well, it's not like I've ever been really nice to you," she said before she could rethink her words. "I mean -"
Wow. He shrugged and let out a small laugh. "No, you haven't. I guess I thought it was worth trying anyway."
"It just surprised me," she finished, trying to regain some dignity. "That you'd be interested -" for whatever reason - "when you don't even know me."
"I spent seven years in the same house as you-- I hope I know you at least a little. Although, maybe not as much as I'd like," he conceded. "But that I'm going to have to put on you, you're the one who kept rejecting me."
She felt her cheeks start to burn, just a little. "Well, I was told it was polite to say no if you weren't interested," she told him. "Would you rather I gave you false hope?"
"I'm confused. It's polite to say no if you're not interested, but it's also polite to say yes?" He shook his head. "I hope it's not too much to ask if you'd make up your mind."
Now Anna just felt like an idiot. "You know, maybe this was a bad idea from the start."
"Probably," Fletcher agreed, feeling a little annoyed. "It was probably stupid of me to assume that when you said yes, that maybe you'd warmed up to me."
"I think you're decent and just fine when you're not with your friends," she half snapped at him. "Don't get mad at me because I'm not spinning great conversation or some rubbish like that. What do you want me to talk about, the weather?"
"I-- what?" Fletcher asked, taken aback. "I'm not mad at you, you're the one who started to insinuate that I find something else to do other than take you out again."
She sighed. "What I meant was, isn't there some other girl you'd rather take out who wasn't mean to you?" And isn't sleeping with someone who you hate?
"In that case, the answer's still no. But don't think you have to be polite if you don't want to be." I'd rather you not lie.
"I told you that you're fine enough when you're not with your friends. And here ... no friends," she concluded, as if this made her point. "See?"
"I get it, I get it," Fletcher said, nodding and relaxing a little. He took a long drink of his water. "I get better, you know. Once you get to know me a little more."
"Oh." What do you say to that? "Well ... that's good. I think most people do." And, their brief tiff settled, Anna was once more without a topic of discussion. What were they supposed to talk about? She may have been mistaken but other than their year and house, she wasn't sure they had much in common.
"What do you say, then?" he asked her. "To finding out, I mean."
"Well." Another drink of her water; she hoped to order wine sooner rather than later. "I haven't left yet, so."
That isn't saying much, it's only been ten minutes. "I didn't mean--," he started, but got cut off by the waiter, and gladly let Anna order first.
After Anna placed her order, and Fletcher had placed his, she tried again. "I meant, if I haven't left yet, I'll at least stay for dinner."
He was trying hard not to take that personally. "I hope it's not pushing it to offer dessert, too," he said.
Anna could be nice. She could, and she realized that she sort of had to, particularly if she wanted to rub it in Francis's face when he returned. She had to be nice, and charming, and maybe she and Fletcher could be friends, of a sort. "We'll see," she allowed with a faint smile. "I'm choosy about desserts."
"Yeah?" he asked, smiling. "Which do you usually choose?"
This was harmless, really useless information she was volunteering. "I like cherries," she started. "So usually only if there's cherry pie."
"Good choice. I'm nearly the same-- in that would be my first choice, but I'd eat nearly anything else as well," he added with a laugh.
"Oh. Well, you might be alone for dessert, then, because I only eat cherry pie." She had been a little bit of a picky eater growing up, that much was true, and a few of the habits had carried over. "I could sit and have tea, though, I suppose."
He shook his head. "I'm not going to eat in front of you like that. If they haven't got it, well, I'm sure we can find a place that does."
Anna shrugged. "We can see, we might not even want dessert," she pointed out, carefully moving the rose he'd given her to the inside edge of the table where it was less likely to have something spilled on it. "... thank you, again," she added, gesturing to the flower. It was a nice sentiment.
A touch of color came to Fletcher's cheeks. "Yeah. I-- yeah. You're welcome."
It made Anna pause, just a little, before she picked up where she left off. "Well. Why don't you tell me what you like to do when you're not being an Auror, and all, and we can start there for the evening."
"Sure. Yeah, I-- enjoy watching Quidditch," and football "matches, or listening, when I can't get to the games, which is more the case lately. And I guess I do normal things. I go 'round to the pub with my mates sometimes, listen to music, and sometimes I read. I've also been thinking of getting a puppy, but I'm not sure I've got the time to take care of one. I've always wanted one, though."
"They're a lot of work," she confirmed. "Puppies, I mean. We had two before we all went away to Hogwarts. Tiny ones, but still. We were supposed to take turns walking them but Eve usually did it without being asked."
He smiled at that; Bracer would have done the same. "Yeah, that's exactly why I probably shouldn't get one. I wish I liked cats as much, but I sneeze around them. It's terrible."
"We couldn't do a cat," she admitted. "It would get under out feet. The dog only lasted when we were little, anyway. No one's home often enough now."
He nodded. "I wonder how much maintenance a parrot would be..." he said thoughtfully, half-joking.
"Oh my god, it would never shut up!" she pointed out. "Ever."
He laughed. "I can't promise it would have a clean vocabulary, either. Although, I could teach it to cheer for Falmouth."
"Then it's guaranteed a vocabulary of bad language," she pointed out. "And if it's cheering for Falmouth ... shouldn't you get a falcon?"
He seemed to consider it. "I don't know. I doubt you can teach a falcon to cheer for anything but a dead rat."
She made a face. "Really, over dinner?"
He laughed, but put his hands up apologetically. "At least it hasn't started yet?"
Anna still made a face. "Just a tiny consolation."
"Forgive me?" he asked her, slightly relieved that he hadn't gone with his first option: a dead cat.
This was awkward. "Well. Yes, uh. Of course. You didn't know."
He nodded. "Either way, I think the falcon would cheer less and make a terrible loud screeching noise more, so he's out."
"And you're back to the parrot. What about a magpie?"
"At least I'd know where to find my watch if it ever went missing."
"You'd win in all ways. And the Magpies are a better team," she added in.
"They're good, but not from Cornwall," he pointed out.
"And that's your requirement? Really?"
He nodded solemnly. "Everything's better in Cornwall. Including Quidditch."
"We're just going to have to disagree, there. It's ... all right."
He gave her a confident smile. "You won't have been the first."
"And likely won't be the last," she pointed out. "Everyone likes where they came from the most."
"That's true. Have you ever been?" he asked her. "To Cornwall, I mean."
She hesitated before answering; he'd likely know if she was lying if he asked questions. "Just once, when I was little."
He nodded. "It likely hasn't changed much, but it's still great," he said. Maybe I can take you there one day. "What part of this glorious island did you grow up in?"
Anna guessed there were things they didn't know. "West Midlands," she told him. "You know, big area."
"Quite," he said, nodding. "I've been to Birmingham," to see a footie match, "but not much else."
"Oh, Birmingham. Well, I'm not from there, but I go often enough. It's nice."
"For a city," he agreed. He still wasn't entirely used to big cities.
"Well, it's not exactly London or Glasgow or something," she pointed out.
"It's true; London is much larger. I'm sure if I went back now it wouldn't seem as big," he laughed. "Even though I'm still far from used to London."
"Really?" Anna shook her head. "I got my flat there, in London proper."
"Yeah, same here," Fletcher said. "About a month ago."
"And you're not used to it yet?"
He shook his head. "I've got to sleep with the bloody wireless on just to drown out the noise."
"What, really? You don't love it?" The idea blew her mind.
"Not entirely. But I'm learning to. I figure by the time I'm out of Auror training I'll be there."
"It's brilliant, there's something for everyone, always open ..." Anna trailed off. "I don't know. It's different, it's great."
He smiled at how interested she sounded. "It's definitely different. And I like it well enough in the daytime," he laughed.
"But it's most lively at night," she protested.
I know. "I can't disagree with that."
"Then it doesn't matter how you like it in the daytime, you need to try night," she reasoned. "That's all."
"What is it that you like to do at night?" he wondered. "...In London, I mean," he added, before he could be misunderstood.
Too bad he was more accurate than he knew. Anna had taken up light waitressing some nights at a ... less-than-illustrious club. "Just walk around," she came up with. "You see loads of interesting things and people."
That I don't doubt, either. "Come on," he said lightly, "you just walk around? No clubs or pubs or anything like that?" He tried not to ask his question condescendingly, especially after having just said he didn't care much for nightlife. But if he was honest, he just didn't care much for nightlife while he was trying to sleep.
"Once in awhile," she allowed, a little paranoid. "I'm not much of a partier or anything like that. That was more ... you and your friends."
He nodded. "I know, but it just sounded by the way you were talking about it... I don't know. Maybe one day you can show me what's so great about doing the walking around thing."
Anna hesitated. "Well. Let's take one night at a time, can we?"
"Yeah. I said maybe," he shrugged, taking a drink of water.
"Maybe you'll try it on your own and still hate it, after all."
He looked at her skeptically. "That doesn't sound like something I'd want to do alone." Though I could always ask someone else.
"Really? You don't people watch?" It's not like she did it often, but sometimes. When she had a bit of free time.
"Not... really?" he said uncertainly. It wasn't something he'd ever considered doing, but he couldn't say whether or not, now that he'd been asked, if he'd done it before. "At least not consciously."
"You must have, you just don't know it. Like sitting in the library and watching everyone instead of finishing your homework?"
He had a blank look for a half second. “Maybe…” Usually he just wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. “I’ve probably done that.”
"See, then? That's all I mean." Anna particularly liked to watch people coming and going; it was an escape, to imagine what they might be doing.
"Okay." He couldn't imagine doing that deliberately (and not just when his eyes were glazed over) would be that great. "Do you do that a lot?"
"A lot? Not at all. Once in awhile."
That was slightly relieving. He was sure that he just didn't get it. "Do you listen to music at all?" he asked, hoping to change the subject.
Not always by choice. "Off and on. I don't just sit and listen."
Damn. "So you don't have any favorites," he guessed.
"Well, do you?" she pressed. "Just sit and listen and all that."
"Yeah. Loads, actually," he admitted. Mostly Muggle music. "It's relaxing. Or it can be, depending on what kind of music you're into. I don't sit there and listen to ...Beethoven or anything."
"So you mean you just sit and listen to ... rock 'n roll?"
"Yeah," he said cheerfully.
"Huh." Anna considered that. "Well, everyone has their own thing." It just seemed a little bizarre to her. "I wouldn't find it relaxing, but if you do, that's great."
"It's particularly good when it's too hot outside to do anything else." He thought to ask her if she'd ever been to see any films, but thought better of it.
"Cooling charms?" she suggested. "You could do plenty inside."
"Yeah, cooling charms on the inside and another charm to keep the sound from leaking out," he laughed. "Lately, though, I've been reading quite a bit instead." He had a lot of policy and technique books to study.
"Not like school, then," she cracked, unable to stop herself.
Fletcher narrowed his eyes playfully, but laughed as well. "I honestly thought I might be done with all the books."
"I think it was Professor McGonagall who said we'd never be done with books."
"I remember her saying that, but I guess I always just hoped she was scaring us."
Anna smiled faintly. "She was definitely telling the truth."
He nodded slowly. "I don't really mind it, if I'm being completely honest. But don't repeat that."
"Well." Wasn't tonight just a whole load of firsts. "That's good. Reading's important."
"Especially if it's possible that your life depends on it, but it's really an interesting read otherwise," he agreed. "Sorry-- I'm being morbid again."
"I noticed." It wasn't terribly enjoyable. "Are all of you like that?"
He thought about that for a second. "I don't know about all, but I can say it's a learned behavior." He certainly wasn't thinking that way before.
"It's barely been a handful of weeks."
"Plenty long to learn it," he sighed. "I don't mean to be."
"Well." She fiddled with her fork. "It sounds inevitable."
He nodded. "I figure it's better to laugh and make light of it." I'm not scared.
"Even though it's so serious? Really?"
"Rather than take it seriously and let it take over? Yeah."
"Mm, I guess." Anna wasn't about to give in and agree this time. "Well, it - " She broke off as their meals arrived. "Let's eat," she suggested, after a moment.
"Good idea," he agreed, tucking his napkin into his lap. He didn't particularly feel like justifying why he had to keep a light mood about his choice of career outside of the training rooms.
"Cheers," Anna mumbled before turning more of her attention to what was in front of her. It was a slight relied to have a reprieve from the somewhat-stilted conversation, though she knew it would resume again soon. Hopefully once she had collected her wits.