First Encounters { Dom }

[Deleted]

As usual Conner woke up on the wrong side of the bed, not particularly excited for the day since he assumed it would be like any other, dull and full of the same people with the same conversations. For years he tried to look at the bright side of waking up, but lately he’s wondering if there even is one and that has lead to thoughts he wasn’t too fond of. Sure, he thought of death many times but never quite saw it as an option, but giving in was one that started to look pretty good.

For a fairly long time he’s been pushed towards the Death Eaters, to join them, but he never agreed with them on everything and has managed to stay neutral for quite some time. More time than others had, that was for sure. However, putting up an act and making up excuses was getting old and he had a pretty good feeling that they were on to him, so he knew he had to make a choice soon. To give in started to seem like the best choice, it would relieve him from constant stress and so much more he honestly didn’t want in his life any longer.

He headed to Hogsmeade, not exactly rushing but taking his time to get to the Hog’s Head Pub, a shady, dirty place but perfect for people like him. People who wanted to stay low. His hood was up and his hands were tucked away in his robes’ pockets, his thoughts dwelling so he barely noticed all the students roaming about, giggling and eating candy like they haven’t had candy in years. Once past the crowd it started to get quiet again, the familiar silence filling his ears as he took a shortcut through an alley.

The alleys were places students avoided unless they wanted some sort of trouble, that and the shady places. And even though he didn’t notice much of the students on his way the chances of them being in the pub were slim, and he knew that. He quietly entered the pub, not drawing much attention to himself as he headed over to the bar, signalling the bartender for his usual as his thoughts continued to dwell.

[Dominique Keys]

Dominique's day hadn't been off to the best of starts. She knew that more often that not she brought it upon herself, but this morning had left her particularly shaken. She'd had quite a long time deal with one of the seventh years in her house that basically involved no-strings 'fun', only it wasn't very fun at all. Since he'd gone and joined the Death Eaters somewhere around Christmas he'd been...different. But she couldn't just say no to him. It was like she didn't have much choice in the matter. At first it was her convincing herself she couldn't say no because she had a reputation to uphold, but now it was him. Now, he wouldn't take no for an answer, and she was left with very little choice. 

She didn't like to think about it in that way though, because it made it sound like... you know, and it... it wasn't. She didn't like it but it wasn't like she... Urgh! It was too much to think about. Point was, the morning hadn't been a particularly good one so far, so escaping into Hogsmeade was exactly what she needed. One she was there she headed straight for the Hogshead, not wanting to face people and much preferring the idea of being somewhere she could be alone. Yet... she didn't want to be alone. She did, but she didn't. She didn't want to be with anyone from the school, yet she wanted company. A stranger... Maybe if she met a stranger...

When she got in there she spotted a guy by the bar, and he was one of the only people who was standing up. Most people sat at the tables looking lifeless and just, well, just what you'd expect of people in this place. She headed over to the bar and appeared next to the guy that was already there, not saying anything, just... standing there. She didn't know what to say.

[Deleted]

It was quiet inside the pub, the only noise were whispers from the corner table, glasses and bottles sliding on table surfaces and a cough added into the mix every now and then. ’Not surprising’ he thought, at this time of the day it always seemed to be like that, at least when he was here. Conner didn’t come here a lot, he preferred places with a little more life, but he knew who’d be at those places just like he knew where they wouldn’t.

As he waited for his drink he turned around, leaning against the bar as he looked out over the other customers. There were none he recognized, which was a good thing, he was in no mood for people he knew, yet he didn't want to be alone with only his thoughts in a quiet place like this. He bit his bottom lip softly, analyzing the others, searching for potential company. Most had their faces hidden, but of what he could see none looked like they wanted conversation, nor did they look like the type he would just go up to.

He turned back around as the bartender placed his drink on the counter, lowering his hood in the process as he saw no reason to keep himself hidden. Picking up the glass he brought it to his lips but lowered it almost immediately as a figure suddenly appeared next to him. The glass was now back onto the counter but his fingers were still wrapped around it as he turned to look, slightly surprised when he realized it was a woman.

It wasn't completely insane to be surprised at such a thing; women tend to avoid the place. Of course it wasn't as dangerous as other places, but lately a certain group of people has been at every shady place there is night and day. It was smart to avoid the Hogshead, so he was immediately intrigued when he saw her.

He turned his focus back on his drink to avoid staring, taking a second to figure out whether or not he should say something as he took a swallow of his drink. It was rare for him to start a conversation with a stranger, but he had a feeling she wanted him to, so he turned to her and gestured to the bar with his drink "Not going to order anything?"

[Dominique Keys]

The guy she appeared beside had his drink already but he didn't seem to be in any rush to move or sit down. She had no idea who he was, and from the piercings and tattoos that she could see from where she stood didn't make him look like the most approachable person, but right now, anything was better than the feeling of being alone that seemed to be seeping through her after the morning.

Dominique leaned on the bar but said nothing, just staring down at the counter in front of her, hoping he didn't move. She wanted company and she wanted to talk to somebody, but words seemed lost to her in that moment, and she didn't know how to approach a conversation in that moment. Thankfully, she didn't have to.

"Not going to order anything?"

She shrugged. She hadn't really been thinking about what she was going to do when she got here, but now she was here she didn't really care much for alcohol. What she wanted was company, not to get drunk, so what did she order. "I don't know..." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, turning around to lean back against the bar. She didn't like like herself today, not after that morning.

[Deleted]

As he waited for a reply he couldn't help but notice a few things about her. She seemed familiar, like he saw her before. Though that wasn't really anything since all wizards and witches has seen each other at some point in their lives, but that wasn't all that he noticed. He saw confusion? Or at least it seemed like confusion, but it wasn't exactly that, but he didn't quite know the word for what he saw, if he even saw it at all.

"I don't know..." she replied with a sigh, turning around after running her hand through her hair and that's when he noticed, really noticed, how beautiful she was. For some reason this caused him to look at the rest in the room. Again, this was a shady place, and he knew what most shady guys thought when they saw girls like her. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if people thought he was one of those shady guys. However, it was Hogsmeade and it was day, not exactly anything to really worry about and... why did he even care?

He turned to her after pushing his drink aside and leaned against the bar "This might be strange and not my business... But what are you doing here?" Strange? Try off putting and creepy. But he didn't really care what she made of the question, nor of the hushed tone in which he asked it. The last thing he wanted was attention from the wrong people.

Even though it wasn't exactly that time of the day, and he didn't see much threat, he still couldn't see who the hooded figures were and right now you could hear a needle drop in there. He wasn't looking for anything but a break from hell, which so happened to be what his life was to him right now, and rumors spreading to people like his cousin was the last thing he wanted.

[Dominique Keys]

"This might be strange and not my business... But what are you doing here?"

Next to her, Dominique saw that the guy had turned so that he was leaning against the bar the same way she was, facing into the room. A number of hooded figures entered through the door in that moment, chattering surprisingly loud considering how quiet the place was just seconds before. Luckily, none of the crowd were from the school, which became clear as they busied themselves just inside the door.

"I'm avoiding the morning." The crowd started towards the bar and Dominique pushed away from it. "And I don't want crowds." The words were just loud enough for him to hear, but not enough that the rowdy newcomers could hear her. She wasted no time in heading towards the back of the bar - to a small table in the back corner almost completely shrouded in darkness, and nowhere near any other tables or patrons. While she didn't look back, she was hoping like hell that he followed her, because she just didn't want to be alone right now.

[Deleted]

An unexpected crowd suddenly entered through the door, hooded and loud. It was an annoying change to the previous silence, but after a second he found himself pleased with the increase on noise. Talking in a place like that, with people who knows people you might know listening was never a good thing. Not even if the topic was of no importance.

"I'm avoiding the morning."

Her voice forced his eyes off the newcomers, they were nearing the bar, taking of their hoods as the chattering commenced. He tried to get a look, to see if he knows them, but none looked familiar enough to be concerned about.
Conner relaxed but an ear was still focused on the conversations too loud to miss and her, that was at least until she spoke again.

"And I don't want crowds."

He straightened, pushing away from the bar and raising an eyebrow as she walked away, heading to the back. He didn't know why, but he was fascinated, something which didn't really happen often. First, he knew he knew her, but from where was a mystery, just like everything else about her. Almost always he would turn back around, down the rest of his drink and walk out, which was what he did. However, this time instead of walking out, he walked after her, taking a seat across from her at the table. "Not a morning person, then?" he asked as casually as possible, avoiding awkwardness.

[Dominique Keys]

Dominique slipped into the tiny little booth that surrounded the rickety table. It was one of the few tables that didn't just have old wooden chairs around it, but rather an actually booth with material padding, even if said padding looked like it was filled with a centuries worth of dust and grime. Today, she really didn't care all that much about it. She sat there for a few long moments, holding her breath and hoping that he was going to join her. The more seconds passed though, the more she doubted he was going to, but she wasn't about to turn and look back.

"Not a morning person, then?"

He had followed. It was hard for her not to show the sense of relief she felt at knowing he hadn't vanished, and knowing she wasn't alone. Usually she did like to be alone, but this hyst really wasn't one of those days. "On the contrary, I am. But this particular morning is ruined." Damnit she hated that stupid 7th year... He certainly knowed how to kill her entire day.

[Deleted]

As soon as the question was asked he couldn't help but to look at where she lead him. The back of the pub and in the darkest corner, which he liked, but the dirty, dust covered booth was a bit of a turnoff. It didn't bother him as much as it probably should have, sure he grew up with a mother who made sure everything was clean and neat, a father that wouldn't even come to a place like that, but he liked it. Well, sometimes.

This morning was one of those times, though he wasn't so sure if he was still going to think that after a while. After resisting the urge to wipe the part of the table in front of him with his sleeve he reached to place his palm on the surface, but retreated almost immediately with a bit of a disgusted look.

"You're a morning person? I found that almost impossible to believe. Most everyone I know hate mornings, me included." he replied with a sort-of-small-smile, trying to shove previous thoughts away. However the smile, no matter how visible it was, faded once he had to decide if he should or shouldn't ask what ruined her morning. Seconds went by, but it was pretty obvious he still had something on his mind. Normally he wouldn't care about sticking his nose where it didn't belong, but he felt it was the last thing she needed, and gave it a bit more thought than usual. 


"What ruined your morning?" he finally asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he made himself as comfortable as he could possibly get in that booth. He gave the question thought, but curiosity got the better of him and he wasn't sure he really cared if she wanted to answer it or not. 

[Dominique Keys]

"You're a morning person? I found that almost impossible to believe. Most everyone I know hate mornings, me included."

"Morning is a new start." She placed her hands on her the table in front of her, keeping her gaze on them. "It's the best time of all, for however long it takes until someone gets in the way." She did like morning, especially when she could wake up before the rest of her house, and she could escape outside until she had no choice but to return indoors. The longer she could be alone on a morning, the better.

"What ruined your morning?"

Dominique sighed and looked away, her gaze drifting to the loud, rowdy group that were just getting their drinks at the bar. They seemed to carefree in that moment, as if not a single thing could bother them, not even the fact that they'd just walked into a bar of near deadly silence. She didn't know what to say to him, if she was honest. For some reason, she didn't want to tell him exactly why, which was strange considering it was the sort of thing she usually strove for because it upheld the reputation she wanted it to... "Just... someone." In a way, she did want to talk about it, but... "Things are just... one sided - I mean, it's not that... forget it."

[Deleted]

"Morning is a new start." she began and he unknowingly raised an eyebrow in doubt "It's the best time of all, for however long it takes until someone gets in the way." and there it was; life. He relaxed and nodded, staring at the table in thought.

Every morning seemed like a curse instead of a blessing. He would sometimes lie in bed for hours even after he woke up, hoping it will all go away. There was a point in his life where he would think of the morning as a new start, but every morning turned out the same or worse than the previous and he gave up on thinking like that. He figured she would too, one day.

"Just... someone. Things are just... one sided - I mean, it's not that... forget it."

Boy trouble? Well, he didn't expect this. He looked at her in question, his thoughts racing back to the questions 'who is she' and 'where do I know her from', and he sort of figured by her words that she's a student at Hogwarts. His eyes looked away and to the crowd "Uhm, well..." he blinked a few times as he tried to think of what to say.

Obviously something was wrong, but when he first saw her the last thing he expected was her to talk about her relationship problems. He barely knew her, and he wasn't an expect in these sort of things. "I'm not sure what's wrong or..." he looked at her, a bit stuck "Did he hurt you or something?" this was odd and you could hear discomfort in his voice. The last thing he expected was to get into a 'girl talk' with a love struck student who's boyfriend doesn't love her back. Little did he know he had the wrong impression.

[Dominique Keys]

Why did she bother to say anything at all? Why part of her thought that trying to put that morning into words would be a good thing? It was a terrible mistake, and she really should have just left it and said she was fine. Only, she wasn't fine. But she also wasn't good at putting her feelings into words. She's spent so many years keeping her emotions to herself and putting up a cold front that now she felt that she'd lost the ability to talk about it completely.

"I'm not sure what's wrong or... Did he hurt you or something?"

Dominique sighed and shook her head. "Forget it. It's nothing. I shouldn't even give a toss. It's just... a thing." She was making such an idiot out of herself and she hated that fact. She hated it so much that she pushed to her feet, annoyed with herself with sounding so pathetic. "Just forget I said anything. It's stupid." Before she could be told she was pathetic she turned and tried to flee for the door, meeting the loud crowd that partly blocked her way, and she tried to shove past them, only for one guy to push her back with a 'woah, watch where you're going, sweetheart' her direction.

"Move the f*ck out of my way." She glared at him and tried to get past again, not wanting to feel like any more of a fool than she already did. She'd sounded pathetic, and while she didn't want to be completely alone right now, sounding like...whatever she'd sounded like, was worse.