True Colors (Irina)

[Deleted]

It was a few days before the third task and Anna was fighting to keep her composure. She was so excited to almost be done with the Tournament, but at the same time she was more nervous about it than she wanted to admit to anyone, even Oscar. She just wanted to be done with it and able to focus on other things, but what? She made her way down from her dorm to the common room, looking for someone or something that she could focus on. She smiled when she saw a dark-haired, familiar figure sitting on one of the couches and made her way over there. "Hey Irina! It's been a while. How are you?" she asked curiously. They'd both been so busy with classes and such that she hadn't really found time to do much with her dorm-mate.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

It had been a few days since Irina’s birthday, and yet her mind was tracked on one thing; the snowglobe her ex boyfriend Daniel had sent her. She hadn’t been able to open it herself; Andromeda Lestrange had helped her along with the wrappings, because she was afraid of what to expect inside. The snowglobe held an igloo, and every time she looked at it, Irina flashed back to that day. The snowball fight, the hot chocolate and...that moment. Irina had to hold back tears every time she got to that part. How could something so beautiful and perfect have gone so downhill just a month later? She knew it had a lot to do with Dans’ powers as an empath, and learning how to adjust living with stronger emotions around him. Irina was a stubborn witch, and she knew that her emotions would overwhelm him sometimes. She guessed that was why he had left instead of sticking around like the rest of the Durmstrang champion rejects. But...why her birthday? She hadn’t heard from him in months, and was finally out of the fog that was moping about lamenting the loss of her first true love. Her date with Iggy had gone rather well, and she was trying her hardest to set up a Potions Club meeting, if only to get to know him a little better. But now...she didn’t know what to do. She needed to talk to someone, but everyone was so busy with their lives, both schoolwork and personal, so Irina had spent a lot of time trapped inside her own head.

As if by some chance she had heard her wishes, Anna Weasley came into the common room and made a beeline to Irina. Irina smiled at her friend; out of all of them, Anna also had the Third Task coming up next week to worry about, but here she was, right when Irina needed her. “Hey Anna,” she said warmly, then shrugged at her next question. “I’m...well, I’m not sure,” she admitted, pulling the snow globe out of her bag. She had taken to carrying it around with her instead of setting it on her bedside table like a normal person, though she wasn’t entirely sure of the logic behind it. “Dan sent this to me for my birthday. First time I’ve heard from him since he left,” she told her friend softly.

@annelise

[Deleted]

The good thing was, when Irina noticed Anna approach she was smiling. At least that meant that Anna wasn't about to interrupt some important homework or deep meditation or something. While she hadn't seen her friend in ages, she also didn't want to disrupt her when she was in the middle of doing something important. When Irina said she wasn't sure, Anna looked at her curiously, not really knowing how she should respond to that. What happened? She was about to ask when Irina turned to her bag, pulling out a ... snow globe? Anna looked at it curiously. Then her eyes widened with the explanation. "Dan? Did he send a note with it?" What was that boy thinking? Anna wasn't sure what was going on, but she did know that Dan leaving was extremely hard on Irina and she didn't want this gift to take her friend back to that dark place. 

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina nodded silently, pulling out the slightly crumpled piece of paper that had accompanied the snow globe. Irina, Alles Gute zum Geburtstag, that was what the note said. “It just says happy birthday in German, nothing special, no hidden meaning or any sort of hidden messaging,” she commented as she let the piece of paper slip through her fingers. She was embarrassed to admit she had tried to see if the note had contained anything else, invisible writing from Dan explaining why he had been so silent the past few months, but there was nothing. “I thought I was over it Anna, I thought I was over it,” she said softly, setting the globe back on the table. “I signed up for that Blishwick dating service, and the day actually went really well. Iggy is a really nice guy, and he actually GOES to this school so it’s not like he’d rush off to a different school. He’s the kind of guy I should be dating…” Irina trailed off, looking at her friend pleadingly. She turned her palms so they faced the ceiling and she sighed. “But somehow, my stupid, stubborn brain and heart always go back to him,” she admitted, sounding defeated. She took a few more deep breaths, and shook her head. “Listen to me, going on about a birthday gift that in all honesty was probably just a nice gesture on his part remembering celebrating my birthday all those springs he and my brother would horse around with each other in Bulgaria. I’m probably thinking too much into it.” Irina looked up and gave her friend a small smile. “Let’s focus in on you Anna. Are you ready for the last task?” she asked her, her green eyes intently staring up at her.

@annelise

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Anna watched her friend sympathetically. In all honesty, she couldn't completely understand what Irina was going through, though she could try to imagine. If Oscar suddenly disappeared and went off, never talking to her, Anna was pretty sure she would break. She wouldn't understand what she was supposed to do or whether or not she'd done something wrong. She couldn't imagine how that would feel. She moved closer to her friend. "I'm sorry Irina. I can only imagine how hard that would be." She bit her lip for a second, trying to think before she spoke. "Just give it a bit of time. I know hearing from him, even with him just saying Happy Birthday, is pretty hard, but try to go about things normally." She gave a small smile as Irina mentioned the dating service thing. Lots of people joined in that when it started and she was proud of Irina for doing that. "Just get to know new people. Dating and being in a relationship isn't the only thing that matters. Try to make new friends and get comfortable with yourself, you know?" Really, Anna had no idea what she was saying, but she hoped it would help even just a little bit. It was hard to see her friend struggling so much. 

Then Irina changed the subject, asking about Anna. She shrugged at the question. "I don't know. I've never really felt ready for one of these tasks, but I hope it'll go alright. I'm just not exactly sure what to do to prepare. I think that's the hardest part. The waiting to see what's coming." She made a face at Irina. "Am I making any sense?"

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina smiled a little as Anna admitted she didn’t know exactly what the girl had been through. “You’re lucky, Oscar clearly just loves you so much and I hope you never lose that,” she said passionately, reaching out and taking her friends hand. “I know we were a bit..hard on him at first, but really we were looking out for you,” she said, then chuckled. “I must admit he did pass the test with flying colors,” she admitted. Her smiled faltered slightly at Anna's next statement.  “I know that dating isn’t the most important thing out there,” she added quietly. “I just...wanted to know if I could even get back out there. My relationship with Dan was so...passionate, so fierce. I was scared I’d never find that again,” she explained, shaking her head a little. “I know it’s a bit silly to think that at eighteen I’m scared of not finding that type of love again but...it was everything I could have ever wanted, more than I thought I could ever have.” The words were tumbling out of Irina’s mouth before she really understood what she was saying. She sighed and smiled wryly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to ramble,” she said sheepishly.

Rina listened as Anna explained how she was feeling for the third and final task. “Well you did brilliantly in the Second Task; as long as you keep expecting the unexpected, you should be good right?” she reasoned. From her fathers stories of his Tournament, the tasks were VERY different from each other stylistically. It would be easy for any Champion to think that they know what to expect, only to see something completely different in the end. “Have you gotten any clues?” Irina asked, remembering her father definitely had clues in between the tasks.

@annelise

[Deleted]

Anna felt a little bit guilty as Irina started talking about how much Oscar loved her. Of course, she didn't feel guilty about that- it wasn't her fault that she was in a relationship with an amazing guy, but she did feel guilty that Irina lost the last man she'd been so deeply in love with. It wasn't her fault and Anna felt bad for her friend. Still, she knew Irina didn't really want her pity right now. She might want to talk about Dan soon, but she wasn't asking Anna to feel bad for her in talking about Oscar. Anna smiled back, "I'm glad that you guys approve of him." And she was. While knowing that her friends didn't approve of Oscar would have made her sad, it wouldn't have ever changed how she felt about him. She nodded as Irina started talking about Dan and her relationship with him. "No, don't apologize. It's okay. Just ... you're going to have to give yourself time. Don't try and rush yourself Rina. It'll come," Anna wasn't exactly sure what would come her friend's way, but she was sure that things would work out for her friend somehow.

"Thanks," she said at her friend's compliment about the Second Task. She still didn't feel completely at ease about the whole thing, "I'll try to expect the unexpected. Still going to be nervous about it." She couldn't help it. Anna seemed to always find herself nervous about what was going on. Then she shook her head, "No, I don't have any clues," she said with a grimace. She wished she had a clue. 

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina chuckled. “You know me Anna, I rush into everything,” she told her, offering her friend a small smile. She listened intently as Anna grimaced over the lack of clues given for the third task. Huh, that was a bit strange; her father always talked about the fact that they had always gotten ONE clue per task, except for the first one. He had had to solve the riddle of an egg, and they had blatantly told them about the maze for the Third Task. She had been glad her father hadn’t been at the First Task - she had no idea what would have happened if he saw the maze. He probably would have gotten post-traumatic flashbacks; she had found out from Anna’s uncle that he had been Imperiused by a Death Eater during that particular task. He had never revealed that bit of information to any of his children, and Irina wasn’t exactly rushing to talk to him about it. “You and Emile are neck and neck though. Poor Elias, unless he somehow demolishes the two of you in the Third Task, there’s no way for him to win,” Irina said. She REALLY didn’t want Emile to win; though he and her sister had mercifully parted ways, he was still an arrogant little prick and him winning the Tournament would just...she’d probably throw something. “Please...just beat Emile, that’s all I ask,” she said finally, laughing.

@annelise

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Anna rolled her eyes good-naturedly at her friend's proclamation that she rushed into everything. "That's not what I meant. I just don't want you to feel like you need to rush into anything. If it feels right rushing in, of course I support you, but I don't want you pushing yourself for something you're not ready for just because." Anna hoped that made sense and that her friend wouldn't mind her insisting on it a little more. She didn't want Irina to feel pressure from anyone that she should be in a relationship or whatnot. Irina didn't say anything about them not getting any clues, so Anna just let it go, though she couldn't help but smile as Irina started going over the rankings for the tournament. Of course, Anna was fully aware that she and Emile were tied and that it was unlikely Elias would catch up with them. She sighed a little when Irina asked her to beat Emile, laughing. "I'll do my best," she promised, "But I really don't know how good that is. He's so confident and has really good luck so far, so I guess we'll just have to see." Deep inside though, Anna really did want to win. It would be fun and amazing and she really wanted to be able to feel successful, for her efforts to actually mean something. If only the task were here already, then all the blasted waiting could be over with.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina giggled at Anna’s eyeroll. “I know what you meant Anna, and I won’t,” she promised. She knew her friend just had her best intentions at heart, and she was relieved she had someone like Anna to count on. They were an interesting bunch to be sure, the Gryffindor seventh years. They all didn’t get along, all had different relationships with each other, and no two of them were similar. Yet in a way, it seemed to work out for the best, and part of Irina knew that if any of them were in any serious trouble, they’d be supportive.

Irina raised her eyebrows at Anna as she said she’d do her best. “Uh huh, nope that’s not good enough. Remember this is Emile Chevalier, proper pig of a person if there ever was one,” she reminded her, standing up from the chair. “His heads so big I’m still not entirely sure how he was able to get through the maze without brambles sticking through his hair,” she added, giggling a little. She then grew somber. “Someone like that doesn’t deserve to win; someone like you does,” she stated, as if the facts were simply the facts.

@annelise

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Anna nodded, satisfied when Irina said that she wasn't going to rush into things. She didn't feel the need to push it any further than that. Irina knew why she was worried and Anna was glad that she seemed to agree. Really all she wanted for her friend was the best, so as long as Irina was happy with whatever happened, Anna would be happy as well. 

Anna rolled her eyes when Irina started insisting that her best wasn't enough. "Yeah, yeah. Even though he's a jerk, he's a talented one. I'm definitely not going to bow down to him, but we don't even know what the task is." She laughed when Irina started talking about his big head. "Well maybe it'll get him into trouble in the next task," she suggested. Anna shrugged as Irina said that she deserved to win. Honestly, she hadn't thought about that yet. She wouldn't know what to think it she had won. "I don't know if that's true ..." she said. Anna wanted to win, but deserve felt like such a strong term.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina waved her hand impatiently. “His ego will be the end of him; people like him believe they’re the best, and the only way to knock him down a few pegs is to kick his bum in the last task,” she told her, her face dead serious. She was so tired of seeing that smirking, arrogant face everywhere, so confident and brazen that he was going to win the Tournament. Anna was the one who could put him in his place, and Irina was hoping dearly for that moment. “Hey,” she reached out and squeezed her friends shoulder. “You DO deserve to win, never forget that,” she told her honestly.

She looked down at her watch and shook her head a little. “I’m sorry Anna but I have to be on my way. I’m going to go over the Potions Club roster with Professor Constantine to pick a new Captain for the club,” she told her semi-apologetically. She also had another Occlumency lesson with him, but she kept that bit of information to herself. She still wasn’t doing very well at it, and she didn’t want to share her failures. “Go and get some sleep Anna,” she suggested gently, and with a final smile and wave she crawled out through the portrait hole to head down to the dungeons, where Professor Constantine was waiting.

END IRINA

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Anna couldn't help but smile as Irina explained that Emile would lose because of his ego and that the best thing to do would be to beat him in the last task. She could tell how serious her friend was and wondered what Emile did to make her so against him, but now didn't really seem like the best time to ask. Then Irina told her that she did deserve to win and Anna met her eyes, smiling. "Thanks Irina. I'll do my best to remember,"  she answered, hoping that her friend was right. Anna wanted to do well, and winning would be amazing. 

Then Irina said she had to leave because she had a meeting with Professor Constantine. "It's no problem. Have fun," Anna told her as she started to move away slowly. She nodded when Irina told her she should get some sleep. "I will." Sleep actually sounded really good right now. Anna just wanted to reset and relax. So that was what she was going to do.

Irina Rose Krum