we were just kids when we fell in love - dan

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina. Was. A. Nervous. Wreck. Why had she agreed to go on this dinner with Daniel?  Well, who was she kidding she knew exactly why she had agreed to it.  Despite her best efforts, she wanted to see him again.  She couldn't help how she felt proud of him for being recruited for her fathers' old team; for all the years she had known him he and her brother had always boasted how they would one day they'd play Quidditch on the same team.  At least Daniel had gotten his dream.  But, if she thought about it, so did Irina.  She was a Cursebreaker after all, hadn't that been her dream for years?  Of course it had, and just one day of orientation had been perfect.  Karen was a great mentor, and Irina had the feeling they'd get along swimmingly.  Irina had had other dreams too though, and one of them had centered around the man she was currently getting ready to go out with.  Was it a date?  Irina couldn't be so presumptuous; so she would think of it as a dinner with an old friend...who she had fallen madly in love with.  No big deal.

She had changed outfits about a half dozen times, before deciding on a deep sapphire blue sleeveless dress with a bit of a plunging neckline (what, she couldn't help herself), which she paid with tan heels.  She left her hair down and paired a set of diamond earrings with her locket.  Daniels' grandmothers locket actually -- she had remembered that almost immediately after he had walked back into Quality Quidditch Supplies that day they had run into each other.  She fluffed her hair in the mirror, took a deep breath, and grabbed her purse.  She stepped outside and closed her eyes, envisioning the Leaky Cauldrons backyard.  She turned a half spin and with a POP she appeared in the back yard of the Cauldron.  Glad she got the Apparition right, she made her way to the bar and looked around.  She was fifteen minutes early; she had thought she was running late but it must have just been her nerves.  She popped up onto a barstool and asked for a glass of water.  She took a sip as she looked around, nervously waiting for Dan to appear.

@daniel

[Deleted]

Dan had kind of adopted a new staple. A black leather jacket he had acquired. He had started wearing it all the time, only removing it when in uniform or when it was too hot. It was evening, though, and so he picked it off the chair and put it on. He was wearing a maroon button up shirt, with the top few buttons undone and black jeans with regular, pretty banged up, black boots. It was a pretty normal outfit for Dan to be wearing, save the jacket which was a new thing.

He didn't look in the mirror before heading out, sure that he looked just fine... and trying really, really hard not to care. Irina wouldn't care, right? She never cared how he looked when they were childhood friends or even when they were dating. She was just Irina, and he was just Dan, and everything was cool.

It was cool.

He apparated to the Leaky, glad that he was getting more acquainted with London. He was there ten minutes early and was surprised to find that she was right there, waiting for him at the bar. He caught his breath at the site of her, standing a little ways in the door. "Well, that's just not fair," he said out loud.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina heard his voice from the front of the pub and she startled slightly, spilling some water onto the counter. She cursed lightly under her breath and began mopping it up before realizing...it was just water.  Smiling sheepishly at the bartender, she thanked him for the water and finally looked over at Dan.  And of course, her heart skipped a beat,the betrayer that it was.  He looked handsome as always and...was that leather jacket new?  She didn't remember him owning that when they were together.  It suited in very well.  Irina felt like her legs were made of jelly; why was she so nervous, it wasn't a date!  She took a few deep calming breaths, remembering what her yoga teacher had instructed earlier; she was lucky to get into that class last minute, and she was grateful for the calmness it brought her.  So with that strength, she made the walk over to Dan, and smiled.

"Hey," was all that came out of her mouth, reaching up and tucking a strand of her long black hair behind her ear.  "Jacket?" she asked, then giggled nervously.  "I mean...I like the jacket, it gives you a bit of an edge.  It suits you," she said, cursing her awkwardness.  Merlins beard Irina act NORMAL.  "So..where are we going?" she asked him, focusing on where they were going instead of necessarily the relationship of the man she was going to dinner with.

@daniel

[Deleted]

She walked over to him and he took a few steps forward, too, not wanting to make her do all the work. She said hey, and he smirked a little, his face feeling a bit warm. She asked about the jacket and he shrugged, feeling awkward himself because her emotions were clear as day. She asked where they were going, and then he gave himself the chance to answer. His hands found his jacket pockets and he shrugged again, "yeah, it's new. I like it. I think it makes me more... dangerous looking," he smirked, only half joking. "I was thinking we'd just walk until we found a place we think looks good?" he suggested, shrugging his shoulders a third time.

He laughed nervously, shaking his head and looking down at his boots for a moment, "you'd think it'd be easier to talk than this," he said softly, looking back up at her through his eyelashes, not turning his whole chin up yet. "Maybe it'd be easier if we had an igloo," pleeease, please let that break the tension and not make it worse. Please, please, please, he thought. There was no point dancing around the subject. It would be more healthy to embrace it and be able to talk openly then to be so awkward.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina chuckled at his comment.  "Oh yes, it makes you look VERY dangerous.  Wouldn't want to cross you in a dark alley," she joked right back.  Well, that wasn't entirely true, but Irina was not going to let her  mind go there.  "Sounds good to me, lead the way out," she said, mercifully happy that her own dress had pockets.  She didn't understand why designers seemed to think females didn't need pockets as much as men did.  She tucked her purse over her shoulder and put her own hands in her pockets as they left the Cauldron and took a right turn.  It was London after all, the variety of restaurants they offered were plentiful.

"So from my limited knowledge of the city there's a lot of pubs...and a lot of curry, and there seems to be a kick on Asian Fusion," she rattled off, not really knowing why as it would become pretty obvious as they walked forward.  She laughed nervously and fell into step beside him.  She knew he could feel her emotions, about how nervous she was.  What surprised her was when he brought it up.  "It should be easy, we've certainly known each other for long enough," Irina agreed, privately thinking and in many more aspects than most people.  And then...the igloo.  Irina's face turned brilliantly pink and she giggled.  Before she could control herself she snorted by accident, and threw her hands over her mouth.  "Oh my gosh," she whispered, sounding mortified.

@daniel

[Deleted]

Dan was glad that she chuckled, and maybe straightened up a little when she said that he did in fact look dangerous. The dark alley part made him chuckle a little. He nodded as she agreed to his idea and turned to leave, making sure she was still walking beside him. once they were out, he let her lead the way to the right. She knew this place better than he did, after all. She mentioned the pubs and curry and Asian Fusion. He nodded, looking around at the buildings nearby. Thunder clapped ahead but no rain was falling yet, but it still was enough for him to look over at her with concern. No jacket. Well, it wasn't raining yet... but it probably would be on their way out...

Her nerves were almost starting to irritate him, hence why he tried to say something lighthearted. She said it should be easy, since they had known each other for so long. She giggled and then snorted, feeling embarrassed and covering her mouth. He reached over with one hand and grabbed both of hers by the fingers, lowering her hands down. "Hey, don't be ashamed of a snort," then he fake coughed and said "nerd," within the cough. 

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina felt the electricity flow through her as Dan grabbed her hands. She looked at him just for a moment, as if unsure how to feel in that moment.  Then came the sarcastic Dan she had grown up with and she fake scoffed.  "Excuse me!" she exclaimed, whacking his arm with one of her hands.  "Should have bought those Keeper gloves," she muttered, then grinned cheesily at him.  She couldn't help but remember how she had accidentally slapped him with a pair of the leather Keeper gloves when they ran into each other a few days ago.  She chuckled again at the memory; it had actually broken the tension she had been expecting between them.  So she nudged him quickly so he'd be at the edge of the sidewalk before hurrying forward a few steps forward.  "Oh sorry must have lost my step for a moment," she said airlily, tossing her hair behind her shoulder.

She looked around them; London was a winding maze of cobblestone streets and fairy lights at twilight, and it was just so beautiful.  She couldn't wait to move here in a few months; she'd explore everywhere, visit every restaurant and pub, check out all the museums.  See what all the fuss was about with those royals.  "I have an idea," she proclaimed, turning around to face him.  "Why don't we look and see which pub has the weirdest name, and go in there?  I do love pub food," she suggested, feeling a little bit more relaxed.

@daniel

heres a list have fun

[Deleted]

Her energy changed drastically when he took her hands, but he didn't let it bother him. It was easier for him not to just process that and keep what he wanted and dispel the rest... it was all pretty good right now, though. She released one of her hands in order to whack him and he faux winced, laughing. His life brightened at the mention of the gloves and her cheesy smile that accompanied that. "I'll get them for you," he suggested. Then she was nudging him and moving ahead! Rude! 

He stayed behind a few steps though, gathering his wits, his hands back in his pockets. That was something he had gotten better at, taking a few seconds at a time for himself so he didn't have to do hour (or month long) detoxes. She said she had an idea, suggesting they go to the pub with the weirdest name. "You, my lovely friend, have a deal. Lead the way," he said, nodding forward and continuing to walk behind her just a little so she could lead. 

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina laughed, genuinely this time. "Alright, but only if you wrap them in bright pink paper with a purple bow on top," she instructed, trying to keep a serious face. She knew some light hazing typically happened for the newbies on the professional Quidditch teams, and she imagined if Dan showed up with a brightly colored package they wouldn't let him live it down for awhile.  "Now since we're going to a Muggle pub, we have some rules," she instructed, stopping and turning around to face him, ignoring her heart rate speeding up as he got closer.  "Quidditch will hereby be referred to as football.  I've heard its basically the same deal as Quidditch is but you know, without brooms and flying stuff," she said, waving a hand in the air.  "Cursebreaking, will be referred to as...oh what's the word.  Erm, you know what, let's go with banking.  Even though I'm pretty sure Muggle bankers don't go tomb raiding.....you know what I want to be referred to as a Tomb Raider, even if it does sound crass," she said with a laugh.  "Three...Hogwarts is referred to as...school.  And yeah, thats about it."

With a smile, she turned around and started looking out for oddly named pubs.  One thing she loved about them were their facades; they were always painted one color with big glass paned windows out front, and their names in metal lettering above them.  Inside there were always couches and chairs towards the front, with the bar near the middle and tables and booths lining the sides.  The lighting was always a bit dimmer than other restaurants, but Irina happened to like the soft glow from the candelabras attached to their ceilings.  Finally, Irina stopped in front of one and turned back to Dan, grinning widely and trying not to burst out laughing.  "Its..it's called Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese," she said, then giggled a little bit.   Out of old habit, she reached out and took his hand.  "Come on, we gotta get the best seat," she explained, not having the foggiest what the best seat actually was.  She realized what she had done, and dropped his hand.  "Oh...sorry.  Old habits die hard," she said softly.

@daniel

[Deleted]

She talked about bright pink paper and a purple bow and he rolled his eyes, "I know you're kidding but you don't know me very well if you think I won't," he challenged. She talked about rules next and he listened, nodding as he tried to remember them all. Football. Tomb raiding, which made him laugh. School. That made sense. "Or Durmstrang is my school," he added. They could still claim they had gone to different schools of course. That wouldn't change in a muggle pub.

She led the way and picked a pub. He looked up after she grinned at him, reading the sign. He chuckled a little and then suddenly stopped when her hand took his. She was urgent, excited, amused- then she was dropping his hand. At her words, Dan somehow managed to reach over almost immediately and take her hand back, "they can die harder," he said firmly, before taking the lead and pulling her inside.

He led her toward the back, where the least amount of emotions would be. Plus, he liked to be in a corner where he could see everything. It was a cozy place, and he tugged her down into a booth with him, if she would give way then he'd release her hand in order to throw an arm around her shoulders. That's right, Dan is supa casual - oh, yeah.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina didn’t know exactly what to expect when she dropped his hand, but one thing she didn’t was for him to take her hand back again. They can die harder. Irina felt her heart swell up like a balloon, and she couldn’t help but smile. She didn’t know what it meant that he wanted to hold her hand, and she didn’t know what it meant to her, but in that moment she didn’t much care. All she cared about was how nice it felt to feel the warm pressure of his hand in hers, squeezing gently as he led her to the back of the pub into a cozy booth. “Are you trying to seduce me Mr. Hoh?” she asked, raising an eyebrow before laughing a little. She didn’t want to be brazenly flirting with him, even if it did seem to feel extremely natural. Taking a cue from him, she scooted into the corner booth first, letting go of his hand rather reluctantly if she was being honest.

There was a plaque on their table; she leaned forward to read it. Her eyes lit up and she gasped at its’ inscription. “Do you know, we are sitting at the preferred table of one Charles Dickens?” she said excitedly, looking up at him with wide eyes.  “I may have not...had much of that sort of influence growing up, but my mother was a very big Dickens fan. Christmastime is not complete without a reading of A Christmas Carol,” she told him, then frowned slightly.  Now that she thought about it, that’s a pretty dark novella to read to your kids.  As she sat back, she became aware of his arm draped casually around her shoulders.  As if on instinct, she leaned in slightly, just taking in the moment as it was.  Right now, she surprisingly didn't feel nervous; she was too excited to be sitting where the late great Charles Dickens sat and penned literary masterpieces to worry about herself, which was probably a good thing for him.

Irina pulled a menu that had been placed on the table for them towards the two of them. “Hm...well it’s a pub, so they’re usually pretty famous for either their fish and chips or their pies,” she said, stroking her chin thoughtfully before laughing at how ridiculous she probably looked. She pulled her hair and let it rest on her outside shoulder. “Should we...get a pint? I dunno, it seems like the normal thing to do here, but I’ve never drank before,” she asked, looking over at him curiously.

@daniel

[Deleted]

She asked if he was trying to seduce her and he didn't answer, just laughing as he led her inside. When they were sitting, she leaned forward to read the plaque. He didn't bother because he was sure she'd tell him what was on it, and so she did. "Wow," he said with an impressed nod. That actually was pretty cool. He looked over at her, her excitement rushing through him like a warm cup of hot choco. He couldn't help but smile. But then she frowned, and her emotions shifted a little but it was short lived. 

When she leaned into his arm. he felt himself tense up. He was prepared for a slew of crazy emotions but... all he got was the excitement... which he assumed was still about Charles Dickens. "You wish you were eating with this dead guy instead of me, don't you?" he questioned, his eyebrow raising but his smirk humorous.

He looked at the menu over her shoulder, and nodded as she spoke about the food. "I haven't drank before either... I have a bad feeling about what it would do to me," he answered honestly, his brow furrowing as they looked at each other. She was so close to him right now. He shook his head a little and turned back to the menu, "maybe just water."

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina made a face at him as he teased that she’d rather be dining with Charles Dickens than him. “Well he would be rather interesting….” she pretended to ponder the idea for a few moments, then snickered. “He’s a little dead for my tastes though. Too bony,” she relented. She inhaled and finally realized juuust how close they were sitting together. Out of the corner of her eye, she did a quick scan of the man sitting next to her. He didn’t seem to be freaking out, and she had learned the signs of the empath overload very quickly when they had started dating. She was thankful in that moment for the months of yoga and meditation as she channeled her teachings to keep herself present in the moment, and not let the mind wander into overthinking and overanalyzing. That wouldn’t be good for either of them, for multiple reasons.

She felt relieved when Dan suggested just water; she knew her father had had an uncle or cousin who had been a belligerent drunk, and how he had ruined holiday dinners and family functions. He had even fallen face first into her older brothers baptism cake. Her mother didn’t like her knowing these stories, so her father had only relented when Irina had begged. She had found them funny when she was younger, but now that she was an adult she had realized just how sad it was. “I have an idea, if you’re up for it?” she suggested, turning her body to face him better. “Let’s order one steak and ale pie, and one fish and chips, and share,” she declared.

Deciding to take initiative, she scooted over him to get out of the booth to place their order at the bar. She ordered the two waters, which the bartender filled easily for her, the pie and the fish and chips, plus a little something extra. Smiling, she walked back over and set the water down in front of him, deciding to take the long way around this time. She didn’t want to come off as trying too hard after all. “He said give them fifteen minutes,” she told him as she settled back on the bench, smoothing her dress down. She took a sip of water, taking in the atmosphere around them. There were a few patrons sitting at the bar that were well into their sixties; likely regulars at the little pub, and a couple of groups sitting at the other tables who looked like they had just gotten off work. Irina felt a little weird to know that next month she’d be getting out of work around this time, perhaps popping around a pub with some coworkers. “We’re adults now,” she stated out of the blue, still amazed at that fact.

@daniel

[Deleted]

She said that eating with Dickens would be rather interesting and he grimaced at her. But then she spoke about him being dead, and bony, and he laughed too. A low chuckle, but still a laugh. "I'll take that," he said, his voice a lot lower than he meant for it to be. But, once he was turned back to the menu he felt himself being successfully distracted.

The truth was, Dan had thought about this a lot. He loved Irina, he knew that now more than ever. At the start of being back at Durmstrang he really thought about the hard parts of their relationship. The moments when she had visions and her emotions were so crazy he was sure he was going to die on the spot. When they had too much fun all at once that made him ill, too. Irina was the type of person whose emotions ran high, and that wasn't good for him. The good was so good, but the hard parts were just too hard. For a long time, months even, he was sure he'd never be able to be with her in a romantic way ever again.

But then, slowly (and while doing therapy), he started to realize that maybe it wasn't that bad to be so head over heels, sick in love with someone. It was unhealthy at times, sure, but in a world full of bad things even just a little light was beautiful. And Irina was more than a little. The more he started learning to control his abilities the more he started thinking about her. About how he could handle it now, about how he could get past the high moments to be happy. He realized that her emotions shouldn't keep them apart, especially since he loved those emotions. Every bit of them, even when they were hard to handle.

Here, in this booth, it was clear Irina had done a lot of thinking too. She had calmed, found a way to be mindful of the moment. He didn't know if she did that for him specifically, but it certainly made them an unbelievably beautiful fit. He hoped she wouldn't hide her emotions, though, or stop herself from feeling them. He was better equipped and even happy to handle them now, and she clearly was well equipped to keep him calm. However, he couldn't help but crave a moment of that high bursting energy, the kind that was so paralyzing before. He hoped that she would feel comfortable being that way around him again someday, but was glad for this calm, too.

Either way, he loved her. And he was going to get her back. If she would have him.

He worried about it being too soon, though, but a part of him didn't think 'too soon' existed for he and Irina Krum.

She said she had an idea and he was pulled out of his thoughts. He turned toward her as well, pulling his arm away just a little so he could turn more. He smiled, nodding, "that sounds perfect." Then she was scooting around him to get to the bar and he definitely looked away for a moment to catch his breath. How did she get more beautiful every second? Or rather, his perception was clearing up every second.

When she came back she set the water down and then, thankfully for his nerves, came around the other way to sit beside him. He nodded as she said how long it would be. She said they were adults now, and his response came without even a breath between their words, "do adults kiss someone just because they're selfish bastards? Because if so, I am definitely an adult," without any more warning than that he kissed her. He was selfish, he knew that. It was a horrible thing for him to do without them talking things through first. But he didn't stop himself. Couldn't. Every move she made was driving him crazy. Every word she said sounded like an invitation in his slightly obsessive mind. Plus, he'd been thinking about her constantly for the entire time he was back in school. He fully expected to get slapped and scolded for this, but he also sensed a smile would come out of it, too.

Irina Rose Krum

[Irina Rose Krum]

Irina was glad Dan had agreed to share the food, as she would have probably ended up taking several bites out of his dish either way.   This way it was agreed upon from the beginning.  The owner had mentioned he had a few board games in the back; apparently it had been a big thing a few decades ago to drink beers and play board games at pubs, but lately people had been on their cellphones - devices that kept Muggles in touch with the world.  Irina was pretty happy with the fact that not all of Muggles electronic technology had been adapted for the wizarding world.  She much preferred face to face contact with people instead of through a screen, it was more personal that way.  She had to admit, seeing Dan in his Arrows jersey the other day  without any sort of prewarning made her curse her foresight ability a little - couldn't it let her know when she was going to run into him after all? - but it had been alright in the end.  She had accidentally slapped him with a pair of gloves but it had been more funny than offensive.

She shifted in her seat a little as he spoke without a breath to spare after her last word, and her head jerked towards him as he posed a question.  Irina didn't have time to register what he had said before he had leaned forward and pressed his lips against hers.  Immediately, she felt a swelling, swooping sensation in her stomach she hadn't felt since the night of the Yule Ball.  People joked that they knew when they had met the one when they kissed them and they saw fireworks.  When Dan kissed her, it wasn't fireworks; it was explosions of light and color that reminded her of every good thing that had ever happened in her life.  She knew that giving into this feeling may not be the best idea; they had been separated for five months and have only just begun to reconnect.  But Irina didn't want to think about that, she didn't care.  Because this not only felt good, it felt right.  So she let her feelings take control and kissed him back.  The world melted away; Irina would have been able to tell if she was still at the pub, or if they had fallen into a black hole where just the two of them existed.  Either way she didn't care; the only thing that mattered right now was Daniel Hoh was kissing her, and she was kissing him and all felt right with the world.

From a distance, she heard someone clear their throat and reluctantly, she broke away from Dan, letting her hands slide from the base of his neck back to HER lap.  "Got a fish and chips, a pie and we couldn't find the board game you were after miss, but here's a checkers set," the barman told them, unable to keep a small smirk from his face.  Irina felt herself blush as she nodded her thanks; she didn't think she could speak right now, she still felt breathless, her heart racing a mile a minute.  She felt like she had just run a marathon, and had finished with a record setting time.  She felt dizzy, giddy and just...happy.  She knew that they would have to have that conversation about them, but right now there was delicious food and a game of checkers to be won.  She finally turned to face Dan.  "Red or black?" she asked, unable to keep a small smile off her face.  She snagged a french fry from the fish and chips plate and popped it into her mouth.

@daniel