(Untitled)

[rileymcgranahan]

Date/Time: Saturday, May 13th, about 3 PM
Location: The Lake
Open To: Professor Delame
Currently Involving: Riley
Warnings: None.

Comments

[corps_et_ame]

Michel, on the other hand, was in a rather good mood, if entirely confused. It had, in theory, all been sorted out this morning, but he knew they'd both be thinking about what it might actually mean for so much longer. He thought the best way to think this out in a calm, relaxed manner, because he was, was to get a book, a cigarette and head down to the lake. It was, after all, where he'd spent a lot of his time as a student, enthused with history.

He grabbed the nearest book, a tatty old piece literature for a change; The Overcoat by Nikolai Gogol, which wasn't nearly as boring as the title suggests. He crammed his brand new pack of cigarettes in his pocket and set off down to the lake. When he was a fair enough distance from the castle, he balanced one between his lips and lit it.

When he got down to the lake, he saw someone there he really wasn't expecting. Riley? Smoking too. He hardly knew her outside of the very random girl he often gave cigarettes too, but shouldn't. There was a pang of guilt at giving her them without care or attention, but she had asked and he really did feel so sorry for her at times. Not to mention, she really was her own woman. He just took another drag of his and said casually, "I should hope you're not smoking," Michel paused for a second, then added with a smirk, "because something's wrong." That was the definate impression he got, though. This was why he'd given her exactly what she asked anyway. He did have difficulty saying no.

[rileymcgranahan]

Riley looked up when she heard someone speaking to her. Well, if it wasn't the aforementioned generous professor. She smiled up at him. "If something's wrong because I'm smoking, then the same goes for you," she teased, finding that the easiest way to keep him from prying. They were her problems, not his, so why should she dump them on him?

Had it really been all that long since she started smoking? No, only just over a month. It was bad for her. She knew it. But it was the only thing that was really helping her deal with everything that had been going on. Sometimes she felt that, while she spent all her time trying to help everyone else through all of this, she'd spent no time on helping herself. And there was no shoulder to lean on for her.

She caught a glimpse of his book. Now that was something that always caught her attention, any sort of literature. Of course, knowing the professor, it was some sort of non fictional history book. And she couldn't quite see the title, so she couldn't judge. "What are you reading?" she asked, honestly interested. An educated conversation would surely help her forget about things.

[corps_et_ame]

He smirked and leant against the tree, taking another drag, "Or, I'm just smoking because I'm addicted." Michel wouldn't admit it was because he needed to think, or because he was avoiding another of his addictions. "You, on the other hand, are smoking nervously." It seemed rather obvious to him, as he'd spent a good proportion of his life smoking himself or watching other people smoking.

He wasn't about to press the issue anyway. He didn't want to bother her particularly. Instead he put his cigarette between his lips for a second and showed her the front of the book, mumbling whilst keeping the cigarette balanced, "The Overcoat, Gogol."

[rileymcgranahan]

She shrugged and looked out across the lake. "I've nothing to be nervous about really. I mean, one or two things yeah, but nothing out of the ordinary for a student at Hogwarts." Which...wasn't necessarily a lie, as she was sure there were several other students who were in worse shape than she was, but it wasn't the whole truth either. What was she going to tell him, that she was planning on leaving home and disappearing in the middle of these incredibly dangerous times?

The truth was that, in her father's eyes, there were only two things a woman could do with her life; fight for the Dark Lord or marry someone who does. Riley wanted neither. She couldn't possibly fight for a cause she didn't believe in. So she was avoiding it completely. True, she didn't have to disappear. She was always welcome with her aunt and uncle and her cousin Sam. But to live there would be putting them in danger. And Riley couldn't bear to do that.

"I think I've heard of that, actually. Never read it though. Isn't it the one where the bloke dies as a result of a mugging and then haunts people and steals their coats?" she asked before taking another drag. If it was so obvious that she was doing this out of nerves, she should stop. But, truth be told, she didn't want to.

[corps_et_ame]

"In that case, you've got a really odd way of smoking." He wasn't blind, he could see she had something on her mind that was troubling her a lot. He did too, but his was much more entertaining and flighty to think about than anything she had on her mind, he reckoned.

Either way, Michel figured she'd talk about it if she wanted. It wasn't his buisness to press her about.

"It's...pretty much like that. Except there's not much stealing of coats. He sort of haunts their coats. The whole thing centers around how the main character was treated like nothing until he had this coat, he died without the coat...and all those who then own the coat suffers from it." He shrugged, taking a drag off his cigarette and waving his hand vaguely, "It's all about materialism and society. Heavy reading for a Saturday morning, I know."

[rileymcgranahan]

Riley couldn't help but laugh at that. "Well, I'm sorry I don't smoke the right way." Yes, it would be nice to talk to him about this. Or anyone for that matter. But what was she supposed to say? 'I'm running away from home, I basically have no idea where I'm going to live and I'll probably end up in some sort of hostel. It seems stupid, but I'd rather die on the streets than live a lie that goes against everything I believe in. Fancy coming with?'

No, she'd keep it to herself. She had to, didn't she?

"Sounds interesting, at least," she said with a small smile. "But is anyone really like that? I mean, I have my own materialistic tendencies, but I'm not going to shun you because you're not wearing Prada." She cocked her head to the side and took another drag. "Though I wouldn't say it's all that heavy for a Saturday at all. You could be reading The Jungle or something like that."

[corps_et_ame]

Michel laughed too, after all, it was a rather silly thing to say, now he thought about it. "I'd hate to see how you smoked when you were nervous." He took a quick drag off his cigarette and leant against that tree, wondering what was really on her mind.

He laughed, "Actually, I do have some Prada shoes. But sssh. I'm a man." He shook his head at her question though, "Actually, in 19th century Russia, an overcoat, and a good quality one at that was a real status symbol in some professions. This guy was a civil servant, and he hadn't got a cat in hell's chance of a promotion or even being respected by his peers unless he had this overcoat." Ah, history. Didn't he love it? "In a society where pretty much your role in society was demonstrated by the clothes you had or the clothes you could afford, there was a lot to be said for owning a good overcoat." He shrugged at that one and took another drag off his, "Or Crime and Punishment. You have to be in a certain mood for Dostoyevesky, though."

[rileymcgranahan]

"It would be funny to watch, I'm sure." She paused for a moment. It couldn't hurt to talk about other things, just so long as she avoided the main thing that was bothering her. "Though if I'm not a nervous wreck after this past month and with NEWTs looming around the corner, I don't think I'm in danger of getting nervous anytime soon. I think you're safe." She chuckled a little, brushing it off with a shrug.

"Scandalous! Don't worry, I can keep your feminine tendencies a secret," she said with a smirk. "That just seems so odd to me. I mean, I buy my clothes at Saks, my bags from Louis Vuitton and my shoes from Gucci, but I don't expect to get ahead in the world because of that. It's just what I prefer. God I sound like a spoiled brat, saying that." She shook her head, taking another drag. She wasn't quite spoiled. She could afford these things, yes, but that didn't mean she commanded them. And if all of a sudden she had no money to spend, she could live without them. "A different time period I guess," she continued. "I've actually never read that. I'll keep picking it up and knowing I should read it, but I get distracted by something else."

[corps_et_ame]

He smirked and shook his head, "Which was exactly why I guessed you were nervous in the first place." He took a drag off his cigarette and knocked some of the ash off the end as he exhaled. "But I'll take it that your nerves are seemingly unshakable." Not that he believed that one bit, but if it was what she wanted him to believe, he'd let her think he did. If she actually did want to talk about it, she'd challenge that assertion at least.

"In my defence. The last woman I went out with had amazing taste in shoes. Thus I have Prada." Michel laughed at how ridiculous he was, "And do what you like, that's what I say. As long as you don't act like a spoiled brat, then it hardly matters what you wear." He always did have a polite nature, Michel, and tried to understand where everyone was coming from. "Never judge history by modern standards. First mistake of most people."

[rileymcgranahan]

She shrugged. "I'll live. At least it's over?" For now at least. Riley wasn't naive enough to believe this couldn't and wouldn't happen again. "Besides, I'm better off than Ed or Sam right now, at least." And that was certainly true. She pulled her knees to her chest before finishing that cigarette and putting it out. She debated on getting another, but wasn't sure if she should. "I guess I just can't believe this all actually happened. I can't believe Trick's gone. I can't believe that Darin and Bastian were kidnapped. This is all so surreal."

Her nerves won out and she lit another cigarette. "Well I suggest you find another fashionable woman, sir. Your kind of out of style right now," she said, laughing and standing up. She was only teasing, of course. "I certainly hope I don't act like a spoiled brat. Though I'm sure, if I do, that I'm nothing in comparison to the rest of my house." Riley never understood history. Yes, she knew that to have a brighter future you have to remember the mistakes of the past, but she wasn't going to be the next minister of magic, or anything. She wouldn't be making decisions for a whole country, so really all that mattered was her own personal history. And she, of course, could handle remember that. She'd lived it, after all. "That there is why I could never have your job. I'm too caught up with the here and now."

[corps_et_ame]

He finished his cigarette off and put it out against the tree. Oh, how enviromentally friendly. He had just got something out of her. Something, to be quite honest, he did expect and was surprised she wasn't more upset by this, now she'd mentioned it. "The world is fucked up, it's the way it comes. Nobody anywhere can believe it when it happens to them." Damn, now he wanted another cigarette. "To be honest, I think it'd be a sorry state for the world if people did just believe it and accept it." Michel was a lot more detatched from this than most people. He'd spent a lot of time in France, he hadn't seen the brunt of this, but he had been here for the last year, and although it hadn't really effected him, he couldn't help but be disturbed by it all.

He paused for a minute or two after she lit her next cigarette and decided to light one himself, resisting wanting to tell her that he was right about her being nervous. "Why, thank you, I'll have you know my taste is fine." He laughed, definately knowing more than she did there. "Well, the rest of your house is mad. That's true. Never compare yourself to madmen, it doesn't work too well." Michel laughed with a shrug, not expecting everyone to love or get the importance of history, "The here and now is pretty alright too, if I'm honest. But there is something to be said for living in the past without the syphillis."

[rileymcgranahan]

It wasn't so much that Riley wasn't upset. She was practically devestated at the loss of Trick. And of course she'd been worried sick about Darin, Bastian, and even more so, her cousins Sam and Ed. She loved her family more than anything and wanted desperately for them to be happy. So when anything happened to make one of them upset, she became a veritable mess as well. She just covered it better. She had to be strong. She had to be the shoulder to lean on. She couldn't just break down. They needed her. "Well, just because it happens to everyone else doesn't make it any easier," she said with a ill concealed grimace.

She took a rather long drag before laughing. "Oh please. That tie? With those shoes? Sweetheart, you need a makeover," she said, shaking her head at him. "My house. Hah. Well, at least I won't have to deal with them for much longer, right?" Riley did understand the importance of it as a whole, but she didn't understand it's importance to her. Like Potions. She laughed again at his comment. "See we have yet another difference of opinion. The here and now is horrid. I just prefer it to learning about the Plague."

[corps_et_ame]

Michel shook his head, annoyed at himself that he'd come across like he was saying that. He did catch that grimace too, and was surprised to get some kind of expression out of her. She had, from his experience, seemed like one of those people that would rather die than be honest about their emotions to you. "I never said it should make it easier. I was saying it was natural for it to be difficult."

He was relieved for the change of subject and took a drag off his newly lit cigarette, "Hey, I got dressed quite quickly this morning, so let it go." He had, too, once he realised how long he really had stayed in bed. "No, that's true. You've made it this far, I'm sure you'll make a few more weeks." He shook his head as he didn't really disagree as such, "No part of history is completely fluffy and nice. Just like life. It's good for putting the here and now in perspective, perhaps."

[rileymcgranahan]

Riley was the type of person who would rather die than admit how she felt. But sometimes...well, she was human, wasn't she? She couldn't hold it all in all the time. Of course she hated knowing that. Hated that rare occasion where she couldn't control her emotions. But enough of that. Their other conversation was...well, it was a distraction. And that was precisely what she needed.

"That is not an excuse to look like a slob, Professor," she said, sticking her nose in the air. But it was rather hard to look down on someone who was about a foot and a half taller than her. "Especially as none of them are talking to me much. That's always a plus. And those that do, well I'm well practiced at ignoring stupid comments." She shrugged and smoked a bit more. "Don't mind me. I'm just pathetic at History. Always have been. Which is strange because I'm aces at Arithmancy and one would think that History and numbers would go together.

[corps_et_ame]

He found it very curious that she left that topic of conversation so very quickly. Michel resolved that he'd be able to take the conversation back there if he thought he needed to. For now, he was enjoying the other subject of conversation.

"I do not look like a slob. Anyway, I'm excused for crawling out of bed at an unhealthy hour today." He shrugged, smiling to himself at the reasons why, "It's perfectly alright, not talking to most of your house. Sensible move, I think." He stuck his cigarette between his lips for a couple more seconds, then nearly spat it out at her next comment. "Never. Ever. Say. That. History and numbers do not go together. It's perfectly natural that you get Arithmancy and not History. If, for that matter, getting Arithmancy is ever natural."

[rileymcgranahan]

"And why is that? A gippy tummy? Not a good enough excuse, I'm afraid." Though really, Riley was perfectly happy not knowing what his excuse was. "The other houses are better anyway. I really got the short end of the stick here." She took a long drag of her cigarette and practically jumped when he spoke again. "If you say so. I always thought the two were distant cousin-in-laws at least. And hey. There is no reason to knock Arithmancy. It's perfectly natural to enjoy that class."