Fic: Internal Monologues on Speed
Title: Internal Monologues on Speed
Author: alohachary1851
Summary: Gideon and Dorcas go on that date. Gideon attempts to be cool as a cucumber. Attempts.
Characters/Pairings: Fabian Prewett, Gideon Prewett/Dorcas Meadowes (potentially)
Genre: Awkward First Date Humor
Word Count: 1951 (wat)
Author's Note: After ages, it's finally done. Bizzounce. Brownie points to whoever points out the sources of the last bit of this fic.
"FABIAN, WHAT TIME IS IT?" Gideon yells from his room. Up until now, he had been studying his hair in the mirror, this after doing an inordinate number of sit-ups for no reason. "Why is it so hard to get this damn hair- shut up, Gideon."
"Seven fifty-ish?" Fabian answers lazily, propping open Gideon's door, mug of tea in hand and halfway through a pasty. "Good god, what the... is this Vanity Hour with Gideon Prewett?"
"Shut it." Gideon answers. "Going out. You know, out." He checks to make sure his laces are tied or, more appropriately, that Fabian didn't untie them when he wasn't looking.
"Oh right," Fabian grins. "You and Double-"
"Dorcas" Gideon warns. "It's just a few pints, and... seven fifty ish? What the hell is that?" He suddenly panics. "Get a better watch, Fabian," Gideon says irritably and Disapparates.
Fabian rolls his eyes and mutters "Twat," before stopping and asking, aloud, "where the hell is my watch?"
Gideon finds himself in a hallway. "Four B... four B." He rushes down the hall, glancing at the doors. "Of course it would be at the end of the hall." He says and tries to catch his breath and then knocks on the door. He nearly chokes on his own spit when he hears the door unlock and hopes he's not making an anguished face as the door opens.
"I was about to turn on the water, Gideon." Dorcas says with a wry grin. She leans against the door frame "Thirty seconds later and I wouldn't have let you in."
"Well, Dorcas, I'm not in your apartment, I'm still in the hall." Gideon answers matter-of-factly. "Unless that was you inviting me in-"
"-It was not." Dorcas interjects, standing up properly. "Though it would set all kinds of lows for women 'Girl invites bloke in before first date even starts, dignity lost, called 'slag' forever.'-" She says gesturing a scrolling headline. "Sorry, got carried away-"
"Er, not at all." Gideon answers, "When you do it, it doesn't get you in trouble." He takes a glance at his watch. "Right, George and the Dragon, best place for watching football, in my limited experience. Still have to make it to a proper match-"
"You haven't been to a proper match? And you think you've lived." Dorcas laughs. "No you've got to be there for the loud drunken singing, the funny hats, the brawls-"
"That's actually how I am on a daily basis, blokes go out to pub nearly every night. Can't cook." Gideon says. "But I've been to a Quidditch match, doesn't sound too different-"
"Yeah," Dorcas concedes, "but with football matches no one leaves as a chicken or sheep or something."
"Bad news for anyone leaving as a sheep in Wales. The horror." Gideon grins. The George and the Dragon is busy, just as Gideon predicted and they find a table far enough away that beer isn't being spilt on them but close enough to see a television. He looks around, scanning the area.
"What, are you practicing for class, or something?" Dorcas asks. "Switch it off, we're supposed to be forgetting about school-"
It finally registers that she's talking. "Oh, no, just checking- I'll go get us- what did you want?" He asks feeling extremely foolish and a shame to the chivalrous Godric.
"Cider, obviously." Dorcas answers. "I mean, please. Sorry."
Careful not to slop the cider everywhere he walks as slowly as he can back to their table, narrowly avoiding a very large thick-necked man's high five to another equally thick necked man, faces red from shouting at the telly. "It's... it's usually like this." He says setting down the glasses on their table. She moves her glass closer and after a slight pause, takes a sip. "Er, you can see the telly alright?"
"Uh... yeah. Yeah sure. What side is this pub for?" She asks.
'The good ship Small Talk, ladies and gentlemen, has sunk' Gideon thinks. "Actually, I don't even think half the people here know who's playing. I think they just like being able to drink any time there's a goal. Less bar fighting, at least until after ten."
"Are you in any of those bar fights?"
Gideon eyes her and answers "They're usually with Fabian." He takes a hearty swig of his cider. "Where're you from again, Dorcas, Cornwall?"
"If the next words out of your mouth are a line about me and tasting my 'Cornish Pasties'-"
Gideon rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, ears tinged red. Scratch that line. "Actually I wasn't- What- I'd never- Someone actually tried that?" He decides to take another large swig of his cider.
"Most men when they hear 'Cornwall'-"
"I'm from Somerset." Gideon interjects. 'Please end the subject, please end the subject.'
"I know." Dorcas answers before quickly adding, "You've got a Yeovil Town football shirt that you wear for training days- do you support them?"
In all honesty Gideon couldn't name a single person on the squad. "Erm."
Dorcas resists the urge to drown herself in her pint after having made herself out to be a raving stalker.
Gideon sees this and says "You look nice. I mean, no, you always look nice. But it's not like I'm always staring at- I just- my sister always said to make sure that when I said something to girls that I didn't mean something else, which makes no sense because why would I say it if I meant to say something different? A'right, I think I've already made myself out to be an arse-"
"Does that mean that it's my turn?" Dorcas asks, laughing. Gideon relaxes into his seat when Dorcas asks him "Have you, erm..." she pauses to find the right words, "always wanted to be an Auror?"
"I always thought Auror's were like the James Bond of magic." Gideon says after some thought. "Though I'm entirely too English to be built like Sean Connery. Scottish people, really."
"James Bond? James Bond." Dorcas finds this entirely too thrilling and says "I thought, you being a Gryffindor and all-"
"Well yeah, 'course it's all about justice." Gideon grins, "But I mean, the whole putting away the baddies and looking like a smug bastard whilst doing so, well, I have half of it down. Erm, more cider? I can get us chips and take a pit stop at the Smug Bastard's room."
"Maybe later on the chips, I like feeling warm with cider on an empty stomach," Dorcas says with a laugh, "and you're not a smug bastard."
"Erm, you know, we've gone to school with each other and all that, but, aside from you being in Ravenclaw, living in Cornwall and being good with Charms... do you prefer Earl Grey? Do you have siblings?" Gideon flails, quite literally he flails as he is wont to do when he is nervous and in the company of someone that he fancies and could possibly fancy him back. "Oh my god-"
"What?"
Gideon exhales. "D'you want to maybe just walk around the park, I'm getting, erm... I can't think properly in here and... I'll pay for all this."
"Well," Dorcas answers, "sure."
Once their out of the pub, Gideon, with hands in his pockets, says "Sorry for being abrupt, I just, erm... I sensed failure and I'm better in the outdoors."
"I thought you were fine, me, on the other hand. Can it be any more obvious that I grew up an only child?" Dorcas asks. "And my mother almost home schooled me instead of sending me to primary school. Then my dad said 'Margaret, no daughter of mine will be socially awkward' and this is when I've realized I'm rambling and I retreat into myself like a frightened turtle."
Gideon grins at her reassuringly, "Secret? If I'm not in a group, I have no bloody idea of how to interact with people. Well if I'm not in a group or not sloshed... yeah, that's about right."
She looks up at him and smiles back. He clears his throat.
"So my expert reasoning skills tell me that you are a Muggle-born with a penchant for being a bit cerebral." Gideon says matter-of-factly.
"Bonus points for the use of the word 'cerebral.'" Dorcas laughs and relaxes.
A walk around the park, an ice cream, and a slightly insensitive mocking of a rotund man walking his dog ("More like rolling along next to his dog," Gideon says as Dorcas snickers) later, Gideon learns that Dorcas has an odd obsession with learning complicated Quidditch plays ("They're like puzzles," she explains), loathes the French ("That's to be expected for any proper English person," Gideon replies), and is terrified of Mad Eye Moody ("I don't know if it's the eye or the peg leg," She says, to which Gideon replies "I thought you all were used to pirate folk in Cornwall").
They find themselves outside of Dorcas' building near midnight. "So," Gideon starts.
"This part's always awkward." Dorcas says. Before Gideon can ask 'Why?' her inner monologue just spills out of her mouth. "Everyone always judges this moment right before the end of a first date and everything will be put up to review-"
"Did you have a nice time?" Gideon interrupts hopefully and then berates himself for interrupting.
Realizing she'd been thinking out loud, "Yes, Gid, I did. Erm, so, I'll see you Monday-"
"We should do this again sometime" Dorcas doesn't know it but Gideon is wincing internally and flailing in his head: 'Shot in the dark! Shot in the dark! Time for the Hail Mary plays, Prewett!'
"-Yes!" Dorcas says enthusiastically. "I'm... going to go now"
"And erm, this." Gideon interrupts and, out of a Gryffindor habit for impulsiveness and rash decisions, kisses her cheek.
A pause that can only be described as more pregnant than Molly Weasley follows.
"You're odd-"
and
"Erm" are said at the same time.
"Endearing odd, not creepy mental odd, Gideon." Dorcas says. "I'm going to go inside now and kick myself."
"Yeah... me too, but, in my own flat." Gideon says and then clears his throat for what he thinks is the millionth time that night. They wave awkwardly at each other and after surreptitiously checking for Muggles, Gideon Apparates home.
Fabian, dressed in a satin pink bathrobe with a matching towel wrapped 'round his head, sits cross-legged in the arm chair, daintily stirring a cup of tea. "And where have you been, young man?"
"So you dress up in women's clothing when I'm gone, splendid." Gideon snorts. "It went... it went. We'll see on Monday."
Fabian rushes after Gideon as his brother heads into the bathroom. "You didn't get sick on her did you?"
"No" Gideon answers, as he starts to brush his teeth.
"Didn't say stupid things that you thought were cute but actually stupid?" Fabian asks,
Through muffled speech, Fabian deciphers Gideon's response as: "No, she said I was endearing."
"Did you pay for everything and walk on the outside of her, open doors, pull out chairs?"
"Yesh."
"Oh she's definitely going to let you do a little upstairs outside on the next date, maybe upstairs inside if she really likes you. Well done, brother." Fabian says clapping him on the back and walks back into the living room. "Oi, when you've gone upstairs inside with Dorcas, you know we're going to want full detailed reports of the goods."
Gideon pretends not to hear the last part.
Author: alohachary1851
Summary: Gideon and Dorcas go on that date. Gideon attempts to be cool as a cucumber. Attempts.
Characters/Pairings: Fabian Prewett, Gideon Prewett/Dorcas Meadowes (potentially)
Genre: Awkward First Date Humor
Word Count: 1951 (wat)
Author's Note: After ages, it's finally done. Bizzounce. Brownie points to whoever points out the sources of the last bit of this fic.
"FABIAN, WHAT TIME IS IT?" Gideon yells from his room. Up until now, he had been studying his hair in the mirror, this after doing an inordinate number of sit-ups for no reason. "Why is it so hard to get this damn hair- shut up, Gideon."
"Seven fifty-ish?" Fabian answers lazily, propping open Gideon's door, mug of tea in hand and halfway through a pasty. "Good god, what the... is this Vanity Hour with Gideon Prewett?"
"Shut it." Gideon answers. "Going out. You know, out." He checks to make sure his laces are tied or, more appropriately, that Fabian didn't untie them when he wasn't looking.
"Oh right," Fabian grins. "You and Double-"
"Dorcas" Gideon warns. "It's just a few pints, and... seven fifty ish? What the hell is that?" He suddenly panics. "Get a better watch, Fabian," Gideon says irritably and Disapparates.
Fabian rolls his eyes and mutters "Twat," before stopping and asking, aloud, "where the hell is my watch?"
Gideon finds himself in a hallway. "Four B... four B." He rushes down the hall, glancing at the doors. "Of course it would be at the end of the hall." He says and tries to catch his breath and then knocks on the door. He nearly chokes on his own spit when he hears the door unlock and hopes he's not making an anguished face as the door opens.
"I was about to turn on the water, Gideon." Dorcas says with a wry grin. She leans against the door frame "Thirty seconds later and I wouldn't have let you in."
"Well, Dorcas, I'm not in your apartment, I'm still in the hall." Gideon answers matter-of-factly. "Unless that was you inviting me in-"
"-It was not." Dorcas interjects, standing up properly. "Though it would set all kinds of lows for women 'Girl invites bloke in before first date even starts, dignity lost, called 'slag' forever.'-" She says gesturing a scrolling headline. "Sorry, got carried away-"
"Er, not at all." Gideon answers, "When you do it, it doesn't get you in trouble." He takes a glance at his watch. "Right, George and the Dragon, best place for watching football, in my limited experience. Still have to make it to a proper match-"
"You haven't been to a proper match? And you think you've lived." Dorcas laughs. "No you've got to be there for the loud drunken singing, the funny hats, the brawls-"
"That's actually how I am on a daily basis, blokes go out to pub nearly every night. Can't cook." Gideon says. "But I've been to a Quidditch match, doesn't sound too different-"
"Yeah," Dorcas concedes, "but with football matches no one leaves as a chicken or sheep or something."
"Bad news for anyone leaving as a sheep in Wales. The horror." Gideon grins. The George and the Dragon is busy, just as Gideon predicted and they find a table far enough away that beer isn't being spilt on them but close enough to see a television. He looks around, scanning the area.
"What, are you practicing for class, or something?" Dorcas asks. "Switch it off, we're supposed to be forgetting about school-"
It finally registers that she's talking. "Oh, no, just checking- I'll go get us- what did you want?" He asks feeling extremely foolish and a shame to the chivalrous Godric.
"Cider, obviously." Dorcas answers. "I mean, please. Sorry."
Careful not to slop the cider everywhere he walks as slowly as he can back to their table, narrowly avoiding a very large thick-necked man's high five to another equally thick necked man, faces red from shouting at the telly. "It's... it's usually like this." He says setting down the glasses on their table. She moves her glass closer and after a slight pause, takes a sip. "Er, you can see the telly alright?"
"Uh... yeah. Yeah sure. What side is this pub for?" She asks.
'The good ship Small Talk, ladies and gentlemen, has sunk' Gideon thinks. "Actually, I don't even think half the people here know who's playing. I think they just like being able to drink any time there's a goal. Less bar fighting, at least until after ten."
"Are you in any of those bar fights?"
Gideon eyes her and answers "They're usually with Fabian." He takes a hearty swig of his cider. "Where're you from again, Dorcas, Cornwall?"
"If the next words out of your mouth are a line about me and tasting my 'Cornish Pasties'-"
Gideon rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, ears tinged red. Scratch that line. "Actually I wasn't- What- I'd never- Someone actually tried that?" He decides to take another large swig of his cider.
"Most men when they hear 'Cornwall'-"
"I'm from Somerset." Gideon interjects. 'Please end the subject, please end the subject.'
"I know." Dorcas answers before quickly adding, "You've got a Yeovil Town football shirt that you wear for training days- do you support them?"
In all honesty Gideon couldn't name a single person on the squad. "Erm."
Dorcas resists the urge to drown herself in her pint after having made herself out to be a raving stalker.
Gideon sees this and says "You look nice. I mean, no, you always look nice. But it's not like I'm always staring at- I just- my sister always said to make sure that when I said something to girls that I didn't mean something else, which makes no sense because why would I say it if I meant to say something different? A'right, I think I've already made myself out to be an arse-"
"Does that mean that it's my turn?" Dorcas asks, laughing. Gideon relaxes into his seat when Dorcas asks him "Have you, erm..." she pauses to find the right words, "always wanted to be an Auror?"
"I always thought Auror's were like the James Bond of magic." Gideon says after some thought. "Though I'm entirely too English to be built like Sean Connery. Scottish people, really."
"James Bond? James Bond." Dorcas finds this entirely too thrilling and says "I thought, you being a Gryffindor and all-"
"Well yeah, 'course it's all about justice." Gideon grins, "But I mean, the whole putting away the baddies and looking like a smug bastard whilst doing so, well, I have half of it down. Erm, more cider? I can get us chips and take a pit stop at the Smug Bastard's room."
"Maybe later on the chips, I like feeling warm with cider on an empty stomach," Dorcas says with a laugh, "and you're not a smug bastard."
"Erm, you know, we've gone to school with each other and all that, but, aside from you being in Ravenclaw, living in Cornwall and being good with Charms... do you prefer Earl Grey? Do you have siblings?" Gideon flails, quite literally he flails as he is wont to do when he is nervous and in the company of someone that he fancies and could possibly fancy him back. "Oh my god-"
"What?"
Gideon exhales. "D'you want to maybe just walk around the park, I'm getting, erm... I can't think properly in here and... I'll pay for all this."
"Well," Dorcas answers, "sure."
Once their out of the pub, Gideon, with hands in his pockets, says "Sorry for being abrupt, I just, erm... I sensed failure and I'm better in the outdoors."
"I thought you were fine, me, on the other hand. Can it be any more obvious that I grew up an only child?" Dorcas asks. "And my mother almost home schooled me instead of sending me to primary school. Then my dad said 'Margaret, no daughter of mine will be socially awkward' and this is when I've realized I'm rambling and I retreat into myself like a frightened turtle."
Gideon grins at her reassuringly, "Secret? If I'm not in a group, I have no bloody idea of how to interact with people. Well if I'm not in a group or not sloshed... yeah, that's about right."
She looks up at him and smiles back. He clears his throat.
"So my expert reasoning skills tell me that you are a Muggle-born with a penchant for being a bit cerebral." Gideon says matter-of-factly.
"Bonus points for the use of the word 'cerebral.'" Dorcas laughs and relaxes.
A walk around the park, an ice cream, and a slightly insensitive mocking of a rotund man walking his dog ("More like rolling along next to his dog," Gideon says as Dorcas snickers) later, Gideon learns that Dorcas has an odd obsession with learning complicated Quidditch plays ("They're like puzzles," she explains), loathes the French ("That's to be expected for any proper English person," Gideon replies), and is terrified of Mad Eye Moody ("I don't know if it's the eye or the peg leg," She says, to which Gideon replies "I thought you all were used to pirate folk in Cornwall").
They find themselves outside of Dorcas' building near midnight. "So," Gideon starts.
"This part's always awkward." Dorcas says. Before Gideon can ask 'Why?' her inner monologue just spills out of her mouth. "Everyone always judges this moment right before the end of a first date and everything will be put up to review-"
"Did you have a nice time?" Gideon interrupts hopefully and then berates himself for interrupting.
Realizing she'd been thinking out loud, "Yes, Gid, I did. Erm, so, I'll see you Monday-"
"We should do this again sometime" Dorcas doesn't know it but Gideon is wincing internally and flailing in his head: 'Shot in the dark! Shot in the dark! Time for the Hail Mary plays, Prewett!'
"-Yes!" Dorcas says enthusiastically. "I'm... going to go now"
"And erm, this." Gideon interrupts and, out of a Gryffindor habit for impulsiveness and rash decisions, kisses her cheek.
A pause that can only be described as more pregnant than Molly Weasley follows.
"You're odd-"
and
"Erm" are said at the same time.
"Endearing odd, not creepy mental odd, Gideon." Dorcas says. "I'm going to go inside now and kick myself."
"Yeah... me too, but, in my own flat." Gideon says and then clears his throat for what he thinks is the millionth time that night. They wave awkwardly at each other and after surreptitiously checking for Muggles, Gideon Apparates home.
Fabian, dressed in a satin pink bathrobe with a matching towel wrapped 'round his head, sits cross-legged in the arm chair, daintily stirring a cup of tea. "And where have you been, young man?"
"So you dress up in women's clothing when I'm gone, splendid." Gideon snorts. "It went... it went. We'll see on Monday."
Fabian rushes after Gideon as his brother heads into the bathroom. "You didn't get sick on her did you?"
"No" Gideon answers, as he starts to brush his teeth.
"Didn't say stupid things that you thought were cute but actually stupid?" Fabian asks,
Through muffled speech, Fabian deciphers Gideon's response as: "No, she said I was endearing."
"Did you pay for everything and walk on the outside of her, open doors, pull out chairs?"
"Yesh."
"Oh she's definitely going to let you do a little upstairs outside on the next date, maybe upstairs inside if she really likes you. Well done, brother." Fabian says clapping him on the back and walks back into the living room. "Oi, when you've gone upstairs inside with Dorcas, you know we're going to want full detailed reports of the goods."
Gideon pretends not to hear the last part.