RP: Useless Ambrosia

[shh_sanguini]

Date: January 8th, 2005
Character(s): Sanguini and Hermione Granger
Location: The Five Alarm
Status: Public
Summary: After returning from a rather depressing trip, Sanguini decides it would be good to get his mind off of things. How to get drunk without being able to drink? Who knows?
Completion: Incomplete

Comments

[shh_sanguini]

Sanguini was rather lost in his thoughts when Hermione entered the Five Alarm. He had been staring at the same spot on the other side of the room for quite a while, occasionally taking a miniscule sip from the glass of wine the barmaid had brought him. It was just enough for him to taste it, however bland it was to his blood-suited palate, but not enough to make him running to the loo to cough up ash all over the place.

When she sat down at the table next to him, he jumped a bit, startled out of his reverie. He didn't really remember seeing her in here before, but then again, he hadn't been in town very long, and had spent the last few weeks out of the country. Besides Narcissa, he didn't really know anyone in the first place. If he wanted to get involved in the affairs of this town, he would have to introduce himself, or he would end up back in the shadows doing nothing more than gawking.

He saw her flipping through folders and wondered what kind of work she was doing. Perhaps he should ask. Hoping that she wasn't too busy, he stood up, glass of wine in hand, and walked over to the table.

"I apologize if I'm bothering you, but I'm rather new to town, and I would find it pleasant to have some company, someone to speak to. If you're too immersed in your work, I will, of course, leave you to it."

[shh_hermione]

The basic wards around her table shifted slightly from the direction opposite the bar. Hermione tensed and lightly gripped her wand in her pocket, ready to defend herself if needed. An unfamiliar voice spoke, low and quiet, barely above a whisper, and male.

She looked up through her hair and straightened in her chair as she studied the handsome man curiously. The face was recognizable, but a name wasn't coming to her yet. Not a classmate, though. Someone else.

"You're not bothering me," she said slowly, trying to find the name from the many in her mind. Finally, it clicked and she looked at him more intently. "Please, have a seat, Mister Sanguini. It is Mister Sanguini, right? I believe we exchanged a few polite words of greeting during a holiday party many years ago at Hogwarts during my tenure there."

[shh_sanguini]

The moment the words left his lips, he realized that he recognized the young woman sitting at the table. Her first name escaped him, but he vaguely remembered Slughorn introducing her as 'Miss Granger'. While she still looked to be in the peak of her youth, there was something in her eyes that made him think she was much older than her body made her seem. Then again, the war had done that to many.

When she recognized him as well, Sanguini allowed a small smile to come to his lips. So he had been right. They had met. He found it rather pleasant to run into a familiar face here, even if he didn't really know anything about her. Well, everyone knew that she and her friends had been part of the resistance against the Dark Lord, but rumors were delicate and easily manipulated things.

"You must be Miss Granger, then," He said as he sat down in the chair across from her, "And yes, it is Sanguini. I'm surprised I did not recognize you. I'm usually rather knowledgable when it comes to faces."

[shh_hermione]

"Hermione Granger. Please, just Hermione, though," she said with a polite smile.

"Well, we only met briefly, and I'm rather forgetable, for the most part," she mused. "I'd imagine that you've met enough people that the names are sometimes difficult to remember. I remember faces but the names often have to come to me at their own rate of speed. I remembered you because you were, quite honestly, the first vampire that I'd met, so I found it fascinating to observe you and determine how much the books happened to get wrong."

Someone arrived to take her drink order before she could elaborate. She requested a pineapple juice and a bacon sandwich with crisps, something she could afford and would hopefully stop the rumbling in her belly that seemed most annoyed she'd forgotten to eat again. Once the waitress left, she focused on her unlikely companion. "Have you recently arrived in town, Sir?"

[shh_sanguini]

"Hermione."

Sanguini took the smallest of sips from his glass, vaguely amused by Hermione validating why he had forgotten who she was. She was right, though. After a few centuries, names and faces often seemed to blur together into an unrecognizable mess unless there was some significant event attached to them. Sanguini remembered events much better than people, although he knew that wasn't true of all vampires.

"Books are often by the victors and the biased, Hermione. They are bound to get some things wrong."

He let her order her food before answering her next question.

"I arrived a little while ago, but I was out of the country until recently, so I have not actually spent much time in town."

[shh_hermione]

"Oh, I know," she said, waving her hand in a dismissing fashion. "If you read every book on a topic, you're still no closer to knowing an absolute truth because it's in the eye of the beholder. Much like beauty, that is. However, what I find fascinating is determining just how wrong or, in rare instances, how right some of those texts happen to be, and then developing my own analysis of the events. It's silly, of course, as I'm no more right than people who were actually there, but it's still a nice challenge. And I do apologize for rambling on about history. It's a favorite topic of mine."

She nodded. "I've been here two months, I guess, though I don't actually live in town proper. I occasionally eat at one of the pubs, but my walks often take me through the streets as I wander. It's an interesting place thus far. Are you just passing through or do you plan to take up residence here?"

[shh_sanguini]

Sanguini's gentle smile stayed on his lips as Hermione gave her quite solid opinion on the variating forms of history. She seemed like she would be quite the interesting person to talk to, although he certainly imagined that their conversations would be quite lengthy. Not that Sanguini minded. So many humans were so protective of their time, and hurried from one task to the next without thinking much about it.

"I have a flat in Copper Towers. Well, actually, it's a basement, but I'm sure you understand." He chuckled softly. "I do plan on staying here, although it will take me some time to get used to staying in one place. I've been wandering the earth for the last few centuries, so it will be a difficult habit to break. I...came here to try and make a difference, to help rebuild. Although I'm not sure how much I could really do, considering I'm limited by the daylight."

[shh_hermione]

She nodded. "Yes, I understand. It's a shame that there's not a charm developed that could help," she mused. "Muggles have this tinting shade that can be applied to glass and it prevents the sun's rays from being direct, you see. I've seen it on automobiles to make it cooler during the summer, but I'd think a similar logic could be applied magically so those with your condition wouldn't be forced to live in dark basements or windowless rooms. It's really not fair, all things considered."

"Copper Towers? I've seen that during my walks. It seems to be a nice building." She tilted her head slightly and studied him. "What would you like to do to help? What subjects would be foremost on your list? Really, Mist-Sangiuni, if you've the desire to help, then a silly thing like daylight shouldn't get in the way. You just become more creative and analyze the situation a bit more thoroughly to determine where you'd be most helpful."

[shh_sanguini]

"Really?"

Sanguini considered that. He hadn't heard of such an invention, but when he mentioned it, he remembered seeing Muggle automobiles with darkened windows. Did they really block out the sun enought to prevent him from being damaged? He would certainly have to research that. He assumed that they would be able to see out of the windows one way, and it would be nice to see the world out of the night once. If he tried, he could keep himself awake during the day, although without much to do, there wasn't much point.

"Well, I'm not actually sure. I have a fair knowledge of history, an inhuman amount of strength, and I've picked up some odd skills during my long existence. I've done jobs from gravedigging to selling clothes, mostly on a whim. I am fairly adaptable, save for the issue of sunlight."

[shh_hermione]

"If I have a chance, next time I'm in Exeter, I'll stop by a petrol station and see if there's any sort of information on that tinting. I'd imagine if they could use it on autos and even outdoor rooms, it might be something helpful," she said thoughtfully. "If I can learn the properties and concept involved, I might be able to create a comparable charm. Something that would apply a glaze to glass to prevent the rays from being damaging to you but perhaps without it having to be so darkly tinted that you'd not be able to enjoy seeing the day outside."

"There's a new museum being built. It's actually in a warehouse, so there aren't any windows. If you wished to help with that, you could simply Apparate there and avoid sunlight regardless of the time of the day," she said. "I'm also working on a syllabus for a new History of Magic class with a friend, should you ever wish to contribute ideas or knowledge in that realm. It's one of my projects. Actually, I'm also working on thoughts regarding adult education, for the lost generation that never attended school, but I've not had the opportunity to speak to the man I think could help with that project."

She noticed someone behind him motioning and focused to see Parvati wave. She waved back and smiled before focusing back on Sanguini. "So, as you can see, there's already a few choices of things you might enjoy without having to deal with pesky sunlight issues."

[shh_sanguini]

Sanguini nodded, pleased at the idea of being able to see the world again when it wasn't covered in shadows. He'd have to be inside the whole time, of course, but it was much better to watch than not be able to see at all. He raised an eyebrow when Hermione mentioned the new museum being built. Working in a building entirely devoted to history and knowledge did certainly interest him, but there was one problem with her idea.

"The idea of working in a museum does certainly interest me, Hermione, but I am a vampire. All magical abilities were taken away from me when I was turned. I would only be able to work there at night unless I could somehow stay there the entire time. The ability to Apparate no longer belongs to me."

Sanguini felt a pang of loss low in his chest.

"As for History of Magic, I wouldn't mind contributing what I know. I've been through quite a bit of significant events, mostly watching by the wayside."

[shh_hermione]

Hermione frowned and shook her head. "I should have known that," she muttered, annoyed with herself for getting carried away and not recalling all her reading.

"Well, there was talk at that council meeting of possibly rebuilding the floo network, which would solve that problem. There's also the possibility of arriving before dawn, which isn't very early, and leaving at dusk," she said. "It would make for a long shift of work, but if you chose to do it only three or four days a week, it might be worthwhile to consider."

She smiled then. "I rarely accept 'no' unless I've exhausted all over viable options," she explained. "I've found that sometimes simply thinking about something more than a general 'oh, no, can't do it' way allows you to see solutions you might not normally not realize."

Her drink arrived and she brushed her hair away from her face before she took a drink. "With all your knowledge, you should write a book," she said. "Observations of a man who has seen history repeat itself far more than it should."

[shh_sanguini]

"Everyone forgets things."

Sanguini took another miniscule sip of his wine, letting it sit on his tongue before he swallowed it. So far his body wasn't rejecting it, much to his pleasure. Sometimes just a single drop would make him sick, and other times, a third of a glass wouldn't do a damn thing. He had yet to figure out the reason for that, but it might be something to research.

"Well, considering I never get tired, I wouldn't mind having a long shift. It is one advantage of being undead. It would be unusual sleeping at night like most humans, but it wouldn't be unpleasant."

He considered her next words carefully. The idea of writing a book had occured to him, but he had moved so much that he never really had time to sit down and do such a thing.

"It is an interesting idea. The only reason I have not done so before is because I have been constantly mobile. Perhaps, if I end up staying here, I will do so."

[shh_hermione]

"If you'd like to consider helping with the museum, you should owl Cedric Diggory. He's somewhat in charge of developing it, and I believe he'll take over as the museum director once it's up and running," she said. "He's a friend of mine so I can speak to him for you, if you'd prefer, or introduce you, though I'm sure he'll be grateful for help from someone passionate about the project."

She smiled wryly. "And I do apologize if I seem rather overwhelming. I am, of course, so that's not why I'm sorry. I just usually try to avoid bossing people about that I don't know."

"These folders are lists of authors that are signed with my publishing company," she said, gesturing towards them. "A friend and I are in the process of creating one, Vanateigh Press is our name, so, if you do find yourself interested, do let me know. I can review the manuscript for possible publication and eventual sale in my bookstore."

[shh_sanguini]

"I would be utterly grateful if you introduced him to me."

Sanguini was smiling enough to bare the slightest amount of his fangs, although he had the feeling that the sight of his teeth wouldn't bother her as it often scared off other mortals. She seemed serious and well-grounded, which were pleasant traits in a human. So many of them were flighty and chaotic.

"Perhaps once I am settled down more, with a job at the museum or some other place, I will find the time to sit down and actually put pen to paper."

[shh_hermione]

"I'll make arrangements then." She smiled slightly and looked down to make a note on a scrap of parchment.

When she looked back up, she noticed his smile and wondered if the fangs were annoying. She knew she'd end up biting her lip all the time if she had them.

"I'll owl you once I have an opportunity to speak with Cedric. He works full time during the week, so it might not be until the weekend that I'll see him," she said.