HHAWT The Heart of a Melody PV Bowen

Once Evelynn said that she was fine holding onto her bag, Serena responded with “Alright, as long as you don’t mind carrying it…” It felt… nice to have someone carrying her bag for her. The first-year still wasn’t quite sure what type of club this was, but the hosts seemed nice enough if a bit flirtatious. Serena followed Evelynn, not quite sure where they were going.

At the mention of playing again, Serena thought for a moment. She had come here to practice after all. As Evelynn brought up the Talent Show, Serena gave a small smile. So the Gryffindor Quidditch Co-Captain was there in the audience that night. Serena enjoyed performing even though she was slightly nervous about what her peers might think. But at least one of them liked it as much as she did.

Serena almost wandered over to the piano, but tea also sounded nice, especially after hearing the selection. And while the first-year had, of course, had Earl Grey tea before, she had never had it with rooibos before. And after walking around the castle all day, resting her feet would be nice.

“Some tea would be nice… I’d like to try that one you mentioned… Earl Grey Rooibos?” Serena finally said.

Maybe she could play later. Serena then followed Evelynn to two comfortable looking armed dining chairs and a small square table that was filled with snacks.

Interacting with:@Evelynn Decipio

Reducio

So sorry for the delayed response!

Interacting with @Serena Bowen

Although far from being particularly large by any standards, Evelynn was, at least, slightly taller than average and had developed enough lean muscle through riding and Quidditch that she could be considered lithely, if not athletically, built. The bag was of little consequence to her. Especially compared to her own which usually held a minimum of two or three textbooks at a time. Plus, it was only for a short distance, and Bowen seemed pleasantly surprised and perhaps even touched at the gesture.

It was a somewhat odd experience, honestly, to yield such a reaction in another individual. To date, Evelynn's peer interactions had generally been limited to something either along the lines of hostility — whether open or subversive — or rigid formality. Only recently in the past month or so, particularly after a certain encounter on her birthday, had she begun to attempt to let down her walls to allow more informal interactions with her peers. Even then, however, she'd been largely uncomfortable with the experience. Almost as though she were holding her breath and just preparing herself emotionally for when the stab came. She had to act, and pretend like she wasn't.

Here, however, the act was what they came for. Perhaps some weren't aware that it was all an elaborate show, and perhaps even others chose to ignore that fact. Regardless of the dis-ingenuity of their behaviour, however, what remained true was the goal to ease the comfort of those that sought their company and to have them leaving in brighter spirits than which they came. There was nothing false in that. And whatever means were required to achieve that end only served to aide Evelynn in her efforts to practice using those same social skills in an informal setting.

The Earl Grey rooibos it is, then," Evelynn replied with a lilting tone, a small smile creasing her lips to mirror her thoughtful reflection. "How blessed am I to be graced with the opportunity to enjoy not only the blissful aroma of a bodily brew, but also the company of one so fair as yourself."

Nearing the pair of armed dining chairs, Evelynn gently lowered the Hufflepuff's book-bag to the floor to rest against a leg before pivoting around the back of the nearest chair. As though playing the role of a butler or gentleman, she pulled it out just enough for Serena to take a seat. "Come," she invited with a warm smile, "Join me."

Should the blonde do just that, Evelynn would aid to push the seat in as the girl took to it, before stepping gracefully away with a chiming, "I will be but a moment, but I heart will bleed for the time with are apart with every second that ticks by.."

And then she would be away. From the table, Serena would see her carefully sorting through the various pots of steeped tea at the serving table before finally finding the one she was looking for. She retrieved first one china tea cup, and then a second, pouring into each of them and setting them on a silver platter. Onto a plate between them, she set a pair of tongues which she used to collect a selection of desserts from the unoccupied tables on her way back. Strange, perhaps, given the tiered platter of desserts serving centrepiece at the table at which Serena had been seated.

"I do hope I did not tarry too long…" An almost exasperated and melancholy sentiment expressed by the red head upon her return to their table. "I hope you do not mind…" She set the platter down to the table just off to the side of the tiered display. "I took the liberty of retrieving some delectables that did not make their way here.

"First, a mango kalamansi entremet, gold in hue to reflect the aureate tresses of your hair, and just how brightly you shone at the Talent Show," she explained, gesturing to the first with an open palm before continuing. "Then an Orange Chocolate Mousse, as refreshing at this turn of Spring as your presence to this dreary and darkened room." Evelynn was almost grinning now, unable to tell if the compliments she was trying to deliver were fantastically or just pathetically over the top. A rose hue began to colour her cheeks at the uncertainty. "And finally a Mini Blueberry Mousse cake. Something fun and memorable, as I hope this encounter to be."

With that, she set the tea from the tray to set before Serena, the auburn of the tea within the delicate cup not a far cry off from the colour of Evelynn's own hair. What was likely more notable, however, was the vessel in which it had been served. A vintage Duchess China cup and saucer set, a vibrant and pretty robin egg blue but for the display of rose flowers, delicate greenery, and ebony and ivory piano keys that served to frame the piece. She had picked it out in particular with Serena in mind.

"Is this to your satisfaction?" she wondered, hoping that her efforts had done well to brighten the girl's demeanor.

Serena walked with Evelynn. She was slightly unsure of how to keep up the conversation. Not only was the eleven-year-old not used to talking to her peers in general but also in a flirtatious manner. She was entirely out of her comfort zone. And Serena had fancied some fictional characters in the past, but they’d all been boys. She had never felt this way about a girl before.

Not that there was anything wrong with it. Serena was just surprised, that was all. Although, she wasn’t sure what this exactly meant. Was it just because of the context of Evelynn flirting with her? Or did Serena genuinely have romantic feelings towards girls? It was hard to say at the moment. Something was telling her that it was more likely the latter, but further self-reflection would have to be done to prove that. And now wasn’t the time, especially since the Gryffindor Quidditch Co-Captain had just said something.

Ah, she was just confirming her choice of tea. Oh, and another bit of flirting. Serena gave a small smile. Honestly, she wasn’t sure how to respond or if she even should respond to that.

“Oh, um, thank you…” Serena trailed off. “You’re also pretty good company” She added before she could stop herself.

Serena internally winced. You’re also pretty good company?! What the hell kind-of flirting was that?! Even someone with her inexperience knew that that was not a great response. Gah, why did she have to be so awkward?! But, since she didn’t have access to a Time-Turner at the moment, the eleven-year-old couldn’t take it back, no matter how much she wanted to. So she continued to follow Evelynn.

The two eventually reached their destination. Serena watched as Evelynn placed her bag down against the leg of one of the chairs. The girl then pulled out a chair, like a waiter at a fancy restaurant would. At her request to join her, Serena simply nodded and took a seat, deciding that after that fiasco earlier, it would be best to keep quiet for now.

Serena was pleasantly surprised when Evelynn pushed her chair in for her. The only time anyone had done that for her was on the rare occasion her family went to a nice restaurant. Or when her dad would do so during their tea parties when she was younger.

As Evelynn walked away, Serena again opened her big mouth and said, “You know, if you think your heart is bleeding, maybe you should see a Healer?”

Oh dear Merlin, Serena really should just stop talking. ‘Come on, Serena, get yourself together!’ she thought to herself. She normally wasn’t this awkward when talking to people, honest! Taking deep breaths in and out, Serena tried to school herself. This was just a normal conversation. Just a normal conversation. She kept repeating to herself.

As Serena tried to calm herself down, she watched as Evelynn prepared the tea and selected a few desserts. The badger couldn’t tell what exactly they were from this distance, but from what she could see, they looked delicious. It was at that moment that she realized that she was a bit hungry. It had been a while since lunch and dinner wasn’t for a while. Yes, some desserts would be fantastic.

Unfortunately, it seemed that her stomach agreed, because right when Evelynn arrived at their table, it let out an audible grumble. Serena blushed. “Oh, s-sorry about that! I guess I haven’t eaten in a bit, and those desserts look so good…” She trailed off, hoping that Evelynn didn’t think she was gross or rude. “And you didn’t take long at all!”

Serena listened as Evelynn explained each of the different desserts. She had never heard of the first one before, but the golden glaze looked delicious, and she liked mango, so she was sure to enjoy this dessert. Serena felt her cheeks heat up even more at the compliment to her hair and Talent Show performance. Was it really that good of a show?

The second dessert was slightly more familiar to her. She had heard of a mousse before; her dad had even made some previously. But Serena had never heard of orange chocolate before. She was intrigued by the flavor. Maybe it would become a new favorite? She also blushed at Evelynn’s compliment once again. This was beginning to be a bit much! Not in a bad way, though, more of a not being used to all of this attention way.

Finally, the blueberry mousse cake. Serena had had something similar before that her dad had made. But she was excited to see how this version tasted. At the redhead’s comment, Serena couldn’t help but smile. This encounter would certainly be memorable, and she hoped that it would be fun for both of them. Maybe she and Evelynn could become friends?

As Evelynn set the tea in front of her, Serena smiled at the choice of the teacup. The piano keys, of course, she loved, but she also loved the robin egg blue color. Blue was her favorite color, and Serena wondered if Evelynn had somehow known that, or if it was just a coincidence.

Serena carefully picked up the teacup and took a sip. It tasted wonderful. She then gently set it back down on the matching saucer before saying “Oh, yes, everything is wonderful! You didn’t have to go to all of this trouble…”

Serena then decided that it was time to taste some of these desserts. She chose to go with the one that she was unfamiliar with, the mango kalamansi entremet. The eleven-year-old picked up a nearby fork and took a small chunk out of the dessert. She wanted to make sure to leave some for her companion. Taking a bite, Serena could definitely taste the mango. And what must have been the kalamansi paired wonderfully with it.

“Oh wow! This is really good!” She said after swallowing. “You should have some!”

Interacting With: @Evelynn Decipio

"For you, there is no trouble," Evelynn had replied, verbally dismissing any notion that Bowen could possibly be a burden. Certainly, the smile that she carried was warm and genuine, and far easier to display than she actually thought it would be. She had come into this whole charade thinking it would be just that: an act. What she was slowly coming to realise, however, was that this was actually sort of fun. There was a lot of power behind her words. She'd managed to make Bowen blush a little, and now she found she wanted to see just how scarlet she could make her. To see what she could do to make her grin. The reactions that she was able to elicit with but a little phrase was almost intoxicating. "I would consider it a privilege and a victory if I'm able to do even one thing to brighten your day."

"Go on, though. Stand not on ceremony," she had continued a moment later after Bowen's voiced concern that Evelynn was perhaps doing too much, an upward open palm motioning towards the desserts. While she had felt a little flutter with the smile that had broached the girl's lips on the obviously approving inspection of the teacup that had been brought to her, Evelynn was eager to see her reaction with the little delectables. "There is no need to starve the beast—" She grinned a touch, the twinkle in the brief downward flick of her eyes towards Bowen's abdomen before returning to her face speaking silently of the girl's obvious hunger. "—nor to hold yourself back."

Rarely was there so easy a way to peel back someone's layers and get so clear a glimpse of someone's heart as there was with food. It was a universal constant. Something needed by every living creature across the globe. For some, it was merely a means of sustenance, but for many, it was more than that. An outlet of creativity, a means of confirming commitments of belief and faith, a way to connect with friends and family, and an expression of culture. There was something special about food, and in the way that it could humanise even the coldest individuals and make vulnerable the unbreachable.

Evelynn had never really understood that until this moment, though, largely due to the environment in which she was raised. To her mother, food had only ever been just sustenance. In fact, she'd often joked to Evelynn that if she could get away with it, she'd simply consume balanced liquid meals three times a day and nothing else. It was a chore for her to eat, but one that she'd invested considerable effort in try to remedy in order to give her daughter the appreciation that she never had. Thus, while Evelynn had been imparted with the knowledge and theory about the importance of food, she'd never really seen the effects that it could have.

Not until this moment.

Relief immediately flooded through every fibre of Evelynn's being with Bowen's exclamation. Confidence might have been the mode of the day, but it really was all an air. If anyone had gone to shake her hand in that moment, they likely would have retreated immediately and left with a horrid first impression with just how clammy her hands were. She'd spoken a big game with her little similes and comparisons, using every little trick from Shen's book that she could remember to try to flatter her guest. But the truth was that she really didn't know what she was doing, and that everything she had done was largely guess-work. If the dessert had been horrible, or if it just hadn't been to the girl's tastes, then the illusion could have been completely shattered.

"As my Princess commands, then so I shall," she grinned, almost sheepishly this time but with an effort made to maintain that same air of confidence.

How successful she was could be left to interpretation, however. Then, with fluid grace, Evelynn sank into her own seat. Not a moment too soon, either, as her limbs seemed to release all her tension all at once, leaving her feeling almost weak-kneed. Right elbow lifting lightly to anchor on the table with fingers lifting to rest the backs of her knuckles lightly along her jawline, the Gryffindor leaned forward with her left to pluck up a second fork and slice off a thin wafer from the mango kalamansi before taking a bite.

"Ohm!" Admittedly, Evelynn had never actually given the desserts a try herself. Not before this moment, anyway. She had been far more occupied with trying to settle her nerves and work up the courage to step out of her comfort zone with the silly flirtations and over-dramatic actions. The moment the mousse had touched her tongue, it had left her momentarily stunned, her thoughts completely fixated on the flavour and texture of the mousse. Her eyes had flashed wide for just a second, her posture straightening. She'd even pressed the side of her hand to her lips as she mashed the dessert around inside her mouth to profile the full experience before remaking in a moment of naked surprise, "Oh, this is really good!"

She couldn't help it… The tables had been turned, and for a moment, she let slip through her eager curiosity as she moved to give the next one a try. "Oh gosh, ah'm sorreh!" she mumbled around the bite of Orange Chocolate and the fingers pressed against her mouth again to hide the fact that she was actually being really rude right now and talking with her mouth slightly full. Swallowing, she leaned forward to slide the second dessert in front of Bowen with a, "Try this!", before relaxing back into her chair to pick up her own teacup for a sip.

When she had left the table previously to fetch them some tea and munchables, Evelynn hadn't really addressed the comment that Bowen had left her with. You're also pretty good company, had been met with a quiet chuckle that had trailed after Evelynn's wake and a brief lingering glance that had been peeled away from the girl the moment the redhead had gone too far to be able to sustain the eye contact from her periphery. She would have been content just to leave it at that had it not been for what had come after.

You know, if you think your heart is bleeding, maybe you should see a healer? In the moment, Evelynn hadn't reacted to that. In fact, she hadn't really understood it at all. If her heart was bleeding? What had that meant? There had been a vague familiarity with it; she was pretty sure the girl was making a pun of sorts to address a bleeding heart which she was pretty sure was some sort of idiom, but it was one heart so infrequently for her that she honestly couldn't recall what it meant.

"I didn't know my company would have such a way with words," Evelynn remarked, attempting to recover her gluttonous slip from moments ago and turn the tables back around. "When you said I should seek a healer."[/color] A grin tucked at her lips. Sure, she didn't really know what had been meant by the statement, but Bowen didn't need to know that. Plus, it was obviously meant to be some sort of quip. "Are you as eloquent a poet as you are a musician, then?"

[font=century gothic]INTERACTING WITH @Serena Bowen[/font]

Serena gave a little giggle at Evelynn’s reaction to the dessert. “Right?! Do you know who made these desserts? I’d like to send my compliments to the chef! Or I guess baker would be more appropriate in this case…” She mumbled off the last sentence.

As the red-head slid over the second dessert plate (the orange chocolate mousse, if she recalled), Serena took another small bite. The flavor was even better than she had expected!

“Oh wow! That’s so good! I’ll have to ask my Dad if he can make some at home sometime!” Serena said, her words a bit muffled as the dessert was still in her mouth.

She quickly swallowed. “Oops, sorry about that. Just got a little excited.”

Serena was starting to feel a little more relaxed. Maybe she was getting the hang of this situation? As the badger took another sip of her tea, Serena thought about how nice it was to sit down with someone else with tea and some tasty desserts. Perhaps she and Evelynn could make a habit of this?

Or not. Serena didn’t want to jump the gun and scare off another potential friend, or whatever relationship was developing. She had been a little…overeager before when it came to meeting new people. But, well, this year was the first time that Serena had hung out with multiple people her age in, well, as long as she could remember in her eleven, almost twelve, years of being on this earth. So it was natural that there would be some hurdles to jump over. At least, that was what advice her parents had given her over winter break when she had brought up her concerns.

Serena was broken out of her thoughts when Evelynn brought up her earlier comment about seeing a Healer.

“Oh, no, I’ve never really tried writing before, unless you count the essays we have to write for homework.” Serena said. But she started to wonder if maybe she should? But when would she have the time, between schoolwork, Quidditch practice, and practicing piano?

“What about you? Do you like to write?” Serena asked. One thing Serena was sure of was that she wanted to get to know more about the girl sitting across from her.

Interacting With: @Evelynn Decipio

This encounter was turning out to be rather the interesting experience for Evelynn. It wasn't uncommon for her to watch others. To make note of their actions and reactions, observe their habits, or note their pattern of behaviour. She did that ceaselessly, often passively just as she went about her daily routine, but sometimes more actively when she would attend a gathering and people watch. Most, she'd found however, weren't terribly keen to find they were being scrutinised. More and more, Evelynn was having to learn tactics of subversion to conduct her assessments without notice. It was a rather tiring thing.

Here, though, there was no such limitation. Those that came to the Rehearsal Room did so with the intention of receiving attention. Well, perhaps Bowen had stumbled in accidentally and been swept up in it all, but that was beside the point. Now that she was here, she was a client, and would be treated as such. There was no rule against the fixation. In fact, it was encouraged. Evelynn could place her full and undivided attention upon the girl to soak up every little detail of her behaviour and mannerism without fear of it being thought of as stalkerish, as some had dubbed it. That, like the little delicacies upon which they dined, was refreshing.

Evelynn shrugged her brow, smirking slightly as Bowen replied. The image of the girl's excitement for the treats was still in mind to illicit a lingering amusement. "I would not be surprised if your written word, be it essay or simple note, carried just as much eloquence. The professors are fortunate indeed to be able to digest such products of her mind and hand. Would that I could take their place to mark your assignments with as much enjoyment as I'm sure they take in doing so themselves."

And hopefully Bowen was an excellent student. It had occurred to Evelynn half-way through that little embellishment that it was likely to fall rather flat if the girl struggled with her work and received anything but flowery remarks from the professors. But… it was too late to go back on it, so she simply moved on, giving a little shake of her head.

"No, not I," Evelynn began, lifting a hand to wave the notion of writing away. Then paused. "Well…perhaps that's not quite so. I wouldn't say I dislike it, per se, but I do not think my words terribly worthy. Not when compared to others whose words are so much lovelier. I would sooner spend my time reading and absorbing what others have penned to paper than to dilute the quality by putting out my own."

"And to answer your previous question.." she added, recalling that there had been one that had gone unanswered. "Unfortunately, I do not know who made the desserts," she delivered with an air of melodramatic melancholy. "However…" A finger raised to punctuate the shift of sentiment, accompanied by — what she hoped was — a winning smile. "…for you, no answer is too much effort to uncover, and I shall quest to find out."

"But setting that aside…" From there, Evelynn pushed her now-empty plate aside and lifted her tea for a sip. Elbows settled on the table, fingers cradling the delicate porcelain to hover just below her chin. With a tilt of her head like a cat eyeing something that had caught its attention, she peered out across the table. "Tell me about yourself. Who are you, Miss Bowen? What are your hopes? Your dreams? What brings you joy in the halls of these gray and unyielding castle walls?"

[font=century gothic]INTERACTING WITH: @Serena Bowen[/font]