If you seek clarity

Opening the door in a haste and rushing inside, Andrei welcomed the warm air that embraced his body with speed. The cold weather was something he enjoyed, but the icy wind outside made even him shiver unpleasantly. Seeking for a warm shelter, he decided that the Three broomsticks was the most rational and closest choice. Besides, it would suit his current craving for butterbeer perfectly.

It took him a while to find any empty seats in the crowd that now filled most parts of the pub. It wasn't surprising that he wasn't the only person to find the cold weather unbearable. And as most, he was just happy to find a warm place to sit in and relax. These past few weeks have brought him more stress than he was used to, and what he needed at the moment was just some silence. Sixth year has proven to be a lot more demanding than last years of his education at Hogwarts. Used to using his wits for passing classes rather than actual work, his study habits were largely nonexistent. This year however required a lot more than a few silly papers and familiar spells.

The waiter came and he finally ordered his butterbeer. Andrei played with his fingers anxiously on the table while waiting for his order, fighting an urge to lite up a cigarette. It was a nasty muggle habit he had picked up during the summer thanks to one of his friends. But now that he was trying to get rid of it, he had learned just how addicting it could truly be. Glancing through the room, his attention soon fell on a girl that was sitting near him. For some reason she seemed rather familiar, but he couldn't see her face very well from here.

Sometimes Dani wondered why she was always alone ... well mostly, when Juliet wasn't around. Of course that was easy for her to answer. It was because the only other friends she had were idiots and her supposed fiancé was no where to be found. Dani had given up on that long ago. She'd made it clear to her parents that if she was married to Ezra, she'd either cheat on him or just divorce him immediately. And she wasn't kidding either. Since that night on the beach, she hadn't seen him at all and now she thought that he only used her for his amusement.

She wasn't going to let him have his way though. If he wanted to play that game hen so would she. Right now he was probably off banging some other chick and she was just in the Slytherin common room, doing nothing besides waiting for him and Juliet. She was done. She was sick of being treated like some possession and that was why she decided to get out of the castle. If Ezra wasn't going to pay attention to her, that was fine, she knew how to use her looks to her advantage.

Dani walked down to Hogsmeade where she was greeted by nearly every person she passed by. Her head sunk lower and lower into the Slytherin scarf around her neck with every greeting she got, her hands buried in her pockets so she wouldn't lash out at anyone. It was obvious that she was practically going antisocial, but that wasn't technically her fault. The blonde walked into the Three Broomsticks and went up to the bartender. She ordered a butterbeer and he quickly gave it to her. She placed the money kn the counter, which he quickly scraped up, and she turned around to look for a seat. She couldn't find an empty table, so she settled for the next best thing, a table with only one person sitting at it.

Her eyes quickly fell upon a table with a boy at it and she stared at him for a few moments. He was familiar, and she looked him over cautiously to figure out where she knew him from. Then it came to her, he was her housemate. A Dolohov is she wasn't mistaken, and a quite handsome one at that. She sighed softly and pushed herself off the counter she'd been leaning on and walked over to him. "Hey, mind if I sit with you?" she asked him.

Andrei's thoughts were interrupted when he heard someone speak to him. He lifted his head up and let his gaze fall on the blond in front of him, asking if she could join him. Still trying to put a name on her face, he simply nodded her head. But as she came closer and he caught a glimpse of her bright green eyes, he had remembered her instantly. She was a girl he would seldom see at classes and in the Slytherin common room. She was his year as well, if he wasn't mistaken. Not being very good at remembering names, he struggled with it for a while but seemed to remember only that it was something starting with the letter D.

"Not at all. I never mind pretty company" said Andrei as he flashed the girl a smile. Watching her take a seat, he couldn't help but be curious as to why was she alone here. A boyfriend or at least a few girlfriends were the company Andrei usually expected around girls like hers, but she was completely on her own. Well he could certainly respect and understand the need for solitude every once in a while. The look on this girl's face however, told him a different story. There was something a lot more mischievous than spending a few hours alone on her mind.

"Danielle, right?" he asked, finally remembering the girls name. He didn't know much about her, which was rather surprising. They were in the same year and house after all and Andrei definitely wasn't the shyest type around. For some reason however, he knew very little or almost nothing about this girl. She had probably kept to herself all of these years, not really being loud and obnoxious as some of the Slytherin girls tended to be. But if there was something Andrei was sure about, it was not to underestimate the shy and quiet type as they were the ones who would surprise you the most.

"So tell me then...Danielle. What would make a girl go out in the cold weather such as this one simply to get a butterbeer? Your hair would certainly get ruined from the wind. Mother nature can be cruel" he spoke with a teasing tone in his voice. He knew how much girls would spend time on their appearance and although he could appreciate a good looking girl, he couldn't stand when they were fussy about every single little thing around them that was wrong. Too spoiled probably, that's what he thought of the better looking sex in this world. And in most cases, he was right.

Pretty much everyone knew Danielle because of her reputation as a prankster. It was true what they said about these things, your reputation precedes you. Which was why she was surprised that the Dolohov boy hadn't even mentioned anything seemingly related to that. She didn't mind it much though, it was better that she wasn't addressed as the prankster of Slytherin as many called her now, since she was a first year. Juliet also shared the name, as the two girls were always together planning pranks and anything else they could.

Dani sat down and played with a strand of her hair after he'd nodded that it was okay for her to sit with him. He asked if her name was Danielle and she smiled at him slightly before nodding. "Yes, that's my name." she said with a smile and looked at the butterbeer in front of her. "You're Andrei right?" she asked him, pretty certain that that was his name. Names were one of the only things she was actually good at remembering, especially unique and rare names such as his.

She couldn't help but laugh at the stereotypical girl he was basically describing. She touched the side of her hair and smiled, looking down at the strand of hair laying idly in her hand. "You know, not all girls care about their appearance." she told him. She was one of those girls who didn't care, as her hair was almost always frizzy because she didn't exactly take care of it. The only thing she did to her hair was cut it really.

"And really the castle was getting a bit boring. My best friend is out and about somewhere, getting things prepared for her wedding with her mum. Though I don't quite get why, she isn't getting married for another two years at the latest." she said. "And then there's Ezra ..." she said quietly. "I haven't even seen him since September. Who knows where he is and with who. I've really stopped worrying about it though, but the castle was just ... not suiting me well today, I guess you could say." she added softly.

He laughed out loud at her comment that not all girls spend a lot of time on their appearance. That might be true but he was certainly not acquainted with those kind of girls then. Again he didn't mind a girl taking pride in the way she looks, but it seemed that it was so hard to meet someone who was balanced. Andrei had a younger sister of his own, and nothing was more annoying that walking into the bathroom that was filled with random clothes and pieces of make up. "Really? Such creatures exist? I thought it was only a male fantasy", he said through a smirk.

He could help but frown at her words. Marriage was such a distasteful word to him. He couldn't imagine having to commit to someone in that way, especially at his age. People who did that were either foolish or very delusional, there was no other explanation. Why else would a teenage girl wanted to promise herself to just one man for the rest of her life. He could think of madness, poisoning and probably a few more reasons. "Two years? Perfection has it's price I see", he chuckled. He would usually appreciate that kind of dedication, if it was used for anything but a wedding.

Andrei didn't really know who Ezra was, but from the way she was talking about him it was clear it was someone important in her life. Probably a boyfriend or something of that sort. And then it all made sense. A broken heart was the reason a girl like her would be all alone out in this cold weather. Perhaps it wasn't broken, but it was certainly cracked. "The castle rarely suits anyone who is half-decent. It's gone too crazy even for my taste. I say firewhiskey would be the answer to your problems. If would offer you some, but then again I'm sure we wouldn't get that kind of service here"