A DREAMDAY AWAY

He was going to be ticked, that much was evident. Throughout the years, if Ginevra had learned one thing it would be that Darren hated surprises. The thing was, she never really 'learned' anything, merely observed and decided that she really didn't care. There were parts of her that wondered how he even put up with her after all this time but really, that could have been the reason. She was such a persist pain in the ass that her caring made a difference in the long run. Home was getting lonely and there was only one person she could think of. Okay- that was a lie. Ginevra had thought of a few old friends from Hogwarts but it had been years and she had no idea where they were at. The fact that Darren tended to go off the grid as well didn't really phase her. The difference was that he was predictable to her, where as others were not. Beyond that, one of the people she had thought of was Sophia and from what she had heard she was now a vampire, something that wouldn't go well if they had seen each other. Feeling the hair on her arms rise at the thought, she tilted her head to the side and shook a little, trying to keep any discomfort at the mere thought of a vampire from her system.

It only took a few days to track down where Darren was staying. He was secretive so she didn't expect it to be easy and that was what almost made it.. fun. They had ran into each other a few months back and went for coffee. She hadn't expected to hear from him afterwards and the blonde had told herself that she wouldn't go looking for him either; so much for that. Yawning, Ginevra pulled a loose tee over her head and kicked around a few things on her floor before she came across a pair of jeans. Running her fingers through her hair, she shrugged and gathered a picnic basket she had made the night before from the fridge. If she was going to show up, she had to have a reason and why not make it absolutely ridiculous? Plus she was always hungry, so naturally it seemed like the perfect excuse. Apperating from Smirking a tad at the thought, she wouldn't put it passed him to do but that really was the nature of their friendship. Coming up to the door, she knocked, hoping that he was going to answer.

Summer had begun and the weather was warm and pleasant. The sun was baking the land of Cornwall and making the lush green glass turn slightly yellow. Even the dark shadows that lay over the large house in the distance were almost pushed away by the bright shine that was sent down to the ground and reflected on the blue waters. A perfect day, a pity you have no one to spend it with. Darren frowned at the thought. He had always enjoyed peace, quiet and solitude, but now he had to admit they were beginning to trouble him.

That wasn't all that was troubling Darren. A while back he had, against all better judgement, left his position as Cursebreaker for Gringotts. He had been quite satisfied with the job, it had kept him busy, at least. But descendants of old and proud pureblood families did not work for banks owned by Goblins, and so he was now spending most of his time at home. With nothing to do, his mind always turned to troubled thoughts. He had today decided to visit the muggle town nearby, to get some fresh air at least.

On his way back, Darren had stopped to observe the new house that you could just make out from where he was standing. The house had cost a large part of his remaining funds in Gringotts, but at this point, Darren was not even sure if he would ever have an heir to inherit the money, so surely it was better to spend what remained. The house at least, was money well spent; conveniently close to a muggle town but hidden from muggle sight, it was quite a lot like his family manor. Unlike that house though, this one was located in Cornwall rather than Northern Scotland.

Suddenly Darren noticed a figure standing just in front of the house. As he approached, he noticed it was a girl, rather short, with blonde hair. Darren frowned. He had recieved no visits from anyone ever since he had moved in, and he knew of only one person who would go through the trouble of finding him. Ginevra..., how had she found him? Darren had to admit, he was excited at the prospect of seeing an old friend, but he also felt uneasy. Memories were what he was running from. The only reason he had even bought the house was because he could not bear to live under the same walls where his mother, father and sister had. But it didn't really matter. Their last meeting had been short, awkward and hadn't led to anything. This meeting would be the same, because while they still got along reasonably well, their relationship would never go anywhere. It was best forgotten, but Ginevra seemed incapable of doing that. In any case, he didn't really have a choice right now. Darren was unsure how long exactly she would wait if he just turned and went back to town, but he didn't want to find out. He was far too mannered to refuse to turn away a guest.

Not wanting to startle her, Darren called to her as he approached. "Ginevra." He only ever used her full name when he was unhappy with her, and there was little Darren hated more than surprise visits. He looked down at her, eyes resting on the picnic basket in her hand. He frowned, Darren had been about to ask what she was doing here, but the answer seemed rather obvious. With a resigned sigh, he opened the front door. "How did you find me?"

Before arriving, Ginevra hadn’t decided how long she would wait before leaving. A vast majority of her was hoping that he wouldn’t make her wait, that not knowing it was she would cause him to answer the door regardless. The two both had a past and sometimes it kept them from coming together like people always thought they would. At the same time, it was what made random appearances like this expected. No matter how long the two spent apart, they could figure out something to talk about. Ignoring the fact that their last meet had been a tad awkward, Ginevra was doing her best to move on from the difficult past. Things were better for her now, she had escaped the life of always having to be on the run and although she still was looking over her shoulder on a daily basis, it was nice having the option to live amongst everyday people. Having the option and taking it were two different things, but that was beside the point.

Ginevra had recently moved into a two-bedroom house outside of the city, somewhere that she had plenty of land and could smell the fresh air around her by simply opening up her window. Living in muggle areas could easily cause pollution, as the cars they drove and the energy they consumed was vast for clouding the air but there was always a peace of mind going back to where her family always wished they could live. However, escaping the city life wasn’t easy when you were a muggle and had to travel to work. It wasn’t as simply as apperating for her sister and father (while they were alive) and so regardless of the fact that her mother was a pureblood witch, the life she had chose made Ginevra have a respect for people who didn’t have the same privilege. Dealing with Darren was difficult at first, as he couldn’t’ always be accepting of the same things that she was. Both his parents were pureblood and they stuck by the fact that they were better than everyone else. Although her mother kept up appearances at the pureblood parties for her parents sake, it was forever ago that Ginevra could remember attending and feeling out of place for more reasons than those who knew she was the product of a pureblood gone.. rogue, per say.

Swinging the basket back and fourth in her hands, she kept it with the pace that the wind was glowing her hair around her face. The breeze was nice and it was easy to understand why Darren had chosen something like it. Hearing her name, instantly she could tell that it was the man she had come to visit. Spinning on her heels to see him, her eyes met his and she rolled them without thinking twice. ”Ginevra, really?” she asked, shaking her head. If there was one person who never used her full name, it was Darren. He insisted on calling her Gin, and despite the fact she didn’t associate it with alcohol, it made her full name almost vulgar when he did use it. Was he really that upset she had shown up? Well, yeah, I guess that was what was expected. Surprises. making a mental note that she had expected no less, she placed the picnic basket on the ground beside her and took a few strides forward. Not giving him a chance to react, she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him forward into a hug. ”My fairy god mother.” responding with sass laced around her tone, she pulled away from his ear and took a few steps back.

It was nice to see a familiar face and awkward conversation over coffee wasn’t where she wanted their story to end.

Darren stood quite still as she hugged him, still quite surprised. He shook his head slightly, trying to clear his thoughts. For some reason, he thought about his father, or at least, what he would have said. His father would have considered it a disgrace to ever even be touched by a werewolf. But Darren had never been like that. He had always been proud to a fault, and belonging to a very old pureblood family had fed that pride. But he had never been as bigoted as the rest of his family. He had never considered half-bloods, werewolves or muggleborns to be beneath him. Or did he? Perhaps he was slowly becoming like his father... Now that was a troubling thought.

Regardless, now that he had met her, it was clear that he would have to attend her for some time. The last time Darren had met Gin, he had been upset to find out that she had not moved on, nor made any attempt to do so. Things were clearly going better for her now, he could tell that just by looking at her. Time heals all wounds "You look... well," he said. He directed the groceries he had gotten from the town into his house, then closed the door with another flick of his wand. "So are we going for a picnic?" Darren asked, with a hint of sarcasm. Glancing around, he had to admit that it was definitely a good place for it. The location reminded him a lot of the Hogwarts grounds where they had spent so much time. "How have you been?"

Ginevra wasn’t like the other girls that she had attended Hogwarts with. A majority of them were boy crazy throughout their entire schooling years and moved from one guy to another, or on the rare case, obsessed over one that didn’t want them. Yes, the blonde girl could be categorized by some as obsessive but she had given up on trying to get together as more than friends with Darren for a long time ago. The one difference with her was, if asked, she wouldn’t lie. Somehow, someway, she had fallen for someone who was exactly what everybody didn’t look for in a partner. He could be prejudice, hateful and incredibly inconsiderate. Over time, she saw through it and stuck to that. She knew who he really was and after everything that had happened to her, moved on from the fact that she needed love in her life because honestly, she didn’t. She never would. Like it? Sure. Need it? No. There was a difference, the only positive was that the blonde could see it, whether she let it go or not.

At this stage in her life, a friend was what she needed and that was why she was at his door today. To spend time with a friend. ”That I do.” she agreed, smiling a little at herself. Modesty really wasn’t her forte but at times she humoured herself anyways. ”You look.. alright, too.” she responded, checking him over quickly. He wasn’t in bad shape, but she had seen him better before. That, sadly, was a long time ago. The experience he had grown up with and gone through with school would scar anyone, and those scars would most likely never fade fully. ”We are, come with me.” nodding her head, she lightly grabbed the end of her hand and led him close by. The grass was a stunning green and the sun shined directly on it, revealing a spot that she couldn’t’ say no too. As dark as times could get, the light could always be found. Sometimes it was merely easier than others to find. ”Things have been looking up, so I thought I would come see how you’re doing. See a friend, since someone doesn’t seem to want to come see me. Though you’re a hermit, so I’m not really surprised.” the tone that Ginevra used was one that had a hint of laughter behind it. She was partially kidding, as he obviously had to get out here and there, he was putting groceries away. But at the same time, he had never been the most social.  

"How is Gringotts treating you?" she asked, genuinely curious. She was completely unaware of the fact that he no longer worked where he had informed her he was employed. That would mean she was keeping tabs on him, and therefore would make her creepy. She cared and was able to find him easier than others, but that didn't mean she followed his every move. That was what their random encounters were for. Opening the basket, she pulled out two plates to put whatever she had packed earlier within, followed by two cups. Proceeding to fill hers by whispering Aquamenti, she returned her glance back up to him.

[Six months late...
Post is pretty poor, I didn't have much time. But it's something!]

In truth, a part of Darren did desire to get closer with Ginevra. There was absolutely no doubt in his mind that he loved her, and had loved her since the sixth year of Hogwarts. But he had always resisted letting their relationship become anything more than a friendship. Before, there had actually been noble reasons for him doing that. Sure, part of him, even then, cringed at the thought of being with a half-blood, or feared what other’s would say about him in pureblood circles. But mostly Darren had avoided getting too close to anyone, but especially Ginevra, for her own safety. In the end, despite his efforts, she had been harmed because of him anyway. But that had only reinforced his belief that what he did was necessary.

That was all over now. Voldemort was gone, his father was gone, the war had ended years ago and the Wizarding World was relatively peaceful. Truth was, that as his post-Hogwarts career became less and less successful, Darren had regressed towards the only true source of pride he had left – blood purity. The fact that he belonged to such an elite group of Wizarding families had always been a source of pride for him, but he had never really embraced the ideas of pureblood supremacy and segregation. The other factor was that Ginevra was not just a half-blood, not anymore. She was a werewolf too, which for Darren was even worse than a half blood. Darren had seen first-hand what werewolves were capable of while he had been a member of the death eaters, and of course he had painted all of them with that same brush. Making blanket generalizations had always been a big fault of his. When he had first found out about Ginevra being a weerewolf, he had wrestled with the thought for days, until finally he had merely decided to ignore it, to not even acknowledge it, as he was doing now.

Even now his reasons to avoid her were not altogether selfish, but deep down Darren knew what he was doing to her now by avoiding her was worse than whatever may happen otherwise. He had always hoped that someday Ginevra would move on, find someone else. But she hadn’t. Darren didn’t even need to ask, he could tell she hadn’t just by looking at her now. Over the years they had gotten very good at reading each other, and he was certain that if something would change, he would notice immediately. But nothing had changed and, oddly, that thought brought him both annoyance and relief.

“I suppose I’m not getting out of this one?” he said. A rhetorical question. He had always found it difficult to say no to her. He wasn’t even sure if he wanted her to leave. Seeing a familiar face was refreshing, even if it did bring with it some bad memories. So he followed her, it was a good day after all, no point in wasting it indoors.
“Not completely a hermit, not yet… I go to Diagon Alley quite often,” he said, with a shrug. It was true enough. While Darren had never been the most social, even he found it difficult to go days at a time without anyone for company. He often spent time at the Leaky with some company, or at Flourish and Blotts. Sometimes he also went to several of the new nighttime establishments at Knockturn for… other company. “Though… not for work. I left Gringotts a while ago.” Darren was quite sure she wasn’t remotely surprised at this news. She knew him reasonably well, and it was obvious that a job like a curse breaker was never going to be prestigious enough for Darren.

He didn’t want to hear her follow up question. So what are you doing now? The answer was of course nothing, he was unemployed. But he didn’t want to discuss that. So Darren decided to ask her the questions. “What about you? Where are you working?” His tone was still more formal than friendly.

As a girl, god forbid she accept that she could now be called a woman, she had experienced enough that her emotions were pretty under control. As a teenager, they could become an uncontrollable whirlwind creating inevitable angst. Over the past few months, Ginevra had taken to forcing herself to go on vacation. She worked far too many long hours, having always found it hard to take time for herself. When one had no family and kept very, very little close friends, there was only so much to do. Working, helping others in the profession that she had chose, was a good way to give back. Not only this, but it was also a method of not reminding herself of how little she could be viewed to have. Ginevra found it was hard to get lonely when you kept yourself busy enough with tasks that held consistent interested.

St. Mungo's was not a place for the faint. Despite the obvious hours that kept her mind racing, there was also a lot of blood. Blood being put into people, blood spewing out against the efforts to heel wounds that had something far beyond what a normal muggle doctor would even imagine. The curses that people had inflicted on them, or experiments that went through were endless. People really were twats on the best of days, but really she wouldn’t ask for anyone else. Okay- that sounded bad. Never would Ginevra want someone to be in pain. She was the exact opposite, really. As crude as the blonde could be, she was kind-hearted. She enjoyed to love and, if the time ever came around where she could trust someone to stay around and not leave, to be loved. However, that was a whole other bowl of cheerios. Bringing her attention back to the fruit loop situated in front of her.

Brushing a stand of loose hair behind her ear, she murmured a smell and filled her glass with white wine. Although she didn't drink much, here and there never hurt anyone and right now seemed like an appropriate time to have a little taste. What was a picnic without sweet scents to draw the unwelcome ants in? "I work as a healer at St. Mungos. Typically I am in the unit caring for those suffering from creature injuries, but I float when needed." swallowing the sip she took right after, her eyes averted away from her old friend for a moment. It was highly ironic that she would work in a ward where her.. condition was of play. At first, it was extremely hard. What if she had ever done that to someone? What if, when she turned, the werewolf injury her coworker was treating had been because of her? Over time, Ginevra realized that facing the injuries that half-breeds, or rather any creature, could inflict was not much different from that of which a wizard would do. All people were capable of inflicting pain. The difference? When she turned, there was no control. It was as if, literally, there was a new being taking place. She was no longer present, there was a beast inside of her that let loose and the animal instincts took over. With humans, they were fully aware. Humans were, for lack of a better word, evil.

Now, again, that took the risk of seeming cynical. With all she had been through, a pessimistic view on life was easy to take. Attempting to take a higher road was what she aimed for because, really, if no one tried then nothing would be accomplished. She liked to think that the attack that took place on her was not by a wolf that knew what they were doing. That she was left for dead out of some sort of luck and because she was a fighter, she lived to be able to do better for those who came close to running out of the bit of life she wanted to hold onto so dearly, even while every limb in her frail body told her to give up. Darren had been the one that taught her, on top of the fire she already had burning inside, that giving up wasn't an option. Being weak was not acceptable, and though she had not learned such a concept from growing up in a warped pureblood family, it could be applied in a different sense. At times, she wondered how she had impacted him in ways she may not have noticed, much like that trait had been inflicted on her, quite likely without his immediate awareness.

Gazing back at his pale frame and dark eyes, she reached forward on her knees and pulled him into a hug again. He could fight it if she pleased, but she didn't care. There was once a time where she saw him on a near daily basis and it was hard not to miss them. "You really have to stop being such a loner. I miss your cute arse and it's not okay for you to estrange yourself until I feel like showing up with good food and a challenge won." letting go of her grasp, she kept her eyes on him and slowly slouched back down into her spot. Assuming he would know the challenge was finding him, she didn't elaborate further. Friends like the two of them had to stick together, even if the separation did little on changing their relationship.