Wrong Place, Wrong Time (Open to Anyone)

It was probably something more along the lines of Faith being too clueless to really have pieced together what Daven had really meant by his words. Her hands had folded together in front of herself, wringing together as she waited there in the silence, watching the male stare off into space. Again she realized that he mustn't have been very much older than her, which made her very curious. She wasn't sure that she really recognized him all that much... but then again, she didn't really recognize most of the people who attended Hogwarts. The problem was that, for the most part, Faith tended to keep to herself, being far too nervous and shy to interject herself into any major social situations. Chewing her lip for a few more moments, she rifled through possible ways she could attempt to get to know more about this individual.

The voice of the shopkeep pulled her out of her thoughts, and she found herself smiling slightly. It was a good nickname, spot on. Her own nickname came to mind, but she didn't offer it. After all, nobody had really asked her opinion. Instead, she grew distracted by the mention of the Patronus charm, and clasped her hands together a little tighter, a look of awe and excitement on her face as she glanced to Brice. "Y...You've mastered your Patronus?"

She sounded very curious about it. "I... I'm no good at it..." It was the truth. Despite being incredible in nearly all of her classes, anything Defense Against the Dark Arts was always difficult for her. "A...anyways. Do you g-go to Hogwarts?" She smiled a little awkwardly as she looked up at him- he was taller than her- but then again, nearly everyone was taller, so she wasn't really sure why she was so surprised about it.

The question that he always got came up, if he did go to Hogwarts. That always happens. He liked not to tell anyone that he went to Durmstrang, but too bad. And he woulda liked if he had mastered his Patronus, but not at all. It was just an explosion of self confidence at the time he said that. He saw the look on her face and knew a lie like that could easily control someone like her. But he didn't feel like it. Maybe he could give her a second chance, and maybe, if she's a smart Ravenclaw like most others... she could learn how not to fall for it.

"I haven't mastered my Patronus, as much as I would of have liked. I'm training to be an animagus, though. I'm no good at Defense Against the Dark Arts, and the why will answer your next question. I did not frequent Hogwarts, nor my sister, last year, or the years before. I studied in Durmstrang, and my parents are moving from Bulgaria to London with me. During the time they haven't, I just use Floo powder to go from my house to a fireplace in the Slug and Jiggers Apothecary. I have an apprenticeship there. By the way, you like potions?"

The girl blinked a few times, clearly surprised by what he had to say, but eventually, she let out a tiny giggle. "It's alright, like I said, I'm nowhere near perfect with it, s...so maybe we could practice, sometime." She scrunched up her nose- she knew she shouldn't be offering things like that, but aside from being shy, she was also a little socially inept. Oh well, too late to take it back, now." Her eyes only glimmered all over again at his mention of animagus training, however, and she bounced a little, clearly excited. "I am too, actually! Isn't transfiguration magic just lovely?" The hands she'd previously been clasping down now came up to her chest, as if she was praying (but of course, she wasn't, she was just happy.)

A surprised expression formed on her features- Durmstrang. That would explain why his voice was... different. Her own voice was a little different too, being that she was from Ireland, not Britain. It wasn't nearly as impressive as Bulgaria. A little look passed through her eyes. It was clear she was thinking very deeply about something- only just a summer ago, she'd discovered some particularly startling details about her family. Durmstrang was part of those details. She chewed her lip a bit, but after a while, she lit up all over again. "I've heard wonderful things about Durmstrang's Quidditch program, is it as good as they say? I'm not very well versed in anything to do with sports though... I'm more..." She hesitated, thinking to herself, You're an egghead, Faith. You're an egghead. "I... just haven't ever really... known anything about it." That wasn't entirely true. She could tell you all about the history of Quidditch- she just didn't know how the game was actually played. In any case- it seemed she wasn't anywhere near bothered by his past attendance at Durmstrang.

His mention of potions, however, brought what was, to her, a very well-appreciated change in topic. "Potions!!" A very bright smile grew on her face, her features lightening considerably. "It's my favorite subject. I hope to maybe teach it someday. T-that's why I came here, I heard this place has some of the finest ingredients, and... and from what I c-can see, it's true!" The girl seemed very excited about it all. "You're so lucky to have an apprenticeship, it's s-so difficult to find them these days..."

Sides were shifting. In his mind, the table that was his mind had a single chip on it, which rolled from side to side. That chip kept going from liking her to not caring at all or worse. That's how he imagined it, at least. But as the table kept turning and the chip sliding, upon listening to all she had to say, it just fell too far on his good side. It wasn't common to see anyone with so much in common with him, so he found it quite nice. He was unable to completely be meaning any bad to her at the moment. His only weak spot. Funny. Well, she did seem to be clueless, though. Asking a complete stranger to practice with her? That's exactly what he'd exploit, but at the moment...

"Apprenticeships are not hard to find, not at all. I got mine by complete accident, in fact. I was going to buy some things to make potions, since it's my favourite subject. And about that thing on Quidditch, that's too bad you're not too much into sports. I'm a beater like my fa-- I mean, I was a beater back in Durmstrang, but I really can't tell if it's good or bad if I haven't compared it to any other schools'. And... about practicing together, we could. But not now. We just met, and even if you're nice, I still find that maybe later. We can talk to each other some other day, maybe. In another place, under other circumstances. Also, not to be rude, but at this point, there's nothing to be nervous with. Except maybe me. I mean, I'm weird, after all. A complete stranger that popped up, said a random thing, and started chatting."

Exactly what he wanted, actually. Even if the people in Knockturn Alley were nice, it still didn't redeem it's ugly looks. It was a dump for people that had bad luck. He pitied them, but not much.

Another small noise left her lips, and her cheeks flushed- he'd thought it was awkward too- the practicing thing. Something ticked in the back of her mind for a moment as she considered the Defense sorts of magics... but for the time being she left it alone, not wanting to get lost deep in thought in the middle of an unfamiliar store, surrounded by unfamiliar people. Instead, she thought it far more prudent to try and converse with the boy a bit more- especially since he'd be going to Hogwarts soon. He didn't seem outright offended by her existence, or anything, so she thought it might be a good chance for her to at least attempt to connect with another living being.

"I'd like to know more about sports... it's just, my father's never really home. He's usually away on business, and I never really had anyone to teach me. Mother thinks academics are far more important." Faith secretly agreed with her mother, but at the same time, she felt as if she was missing out on a huge part of wizarding culture as a whole. It never really bothered her too much- except for when someone pointed out that it was strange. Then again, Faith never really liked her flaws being pointed out, especially when she tried her very hardest to be as perfect and pristine as she could.

Her fingers had made their way to a button on her camisole, which she continued to fiddle with. So he'd noticed she was the nervous type- this in itself made her embarassed all over again. "I... I didn't mean to offend, I'm just a little..." she pursed her lips as she tried to think of any word other than 'shy'. None came to mind, and she did her very best to divert the topic entirely. "Well, I don't think you're weird. I don't really think very many people are genuinely weird though... but that might just be the Ravenclaw talking." She pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"I wonder what house you'll get. Probably not Hufflepuff... you're too outgoing for a place like that." A little smile formed on her lips. She herself was feeling more and more comfortable the more she stood there, mostly because she'd realized that he was probably right. Nobody she'd run into at Knockturn Alley had actually seemed dangerous, they'd all seemed very polite. She thought to herself that she might explore the area more often, in that case... maybe.

He couldn't help but smile again. She didn't know much about sports AND was nervous and shy? Well, that's at least a couple things they DIDN'T have in common. He would try to help her out, though. In fact, this girl who he had just met, got onto his nice side without even trying, and was only going further that way. Brice even forgot what he was doing in the Knockturn Alley. She slowly exposed the weak side of his psyche without even realizing it. But by then, neither did he notice.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean I'm offended or anything. I mean, I'm not shy or anything, but still, I get it. And for not finding me weird, you're weird!" (He grinned comically for some seconds)
"And, if you really must know, I agree with most people about going to Slytherin. Some even suggested Ravenclaw, but... I don't think I'd make it. And for my own reason to be thinking about going to Slytherin, it's because of my ambitions."

"Back to the sports, though! I can't really explain. You play it, or watch it, and decide if you like it or not. If you actually know nothing about it, I can tell you the rules. But the one thing I have to say is, when you fly or see someone from the team playing, it's an somewhat tense, but extremely fun experienxlce. I can't describe it with words."

A laugh of her own escaped her lips. It was a lighthearted one, that jingled slightly as it escaped her lips. In that moment, it seemed as if all those nerves that she'd been carrying around with her had somehow just disappeared, that the weight of her own shy demeanor had been lifted off of her shoulders for a moment. "Maybe I am a little wierd... I mean, I did sneak out to here of all places." She giggled again, before, folding her hands back together in front of her.

"I think you'll be wonderful no matter what house you're in." She rocked back and forth on her heels for a moment as she considered the various houses. Faith had always held a high level of respect for each house; they all had their own wonderful virtues. The Gryffindors- much unlike herself- were brave and bold, and had a taste for adventure. The Hufflepuffs loyal and kind, the Ravenclaws keen and intelligent, the Slytherins smooth and ambitious. She wondered for a few moments if there ever was another house besides Ravenclaw that she might have ended up in. A few more moments of consideration were given, before she allowed herself to return to the conversation all over again.

"I suppose I'll just have to watch it this year, then." Faith gave a small little smile. "It'll do me good to try and do something besides hide in the library, I think." She chewed her lip for a few moments. "Do you plan on trying out for the Quidditch team once you come to Hogwarts?" Her tone was curious as ever. "You seem very very passionate about it."

The Hogwarts team... Of course he was! I mean, Brice couldn't just train at home during summer but not play it during school year. He'd never accept that. Plus, after playing, he could answer Faith's question about the quality of the quidditch of the schools (Trust me, he's not forgetting it.) Seeing the many smiles the girl was starting to let out, though, he couldn't help but keep smiling as well. With her mention about going to the library all the time, though, he couldn't help but laugh shortly.

"So you spend your school year in the library? Funny, I spent my summer with potions and transfiguration books. And I am going to try quidditch in Hogwarts. There's nothing better than a little game of quidditch to get some relief. I don't understand how you made it without quidditch! I used to watch all matches in first year, then in the second I started playing. Then the third, fourth and... Here I am, I guess."

Her nose scrunched up again. For a moment, Faith almost thought that Brice was making fun of her. A deep breath reminded her that she was probably just being paranoid about the whole thing. Her expression slowly relaxed back into the usual ghost of a smile. He hadn't done anything to give her any reason to distrust him- so it would be good of her to continue giving him the benefit of the doubt.

"Yes. The library. The potions lab too. I just enjoy practicing as much as I can. I reallyought to take on a few more hhobbies though. It really wouldn't do if I started to burn out from working too hard. " Another small laugh left her lips. "...Does wizard's chess count? "

That second, the most honest smile he gave in years popped up in his face. He almost never smiled because of actual happines, or affection, but yes to seem more friendly. In that moment, though, it was different. And he wasn't supposed to like that. He didn't care, though. He didn't see it coming, and didn't see it when it came. Brice was just actually liking that girl, as much as she was really like him, and really unlike him. Funny. Really funny. But he liked it anyway.

"I guess, if you think about it. I mean, why not? I like it a lot, too. And I mean it, I could not be more excited for an year. I want to go to Hogwarts and learn all about it. I just love both potions and transfiguration, can't leave without it. I do want to know about Defense Against Dark Arts, though. It seems... pretty interesting. We... uh... learnt Dark Arts back in Durmstrang."

His smile turned awkwarder. But still no remorse.