Sweets and Summer [OPEN]

For the first time in a very long time, Keiran was out of the Hogwarts castle and just taking a day to relax. The first match he wanted to attend - the Ireland and Scotland game - wasn't until that night, so he had agreed to spend time with Avery and hear about how she had been since her father had died. He was surprised to find - and it seemed like Avery herself was, as well - that she had gotten better over the past couple of weeks. She wasn't really acting like her old self yet, but Keiran was actually really glad that she had asked him to meet up with her before the game.

As they walked through the main square of the marketplace, Keiran caught accents and languages from all over the world, a few making him turn his head to look. Sometimes it surprised him to note where the other wizarding communities were popping up, but it was actually rather exciting. As many interesting people as they saw, the two friends saw nearly as many familiar faces.

Smiles and waves were exchanged before Avery caught sight of a little shop set up to sell sweets and ice cream. Upon entering the shop, they split up to wander about and, in the end, both came back to the ice cream, laughing at each other good-naturedly. As they collected their snacks and paid for them, Keiran held the door open for her, following Avery back onto the square.

She was going to kill him.

Which of the gods had decided it would be funny to let Jack get into the biggest match of her life... and then allow Robin Ivanov to be her fellow Beater. She really could not imagine anything more painful. She wanted to stay focused on the eventual match... not on whether or not Robin was going to show up, and what he was saying about her to their fellow teammates. She wanted to do warm ups with him, wanted to run some drills.

He had laughed her off.

She was going to kill him, and she thought it best to let his wife know so she could get the will all arranged.

She was stomping about the market place, in search of someone who could handle her rage when she spotted Avery and Kieran. Perfect. She could warn Avery about her murder plot and enlist Keiran's help.

She stomped over, stopping right in front of Avery. "Does your husband have a life insurance policy? If so, you're about to be a very rich woman."

Avery had just gestured towards one of the stands she was particularly interested in, saying that she was actually quite proud of Keiran for working so hard on the event with Khaat and making it - at least thus far - the success that it seemed to be. He acted like it was nothing at all, but Avery knew better. It wasn't sensible for him to walk around doing all that he did and expect nothing from it. But Keiran had been that way nearly as long as she knew him. With the school, with things to do with his family. He had stopped expecting recognition, and she wanted to offer a bit of that back to him. Of course, as soon as she finished her sentence and went to throw away her now-empty cup, someone stepped directly into their path.

"I would be fairly surprised if he didn't..." Avery returned slowly. It wasn't as though neither of the pair knew who Jack was. Of course they did. It would have been bizarre, somehow, if they didn't. Particularly knowing who their best friend - and, in Avery's case, husband - was.

"What's he done this time?" Keiran asked, an amused smirk lighting his face. Jack looked pretty serious, but the image of Robin getting into trouble was pretty fantastic.

If Jack was crossing social lines, it was because she really did not understand them. Jack had gone a long time without ever really having to properly function around other people. Her 'social group' had always been coworkers, allies, and enemies that she did not have to exercise social grace with. And the few people who had worked themselves into her inner circle of what could reasonably be called friends had jumped on the bandwagon long after it was too late to teach her any better.

A proper hello would have been a good starting lesson.

She shifted her wait onto her other hip, crossing her bare arms in the tank top she had donned in preparation for the practice that seemed to be doomed.

Jack glanced over at Keiran as though she had just seen him. "Oh, hey Kevin." Without bothering to explain the nickname she had coined for the professor, she looked between them both and explained, "I mean, this is just our biggest match to date, yeah? This isn't for the Falcons, this determines our individual success from here on out - and that git will not practice with me."

Jack took Quidditch very seriously.

Keiran ignored Avery's confused sound and expression when Jack addressed him. Instead he just went with it, smiling slightly at the redhead but not bothering to explain it. "I mean, that makes sense and all, Jack," Keiran began, shrugging. "But wouldn't it be better to practice with someone who would take it seriously, anyway?"

"Well," Avery cut in, attempting to be fair to Robin since he wasn't there to say anything. "They have been on a team together for ages. It's probably comfortable."

Avery, although it might surprise Jack, was not at all clever when it came to Quidditch. She went to matches when she and Robin were doing well, and avoided being a distraction when they weren't. But did she understand the dynamics of it? No. It didn't register that she would have been forced to learn how to play with members from teams outside of the Falcons. Avery was a clever girl, but not when it came to sports.

Keiran passed her a bemused look, shaking his head. "Well, hopefully you play well with the others, too, Jack. We'll definitely be there."

Jack was not typically a complainer. She was a doer and a fixer. She liked to find solutions, not complain about the problem. She had never found much use to it. That was why she and Chase had always struggled to understand each other. Chase would want to complain about whatever was going on and Jack would walk away in the middle, just to track down whatever the problem was and beat it to a pulp. That was how Jack cared, that was how she dealt with things.

But Robin Ivanov brought out the worst in her, now didn't he?

Jack shook her head. "We're in the match together, so we need to get in sync. If we're evenly matched, then there's no way someone will get passed us and -" she let out a breath. "I'm getting locked on. And if I lock on, I will murder."

She glanced to Keiran, forcing on a calmer looking smile. "Thanks. Just... want a good match is all."

NOT TOO MUCH TO ASK, IVANOV.

"So, you're all right then, you two? Doing well?"

Small talk had never been her forte.

For once, Avery didn't color up when being corrected. Maybe Keiran had a point when it came to Jack. She could be intense, but she did mean well. Instead, the blonde stepped slowly towards the nearest depository for her trash, reaching for Keiran's while he replied to Jack's question. Lucky for Avery, he didn't mention her until she was out of hearing range.

"Well, I've been working on this event with Khaat, so I have been busier than I anticipated. I've been trying to balance the time here and the time at home, now that we have Darcie to look after as well. I've sort of stepped up into the role of the night-time watch guy, which I hope will make Millie more accepting of my being gone so much," he added, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Now that it's started I have more time to stay home and be with the kids. I only stepped out today because Avery asked me to.

"She lost her father a few weeks back and she won't admit how much it hurt her. Not to me, anyway. I'm not sure about what she's said to Robin, though I know he was there when it happened. A part of me hopes he's off doing something to help her, but I don't think Avery would actually accept it if he did," Keiran frowned, glancing towards the woman in question. She had stopped to chat with someone Keiran thought was from the Ministry, which was rather lucky. "Anyway, it has been a trying time for us. But how are things at your place?"

"Bloody good job you've done with it," Jack said, searching through her knapsack for her water bottle, having to push beyond fireworks, various weapons, Ministry paperwork - the usual junk that littered her backpack. "Really. Besides the walking arsehole I have to deal with, everything's been smooth as pie for us players. Out itinerary is all handled, and we're politely herded like sheep from place to place to ensure we get there on time - and it's brilliant. We're a thick lot, you know. Lots of Bludgers to the head."

Jack grinned. "Kiddos. Weird, huh? You suddenly have no time but the days are long as shit. It's a mind boggle, really." She had found her water bottle and unscrewed it, taking a quick chug of it. She was trying to flush out all the leftover alcohol of her system to ensure she was well hydrated for the game.

Keiran continued on and Jack felt her expression take on a more somber tone. She lowered her water bottle, staring at Keiran. Two things struck her, beyond the natural sympathy that arose from hearing someone had lost someone. She vaguely realized that this information meant Claire Bishop had suffered a loss - though who could tell as she had not missed a day of work nor seemed off of her game. Secondly, the way Keiran used the word 'us' to describe the situation of the other couple, Jack suddenly realized she was talking to a man intensely loyal to his friends. A man who had exhausted himself between working on something very few people would thank him for and taking care of his children, still finding time to ache for a friend.

It sounded familiar.

Jack tapped her fist atop the water bottle. "I'm sorry, mate. I'll, um..." What could she do? "I won't kill Robin, I guess. Not if Avery needs him." She offered an attempt at a smile. Always trying to lighten to mood. It was really the only thing she could do.

If Keiran had been more humble, he might have actually taken a moment to properly thank Jack for her compliment regarding the running of the whole event. Instead, he was so surprised by it that he paused and failed to come up with anything decent to say except, "really? I'm glad it's going over well." Which, for the record, had become his very bad way of accepting praise. He appreciated it, obviously, because he was smiling at her. But he didn't really have the words to explain how surprised he felt because of it.

Avery returned just as Jack teased about letting Robin live, and she smiled brightly. "I won't tell him you threatened it until after the game. Then he might not make any more trouble, hopefully."

Keiran shook his head, fully believing that Robin would find the fun in messing with Jack all the more. Avery clearly seemed to have something she wanted to say, but when she finally got int all out, Keiran could only stare at her in confusion.

"Hey, I was wondering-... Robin mentioned some folks that were working with you and, it's not like I don't trust you, or don't trust him, but it doesn't exactly sound... safe."

Wow. Jack was actually interacting with people. Hang on, Jack was interacting with people on a non-business level. And she was doing so without being aggressive. And she was being received well. The conversation was actually sort of… wow. Enjoyable. This wasn’t a very common occurrence for the overly-abrasive woman. She was used to talking at people, or talking about complicated issues she wished she could just bash into submission, or she got used to people just… not responding well to her in general.

This was different.

She sort of liked it.

Was this how most people lived?

Kev seemed surprised by her praise, so she clapped a hand on his shoulder, giving him a affirming nod. She dropped her hand and grinned at Avery. “I appreciate your help.”

But then the conversation shifted. Jack glanced to Avery. She… Was she talking about Knight’s Watch? Out in the open, in front of someone who knew nothing about Knight’s Watch. She couldn’t be upset with Avery. It wasn’t her who had broken the rules they had all agreed upon.

Her face had gone slack during these thoughts and life now came back into it. Her expression was much the same as what they had first seen upon her approach. “…Right. I’m going to kill him.”

She really could. AND she had enough reason to. Maybe, once the cup was won safely in their name – because any other alternative had not yet entered her head – she could suggest a broom ride around the grounds. It would be easy to kick him off his broom. His head would weigh him down and bring him crashing down.

She sighed. “Look – everything is voluntary. We’re not even like… a thing.” This was hard. “We’re just trying to promote peace.”

Through espionage and ass kicking.