In with the OLD FAMILIAR

[Noah Orchard]

I PROMISE TONIGHT NOT TO DO NO HARM
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AND YOU CAUGHT ME IN THE CROSSFIRE

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Writers have writer’s block. Artists have artists block. Athletes psyche themselves out, and actors get stage fright. Noah was having dater’s block. Although he didn’t want to compare them at all, Isabelle and May were similar in regard to not liking romantic things. The problem with this, is that Noah was really good with romantic things, and not so good with…dates that didn’t involve a lot of romance. It’s hard to blame a guy – that’s what dates were supposed to be about. Then, he remembered a golden rule: All girls like romance. They could lie, deny, and outright distain the idea but none of them really meant it. The challenge, you see, was presenting it in a very subtle way for this type of girl. Another –spur-of-the-moment date had come about when he was passing a note with Maylene Bell yesterday. Yes, he’d only given himself one day to plan this. Noah wasn’t even sure why he had asked out May, but it very well may have to do with how attractive she looked, and the way she could talk about anything and not be embarrassed. I don’t know, Noah could just talk to May, and sometimes a guy wanted to go out with a girl that wasn’t trying so hard she seemed like she was straight out of a copy machine. Then came the part where Noah had to think of a good date idea, and he was drawing blanks. It was even more difficult because he couldn’t ask someone else for an idea. Noah prided himself in being the person others went to for date ideas, and if he were to ask them – tarnished. The reputation would be tarnished, I tell you. It was when he was sitting in the Great Hall looking at all the food on the table and thinking he could probably cook something like that, that it hit him. He Could cook someone like that. So he did. Noah went into the kitchen in between classes on Friday and asked the House Elves if he could try his hand at a few dishes. They of course, not knowing what to say, scuttled about as Noah made one hell of a mess. But, he’d often cooked things the muggle way back in California when his non-wizarding friends were around and he was sure he could do it again. Noah Orchard was successful.

May understood muggles, better than even Noah did. Her family were muggles, and you know, the wizarding world was great, but sometimes you miss the normalcy. Noah decided that it would be a good idea if they had a “muggle” date. That’s why Noah made gourmet sandwiches with types of cheeses on the side, fresh fruit, and maybe just a little bit of wine (What? He wasn’t going to get drunk). He piled it all into a basket, took it down to the lake and moved on to the next idea. After you eat, you need some sort of other activity. Noah met up with a friend in Hogsmeade who gave him a pair of kites. Lastly, Noah took a cassette with some of the latest muggle bands and put them in a small stereo player. Completely muggle and completely normal. It could be that simple and still turn out alright. It took Noah much longer to think of this than is generic first date ideas, but when you’re going out with a friend you want to do something that’s actually nice for them. I mean, I think you’re supposed to do that. Noah was finishing the last touches on his hair, trying to get this whole “flat” hair thing down. He’d had a haircut not too long ago and instead of his typical, shaggy California do, he’d been flattening it down. It still looked good it was just…unusual for him. His comic book obsessed roommate was for the first time, not in their room, otherwise he’d likely ask a series of offending questions which would end with Noah shoving a pillow in his face until he screamed. Noah didn’t want to do that because he could wrinkle his clothes. Don’t mess with the clothes.

Noah was half way down the common room steps before he flung his leg over the side and then the other, hopping off the banister and onto the stone floor with a thud. He was fortunate not to sprain an ankle, as he’d done once before doing the exact same thing. Some people just never learned. There were a lot of students in the hallways because they were filing slowly in for dinner in the Great Hall. It would be only too easy to retreat to the outdoors with May without anyone noticing because of the throng of individuals. They weren’t even leaving Hogwarts so it’s not like trouble was a factor, but technically, they were supposed to be dining like everyone else. Technicalities. Noah had nothing in his hands because he had put all of the items down by the lake already, hiding underneath a blanket. Not that anyone was going to steal some sandwiches and a muggle cassette player, but you never knew. There were some interesting stories about a monster about at the lake when no one was around, and even tales of a couple of sightings. Noah didn’t buy into it, especially after Justin told him that he and Isabelle took a swim in it one early morning, and Justin clearly still had all of his appendages. Noah walked a steady pace down all of the many flights of stairs until he had reached the bottom step. From there he walked over to the grand doors in the entrance hall that separated the castle from the grounds. There he waited for May, glad that he was early. Not that he knew where the tradition came from, but it was the guy’s responsibility to be the first one there and he intended on keeping it going. He stood there, with his hands in his pockets, his shoulder casually pressed up against the stone siding of the wall. As long as that front door didn’t swing open and squash him flat into the surface, this was going to be a good night.

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tags;; May Bell
music;; Crossfire - Brandon Flowers
outfit;; here

[Maylene Bell]

So she had a date with Noah Orchard. May pursed her lips and frowned at herself in the bathroom mirror, like she’d been doing for the past couple of minutes. She was actually—she was going on a date with Noah. What had the world come to? May hadn’t been on a date since…she could barely even remember. Maybe it had been TJ. Months ago, and with the way things worked at Hogwarts, that was ages. Not that she was complaining. To be honest, May thought dates were kind of really overrated. It was nerve-wrecking and annoying to have to dress up and pretend to be perfect the entire night for some guy that you had romantic prospects with. It was all very silly, really. She’d much rather hang out. Just… hang out and if people were interested in each other, they could date, but the word date as a noun was just irritating. She liked hanging out with friends, and to her, really, boyfriends were friends that you felt physical attraction with and did physical things with. The whole having a boyfriend that you have little chemistry with was stupid, to her. She didn’t understand girls that started dating someone based on immediate physical attraction, which was why all of her boyfriends had been guys she’d been friends with forever. Kieran, TJ, Noah last year… and now Noah was asking her out again. The whole thing was weird, really, but she figured it had been a spur of the moment, why-the-hell-not sort of thing, and she couldn’t blame him, really. Things were boring nowadays, and since both of them were single, she didn’t see why they shouldn’t go and have a good time somewhere different than their usual routine.

She still thought dates were stupid, though. So, puffing air through her lips, May ran a hand through her hair, leaving it loose down to her shoulders and came out of the bathroom just as Lucy was leaving the room to go to dinner—she’d told her she was hanging out with Noah elsewhere and wouldn’t make her, but to save her dessert if they had apple tarts again. Grabbing a scarf from her closet, May let it hang over her shoulders and quickly left the dorm room. People were still coming out of their dorms to go to the Great Hall, but thankfully nobody questioned her lack of robe for dinner. She glanced at her watch and slowed down her pace; she was fine. May walked down with everybody else towards the Entrance Hall, looking around as she went. The whole thing had really come out of the blue. One moment they were talking about his eyebrows and her breasts and the next he was flirting with her onto the next century. And as much as she hated to admit it, Noah Orchard flirting was hard to resist. He just had a thing with his eyes. And eyebrows. It was alluring. And okay, she wasn’t stupid; this was Noah Orchard they were talking about here. He was probably living up to the fact that he hadn’t actually taken her out when they were dating—something she’d been totally fine with, by the way—and was doing this tonight because he was still upset over his breakup with Isabelle Laurentine—or no, wait, there had been someone else after her, right? Valentine. Right. May snorted, he really knew how to pick his girls.

Anyway, May thought, as she walked down the stairs to the Entrance Hall, where she could already spot Noah waiting for her. This wasn’t a proper date anyway, cause they didn’t like each other that way, so without any real intentions behind it, it was just a way to hang out with a good friend and flirt because it was fun from time to time. It wasn’t like she expected flowers or kissing or anything. Yeah, she nodded to herself, taking a breath, this was just hanging out with a friend. Outside. On a date of sorts. Urgh, whatever. May stepped up to him and reached up to wrap the scarf properly around her neck as it got chilly outside the common room. “Tell me we’re not going into the forest,” she called out as she approached him. “Or I would’ve brought my camera with me, because I don’t think I’ve ever seen you serve detention in there after dark, and people’s faces are priceless when something with legs shows up.

[/color]” May grinned up at him. “So, where are we going?[/color]”
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[Noah Orchard]

LET ME INSIDE NO CAUSE FOR ALARM
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AND WE'RE SEARCHING FOR SHELTER

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It took little time for May to arrive, although he didn’t actually see her until she was standing right next to him. Noah could see over other people’s heads but May was so short that it didn’t help a lick when trying to play a game of “where’s Waldo?” at Hogwarts. It was good that she was dressed for outdoor weather because he hadn’t told her or even hinted at what they were doing, as he didn’t know himself at the time of the initial asking. He had a jacket he could share just in case but it would drown her. He made a mockery of looking disappointed as she spoke about the Forbidden Forest, a place he sadly had to go to many times. Noah could put up with and even enjoy detention anywhere except when they went into the forest. That he couldn’t abide. “Well, I guess the forest is out,” he said and waved his hand, looking annoyed until he burst into a smile. “The forest is so overrated, wouldn’t you rather do something more exciting?” He probed, to peak her interest. Actually what they were doing was rather unexciting in comparison and didn’t involve something so magical. He moved and waited for the heavy doors to open, and with all of their locks and mechanisms it took a good minute for it to do so. Eventually they retreated into the castle and Noah began to lead the way outdoors. Noah took her arm, hoping against hope that she wasn’t going to get annoyed and yank it away. That was just Noah, and he’d done it before when they weren’t on a “date”. He was just touchy like that. There was still a good amount of sunlight left, probably another hour or so before it got dark. If it had been one of the later months they would have hours, but that was fine, because he had fixed little lights on top of the kites so they would glow. Actually glow. In the dark. No matter how old a man become, glow in the dark was still the coolest thing ever.

He gave May a little time to guess herself where they were headed, before he veered off right and headed down a path through the grounds that led directly to the lake. “First off, I’m going to feed you.” It was dinner time, and even if that wasn’t enough, he knew that May had a hearty appetite. Noah had seen her eat first hand at the house table. There was no longer any snow on the ground and leaves would begin to bud and bloom on the trees soon enough. It was actually rather beautiful right now because it was the anticipatory time of year right before spring really began. There were already flowers springing up, the early ones, and the birds had come back to the castle. The lake was only partially frozen but it glistened in the sunlight, and while we know that as a guy he wasn’t supposed to pay so much attention to such things, Noah really did like scenery and the changing of the seasons. Their outing was timed so that no one else should be around, as they first off, don’t usually go down to the lake this early in the year and two, were all too busy stuffing their faces in the Great Hall. The best part about the lake would be when the sun started to go down. He was a sucker for sunsets. Shut up. Now the lake was sprawled out before them and there was no doubt as to where they were going. Noah let go of May’s arm and ran ahead a couple of paces to wear a blanket obviously covering something was sitting. He yanked it off and tossed it to the side, planning to spread it out in a second.

“Now, I’m not going to even look at you until I finish setting up because I know exactly the look you’re going to give me,” Noah began, now flattening the blanket, setting dishes, and pulling out the food items and condiments as he did so. “And I’d like you to remember at this moment, as you are scowling in distain at this obvious attempt at romance, how much you like me. Then, when you’ve pondered and accepted it,” Noah kept going, putting up the finishing touches. He grabbed the stereo last, and even that wasn’t magic because he had put batteries inside. He placed it beside the blanket so it wasn’t in the way of where they were sitting. “-I’d like you to see that this is not some feeble attempt at romance, but a little gesture of….” He stopped talking until he pressed “play” on the tape, rock music blaring out of the speakers. “-Home.” Noah smiled and turned around so that he was looking at May now. There it was. A muggle dinner, and a muggle activity afterwards, and hardly a magic item anywhere near them. “I made the food. No, it’s not poison” he smirked, unwrapping the sandwiches on the plate. It was a good thing he had brought the music because it was incredibly quiet outside, with only a slight breeze that just might be enough for kite flying. If not…maybe a Little magic inducement of wind wouldn’t be so bad.

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tags;; May Bell
music;; Crossfire - Brandon Flowers
outfit;; here