|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 5, 2009 0:27:07 GMT -5
Belle leaned over the counter, her eyes closing slightly as she sighed, bored. There was no one in the shop but herself, as Hogsmeade was hardly ever busy while school was on break. Still, it was unusual that there wasn't at least one non-employee wandering around.
Belle had already reorganized all of the shelves and taken care of throwing out any expired products, and now she had nothing to do. She didn't even have a magazine to read, and she had left her book at home, which was probably for the better. Reading made her sleepy, and she couldn't very well fall asleep at work. She began to hum to herself, trying to occupy her mind. One hour, one hour and she could go home, leaving the store in the hands of the next employee.
She had only been working at Honeydukes for a month, but already it felt like a sort of haven. Not yet home, but it was nice. She liked being here, surrounded by cheerfully colored sweets. Nothing could ever go wrong when you were surrounded by sweets.
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 5, 2009 1:40:44 GMT -5
Alternating jobs tended to make figuring out one's schedule a bit more difficult than looking at a list of dates and shift times, especially when one was already preoccupied with other things. Tired from a night of less-than-perfect sleep, Zephyr had been roaming the High Street in Hogsmeade for quite some time. The locals were out and about, but everything was relatively quiet without the presence of students from Hogwarts, just down the road from the picturesque village.
Deciding against stopping in at the Three Broomsticks - though the thought of a butterbeer was very tempting at that point in time - he passed straight by the pub and made his way to Honeyduke's. Able to draw up his schedule from the recesses of his mind, he had come to the conclusion that he was working the afternoon and evening shift - and was an hour early, as he found one of the other employees behind the counter as he walked in.
Better late than early.. There was no one in the shop and he had no need to look around with the layout memorized, so he walked over to the counter to his very bored-looking co-worker. "Quiet day, I take it?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 5, 2009 7:41:16 GMT -5
"Something like that." Belle gave a startled smile, having not heard Zephyr come in. She didn't know him all that well, but what she did know, she liked- he was kind, considerate, and didn't look at her like she was a freak, even though he had no idea why she was wearing gloves.
"You're here early." Belle tilted her head curiously. She surely couldn't be an hour behind, could she? "Something wrong?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 5, 2009 11:33:07 GMT -5
"Oh no, no. Nothing's wrong, just wanted to see how things were going." Zephyr smiled, knowing she would probably find that pretty strange - then again, he wasn't exactly normal. "Came into town early, figured I'd come by before my shift starts."
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 5, 2009 17:59:27 GMT -5
"Pretty well, as nothing is going on." She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, leaning on the counter.
"I know how that is. There are days my apartment seems so small that I have to escape, even if it is just to work." She smiled shyly, placing one gloved hand under her chin.
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 5, 2009 18:22:17 GMT -5
"Funny how having to be here doesn't really affect your decision." Implying himself in that as well, Zephyr leaned against the counter and folded his arms on top of it. "You only have another hour, right?" He couldn't always be sure, as their shifts often overlapped.
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 5, 2009 23:23:06 GMT -5
Belle laughed, "I must admit that is very true. Touche, Master Carlisle." She teased, hopping up to sit on the counter in order to rest her legs. She was wearing jeans and a pink Hollyhead Harpies shirt, along with matching four inch heels that made up for her lack of natural vertical strength. "Yeah, I'm off in an hour, unless you need me to stay. It's not like I have anything better to do, after all. I was thinking of maybe going and getting some ice cream before going home." Belle usually didn't talk that much, being more of a "hi-bye" kind of person. However, she usually felt a little more comfortable around Zephyr than her other coworkers- he was a little calmer.
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 6, 2009 0:33:12 GMT -5
"I've learned to be good in making points." Grinning a bit - though he didn't know where it came from - Zephyr ran a hand across his hair to smooth errant strands back. He hadn't had it cut in quite some time, so it was starting to get a little longer than he liked to keep it.
"Ah, okay. Sounds fun." Not surprised that she had plans, he backtracked a bit. "If you want to go ahead and head out, I'll cover the rest of your hour. I know it's probably already been a boring day." The offer wasn't entirely out of character, as he was the one always ready to cover for others and help them out - almost as if he needed to do it.
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 7, 2009 20:30:25 GMT -5
"I'll wait it out- I need the extra money since my roommate just moved out." She shrugged, checking to make sure her wand was still in her pocket. She fell silent for a moment, clearly unsure of what to say. She had been working with Zephyr for a month now, and while he certainly made her feel more comfortable and chatty than the rest of her coworkers, Belle still had a hard time being able to talk to anyone. Too many things had gone wrong, all because of one stupid ability. And that little ability made everything in her life difficult- relationships, friendships, hell, even her job. She was used to being looked at like a freak, but how could one not give their friend a hug when they were upset, or go over and talk to the cute guy at the bar? Belle didn't know, and she felt like these hesitations in her knowledge made her years younger than she was supposed to be. Being naive wasn't something Belle prized, and it made making friends very hard for her. She fidgeted with her gloves- black lace ones today- and chewed on her lip.
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 7, 2009 20:37:35 GMT -5
"Alright. I can understand needing extra money." Taking that line of thought no further, he backed off - metaphorically. She seemed reluctant to speak, and he certainly had experience with situations such as that.
"Almost wish I'd gotten a better night's sleep." Making that as an aside, he moved away from the counter and walked to a nearby display, studying the various types of chocolate - some of which he would have to take down and replace with fresher wares.
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 7, 2009 20:50:12 GMT -5
"Mmm." Belle agreed, watching him over her shoulder. She wished she could come up with some witty return, something to make him laugh, but nothing came to mind. She wasn't dimwitted by any means (even though most people wrote her off as not having two brain cells to rub together because she was so quiet and inobtrusive,) but she only seemed to be able to show it when she was alone.
"Zephyr?" She asked suddenly, looking at him through her lashes shyly. "Would you like some ice cream?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 7, 2009 20:55:53 GMT -5
"Hm?" Having to take a moment to be sure she was speaking to him - they were the only two in the building, granted - Zephyr turned away from the display and thoughts of what he was going to have to do to it. Reactions a bit sluggish for one reason or another, he studied her face and expression for a long moment, then finally seemed to get his wits back and slowly nodded. "Yeah..sure."
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 7, 2009 21:02:55 GMT -5
Belle smiled, her face lighting up. Unlike other girls in this situation, she had no alterior motives in offering him a treat. She was just happy to have someone to enjoy it with, which had happened only a handful of times in her life. "My treat." She slid off the counter and rifled in her pockets for the spare change she had left over from breakfast that morning. "Any particular kind you prefer?"
|
|
|
|
Post by Zephyr Carlisle on Sept 7, 2009 21:09:39 GMT -5
"As long as it has chocolate in it, I'll be happy. I just can't have anything with strawberries in it, allergies suck." Managing a smile, Zephyr tried not to think about feeling as if he needed to pay - he simply didn't have the extra money. He was barely clearing as it was, and his bank account at Gringott's was nearly empty. They were maddening thoughts.
|
|
|
|
Post by Belle Hullett on Sept 7, 2009 21:19:19 GMT -5
"I'll be back." She smiled mischeviously, knowing she wasn't really supposed to be leaving, but she chose to ignore it. It wasn't like there wasn't someone watching the store. She could sneak out for a few minutes.
Five minutes later, Belle came back, holding two ice cream cones- a strawberry one for herself, and a chocolate one for him, her heels clicking gently against the floor as she came over to him, holding out the cone. "Happy Wednesday." She winked jokingly, going back to sit on the counter again. With her legs crossed and her tongue gently licking her ice cream, she looked vaguely like a little girl. When she was relaxed, Belle seemed to be content in the little things in life- like ice cream.
|
|
