Lazy Mornings [Open]

[whatever]

When one worked as often as Eloise Dolohov did, the days started to blend together. It seemed that her work had become the driving force in her young life which had been a relative adjustment for her to make three years earlier. The former society girl had never once had to work a day in her life until she left everything she knew on the hills of the pureblooded elite for the uncertainty of normality. Though she never once questioned her decision to leave some days were indeed harder than others. She had to work to maintain her life. There were bills to be paid, food to be brought in, and things to be done and all of which required money. For Elle, the only thing she could afford to do was dive into her work head first.

It wasn’t as though this was her dream job. While the Three Broomsticks had been hospitable, encouraging, and kind to her while she learned the ropes, her dreams were set in an entirely different field. The Three Broomsticks required long, hard hours and little pay, but it was all she had at the moment and she was not about to give that up. The dreams she did have were kept close to her heart and she did not freely divulge them to anyone. They were her own secrets and being that, they were the only thing that couldn’t be taken away from her. She had always had dreams, even when she had everything a girl could ever wish for, Elle found herself yearning for the unexplored. No matter what, these dreams were hers, and no amount of money could take them from her.

It seemed as though she had been at the Three Broomsticks for far too long. She might as well have made herself a bed in the backroom as to save her the commute and give her a bit more time to catch up on the sleep she was not getting. That morning was not like anything else only due to the fact that she was not at her work, she was not on duty, and she had a bit of time to breathe.

She was tired, overworked, and underpaid, but yet, she was happy. She was not used to sleeping in and despite her yearning for more hours of rest; her body woke her up ready to go at an early hour. Instead of staying in her small, run down flat, she apparated out as soon as she was ready. She took her hours of rare peace to take in a new scene. She liked the teas and coffees at Madam Puddifoot’s cafe and that was where she found herself that morning.

The tired blond wore a knit hat, a casual, loose fitting grey sweater, and some nice jeans. Her makeup was done lighter than usual, showing off her natural beauty. This was Elle at her core. Her small fingers curled around a mug full of steaming hot coffee as she let out a tired sigh and inhaled the sweet aroma of a morning free of responsibility. For once she did not have to be at the pub until the afternoon. For once she did not get owled in for someone who was sick. Though Madam Puddifoots was a designated couple’s retreat, Elle did not mind being by herself. It was too early for the overly PDA approved couples to come and display their love for the world to see and those couples who did fill the store sat quietly talking to one another.

She flipped through the Daily Prophet, immersed in her own world, letting the hot coffee seep into her and warm her from the morning cold. She brought her knees up to her chest, her small feet dangling daintily on the edge of her chair as she peered over her knees to read the latest news. Taking a sip of her coffee she was not aware of the chime going off by the door to signal someone else’ arrival.

W O R D S *673 ;;
T H O U G H T S * Post-St.Patty’s day lazy day ;;
M U S I C * Lion Man- Mudford and Sons ;;
T A G G E D * Open;;
W E A R I N G * grey sweater, knit hat, jeans, and flats ;;
C R E D I T S * adele's chasing pavements ;;

template by RoyaLe of Caution 2.0

[evelyn beth macmillan]

PEOPLE LIKE TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU'RE GONNA BE
it's not my problem if you don't see what i see

[/font]

For Charlotte Selwyn, life presented itself in a series of choices. Choices that the brunette could not make herself, choices that she had no say it. Being a pureblood princess – if such a thing existed – the woman could not be trusted to make her own choices. She was simply too delicate to handle such things and viewed as too dim to be allowed the ability to do so. Once she was given the rare opportunity to decide whether she wanted a job. No one had expected her to say yes and definitely no one expected her want to become a professional ballet dancer. It was a strange thing really. She hated ballet as a child, found it to be too boring and tiring. She even swore that she wouldn’t ever do anything involving ballet as she grew up. Oh, how everything had changed. Ever since she had made that decision right after she left school, her family knew better that to let her make her own choices. It only lead to foolish things and disappointment for them and Charlotte.

The main reason why she chose the job that she did was because it gave her a chance to escape her parents’ watchful eye. It gave her freedom, something that she did not possess unless she was at dance practices, and even then she wasn’t offered that much. When one belonged to a pureblood family who obsessed over blood nearly more so than vampires did, Charlotte always had something to do so she could please her mother and father. For growing up, the brunette knew nothing more then saying ‘yes mister something-or-other’ or ‘yes miss something-or-other’. She was raised to be a perfect housewife or very possibly a perfect slave. Both of them seemed to be terribly similar in her eyes.

At the moment though, Charlotte had just finished practiced in Muggle London – perhaps another reason why her parents disapproved of her job – and had apparated to Hogsmeade. She was going to enjoy herself for however long she could, but sadly she had no place in mind to go. The brunette sighed and tilted her head down so her hat shielded her face. The sun was bright and warm against her skin despite the cool March breeze. A few loose tendrils of her hair blew in the wind. If her mother was here she would criticize how messy her hair looked, but she was not here and she got a chance to enjoy some time by herself. She wore a loose black dress that came down just pass her knees. The hat perched atop her head matched to a tee.

Spotting Madam Puddifoot’s, a place where Charlotte absolutely detested with its obnoxious amount of lovesick couples, she decided to risk her chances. After all, it was simply too early for kissing and other displays of affection. With another small sigh, she entered the shop and took off her hat. She was taught that it was improper and rude to wear hats inside a building. Not to mention unlucky. She did a quick survey of the shop, and was quite glad that there weren’t any couples kissing and spotted a girl that she vaguely knew. Or knew that all. But she decided that it wouldn’t hurt if she approached her – honestly, Charlotte should know better than that by now. “Hi, do you mind if I sit with you?” she asked with a smile, which hid the anxiety that she currently possessed. She did not do well conversing with strangers.

notes: I hope you don't mind me snagging this!
words: 590

[whatever]

When Elle left the Dolohov house, everyone in her old life knew almost instantaneously. Word of mouth always seemed to travel faster than normal around the old pureblood families. Elle remembered the old joke that everyone around her would say and it always rang true at times when scandal hit the conservative class; “Be careful what you say for even the walls are listening.” The shame that she knew her family was feeling at her blatant disregard to the core ideals of a family that was so engrained in the old ways of life did not sit well with many around and she knew that her father and brother would not be forgiving towards her when the time came to confront them. Image was everything to these people and any kind of scuff on the family name had to be removed as quickly as possible. She had seen it done with her sister before her. When her eldest sister was placed in Hufflepuff, her father tried to pay off whomever he could to get the thing wiped clean and her placed in the ‘right’ house. No such luck and it was then never spoken of again. When Elle’s time had come where she had run out of time to sit idly she finally made a choice and left everything, never once looking back.

To say she suspected her name was constantly thrown around various circles of purebloods was an understatement; she knew her name was being tossed around. Something like that did not go unnoticed and it indeed did not just get swept under the rug. She was the petite blond that did not conform and she did the ultimate betrayal by leaving them all. Elle was not the least bit extraordinary. Up until that point three years ago she had done everything her family had told her to. She had been the perfect child. If she could do it, why couldn’t others? Something like this had to be fixed and she knew that she would not get any sympathies from those who had ties to the conservative old families.

Sipping her coffee she nearly jumped when she heard a soft voice address her. Her eyes slightly wider than normal due to the shock she looked up to see a small brunette she was positive she knew. If only she could place the girl Elle would be able to be slightly less guarded about it. Was this girl a friend or foe? How could she not remember her specifically? Nevertheless, Elle could never turn down a friendly face and at this point in her life she really couldn’t afford to.

“Go right ahead,” Elle said, moving some of her things around the table to fit the new girl, “ I know I wouldn’t want to third wheel it at any of the other tables—they’re tame now but I’m just waiting for one of those girl’s to jump their boyfriends and have the PDA session of the century.”

Elle blushed slightly as she wasn’t sure if this girl would take kindly to her joke. She smiled again at the girl before looking back down at her paper and started reading again. She was about half way through the article about some scandal when the girl had come to sit with her and now as she continued to read all she could do was think about where she knew her from. After rereading a sentence about ten times, Elle put the paper down and looked across the table.

“Uh-Sorry,” she said, interrupting the girl’s thoughts, “I’m Elle. Have we met?”

W O R D S *599 ;;
T H O U G H T S * By all means! Welcome! ;;
M U S I C * Not Over You- Gavin DeGraw;;
T A G G E D * Charlotte!;;
W E A R I N G * grey sweater, knit hat, jeans, and flats ;;
C R E D I T S * adele's chasing pavements ;;

template by RoyaLe of Caution 2.0

[evelyn beth macmillan]

PEOPLE LIKE TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU'RE GONNA BE
it's not my problem if you don't see what i see

[/font]

Charlotte stood there waiting for a response, her elegant posture with her straight back and hands clasped in front of her did not convey her nervousness and anxiety about the blond’s answer. She wasn’t afraid of her answer; well not really it was just that she had lived long enough in the real world to learn that not everyone appreciated or care about one’s family’s last name. Some would even refuse to help someone if they dare mention their surname. Her seven years at Hogwarts taught her that much. Being sorted into Hufflepuff had been a big disgrace for her family and nearly everyone in Slytherin happened to mock her for it. Though honestly, they should’ve realized by now that Hufflepuffs could be the jack of all trades. Her family had been…. unhappy to say the least. They couldn’t see how their daughter could be placed in such an unremarkable house. They had expected that she could’ve at least been placed in Ravenclaw for her intelligence that she rarely showed. But as time went on, they slowly grew to accept it. It would be better for her and their plans. If she thought about it, it would become apparent that the girl didn’t possess many of the known house traits.

Sometimes, the brunette was surprised by how much which house one was sorted in could play into politics. How such an insignificant – though some would argue that it was quite important – thing could change so many people’s lives and either cause them so much misery or so much joy. It baffled the girl and at times she wished that she could shout that this didn’t matter. That nothing mattered. Because years from now, everyone would forget them and then the world would end. There was no point in trying to make their mark in the world because eventually they would end up forgetting. But she couldn’t because everything she was taught went against what she wanted to say. And who would listen to her either? She was just Charlotte Selwyn, a completely unremarkable girl who was of no importance whatsoever.

Letting a small smile grace her lips when the girl said yes, Charlotte sat down and let out a quiet laugh at the joke she told. While she did find it to be quite funny, she was taught that she would laugh politely at jokes, whether it be at jokes that she found incredibly funny or jokes that she didn’t particularly get. When a waitress came along, the brunette ordered green tea and quickly thanked the woman.

Charlotte observed the girl who sat across from her, and tried to place her face. She was sure that she knew her. It took a few minutes but it didn’t take too long for her to realize that the girl she was currently sharing a table with was Elle Dolohov. She knew her family since all pureblood families knew each other. She recalled hearing that she had left her family, though why she did not know until much, much later. Charlotte’s parents would kill her if she realized that she had spoken to Elle, but what they didn’t know wouldn’t hurt them right? Of course not, they knew everything involving her.

In some ways the brunette admired the girl who was in front of her. She was brave and smart for choosing to leave her family, to leave everything behind and start new. Yet at the same time Charlotte wondered if she wasn’t at least a little bit crazy for leaving. But it was her decision and she had already chosen. The only thing she could do was judge and that was not something that she did.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she spoke. “I’m Charlotte. I don’t think we’ve met before unless you count the brief conversation we had in Hogwarts,” she said. That was the truth or it was close to it.

notes:
words: 652

[whatever]

Elle came from a family entrenched in tradition. Every move one made, every word one spoke was judged on an old set of prejudices that were passed down from generation to generation. If Elle was to be completely honest she would have to admit that she too had carried these on for much of her Hogwarts days. At school she had been the girl enslaved to what her father told her and was constantly watched by her older brother who always made sure she did exactly what was deemed right. Elle realized now that she had always been rather uncomfortable with it all. She had resented the fact she could not be friends with just anyone. She was angered by the fact that the friends she had now could have been in her life earlier if she had just had the audacity to stand up for herself.

Such was the life of the Dolohovs, and all other families they associated with. She had been to so many functions where they all stood around in their most elaborate clothes, speaking of themselves as if they were better than the rest but at the same time fearing they would say or do something that wouldn’t go with the status quo. When the brunette laughed politely at her joke Elle’s stomach lurched. It was that same polite laugh that so many of the girls she used to knew had. It was the laugh that she, herself had. Suddenly Elle felt a bit uneasy with the girl sitting across from her. She had come to discover that her actions had not been so well received and had not gone away like her sister’s house sorting had done. A lot of them felt betrayed.

Elle wasn’t normally one to be so abrupt, but she couldn’t for the life of her place the brunette sitting across from her. She of course recognized her and had a sinking suspicion that she was another girl from the same walk of life as she had been from. It wouldn’t have surprised her if the two had been to the same family functions all throughout their adolescence.

“I’m Charlotte. I don’t think we’ve met before unless you count the brief conversation we had in Hogwarts,”

As soon as she said her name everything in Elle’s mind clicked. The brunette was indeed Charlotte Selwyn. She came from the same kind of family as Elle and would have definitely been at the same functions as Elle growing up. The two had never really gotten to know one another possibly because of the slight age difference; Charlotte was two or three years older, but more likely due to the fact that Charlotte, like her sister who was four years older than Charlotte, had been sorted into Hufflepuff. If it seemed odd that Elle who had a similar experience of having her sister be sorted into Hufflepuff as Charlotte didn’t associate her, it was by all means the norm. In the twisted society Elle had come from people would do anything to fit in even if it meant ostracizing others. While their similarities could have made them close, her father and brother would never had tolerated it. They had to fit in and if the fingers were pointing at someone else that meant that they weren’t pointing at you.

“Selwyn, Charlotte Selwyn, right? Oh I’m an idiot of course it’s you!” Elle said, her stomach in knots though not as bad as they were before, “ You look as beautiful as you always have! I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you!”

Elle gushed nervously, though not enough to be noticeable. She assumed Charlotte was more accepting than most but she couldn’t be sure. Elle knew all too well the power family played over decisions and actions made.

“What are you doing here? Waiting for a boyfriend?” she asked with a laugh as she picked up her cup of coffee and took a sip.

Again she reverted back to her old ways. If the attention was on Charlotte and off of her perhaps Charlotte would forget the fact that Elle was now a disgrace to the pureblood world. It was a long shot but it was the only one she had at the moment.

W O R D S *710 ;;
T H O U G H T S * I’m excited about this thread! ;;
M U S I C * Jason Mraz ;;
T A G G E D *Charlotte;;
W E A R I N G * grey sweater, knit hat, jeans, and flats ;;
C R E D I T S * adele's chasing pavements ;;

template by RoyaLe of Caution 2.0

[evelyn beth macmillan]

PEOPLE LIKE TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU'RE GONNA BE
it's not my problem if you don't see what i see

[/font]

The Selwyn name was something that Charlotte carried proudly, or so she appeared to. She knew that a powerful surname could both hinder and help a person in the wizarding world, and more often than not, it got the brunette what she wanted. It wasn’t like she was proud of that fact though. She much preferred to work things out her own ways and see how far she could get in life without any help. That was the thing with last names and elitist pureblood families though. Everything one wanted could be easily gotten with a snap of their fingers. If one were to venture out into the real world, the muggle world – though which sane pureblood would want to? – and tried to get what they wanted by saying their names, they would be disappointed and mocked. See, such a seemingly significant thing didn’t matter when it was important. One’s name allowed someone to hind behind their ignorance and get away with it. No one seemed to understand that it didn’t matter except for Charlotte.

She had learned that lesson from a young age, though surprisingly it was not from her parents. No, no. It was from a muggle child who taught her such an important thing. Not even a muggleborn, just a muggle and an incredibly unremarkable one at that too. She could remember what had happened as if it happened yesterday. As a child, Charlotte was incredibly stubborn and enjoyed wandering off. Her mother had decided that it would be a good thing to take her to Muggle London, though why the brunette still wasn’t sure. One minute they were in the only London that the girl new and the next she was somewhere else, somewhere different and new. So of course when her mother had her head turned to make sure her dress wasn’t getting soiled, Charlotte ran off. It didn’t take her too long to get lost and it took even less time for the girl to burst into tears. When a kid, roughly the same age as she was, walked up to her and asked why she being such a baby, it only bad sense for her to yell that she was not being a baby and she was Charlotte Selwyn and if he dared said anything else like that her daddy would hex him. It was safe to say that the kid, Thomas, laughed in her face. That was when her first sign of magic shown and it was also the main reason why she hated anyone named Thomas from that day on.

Obviously, being the child that she was back then, she didn’t exactly understand what she was being taught, but a year in Hogwarts made Charlotte understand. Names couldn’t get you everywhere, especially when it came to those who didn’t know a thing about it. Yes, names did matter to a certain level, but your character did too. That was why the brunette did her best to portray a sunny, innocent personality towards other, hoping that they wouldn’t judge her for being a Selwyn. Whether she did well was still up for debate since right when she was done from school, the only contact she had with people were from functions that she thought had gotten out of when she left for Hogwarts.

Charlotte took a sip from her tea and looked disappointed when Elle realized who she was. “Um, yes, that’s me,” Charlotte said. Instantly she knew that all hopes of having a normal, non-awkward conversation was thrown out of the window. She was still part of the ruthless and twisted society that the blonde had willingly left and Elle was not. “Um, uh, thank you,” the brunette said awkwardly. She wasn’t use to having people complimenting her. “You do too,” she added a second later, with a warm smile on her face. If they couldn’t have a normal conversation, the least Charlotte could do was be the nice person that she was.

The conversation they were holding was unfamiliar to the girl, but it was not unwelcome. If anything, she was glad that Elle had decided to continue it. She wasn’t sure how kind the blonde was because they rarely held a proper conversation. They only had spoken once or twice in their Hogwarts day. If she was asked why that was, the brunette probably would’ve chalked it up to the fact that she was two or three years older than the girl who was sitting across from her, and of course the fact that she was sorted into Hufflepuff, one of the two unacceptable houses to be sorted into if they were part of an elitist pureblood family.

Charlotte nearly spit out her tea when Elle asked her if she was waiting for her boyfriend. Either she had forgotten quite a lot during the time that she had left the pureblood society behind or she was trying to keep a conversation going. She believed it to be the latter. The blond – despite being blond – did not seem to be a stupid or forgetful person. “Oh, no, my parents would kill me. I had gotten out of practices and I was craving for some tea, so here I am.”

“How have you been?” Charlotte asked curiously. She hoped that her curiosity didn’t come across as rude though. “Has life been treating you well?” Now she was sounding more like a concerned mother than acquaintance. Her plan of action was pretend like Elle had never left her family behind. It would make it easier to lie to her parents.

notes: sorry it's so rambly! charlotte's just going to pretend like everything is normal
words: 929