From Paris To Berlin

[Dante Vrael]

What is there to do on the most miserable, rainy day in London? Apparate to Paris of course. And that had been exactly what Dante had done. As much as he tried to avoid using magic, he hated the cold more than anything. The cold was miserable, and regardless of winter or not, it seemed to always be cold in England. Today however, Dante has arise from bed in better spirits than usual. So, instead of moping around the house like he usually would have done, he decided today he would travel. Apparating to the bright and bustling city of Paris. He loved Paris, and loved France all together. He had his favourite little cafe that made the best chai late, and always had the cutest waitresses. Not that he ever talked to them of course. He was always way to awkward to talk to any of them, and barely even managed to blurt out 'caramel chai late' most of the time. Today he sat at this particular cafe, the Café de la Paix. It was a bright, and warm day. He had left the house in his usual attire, of black vans shoes, grey skinny jeans and his white tall t-shirt that was well fitted and came down to his mid thigh. Today he sat outside in the sun, his ray ban sunnies shining in the sun, and his hair spiked back in a handsome fashion. He felt good about his appearance. But of course, his appearance never helped him.

When they waiter brought his late and donut out, he smiled at her, and nodded his head in thanks, still to shy to say a word. He hated his social awkwardness, but of course, was always to awkward to fix it. Without a clue as to what to do, he gently sipped on his drink, and tore a part of his donut off, and popped it into his mouth. In his opinion, american's always made the best donuts. But, alas, they didn't quite have the atmosphere that Paris did. "See, if you weren't so retarded, you might have had company on this fine day. But no, you're a social retard Dante." he said to himself as he stared down at his half eaten donut. He hadnt actually checked around to see if anyone was in listening reach, but was to focused on his own self pity to really care.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Connor had it in herself to visit her parents, despite not liking her mother very much. She had been prepared for the bombardment of dresses which she should try on when she arrived. But her mother hadn't done such a thing, for she wasn't home. Connor did talk with her father, telling him about her new job, teaching. She knew it was something Eliska had always wanted to be, but it just seemed to fit Connor at the moment it would seem. The woman was glad to be able to settle down into a job for once, she was getting bored of dueling championships all around the world. She won many of them and had created a sort of name for herself. But she ignored all the hysteria about it. Connor had her own issues to worry about rather than being on the front page of some wizard magazine she'd never read. Being a teacher would bring her out of the spotlight of the dueling competitions for awhile. Heading down the streets of Paris, the girl sighed wanting to be back in the New Zealand summer. But she did have to consider seeing her twin sister before she left. She wasn't sure if she wanted to see the woman. Eliska was always nice, sometimes too nice it was smothering. Sighing the girl decided to stop at the Café nearest her family home. Connor walked into the Café glad to be in a familiar warm location. Of course, the young woman couldn't fully see the brilliant decorations of the place. Not being able to see every color int he rainbow, but she didn't mind anymore. She realized that it was something she was gifted with and she'd better accept it rather than mop around about it anymore.

Sitting down at a table for two suddenly Connor realized how alone she had been for the past few years since graduating from Durmstrang. Leaving her family home and moving to Australia she hadn't bothered to make many friends. Not being a fan of muggles, even though her own father was a muggle, kept her from hanging around the hip joints in town. Not many wizards and witches had been around, only at dueling events. But now she lived in a castle full of little witches and wizards. It was new for her, but she enjoyed it. She still wasn't sure on her teaching abilities. Connor was enjoying the quiet until she heard someone talking. Turning she looked at the man who was talking to himself it seemed. He didn't seem unfriendly or ugly, she wondered why he had problems with being social. coming from her it didn't really seem like much of course being a very unsocial type of person herself. Looking down at her empty table, she was still waiting for her iced coffee. Putting her hands on the table she stood up having it in her to make a friend that day. Maybe her time would be taken up so much she wouldn't have to see her twin. Walking over to the table she stood by the open chair at the man's table. "Sorry but do you mind if I join you?" Connor asked and without really waiting for a response she sat down at the table. If this person was socially awkward they might fit well together, of course if he could even talk to her was the biggest thing to discover.

 

[Dante Vrael]

Lost in his own trail of thought, Dante didn't notice the girl approaching him. It was probably lucky that he didn't, because it didn't give him time enough to hide away in his anti social shell, and when she suddenly sat down and started talking to him, the shock hit him a bit too quick, and he just stared at her awkwardly. What was happening lately? This was the second girl to abruptly join him in his peaceful coffee periods. He wasn't quite sure if he liked the fact that he now had company, or if he was put off by the fact that this would inevitably mean he would have to socialize. "Um... Sure?" he said, his voice cracking awkwardly, as it barely came out above a whisper. He wasn't sure if she expected him to say more, or if she could read from watching him, that he would struggle making conversation. He struggled enough with people he knew, let alone those he didn't. His mother had been the only one he was comfortable with talking to fully. And she was gone now.

Returning his focus to the girl, he studied her a bit more. She was attractive. Oddly cute, but now that he looked at her more steadily, he noticed that she carried herself with a more awkward air than those of regular people. Was it slightly possible that this girl was a witch? Thinking back a bit more, he noticed that she didn't have an french accent, which indicated the fact that she was from out of town. Rather than abruptly asking her outright questions, he thought he would try and throw himself out of his comfort zone. "I'm Dante," he said, pushing his hand out to shake. His strong British accent was clear, and it was obvious he wasn't from France either.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Connor was French to a point. Her sister was really more French than her if that was possible. Their family was split between Bulgaria and France, their parents living half a year in one place and the other in the other house sort of thing. But Connor had always preferred their Bulgaria home as she did go to school at Durmstrang so it was much closer. She learned English because of Durmstrang and so her accent typically reflected the Bulgarian accent more than the french. Whereas Eliska had gone to Beauxbatons and was always prim and proper unlike Connor. Connor really was the boyish one of the two twins, not that she minded, it had always kept the spotlight off of her when it came to boys. She never really wanted them drooling over her, not that she was gay cause she is straight. Just not really a people person. Connor thought she was beginning to sound more Australian now having lived there for about three or so years. But now she lived at Hogwarts New Zealand as one of the Charms Professors. She wasn't sure how she was going to get on with the job. But she loved charms and she had been good enough to get the job so she was excited for it.

The man or Dante as he called himself, put out his hand in greeting and she looked down at it. She hated physical contact and here was a complete stranger, someone who obviously wasn't French as he had been speaking English, in a very British accent, wanting to touch her hand. She cringed inwardly as she reached out and shook his hand with a pleasant smile on her face. "Connor, it's a pleasure," she said pulling her hand back once she had finished talking. Just then she thought how she might just be worse at being social than this guy. "You're not French. What are you doing here? Not many outsiders know about this Café, unless you're here because of the painter? Antoine Blanchard?" Connor was getting ahead of herself. Her conversation kind of went out the window as she questioned the man in front of her. Of course, many did know about the Café de la Paix it was famous, why did she saw many didn't? She wasn't sure but growing up nearby she had frequented the place with her pristine mother and hadn't ever seen a non-Parisian there.

 

[Dante Vrael]

The inner struggle that was battling away inside of Dante to try and keep calm and focused on the events at hand were making him feel a bit of a strange sensation. This was the second interaction he had had in over 6 months, other then when he had to walk to the barristers, which he rarely said more then two words anyway, and the register workers for the shops. Dante really was the most socially awkward person he had ever met. He wasn't quite sure why he was so withdrawn from people. In school, he was probably the loudest, most adventurous kid in his year. He had been used to being the centre of attention, the spotlight. He had been used to the girls, the parties, and the trouble they had all brought with them. But the drastic changes that had unfolded since the passing of his mother were spectacular. Sitting there studying this girl though, and noticing her awkward movements, and the way she all but ripped her hand back after shaking his, that she was probably just as awkward as he was. Which surprisingly made him feel a little more at ease. Untensing his body, he smiled at her, and thought of what next to say. Luckily, by that point, one of the waitresses came with his chai late and what looked like an iced coffee. Pulling his wallet from his pocket, he pulled out a note and handed it to the girl. "For both drinks." he murmured, "Keep the change."

The girl smiled, and nodded her head, and went back to her work. Sipping his drink, and studied the girl across from him a bit more, noticing more and more smaller details that he hadn't picked up from the first inspection. 'Connor'. What an odd name for a girl. He wasn't the judgemental type, but he certainly thought it was strange for a girl to have a boys name. However, the more he inspected the girls attire, and the more he studied her movements and body language, the more he realized that this girl wasn't exactly the girliest of girls. "Oh, no. I'm from London." he said in reply to her question, his British accent more evident as his voice rose from the whisper it was as he gained more confidence in his surroundings. "I came here for the coffee." he said, his smile widening as he inclined his head to the drink in his hand. And then he realized, that if this girl was in fact, not a witch, then coming all this way for a coffee would be a bit strange. "I'm visiting friends who live nearby." he lied, dropping his eyes for a moment as he spoke. He placed the coffee on the table, and ran a hand gently through his blonde set of hair, caressing it into a neat position on his head. He simply frowned at the girls question about the painter. He hadn't even realized that a painter worked here. He realized that this girl must be somewhat local if she knew so much about the local cafe. "I originally assumed you weren't from France, due to your accent. But it seems i may be mistaken? Are you from here?" he asked, raising an eyebrow curiously.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Connor smirked to herself as he spoke English to their waitress, the woman simply smiled and nodded but Connor didn't think she really understood was was going on. But maybe she did as he had to of ordered his drink somehow. "Merci," she said as the drink was set down in front of her. It wasn't the warmest day in Paris but she always found coffee to taste better ice cold than warm. She also liked her milk at breakfast time to be ice cold. Her French thank you was very much meant for Dante and the waitress alike which was why she had looked up to his eyes when she said it, the waitress would just assume it was for her. Watching the waitress walk away Connor wondered if it was how pretty the woman looked which made this man so timid. Of course Connor held nothing to the French women. She didn't bother trying to look pretty, she rarely ever wore makeup. Mostly for the fact she wouldn't know how it truly looked on her, she'd never know if the color was right or not. She could look like a clown and not even know it.

Connor raised her eyebrows as Dante said he had come for the coffee. It was the first instance when she wondered if he wasn't a muggle. Now she wasn't very much a fan of muggles having her schooling background at Durmstrang. Which made her curious as to why she had decided to talk to this one in the first place. Usually she wouldn't be seen with a muggle. She narrowed her eyes as he stated he was visiting friends. He had at first complained about not having company here, he was lying straight to her face. She wondered why. "You are wrong. My family lives just around the corner. Though I've spent much of my life in our other home in Bulgaria. Now I'm living in New Zealand as a teacher at Hog-, uhm sorry got an itch in my throat. A teacher, at a hospital, for children," Connor said catching herself before mentioning Hogwarts. Though she was sure if he was as smart as she that he'd see her lie.

 

[Dante Vrael]

Dante, still lost in an awkward trail of thought, simply smiled at the girls thankyou. He wasn't completely sure that it was meant for him, but either way, the sound of her speaking french made him smile. He didnt have a particular preference for girls with accents, but he had to admit to himself that this girl was very attractive, though it was obvious that she was a tom-boy. Studying more closely, he noted the lack of make up and pointless hours of effort and work on her appearance that he had noticed alot of muggle girls went to the trouble of doing, for no apparent reason. Well, that was his opinion anyway. Sipping on his warm beverage, his moved his eyes from the girl to study his surroundings a bit more. He always felt awkward when people stared at him, and after considering it, figured he might be making Connor awkward as well. The street was still as busy as when he had first arrived. Shaking his head after studying the bustling crowds of people frantically going about their day, he turned his attention back to the girl across from him.

Noticing Connor's raised eyebrows, and frowned slightly. He wasn't sure if he had said something he should have, or whether he had slipped up in letting her know his true identity. Listening to her for a minute, he noticed her slip up. 'Hogwarts' he thought to himself, finishing her sentence in his head. He smiled widely, running a hand through his hair again. He still wasn't one hundred percent that she was a witch, but most things seem to make sense now. Listening to her tell him about her family, and nodded. That confirmed his suspicion that she had indeed originally lived here. "Oh, you're a teacher?" he asked, smirking to himself. "Of these colours, would you say you preferred red, green, blue or yellow?" he asked slyly, looking up and grinning at her. If she was a witch at Hogwarts, she would know what he was talking about. If she wasn't, she would think he was simply asking about her likes and dislikes.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Color. How Connor hated that word. She sat back in her chair looking at the drink in front of her rather than the man. He didn't know about her eyes, barely anyone did. He didn't mean it as an insult asking her about colors. Thinking on colors she wondered why he only made the choice of saying the four colors. Of course she would naturally say red, it was the only one she could really see and really understand. Burgundy was even better in her eyes, the color of Durmstrang, her alma mater. She didn't feel the need discussing colors with this stranger however. She wished she hadn't even sat down, but she wasn't ready to show her weak side to anyone. Especially someone who could barely talk to a pretty face like the waitress. He had been staring at her and she wondered if that was part of his awkwardness. She supposed she was better mannered than this English gentleman, which was odd the French were typically thought of as rude.

Debating an answer it clicked in her head the houses at her new school. She had grown up hearing about the division of students at Hogwarts. Which was very unlike how it was at Durmstrang. She wondered if he was a wizard after all. More than likely he must of gone to Hogwarts Scotland then. She wondered how she should answer. Blow the topic off or answer in a way a wizard would know but would creep out a muggle. "I've always found myself a fan of red. Red like the blood dripping from a lion's mouth after it made a kill. Or there is green, like a snake. Slithering and slick. Hmm, or yellow would be like honey. Almost reminds me of a honey badger. Cute and not fully there I hear. And blue, oh blue, perhaps that is like the blue sky hovering above a dark raven as it circles the skies above it's prey," Connor said this as she watched for reactions in his face. She knew she might of taken it a little to deep and gross. But she was used to that sort of treatment and behavior from years at Durmstrang. Where they learned to be a success you needed to intimidate. Here she wasn't trying to intimidate, just get answers tot he questions inside her head.

 

[Dante Vrael]

She was a witch after all. No muggle would have made those details to a simple answer about colours. Sitting back in his seat, he smiled openly, now a bit more at ease with the fact that he knew he was talking to someone of his 'kind'. "The snake, would definitely be my choice." he said, a grin on his face, as he looked at her. This, for some unknown reason, but him a bit more at ease with the situation. He had lived with muggles for quite some time now, almost completely shutting out the wizarding world. But now he felt more at ease over the fact that he no longer had to be fully guarded in what he said with Connor. "So, where are you teaching then? Being from France, i'd first suspect Beauxbatons. But your accent tells otherwise." he said, probably being a tad more open with the situation then he should. He kept his voice only to a strength where she would hear, and not being overheard by the muggles surrounding them. He honestly couldn't remember the last time he had interacted with a magical person. He had become more muggle then he had thought. "Perhaps Durmstrang? Or Hogwarts?" he said. She did have a slight Bulgarian tone to her voice. Though, she seemed different from those who attended Durmstrang. He simply couldn't place it. He took another sip of his drink, savouring the sweet flavour in his mouth for a moment, before placing the drink back on the table and sighing to himself.

 

[Connor Barnard]

He opened up Connor noticed with her answer, grinning at her. He did understand, or otherwise he was a very weird muggle in which case she'd probably depart from. She did not enjoy muggles and having to keep another part of herself a secret. It never seemed fair to her, growing up being school at Durmstrang she wondered why wizards never took over the world. It'd be easy enough to control the muggles, other magical creatures would be able to come out of hiding. Like the dragons, truly beautiful creatures that are just myths to the muggles. But still alive and vibrant and starting forest fires in the USA occasionally. Slytherin, the house qualities would suit her quite well. It was the closest house which matched Durmstrang. She would of been in that house she thought. Mentioning Beauxbatons her answer was finally given he was a wizard. That was exciting, she hadn't thought she'd meet another one in the area. "Hogwarts New Zealand. I'm just starting at the end of the week to teach Charms. Though I was schooled at Durmstrang," she told the guy in front of her wondering how he hadn't figured that part out when she'd said she spent most of her life there. Looking at him she figured he probably didn't have a job in the magic world unless it was Ministry work. He was handsome, good-looking and could talk once one broke down his shell. She hoped the waitress wouldn't come around anytime soon for fear of him going back inside himself.

 

[Dante Vrael]

Hogwarts New Zealand. It was confirmed, she was a witch. With his suspicions confirmed, he felt a hell of a lot more at ease with the girl he was talking to. As cut off from the wizarding world as he had been, he still slipped up in his mind set from time to time, and didn't want to risk saying something that he shouldn't have to a muggle. Relaxing a lot more, he smiled at the girl as he watched her. Durmstrang. Now Dante felt like an idiot. She had already stated that she had lived in Bulgaria most of her life. 'Duh' he thought, mentally slapping himself. He smiled again as he watched her talk. She was similar to how he used to be. Durmstrang had a lot of the same morales that Slytherin had had. It was stunning to see just how much he had changed from the arrogant person he was in Slytherin, so charming and influential. He had always gotten what he wanted, one way or another. But now he was only a figment of the boy he had been. Though, that was slowly changing. "Durmstrang... Not an easy upbringing." he said, more to himself, as he pondered the thought. Durmstrang made Hogwarts seem like a cakewalk. It did explain Connor's boyish looks and attitude. And her confidence in coming over. He imagined she was someone who did and took what she wanted, when she wanted it. "I was a Slytherin at Hogwarts, though id imagine you had already guessed that." he said, grinning at her. He felt they would get along swimmingly. "Why Charms, if you dont mind me asking?" he asked curiously. He had placed her for the Defence Against The Dark Arts kind of girl. Hands on. But the more he thought about it, alot of the worlds dark wizards had originated from Durmstrang. Not much 'defending' against the dark arts going on there.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Connor was not sure how to take him being a wizard. She couldn't tell what type he was, which made her nervous for her family. She knew she had create plenty of rivals in all her dueling years, but she didn't think they'd hate her enough to follow her home. This wasn't a man she had dueled before, but that didn't mean she hadn't dueled a friend of his. Of course, judging by his character he seemed too shy to do anything big like her previous thoughts. Connor was more likely the sort to do something evil than he it would appear. Her upbringing was much darker and she had always been in that darker place. One of general annoyance and hatred for much of what the world had to offer. She was slowly beginning to change as a person however. New influences in her life caused her to look at the world as something nice and actually beautiful. Despite her disadvantage she still looked for the prettiest views where ever she was. Tried to find the most picturesque places whenever she traveled. It made her think that for her they were different places compared to others. Right now this cafe was very pretty to her. She'd probably take a picture of the decorations on the table if the two had nice little mugs they were drinking from. Of course, she didn't actually carry around a camera. Her photos would look amazing to her but she was sure to others they would look quite terrible.

Leaning against the back of her chair, Connor took in the man in front of her. It was never easy for her to tell if any one person was rather good looking or not, but she thought he did have nice qualities about his face. It made him look younger, like he had a baby face. But with a certain look she could tell he wasn't a young teen at all. "Durmstrang was fine," she replied not caring to exactly explain the details of her life there in a story for him. She didn't care much about the school any longer, except her Charms Professor who she still kept in contact with. The old man was very excited in her choice to become a teacher. For the family Eliska had always been the one who wanted to be a teacher. Connor never thought of herself as being able to do much with her life. Figuring she'd be best off as a stay at home mom, like her's had been. Of course, Connor knew when she did have children she'd never force them to conform to her wishes. They would be free to do as they liked, wear the clothes that made them comfortable. Connor almost had it in her to marry a woman just to upset her mother. Slytherin, the daring house she'd heard. Where most of the trouble makers came from. She wondered how he'd been at school, he sure would've been bullied a lot if he'd been this shy Slytherin. Connor just nodded, she hadn't guessed because she didn't really care for those details. The past was the past really. She did not ever dwell on it very long. "I got bored of dueling championships and always winning with my excellent use of Charms, so a Professor position seemed to be a good place to start settling down. Still having action in my life as well," Connor replied after taking a sip of her drink. To be honest, her life had been pretty boring. All the practices late into the night alone, waiting for another competition she could join to give her something to leave her apartment for. Connor was glad the position had come up when it did.

 

[Dante Vrael]

Dante raised an eyebrow at her comment. 'Durmstrang was fine'. The tone she had used, and the way she had said it, made Dante believe that the school hadn't been as fine as she made it out to be, but he didnt pursue the conversation. He imagined that wouldn't be a very pleasant conversation to go into, and wanted to avoid a fight or argument. He could tell that she was studying him, and that made him feel a tad more awkward then he thought it would. He had been studying her all morning. Why shouldn't she be allowed to study him? He wasn't sure what to think about the girl. She seemed nice, and they came from similar backgrounds, in ways, but he could never tell about other wizards and witches. They were always hard people to understand and read. She could seem like the nicest girl in the world, and in a split second, could be the most deadly force he had ever seen. He was sure he was just making weird assumptions due to his awkwardness, but one could never fully tell. When she brought up the fact that she was a duelist, alot became clearer. And at the same time that is fascinated him, it worried him a bit, and brought him back to his thinking that she was dangerous. It made him unsure of how he should react or reply. He didnt like that type of situation.

Running a hand through his hair, he contemplated how to reply. He didnt want to anger or offend the girl, but he was obviously a bit more awkward now that he could somewhat grasp how dangerous the girl might be. Deciding to settle for a basic answer, he simply said "A duelist?", as he took a sip of his drink.

 

[Connor Barnard]

Dante only response was of her previous occupation. Her eyebrows raised at his response, but she was looking down at her cup. The tension between them was growing and she could sense that he was becoming awkward once again. He probably thought that if she wished she would kill him on the spot, even torture him first. Sighing she took a sip of her drink making herself comfortable in her chair. Her wand hidden in a pocket in her sleeve, ready to be drawn. But she never hurt any person outside of a duel. She was not a dark wizard despite going to Durmstrang. Surely he could see that she'd be living at Hogwarts, dealing with other people's young children. They wouldn't of hired a maniac that would kill them all. However thinking of some of the pictures she'd seen of the other Professors she thought they might of let some slip by. Connor decided to let him think all he wanted and it would be his choice not to see what was the truth that was in front of him. A person who could barely touch other, who'd rather be with her awful mother than in a duel outside a competition. Connor just simply nodded. He was judgmental, even being shy, he still was. Of course he watched woman who were good looking with eyes of hunger, she should've seen something like this coming up. But she knew the only time he'd see the harsher charms from her would only ever be in a duel or in her classroom. Others like the Levitation Charm she'd use to clean under her furniture at home of course.