One in a million (Finley)

Guest

In all of her years of being the perfectly attractive witch that she was, Isaline Charlot had always been the one that the boys chased after with flowers or chocolate or even something a little more risque. She'd always attained a certain satisfaction from being worshiped and desired. If she had a bad day? There was a boy for that. Feeling lonely? There was a boy for that. No matter what was going on in her life, there was always some kind of adoring fan that she could use to drown out the world and though this was still the case, the wooing from random strangers was not giving her the satisfaction that it once had.

Her black heels clicked against the floor of the castle, confidently striding past lovestruck smiles and "Hello, Isaline"'s. Wherever she walked, the boys followed. Every turn, every twist, there was a boy there. There were boys everywhere, but none of them were the boy that she wanted.

The moment that she stepped foot in the library, Isaline scanned the room for Finley Allen. Never had she met a boy so genuine as this one. He was insecure and he was kind. He looked to her as if she was a human being,~~despite the fact that the knowledge of her being royalty made him want to bow in her presence.~~ He was not one of the cardboard worshippers that Isaline had grown up knowing. She was genuinely interested in knowing everything about him.

She almost could not believe it, but her heart jumped a little when her eyes rested on the boy. She did not know that a heart could do that. What a useless organ, the heart! She could not believe that it was making her chase after a boy. She was a lady. Ladies did not chase. Maybe her heart was defective.

"Hello, Finley Allen," She spoke, hoping that she was not here for no reason.

Guest

Finley was, as usual, hiding out in the library, tucked beneath a pile of books, working hard on an essay that had been set only that morning. The Head Boy was, and always had been, the kind of kid who did homework as it was set, not when it became due. Today's work was for Care of Magical Creatures, so it was going very smoothly for the Ravenclaw because this subject was one he enjoyed thoroughly.

Finley was busy checking references when his name resonated from before him - making him jump lightly as he looked up and over the pile of books around him. The witch the other side was not one he'd expected to see - probably something that showed momentarily on his features before a warm smile replaced the expression.

"H-hi, Isaline!" Finley responded warmly, setting his quill down and motioning to the seat the other side with a "Please, s-sit." The only trouble was, the overly enthusiastic motion made the books before him go tumbling across the rest of the desks, and Finley's cheeks grew warm with embarrassment a moment later.

"S-sorry." He added, quickly moving to tidy up the mess he'd made, shaking his head at himself as he put the books back in to the neat piles they'd been in a few moments before. Finley Allen, the complete wreck of a boy who'd somehow landed himself the Head Boy's badge.

Merlin knew how he'd managed to do that.

Guest

It was not much of a shock to the witch that Finley Allen had been found among a pile of books. Isaline loved being smart, especially when she was smarter than the other wizards and witches with whom she attended school. She enjoyed the occasional book and she enjoyed the knowledge that came from it even more. She came from a world in which knowledge was power. The person who knew nothing of the the world in which they were raised was a person who would amount to little.

And though she respected books, Finley Allen existed within literature. She had never met anyone who enjoyed learning quite as much as the Ravenclaw boy in front of her. He encased himself in a book caccoon, taking in as many words as he could. Isaline wondered how Finley had gotten into reading and studying on such a level. She thought that maybe books had been there for him when no-one else had, but she shoved the thought into the back of her mind. She liked the idea that perhaps Finley just liked books.

"Please, s-sit."

The girl watched as the book pile beside Finley came crashing down as a result of his good-intentioned gesture. She watched as he carefully gathered the books back into their spots.
'Perhaps I should come to his aid..' she thought, but Finley seemed to know exactly how he wanted the books set up. Who was she to interfere with organization?

When the last of the books was picked up, she sat in the chair beside him, legs crossed as every lady's should be.

"Did you have a thriling Summer?" She inquired.

Guest

Thankfully, for Finley, Isaline didn't make a fuss over the books that he'd knocked over. She ignored the situation as if it had not happened. For that much, Finley was very, very grateful because it meant he did not have to explain his clumsiness away. As he finished setting the books straight, Finley took a moment to steady himself. No need for another clumsy mistake, was there?

The question was not one that Finley had expected, and after managing to contain his confusion, Finley gave a shrug, and looked momentarily at his hands before looking up to Isaline. "It w-was the same as normal, r-really." Finley replied, though no details of what normal was to him were given. But, before this could be noted, Finley pointed to the badge on his chest.

"Except t-this." He added, the faintest hint of a proud smile on his lips. Of course he was proud of the achievement, but his parents hadn't been overly enthusiastic about it, so he hadn't made a big thing out of it at all. It was unimportant.

"How was M-Monaco during the summer?" Finley asked in return, wondering what Isaline had gotten up to in the time she'd had to herself back at home. Probably much more interesting things than Finley, of that much he was sure.

Guest

Isaline did not think much of the fact that Finley claimed to have had an anticlimactic summer holiday. She was not sure of what she thought he was going to say. Finley Allen did not seem like the kind of boy who would go skydiving in New Zealand or shark diving in the Caribbean. She figured that the boy must've stayed home reading as summer, but it never hurt to ask. At least it kept the conversation going.

The thing that did surprise the young Pureblood, though, was the fact that Finley had been appointed head boy. There was no doubt that Finley was smart;he was a Ravenclaw. Of course, the boy was one of the smartest students at Hogwarts, but the head boy was supposed to be somewhat of an authority figure. While Finley did seem to be widely respected by the school, she did not know if someone with a lack of confidence such as Finley's could be seen as an authority figure.

She also could not help but wonder if this meant that Finley was now more powerful than she was. Isaline had come from a world in which she was always the best at everything. She had always been in the top tier, but she now feared that the closest thing she had to a real friend would be seen as being above her.

Unsure of how to respond to the news, she faked a convincing half smile."Finley, that's fantastic!" She tried her best to hide any tone of uncertainty in her voice.
"I'm so happy for you"

When the subject was thankfully changed, she let out a small laugh. She had spent very little of her Summer in Monaco. Her family enjoyed traveling. This was mostly because traveling was a good excuse for each member of the family to get as far away from the others as possible. The twins were usually occupied with schemes and adventures, while Alexande preferred spending his time with the babes and the boos. Isaline tended to gravitate towards the boutiques and sometimes the library. She enjoyed learning about the places she went by studying what they wore. A person's clothing gave away most of their life stories.

"Wish I could tell you," She laughed. "We vacationed in America this Summer. Odd, I know, but we had already been so many places that we figured that we might as well visit the states. There honestly wasn't much to see. I spent most of the Summer.." she hesitated for a second. She'd spent most of this past holiday playing the field. American boys may have been stupid, but they were stupid and very very well built. She did not quite know why she kept this information from Finley. It was not as if the two of them were anything more than friends, but she still decided that Finley did not need to know about her escapades.

"Reading," she finished the sentence, making sure that the lie sounded believable. "The one interesting thing about America is the fact that their movies and books tend to be a little altered."

"So you did nothing?" she questioned, deciding that she would rather focus on Finley than further explore the stories of what Isaline Charlot did this Summer ~~and how was wearing that little amount of clothing even legal?~~
"You moved not a muscle? Read not a single book? Left the house not even once?" Her eyes grew more curious, focusing on the Allen boy.

Guest

Embarrassment flooded through Finley much too quickly in the moment that Isaline congratulated him for getting the role of Head Boy. Truth be told, the fact the witch was not being completely enthusiastic about this had not been noticed by the boy. It was much more enthusiastic than his parents had been, which meant he had to deal with the uneasiness of attention.

"Thank you." Finley said quietly after a moment, managing to keep his tone the same level in that moment, despite the shyness of his demeanor in that moment. He would, eventually manage to control everything, but when his emotions clouded his mind, Finley's insecurities reigned.

As Isaline went on to talk of America, Finley couldn't help but begin to smile. He's been to America three years previous with his friend, Sumire. It had been a rollercoaster of new experiences. Including getting his first kiss - which had been something of a complicated situation, but a new experience. "I q-quite liked the States." Finley replied to her comments, giving a small shrug to show that their differing opinion wasn't one that was going to affect Finley's opinion of the witch.

Though, he did pick up on the gap in what Isaline said she'd done this summer. Finley gave her a curious look, before accepting the answer. Finley Allen wasn't one to pry in to other people's business. Books were things he explored, people... he tended not to try to do that so much. Messy, was what that turned in to.

Isaline, however, was not about to let Finley's lack of answer be enough for her. And as she probed him for answers, Finley couldn't help but smile at the way she was asking. Almost teasing him, perhaps? Finley wasn't sure if she was, but he couldn't help but appreciate the fact she was trying to get him to open up to her. Which, he did want to do, but he had never been very good at it.

"Well..." Finley started, glancing at his hands for a moment as he thought, before deciding he might as well be honest. "I read a l-lot of books." Finley decided, thinking for a moment. "The series Noughts and C-Crosses was amongst them, that's v-very good. I-It's about an alternate universe, in w-which white people are not in control." Finley explained, hoping this would make sense. "But... it's m-mostly a romance series." He added a little sheepishly.

"And... I p-played video games. It's a M-Muggle thing..." Finley continued, not knowing if Isaline knew about the Playstation 4. He decided not to press on in that regard, though. "And I o-only went out when my p-parents took me to see family." The last was really lame, Finley knew, but it was the truth. This had been the first summer where he hadn't had anywhere else to really go, and it was quite... well, sad, to say the least.

"So... umm..." Finley paused, looking around them before looking back to Isaline with slight confusion. "Which b-books did you read?"

Guest

As Isaline described her Summer, she noticed that Finley's face had grown warmer.

"I q-quite liked the States."

She was not bothered by the differing opinion that the boy possessed. She knew that he would not agree with her on every little thing, but she hoped that he would not argue with her on issues of higher importance than the best vacation spots.

"I mean there is not anything wrong with the states, really," she clarified. "It is just a very casual environment. I feel that it lacks the excitement or adventure that the rest of the world has. Countries such as Egypt and Paris are so full of culture and life. They have rich histories and glorious architecture. America is very much a Hodge podge of special snowflakes who constantly try to contradict everything that the founders of their nation stood for." Upon noticing that her clarification was turning into somewhat of a rant, Isaline decided to seal her lips and move on.
"But I guess opinions vary," she shrugged.

As Finley discussed the books he had read, Isaline noticed his face go a little pale alongside the explanation of a certain series. He spoke of a book in which humans were not dominate.
"But... it's m-mostly a romance series."

She laughed a little, her hands running through her velvet blonde hair.
"What is wrong with a little romance?" she questioned. "All anyone wants is a little dark room, a little black dress, and some really sexy music." Her words grew slower and softer as she spoke, as if to make sure that he took in her every word. Isaline loved romance. She loved the feeling of being wanted by a male suitor and wooed with flowers and jewelry.

She leaned forward slightly, placing her face close enough to his that it just barely grazed his skin.
"Does romance make you nervous, Finley?" she asked.

Almost as soon as it began, her game ended. She returned back to her original position, sitting platonically in conversation. What was the point in playing the game if she was going to let him win in the beginning rounds? Oh but she wanted him to win the game, he just did not seem to want to fight for the trophy.

"What books did I read?" She asked. While she had spent most of her Summer being very active, she skimmed at least one book, right?
"I started on rereading Les Miserables," she told him. "Now there's a tale of romance...and death. But what would one be without the other?"

Guest

The idea of other places, such as Egypt and Paris made Finley nod along with Isaline. He hadn't meant that America was better than everywhere else, because it probably wasn't, it was just the first place he'd been abroad. Without his parents. And the freedom... well, he didn't think he could ever explain to Isaline just how much freedom that trip had given him. How exhilarating it had been to a boy who wasn't normally allowed to do anything.

"Opinions vary." Finley agreed with a smile. "B-but I would like to go to Egypt, and P-Paris." He added, hopefully making sure that Isaline understood that he was open for new places before the conversation was completely dropped.

The conversation changed to romance novels, though, and Finley could feel his cheeks flushing brilliantly in that moment. The question of what was wrong with romance made the Ravenclaw boy try to answer a couple of times but only mere sounds came out, making him look... well, a little silly to say the least. In the end, Finley gave up with trying to come up with an explanation, giving a casual shrug of his shoulders to show his comment was perhaps unnecessary.

"Does romance make you nervous, Finley?"

The question threw Finley - or perhaps it was the closeness of the witch before him... The overly sweet smell of perfume filling his senses, and the boyish instincts of leaning forward and kissing her trying to move in to being, but failing with Finley's lack of confidence. "I..." Finley tried to reply to her, but his words got caught in his throat, and a bashful look took up his features. The obvious answer was yes, everyone would be able to see that. But, Finley was really trying...

"Y-you, make me nervous." Finley admitted softly, his eyes taking her in momentarily as she sat back with confidence, before they fell away from her. Most girls made Finley nervous, but... Isaline made him a deeper level of nervous. One he hadn't felt in a while...

"Now there's a tale of romance...and death. But what would one be without the other?"

"A d-dull read." Finley replied, letting out a very soft laugh. He wasn't sure if that was a good joke, or whether it would have been better left unsaid. But it had come out now and there was little he could do about it.

Guest

"I would like to go to Egypt, and P-Paris."

Isaline nodded, her eyes looking slightly in a different direction as if to avoid a gaze that seemed to be filled with pitty. The girl had grown up spending more time in foreign countries than in her own home. She'd always traveled the world whenever possible because she loved exploring the cultures of every new place she experienced. She often overlooked the fact that not every-one had a similar lifestyle.

For a majourity of her life, the young pureblood had figured that all wizards and witches traveled. She did not think that anyone would stay in one place for a long amount of time. She did not know that there were people who did not have the option to travel to Rome one week and Barcelona the next. She'd thought that it was just something people did.

Even though she was more aware of other's misfortunes than she once had been, Isaline still forgot every now and then. As Finley talked of travel, she couldn't help but wonder if Finley would ever be able to go where he wanted to. She hoped that he would find the opportunity.

Placing her hand on his shoulder, Isaline smiled softly.
"Perhaps one day I will take you to Paris," she told him. "A man simply must see the Arc de Triomphe at least once in his lifetime."

"Y-you, make me nervous."

As the topic was changed, Isaline's heart went to war with itself. Accomplishment, sympathy, and confusion all chose a weapon and began to hack away at her sanity. Isaline's favourite game had always been the game of lust.

Affection was a drug to the Charlot girl. She loved watching as a boy swooned over her, tripping over his own feet as he tried to get a single kiss. Isaline used emotions as her toys, and the toys always played along.

But here in front of her , where every toy before has stood, stood this boy who seemed more geniune somehow. His nerves were no different than all of the others, but she did not think that Finley was nervous for the same reason the other boys were.

None of the others would have admitted their nerves in a million years. They would have held in their pride in order to seem like a strong man worthy of Ms.Charlot, but what made a boy worthy?

"Why would you be nervous?" She asked the boy. "Am I really that intimidating?"

Guest

As Isaline's hand came to rest on his shoulder, Finley did his best not to move away from her touch. His shoulder gave a little movement, but unlike with most people, Finley remained relatively calm in the situation. A small smile even touched his lips for a moment before Isaline said she would like to take him to see the Arc de Triomphe.

The boy's eyes went big for a moment, thinking about that possibility. "I'd love to!" Finley blurted out before his mind could function itself in to something more well rounded, something that sounded less clingy and desperate. But it had come out, and Finley could only smile sheepishly at the witch before him in that moment.

Many a person might have launched in to plans, but Finley didn't wish to press the idea further, dropping it because he knew better than to push his luck.

Which was probably a good thing because Isaline asked him the question he really didn't know the complete answer to. Looking at the Monacan witch before him, Finley hesitated for a moment. "Well..." He started, fiddling with his pen idly as he tried to work it out in his head. "Y-you're very confident." Finley explained, nodding to himself to show that was a good place to start.

"And... you k-know what you want. I-I... find that hard t-to understand, which makes it s-somewhat intimidating. But, you're also v-very powerful. That isn't your f-fault, but it make you seem intimidating." Finley explained, though the final bit he really hoped Isaline knew he didn't think himself. She'd never used her power against him. But it was there. "M-mostly, though, you make me nervous because I... d-don't know why you take the time to talk to me." Finley finished, not looking up because he knew it was a little bit pathetic.

"Y-you don't judge me because of my stutter. You s-seek me out. I f-find that difficult to understand. I l-like you, though. I..." Finley faded off. It would be unfair to think Isaline had the same motives as Madison in this moment. But it was an underlying feature. Finley slowly looked up, trying to see if Isaline minded what he'd said. But his brain wasn't allowed to engage for a few more moment, however.

"But, m-mostly... mostly, you're b-beautiful and I don't know h-how to... to say... well..." Finley motioned to Isaline and then seemed to lose the point. "That." He finished weakly, hoping, perhaps, that Isaline would understand in some very weird way exactly what he was trying to say. That he liked her, despite the fact he had absolutely no chance with her.

» you followed me (Finley)
» Didnt See You There (Finley)
» The Things I've Seen (Finley)
» Ready, Aim... (Finley)
» Letters (Finley)