Sorry Gift? (Open)

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There was something about animals that simply brought some childlike glee in him. It was not so outwardly such as his companion, but it made life simpler. Animals were simple and there was no qualms about how they felt, they were spectacularly simple and felt without questioning. So as he stared at the chubby kitten, and reached out to get him, he found himself smiling outwardly as the kitten showed him his belly allowing him to be petted. It was spectacular. For a brief second he wanted to keep the kitten for himself, just be responsible for another living thing.

But the thought of a kitten being around a big horned owl was enough to stop that. The thought of Hermes being friendly was out of the question, even his sister was nervous around the large owl. He smirked at the thought, especially as he went out of his way to pick up the kitten.

It was that moment he realized that Victoria was rambling on about what was needed for the kitten. It was almost overwhelming how much would be needed for a simple kitten. Still, as he purred against him, he had to agree that the kitten needed a lot.

"How about we grab all the items that you suggest I need, and then...if you aren't doing anything, I might take you to lunch? My treat since I've taken so much of your time."

Subject: Re: Sorry Gift? (Open) Mon Nov 13, 2017 7:41 pm

When Victoria had finished rambling out a list of things Mycroft would need for the cute little furball they'd picked out -- or rather, Mycroft had picked out, and Victoria had quickly gushed her approval -- with flushed cheeks, she'd figured the Ministry official would play it off. An agreement maybe, a question of a little more help to get the cat everything he needed.

What Victoria had not expected, was for Mycroft Holmes to invite her out for lunch. A flash of surprise touched the witch's features in that moment, showing quite clearly that he had caught her off guard.

"I..." Victoria began, before shaking herself and giving Mycroft a most thankful smile in the world. "Lunch would be lovely!" The American witch finalised, showing that she really did appreciate the offer.

***

And that was how, almost an hour later, the two of them sat in a small cafe in Diagon Alley with the kitten in a small travel box, bags laden with the essentials for Tess to care for the kitten, next to Victoria's small bag of owl treats that she'd only just remembered as they were about to leave the shop, having to hurry back in the most unflattering display of forgetfulness around the male.

Victoria had perused the menu with gusto, feeling quite hungry after they'd spent so much energy getting everything for the little kitten.

"You will tell me how he gets on, won't you, Mycroft?" Victoria asked of the man sat opposite her after a few moments of looking over the menu. "I really hope that Tess likes him! Oh, and if for any reason she needs a cat sitter, do tell her I would be more than happy to help! He is the most adorable little thing in the world!" She insisted.

But, that was enough talk about the cat, Victoria's attention instead turned to the ex-Slytherin. "We didn't really talk much at school, which was a shame, but you had your group of friends, and well I was the transfer. Though... if I may ask, aren't the Holmes' originally from France? I know I transferred, for personal reasons, but Beauxbatons is supposedly beautiful, why would you not go to school in your home country?" Victoria asked. It was, she knew, a little bit of a personal question, but if Mycroft was willing to share with her, she would return the favour without question.

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If he was perfectly honest with himself (which he rarely was) he had absolutely no clue why he had asked the woman out for lunch. He had firstly told himself that it was simple out of politeness; but no matter how many people he had seen and intermingled with, the idea of spending idle time chatting had always been greatly unappealing. Not to mention the horrifying idea of small talk. Still something in him had spoken the invitation before he had truly fathomed what he was saying. And it was not to say that he was regretful of his actions, in fact the opposite. The young woman had helped him find something that could placate his sister and possibly open the doors to a more open kind of conversation.That to him was worth a lot more than a simple goodbye, he wanted to show his appreciation.

So as they had paid and he had grabbed everything that he could possibly need (and he was sure some items were out of mere overspending than actual logical use), he had waited an additional amount of time to allow the young girl to finish buying what she had initially come in for before the whole idea of the kitten began. He had assured her that there was no rush on his end. After all he had used his afternoon for this and he was not looking forward to returning to the office. Kamren had insisted he simply take the day off.

There walk to the cafe had been a very active and talkative moment. While he was not chatty himself, Mycroft did enjoy listening to what she was saying and added his comment here and there. It was easy to talk to Victoria, and he wondered just how perhaps it was cosmic irony to bring this towards him.

Her small talk was simple enough, he saw that she itched to ask questions but so far they were of the kitten. He had promised her that yes, he would tell Tess about the girl and helping her out. He doubted that Tess would take on the offer due to her bad spirit, still he did not mean to sadden the woman. And as time passed and they sat and took a look of the menu, her question had taken him aback. As soon as he decided what he wanted, he put the menu down and thought her question over before properly responding.

"Well, you are quite right in saying that the Holmes family is French. I spend the formative years in France, but my father had planted his feet firmly in Britain in hopes of working here. Most of the negotiations and families that we are connected to us fell here. My grandmere would definitely disagree" he smirked thinking of the old batty woman. "As soon as I was old enough to go to school my father was determined to plant my seeds firmly in Britain. My sister...she holds France closer to her heart than I do." he smiled a bit saddened.

And it was true. He loved France dearly, but if he was perfectly honest, his loyalty was more towards Britain in certain aspects of his life. And while his sister would sit beside him and find herself forcing to be British, her soul sang La Marseillaise.

"In turn, I should ask, are you not American? What brought you to Britain?"

Subject: Re: Sorry Gift? (Open) Tue Nov 14, 2017 9:13 pm

The confirmation that the Holmes' were French was not one that Victoria had needed. She'd read up more than necessary on the European Pureblood families when she was at Hogwarts for a little bit of extra credit in History of Magic, and she'd loved the rich histories of the European families. The Murrays, the Holmes, and the Clements each had their own complications in history that they'd overcome, and Victoria had enjoyed the read immensely.

But Victoria listened to Mycroft's explanations, and took on the information she was given. It didn't take too many moments for Victoria to understand Mycroft's father's intentions. France had been held firmly for centuries by the Clements, and Victoria doubted the Holmes' could move up much more without... perhaps finding a suitable marriage.

That much, however, was beyond Victoria's knowledge, because she was not certain of the current standings in France.

"That makes a lot of sense." Victoria replied, tucking her hair behind her ear carefully as she listened on to how Tess was much more for France than Mycroft was. "I have never had the honour of going to France, but I hear that it is beautiful. England is too, of course, but France is definitely on my list of countries to visit, when I had time."

Unlike many, though, Victoria's explanation of her wishes to head to France were not laced with the suggestion that Mycroft should take her there. Victoria would get there in her own time, she was sure of that much.

With the question being thrown back in Victoria's court, the witch gave the man a small smile. There would be a hint of the fear of the past in her eyes, the nightmares that had long since passed coming to the surface for a moment. Looking down at her hands for a moment, Victoria took a small breath to steady herself internally before she explained softly.

"In the summer of 2013, there was an attack on Salem Institute whilst we were hosting Hogwarts for an End of Year Ball." Victoria explained evenly. "A woman named Constance Vale headed a group called the Black Widows, and thought it would be to her amusement to... to bring chaos to the school..."

Victoria took a moment, steadying herself once more.

"After the attack, I could not bring myself to go back to Salem. I saw the attack every night after it had happened. I couldn't shake it. Hogwarts was a new start for me. I made some great friends there, too. But, that was how I ended up at Hogwarts... running from my nightmares." The witch explained, not in the slightest bit embarrassed for admitting to such things. Her brother was the brave one, she... she had simply survived.

But even as Victoria finished, she did not allow her own tale to dampen the mood, instead, she moved on. "I believe that coming to Hogwarts was possibly one of the better decisions I made. With some of the political mishaps in America..." She said, meaning it as a joke to lighten the mood as she referred to some of the less than tasteful man that had become president since she'd left.

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Hearing her speak about France brought a warm smile to his face. From Hauts-de-France to Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur the country brought warmth into his usually cold heart. He had blurry memories of his youth traveling the departments and taking in what was his grand-mere's country. He wasn't quite sure exactly when Britain became the mistress in this situation, but he loved them both. His lip twitched in amusement at the flitter of thoughts.

"France is a beautiful country, I suggest Marseille. I know that Paris is always the rave and definitely lives up to her beauty, Marseille's southern coast does have it's own charm"

The smile from her that followed before she sprung into her own life story made this conversation seem easy. It was never easy to talk to many people, and he wasn't too chatty to begin with, but the thought of simply gong back and forth and sharing stories wasn't as bad as he thought. It was natural to simply sit, chat and listen.

Unfortunately the conversation darkened at Victoria's admissions of her part and reason for leaving. He felt a bit uncomfortable for making her admit it, but his face remained blank unsure quite what to say. Taking a sip of his drink he briefly mulled over the information. His father had mentioned the destruction when he was a child in passing. He said that there never came a good wizard or witch from America and he rambled on. It was clear his father's sore spot was truly for their mother. Still...he looked at her directly before speaking once more.

"I am sorry for what you've seen, but I comment your for your bravery. By that I mean...when you first arrived, you were always cheery, and never once did I see those fears. As a young child, I always observed, as you can see I wasn't the most lively of people" he chuckled. "But your tenacity is quite impressive...if you don't mind me saying"

Subject: Re: Sorry Gift? (Open) Fri Dec 01, 2017 9:46 pm

The information on good places to go in France made Victoria focus and hang on Mycroft's words much more than she would normally in a situation. Mycroft knew France, and thus the option of Marseille was one that Victoria took on board with an eager nod. "I've heard that Lyon and Versailles are also quite something -- though I only really know of that through my reading up on the history of the Clements. Quite a wonderful family, I believe, from my reading. A very interesting read, their history, did y-"

Victoria caught herself then, looking to Mycroft with a very embarrassed look for a moment before her eyes fell away, down to the table. Her cheeks having the faintest of rosy glows in them because she'd just got much too in to the subject and almost asked one Mycroft Holmes if he was aware of the Clement dynasty.

Thankfully, the witch was spared somewhat when Mycroft listened to her speak of her experience in America. She could see the young man was growing somewhat reserved as she spoke, and though she could not read him, she could see the change in his demeanour. It was confirmed, too, only a moment later with Mycroft's words.

Slowly, tentatively, Victoria reached across the table, and placed a small hand on Mycroft's. "It's okay, honestly. It was a long time ago." Victoria told him very softly. Whilst she had never forgotten what had happened, Victoria had not allowed it to control her.

However, as Mycroft moved on to compliment her, Victoria could feel her cheeks flaming in that moment. She'd never noticed Mycroft watching her, and though Victoria knew she had never allowed people other than Allegra to see the pain of the memories of her past, Victoria had not realised Mycroft had noticed her.

"Thank you." Victoria said softly, her eyes dipping away from Mycroft once more in that moment. "Many people put up a wall, to protect themselves from the world, I guess I put up the wall so that I didn't have to let others know of the horrors I'd seen. We were, after all, only children." Victoria offered in explanation to how she'd been so bubbly.

"My tenacity is what I pride myself on, though." Victoria explained with a more confident smile in place. It wasn't big headed, though, it was merely a sincere acknowledgement of her abilities.

"So, tell me, what are your plans at the Ministry? A Holmes... surely won't be resting as a ministry politician forever?" Victoria asked, not meaning offence. She was sure, though, Mycroft would be aiming for something like Minister, one day, it would make sense.

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A hint of surprise rose to his face as she began to speak, almost excitedly over the whole idea of the Clement dynasty. If he was perfectly honest, he was very amused by it all. He had never really taken in the perspective of another one of....unpure blood and taken into consideration their perspective. To him life was normal, he took for granted the history, the power and the honor.

"Please continue, I do enjoy hearing the history from a third party" his eyes shined with mirth. "It's funny how often I forget that it's actual history"

Leaning back, he didn't show his surprise, despite how surprising it was, as she placed her small hand over his. He was not used to much contact from the opposite sex. Still he took it in stride. Smiling slightly he nodded.

"I can appreciate your viewpoint." he admitted.

"So, tell me, what are your plans at the Ministry? A Holmes... surely won't be resting as a ministry politician forever?"

He laughed even more genuinely.

"I love working in politics actually. I am not fond of the lethargy in life that comes a lot with pureblood society. I wish to be a Minister one day. In a few years."

Subject: Re: Sorry Gift? (Open) Sun Dec 17, 2017 7:44 pm

The amusement in Mycroft's eyes at Victoria's excitement made the witch's cheeks burn a little more in that moment. It was, in truth, not uncommon for Victoria to get overly excited about a topic that she'd read up upon, but to assume Mycroft hadn't known the history of the Clements when his own family hailed from France was a very silly situation to have gotten herself in to.

"Well... my favourite story would have to be the story of Lord Thomas Clement and Lady Lissette Clement, the first of their names. The revolution that they headed in France, becoming the people's favourites through such a time where Lords and Lady's didn't give much care to the poor... It is quite the tale, seeing them work with those they would usually be expected to overlook." Victoria explained, quite excited. "Though, of course, there were always rumours over the Lady Lissette's upbringing. I do always wonder about that myself... But, of course, the Clement's have her documents, their proof, it would be quite something to prove there was something untoward there.

"The rumours that flowed around the two of them, too -- you know, of course, of the rumours of Lady Lissette sharing a bed with her brother, and the Lady's sister, Lady... Lynnette I believe, was apparently in love with a Palace guard. I would love to see the Palace of Versailles... have you been?" Victoria asked, trying not to end up on a complete monologue of her enjoyment of the histories.

"Also, I have noticed that all the Pierre Clements seem to come to an untimely death on a battlefield, the most recent being the death of Pierre Clement the... third? In World War Two." Victoria added, noting the pattern that had stuck out whilst she read. "I do hope the future Lord Clement doesn't see fit to name his son Pierre...

"What of the Holmes'? I'm afraid I haven't yet read your history... but, perhaps you could share your favourite part of your family history?" Victoria asked, a hopeful look on her features.

Mycroft's explanation of why he'd come in to Politics was interesting. Many of the Purebloods she'd met in Europe were not so... honest about their situation. "Minister? Wow! That would be great! I'm sure you'd do that job really well, too. But, that would be very stressful, I would imagine. Long hours at the office, a number of conferences to attend..." Victoria explained, looking to the man before her for a moment. "But, I wish you the best of luck on that adventure, and hope you will keep me informed of your progress."

Though Victoria could follow it in the newspaper, she was trying to make the idea look natural without too much pushing. To know Mycroft more was definitely something she liked the idea of, especially as he'd been so... quiet at school.

"Though, I must ask, what is Pureblood society like? In America we don't have the kind of Purebloods that are known in Europe. Ours are just rich, not... traditional like the families here. It's... quite curious, in a good manner!"

OOC: It was Pierre Clement the Second who died in the war, I'm just letting you know so that if you find it reasonable to do so, Mycroft can correct Victoria <3

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As Victoria actually began to explain the family history of the Clements, Mycroft was surprised that his light sarcasm was missed completely. So he said nothing as she summarized the Clement history much like a child expressing their favorite storybook story. Very different than what their Nursemaid and nanny taught them the history of other Pureblood families. He remembered briefly as one after the other, the branches were explained and oral exams were implemented that led to sharp hits on their hands if any information was incorrect. His lip twitched remembering just how painful his Nanny was. He briefly had tuned out of her speech, that is until he heard the inflection in her tone.

'Ah, she asked you a question'

"Yes, I've been to Versailles. My family is very...close to the Clements and have had a long history of attending events. The first time I went I believe it was for their annual ball, I was around five years old. I typically go once a year as dictated by our traditions. Lovely palace. Also...I hate to be that person but it's Pierre the Second. Trust me that was drilled in my head."

When the family history turned to his own, he was a bit uncomfortable at first to say his family history. It seemed much like a storybook of sorts, there was just a long lineage of one generation after another searching for glory. He did not care much for learning but there was one that did stay close to his mind.

"I suppose there is one. The Lady of the Lake in the poetry of Medieval fairy tales was actually of an ancestor of mine. She was named Vivienne, and she was loved by Merlin for her beauty. When Merlin begged for her love, she promised him to give it, so long as he taught her everything he knew."

"So day by day, a young Merlin would go to Vivienne teaching her a new spell, a new charm, anything to just win a piece of her heart. Both knew that what the outcome would be, but Merlin's unwavering love for her led him to a trap, for the moment that she learned all that there was to learn: she won. When he requested a kiss, she promised to give it, and took advantage of his vulnerability to trap him in a bleeding heart tree. He obviously escaped, but in turn she held all his secrets for her clan." he smiled slightly.

"I used to read that story to my sister at night, and that's why she has an affinity for the moon. The moon for us represents Diana, who is the goddess that legend says gave Vivienne the powers to lure Merlin. Obviously that part is folklore, but...it's a charming notion of how to use the system for the advantage of another."

When the conversation switched to his future endeavors in politics and his foolish dream of Minister, he smiled slightly at how she unwaveringly believed in him. It was nice.

"I can appreciate that and believe me, you will hopefully hear from me going into deeper politics."

"Though, I must ask, what is Pureblood society like? In America we don't have the kind of Purebloods that are known in Europe. Ours are just rich, not... traditional like the families here. It's... quite curious, in a good manner!"

"Pureblood society is...a structured society. We lead by tradition and customs that we must abide by. The moment you are born, your destiny is set." he took a deep breath. "It's both a blessing and a curse."

Subject: Re: Sorry Gift? (Open) Mon Dec 25, 2017 11:24 pm

As Mycroft admitted he'd been to the Palace of Versailles, Victoria couldn't help the small feeling of envy that built up inside her. The pictures of the Palace were beautiful, and they were only pictures, pictures could never capture the full beauty of anything. "You're so lucky..." Victoria breathed, before flushing a deep pink when Mycroft corrected her. "The second!" Victoria exclaimed, because she knew she should have known that, and now she looked silly.

When Mycroft came forth to present his favourite story -- the Lady of the Lake -- Victoria beamed. She had heard of it -- though as Mycroft had pointed out many people thought it to be a myth, Victoria was one of those people, in truth. "The story is not quite how I've seen it written," Victoria admitted, a fond smile on her lips as she looked across at Mycroft. "But, I think I prefer the real version much more." She added, and she meant it when she said it.

"You love your little sister, don't you?" Victoria asked Mycroft in that moment. Though the man before her was not quite so open as Jake was with his emotions, Victoria could see a flicker of the feelings she'd seen on her brother's features before. Which meant Mycroft loved his sister, even if he didn't answer her question.

The confirmation from Mycroft that she would hear of his endeavours was enough for Victoria to understand that she now had a friend in Mycroft. That, in itself, was more than enough for the American witch, and she gave the man a small smile of thanks to show that it meant a lot to her. To actually say thank you would have been weird, but she was sure Mycroft would take the social cue.

Mycroft's explanation of how Pureblood society worked in Europe brought forward a frown on Victoria's expression. It seemed odd, to be given a 'destiny' from birth, but Victoria was going to be as open about this as she could. "And, if I may, what was your destiny?" Victoria asked, wondering if she had, perhaps, pushed a little too far with that question. She was a curious person, though, and therefore didn't mind asking these questions.

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