Story Background
Silas Druery, new to the Ministry, is a shady character at first glance. His speech is often terse when met with inquiries about his background or family. He is a tough shell to crack. Except that his shell is already starting to chip as co-workers press ever closer. What will they find?

ooc: This thread will provide space for Silas' world to begin to crumble and expose what he's been hiding from for the last 15+ years. At present, his recent "interaction" with Dora Lovegood should begin to provide that.


Locations

Neighborhood Streets
Silas picked a location to live where his own eccentricities would go unnoticed. It's quite common to see a host of strangely dressed street performers, artists, homeless men and women, and other single "broody" folks milling about on the streets. It's a little dingy, but charming.

The Hole in the Wall
An ironically named restaurant, providing a rather spacious, lush dining experience. Nearly any type of regional cuisine is available. Silas secretly believes that a wizarding family must be behind it. The seat cushions are a deep purple, which complement the rich red tapestries on the walls and dark mahogany furniture. Low-lit chandeliers provide an intimate dining experience. It's perfect for a date situation, or just to sit and brood.

Silas' Flat
While you may never be granted admittance, if you were to enter Silas' flat, you'd be immediately struck by how schizophrenic his decorating seems to be. Some areas are full of vibrant colors and artwork, shelves upon shelves of books and antique muggle navigation instruments decorate most corners. His living room and bedroom are of this type. Other rooms are dark, gray and sterile, like his kitchen, foyer and what looks like an office with an old metal table serving as a desk.

Off to one side of the apartment, there is a locked door, with a sign with calligraphic script, which reads: "Pain to all who Enter here." Behind this door, you'll find brewing potions, an old dressmaker's dummy covered in scorch marks, various unsavory looking instruments, and incredibly old volumes of spellbooks. Cobwebs cover most of the room, but the smell of singed fabric is fresh.

Silas stood on the street, hands in his pockets, waiting for Dora to arrive. A young man sat nearby on the corner, playing a variety of instruments for spare change, while across the street, a woman painted entirely with silver paint imitated a statue. Further down the street, a painter was dousing canvas with entire jars of paint at a time.

Silas shuffled uncomfortably. He hadn't put much thought into what he might say tonight. He was still wearing his clothes from work, slightly wrinkled and rather unimpressive. He fit in in this neighborhood.. a little dark, a little weird, but he wondered what Dora would think. He hadn't mentioned that he lived nearby... he didn't want her to know.

Dora had apparated home and changed into a pair of distressed jeans and a black blouse with a pea coat. Her knee high boots making a clunking sound as she walked down the block toward Silas. She was taking in the neighborhood. There were artists about everywhere. Dora thought it was a bit dark, but she liked it none the less.

A smile stretched across her face as she approached Silas. "Hullo Silas. Hope I am not too late." she said as she stepped up and kissed both his cheeks.

oh my. ohmyohmyohmy. Dora was walking down the street toward Silas, clearly having changed clothes after work. She looked, well... great. Silas smiled uncomfortably as she approached and then... she kissed his cheeks?

Oh dear.

Ignoring the panic that grew in his gut, Silas simply said, "your timing is perfect." Gesturing around, he dropped his voice conspiratorially. "This is mostly a muggle neighborhood, so, some discretion may be necessary." No morphing at the table, no wand brandishing.. just.. dinner.

"Shall we?" Silas removed his hands from his pockets, gesturing with one, and, subconsciously, placing the other briefly in the small of Dora's back, not quite directing her, but guiding her nonetheless, and letting her walk in front. Realizing, after a moment what he was doing, he quickly jabbed his hands in his pockets as they entered the dimly lit restaurant.

Dora nodded when Silas said they were in a Muggle neighborhood. "I will be on my best behavior" she smiled. Dora let herself be led into the restaurant...

Was it her imagination, or was Silas' hand on the small of her back? |She smiled to herself. Checking to be sure her wand was safely in it's holster up her sleeve she went in and took a seat. Dora looked around appraisingly, "Decent place here, Silas. What's good?" she asked. It is very difficult for Dora to function in Muggle society for she is a bit of a sore thumb. She doesn't blend in, she sticks out.

Silas smiled, though it was barely noticeable in the low light. "Everything, really," he answered, taking a seat. "I honestly don't know how they manage it.. they've got everything." He opened a menu, revealing pages upon pages of various regional cuisine as well as local favorites. "Personally, I really enjoy their Thai dishes."

Looking up from his menu Silas thought Dora looked a little uncomfortable. He remembered her mentioning not spending much time among Muggles. "What I really enjoy about his place," he offered, leaning closer, "is that even the most eccentric-looking individual practically goes unnoticed. I mean, my appearance isn't exactly subtle most of the time." Silas chuckled, thinking about his rather severe appearance and his tendency to forget to remove his cloak on his way home. "That young man on the corner with the guitar, outside? I do believe his hair color changes more often than yours." Silas grinned and hoped she took it as the playful tease it was meant as.

Dora was intrigued by the vast choices of food the place offered. She had to admit, she was a bit uncomfortable though. Even though she spent time with Muggle family members when she was younger they knew what she was and she never had to hide anything. The only rule was not to change her appearance in public.

The oly thing that worried her was that from time to time it happened without her meaning for it to. So she was having to concentrate really hard not to do anything... weird.

She smiled warmly at Silas when he leaned in to speak to her. She breathed him in, he smell like parchment, cologne, and some potion she couldn't put her finger on. He joked with her about one of the locals changing his hair color frequently. Dora responded by sticking her tongue out playfully at this.
"Silas, I am not a complete newbie to Muggle neighborhoods, I am half blood. Me dad is a muggle born. But thanks for trying to ease my mind." she said. She reached across the table and placed her hand atop his own for a moment and then withdrew it.

She didn't want to cross any line, and apparently Silas was a bit easy to push across that line. "I am not a big fan of Thai food, but Sushi would be great." She remarked looking over the massive menu.

Silas smirked when Dora stuck her tongue out at him. Ah, yes, muggle-born dad; he'd forgotten that. The smirk left his face when he felt her hand rest on his to be replaced by a quick flash of panic that washed away when she removed her hand. Leaning back and making his hands busy with napkins and rearranging silverware, he said, "Well, as that may be, no one here notices much of anything, so don't worry about it." Silas once thought he'd seen an animagus shift in the back corner, but he had been the only one to notice even the movement of the curtain.

Perhaps it was a good thing that Muggle neighborhoods made her uncomfortable; mostly wizarding ones made him incredibly irritable. They wouldn't have much common-space to socialize in beyond work so the risk was certainly reduced.

Relaxing a bit, Silas leaned his chair back on two legs and swung his hands behind his head, jutting his elbows out, and observed the room around them as Dora looked over the menu. He occasionally snuck glaces over at her, taking her in. He felt a pang in his stomach. Regret? Remorse? Bitterness? He couldn't quite place it. He only knew that when he looked at Dora he was angry and sad and lonely, but also hopeful, nervous and.. intrigued?

Why does she have to remind me so much of Lizzie, he thought, mournfully.

Dora smiled reassuringly at Silas before shifting her eyes back to the menu in her hands. She could feel Silas look at her once in a while. She didn't know how she felt. She had been having disturbing nightmares about werewolves and dark wizards for years, but these new dreams were more disturbing to her...

The scene with Edward telling her he was leaving played over and over and Edward morphed into Silas sometimes and then it happened... Silas was being taken from her by someone..or something... she didn't know, being ripped out of her arms. The most disturbing part was that she couldn't tell what hurt worse, Edward leaving or Silas being ripped away. She shuddered involuntarily and looked up at Silas.

"So, Silas, I... Nevermind" Dora trailed off. She shook her head and said, "I think I'll just have some Onion Soup and bread." She wasn't sure why, but she really just wanted Silas to tell her that everything was alright again.

Silas saw Dora shudder as she looked up, but thought nothing of it. The restaurant was a bit cool. "Wonderful!" Silas beckoned the waiter over. "I'll have the steak and shrimp with rice, please, medium rare, and" he paused, trying to gauge how Dora would respond if he ordered for her. Opting to risk it, he continued, "and my friend will have the Onion Soup and bread.. was that right, Dora?" He decided to check just in case.

Once the waiter left, Silas resumed fidgeting with his water glass. He could tell Dora had wanted to tell him something and he worried about what that might be. He had plenty to tell her, but it would need to wait until their food was at least there. He didn't want another Florean's scene, but he had to tell her why without telling her exactly why.

Silas squinched his eyes shut and rubbed them with one hand absentmindedly trying to figure out how he was going to handle this.

Dora simply nodded when Silas asked if he had ordered correctly. He seemed as nervous as she. Dora looked deeply into his eyes and saw.... pain, sadness.. She just wanted to tell him something to make it alright, but she knew better than that at this point. Why was he so hellbent on staying locked up inside himself?

Dora sighed and went to open her mouth to speak again but snapped it back shut. She really was a bit... bad for him, if truth be told. Edward had suffered from her temper tantrums on many occasions and he had seen the worst of her. She didn't want Silas to see her that way...ever.

Taking a deep breath she said, "Silas, I have a problem with my temper sometimes, I just can't hold in my anger and I act out. I have been that way since I was a child. I guess what I am really trying to say is that I am sorry about that tripping jinx earlier, but trust me, it could have been a lot worse. Ed-.." she shook her head and trailed off. She was afraid that Silas was going to be angry with her. She deserved his anger, of course, she was really rather childish about the whole ordeal. Really he should learn to mind his manners and watch his tongue she thought ruefully.

Silas chuckled internally. He had heard her correctly back at the Ministry. "Trust me," he said perhaps a little too darkly as he leaned across the table, "I am aware it could have been much worse and, frankly, probably appropriate given the situation." Sure, it had hurt, but if there was anything Silas was used to, it was pain. Straightening back up, he continued. "Besides, one gets used to those things when..." He trailed off. Too much! "Oh, nevermind," he said trying to cover his tracks. "It's past."

He was about to speak again, to ask her what she had begun to say before she cut herself off, when the waiter reappeared with their food. "Well, that was certainly fast!" Silas was grateful for the distraction. As he began to eat, his mind raced with the need to explain, or justify, at least vaguely.

"Dora?" He began, prepping himself to tell her. But, he chickened out, instead continuing, "umm.. could you pass the salt?"

Dora's brow creased when Silas' words had gotten so dark. She knew there was more there, but she daren't push! If ever he decided he wanted to reveal anything about his past, he would, maybe.

Dora's stomach gave an involuntary rumble as the food was set on the table, she flashed the server a bright smile and thanked him cordially. Turning back to the food she closed her eyes and took a deep breath... She wanted so badly to tell Silas how she felt.. or was beginning to fell, but couldn't

Silas asked for the salt and Dora could think is , Is that all?!. For the love of Merlin this guy needs to loosen up! She busied herself with her food as best she could, but it wasn't working. She kept stealing peeks at Silas. She couldn't take it anymore, she felt like she would explode....

"Silas, I get the feeling you are trying really hard to tell me something, or not, or something. Just be aware that you can speak freely with me." Then leaning in she whispered, "I'll cast Muffliato on the other patrons if you wish to really speak freely." Hopefully this didn't upset him... she reached across the table to touch his hand again, but dropped it on the table instead and sent her drink crashing into her lap.

"Bloody hell! I am such a disaster" she exclaimed jumping up and trying to get some of the drink out of her lap. Bah! she wasn't allowed to use magic in front of the Muggles... She was such a klutz.

Silas was going to tell her... something... eventually. Certainly not what she wanted to hear, but something. He was about to speak again when she knocked over her drink and jumped up. Some patrons turned their heads, but not many. Turning to them, Silas said, "We've got it, not a problem, just a little spill."

Turning back to Dora, he spoke as gently and kindly as he could. "Shhh, it's fine. I'll take care of it." Holding out a napkin as if he would hand it to her, Silas shook his wand free of it's holster and into his hand under the napkin. "Tergeo," he whispered, siphoning off the liquid rather inconspicuously. He handed the napkin to Dora as he palmed his wand and hid it along his arm until he could safely put it back in its holster. "There, that's better," he said, smiling and retaking his seat. The tablecloth was still a little damp - he'd done that on purpose - so he refrained for leaning his forearms on the table. Couldn't have the waitstaff getting too suspicious.

"How's your soup?"

Dora was so embarrassed that she was fighting really hard against her natural instinct to change her appearance to suit her mood. Merlin, this is harder than I expected, she thought.

Silas cleaned her up and took his seat asking her how her food was. "It's fine, thanks." she grumbled. She was tryingtoo hard not to use unintentional magic, but she couldn't stop her eyes from turning a raging shade of red. Oh well, she thought no one would notice.

Dora stared into Silas' face and said,"Thanks. I swear, I am an accident waiting to happen these days! No wonder..." she said thoughtfully smiling a bit. Accidents and Catastrophes! Huh, that was funny! She really hated that she had made sucha mess of things... maybe Silas would take the reins, so to speak, and she wouldn't have to do all of the work... likely! She thought!

This was clearly not going how Silas had intended. Dora seemed upset and agitated. The last thing Silas wanted to do what tell her what he needed to at this point.

"Just these days?" Silas inquired. "Any special reason you've gone all klutzy?" Yes, small talk! Work into the conversation! Get her in a better mood! Silas noticed her eyes shift color. Red couldn't mean good things, but he pretended not to notice.

"Well, things have just been upside down since I came home. Things in America weren't that grand before I left. Edward left me, me mum has taken ill, I can't seem to do anything right..." Dora spat all of this out in rapid fire. She was tearing up a bit and her breathing had quickened. What she really wanted to add as an aside was I think I am starting to feel something for you and that scares me!

Dora had run her last guy off, unintentionally. After years together she ran off when things got to be too much to handle. She had dedicated her life to hunting Dark wizards and witches and let everything else fall to the wayside... Well, one day everything she had been running from had caught up to her and it was all too real. For that matter, the things that had happened were all too real. The night she had left for America she and Edward had a MAJOR fight, in the midst of her rage she had stunned Edward and knocked half their house down to boot. She was amazed when he had forgiven her, but she kept her distance after that... an ocean to be exact.

Coming back to reality she looked deep into Silas' eyes she sighed "I am so sorry. Iam just a wreck. Silas, I am trouble... not the cool kind either, I have too much...." she whispered. She wanted to get up and run as far from there as she could, but there was a force keeping her glued to her seat. She dropped her eyes and began to fidget.

Silas could tell there were things she wasn't telling him. One didn't keep secrets for as long as he had without knowing when others were, too. This was going to be harder than he thought.

"Shush, you're not a wreck and most certainly can do things right," he said, chivalry kicking in. He made certain to keep his voice low. "You are an incredibly talented witch who I would dare say has one of the more forgiving dispositions I've dealt with." Pausing, he considered. "I'm sure whatever is going on - and I'm not asking what it is - will pass and you will come out on the other side even better than you were." Now Silas, it's not nice to lie to the poor girl - you didn't come out better, after all. "And I can say that, because I know you're a better person than I." Aha, a truth!

Silas took a deep breath and reached across the table, placing a finger under Dora's chin and gently nudging her head upward so that their eyes met. Pulling his hand back, his eyes filled with concern for her but also a little bit of fear, he continued to talk.

"Dora, part of the reason I asked you to come here tonight was to apologize. I am sorry for what happened in the office the night we went to Melanie's. I shouldn't have done that and I'm sure it had a lot to do with our resulting, um, difficulties." His voice was low, sincere. "And I want to apologize for how I treated you in Florean's. I was dismissive." Silas was always dismissive whenever those subjects came up. Dora was the first person he ever felt compelled to apologize to. This was completely out-of-character for him.

He bit his bottom lip and continued. "And I want to say a little bit about why I was so dismissive." Pausing to choose the right words, Silas continued. "There are things in my past that I simply do not discuss with anyone. They are memories I would most sincerely care to never revisit. Most of them involve my family, and so you will likely never hear me speak of them except in the vaguest of detail." Silas' mind raced. Should he continue? Should he offer more explanation for how Dora affects him?

Hesitantly, he continued, running a hand through his hair, his voice still low, soft and vulnerable. "There's one more thing. You asked me once about any women in my life and I'd said there had been one. What I didn't say was that she died..." No. Silas would not say how. THAT was certainly not up for discussion. "And you remind me of her, quite a bit, actually. You're about the age we were when..." Silas didn't finish his sentence. He couldn't. His voice shifted a bit, "in any case, I believe that was a large part of what happened in the office; an action for which I again sincerely apologize."

Silas searched Dora's face for a look of understanding, or of rage, or of anything, really. After their last few interactions, he wouldn't be surprised if she hexed him and left.

Dora listened as he reassured her she was okay... this she scoffed at! Even her own family thought she was a wreck. Suddenly Silas reached across the table and pulled her face up. She couldn't do anything about the tears, it was too late.

Dora listened to his apology and shook her head. "MY behavior that night was unforgivable, I crossed a boundary, obviously." Dora was good at that. She apparently screwed up everything she touched.

Wait, wait a moment, did he really just tell her that she reminded him of his former woman? I mean, yeah it is very unfortunate that she passed away, but really?! Dora was starting to lose control of her anger. Her eyes were already red but her hands had begun to shake slightly, she clenched them into fists and spoke through her teeth. "Silas, I am very sorry to hear about your loss, that is most unfortunate. I am not as forgiving as you'd like to think though. You call me here make me feel like a fool by telling me that I remind you of someone else...What exactly did you imagine the outcome would be?" she asked. She had already taken her hand and ran it up her sleeve to unholster her wand under the table, she brandished it. Ready for him to make another mistake or slip of the tongue... or would she?

Silas had been taken slightly aback by her tears, but was even more so by her reaction. With surprise written all over his face, Silas sat straight up, wide eyed. This was clearly not how he'd imagined this going. He'd thought she'd be upset about him refusing to talk about his past, but he never thought that mentioning Lizzie would be made her angry.

Stammering, Silas spoke, nervously, "I.. I offered it by way of explanation... I had thought it might clarify my awkwardness around you." Silas frowned. "I don't think that's how it worked out, though." Standing slowly, Silas looked away from Dora and left some muggle money on the table. "Clearly, I've upset you and for that I apologize," he spoke rather glumly. Merlin, this girl was really getting to him. He absolutely couldn't tell her that the very biggest reason she reminded him of Lizzie was that when he was around her he felt like he had when Lizzie was still around. Admitting that was dangerous... right? The thought of Dora hating him felt even more unbearable. "I'd just like to offer one more explanation and then I'll take my leave." Silas hesitated and took a deep breath, preparing for the overwhelming sadness that he knew was inevitable whenever he talked about Lizzie.

"Before she died.. Lizzie was her name... before Lizzie died we'd decided to get married. That was a little over ten years ago. I haven't so much looked at another woman let alone held one in my arms since then.. until the other night. So when I say that you remind me of her, what I mean is that I never thought it would be possible to feel again. Because I didn't before her and I didn't after. But when I look at you, I begin to think it's possible." Silas allowed his voice to trail off; his eyes were welling with tears. He'd totally gone off-script. This girl was no good for him; he was going to give everything away. Despite all that, her persistence had gotten to him. Not waiting for a response, he began to walk away.

"Good night, Dora."

Dora's face dropped and her bottom lip began to quiver at Silas' explanation. What an IDIOT, Dora! she berated herself. Silas got up and began to walk away, but Dora couldn't let him, she had to go after him.

Jumping up, Dora ran after Silas. She grabbed him by the arm right outside of the restaraunt and spun him around... Not knowing what was happening or what the reaction would be she pressed her lips to his and kissed him passionately. Pulling away, tears rolling down her cheeks she said, " I am so sorry Silas! I hope that you can forgive me! And, and, I am sorry for that." She pressed her fingertips to her lips and closed her eyes sighing.

Before Silas left her standing alone she had to say something. Her eyes still closed she said, "I know how you feel, Silas. I never thought I'd love again and then I met Edward...and now he's gone and I have met you. You make feel like I am worth something, like maybe I am not as much a mistake as I thought. You make me want to be better. I understand if you never want to see me again after my behavior lately, but I hope not." She did not dare to open her eyes even an inch. She just waited for the explosion.

Silas was incredibly surprised that Dora had followed him outside and even more startled when she spun him around and kissed him. Nevertheless, he didn't push her away. Silas' mind and heart argued with each other; this was a terrible idea and he knew it. But, he mostly didn't care.

As she talked, he held her closer, much against his better judgment. When she finished speaking, he moved his hands up to her face, and tangled his fingers in her hair. A single tear, left over from the restaurant still clung to her cheek and Silas brushed it away with his thumb. Bending slightly, he leaned his forehead on the top of her head and whispered in her ear.

"Dora, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't extremely confused after our past few days. And... I'd guess that you are too." Silas was so unlike himself; there was no cold calculation, no sneakiness... well, he was the Silas he had been when he was a kid.. before everything happened.. and then the Silas he had been with Lizzie, but not since.

"I know we've both got skeletons... and I know I'm not ready to share mine. But I may... in time." Baaaaad promise, Silas. Remember what happened you shared those skeletons with Lizzie? Remember how she, you know, stopped living?

"I..." Silas closed his eyes, and ran his fingers through her hair. "I need some time to think. This could be either the best idea or the worst idea either of us had ever had. And I want us both to have the time to think it through." Silas sighed.

Kissing her temple lightly, he brought his hands to his sides and stepped away. As he turned to leave, he whispered, "think of me?"

Dora had braced herself for a horrible reaction so she was immensely surprised when Silas held her close and spoke so sweetly. She buried her face in his chest and breathed him in. What were they thinking?

All the while Silas spoke Dora listened intensely, she would not overlook a thing this time. She was a bit crestfallen when he released her and turned to walk away, but the place where he had kissed her temple still tingled, as did her lips. She heard him whisper "think of me" She whispered back, not sure if he could hear her, "Every moment we're apart." It was a promise she would most definitely keep, because she did have a lot to think about... or did she. Silas felt right, natural, but he was right-there were many a skelton in Dora's closet and she could only imagine what he was hiding. But she didn't care.

Dora turned in the opposite direction Silas had taken off in and looked for an alley way or some dark spot to apparate from. Once she did she turned on the spot and disappeared with a slight POP

Silas walked home, mulling over the night's events. It was most certainly not what he'd expected. Passing a performance artist, he tossed a pound in her hat.

Was he putting Dora at risk? If he was, and if he truly cared for her, he'd leave town tonight. His heart ached at the thought, but his head told him maybe he should leave again. He resisted this idea and tried to justify himself. After all, he hadn't really told her anything, and as long as he didn't, she'd be safe.

Walking up to his flat, his mind raced. They weren't very alike. He adore muggles; she was extremely uncomfortable around them. He was 12 years older! He tried to stay calm and collected at all times; she was a firecracker. It was no use; it was the same with Lizzie. Only this time, Silas was older, wiser, and broken.

Tossing his cloak on a chair as he entered the flat, he made his way to the room with the sign. Removing the enchantments that sealed the door, he entered. Walking over to the bubbling potions, he stirred each cauldron once. He turned his back on the dressmaker's dummy and prepared to turn and fire off a spell when a voice spoke out that chilled him to the bone.

"You shouldn't have done that, Silas." The voice was threatening and cold.

Silas spun around in the direction of the voice. For the first time in years, Silas' mother had returned to her portrait.

END SCENE

Dora spun like a top as she appeared in the abandoned building down the block from the restaraunt. She was dressed a bit more vibrantly today in a long sleeved pink wrap dress. Dora didn't like to wear short sleeves if possible.. she had some.. um.. body art that she liked to keep covered up around co workers. She always wore dressier shoes when working, but seeing as they weren't now and were going to be walking she had donned herfavorite pair of black Converse.

Stepping out of the building hoping that no one noticed she walked down the block toward the restaraunt which she and Silas had met previously. She had a bright smile plastered across her face and was radiating energy.