The sound of the spoon clattering against the brick flooring beneath them barely registered to the Ravenclaw. Derf's reaction, the yelling especially was slowly bringing her back to all the many ways she'd felt horrible after it'd happened. To have her friend so worked up about something that was her fault--to have her other friend come under cross fire because of her curiosity.

Great going Jessa. Haven't upset enough people in the last week, clearly have to add more. "He didn't let everyone down, he...he was helping me." Her brows furrowed at the reminder. If she hadn't been so keen on knowing things this wouldn't be nearly as big an issue. "I'd asked first and he said he couldn't because his girlfriend would be upset, which I had to accept." Because she didn't force her test subjects unnecessarily, least of all when she had a bunch more options to choose from.

Her eyes widened before filling with a certain hesitance and remorse. The more conclusions he drew was the worse she felt. "He didn't steal it...it was...I...there was this book and he was answering questions from it for me because I was curious and he wanted to help and then..." Her voice trailed off as the girl grew ever more conscious that his yelling just now had gotten them unwanted attention. The girl leaned forward, whispering briefly info she didn't fancy saying aloud before straightening in her seat. "And then suddenly he didn't mind that he had a girlfriend, he just asked me to kiss him." A huge leap from "I can't, Lily won't like it"
and she hadn't been sure what to make of it at first but he didn't seem all that confused in his decision at the moment which only confused HER more.

Long story short, the young girl did not thrive well in confusion. "So I thought it was fine, because he wasn't protesting anymore like he'd been earlier but then I thought about it and it isn't fine and good people don't do that."

It was quite possible that the wider his eyes got and the more confused he seemed to be was the worst she felt. By the time that first question came out, the girl found herself sinking lower in her seat. Her stomach had begun doing very strange and terrible flips, in much the same way Derf's was; not that she'd know.

By now her spoon had been replaced on the table, her appetite a fleeting memory in the wake of this discussion. Silently she fidgeted with her fingers resting in her lap before finally giving a small nod. If it wasn't evident before, it was all too clear now that she wasn't proud of it--a strange thing in truth; Jessa was typically very fond of her experiments and the results they yielded, even the failed ones but this...this was different and for the first time in her young life, acquiring information felt...wrong. "He'd mentioned it while we were at school...and again when I got to his house................and again when I asked." And a couple times after that too now that she thought about it, yet at the time, it didn't seem to matter.

Merlin, how terrible.

His protest at her whispered words? Yeah, she'd already gotten as much but he was right for saying it. You couldn't and SHOULDN'T mess with things like that. "I know." By now her voice was barely audible. "That's why I said what I did." The whole bad person thing. Made sense now, right? Was she losing some of those heads now? "I just wanted to know...and I wanted to know a lot more than I bothered to think about whoever it might affect. There was just this open source." Her eyes widened a little, the faintest of sparks flashing behind her eyes as she remembered just how much she HAD learned that day and how...wonderful it had felt knowing--right before everything got shot to hell. A memory that saw her eyes growing dull once more. "I wasn't thinking straight, which isn't much of an excuse."

Jace just shrugged casually as she spoke, "Ehh, you get used to it with brothers I guess.. whenever I go out with my cousin, who is a girl, she never leaves my side.. " It's just how his family was.. besides he didn't fit in super well with his outgoing preppy brothers.. So this was better off.. "But ice cream does make everything better. " He said with a half smile over at her..

"Nice to meet you Scarlett. " Jace said with a genuine grin.. It was always nice having company, at times, and even better when the company was rather pretty.. He pushed his spoon into his ice cream and then brought it to his lips..

"Mmmhmmm, I'm a Slytherin.. I'll be a fifth year this term.. and you? "

Etta grinned at his enthusiasm, feeling glad that he was just as excited as she was. She simply stood for a moment as she debated giving him a kiss on the cheek.. but settled for a hug instead. "You smell nice." She blurted out abruptly before she could stop herself. Oops. Was that the right thing to say? Would he find it weird? Or awkward? ".... and you look very nice too." She added, unable to keep the excited grin off her face.

Ahem. Moving on.

She took the seat across the table from him, finally noticing that he'd managed to get the best table. Wow, had he been waiting for a long time? But she wasn't late, was she? "This.. table.. the location is pretty great." Etta smiled at him, her cheeks turning faintly pink as she stared at his face for a long moment. Anyway, summer. Right. Gosh, he was so distracting.

"Summer has been great.. really great and guess what? I've been made prefect for the upcoming year." She said, the happiness clearly oozing out of her voice. Etta couldn't help it, though. She felt so proud of herself. Tucking a few strands of hair behind her ears, she continued, "How has yours been?"

She knew that. She knew that too. It was funny how the more Derf spoke was the more she was starting to feel justified in how terrible of a person she must have been. Had to say, in all her years, stupid and selfish were never things she expected to be labelled--well stupid yes, by a couple people and herself when she seemed to be missing a critical link but not selfish. Now here she was, being labelled as such by her bestfriend who was typically very honest with her. The worst of it all? He was right.

The absolute worst, however, came when he stood and shed some light on how her brain had really been picking apart the situation on that day. Circe, how many things could he be right about in one sitting??? It was almost unnatural. "Where are you going?" Was he angry enough to leave her sitting here with a full bowl of sundae she no longer had interest in? She didn't want him to go but she wouldn't hold onto him if it was what he really wanted.

"I don't know when they stopped being people." She confessed, the mere admission making her feel a little queasy in the stomach. Suddenly she was reconsidering even the reason they were here today. Derf seemed entirely put off by the whole thing and she didn't want another lecture a couple months from now regarding the same thing. "I dunno how to fix it. RJ seems keen to pretend it never happened," with the way he'd gone back to being all grins and baseline conversation, "but I can't...not feel bad about it..."

Blue eyes looked him over once. "Does that mean you're uninterested?" At this point, she wouldn't be able to fault him. "You've got a while to think about it."

Oh, should he get up? Levi realized that Etta was still standing like she was waiting for something. And it was the gentlemanly thing to do, right? So, he did.. which probably seemed a little awkward after the fact, since he didn't do it right away But a hug was nice and he was happy to give her one back before sitting back down.

He smelled nice? Levi grinned at the compliment, not thinking it was weird at all. "Thanks! It's a new cologne." Well, not exactly. He borrowed it from his dad so it was new to him, but maybe he should get some of his own then. And hopefully he put on the right amount and not too much.

And she even noticed the table. His smile turned a little more self-satisfied. "Yeah, I thought so, too. I had to grab it when it opened up... good for people watching and not in a too-crowded spot. But I did wait for you to order."

He did want to hear all about what she had been doing so far this summer, and he'd be happy to tell her about his. But he wasn't expecting this news. "Wow, what.. really?" His mouth a bit in surprise before smiling, happy for her. "That's really cool... congrats! We should celebrate." Of course, they were already getting ice cream... but surely there was something else they could do to commemorate it.

Gaston had no idea what he was doing with his life anymore. This time last year, he thought he was going to have it all... loving parents, friends who would always be there for him, a job with people he cared about and who cared about him, and the love of the most amazing woman he'd ever met. But now he wasn't so sure. The events over the past few months- the international tour announcement, the end-of-term feast, and the fight with his father - had cast doubt, and now he felt he was being forced to choose only one.

He decided maybe some ice cream would cheer him up and made a beeline for Florean Fortescue's. He had a little time for a snack before heading to the owl post office. He had a very important letter to send! After ordering some double fudge brownie ice cream in a chocolate bowl, he ventured outside. Imagine his surprise when he saw the very person his letter was intended for sitting there!

"Hello, Natalia," he greeted his former student with a slight sad smile. It felt a bit odd calling her by her first name, but he saw no reason to stand on formality now that they weren't at Hogwarts. "Would you mind if I join you?" After all, he had some big news to deliver!

and mentions of Gaston because WE LOVE HIM xD
 

As she swirled her ice cream thinking about things her thoughts were distracted as she felt someone coming closer. Her eyes lifting she gave a small smile as she noticed who it was. "Hello professor"
funny to see him here just at the moment she was thinking about him.
She needed some direction, she needed to know if things could still go as planned, but she didn't know who to really ask. He would know and understand, he was in a band. So was Atticus and she was sure to talk to her mentor/boss about stuff.

"No, not at all. Please have a seat. I've actually been meaning to owl you." That wasn't strange or anything, she had left school just to seek out a professor. No, she didn't find it strange at all. She had many mentors there that she would be keeping in touch with and he was one of them.
"How is the touring going?" She wanted to hear all about it. Her dreams of touring showed in her starry look she was probably giving.

...."Curious." That...was certainly one way of letting her know he was angry. Granted, she could have guessed that without him standing and the gesture itself had only served to confuse her but it was a good effort anyway? In any case, now she felt she needed to watch a few scenes with this standing protest. It really was a curious way of letting someone know your foot was down.

Suffice to say, she was a little calmer once he'd retaken his seat and no longer in immediate danger of simply storming off. This was better, more predictable. Good good.

"Maybe it's the way he copes?" Jessa suggested, not entirely sure herself. "Or maybe...I mean...he didn't want me feeling bad about it. I think he was trying to cheer me up." Which admittedly hadn't worked all that well given everything that had swarmed her mind after and prevented happy thoughts but y'know. "But you're right, I think I have learned my lesson." She'd be more careful next time or rather more thoughtful toward the other party's situation.

In fact, she'd already made mental notes as well as a couple preliminary changes to the assessments themselves. Only thing now was WHY Derf went back to looking so confused. This had to be the widest range of emotions her bestfriend had gone through in such a short period of time. She would have to ask him how he felt soon. Find out the possible side effects of such change. For now..."My study, my experiment." She replied, incredulous to the fact he'd even have to ask while casually forgetting she'd never really explained. "That's why I'd like you to kiss someone you like, that way I won't have robbed you of yours and I won't feel bad and you won't regret everything and nothing will spiral terribly out of control and we won't end up wallowing in horrid feelings that eventually drive such a huge rock between us that you no longer come to tropical islands with me to kiss dolphins." Slippery slope fallacy? Sounded familiar.

Gaston almost laughed a little as Natalia greeted him. It felt odd being called professor outside of Hogwarts, but he hadn't the heart to correct her. He wasn't sure how she'd react to his presence - maybe it was uncool to be seen with a teacher outside school - but he was relieved when she invited him to sit. "Thank you, Natalia," he replied.

He pulled up the nearest chair and sat down, taking a few bites of his ice cream. Natalia's question came as a bit of a surprise and he choked slightly. He couldn't help but notice the starry look in her eyes, adn it made him laugh a little - something that was nearly impossible since that fight with his father! "It's been great so far," he said. He was still uncomfortable with being in in the spotlight and the crowds of screaming fans, but it was nice to know they liked him. If only the people at Hogwarts thought as highly of him...

"The crowds in Paris were very welcoming!" Gaston went on. Of course that was probably because they saw WerewolfSnout as their own native sons, but that was beside the point. "There were a few small mishaps. An amp blew out on opening night, and there was an incident with some fangirls..." He shuddered at the memory of all those young women pawing him! The blue-eyed Frenchman sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Anyway, I have some news for you..."

She kept eating her ice cream and didn't mind at all if he joined her. She actually adored the professors at Hogwarst and of course her favorites, including him were always welcomed around her. [b] "I haven't come across anymore of the bands stuff hidden at the music shop."[/b She laughed a bit, because that's how she had figured it all out last summer. Working for Atticus had it's advantages. She loved working there.

When he started talking about the tour she placed her spoon in her ice cream and gave him her full attention. She didn't want to miss any of it, because honestly she wasn't sure at the moment if she'd ever get her chance. She knew she'd have to tell him what all happened, but she wasn't going to right now. Story time was better and getting to hear about the bands touring was great. "Fangirls? Professor you dog." She laughed jokingly, but really he picked annoying students over screaming fans. The man had to be mad.

Leaning back in her chair she tried to think what it would be like to have that many fans and people wanting your autograph and picture. She was so ready for it all, but knew she'd not be having it for awhile. She picked her spoon back up and took another bite before looking at him. "News?" Oh it was about the opening act wasn't it, she frowned knowing she'd have to tell him.

Etta gave an internal sigh of relief when he took that compliment rather well. Who comments on the way their date smells, though? But somehow.. it attracted her more towards him. If that was even possible at all. The corners of her lips lifted up in a bright smile, momentarily pushing those thoughts away and concentrating on the boy sitting across the table from her.

Hmm. "That was very nice of you. Did you have to wait for a long time?" Etta finally asked, her smile turning into a tiny frown. "I apologise if you had to." Her gaze shifted to the window for a moment before turning to look at Levi once again. "What do you enjoy most about people-watching?"

She looked incredibly pleased at his reaction, her face still rather flushed with excitement. "Celebrate.. yeah. Definitely.." Etta paused for a few seconds as she curiously looked at him, leaning back against her seat comfortably. "What do you think we should do?" She could think of a few things, honestly. Ahem.

Jace grinned a bit, "Well you clearly have a majority then, it's just me and my brothers in my family.. My younger brother Stefan and then my older brother Xander.. " He said with a bit of a shrug.. The two of them got along pretty well where as Jace was just out here alone.. at least his cousin Lily liked him..

He blinked a bit as he noticed the girl get all googly eyed and since he was pretty sure he hadn't gotten hotter in the past thirty seconds, the grey eyed boy took a look around and saw the Charms Professor there..

Ahh well.. to each their own?

Jace casually sat there and ate his ice cream while he waited for Scarlet to come back to earth.. Ahhh.. one day he was going to affect a girl like that..

Today was not that day however.

Ahh there she was. "Hufflepuff eh? That's pretty cool and yeah, I'm a snake. " Cue charming grin.. "No, I'm not ready at all for them. " He said in reference to the OWL thing.. "I'm not looking forward to them either..seems like a pain.. " He said with a sigh.

Gaston absentmindedly swirled his spoon around in his bowl, trying not to let his thoughts wander back to his father and the fight they had. Nope, he wasn't going to think about that now! He had exciting news for Natalia, and he wasn't going to spoil the moment for her!

The mention of band merchandise caught him off guard slightly, and his expression changed. "Maybe it's just sold out?" he said. That seemed the most likely explanation. The store in France had trouble keeping their merchandise in stock, and he would be surprised if Atticus's Attic didn't carry any at all. He couldn't help but laugh along with his former student. "It's not what it probably sounds like!" he added quickly. "Most of the fans were very kind, but there were some who didn't understand the concept of boundaries." He still couldn't figure out what they saw in him. Lucien was the one with the bombastic rockstar personality; Jerome was the closest to their age; Tillie was the female role model, and Ed and Armand were the musical talent.

Gaston nodded. "Yes, news," he said. "The band and I have talked it over with our manager, and..." He tried to keep a straight face, but he was so excited for Natalia that he couldn't stop a smile from showing. "We've decided to add The Sirens to our line-up for the London shows! You'd be going on after us, as a closing act."

Well when he said it like that...

Jessa straightened in her seat, trying to read into her friend's expression and the way his voice had risen in pitch the way it did. The noise he'd made sounded almost...strained....and there were typically only a few reasons for that: lack of understanding or reluctance.

Given she'd just explained it to him, the excuse of ignorance didn't seem to fit. Reluctance on the other hand made all too much sense. Why should he have wanted to? There were certainly other options out there, one's that thought things through more thoroughly and didn't mess things up as often.

"That was the idea, yes." She confirmed, trying to keep her tone even. Experiments always had setbacks, it was important not to let them throw you off the trail of knowledge completely. "It'd only be with your go ahead and I'm amendable to having you find someone else so long as
I still get to collect whatever data comes from it. You've got choices in this, the third being that you could say no entirely and I'd still be your friend." It did no one any good to be bullied into the life of a test subject afterall.

Of course it would mean finding someone ELSE at the risk of further rejection but such was the sacrifice needed she supposed.

Something was off about the professor. He she knew that look because she gave it many times. His mind wasn't fully around, but she wasn't going to ask, no, she wouldn't make it out she noticed. She didn't want to put him in an awkward position. She wasn't his student anymore,
but there was still a respect to hold for her to him. She fully admired him and thought of him as a mentor.

She couldn't help but laugh, "I was joking, I bought one the other day." There were some stuff but the closer their dates came for the concert the more it was selling she did notice. "Stop being modest Professor you probably have so many fangirls making heart eyes at you." She was laughing, but she was serious. The professor wasn't bad looking, though she never had a thing for any of her professors in that sense.

Now was time for the news and her heart sunk as he spoke about it. She should have been jumping up and down so excited, but she had news for him that wasn't going to go as well. "About that.... " How did she even explain. "The Sirens aren't going to be together anymore it seems. A few of our members have decided that their hearts weren't fully into making the band famous and went to enjoy their other passions." She had nothing against them for it either, but she was saddened by it. "Lily and I have decided to continue though. We are going to focus on trying to possibly be a duo. " Though they probably wouldn't come up with a band to play for them in time for the tour dates.

"Thank you so much for the offer though. It was incredible and I'll never forget it." How could she, she came so close to being on stage in front of so many fans. That was what hurt when she thought about it.

Jace couldn't even imagine what it would be like to have sisters. Making a brouhaha over every little thing, being all loud and noisy and in his face.. Naw he much preferred his brothers.. at least they left him alone? "Yeah see I'm not so good with the make up talk. " He said with a teasing grin at her.."Lipstick is stuff that goes.. on your eyes?" His grey eyes were twinkling slightly as he spoke..

"That's cool, I'm not sure if I've met her or not.. but I'll keep an eye out. " He said with a smile as he groaned slightly as she spoke..

"I don't know what's worse.. not knowing what you want to do.. or knowing what you would like to do.. but making it in the field is super hard, so you might as well give up and find something else to do. " He said with a bit of a sigh..

"Though what I want to do has nothing to do with magic.. so there you go. " He said with a shrug as he took another bite of his ice cream.

Natalia's laugh jerked Gaston out of his thoughts, and he managed a halfhearted chuckle. He might've guessed she was joking, but there were times when he couldn't be sure. Her comment about the fangirls turned his chuckle into full-blown laughter. "The heart eyes I can handle," he said. She was right, there had been a lot of that going on at the Paris shows. He thought it was sort of cute actually. "It's having my personal space and privacy invaded that I don't like." His eyes darted apprehensively, half-expecting a mob of fans or paparazzi to ambush him.

He was surprised by Natalia's reaction to the news he had for her. He'd expected jumping around and squealing, more along the lines of her reaction at the end-of-term feast, but instead she seemed sad. He soon found out why, and his bright blue eyes widened in shock as she explained what had happened. He was sorry to learn that The Sirens were breaking up, but he could understand them wanting to pursue another dream. He'd had to make that same choice not long ago. But there was still the matter of the London shows. The tour manager and the rest of the band were expecting four girls to perform, not two! A terrible thought suddenly occurred to him. Had he done that? He couldn't help but feel a little guilty; he meant to help, not break up The Sirens!

Natalia's words of thanks were completely unexpected but touched his heart nonetheless, just as kind words always did. For a moment, he was at a loss for words; all he could do was look back at her, smiling sweetly. Merlin's beard! She was going to make him cry if she kept saying sweet things like that! "It was no trouble at all," he said once he'd found his voice. "I'm just sorry things didn't work -" He stopped himself midsentence as an idea came to him. "I just thought of something... if you can't perform as The Sirens, maybe you and Lily could perform as part of WerewolfSnout... at least for the London shows." The band probably wouldn't go for that, but he'd deal with them later.

Gaston's brain was suddenly buzzing with ideas, and for the first time in weeks, he forgot all about the awful things his father said to him. He was determined to find a way to make Natalia's dream happen! "You'll perform the last song of the show with us," he thought out loud. "I'll write something new just for the occasion." He already had an idea what that song would be. He looked at her, unable to hide the excitement in his eyes as he tried to gauge her reaction. Would she like the idea?