appealing to the masses - amina

[Gavin Dewhurst]

come on make it easy,
(SAY I NEVER MATTERED)
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[/i] missed the place, but he was ready to live inside of four real walls. To have a bed with real pillows to collapse into. He was sick and tired of living in a tent, surrounded by nobody but his noisy, often smelly, teammates. They were grand company, certainly perfect for what he needed, to keep him distracted. Almost all of them worked just as hard as he did, working out or drinking. They were often working at one or the other. Gavin had just finished this morning's practice, and was currently in his tent starting to change clothing for the day. It was press week, the whole team had been traveling during this gap between games. They were still in the middle of their season, but they didn't have any games until next month. So now, it was all PR and smiling for cameras. The team was traveling together, but doing separate functions. Pulling the shift over his head he stepped out from the small room divider that his trunk was located behind. Yesterday had been Denmark, just a press release where he had been asked to stand as a part of the group while their Captain spoke about their training and such. Next week he was off, so that would be worth it. Lucinda seemed to finally be dialing it back a notch, if he bothered to care, he might be worried that something was going on, on her end. Not that he would really care if there was, at least he would be home and he would have real home cooked food and a private shower. Of course, Adam would have to come with him...but other than that he would be home alone, finally. No more boisterous voices all hours of the day and night for a change. It would be nice. ”Austria, sir.” He hated that Adam addressed him as sir, the boy was only four years older than he was after all, they weren't that different, come November there would only be three years between them. However, that was less concerning than the next destination. He knew that Adam was just reading from a list that had been given to him by the team Captain, he just didn't know why they would be going back there, now of all times.

Gavin didn't want to go to Austria, he had spent right years of his life frequenting the place, hitting up all of the social spots, getting his education, making a name for himself apart from just his impressive Surname. Still, he didn't want to go anywhere near there again, now it was just bad memories, things that he didn't want to think about. People that he would much rather ignore. “Austria? What for?” he tried to keep his tone neutral, he had no reason to hide anything from Adam, he was a hired hand but over the past couple of months he had become even more than that. They were friends, he liked to think. Not that they talked about it very much. ”Just what the list says, Sir” of course it was, just as he had originally thought. He was going to need pants then. “Do we have much time left?” he knew that he tended to take a little longer to get ready than a lot of the people that he was on the team with, but they all took off together, they weren't very far away. Just outside of the country lines of Germany, then straight on through to Austria he supposed. They were fast fliers, only a couple of hours for the trip as a team, people liked to see them out and flying together anyway so it couldn't hurt. Gavin turned his attentions to the tent, “Well, pack this lot up and I'll find the rest of my clothing.” Yes sir,” not like it was difficult, the whole tent could be packed away into the trunk he had just been standing in front of, Adam had gotten fairly good at it, he did it just about every other day. He wouldn't mind the time alone either. Leaving the older man to his work Gavin meandered to the only other trunk in the room, the one that held his personal effects and extracting a pair of jeans and trainers. There was no point in looking too fancy whenever meeting his fans, looking close to one of them helped humanize him, makes him more approachable is what they said. The PR reps for the team wanted them to really get out there. The team that they belonged to was a fairly prominent one, but they were really working on making them one of the forerunners in the league.

Going back to Austria meant that there was a chance that he was going to see her again, something that he really didn't want to do. Of course, who knew what she was up to these days, it had been two months since he had seen her last. This time last year, he had been breaking up with her the last time. Right around the time that he was due to start back to school shopping. He was sure that was why he was going to Austria now, because all of the students, the target demographic was going to be in the street en mass. He needed them in the shop buying things with his face on it, promoting the team's brand. The Quidditch shop was highly familiar to him, all of Alzubra was in truth. He spent enough time there after all. Pulling his clothing on he headed outside of the tent, grabbing his wand and broom along the way. No sooner had he stepped out than the tent collapsed around him and into the trunk. All around his tent were others from his teammates collapsing in on themselves, trunks being lashed to brooms, more than one of the Irish men were nursing hangovers, like they did almost all of the time. So long as they played well, he didn't give a damn. Adam was just behind him, it really was strange that the man agreed to take this job, he hated to fly and that was how they got almost everywhere. They practiced their formations on trips like this, it wasn't for amateurs. Gavin could only hope that he didn't see Amina, not that he would. She didn't fly, the only reason that she even had a broom whatsoever was because he had bought it for her. The chances of her needing to pop in an purchase a grooming kit were slim to none. Which would be fortunate, since he felt like he was practically radiating anxiety. He could only hope it didn't show as he mounted his broom and pushed off into the sky in line with the rest of the team, falling into the center of the group as he was trained to do. Just a couple hours and he would be touching back down in Austria, wind burn on his face. There was no way out of this, he was contractually obligated to go where they told him to go.

Over the course of the flight, they had all been given their orders, told where they would all be going. Apparently it was just going to be him and Adam going to the Quidditch shop, a couple of the others were heading into the pubs to sign things with the older crowd, and the rest were going to be working a booth in the lobby of the Ministry building. He apparently was supposed to flaunt the fact that he was close to school age and just graduated, make a good impression on those who had been younger in years than him but would be graduating soon. 'Anybody who could be old enough to purchase a ticket or merchandise' as their Captain put it. Whenever Gavin had veered off from the bunch with Adam he had no idea what he was going to be in for, he certainly hadn't been expecting what he had found whenever he had landed in the back loading area of the shop. His face was everywhere, a life sized cardboard cutout was in the front of the shop , his face was in the windows announcing the time 'teen prodigy' the sign said along with the exact line of keepers gloves and sort of boots that he liked to wear. No doubt they would sell out of all of those today while he was there. He knew he was popular, he had always been, with the exception of his seventh year in school, but that was for another reason. He had been living the character that he was presenting to the public for so long he had actually been starting to believe it, until he had landed here, everything just came flooding back. Merlin he could only hope that she had moved back to Florida, that she had left and was gone. He couldn't see her again, not after how they had left things last time. Not with all of the developments in his life being what they were.

He could feel the questions bubbling up within Adam, not that he was the questioning type, but he had been there whenever Amina had left, he had been the one to throw her out. Who knew what she had said to him on the way out. Gavin shook his head, he wasn't interested, he didn't want to dwell on it. The back door was opened for them and ushered inside. Pasting a smile onto his face easily as he accepted the hand proffered to him by the manager, this wasn't their first time meeting. “Donald, been too long. How's your sister?” ”Good, good Mr. Dewhurst! We're so glad you haven't forgotten us, we sold you your first broom after all”[/i Gavin nodded with a chuckle “I couldn't forget, you sold me the broom that I'm using today. Where do you want us?” the man took the broom with a loving hand, it was obvious on his face that he remembered selling the very broom. He would keep it in the employee area with their stuff. ”I've got a table set up by the register, only area in the shop big enough to accommodate the que, I'm sure that you've seen it...” He had, the line was already around the corner. It was all very flattering, he just hoped that there weren't too many with raven hair...he didn't think that his nerves could handle it.

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tonight the foxes hunt the hound,
(WE'RE THE BEGINNING OF THE END)

[/b][/font] 1,791
outfit: This
tags: Amina
notes: Here we go.
credit: gabs of a different color; @ caution 2.0[/ul][/font][/font][/div]

[Amina Krane]

Amina was grasping her wrist, rolling her right hand in a gentle circle as she flexed the muscles underneath her grip. The pen that had been between her fingers for the past hour was now lying across the piece of parchment on her desk, discarded like the ugly thing it was. All of the paperwork she had to fill out for this job was causing callouses on her fingers right where the pen rested. She hadn’t imagined this was what she was signing up for when she applied to be an auror. In her head, it had been all about fighting evil doers and being some sort of magical super hero. Her mind had never stopped to reflect on the thought that she was still a child in most people’s minds, despite that she was a graduate, and that she had very little real world experience. She wasn’t going to be put on the front lines right away. Instead, she was having to work her way up through the ranks. Thankfully, she was already beginning that piece of the process. She had started off at the desk permanently, only seeing the light of day when she was doing a training session, or when she wasn’t working. But, when she wasn’t working, she usually was doing something for the order. Or trying to get in some sort of sleep. Or being forced to phase by the full moon. Really, time to herself was impossible to come by these days. And whatever time she did find, was actually spent with the boys or Victoria or some other friend that she was trying to keep a relationship with. When had her life become such a string of commitments?

The last twenty-four hours had been no different. She had started her shift early that morning, coming in to try and get a head start on her paperwork. Her day, in turn, started a whole three hours earlier than scheduled. Then, as she had finally started to make a dent in the paperwork piled on her desk, they had received a call. It was one they deemed would be appropriate for a training case, a minor disturbance in a magical neighborhood. It wasn’t suspected Death Eaters which was why it was appropriate. Nothing that would really prove to be too dangerous for a newbie. The problem was, despite how simple the problem and how even more simple the solution, the paperwork to fill out was ridiculous. Her stack that had been dwindled before she had left and was supervised by another auror as she tried to calm the domestic disturbance that they were called to, was now double the size it had been when she had gotten in that morning. How was it that a call that took less than half an hour, resulted in an additional five hours’ worth of work? No wonder they had trainees. The aurors did the field work, the trainees wound up doing the desk work. She couldn’t wait until she was able to be the one to pass off the work, though somehow she imagined she wouldn’t be able to do it, wouldn’t be able to subject people to the same torture she had to endure. Sighing softly, Amina picked up her pen and signed the last paper of the stack for the disturbance. Dropping the pen once more, letting it roll to the side of the desk where it came to rest against another stack she would have to complete before the week was out, Amina picked and placed the newly signed piece of paper upside down on the completed pile. No, she was pretty sure she would be able to pass off this job.

Standing up, Amina stretched her arms upwards, feeling the lengthening in her spine that was so sore for sitting for so long. Stretching a little taller, she felt her back pop ever so slightly, a wave of relief rushing down her entire spine as the tension was released. Sighing with relief, Amina picked up the stack she had been working on and flipped it over, binding it magically and setting it into the outbox. “Break time,” she told herself, grabbing her wand off of her desk and shoving it into the hidden spot of her slacks, then opening up her drawer and grabbing out her bag. It wasn’t often that she took breaks, but on days like this, where she was working longer shifts, she had to have a moment to herself. So she made a beeline straight for the elevators, dodging out of the way of anyone who might try to keep her from tending to her growling stomach that mimicked her own growls during the full moon. She needed food and needed to give her wrist a break before she started in on her next stack of paperwork. Climbing into the elevator and pushing the lobby button, Amina tapped her foot incessantly until it finally closed and raced towards its intended destination. Fortunately, there had been no needed stops along the way so she was delivered right to the lobby where she was greeted with a rather peculiar scene. Her eyebrow arched as she looked around at the numerous employees that were crowding around a particular area of the lobby. Moving hesitantly closer, Amina tried to peer through the people and find out what they were ogling after. She couldn’t see over them due to her height, even with her heels, but she could most certainly try to find a way through the crowd.

That was when she saw the gold and green shimmering between two employees she recognized from Level three. Her hear constricted as a broom suddenly rising up out of the crowd with a male riding on its handle. The tightening kept building, tighter and tighter until she could hardly breathe, that was until her eyes finally took in the person on the broom. She had assumed, but she had been wrong. Her heart finally began to beat again as she realized the man riding was a bright blonde, bleached if she was right, so certainly not him. Good, she thought to herself as she rushed past the crowd and towards the exit. If she moved fast enough, maybe she could avoid the crowd parting and him becoming visible in the mass. How she had forgotten, not seen the reminder messages that the team was coming here today, Amina wasn’t sure. It had been everywhere, in peoples emails, some people even brought out their team colors and posted them around the office, but somehow she had still forgotten. When she had first seen the message about the Irish team coming to do a PR gig in Austria and that they were going to be coming to the Ministry for a little bit of face time, she thought she had committed the date to memory, told herself that she wasn’t going to go anywhere near the lobby during those hours. She didn’t want to see him, couldn’t see him. She didn’t want to face the way they had left things last time. Well, more like the way he had kicked her out and made her feel completely useless. Just thinking about how he had left her there pretty much naked on the floor of the tent, thrown her his grimy robes and had her escorted out, brought the anger out as a flare in her cheeks, her hands gripping the strap of her bag tightly as she made her way out to Alzubra Alley. She hated him for what he had done to her, how he had made her feel so small and used, but in reality, she could never truly hate him. It was a fleeting thought but she couldn’t deny that she held some sort of resentment for that day. It just happened to be that the only real emotion she could ever feel for him was love, despite all the hell he had ever put her through. Why was she a glutton for his punishment? Was the little bit of love she got in return for it really worth it? When she knew damn well there was another male in her life that treated her so much better, gave her the respect of his friendship and trust, his attention and consideration. Yet, she could never see that happening. Because there would always be Gavin.

But as she strode down the street, Amina tried to think of anything but him. She should have turned around and gone back to her desk, drowned herself back in the paperwork that would have been an easy distraction. Focusing on some useless report that was just going to be tucked away in a file cabinet and never read would have been much better than walking down Alzubra Alley where people kept talking about the Quidditch team, how they were in town and how hot some of the players were. ”Especially the Keeper, don’t you think?” Sometimes, Amina wanted to tear off her ears, to get rid of this wolfish hearing she was tormented with. But now, all she wanted to do was tear out the throat of the girl who had spoken. Gavin was hers. Only hers. Though, even as she thought that, she knew it wasn’t true. He hated her guts. Why else would he have thrown her out of his tent? The anger kept welling up though, to the point where she had to put her mind elsewhere or she would just go crazy. She was going to go running back to that lobby and go looking for him, trying to reason with him that they could work and to stop making other girls adore him because he was hers. It would be a waste of breath if she predicted correctly, though. So she gripped her bag tighter and kept walking, didn’t turn around to snap at any girl whom she heard discussing the team, not going back to the Ministry, but addressing her growling stomach and heading for the café she had originally been focused on. Though, even as she walked, her path was altered slightly, not enough for her to really notice until she passed the café on the wrong side of the alley, her eyes focused on something else entirely.

Amina was focused instead on a giant cardboard cutout of the man who had just been obstructing her thoughts, tearing away all consciousness of her actions. Instead, she was following her nose. Her wolfish sense of smell was leading her in the direction of the Quidditch Supply store, the smell of leather and broom polish, wood and bristles, but also a hint of pine, of firewood, of familiar. She didn’t even realize it. There was no part of her conscious brain that knew where she was going and why, nor any part of her that stopped her feet from moving forward. Unconsciously, she weeded through the line of people until she was finally standing at the front window of the store. Her eyes combed over the crowd, going face to face until they finally found the familiar. Found what her nose had been telling her was there the entire time. Amina’s brain finally woke up and told her this was a bad idea, that it was sorry it hadn’t stopped her sooner, but her heart was aching again, more painful than before. It was literally hurting her to have the pane of glass between them, to have all of these people in the way of what could be a private moment for the two of them. The moment where she could finally convince him that he was hers, and she wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was going to happen one day because she had promised him she would come back for him, that she would be the woman he deserved and wouldn’t hurt him any longer. Why not let today be that day? Were these obstacles really going to be in her way? No. So she aimed to at least right one of the wrongs. She couldn’t get rid of all of these people, but she could at least get the glass out from in between them. As her feet began to carry her forward, her hands finally releasing the strap of her bag that was nearly mangled now, in order to separate the crowd, Amina’s brain began screaming at her. Telling her to stop, that it was a horrible idea to do this and that she was only asking for him to hurt her again. But her heart didn’t care. It would take the pain ten times over if it meant she would get to hear his voice again.

Pushing through the crowd was more difficult than she had imagined, mostly because there were plenty of females there to fawn all over Gavin, but she did manage to get past them, to slip her way into the store until she was standing off to the side, just out of what she presumed was his field of vision, staring at him. Had this been at the Ministry lobby, had she seen him then when she had felt that pang of anger, she might have just stormed up to him, slapped him and then his god damned body guard, and stormed off. But now the anger was gone, and all she felt now was a longing to be next to him, to feel his touch. An involuntary bite on the lip, something her mind must have done to wake her up from this daydream, drew some blood and brought her back to reality. Suddenly her hands were back on her bag, clutching it as her eyes widened. This was such a bad idea. Why was she so hopelessly attracted to him? How many times had she completely disregarded the rational part of herself and gotten hurt because of it? She tried to turn, to get away as soon as she could but it seemed like the moment she did, the crowd became denser, women getting louder, some even shrieking as they finally caught glimpse of Gavin through the crowd. Sure, there were some guys in the crowd, but from what she was seeing now, it was all women. And there was not a single break in the crowd that she could slip through. She could resort to using her unnatural strength to push them aside, but she didn’t want to hurt anyone, even if it meant saving herself from getting hurt again. So she was stuck. Stuck in this room. With Gavin. As she turned back around to find if there was some other way out of the store, some way of getting away, she realized it was too little too late. His baby blues were on her, and all she could do was swallow the lump rising in her throat, and keep reminding herself to breathe.

Words | 2,482
Tag | Gavin
Outfit | Click

[Gavin Dewhurst]

come on make it easy,
(SAY I NEVER MATTERED)
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[/i] of course, he knew that just by the man taking the time to mention it to him, that it would be alright if he gave a few out to the youngest that show up, since those were who Gavin felt like would need it the most, would get the most out of it. Just a theory of course. Rubbing his hands together to get them warmed up, cracking the knuckles on his right hand where the quill would be sitting, he had told the man to have gold ink set out for him and a stack of the photographs he had set over earlier in the week to be handing out to people. So, that was taken care of them. With a final glance to Adam and a steep inhale of breath he stepped out into the room, and the screams erupted instantaneously. He lifted a hand to greet them, with his brightest smile as he moved to the table and took a seat, Adam looming right behind them to keep their hands off of him. A hand shake or chance hug he might not mind if it's for a photo, but whenever they started to pull on his clothing and tug at him, that he couldn't stand. The women were quivering with anticipation. Had he never met Amina, he would have been eating this up, loving every second of it. Perhaps he would be here with Lucinda sitting at his side, proud that after all of these women wanting him, it was her that he would be going home with. He had no idea what she was up to back at the house, doing whatever she did to fill out her days. He hadn't even written her with the fact that he was going to be here today, he imagined that maybe Adam had informed her, he knew that she got the team itinerary (minus the free tickets, per his request)so maybe she did know. He would have to write her soon, otherwise she was going to come and visit him, demanding to know what was wrong, why he was ignoring her whenever they were so close to finalizing their wedding plans.

Not that he cared about whatever her plans for the wedding was, he would have been drunk for the whole process if he could have done it. Sadly, he had a job to do. His eyes focused on the woman who was babbling on in front of him, already he was off to a poor start. He was supposed to keep them moving, make them swoon with the eye contact before moving on to the next, one signature and then moving on. He had already lost count before he had even really started. One, two, three, and then they became a blur. The smiling came easily, the dozens of names as the crush of fans moved about the stores, purchasing things, commenting on him and moving in and out of the at capacity store. He didn't like that he couldn't just get up and leave if he wanted to. It wasn't that point yet, but he could feel coming soon, a need for a break at the very least. Who knew how long he had been sitting here. Four five six, a dozen, a hundred, an hour. His hand was cramping but he didn't stop. He couldn't afford for any black marks on his reputation, not this early on. This was what he wanted, this was what he had gotten, he had earned this. He wanted to enjoy it, and then he felt a tap on his shoulder. Leaning backward to head what Adam was going to whisper to him, holding up a finger to signal the girl in front of him just a moment ”There's something you should know...” Gavin could tell from the tone of voice exactly what it was that he should see. He could feel the message transferred instantly, and his spine ran cold. His eyes rolled over to where she was standing, clutching her bag toward the side of the shop. What what she doing here, even if she had known that he was going to be here, even if she knew that she needed to buy something, she should have done it another day. With how they had left things last time, he would have expected at least that much from her. He didn't understand why she would want to see them. Why did they have to keep doing this dance? Over and over again, and it hurt just the same every single time.

The second thing he thought of was her brother. He had just seen the lad half a month ago was it? It was recently, to be certain. He knew that her family was bankrupt. He knew that her brother had been relocated. It had only taken a few letters between the boy and himself before a family had been chosen. He had just needed to be certain that he actually was willing to leave his parents. The boy was so confused as to why he couldn't see his sister, as to why his father was back to being an ass all the time. Not that he had put it so eloquently, but it had been similar. Gavin had put him in with the Alcott family, they only had one boy who was set to turn fourteen this year. Somehow, he didn't think it would have gone over well if he had made it to where he was a new foster sister, and it didn't feel right. The Alcott family weren't the most wealthy of families, but Gavin could easily afford to set up a trust for the younger boy, and the Alcott's were happy to have him, they would raise him properly. As a pure blooded male should have been raised, he would he afforded a proper life now. With the promise of attending any game that they would have ever wanted, and Amina's brothers financial needs to be met by Gavin, it hadn't been any imposition whatsoever. He just knew that he couldn't leave him with those parents, not after what they had done. Ruining them had been easy, since it was because of Pearl that their company had ever started to come back in the first place. Given their tendency to overspend, they had nothing. It didn't tell him where Amina lived, but it certainly made him feel better about the whole thing. They were an insult to their bloodline in more than one way. Not only their association with muggles, but also the fact that they had no regard for their family. They had no right to disown Amina due to her tainted blood whenever they were no better than her in the first place.

Swallowing hard he held her gaze, making very certain that his brilliant smile never faded, didn't waver. There were dozens of people staring at him at this very moment, some with cameras or telephones that could record him, he couldn't afford it. He couldn't have anybody seeing him slip and finding out that he was looking at Amina. To the world, he was blissfully engaged. He couldn't have any of this getting back to the press. He didn't want to think that that was why she was here, to cause trouble for him, to get back at him for kicking her out of his tent. He just couldn't allow it to happen. He just couldn't. Turning back to the woman in front of him he finished signing her photo with a little something extra. Amina would just have to go home. Whatever reason she was here, it wasn't going to work.

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tonight the foxes hunt the hound,
(WE'RE THE BEGINNING OF THE END)

[/b][/font] 1,800
outfit: This
tags: Amina
notes: Here we go.
credit: gabs of a different color; @ caution 2.0[/ul][/font][/font][/div]

[Amina Krane]

Oh this was not good. Not good at all. No matter what Amina tried, she was stuck. How had she gotten in here so easily through the hoard of females that were shoulder to shoulder, leaving no room at the doorjamb? Surely they would not have just let a girl cut in front of them. Had she shoved them out of the way? No, she might have been delirious when she walked in here, but she wouldn’t be so cruel to push women aside just to see Gavin. Would she? Was she that in love with the man that she would shove people aside with brute force and not even remember it? Obviously she was in love with him enough to not even realize where she was going when she walked in here, or the trouble she was going to get herself into. After all, last time, hadn’t he thrown her out of his tent, even after she had told him that she was better? She was finally to the point where she didn’t lose control, she didn’t have emotional outbursts that were caused by her wolf. Only the ones that were caused by her own internal torment going on. That was what she had told him, that when she was better, she would come back for him. But their last conversation, the things he had said. How did he misinterpret her words so horribly? And did he still believe that she hated his humanity? That she wanted him to be like her for them to ever be together? Merlin, this was all just so screwed up. All because she had said no. And now, she wasn’t sure how she could even make it right, but everything in her said she had to. To go up and talk to him, to make this right, but how could she? There were just so many people to witness and the last thing she wanted to do was ruin his career. Merlin, what was she supposed to do?

As if on instinct, one of her hands let go of the bag and went directly to the ring that was still set against the same finger he had placed it that night. Of course, it had moved a few times, but only to refrain from it being lost during the full moon cycle. It was too precious to allow it to be ruined, but any other time, she felt naked without it. She didn’t even realize when she was messing with it anymore, just like right now. Her eyes were searching for an answer while her fingers were twirling the ring around her finger nervously. But there was no answer, at least no right one that she could think of. She could go up to him and tell him they needed to talk, but that would give a horrible impression, even if it was true. She could leave, but this could possibly be the last time she ever saw him. And even if she just wanted to leave and save herself the impending heartbreak, anytime there was even the slightest gap, it was closed right up again. She was a sitting duck. And like an idiot, she was standing in probably the most visible spot in the store, away from the bulk of the line so she was out in the open as she tried to figure out what to do. It was no wonder that he had spotted her. Once their eyes connected, her entire body stopped with the exception of the rapid rise and fall of her chest, the occasional pause as her heart skipped a beat. It did that every time she saw him. Hell, every time she even though of him. And now, all she could do was think about all of the time she had looked into those eyes up close; seen the love in them; seen the passion. How she wanted to run up to him and see if those things still existed there, but as her eyes finally left his for just the briefest of moments, she realized nothing would be there. This wasn’t her Gavin. She had seen a glimpse of him back in that tent, but this one was all business. It made her happy to see that he was getting everything he wanted out of his career, but it hurt that she couldn’t be standing there next to him, supporting him. Pursing her lips, she forced her eyes away from him and back to the door, where she saw that the situation was not much improving.

Looking back over, she saw he was back to signing autographs. She could shove her way out of here, no doubt making a scene. Maybe he would come after her? No, he had work to do. She knew his work ethic. His career literally meant everything to him. If she wanted to talk to him, she was just going to have to figure out a way to do it. Her eyes roamed back to Gavin, and that was when she saw Adam, occasionally glancing in her direction, obviously keeping an eye on her but trying not to raise suspicion. Perfect. Taking in a breath, she made her way forward, skirting around a few females who were quietly buzzing about Gavin and his hair. She kept her distance, wanting to refrain from the odd looks she always get when someone felt the intense body heat that radiated from her. Fortunately, even though it was still noticeable from a distance, everyone that she passed as she moved through the store didn’t seem to notice the temperature change. They were all too focused on Gavin. Except Adam. He was focused on her now, moving away from Gavin to block her access to him. Just as she had predicted. When they were within talking distance, she could tell he was about to send her away, knew exactly what he would say as he did it, but she didn’t let him. She used the same hand that she had been twirling the ring with and held it up to stop him. “I know what you’re going to say. I’m not here to make a scene,” she began, keeping her voice down. “Just relay a message. When he has a break.” She didn’t bother to say where in case there were any listening ears, but glanced at the back door, giving a slight indication to the door she was going to be just outside of. He seemed to understand, but she could see he wasn’t pleased with the idea. ”I-“ Amina’s eyes narrowed when he opened his mouth and, once again, she didn’t allow him to talk.

“Just tell him, okay?” You owe me that much for the way you grabbed me last time. Of course, she didn’t say it out loud, but her tone conveyed that he owed her at least that much. Okay, he was Gavin’s body guard, but that gave him no right to grab her the way he had. Turning on her heel, Amina strutted in the other direction. She glanced over her shoulder at Adam with the same glare she had given him before, but not really upset with him. It was her hope to distract some of the girls who had begun to stare, wondering what was going on. And it did exactly what she had hoped it would do. The few people who had been paying attention had no idea that it was Gavin she had been there for, they assumed it was Adam. They stared between the two of them, two of the girls muttering about how one or the other was out of the others league, wondering what he had done to make her so short with him. The distraction gave her the gap she needed too. Some girls were watching her walk off and didn’t even realize they left a gap in the door which she slid right through. Slipping through the small gap, Amina found herself releasing a sigh she didn’t even know she was holding. Once on the street, she took a moment to recover her composure before making a beeline for work. It took her half the time to get back as it had for her to get to the shop, and once she reached her desk, she dropped a note to her boss informing him of an obligation that she needed to attend to, but that she would be in early tomorrow to finish the pile of work on her desk. It was the first time she had ever done this, so she hoped he would understand, but she wasn’t willing to wait to find out. Instead, she ducked out of the office at a near sprint and back to the elevators. When they clattered at the main floor, she made the same move through the downstairs crowd as she had before, but at twice the pace.

From the time that she had left the store to the time she made it to the back alley, only about five minutes had passed, but it was enough time to make her worry that she had missed him. Running up to the back of the store, Amina let out a few quick breaths and suddenly her breathing was calm. Another advantage of being a werewolf. She didn’t get tired as easily anymore. She walked the last few paces to the back of the building, knowing at that point that he hadn’t come out yet. She couldn’t smell him enough to know that he had been here. If he had, it would hit her like a brick wall, just like it always did. So she leaned against the wall, leaned and waited with her arms crossed, and her thoughts wandering to how she should have stopped to get a tea on the way. Who knew how long she was going to wait here, if he even came out at all. Who knew, he might run out the front door just to stay away from her. Would he do that? He had kicked her out of his tent, but she was willing to forgive him for that, just like she had forgiven him for everything else he had done. Now she just had to hope that maybe, just maybe, he would forgive her for hurting him. So she would wait until night fell, until the shop was closed, and until she came dangerously close to having a search party looking for her.

Words | 1,748
Tag | Gavin
Outfit | Click

[Gavin Dewhurst]

come on make it easy,
(SAY I NEVER MATTERED)
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[/i] Gavin had already dropped the pen from his hand, flexing the fingers on his writing hand, popping the knuckles until they felt better and shook his head, speaking softly. “No, that sounds fine.” besides, he couldn't take much more of Adam's silence any longer. The manager put a small, folded sign onto the table announcing the break and Gavin felt himself waving, even though he wasn't aware of the fact that it was his body that was doing it. He could register their groans and protests, not wanting him to leave but he had been here for hours. He had to of been. He knew that it meant that they had been standing there for hours as well. He could say something about how if he kept sitting, the ass that they liked so much was going to get flat, he might have, had Amina not been covering all of his thoughts. He couldn't think of anything but the look that had been on her face as he turned and followed Adam toward the back of the store, the same area that he had left his broom however long ago.

Adam's arm stuck out before he had a chance to exit the building into the alley they had arrived in. It wasn't exactly private, but it was at least a good deal more muted than it would have been anywhere else in the building. It wasn't big enough to have a break area or anything of the like. Gavin's eyes met his, waiting ”Sir...” his nerves were obvious, he clearly didn't want to let Gavin out into the alleyway, but he seemed like he had something he needed to say. “It's her isn't it?” of course it was, Adam didn't even need to answer. It was stupid of him to think that she would just leave, she never did. She never listened to anybody, most of all him. Again, the realization that is she did listen, they wouldn't be in this position whatsoever. Inhaling sharpy, he very seriously considered getting on his broom and taking off, just avoiding the whole situation, but he knew that he never would. He had no idea what to expect whenever he stepped outside, which was why he did it before he had a chance to reconsider. He pushed through the door, his eyes not wanting to adjust to the sunlight. His hands came up to lace behind his head, he didn't utter a word, and he didn't move any closer to her. Obviously he had gotten her little message, why was she here? Shouldn't she be working?

Something knotted in his stomach. Had she done it? Had she managed to think of a loophole that he hadn't managed to think of until now?


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tonight the foxes hunt the hound,
(WE'RE THE BEGINNING OF THE END)

[/b][/font] 1,228
outfit: This
tags: Amina
notes: Here we go.
credit: gabs of a different color; @ caution 2.0[/ul][/font][/font][/div]

[Amina Krane]

It was quiet. Far too quiet for Amina’s tastes, because the quieter it was, the louder. With her werewolf senses, things were amplified. If it was loud, she could focus on one thing and allow that to overcome everything else, but out here, she had nothing to focus on. Nothing but the soft muted sounds of the alley beyond the shops, the faint squeaks of girls in the store who were no doubt getting their chance with the man who she was in love with, the man who she should be standing next to and presenting to the world. So it meant that she focused on far away sounds, hearing multiple things at once, and yet nothing at all. And inside her head was the soft hum that came with that unfocused silence. She hated it. Nibbling on her lower lip, Amina heard another sharp squeal as another girl exited the other side of the store into the alley. It wasn’t loud from here, not even with her hearing; just a soft sound that could have been mistaken with the chirp of a bird. She cringed at the sound but even more at the silence that followed. It was the fact that it was just so damned quiet back here, nothing else for her to focus on. It was either them, or her own thoughts, and those were a dangerous thing to focus on. So dangerous that she had forbidden herself many a time in the past from drifting to thoughts of Gavin. Every time she did, either she was emotionally or physically hurt, or she got her hopes up so high that one or the other was going to be a possibility in the future. If she were to allow her thoughts to drift now, there was no telling the outcome. But with all of the silence, she wasn’t sure what else she could do to refrain from it. The taste of blood suddenly flourished in her mouth as she realized she had bitten down a tad too hard on her lip.

Spitting the blood off to the side, Amina uncrossed a hand and brought it up to her lip. She ran her finger across the spot where the hole had just been, but already the skin had healed over. Her finger came away with a slight tint of red that indicated thin blood, but nothing showing that she had nearly just bitten through the skin without even realizing it. Rubbing the tips of her fingers together, the soft pink faded away into the ridges of her fingertips before she brought her thumb nail back up to her lips. This time, she captured the tip of her nail between her teeth and began to mindlessly nibble on that instead. Better she bite through a nail than her lip in the future, even if she hated to ruin a perfectly good manicure. And in that position was how she stayed, for an unknown amount of time. She heard multiple women shout and laugh and gasp over their newly signed merchandise, also heard many shoppers pass by in the alleyway, but nothing that could really distract from the point that she had wound up in the recesses of her mind, thinking about the old days and all the mistakes she had made, both the good and the bad. Every time she went down this path, she tried to imagine what she could have done to make him stay, to keep him with her, but every time, it all came back to her answer. If she had just said yes, just been selfish enough for once to think of herself over someone else’s well-being, she could have had him. They could have been wed. Somehow, someway, they would have figured it out right then and there if she had just said yes. Of course, that was an assumption. There were still so many hoops they would have to jump through, but none so much as the one they were facing now. None so much as the fact that he wouldn’t even speak with her because he thought… Merlin, how could he even begin to think she hated his humanity? If he had ever become like her… become like she and Marcus, subject to the calling of the moon… She would never forgive herself for not being able to save him from that.

It was all the same. The same conversation she had with herself in her head over and over again when she thought of Gavin, which was why she tried her best not to let her mind wander. It never sufficed for anything but a sour mood later. But how could she be sour now? That mood always resulted because she didn’t have a way to rectify the situation, didn’t have a chance to even talk to him because she was never anywhere near him. She could travel to his home, and had contemplated it on more than one occasion since she knew where it was. She had been there, slept in his bed with him, consecrated the house before he had even spoken to the blonde. It would not be hard to find it again, but the chance of him being home was small, and the chance of not running into the blonde, even smaller if not nonexistent. So despite how much she wanted to go talk to him, to track him down and fix this, she had always locked herself up in her room instead. But today was different. He was just inside. It had been a while since she had seen him, and because of the walls in front of her, she couldn’t even tell if he was still there or if he had managed to sneak out, but this was the closest she had gotten in so long. Pulling her nail from between her teeth, she crossed her arms again. Her nerves were increasing along with her anxiety, causing her leg to start bouncing slightly. She hoped he would come out, that he hadn’t found a way to get out of talking to her. But the more she stood there, the less likely it became that he was going to come out.

Until the sound of footsteps. Her eyes that had been narrowed, staring at the ground for so long, flicked up to the door to the store. ”It’s her isn’t it?” Her teeth ground together in a sad fashion, her eyebrows pulling together at his words. Standing up straight, she considered just running off. She should have figured he wouldn’t want to see her, that this would cause more trouble than it would help, just like always. She was making another mistake, but by the time she turned her eyes down to the ground to walk her way out of there, the door knob was turning. Her eye turned up again, arms falling to her sides as she stared in disbelief. Was he sending Adam out here to tell her to bug off? She wouldn’t doubt it. There had been no problems having the man throw her out of a tent, nearly naked, without a second glance. What would make him shy to having Adam throw her away again? But as the door opened, his scent hit her strong. A mix of him and the store products, but she could still smell him underlying all of it. She inhaled deeply and held it there as he emerged completely from the store. Having just seen him, it shouldn’t have been much of a shock to her system, but it seemed like no matter how many times she did see him, he took her breath away. Even when they had spent the summer together, hardly leaving one another’s side, he had always managed to steal away her resolve. Now was no different. “I didn’t think you would come out…” she muttered softly, hardly even recognizing how little her lips moved. She took in a breath and let it out slowly, trying to pull herself back together but it didn’t help. Being in such close proximity… It was something she had only been able to think about for the last few weeks.

As his hands laced behind his head, stopping right where he was, across the alley from her, Amina was brought back to the first day they had met. Her hands went in front of her and laced together as she recalled the memories. Her fingers latched around each other tighter and tighter until she could feel the ring he had given her digging into her skin, but she didn’t care. All she could think about was the trails they were running, the inexplicable chance of fate that they would meet. He hadn’t been in this position to begin with, but it was a technique to slow a heart rate when a running routine was either ended or interrupted. Like it had been when she had nearly mulled him down, when he had argued with her, wouldn’t accept her apology… “I still owe you a few favors,” she recounted unconsciously. She wasn’t sure why she had said it, or how she had even found the voice to, but it was the first clear words she had spoken to him in weeks and probably the stupidest. So she owed him favors. What good was that going to do for her? For him? There wasn’t much he could claim them for now. “How have you been?” she asked, attempting to recover from the sad state she had already put them in. Why was it so hard to talk to him these days? Had it always been so hard?

Words | 1,608
Tag | Gavin
Outfit | Click

[Gavin Dewhurst]

come on make it easy,
(SAY I NEVER MATTERED)
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[/i] That couldn't be true, or else she wouldn't be standing here still. Then again, if the roles were reversed it was very likely that he would have waited there all night long. When was she not going to be a weakness for him? Nothing good had come from them being this close together in a long time. Nothing good had come from them speaking in even longer. He should have stayed inside, should turn around and walk away now. Should. But wouldn't. Couldn't. He could tell from the look on her face that this wasn't going to be what he was hoping for, this wasn't her coming to him with some sort of miracle cure all. This was just this, her talking to him in an alley. Hiding, like they were something to be ashamed of.

“I still owe you a few favors,” What? It took his mind a good few moments to catch up to what she was talking about. It had been something that had been so important to him, once upon a time. The favors, he had taken quite the rigorous approach to it. Everybody owed him something, and he had always cashed in those favors. She had racked them up more than most...and he had only ever asked for one of them in return. It was how he had gotten her to kiss him for the very first time at the charity auction. Not that he could ask her to do the same now. He might want her to, but the chance of being seen was too great. The threat was too real that he wouldn't have been able to stop if he did. He had barely managed to get himself out from under her the last time that he had run into her. A fond smile moved across his face regardless as he backed himself up to lean against the door he had just come out of . He knew Adam was just on the other side of it, he would stop him from doing anything too stupid. If it were to come to that, that is. More than once, he had asked things of her that she hadn't agreed to. To hate him, to stay away, never to talk to him again. If he had poised it as one of his favors, would she have honored it? She had the first one, but he was still pretty certain that that was only because she had really wanted to , deep down. Even if she wouldn't ever admit to it. The thought made him sad, if only it had been that easy all of that time ago. They certainly wouldn't be here right now. That was for certain. “How have you been?” that was why she had pulled him out here? To ask him how he was? She could have pretended to be one of his little fangirls if that was all that she really wanted. No doubt they were talking about him enough, no, she had to have something else that she wanted to talk to him about.

His weight shifted from one foot to the other, allowing one ankle to cross on front of the other. That dress was wonderful, and even though he shouldn't, he couldn't help but to admire how it skimmed her thighs, her short stature elevated by the heels. She had always worn heels, but not like that. Not those. “Busy,” he finally admitted. Having a normal conversation with her was difficult. He couldn't scream at her any more, he couldn't be angry with her for being honest with him. He wouldn't blame her for not wanting to marry him whenever given the choice, not after he had turned her into what she was. He just wished that it was easier to pretend like they were just friends. Everything within him rejected that title. He didn't want to ever think about her in such simple terms ever again. “Did you stay here then? Unless you're stalking me?” it was meant to be a joke, a lame smile falling on his face, and fading just as quickly. His gaze dropped to his feet. He never would have imagined that talking to her would be so hard.

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tonight the foxes hunt the hound,
(WE'RE THE BEGINNING OF THE END)

[/b][/font] 816
outfit: This
tags: Amina
notes: Here we go.
credit: gabs of a different color; @ caution 2.0[/ul][/font][/font][/div]

[Amina Krane]

Everything was feeling so cold, despite the raging temperature that always tore through Amina’s body. It wasn’t the alley per se, because the temperature outside wasn’t nearly cold enough to cause her body temperature to drop that dramatically. No, it was the chilling situation that she had gotten herself into, how he just stood there, staring at her, so obviously distracted by other things going on in his life. He didn’t want to be here, he didn’t even want to look at her. Once again, Amina begged the question, how did they get here? So many nights they spent together, loving one another, but in the end, they were torn apart. No, torn to shreds. Now she was just working to put the pieces back together, match up the tears and gashes until it made one whole piece again, or at least something that was recognizable. But that was proving an impossible feat, especially when he stood there, looking the way he was. Did he want to get them back together anymore? Did he lose all interest in her when the blonde had come along? Had he lied to her when he said he was still hoping to find a way out of that horrible relationship? The fact that he never even replied as she spoke, didn’t comment on the fact that he still came out here, made her think he had no interest in coming out, but merely that he felt obligated. The thought alone made her sick, on top of cold, on top of lonely, and every other emotion she was feeling.

The emotions that caused her to blurt out some random fact that really meant nothing in this situation. That meant nothing at all if they weren’t together. Well, that was a lie. He could use those favors in a way that would fix all of this. He could use those favors to tell her to forget about him, to stay away from him. And while she couldn’t comply with one of those requests, she could comply with the other. She could stay out of Austria when he had games, she could demand the boys not let her even watch his games, and one day it would become easier to be without him. But she could never forget him. To forget the first real love of one’s life was impossible, and that was exactly what Gavin was. He was her true love and she doubted that she would ever be able to find another. Amina would end up alone, single for the rest of her life, searching for someone that she could never have, waiting for someone who would never come. “Busy.” Amina felt like wincing at such a short response, but it wasn’t full with a hateful tone like she had imagined it might be. It was more neutral than she had heard him in ages, mostly because she hadn’t heard his voice in so long. But despite how neutral it was, the word still stung. He used to talk to her, tell her things, and now she got nothing but a single word. “Oh, right,” she replied with the biggest smile she could muster, her fingernails still digging into her skin as her crossed arms tightened. Pain, physical pain more explicitly, made this that much easier, because it kept herself out of her head where she would wind up closed off and unable to even speak a single word to him out of fear for saying the wrong thing. She hated fear.

“Did you stay here then? Unless you're stalking me?” Amina’s eyes widened for a moment as she caught a glimpse of a smile from him. Had he really just smiled? Even if it lasted for a moment, she couldn’t help but get just a hint of hope from it. If he could still say something like that with a bit of a smile, maybe all wasn’t lost. As the bit of shock wore off, Amina’s smile grew a bit and she shook her head slowly, her hands releasing their death grip on her arms for just a moment so the blood could rush back into her ever-numbing forearms. “Not stalking,” she responded, watching as his eyes dropped to the ground. It was an assumption, but she certainly thought that this was just as hard on him as her. Maybe she wasn’t wrong, maybe she hadn’t completely trashed all hope last time. If he wasn’t even able to look at her, to talk to her, he wasn’t upset. He was hurting just like she was. “I stayed in Austria. Couldn’t bring myself to go home,” she said, half wishing she could take back the words once they were out. Her home problems didn’t need to be brought up here, they were her problems. “I actually learned to like it here after a bit,” Amina added quickly, leaving out the part of how she literally had no where to go, hardly any money to get her out of Austria for a day, and she had two people willing to put her up until she got a job. No, she wouldn’t mention the boys. No doubt he would immediately assume she was with them, even though she figured he had already left her behind for the blonde. Why was she hanging on so tight when he already had a new woman in his bed? She resisted a grimace, instead, just allowing her smile to fade faintly. “How is France?” A question she didn’t want to know the answer to, but it seemed proper. Not right, just proper.

Words | 931
Tag | Gavin
Outfit | Click