Safiyeece​:

ava-avery​:

Ava grinned as she took her newly made drink, lifting it up to take a sip to test it out. Not that she was ever picky, and it turned out that being friends with the owner resulted in getting the good stuff. “Thank you kindly,” she told Harper. “Well, now that you’ve been good and worked all day, you most definitely deserve some well-earned fun. I’m happy you chose this path; I was starting to worry I’d have to spend my evening alone.”

Not that Ava was ever stuck alone unless she wanted to be. There were always someone to talk to, someone to drink with. But the bar had seemed boringly tame until Harper had walked in. It was much more fun to party with a drinking buddy than to nod politely as some suit talked about his business. 

“I’ve just been here a little while. Helped a friend of mine meet a bloke. Some blind-date she’d been put up on, wanted some courage – liquid and otherwise,” she explained, taking another sip. Ava looked up at Harper, giving her a friendly grin. “So far it’s been pretty uneventful; no drinks tossed or anyone stripping. But the night is still young! There’s a group of three girls in the corner that’s just ordered their second round of martinis since I got here. If I’d bet on any excitement happening, I’d reckon they are a good choice.” 

-

“Alone? You? Never… At least, not for long” Harper laughed with Ava, “Although Mr. Suit over there seemed like he was enjoying a semi-captive audience to talk about himself to. That’s really sweet of you to accompany your friend, though. Blind dates can be… well…” She gave a little shudder and punctuated the sentence with a sip of her drink. Not that she’d actually gone on a blind date— any sort of date, actually— in quite some time, but the sentiment was the same regardless.

Harper listened as Ava told her about the group of girls in the corner. She appreciated that the younger woman was also the type to pick up on that sort of thing. Casually glancing over at them, Harper guessed that they were around her age, give or take a couple years, but she didn’t recognize them at first glance. Hmm,” she started, the corner of her mouth turning up into a half smirk, “What do you think they’re on about? Post-breakup cheer up? Birthday? Just a girl’s night out?” While she wasn’t keen on being involved in drama, herself, Harper loved to hear the gossip (or at least speculate), even if it was about random bar-goers she’d never see again.

The dragging day of working alone must have really put her in a state tonight, because after taking a long sip of her drink, she wondered aloud to Ava, “Do we want to find out?”

safiyeece​:

-

“Yes, it simply must be!” Safiye simpered along with Harper, then rolled her eyes again. “Nevermind that exponential growth is fundamentally unsustainable.” It was always like this with Safiye, swift shifting between shallow swimming and deeper waters. She was by necessity comfortable with surface interactions, but she craved greater stimulation. Usually, she ignored the urge, pushing it down until it was little more than a vague irritation, but she didn’t go to the same trouble to appear Proper when it was just  her and Harper.

For a moment, Safiye allowed herself to imagine it. Her hand went to the watch in her pocket and she traced its outline as she pictured seeing the world with Harper at her side, showing her friend around Istanbul, even reconnecting with Dilara. But the memory of her fallen cousin pushed Safiye out of her reverie and she shook her head. They could, technically, but at what cost? 

“Oh, but think of all of the Society we would miss.” The joke came out thin and dry. Safiye knew all too well that neither she nor Harper would truly miss the society they’d grown up in. Sometimes she craved a lack of it, and though they danced around the subject, never openly addressing it, she had a feeling Harper did as well. The truth of it was like the sun, easier to look at through the corner of an eye rather than directly.

Safiye took the offered menu and perused it eagerly, happy to follow Harper’s plan away from the ‘sad wine-tipsy road.’ Her eyes went immediately to the cocktail Harper mentioned, gin mixed with black tea and a ginger simple syrup poured over muddled plum. It combined several of Safiye’s favorite flavors and was something she’d mentioned to Harper on more than one occasion. It was touching that Harper had remembered to include it this season, and the kind of silent gift that their friendship was built on. “Well, if you have that, then I don’t need to look at the menu.” Safiye smiled as she handed the menu back to Harper.

-

Harper internally felt a surge of pride in herself as she took in Safiye’s response to the drink. She thrived on positive feedback as it was, but coming from Safiye it hit a different chord. It felt so genuine and natural; she knew Safiye wasn’t looking to gain something from her, she had just made her friend happy. And in a world where Harper knew that was a struggle for both of them, she was honored.

They didn’t often discuss it, their feelings about their respective situations. It was clear that there was more beneath the surface that neither friend could or would discuss, but part of what made their friendship so special was their understanding and respect of those boundaries; their shared ability to catch each other’s drifts in spite of things left out. It was this same understanding that guided Harper to drop the joke. If it were anyone else, she probably would have continued in order to keep her guard up and her edge intact. Truth be told, she also had the feeling that if she tried, her voice would crack or some other tell would show itself.

Unsure of what more she actually wanted to drink, herself, Harper pondered the menu. She let out a soft laugh. “You know, considering the role I had in shaping this menu, you’d think I’d have an easier time picking something,” she mused aloud. Truth be told, beyond Safiye’s drink, she could barely remember what they’d actually selected for this menu.

The summer was difficult for Harper. Between the memories of graduation, and then her parents, plus her birthday thrown in there too, the early part of summer especially tended to be blurry and hard to focus on. For one or two years after her parents passing, Harper attempted to actively deal with both, which just resulted in whiplash and guilt. She’d considered trying again this year, but ultimately hadn’t decided for sure.

Settling on an elderflower cocktail for herself, Harper sent word down to the kitchen and bar to deliver a couple of their chosen drinks along with some sweet biscuits up to her suite.

Hogwarts House ↠ Ravenclaw

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw

If you’ve a ready mind

Where those of wit and learning

Will always find their kind

I opened my mouth, almost said something. Almost. The rest of my life might have turned out differently if I had. But I didn’t.

Khaled Hosseini (via sunsetquotes)

“Cheers to female friendships being complicated.”

Florence Welch, from “Useless Magic: Lyrics & Poetry”

23 and Me //

Waking up and turning 23, Harper really didn’t feel much different than she had the night before. Which wasn’t a complaint, per se. But some silly little bit of hope inside her still gleamed… Maybe she would wake up and the mere act of turning another year older would just make something click into place; maybe she would finally have the answers instead of searching for them whilst pretending she already had them.

Part of her wanted to go out and celebrate; she craved the rare moment of letting herself be the center of attention. Harper was all too familiar with this conundrum. She tried to celebrate as normal, or at least as close to normal as could be, for the year or two after her parents passed. Not her best idea, though she was loath to admit it. The whole thing left Harper a whirlwind of emotions, and she spent the following couple of days holed up by herself in her apartment.

So after a few years of downplaying and minimizing the day, Harper decided that this year she would take a different approach. She’d let it be known that she’d be out and about for brunch and some shopping, and see where the day took her. No expectations of anything or for anyone besides herself.

Strolling through Diagon Alley, wearing one of her favorite summer outfits and reveling in the sound of her shoes clicking on cobblestone, Harper slowed as she approached Flourish and Blotts. She raised a brow and pursed her lips in thought. She was about to estimate how much time she could spend in the store before she’d have to drag herself away in order to get to brunch, before again realizing her only restriction today was, well, herself. She didn’t feel hungry yet, so deciding that food could wait, Harper entered the store and took a deep breath in, appreciating the smell of books and stationery.