Avalee walked to Hogsmead in a calm, almost happy mood. Almost. But not quite. The pain was still there. As it always was. But at least she had a friend. Avalee was set to meet Phoenix for coffee this late summer afternoon. This made her happy. Spending time with Phoenix made her really happy. Which really scared her. She didn't know if she was reading too much into this. On top of that she didn't know if she was reading too much into it. Did he feel the same...she pondered this as she walked down the cobbled streets. As she had so many times.
They were to meet at a small coffee shop in the outer part of Hogsmead. She assumed it would be less busy and therefore they could actually talk. Today Avalee wore black shorts and a navy blue t-shirt. On her feet were yellow Converse. Vibrant colors, that she wish reflected her mood.
She wore a blank, yet vaguely pleasant expression on her face.
It took Phoenix nearly a half hour to decide whether to dress casually or more formal. Did today really even count as a date? He shook his head. We're just friends. He reminded himself. Friends going out to get coffee. But still, he couldn't help thinking about how beautiful Avalee was to him. She was as breathtaking as a full moon on a summer's night. Her eyes always got to him. They made him sort of melt.
He finally decided on a black t-shirt with quarter sleeves and light, faded jeans. He even got out a pair of sneakers. Phoenix didn't want Avalee to think of him as stuck up for caring so much about his appearance, so he stuck to casual. He spiked up his hair and left his glasses on the night stand beside his bed. His blue eyes were unusually bright today. Maybe it was because he was so excited.
Phoenix could not be late. That would be rude. So he did change into his lion animagus so he could reach Hogsmead faster. He took a trail through forest to avoid any people and changed once he reached the end back into his normal human self. The nice thing about animagi was that their clothes weren't ruined or altered in transformations. Maybe wrinkled, but no shreds or stretching.
He jogged the rest of the way to the coffee shop and wiped his brow. Though it was pleasantly breezy outside, he didn't want a single sign of perspiration on him. He stood against the wall and closed his eyes, his head against the brick.
Avalee was almost to the coffee shop and walked fairly quickly. She was excited to see Phoenix. When she was with him she didn't feel alone or sad. She felt good. He was so nice to her. She wondered if she deserved his kindness. Did she deserve all that had happened? She wondered from time to time weather or not every bad thing that has happened to her she deserved.
As she came closer, she saw Phoenix standing against a brick wall. He was tall and skinny, and breathing heavily, like he had run the entire way from Hogwarts. She approached him quietly, silently. She greeted him with a light touch on his forearm. His skin was warm against hers, and as their skin met her heart jumped in an oh-so-familiar way. She prayed deeply inside that he felt the same way.
Phoenix felt a soft touch along his forearm and turned his head to see who it was that had brushed against him.
"Avalee." He said softly, happily. He felt himself grin and pushed himself off of the wall. Looks like he had gotten here just in time. He stepped around her and walked over to the door, pulling the wooden door open so that she may enter.
"Ladies first."
"Phoenix." Avalee said with a slight smile, and gently bowed her head in greeting. It was good to see him, his bright blue eyes glimmering. His eyes, sent an ache of longing deep in her stomach. Phoenix's eyes shinned just the way Axel's had. Avalee stared into them deeply for a moment. Blue eyes...another smiled gently graced her lips.
"Thank you sir." Avalee said to Phoenix, walking into the shop. It smelled of coffee, cinnamon, and tea.
"You're quite welcome madam." He replied as she stepped through, then he followed after her. The shop had a very delightful scent. But if he stayed too long, Phoenix worried he might become light headed from so many different smells mixing together. The shop wasn't very crowded. In fact, there were only three other tables, all spread out, that actually had occupants. So at least they could chat without having to raise their voices like they would have to in a bar or popular restaurant.
"Where would you like to sit?" Phoenix asked. "We can sit anywhere you want."
She picked one of the small and only booths in the place. It was small, a two seater, and it was right by the wall and circular, so it was just one big booth. It was away from other people, which is why Avalee picked it. She felt really self concious, and she didn't want to when she was with Phoenix. She wanted to be herself, not this shell of a depressed girl. It didn't feel good. When she saw Phoenix, she didn't want to feel guilty and sad. She just wanted to be happy. But she still cried herself to sleep every night.
Avalee shook those thoughts from her head, today was to have fun. She walked over to the booth and sat down.
"So how are you doing?"
Phoenix sat across from her and cross his arms on the table.
"I'm doing well. How are you? Have you been doing alright?" He asked with sincere eyes. He knew Avalee was still struggling with Axel's death, which made it hard to decipher his feelings for her. He liked her, but it was not the time to step in. He would wait for her though. Wait, he was getting too ahead of himself. He didn't even know how she felt about him.
Avalee took a moment to think before she answered, then took a deep a deep breath before she answered. She could lie, but that seemed odd to do with Phoenix. She didn't want to lie, but the truth would hurt. "Okay. I mean...I don't know how well I should be right now. But I left my home this morning, which is a step forward. It's...it's..." Then she sighed and nodded her head, smiling weakly. "It's a work in progress."
It got hard sometimes, seeing reminders everywhere of him. It was really hard when she was alone, not to think to herself 'If he was sill here...I wouldn't be so alone. I could feel his lips against mine once more.'
"Well...you've got to start somewhere. It's hard to leave home, but you have to do it to be able to do other things." Phoenix paused and then took Avalee's hand for just a moment, giving it a gentle squeeze. "Give it time." He said softly.
Avalee smiled weakly at him. Someone cared. And to self-concious Avalee...it meant something. At least to her it did. A moment too late she tried to squeeze his hand back. But he had already pulled back. "I know." Avalee said quietly, nodded shortly.
"What would you like? I'll go order." Phoenix said, nodding to the counter where a single wizard stood, ordering a late afternoon coffee. "My treat." He added with a crooked smile.
"Green lemon ginger tea please?" She asked. Her favorite kind of tea. Then nodded at him, half a smile on her face.
Phoenix nodded and went to the counter to order. He was back in five minutes with two styrofoam cups. He placed one in front of her before sitting back in his seat.
"Careful, it's very hot." He said as he opened the lid and blew on his own lemon tea. Today was a good day for hot tea. He brought it to his lips and took a small sip so as not to burn his tongue.
"Thank you, very much." Avalee planned to slip the money for her drink into his pocket at some point later.
"So, are you happy for the semester to start?" Avalee asked with as much pep as she could muster.
Phoenix shrugged.
"I suppose. I'm still not ready. Can you believe classes start tomorrow?" He sipped at his tea again delicately and stared at a picture on the wall behind Avalee. It was of a farm with unicorns and strange animals. "You must be excited."
"Nervous, is more like it. It is my first time teaching...is it wrong to be scared of it?" She asked. Avalee was quite nervous. Standing in front of a bunch of kids, almost her age, being endlessly ridiculed, didn't sound like fun. Yet, she was passionate about her job, and about plants.