Unexpected fun times

Dani had been a little surprised to get an owl from Bran. Sure, he was nice enough. But he was also a celebrity, so she hadn’t really expected to see much of him aside from his occasional visits to the pub. But now he was inviting her over to his place. Meg seemed to think that made it a date, although that might just be because she seemed to have caught on to the budding feelings Dani hadn’t even admitted to herself yet. But it was early in the day and not some sort of fancy outing, so Dani remained adamant that it was not, in fact, a date. Besides, the day Bran had suggested was November 1st, the day before the full moon week began and also the deadline for registering werewolf status with the Ministry. Which the staff of the Three Broomsticks had agreed not to do. Today could very well be the day Dani’s life went to hell in a handbasket. Not that it hadn’t already done that a year ago. The point was, she might as well have some fun while she still could. So over to Bran’s it was.

Dani rang the bell and waited in silence for Bran to answer the door. Some people got a little uncomfortable around Knockturn. But it wasn’t so bad during the day. Besides, it wasn’t like Dani’s tiny apartment out in London was in the best part of town either. She heard some noise inside the apartment, and then the door was flinging open and Bran was standing there in his underwear looking very confused. And sleepy. Dani would’ve been lying if she said his bleary expression and ruffled hair wasn’t a little cute. He also had way more tattoos than Dani had realized. Interesting. “This a bad time?” she asked with a hint of a smile. But the singer quickly waved her in despite his current state. Dani shrugged off his apology. “Don’t worry about it. You should see my place. Sometimes it looks like a hurricane came through.” Or a raging werewolf. She had more or less figured out a combination of charms that would keep her (and the noise she made) contained while causing as little damage to herself as possible. Her tiny apartment, on the other hand, wasn’t always so lucky.

There came a horribly yowling noise, and then Bran was running towards his curtains. Apparently he had a cat. Named Whiskey. Dani couldn’t help chuckling a little as she tucked some hair behind her ear. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea.” She had thought about getting a cat herself. Supposedly they companions helped keep werewolves calm. But she really couldn’t afford to feed one. Not on her salary. She could barely keep up with her medical supplies as it was. But she was here today to have a good time, not worry about the mess that was her life. She stepped further into the apartment as he headed for the kitchen, looking around curiously at the graffiti, posters and guitars. Bran definitely had a strong sense of style. “Cool place.” Dani slid her satchel off her shoulder (she had to go to work tonight and it never hurt to have her pencils on the off chance it was a slow night) and set it on the couch as she moved closer to the display of guitars. “You have a lot of guitars. You collect them?”

Apparently Bran had a soft spot, although Dani had picked up on that pretty fast. But still. Not everyone would take home a kitten. Dani had considered getting a cat herself, although she had been stopped by knowing she couldn’t really afford to feed one. She eyed the guitars on the wall as Bran talked. Dani had never had much musical talent. No one in her family did. But she certainly loved listening to it. “You’ll have to play for me sometime.” She took a step closer to the guitars to get a better look at one that looked particularly expensive. “Do you have a favorite one?” He seemed like the sort of person who would have stories behind his instruments.

Bran took her hand and led her over to the balcony. It was a little chilly out, but not too bad when they stood close together. (The warmth had absolutely nothing to do with it being Bran standing there. Nope, not a thing. Honest.) And the view had its own charm in a crowded alley sort of way. Dani grinned teasingly at the mention of the White Wyvern. “Great. I’m fraternizing with the enemy.” Not that she minded. Although Meg might have a thing or two to say about Dani spending time with a rival bartender. (This was not a date. Not at all.)

The talk of tattoos was also interesting. “Neat. I draw, so I guess you could say we have that in common.” She tilted her head curiously. “I’ve never really thought about getting a tattoo. But a magical one might be neat.” She had seen a few people with them come through the pub. Flowers that bloomed, birds that flew in little patterns, hearts that beat in real time. It certainly opened up a lot of possibilities. Speaking of tattoos. “You have quite a few going on there. Do they have stories or did they just look cool?” It really could go either way. On one hand, he was a rock musician, a group known for their rebellion. But Dani had a feeling there was a deeper layer to Bran than most people realized.

She shook her head at the offer of cigarettes. “No thanks. I don’t smoke.” Instead, she crossed her arms and leaned on the balcony railing. Most people might see this as something of a slum. Dani, however, saw bits of beauty in everything. In the moss creeping up old stone walls, rain water collecting between cobblestones, sunlight glinting in miniature rainbows off pieces of broken glass. “It’s beautiful in its own way.” Or maybe that was just the artist in her.