Mina knew this day would come. It was just a place and it really couldn't hurt her, but she had kept her distance none the less. If she stayed away, she didn't have to think about it, but it was just time to face it. It was years ago and things change. She changed and if she wanted to move on completely, she needed to stop avoiding.

Besides, she did want a butterbeer and she wasn't about to go to The Three Broomsticks and Puddifoot's was out of the question. Her only option was The Hog's Head.

Stepping through the door and stomping off what snow was on her feet, she glanced around. It wasn't just how she remembered, but then again she was young when she was last there. It really wasn't as scary as she remembered it though and that comforted her at the moment.

Spotting the booth that she last sat in, she headed over. It was strange to even want to sit there, but she thought it fitting at the moment. A voice in her head said she needed to just do and get over the past. This was the first step, wasn't it?

"Fun." She echoed flatly. Really interesting choice of word there, Dashbag. She noted the sarcasm on his part, and would have said something snappish but his smile sort of... threw her off. What was that all about? Was he actually being genuine. She was silent for a moment while she mulled over it and met his eyes before answering, unable to completely hide the hurt that flickered there. "I was engaged once. It didn't work out."

She sipped her cider and smiled at his admission. "You just have to pay attention to what you're doing, and above all do your research and know your history, that's all. You'd be surprised how many accidents happen because someone repeated an experiment and made all the same mistakes." Mmm. How bad? Was it time for horror stories? That part was always fun. "I hear someone had half their head sliced off, right through the brain when a sheet of Aluminium didn't cooperate with the manipulation." Hmmm. "Oh someone in the year above me lost their nose. And a lot of people end up with unexpected piercings. Legend has it that some of the most popular piercings in the Muggle world had their roots in metal charming mess ups." She laughed at that, a gentle sound.

"I know I'm strong. But even the strong have weak moments. Sometimes I feel like I have a lot of those." She answered in a moment of straightforward honesty. "Maybe you don't know what that feels like." She mused out loud. Did arrogant people ever wonder at their own weakness?

Usually when Mia came into Hogsmeade, she headed straight for the Three Broomsticks or Honeydukes but she didn't feel like it today. The cold was depressing. You would think she would be used to it by now seeing how she had spent quite a few winters in Russia but she still hated it.

She was also missing Nik more and more each day so that was putting her in a sad and frustrated mood. She just wanted graduate already.

So she wandered her way through the village of Hogsmeade until she got to the other end and she found herself standing in front of the Hogs Head. Well why not? The look of the place fit her mood perfectly. Mia pushed open the door of the pub, pulling her beanie off at the same time and looked around the room.

It wasn't easy to see because the place was so dark but she did make out a couple of the Professor's and she raised her eyebrows slightly before scanning her gaze a little further and spotting a familiar figure. She headed over to the table Mina was sitting at and slipped into a chair opposite the girl.

"Well...it has a kind of character, I suppose." she said in reference to the pub's interior.

Engaged? Dash would have inserted a random joke asking her if her fiancé had ran away but he stopped himself once he noticed the small look of sadness in her eyes. "I'm guessing that this was recently...I mean..." He paused. Unsure what else to say. It just had to be recently if she still looked hurt by it. "Why didn't it work out?" Was he prodding too much into her personal life? Oh well. He took another sip of the cider.

"So! You admit it. You weren't paying attention when you got that." He pointed to the scar again. Tisk, tisk Althea.

Head sliced off? Nose cut off? He simply blinked a few more times with a bored expression. "So when that nose got cut off, must have been a heck of a nose bleed." The incidents sounded pointless. Maybe some people deserved to have their head sliced off.

"Well that is normal. Especially if you've been through a lot." He shrugged. Really, who didn't have weak moments? Oh yeah. Apparently him. "Of course I don't. I am perfect. Perfect." His voice was dripping with the usual sarcasm.

Seriously, Mina was making more of this than there needed to be. It was just a pub after all and it had no power over here in the slightest. Nothing could possible harm her now and that crazy Remi was locked away anyway. There wasn't any thing to worry about and she should be perfectly fine. Yet she just didn't feel fine at the moment.

Letting out a sigh, she continued to glance around. It really wasn't as welcoming as The Three Broomsticks and the sight of professors kind of surprised her, but it did have something about the place. She probably really didn't want to be around that many people the way she was feeling. Her thoughts were still all over the place and she hadn't been able to focus for the life of her. Yes, sitting there in the Hog's Head felt odd to her; but at the same time, it felt right to her too.

Hearing a familiar voice, she looked up and smiled. "A little off the beaten path, but it has its charm." she replied. It wasn't homey by any means, but sometimes you just don't want a homey pub. "Your chances of getting a butterbeer quickly is probably higher here than at Broomsticks," she added with a shrug.

No people meant no lines. No lines mean no people to get in your way when you wanted a butterbeer. It so made sense in her mind.

"Sort of recent. Not... immediate. But wounds don't heal if you keep prodding at them." And in her case working with the man in question and seeing him with his new partner... well. Healing was hard. Moving had been an easy decision actually. She pursed her lips and considered making a cutting remark but answered simply. "He wanted something that apparently I couldn't give him." That was the part that hurt the most, actually. She supposed she could always adopt, once that wound closed up.

"Not the right kind of attention. But some things you can't learn just by being told." She eyed her scar almost fondly and then dismissed it. It hadn't been a bad injury, just scarring. "Oh yes. Noseless isn't a good look, and hasn't been at any point in history." Poor Voldemort. Althea wondered idly how the vanquished dark lord would have felt knowing that his look hadn't taken off.

She studied him at that sarcasm. Sarcastic tones came normal to him huh? So how could anyone tell if he meant anything at all? Really? "You're far from perfect, you'll be pleased to know." Perfect was boring, right? She sipped her cider again. Imperfections were sexier. Not that that was related to present company. Hmmph.

"Then stop prodding it." Oh look! Simple solution! Gold star for Dash! Really, it wasn't that complicated. Her next words drew him in again. And they also made him realize that Althea spoke in circles. Or perhaps riddles. Whatever they were she never came right out and said exactly what she meant. Of course Dash could find another way to find everything out but..it wasn't necessary. "What was that?" A brain maybe? Hmm?

"That is true. Bet you didn't make the same mistake twice." Although she didn't really seem like the type of person who would make the same mistake twice. "Pity though-" He pressed his hand against his nose, trying to flatten it. "-I mean breathing through your mouth must get tiring." Unless they could still breath through their nose? Remarkable.

Dash chuckled, dropping his hand. "Really now? How would you know Althea? You know very little about me." Very, very little. And he would like to keep it that way. "But go ahead. Keep thinking that I am not perfect. You'll learn soon enough." He rolled his eyes before taking a gulp. He wasn't perfect. He wasn't even close, but he might as well run with it.

The moment Mia sat down she could tell there was something off with Mina, she looked a little lost. She didn't say anything though as she unwrapped her scarf and looked around the pub again. While it wouldn't win any awards for cleanliness it wasn't that bad. It could probably do with a little warming up though.

Mia turned back to look at Mina and a small smile tugged at her lips. "I didn't come here for a butterbeer." No she was looking for something a little stronger than that.

Hmm, she supposed they would have to go up to the bar to order. The place didn't look like it had table service.

She gave the Ravenclaw another small searching looking before pushing her chair back. "Would you like me to go and get a butterbeer for you?"

To be honest, the place didn't give her warm fuzzies and it probably would never. It was her only option and Mina wasn't about to want to run into a certain blond ex-bestie and his trophy girlfriend. No one would have thought to find her there, but seeing Mia had been a nice surprise though. Perhaps being alone wasn't the best idea.

Catching the small smile, she smiled herself and tilted her head slightly. "Well I do hear their stronger options are just as good here." The thought of it did interest her now though. A butterbeer would only warm her so much.

Giving a glance around the pub again, she shook her head. "No thank you, I'm good for the moment." She had wanted one before, but at the moment the thought of its sweetness and foam didn't speak to her. "I'll head up there later if the urge strikes me again."

A small chuckle made its way out of Mia's mouth. "Couldn't be any worse than the stuff I had before." Now that stuff had been deadly. But she supposed being in the outback of Africa on a safari, you weren't going to find many reputable places to get a drink. Actually she was pretty sure the stuff she had drunk had been made by a witch doctor.

And the reason she had needed a drink was because of one Destiny Shepard and her crazy antics that kept getting them into trouble. How they came back alive was a complete shock to Mia.

"Okay then. I'll be back in a moment." With that Mia rose out of her chair and headed for the bar and ordered her drink. A few moments later she was back with a somewhat grimy looking glass with amber liquid. "I don't think the barman found me very amusing. He gave me a strange look when I asked if I could have an umberella in my glass." They were far too uptight in these places.

Taking a small sip, Mia let out a small shudder as the liquid went down her throat but the heat was rather welcome. "You can tell me to butt out if you like but I have a feeling that you have something on your mind." Usually that's why people ended up in places like this, so they could brood.

Hearing the chuckle from Mia made Mina smile. It was nice to hear someone laugh, she really hadn't been around that many people outside her own house. It was nice and she had forgotten just how it was. "You'd be surprised how some of the stuff here is." She hadn't ever had anything strong from there, but she was still a bit leer of drinking another not in a sealed bottle at the moment. "What doesn't end up killing you, only makes you stronger." There were still probably worst stuff out there compared to what the barkeep had at the Hog's Head anyway.

Again, she glanced around the pub. It really wasn't as terrifying as her nightmares made it to be. Okay, it wasn't going to ever receive a five-cauldron rating but it wasn't like it was a complete dive either. She was just making a big deal out of nothing.

Turning her attention back to Mia as she returned, she shook her head and let out a tiny laugh. "I think that's in the job requirement for this place. Must have no sense of humor. The last barman I encountered here was just as pleasant." Remi was a character for sure. He wasn't rude to her but he did give her a funny feeling that first time she met him. "I'm sure their people skills are lacking since not many people like coming here." At least one thing was just like she expected.

Mina looked up and shrugged. She really did have a few things on her mind, but hadn't talked about most of them. Most of the stuff on her mind she would have talked to Carter with, but she wasn't even on talking terms with him at the moment and he wouldn't understand; the other stuff all included him and she wouldn't even want to tell him more than she had already.

Sighing, she finally nodded. "Lot of things really. Silly Ravenclaw had been thinking too much." It was a downfall of hers after all. Always overthinking things. "I've been a bit confused and conflicted lately. So I thought I'd face some demons and avoid people for a bit." She had calmed down a bit from how upset she was after the front gate incident, but she was still upset over things. Adding on to how much she did miss Evan, she was just wasn't where she needed to be her last term at school.

"Apparently not washing the glasses is also a job requirement." she said with wry smile as she held up the glass and tried to look through it. She shouldn't complain though, she had known what the place was like before she stepped foot in here. Mia looked around the pub again and could see that Mina was right. There were only a handful of people in here. "I'm quite glad that there's not that many people in here to be honest. As big as Hogwarts is, it's always difficult to find a quiet spot."

Mia brought the glass back to her lips and watched Mina over the rim of her glass for a moment before taking another sip and gently placing the glass back onto the table. "Understandable really. With only six months of school left. I think most of us are feeling the pressure of our last year." Yes even she was feeling it. Not so much the work because she wasn't particularly concerned whether she knew enough magic or not and what she was going to do after school because she already knew. But she was worried about losing touch with her friends.

"But I'm figuring that's not the only thing you're worried about." She gave the Ravenclaw an encouraging smile as she ran her finger around the rim of her glass. "It's amazing how that we're now of age now. We're about to enter the adult world, we're supposed to be all mature like and yet we're as angsty as ever." She let out a small laugh and leaned back in her chair. Mia was remembering her moments of angst. Only no one at Hogwarts would ever be able to say they had seen it. Only Nik had been given that unpleasant experience.

He got a withering look for that. "That's why I moved actually." Because taking herself away from what kept it raw would give her a chance to recollect herself. His next question made her pause and she wondered if she should answer. It'd maybe be better to keep her woes to herself. She met his eyes for a short moment, the words ready to spill out. A child. But instead, "Oh, it isn't important." It was everything, really.

"Not so you'd notice." Her hands were perfect aside from that scar, and the slight calluses from not being afraid of a bit of hard work. She watched Dash and raised one shaped eyebrow. "I imagine mouth-breathing is only a trouble for those who would rather spend their air on pointless chatter." Like a certain History of Magic professor perhaps?

"I find I'm absolutely content with that." She looked him in the eye again. She didn't want to know him better. She didn't want to see any redeemable qualities. He could go ahead and roll his eyes and be smarmy and sarcastic and she'd just go ahead and keep judging him based on those things, and what she knew of him from their Hogwarts days, back when they were students.

Marilyn needed to get away from Rafe...She'd been trying to spend a beautiful day with Cassie when Carter had showed up, which was FINE. She loved spending time with him. So, his crashing of the girl's day was okay...

...Naturally Lycaon had to show up to ruin it!

*face palm*

So, here she was...breaking away from the small group they'd assembled. Didn't her ex know how uncomfortable he made most situations for her? She didn't even have her bf-heater anymore. Carter would wonder where she'd gotten off to, the blonde was sure...but she couldn't be in Rafe's presences one moment longer.

Walking into the Hog's Head, Marilyn spied two people she hadn't expected to.

Mia...who wasn't that bad, really. Since Mar had befriended Cassie, the Hufflepuffs weren't as annoying...

Mina!

Marilyn's eyes narrowed. She didn't think she'd get so upset upon seeing her...So, her immediate anger took her by surprise. There was A LOT she needed to say to this girl.

No time like the present.

Scott walked into the Hog's Head on his own. Sighing as he remembered he'd left his money in his back pocket which he couldn't open, he waited patiently for any of his friends to say hello.

another visit to Hogsmeade, Raven wanted to warm herself with a glass of butterbeer. She wanted go to Three Broomsticks, but it was full. So, she walked to a small pub, Hog's Head. She just saw some students there. Yeah, it was not too favorite by students. She saw.. Chelsea's ex there alone. Yeah... It will be okay if she just drop and say hi, right?


"Hello." Raven greet him warm.

Scott partially turned around startled to see who was there.
She was a First year Slytherin. He rotated himself so he could speak to her.
"Hello. I'm Scott Rowe, First Year, Ravenclaw" he smiled at her warmly.

So, his name was Scott. Raven saw playboy's smile at him..

"You were.. Chelsea's ex right? Yeah I've ever saw both of you at slytherin house table. I'm Raven Charlotte. Mind if I sit here?" asked her.

Scott suddenly felt like a knife was pressed against his chest, he didn't really like Chelsea anymore, but it was still a big weight.
He managed to utter "Yes, I was" feeling slightly better that was out in the open, he pulled a seat out from the table so she could sit on it. "I don't like talking about it" truthfully he was ashamed and embarrassed, and whenever someone mentioned it he tensed up. "Yes of course" he said gesturing to the seat. "It's nice to meet you Raven"

She noticed that something strange in Scott's expression when she mention Chelsea's ex.. Ckckckck.. Boys.. He liked to dump girl easily..

She took a seat there then her butterbeer came. Raven enjoyed sip it.

"Actually you look like a good boy." said Raven.

Scott was completed stumped by what she said. "Sorry what? I abandoned Chelsea when she was in need, I'd hardly say that was good!" here he was playing the sympathy card again.

Poor Chelsea...

"How pity she is.." said Raven surprised. So, they broke up when Chelsea need him? Oh boys...

"I'm sorry, but Why did you broke up with her?" asked Raven.

"You don't need to make me feel any worse about it" Scott added bitterly. Yawn, this girl was asking too many questions. "I broke up with her because my parents said I couldn't date until my third year, and I'm not sure I like her now" he said in a slightly softer tone, feeling ashamed.

*sigh*

If he knew that he was not sure she lived Chelsea and forbod to date until third year, WHY DID HE DATE CHELSEA?? Raven felt she would took her first statement to him... Oh Boys.... Raven thought that the only man who is nice just two. Father and brother. She sipped her butterbeer and took her deep breath..


"You've hurt her, Scott. She loved you! If you were not sure you love her, Why did you date her?" She yelled to him. Ups...

"Sorry.. "

Oh here we go.
"Please, she didn't love me, we're 11 years old, it was more lust than anything, and I liked her ALOT. Please don't shout at me" he begged quietly.