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Post by Trevor King on Nov 8, 2009 1:21:58 GMT -5
There was nothing Trevor liked better than the smell of money. It was a smell that could take on many forms. Although galleons, sickles, and knuts didn't smell like much of anything, the things that people could buy when they had lots of coins... they always smelled wonderful. Expensive drinks, cologne, new clothes, leather and fur... they were the smell of money to Trevor.
In the Ambrosia Champagne Bar, expensive drinks were always flowing like water. Champagne, cognac, vintage wines... they were like heaven to him. He couldn't always afford them; it depended on whether he had made a good deal or not. A good deal would bring in money, which he would promptly spend until he had used it all up. It was a terrible habit, but he couldn't help himself. He craved the things that money could buy. And the more money it cost, the better.
He had just finished a particularly lucrative deal and was waiting in Ambrosia, to meet his girlfriend, Celia, to take her out for a night on the town. He had a new outft for the occasion, a perfectly tailored 3-piece suit, crisp white shirt, and hat with perfectly shined shoes. The hat sat at a rakish angle as he leaned against the bar, sipping champagne. His other hand found its way into his pocket, checking once again for the newest trinket he'd bought for Celia. He didn't buy them for the look of joy on her face, orr even the "reward" she would later give him in bed; he bought them simply because he liked looking at the sparkle as each new piece sat at her throat, her wrist, or her finger. She would like this piece, he was sure, and he knew he'd enjoy looking at it on her.
He just hoped she'd get there soon.
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Post by Celia Prince on Nov 8, 2009 1:36:51 GMT -5
Celia often felt like she could be viewed only in fragmented pieces, even now as she hurried towards the cocktail bar that she and Trevor frequented. First, the click of her heels on the cobbled pavement, then the whoosh of her cloak as she slipped inside the place after the door was opened for her. Later, it would be her fingers around the stem of a champagne flute, a smile, a curl of her hair.
She liked it this way, even if she was the only one who viewed herself like this. She just often felt that others saw her in much the same way, and if no one ever got a full picture of her, then she would never be found. She didn't want to be found.
She spotted Trevor as the bar almost instantly, his face always standing out to her. Smiling almost coyly, she let the man at the door take her cloak and she made her way over to him. "You look dashing."
If she ever knew that their game of being one of the rich and elite was just that- a game- she'd never once shown it. She built her entire life off of pretending, and maybe it was the only thing she knew anymore.
To match, she was wearing a little black dress and a pair of vibrant red heels, looking like a femme fatal straight out of a 1940's movie. Both were new items she bought that very day, and she was eager to show off for him.
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Post by Trevor King on Nov 8, 2009 1:53:07 GMT -5
Trevor broke into a grin at the sight of her, and, in a gallant, but very affected gesture, he tipped his hat to her. "Celia, my dear, you take my breath away. You look just like Jean Harlow."
It was part of their game. They played at being rich, and they played at being famous. They even played as if they were living in different eras. The post-war 1940s were his favorite, but sometimes he'd slip into the 1920s, or even earlier, if he could dress accordingly.
He waved the bartender over. "A glass of champagne for Miss Harlow," he said, nodding toward Celia. "The finest you've got." He placed a couple of extra galleons on the counter, which caused the bartender to scurry off to get Celia's drink.
"So, love, how was your day?"
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Post by Celia Prince on Nov 8, 2009 22:45:33 GMT -5
Celia's smile was genuine in those moments, and it lit up her eyes. She loved when he would praise her and indulge her. Sometimes, she didn't know if she liked it for the attention or because she wanted to please him, but it always made her happy.
"Only for you, my very own Clark Gable." She took a seat next to him, her eyes on the bartender as he set the champagne in front of her. With long, well manicured fingers, she took the glass and held it out to Trevor. "To the movie stars and the finer things."
When she sipped, she turned a well practiced look on him. "My day is perfect now that I'm here."
It was almost like they lived in a fairytale... their own made up, perfect world. With everything going on around them, how could that be a bad thing?
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Post by Trevor King on Nov 9, 2009 23:58:06 GMT -5
Trevor grinned and pretended to twist an imaginary mustache, then raised his glass to hers. "To the finer things," he agreed. And as if to demonstrate, he deftly slipped a rectangular velvet box from his robe and set it on the top of the bar in front of her. His hands were so quick that it seemed to almost magically appear there, and while he certainly could have used magic to present her with the gift, he much preferred the game.
"For my own perfect movie star," he said, raising an eyebrow. Inside the box was a bracelet made of white gold and set with diamonds and sapphires.
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Post by Celia Prince on Nov 10, 2009 18:16:57 GMT -5
Her eyes lit up again as he so smoothly placed the box in front of her, acting nonchalant about it. She adored the gifts he showered her with. It always amused her because she was a runaway, a girl who'd lived on the streets for a while, even, and now she was living a very carefully constructed life of riches. She felt immortal when she thought of this, like she could be anyone or do anything.
Her long fingers reached for the box, opening it as she smiled widely. "Trev.... it's beautiful," she nearly gasped, pulling it out of the box and examining it. After a moment, she looked up and handed it to him. "Help me with it, please?" she asked him.
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Post by Trevor King on Nov 10, 2009 22:27:47 GMT -5
His smile widened as she held the bracelet up and the stones sparkled in the light. Yes, it would have been cheaper to buy an imitation, and maybe the sparkle would have been the same... but he would know. And he liked the real thing.
"It's not beautiful," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "Not until it's on your wrist."
He gave her a wink as he took the bracelet from her and clasped it around her wrist. It truly did seem to sparkle all the more against her pale skin.
"There now. It's beautiful. And so are you." He raised her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to the back of it. "Shall we dance?"
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Post by Celia Prince on Nov 21, 2009 21:35:51 GMT -5
He made her feel like a woman and a school girl all at the same time, and she loved it. So maybe it was wrong that she continued on with this charade, but she didn't want to stop. If she stopped playing along, she would be forced to come to the realization that she hadn't saolved anything- she was no closer to avenging her brother's death, or even finding those responsible, and she had long ago lost her identity.
"Thank you," she said softly, nodding when he asked her to dance. "I would love to dance..." she leaned in so that her lips just grazed his ear. "Let;s make them all jealous."
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Post by Trevor King on Nov 26, 2009 23:33:18 GMT -5
It had started as a game. He knew who she was, and just as she lied about her identity, so he lied about his. But the game had continued so long that Trevor wasn't even sure what the objective was anymore. It was really just an elaborate masquerade, like they were performing in a muggle movie. It was easy to get caught up in the romance of it all.
She looked good on his arm, and he liked the envious glares from other men who were foolish enough to think they'd even have a chance with her. So he kept playing the game, with no end in sight.
"Make sure you flash that pretty bauble around so it catches the light. Maybe we'll blind all those other pathetic fools around us," he said with a wink, then led her off to the dance floor.
The woman who played the piano was playing a waltz, which suited Trevor just fine. He got into position and began to move along to the steps.
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Post by Celia Prince on Jan 25, 2010 2:09:17 GMT -5
"I like to think they'll be looking at me more than the jewels, Trevor," Celia replied, but there was a smile on her face and she leaned up, kissing his cheek. "But it is beautiful. Thank you."
Celia fell into step with him as they began to dance. Dancing like this was something she had to learn very quickly when she submerged herself in this life. It astounded her how many Death Eaters were dancers, and she rather suspected it was because of the wealthy upbringing in most cases. But she wanted to fit in, to be able to play the part, because this wasn't a game to her. She still had an objective, even if Trevor distracted her. She hoped that maybe he'd lead her in the right direction, though.
She caught his eyes as they moved together. "Trevor, tell me I'm pretty. That you think I'm pretty."
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Post by Trevor King on Jan 29, 2010 16:11:23 GMT -5
Trevor was used to this. Even though it was all just a game, Celia could, at times, be quite needy. If he had been a different type of guy, he would have wondered what kind of life she’d had with her family. He had known her brother quite well, and her sister, Cassidy, was an auror, but he didn’t know much else about her. Celia was always searching for praise and compliments, which made him suspect that she hadn’t got a lot of them when she was younger.
But who was he to analyze?
“Celia, don’t be daft,” he said. “You know you’re gorgeous.”
Then, softening, he leaned in and pressed a kiss on her lips. “You’re the most beautiful girl in the room, no matter which room you’re in.”
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Post by Celia Prince on Feb 5, 2010 20:27:35 GMT -5
His first words, though a compliment in its own, was still a little offputting, and she frowned. She really did like the compliments and assurances that she was beautiful and perfect in her own ways. She never told Trevor about her childhood, about Sarah. That girl was long and dead.
But when he softened and continued, she looked at him again and her eyes lit up, smiling slowly. "Thank you," she said, giving him a quick, second kiss.
"So, are we the envy of everyone in the room, yet?"
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Post by Trevor King on Feb 9, 2010 16:02:39 GMT -5
Trevor grinned and made a show of looking around the room. The biggest trouble with hanging around the rich and famous was that it took too much to attract their attention . Like Celia, Trevor wanted everyone to envy them, to wonder who they were and how they could impress them. It wasn’t enough to simply blend in, he wanted to stand out as someone to be reckoned with.
“Hmm, not yet,” he said. “Perhaps we need to do something to attract their attention. Maybe something like—this…”
He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him as he bent forward, dipping her backwards for an old-fashioned movie kiss.
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Post by Celia Prince on Oct 7, 2010 21:34:05 GMT -5
Celia was on a somewhat different page. Coming from a past that she was trying to forget, to outrun, blending in was sometimes the way to do things for her. But she wanted everyone in that room to know that she had the best of everything in that moment, even if it was all pretend.
She smiled as he lead her into a picture perfect dip, kissing him back. "Hmmm... I think that might do it," she told him, her tone playful and low. "You're too good for me. I love it."
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Post by Trevor King on Oct 14, 2010 0:10:47 GMT -5
At moments like this, Trevor found himself wondering if he had somehow gone and fallen in love with Celia. She was supposed to be a mark, nothing less. And yet, he couldn't quite figure out what it was that he wanted from her. He kept her around, telling himself that the game wasn't over yet, but sometimes it didn't feel like a game anymore. Usually, that was the point at which he went out of town to pull another scam and left her behind for a while. He'd come back, thinking he would end things... and somehow he never could make himself do it. It was the game, he told himself. He'd started it, and he couldn't very well quit now, could he? But he still couldn't quite figure out the objective.
"Yes, I know," he teased, twirling her around. "Remember? When we first met, I swore I'd treat you like the queen to my King."
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Post by Celia Prince on Dec 5, 2011 23:45:25 GMT -5
Celia was so deeply involved in this web of lies. She lied to everyone that she and Trevor knew about who she was, who they were, the kind of life they pretended to lead. She lied to Trevor about her motives and her past. It was sort of at a point that she didn't know what she wanted.
But at the core of every lie she told was one solid truth... Trevor, and the fact that he was a stronghold for her. Wherever she was running, she wanted to come back to him. And that in itself was dangerous. Very, very dangerous.
"And you have. And they're all looking at us like we're royalty, so we're certainly doing something right."
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Post by Trevor King on Mar 27, 2012 10:23:13 GMT -5
It was a dangerous game they were playing, and dangerous lives they were leading. Of course, Trevor wouldn't have had it any other way. Life was too short to live a boring one, and Trevor meant to make his as enjoyable as possible. Maybe it wouldn't last as long as those who lived boring, predictable lives, and maybe he wouldn't be remembered for any great accomplishments, but at least he lived life to the fullest.
And Celia... she was part of that. Whether she was a mark, a friend, or something else, he decided it didn't even matter. He'd keep her around as long as he continued to enjoy her company.
"Well, if we've got their attention, perhaps we should do something shocking to shake things up. It's getting a bit dull in here, wouldn't you say?"
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