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Post by Julian Faust on Sept 28, 2016 1:46:40 GMT -5
Julian had sent Lyra an owl to see if she was up for receiving visitors. He had surprised her last time and that had been bad form, of course if he hadn't surprised her then he wouldn't have found out about her circumstances, and he wouldn't have been able to help.
In any case he decided to be a gentleman today and see how things were coming along. He had been surprised by her visit the other day, but then Lyra always surprised him, and he'd be lying if he didn't enjoy it every time.
He had waited to see her again until her furniture had arrived and she had settled into her position at Enchanted. His faith in Samantha proved to be well placed, and from what he heard (after she had ripped into him about not telling her about Lyra and then proceeded to make other kinds of insinuations which he was better off not thinking about) Lyra had been doing a great job.
But enough time had passed, that Julian was ready to take their planning to the next stage, mainly getting Lyra a suitor. It had nothing to do with the fact that he missed her.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Sept 28, 2016 2:32:28 GMT -5
After the chaotic events from his last unannounced visit, and the gentle ribbing she gave him on her own unannounced visit to his home, Lyra was happy to receive an owl asking if she was available for dinner and to discuss her romantic future. She had time to plan things out now. However, the support she'd gained from Julian; a house elf, a completely restyled flat, and her confidence, alongside the assistance from Samantha in obtaining not just any job but such a prestigious job with so many benefits, Lyra had very little to do to make herself and her home suitable for Julian's visit.
Lyra was sitting at the dining table, reviewing photographs of some of the new pieces that were being submitted for the next month's edition of Enchanted. On of her favorite parts of the job thus far was finding the least attractive pieces and crossing them out with bright red ink. It gave her a sense of power, one that she had been missing in her life for so long now. She treasured those moments with her quill and red ink. Lyra was drawing a large X through a photograph, who snapped insults at her for not adoring the brown and orange checkered poncho the model was wearing, when Mimsy announced Julian's arrival.
Lyra turned and smiled. "Good evening, Mr Faust."
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Post by Julian Faust on Sept 28, 2016 2:38:35 GMT -5
He brought flowers. Orchids. Vanilla. He was beginning to associate the smell with Lyra herself and it was beyond intoxicating, much like ...Lyra herself.
"Good Evening, Ms. Newbury." he bowed slightly and set the flowers down next to her.
She looked beautiful sitting at the dining table working. Regardless of whether or not she kept the job after she married, Julian realized that she would be forever changed by it.
"Working late?" he asked moving his hands to her shoulders and neck in and massaging gently.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Sept 28, 2016 2:49:00 GMT -5
There would be no orchids left in all the country if he kept this up. She looked forward to news of the shortage. "Mimsy, will you put these in a vase, please?" she asked the house elf. Then, looking to Julian she explained, "I'm not making that mistake twice." She laughed, and then closed her eyes slightly as his hands moved to her shoulders.
"Julian, it is simply marvelous! They pay me to critique clothes. And to think I'd been doing it my whole life for free, like a chump." She leaned her head back and looked up at him.
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Post by Julian Faust on Sept 28, 2016 3:04:03 GMT -5
He chuckled at her job description and sat next to her looking over her work.
"Godric, that one's hideous!" he remarked on a picture that Lyra had already placed an X on. The model in the picture once again disagreed and then almost self consciously reexamined her outfit.
He looked over some of the other designs and smiled, "Sam was right..." he looked up at her, "You were born for this."
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 5, 2016 2:27:56 GMT -5
Her smile came naturally, as apparently so too did her skill at deciding what trends would be gracing the pages of Enchanted. It really was the perfect job for her and she was happy to hear Julian agree with her decisions. "Are you and Sam talking behind my back about me?" She feigned upset but smiled through it, ruining the effect.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 5, 2016 18:05:49 GMT -5
"Are you insinuating there's a subject more worthy of conversation?" he teased her in return.
Lyra had always been beautiful, but to see her working, applying her natural gifts to the world of fashion made her seem even more attractive strangely. Perhaps it was just seeing her so engaged in something and proud of herself.
"Do you think you could tear yourself away for dinner?" he asked.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 0:21:23 GMT -5
She had been nearly done before he arrived, and it was no trouble to leave the rest of her work until tomorrow. She was surprised to find herself enjoying her work to the point of bringing it home with her in the evenings, but her evenings were generally spent alone with only Mimsy her house elf to keep her company. Without the threat of starvation that fueled her previous nights spent searching for some way to pay the bills, Lyra was beginning to realize how lonely she was. At Hogwarts she had her housemates and friends, not to mention the boys, to keep her company when the sun went down. But without the forced socializing that school brings, Lyra's evenings were spent alone. The work had been a welcome distraction. Julian, an even better one.
"Of course," she replied, cheerfully. She drew her wand and gave it a swish. The photographs stacked themselves and inserted themselves into a file which then flew into a large, black bag that rested against the side of the sofa.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 0:27:50 GMT -5
"Good." he smiled, "Then I suppose I can give you your gift...after dinner." he teased.
He reached into the pocket of his coat and pulled out a small basket setting it on the counter in her kitchen. Once again he used a spell to make the basket much larger, then proceeded to take out various ingredients. They were staying in tonight.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 0:54:14 GMT -5
"You monster," she retaliated. Another gift! What else could this man possibly give her? He'd already saved her life, Lyra couldn't think of anything to top that. Except...
Lyra forced herself to think of the portrait she had seen at Julian's home. The one of his dead fiancee. Whenever she began having tender feelings for Julian she thought of Belle and of the stupefied look on Julian's face when Lyra had ignorantly flaunted herself in the dead woman's clothes. Julian was still deeply in love, and it wasn't with Lyra. She pictured Belle's face once more and then focused on the items Julian was pulling from the basket.
"Oh, he knows how to cook as well," she mused aloud. Lyra moved to his side to watch as he worked, and hopped up on the adjoining counter for a better seat. "What are we having?"
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 1:03:51 GMT -5
" He does." he answered, "And soon, so will you."
There was a mischievous twinkle set in Julian's dark eyes as he smiled and held his hand out to her.
"While you accused me of never sharing my talents with you, I decided that this particular talent was one you'd enjoy quite a bit. And one I would enjoy with your help." knowing full well that Lyra had probably never cooked before in her life.
"We are making coq au vin."
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 1:38:02 GMT -5
In the time between when her parents had banished her from their home and Julian had delivered Mimsy, Lyra was forced to fend for herself. Initially, she ate out, purposefully ordering more than she could eat and picking off the leftovers as her following meals. But soon the restaurants realized that her tab wasn't being paid and she they not-so-politely began insisting that she pay her bill at each sitting which she was obviously unable to do. The disgusting pervert down the hall had invited her in for supper on several occasions and she repaid him with her company and lewd promises she never intended to keep. Eventually he too grew tired of never receiving a payoff, and the invitations stopped coming. She was surviving on cold sandwiches and crisps near the end. When Lyra said that Julian had saved her life, she was in no way exaggerating. She was seriously considering walking a few doors down and fulfilling those promises in the hopes of a warm meal. In short, Lyra had never cooked a single meal in her life.
She had never heard of this dish, but was excited for the opportunity to learn. "Coke qua vah?" Lyra was rubbish at speaking French. The words just didn't fit right in her mouth. It was partly out of jealousy at her inability to pick up the language that Lyra typically sneered at anyone who spoke it in front of her. In fact, when Samantha first came to Hogwarts Lyra deemed her unworthy of friendship, as the girl constantly flaunted her French around for the other students. Luckily, the tiff didn't last long and the girls became best friends.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 1:49:00 GMT -5
It was difficult, if not down right impossible, not to be charmed by Lyra. Her poor french, her excitement, her vivacity. Julian had played the white knight for years, and yet it had been a disguise to avoid the deadened soul inside. But being around Lyra made him feel alive in ways he hadn't in years.
"Coq Au Vin." he pronounced slowly.
It was a good thing Lyra hadn't told him about her neighbor or any other troubles she had gone through.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 2:08:04 GMT -5
She nodded along to each syllable as he said it again more slowly, but didn't bother with attempting the pronunciation again. She could see Mimsy at the door of the kitchen, looking anxiously at the pair. She knew the house elf was uncomfortable with the idea of her mistress cooking her own meals, thinking it improper. Showing mercy, Lyra called out to the elf. "Mimsy, could you make me a dirty martini, and Mr Faust will have...?" She looked at Julian.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 2:18:57 GMT -5
"The same." he answered smiling at Lyra. She handled Mimsy well, as he knew she would.
"Let's get started shall we?" he asked after laying out the ingredients and collecting the things he needed from her kitchen.
It wasn't the simplest of meals to cook, but it was something Julian knew how to make in his sleep, he set Lyra to chopping mushrooms and lingered with his arms around her as he held her hands and taught her how to cut the vegetable without cutting herself.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 2:57:45 GMT -5
Lyra's movements were rigid with her uneasiness. She concentrated hard on keeping her fingers firmly attached to her hands. But as Julian's touch stayed with her, she began to feel more comfortable with the task. They finished the mushrooms and Lyra turned over her shoulder to smile at him. "This means I'm officially a chef now, right?" She laughed at her own joke.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 3:09:24 GMT -5
"Getting there." he laughed and took a sip of his martini. He helped her with the other vegetables as well before starting the broth.
He moved or rather danced around Lyra's kitchen gracefully and completely at ease, all the while teasing Lyra, or showing her how to do something.
Two more martinis down and the dish was cooking. Julian smiled at his partner, they worked well as a team, and he wasn't above lingering contact as he taught her how to prepare the dish.
"Now, for dessert."
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 3:37:52 GMT -5
Lyra tried to force herself to picture his fiancee whenever his hand lingered too long on hers, but as her cocktail count went up her walls went down and soon she didn't bother with the mental image at all. She happily nestled in the crook of Julian's body as he guided her through each complex step. She laughed at his jokes and teased him right back whenever he got smart. She was having a wonderful time with him, and Mimsy continued bringing them drinks which only heightened her good mood.
"I know what you might like for dessert," she said seductively, pressing her body against his and guiding his hands to her backside.
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Post by Julian Faust on Oct 6, 2016 3:45:33 GMT -5
Julian would be ten kinds of a fool if he pushed her away now, what with all the prolonged contact they already had. His body was aching for more, his spirit was seeking the warmth and comfort she offered, but his mind haunted him with visions of the past.
Thanks to Mimsy however, his mind wasn't as sharp. The clever house elf had been supplying them with more than enough alcohol to incapacitate them, or lead to hasty completely regrettable actions.
"Lyra I-" he cut himself off, he was tired of denying himself, he was tired of denying her.
He couldn't refuse what she was offering, but he couldn't quite take it either.
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Post by Lyra Newbury on Oct 6, 2016 12:46:49 GMT -5
He wouldn't need to take anything. Lyra willingly gave herself to him. Her hands wrapped around his neck, she pressed her lips to his. With liquid courage fueling her, she gave in to the desires she now realized had been present for a very long time. To hell with dinner and to hell with his ex-fiancee.
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