Marin was not dealing well with the heat.
In the little sanctuary just outside of Yondertown that the Clare family called home, the average July temperature barely made it past twenty degrees, and never ever went above thirty. At least, not in his memory. Twenty was a good temperature, thought the Hufflepuff, leaning in just a touch as someone walked past him quickly, disturbing the hot, heavy air enough that it almost felt like a breeze. He found himself craving the weaker sunlight of England, the cool ocean breeze when his family took daytrips to the southern coast.
The funny thing was, though, that Marin actually really liked travelling. He and his parents had done it a lot when he was younger, and they went away most summers. His father worked in international relations and his mother was a restless soul. He'd been to Australia twice. All over Europe. Now he was in India. His more imaginative mind craved the newness of being in a new place, despite the apparent contradiction someone who knew him might see. He loved safety. He didn't like change. But travelling was different, he thought. He got to see all kinds of different things, but wasn't forced to interact or be in uncomfortable situations. It helped that no one new him, too, though the benefit was only slight.
Of course, whatever train of thought he'd been on previously went out the window as a girl appeared, seemingly from nowhere. Marin blinked. "Umm," he said, resisting the urge to glance over his shoulder to make sure she was actually speaking to him. He remembered something in the prophet about being on the lookout for visitors who might try to steal your heart and he eyed her warily. "Marin Clare," he said, trying to guess her accent from the few words she'd given him. It sounded Russian, but he didn't have a lot of foreign friends so the guess might just be evidence of his ignorance. She was speaking English, he noted. Aside from being very pale, even for an Englishman, Marin knew he just looked British.
"Yeah, I do," he said, a little belatedly, nodding. Realising that she hadn't mistaken him for someone else, he wondering if she was about to pitch some sale or ask for his help or something. Marin straightened up just a little, his shoulders still a bit hunched as he slipped his palms into his pockets. She was tall, he noted. Still several inches smaller than him, but tall for a girl. Subconsciously, he noted other things about her appearance - freckles, hair colour etc. It was natural for him to pay attention to these little details whenever he was in the position of interacting with someone new. These days, it mostly happened subconsciously unless he was particularly nervous.
She spoke a lot. He didn't know where he should interject, or speak over her, even if he was answering one of her questions. He stayed quiet instead. A bit too warm, he thought, and was considering saying it but she didn't give him a chance. He cleared his throat once she'd actually finished speaking, answering her most recent question first. "Actually I have been here once before. Not here, here, I mean... But to Delhi." The teenager swallowed. "I haven't seen anyone I know either," he added, clear blue eyes scanning the crowd quickly as if to prove the point.
