entertain my faith [annelise]

Sebastian de Vos didn't know if he'd make it through the day. The bags under his eyes were outrageous - puffy and purple and were the complete opposite of flattering. They made his face look even more gaunt, if that was somehow possible. He wasn't just extremely tired, he'd look the part, too.

The previous night had been interesting, to say the least. Bas tried to take home some fit girl he'd met at his favorite bar - some nice bird with brown hair and blue eyes and the longest legs he'd ever seen - they'd gotten as far as his couch before she started sobbing in his neck about someone named 'David' and his obsession with some 'ugly blonde bitch' that had 'the most hideous eyebrows, too'. Sebastian had no clue who David was, or the random the girl had been on about, but he hated them. He really hated them. By the time four had rolled around, she was still sobbing on his couch and he was lulling to sleep, and by the time it was four thirty, he was knocked out. She was gone when he woke up.

He was still going shopping, though. Despite the fact that he'd gotten a few hours of sleep, he still needed new pants and shirts and by the thin hairs on Merlin's gross beard, he was going to get them. Dragging himself out of bed that morning was probably the hardest thing he'd ever done, but after he'd showered he'd felt a little better - only enough to keep him going - getting dressed and apparating to the middle of the bustling streets of wizarding London.

Sebastian's hands were shoved in his pockets and his eyes were cast down when he walked towards his favorite clothes shop - a small boutique filled with dark clothes that were probably a little too expensive for a man who had a four year old that liked to throw his food around. But then again, that's what spells were for, right? To fix the damage that children did, or something. A shiver went down the Frenchman's spine as the thought was swept away with a gust of wind, his shoulders hunching up more in hopes that his neck would start to warm up more in the short walk to the building. His eyes didn't leave the ground - instead they traced small cracks in the pavement and watched small pebbles roll across the walkway.

He'd almost made it to the store, to warmth and solitude, when his body collided with one smaller than his. "Merlin's fu-"

The rest of the words got caught in Sebastian's throat, his eyes widening as he stared at the figure in front of him. What was her name again? "Uh," Sebastian did his best to put on a smile - one that would at least seem like he didn't feel completely awkward int he current situation. "Hey! Anna..." He drifted off, hoping the name was at least partially right. With his luck, she'd be an Isobel or a Trudy. "It's been... a while..."

Annelise de Massey moved with purpose on the streets of wizarding London. In a shocking twist of events, the young witch had actually organized a to-do list for the day. The whole concept of planning and organization was relatively foreign to her, but now that she was trying it on for size, it actually wasn't as painful as she'd remembered. In truth, Annelise had always lived a very unpredictable and spontaneous life, and it was finally starting to catch up to her. Night after night of partying, having a good time, meeting different men... for the first time in a long time, nights and days were bleeding together in her memory. It was hard to remember what was fact and what was fiction when the edges of her memories were blurred.

Today was her all-out attempt at changing her tempo. She'd even dressed for the day, taking the appropriate time to pamper herself before heading out on the town. She was going to be a functioning, orderly member of society today, and she wanted to look the party. Sleek and sophisticated black pieces clung closest to her body, offset by a bright (and very warm) red coat. Gold accessories decorated her wrists and fingers, and for the first time in a while she really felt put together. She'd even scooped all of her long platinum hair up and secured it was a red bandana, a classic look reminiscent of "spring cleaning." Never mind that it was only February.

As her boots struck repeatedly against the pavement, she began to dig around in her purse for the list. She mostly had it memorized, but she thought it best to give it another once-over to make sure she wouldn't forget anything. Evidently, clean out purse had not been on the list, as she was having a hard time finding it. She rummaged through various eye shadows, lipsticks, and other odds and ends in search of the little white slip of paper. Sure, she could've just grabbed her wand and summoned it, but that was not the point. Today was not about taking the quick and easy road, it was about responsibility! Naturally, she only made it a few more steps before running hardcore into a taller and manlier figure.

She quickly stumbled back, her attention falling from finding the list to keeping her balance. "For the love of-" she started, taking in the figure before her. Suddenly, her cool and collected demeanor melted away. Seriously? What this really happening right now? She took in a deep breath and quickly blew it out through gritted teeth. Her expression faded into utter disappointment as the former hook up before her struggled to remember her name. "Really?!" she groaned aloud, rolling her head back. "This day, I can't win. I just can't win," she rambled to herself, quickly pulling the handle of her wand out of her purse. "Accio list!" she barked, the small white slip of paper fluttering into her hand instantaneously. As far as cosmic signs go, this felt like a big 'ol slap in the face. "I hope you're happy," she said, angrily waving the list in front of the tall, pale man, though her words were mostly directed at the heavens above.

Her hand found its way to her hip as she let out another breath. "What are you even doing here? Of all the days and all the places in the world, you have to be here, right now?" she said, obviously irrational. "You know what, just stop, I can't even deal with this today," she said, pushing past him. "And," she said, turning on her heel, "It's ANNELISE," she added, pointedly. The hypocrisy ran deep, but in her defense, she was in a particularly fragile mood this day, and as much as she didn't want to admit it, she hated that he didn't remember her name. She certainly remembered his.

Someone was a little angry.

More than a little angry, it seemed. Was it that time of the month, maybe? It really, really did seem like it.

His eyes scanned the short woman in front of him, one eyebrow raising on his forehead as blue eyes landed back on her face. She sure was distraught, to say the least. Silly Anne. He didn't remember her seeming this frazzled - when they'd first met, she was the epitome of seduction, of sexiness, really. But apparently, she was no longer that woman. Or maybe, maybe she never really was that person, and instead, this was really who she was - someone who worried about whatever was so important in her bag and so booked up that she couldn't even stop to look for it. Maybe she'd had an appointment somewhere - for a second, Sebastian had hoped it was a therapist, or something.

Sebastian couldn't help but roll his eyes once she started speaking - of course he wouldn't put it past her to be angry about the fact that he couldn't remember her name. A name that he was told two months ago, maybe a few times. Hell, he couldn't even remember the blonde waitress's name, the one that always came back and handed him, personally, the order slips, instead of setting them on the counter like she was supposed to, and he'd seen her name tag numerous times a day, six days a week.

"Happy?" He repeated, his head craning back for a second, while he stared at the paper she was waving in his face, watching it move back and forth. "Happy about what." Sebastian had never been more confused by a woman in his life. Why was she so mad at him? Really, he didn't do anything wrong. Nothing was his fault. Ever.

"Ehm," Sebastian cast his eyes down at the ground, cursing a few times in his native tongue before looking back up at the blonde. "I live around here," He looked around, nodding for a quick second. "Just a few blocks in some direction. And if you're really concerned with what I'm doing," Sebastian pointed toward the shop he was so close to walking into before. "I was going-" He was cut off by the short woman standing in front of him, his hands going up in the stereotypical 'surrender' position before he let them drop back to his sides. Bastian had learned, by now, not to argue with women. They'd always won, somehow, even when they were so terribly, terribly wrong. And in certain cases, like the one he'd happened to be in at the moment, incredibly rude.

When she'd brushed past him, Sebastian turned to face her, his eyes settling on the features of her face. Annelise. Her name was Annelise. Sebastian let out a bark of laughter at her tone before he'd shaken his head - he didn't even really understand why she was mad. In all honesty, he'd gotten it close enough. It wasn't until he looked back up at her that he'd sighed, a tired sigh. "Désolé," He told her, "Sorry." He paused for a second, wetting his lips with his tongue before sincerely telling her, "I'm terrible with names." Sebastian waved his hand dismissively. Why was he apologizing again? He had no clue. "I did get pretty close, though."

She narrowed her eyes as the man continued to speak. He would mutter French to her right now. Though she had to admit, “sorry” sounded better in French. She suddenly wished she could speak a foreign language of her own. It was around this time that her actions caught up to her. Oh God. Oh Merlin. She was being the crazy girl. She let out an exasperated sigh as her former fling finished his thought. Why was she so good at losing her dignity in one fell swoop? She rubbed her right temple as a small, pained smirk crept onto her lips. “Yes, you were close,” she admitted in defeat. Where could she go from here?

“The point is,” she started, her hands resting on her hips, “I was angry because –“ she continued, her hands hovering in the air between them. Her eyes met his and she lost all her words. He looked utterly dumbfounded. Her hands fell to her sides as she shifted her weight from side to side. “Désolé” she said, quickly. “Désolé me. I’m désolé,” she clarified, tapping her fingertips against her collarbone. “Rough day,” she added, fleetingly. “It’s been a rough day.” This was the point where she should’ve stopped talking. Naturally, she didn’t.

“It’s been a rough few weeks, really,” she continued, her eyes flickering back and forth between Sebastian’s face and the ground between them. “Everything feels sort of, I don’t know, out of control,” she said, motioning her arms in the open air. “Today was supposed to be my day to get things on track, you know?” she added, nodding encouragingly. “But then, I bumped into you,” she offered with a shrug, “and I haven’t seen you since that night, which was a really good night by the way,” she said, her voice getting quieter, “and that sort of… well, pissed me off,” she finished, frankly. There was silence for a moment. “Not that night,” she clarified, frantically waving her hands, “the bumping into you. I just, I wasn’t expecting to see you,” she continued. “Ever,” she whispered, mostly to herself. She was quite certain she was blushing, and Annelise was not the blushing sort of girl. Abort mission. Abort.

“You know, I’m just gonna go,” she said, shaking her head a bit and taking a few steps backwards. “Should I go?” she wondered aloud, giving him thumbs up, thumbs down as she moved away. “You don’t deserve all of this… crazy,” she said, pointing towards herself. She turned away from him. She was a mess. It was like she was a teenager again. What on Earth was happening to her? “February,” she muttered beneath her breath. Always February.

((ooc sorry that this took ten years))

Aha! She admitted it - he was close. She didn't even have the right to be angry with him, and it seemed that she wasn't, anymore. Because of that, a bright smile appeared on Sebastian's face, directed right at the woman that was standing in front of him.

The grin soon faded from his face, however, as Annie - Annelise - continued speaking. She didn't even seem to be knowing what she was thinking, let alone saying. "Je suis désolé," He corrected, his eyebrows raising at the blonde. "Instead of 'i'm'. It's the French equivalent." Sebastian shrugged, licking his lips as he let her continue speaking. The words that were falling out of the Englishwoman's mouth confused Bastian - although he knew exactly what she was saying, it just didn't add up. She went on about how she was having a rough day, yet she was so put together. I didn't make sense to the twenty three year old. Those who had rough days, absolutely looked the part, in his experience. Annelise didn't. She looked rather beautiful, if he had to admit it.

"You're welcome." Were the first words to tumble out of his mouth after Annelise had mentioned their night together. "Or... thank you?" He paused, staring into space for a second while he pondered whether that was a compliment or not, before he shrugged and looked back at the shorter girl. "Trust me, I never thought I'd see you again either. It's not really often I bump into someone I've been with, and if I do, something usually gets thrown at me." He admitted.

"Hey, hey!" Sebastian's voice, he hoped, was calming as he reached out and grabbed Annelise's arm, pulling her back towards him gently. "No, you're not crazy, you're fine, people have rough days... or weeks. I had this friend at Beauxbatons that considered his whole seventh year rough, but he was far worse off than you," Sebastian let his hand slide down the woman's arm, raising his eyebrow. "When I was little and I had a rough day, my mum always made me éclairs." He told her. "I think there's a little bakery around the corner, if you wanted to get some. It's on me."

An exasperated sound escaped her as the man spoke: half-grunt, half-sigh. He would proceed to offer her French lessons in this moment. She shook her head slightly to refocus herself. He's just trying to be helpful. She eyed the man as he continued, and the smallest hint of a smirk flickered in the corners of her mouth. He's just trying to be nice. Her face lit up at his next comment, her mouth falling open and a playful gasp of shock escaping her. She was welcome? Thin, effortless laughter became her as he continued, this time thanking her. This whole exchange was an utter and absolute mess. She was smiling, though. Maybe messy was good for her.

There was a surge of energy beneath her skin as his arm grabbed hers, gently pulling her back. She was surprised that he'd even continued to speak to her, the rambling psycho she'd become, but the feeling of his skin once again upon hers was enough to grasp her undivided attention. She turned, facing him again, listening to him intently. He was surprising her, and as she watched his face, she had to admit he was still quite handsome. Her thoughts faltered to the crumbled piece of parchment she clung to. Sebastian certainly wasn't on her list of things to do. Yet, here he was, in the strangest of places. Better yet, he was reassuring her. She'd been too hard on him; she was sure of it.

"I threw a lamp once," she offered, plainly, referencing the words that she'd most certainly heard earlier. "To be fair," she continued, "this guy was two-timing me, and I was younger," she defended lightly. "Still, mister," she said, playfully poking her finger into his chest, "you better stay on my good side," she added with playful faux-seriousness. She didn't deserve the kindness that he was offering her, but she was going to take it nonetheless. "Beauxbatons," she said, more of a thought than anything. "That's something I'd like to hear about," she added, with a smile. She couldn't quite imagine the dapper man before her in a schoolboy's uniform, but then again, magical education was, quite literally, a lifetime ago to the blonde. Rarely did she allow her thoughts to linger in her past.

"Come on, Sebby," she quipped with a smirk, "let's go get some éclairs," she said, taking a few steps forward in agreement. With her playful pet name, she decided they were even. She took a few quiet steps alongside the Frenchman, wondering what to say next. "Thank you," she offered, a bit quietly. She turned and looked up at him, her gaze lingering in his blue eyes. She wondered if they had power, real power, over people. "Thank you for being so nice to me," she added with earnest. She hadn't expected it from someone like Sebastian, someone she'd used for a night of good fun. Needless to say, she was thankfully surprised.

"Oh, one more thing," she added as they wandered down the walk. She quickly moved away from him, delicately in her heels, towards a rubbish bin. With a swift motion, she severed her crumpled piece of parchment down the middle and chucked it away. Turning back to the blue-eyed man, she briskly wiped her hands together as if to say that's that. She moved back alongside the man, feeling relaxed. It felt like a burden had been lifted, though she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was. After a moment, she lightly shouldered the man beside her, turning her head to offer him a playful grin.

"It's your turn," she jested, a bit off the cuff. She looked to him to be sure he understood. "You told me about your friend," she offered, "then I told you about the lamp I threw," she continued, "so now it's time for you to tell me something else. Something about you," she finished. She was intrigued by the man; interested to know what stories he could tell. On some level, she related to him, despite their many differences. She wouldn't push him too much, of course, but she refused to enjoy these potential éclairs without a side of good conversation. Maybe it was forward of her, but as they continued onwards, she lightly linked her arm through his. They'd already taken the plunge, so to speak, but this gesture could be interpreted differently. She didn't mean much by it, though admittedly she wanted to be close to him. She hoped he wouldn't read too much into it, but even if he did, she had realized that her only method of survival this day was to relinquish herself to the chaos.

She thought once more of the list that she'd so carefully made, and how easily she'd been able to part with it. Perhaps she could never truly get her life together. Maybe her life and this crazy world around her wasn't really the problem. Perhaps it was up to life to get her together instead.

"I think he fully deserved to have a lamp thrown at him," Sebastian shrugged, his eyebrows raising as he flashed a smile at the woman in front of him. "Did you hit him with it? Or was it just a random throw, maybe?" He continued to question, the smile growing on his face as he'd imagined the blonde heaving a lamp at a cowering, scrawny man. He rather liked that image - feisty women were kind of his thing. "But for the record, all I want to be on is your good side, Miss Annelise." His tone, this time, was sincere, his tongue darting across his lips to lick his lips as he shoved his hands in his pockets.

Sebastian let his arms relax, his hands still letting in his pocket as he listened to her repeat the name of the school he'd attended for seven years. "It's nice. It's always..." Sebastian took a deep breath as he tried, in his head, to translate the word he was looking for into English. "It's always happy? Bright? It is very... always..." The man trailed off as he fumbled with words, furrowing his brow. Maybe... maybe he just wasn't as good with English as he thought he was. He did work in a kitchen with primarily French speakers - most of the time he hadn't even spoken the language of the Brits when he was at home. "It is always very lighthearted?" This one was a question. Sebastian didn't even know what he was saying anymore.

The thought of his second language was soon washed from his mind as Annelise had agreed to get éclairs with him, his eyes lighting up as he smiled at the shorter woman. "I'm always nice to pretty women," Sebastian lied easily. If there was one thing that Sebastian wasn't, it was nice. He was, in fact, quite rude.

He stopped walking as she toddled in front of him in her heels, his eyes sticking onto her rather small body as she moved over to the rubbish bin and tossed away whatever it was that she'd had in her hand. Sebastian eyebrows had been raised when she bumped his shoulder (or rather, his bicep) with hers, his eyes returning to the path in front of them. Sebastian let his arm sit comfortably when she linked her arm through his, a smile appearing on his face as she did so. This wasn't something that he'd seen done before - he'd generally had his arm around a girl's shoulder or waist or something of the sort.

"Something about me?" He repeated, looking down at her with his eyebrows raised. "I don't know if I can think of something about me so quickly." He wanted to run his hand through her hair, but he supposed that would be rather... inappropriate. At the moment, at least. "One time I was grounded by my parents after I had already moved out of their house." He shrugged as best he could. "I got a tattoo and my sister didn't like it, so she told my parents and they tried to ground me. I was like.... ehm..." Damn. He couldn't translate for the life of him, not today. "I was nineteen? And I lived here in London. But they tried."

Blue eyes scanned the building the bakery was in, shaking Annelise's arm from his for a second while he sped up to open the door for her. "After you, my lady."

She laughed brightly at his words, her eyes sparkling. At least he knew when to say the right thing. "He most certainly did," she confirmed. "Oh, of course I hit him," she added with a playful scoff. "If I'm going to throw a lamp, you better believe I'm going to make it count," she joked. She raised her brow and smirked at him as he continued. "Well, mind your P's and Q's around me," she teased, "and you've got nothing to worry about."

She blinked at him, pulling her lips into thin lines and stifling a grin as he searched for his words. It amazed her, honestly, how incredibly sexy it was to watch him fumbling with his English. She found it quite fascinating, really; the idea of thinking your thoughts in another language. How odd it would be to have to translate them. There was, quite literally, a whole different culture inside his mind. She wondered if she'd get a chance to explore it sometime. Eventually she faltered, and grinned brightly at him. "Lighthearted?" she repeated, generally believing she understood his thought. "It was always a good time, sounds like," she rephrased for him, wanting to show she understood. "I bet it's beautiful there," she said lightly, "in France. It's near the water, right?" she queried. "I've never even been to France," she said sadly. "I've just never known where to go, or what to see, you know?" she added, looking to him for understanding. Maybe you can show me sometime.

She shook her head gently at the man's flirtation. "Easy, tiger," she warned through smiling teeth. He didn't need to try so hard. Not with her, not right now. It felt odd to be on this side of the fence, having already been with Sebastian once before. Well, twice before. Or had it been three times? She felt her face flushing as she searched for the memories of that night. Regardless of the statistics, everything had gone very, very well. She looked to him in silence as they walked, just for a brief second. She wasn't sure that knowing of Sebastian's prowess between the sheets was really helpful information to have in this moment. It was too easy to let it fluster her. As if to prove the point, she moved ever slightly to the side, walking just enough closer to him to find added comfort.

She nodded lightly as he searched for his response. You can do it, Sebby. She smiled to herself as she listened to his tale, and was quick to meet his eyes. "They didn't like your tattoo, eh?" she teased, nudging into him once more. "Was it the skull on your arm?" she inquired, a faint blush on her cheeks. She remembered his tattoos, perhaps more than she should've. "Hey," she spoke, resting her hand on the arm entwined with her own, "at least they care enough about you to make you crazy," she teased, her eyes on his. She looked to the ground, ever briefly, as she thought of her own distant family. They hadn't spoken in ages, not even her siblings. It was easier, sometimes, to just believe they didn't exist at all. She smiled at him once more, reassuringly, but her expression hopefully made it clear that she didn't want to talk about it any further.

The girl laughed lightly in surprise as he wriggled out of her grip and skittered forwards to grab the door. She stopped before him, shifting her weight to one side and resting a hand on her hip. "How chivalrous," she teased appreciatively. She sauntered past him and through the open door, letting her hips sway. She looked around the little bakery, rolling her head as she took in every angle. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She turned back to the Frenchman and beamed. "Smells amazing!" She wandered down the way, her heels click-clacking against the floor, as she approached the glass case. So many little deserts to absorb, and so little time. She leaned down, bending at the waist, getting up close and personal with the baked goods.

She looked back over her shoulder at Sebastian, and caught his icy blue eyes. She bit into her lip, a simple motion to stifle the flirtatious laugh that nearly escaped her. "They've got strawberry éclairs~," she said decadently, her voice fluttering with sing-song. She lingered, her long nail tapping lightly against the glass. My favorite.