[spinners] not of this world | nola

“Oh you know,” Magnolia pretended, feeling the need to play up how much of the Quidditch captain she actually knew, “we talk,” she emphasized, letting him come to whatever conclusion he wanted to about that statement. In reality, the whole phrase should have been in the past tense. When Magnolia said she had talked she meant that they had casually greeted each other in the hallway, that he had remembered her name and she had swooned a little, making a complete fool of herself in the process but coming to the conclusion that if he wasn’t so into his Head Girl girlfriend, she’s totally have a chance. Magnolia also excluded the extra detail that on the occasions that she ventured into a Quidditch game, it was almost always against Slytherin and she was almost always cheering the Quidditch captain on (in secret) and admiring how good he looked every time he flew past on his broom.

Magnolia wondered if she had seen Isaac play before but simply hadn’t been aware of it, or if she had noticed him, thought has pretty good looking and moved on with her life which was likely considering her taste in Slytherin boys. It was weird to her that they had never met before especially when one considered how small the wizarding community could be at Hogwarts sometimes. Thinking they had met before and were re-meeting now did feel a little like out of a movie or a novel and it was a cute thought that she kept tucked secretly away close to her heart.

The girl was surprised that he hadn’t found her drinking experience (or lack of if) a complete deal breaker, not that he would considering how impressed he had been when he had gotten them into Spinner. Magnolia was hoping that nice Isaac kindness bonus would last a few more turns now that she was actually enjoying it. There was much to be done here in the way of wooing and Magnolia was doing very little. But he seemed more willing to do things her way which was a plus considering his usual behavior.

He was even going to teach her how to skateboard, how cool (delightful and couply!) was that? But of course her joy was short lived and once again, she gave him a look when he asked her to ask some guy she’d never met for the skateboard and was a little upset that he had sent her off like some call girl to get it but sighed heavily and relented, making sure to take her sweet time actually engaging with this guy all the while occasionally glancing over in Isaac’s direction. There was no need to get angry, this place was supposed to be good vibes only.

Magnolia sat down next to him, going as far as to ask where he was from and why he was in town, might as well get to know this stranger a little better before taking his board, right?

Magnolia's sighs as she headed in the skater's direction made Isaac chuckle, he thought they were having fun, and she was playfully dramatic. It only took about three minutes of her chatting with the other wizard for Isaac to realize precisely how wrong he had been. He'd sent her over there to borrow the skateboard, not to fucking find a boyfriend, and now Isaac was the one huffing. He gave it two more minutes before he threw his hands into the air and assumed she was doing it to piss him off.

Isaac crossed the little skating area, scowling at some witch who nearly ran him down, and found himself staring up at the pair of them from the floor. "You about fucking done or what?" Isaac shouted up, the loud sounds of wheels on wood, making it difficult to project his voice. Jumping to conclusions and getting angry came quickly to the Slytherin, and Magnolia was way too good at bringing it out of him. The skateboarder gave him a puzzled look, but Isaac ignored him; instead, he turned his attention to Magnolia. His dark brown eyes were burning into her as he waited for an answer.

 â€œHm?” she asked, looking down at him as if she wasn’t very well aware of why he was looking up at her like that and just like that, whatever sort of acting she intended to do almost immediately disappeared and she burst out in a happy fit of giggles, “Just a minute, Peter here’s about to give me his address,” she replied, her eyes focused on Isaac as the boy beside her asked her if she knew him. Magnolia nodded, waiting for a moment, her eyes still on Isaac as she continued speaking, “Yeah just some guy I know from school,” she replied.

Magnolia waited as he asked someone else for a pen and paper and got a pencil and crumpled empty box of cigarettes instead and wrote down his address. “Thanks!” she said in return, reaching over him before she took the skateboard that he had said she could borrow. She had promised to bring it right back and took her time to wave goodbye, say goodbye to his friends and promise to owl before returning to Isaac.

“You can’t just go over and demand things, Isaac, you’re supposed to ask nicely,” she said pointedly, handing the skateboard over to him. “So are you  gonna teach me to skate or what?”

Was she being fucking serious? Isaac thought they might have been turning over a new leaf, but he was dead wrong. She was still as aggravating as ever, and here he was looking like a damn fool waiting for her. He thought they would have fun today, but apparently, that just wasn't on the menu. Instead, he watched her get a pen from some other stranger, get an address from the bloke, and then wiggle her fingers at him in goodbye. To say he was angry would be an understatement.

Isaac felt out of control, livid even, and maybe slightly betrayed. They weren't here on a date, but they were here together and if had the good sense not to try to pick up chicks in front of Magnolia, he had expected her to do the same. It was disrespectful, and now, on top of that, she was yelling at him. "What?" Isaac turned quickly to face her, a darkness in his eyes, "I didn't do anything wrong, what the fuck?" Running his hand through his hair, he tugged at the ends, staring at the ceiling, and exhaling loudly.

"No, Magnolia, I am not," He said finally; his voice was level, but he wasn't even close to it. Isaac took the skateboard from her hands and threw it across the ramp. It crashed loudly against the wood, sliding down awkwardly on its deck until it came to a stop at the bottom. Isaac didn't care; he was already gone. The wizard stalked off toward the stairs that led back to the streets of London. Fuck this place.

“Yeah I mean—“ Magnolia started again, wondering if she had been too harsh when she had returned with the skateboard in tow when that wasn’t her intention, in reality it was just her teasing him, getting him back for something that obviously displeased him and it was fun to see him angry once in a while. But this time it didn’t feel like any of the times before, in fact, he actually looked much more upset than she’d ever seen him before (even after she had teased him about his secret in class) and the Gryffindor couldn’t understand what was his deal. Who knew boys were so ridiculously confusing? And to think they said girls were the problem. Someone obviously needed to take a look in the mirror.

“What? Why?” she said angrily, her brow frowning in a mixture of confusion and anger. Why had he sent her across the way to get it, purposefully done it because she was a girl and apparently he thought it had something to do with the way other people treated her, only to get mad when she returned. It felt like a practical joke gone wrong and though she was pretty sure she was supposed to laugh it off, the girl was getting pretty mad, too. To make matters worse, he had gone completely haywire and had tossed the skateboard down, the sound it made making her jump a little; the sound had been utterly startling.

Magnolia stood there dumbfounded as he walked out, not really sure how to handle this but also feeling pretty embarrassed that he’d made such a scene and people were actually looking at her. The girl enjoyed being the center of attention, sure, but not like this and the fact that people were probably speculating about their relationship at that very moment only made it worse. She walked over to the skateboard, tucking loose strands behind her ear with resolve as she crouched down to pick it up before she walked up to give it to the boy she had borrowed it from. He had been yelling something at Isaac but she hadn’t been paying attention, though she had an idea. “What the hell is your boyfriend’s problem?” someone else had asked, and she shook her head almost immediately, “He’s not my boyfriend,” she emphasized even if moments earlier she had been feeling completely different.

But even if she didn’t understand his anger, it lingered there in the air and made her feel increasingly guilty for causing it. She enjoyed a good joke once in a while but not if he was going to storm off like that. What if he was actually upset and had gone off to cry in the bathroom or whatever? Resolving to figure out what had happened, she tried to look for him in the crowd, quickening the pace as she ran back to the stairs (as much as one could in a crowded room) hoping that she’d catch him before he had left. By the time she reached the stairs, she couldn’t spot him. Fuck. “Hey Miles, did you see the boy I came with? I—“ she tried to figure out how she wanted to explain it but didn’t have to when the man pointed in the direction upstairs.

And boy how relieved she was to see him browsing through some of the records stalked in the back (albeit angrily). Sighing, she stalked over to him, though at this point she had been much more worried than angry. “Isaac, what is your problem? You’re the one that told me to get the skateboard and then you just leave like that? If you didn’t want to come you should’ve just said so,” she whispered angrily.

Was he overreacting? Probably. Was he going to stop? Unlikely. Isaac knew he was getting angry for something he had no right to be upset about, but it didn't matter. Some part of him had fucking hated watching her flirt with that guy. They weren't together, but it didn't matter; that was just a rude thing to do when you were hanging out with someone. It was probably something he had done a hundred times with his friends, even right in front of Allison when they were dating, but that didn't matter either. Isaac lived within layers of double standards and hypocrisy.
Stomping away from her, Isaac flipped off the wizard howling about his thrown skateboard and found himself upstairs among the aisles of poorly packet records. He shuffled through the sections, past anything remotely calm, and landed himself in the Metal section. He began to browse, a pissed off look on his face, and pushed an entire stack violently forward just for good measure. He heard footsteps coming up the stairs and assumed it was her, and the wizard was correct.

What is your problem? She had asked, and he ignored her, but by the time she was done yelling at him, he couldn't ignore it anymore. "What is my problem?" He repeated, "Your the one trying to fuck that guy; I just said go get the skateboard, not flirt with him," Isaac was needlessly cruel again; he knew it; it pulled at him like an annoying alarm in the back of his mind. While he never set out to be mean to Magnolia, he always ended up saying something hurtful.

"I did want to come here with you," He shot out, it wasn't going to take away what he had just said, and he hadn't meant it to, but it was still valid. Exhaling loudly, the teenager turned back to the records, pretending like he gave a shit about whatever EP was in his hand, even though he could care less.

“I’m not—” she started, feeling rather vexed by his insinuation but also wondering if that was what he had reduced her to, if he thought she was just another Allison. Magnolia had been trying to make a point and it had obviously been lost in miscommunication as it tended to when she was talking to him. Maybe she came to conclusions in her head without thinking to include the people she was supposed to be having a conversation with. Maybe she had been insensitive after all.

“I wasn’t trying to do anything,” she insisted, not sure if this was a good time to mention that it had just been a poorly chosen joke. “I don’t get why you’d care anyway, you’re not my—” she paused, sighing heavily and knowing well that this argument would just go on until she chose to end it. So, Magnolia was going to be the big girl in this situation and walk about from it before something was said that she could not take back.

But Magnolia didn’t physically walk away, he had said that he wanted to be there and if she could just ignore the tone of his voice and the way he was saying it then maybe she’d be able to believe it. Maybe it had been a mistake to bring him here in the first place, but Magnolia was starting to get the sense that he might have been happier elsewhere or had his friends also come along. She didn’t like those thoughts though. So instead, “Okay,” she said sulking, turning to look at the record that he had in his hand. It was time to drop it for now.

“That,” she nodded in the direction of the album in his hand, “is a shit record,” she continued, giving him a small smile before she moved to stand next to him, browsing through the collection of metal albums as if it had been her intention all along. Flipping through record after record, she finally pulled out one whose cover was completely black, the outline of a snake in the corner that was barely visible in a light grey and handed it to him, “It’s a power ballad but heavy metal’s never been my style, too angry,” she smiled again, “you’ll like track number four,” she suggested. Leaving it there so that he might do what he liked with it, she returned to the records again, slowly looking through them this time, wondering if she’d run into something new she’d like to listen to. 

She began to protest, but Isaac probably wouldn't have heard if, even if she had finished. Though he had no reason to be, he was livid, and unreasonable anger was the most difficult to quell. Shaking his head, the Slytherin was almost daring her to finish her next sentence, his eyes finding hers like daggers, "That's right, I am not," He wasn't her boyfriend. While her words nearly knocked some sense into him, he chose to lock onto the assumptions she was making instead of the ones he had already made. Isaac hadn't wanted her to flirt with anyone else; he didn't want to see it but hadn't realized it was because he wanted her to flirt with him instead. He would have probably loved it, not that he'd admit it.

Instead, he doubled-down with his irrational anger. What right did he have to feel jealous? She had said it; he wasn't her boyfriend; he barely acted like he wanted to be her friend half the time, so why should he care? Because she told him he didn't, part of him wanted to correct her, of course he cared, but he wouldn't. He grew silent instead, violently flipping through old stacks of records and huffing loudly.

He stiffened as she moved to stand next to him, telling him what he was looking at was shit, and finally, the wizard was able to focus on one of the titles. It was probably one of the worst albums he had ever listened to, and he hated that she was right, "Fuck," He mumbled; he had not meant to pick this one up. Shoving it back into the stand just as she pulled out a record to hand to him, Isaac narrowed his gaze at it. She had good taste in music, and she was funny, and she was somehow cool enough to get into Spinners despite being underage, so why did she irritate him so much? He couldn't understand it.

Regardless, the record served as an olive tree, and Isaac took it from her hands. "Thanks," He said, turning it over to read the tracklist and nodding. He'd heard these before, but maybe he'd listen to it more intently now, mainly track number four. Isaac set the record to the side before moving a few more and pulling out a Danzig record he'd been looking for. "Do you like horror heavy metal?" He asked her, not expecting her to say yes, let alone know what it was, but she had surprised him before. Isaac didn't like all of their songs, but 'Not Of This World' was one of his top favorite songs of all time, and suddenly he felt the need to share that with her. Like his own sort of peace offering, despite the title.

He was actually rather cute when he pouted, especially when he wasn’t throwing a tantrum but rather sulking quietly next to her like this. Even though Magnolia could not fully understand what had made him upset downstairs, she figured that maybe she had not been as gracious and welcoming of a host as she had intended to be. Magnolia wanted him to be happy when they spent time together, considered him at least friend enough to care about what he thought and the things that he wanted.

But there was no denying she wanted more and often looked for the opportunity to show that she was capable in other ways too, like being a girlfriend. Your girlfriend was supposed to know how to calm you down, right? Or was that only your mates? Either way, she wanted him to know that she was there and even if she had been the one to cause his anger in the first place, she was trying.

“Horror heavy metal?” she looked at him in confusion. The girl was well aware of what metal was and had an inkling at what heavy metal sounded like but it was noisy, the particularly heavy stuff, and had no rhyme or reason for existing so she had never gotten too into it. But once you added horror to it, did it mean that it was the sort of thing people played at Halloween parties? Or were the lyrics frightening in nature?

However, not one to shy away from music, especially not when it was recommended to her by the boy she liked, she took the record from his hands and gave it a once over. “No, never heard of ‘em,” she said finally, “though I don’t own many heavy metal albums, mum and dad probably wouldn’t love it,” she explained though she figured it would have a purpose especially when she was feeling particularly upset.

“But,” she paused, turning the album cover over to look down the track list, “Let’s have a listen, shall we?” she suggested, pointing towards the phonograph in the corner before walking in that direction. “Why do you like it?” she asked quietly, curious to know what he would say to that, “I mean like, to know what to listen for,” she offered, hoping he understood what she meant. Were the lyrics worth thinking about it? Was it the melody? Was it the mood of the song? Or, a special part in the bridge? Perhaps, a change of music in the middle? These were the sorts of things that Magnolia was good at talking about.

Her question was about what he had expected, but Isaac didn't boast about the fact that he knew something she didn't know when it came to music. If it were Arithmancy or something muggle related he would have rubbed it in her face, but never with music. Music was something to be shared, experienced, and appreciated, and even if the pair would never see eye to eye on anything else, at least they agreed about music.

"Their music is pretty dark, like demons and hell and shit," Isaac began, watching her turn the album over in her hand and then point at the record player in the corner. "Pretty sure they are occult wizards pretending to be muggles," Maybe he was wrong, but they mentioned a lot of heavy subjects that muggles typically had no experience with. And something was haunting about some of the lyrics, like listening to them might open up some gateway or be a hex in itself. It was enough that Isaac was always paying extra attention.

"Play track two," He told her as they approached the phonograph, and Isaac leaned against the wall next to it. His sweater caught on the felt blacklight posters behind him, but he didn't care enough to move. Slipping his hands into his pockets, he explained a bit more as she set up the record. "It's the lyrics," He began, pausing to take a breath and decide whether to tell her how he felt about it, "But also the feeling, I guess..." He shifted uncomfortably, knowing he wasn't doing the song justice. "It sort of... resonates, you know, just play it," Isaac shrugged, frowning a little because he wasn't able to properly convey what the song meant to him even though he wanted to.

Isaac felt like he didn't belong, but also like no one did, and it was because everyone was a liar, including (and especially) himself. Not of this world. He was a Pureblood Slytherin who liked muggle things better, a bad kid who was secretly quite skilled at magic and academics, and a cruel, selfish boy who pretended not to be lonely. Not of this world, For I am nothing known.

The thought that a metal band would add subliminal messages of demons and darkness did not seem out of reach considering the way the cover looked but the thought that the same band might be composed of wizards pretending to be muggles was pretty entertaining. She hadn’t given it that much thought at all, so she gave a short laugh, intrigued by the idea and wondering if there was any substance to what he was saying. She’d have to do her research.

Though Magnolia didn’t look like the typical heavy metal consumer, she really had popular charts written all over her look, especially here in a fluffy, pink sweater holding what could be the key to a portal to hell or something crazy like that, she appreciated good music. Some of the darker stuff was just a bunch of noise to her but if something had rhythm, killer lyrics, or just something that made it stand out from the rest, she’d immediately fall in love with it. The fact that Isaac liked it certainly helped form her initial response to it.

She carefully took the record out of the sheet, counting herself lucky that she would most likely not get yelled out for trying out the music before buying it (plus she did know how to handle records unlike the majority of the kids her age that went into Spinners). Magnolia she set the headphones over her ears, fiddling with the vinyl jacket as she waited for the song to start. The electric guitar riff was a given, she couldn’t think of a metal band that did acoustic, though she assumed there’d be a cover song somewhere desperately trying to fit within the genre.

But what she would have expected to be the beginning of a much more upbeat tempo as soon as the singer’s voice filled her ears, did just the opposite, the tempo of the song trudging along as the lyrics came through clearly. Magnolia played close attention to the song, her eyes inadvertently wandering back to him as she listened and tried to form a connection between what was being said and the boy in front of her. “It’s pretty good,” she said, though she could barely hear herself speak over the sound of the music, “Don’t think it’s opening any portals to hell though,” she teased, only portals to feelings, she added to herself.

Isaac wasn't sure what he had been expecting her to think of the song, and so he wasn't sure how he felt about her response either. He wasn't exactly disappointed, but he didn't feel fulfilled either, but that was most likely because they had been on the brink of another fight, and now they seemed fine again. He had gotten worked up about the bloke with the skateboard, but showing her this song, letting the lyrics wash over him, was somehow soothing. Five minutes ago, he had been so mad at her, and now he felt kind of empty. The anger had been wiped clean in that way that only music could do.

"Yeah," He said with a shrug, leaning his head against the blacklight poster behind him and nodding along as the last of the song came across the player. Isaac liked the rest of the album well enough, but not enough to show and tell, not like track two. "You never know though," Danzig probably wasn't a bunch of crazy wizards pretending to be muggles so they could hex the world, but Isaac had heard of weirder things, and it would have made a pretty good story, so he'd always wonder. "They talk about magic in a lot of the songs, not like... our magic specifically, but I guess maybe what muggles think of as magic? Lots of evil shit too," Some of the lyrics were pretty dark, even for Isaac's tastes.

"You pick something next?" He half asked, half insisted, as the next track began to play, and Isaac turned the volume on the record player down. He felt exposed having shown her this song, and if he had given himself a few seconds to consider the action before doing it, Isaac might not have gone through with it. Sharing music was deeply personal, but now that it was done, it didn't regret it but needed some balance. "Anything but fucking pop,"

“Evil shit sounds right up your alley, now, doesn’t it?” she tittered a little at the thought, practically bouncing off to a section opposite to the one they were in search of something that spoke more to her style of music. But there was that ever-present challenge of wanting to impress him and wanting to show more of herself at the same time that had her looking through the shelves of records, passing one of her favorites, then another, then another. “Hm,” she said decisively, turning back to him and giving him a nervous smile. “Well if you don’t want to listen to pop what am I suppose to have you listen to, hm? Not my fault you have no taste in music,” she complained but she smiled at him anyway, taking a step back from the records altogether.

“Is that what you listen to at night, like when you’re in your room crying and stuff? That evil pretend wizard music?” she teased but she hardly meant to make him feel bad for liking something so meaningful. Turning to the opposite side of the aisle, she went through the records again, settling on one before pulling it out and showing it to him, her hands wrapped around both edges of the record. “Stevie Nicks has the voice of a goddess, you know who Fleetwood Mac is, right? Or is this not obscure enough for you?” she added, walking back to the record player and expecting him to follow behind.

“Rumours is their best album,” she explained, “Sure the earlier stuff is classic but they really outdid themselves with this one, Dreams is my favorite,” she continued, setting the record and giving him the headphones.

Isaac wasn't sure what kind of alley Magnolia assumed he came from, but if she thought evil shit was up it, he supposed he didn't need to correct her. Better she thought that then that he was some chump who liked pop. And dance music. The teenager shrugged at her when she mused about his taste in music. He was a snob when it came to most things, and the music was certainly one of them. Isaac refused to waste time listening to nonsense. If it didn't have good lyrics, he couldn't be bothered.

Blinking slowly, Isaac actually considered ignoring her statement altogether. It was too ridiculous to warrant a response, but his need to fight back won in the end, and soon enough, he was moving to follow her down the aisle and correct her clearly. "Magnolia, I do not cry in my room, I think you are mixing me up with one of your dramatic friends," Throwing in a backhanded insult to the types of students she typically hung around, let Isaac feel like he was on firmer ground again, and with that solid foothold, he continued. "Wait, do you listen to upbeat pop when your sad and crying?" The wizard asked, the look on his face proving he was about to make another rude assumption. "You know that makes you sound crazy, right?"

And just when he thought he had Magnolia pegged, she turned around and caught him completely by surprise.  "It does not have to be obscure for it to be good, yeah, I know who Fleetwood Mac is," Truth be told, he kind of hated everything Stevie Nix had ever done solo, but he was clever enough not to mention that fact yet. He could, however, argue about their best songs, "Mirage was better," He told her, but plucked Dreams off of the shelf anyway, pulling it away from her and brushing past her back to the record player as he pulled the vinyl from the sleeve. "I like Gypsy," Isaac admitted idly as he started the record and moved to sit on the floor next to the machine.

By far, his favorite albums were the ones he could listen to start to finish, like a journey, and not have to skip or search for a specific song. To Isaac, it was better to like them all just enough that to be absolutely in love with one song and not like the others. "But Rumor has the best play-through," He mentioned, setting his head against the back of the wall and frowning as the felt poster rubbed against his hair.

“Oh sure you don’t,” she made a face that made it obvious she did not believe one word he said before laughing at the thought of him in his room crying over Joni Mitchell or something high brow and classic like that. But Magnolia wouldn’t laugh if it was actually true, she sort of liked sentimental and sweet guys too, underneath a lot of muscle and toxic personality.

Wasn’t it every girl's dream to sort of uncover the real side behind the bully who always took his rage out against the world? “’Course I do,” she answered his question without a second thought, “what better way to feel even more miserable than to hear how happy the world sounds outside of your own misery?” she suggested.

It sounded way more dramatic than intended but she sort of liked it? Magnolia figured that it made her sound deep and otherworldly poetic, or better yet, well-read. Even so, Magnolia was glad when he moved on to the next topic, not entirely excited about the prospect of explaining herself should he ask for her to do so.

“Well, you’re the one listening to your horror music over here,” she said, it was a bit judgmental but Magnolia had a very refined taste in music and sadly, the heavy metal didn’t normally make the cut in her universe. “But good, I’m glad you know who they are, I was about to think we had lost you completely,” she added.

“You’re just saying that to be contrary,” Magnolia said with a wrinkle of her nose, Rumours is the best, hands down, that’s all,” she insisted, “Have a listen,” she offered, moving to sit next to him as she drew her knees closer to her chest watching him intently.