golden days in this golden age [marin]

"I can't believe he looked right at me and smiled. You saw it right? I swear, he was looking right at me because he saw my 'I Love Owen' sign. This was the best concert everrrrrrr," Wini sighed, her voice hoarse from all the screaming and singing at the top of her lungs, her face pink from excitement, and even the exhaustion of such an emotional onslaught couldn't taint the high she was on.

3Spelled had just held their concert at the Puddlemere United stadium and Wini was in heaven. Everything had lined up perfectly: this concert falling on their spring break, Owen miraculously recovering from being transformed into a mouse (however that had happened??), and Marin agreeing to go to the concert with them. Of course, the last one was a little debatable on whether or not he had actually agreed but Wini could have sworn that she had seen him singing the words to a few of the songs and bopping his head a little. Plus he had let her sit on his shoulders at one point, which was when Owen had noticed her, Marin being so tall definitely had its perks.

Her arm was wrapped around his, she was decked to the nines in 3Spelled swag of course, as they strolled down the sidewalk toward a little restaurant Wini had scoped out pre-concert and her stomach grumbled gratefully. She was hungry. And tired. And worn out. But mostly just really, really happy. The blonde grinned up at her friend and nudged him gently with her elbow. "Did I tell you you're the best? Thanks for coming with me, Clarebear," she added with a laugh, waiting for the look he'd probably give her.

@Marin Clare

“Probably because you were like… Eleven feet tall,” Marin said, nodding. Wini wasn’t as light as she had been the last time they’d gone to a concert (a couple of years ago, now), and he was sure he’d grown even more frail since then, somehow, but he’d had to get her up on his shoulders for at least a song. She was just so unbelievably delighted the last time he’d done it that he’d pushed through the physical discomfort and the heat. And he’d been right to do so again; he was pretty sure she’d cried from joy.

He let her loop her arm in his, and tried not to walk too fast or move up and down too much when he did so. Absent-mindedly, he smoothed down the front of his 3Spelled t-shirt with his spare hand. During the concert, Marin had mostly felt anxious about the girls behind him not being able to see, and he’d of course had to do a lot of self-management when it came to the ridiculously overstimulating environment. Now that they were out, his ears were ringing but he felt less tense.

Marin grimaced, mostly at the nickname. “Only thirty times,” he answered, glancing at her. Though there was a little sass in his voice, Winifred would be able to read underneath it and see the rest of the answer in his expression; he thought she was the best, too. Even if she hadn’t yet given up on that ridiculous nickname.

“That the one?” Marin asked, nodding at a restaurant ahead of them.

"Well, still," she said in the face of his facts and logic. She had literally stuck out because of Marin's height but who cared since Owen had noticed her. She was so glad that Marin had agreed (aka not fought) over her insistence that he come with her to the concert because Merlin knew Lip wouldn't have done the same. He probably would've just brooded at the back until the concert was over. If he had ever stayed the whole time. She tried not to think of her Ravenclaw friend because she was still mad at him for deciding to stay with Marin over the break instead of her and William. He hadn't even said anything to her about it! Rude!!

But whatever, even grumpy Lip couldn't touch the high she was on right now. "Only thirty?" she said with a melodramatic gasp as she caught his eye then grinned at him. "Guess I'll have to pick up the pace then, about seventy more to go. Unless you prefer a different way? You have said my poetry is pretty good," she said, trying her best at Marin-deadpan-look before cracking up a few moments later. Her poetry was terrible and she had given up on writing prose about how lovely Hefin Howell was years and years ago.

She nodded at the restaurant and then hopped ahead a step to grab the door holding it open for him and it was crowded, but thankfully a few tables were still open. Wini had even managed to talk the hostess into giving them a booth instead of a table in the middle of the busy floor since she knew Marin might like it a little better, closed off, a little more secure, without having to worry about people bumping into their chairs every time someone walked by.

The blonde slid one of the menus toward him and flipped hers open. "I'm starving. Can we share an app?" followed shortly by "But first, tell me what your favorite part was." Because of course, she wanted to dissect every part of the concert and give a full run-down on everything that they had seen and heard and experienced at the concert.

His lip quirked a bit at the poetry comment. Thank Merlin no one was out here trying to write poems to him. Uncomfortably, he thought of the note that that fifth year had given someone to give to him once. He’d never written back, of course. It was a bit much. Marin was sure he’d only materialised to those outside of his house when he’d been appointed head boy. Well, except for Lionel, of course. And Darcy.

Marin reached for the door, but Wini was ahead of him; he gave her a small smile as he passed her, but then waited just inside so she could follow. Wini did most of the talking at these kinds of places. True to form, the blonde argued for a booth and — also true to form — she got what she wanted. Marin felt admiration as he followed her to their booth, then slid in the opposite side, not making eye contact with or speaking a single word to anyone but her.

“I want a vanilla milkshake,” he told her, nodding at the menu. “And I’ll share whatever — you pick.” Thankfully, she knew his food preferences. And if he didn’t like it anyway (which was, admittedly a possibility), then there was always more food at home.

“Well, I mean there’s the obvious,” Marin said, fishing in his jacket pocket, then through his wallet, to hold up the guitar pick he’d proudly snatched out of the air late in the show. It hadn’t been tossed in their direction initially, but someone behind them had clearly had the best summoning charm; it had changed directions mid-flight and started zooming their way. Marin was about a foot taller than almost everyone he’d been standing around; he’d simply reached up and grabbed it.

He’d stuffed it in the zipped part of his wallet and then put that in the buttoned pocket of his jacket so no one could grab at it. Marin leaned closer now, sliding it across the table for Wini to look at.

Wini's brown eyes lit up as he reached into his pocket and then in his wallet and then into the zippered part where she knew he had kept it safe, practically dancing in her seat with her impatience at wanting to see it again. She had examined it in the moment between songs before entrusting it to him to safeguard, but now she really had a chance to study it as he slid it across the table to her, her fingertips brushed his as she picked it up.

"Like it's annoying you're so tall because you make me look so short, but Merlin, it does come in handy sometimes," she teased with a smile that was somehow both tired and excited. She wasn't sure if she was ever going to get over this feeling. Well, maybe not until the next concert they had lined up. This was so cool though. No one use had a caught a pick right out of Zack's hand. She flipped it over to the other side to study the design before she sat up straight as the server came over. "What are you going to do with it?" she asked, curious, trying to keep her tone even.

"How was the concert?" the woman with sagging gray hair asked as she stopped at the edge of their table and took a pen and pad from her apron. "Great! Amazing! We had a great time," Wini answered brightly before she started to order for them. A vanilla milkshake for him, and a peach pineapple mango one for her plus and then an appetizer of loaded chips to share (but all the 'loaded' on the side so Marin could eat them plain). She actually wanted to order four more things because her eyes were bigger than her stomach in the moment and even though William had given her more than enough money to cover it, she was still used the frugality that came with being raised in a family of ten kids.

Wini sagged back against the cushion as she sighed with a dreamy, happy smile on her face. "Wouldn't it be great if we had a timeturner? Could just turn back time and relive it over and over," she said as she twisted a bit of her hair that was more messy than wavy after all the jumping around and excitement from the concert.

“Mmm,” Marin agreed with a small nod. From time to time, the young wizard was self conscious about his height (had a permanent sort of slouch because of it) but she was right; it did come in handy. It had been a while since Marin had measured himself; he wondered how tall he was now. Taller than the start of the year, much to his chagrin. He really should have stopped growing at six foot, when he was twelve or whenever that had been.

“Oh,” Marin said, glancing down at the pick — the plectrum, that was. “It’s yours,” he said with a small shrug. Sure, he was wearing the 3Spelled shirt and he’d caught it and everything, but he really didn’t love them like she did. ‘Tolerated’ was probably the better verb, there.

Marin gave the waitress a small, tight-lipped smile, but Winifred jumped right into answering before he had to. He liked that she ordered for them both; he didn’t care for talking to strangers if it could be avoided. “I guess,” he said, once the woman was gone. “Aren’t you tired, though?” he asked her, smiling a bit because he knew the answer would definitely be a no, if the alternative to sleeping was going to another concert.

Their drinks came and Marin slid his milkshake over to him, playing with the straw a bit before taking his first sip. It was a little too sweet for his liking, but not too bad. It’d go well with the chips, he thought distantly. “Mine after this?” he asked, confirming an already-made plan. “Did you want to stay over? I can take us back to yours if you want to get some clothes. Mum won’t mind.”

"Really?" she asked brightly, her eyes going wide as she looked up at him, her smile wide, making her cheeks hurt from how much she had already smiled (and screamed and hollered and whistled and sang at the top of her lungs) tonight. Wini wanted to hug him in that moment, but too bad the table was in the way (was that why he liked booths better?). She simply made a mental note to make up for it later as she held the pick in her hand again and smiled gratefully. "You're the best, do you know that, Marin Clare?" she said with a dramatic sigh.

She placed it just to the left of her water glass, the sight of it sending a thrill through her. Wini gave him her patented 'are-you-crazy' look that was usually reserved for things like when he asked if he wanted to play Rupert's latest single again (the answer was always yes, even after the 564th time, duh), but today it was for his 'aren't you tired' question. Wini gave him a shake of her head. "Of course not, I can sleep when I'm dead," she said cheerfully. She had her priorities straight after all and if there had been a follow up concert to this one, she would have been there, first one in line, and probably somehow convinced Marin to come too.

Wini licked her lips as the milkshakes came and hers was delicious, sweet and fruity, with hints of mango, a tang of pineapple and the sweetness of peaches. It was perfect. She leaned forward as she sipped through the red and white striped straw, nodding as she glanced up at him. "Can we stay in the studio though?" she asked. The studio was her favorite, down the hill from the house a bit with a great view of the water. She had never been a morning person, but waking up there almost inspired her to be one.

Besides, a grumpy Ravenclaw was also staying at Marin's these days and she did not want to speak to him. "Only us though right?" she asked to confirm with a little frown. "Yeah, we'll have to pop back to William's so I can grab some clothes. Your mum is going to freak when I tell her about the pink and how Owen looked right at me and ugh everything!" she mused as she shook her head and then sat up straighter as the chips arrived too.

"Oh, these smell good, thank you," she said to the server as she placed everything in front of them and Wini got to work rearranging the plates so that the plain chips were right in front of Marin and the various other bits (little bowls of bacon, sour cream, and cheese) were on her side. "Feel free to have any of this if you want," she offered even though she knew he liked his food plain. She was hungry and she wasn't shy about digging in.