Quick Break

Ivory wasn't a little kid anymore. After first-year, she'd started shopping for school supplies alone, finding it completely pointless to drag her father out to the busy alley. She'd only end up wandering off for potions ingredients while he was doing something suspicious somewhere. Still, she got a lift in his muggle car since it was too far to walk.

Dressed in causal black jeans and a t-shirt, she said goodbye to her father and got out of the car.

Fifth-year supplies were nothing special. Obviously, she'd chosen subjects to take for OWLs, but the books, stationary and the likes shouldn't be too difficult to find. Ivory had chosen to get the school stuff earlier rather than later so that the streets wouldn't be too swarmed with new Hogwarts students. It hadn't worked out quite as well as she hoped since it was still busy, but oh well. She was here now.

She started off with textbooks from Flourish and Blotts', before going in search of new robes. These took a little longer than she'd hoped, but she was patient enough.

Afterwards, she took a break to sit on a bench towards the end of the street, by Gringotts.

Miss Ivory Nott's choice of seat was meanwhile causing a dilemma for Kismet Fortuity.

He didn't know Ivory except by reputation and it wasn't a reputation he fancied getting involved with.  However, he did need to exchange his pounds stirling for galleons, the only currency any wix worth their wand would accept in Diagon Alley.

For the first time, Kismet found himself cursing his parents decision not to allow him an account with the goblin bank for the exchange office faced onto the street, right in view of the poisonous Miss Nott.

There was nothing for it.

Kismet ran full speed at the bench, diving toward it at the last moment in a passable imitation of a rugby tackle.

"Whiskers!" he shouted.  "Come back here!"

Ivory stared into space, paying little to none attention to her surroundings. Like usual, she was deep in thought.

Usually, these stances were hard to break her out of. However, when a boy ran straight towards the bench she was sat on and dived forwards. What an idiot.

The sight was so amusing, though, that she had to hold back a small chuckle. But you would never have thought she found it funny from the stone-cold expression that she wore.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

He wasn't going to get away easily with disrupting her thoughts. 

Whiskers? Pathetic. Who was he, anyway? Ivory squinted at him. Kismet Fortuity. Practically the village idiot in her opinion.

Pain cracked through Kismet's skull as he raised his head, forgetting that it was still inches away from the underside of the bench.

"Ow!"

Rubbing his head, he looked up at Ivory. She didn't seemed amused, but that was the idea.

"I swear I saw my rat run under here. You can't see him around, can you?" he asked.