Hey! My name is Cherriey. This is my first fanfic with Harry Potter characters so it won't be the best story out there, but give me a chance. The first chapter is not really eventful but I needed to get the setting straight. I can't just jump into a story. It will get better, I promise! If you ever have questions or concerns, let me know. I'm not going to make everything exactly as the book had it so please excuse any differences. Thanks, and I hope you like it. .
It's sunny. It's bright. It's breezy. It's a perfectly beautiful spring afternoon. I want desperately to go outside and enjoy the freedom such an atmosphere provides but no. I can't.
I lean against one of the tables. I can't deal with this much longer. I mean, for the past week there has been amazingly lovely weather. Every day the sun shines brightly but there's always a gentle breeze that plays with people's hair, cooling them down. It's not hot, but neither is it cold. In other words, it's perfect. But no. I can't enjoy it. I have to work.
Don't get me wrong. I like my job. It's pretty decent. I'm a waitress at a cozy little restaurant called Madame Farley's. Oh, believe me- I realize how original the name is. You know, it's not like everyone else names their shop after themselves. But I won't complain. I mean, Madame Farley is a sweet woman. She's a short brunette in her mid 50's. She's nice to everyone she comes across. I think that's why she decided to open up this place a few years ago. She loves to help people and I'll be honest- she is the best cook I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. Merlin! This woman can cook! Even if it's the simplest meal, it always comes out looking and tasting spectacular.
So in short, my employer is wonderful. Never mean to me. She did hire me, after all. Right out of Hogwarts, too. I've been here for the past 2 ½ years. It's not bad. I get decent pay, I have a bit of seniority around here, and Madame Farley is as bright as the sunshine reflecting off the window panes.
The thing is that I work every. Single. Day. I never take off for holidays or vacations or anything. I work 7 days a week from 7 am (yes…. 7 AM!) to 7 in the evening. Yeah. I'm pretty much the loser. I never have time to go out. I never really hang out with anyone. I never actually do anything besides work. And I work so much. I mean… yeah- that really is my decision. I've always worked myself to right before my breaking point. I like working hard for some weird reason. But then again, I've always been weird.
The point is that I ask to work this much and except for the gorgeous days such as today, I don't really mind. I want something good for myself. I'm not going to live in some nasty, dirty, old, smelly, moldy, crusty, infested, who-knows-what-could-be-crawling-in-your-sheets-right-now apartment. I just refuse to live in filth. Or have to live from paycheck to paycheck. So I work my butt off every day just so I can live in a decent place. Hey- what with everything I have to pay for, the cost of living isn't too cheap, you know.
Basically, after Hogwarts I had no idea what I wanted. I decided to get a part-time job anywhere that would have me. I wanted to take some time to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. I didn't want to just jump off into some dead-end career that wasn't going to make me happy. I wanted to start out with the right job. But here I am, 2 ½ years later. I still have no idea what I want in the future. No idea at all. It's amazing, I tell you. Amazing…
Whatever, though. I'm content for the time being. I'm not even 21 years old yet. I don't think I just absolutely need to know what my profession will be. I just need some time.
In the mean time, I'm just pretty much working and working and oh, that's right! Working. Hey, at least I have a good amount of money saved up right now. No one can say that's a bad thing, right?
Ding!
Here we go. Monday mornings aren't usually busy. A few witches might come in and have tea. A couple might have a nice little breakfast. Other than that, it's pretty much dead. Hey- I'm getting paid to wait on who ever comes in. When there's pretty much no one here, I am one happy witch.
However, it's nearly noon and that means one thing. Lunch time. You'd be surprised how many people like to eat here. I mean, yeah, it's amazing food but our location isn't that convenient. And I never thought the working class really felt like having a relaxing lunch in a cozy shop when their day is hectic and stressful and they're always on the edge, and whatnot. Oh, who am I to say what the real working class would like? I'm a waitress. That doesn't count for anything.
The group of 3 that just entered looks around. I glide over to them. I've done this waaayyyy too many times to not try and have fun with it. Besides, we get a lot of the same people through here- the Regulars, if you will- and I had never seen these people before. I can afford to make them think I'm weird. "Welcome to Madame Farley's!" I greet warmly.
This seems to put a smile on their faces. Oh, good. This means they will be tolerable guests. I hate it when they're rude. I HATE it. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it. The rudeness rubs off on me rather easily and then I tend to pass it on to the other guests. They, in turn, are rude right back to me, and that just ruins everyone's day. Clearly, this has happened to me quite a few times. And I hate it. So much.
"Please, allow me to show you to a table."
"Oh, could you please seat us somewhere in the back, we may be a bit noisy and don't want to disturb anyone else." One of the witches smiles shyly at me. No problem, I suppose.
"Sure, right this way." In the most secluded spot I point to a table. They take their seats and I conjure up some menus for them. "Can I get you any kind of beverage?"
They each tell me they would like tea so I leave them to look over the menus. I make my way to the back, maneuvering through the maze of chairs and tables. I do like this place because it really is cozy and homey, but it's a bit cramped. Oh well. No use complaining over it.
The next hour passed relatively quickly. More and more witches and wizards came in and had tea together or a nice little meal. I'm the only waitress today so I have to take care of everyone. Two and a half years of dealing with this makes it easier than it sounds, though. Besides, compared to those busy weekend evenings when everyone is free to bustle about and decide to have dinner- all at the same time, mind you- this is really nothing.
As the end of everyone's lunch hour neared, the crowd thinned out and the place became less noisy. I like this part the best- cleaning up after people is a lot better than waiting on them. Not that I like cleaning up after people. I don't. But picking up a few dishes or wiping down tables admittedly sounds much better than getting anything and everything that every customer desires.
Right now there are only a few people here. A young, giggling couple is sitting by the front windows. A middle-aged witch, one of our regulars, is curled up in a corner sipping on some tea and reading a rather thick book. By the way, I did make that tea myself, thank you. And she loves it. She's asked for her tea pot to be refilled twice now. See? I'm not completely hopeless. I might have a lowly job that absolutely consumes my life, but I can make great tea.
Merlin. I really am a loser sometimes. I'm bragging about tea. Tea. Anyone can make tea.
Anyway, there's also an older wizard reading the Daily Prophet and munching on some biscuits and tea. The tea I made. Yup. Oh- and the group of three that came in earlier.
I pick up the last plate and glace over the restaurant. The chairs are pushed in, tables are wiped down, and everything seems to be in order. All I have to do is make sure these people have whatever they need and I'll be free until the next customer comes in.
Taking my time, I make my way over to the adorably sickening couple in the front. Don't get me wrong- I think it's sweet and cute to have that significant other. But when they're giggling like five-year-olds and just giving each other pecks on the cheek every 3 seconds, it's kind of weird. Maybe it's just me.
"Is there anything I can get for you two? Are you all taken care of?" I smile as warmly at them as I can.
All they do is nod and giggle again. I didn't say something funny, did I? Whatever.
With the reading witch in sight, I walk over to the secluded corner. I can officially say this is her corner because whenever she comes in, this is the only place she can sit. And she comes in rather often.
She seems to be immersed in her reading so I clear my throat as to not startle her. "Excuse me, is there anything you would like? More tea, perhaps?" Say yes to the tea! Please!
Silence answers me.
Umm… ok. I guess she's a bit too absorbed in whatever that book is. I look at the cover- Ancient Runes! Second Century Edition. Oh. Wow. I could never get a hang of that stuff. It was all the same to me in Hogwarts and now that I don't have to deal with it anymore, I realize that I do not miss it at all. Not one bit.
Well, since she's too into Runes to hear me, I turn on my heel and take a step.
"Oh!" I hear her cry from behind me. The sound startles me and I jump. "I'm sorry, dear. Didn't mean to startle or ignore you!" She looks a bit frightful, as if she thinks I'm going to kick her out or something. Yeah- cause I'm that mean. Or mean at all. Sure.
"Don't worry about it, it's fine. Really! I just wanted to know if you needed anything. Can I get something for you?" I repeat. Sure, I have patience. But sometimes having to be so sickeningly sweet to customers bothers me. It really does. I wince. Hope she didn't catch that.
"You're so kind, dear. Could you get me another refill of this magnificent tea? That would be great."
"Of course!" And like a little kid, a grin comes on my face. I feel a lot better for some reason. Why? Oh, yeah. My tea kicks butt. I took the tea pot.
After giving her new tea, I make sure the wizard was content. 3 down. 1 to go. Then I'll be free!
"Do you guys need anything? Any refills?" The group looks up at me with grins. Um… that really is a bit unnerving. I hesitantly smile back, not really understanding what exactly is so great to be smiling about.
"Sorry!" The wizard exclaims. I guess he realized how alarmed I was. "We were just deep in conversation and- " he looked around the restaurant. "Woah! I didn't even realize we've been here for so long!"
I must say, this one is interesting. He just seems so…. so… lost. "It's fine. You have nothing to worry about."
"Oh, good," says one of the witches with a sigh of relief. "I thought you were going to kick us out for being too loud!" They all laugh together. Did I miss something funny? I'm not mean! I was actually in the middle of being sickeningly nice so I have no clue how they got the impression that I would actually-
"Hey! Maybe she would know!" The other witch says excitedly to the other two. Looking at me, "Do you happen to know if there is a joke shop around here?"
I give them a funny look. Umm… everyone around here knows that the twins' shop is just a few blocks away. I mean EVERYONE. Seriously. If you weren't the one buying some kind of prank, you were the one being pranked. Well- maybe not everyone is pranking or getting pranked but they sure do know the shop is there.
I must be looking at them weird because the witch starts whispering to the other. "Sorry! I must have blanked out," I explain sheepishly, "Of course there's a place around here. Weasleys' Wizards Wheezes. There's a huge sign outside the shop so you can't miss it. Just be careful," I warn as I conjure a piece of parchment and a quill. Taking my time, as there is nothing better to do and a messy map is rather pointless, I put as many details as I can manage. "There- that should do." They smile brightly and give their thanks.
Wow. Now there's two people I wouldn't mind seeing. The Weasley twins made me laugh to end back in Hogwarts. Now that we're out of school, I used to see them here and there. But now that I think about it, I haven't seen them for nearly six months. I feel my smile falter. What's wrong with me? I loved them! I still do. Whenever I had a problem I went to them for help. Always. Sure, I had Alicia and Angelina but they always had problems of their own and I never quite felt comforted. Of course I love them, too, but I ended up helping them more than they helped me. Not that it bothers me. The point is- whenever I had a problem, Fred and George were always there for me. Especially if it was a boy problem. Oh, did they have fun when I had one of those.
I feel a goofy smile creep on my face. I remember in my fourth year I was dumped by my boyfriend of a year. Thomas. Oh yes- on the eve of our first anniversary he decided to cheat on me. It wasn't enough to only cheat on me, but he had to brag and tell half the school the next day. The day that would have been our anniversary. He told half the school. The other half found out via rumors.
You can imagine my reaction. I skipped out on a week of classes to stay in my bed crying my eyes out. My friends did more than enough to console me. Alicia and Angelina hunted down one of my friends from each class to retrieve my missed assignments for me. Without my knowing, they pulled two all-nighters in a row to do my work for me. To say I was surprised would be the understatement of the century. I really do love them.
The twins had a batch of untested pranks. They were rather sick of using themselves as test dummies so the opportunity was used to the fullest. Thomas was pelted with water balloons, hexed to mumble incoherently and had all of his hair fall out. Of course he used a spell to grow it back out. To his dismay, he was bald the next day, too. For two and a half weeks, countless other things seemed to ruin everything for him. The twins refused to stop until he came to apologize.
He finally approached me after nearly three weeks of not saying a word to me. I couldn't help but giggle when I noticed he was a bright shade of pink. He apologized as nicely as he could. The twins thought he could have done better but I thought he did well enough by not stomping off. I admittedly was giggling at his lovely new skin color throughout his entire speech.
Oh. And Oliver. Oliver definitely beat the pee out of Thomas. I saw him a week and a half after the break-up ( I was still in my bed until then) and he was still bruised underneath his eye and on his chin.
I absolutely love all of them. To my embarrassment I realize that there's a huge grin plastered on my face at this point. Sure, after Thomas I find it really hard to trust anyone in a relationship, but the group really made me feel a ton better. I'm pretty sure I'm the luckiest witch in the world to have such amazing friends. My smile falters. Then again, thanks to my workaholic ways, I haven't seen them for the longest time. It's not that I don't want to see them. I do. It's just that by the time work is over, I'm completely worn out and all I want is to curl up in bed and sleep. Oh, Merlin. I have no life. Early to bed. Early to rise.
I stand up from the chair I had been using. It's settled. I don't care how worn out I get. By the end of today I will march over to the twins' shop and catch up on everything.