[OOM] Dinner and the Seine

[honourbyname]

Dinner is amazing.

Flammekueche, it turns out, is actually really, really tasty. And kind of pretty too.

Plus? It smells delicious.

They order a large rectangle of it, and between the three of them, it doesn't take too long to disappear. After a full day's worth of tourist activities, it's easy to work up quite the appetite, so it comes to Albus as no surprise.

Once dinner has been consumed and paid for, Albus checks his watch to be sure that they're on schedule for their last tourist activity of the day: a cruise along the Seine.



The day has really led to a beautiful evening. The sky is clear and the sun is just setting, bursting with deep oranges, yellows and blues behind the silhouettes of ornate buildings and bridges.

Down below, along the river, there are a number of boats waiting to take passengers.

Albus is excited.

(He even goes a little snap-happy with his camera in anticipation, taking over Scorpius' previous job.)

Comments

[golden_lyre]

"They wanted to know where the boat was going," Orpheus says, pulling his arm back and giving Scorpius a little shove in the direction of his boyfriend.

[honourbyname]

Albus gives Scorpius much more than a glance.

Really, does he actually expect him to make an apology? For what was clearly just a joke?

That's ... weird.

[alsoagreengrass]

Scorpius stumbles toward Albus after being shoved.

And then takes a hasty step back for the look he's getting.




" - See, you should have taught me to flirt in French," he says, turning to Orpheus and crossing his arms over his chest.

He also pouts, just slightly.

"I don't think he likes me anymore."

[golden_lyre]

"It's bad form to flirt with only half a couple. I hope you were planning on spreading the love."

He arches an eyebrow as he looks at the two of them.

"Okay, you two have from here to the gangplank to work this out, because I'm not getting on that boat with you until you're all...adorable again."

Not that he intends to be on the cruise anyway...

[honourbyname]

Albus turns his attention to Orpheus now, shaking his head.

All right. So he didn't mean to side-eye Scorpius, but he's confused, okay!

"Um. It's okay," Albus says. "Everything's okay."

[alsoagreengrass]

Scorpius is very confused too!

His gaze darts to Albus again, then sighs.

"Everything's okay," he echoes.

He's just awful when it comes to flirting, apparently! Took it too far with the flouncing off, probably.

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus looks from one to the other of them, sighs, and then quite suddenly, grins, flinging an arm around each of their shoulders.

"Great! Then let's get our cruise on."

[honourbyname]

Yes.

Perhaps the cruise will dissipate the weirdness!

Finally the ship is accepting passengers, and the line filters in through the doors without delay, much faster than the line for the Catacombs had been, that's for sure.

(And it isn't as long either.)

[alsoagreengrass]

Scorpius grins, too. A small and slight grin, but a grin!

(And tries not to glance worriedly at his boyfriend again.)

"'Let's get our cruise on?'"

He shakes his head with his tiny grin, already shuffling toward the gangplank with the rest of the line.

They're nearly there when he risks another look at his quiet boyfriend.



" - Can't you give me one line in French?" he asks Orpheus again, as his feet hit the gangplank.

Something to make it all better!

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus laughs at that as he shuffles them toward the boat. "What do you want to say?"

[alsoagreengrass]

"Uhm."

Well.

"'Will you sit next to me on the boat?'"

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus pretends to think seriously about this before offering, "Voulez-vous asseoir près de moi sur le bateau?"

Or so says Google Translate.

[honourbyname]

Honestly, it's hard to pretend he can't hear Scorpius and Orpheus talking when he's walking beside them, one of Orpheus' hands shoving him toward the boat.

But he does smile a little, a secret sort of smile to himself, and says nothing to show that he's listening.

[alsoagreengrass]

Scorpius, who pays no heed to secret smiles, has left himself with very little time to practice. Tickets are about to be exchanged and the boat boarded.

"Voulez-vous asseoir près de moi sur le bateau?" he's muttering to himself as they reach the man who takes their tickets.

He'll ask Albus as soon as they're past him and won't be holding up the line by doing so.

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus smirks a bit to himself and repeats, "Voulez-vous asseoir près de moi sur le bateau?" to help with pronunciation.

[alsoagreengrass]

His pronunciation is a bit better the next couple of mutters, thanks to Orpheus.

And, as soon as they've handed off their tickets to the guard, Scorpius pulls Albus off to the side.

"Uhm. Voulez-vous ass- asseoir près de moi sur le bateau?"

[honourbyname]

Okay, it's really cute what Scorpius does.

And while Albus is by no means an expert in French, his skills limited to simple words like 'yes', and 'no' and 'thank you' and 'my name is Albus Potter and I go to Hogwarts', he can appreciate Scorpius' efforts. Especially when they sound pretty convincing.

Albus nods, reaching for the other boy's hand.

"Oui."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus laughs at that, pleased that things are going better.

"Why don't you two head up to the upper deck? I'm going to get a drink first."

[alsoagreengrass]

He said oui! He still has a boyfriend!

Scorpius grins brightly, threading his fingers with Albus'.

"Right, we'll meet you up there," he calls to Orpheus as he tugs his boyfriend toward the stairs that lead to the upper deck.

"So, uhm - What was the whole look before about?"

He has to ask. Blame the Ravenclaw in him.

[honourbyname]

He does, doesn't he?

Oh, Scorpius.

Albus shakes his head, only briefly glancing over his shoulder at Orpheus before allowing himself to be led up the steps.

"Well," he says slowly, "what was with the dramatic flouncing?"

[alsoagreengrass]

Scorpius shrugs.

"I was messing about. You were supposed to, er - I don't know, come and snog me or something."

[honourbyname]

"I might be a Ravenclaw, but I don't read minds," Albus points out, amused.

"If you want me to snog you, sometimes the best thing to do is just ... um. Ask, maybe."

You know he's horrible at this stuff!

[alsoagreengrass]

" - Ask. You want me to ask?

"What, like - 'Oh, Albus, please snog me'?"

Scorpius wrinkles his nose just slightly.

It sounds weird. Asking his boyfriend to snog him. Too weird.

[honourbyname]

Albus laughs.

"Okay, fine. Maybe - um. Maybe that's not the best idea, but ... at least make it obvious."

So he can grasp that social cue a little better!

[alsoagreengrass]

"Right. I could do obvious," Scorpius says, laughing.

Just before launching himself at Albus. With puckered lips and kissy noises.

(Well. He waits until they've reached the upper deck, anyway.

Tumbling down the stairs? Would not make for a romantic cruise along the Seine.)