It was quite a warm day today, at least that's what it looked it should be, with minimal cloud cover and lots of blue sky showing up above. Clara smiled, always imagining what it would be like to feel the sun's warmth on her skin, the coolness of the breeze in her hair. She didn't mind, really, it was just one more thing to ponder.

She turned a corner and headed straight into the bright atmosphere of the famous Diagon Alley Ice Cream Parlour, run by the Fortescue's, who happened to be lovely people. It was just one of those days that needed ice-cream. Quite literally. Clara bought herself a caramel, chocolate and rainbow sundae, with lilac-coloured sauce drizzled over the top and down the sides. It looked delicious.

Clara grabbed the thin metal spoon and started digging her way into the mass of sweet, frozen goodness. It was devine. Now, the one last thing to make this little trip complete was a book, so Clara dug around in her small handbag for her latest novel and flipped it open to her book-marked page. She was soon lost in it's enchanting scribbles, her mind buzzing while she devoured both the ice cream and the story.

Darcie was walking through Diagon Alley after going to Flourish and Blotts to look at the latests textbooks that she would need ot put on the reading list for her student's this year, when she saw someone that she thought that she knew in the window of the ice cream shop there.

Thinking that she hadn't actually been in there in a while she smiled and walked inside, ordering an ice cream, a mixture of marshmallow, chocolate and lollypop flavour and she couldn't wait to eat it when she sat down.

Seeing that the lady that she knew was reading, Darcie bit her lip and wondered if it would be polite to interrupt her, since she didn't know her well, and she blushed slightly as she walked up to her.

"Uhm, excuse me, I...I don't know if you remember me but I'm Darcie Vane, may I sit with you for a moment?" she asked nervously.

Deva looked up in surprise when someone talked to her. She had been reading intently about the way the war was going. So far, she still couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. She then grinned as she saw it was Darcie.

"Oh, come now, Darcie, I haven't forgotten you," she said with a small chuckle.

Then she gestured to the chair in front of her. "Please, sit," she offered.

She smiled at the ice. "This place sure brings back memories, doesn't it?" Deva asked, thinking of all the times she had been here with her friends from Hogwarts during the summer before they went back to school.

She missed those times.

Darcie was very glad to hear that Deva hadn't forgotten her, she had come to think of her as quite a good friend and she didn't want to be so easily forgotten by somebody who she hoped felt the same way about her, it was odd the way that they kept running into each other.

Smiling happily she sat down opposite Deva with a smile, setting her ice cream down on the table, her hands cold and a little damp from holding it for too long.

"I'm glad, after all, we seem to be seeing an awful lot of each other, not like thats a bad thing I mean, it's rather nice to see a familiar face around." she said with a large smile

Biting down on her lolly she broke the candy and placed the stick in a napkin which she would put in the bin later. Thinking about the memories that this place held she nodded:

"Yes, I always used to come to this place as a child, I haven't been back here in a long time though..." she smiled "What flavours have you got there?"

Deva let a chuckle out. "Indeed," she said, "We do keep bumping into each other. And I'm glad you don't mind that, because you seem pretty great, and it's relaxing and easy to talk to you. Not very many people are like that, you know."

Deva noticed the lollypop in her hand that she finished and then the lollypop shaped ice-cream in Darcie's ice. "You like your lolly, don't you?" she asked, beaming at Darcie.

She then sighed. "Yes, it's been all too long since I've been here. I've missed this place. It really is wonderful. Not to mention how good the ice is," she added importantly in a joking fashion.

She looked down at her ice-cream with three different flavours. She really loved ice-cream, and these were just amazing.

"I have Oreo, yup, caramel, check, and lastly, but not least, yummy, beautiful bananaflavoured ice-cream," Deva said, licking her exaggeratedly around her mouth, before taking a bite with her spoon.

"Yummy," she said with a big grin, "And what are your flavours, except the lolly?"

Darcie beamed happily when she was complimented so, although she loved them, she very rarely got them, mostly because she didn't go seeking for compliments so people never really got the occassion to tell her things that they liked about her, but Darcie didn't mind. She knew she was appreciated really.

"Why thank you Deva, it means a lot to me that you think that! I think that it's because that both of us are so nice that we get along so well together, it helps."

Digging into her ice cream Darcie sighed contendedly with the lovely flavour of the marshmallow ice cream, it tasted so good, but she could tell that it was going to get very sickly.

"Oh yes I love lollies, they're so lovely, and sweet, they always put me in a good mood, especially the cherry ones, they're just delicious."

Listening intently to the different flavours that Deva had in her ice cream Darcie smiled and thought that it sounded rather nice, she liked the oreo biscuits, and decided next time she was here she would have to try the ice cream.

"That sounds lovely, I'll have to try the oreo flavour next time I'm here, I have mashmallow and chocolate flavour, although it's a bit sickly I think" she pouted.

Deva grinned. "Yes, well, great minds think alike, kind people are kind together," she said in a 'reasonable' manner.

Her grin widened when Darcie took a taste from her ice. She then nodded.

"Cherry is the best," she agreed.

Deva wasn't so big on lollies, only those who's stick was made of plastic and not that paperlike constistance. She hated the way the stick softened up and tasted awful in her mouth.

"Oh yes, Oreo is amazing. You must try it next time," she said with a big nod, "And, yeah, it might get sickening, but it sounds very good when you don't think too much about it."

She grinned and then saw a woman sitting at another table not far from them. She frowned. Wasn't that-?

"Hey, Darcie," Deva said, lowering her voice, "Isn't that the Head of Ravenclaw?" she asked.

She searched her mind to try to remember the name. "Clara, wasn't it?" she asked, "Should we wave her over?"

(OOC: OH... MY... GOD! I completely managed to overlook the post from Clara, the OPENING POST!! AAAh! Sorry Clara! Please join us now? )

((OOC: *Laughs* Oh Vildiekins! I was going to say! I thought it might have been something like that. It's okay ))

Clara glanced up from her book to rest her eyes a moment and take another large scoop from her sundae, when she finally noticed the presence of two of her co-workers sitting at a nearby booth, eating their own ice creams. She smiled softly at them, starting to feel a little awkward under the worried gaze of the Gryffindor Head.

Waving a little at the two - who she now remembered to be Darcie and Deva - she marked her page and shut her book with a soft tmp. Clara found she'd finished her ice cream so she left it on the table and shoved her book into her handbag before standing up and walking over to the two Professors.

"Hey!" She greeted, smiling broadly. "You liking the ice cream?"

Deva looked seriously at Clara when she walked over to them. "Indeed, the ice here is so exquisite," she said in an overly formal voice.

Then she grinned. "Nah, kidding. Or... Well, the ice is extremely good. But before I start rambling and completely forget that you're standing; would you like to join us?" she asked with a laugh in her tone.

She really wanted to get to know all the staff really, hoping that she wouldn't fall out with anyone of them. Also, she knew she could be a bit random at times, but she hoped that Clara wouldn't dislike her for it.

Darcie smiled lightly when she agreed with her that Cherry ice cream was the best, she thought so too and was very happy to have a fellow supporter, although she was sure that nobody would manage to love lollys as much as she did.

"You know what I like better than Ice Cream? You can probably guess, but those muggle ice lolly things that they make, they're lovely, especially those Solero ones." she said with a longing sigh.

Noticing that there was another Professor there also, Darcie nodded her head, hating to think that she had been rude towardsher by leaving her out and wanted to rectify this immediately.

Glad when Deva waved her over, she smiled warmly at her.

"Hey there Clara, I like mine, although I'm afraid that I might have gotten too many sickly flavours...it seems a shame to waste the ice cream though." she pouted.

Clara grinned and nodded knowingly. "I've done that before too! You choose a combination of the sweetest, yummiest ice creams ever and then... you can't finish it because if you do you'll feel sick. It's quite a shame, really."

She pulled up a seat at Deva's suggestion and sat down, still smiling. She liked smiling. Clara set her bag down at her feet and then leaned forward, resting her chin upon her palms.

"So, ladies. Are we doing anything before term starts and we get flooded with kids?"

Deva nodded vigorously. "That is true, too sweet can get sickening," she said with a serious look, and then grinned again.

She thought about it. What could they do? Have a party at the teacher's quarters? Go completely wild? Or, just a slow and nice night in Hogsmeade at Three Broomsticks or Hog's Head?

"Well, there are several things we could do. We could have a nice night in Hogsmeade and get to know each other in a proper manner, or we could have a wild night in Hogsmeade and get to truly know each other," Deva said with a joking grin.

Clara laughed out loud, remembering her night out on the town with Nora and Alcy. "We could do both in one night," she suggested. "As in, start off slow at the school, and then go crazy and get completely trashed down in the village!"

Although Clara wasn't much of a fan of getting drunk, sometimes it was good fun to let your hair down and go completely mad once in a while. "What do you think?" She winked slyly.

Darcie smiled lightly and when everyone seemed to agree with her she felt a little bit better, and less nervous, relaxing a little when she was asked what she planned to do before she went to start the term at Hogwarts Darcie smiled;

"Well I think I'm going to have to go and stock up on some potions and some more parchment and...oh...oh is that not what you meant?" she said with a large blush.

The talk of going out for a drink made Darcie a little nervous and she realised that she had never 'been out with the girls' before in that manner and she didn't know if it was really her thing.

"Uhm, I don't know, I mean, I'm not really a big alcohol drinker, but I'll happily come to make sure that we all get home okay, if...if you want me to."

Deva grinned at Darcie. The woman was so cute and innocent. She obviously ddn't go out much with friends and stuff like so, not that Deva minded that at all. The last time she had been out with friends... Deva instantly willed the memory away. She did not want to think about that. It was way too hard for her still.

"Of course we want you to join us!" Deva said flabbergasted, "You're a part of our team, Darcie, the Hogwarts-Staff-Team!"

Deva rolled her eyes at herself. "Okay, forget I said that. The wonderful taste of this ice-cream is going straight to my head, I guess," she said with a sigh.

"As for alcohol-drinking, one does not need alcohol to have fun. I'm gonna join in on being very much not drunk, how about that, Darcie? Sound like fun?" she asked, a big grin on her face, turning her eyes into slits.