thecapitol | [closed]

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WHO| Draco Malfoy and Momoko Ryugasaki
WHAT| Draco and Momoko are classy, and therefore, having a little...tea party of sorts.
WHERE| one of the more calming restaurants in the Capitol.
WHEN| an afternoon this weekend
WARNINGS| none right now.

As things went, being told that he was going to meet one of his fellow Tributes for tea was actually one of the better things he'd been forced to do. All Effie's idea, he was fairly certain, probably because Momoko actually had manners. Despite having offed herself last Arena. Better than how he went, though, so he wasn't about to say anything on the matter.

Instead, he waited for her in the surprisingly normal teahouse, wondering how it managed to straddle both Western and Eastern influences simultaneously. At least they made good tea.

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"You have a name for people who can't do magic? A ridiculous name, for that matter. ...What do you mean by magic, exactly?" she asked hesitantly, thinking over some the strangeness of the past few months. "A Manor. That's rather old-fashioned," she said, unable to think of what else to say. "I mean, I like old-fashioned things, though.

"If I had an ally strong enough to hold someone else down I would waste my time with needles," Momoko said, then added thoughtfully, "Unless I really disliked whoever it was, I suppose."

She smiled. "I never had to try very hard at school either, excepting for physical education and then I didn't bother to try at all." And she still couldn't bring herself to quite regret that, despite the consequences of that choice now. "How much more school did you have to go, before you were--before you came here?"

"Well, it's better than 'boring', I'd think," he shrugged, offering her a small quirk of a smile. It was almost apologetic in a way - he'd forgotten for a moment that he was surrounded by Muggles (and that his father would have his head for this if he knew) - and simultaneously smug. "But I mean magic-magic. Like proper...floating things round, conjuring stuff up magic." That was the best way he could think to describe it, at least. Too bad he couldn't just show her. But he preened a little at the reminder of the Manor. "We're fairly old-fashioned; it fits.

"I suppose you've a point there. I think it would be sort of-" Draco tongued the back of his teeth, hesitating before shaking his head and taking another sip of his tea. The topic was a bit too horrific for a tea like this; and with a proper lady such as herself, no less. One thing his parents couldn't complain about: she definitely had manners.

"Physical education? We never even had it. Thank Merlin for that, I think," he sniggered a little. "I had another year and a half, though. What about you?"

"You do magic?" she said, unable to help the tinge of doubt in her voice. She'd seen many strange things since arriving in the Capitol, but 'magic-magic' was a bit far.

"Very traditional family then?" she asked, letting the other horrible thread of conversation fade off. This was hardly the place to be discussing such things, and anyway the logistics were just too complicated.

"No physical education? What kind of school was that?" she asked, eyes wide. That sounded heavenly. "I had about the same left, but I can't say I care too much about finishing."

He just tipped his head to one side, a tiny smirk playing at his mouth as he just shrugged. Better to keep that part quiet until it actually came up. Besides, she didn't seem to believe him anyway, though it seemed obvious enough to him. But to each their own.

"Something like that. I'm not sure I'd actually know what a progressive sort of family was like to compare it to. But in the sense that we do things traditionally, yes. We're traditional," Draco told her, offering another shrug. "What of yours?"

He laughed a little, leaning forward slightly, "Not the kind you could attend, sadly." And that was probably enough for that. If she didn't believe he did magic, then she probably wouldn't believe that his school was for magic, too. "Oh no? Why's that?"

Momoko frowned at his nonanswer. She had no fondness for people who played it coy, but she shrugged it off as a typical boy's silly storytelling. It hardly mattered.

"My family isn't...traditional, no," she said slowly. "It's kind of a long story, really, but before I came here I was living with my useless father at my senile grandmother's house in the country." She sighed. "I had to walk for an hour to get to a city with decent shops.

"Was it a boy's school?" she asked curiously, that being the first reason that came to mind. "I never had much interest in school is all. I don't have any real desire for a career or anything, I just want to live alone and in luxury. If I have too, for that sort of life, I'll go back, but otherwise, why bother?"

Better to let her think what she would, and be able to brag further when he actually had the chance. To be quite frank, Draco was thoroughly embarrassed by his lack of magic. Not only did he have to force himself to get used to doing things on his own, but he had to fight hand to hand. It was horrid.

"That's horrid. You didn't have some sort of more convenient transportation?" He hesitated, frowning as he tried to think of the word, "Cars, or what you have?" Honestly, with that sort of travel time, Draco had never been happier that he had Apparition and the Floo Network back home. Even if it just proved to him now more than ever that Muggles were terribly inefficient.

Weighing his options, Draco wondered if it would be worse to lie and say it was, or to tell the truth and have her scoff again. A magic school, of all things. Instead he just nodded a little, opting for a half-lie of sorts, "Can you imagine it? Living with the same blokes for seven years. I've seen far too much of some of them." He gave a dismissive flap of one hand, a stilted sort of gesture. "You ought to marry rich, I think. It'd suit you well. Though I don't know how easy it'd be to find a rich enough bloke around where you live."

"Well, I take the train into the actual city itself," she explained. "It's a long walk to the train station, is the thing, and then of course the train ride itself. Not that I have many other restraints on my time of course."

Momoko grimaced with faint distaste. "It sounds horrid. Did you at least have your own room?" She drained her tea and stared at the tea leaves in the cup for a moment, amused at the thought. "I don't know if I'd enjoy marriage, unless perhaps we had different houses." If he was rich, that wouldn't be an issue. "Or if I became a Black Widow." Just a joke, of course. "Maybe instead I could find some dying old man without a family and convince him to make me his heir."

He just shook his head a little, the gesture sympathetic, and took another sip of his tea, hesitating before cracking a wry smirk. "Not at all. Shared with at least three others at any given point in time. Thankfully, my roommates were decent people, but it's really the point of the thing, I'd think. Point of the thing indeed; he was better off with roommates like them. Maybe not Crabbe or Goyle - they left something to be desired - but Theo and Blaise, at the very least.

Vaguely curious as to if she saw anything of any interest in her tea leaves - and then remembering that the entire matter was a crock and a waste of time unless you were joking about it - Draco shrugged. "Well, I'm sure you could suggest it. The house bit, at least. Though I could probably see you being a Black Widow as well. One of my friends, his mother's got quite the reputation. There's no proving it, of course, but you know how tongues wag." A pause, and another smirk. "I'll bet you could manage it fairly well. There's a market for that, if it's what you were into."

"Awful," Momoko declared simply. "I couldn't have stood it. At least here you have your own separate bedroom. He was nice enough, but I can't imagine sharing a bedroom with Tony, for example."

Momoko smiled once again, pouring herself another cup. "Well, if you know someone with experience perhaps you could give me some pointers. I certainly have plenty of rich people to choose from here. I don't know if I could manage it, though," she added with a wry grin, not at all insulted by his implication that she'd make a good domestic murderer. She'd started the joke, after all. "I've only ever killed people who were already dying, so far."

"I don't think I'd ever get any sleep," he pointed out mildly, "At least back at school, we could-" Draco hesitated, wary of mentioning magic again. He backtracked, shrugging instead, "We had no trouble blocking each other out if we wanted some time to ourselves. I don't think that'd be nearly so possible around here. Especially not with the parties going on constantly."

His smirk only grew a little when it seemed as though she was willing to go on with it. It seemed an appropriate little joke for the setting anyway, what with all the murder and what have you. Unsavoury activities. "Well, who's to say you won't be able to find someone who fits both bills? Rich, and already dying? It just makes it all the more plausible that he just...passed away conveniently, anyway. We'll have to pick someone out first, you know. Before I can offer too much as far as advice goes."

"The parties," said Momoko darkly. "They're the worst part. When we're in the Capitol, I mean. And we have to go to them, too." She wrinkled her nose at the reminder of that particular responsibility.

"So there would need to be research," said Momoko thoughtfully, still grinning. "Scout out prospects, ask for medical history, that sort of thing. If real dating was like that, it'd all be a lot more organized." Not that Momoko had any experience in that field. "Or we could find someone nobody would miss, who everybody hates. I could convince someone else to take care of him, no evidence to point towards me."

"Some of them are all right, but I agree - it's really the obligation of the thing that's the worst of it all. If we had the opportunity to opt out of some of them, and not just because we were at another party, then I think I'd be a lot more inclined to attend. There's only so long I feel like obliging social niceties, after all," Draco rolled his eyes, his own tone growing dry for a moment.

"Oh, without a doubt. You'd have to go the distance on the thing, otherwise it'd just fall horribly flat. You'd get caught in a second, or else it would go awry in some way." He shrugged mildly, tipping his head to one side. "As long as you mourned properly after the thing, had a good alibi and all that... I think you'd be all right after the fact. Can't bounce back too quickly afterwards."

"I don't think they understand the word 'options' here," said Momoko, her voice equally dry. "Unless it's an option between a terrible outfit for the terrible party or an even worse outfit for the terrible party."

She tapped a finger against her lips as she pondered. "I could do mourning, although having to wear black for that long would be annoying. But I'm good at pretending to be sad. It's more about the sounds and the expression than the tears." She demonstrated, briefly, though quietly so as not to attract attention, ducking her head and letting her shoulders shake before straightening again. "See? I have a knack."

"Is that really an option, though? I'd almost rather just go naked. Though with our luck, that would start a trend in nudity amongst Tributes, to help them stick out like sore thumbs even more than before."

He tipped his head to one side as he watched her little display, amused and intrigued. "You are good at that. I suppose we could let the mourning go. Maybe just an armband or some such. You could hardly sacrifice style just for something like that."

"Oh don't say that," Momoko said quickly. "You'll jinx us all." It wasn't even a joke, really. She wouldn't put anything past the Capitol fashionistas.

Momoko shrugged modestly. "I have practice. With enough tears I could get any amount of money out of my father when I needed it." She nodded. "An armband, very classy. And perhaps a veil, just for a short time. Lace is always in style."

He shivered. She was right, after all; with talk like that, they'd probably end up in very little if the Stylists could help it. Best not to let anyone overhear that.

"My mother would probably agree. I imagine she's already picked up some form of fascinator for if my father passes at some inopportune moment. At least, I wouldn't put it past her. She's terribly practical," Draco said, unable - unwilling, more like - to keep the thread of adoration for his mother from his voice.

"She sounds like a very sensible woman," said Momoko, pleased that Draco came from good stock. Nothing like the hopeless messes that were her own parents.

"She most definitely is," he told her, just as pleased. It showed in his face, his body language. Then he shifted a little, "More tea?"

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