Cages or wings? Which do you prefer?
Ask the birds. Fear or love, baby?
Don't say the answer. Actions speak louder than words

Early Evening August 11th, 1890 — A Hillside near Athens, Greece
Zachariah Binns

The few kisses exchanged had Jo tethering on the edge of desirous insanity. Determined as she was to take this at his pace (more out of fear of scaring him off than anything else), she was enjoying the slow torture of getting to know Zach without the fear of someone spoiling their fun with rumors and scandal. There was always someone lurking around the corner back home, someone poised and ready to ruin their lives with one whispered conversation. Now, Jo didn't much care for her own reputation, as that was in shambles already. Zach, however, had his shop and livelihood to worry about. Jo wasn't quite ready to destroy his life by publicly associating with him.

The sun was only just beginning its descent as they shared a late evening picnic overlooking the ocean. A friend of Jo's had mentioned this spot as a magnificent spot to watch the sunset, and, well, they weren't wrong. A half eaten picnic existed between them as well as an open bottle of wine, and Jo was delightfully tipsy. "I forgot how delicious Grecian wine is," she told him with a smile. "Thank you for remembering to grab it."

Jo then dug around in the bag carelessly tossed to the edge of the blanket. "I brought this deck of cards, one of the sailors gave it to me on the trip to Egypt. Do you want to play?" The game was simple, or so Jo thought. They would start with five cards and work to play them all before their opponent played theirs. The new card played would have to be the same shape or color as the one played before theirs.

OOC: Thank you Ophelia Devine for making up the game!

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   Billie Farrow

They were alone again, and Zach's nervous energy was near to the brim. Not that he was afraid of Jo, no. He just feared he would mess something up; he never had been the best at being in the company of women in more than a professional capacity. It made him nervous to think his inexperience and awkward way of doing things would cause Jo to withdraw.

"It truly is. Even more delicious than Italian wine," Which truly was saying something. Zach wasn't quite as tipsy as Jo was. He tended to slowly sip wine, which was likely for the best. He was a rather silly drunk. It also helped that he had eaten a good deal.

His gaze turned back to the beautiful sunset, a smile on his face. They really were at a lovely spot.

"Oh! I'd be delighted to play. As long as you show me how it's done."

Zach loved games. In fact, a corner of his shop was devoted to them. There were small tables with seats squashed around them where customers could play gobstones, wizard's chess, exploding snap, and a variety of other wizard and muggle board and card games. He sometimes even allowed the village children to borrow them.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

"I've never had Italian wine, if you can believe that," Jo laughed. In fact, Jo had yet to travel to the country at all. It wasn't an intentional avoidance, but rather that fate hadn't taken her there just yet. Perhaps someday they would compare Italian and Greek wine together.

She quickly went through explaining the game and dealt the cards. There were some inappropriate cards in the deck, but Jo fully intended on blaming the sailor for such additions if he asked. Plus, it wasn't as though Zach had to play such risque cards. He could simply keep drawing until he found a more simple card if that was what he so chose. Jo wouldn't mind an easy win.

The face up card was a red diamond, an unfortunate color for the cards in her hand, but she did have a yellow diamond to play. The question read, 'what always brings a smile to your face?' And, for once, Jo was thankful for the more innocent opening. It would be better to warm him up to the game than throw him in head first.

She thought for a moment on her answer, then said, "traveling, for sure." It was a basic answer, she knew, but it was the undeniable truth. "I've always loved exploring, even as a kid. I would wander around London aimlessly whenever possible." Eventually, her parents had ceased trying to stop her, for Jo always made her way home.

Before he could answer the question himself, Jo quickly interrupted, "I forgot to mention, if you don't want to answer the question you have to take a drink."

  

"Well, perhaps the next time our paths cross, I could arrange to have some on hand." Or they could next meet in Italy. Though, that was a faraway possibility. Jo was meant to be in Egypt for the foreseeable future.

Zach held tight to the cards he was dealt, his eyes surveying the questions, as well as the colored shapes. Most seemed rather harmless, but the one second from the right nearly had the poor man blushing. Hopefully, he wouldn't have a need to use it, even if that meant Jo won the game.

Zach was relieved the first question was simple. He wouldn't need to drink for something as simple as that. He smiled at Jo's answer. It was the expected one, though he loved to hear her speak of it, nonetheless. "You'll have to tell me sometime about the interesting things you discovered in London. I'm sure you strayed further than I ever did."

Now, it was his turn to answer.

You.

The thought skipped across his mind immediately, but he kept it tucked away. Zach didn't know how Jo would receive such a remark. Instead, he went with a safer answer, "Matching the exact right book with the exact right person." It was his passion, something he had knack for, and it was exhilarating when it was successful. "Though, I'm becoming rather fond of travel, as well."

He glanced down at his hand and thankfully found a yellow card with a circle on it. He place it down and read off the question. "If you were the opposite sex for one day, what would you do?" Zachariah blinked as he read it off, not quite sure how to answer. He hadn't really ever imagined himself as being able to function as a female, or, well, a traditional female. "I supposed I would spend a good deal of it trying to figure out how navigate in a skirt. I'm not so sure what else I would do that's terribly different. There are male and female bookshop owners."

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

"That would be great," Jo agreed despite knowing they wouldn't meet again for some time. It had taken a great deal of convincing and some selling of her soul to manage these five days away. Unless Zach visited her near Cairo it was unlikely they would see one another before the new year. Even then, Jo doubted she would have much free time until the winter months had passed.

"Oh, there's plenty to discover in London if you're looking." She had followed a treasure map during her last visit, after all. Granted, it led to more questions than answers, but she was pleased to investigate the next time she visited all the same. "I have a theory that Diagon Alley used to be far more expansive than it presently is, or there was a second similar location. I'd be happy to show you next time I'm in England." Jo wouldn't lead him to the end of the treasure — that was hers to claim alone — but they could examine the history if he was curious.

What would she do if she was a man for a day? Jo suppressed a laugh and kept her head down towards hed cards. The first thing she would do would be examine her new anatomy, if only to better understand why men thought with it so often. "Skirts are a nuisance," she replied, the hint of a laugh easily heard in her voice. "Men have always been lucky to have trousers."

Jo struggled to come up with an adequate answer for his question. For while men had a freedom most women only dreamt of, Jo was freer than them. "Try my hand at sailing, probably. Most sailors don't appreciate women on board their boats. Supposedly, it's ill luck."

The green circle card was next, and she played it with ease. 'What physical feature are you most complimented on?' "I've always been told I have really nice eyes," she shrugged.

  

"I would be exceedingly interested in learning more about that theory," he commented, eyes lighting up. A second location? More expansive? That certainly sounded like an fascinating find. He loved history, and, exploring it together was something he wished for more of. Thank Merlin, they still had a few days together.

"Sailing! Why that would be an adventure." Zach watched her for a moment; he could imagine her as a sailor. "Yes, seafaring superstitions are most interesting. Some have proven to be true, but I think women being ill luck is likely just a fantasy. I do believe there are lady pirates." Then again, pirates weren't exactly good luck.

"You do," he agreed, his gaze meeting hers. "They're a very unique shade of blue. They somewhat change, depending on the lighting." Zach's gaze lingered there for a few long seconds; they really were gorgeous. He then cleared his throat and answered the question himself. "I suppose my eyes are tolerable, as well." At least he'd heard ladies whisper about them in the shop before, but he wasn't about to reveal that bit of information to Jo.

Looking over his hand, he found both a green and a circle, but the one with the correct shape was the card he was actively trying to avoid. He laid the green star down and read off the question. "What is a bad habit you have?" Merlin, he had a lot of those, he supposed. Rambling being one of them.

"I have to constantly replace quills because I chew on them. I don't even realize I'm doing it sometimes."

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

There were female pirates, but those were far from the norm. Even Alfred had been skeptical of having a woman on board his ship, though he had eventually come around to the idea of an expedition. "Either way, I think I'd be more willing to take my chances if I were a man. Although, a friend of mine has been willing to discuss an expedition to find Avalon." Jo wasn't going to divulge the nature of her friendship with Alfred. Despite it being purely platonic, Zach somehow finding out about Alfred seeing her topless wasn't exactly attractive.

His commentary on her eyes had her taking a sip of her wine to hide her blush. Most men wouldn't have rambled about the shade of blue her eyes were, but then again Zach wasn't most men. "You do," she acknowledged with a warm smile. A faint hint of a blush was still on her cheeks. "They remind me of the sea in the Caribbean. Shockingly blue but with hints of green."

A bad habit? Merlin, Jo had hundreds of those. She raised her brow and quirked her head at his quill biting habit. Why on Earth would he bite a feather? "Better than biting your nails, I suppose," she shrugged, still somewhat skeptical. "I'm quick to assume things about people. It's a defensive mechanism, I think. I try not to, but it just happens sometimes." And not always for the better. The hand holding incident in Virginia was a prime example.

Jo had only one card to play next, and she knew it was bound to make him uncomfortable. However, she was competitive and refused to lose. Zach would understand, she hoped. The yellow star was played and it read, 'where is your favorite place to be kissed?' "Probably my neck, it's a hard choice."

  

"Avalon! Now that would be quite the expedition," he remarked. Though, he couldn't help but think that it would be a somewhat dangerous one. After all, the stories of those who tried didn't always have the happiest of endings. He secretly hoped that other pursuits would suitably occupy Jo's time.

It was Zach's turn to hide a strange expression when Jo described his eyes. He'd never heard anyone speak of them that way. He hid a bit behind his few cards, pretending as if he were just surveying them.

Jo's bad habit had him tilting his head. Yes, he could certainly see it. However, he idly wondered what it is she assumed about him. He shifted a bit in his seat, restraining himself from asking the question. "It probably keeps you safe, I suppose."

The next question had him going pink around the edges of his cheeks. Merlin, what sort of question was that? Poor Zach hadn't really ever given it much thought that one was allowed to kiss someone anywhere besides the lips, head, or cheek. Aside from the hand, he supposed. Clearing his throat, a nervous habit, his gaze slid to her slender neck. It certainly did look...kissable.

Fuck, it was his turn.

"Erm..." What was he supposed to say? Zachariah wasn't the most experienced kisser; he was usually drinking when it happened. "The...lips?"

To hide his embarrassment, he quickly looked back to his cards and paled at the fact that the question he'd been avoiding was the only one that he could play. Instead of doing so, he reached out and started drawing cards from the deck until he found something yellow. He immediately played it, and then cringed. It was also highly impolite! Too late now. Jo had already seen it.

"Have you, erm--" Merlin, spit it out. "Have you...ever swam naked?"

Who wrote these damn questions? He couldn't even look at Jo when he read it out and squeaked out a quick, "No," and took a swig of his drink anyways.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

"Yes, it would," Jo agreed cheerfully. The adventure was one that would need thorough planning and a steady access to funds, neither of which Jo had as of yet. Perhaps once this dig was over she would talk to Alfred about it again.

Jo giggle at the tension her card had created and took a drink to further avoid embarrassing him. She hadn't realized his inexperience stretched that far. Was he a virgin?! It wasn't entirely implausible, she supposed. In fact, it would likely make more sense given his naivete in joining her here. Merlin, what had she gotten herself into?

Has she ever swam naked? The question made Jo giggle again. Swimming nude was highly enjoyable, but not entirely practical. Her coworkers and she had dunked themselves in a nearby stream to cool off amd wash themselves after a steaming hot day. Should she answer that truthfully? Would the game know if she lied?

Rather than risk it, Jo raised her brow and took a drink of her wine, frowning when she realized her glass was empty. She quickly reached for the bottle and refilled her glass.

It was still her turn, however, and Jo had nothing to play in her hand. Damn, there went her easy win. She drew until she could put another card back down, this time a green diamond. It read: 'do you prefer rainy or snowy days?' To which, she answered easily, "it depends. I vastly prefer living somewhere warm than cold, so blizzards aren't my favorite. A quick flurry isn't the worst thing in the world...I would definitely pick rain if I had to choose."

  

Jo's decision to decline to answer had his mind somewhat racing. Should he have answered his own question at all? The giggle that accompanied her drinking led him think that she certainly had, which sent his imagination down a path that he hoped alcohol would steer him away from. While she drew more cards, Zach also refilled his glass and took another sip.

He'd played question games at school, but never one with such surprisingly racy questions.

Zach let out a sigh when Jo asked the next question, grateful it was a fairly benign one. He smiled at her answer. "I am grateful Scotland is fairly temperate. I can't imagine winters that are more harsh than what we experience in Hogsmeade. I shall have to agree. I also prefer rain, especially in the autumn. Those are wonderful days to spend by the fire." Slightly chilly, dreary.

Surveying his own cards, he noticed he had a few options, thanks to having to add quite a few to his hand. He laid down another green card and read off the question. "If you were able to choose your animagus form, which would you pick?" Well, that was certainly an interesting one. Zachariah appeared thoughtful and rubbed at the back of his neck, trying to decide how exactly to answer.

"I am not sure. Perhaps, a bird of some sort. That would make traveling much easier. No need for a portkey. Though, I do envy the shop cats at times. They live a life of only comfort. However, that might grow boring." Practical answers.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

Rain in London was common enough that Jo learned early on how to still adventure through all but the worst of storms. She would return home with her skirts sopping wet but happier than a clam for whatever discovery she made. However, none of those rainy days were spent sitting by the fire watching the dreariness. Jo was simply too restless for it. "That sounds nice," she commented without elaborating further. The weather wasn't what she wished to discuss with him.

"They must grow terribly bored." Being restrained to the same four walls was enough to drive a sane person crazy, nevermind a less intelligent creature. "I certainly wouldn't wish that upon myself." What animal Jo would choose, though, she was unsure. Zach had a point about birds being able to travel freely. However, the perks ended there. The rest of the list was considering how the poor birds were hunted.

"I think I'd choose a jaguar. Still a cat, but large and free to roam. King of the jungle." That felt more fitting at least, if not the perfect pick.

She glanced down towards her cards and played yet another green card. While she was reluctant to embarrass him further, her competitiveness refused to allow another drawing of cards. 'How was your first sexual experience?' "Mediocre, I guess." Jo shrugged, unsure of whether or not it was appropriate to elaborate to a virgin. Hopefully his would be better if they ever bit the bullet.

  

"I'm not sure house cats mind in the least. They are free to come and go, of course." Sometimes, he wished they wouldn't since they tended to bring in dead things or tracked in Merlin knows what. Then again, he hadn't exactly populated his shop with such creatures. Zach was fairly certain all of Hogsmeade was in on the little joke.

"Jaguars certainly are fierce," he commented. Something he was sure Jo embodied. He smiled at her, perhaps trying to imagine her as such, since one's animagus tended to take on some physical characteristics of the person tranforming. "Have you encountered one in your travels?" He hoped the answer was no, even though she had clearly lived to tell the tale.

The next card had Zach immediately reaching for his wine, nearly choking on it in his haste to drink it. What on Earth did she mean by mediocre? He had so many other queries, such as when it was that she'd had sex and with whom. Although Jo seemed older than she actually was, Zach knew she was closer to Hogwarts age than to his own thirty-six years. When had she found the time? In her travels was the obvious answer.

The poor man drank more than he needed to, pretending as if he was simply perusing the cards in his hands. He was buffeted with a flood of emotions that ranged from embarrassment that he was so inexperienced in comparison and worry that he'd given her the wrong idea or gotten her hopes up. Zachariah simply wasn't sure what to do with such a revelation.

Clearing his throat, he tossed down another green card and read it out, not fully processing its words until he read it again silently to himself. "What is the most embarrassing thing you've done while drunk?"

While it was a relatively tame question compared to the last, he still found himself on the verge of blushing because he was sure his answer would sound incredibly idiotic and juvenile to Jo. The most embarrassing thing he'd done was kiss a woman at a party. How could he admit to such a thing when she had already gone so much further? Zach appeared torn and, instead of answering, he took a large drink of the wine.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

"Mercifully, no, not up close anyway." A jaguar did live nearby the dig site, but the wards they cast around it kept the animals at bay. As tempted as she was to see the magestic animal up close, Jo wasn't foolish enough to believe she would survive the encounter unscathed. Her arrogance did have some limitations.

Damn, she shouldn't have played the virginity card. His embarrassment only further confirmed his status as a virgin. Merlin, what did he think of her now?

The next question was easier to answer, at least. "A friend of mine bet I wouldn't kiss a monkey in some random Indian pub," she laughed. It wasn't one of her fondest memories, but it was comical in hindsight. "I won a galleon, paid for my travels for at least six months." The ship fares, anyway.

She played a blue card of a similar shape. 'What's more important: truth or happiness?' And, for a minute, Jo stared at it in contemplation. She had little issues with lying to further her own agenda, but she also wasn't untruthful to herself. She didn't try to stuff herself inside the box most of her family and Society did.

"I think I'd say truth," she hesitantly admitted. "But truth leads to happiness, so they're really just the flip sides of the same coin."

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   Billie Farrow

Zach was, admittedly, relieved that Jo hadn't seen a jaguar up close. However, he was coming off of embarrassment, so he didn't make any further commentary. He hoped that she didn't think less of him that he was clearly a virgin and she not.

Trying to shoo the thoughts from his brain, he attempted to concentrate on the game and Jo's answer. "A monkey!" He laughed, glad for the subject change. He'd only spied monkeys in the zoo, and he couldn't imagine kissing one. "Was it difficult to kiss a monkey?" They seemed like they'd be squirmy creatures. He just hoped it hadn't been carrying any sort of terrible diseases.

"I would have to agree with that assessment," Zach answered, nodding along to Jo's answer to the next card. He also believed truth and happiness tended to go hand-in-hand.

It was his turn to play a card, and he played another blue card, but with a different shape. "If you could live anywhere, where would it be?" He 'hmm'd' over the question. "I'm not sure. Somewhere peaceful, quiet, maybe by the ocean." He'd very much like to remain in Greece, but he wasn't certain that he could still run his shop from so far away.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3

She blushed at the ridiculousness of it all. Kissing a monkey was hardly something to be proud of, even if said monkey was rather handsome when one was as drunk as she had been. "No, not at all," she laughed. "He was very docile. Someone's pet, I think." Perhaps the pub owner's? Jo didn't put too much stock in it now.

Jo had never put much stock into staying in one place too long. Sometimes, she thought about taking up residence with one of the Native American tribes, but she never could quite make that leap. Rather than answer, she shrugged and took a sip of her wine. "I don't think I could ever decide on any one place," she then explained.

The next card she had to play was unavoidable unless she were to draw more. And, having picked up more than enough already, Jo didn't wish for anymore cards in her hand. "If your parents disapproved of your chosen partner, what would you do?" It read. The Smith's likely wouldn't care who Jo ended up with, so long as she ended up with someone. "The same thing I always do: keep going about my business," she answered.

  

Zach furrowed his brows, thinking the question was an odd choice to just settle with taking a drink, but Jo's words had him nodding. "That's certainly fair. There are a wide number of places to explore. I'm sure even someone as worldly as yourself hasn't visited all of them." Far more places than him, at any rate.

The next question and her subsequent answer had him quirking one side of his lips up. It was a brave answer. He was certain most young ladies would be far more worried about what their parents thought. "It would take a lot for my parents to disapprove of someone. They're very...tolerant." They would have to be with a son like Hugo. "I suppose I would determine why they disapproved and try to figure out how to bring that person into their favor."

Glancing down at his hand, he dropped the next/only option onto the pile and read out the question, "What's your biggest turn on?" He blinked a few times, trying to figure out what the Hell that meant and why he hadn't pre-read the card before playing it. Zach fumbled about, trying to summon up an answer. "...good...conversation...?" Merlin, that was a stupid answer. He followed it up by taking a drink. Whether it was because he didn't have an answer he wished to say, or if he wasn't sure if he should be truthful was anyone's guess.

  

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Pretties thanks to Olive! <3