March 15th, 1890 (Hogsmeade weekend) — Twilfit & Tattings

Having spent the morning assisting a very generous shopkeeper with a delivery, Clue had a bit of silver in his pocket for the first time since... well, possibly the first time ever. And now he gazed musingly in through the window of Twilfit & Tattings, knowing what he wanted to spend it on but not really knowing how. After all, he'd only ever worn secondhand clothes; mostly hand-me-downs from the other children at Mrs Spragg's foster home, which was why his sleeves were too long, elbows frayed, knees patched... just some of the reasons why other students walked quickly by little Clue Leverett whenever they saw him.

But something had happened recently that made him wish for a change; and even believe in a change. Hence him standing here, under the late afternoon sun, looking through the window at shirts and coats and ties and wondering where to begin before he lost his nerve.

Calla Potts

  

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Someone had said something about needing a new robe for school - something about their cat getting ahold of their last one - and then everyone had decided that they all needed to go. Calla's general lack of interest in clothes shopping was what led to her trailing after her pack of friends like a little lost puppy who didn't have a clue what was going on but wanted to please regardless. She had followed her friends into the store, feet dragging along the ground in dejection. Her idea of going to Quality Quidditch Supplies had been outvoted by the more girly members of her friends.

They'd been there for easily half an hour by the time she spotted someone else looking just as lost as she felt. And what would you know? It was the Slytherin boy who she had met at the beginning of the year when she had gotten the rat from the... potatoes? She thought it was potatoes. It was that or green beans. "Mr. Leverett! What are you doing here?" the third year pipped, offering him a happy smile.

  

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Clue certainly was odd, he was as odd as you like, but it was quite rare that he should feel odd. Everyone is normal to themselves, after all. But standing here and considering new clothes for the first time in his life, wondering what would make him look the most presentable... that was probably normal to everyone but him. To Clue, normalcy was the oddity.

He broke from his reverie to regard Calla Potts, a younger student he recognised largely because she had been kind to him when someone had targeted him at the Slytherin table. She, he recalled, was not a Slytherin. "Hello Miss Potts". That was a normal greeting, right? He was trying. "I suppose I'm... thinking about some new clothes. But frankly I've no idea where to start."

  

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"Well now that you say that I feel like an idiot. Of course, you'd be in the clothes store to by clothes," she sighed, feeling a bit silly. "Why else would you be here. Sorry, Mr. Leverett." Calla grinned sheepishly, shifting her weight from one foot to another, eyes flicker to where her friends were fawning over an ebony outer cloak. Deciding they would not be finished anytime soon, she turned her attention back to Clue fully. Her friends spoke of him being odd, but she didn't mind him that much. 

"They mostly carry cloaks and robes here, so you have certainly narrowed down your choices. Unless you want a hat - they have some nice pointy hats."

  

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Clue was not used to being spoken to in such a friendly or earnest manner; the best he could expect was curt, automatic politeness. And as such he wasn't sure how to react to Miss Potts's sheepish apology. He just sort of looked at her briefly, then returned his gaze to the window, where a group of girls were admiring a winter cloak.

"Cloaks and robes..." he repeated softly, leading the way into the shop. The bell gave a needlessly cheery ding-a-ling! as he opened the door. "I'd just like... I need something presentable", he murmured, tugging at his sleeve. Calla might notice that his clothes were overlarge and threadbare.

Luckily, Twilfit & Tattings was not an expensive shop. The fresh silver in his pocket could surely buy something that didn't make him look like an alarming girl-urchin.

  

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That was simply how Calla was. She was polite and friendly on a default base to everyone - sometimes overly friendly - until they proved she should treat them otherwise. It seemed to be an unpopular mannerism, but it wasn't something she was willing to lose. She would continue to treat others the way she would want to be treated. Even still, she had a large level of mistreatment she would tolerate before she changed her behaviors to someone. Regardless, Clue didn't strike her as someone who'd she'd ever need to change her behavior around. Therefore, she would continue to be just as bright and sunny as ever.

She trailed after the older boy into the store she'd just stepped out of. "I would tell you to choose a robe then. That way if you go inside you still look presentable." She shrugged, unable to say much more. She barely knew anything about women's fashion. Men's fashion might as well be Latin for all she knew.

  

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A robe then. Clue gave a small, uncertain nod — but Miss Potts was right. Indoors or out, he'd look only as good as his robe (at least at school), and besides, it could hide whatever weather-beaten twice-owned shirts lay beneath.

Grateful that he had company in this very unknown little world, Clue approached the first robe he saw. "Something like this...?" he asked Miss Potts uncertainly, not noticing the rose pattern on the collar, nor the feminine draw at the waist.

He also didn't notice the small group of girls giggling at him from a corner.

  

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She gulped air, biting back her overwhelming urge to laugh as he held out an example. She shook her head, the movement extreme. "Maybe you want to look over there, Mr. Leverett. In the men's department." She pointed to the other set of shelves on the opposite side of the store where there were robes in more muted, darker tones - and about less flower embroidery.

She then sent a pointed glare at the gaggle of girls, grateful they weren't her friends. Once thing she could count in her friends for - never being nasty.

  

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Clue was not the type to be abashed or embarrassed, but he certainly felt profoundly lost as he blinked over at the giggling girls, then at Miss Potts, then obediently made his way over to the gentlemen's department. Yes, sure enough, these items did look more conventionally masculine, though Clue — who was practically a ragdoll — could scarcely guess how he knew the difference.

"There sure are a lot of colours..." he murmured; either to himself or to Miss Potts had she decided to join him. "How in Merlin's name are you supposed to choose one..."

  

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"I mean I think you'd look lovely in flowers and lace." She shrugged. She wasn't being malicious, simply teasing him like she would any of her other friends. "Frankly, you'd probably look better in it than me." Than much was true. Mr. Leverett had a decidedly feminine look to him and while she wasn't masculine really, she was long and gangly and far to tan and muscular to be pretty. Frankly, she was taller than Clue - by what she had to guess was a solid four inches. And while she typically wasn't taller than most of the boys (though she was close to many her own age), she towered over many of the older girls.

"I just pick a color I think is pretty,  or you could just go with a conventional black. I'm not the best help for fashion advice. My aunt tells me I always look like I got dressed in the dark. She lectures me on colors that apparently suit my skin but I don't know what any of it means."

  

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Flowers and lace; maybe. Not only could Clue take the teasing (or it went straight over his head), but he had no issue with something a little more frilly. Though he supposed that was more suitable for high class gentlemen and, well... ladies.

"You dress yourself fine", he said blankly, contradicting Miss Pott's aunt. He wanted to say something nice to the helpful Huffle', and that would have to do.

"I quite like white..." he murmured, which was hardly a colour at all. Clue picked out a robe with black and white embroidery round the collar. "Oh I quite like this; it looks like it has spiders on it."

  

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She chuckled as Clue told her she looked fine. Of course, she did to him, they both had established they didn't value or knew what society had deemed appropriate. But she wasn't going to argue that point. "My dormmates typically intervene. They've been trying to get me to wear more frills for years, but they'll settle day to day just making sure that I don't as they say "look like I got dressed in the dark". She refused to wear frills. They were a nuisance, bound to be caught on something and rip - she struggled enough with coping with her lengthening skirts. She dreaded the days she'd be bound to floor-length skirts.

"Oh, that is neat," she offered shuffling closer to peer at the stitching he'd pointed out. "I can't wear white. I get too messy. The housekeeper is always complaining about having to get the stains out. They always turn green from the grass."

  

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Clue did have one dormmate who looked out for him... but Narcissus Laurent wasn't fussed about how he dressed. It seemed Narcissus liked him despite all his many oddities and foibles.

He nodded firmly at the "spidery" robe, then found the smallest one they had and draped it over his arm to buy. He blinked over at Miss Potts. "Maybe you should buy something too. Something green... you know, for the grass stains..."

  

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She wasn't sure she would have ever predicted Clue and Narcissus's friendship but now that she'd seen them together multiple times, she couldn't deny that it fits. Before this year she would have presumed a half-veela would be to vain to care about some like Clue who dressed like he didn't care how he looked. That they would have found any common ground. Still, she and Sisse got along just fine and Sisse liked and cared about pretty dresses. They were best friends. But having interacted with Narcissus the past year had taught her she was silly for making those assumptions and that the elder of the two Slytherins was actually nice - she quite liked him. And Clue had proven himself quite nice as well. She kind of wished they were a bit younger so they could have been friends but she doubted they saw her as anything more than a baby.

She grinned but shook her head as his words snapped her out of her own world. "I can't. All my spending money needs to go to restocking my potions kit - I'm running low on a lot of things. Also, I already brought too much candy to afford a robe. I can never walk past Honeydukes without buying something. An incurable weakness."

  

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If Clue had been socially practiced (which he wasn't — not even to a beginner's level), he would have most certainly asked Miss Potts if she would care to be escorted to the apothecary for her potions kit. And truth be told, he could use some more supplies as well. But he was about to spend all of his money on this cool spider-robe, so he'd have to borrow second-hand kit as usual.

Either way, Clue was not socially practiced, and so he failed to suggest they extend their time together.

"Liking Honeydukes isn't weak. Especially if you're buying chocolate", he replied with a shrug of one narrow shoulder, heading for the counter to pay for his new robe.

His first ever piece of brand new clothing!

  

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"Oh, no that isn't. Liking it isn't weak, just my inability to restrict my spending there," she chuckled, thinking about how much of her pocket change was now in the hands of Mr. Honeyduke. A lot. Especially here where she couldn't have cook's sweets.

Grinning, she trailed after the older boy, wishing to see him through, not at all bothered by his lack of offering to escort her. She hadn't even thought of it herself. She simply presumed he would return to his friends and she would return to hers. She was kinda surprised he wasn't her with Narcissus.

"For what my opinion counts, Mr Leverett, I think you'll look lovely in it."

  

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