Chapter Seven

A/N: Thank you to Guest for reviewing the last chapter.

The uproar in the common room must have been audible for miles around and Sue was barely able to conceal her smirk at Hector's sheepish expression; the news of the cross-country walk they would be doing that morning had not gone down well with the students.

She was still smirking when Simon looked over at her from across the table and although he tried his best to appear stern, she could see that he was amused as well.

"You shouldn't laugh at him." Simon reprimanded his wife, although his heart was not really in his voice. "He's trying really hard to get them involved. He's just not used to them."

"No, he's probably used to the kids at the RAW camp you were stuck at all summer." Sue responded, smiling innocently as she sipped her coffee, although her eyes showed a very different emotion. "You know, kids who actually do these kind of things by choice, not just because they would have been put into detention otherwise."

"You're probably right there." Simon chuckled quietly, unable to maintain his stern exterior any longer. "Still, he needs our support. He's struggling enough as it is and if he sees us laughing behind his back, he's going to be crushed."

"Alright, I'll try to be subtle." Sue sighed begrudgingly. Simon shook his head slightly, but his smile showed he was not annoyed in the least. Then the two returned their attention to their breakfast, knowing that, for the day ahead, they would need all the strength they could get.

Half an hour into the walk, stragglers were beginning to appear, mainly among the older students. Sue had positioned herself at the back of the group, to try and hurry the pupils along a bit, and had already had to break up two very heated arguments between Dynasty Barry and Gabriella Wark. She could hardly express her gratitude when Vix appeared through the crowds, to come and help her out.

"Come on, you lot! There's sausages grilling back at the camp; the quicker you get there, the quicker you get fed!" Those words spurred on the likes of Darren Hughes and Rhiannon Salt and even made the warring Year Six girls move a little faster, if only to get away from each other as soon as they could.

"Thanks, sis." Sue sighed, once the students were a few metres ahead.

"No problem." Vix replied with a shrug of her shoulders. "That's what I'm here for."

They walked in silence for a little while longer, but inevitably, Vix spoke again, bringing up the topic of conversation they had both been avoiding.

"Have you been alright today?" the older of the two women asked, resting a gentle hand on her sister's arm. Her concern was clear in her face, although her sister did not see it from the concentrated way she was examining the ground beneath their feet. "Not too nervous?"

"I'm fine." Sue answered, feeling nerves begin to squirm in her stomach. It had not been a lie until she had said it, when the fear had brewed inside her once again. "You?"

"Fine." Vix responded, not quite sounding convinced. She was too distracted trying to read her sister's face. It was a more difficult task than it had been when they were children. Sue had become a more talented actress since then; she had had a lot of practice.

They reverted back to silence after this, the awkwardness between them dominating the walk, but after a couple of minutes, Vix stopped them to sit down on a log on the edge of the path.

"They're going to be wondering where we are." Sue pointed out, staring anxiously at the path ahead of them, as if a search party would come marching down it any second.

"I'll text Simon, it'll be fine." Vix responded, retrieving her mobile from her jacket pocket and tapping in a quick message to her brother-in-law, saying that they would be a little late back to the camp and that they should continue with the activities without them. After all, they needed time to talk properly; especially if it resulted in them missing the team building activities.

Vix turned to face her sister on the log, catching her hands in her own to force the younger woman to turn and face her. "Sue, I just wanted to talk to you about Mum."

Sue sighed deeply, acting as if she was bored of the conversation. In truth, Vix knew she was trying to hide her emotions, as she so often did, and so continued to speak regardless.

"What happened to Mum wasn't your fault, Susie, or mine, or Dad's, or anyone's." she stated, clutching their hands tighter together. She felt Sue squeeze her hands in return. "It was just a coincidence. However bad it was, that's all it was, a coincidence. I just need you to understand that."

"I know it was, Vix, we've been through this!" the redhead exclaimed and her sister flinched at the harshness in her voice. However, as soon as it had appeared, the harshness was gone, replaced with an awful vulnerability. "I just... I miss her, that's all. All the important things in my life, passing my exams, getting my degree, marrying Simon... she missed them all. And she'll never get to see me fully qualify as a teacher, she'll never get to hold my baby. I just wish that she was here."

"Oh, sweetheart." Vix sighed and swept her younger sister up in her arms, rubbing her back as her tears soaked her shoulder and blinking back tears of her own. "I know you miss her. I miss her too. And yeah, she wasn't there for all that stuff, but we were, and we'll be here for all the rest as well. She's proud of you, you know, wherever she is. I know she's proud of you."

"Thanks." Sue sighed. "She's proud of you, too."

"I hope so." Vix responded with a giggle. They both stood from the log and walked off, arm in arm, along the path towards the camp. In the quiet of the woodland, a question came to Vix's mind. "Why are you thinking about Mum so much now, do you think? Is it just because of the room sharing thing?"

Sue's eyes fell to the forest floor, avoiding her sister's gaze. "Yeah. That's all it is."

A/N: What's going on, do you think? Please review!