7.

He'd been different after Christmas, Viona mused. He'd started doing the dishes for the two of them. Boxing Day morning, he had come to the kitchen with red, puffy eyes, and she suspected he had cried himself to sleep, but she didn't bring it up. They ate in silence, and then, to her surprise, he took her plate and cup to the sink with his and washed their dishes. She smiled at his back and thanked him quietly before heading down to help Dennis take down the pub's garlands.

She'd been equally surprised when he'd done the same thing at supper, and the next morning as well. She didn't make a fuss, though, and had simply thanked him each time. It wasn't until New Year's Eve that he really threw her for a loop. They had been at the breakfast table, eating in silence, as usual when Lucius cleared his throat.

"Is there any way that I can help in the pub today?"

She almost dropped her fork. He looked up and met her eye briefly before returning his attention to his plate.

"Yes, I suppose Dennis and I could use some help," she finally responded. She looked him up and down. "First, though, you'll need something to wear besides pyjamas, and you're going to have to tie your hair back. I don't think anything of my da's'll fit you - you're a lot taller and thinner than he ever was. I'll call Kev. He's more your size."

When he was properly outfitted and hair restrained, Viona took Lucius downstairs to show him the ropes. Dennis was at first intimidated by Lucius' haughty expression, but he was so excited by the novelty of having an underling that he quickly got over his nerves and, much to Lucius's dismay, had chattered away to him as they restocked the shelves, connected fresh kegs, wiped down the counter and tables, and swept and mopped the floors.

He had been apprehensive about being exposed to the general Muggle population of the town, but that evening, the mood in the pub was so celebratory, no one paid him much heed at all. Viona didn't want him taking drink orders on his own, so she instead had him cleaning pint glasses. The little old ladies, the wives of the old fishermen, gathered around the bar where Lucius was working and tittered at him, which he bore with more patience than Viona thought he possessed.

Viona's band would play a small set that night, ending before midnight, though since the fishermen's council had purchased fireworks again this year and would be putting on a display over the sea at the stroke of midnight. Kev, who had showed up early with practically an entire wardrobe of clothing for Lucius, had spent most of the evening sitting at the bar, shooting the other man suspicious glances, but he hadn't actually spoken to him, yet.

Lucius was relieved when it was time for the band to play, and Kev took his place next to Viona, guitar in hand, abandoning for the moment his vigilant surveillance of Viona's tenant, which was what most of the village had come to refer to Lucius as. The older women said it with a wink and a nod, suspecting that a young and attractive woman like Viona wouldn't be single for long when the winds and seas had brought her a handsome stranger.

The band had picked out some rollicking rock numbers for New Year's Eve. They played mostly covers, but would occasionally dust off an original number from their secondary school days. Viona got things started with a high octane 80s glam rock piece which bounced off the walls of the pub. A makeshift dance floor was created spontaneously, when a tipsy group of patrons decided to shift the tables around. Viona didn't mind as long as they didn't break anything.

As the band played through a couple of songs, Lucius felt the tension that had lingered through the evening melt away. He was discovering how much he could do without the aid of magic, and in his current wandless state, that was quite satisfying. What's more, he found that Muggles - or rather, the ones he had met so far, weren't so different from the wizarding folk of his acquaintance. Viona's voice carved a melody through the ambient noise of the pub, Kev's voice undergirding it with easy harmony, and Lucius looked up from his work, his eye drawn irresistibly toward her. She glowed. Her performance belonged on a larger stage than this - she was born for it.

She grinned and looked across the crowded pub, stopping when her eye caught his pale blond hair shining under the light over the bar. Grey eyes met blue and she winked at him. He couldn't help but smile at her. A familiar, yet long absent warmth blossomed in his chest, loosening the permafrost that had started forming there ever since the Dark Lord first came to power. The heaviness that had been growing from the moment he took the Mark was slowly fading away ever since he had awoken in the tiny fishing village, and it was all due to Viona's persistent kindness pushing him to be better, convincing him that he could be different from the person he had been for the past 20 years, or indeed, from whom he had been his entire life.

The band wrapped up by a quarter til midnight and well-lubricated patrons started meandering outside to get a good seat to view the fireworks. After most people had cleared out, Lucius and Viona puttered around behind the bar, wiping up a few spills here and there while Dennis prepared the shelves for round 2, which would commence after the fireworks. Viona grabbed her guitar and amp to take upstairs before the madness resumed. As she passed the bar, she beckoned to Lucius.

"We can watch the fireworks from the living room. No need to freeze outside."

"I'll stay here and finish with this, then," Dennis muttered.

"Of course," Viona grinned at him, "You're the one getting paid for it, after all."

"Yes, ma'am," he replied.

"Anyway, I think that Brianna girl you're always mooning over was hanging about by the door earlier," Viona called over her shoulder, "I'm sure she would be glad to help you."

Lucius followed her up and shut the door behind them. While Viona put her equipment back in its corner, he put the kettle on and pulled a pair of mugs out of the cabinet. By the time she had turned the living room lights off, collapsed on the sofa, kicked her boots off, and pulled the curtains back from the window, he had prepared the tea. He handed her a mug wordlessly and sat on the other side of the couch.

She sighed, "Rest up while we can. That lot isn't finished with the party and won't be for a while yet."

She studied him in the limited light brought in from the window as they sat in the peaceful silence. His hair was coming loose from the hair tie she had leant him, and he had exhaustion written on his every movement. She felt it in her bones, too, but she wasn't recovering from illness.

"Maybe you should go to bed," she suggested gently. "You look beat."

He looked up sharply and shook his head, "I'll be fine. I just need to rest for a few minutes. I've been lazy for too long."

"Ok," she sounded doubtful. "If you're sure. We'll probably be up til sunrise."

He nodded and they returned to drinking their tea in silence, until it was broken by a rowdy cheer from the crowd below. The two of them set their mugs down and turned to investigate what was happening outside. Viona glanced at her watch.

"It's a minute til midnight," she announced.

He failed to grasp the significance of that, but saw that several couples in the crowd below were kissing, with various degrees of enthusiasm. They watched for several beats before Viona leaned over and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. He looked at her in surprise. She was pink-cheeked and grinning sheepishly.

"For luck in the new year," she said, ducking her head and reaching for her mug of tea again.

He didn't know how to respond, but was saved from having to formulate one, as the first volley of fireworks launched. His heart launched a flurried staccato, and he was sure it was just the shock of the sudden sounds of the explosives and not at all due to Viona's unexpected kiss.