Life goes on

by rrabbit

Cassius, Gavin, Lavinia, and Evelyn carry on with their lives as Draco and Ginny's children. It's tough starting your own family outside of the one you already have... This takes place right where When the truth doesn't matter left off.

10. Chapter 10

Lavinia

"Should I go talk to her?" I ask softly as I stare at the house that Chloe just stormed towards. Byron sighs and holds me closer to him, ignoring everyone around us as they glare and stare. Apparently, upsetting the birthday girl isn't something people like. "She's never looked at me like that," I whisper because it was true.

She couldn't be so angry that I was with her brother, right?

Byron lets me slink out of his arms and he puts his hands in his pockets. "You might want to check the front porch. She favors that spot," he mutters softly. He looks uneasy and I nod my head, leaving a kiss on his cheek.

"Will you be alright?" I ask as I spot Samantha Flint watching us with an eyebrow arched.

"They're my family," he says and I guess he's right, so I gently squeeze his hand before walking around the house towards the front porch.

I'm still wearing that stupid orange cloak, so I unclasp it as I make my way around the front of the house and as I'm folding it over my arm, I spot Chloe sitting on one of the side porch steps. It was a good little hiding spot, because she would be hidden from view if anyone stepped up the front entry.

She looks really sad and it hurts me to see it because I do love her so much. I quietly walk over and she doesn't even look up as I take a seat beside her on the step.

"I'm sorry, Chloe. I didn't know you would be so upset that I was with your brother," I say as she folds her arms across her chest and slightly turns away from me, leaning her shoulder against one of the small pillars that hold up the porch. "I didn't want to ruin your birthday party."

"Byron should be apologizing," she says in a harsh voice and I look down at the orange cloak on my lap just to have something to focus on.

I glance at her as she kicks off her heels and I scoot closer until I feel the warmth of her body against mine. "I love him," I whisper softly and she turns her head away more. "I'm sorry, I know he's your brother, but I do, and I want you to be happy for me. I wouldn't be so upset if you ended up with Gavin…" I tell her, trying to make some common ground even though Gavin is the last person in the world she would end up with. She breathes in deeply and I try to make her feel better by getting even closer. "Just think," I say with a sad smile while touching her hand. "Maybe one day we'll be real sisters."

"I don't want to be your sister," she hisses, and it hurts me, so I pull my hand back and slide away from her while looking at the sky.

Maybe she doesn't want me to be with Byron not because of it being weird, but because she didn't think I was good enough for her brother. I don't like that thought, so I bite my lip furrow my brows as my fingers play with the stitching on the cloak. She sighs loudly and rubs her eyes as I worry myself about it.

I think she might be crying. I really don't understand what's happening right now.

"I'm sorry I'm being crazy," she says, trying to change her voice, trying to make it steady. "I just… I always knew you had a crush on Byron and I knew he liked you…" she shakes her head and when she looks at me I see her makeup is streaked and her eyes are red rimmed. "And you've always had a boyfriend. Don't you think you could not have a boyfriend for a while?"

I don't know how to answer that so I take a corner of the borrowed cloak and I gently start wiping off the streaked mascara from her face. "You told Byron that he knew how you felt," I say as I clean off her face and then pull back after she gives me a soft thanks before turning away again. "What did that mean? Did you tell him you didn't want me to be with me because it would be weird?"

"I told him…" She looks me in the eyes and then she turns away. "It's just weird seeing you guys together, that's all," she says briskly, obviously lying. "So, what have you two been doing then?" she asks with her voice sounding hoarse.

I tell her about Byron's theory on Cassius and all the research he (mostly he) and I have been doing the past couple of weeks. When I told her about me convincing Elias Green to let me see the statue by flirting with him, she snorted and said that was hard to believe. I agreed with her. I almost asked her if she wanted to come along with us when we left again, but that cold look she had on her face when she saw me and Byron together held me back.

"Are you ready to go enjoy your party?" I ask after the dramatic feeling lowers and I think things might be normal again. "I saw a pretty delicious looking cake I would like to try and Peter Pickens was hovering around the dance floor."

She rolls her eyes. Peter is in her grade and has loved her for years, but she never even spared him a glance, or any boy for that matter. I think Chloe might be one of those girls who will really bust out once they get out of school. I think the man she decides to be with is going to have their work cut out for them.

"Yes, his hair lip is getting quite attractive," she jokes and I laugh before biting my lip and taking her hand again.

"I don't want you to be sad about anything," I tell her honestly as I gently squeeze her hand. "I promise it won't be weird," I say, because I fear that's her biggest complaint with Byron and I.

She smiles at me and with her free hand she pats down her hair, trying to make it look presentable again. "Thank you for coming," she says softly and then her eyes glance down at that ugly cloak in my arms. "And where did you get that atrocious thing?"

I laugh and tell her about the strange Dr. Bailey. When I was describing his house that we had been staying in, Byron walked up with his hands buried in his pockets as he looked steadily at his sister. When his eyes went to mine I gave him a warm smile and he looked at my hand with Chloe's before settling back on her again.

"Mom is wondering where you are," he says smoothly and Chloe looks chilly again, apparently our conversation didn't warm her towards her brother and it confused me even more. She lets go of my hand and turns away. "I'm sorry, Chloe," he whispers softly. "But you knew how I felt too."

She scowls at him and I stade up, figuring they needed to talk to each other with out me present. "I'm going back to the tent," I say, giving Byron a significant look before I take off walking.

I glance over my shoulder once to see Byron take the spot I occupied, putting his hands together between his knees as Chloe says something heated to him. It was a conversation I wish I could listen to, but I knew it would have been rude and probably none of my business so I didn't look back again. When I made it to the large tent, I realized that I actually didn't want to be there by myself. I saw random Wealsey's around, talking to one another, and Harry Potter was walking around the temporary dance floor with James in his arms as he spoke happily to some of the guests. I spotted the group of girls I recognized from school and I debated whether I wanted to go over to them so I wouldn't be by myself, but I couldn't bring myself to. I didn't know them so well, after all. They were Chloe's dorm mates.

I placed my orange cloak on an empty chair and went over to the large punch bowl to get myself a small drink to sip on. I wanted to look like I was doing something, like I had a purpose and was welcomed. As I carefully sipped on the punch, I tried to act like I was admiring the cake so I didn't look like such a loser, all alone at a huge party like this. It was a three tier cake with red sugar flowers and white and pink icing writing out Happy Birthday Chloe around the sides. I wonder what flavor it is, and I stretch out that thought for a few moments until I feel someone step beside me.

"Hello Lavinia." I school my features and turn to the man beside me.

"Mr. Potter, thanks for inviting me," I say, trying to smile politely as baby James grins at me from his father's arms. Harry Potter is wearing a red polo shirt tucked into khaki slacks, and his glasses are still as round and stupid as I remember. The last time I spoke to him was when I was a first year at Hogwarts, and that wasn't pleasant.

"I didn't invite you," he says as his emerald eyes look me over. I gulp. "Chloe did."

I bring a hand up to my neck and hope I don't look too blotchy because I know I'm blushing pretty terribly right now. "It is her party," I say with a nervous laugh even though there is no reason to laugh at all.

I send a swift look around the tent to see if Byron or Chloe have made their way back yet. When I don't see them, I look at the baby because I'm too uncomfortable to look at Harry Potter directly. Sometimes I wish I was brave or… or mean, even, but I never was and I probably never will be.

"How are your parents?" he asks and the coldness in his voice betrays his polite question.

My eyes flick to his before looking away. I think of my parents and a thing like guilt washes through me because of the way I left them so soon after my brother died.

"Getting by," I admit softly.

Baby James reaches his arms out to me and I try to ignore his pudgy fingers as they attempt to touch me.

"I take it they're pretty torn up about your brother?"

I hate the way his voice sounds and I look at him, hoping it's a convincing glare. "Wouldn't you be?" I say, inclining my head to his young son to make my point. "I don't know, though. You could always slip some Vertiserum in my punch if you really wanted to know the truth."

It was satisfying to say that, and it was also satisfying to watch him lift an eyebrow in irritation before walking away from me. Stupid jerk. With him leaving, it left me alone again and I cross my arms over my chest as I balance the small cup of punch in my hand and look around the room. I watch with weary eyes as Harry walks over to the denim clad Beatrice and whispers something to her while sending a little glance to me. She looks to me and so does Samantha who was standing beside her.

Unable to just stand there and be gawked at, I put the cup down on the table and walk off, trying to seem like I have a real place to be and not just trying to avoid the people at the party. I veer around the crowd and leave the tent, scolding myself for wanting to come to this stupid thing in the first place. The only reason I came was because of Chloe and she's acting so weird and upset with me that it doesn't seem worth it. There's a small gathering of trees behind their house and small place has been cleared for a fire pit. Around the stone enclosed area are small tree stumps in a circle, placed there for people to sit.

I cross my arms and take a seat on one of the stumps and I put my legs together because the rain had left the air quite chilly. When dampness seeps into my dress from the wet stump, I almost start crying. I don't get up because I left my wand with the stupid cloak and I wasn't about to walk around that tent with a wet bottom. I stare at the charred wood and rocks at the heart of the fire pit and I sigh as I think of home.

I want to talk to my little sister and tell her all that had happened so far because she always has the funniest comments to add to my story. I want to talk to my Mom so she can give me advice on how to handle this new budding relationship with Byron. I want to see my Dad so he can smile and call me princess while he tries to protect me from all the bad things that would come my way. I miss my cat and hope that they are taking care of him.

I just missed home, plain and simple, and with surprise I even decide that I miss Gavin with his snarky attitude and lazy smile. After this, I told myself that I was going to go back to the Manor.

"Can I take a seat?" I look up and then away, nervously nodding my head.

It was one of my mother's brothers, my uncle, but one that I've never spoken to. To be honest, I haven't spoken to any of them, but I had seen Ron and Bill around more because they had children I went to school with. This one was Fred, the living half of my mother's twin brothers. He took a seat beside me and took out a flask from his jacket, unscrewing the lid and taking a long drink before looking at me.

"You're one of Ginny's girls." It wasn't a question, more like a statement, but I nodded anyways.

"My name is Lavinia," I offer because, in all honesty, he probably didn't know.

"Fred." He held out his hand for me to shake and I put my small hand in his while he gave it a sharp jerk and pulled back. "Do you want to see a magic trick?"

I gave him a weird look and then nodded my head, thinking this encounter strange but not willing to voice that thought. I watch as he takes a piece of paper out of the pocket of his jeans and folds it a few times, using the top of his legs as a table. I study him while he works, noticing that his shaggy hair was the same reddish brown as my mother's and all of his features seemed like a more masculine form on hers. The straight upturned nose, the large eyes, and the full lips. If my mom could ever be a man, I'm sure she would have looked like Uncle Fred.

"Now watch," he says as he hands me the flask and holds up the paper folded bird in his hands. He blows on it and it goes flying up, over the fire pit, where it bursts into flames and sprouts off into a small series of red and yellow fire works.

I find myself smiling.

"That was a favorite of your Mother's," he says, taking the flask back so he can take another swig.

"Really?" I ask, because usually the Weasley's say nasty things about my Mom… nasty or nothing at all.

He nods his head. "She was very opinionated in what she liked and didn't like if I remember correctly."

"What was my Mom like?" I ask and when he looks at me I try to elaborate. "When she was young, I mean."

I have an excellent mother. She's probably one of the best out there and I love her dearly, but sometimes her life seems to be divided into two sections. Before she was with my Dad and after she was married. Whenever she talks about things in her childhood and her past, before being a Mafloy, there's always this underlying tone of guilt and she speaks like she was talking about another person all together.

"Well…" He turns away and itches his head. "She was pretty mouthy and rambunctious back in the day." I snort and he smiles. "A thief too."

"Really?" I say, feeling pleasantly surprised that I was liking this conversation.

He nodded his head and gave the flask another drink. "She was always breaking into the broom shed and stealing mine and George's brooms. Never quite got caught, but I knew what she was doing. She would always fly past my window, you see, but we could never catch her. She was such a good flyer."

I try to imagine my Mom being that way, being fun and young and care free. I imagine we would have been friends if we went to school together. "It kind of threw me for a second," he says and I raise my eyebrows in question as he looks over my face. "You look just like her from behind. As I was walking up, I almost thought it was her."

"Oh, yeah," I say as I look down at my lap and start fiddling with the hem on my dress. I've heard that a few times.

"I'm sorry about your brother, you know," he says as he nudges my arm, like we were close, and it made him so endearing to me. I nod my head. "I'm well versed in brother grief."

"Yeah," I say, looking away and then I feel like I should say something back. "Sorry about your brothers too."

We sit in silence for a few moments after that and I watch as a bird chirps and flies from tree to tree. He drinks more from his flask and I become uncomfortable with the silence. "So, why are you talking to me?" I ask because usually the Weasley's make a point not to talk to us…. It's even tough to get one to look at us, if I was being honest.

He laughs and offers me the flask. I take a drink because I think it would be polite and the alcohol burns my throat. The unexpectedness of it makes me cough and he pats on my back dramatically until I stop.

"Thanks," I say with a final cough and I hand the flask with the throat burning liquid back, making a mental note not to take it again.

"I don't believe in the whole 'sins of the father' nonsense," he says after a while and I glance at him again. I think that if we were close with the Weasley side of our family, he would have been my favorite member. "My parents were part of a war," he says as he looks at me with my mother's brown eyes, just a shade darker. "My generation, including your parents, fought in another… I don't see the point of carrying on that burden."

I wish I would have known him sooner and when I tell him so, he smiles and pretends to fain modesty.

"So, what do you do?" I ask because I know nothing about him and that makes me feel bad.

"I have a magical packaging company."

"That's cool," I say and he snorts.

"Come on now. We both know that's a lie."

I laugh a little again and so does he. I can't believe this normal thing is happening to me and I feel so light and happy because of it.

"Are you Byron's girl?" he asks. "I saw you two come in, holding hands and looking nervous like you just entered a shark tank."

"Yeah," I say, liking the sound of it. "Yeah, I guess I am."

"Good chap that Byron," he says and I smile at him as he looks at the fire pit. "A little on the depressing side, but good none the less."

"I agree," I say softly.

"Welp, I better get back to the party," he says, standing up and wiping the back of his pants. When he realizes they're wet, he laughs. "Oh, bugger." He takes out his wand and dries himself and then he looks at me. "Do you have a wet bum too?"

I blush and nod my head. "Why do you think I was sitting here so long?" I joke and he laughs.

"Well, stand up then."

I hesitate a moment before standing up and when he tells me to turn around I follow his orders and do just that. He mutters a spell and I feel the back of my dress and knickers dry and I thank him with a kind smile.

"It was nice meeting you, Lavinia," he said with a crooked smile.

"Yeah, um, you too."

He looked back towards the tent and then to me with a smirk. "Looks like the knight in moody armor is headed this way. I'll leave you to it."

When he passes Byron, he gives him a curt nod, and my eyes shift from his back to Byron's empty face. "Are you okay?" I ask when he gets close enough to take my hand.

"I'm fine," he says dryly and I knit my brows, but I don't press the matter. "After she blows out the candles, we're leaving."

He said that so quickly and so narrowly that I found myself wordless for a moment or two. "Your conversation with Chloe didn't go well?" I ask, pretty sure that's the cause.

"I fear I may have fanned the fire. I won't be patient with her on this."

"On what?"

"Come on." He ignores my question and starts pulling me towards the tent where the DJ has started making announcements, wanting everyone to gather around as Beatrice uses her wand to light the candles on the large cake.

"Alright!" The DJ comes from behind his music table and he lifts his wand to his throat so everyone will be able to hear him. "Let's have the special birthday girl come here, front and center!"

The crowd parts to let Chloe through as Byron and I settle ourselves towards the back. When the woman beside me knocks into me to get closer, I hold my shoulder and glare at her until I realize who it is. The last time I saw Molly Weasley was at my brother's viewing, where she was getting a pretty terrible scolding from my father. She slides in front of me, successfully bumping into me again, so I take a step back and hope she doesn't notice me by turning more into Byron and pretending like I was listening to the DJ say funny things about my friend up front.

"Molly," Byron's voice is hard and steady. I'm kind of disappointed that he picked this moment to say hello to her, so I try to busy myself with messing with my watch so I look preoccupied while they talk.

Molly turns around and smiles at Byron. I hope that their conversation is going to be short because I'm going to run out of things to look interested in if it isn't. Her sandy aged red hair is placed in a bun on the top of her head and she's wearing a boxy flowered dress that makes her body look shapeless. I notice that all of two seconds before looking back down at the watch on my wrist and pretending to readjust it.

"What is it, dear?"

I see she was avoiding looking at me at well, so I didn't feel so guilty.

"You just ran into, Lavinia." I shot him a look at the mention of my name and I slightly shake my head to indicate it doesn't matter. "Twice," he added after sparing me a stern glance.

"Oh," Molly's eyes slide to my own and I shift uncomfortably until Byron's strong hand rests on the small of my back, calming me down. "Sorry, I didn't see you there."

Well, ouch. It always makes me feel warm and fuzzy when my Grandma thinks I'm invisible.

I give her a tight smile anyways. "It's okay."

She turns back to the spectacle on the dance floor and when her back is to me I let out the breath I was holding. After a few moments I feel Byron bend down and place a gentle kiss on my neck, making me sigh. It must have been loud and wistful because Molly glanced over her shoulder in the you're making too much noise kind of way. I apologized softly but I was scandalized when Byron licked my neck while she was watching. Molly's eyes widen before she sniffs her nose in distaste and stomps away to another area.

I'm mortified, so I slap his arm and wipe off my skin with the back of my hand. "She already hates me," I hiss in a whisper as he chuckles. "I don't need her thinking I'm a slut as well."

"She's had seven children," Byron whispers in my ear because the people have started to sing Happy Birthday. "I think she would know a thing or two about that."

I give him a hard look that he smiles at and I frown at his amusement as his eyes look down to my mouth.

"Your lips," he says softly and before I get a chance to ask him what about my lips, he takes my chin between his forefinger and thumb, holding me there while he kisses me.

I push him back with an irritated glare before joining in with singing the birthday song. Chloe still looks slightly upset as we sing to her and when we're finished she closes her eyes tight, mumbling a wish under her breath before blowing out the candles on the cake. Music starts up again as we all clap and the crowd divides into little groups again as we watch her open presents. When she gets to mine, she reads the small card out loud and when she sees that I signed Byron's name as well she shakes her head and gives us a bitter smile.

I don't know what to think about her right now.

When she's done with all of the presents, that took a boringly long amount of time, lights around the dance floor light up and the music the DJ was playing becomes louder as the younger people at the party start to migrate towards the noise. Chloe, I see, is intent on getting drunk because she bee lines right for the cooler that holds the alcohol. There's a sign hanging by it that warns anyone under seventeen would not be permitted to drink or get past the ward set up to prevent them. She hesitates one moment before walking through the small ward and taking out an iced bottle of some kind of colorful mixed drink.

"Let's go now." Byron puts his hand in mine as I stare at my friend downing bottle after bottle of spiked lemonade and other fruit flavored mixers. A girl with short red hair walks up to her and they clank their bottles together while laughing. I think that's Rose Weasley. Yuck.

"Can't we stay a little longer?" I ask hopefully as I watch Chloe hide her misery behind her drinks.

"I'm not," he states simply and I look at him with my eyebrows furrowed.

I don't want to be here with out him, but his brisk tone angered me because I spent two freaking weeks in some old man's weird little house with no complaint, but he couldn't even stay at his sister's birthday party a little bit longer for me. If there was something wrong he wasn't telling me about it, so I decided not to coddle him like he said before.

"Well, I'm staying," I tell him and I was going to add that I would meet him at home, but I stopped myself because we didn't really have a home… and we didn't technically live together.

He was trying to stare me down after I said that and it annoyed me, so I sent him a look before walking towards the coolers where Chloe was holding court with Rose Weasley and some other blonde girl I couldn't place.

"Coming to say goodbye?" Chloe asks sharply when I approach.

I shake my head. "Just wanted something to drink," I answer and her aqua eyes brighten a little before she hands me one of the brightly colored alcohol bottles. I pop the lid and take a sip as Rose Weasley eyeballs me from the corner of her eyes. "Hello Rose," I greet polity because my mother taught me to be kind—even to trolls.

"Malfoy," she replies, not too pleased with my presence. Not surprising.

Chloe introduces me to the blonde girl and we surprisingly fall into a comfortable conversation about clothes, and we all agreed that gaucho pants looked stupid no matter what your body type. I was just waiting for the insult from my Weasley cousin, but to my surprise, none came.

"Byron is looking unhappy," The blonde girl, who's name I found out was Anna, says and we all turn towards him.

I wasn't sure if he was going to leave and I was secretly wishing he wouldn't, but when I saw him sitting by himself at one of the fold out tables with his arm crossed as he glared down at the brightly colored place mat, I felt a pull to go to him, but I didn't.

"He's probably off his meds again," Chloe says and I gave her a disappointed look for that mean comment as the other girl's giggle. She had the courtesy to look ashamed and then she downed another bottle and took out another one. "Let's dance," she says, changing the subject as she pulls me towards the dance floor.

She should have known that that was absolutely not happening. There were a few kids dancing, but not enough, and most of the people here were older. They weren't going to dance, they were just going to sit and watch. Which I hated the thought of, so when Chloe took my hand and tried to force me into dancing, I just shook my head.

"You know I'm not much of a dancer," I say softly. She puts my drink to my lips and tips it back with a smirk.

"Drink up, then. Loosen up. It's my birthday!"

I take a gulp and then I wipe off my mouth, looking around the tent to see who is watching. Most people are talking to one another in little groups. I spy Ron Weasley by a few large grills with a spatula in his hands, working the barbeque with Harry Potter by his side as he holds a beer in his hands. Hermione is talking to Molly about something serious, I imagine. Peter Perkins is drooling over Chloe who was dancing her little heart out by my side, and Byron… Byron was still at the table. I watch him pout until his mother takes a seat beside him and they start talking. I don't know if they were talking about me, or they just sensed they were being stared at, but they both looked up from their discussion to look directly at me. I didn't want to seem like a creep so I turned away quickly and downed my bottle.

"It's weird that your Mom is letting you drink." I couldn't imagine my parents being okay with it, especially if I was still in Hogwarts, which Chloe is.

"I'm of age now," she says with a shrug as her cheeks flush from the alcohol and heat of dancing.

We must have looked silly because she was still dancing like a fiend and I was standing perfectly still, right in the middle of the dance floor. I glance back at Byron who's still talking to his mother and I try not to make it obvious that I'm staring at them as I tilt my head down and watch from the corner of my eyes. He's leaning forward with a serious expression on his handsome face and he must be telling her something important because he has his right hand balled into a fist. He bangs it against the table and his Mom jumps before shaking her head and placing her hand over his, to comfort him, to pacify him.

That was my job and I started walking towards them when Chloe grabbed my arm and pulled me back. I reluctantly stayed and didn't try to go to Byron again.

More people come to the dance floor after a while, so I wonder off towards the edge to avoid them as I finish off my drink. This is a weird party, I think. Dad would never let us have a party outside under a rented tent with cheap beer and mixed drinks served in coolers—and he certainly wouldn't have a barbeque of all things.

After two more bottles I feel light enough to actually start dancing.

As I'm finishing off my fourth mixed drink, the sun starts to set and the torches set up around the tent flame to life. I find myself dancing, terribly, by Chloe and I smile at her while wiping off my damp face with my hands. Most of the adults are inside the house now, leaving most of the younger people to dance.

I take a break to eat a hamburger, some big messy thing which tastes delicious to my mouth and it's gone in two seconds flat before I go back to dancing. I take another break to eat some cake, and another to have some ice cream. The more I drink, the more I find myself eating.

It feels nice and I find myself smiling because everything tingles and seems funny to me. It's fun to be drunk. I feel quite invincible.

I step away from the dance crowd again to catch my breath and to look for Byron. After a while of him not coming to me, I was trying to make a point by not giving in and going to him, but right now I just really wanted to kiss him. So I scanned the tables, but he was no longer there and I frowned in disappointment. I hope he didn't leave with out me because I had no idea how to leave here. I finally catch him walking away from the tent and I sigh in relief before running after him.

He seems to be headed back towards the house and when I call his name I so gracefully trip over my own feet, landing on the wet grass with a thud.

"Oh, ouch," I whine as I catch myself on my hands and knees. "Gross," I add when I lift my left hand and see the mud and grass clinging to my skin and probably my knees.

"Are you alright?" Byron asks as he wraps his hands around my arms and helps me to my feet.

"Thank you," I mumble as I try to clean myself off the best that I can with out a wand. "Where are you going?" I ask once I feel satisfied and I push some hair that had come loose from my pony tail out of my eyes, only to have it fall right back into place.

"I was going to go talk to Samantha for a little bit," he says flatly as he looks me over.

Suddenly my drunkenness sobers up a bit as his eyes travel around my body… to the grass stains on my knees and my damp sweaty hair. I feel bad right now so I look down and put my hands together. I don't know if I was supposed to come here as Chloe's friend or as Byron's date, but I feel guilty none the less.

"Are you upset with me?" I ask, not able to look at him if he was. I look over his shoulder at the house where I can see the other guests through the windows inside. "I'm sorry," I say looking back at his cool blue eyes again. "I know it was very rude to drink in front of your family, but Chloe was doing it and she just kept on handing them to me and I give into peer pressure quite easily when I'm nervous. I know you wanted to leave, but I just wanted to stay for a little while, so I'm sorry." I said that all in one breathe so I inhaled deeply to steady myself. "If you want to leave now, I'll go with you."

He stares at me for a few moments before tucking some loose hair behind my ear, being more successful at it than I was. "I forget how young you are sometimes."

That makes me bristle and I cross my arms. "I'm not that young," I say harshly, not wanting to go into the 'you're too young and stupid for me' conversation.

I look away, back at the house as he takes a step closer to me. "Lavinia," he says until I glance at him from the corner of my eyes. "I'm not saying anything is wrong with it. You just act so much older than eighteen sometimes that I forget how young you truly are. I'm going to be twenty four in a couple of months and I've been out of Hogwarts for a while. I can't hold it against you if you want to go and have some fun to enjoy your freedom."

I search his face as he places his hand in the pockets of his corduroys, looking all casual and handsome like always. He has no idea how attractive he is and a part of me is grateful for that because if he did, he probably wouldn't go for a girl like me… He'd be more like Gavin and I crinkle my nose at that thought before returning to the conversation.

"But you seem upset," I whisper, wishing I hadn't drank so much.

"No," he says with a little smile. "I am not upset with you and even if I was, you shouldn't feel obligated to do what I want," he says as he looks into my eyes. "I can be terribly obtuse sometimes."

I laugh a little and step closer to him, taking his hand and kissing the top of it. A little smile turns my lips against his skin as music blares from the tent behind us. "Why do you have to talk to your sister?" I ask as I hold his hand against my cheek. I'm too drunk to think that's sappy, so I continue to do it because I want to, but judging by the raised eyebrow he's giving me, I think he must find it a little strange. "Why don't you come dance with me?"

Byron must have thought that question was silly because he didn't even bother to acknowledge it. "I just wanted to speak to her about something. Nothing important."

I look at the window of the house again as Mrs. Weasley laughs at a joke Harry Potter told. I sigh loudly and let his hand drop. "I wish your family liked me."

Technically they were my family too, but they didn't act like it and I've never really cared if they liked me that much… I just wanted them to for Byron's sake. Although, with the talk I had with my uncle Fred earlier, I think I might have one member in my corner… and if Chloe returns to normal I'd say my chances are looking pretty good at being invited to the family Christmas.

"I'm not totally sure they even like me that much," he says with a tilt of his lips. "But it doesn't matter what they think because I love you."

My heart swells at those words and I lunge at him because the alcohol in my system makes me brave and foolish. I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him deeply, pulling back only to tell him that I love him so very much as well. It's amazing how quickly Byron can change my moods and spike my emotions. I don't think he knows the power he really could have over me and thank god for that.

"I know you're a little inebriated," he says as he places his arms around my waist. I make a weird sound that's a cross between a laugh and a snort and he smiles before turning his head away and then looking back at me, shaking his head. "I know you're drunk, but I want you to promise me something."

"Of course," I say with a grin on my face. It feels good to smile. "What is it?"

He works his jaw for a few moments, like he was trying to decide exactly what he wanted to say and I tilt my head to the side as he works it out. When he looks over my shoulder, back at the people under the tent, I turn to follow his gaze but he puts his hands on my waist and spins us, walking me backwards until my back hits the blue paneling of the house. My adrenaline jumps at the movement and I start laughing as he plants his body against mine.

"It seems I'm not the only one who wants you," he says in a soft voice as his hands clamp on my hips to hold me in place. I have no idea what one earth he is talking about so I just raise an eyebrow while putting my hands on his arms. "I guess you're an easy girl to love."

Silly Byron.

I smile and lean up to kiss him again because I like the way my tingling lips feel against his. "Too bad for them," I say jokingly. He presses his body into mine again and I raise my eyebrows when I feel his body responding to our closeness. "I don't want any one else. I'm Byron-sexual." I start laughing again. "By-sexual… that's funny."

When I snort mid laugh I cover my mouth so I don't do it again as I glance up to him. He's smiling too and he's looking at me with that… well… I can only describe it as a funny fond expression. When he kisses me, I lean more into the siding of the house to steady myself so my knees won't buckle underneath me.

"I usually make a point not to take advantage of drunk people," he says against my lips as his clever fingers work their way up the skirt of my dress. "But I can make an exception for you."

"How noble of you," I say as I lock my fingers behind his neck, tangling his hair.

I just love touching him and I love the manly way he smells. I'm glad it was Byron who introduced me to sex because I can't imagine wanting anyone as much as I want him. When I pull back from another heated kiss I look into his eyes, liking the way the lighting from inside the house highlights the strong narrow of his jaw and the bridge of his nose.

"What did you want me to promise you?" I remind him as he nuzzles my neck.

He slides a finger under my knickers, making me forget about all of those thoughts as I gasp into his shoulder. "Still as warm and inviting as I left it," he says against my ear and my cheeks heat up.

Two times in one day… Goodness, I'm in danger of becoming interesting.

There is something erotic about doing this outside where people could see us and there was also something extremely naughty about doing something against the house that most of his family was inside of. I almost grab him inside of his underwear to see how he handles it, but my rational side wins out and I grab his wrist, pulling back his amazing fingers from my body until my skirt falls back to its proper place.

"I'm not that drunk," I tell him reluctantly as I give him his hand back.

He smirks at me and places said hand by my head, caging me against the house. "That's funny," he comments in a low voice, the voice that can send a shiver up my spine in the most electrifying way. "I haven't been drinking at all and I'm perfectly okay with it."

I open my mouth to reply, but someone starts walking around this side of the house before I get a chance to, making us both freeze.

"Byron, is that you?"

He steps away from me quickly and I turn away, patting down my hair and wiping off my lips as Byron's Mom, Beatrice, makes her way over to us with her wand lighting her way.

"I'm right here," Byron says as he glances at me and then towards her. "What do you want?"

"What are you doing over here?" she asks suspiciously and when her eyes land on me I hope she doesn't notice my lips are swollen from kisses.

"Nothing, I was heading in to talk to Sam," Byron answers flatly and I watch his profile as he puts his hands on his hips. His hair is all messy in the back from where I put my fingers through it and I take some guilty pleasure in seeing it like that. "What do you need?"

She glances at me again, before turning back to her son. "Harry has been looking for you. He wants to speak to you."

"Why?" He asks. His flat voice doesn't hint towards his emotions but I can tell he's irritated by the way his eyes are narrowing and the way he's tightening his fingers around his waist.

Beatrice looks at me one more time, and I look away, feeling weird about it. She takes a step closer to her son and slightly turns away from me, like she was butting me out of the conversation. I guess I don't really mind because I would have nothing intelligent to say to her at this moment.

"He's worried about you, By," she says in a low whisper. My By-sexual joke comes to mind and I put my hand over my mouth to stop myself from laughing. "We all are. We don't like the way you've been acting." She sends me another sly glance before leaning her head more towards Byron to whisper. "And we don't like what you've been doing."

He's been doing me, Mrs. Potter. That thought surprises me and I cover another bought of laughter. It seems drinking makes me ridiculous and slightly perverted.

"Forgive me, but it's not your concern anymore," Byron says in that smooth voice of his. "and it especially isn't Harry's."

I get another glance from Beatrice and it makes me uncomfortable, like I should leave to give them privacy, but my feet just won't move and, because of her son, my knickers are wet and I don't feel comfortable walking in them right now. Jeez, drinking does make me ridiculous. She eventually grabs his arm and pulls him further away, turning their backs on me so she can have a heated discussion with him without me hearing. After a while of that Byron finally steps away.

"Fine, he has fifteen minutes," he says in a narrow voice as he goes stomping towards the house, passing by me without a word or even a look.

I nearly run after him, but I don't because Beatrice is still standing a few yards away from me with her hands on her hips. Now that I'm alone I don't know what to do with myself so I look down at my flats and start counting the beads on them, hoping Byron's Mom will leave so I can make my escape. I flick a look towards her to see her staring directly at me and I give her a nervous smile before looking away shyly.

"You're standing in my flower bed."

I look down and then back up. "Oh…um… yeah…" I so eloquently say as I step out and try to shake the dirt from my feet. "I'm sorry about that."

She tightly nods her head and she starts to walk away, the way that she came, but then she stops herself and looks at me again.

"You and my son are together now?" she asks and I nod my head while wringing my hands together like the nervous twit that I am. "You love him?"

"More than anything," I say honestly.

"Well, then, you should know that my son is sick," I knit my brows together, but I don't say anything to that. "He's not well and he's stopped seeing his therapist. He also didn't refill his prescriptions this month."

I think of all the bottles lined up in that old motel in Spain and I have to wonder how she knows all of this. Byron is a grown man after all. I also have to wonder why she's saying this to me, why she thinks I need to know.

"He's a good boy," she continues as her eyes look into my own. "But he has problems and he needs to be home right now. At least when he was with Cassius he was still going to his sessions and I realize he's all upset about your brother, but he needs to be here where we can take care of him. He has more of Marcus in him than he should."

That flairs my temper as I think of the scars on his back and the circles always present under his eyes because he never sleeps well.

"Go back to your family, Lavinia, and let me fix my son."

"He's not broken," I find myself sneering, and I hope I look impressive because that comment just enraged me even more. "He doesn't have Marcus in him either," I state bravely—and probably stupidly. "It's what you let Marcus and all those other guys do to him. You're his mother, it was your job to protect him, but now his body has the marks to prove how you failed," I can't believe I'm saying this, but I can't seem to stop. "You can't just expect to pick up the pieces when it's all said and done and think things can be fine."

We stare each other down for a few seconds and I almost apologize for ranting at her like that, but I can't find my voice and she leaves me standing there after shaking her head. I smack my hand against my forehead when she's out of sight and wish I wasn't so stupid. She'll never like me now after I said such hateful things… and I hope Byron won't be mad either. I hate it when things turn sour. I wait a few minutes for Byron to come back out, but when he doesn't I fear that his Mother might have spoken to him about how rude I was to her and he probably agreed with her. So I sigh before heading back to the tent to get my cloak and wand so I can leave, but Chloe intercepts me before I can, handing me another drink.

It doesn't seem like such a bad idea because most of my buzz seems to be lost with Beatrice walking away from me. I don't want Chloe to know what I did because she is probably still upset with me about Byron so I smile and take the drink as she puts her arm across my shoulders.

"Where did you go?"

I shrug.

"Well, they're going to play my favorite song soon, so you had better be dancing with me," she says, sounding slurred and looking more flushed than when I left.

I'm feeling nervous and I want that happy buzz back, so I drink three more until I'm totally drunk off my rocker and seeing double. I start dancing again, pretending like the conversation from before didn't happen as my body heats up and my coordination becomes iffy. It gets to the point where I nearly forget what happened by the house.

"Happy Birthday!" I yell over the blare of the music when Chloe grabs my hand to pull me away from the crowd.

She nods her head and smirks. "It's bloody hot in here!" she says with a drunk smile as she pushes her damp hair away from her sweaty face. My loose tongue almost tells her about what I said to her Mom because I feel guilty, but I try to bury that away as I smile back.

"Yes, it is," I agree as I feel sweat trickle down my spine. What a disgusting and unclean feeling that is. "I feel gross," I say as I try to pull my dress away from my skin to supply more air.

We walk back to the cooler to get more drinks, which seems like the proper thing to do. Chloe pops her lid off right away but I hold my bottle up to my face to cool my cheek.

I can't hold back anymore as I look at her. "I think I made your Mom mad."

"What did you do?" She asks over the blare of the music.

I frown because she's not looking at me, she's looking at the dancers on the floor so I grab her chin so she has to. "I said something stupid to her about your brother."

"I don't want to talk about him," she says with a sour look. "And who cares if you upset my mom. She's such a bitch sometimes and it's my birthday party, so let's have fun."

I wipe more sweat away from my brow before putting the cool drink back against my cheek. "It's too hot to have fun."

"Do you want to go for a quick swim?" Chloe asks, yelling again because the music just got really loud.

"I didn't bring a swimsuit."

She laughs and I laugh too for the hell of it. "I don't have a pool," she giggles before grabbing my hand and pulling me away from the tent.

I trip a few times as she pulls me into the clearing of trees and when I ask her what we're doing she smirks at me over her shoulder. In the darkness it's hard to see.

"There's a creek back here," she explains.

In true drunk girl fashion, by the time we reached the creek bank I had lost one of my shoes, my knees were banged up from falling, and my hair was pulled free from the hair tie I had it in—but my drink was still perfectly intact, not a drop spilled.

When Chloe drops my hand, I lean against a tree and start laughing as she pulls her golden dress over her head, revealing her leggings and the black strapless bra she was wearing underneath.

"There is no chlorine in that creek," I tell her as she comes over to me and takes the drink from my hands, placing it on the ground near my feet. "There are probably fish in there and dirty plants… and fish."

"Oh, come on, Lavinia," she says, using the you're boring tone that I'm quite familiar with. "We're hot and the water is cool."

She stands back and faces the creek as she drops the leggings to her ankles and steps out of them. I look at the dark water with my nose crinkled in distaste because it's probably dirty and then I look at the stars and moon because they're our only lighting.

"I don't have a swim suit," I repeat again and she glances at me as bugs and night animals make noises in the background.

"Neither do I."

She takes off her knickers in bra as I close my eyes and turn away, not wanting to see that much of Chloe. When I hear a splash I open my eyes and look at the water as she reemerges and slicks her wet hair back with her hands.

"Oh, this feels good," she moans and I give her a skeptical look as she moves her arms around the surface of the water, hiding the rest of her body.

"Do you feel any fish?" Apparently, I'm very concerned with that. The idea of accidentally touching one makes me want to vomit.

"Live a little, would you?" She says and she swims around in the moonlight.

The alcohol lets a few of my inhibitions drop and the facts were simple. I was hot and sweaty and the creek was cool and nice. Besides, it was just Chloe and I want to pretend to have a good time so I can forget about everything unpleasant that's happened. I want to be normal.

"Okay," I say while pulling off my one surviving shoe. "Turn around."

She makes a big show of sighing and turning around so her back is to me. I eye her to make sure she won't peek before hiding behind a large tree and carefully pulling off my dress. I send a look around the forest to make sure there are no other prying eyes before folding my dress and laying it on the ground. I debate whether I should just leave my bra and knickers on, but Chloe didn't and I don't want them to get wet so I send one more weary glance around the woods before unclasping my bra and dropping my knickers.

My arms immediately go across my chest to cover my self and I peek my head around the tree to look at Chloe. "No, looking," I say and she shakes her head.

"Honestly, we have the same parts," she says like I was silly, but she doesn't turn around as I run to the water and jump in quickly.

"That's easy for you to say," I comment before dipping under the water. "You're thin."

The water isn't only cool, it's bloody freezing and when I come up after dunking my head under water my teeth are chattering and goose bumps form on my skin as I cross my arms over my chest because other things are starting to feel painful from the cold.

"It's freezing!" I tell her because she lied to me.

She's lazily swimming around the creek with out a care before smiling at me. "I think it feels nice." She stops circling me and she gets closer. Luckily both of us are so pale, because we practically glow against the darkness of the water and the trees, making it possible to see each other fairly well. "You missed a lot while you were gone, you know," she says as she looks into my face.

I bend down so that the top of my chin is at the surface of the water, coming in naked was a bad idea. "Like what?" I ask, trying not to shiver.

She starts swimming again. "Well, I'm no longer a virgin."

I raise my eyebrows at the blunt confession and I start swimming a little too, so that my limbs don't freeze through. Hypothermia comes to mind as I kick my legs to get the blood flowing.

"Who did you sleep with?" I ask as I swim after her.

She pauses a moment before looking at me. "Why do you think Peter Perkins was invited to my party?'

I admit, it did seem strange and I found my mouth dropping open. "I thought you hated him," I say and she shrugs a pale shoulder. "Well, do you like him now?"

"No," she states plainly and I frown. "I just wanted to get it over with."

"Oh," I say because I slept with Byron because I wanted it to be Byron, not because I was just trying to get it out of the way. "Did you like it?" I ask softly.

I think she shuddered. "God no, it was awkward, it hurt, and he smelled like beef."

I snort, but then try to cover it by dipping my head under water again. When I reemerge Chloe is right in front of me. The surprise of it makes me jump and she laughs.

"So, did you sleep with my brother?" she asks in a controlled voice and I debate whether I should actually tell her or not, but she is my best friend and she did ask… and I am drunk.

I nod my head with a blush, thinking of the hot session we had today in one of the rooms above a tavern in Diagon Alley. I did more than just sleep with her brother.

"He was your first, right?'

She should know and I nodded my head again, feeling uncomfortable talking about it.

"Did you like it?"

I tried to think of the best thing to say. "I just like being close to him," I stated honestly and I started to swim backwards because, even though we were best friends, I still didn't want to be so close to her while naked. It was just weird.

"What do you like about him?" she asks as she copies my movements and swims backwards as well. "What do you like about my brother?"

"Well," I say, eyeing her to see if she really wants to know and when she raises a dark eyebrow I guess I'll continue. "I like how smart he is, I like how deep his voice is, I like it when he smiles, I like how he looks at me," I could go on forever and I start listening off more things as Chloe stares at me, with a blank look on her face. "I like his broad shoulders and that his waist is so narrow. I love that about guys," I say, looking to make sure Chloe agrees. "How their back goes down into that perfect V."

"Not all guys have that," she says with a scoff and I shrug my shoulder.

"I think he's sweet, and handsome, and kind, and—"

"I get it," she says flatly but I won't apologize because she asked. We swim in silence for a while until she speaks up again. "How do you know you don't like other things if you've never tried it?"

"Like what?" I ask, not really paying attention because I'm pretty sure I just felt a fish by my leg.

"Well, I didn't think I'd like that one kind of vegetable thing you're always eating, but when I tried it, I liked it."

"Okay," I say slowly as I edge towards the bank so I can step out again. I hate fish. "What does that have to do with anything?"

She started swimming towards me so I crossed my arms over my breasts again. "You never liked Darius."

"I did to."

She shakes her head. "Not really, and you never liked Colby either." I think of the boyfriend I had in my fourth year and I shrug my shoulders. "You never liked any of your boyfriends very much."

"I'm not sure if that's true," I say, feeling the need to defend my dating habits. I did like them, just not enough.

"It's true. I know it," she says and right now her eyes look dark and her face serious. "How can you be so sure you love Byron?"

"I don't know," I say as I close my eyes because my head is starting to spin. I guess all those drinks are coming to bite me back now. "I just do."

"How do you know?" she asks again more persistently, but I don't open my eyes because my mouth is starting to water, like it usually does right before you throw up.

Oh, no.

"Byron's not always kind," she says as I try to stop the spinning by clenching my eyes shut and staying perfectly still. "He can be quite mean and selfish, did you know that?"

"Chloe," I say softly so she'll stop talking. I don't want to throw up and if I can settle my stomach than I'll be fine.

"Like today, for example, he was very stern and sharp with me and it's my birthday."

"I need to get out," I say, no longer paying attention to her. If I'm going to vomit than I want to be wearing some clothes.

I quickly climb out of the water with out bothering with modesty as I pull my dress over my head and to cover up my body as I lean against a tree and close my eyes again. I hear Chloe get out of the water as well as the bark scratches my arm.

"He's my brother and I love him, but he has too many problems." I inhale deeply and when I crack my eyes open I see her slinking into her gold dress, sounding so much like her mother that it's disgusting. "I told him after I saw him kiss you at Cass' viewing that he shouldn't pull you in with him. I told him…"

"I need to sit down," I say as I put my head down and gulp a few times, feeling that fruity tasting drink trying to make it's way back up my throat.

"It's not fair," she says and now she's so close to me that I can feel her body heat. "Things aren't fair. Byron is unsafe, he's unstable, and he hurts himself… he might hurt you too."

I wince. "We're drunk, Chloe, stop talking so loudly."

I try to calm myself again but then I freeze when I feel warm lips against my own. My drunk eyes snap open and when I realize what's happening, I violently push Chloe back. "What are you doing?" I ask.

She trips back from my push and lands in the shallow part of the creek. I feel bad but I don't try to help her, because I hunch over and start puking. It was painful, it was gross, and it smelled terrible. Even though I pushed her, Chloe was kind enough to hold my hair back as I emptied the contents of my stomach, that orgasmic hamburger I had earlier didn't seem very great coming up the other way.

"This was cruel, Chloe," I heard a deep voice say and I realize, mid heave, that it wasn't Chloe holding my hair at all. "I saw what you did. Go back to the house."

When I'm done throwing up and my stomach is twisted in painful knots, I slump back and feel warm arms circle around me. I turn into the embrace with my eyes closed as I try to steady my breathing. I'm never drinking again.

"Is she mad at me?" I ask with a slur even though my throat hurts and my teeth feel gross.

"She has no right to be. We're leaving now."

I recognize Byron's voice and when he helps me stand up I hold onto his waist so I don't fall again. A warm cloak gets placed around my shoulders and my vision is blurry as we walk towards the Apparation point. I'm not even paying attention where we're going and I follow Byron as he leads us towards a warm bed and pushes me down. He even pulls back the covers for me and I smile and kiss his hand as he tucks me in. I intend to pass out on the mattress with out another thought.

"Mr. Flint," If I was up to it, I would have groaned to hear Dr. Bailey, but I wasn't so I just stayed quiet and still as Byron let his hand rest on my thigh. "I believe I've found something. Do you know any herbologist that could help us out, with out any questions?"

That catches my attention, and I raise my hand with my head still plastered to the pillow. "I do. My boyfriend— Darius." He's not technically a herbologist yet, but he's pretty damn good.

I didn't even realize my error until the comforting hand that was on my leg retracted.

"I have a better option," I heard Byron say, his voice sounding cooler.

I didn't get to hear that better option, nor did I see the glare I was receiving from my Byron because I took the opportunity to fall asleep.

Evelyn

"I would like a baby tiger cub."

Mom and Dad both stop eating to look at me.

"Just a little baby tiger," I say with a small smile, picturing the little cub in my head. "I would name him Jeffery and he could stay in my room."

They exchange a look before Mom laughs. "We already have a cat," she says as she shuffles things around on her plate with her fork.

"Cato doesn't count," I say, crinkling my nose as I think about the old black and white cat that always rubs up against my legs. "That's Lavinia's cat." Even though she abandoned him, I resist adding.

"A baby tiger is going to turn into an adult tiger," Dad says before taking a drink from his wine glass. "And then Jeffery will eat you and he won't seem so cute to you then."

Mom smiles, thinking Dad's statement was funny, but I keep pressing. "Once he gets big enough we can put him outside, in a little house made for him. Just think, a cute little tiger walking around here with a blue diamond studded collar. We could even make him wear clothes! Oh, he'd be so popular at parties."

"Where is this coming from?" Mom asks as she looks at me with amusement in her eyes. They think I'm joking.

"I was reading today—"

"You were reading?" Dad cuts me off and I glare at him. He laughs.

"Yes, I'm very well read, I'll have you know. Anyways, I was reading this magazine," Dad snorts. I ignore him. "It had a picture of the cutest little tiger cub and I just would like to have an animal of my own."

"You have a horse," Mom says and I roll my eyes.

"You can't cuddle a horse."

Dad, the killer of dreams, decides to voice his verdict. "You're not a getting a tiger."

"But—"

"Pout all you want," Daddy says and I glare at him before sitting back in the chair and crossing my arms.

My parents go back to eating their food like I wasn't even in the room and after a few moments of that I sigh loudly until they look at me again. "May I be excused?"

Dad glances at my plate and then back to me, shaking his head. "You didn't eat anything."

"Not hungry."

"Not excused."

I stomp my foot under the table and go back to pouting. I don't touch any of my food just to prove a point and when Dad finishes up his plate, he wipes off his mouth with his napkin and puts it on the table before checking his watch.

He sighs and stands up. "I have to go. I'll see you in a couple hours," he tells Mom as he kisses her cheek. "Goodbye, Evelyn."

I don't say anything and when he comes over to me to kiss my head I ignore him. "See you later alligator," he whispers in my ear because he knows I can't resist responding to that.

I feel a little unwanted smile on my face. "After while crocodile." I feel his lips turn into a smile against my cheek as he kisses me. "I'm still mad at you," I add so he knows not to get cocky.

"I'm surprisingly okay with that," he jokes before sending a wink to Mom.

I look down, going right back into my pouting sulk as he rights his collar and tucks in his shirt. When he leaves the room I turn back to Mom and raise my eyebrows. "Can I be excused now?" I ask hopefully now that the tyrant is gone.

"Help me clear the table."

I groan before standing up and picking up the dirty plates while she gets the glasses and silverware. I hate that Mom doesn't think we need the house-elves at the beach house. I've washed more dishes than I even want to admit while being here and I've had to clean up every single mess I've made, which is very irritating to me because I make a lot of them. When we make it into the brightly lit kitchen I dump the plates into the sink and try to sneak away, but Mom catches me.

"I'll wash, you dry," she says as she throws a dry dish towel at me.

Oh, bother.

I sigh loudly again before standing beside her as she fills the sink with soap and water. When the water his high enough and all the dishes are resting among the soap bubbles, my mother ties her hair back and rolls up her sleeves before diving into this unnecessary chore. When she hands me the first clean plate, I swipe it once and put it away, but Mom makes me take it out and do it the right way.

"I washed dishes at home all the time when I was your age," she says, like it would guilt me into enjoying the task. I make a noise and she looks at me when she hands me a fork. "You've been kind of off today."

"Whatever do you mean?" I ask as I dry the fork and put it in the stupid drawer.

To my surprise, Daddy had let me to go to Jim's hot dog stand this afternoon… well, it was actually very early American time and pretty late UK time, so I figured we met somewhere in the middle. Anyway, I went so I could have my hot dog eating face off with Gabe Hung. Of course, I told him I was meeting a friend from ballet and I might have said I was meeting up with a Gabrielle instead of Gabriel… no harm in a little lie. Anyways, when I got there Gabe was already seated, ready to perform our bet.

And I lost.

I don't think it was because he was better at eating hot dogs than me, because that's not it. It's just that my heart wasn't in it because I was too busy worrying about that look Xavier had on his face when I laughed after he tried to kiss me. It was distracting and Gabe took advantage and now he has my favorite exploding snaps game because that's all I was willing to offer up if he won. It was already a bad day and then Gabe suggested we go to the dance studio for a little bit to secure times to practice with Madam Violet. I had agreed to go only because I still had one hour left before Daddy would want me home.

It was just my luck that Xavier was there, already practicing with Pearl Hunnington. I guess I couldn't blame him because she was so terrible, but when I peeked into the room to see how they were getting along, I was not expecting to see him laughing. And it wasn't at her! They were laughing together. I don't know why it bothered me exactly and I watched them dance together, touching and laughing, and I found myself turning away in a huff.

He did just kiss me the day before, after all, and he called me the flirt. Honestly.

It put me in a sour mood the rest of the day, but I wasn't going to explain that to Mom so I just shrugged my shoulders when she said I seemed upset. "I'm just tired, I suppose."

"You've been in your room most of the day," she says softly, like saying it too loud would hurt.

"I'm fine, Mom," I say, more sharply than I should have and when she doesn't respond I feel guilty for snapping at her. "What are you doing tonight?" I ask to soften the conversation. She's been going back to the Manor to organize things and sort stuff out. I've never gone to help her. Maybe tonight I'll offer.

"Well, since Gavin is going to be getting married soon and having a baby, I thought he would like some of his baby things."

"Do you want any help?"

She looks at me with her hand wrist deep in the soapy water, and she smiles. "Yeah, I would."

When we finish up the dishes we floo back to the Manor and I shiver when I step into the room. I haven't been home in a while and it feels empty and cold, so I cross my arms as I follow Mom to the attic. It takes a while because the Manor is so freaking big. The stairway towards the attic is narrow and steep and I hold on to the railing for dear life until we reach the musty smelling air of the large landing. The walls are slanted and the sun shines through the rounds windows, casting the large room in a soft orange glow. Mom uses her wand for more light and I look around at the dusty covered furniture and forgotten trinkets that had been stored up here for safe keeping.

"What are we looking for?" I ask as our footsteps creak along the wooden floors. I pass the old rocking horse that use to be in the toy room and I smile fondly at the old marionette theatre box that kept me entertained as a child.

"Gavin's chest. It'll have his name on it," she answers as she walks confidently towards one section of the large room.

I follow and as she bends down to move some things out of the way I look at a large white box on top of an old forgotten piano. Curiosity gets the better of me as I open the box and remove the tissue paper that was lining it. Inside is a dress, a magnificent white dress, and I smile as I take it out of the box to air it out. It was obviously old because the whiteness of the material was yellowing in certain places and the cut was old fashioned. It was a long dress that would have gone straight down to a tall woman's ankles, with a green sash just under the chest part and elbow length dropping sleeves. It was all lace and pearls and satin.

"Who's was this?" I ask as Mom pops open a chest and starts sorting through it. She looks over her shoulder and then back down.

"I don't know, sweetheart. It looks like someone's wedding dress. Probably one of your Father's relatives."

"Was it Grandma's?" I ask as I pull down one of the sheets beside me to reveal a full length mirror.

I hold the dress up to my body and turn from side to side to see how it would look on me. I'm wearing a pair of denim overalls, so the fine material looks kind of out of place next to them and the blue t-shit I have on underneath. Underneath the dress, at the bottom of the box was a small silver crown that had hanging pearls dangling from it. So I grabbed it and placed it in my own hair.

"Doubtful, your Grandma wasn't big on lace," she says as she watches me hold up my hair and pretend like I'm wearing the dress as I make faces at the mirror. "Is there a name on the box?"

That make's sense. I carefully set the dress aside and look at the lid. There is a small tag on the side that I read out loud. "Bellatrix Black. Who's that?"

Mom snaps a look to me and then to the dress. "A very wicked woman," she says as she walks over to me and puts the dress back in the box, making sure the lid's on tight.

"But who was she?" I press and as Mom throws the box across the room. It lands with a thud and slides across the floor boards before settling by an old wardrobe with carved wood decorating the front. I look back to Mom with my eyebrows raised, her reaction surprises me.

"Well, she was your father's aunt and she was a very mean person. Now, help me pick some of these things out."

I frown at that, but I go back to the chest anyways and drop to my knees by her side, carefully taking the crown off so she doesn't throw it as well. I look inside and smile at all of the baby things there. Small things are just cute, no matter who they belong to and I awed out loud when I pulled out a little green out fit that belonged to Gavin when he was small.

I laugh when I see a couple painted rocks at the bottom, courtesy of my awesome art skills when I was a child. "Shouldn't these be in my chest?" I ask as I turn over the pink sparkly stones in my hand.

"You made them for him," she explains simply and then she sighs. "It's hot up here. Let's take this down stairs."

She takes the rocks from me and puts them in the trunk before picking it up and walking back towards the stairway. I look over the other chests along the wall. There's Daddy's, it looks older and more worn out than the others. There's Lavinia's and there's mine… I even find a few that have names of Mafloy's I can't place. I bet it would be interesting to sort through those. And then I spot Cassius' name. It stops me for a second as I stare at his name carved into the golden plate on the front. I have an itching feeling to look into it, but I know it will probably make me cry, so I let it stay up in the attic as I chase after Mom.

We decide stay at the Manor, because the time zone changes have us all off kilter but I can tell she isn't happy about it. She just doesn't like being here much any more, and when we go to one of the front sitting rooms, she sets the cheery wood chest down on the table and takes a seat on the floor. Dad scolds me for doing that very same thing, but I figure since she's doing it, it's safe. So I plop down beside her and cross my legs.

"What things are you going to give him?" I ask curiously as she opens the lid and starts pulling things out. A light green baby blanket with yellow stripes, a small starter broom with safety handles, a stuffed dog with droopy ears, and a yellow pacifier connected to a string, all get placed on the couch behind our backs.

"Well, since he's having a girl there really isn't many of his things he'll want to pass down just yet," she explains as she takes out a small wooden horse to put in the toy pile. I think it's weird that Gavin is having one baby, let alone thinking about him having a male child sometime later. "I think they'd like to have some of his baby pictures, though."

She takes out a small metal box and pops the lid open, revealing organized stacks of glossy photos separated by dates and Gavin's ages. She hands me some and I smile before resting my back against an arm chair and flipping through the stack. Gavin was a cute little boy, I will give him that. Curly haired blondes with big eyes and freckles always rate well on the adorable meter.

"Why would they want his baby pictures?" I ask as I look down at a picture of Gav when he was small, dressed up as a dragon for Halloween. I laugh and put that in the show Gavin pile.

"When Addison has the baby, she'll probably want to see what he looked like so she can compare features and all that other stuff."

"Who did I favor when I was a baby," I ask, putting more funny pictures in the keep out pile so I can make fun of them later, of course. "Did I look more like you or Dad?"

She squints at a picture before setting it aside. "You've always looked more like your Father," she says and I guess that's true. I hear it all the time. "But I didn't have any of my baby pictures to look at."

I frown, realizing that was true. In fact, I had never seen a picture of my Mother before she was married to my Dad. We just didn't have them here because we were so cut off from her side of the family.

"Couldn't you just ask…" I was going to say 'your parents' but that didn't seem right. "Couldn't you ask the Weasley's for some of your pictures?" I ask, probably naively, because she sighs out loud.

"When I was young I use to live in a house we called the Burrow," she says in a faraway voice as she looks down at a picture in her hands. "It was actually just an old farm house held up my magic and the hope that the roof wouldn't collapse whenever there was gust of wind." Her voice sounds strange right now, so I study her profile as she speaks. "It burned down when I was eighteen, so all the pictures of me are probably gone anyways."

Sometimes I forget that I'm a child of war.

I don't say anything else after that and we fall into a comfortable silence as we sort through Gavin's life, condensed down to a trunk. As I look at pictures of my brother, my mind starts to wonder back to that kiss in the rain and I bring my fingers up to my lips, trying to imagine what kissing Xavier would feel like if I remained serious during the whole thing. Then I think of him dancing and laughing with Pearl Hunnington with her honey blonde hair and annoying laugh.

"Mom," I say softly and she glances at me with her eyebrows raised. "When a boy kisses you, that means he likes you, right?"

"Who kissed you?" she asks and I feel my cheeks heat because she went straight to the point.

"No one," I say quickly, not willing to go into too much detail. "But this boy in my ballet class kissed my friend, and now she's wondering if he actually likes her because she saw him flirting with another girl the very next day and he's always been quite mean to her."

She's smiling at me, so I make a point not to look at her. "Well, why do you think this boy kissed your friend?" she asks me and I try to think of the answer.

Why did he kiss me? He's always hated me and treated me terribly before all of this. It doesn't make sense, but then people can change. Daddy said Mom used to hate him when they were younger, but eventually she fell in love with him, even though he can be terribly stubborn and bossy. Like someone else I know.

"I don't know," I end up whispering because I can't rightly formulate a good answer.

"Maybe this boy was mean to you because he liked you and didn't know how to tell you," she says and I shoot her a look that makes her give me a half smile. "In my experience, a boy your age wouldn't just kiss you if he didn't have feelings for you."

I nod my head, but I don't correct her on her wording because it's obvious she knows it was me anyways.

I chew on that thought for a while, trying to decide what I want to do as I look at pictures and divide them into pills. After a while, I look over to Mom because her breathing pattern has changed. She's staring down at a picture in her hands and when I tilt my head to get a look at her face, I realize her eyes are stinging with tears. I crawl closer to her and look down at the photo. It's an old one of Cassius and Gavin when they were young boys, and they were riding on some carousel ride that was spinning around in a circle. They were both giggling and waving to the camera as they held onto the fake sparking horse that was galloping around the carousel to the music that only the occupants of the photo could hear.

It made me sad too, so I placed my head on Mom's shoulder and put my arm around her back. I wonder if missing Cass will ever stop hurting. I don't think Mom and Dad will ever get over losing him.

Woof!

My head shoots up and Mom looks at me.

Woof! Woof!

"Is that a dog?" Mom asks while standing up, her sadness temporarily forgotten by the noise.

When I stand up, I look towards the door way, intending to go find out, but my Dad comes strolling in a few seconds later. In his arms is a small black and white spotted dog that's nipping at his fingers. Mom crosses her arms as I squeal and roll on my toes, wanting to pet him so badly.

"I figured you two would be here," he says, probably having gone back to an empty beach house first. "You could have left a note," he adds dryly, sending a pointed look to Mom.

"Where did you get him?" I ask in excitement as he lets the small Dalmatian puppy down and I run right towards the hyper little guy to scratch his head.

"Now you have an animal of your own," Dad says with a smile, Mom's still watching the scene with her arms crossed. Apparently this is a surprise to her as well. "But you have to take care of him yourself. You can't pass off his care to the house-elves."

"Oh, he is brilliant," I say as I pick him up and he licks my cheek. I didn't even know I wanted a dog until I saw him. "Thank you, Daddy." I say as I let the fidgety dog back to the ground and I hug him tightly around the waist. "I love him already."

I go back to the dog, that's currently sniffing the couch with his tail wagging feverishly behind him. "A dog, Draco?" I hear my Mom say, not sounding too thrilled by his decision.

Dad shrugs as I bend down to pet my new puppy again. "Tabor was talking during our meeting about how he was trying to get rid of a few pups his dog had. I thought she'd like it," he says, smiling towards me.

I turn around and grin. "I do like it," I say with a large smile, barely able to contain my joy.

I will walk him and I will brush him and I will feed him and I will love him. Now he just needs a name. I watch him as he checks out the room. He really is a speckled little pup, with black ears and a lean little body. I can't name him Jeffery, because I'm still holding out for that tiger, but I think he looks like a Charlie.

"I shall call you Charlie," I tell him as my parents discuss my new companion in hushed voices.

"Pick a different name," Dad says flatly and when I look at him, his face looks cold.

"What? Why? He looks like a Charlie," I glance to Mom for backup but she's no help because she's going back to Gavin's baby chest to put things away.

"Just pick a different name, Evelyn."

That annoyed me. "Fine, I'll think up a name later," I tell him crossly and he lifts his eyebrows before taking a seat in the arm chair I had rested against earlier so he can look at Mom.

I spent most of the night playing with my new little puppy, deciding that he has to be the most favorite thing I have gotten all year. I know dogs aren't allowed at Hogwarts, but I wonder if I could write a nice letter and change their minds. I settle on the name Nero after Mom suggests it, because all Dad had to offer was Spot and I found that highly unoriginal and not funny at all.

For some reason we decide to stay the night at the Manor after Mom and Dad have a long heart to heart on the couch that I wasn't allowed to hear. I was glad to be home and when I tuck in for the night Nero falls asleep beside me on the bed, but I can't find it in me to close my eyes. I'm still thinking about that kiss and I go through my brain, trying to remember every encounter I've ever had with Xavier that would lead up to that moment. He was always glaring at me… but then, that meant he was looking at me, right? And he talked to me more than anyone in our class… just because he was insulting me, but I think that still counts. Does he like me?

And more importantly, do I like him?

I twist and turn most of the night as I try to sort it out, and when morning comes, I find myself exhausted and not refreshed at all. I had promised to meet Gabe at the studio for practice this afternoon so I fed and played with Nero for a little bit outside and I ate lunch before getting dressed in my usual dance outfit. Mom Apparates me to the studio, telling me she'll pick me up in two hours. I wave her off before going inside and waiting for Gabriel to meet me in the lobby like he said.

He comes in looking distraught and frazzled and I raise my eyebrows when he sees me. "Are you alright?" I ask because he looks like he's about to cry and his hair is a mess.

"I'm not in the best mood, Evelyn," he says seriously and I nod my head. "Let's just get this over with."

Well, this is going to be a pleasant practice. Madam Violet isn't in this morning, but one of her workers his. He smiles as he hands me and Gabe the little wooden dolls that dance the steps for us so we can practice against them. They're small, about the size of my hand, and they really are nifty little things. As we walk towards one of the practice rooms I run my fingers over the blank face of the girl doll I'm holding and play with the pink tutu someone put on her.

"Did you get in a fight with your boyfriend?" I ask when we reach the room and we set our dolls down on the table. Gabriel immediately starts stretching and warming up, so I take off my jacket and pants to do the same. "Is that why you're sad?"

"He's a bastard. That's all I'll say," he says with an angry sniff and I glance at him as I work out the muscles in my legs.

I wonder what happened with that, but he's not going to tell me, so I try to ignore the way he's huffing and scowling. The leotard I'm wearing today is a dark blue color, with sleeves that go down to my elbows, with a scooping neckline in the front and back. Pale pink tights encase my legs with a little matching blue skirt I tied around my waist, going down to the top of my thighs. I straighten it out as I look into the mirror to avoid Gabriel's fuming. I actually don't know him that well to get involved, but I do sorely wish he would stop frowning because it makes him look terribly unhappy.

We turn the dolls on, turning on the magic that's working through them and they begin goings through the steps of the first section of the dance we need to learn. I watch them to refresh my memory and then I get into place after Gabe and I have been sufficiently warmed up.

"We went to a club last night," Gabe says as he turns on the record player to play our music. I look at him and tilt my head so he'll continue. He walks back towards me and takes his place behind me. "I went to the loo and came back out to find him snogging someone else."

"Oh, that's terrible," I say sympathetically. "But clubs can be dark, right?" Not that I would know, I'm rarely allowed out to do anything. "Maybe he thought it was you?"

He snorts in disbelief and shakes his head. "Unlikely, the person was blonde," he says and I understand his anger. It would be hard to confuse a blond boy with an Asian man. "And it was a girl."

I look at him and then I pat his shoulder for comfort. "I'm sorry. You're probably better off with out him."

"Damn right I'm better off without him," he says and I think he's lying because his voice doesn't sound too convinced, but I don't point that out.

We start off the dance and Gabe messes up every time and he even slams into after forgetting one of the steps where we were supposed to pass by each other. "God, sorry, Evelyn, but I can't do this today," he says after he bumped into me and made me fall. He holds out his hand for me to take and I let him help me up, trying not to glare at him. "I have to go home and sulk for a while, I just can't concentrate."

"I understand," I say as I try not to pout. I still have over an hour and a half left before my Mother comes. I wonder if they'll let me use the floo network in Madam's office. "Goodbye, then."

He waves distractedly as he packs his things and then scurries out of the room. I feel bad for the poor guy. It's never fun to get your heart broken. After he's out of sight, I look back to the mirrors along on the wall, noting that that stupid curl is on my forehead again. Might as well get some practice in, I tell myself, as I go back to the record player and I reset the music. The dolls in front of me are still dancing, so I watch them, flicking little glances to the mirror to make sure I'm doing some of the moves right. Of course, this is supposed to be a couples dance, so it's hard with out a partner but I work up a sweat doing it none the less.

When I have to go up on my toes and hold that stance I sigh and let myself drop because it hurts. This is just no good. My partner is an emotional wreck and it's not even like I'm going to get the part anyways. It's unnecessary torture, if you ask me.

"You are leaning too much on your left side."

I look towards the door way and put my hands on my hips when I see Xavier leaning against the door frame, with his arms crossed and his bag slung over his shoulder. "Well, my partner isn't here to do most of the moves with," I say, with my chin tilted up, upset that he pointed out a fault.

"Dzat is no excuse for bad form," he says like the snooty dancer that he is and I turn away, feeling a very uncharacteristic blush on my cheeks. "Let me help," he says as he walks into the room, closing the door behind him.

I watch as he puts his bag down and slips into his dance shoes. "I'm sure Pearl Hunnington won't appreciate you helping out a rival dancer," I state as he walks over to the dolls and turns them off. They stop dancing and land in a clunky heap on the table.

"She twisted her ankle today," he says in a smooth voice, like it wasn't concerning that his partner is now broken. "So, I must find a new partner."

"Couldn't the medic fix her easily?" I ask as he puts his hand out for me to take. My stomach tightens as I place my hand in his and he walks me towards the center of the dance floor. "I mean, a twisted ankle is nothing really with a good healing potion."

"Hm," he says as he nods his head. He places himself behind me and he puts one hand on my waist, while taking my left hand with the other, and lifting it up slightly. "But she said she would not be my partner again," he says softly.

I look into the mirror and furrow my brows in confusion. "Why wouldn't she want to be your partner anymore?" I ask his reflection, even though he is mean, he is the best, and judging by all the laughing that was happening yesterday I figured they were getting along fine. "She seemed quite possessive of you and the water that you drink the other day," I say, tilting my lips up in a smirk when I remember her anger towards me when I offered him a water bottle from my bag.

"She dzinks dzat I dropped her on purpose during one of the lifts."

I glance at him over my shoulder and raise my eyebrows. "Did you?"

He smiles a little. "You must find your center, and balance it out," he says, ignoring my question so I frown at him before turning back to the mirror as he speaks to me over my right shoulder. "Your problem is dzat you dzink too much about dancing, instead of just doing it."

Xavier is actually a pretty good teacher when he isn't yelling or threatening people, and he helps me with my toe work and few of the more difficult moves I'm going to have to do for the audition with Gabe. Neither of us breach the subject of that kiss in the rain, but it's still at the forefront of my mind and as we dance together, with him giving soft suggestions in my ear… I can't help but think of it.

He keeps his hands on my waist to balance my spins, and I stay tense through must of it until he makes me stop and pulls me against his chest. "Relax. You must trust me," he says softly into my ear and I find myself shivering. "Are you cold?" he asks, having noticed the movement.

"No," I say simply, because I'm actually much too hot. "Let's try again."

He takes Gabe's place with ease and I find that dancing with Xavier is like dancing with water. Gabriel was sharp like a razor and his movements were practiced, but Xavier's body flows and it feels like his body is going through natural movements that have been in him since birth. When we reach the point in the dance for the first lift, I hesitate a moment, while sending him a worried glance.

He smirks. "I will never drop you."

"Did you tell Pearl that?"

"Maybe," he says with a laugh, his hazel eyes bright with amusement.

I let him place his hand on my leg and around my stomach as he gently lifts me up after I jump into position with my legs bent and my arms out into the proper place. It actually is quite easy, because Xavier is strong enough for me to feel like a feather. He gently places me on my feet and I turn around and smile at him.

"How wonderful," I say, because it did feel graceful and sweet.

"Oui," he says quietly. "Gabriel is older than you, so he has done partnering lifts before," he says as he looks over my face. "It should be easy for him, if you don't tense up."

He nods his head tightly before walking over to his bag and gathering his things. Is he leaving? I check the clock to make sure I have time before Mom comes and I do so I tell him to stop. He shakes the hair out of his eyes before looking at me and raising his eyebrows in question.

"Well, I could use some more help, you know," I say, just because I don't want him to leave yet. I cross my ankles over each other and fiddle with the bottom of my skirt. "There's that lift at the end that makes me nervous."

"Dzat one is easy. You will be fine."

I keep myself from pouting. "Please? You are such an excellent teacher."

He eyes me for a few moments, before looking away and letting his bag drop to the floor. I hide a smile as he goes over to the record player to reset the music again. "I have to leave after this," he says and I nod my head.

"Of course."

I smile when he comes back to me and he shakes his head again like I was silly before going through the dance with me again. The last lift is quite easy, all I have to do is hold onto his shoulders as he lifts me up, with his hands on my waist and he has to spin a few turns. He gets to do all the work and when he lifts me up I smile down at him. He wasn't looking at me at first, but when he glanced up and saw that I was looking at him, he slowed his spinning.

"I didn't mean to laugh," I tell him softly as he stops altogether and he starts to lower me.

He looks terribly serious and handsome, so when my feet touch the ground the thread my fingers through his hair. "I was right," I muse to myself in a whisper as his hands fold together behind my waist. "It is thick."

I tilt my face up to kiss him because everything in my body is screaming at me to do it. I sigh happily when I feel him pull me tighter against his body and he tilts his head more, deepening the kiss, sending shock waves through my body. The one time I kissed Tyler Roscoe, it was all tongue, saliva, and spit… it wasn't a pleasant experience, but Xavier seems to be pretty skilled at the art of snogging. So good, in fact, that it's almost suspicious and I file that away to ask him about later.

I pull back and open my eyes so I can stare into his. "Oh dear," I say as I bring a hand to my tingling lips. "I do believe I like you very much."

"Tu es très belle."

I smile at him and tilt my head to the side. "That's sweet," I tell him, liking the way my heart is jumping against my rib cage because he called me beautiful. "What now?" I ask, because I have no idea what's supposed to come next.

"I do not know," he says honestly as he searches my eyes. I almost ask him why he was always so mean to me but I don't to spoil the moment. He sighs and moves that aggravating curl out of my eyes. "Dzis is my favorite," he says to my raised eyebrow because he's still looking at my hair. When he looks back into my eyes, he looks serious. "Will your Jeremiah be upset?"

"Why would he be upset?"

He gives me a stern look and I raise my eyebrows as he lets his hands loosen from around my waist. "He loves you," he says like it was a bad thing.

I shrug. "Of course he loves me. He's my best friend… I love him too."

That earns me another patronizing head shake. "You can not be dzat blind." I narrow my eyes at that statement and I step back from him, letting my hand drop from him totally. "He does not love you like a friend."

"Yes, he does," I snap back.

I actually don't know why I'm being so defensive. I think of what my Mom said when I asked her about the kiss Xavier gave me. A boy wouldn't kiss me unless he liked me, she said… well, I did kiss Jeremiah, but that was just for fun. What does he think?

"Oh," I say as I think about it. Jeremiah can't like me like that… it's against the rules, but it would explain why he's been acting so funny around me.

"Oh?" Xavier has been watching my reactions closely this whole time and I finally look at him.

"Well, I kissed Jeremiah the other day," I say and Xavier's face falls flat. "Do you suppose he thinks it was a real kiss?" I ask out loud. I didn't mind the kiss at all, actually. In fact, I could probably do it again and be okay.

Oh, my, what a predicament I've gotten myself into.

"Was it?" Xavier asks with his voice sounding low and cold. I glance at him, irritated that he's acting so closed off again.

"Well, no. I just did it because I wanted to."

"I am going home," he says in response and I watch him as he goes back to his bag and slings it across his shoulders again.

"Why are you acting all angry?" I ask as I cross my arms. Didn't we just have a moment?

He glares at me. "Ne joue pas avec moi." He mutters, speaking his native tongue because he's upset.

"I am not playing with you," I tell him in exasperation. Boys are too bloody confusing. "Don't go yet."

He doesn't even bother saying goodbye as he leaves the room and I stomp my foot in annoyance. What was that all about? I scowl as I turn off the music and I pick up the dolls to return to the main office. I meet Mom outside and I refuse to talk to her as she Apparates me home. I stomp to my room and I yell at Daddy when he tries to tell me to calm down. I play with Nero and skip dinner as I stay in my room and stew about stupid Xavier the Raspberry.

When night time rolls around I decide that I need someone to talk to about it, so I decide I must talk to my best friend. I find my parent's eagle owl, Artemis, and I make her send a letter to Jeremiah. His response comes an hour later, telling me to meet him at his house because his parents are both gone for the night. I get dressed and I do my hair, throwing a cloak on before sneaking down to Daddy's study. I don't even bother asking. It's the middle of the night and they definitely wouldn't let me go to a boy's house if the parents weren't there, even if it is Jay.

It's pretty late because Mom and Dad are already asleep as I carefully tip toe into his study and I go over to the fire place, grabbing a handful of floo powder. The fire place in the study is the only one my parents leave on during the night just in case there are important messages that need to get through, and I'd say this is pretty important. Just before I leave, I hear footsteps and Daddy steps through the door way a few seconds later. I panic and hide in the nearest available area. Which just happens to be behind a book shelf and I wrap my blue cloak around my body, hoping I blend into the scenery until he leaves. Being in his study when he didn't authorize it is never good, especially in the middle of the night… obviously trying to sneak out.

Dad's shirtless, with a pair of black sleep pants on his legs and his hair is messy, but he has his glasses on. I notice this because there is a glare on the lenses as he lights a few candles on his desk and takes a seat in his chair. I wonder why he's awake right now and I watch as he rubs his forehead and opens a drawer, pulling a small little ball out. For a second I thought it was the Mood Manipulator, but this ball was smaller, closer to the size of a snitch and I realize it's the location sphere. He has a few of them, and he's taken to carrying them around since Lavinia left.

He points his wand at it and says my sister's name. It lights up and he looks into the ball as it spins.

"Where is she now?" We both jump at Mom's voice and I retract more into the cloak. I learned my lesson the last time I spied on them and I really don't want to have to witness anything as disgusting as I did in the library.

"She's back in England, but the place is unplottable," he answers before looking up at her. She's wearing a sleeveless nightgown that brushes the top of her knees and her hair is down and loose.

"Couldn't sleep?" She asks as she leans against the doorframe, holding something thin and square in her hands.

"Wouldn't be the first time," he replies, then he taps the ball again, saying Gavin's name. The ball lights up and spins. "He's at a pub in Knockturn Alley," he says, sounding soft. I wonder if that will pinpoint exactly where I am, because if he does my charm, then they'll know where I'm hiding.

That won't be fun.

"Do you remember this?" She asks, walking into the room. Out of curiosity I tilt my head around the bookshelf to try to see what she has. She walks over to Daddy's desk and stands behind him so she can bend over and show him the thing she was holding. "It was in Gavin's trunk. I almost forgot how fun this day was."

Dad picked it up and I was able to see it was a photo. "Fun for them," he replies as he studies the picture. "I had to stand there in the hot sun while they rode that ride twenty times in a row and Lavinia peed on me three times."

Mom smiles a little as she puts her chin on his shoulder. "They weren't big enough to get on the other rides and she was just starting to potty train." She sighs. "You can't tell from the picture, but do remember that Cass ate that giant lollie pop while we were there?"

Dad nods his head. "His teeth were blue for two weeks. I thought my Mother was going to have a stroke when she saw him."

Mom smiles as Dad frowns. Neither can see the other's reaction and I hope they're both going to go to bed soon. Dad takes her hand and kisses her palm as he sets the picture on his desk.

"Gin." His voice is a low whisper and she tilts her head so she can see is profile. "Do you honestly think it's my fault?"

She hesitates a second. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean," he says, irritated. "I've lost a son, my daughter's run off, and the other kids are miserable." I nearly speak up just then to disagree, but that's not such a good idea. "It does seem like I'm getting paid back for all the things that I've done. Maybe you were right about that. Maybe your mother was right."

"Oh, Draco," Mom says in that sweet voice she uses to make him happy. She stands up straight and pushes his chair back so she can sit down on his lap. "I don't think it works that way."

"What way does it work then?" he asks as he sits further back into the chair to accommodate her.

She looks at him, they both look terribly serious and she shrugs. "I don't know," she answers honestly and then she kisses him.

It was a quick kiss and when she pulls back she lifts the location sphere from the table. Dad watches her and then points his wand at the little ball.

"Evelyn," he mutters. The ball glows and spins and I close my eyes, dreading them finding me. "Malfoy Manor," he says with a sigh.

I let my eyes pop open when I'm sure I won't be found out. "Why don't you try, Cassius," Mom says softly, rolling the ball around in her hands.

"It's always cloudy, Gin."

"Maybe it will be different?" she asks hopefully but he shakes his head. "Why did you let him keep the ring?"

He looks at her.

"It was a Malfoy family ring, right? You had it, your father had it, and so on… why did you have them bury Cass with it?" She asks with a tight throat as Dad looks down at the location sphere on her lap.

"It's his ring now," he says with a sad undertone. "It's supposed to be passed down through your children, and he didn't get a chance to have any… so it's his."

She kisss his cheek and puts her arms around his neck. "The papers came back," she says with a sigh as she rests her head on his shoulder. "You forgot to sign them."

"I'll get to it," he answers, clearing not thinking it was important, and he was about to add another thing when Nero came running into the room with his tongue hanging out and his tail wagging again.

Stupid little puppy. "That dog is filthy," Mom says with a crinkled nose as Nero comes over and starts to jump up on their laps for attention. He is all covered in dirt from digging in the garden earlier when I took him for a walk. "Why is he so dirty," Mom asks as she stands up and with a scowl she looks down at her nice white nightgown… that now has nice brown paw prints on it.

"Evelyn took him out not too long ago," he answers, but he doesn't get up as he looks down at the location sphere that Mom handed him in her haste to get off of his lap.

"Why on earth did you get her a puppy, Draco. You know it's going to me who has to take care of it. Just like I have to take care of Lavinia's damn cat," she says in distaste and I frown at her lack of faith in my responsibility skills.

The puppy spots me and I shake my head so he doesn't come over, but he doesn't listen and he comes running with a vengeance. I try to hide more into the cloak as Nero runs over to me but it's of no use. The parts of the floor that aren't covered in expensive Persian rugs are made up of polished dark wood, that can be pretty slippery. Nero tries to stop in front of me, but his paws keep on sliding, right into the wall by the fire place. He hits the wall with a yelp and Mom runs over to him.

"You stupid dog," Mom says as she takes out her wand and cleans him of the dirt that was covering him. Nero gets his footing right and then barks at me. "Be quite, you."

He barks again and tilts his head as Mom follows his gaze…. Right to me. "Evelyn, what are you doing right there?" She spots the nice clothes that I'm wearing and the floo powder still clutched in my hands. She crosses her arms with her eyebrows together in suspicion. "What were you doing?"

Oh, hell. I stand up and pat down my clothes, trying to stall time as I think up an excuse.

"Well, you see, I was just trying too—" I don't get to finish my lie because Daddy cuts me off.

"Ginny." We both look towards him and the glowing location sphere in his hands. "It worked."

He drops it when it starts spinning and we all watch it roll across the floor boards as it successfully locates my lost brother.

Cassius

"Oh, you have got to be bloody kidding me."

I shake my head at the group of people that are currently surrounding me. They're all drunk on wine and celebrating my arrival as they dance around in the rain. I throw up my hood a little more forcefully than was necessary and scowl at the people around me.

"Move so I can leave," I state harshly as I grip my wand.

A flower decorated girl with chestnut hair walks over to me and throws flower petals by my feet. I shouldn't have taken this way. I figured I would need a guide to the mountains where Gregorios would be, so I came to grab someone from this village. The rain didn't seem to stop the celebration, but they all stopped to notice me.

"Will one of you bring me to the mountains? I need to find a man named Gregorios."

"You are a most gracious lord," one barrel chested man with a beard says as he beams at me. That one is beyond drunk and into just plain crazy. "You have brought rain! Come see out sacrifices in your honor."

"Sing for us!"

"Bless us!"

"Drink from our wine!"

Apparently there are tactless too. If I was one of their gods I would smite them all by now. I raise my wand and stun the bearded beast in front of me and when he lands with a thud on the ground, all go still.

"I need to find Gregorios," I say, playing the part of the mean and hateful deity. "I need someone who knows where he will be."

No one says anything as I look around them. They're all pale now with frightened faces as they clutch at each other for comfort. They probably think I just killed the man in front of me. Maybe if I brought him back from the dead they would be happy and listen. I point my wand to the stunned man and mumble the counter charm. My wand lights up and the man moves his limbs and sits up with a dazed look on his hairy face. The people around me huddle together in awe as the man gets to his knees in front of me.

"I need to find Gregorios," I repeat again but he's too busy kissing the ground to listen. I look around me at the blank drunk faces, realizing I probably won't be getting any help here.

With a jolt I realize there is someone who can help me. The girl who told me about Gregorios and the mountains in the first place, but now there are way too many people around me and they are all focused on my next move, no doubt they will follow me if I try to leave.

"I have a game," I say, and they all listen in rapt attention as I take out the golden practice snitch from my pocket. "The person who catches this," I say, holding the golden ball in the air so they can see it. It's the only impressive looking thing that I own right now, besides my ring but even here that bloody damn thing doesn't come off. "Who ever catches this will receive treasures beyond belief." I twist the snitch until the wings pop out. They flutter madly against my palm, wanting to be free to fly. "Get ready."

They all watch as I throw the small snitch up in the air. It hovers for a few moments before zooming off into the forest. The people hesitate one second before making a mad dash for it, crawling over each other in their haste to capture it first. Well, that worked out well. I throw up my hood and travel back towards that temple house like thing where I had been having lunch with Paige the Demon Woman to find that girl with the freckles who's the sister to the leper boy. I figure Paige will be stunned for a few more hours, so I can manage with out much trouble.

The girls are still dancing by the food table, in a weird inebriated dance that looks wicked to me now. One girl brushes up against me with red eyes and I push her back, passing through the room with a vengeance in search for the little girl who had helped me. I find her washing pots and dishes in a kitchen area and I pull her to me with one of my hands clamped on her upper arm.

"Help me find Gregorios," I tell her with out greeting and her startled eyes look wide and frightened. The other cooks and slaves edge out of the room thinking I'm going to do something terrible to the girl and not wanting to witness it. "Bring me to the mountains."

"But she—"

"She is indisposed right now and won't be up for a while. Now will you help me or not?"

She hesitates a second before sending a glance out the window, at the rain. "It hasn't rained here in forever," she mutters and I let go of her arm figuring she's just as zombified as the rest of them. "My brother knows the woods better than anyone. He's blind, but he's lived in them, so he would know."

Luckily I helped him, then, isn't it?

Her little brother is mostly healed by the time we get to him and when he feels my presence in the room he takes my tie out from under his pillow and kisses it again. It makes me feel weird so I try not to acknowledge it as his sister tells him what I need. He agrees readily and we take off into the woods after they find wool cloaks to wear to ward off the rain and the chill that it brings.

The blind boy, Kleon, takes my hand when we reach the forest and I almost shake him off but he is just a little boy and that would seem cruel. So I hold his freaking hand as he leads us through the trees.

"Him is not in the mountain," the boy says after a while of walking. He stops all together and tilts his head to the side like he was listening to something. I look over my shoulder at his sister who's wide eyes are looking around the forest like every shadow may come out to claim her. "Him is by the cliffs."

I squeeze his hand. "Can you bring me there?" I ask softly, like speaking too loud would hurt his ears. He kind of reminds me of a house-elf because his speech is so broken. "I must speak with him."

"I will," he whispers, kissing my tie again like it was a treasured artifact, and he starts pulling me a different direction.

He doesn't speak again, but as we're weaving through the trees, I turn to the freckled face girl at my side. "We have time," I tell her as the boy hops over a rock. I follow suit and pray that the cliffs aren't too far away because my feet hurt. I can't believe the day I've had already. "I want you to tell me about Paige. Who is she?"

I wish I had a ball of twine to help me out of this confusing place. I can't help but think that Paige has turned into the beast at the heart of this labyrinth.

The girl, Korinna, looks away as she messes with the thick material of her dress. "She looks different now," she says in a low voice, like if she spoke too loud Paige would hear her and kill her. "She used to be very thin and very tall… with beautiful skin. She was named Drusilla," she adds and I glance at her as we walk. Drusilla. What an annoying and unoriginal name for a villain. "She was also very cruel."

"How was she cruel?" I ask with a sick feeling turning my stomach.

"She…" she licks her lips and looks at me. "This was supposed to be a special place," she whispers. "Everyone who was blessed was invited to come here and live with others just like us."

"Blessed as in you could do magic?" I say as I think about the myth of the lost island that's embedded into every magical child's brain. "Wonderful things?"

She nodded her head as she chewed on her nails. It reminded me of Lavinia and I wondered where she was right now and what she was doing. "Gregorios and Drusilla were voted in as rulers because they were most powerful," she says softly. "But she… she was very good at making potions and she started to poison the people of the island."

I imagined a lot of dead bodies, but when I voiced that thought, Korinna shook her head.

"Not dead poison… they're eyes would turn a dark red and they would do terrible things." She gives me a nervous glance. "Like you almost did."

"Why did she do that?" I ask and the girl shrugs. That makes me frown. "People aren't just evil for the hell of it," I say honestly. I really don't think people want to be evil in general. No one should want to be the bad guy. "Why was she doing those things?"

"I do not know, but everyone feared her, especially Gregorios, and after she had threatened him he went to the mountains."

"He seems brave," I say with a head shake as the small boy pulls us further and deeper into the woods.

"I don't know what happened," she says. "Suddenly things started to change. There was a big flash of light and everyone lost time and when most of us woke up we had the worst headaches… and then the nosebleeds happened."

I pale at her words and I stay quiet as I put my head down. What she just said sounds so terribly familiar and that scares me to death. I don't want to be stuck here in the dreary place forever like they seemed to be.

"And then when we woke up we were at the same place… but things were different. No seasons changed… people who were sick stayed sick…woman who were pregnant are still pregnant… and…" she trails off until I can't stand the silence anymore.

"And what?" I snap.

"No one could die," she says. "Not unless you wanted to."

"What does that mean?" I ask sharply, hating that I have to keep on asking.

"That means that before you came you could have pierced my heart with a sword and I would have woken up the next day just as I was… but if I pierced myself with the intention of dying… I would no longer be."

"How does that make any sense?" I ask as I find ten thousand loop holes in what she just told me. "What if someone pushed you off a cliff?"

"I don't know. It's just the way of things." She holds out her hand to the rain and then she looks at me under wet dark lashes. "But since you've been here, things have changed. It's raining, my brother is healed, two woman have had their children in the village already… it's like life again. Maybe that's why she wanted you to kill her husband… to see if you could."

I look down and crack my neck, trying to ward off that turning feeling in my stomach. "You say if you killed yourself you just died? Did anything else happen?"

She shakes her head. "No, you just disappeared, like you were never here in the first place."

She doesn't have much more she could tell me because she was just a lowly slave girl after all, so the rest of the time was spent in relative silence as we followed the little boy towards the cliffs. It took us half the day to get there, until dusk when the sun was lying low in the sky to make room for the moon. That's when Kleon, the blind boy, tugged on my shirt and pointed upwards. I followed his finger to a opening in the cliff we were standing by, noting that I would have to climb up a ways which did not make me feel any better, but luckily my year of traveling with Byron had brought climbing walls like this into my catalogue of things Cass can do.

"Smoke," the boy says as his nostrils flair and I realize just now how strange it was that he just pointed at something for me look at.

Being blind, I imagine that would be tough and I gave him a good hard look to see if his eyes were clearing up. When he didn't move I stood up straight and frowned down at him before turning back to the cliff.

"We're sure he's up there?' I say as I take out my wand and un-tuck my shirt. They both say yes. "If he's not I'm going to be so pissed off," I grumble as I walk over to the cliff and I look up before lifting my wand and using a cheat spell I had learned from climbing cliffs to go on digs. Little notches come out from the rock to help me with climbing and I smirk at them before finding some footing so I can begin my climb with my wand between my teeth. This would be so much easier if I had a goddamn broom.

The whole way I up I'm thinking of Paige and who the hell she was. I don't understand this place, it doesn't make sense, and I'm not willing to stick around to find out. When I reach the top of the small cliff, I'm too bone tired and weary from the rain to notice that Gregorios is standing directly in my way with his eyes shut and his face tilted towards the heavens as rain showers him. Creep.

"I've been looking for you," I tell him as I stomp over to him and grab his arm. "How do you get off of this Island?"

He blinks at me. "You don't," he says simply.

I punch him.

He goes falling backwards and I catch him before he falls off the cliff. I'm too frustrated and confused to be level headed and hitting him felt good. Underneath us is a body of water, clashing against the rocks and I don't feel like going down there to find him when I had to travel all the way here. He brings his hands up to his nose and turns away from me in pain.

"I am not one of your gods," I state harshly as I grab the gold necklace around his neck, the one with the snarling lion on the end, and I pull him closer to me. "I am not, but I can be terrible if you don't answer my questions. My name is Cassius Malfoy and I want to go home."

"We thought you were blessed," he says when he brings his hands away from his face. There's blood clinging to his skin, but the rain is doing a good job of washing it away. "We thought we were closer to the divine then all the others because we could do things, powerful wonderful things."

"Yeah, that's swell," I say, not caring at all because I'll already covered this with Korinna. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"It wasn't always like this, you know."

"I don't care!" I whine. I grab his arm and start to shake him in my irritation. "I don't care how it used to be, I don't care that it's raining, I don't care who the fuck Paige is anymore. My name is Cassius Malfoy and I want to go home!"

He blinks a few times and then looks at me, like he was seeing me for the first time. "You can't go home." He says and I nearly hit him again.

"Why not!"

"You…you don't know," he says and I shake my head. Obviously. "I need to tell you. I need to be dissolved of this."

I reluctantly follow him when he asks me to and we end up in a smaller cave along the cliff's wall that appears man made. Of course, because he was the 'leader' one of his priests had taken off their robes for him to sit on and he made a small place for me as he ran his fingers through his wet hair and shook the water away from his eyes. A small fire was at his feet, making his skin glow gold.

"We thought we were blessed," he says, sounding miserable as he looks at his hands. "We thought we were chosen, but we really are cursed."

"And…" Let's get this show on the bloody road. I feel this pull in my chest, like I'm running out of time.

"We wanted to live forever… I wanted to live forever" He trails off as he looks at the rain and he puts a hand out to catch a few droplets on his palm. "It was my idea. All of us who could do things… magnificent things that other's couldn't do were invited to this island. We thought we were chosen," he repeats again like I was stupid and wouldn't understand. "We thought if we could all work together, we could be with the gods."

"What did you do?"

He glances at me, like he was still unsure of who I was, before crossing his arms, looking back at the rain. "I'm not even sure. It was a spell, a gateway spell, and we built that statue in honor of our big transformation." He nods to the statue that I hate so much still visible from here. "We found a way to split ourselves… so we could live forever. We did the spell and we all woke up here… and everyday has been the same… the only thing that changed was the attitude from living the same day and unable to leave. We can't even die."

I remember what Paige said about already being dead and I swallow that lump in my throat. "Only if you want to," he adds softly and I look towards him. "You couldn't kill anyone if you wanted…Well, you never could before… but things are changing with you. That's probably why she wanted you to try it on me."

"Your wife?" I ask with an eyebrow raised and he sends me a reluctant look before turning away.

"My wife. She's a real bitch of a woman too. She's the only person who's ever come back after…" Again he trails off and I understand his meaning. "And you came too. Nothing ever comes here. Nothing is ever new."

"Are you sure the only way to leave is to—"

"Die." He confirms. "We have tried everything, but you will bring new hope to us."

"That is not my job," I tell him, actually feeling bad for him now, but I have my own live I need to get back to.

"There's only a small window," he mumbles. "And yours is probably passing."

That makes me glare, because he sounds different, because there was something he seems to be not telling me. "What does that mean? What window?"

"Tell me, if you died, wherever you're from… where would your body be right now, Cassius Malfoy?"

The question catches me off guard and I look away, not liking to think about it. "There's a cemetery in London," I tell him, just because he asked. "I would probably be in the Malfoy Mausoleum. Why do you ask?" I remember the 'we're all dead' comment Paige said and I suppress a shiver.

"I was cremated," he whispers so softly that I don't think I heard him right. "Where is London?" he asks, with his voice sounding harsh again.

"What do you mean 'you were cremated?'" I ask, looking right at him.

"Here," he ignores me and hands me a stick. "Draw me a map, show me where London is."

"What?" I ask as I look at the stick. "No, I'm not going to do that. It's not important."

"You are not from here," he says smoothly. "I want to know about it before Drusilla finds me and kills me."

Trying to tap into someones guilt is cruel. I give him a glare before drawing a jagged map of Europe. "This is where you should kind of be," I say, showing him the boot that is Italy and Greece that's close to that… of course, this place isn't on a map, but I figure it's somewhere in that area. "And London is up here on this island," I tell him pointing to the little rectangle I drew to illustrate my home country. "There, now, who can I talk to get out of here?"

"You would not have been cremated?" he asks too curiously and I nearly hit him again.

"What?" I say again. "No, I would have had a wizards funeral, now you're obviously crazy, so I'm done talking to you." I stand up and dust off my pants, pissed that mud is clinging to them. "You know what," I say as I stop and turn around. "I don't like you very much and you are not much of a leader."

It's not like my words would hurt him. "That was an interesting conversation."

My head spins as I look with wide eyes at Paige, standing so regally in the rain in a different dress than the pink fluffy mess I was use to seeing on her. It was a purple dress with golden clips holding her shoulder and a matching golden cord around her waist. The water makes it cling to her body, showing every curve.

"I just want to go home," I tell her. Right now I'm not above begging. "Tell me how to get home."

"It looks like my darling husband is going to beat you to it," she says as she glancing over my shoulder, Gregorios is walking towards the edge of the cliff and I look back to Paige with my eyebrows raised.

"What is he doing?"

She smirks. "You told him exactly where you would be," she says. "It's not easy of course, you have to know exactly where a fresh one is and mine just happened by chance… or luck… either way." She shrugs her shoulders and I narrow my eyes and knit my brows. What the fuck does that mean? "The curse he put on us left us stuck, and it's either here or there now… Oh," she looks over my shoulder again. "It looks like he's going to jump."

I turn around and look at Gregorios' back as he raises his arms and says a prayer to the sky. "What are you doing?" I ask to his back as he chants.

"You stupid boy," Paige says and when I look at her, she's smiling. "He's body snatching."

"Body snatching?" That doesn't make any sense and I shake my head. "What?"

"Your body. The magic can only work so long until you're stuck here forever… that is of course, if you don't find another body to go into if you want to go back. But that is so hard because you have to be so exact, otherwise you're just lost in-between and no one wants that." She takes a step closer to me. "Stay here with me. We can rule this place together."

"Why would I want that?"

She smiles. "It's nice to be a big fish in a small pond sometimes and there are wonderful things here, Cassius. Things you've only heard about in stories, things you would love to learn about. Let Gregorios go and be Cassius for a while. You stay here with me and we can live forever."

It's too hard to understand and it hurts my brain. I hear a loud cracking sound and my head snaps to the left, where the statue is standing. It's starting to crumble… Everything crumbles. Things change and things crumble. I need to go home.

"What does that mean?"

"Of course, the body I found was seven and just barely dead. I had to push her out, poor little thing, but it was easy after that. Everyone felt bad for me… but I imagine Greggie is going to have a hell of a time waking up in your body, speaking only Greek."

"My body?"

"You're body. Looks like he's done. I think it will be funny to watch. I've wanted that cheating bastard dead for centuries."

I look back to Gregorios, this might be one big cruel joke but I don't care because I'll be damned if he takes my body… or whatever. I spare one more glance to Paige before narrowing my eyes and running towards the cliffs edge. I remember a line from a story my Mother use to read Gavin and I when we were boys and it rolls through my head as I reach the edge.

To die would be an awfully big adventure.

I hold my breath and jump, hitting the water with a sickening crash before everything turns black.

Gavin

Addison has been staying at her parent's house the past couple of days because she claims she misses them and wanted to visit. I have a suspicion that it was her Mother's doing because she is one of those bossy ladies who has nothing better to do with her life but bother her only child. Needless to say, I wasn't looking forward to this visit and I had to face her father when I knocked on the door. He frowns when he sees me and I mimic his expression. I'm not too thrilled to see his bushy browed face either.

"I need to see Addison," I state with my back straight and the letter weighing heavily in my pocket. I won't even go in for a handshake today.

"She's taking a nap," he says, but I don't give a flying fuck if she's taking a nap or not, so I smile tightly at him and tilt my head.

"Let her know that I'm here," I state, as I look into his eyes, willing him to move out of my way.

He sighs and looks me over with detest clearly written on his features. "Come in and take a seat," he says begrudgingly and he steps aside to let me through.

I don't spare him another glance as I go inside their modestly middle class house and I situate myself in the pastel sitting room with the white furniture covered in some kind of tacky lace. The letter in my pocket is burning my skin, figuratively, of course… so I take it out and smooth out the crinkles that I had made in my anger. Mrs. Prescott must be out, or she would be offering me tea and some kinds of treat right about now. I'm glad she isn't here to bother me and talk my ear off about things I could care less about. In an attempt to get comfortable, I sit back in the chair and cross my legs, tapping my fingers against my knee in impatience. I'm not a man who likes to wait on things.

Hangings on the walls are photos of Addison when she was a girl and a few of her sister, Emma, who passed away so many years ago. It's depressing and it won't help what I'm about to do if I feel sympathy, so I look down at the words on the letter to spark my rage again. There's no point in stewing about it. I might as well go right to the source to work this out instead of letting it harvest inside of me.

There's a little voice in the back of my mind that is optimistically hopeful for the outcome of this conversation, but the rational side is bullying that voice into a corner and putting it in it's stupid place. I don't have any room for hope right now… not with the terrible year that I've had.

I think over it for a little while, with my mind having an all out war with my heart when Addison walks into the room. She was asleep. I can see that her father wasn't lying because her hair is braided and tussled and she's wearing a pair of striped sweat pants and an oversized shirt that I recognize as mine. I will not be moved by the warmness I would usually feel to see her in such an outfit, so I look away. She smiles at me when she gets in, but I don't stand up, nor do I return her sentiment which throws her into confusion because of my lack of enthusiasm in seeing her. She looks troubled as she sits across from me and leans forward with her hands on her lap.

"Gavin, what's wrong?" she asks as she studies my face. I look at her, wishing I knew how to read minds, but I was always to lazy to learn the art. "Is it about Cass?" she asks softly, immediately jumping to the main source of my depression.

I shake my head and lean forwards as well, putting the letter face down on the table and sliding it over to her. "What do you think about this?" I ask flatly.

She gives me a worried look before carefully picking up the letter. I watch her face fall as she reads over it's contents and then her eyes are back on mine. She's working to get her English degree from school, so she should be able to get the meaning of that letter quite easily. She doesn't say anything for a while and when I raise an eyebrow in question she looks down.

"This isn't true," she says in a voice just above a whisper, but I hear her loud and clear. That hopeful voice jumps with joy but gets bitch slapped by my rational thoughts.

"Don't lie to me, please," I say honestly and I hate that my voice sounds so broken by it. I want to be mean and detached right now… but it's hard. With her it's hard because I tried so hard not to be that way.

"I'm.. .I'm not," she says as she licks her lips and stares at the first few buttons of my shirt. I sit back and cross my legs again, trying to look cool and collected when I really want to stand up and pace, and yell, and break things. "Terrance lied… I've never been with him like that."

"Really?"

She nods her head, totally committed to what she's telling me and I want to believe her so badly… but I won't live with what ifs, so I lick my lips and look down at the silver snake bracelet on my wrist because it's too hurtful to look at her.

"Why was Terrance at the flat that one day?"

She wasn't expecting that question, so she stares at me blankly, trying to remember and formulate an answer. "He just stopped by to say hi."

"I wasn't aware you were such good friends."

"We're not…" she looks pleading now and I can see her eyes watering. That is never a good sign and I refuse to accept what that might mean. "We've already been over this, Gavin. I swear I've never been with him."

The anger is back because I feel stupid for not seeing it… because I feel bad for caring… because I'm pissed that I want to forgive her and let this go. I sit forward and snatch the letter out of her hands. She gasps from my quick movements and I send her a heated glare that makes her cheeks blush.

"If you've never been with him, then why is he claiming that he might be the father of the child you're carrying?"

Saying it out loud stings and it must effect her too because she flinches. I wouldn't have even paid any attention to this bloody letter if it hadn't mentioned that. It would take a lot of fucking guts to claim something that serious and I don't think Terrance is that kind of idiot. We had been friends for a long time, him and I, and I just can't see him wanting to sabotage me so thoroughly with out reason.

She looks flustered and her cheeks are so red I think she might start steaming soon. "It's, well," she opens and closes her mouth a few times as she wrings her hands together. I study every movement and facial reaction she makes… and I don't like the way it adds up. "He's always had a crush on me."

I wave the letter where Terrence declares his love for my fiancée with a sneer turning my face. "That is obvious, but it doesn't answer my fucking question."

Again, she flinches and a part of me is satisfied with her fear…. But another part is… well… the other part doesn't like seeing her flinch.

"Answer me honestly because if I think you're lying I will have the mediwizard perform a paternity test," I state and now she's crying, looking steadily at my throat. "Did you or did you not sleep with Terrance behind my back?"

It's so quite that even the softest movements seem amplified right now. Her Dad coughs in the other room and it's like an earthquake, she brushes her hair over her shoulder and it sounds like a typhoon coming… even when I crack my neck the sound seems to be at it's fullest volume… like a avalanche of rocks coming to cave us in. She doesn't say anything for a very very very long time and I wait it out, staring right into her, right past her, and right at her. The silence probably answers my question better than any words ever could.

"It's not like you've never cheated on me," she says in a shaky voice and it's like a smack in the face.

I honestly couldn't answer her for a long time, because the comment was so unexpected from her, but anger is a safe emotion and I rely on that as I narrow my eyes. I won't correct her on that statement either. "When?" I snap and she looks down at her lap, like the stripes on her pants were the most interesting things in the bloody world.

"It was only once," she says in a soft voice, apparently giving in and the fire of anger that consumed me when those idiots burned down my flat has been magnified ten fold. I have to hold my self back from taking out my wand and destroying the room. "You were out again and he came over and things just happened." She messes with her hair now and I feel my face fall flat and turn stony.

No emotion in the face of pain has always been my Dad's way of handling things. It's a lot easier, I'd say.

"Why was he at the flat that one day?" I repeat again with my voice sounding far away and calm.

She gulps. "It was only one time. I swear," she could swear it on her mother's life and that wouldn't help the situation. "But he wouldn't leave me alone about it. I don't even like him," she makes a face as she thinks about it, apparently trying to pretend like Terrence is disgusting to her but if she was willing to let him inside of her… he must not be that gross. "I'm so sorry, Gavin. It was just one time and you… you know you've cheated on me before."

"How many months ago was this," I ask with a tilt of my eyebrows. She doesn't say anything so I look down at her stomach… at the place where I thought my baby was growing. I almost want to cry because I feel completely gutted. "Is there a chance that that isn't mine?" I ask softly.

She shakes her head but doesn't say anything because she's crying in earnest now. Again, her silence answers my question better than her words ever could. Everything inside of me freezes as I stand up and dust off my hands on my pants, like I was ridding them of something unwanted. This is the worst year of my entire life… I feel like I'm some actor in a dramatic Greek tragedy. Nothing can ever go right.

"Are you…" she says and I look down at her. "Are you going to hurt him?"

"Hurt who?" I ask coldly with my hands in my pockets, so she can't see them shaking.

"You know…" she says as she wipes off her nose of her sleeve. "Him."

She doesn't get it, the stupid girl. I shake my head and sigh, a long and exaggerated sigh. "I didn't love Terrence," I explain and she looks at me as I walk out of the room.

I have to leave or I might strangle her, or kiss her, or hex her… I just can't look at her anymore. When I close the front door I lean my head against the wood for one second before closing my eyes and inhaling. Sometimes, things are so painful they don't seem real at first. Cassius passing away was like that… this is like that as well and I open my eyes again before taking off for the Apparation point.

Of course Addison follows after me and she calls my name as I take out the wand. "Gavin!" she calls as she runs barefoot down the gravel road way. I glance at her as I rest my weight on my right leg and cross my arms after turning to face her fully. She should not be crying. "I'm sorry… but we can get over this, right? I've never ever said anything about you stepping out on me."

Stupid stupid stupid fucking girl. That spikes my temper again, but I'm too far gone to rage about it. I shake my head again and when she gets close enough to touch, I take her chin in my hand and place a gentle kiss on her lips just because I want to and it just might be the last time I ever will.

"I have never cheated on you," I tell her honestly and her watery eyes stare into mine, with my hand holding her chin steady so she can't look away. "Never. Do you realize how rare that is for me?" I ask softly, thinking she truly might not understand. "I thought you were rare too," I say gently as I look over her face. I let go of her and turn around so I can Apperate away. "At least you'll have a warm bed to go to. Terrance still loves you." I sound bitter, that can't be avoided right now.

"But I don't love him. I love you," she says and I raise an eyebrow even though I'm not looking at her.

I'm the last person anyone would expect to know about love, but I know what it isn't. "No, you don't," I say with a sigh before Apperating away.

I go straight to Knockturn Alley to get drunk. Terrance isn't even on my radar right now because I feel so pathetic, but a good gin and tonic is, so I go to one of the newly opened pubs at the heart of the twisted dark roadways and slums. It's so cleverly called Masquerade and everyone who enters is handed a feathered mask to hide their face from the other patrons. I could care less about that; I just know they have dark booths towards the back and an unlimited supply of hard liquor.

The sun is starting to set on this Saturday night, which means the place is packed and a long line extends out from the dark doubled door entrance. A large bouncer with a clip board and black velvet rope is holding the crowd back from stampeding into the hot night spot that's just a building made out of black glass and silver accents. There's no way I'm waiting in any fucking line, so I pass by the scantily clad women and sour looking men who are already dressed up in costumes and masks as I approach the large black bouncer with tattoo's on his face.

"Name?" He asks, barely looking at me as he pretends to be busy with his clip bored.

"Move."

That makes him look and his glare is hard as he eyes me up and down, trying to size me up. He is bigger than me, much bigger, and his arms muscles are probably the circumference of my waist, but I could care less. Right now there is only one thing I care about and that's getting drunk.

"Excuse you," he says with a tilt of his thick black eyebrows.

I will not be intimidated by anyone right now.

"No, that's alright," I state and his nostrils flair. He may try to hit me soon, but I think the pain will be a welcomed distraction. "Now, move your little rope because I want to get drunk."

He eyes me again and then his focus goes to my hair— my bright blond, wavy hair that distinguishes me from most of the other brown haired sandy blonde population.

"You're one of Draco Malfoy's boys?" he asks in a deep rumbling voice.

I stare at him in response because we're not plural anymore...in fact, I'm the only boy Draco Malfoy has now.

"You can come in," he says, after a tight nod of his head, deciding that my last name is worthy enough to be accepted.

He removes the rope that was keeping me out and I give him another hard look. "I would have come in anyways," I state flatly and he glares right back before I walk through the double doors.

Some girl in a leather jump suit hands me a black feathered mask as soon as I step in and I take it from her without a thank you. I put the damn thing on just because those are the rules and I walk down the dark hallway towards the main bar area. The place is dark, with blue lighting that scatters across the dance floor and a dense fog that lurks among the customer's feet. Heaven forbid you drop something in here, because odds are you will never find it. Not with the fog, and especially not with the hundreds of people that are crowed around in here.

In the middle of the dance floor is a large bar with the table top lit up as drunk girls and buzzed men order from the busy bartenders who are scurrying around to get everyone's orders. Girls in cages dance close to the ceiling and music thumps from speakers all around the room. The bass in the music is so loud that it feels like it's pumping my own heart so I place my hand over my chest to feel it. I'm surprised I have a heart, to be honest. Especially after it was so savagely torn apart earlier.

I scowl as I think about it and I walk further into the club to drown myself. Everyone is wearing masks of varying colors and styles and I push my own on the top of my head, pushing the hair out of my eyes because I don't feel like wearing the stupid thing anymore. There are black spiraling staircases on each side of the large room that leads up to a second floor that has seating for the people who want to take a break from dancing. I head to the left and climb the staircase, not bothering to move out of the way for anyone, and I pick one of the round tables in the darkest corner I can find. In the center of the table is a red button and after I press it a small little waitress with a cat like mask comes over to take my order.

I tell her to keep my tab open and I order four drinks right off the bat and she gives me a smile, probably trying to calculate the tip she can get out of a richly dressed heir who's on the sure fire road to getting drunk. I sit back in the chair and unbutton the first few buttons of my black shirt as I look at the people around me. Everyone is drunk and having a good time. Flirting and dancing and fucking, I see, as I spot a couple behind one of the pillars going at it like bunny rabbits. A few girls and one boy approach me over the duration of the night and I turn them down by ignoring their existence and staring off at nothing when they try to speak. I wish this whole bloody year would just be swiped away and things would be as they use to.

About half way through the night and after a few drinks, I decide that I have been faithful to Addison all in vain and that I will be going home with another girl… just to hurt her and make me feel better, so I scan the dance floor yet again, trying to look for a sure bet to enjoy the night with.

"Mr. Malfoy, sir," I look at the cat waitress as she comes over to me and my focus goes to her. Maybe she would work? I wonder what time she gets off work... or maybe we could just do something now. She looks nervous as I down my drink and put it on the table before raising my eyebrows. "The owner would like to invite you to join them in the V.I.P. room."

"Really?" I state smoothly and the girl nods her head, purple hair comes loose from her pony tail and I eye it for a few moments before looking back into her eyes. "Why?"

"I don't know, sir." She says with a shrug and I figure she must be one of those waitress' for life, as opposed to the kind that only does it to get through school or because they can't find another job at the moment.

I look down at my drink and then at the girl. I didn't want to hang out with some rich old man who probably owns the club, but the soft seating of the vip room is very tempting. So I stand up and follow the cat girl to a hidden door behind some kind of viewing screen that shows all of the people dancing down below. I give the cat waitress a wink that she blushes at under her mask before stepping into the large room that smells like cherries and dark chocolate.

The room isn't so much a party room as it is a glorified bed room with blood red carpet and black metallic furniture placed around a satin sheeted circular bed that looks terribly tacky even to my drunk eyes. I wonder if people watch other people have sex in this v.i.p. room... that would explain the chairs around the bed.

I take a drink from my glass as the waitress closes the door, leaving me alone to look around the room. I walk further in as I glance around at the black paneling on the walls and the gory picture painted on the ceiling. It's a painting of a man getting eaten by wolves and I find myself frowning at the grotesque picture. Honestly, who would want something like that? And why the hell hasn't someone come out to greet me yet?

"Why, Mr. Malfoy, so nice of you to come to my club."

I turn around, not having heard anyone step into the room behind me and when I see Pansy Parkinson-White standing there with a hand on her hip and a predatory smile on her face, I find my eyebrows raised in interest. Indeed, things just got a lot more entertaining.

"I didn't know you owned this place," I state honestly as I watch her move along in a slinky red dress that shows every bump and curve on her body. It's like she was wearing next to nothing at all and I find myself looking over the curve of her hips and the roundness of her breasts because when you wear a bloody dress like that you want to be gawked at. It dips dangerously low in the front and I note that there's a mask the same shade of alarming red, resting on the top of her hair. I guess even the club owner can't break the rules. When she steps past me I see that the barely there dress backless too. Oh, joy, and how wonderfully appropriate for a woman over forty. I think that thought with a smirk and when she sees it she raises an eyebrow.

"Well, you know now."

I take another drink from my glass, taking some ice along with it and I crunch the small cubes with my teeth. I haven't heard from her since I blackmailed her with the picture I had acquired of her giving head to an underage boy. That was almost a week ago, I wonder if she's reconsidered my offer. What an unexpected turn of events, I muse to myself as I swirl my drink.

"Indeed I do," I reply as I watch her walk over to a side bar and fill herself a glass of some dark liquid from a crystal bottle. "So, did you call me in here to tell me you're going to sell me the Dailey Prophet?" I ask, half joking. She most likely wants to kick me out and humiliate me a little before hand. It's the Slytherin bitch way, after all.

"Well, maybe," she states simply and she turns around to face me with her arms crossed. Her short hair is arranged into looping curls that are slicked to her head in a call back to another area and her gold hoop earrings are probably large enough for me to wear as a bracelet. "I noticed you were drinking alone tonight, why is that?"

I look at her and finish off my glass. "Tough day at the office," I lie with a slight smirk on my face. Even though a pang pierces my heart as I think of the first girl I had ever loved who didn't have to love me back, but it's not like I'll ever tell this old cougar about my problems. You never want to give anyone ammunition against you.

"Oh?"

"Oh."

"Well, seeing you here, all lonely and miserable looking, I've decided to take pity on you," she says as she walks closer to me again, with the predatory walk of a woman in high heels who likes to get what she wants.

"Pity?" I repeat back, loathing the word. "How do you plan to do that?"

"I want to make a deal with you," she says, standing right in front of me so that we're eyelevel and I can see every erased wrinkle on her face. "I'll give you the stupid newspaper. You wouldn't even have to pay me… on one condition."

"There's always a condition," I muse to myself as I put my glass down on one of the nearby tables, allowing her to invade my personal space for a while longer until I push her away.

She smirks. "You're right, there always is."

"Come out with it, then," I say, my patience dwindled away because I wasn't in the mood to play games.

"Fuck me."

It takes me a second to process that, and I'm pretty sure that I heard her wrong so I ask her to repeat that with a tilt of my head so I can hear better. "I'm sorry. What did you just say?"

She puts her hands on my chest and I glance at them before looking into her dark eyes. "Oh, you heard me perfectly well, my little Malfoy heir."

Hm, well, that wasn't what I was expecting either. I take her hands off of my chest and study her face, trying to find her motive.

"I wouldn't say that this is below you, because I know it's not… and I know you like the younger men." Irritation filters across her face and when I catch it, I smile. "But why?"

She shrugs, a delicate kind of shrug that doesn't fit a python like her. "I just want to, that's all."

No, that's not all, and if it was any other night I would laugh in her face and leave, but Addison's betrayal is still burning in my veins. I am Gavin Malfoy, after all and falling in love and being domesticated was so against my character. I hate to admit that I wanted that life… and she ruined it by banging one of my friends. She had a now we're even kind of attitude about it and that hurt me more than anything. I do have feelings. People seem to forget that every now and then. Now, I had a woman offering me something I had been denying myself for a long time and the Dailey Prophet was also in the works. It didn't seem like such a bad deal.

Add some alcohol and it doesn't seem like such a bad idea either.

I put down my mask so it's covering my face and I pull down hers as well, deciding that I don't want to look at her at all when this happens.

"Get the paperwork ready," I tell her before ravaging her mouth.

It wasn't a sweet kiss; it wasn't even a kiss at all, to be truthful. It was more like a series of bites and nips that worked against each other violently with a hard clashing of teeth and skin. I didn't like the way she felt, I didn't like the way she smelled, and I especially didn't like the way she mentioned me being like my father when my pants were down. That almost sent me out right then, but I took another shot of some thick tasting drink she offered before going back to it.

Being a drunk guy who was pissed at his fiancée can do wonders to your sex drive and I found myself being quite able to perform even with someone as distasteful as Pansy White. I kept my eyes shut and tried to keep most of my clothes on so most of my skin wouldn't have to touch hers, but she managed to tear my shirt off like a bobcat. She also refused to go unnoticed because she bit me, drawing blood with her teeth, and she ran her sharp as hell nails down my back more than a few times, leaving bloody tracks for later. I wasn't being gentle, or kind… I wasn't treating her like a lover and she wasn't treating me that way either. The more I hated her, the harder I pushed, and she was clenching and sighing under me in no time.

"Drake," she whispers in a hoarse voice and I figured she got me confused with someone else because I sure as hell wasn't thinking about her… but when I realized Drake was short for Draco… that pretty much killed the mood for me. Not that there was much of a mood to begin with, but still. I was having a nice time pretending she was some other girl before she did that.

She was still lying naked on the bed when I stood up and got dressed. The scratches on my back burned when I put on my shirt and as I buttoned up my pants I couldn't help but feel dirty. Not the good kind of dirty. The bad kind that leaves you feeling unclean and makes you want to take a steel brush to your skin to rid it of the grim. I tried not to show my distaste as I retied my shoes and smoothed out my hair, but it must have been palpable on my face because she commented on my scowl.

"I want the papers tomorrow morning," I say flatly as I push my mask back up to my hair and she makes a noise but I don't turn to her as I go over to the side bar and grab a bottle of scotch from behind the table. "And I'm taking this."

This must be how hookers feel and I don't even look at her as I walk out of the room. Thankfully no one's awake when I reach the beach house and I hesitate a few seconds, just absorbing all that had happened to me today before storming up to my room to retrieve my invisibility cloak. This is all Cassius' fault. If he wouldn't have died, none of this would have happened. I'm well aware that Addison was pregnant before Cass passed away, but I need someone to blame and I'm going to blame him.

And I plan on telling him that too.

I make sure the scotch is secure under my arm and my cloak is hiding me from view as I sneak into the cemetery. It's the dead of night and the place is supposed to be closed but that's not going to stop me right now. If he was here, he could have talked me through this like big brother's were suppose to… but he can't and he won't because he's dead and I'm pissed at him for it.

I jump the fence and storm towards the Malfoy Mausoleum, too upset to even be creeped out by the empty cemetery with the stone tombstones and moonlight beaming down from the sky. My wand lays limply in my right hand as I hold the scotch with my left, steadily making my way towards the heart of the cemetery so I can yell at my brother for dying without giving me warning. When I get to the large building with the Corinthian columns and the Malfoy family crest, I slam my hand against the door, watching as it lights up and creaks open.

The inside is impossibly dark and musty so I throw off my cloak and light the end of my wand in a quiet lumos spell. I go straight to his stupid little tomb and I kick it hard with my foot, barely even registering the pain that it causes me.

"This is all your fault," I hiss at his name plate. "This is all your fucking fault."

I rant at him for a while, telling him exactly how pissed off I was that he just had to up and die on me and that he wasn't here when I needed him most. I added a few more kicks and few more cuss words before giving up. Once I exhausted myself with yelling and my throat was hoarse and dry, I slumped against the opposite wall and glared at his tomb while taking large gulps of the scotch.

Because I was unfocused, my magic was waning and the lumos spell started to die, becoming a dim light on the end of my wand. I didn't even bother to fix it as I glared at my brother's name, intending to drink until I couldn't remember what happened today. The scratches on my back still burned and hurt and I shuddered when I thought about what I did with that woman.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" I ask out loud to the darkness of the tomb. "There is nothing wrong with me… This is your fault." The anger at my brother is back and I sneer at his name plate. "You've messed everything up, you realize," I mutter like a crazy person, drunk in an old mausoleum at the dead of night, talking to a tomb stone.

"Mom and Dad are all fucked up because of you. Lavinia is off with that lunatic Flint and god knows what he's doing to her and Evelyn…" Well, I couldn't think of anything to say about her, but I wasn't about ready to kill my rant. "You're just bloody selfish, that's what it is. People don't need me like they need you," I say, going off on a totally different track and I stop myself before I say too much.

I lay my head against the tomb behind me and close my eyes because I'm getting weary and I'm feeling guilty about a lot of things… mostly about yelling at my dead brother and kicking his name plate. My eyes burn, but I refuse to acknowledge what that means.

"Sorry," I mutter and then I bring my hand up to my eyes and sigh. "I'm just lost."

I wasn't expecting an answer, so I kept my eyes closed as I tried to stop my mind from spinning. I need to get up and go home, but my legs feel heavy and I'm too tired to move. So I keep my head resting against the wall behind me and I bring my legs up to my chest with my hands between my knees.

"My girlfriend cheated on me," I say out loud as I thump my head against the tomb behind me. I do it a few more times welcoming the pain. "My sweet, nice, loyal, hufflepuff girlfriend cheated on me with my old fat friend," I say softly as I stare at the relief of my brother on the brass. "Isn't that funny?"

I start laughing.

"It is so funny, because no one is going to believe I didn't cheat on her. But I didn't, Cassius." I shake my head and hit it again against the marble behind me. "I didn't because I thought I loved her and I didn't want to hurt her… but it's funny she cheated on me, isn't it. She's always talking about karma… maybe this is my bad karma getting me back." I think on that for a while before taking a drink from my scotch bottle. "What about you, Cass? What did you do that got you into this mess?"

Of course he doesn't answer, and the only things I hear are the sounds of my own breathing and night noises that are so common coming from outside.

"Do you think I should forgive her?" I ask to the empty space around me as I think about Addison, all pretty and sweet and carrying a baby I had grown rather fond of already. "You probably would have," I say as I take another drink. "You were always a bloody sap."

I sigh out loud and close my eyes again. "I need to go home," I say and I go to do just that as I gather up my bottle, wand, and cloak.

As I stand up to walk out of the mausoleum, my whole body comes to attention when I hear a faint thump, sounding like it was muffled by something big.

When it happen again I take out my wand, letting it brighten to it's fullest with my alertness. There's nothing in here and when I hear it again I reluctantly look towards the place where Cassius is buried.

"No fucking way," I state as I step closer and bend down to press my ear against the name plate. Another soft, muffled thump happens and I narrow my eyes.

I keep my ear pressed against the brass plate, waiting to make sure the noise is coming from inside, because if there is some kind of animal in there I'm sure there's a cemetery worker who needs to get fired. I incline my head more towards the plate so that my cheek is resting against it, waiting and holding my breath to hear the thump again.

I jump back when I hear scratches by my ear and, in my haste to get away, I trip and fall down on my back. My head smacks against the marble floor and I cuss as I look up at the stained glass ceiling that doesn't look nearly as impressive in the dark as it does in the day time, but the moon is still shining through casting some of the things in the mausoleum—including me—in strange tints of blues, yellows, and reds. The loud scratching happens again, so I stand up straight and point my wand towards the tomb. I don't know what I would do with my bloody wand to be honest, but I just feel better when I'm holding it and pointing it at something.

The scratching continues and I eventually lower my wand to my side with my mouth dropping open.

"No. Bloody. Way." I state as I look at my brother's brass plate… and the date that just got erased.