The cool water lapped against her feet as they ambled along the beach, enjoying the solitude of the otherwise empty shoreline. Coarse particles of sand stuck to the backs of their legs, but neither of them cared. It had been good just to get away from the war and spend a day by themselves.
But that getaway was winding down, and concerns and strategies were slowly working their way back into their minds like a persistent mischief of mice.
"James," she finally whispered, knowing that the Muffling Charms would prevent eavesdroppers in the case that they had somehow overlooked someone but still feeling impelled to be quiet, "do you think we'll ever win?"
His hand tightened around hers as he looked down at her in obvious disbelief. "Where's this coming from? Of course we will. That man's a maniac, but he's not invincible. We'll keep fighting until we get him."
A wave barrelled into their legs, almost sending both of them careening down to the ground. Surprised laughs forced their way out of them as they gripped one another to steady themselves, hunkering down as if in a bunker until it was safe to move forward again.
"We're bad at this," Lily observed.
James reached his foot out to idly flick aside a wad of seaweed that was floating past them. "Maybe it means we should come here more often."
"It would be nice to get away from it all again." After a few moments of quiet reflection, Lily added, "But I didn't mean against him; I meant against the ideology. It was here long before him, and it will outlast him, too. And it's not like anyone would be open to us seeking educational reform to address it, so…"
He sighed, the sound thick with exhaustion and resignation, and she could have discerned his answer from that alone. "We'll defeat him, and then we'll see about the rest of it."
"So, no, you don't think so."
"Not yet," he admitted. "But one day… One day, I think we will."
She leaned against him, seeking comfort from his familiar form. "Then we'll just have to do what we can to get ready for that," she said, but what she was thinking was, Everything is always 'one day'.
A/N: Things you learn while writing: the collective name for a group of mice is a mischief.