UNSPEAKABLE
Chapter One: Sun, Shade, Shadow and Storm
***
Precious baby giggles rolled over the gorgeous garden from the open Manor windows, the afternoon warm and sunny. Bird twittering served as charming accompaniment, as a young woman of unreal attractiveness waited patiently in the front hall.
"How could this beautiful baby boy…" the lovely lady with ghostly gray eyes trailed off, staring sadly at the giggling image of an infant with smiling, sparking eyes. Her perfect visage smiled fondly at the adorable face and tiny hands. The nursling stopped its delighted tittering and started sucking its hand, traditional baby behavior. It suddenly squealed with baby joy and started flailing and fluttering its arms merrily, laughing again.
Unspeakable Storm had worked for the Ministry several years now and still couldn't force her deep love for babies out of her professional life. Storm stared at the baby for several moments, trying to determine his age, until a voice surprised her from behind, "He was six months."
Storm's shiny raven hair whirled as she turned to face the lady of the house, who was holding a gray and white cat, her expression that of long-term despondency. She stroke the golden eyed feline and resumed, "Good morning, Inspector. How can I help you now?" She sounded so distant and hollow.
Storm was familiar with the manor, having been there many times before, posing as merely a Ministry Inspector. She had been working on this particular case and all cases connected to it for months now. The bizarre house elf had shown her in, as he had many times before. She always waited patiently admiring the child as the lady of the house was fetched. "Yes, I'm looking for…"
"She's in the garden, Inspector." The older woman turned to lead the way, even though Storm was well aware of where the garden was and what was implied in that seemingly simple statement…
***
Shady Storm approached a middle aged woman who was on her knees in the beautiful backyard garden humming cheerfully with a pair of hedge clippers. She sensed the Unspeakable's presence without looking up and her cheerful mood faltered ever so slightly. "Good morning, my dear. How are you?"
"Very good, Marilyn. And yourself?…" She started to ask.
"Wonderful, dear! You're right on time! We're expecting Quin any moment now." She resumed her cheerful snipping and clipping. Storm had expected this, for every time this woman gardened, she was expecting her son. Storm watched the woman garden in her traditional manner for a few moments, snipping the pretty blossoms off all the flowers. "Thought I'd better tidy up out here for Quin." She added, as she continued to snip all the flowers away.
Storm exchanged a quick expression with the lady of the house, who was this woman's older sister, before starting to speak, "Mrs…"
The cheerful woman in a sun hat suddenly wasn't so cheerful. She interrupted, "Inspector Shadow is hiding in the car again, I see."
Storm refused to let herself even smirk. "Yes, well…"
"Inspector Shadow deserves to burn and rot in Hell." the gardener said somehow both casual and firm at the same time. She started to snip with more force, clearly angry inside.
"Well, I…"
"He's a liar." Marilyn stopped clipping and turned suddenly, speaking sharply. "My son is a good boy."
"Of course he is, we…"
"He's a good boy." she repeated, ardently.
As she resumed her gardening, Storm ventured, "I'd just like a ask you a few…"
"No more questions. No more! He's a good boy!"
"Of course he is. It's nothing like that." she lied. "I was just curious about his schooling…"
Marilyn was still suspicious though. "His schooling? Well…" she couldn't resist, "My son was very bright, you know."
"He was very bright. Brilliant." Storm smiled warmly.
This worked better than any Tell All Charm could. The proud mother was totally taken in and began to spill, "My son was very social. Just like his father. He went to Hogwarts and was a part of all that went on there. Very social. Very popular. Would you like to see his picture?" she produced a reasonably large photo of a young man Storm has seen many times before from basket and smiled proudly. "Beautiful, wasn't he?"
Storm smiled, recalling the first time she'd seen this smiling face. She'd been completely shocked by how handsome the young man had been before…
His mother continued, "Yes, quite the looker. Always had pretty girls here during the summer…"
"He's gorgeous." Storm was sincere as she handed the picture back.
"While he wasn't as handsome or as popular as his best friend, Gil, but he was easily smarter. Sure, Gil was Prom King, but my son was Head Boy."
BINGO. "Gil?" Storm was careful.
"Yes, Gil. Gil and Rick were my son's best friends growing up. Rick was the athlete of the group. Not very bright and rather plain… but certainly a sports nut. He was Captain of the Quidditch team."
"Which house?" Storm was on the right track now.
"I'm really not sure. I assume the same as Quin and Gil… Ravenclaw. However, Rick doesn't strike me as the wise, knowledge seeking type. He seemed more like a Griffyndor to me, I guess. Now that I think of it… Gil doesn't strike me as a Raven…"
"So, Gil and Rick were your sons best friend's at Hogwarts?"
"Oh yes." she smiled, remembering. "The three were inseparable."
"What were there last names? What did they look like?" the Unspeakable tried to come across casual, but knew she was failing miserably because the older sister, Sarah, had a nervous visage now.
The younger sister hadn't failed to notice either, as she worked away, destroying the next lovely rose bush. She started to shut down. "I really can't remember. In fact, I've told you just about all I know about the boys. Nice boys. Good boys. My son is a good boy."
Storm was losing her, "I'm curious to see what Gil and Rick looked like… you wouldn't happen to have any old yearbooks around, would you?"
Marilyn hesitated for a moment before rising slowly, "Yes, several. I've kept all my baby's school things up for him. His room is all ready for him. He'll be home any moment now."
"Could I please see his yearbooks?" the detective was hopeful.
"I suppose." she set down her hedge clippers. "There are some very personal things in them though." She added in a whisper, "Some of those pretty girls had very dirty mouths."
***
Marilyn opened the first year book and smiled warmly, "I dust these at least once a day. Never wanted Quin to pop in and find his things a mess. Everything must be kept up for him, you know."
The loving mother brushed his premature gray hair from her smiling blue eyes as she flipped to a picture of her son, "Here he is. Page 121." There was a large message written across the huge black and white image of her smiling son, who was holding a beautiful blond girl. "She was a nice and pretty girl. Dirty mouth though." For across the picture read the large red message: QUIN IN A SEXY BITCH! It was surrounded by hearts. "Quin assured me that was a good thing… but I just don't know…" she added as she turned the page.
"That's Gil…" she pointed to a very handsome young man, with blond hair that framed his face nicely. He was wearing a cowboy hair and smiling the most sexy smile Storm had ever seen.
"Here he is again on 246…" Marilyn turned to said page and showed a picture of Gil with his arm around her son like a brother. "They were so tight." Storm looked closely at the blonde's face… his hair wasn't long or short… it just framed his face nicely.
She looked at his face long and hard until something clicked. She'd found her man. Before she could stop herself she muttered, "He smiled without showing his teeth?"
"Yes, I never understood that." the mother admitted, turning to another picture of Gil with a cowboy hat - a style that complimented his hair perfectly. "He had the most amazing smile ever made… and yet, he was so self conscious about his teeth. Oh well."
"What about Rick?" Storm reminded her, having confirmed Gil.
"Let's see…" Marilyn flipped randomly through the thick yearbook, until she hit a large picture of a robust young man. He had dark hair and eyes, but it was impossible to determine the colour of anything in a black and white image. He was dancing for joy around the image. His team had just won the house cup, it seemed. There was a caption underneath… Storm read it and memorized the names.
"Sarah, bring this young lady some of my freshly baked cookies…" the woman holding the book beside her broke through her thoughts suddenly. Sad Sarah hesitantly left for the kitchen. Storm understood exactly why…
When Quin's aunt returned with a freshly baked tray of delicious smelling ginger cookies… Storm saw nothing changed. The cookies were all shaped in horrible, negative images. However, Marilyn didn't even realize it. "I baked a fresh batch up, for I know how much my baby loves his gingerbread."
Storm took the only decent looking snap, a smiley face that wasn't smiling. It looked very angry. Hateful, in fact. All the others were too terrible to even consider eating. She could just image all these cookies wrapped up and in tins, piling up in the kitchen and pantry. This woman made cookies nearly every day and they were scarcely ate. Her own sister tried not to eat them. They tasted foul.
Shady Storm forced down the cookie, chatted with Marilyn for a few more moments about her son and then excused herself, heading back to her car, where her partner was waiting impatiently, having finished his coffee and doughnuts.
***
"Well?" Unspeakable Shadow was hopeful as she hopped into the passenger side. "What's the word?"
Storm smirked, "She knows your in the car, Sunny. You're letting her get the better of you. She thinks you're afraid of her now."
"I'm not afraid of that batty old woman. BUT, if I ever set another step on the property, Shade, she'll be provoked and not tell us a thing ever again. She'll clam up and get pissed. PLUS, she's dangerous when she's angry - you know it. She should be in an asylum. I feel sorry for her sister. Decent lady to take her in, isn't she?"
Storm sighed, ignoring the question. "I admit. She's creepy. More often than not, I wish I could stay in the car too…"
"Spill." Her partner interrupted. "What'd she say?"
Storm grinned, "His best friend was GIL."
Sunny Shadow laughed triumphantly as they pulled away. "Bingo."
***
"Maverick…" Storm was on the phone. "Get me everything you've got on a guy named Ricky Wood."
As she hung up, Sunny sipped a pop, "Who? Personal?"
"No, case related. His other best friend."
"Ah…" Sunny leaned back in his chair. There was a long silence and he glanced at his agenda. "I've got another Parent-Teacher Meeting…"
"Casey?" Storm sat down, putting her high healed feet and shapely legs up on the desk. She was familiar with her partners children and his middle daughter's recent troubles at school.
"Again." he snorted, tossing his pop.
"Recycle…" Storm muttered, annoyed. "What this time?" she added.
"Swearing and biting, I think." Sunny sighed, leaning back in his chair. They were silent for a long while before he added, "I just don't understand it. We've tried everything with that kid."
Shady was silent and they listened to the fan…
Suddenly, Sunny started to chuckle - he just couldn't let it go. "Witch's Weekly's Most Handsome Smile Award five times running and he hates his smile…"
Chapter One: Sun, Shade, Shadow and Storm
***
Precious baby giggles rolled over the gorgeous garden from the open Manor windows, the afternoon warm and sunny. Bird twittering served as charming accompaniment, as a young woman of unreal attractiveness waited patiently in the front hall.
"How could this beautiful baby boy…" the lovely lady with ghostly gray eyes trailed off, staring sadly at the giggling image of an infant with smiling, sparking eyes. Her perfect visage smiled fondly at the adorable face and tiny hands. The nursling stopped its delighted tittering and started sucking its hand, traditional baby behavior. It suddenly squealed with baby joy and started flailing and fluttering its arms merrily, laughing again.
Unspeakable Storm had worked for the Ministry several years now and still couldn't force her deep love for babies out of her professional life. Storm stared at the baby for several moments, trying to determine his age, until a voice surprised her from behind, "He was six months."
Storm's shiny raven hair whirled as she turned to face the lady of the house, who was holding a gray and white cat, her expression that of long-term despondency. She stroke the golden eyed feline and resumed, "Good morning, Inspector. How can I help you now?" She sounded so distant and hollow.
Storm was familiar with the manor, having been there many times before, posing as merely a Ministry Inspector. She had been working on this particular case and all cases connected to it for months now. The bizarre house elf had shown her in, as he had many times before. She always waited patiently admiring the child as the lady of the house was fetched. "Yes, I'm looking for…"
"She's in the garden, Inspector." The older woman turned to lead the way, even though Storm was well aware of where the garden was and what was implied in that seemingly simple statement…
***
Shady Storm approached a middle aged woman who was on her knees in the beautiful backyard garden humming cheerfully with a pair of hedge clippers. She sensed the Unspeakable's presence without looking up and her cheerful mood faltered ever so slightly. "Good morning, my dear. How are you?"
"Very good, Marilyn. And yourself?…" She started to ask.
"Wonderful, dear! You're right on time! We're expecting Quin any moment now." She resumed her cheerful snipping and clipping. Storm had expected this, for every time this woman gardened, she was expecting her son. Storm watched the woman garden in her traditional manner for a few moments, snipping the pretty blossoms off all the flowers. "Thought I'd better tidy up out here for Quin." She added, as she continued to snip all the flowers away.
Storm exchanged a quick expression with the lady of the house, who was this woman's older sister, before starting to speak, "Mrs…"
The cheerful woman in a sun hat suddenly wasn't so cheerful. She interrupted, "Inspector Shadow is hiding in the car again, I see."
Storm refused to let herself even smirk. "Yes, well…"
"Inspector Shadow deserves to burn and rot in Hell." the gardener said somehow both casual and firm at the same time. She started to snip with more force, clearly angry inside.
"Well, I…"
"He's a liar." Marilyn stopped clipping and turned suddenly, speaking sharply. "My son is a good boy."
"Of course he is, we…"
"He's a good boy." she repeated, ardently.
As she resumed her gardening, Storm ventured, "I'd just like a ask you a few…"
"No more questions. No more! He's a good boy!"
"Of course he is. It's nothing like that." she lied. "I was just curious about his schooling…"
Marilyn was still suspicious though. "His schooling? Well…" she couldn't resist, "My son was very bright, you know."
"He was very bright. Brilliant." Storm smiled warmly.
This worked better than any Tell All Charm could. The proud mother was totally taken in and began to spill, "My son was very social. Just like his father. He went to Hogwarts and was a part of all that went on there. Very social. Very popular. Would you like to see his picture?" she produced a reasonably large photo of a young man Storm has seen many times before from basket and smiled proudly. "Beautiful, wasn't he?"
Storm smiled, recalling the first time she'd seen this smiling face. She'd been completely shocked by how handsome the young man had been before…
His mother continued, "Yes, quite the looker. Always had pretty girls here during the summer…"
"He's gorgeous." Storm was sincere as she handed the picture back.
"While he wasn't as handsome or as popular as his best friend, Gil, but he was easily smarter. Sure, Gil was Prom King, but my son was Head Boy."
BINGO. "Gil?" Storm was careful.
"Yes, Gil. Gil and Rick were my son's best friends growing up. Rick was the athlete of the group. Not very bright and rather plain… but certainly a sports nut. He was Captain of the Quidditch team."
"Which house?" Storm was on the right track now.
"I'm really not sure. I assume the same as Quin and Gil… Ravenclaw. However, Rick doesn't strike me as the wise, knowledge seeking type. He seemed more like a Griffyndor to me, I guess. Now that I think of it… Gil doesn't strike me as a Raven…"
"So, Gil and Rick were your sons best friend's at Hogwarts?"
"Oh yes." she smiled, remembering. "The three were inseparable."
"What were there last names? What did they look like?" the Unspeakable tried to come across casual, but knew she was failing miserably because the older sister, Sarah, had a nervous visage now.
The younger sister hadn't failed to notice either, as she worked away, destroying the next lovely rose bush. She started to shut down. "I really can't remember. In fact, I've told you just about all I know about the boys. Nice boys. Good boys. My son is a good boy."
Storm was losing her, "I'm curious to see what Gil and Rick looked like… you wouldn't happen to have any old yearbooks around, would you?"
Marilyn hesitated for a moment before rising slowly, "Yes, several. I've kept all my baby's school things up for him. His room is all ready for him. He'll be home any moment now."
"Could I please see his yearbooks?" the detective was hopeful.
"I suppose." she set down her hedge clippers. "There are some very personal things in them though." She added in a whisper, "Some of those pretty girls had very dirty mouths."
***
Marilyn opened the first year book and smiled warmly, "I dust these at least once a day. Never wanted Quin to pop in and find his things a mess. Everything must be kept up for him, you know."
The loving mother brushed his premature gray hair from her smiling blue eyes as she flipped to a picture of her son, "Here he is. Page 121." There was a large message written across the huge black and white image of her smiling son, who was holding a beautiful blond girl. "She was a nice and pretty girl. Dirty mouth though." For across the picture read the large red message: QUIN IN A SEXY BITCH! It was surrounded by hearts. "Quin assured me that was a good thing… but I just don't know…" she added as she turned the page.
"That's Gil…" she pointed to a very handsome young man, with blond hair that framed his face nicely. He was wearing a cowboy hair and smiling the most sexy smile Storm had ever seen.
"Here he is again on 246…" Marilyn turned to said page and showed a picture of Gil with his arm around her son like a brother. "They were so tight." Storm looked closely at the blonde's face… his hair wasn't long or short… it just framed his face nicely.
She looked at his face long and hard until something clicked. She'd found her man. Before she could stop herself she muttered, "He smiled without showing his teeth?"
"Yes, I never understood that." the mother admitted, turning to another picture of Gil with a cowboy hat - a style that complimented his hair perfectly. "He had the most amazing smile ever made… and yet, he was so self conscious about his teeth. Oh well."
"What about Rick?" Storm reminded her, having confirmed Gil.
"Let's see…" Marilyn flipped randomly through the thick yearbook, until she hit a large picture of a robust young man. He had dark hair and eyes, but it was impossible to determine the colour of anything in a black and white image. He was dancing for joy around the image. His team had just won the house cup, it seemed. There was a caption underneath… Storm read it and memorized the names.
"Sarah, bring this young lady some of my freshly baked cookies…" the woman holding the book beside her broke through her thoughts suddenly. Sad Sarah hesitantly left for the kitchen. Storm understood exactly why…
When Quin's aunt returned with a freshly baked tray of delicious smelling ginger cookies… Storm saw nothing changed. The cookies were all shaped in horrible, negative images. However, Marilyn didn't even realize it. "I baked a fresh batch up, for I know how much my baby loves his gingerbread."
Storm took the only decent looking snap, a smiley face that wasn't smiling. It looked very angry. Hateful, in fact. All the others were too terrible to even consider eating. She could just image all these cookies wrapped up and in tins, piling up in the kitchen and pantry. This woman made cookies nearly every day and they were scarcely ate. Her own sister tried not to eat them. They tasted foul.
Shady Storm forced down the cookie, chatted with Marilyn for a few more moments about her son and then excused herself, heading back to her car, where her partner was waiting impatiently, having finished his coffee and doughnuts.
***
"Well?" Unspeakable Shadow was hopeful as she hopped into the passenger side. "What's the word?"
Storm smirked, "She knows your in the car, Sunny. You're letting her get the better of you. She thinks you're afraid of her now."
"I'm not afraid of that batty old woman. BUT, if I ever set another step on the property, Shade, she'll be provoked and not tell us a thing ever again. She'll clam up and get pissed. PLUS, she's dangerous when she's angry - you know it. She should be in an asylum. I feel sorry for her sister. Decent lady to take her in, isn't she?"
Storm sighed, ignoring the question. "I admit. She's creepy. More often than not, I wish I could stay in the car too…"
"Spill." Her partner interrupted. "What'd she say?"
Storm grinned, "His best friend was GIL."
Sunny Shadow laughed triumphantly as they pulled away. "Bingo."
***
"Maverick…" Storm was on the phone. "Get me everything you've got on a guy named Ricky Wood."
As she hung up, Sunny sipped a pop, "Who? Personal?"
"No, case related. His other best friend."
"Ah…" Sunny leaned back in his chair. There was a long silence and he glanced at his agenda. "I've got another Parent-Teacher Meeting…"
"Casey?" Storm sat down, putting her high healed feet and shapely legs up on the desk. She was familiar with her partners children and his middle daughter's recent troubles at school.
"Again." he snorted, tossing his pop.
"Recycle…" Storm muttered, annoyed. "What this time?" she added.
"Swearing and biting, I think." Sunny sighed, leaning back in his chair. They were silent for a long while before he added, "I just don't understand it. We've tried everything with that kid."
Shady was silent and they listened to the fan…
Suddenly, Sunny started to chuckle - he just couldn't let it go. "Witch's Weekly's Most Handsome Smile Award five times running and he hates his smile…"