Characters' current ages: Jillian Verdent (currently Adams)- 23. William Verdent- 24. Archie Kirkland- 25. Elizabeth Kirkland- 22. Konata Verdent (currently Kirkland)- 1.

"She looks so like you," crooned a man by the name of Archie Kirkland, his blonde bangs flopping over one eye. In his wife's arms, a tiny toddler, just a year old, was being held. The little girl's mother- Elizabeth Kirkland- shook her head in disagreement, her light blue eyes glued to her child.

"I beg to differ. She's got those gorgeous green eyes, and her head's shaped like yours, and I think her nose is starting to be shaped like yours is…" she reasoned. Archie tilted his head, shrugging.

"Well, I guess she's a combination of both of us," he decided.

"That's sort of what children are, aren't they?" The couple laughed, kissing and then both snuggling their daughter in turn. They'd had the same conversation at least 20 times, yet it somehow never got old. As long as a topic positively involved their family of three, they could discuss it over and over without getting bored of it. They stared peacefully into each other's eyes, until the sound of knocking came from their front porch.

"Knock knock, it's me!" sang Jillian Adams, casually opening the door to the Kirkland household with William Verdent in tow. Normally, this would be quite rude, but she and her boyfriend had been friendly with the Kirkland couple for around 5 years. Elizabeth and Archie both stood up, beaming at their company. They exchanged quick greetings, Will and Archie automatically beginning a conversation. Jillian and Elizabeth chatted until they took notice of the Kirkland baby's eyelids beginning to droop.

"Jilly, come with me for a tick. Hang tight men, I've got to put Konata up for her nap," Elizabeth announced. Archie nodded pleasantly, while Will raised an eyebrow.

"Remind me again why you named her that? One, you're not Japanese, and two, you don't even pronounce it right," the spectacled, black haired man muttered.

"Well we loved the name Konata," Elizabeth pronounced this koh-nuh-tuh, "and since we're not Japanese, we decided to be unique and say it kah-nuh-tuh."

"You say unique, I say mental," William grumbled. With a roll to her eyes, Elizabeth took hold of Jillian's wrist and led her up the stairs.

"How are things going with, you know, you two? I mean, you've broken up 3 times already…" she murmured to her ginger friend.

"Oh, they're perfect. I think we're together for good this time…" Jillian replied blissfully.

"I don't get it," Elizabeth sighed, opening the door to Konata's nursery with one hand and her foot. "What could someone like you see in HIM? He's a right git."

"But you don't know his other side," Jillian stated immediately. "He loves me, loves me more than you could imagine… You just… have to get to know him. Really know him."

"By 'really know him,' I'll take it you mean that he's a good kisser?" Elizabeth taunted.

"You KNOW that's not what I mean, Lizzy!" Jillian squealed, playfully smacking her friend's arm. Discussing her love for Will, though, seemed to put her in a permanent good mood. Laughing, Elizabeth gingerly lay down her now snoozing baby. Jillian's expression softened, making her suddenly appear a great deal more mature.

"She is adorable… Absolutely precious, I wish I could steal her," Jillian insisted lovingly. Although Elizabeth's gentle smile remained, it darkened and her eyes filled with sadness. She silently drew in a deep breath.

"I'm… I'm glad you think that, actually." Slowly, she turned to face her friend. "Do you remember what Archie and I told you back when Konata was born?"

All joy was now absent from Jillian's face. How could she possibly forget that poignant conversation that tainted such a fantastic day? She did, though, succeed in shoving it to the back of her mind. "Er… Refresh my memory…" Her voice was barely a whisper.

"As you know, Archie and I are… one of those people."

"Oh don't talk about yourselves that way, I think witches and wizards are fascinating," Jillian interrupted. Elizabeth barely attempted to smile.

"Well, we're both purebloods, making us highly valued in our society. But see, we don't think we're all that special- I mean, our best friends are Mugglesfor Pete's sakes. So, we're considered blood traitors. We're as good as dead to the other remaining purebloods. That being said, in the event that anything happens to us… Archie and I want Konata to be raised by you and, if you stay with him, William."

It was silent between the two young women for a moment. Why did Elizabeth choose then to remind her of this instruction? "It… It was nice seeing you, Lizzy. I gotta get going…" Jillian murmured after a while. She gave her friend a tight, lasting hug, before striding out of the door, retrieving Will, and heading on home. She decided not to speak of what was discussed in the nursery, not only because she didn't think it was necessary but also because she was afraid of realizing it may be important to have in mind.

"Archie, hun… I reminded Jill of what we want to be done with Konata if we… don't survive. Did you, tell William about it?" Elizabeth said that night, climbing into bed with her husband. Archie shook his head and pulled the covers over himself.

"Nah… He's got the memory of an elephant. Not to mention Jillian'll probably tell him that you told her," he responded. Elizabeth nodded slowly.

"Yeah… You're right. Well, good night, love."

"Good night darling." The Kirklands kissed lovingly, sliding underneath the blankets and closing their eyes. Little did they know they would never wake up the next morning. They should have realized a Muggle burglar alarm system was nothing for a pureblood wizard, keen on wiping out blood traitors…

"Lizzy? Hey, it's me," Jillian called through the Kirkland's front door. "I thought we ended kind of short yesterday so I…" she trailed off, seeing that her boyfriend was staring wide-eyed at something beside the doorway. The burglar alarm… It looked like a bullet had smashed through it. Without any other comment, the couple bolted into the living room and down the hall to the bedrooms. Will made it there before Jillian, and stopped dead.

"Jill… Don't come any further," he whispered. Jillian immediately felt fear well up inside of her. He rarely called her Jill, and had never sounded so frightened. Leisurely, Jillian stepped forward and peered inside of the room in which Elizabeth and Archie spent their nights in. There was a possibility they could simply still be asleep… Except that their skin was lacking in color, and neither of them breathed. Jillian stumbled backward, abruptly feeling dizzy. They weren't dead… They couldn't be… Poor little Konata couldn't live without parents…

"Konata," Jillian breathed. Weakly gripping Will's wrist, she quickly staggered across the hall to the nursery. The baby was awake, lightly gripping the bars of her crib and staring innocently at the doorway. She started to smile at the sight of the new guests, but soon must have realized these people were not her parents. "Hi there, little sweetie…" Jillian whimpered. With much effort, she made it over to the side of the crib. Shaking, she reached inside and scooped Konata into her arms. "You're… y-you're my baby now…" Normally, she would have been overjoyed- she had just become the mother of such a beautiful young girl- but considering the circumstances… Tears streamed down her face.

Now William was close to falling over as well. There was no way he would allow Jillian to raise the girl alone… Yet he couldn't take up the responsibility of fatherhood: children were awful… "Don't worry, Konata, I'll take good care of you…" Jillian was stammering, precariously kissing the baby's forehead over and over. With a silent gulp, Will took a step forward and wrapped his arms around Jillian's front. Never would he be able to find someone who loved him like she did; someone who he cared about so much…

"Might as well change her birth certificate so that it says Konata Elizabeth Verdent…"

A tiny gasp escaped Jillian's lips. "But, I-I thought you didn't want kids-"

"I don't. I really don't. But it's not like we can just dump the girl somewhere… And you obviously want her, so…" Shifting Konata to one arm, Jillian gripped Will's shoulder and lunged forward, pressing her lips against his. When they pulled back, Jillian's hazel eyes widened: for the first time in at least 10 years, William Verdent was crying. Whether it was because he truly didn't want to be a father, or because he was overwhelmed with his feelings for Jillian, or because his best friend had just been murdered in his sleep, nobody will ever know.