Lady Bacon
After the events at the MLE building, I decided to Apparate back to my flat to collect myself. I closed the front door carefully behind me and leaned against it heavily, surveying the quiet flat. It looked the same as it had before the whole Andrei and Aleksandra event, and yet…
My hand reached up to gingerly touch my stomach. I knew that if I looked underneath my cotton shirt that I would find angry purple bruises staining my tan skin. The healer at the Ministry had offered to give me some cream to make the angry marks disappear, but somehow I needed them there - I needed the reminder to keep me alert.
After three seconds of self-pity I shook myself awake and, with my jaw set determinedly, walked five meters forward to the area where I kept all of my work-related documents. Kneeling next to the small mahogany bookshelf, I let my fingers trace the spines of my law manuals, brushing aside stray rolls of parchment as I searched for what I was looking for. I hadn't tried to contact Elise yet, so I had no idea if her search had been fruitful or not, but I might as well continue in my search. I pulled a faded red tome – the manual of laws pertaining to magical creatures – and a smaller pamphlet of papers I'd retrieved from the library.
Not bothering to get up to sit at the desk back in my room, I spread my legs out on the floor and pooled the papers around me, flipping through them in the quiet peace of the flat. I'd printed out a list of all the Muggle hospitals with a cancer ward and affordable health care. Using my lucky gold quill, I circled the chiefs of surgery of each hospital with bright red ink, marking my targets one by one. Of course, I couldn't just go and stalk these Muggles; I was a lawyer, after all, and thus couldn't risk breaking even the smallest of laws (I once almost got in big trouble for accidentally walking out of Scrivenshaft's with a forgotten quill stuck behind my ear). But that didn't mean I couldn't try and contact them. Of course, I doubted they would know the name of one patient out of what must be hundreds, but it couldn't hurt to try.
I'd try the major hospitals first; the Royal Marsden would be first, considering it specialised in the diagnosis and care of cancer. I checked the chief of surgery's name once more – Ms. Freya Grey. I just had to find some way to speak with her and see if I could find some way to access the hospital's files.
Hm. Judging from the receptionist's reaction back at St. Mungo's, I probably wouldn't have much success if I tried to charm my way in. My specialty didn't lie with charisma. My eyes drifted back to the black and white photo of Daisy that had been included in the case file, and my fingers clenched determinedly. I was, however, dreadfully stubborn. This Ms. Grey would have to watch out; Adela Lancaster was not going to take no for an answer.
I settled back into my research, humming softly to myself as I flipped through the pages of legal text.
A sudden tapping at the window broke Numberita from her thoughts, and I glanced up in surprise to see a small (perhaps only a third of a meter tall) owl hovering outside of the living room window. Maybe it was Elise with good news! I scrambled to my feet, upsetting a roll of parchment in the process, and stumbled over to the window, wincing slightly when the movement pulled at my sore muscles. Unlatching the window with slightly shaking fingers, I watched as the owl – a rather stunning fawn coloured bird with speckles of deep brown scattered across her chest and luminous gold eyes – soared into the room and settled on top of the armchair.
She held out a slim talon, hooting impatiently when I didn't remove her package quickly enough. I stuck my tongue out at her, receiving a sharp peck to my hand for my impertinence. From the corner Sir Archibald, who had come out to examine the source of the commotion, hissed warily, his fur puffed up in his distaste for the loud bird.
She hooted again.
I finally succeeded in removing the slim brown parcel from her leg (avoiding three pecks in the process) and, after rummaging in my bag, extracted a stray owl treat and tossed it at the owl. She snapped it mid-air before bending her neck to preen. Why wasn't she leaving yet? The window was open. Usually owls left as soon as they delivered their parcel…perhaps she was waiting for a reply? I opened the parchment letter attached to the parcel, my fingers smoothing the crumpled paper as my eyes scanned its contents. There were several crossed-out words and the paper was worn thin, almost as if the writer had folded and refolded it over and over again.
Adela-
Seth yelled at me for a good thirty minutes after you left, so you can be confident that your brother is still on your side. And rightly so – I was a prat. An idiot. And I-
Merlin, you know I'm rubbish at apologising. I'm sorry. And I know why you can't forgive me yet. If I were in your place I probably would have hexed my sorry arse several times over. I'm still waiting another beating from your bat, to be honest. That being said, I certainly wouldn't take that lying down. What sort of Auror would I be if I couldn't defend my-
James is yelling at me now. He seems to think I'm going to inject my 'usual gitfulness' into this letter. Absolute rubbish. I would never do that. And now I'm rambling like an awkward schoolboy. What is it about yo- and here he'd crossed out the next few words with enough force to tear a hole in the parchment – Anyway, I'm sorry. Sorry for everything.
And before you start to yell at me – No, the object in the box is not a shameless bribe to try and win back your friendship. Unless it works – then it is.
-Al
P.S. The owl's yours. An early birthday gift – Merlin knows you've subjected Rose's owl to enough abuse by now. I was planning on giving her to you later, but I suppose now's as good a time as any. The bloke at the shop said she's named Hulga – or Helga. I couldn't be bothered to remember. It's an awful name for an owl. I'm sure you'll think of something better to put the poor owl out of her misery.
I couldn't resist smiling a bit at the bit about James; I was glad that he and Al were firmly united again. I picked up the slim, dark box and carefully removed the emerald green (of course) twine, lifting the lid and peering inside. My breath caught; a beautiful silver necklace lay inside, nestled in folds of crushed velvet the color of the darkest red.
A small silver quill charm hung at the end of a delicate silver chain, and a tiny sapphire was inlaid at the very tip. I lifted the necklace gingerly from the box, wondering at the smooth coolness of the metal as the chain draped over my callused fingers.
"Merlin, Al," I breathed. It was beautiful. And it looked expensive; I frowned – I hope he hadn't spend too many Galleons on me. It didn't feel right somehow. I made a mental note to dip into my savings to buy the bloke the blue scarf I'd seen in Diagon Alley. The guy needed some colour - I knew the Auror wardrobe was typically all black, but did he have to insist on only wearing that (and the occasional forest green) even when he was off duty? A good Ravenclaw blue was all he needed.
I surveyed the owl once more. She was fast asleep, her head tucked elegantly underneath her wing.
"Definitely not a Hulga," I said softly. My stomach growled, and I glanced at the clock above the kitchen door. It was almost seven; Rose would be home soon (she'd had to return to Hogwarts to teach her last Ancient Runes class of the week). Merlin, I was starving.
My eyes trailed back to the bacon clock (I'd replaced all of the clocks in the flat with bacon-themed ones. Rose had grudgingly allowed it after the third time I took down her 'normal' clocks and replaced them with my awesome ones), darting back to the owl thoughtfully.
"Lady Bacon," I said slowly. A small smile crept up my face. "Lady Bacon," I repeated. Perfect.
The owl slept on, oblivious to the fact that her name had just been changed.
The sudden crack that always accompanied an Apparition sounded from within the main hallway. Was it Rose? She wasn't due for another eight minutes and thirty-two seconds. I approached the door cautiously, peering through the peephole.
Icy blue eyes stared back. Vane. Stepping back to open the door, I watched silently as Vane walked smartly into my flat, her eyes darting around the flat efficiently. There was no outward sign of her injury, but I noticed that she walked with a slight limp.
"The window's open," she said finally.
"Yeah, an owl-" I started, fumbling over my words a bit. I didn't like her, but she had just gotten injured by Andrei. And I could relate to that – the bruises marring my stomach could attest to that. I felt an odd solidarity with the (scary) blonde, though I did feel a twinge of annoyance when she closed the window with a loud bang.
"Your wards are weakened by 86% when you leave a point of entry open like that," she said flatly, turning to face me with a cool, almost-clinical expression on her face.
Numberita automatically absorbed the fact before pausing; that was an oddly specific number. Sure, I was used to it…but most people (okay, no one) I knew didn't go around spouting such specificities.
"Ravenclaw?" I asked.
She blinked, a rare break in her icy professionalism. She nodded sharply after four seconds, a small smile tugging at the corner of her red lips.
"Yes." Then she looked at my hand – the hand that was still clutching the necklace. I tried to hide it behind my back (managing to twist my bruise in the process), but it was too late.
"That's from Al," she said. It wasn't a question, but I nodded anyway.
She hesitated for six seconds before saying hurriedly, "He was distracted all throughout his first three months at the Academy. Which, of course, just added fire to the resentment – everyone thought he got in so early because of his last name. His distraction made him perform poorly. I'll admit…I was resentful of him as well. I had to work so hard to get accepted, and here was this boy who was barely seventeen who seemed to have the world in his grasp because of his family.
"But then we were paired for a mock mission and I thought he was going to make us both fail because he couldn't produce a Patronus and the whole mission depended on our dispelling the Dementors guarding the target. There were six Dementors; I couldn't get rid of them on my own."
She smiled here, clearly lost in the memory.
"So, in the midst of the battle, I punched him. Told him to man up or go home. I told him that whatever he was moping about, whomever he was so hung up on – that person was an idiot and that he was an even bigger idiot for letting himself be so affected. Especially when his whole future depended on this mission. That knocked some sense in him, and he produced the Patronus effortlessly. After that he was better, and his scores were enough to shut up the others. It was only a month later that he finally told me about you…the girl who had so effectively burrowed her way into his heart."
She looked at me levelly. "I hated you, you know. I thought what kind of bitch would hurt such a person." I winced inwardly but refused to look away. Her eyes drifted back down to the necklace I was still clutching. I realized with a start that I'd been holding it tightly enough to have the quill imprinted in my palm, the skin white from the pressure.
"But he obviously sees something in you. And though I don't trust you, I trust his judgment. So whatever he's done now – forgive him," she said. I bristled; she had no idea what he'd done. How he'd been cruel, how he'd –
"This bloke has been to Hell and back several times. He doesn't need you to add to his troubles," she interjected sharply.
I closed my mouth, looking back down at the necklace.
After thirty-six long seconds, I nodded slowly.
"I'll think about it," I said finally. She nodded again before reassuming her Auror stance, all traces of her prior emotions gone.
I envied her a bit. I wish I could hide my emotions that well, to pretend that I didn't feel anything, that I had an impenetrable shield around me –
But I didn't. And, as I observed Vane's silent figure, maybe it was for the best that I didn't have to hide my feelings.
The door opened. Vane sprung forward, jabbing her wand at Rose's throat.
"V-Vane! That's Rose! She's my flatmate," I said hurriedly. She withdrew her wand silently but stood at the ready next to the door. Then she saw Scorpius, and her eyes widened a bit.
"Scorpius?" the word escaped from her mouth, and she looked like she desperately wanted to take it back.
Scorpius looked at her, his brows furrowing a bit. He cocked his head to the side before a spark of recognition flashed in his grey eyes.
"Evie?"
Evie? I exchanged dumbounded looks with Rose as the blonde duo hugged and started chatting cheerfully. What had happened to the ruthless Auror of twenty-one seconds ago? And how did Scorpius know Vane? I'd known Scorpius quite well since I was nine…maybe he had met her sometime in the time before that or during university? No, Rose and Scorpius had gone to the same university…besides, Scorpius told her everything.
Rose looked a bit uncomfortable as Scorpius and Vane sat on the couch together, still talking animatedly. I nudged her with my shoulder.
"Hey. You have nothing to worry about," I said encouragingly. She smiled, but it was a bit strained. A sudden peal of laughter sounded from over by the couch, and I saw with horror that they were now quite close to each other. Oh no.
Rose's face had gotten quite white, but when she noticed me looking worriedly at her she tossed her dark red curls over her shoulder.
"Worried? Who's worried? I have nothing to fear from that brainless soldier," she said haughtily before turning on her heel and flouncing away, slamming her bedroom door shut. Uh oh. She was quite angry if she was resorting to stereotypes like that; Rose was usually quite adamant about not judging people based on their appearances, and she knew that Aurors had to be quite intelligent if they were to stay alive.
I did not envy Scorpius at this moment. He was sure to get the cold shoulder from Rose for the next day or so.
I watched the two people on the couch uneasily. To any passerby they looked like the perfect couple; both were tall, regal and blonde. And Vane wasn't a brainless idiot. She was intelligent and brave, and they obviously got along quite well, judging by the hearty laughs that kept erupting from their mouths.
Right, time to step in. Though I'd known Scorpius longer, I'd grown closer to Rose. And if this git hurt her…well, he'd have me and OBTS to answer to.
So I pasted an innocent grin on my face and bounded over to the couch, shouting "CANNONBALL" and launching myself in between the duo. They yelped as I crashed between them, an empty smile still firmly placed on my face.
"Adela," Scorpius said exasperatedly. I kept smiling. Let them think I was just a weird, crazed nuisance. It was worth it if I could help Rose in the process. So I began chattering brightly about numbers and oh Merlin's beard baconcats wouldn't that be the best invention? I was trying my best to be an exaggerated parody of myself, fulfilling the image my fellow students had seen me as back at Hogwarts.
I tried to push down the twinge of hurt as Scorpius groaned, completely believing my act.
"Er…I'd better leave. Evie, it was so nice seeing you again. We really should catc-"
"HOLY HIPPOGRIFF SO SETH IS BASICALLY THE WEIRDEST TROLL EVER I MEAN WHAT KIND OF BOY DOESN'T LIKE-"
Scorpius left rather hurriedly after that. I congratulated myself silently before turning to face Vane with a stern expression on my face.
"Now it's my turn to warn you. Hurt Rose and you will pay," I hissed coldly. "Fellow Ravenclaw or not."
Then it was my turn to flounce out of the living room without a backward glance. After I was out of her eyesight, I hurriedly ran to Rose's room.
Muffled sniffles sounded from inside. I hesitated a second – I still wasn't good with crying – before tapping on the door gently.
"Rose? Can I come in?"
No answer. Utter silence rang through the hall. I winced, opening the door; I hoped she wasn't crying too badly.
Maybe I ought to summon a box of tiss-
"Hi, Adela!" Rose said brightly. My mouth dropped open; her eyes were a bit damp, but they were also shining feverishly. A huge pile of books and stray rolls of parchment surrounded her. It looked like a library had gone and imploded in her room. She was sorting the books with a fevered determination.
"Want to help? I've decided to sort these ones by author name and not subject – a change of pace is always good, don't you think?"
I shut the door quietly behind me, surveying the mess worriedly.
I approached her warily, crouching down so that I was on the floor beside her.
"Rose. Are you all right?" I asked in a low voice.
"Just peachy!" she answered.
Uh oh. Rose hated when people said 'peachy.' She thought it made them sound utterly vapid.
"Rose."
"Now, I've gone through the 'A's already…though now I'm thinking I shoul-"
"Rose."
"Damn, I missed Aberlithe – I better put that one bac-"
"ROSE!" I bellowed. She blinked, still clutching the purple tome in her hands.
I cleared my throat before continuing. "Erm…I know Scorp-"
"You mean the Malfoy spawn?" Rose interjected. Shoot. She was copying my term for Al now.
"I know Scorp and Vane seemed close, but that's probably because they haven't seen each other in years. I mean, imagine you see a childhood friend after more than a decade. Wouldn't you be excited?" I reasoned. She hesitated, her mouth quivering a bit as she considered my words.
"I…suppose so," she said slowly. I resisted the urge to do a victory dance. Yes! My Scorose dreams weren't fully dead! I was fully planning on attending their future wedding and saying the best wedding speech in the history of wedding speeches. Vane would not ruin that for me.
"Besides, have you seen the way he looks at you? He loves you. He's always going on about his beautiful Rose with her beautiful hair and intelligence and-"
"That doesn't sound much like him. He's not the type to gush on like that," she said doubtfully.
Uh oh. Right. Scorpius=Slytherin. I shifted tactics hurriedly. "Anyway, he loves you and you love him and you should get married and have beautiful annoyingly intelligent and vain children and make me their godmother so I can coddle them and-"
Rose looked horrified. Oops. Maybe I'd gone too far with that last bit. I hastily backtracked.
"Um…what I mean is, Vane isn't a threat. Not to you. You're beautiful and intelligent and sweet and any guy who can't see that is an idiot."
She smiled, and to my horror I saw the dull sheen of unshed tears in her warm, honey brown eyes.
She reached forward and pulled me into a hug.
"Merlin, Adela. I don't know what I'd do without you," she said sincerely. I smiled, hugging her tightly.
Rose always made me feel better too. I couldn't count the number of times she'd made me laugh and forget about the stresses of law school or my brief lapses over Al or the nightmares of gaping teeth and emptied eyes-
"I feel the same way," I said sincerely.
Author Note: I thought some Rose/Adela interaction was overdue. I love a good friendship. Anyway, thanks so much to everyone who read/reviewed! I'm still astounded by the response and reading all the reviews really makes my day :) 300th reviewer will get a oneshot c;
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