"What do you mean you invited them to the summer house?" I asked with a groan, flopping onto the couch dramatically.
"I mean exactly that, young lady. I invited Jacqueline and Blaise to join us in Greece this summer." I wrinkled my nose and looked over at Tate for help, but he was wrapped up in writing a letter to whatever girl he was dating this week.
"But why?"
"Because, Reid. I really like Jacqueline. And I want her and Blaise to be more of a part of our lives."
"Why ours though? Why not just yours?"
"Do you not like her?" Dad asked, his gaze cautious.
"No- She's fine." I shrugged. "But I already have a brother, I don't want another one." Dad's shoulders relaxed a fraction.
"Last year you were mad because Tate didn't want to go to the beach with you or do anything fun. Now you'll have Blaise to do all that with."
"Hell yeah, freedom," Tate spoke up from the desk.
"Tate," Dad warned. Tate shrugged and went back to writing.
"But what if he's mean? He and his friends are all- stuck up." I made a face. we were all getting ready to go into our second year- at least we would be after the summer. First year had been wild, definitely not as simple as Tate's first year had been. Of course, Tate's first year hadn't included Harry Potter.
Between the troll getting loose, a first-year getting on the quidditch team and the sudden addition of a ton of points to Gryffindor, taking the house cup away from Slytherin, everything had been completely crazy.
And loud, the Slytherins had been incredibly upset about losing their cup.
As a Ravenclaw, I didn't have a dog in that fight. Was it fair? Probably not, but even though I was only a first year I could see that Dumbledore was the kind of person who played favorites, and Harry was definitely his favorite.
"You really think Blaise will go to the beach with me?" I asked.
"I'm sure he will, as long as you ask him and don't demand it," Dad commented. I stuck my tongue out but he was right about one thing, Tate didn't like going to the beach with me anymore- but I wasn't allowed to go alone. Maybe having the Zabini's along for the summer wasn't the worst thing in the world.
—-—-—
It had been three long months since Dad's heart episode. If I tried to call it a heart attack he would get mad at me and insist that it wasn't an attack, merely an episode- because that made such a difference.
In the time since then, he had been eating better, getting out, and getting light exercise. He'd always been big into exercise but he'd had to figure out how to do it all again without risking his stitches.
As for eating better, that was more because I was making him do it than anything.
His diet had never been terrible, but this was something I felt I had some kind of control over because the idea that my dad's episode was completely out of left field and could happen again at any time without warning left me feeling helpless in a way that I couldn't handle.
"Are you almost done?" A gravelly voice asked. I jumped and stood upright, whirling.
Nothing. Until I looked down. The goblin who had led me to the room with the cursed goblet stood there looking very annoyed, he held an old gold pocket watch in his hand.
"No, it's an intricate curse, I don't know what to tell you." I shrugged.
"Well, I can't be here all day." He snarked.
"What time is it?" I asked. The room didn't have a clock and I didn't bring a watch with me when I was working. It was a distraction and this wasn't a job where I could afford distractions. I pointedly opted to not think about the fact that I had been just thinking about my father instead of whatever was coming off this goblet like radiation.
"Nearly five!" The goblin, whose name was Tonkin, snapped.
"Alright, I'll have to come back and finish tomorrow." I shook my head. "I need to do some research anyway." My fingers were itching to get at my work notes. Whenever I encountered a new and exciting curse or spell on an object I wrote it down, I wrote out my entire process, what worked, and what didn't work.
the goal was to someday write a book. Every cursebreaker had their own process but it was a hard profession to get into to start. also, I was of the mindset that sharing knowledge was never a bad thing.
"What do you mean come back tomorrow?!" Tonkin snapped.
"I mean, I have family dinner tonight, and this isn't done. It's a complicated curse, not the 'everyday curse' I was told." I quirked an eyebrow as the goblin huffed.
"Fine, tomorrow." He agreed. He then waited for me to gather my stuff so I could follow him out of the room and into the cart that would take us back to the front of the bank.
it was pretty rare that I got hired by Gringotts, as they had their own team of cursebreakers but when there was a large influx of cursed objects- they'd call me in.
Usually, I ended up at places like Borgin and Burkes where they didn't want me to break the curse, just diagnose it.
I left the bank with a promise to return early tomorrow and headed home, apparating into the front hall.
"Is that you, Reid?" My father's voice boomed down the hallway.
"Sure is. I just need to run up to my room then I'll be down for dinner." I promised.
"Alright, Princess." He replied. I ran up the stairs, heading for my childhood bedroom.
When we moved to America, we kept all our properties in Europe. My dad said it was important that we have somewhere to come back to because he was sure that this was only temporary.
If Jacqueline had believed him, things would have turned out much differently.
I got to my room and plopped down at my desk, opening my journal and starting to jot down everything I could remember about the day and the different things I tried.
By the time I was done, nearly ten minutes had passed and I'd filled two and a half pages with notes. I left the book open so the ink could fully dry before going to change my clothes and wash my hands. I didn't have to dress super nice for my job, as usually, I wasn't in front of people other than whoever hired me- but I still wanted to look decent. Also, my clothes were covered in dregs of the magic I'd been fighting all day.
"About time. Dinner is ready." Dad called out as I came back down the stairs.
"I had to write down all my spellwork today before I forgot anything." I headed for the dining room and froze.
Sitting around the table were my father and brother- as well as Jacqueline and Blaise Zabini.
"What are they doing here?" I asked, looking back and forth between my dad and the pair.
"Reid, that's rude." He scolded me.
"Yes well, I'm surprised." I answered. Also if I had a dollar for every time I'd been rude in some capacity to Blaise and his mother, I would be rich on my own.
"Sit." He ordered. I headed over to the table and did just that.
"If Reid has an issue with us being here-" Jacqueline started.
I was taken back to when my dad and Jacqueline first started dating. I found out eventually that Jacqueline didn't often date men with kids and she'd been- a little awkward around us.
"No, it's not that." I promised. "Just- wasn't expecting guests at dinner, I wouldn't have spent so much time upstairs if I had been properly warned." I gave my father a look and he shrugged.
"Warning you takes away the element of surprise, Reid."
"Reid hates surprises." Blaise commented, I quirked an eyebrow at him and he returned the gesture.
"He's not wrong." I shrugged, and the plates in front of us began to fill with food, as was normal. I picked up my fork to dig into the first course as my dad asked Blaise about work.
I had heard through the grapevine, and eventually, it was confirmed by Blaise himself, that he worked as an intern in the law department. Which wasn't terribly surprising, I did remember him talking about it when we were teenagers, how he wanted to get into law. Because it was a great job, I'd never had any doubt that he would do it.
"So are you ever going to say why you invited us here today?" Jacqueline asked as the first course had finished and vanished from the table.
"Wait- you two don't even know?" Tate asked, surprise evident in his tone.
"Nope," Blaise answered, popping the P sound.
We all turned to look at Dad expectantly.
"Summer vacation is coming up soon-" We all exchanged a look, "So I want all five of us to go to the Villa."
"the Villa?" Tate asked.
"Summer vacation? Dad we aren't in school anymore, we don't get that-"
"I know that you two can take a summer off." Dad gestured at Tate and me Tate was currently unemployed, he'd been figuring stuff out since we moved back to Europe, and of course, I freelanced. "And there is a fireplace there, so Blaise you can floo to and from work as necessary." He offered. "Although I've worked with the law department at the ministry and I know they can be accommodating."
I didn't point out that they were accommodating to him- but maybe not to an intern just about to start his second year of work.
"I..." Jacqueline looked thoughtful at the idea. "You three haven't been back there yet, have you?" She asked. We shook our heads, we'd gone to America and basically stayed there until we were sure everything was clear back here.
"I'm in." She decided. The second course appeared on our plates and she picked up her fork.
"You are?" Blaise sounded surprised, looking back and forth between my dad and his Mom, then once in a blue moon over to me.
"I am." She nodded with a decision. "I think it'll be fun."
"Fun." Tate deadpanned, "Well what do you think?" He asked me. "You want to take a whole three months off of work?"
"It would be closer to two." Dad corrected. "And if you really want, you can do the same as Blaise- take jobs and floo, but I know you don't need to."
He knew that because he'd made sure that both Tate and I had enough that technically neither of us had to work. I did this because staying at home would drive me crazy. Tate felt the same way about it but he'd been struggling to find something he liked since leaving his work in America.
I pursed my lips, thinking about it. Did I really want to spend a whole summer with Blaise Fucking Zabini of all people? No, I didn't. But one glance at the hopeful look in my father's eyes and I knew there was no way I could say no to him. He wanted this so badly.
"Dad."
"After the scare- I just have been thinking a lot more about what's important to me and what I want in life and that is my family- and at no point has my family felt more... right than when we were all in Greece together."
I closed my eyes with a soft groan and sighed.
"Alright. Fine. I'm in."
"Blaise?" Jacqueline asked all eyes turned to the man. He sighed, closing his eyes.
"I'll have to check my schedule but... assuming I can make it work then- yes. I will be there."
—
"You're seriously doing this?" Charles asked, he was lying out on my bed, watching as I walked back and forth from my closet to my desk, where my suitcase was propped open.
"Yes, I am seriously doing this, why would I joke about it?" I paused, fingering a white dress that I hadn't worn in a couple of years- but it seemed perfect for the vacation. I pulled it down from the hanger and folded it over my arm.
'Don't forget a hat, Reid, skin as pale as yours? You'll burn in no time. And the sun does terrible things to the skin' Jacqueline's warning the first year we all went to Greece together rang in my head. I grabbed a large sun hat from the closet as well, carrying everything into the bedroom.
"Because why would I be okay with you going on vacation with another man?"
"Three men, actually." I corrected.
"One of which is your father and one your brother."
"and the third is Blaise." I shrugged. "he was my stepbrother for nearly four years, Charles."
"Yeah, and the way he acted with you in the hospital wasn't terribly Brotherly, Babe."
"It's nothing, Charles, he's protective." I spelled the dress and hat so they would easily fit in the suitcase and turned, leaning back against the desk so I could look at Charles.
He was on top of the covers, he'd only put his boxers back on- not bothering with the rest of his clothes yet.
"You're going to be away for two whole months."
"Yes, and I told you, you can come visit for a little bit if you want." I hadn't really meant to offer it, but honestly, the post-sex brain was a bitch.
Charles sighed dramatically and pressed his head into the pillows. He needed a shave- he kept saying so anyway I liked how he looked with a bit of scruff. Charles was fit- not overly so but his hair-covered chest was toned, down to a stomach that- while not a six-pack- was still nicely toned. His hair was brown and just the right amount of floppy. It was as if they input the perfect man and had a computer spit him out.
I'd met him when I was doing a job for the ministry soon after we moved back, we began dating soon after and while it had been a touch rocky at first- mostly because of me, after the Selwyn-Nott Engagement party when, somehow, I managed to make the same stupid mistake I'd made as a teenager, I had decided to properly commit to him. No more games, no more bullshit, no more games, and most important of all, no more Blaise.
That was going great until now.
"Babe." He sat up and looked at me. "It's just- on his end right? The weird stuff?" I rolled my eyes.
"Charles, there is no weird stuff." I pushed away from the desk and crossed the room, climbing up onto the bed. I crawled across until I was straddling his waist. His hands moved up my thighs. He hadn't bothered to redress after our afternoon delight, but I had slipped back into my dress.
"Alright." He sighed and leaned in to kiss me. I returned the kiss, jumping at a crack outside my window.
"Owls." I muttered, getting up and going to the window to allow the bird into the room. I took the letter from the bird's leg and it turned, flying back out of the open window not even waiting for a treat.
"Who's that?" Charles asked, mussing up his hair. I unfolded the letter as if I had no idea.
I knew that owl.
"It's about a job I'm supposed to do before I go on vacation." I lied, folding it back up and tossing it on the desk as if it didn't matter. I would need to actually read it after Charles left.
By the time that happened- he still didn't seem thrilled that I would be spending the summer with Blaise Zabini but he seemed to accept that it was going to happen regardless of what kind of fit he threw.
I promised him that I had absolutely no interest in Blaise insisting over and over that he had basically been my brother for like four years and of course, Charles pointed out each time that he wasn't my stepbrother anymore.
But I had seen the way my dad was looking at Jacqueline. I knew he'd never actually stopped loving her. I knew there was a chance that he'd eventually be my stepbrother again.
When I had walked Charles down to the front hall so he could go home, I stopped by the kitchen for a decaf coffee- I know a lot of people hate decaf coffee- like what's the point but honestly, I just loved the taste of coffee.
I was heading for the stairs when I realized I could see a light on down the hall, my father's office. I headed that way and knocked before peaking my head in.
"Busy?" I asked.
"Too busy for you? Never." Dad grinned and gestured for me to come in.
I headed over to his desk and took a seat, placing the coffee on a coaster.
"Was that Charles I heard earlier?" He asked.
"Yes, He was helping me pack." Dad quirked an eyebrow at me. "He was complaining about me going while I packed." I amended and he nodded.
"That sounds more like Charles." He agreed. I rolled my eyes.
"You know, most dads would be thrilled that I am with a guy like Charles."
"Thrilled is a big word. I'm happy as long as you're happy, Peanut." Dad insisted.
"I am," I promised.
"That's my girl." He yawned, covering his mouth with his hand and dropping his pen. "I think it might be time for me to turn in soon."
"Yeah, men your age really need a good amount of sleep." I agreed with a completely straight face.
"And to think, I was going to make sure we ordered in your favorite restaurant the first night." Dad feigned offence.
"No, you weren't. You want to go to Ambrosia." He grinned.
"I do. It's tradition. We would have gotten your favorite for the second night though."
"and I am sure we still will." I said with confidence.
"Probably." Dad agreed and stood up. I got up from the seat and walked up the stairs with him.
"I think it'll be good for you. In all those old Victorian novels, they sent ill women off to the coast for better air or something." I noted.
"You are so beyond grounded."
"Love you too!" I chipped, skipping off to my room, careful to not spill even a single drop of my coffee.