Author's Notes:

1. This chapter is Kenneth-centric.

2. Some of this chapter was also covered (from Karen's POV) in the Outtake "Patronuses" - specifically how Kenneth and Karen got together in their seventh-year. The outtakes are on AO3 only, and Patronuses is NSFW.

Family Fight

Sunday — August 10, 1997

Kenneth hated Sunday dinners with his family. In fact, he normally tried to find an excuse to get out of the once-per-month Sunday dinners that his mother insisted he attend, because it mostly made for a sour afternoon and almost always put him in a bad mood. He and his father were barely on speaking terms these days, and his mother disliked Karen. Kenneth could do without their dissatisfied expressions and the tense, awkward silences that filled the long gaps in their forced conversations.

The trouble was, his mother didn't often take no for an answer, and he didn't need her Apparating onto his doorstep either, so he resigned himself to sitting through an hour of unpleasantness once a month.

In truth, he hadn't always been on such rocky terms with his parents. As a child and teen, his family had been perfectly normal. They lived in a lovely, historic row house in Kensington, and by the time Kenneth started at Hogwarts, his father was in an extremely high position at the Ministry of Magic. Lionel Towler was the Lead Liaison Minister in the Department of International Magical Co-operation; even higher up than Bartemius Crouch, for fuck's sake.

Kenneth's parents had always praised him on his high marks in school and on his being made a prefect, and they had been especially proud when he was made Head Boy. But the reemerging war had changed them. Kenneth's father didn't want to risk his prominent position at the Ministry for anything and he was angry that Kenneth hadn't followed in his footsteps by taking a Ministry position, while Kenneth's mother blamed Karen for practically everything. Karen must have talked Kenneth out of applying at the Ministry, Karen must have suggested he apply for a job at Gringotts, it had to be Karen's idea that Kenneth rented a flat in the quickly-declining Diagon Alley — because the little hussy obviously wanted to move in with him! It didn't matter how much Kenneth told his parents that all of those things had been his ideas; Lorraine Towler firmly believed Karen had corrupted her son, and Lionel Towler disapproved because Karen's father was a low-ranking Records Keeper in the Office of Magical Law Enforcement. Kenneth was dating down, and his parents didn't like it.

As much as possible, Kenneth did not take Karen to these once-a-month Sunday dinners. But much like excuses, there were only so many months he could get away with not bringing her.

"If you're actually serious about this little witch," his mother had said tartly back in June (the last month in which he had not brought Karen along), "then I suppose we need to get to know her better, even if I don't like her. I still don't understand why you broke up with Viola. She was such a proper, sweet girl, Kenneth. Her personality suited you so well!"

It had taken all he had not to roll his eyes at that. It wasn't as if his parents had ever even met Viola! More importantly, she hadn't been the right girl, and he'd broken up with her at the end of his sixth year. Kenneth didn't want to lead her on or drag things out when they weren't working. That wasn't fair to either of them, no matter how upset she'd been when he called things off. And he hadn't even started dating Karen until October of his seventh year! It wasn't as if he'd had her on standby, ready to hook up with her the second he ditched Viola! There had been a four and a half month gap between his two girlfriends! But his mother didn't want to believe that, either.

In fact, when he entered his seventh year, he really thought Karen Pickford of Hufflepuff was entirely out of his league and he had never intended to ask her out in the first place. He was absolutely positive he wasn't her type. Karen was staggeringly beautiful, extremely popular, and she'd always had a string of boys panting after her. Rumor had it that she had been dating around since her third year, that she was going all the way by her fifth, and that she changed boys every two to three months. Most guys advised each other not to get too attached if they went out with her. That was common knowledge amongst all the boys in school. Of course, it didn't stop any guy from trying to go out with her, either.

The most Kenneth expected to do was glance at her from the corner of his eye in class or in the Great Hall, appreciate her very fit, slender figure and long, beautiful ash-blonde hair like all the other blokes, and have a couple of dirty fantasies while trying to fall asleep — fantasies that were nobody's business but his own.

It was Chrysanthe who noticed where his eyes strayed, because Chrysanthe had a knack for noticing things like that, and it didn't help that Kenneth had to work closely with Chrysanthe since she was that year's Head Girl, or Karen's best friend.

In fact, it was after a prefects' meeting one evening in late September that Chrysanthe cornered Kenneth. It was 11:30 at night and the two of them were filing reports. Kenneth had been exhausted, wondering if he would get to bed before or after midnight and when he was going to get his Transfiguration homework done, when out of nowhere Chrysanthe had turned and asked if he fancied Karen. Kenneth had fumbled the paperwork in his hands, stammered, turned bright red, and been highly embarrassed, but after picking up the dropped sheets, he had also finally muttered the truth: of course he thought Karen was totally fit; every bloke in school thought Karen was fit! Kenneth himself had thought so ever since they'd been fourth-years, but he also knew Karen wouldn't be interested in a guy like him, and he didn't plan to do anything about it. It was just a fancy; that was all. Chrysanthe had narrowed her eyes at all of that, but she didn't press the matter.

And then, a few days later, while on patrol late one night in a deserted corridor, Chrysanthe randomly told him that Karen said she would go on a date with him, and she wanted to know if he was still interested.

Kenneth had been flabbergasted. At first he thought it was a joke, that Chrysanthe was just winding him up. Why would the absolutely gorgeous Karen Pickford want to go on a date with the studious, slightly-bossy Head Boy who wore glasses and wasn't anything special? Especially when she could have any boy in the entire school!

Chrysanthe had rolled her eyes. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe she thinks you're fit, too?"

No. That had definitely not occurred to him.

"Well, she does, and she's not currently dating anyone. Meet her in the Entrance Hall the October Hogsmeade weekend — next Saturday after breakfast. She'd like to get to know you better."

Sure enough, Karen had met him in the Entrance Hall that Saturday, wearing a long cloak and a Hufflepuff scarf against the cold. Taking Chrysanthe's advice, he'd decided not to take her to Madam Puddifoot's. That seemed far too intimate for a first date, and besides, Chrysanthe had said Karen wanted to get to know him better. It was best just to be himself. So they went to the Three Broomsticks and spent a long time in a shadowy back corner, talking and laughing and blushing (though he was surprised at how easily conversation came between them), before they went into a few of the shops that afternoon.

Then, out of bloody well nowhere, just before they went back to the castle for dinner, Karen had pulled him behind Scrivenshaft's where no one could see them. And before he realized what was happening, she'd pulled him down and was snogging his damn brains out. For a moment, he was stunned — then he'd pulled her right up against him and snogged her back, figuring he'd best make the most of it because it probably wouldn't happen again. Seconds spun out minutes; he remembered her fingers sliding into his hair on the back of his neck and her tongue slipping into his mouth to play with his. He'd never had a snog like that; it felt as if every nerve ending in his body was on fire.

At some point, they'd separated for a moment to breathe, and Kenneth's brain — which had effectively shut down two seconds into the whole thing — decided to ask her to be his girl. The moment the words left his mouth, he'd blushed and stammered and tried to take them back, because there was no way Karen Pickford would say yes to him. And of course, she'd shocked him even more when she gave him a soft smile and said she'd love to be his girlfriend; he was really quite fit, she had enjoyed talking with him, and when he kissed her she felt it all the way to her toes. Kenneth had just stared at her.

If he were perfectly honest, he'd really expected Karen to break up with him after a couple of months. After all, it was common knowledge that she broke up with her boyfriends after two or three months, so he figured he'd just enjoy the time he had with her, and then she would move on, and Kenneth would find someone else. Not to mention that nearly every fifth, sixth, and seventh year guy in the school was muttering that Karen was only dating Kenneth because he was Head Boy and she was clearly hoping for favors of some kind. Kenneth tried not to listen to the rumors, because he didn't want the other guys to be right about that. Hell, even his damn dorm mates had asked if Karen was dating him because he was Head Boy, though Lee did say he was impressed Kenneth managed to snag Pickford, given that he wasn't the type of boy she normally dated.

And then, in late December, the night before term ended, Karen met him on his way back to Gryffindor Tower after his Head Boy duties were finally done for the evening.

This was it, he'd thought dejectedly. She was going to break up with him right before the holidays so she could find someone new when they returned for winter term. He braced himself for it.

But instead, Karen had eagerly pulled him all the way downstairs to the corridor that led to the kitchens and the Hufflepuff common room, and then she had taken him through a bloody wall into a hidden, secret corridor he'd never even known existed! As he gaped in surprise, she'd told him the area had been the house elves' quarters centuries earlier, and she took him into a storage room full of shelving and packing boxes. On the far side of the storage room was a tiny fireplace with a cheerful little fire and a sofa crammed against the last shelf.

At that point, Kenneth assumed she wanted to snog, and he was more than happy to comply, because the final week of term had been rough and he was just happy she wasn't breaking up with him yet. But Karen had other ideas. Forty minutes later, both of them were lying nude in a heap on the sofa (which was really too short for his tall frame), sweaty and gasping for breath, and Kenneth's mind was completely blown. She'd grinned at him as she raked her fingers up through the light sprinkling of hair across his sternum, and said she hoped he'd liked his Christmas present.

Bloody fucking hell, had he ever.

The new term rolled around and Karen remained his girlfriend. He was slipping off to shag her far more than he should, and he didn't give the first damn if it interfered with his Head Boy duties because it was so much fun and Umbridge was keen on making his life hell. They ended up in classrooms, broom cupboards, and Hidden Storage more times than he remembered. He started to become attached; by February, he knew he'd be a complete mess if she broke up with him. But to his surprise, she never did. By June, Karen was still his girlfriend, and people were starting to comment in awe on the fact that she'd been dating Head Boy Kenneth Towler for nearly eight months. Karen Pickford had never dated a guy for that long. She must really be serious, he heard other guys muttering to each other. What was it she saw in him, though?

Kenneth didn't know himself, and he hated to feel so insecure about it… But, at the same time, he was also a bit damned proud that he was Karen Pickford's guy.

Her birthday and N.E.W.T.'s arrived at the same time, and he took a leap of faith that maybe she really was dating him because she fancied him and not because he was Head Boy. So he gave her a pretty citrine necklace that cost more than he'd like to admit — but it had been worth it. When she'd opened it, she had gasped and told him no one had ever given her anything so lovely before; then she snogged and shagged his brains out, and she hadn't taken the necklace off since. That very same day, he'd also told her that he had applied for a job at Gringotts and leased a flat in Diagon Alley (neither fact he'd told his parents yet), and even though they had been dating eight months, he still fumbled over his words as he asked her if she would like to move in with him. He hadn't expected her to agree, but Karen's eyes lit up and she had immediately said yes.

The fact that she had moved in with him was the main reason his mother disliked Karen.

"It's not proper," Lorraine had sniffed disdainfully. "A young lady should not move in with a man before her marriage! I don't think you should be dating such a loose woman, dear! That's not the sort of girl you marry."

Kenneth had bristled and said something he probably shouldn't have; his mother had gotten upset and his father berated him for upsetting his mother. None of it was helped by the fact that his father was already angry that Kenneth hadn't taken a job at the Ministry of Magic.

All in all, it made going to Sunday dinner, even just one per month, absolute bollocks. And for whatever reason, Kenneth had a gut feeling that this particular Sunday dinner was going to be really bad. Scrimgreour was dead, the Ministry was now under Voldemort's thumb, and Umbridge was controlling the horror that was the new Muggle-Born Registration Commission. To make matters worse, Karen's mother had received a notice to appear before the Commission on August the 13th, and Karen and her father were absolute wrecks because of it. Even though David Pickford worked as a Record Keeper in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, not even he was exactly sure what had happened to the first set of muggle-borns who had gone before the Commission the previous week. Kenneth dreaded what was going to happen to Karen's mother.

The only positive was that Luke was still home from school for the summer and Kenneth would get to see his brother. And right now, Luke was the only member of the Towler family who wasn't irritated or angry with Kenneth.

Kenneth begged Karen to wear something sedate; he reluctantly admitted that he had a bad feeling about this dinner. On a normal day, Karen had a wickedly delightful penchant for deliberately trying to antagonize Kenneth's mother in a passive aggressive sort of way, but that particular day, Karen was too worried about her own mother to irritate Lorraine Towler. So she wore brown trousers with a yellow paisley blouse and the citrine necklace, and she pulled her hair back in a ponytail and wore closed-toe heels.

When they arrived and his mother opened the door, she pursed her lips and looked Karen up and down before she forced herself to say in a flat voice, "That's a nice blouse, dear."

Karen hated the blouse actually, but she forced a small smile and thanked Kenneth's mum in an effort to keep the peace.

Dinner was the same as it always was on Sunday: roast chicken, mashed potatoes, buttered peas, sprouts, and rolls. Kenneth was bloody well sick of it; his mother never deviated on the menu.

As soon as they were all seated and had their plates, Lorraine looked at Kenneth and asked tersely, "How is Gringotts?"

Kenneth caught the way his father frowned at the question, as he did every single time she asked. Trying to ignore that, Kenneth replied, "Fine."

"Who is your boss, again?"

She knew who his boss was, damn it. Kenneth grit his teeth. "Gerald Harper."

His father rolled his eyes. "I still don't know why you want to work for that pompous —"

"Because I refuse to work at the Ministry," Kenneth bit out, unable to stop himself, "and I have to start somewhere. I won't be under Harper forever, you know."

Luke smirked across the table at him for opening fire so early in the meal.

"Kenneth!" his mother admonished, looking frustrated that he'd snapped at his father before eating even two bites.

Kenneth ignored her.

His father, of course, glared at him and complained, "You could have had any job you wanted at the Ministry! And you threw the chance away just because of two people, one of whom isn't even in power anymore. It doesn't make any sense, Kenneth —!"

"Yeah, Kenny," Luke interrupted sarcastically as he grinned from across the table. "Just think! You could be working for Death Eaters now! What a wasted opportunity!"

Kenneth nearly choked on a sip of water. Part of him wanted to laugh, and the other part wanted to strangle his little brother. Luke was deliberately trying to rile their parents up just like Kenneth was, and Kenneth didn't need Luke getting on his father's bad side. One of them was enough.

Unsurprisingly, Lionel Towler slapped his utensils down and scowled at his younger son. "Luke. We discussed this —"

"No, you talked and forced me to listen," Luke snapped. "I wouldn't call that a discussion."

It took all Kenneth had not to lean his elbow on the table and bury his face in his hand.

"Luke!" Their father's voice was definitely angry, now. "I explained why it is not prudent to refer to the current administration as affiliated with certain factions. That should be sufficient."

"No," Luke retorted. "You made excuses. The current administration is working for You-Know-Who. Thicknesse is a damn puppet, and they've put Death Eaters in several major positions. Calling it an administration doesn't make it right, either. It's either a dictatorship or an oligarchy."

Kenneth stared at Luke. Where the fuck had his fifteen-year-old brother learned the word oligarchy?! Bloody hell, no one paid attention in History of Magic. Not even Kenneth (most of the time, anyways)!

"When you are older," Lionel said coldly, "you will understand."

Luke rolled his eyes. "See, Kenny? This is what I have to put up with. They treat me like a child —"

"Because you are a child, Luke," Lorraine interrupted sourly. "You're only fifteen. And I will not have you arguing with your father at the dinner table, especially in front of company —"

"Karen may as well be family at this point," Luke responded, grinning at her. "Kenny's going to marry her, after all."

At that, his mother nearly choked on her water and his father almost dropped his fork.

"Really, Luke," Karen said quickly, trying to diffuse the situation. "Kenneth and I aren't engaged, you know."

"Well, you should be. It's only a matter of time, right?"

Kenneth glared at his brother. Discreetly putting his hand in his lap, he pulled his wand out of his pocket and fired a light hex under the table that hit Luke in the leg.

"Ow! Seriously?"

Kenneth gave Luke a look that clearly meant knock it off.

"Kenneth!" His mother sounded angry. "Do not hex your brother at the table! You aren't twelve, for Rowena's sake! And I would certainly hope if you do have any plans for matrimony, that you would inform us, first."

That touched a nerve. Kenneth coldly answered, "Quite honestly, I don't see why I should, since it isn't your decision."

The table went deathly silent.

After an awkward, heavy pause, his mother stammered, "You're our son! Of course you would tell us first if you intended to get married!" She was staring at him as though she'd never seen him.

"No," he repeated, frowning at her. "If I decide to get married, the first person who would know would be Karen."

Karen's foot touched his, both in solidarity and as warning to back down a bit. He ignored her, too. He was beyond caring at this point, and something inside of him snapped. He'd had enough. He'd been putting up with this for a year now, and he'd finally had enough.

"And while we're on the subject," Kenneth went on icily, "I'm bloody well sick of both of you coming down on me for every little thing you disagree with about my life. I'm sorry I'm not the perfect son you wanted me to be, but I'm of age and I'm allowed to make my own damn decisions and mistakes." He turned and glared at his father. "You're right, Dad. I did throw away a chance to work at the Ministry, all because I was angry with two people, one of whom I hate with every fiber of my being, and who is now in charge of that damned Muggle-Born Registration Commission. You do know that Karen's mother has already received an invitation to appear before Umbridge, right? In three fucking days, as a matter of fact, and we're both absolutely terrified she's going to be thrown into Azkaban! In fact, I'm wondering why we aren't visiting her parents today instead, since it might be the last chance she has to see them. So tell me again why the hell I would want to work for the Ministry right now?"

His mother gasped and sputtered his name in indignation for ranting at his father and swearing like he had, but Kenneth was still staring his father down. Lionel's face turned an ugly puce and his gaze was furious.

"Or," Kenneth continued hatefully, before his father had a chance to yell at him, "are you ignoring the fact that muggle-borns are being targeted, just like you're ignoring the fact that the current administration are a bunch of Death Eaters taking orders from You-Know-Who, like Luke said?"

In a tone of complete fury, his father said through gritted teeth, "I have to protect my position, Kenneth. My duty is to protect my family. Getting terminated after a thirty-year career would be suicidal! You have no idea how hard I've worked to get where I am! I would be throwing away my pension, my salary, everything, and I will not harm this family! Your brother is still in school and I have him and your mother to support! You don't understand, you're too young and you're working for knuts at a dead end, pathetic job —"

"Oh yes, how could I possibly understand, when I'm not even twenty yet?" Kenneth snarled sarcastically. "You know what I do understand? I understand that Karen's mother is scared out of her mind that she's going to be imprisoned or killed. I understand Karen's father is terrified of losing his position at the Ministry if he doesn't comply with Umbridge's orders. I understand that Karen is petrified about what could happen to her family! Damn it, you can protect your position and still call it like it is: a bunch of Death Eaters running the Ministry, and Dolores Umbridge locking up muggle-borns as we speak!"

"They are not locking them up, there is no evidence —!"

Kenneth snorted derisively. "Are you really that daft as to think that she isn't chunking muggle-borns into Azkaban? I was forced to deal with that hateful bitch for an entire year! I know what she's like — far better than you do! She'd murder them if she had the chance!"

His mother angrily told him to stop swearing, but Kenneth ignored her again. Beside him, he heard Karen suck in a quick breath; he reached blindly under the table and gripped her hand tightly to steady her. He felt her other hand fall on top of his and she squeezed back. She was petrified, and he wasn't helping, but he had to say one more thing.

"I'm done," Kenneth finished in disgust. "You do what you feel is right, Dad. And I'll do what I feel is right. I'm not coming around anymore if the two of you are going to bury your heads in the sand like this. And don't you dare blame Karen, Mum," he added angrily, glancing once at his mother, who looked absolutely shocked and furious at his entire outburst. "This is my decision, and she didn't have anything to do with it! I'm bloody well sick of having to put up with the two of you berating me every time I come over. I'm done." With that, he stood up and pulled Karen up with him.

"Kenneth!" Karen gasped, trying to stop him, but he pulled her along, out of the dining room and into the hall.

He heard his mother cry out for him to come back and he heard his father yell his name in fury, but he ignored both of them.

"Kenneth!" Karen repeated, now clinging to his entire left arm. "Kenneth, wait, don't do this —"

He shook his head. "I can't anymore," he said, looking down at her as he waved his wand and opened the door. He knew his parents were coming into the hall behind them; he could hear his mother demanding he return to the dining room even as he and Karen made their way past the stairs, to the front door. "They're willfully ignoring what's actually happening and I'm not going to do that. Someone has to do the right thing. Let's go."

He stepped onto the top step and Disapparated the two them just as he heard his father yell for him to stop acting like a damned child and get back inside.

When Kenneth reappeared, he was standing on the landing to his flat. His entire body seemed to sag; he released Karen's fingers and buried his face in his hands. He vaguely heard her unlock the door and he allowed her to pull him into the quiet flat.

As soon as the door was closed and the protection charms back in place, he let the silence press upon him and he immediately felt his anger drain away.

Oh, Godric. What the hell had he just done?

Karen's arms were suddenly around his waist and she rested her cheek against his chest. She took a shaky breath and he realized she was crying.

"Oh, Merlin, Karen… Fuck, I'm sorry," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to lose my temper, I just…"

She shook her head. "Just because I disagree with what you did doesn't mean I love you less, Kenneth," she whispered. "In fact, I'm rather proud of you, even if I don't think you should have done it. I only didn't want you to become estranged from your family, because after this coming week, I don't even know if I'll ever see my mother ever again…"

"Bloody hell." Kenneth looked at the ceiling and blinked back tears. "I shouldn't have said all that, I didn't even think about how you were feeling, I just… I went off on Dad without thinking! Damn it, how can they be so blind as to what's really going on?"

She shook her head. "I don't know, love."

He looked back down at her and held her more tightly. "I'm so sorry. Mum will blame you now, and —"

She stood to her toes and kissed him gently. "I don't care about your mum. It's you I love, not her."

"I'm just so worried, and now I've made things worse…"

But Karen shook her head. "Kenneth, stop. We all make choices. You made your choice over a year ago. You're just sticking to it, and I love you for that. I do. You want to do what's right. You always have. The one thing I've always loved about you, always seen in you, is that you desperately want to protect others."

Kenneth blushed and stroked her hair. "We should visit your parents this evening. I wish we could have gotten your mother out of the country. If I thought we could get her to France without bringing attention to you and your father…"

"There wasn't enough time," she whispered. "It happened so fast. And if she doesn't appear before the Commission, Dad will be in trouble, too. Oh, Helga, Kenneth. I'm so worried! What if they kill her?" She broke down again and buried her face in his chest.

Kenneth had no idea what to say to that. He just held her and felt the tears dampening his shirt. He was helpless again, and he hated Umbridge for making him feel that way. How the hell was anyone supposed to stop her?