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Saint Tropez - Plus One
Author: Lucius Malfoy
Date: 10-02-12 11:40
Calling for midmorning refreshment Lucius settles into his favorite patio chair after a few hours spent with Carina on the beach, ready to go through the mail that's arrived since yesterday noon when he last reviewed the correspondences and to read both the local Wizarding newspaper and The Daily Prophet. The three, not quite four year old, had played so hard that though she no longer usually takes a morning nap, she's now passed out on a blanket in the garden shade within view of Lucius and with a house elf sitting near.
"Mind if I join you?" Barty Crouch, Jr. emerges through French doors leading into a sitting room.
"No, of course not. Have a seat. Morning tea should be out soon if you'd like to partake."
"Yes, thank you. Having to listen to several hours of Bellatrix revising the revisions to her plan to break the LeStrange brothers from Azkaban has a strange effect on my appetite. You would think it would lessen it but, oddly, it's just the opposite."
Over the course of the next hour, the two men converse on a number of topics while enjoying the light meal Lucius's kitchen elf has prepared. By that time Carina has woken up and resumed playing, this time in the garden with her nanny elf to keep watch. Lucius is just about to suggest a game of Wizarding chess to Barty when Bellatrix breezes out through the same doors Barty had.
"Do you have any idea how tiring it is running scenario after scenario? Using the models is a huge help, of course, but the mental exhaustion does take its toll. Oooh. Cucumber sandwiches. You don't mind if I help myself do you, Lucius?"
"Not at all. Would you like something fresher?"
"What's here is fine until lunch, thank you. That reminds me, Barty and I are staying for lunch."
"Given the time of day, I expected as much."
Bellatrix offers Lucius a not too convincing innocent smile before snatching up one of the opened pieces of mail from a small serving platter. "What's this?"
"That is an invitation."
Bellatrix looks up from her second read through of the invitation printed on excellent quality paper, white with a pleasantly purplish ink and silver trim. "Yes, I can see it's an invitation and from Cloris Mockridge at that. Why has that old cow invited you to a charitable soiree and not sent me a thing?"
"Perhaps because you tend to snottily refer to her by such soubriquets as old cow."
"But, this is for charity and everyone knows I am extremely charitable. Goodness, Barty! Are you all right?"
Barty had exploded in a fit of coughing at Bellatrix's statement. He waves his hand at them both and reaches for a sip of his drink. Another long moment and he's able to hoarsely tell them, "Bit of sandwich went down the wrong way."
"Then I shan't slit a hole in your throat with my wand to open an airway," Bellatrix replies, looking somewhat disappointed. "Now, what was I saying? The soiree. Why would batty old biddy Mockridge invite you to her little do when she knows you are not able to attend as yourself but not me when I am able?"
"As a dear, longtime friend Cloris is merely being polite. Like everyone else she is fully aware that I am wanted by the Ministry as the former governor of the City of Hope. As it is for charity, I am fully capable still of sending a contribution for the cause."
"Then she did not send it out of politeness. She sent it because she's a leech." Bellatrix thoughtfully chews on a bite of cucumber sandwich before stating, "As a Master of Disguise, I would have thought you'd already be planning a face with which to attend."
"I have considered donning a disguise."
Bellatrix's face lights up. "I knew it! You haven't snuck about in Britain in ever so long." She taps the invitation. "It indicates you are allowed a plus one. That would be me, of course."
"Actually, Barty and I were just speaking on that very topic before you joined us. I have already asked Barty to be my plus one."
"Pardon?" Bellatrix asks, somewhat nonplussed.
"Barty will be my plus one. I read an entertainment article in some paper years ago about a Muggle duo called Siegfried and Roy. I don't recall the particulars about them but the names stuck."
"You're going with Barty as your plus one and are going to use the names Seigfried and Roy."
"Correct. We will be a gay couple."
"By gay you mean jolly and happy."
"I hope we shall be jolly and happy but we shall also give the impression we are in a committed relationship."
Bellatrix looks to Barty who nods over his pumpkin juice in confirmation. Her eyes narrow, scrutinizing them both. "You are bamming me," she finally pronounces.
"Merlin's honest truth," Lucius replies.
Bellatrix's peels of laughter echo through the patio and garden, startling birds from some nearby trees. When she's caught her breath she sits back in her seat, slightly slumping down and gives a dismissive wave of one hand. "You are talented at disguise, Lucius, but I do not believe for one minute anyone would buy you as a gay man. You are too manly and charming."
"Who would give any consideration that the lively gay man Siegfried in attendance with his life partner Roy is, in actually Lucius Malfoy, wanted by the British Ministry of Magic? Also, don't many woman find a manly, charming homosexual something of a challenge?"
"I don't know. Perhaps. Yes. Maybe. What is your point?"
"My point is that I believe Barty and I are up to the challenge and that women will believe us to the point of wanting to 'turn' us straight."
"Oh, so really this is about two straight men attending a function as a gay couple just to shag a few women?" Bellatrix gestures towards th beach. "Are there not enough women here for you to choose from, Lucius, and here and Venice for you, Barty, if all you want is, what is that phrase even more vulgar than shag? A booty call."
"Nothing wrong with fishing in a different pond once in awhile," Lucius says with a casual shrug.
"Please, both of you, stop the pretense. You know I have to be your plus one, Lucius. I would have to be in disguise because if I were to show up as myself others might jump to the conclusion that the man I am with is Lucius Malfoy. Let's see, should we come up with something entirely new or use one of our tried and trues?" She gets a nostalgic smile as she thinks. "We've not done Boris and Natasha in years, not since having a little fun with one of those Weasley brats in Romania. The dragon keeper one."
"Charlie."
"That's right. Charlie. I hear he had pink in his wardrobe for a very long time after we let him go," Bellatrix says mirthfully. "What fun we had! You cannot seriously tell me you are passing me over in favor of Bartemius Crouch, Junior."
"You are able to roam freely about, Bellatrix. Until you decide to announce you have successfully resouled someone from the Dementor's Kiss and that someone is Barty, he's stuck to a limited range of places. Then, when you do make the announcement, he's wanted by the British Ministry so he still won't be able to show his face back home. This is an opportunity for Barty to see a few familiar faces and walk on home soil again."
Bellatrix's face darkens and just when Lucius is about to tell her that she is correct, they were bamming her all along having a little fun, she smiles sweetly, which is scarier than Bellatrix angry. She states in a sugary tone, "If dear Cloris isn't sending me my own invitation and if she won't allow you to bring two guests then I have it on good authority Barty will be ill the day of the soiree."
Lucius smiles in return, holding back for the moment breaking to her that he was just, as the saying goes, pulling her leg. "I will write Cloris and see what I can do."
Same Old Argument, Different Guy
Author: Melinda
Date: 10-02-12 14:32
After an exceptionally long day at the office and then my usual shift at Petals, I walked in the door at half past one in the morning and about had a complete and total melt down. There were beer bottles all over the coffee table, dirty dishes in the sink and my seven year old daughter had fallen asleep on the stairs instead of in her room, which meant that she was waiting up for me and that is never a good sign.
My first stop after shedding my coat, leaving me in a pair of cut-off shorts and tank top, was to get my daughter into her bed. "Hey sunshine...let's get you upstairs into bed."
Cam stirred and whimpered. "Raury is mean." She muttered as I helped her walk up the stairs to her room.
"What do you mean sweetie? What happened?" I asked, this statement not doing much to quell my already spiked temper.
She was a bit more lucid as we walked into her room. "He didn't bother making me anything for dinner, and when I asked him for help he fired a jinx at me and went back to drinking and fire chatting with one of his stupid friends. So I went to Crew's for dinner and hung out there for a little while."
My anger at the whole scenario that I came home to simply rose toward a boiling point, and I was careful not to take it out upon my daughter. "I'm sorry baby girl. I'm going to deal with him in a few minutes and we will talk in the morning. I'm off from both the law office and from Petals so we can spend the day together."
"'kay Mom. Love you." Cam murmured and she curled under her blanket and cuddled her favorite teddy bear, a white bear with an emerald green belly and bright green eyes.
"Love you too Cammie." I planted a kiss on her forehead and headed out to my room to change into a pair of yoga pants and Cleaver t-shirt before I headed back downstairs to deal with the drunk bastard on my couch. Quick flick of my wand ensured that any arguing wouldn't wake Camden.
"Get up you lazy, drunk piece of crap. You will no longer be allowed to step foot in this house. Nor are you to have anything to do with me or my daughter."
Raury stirred, and opened a blood-shot eye and looked up at me. "What in the bloody hell are you on about woman?"
"You Raury. You are passed out, drunk on my couch. My house is an absolute mess, and I know it was not in this state when I left this morning. You did not bother to actually help my daughter get something to eat, and when she asked you for help you JINXED HER! What kind of person does that? Also, ignoring my child because you were having a conversation with some lazy ass friend of yours is not acceptable either."
Raury groaned and put a hand to his head, eyes sliding closed as he pushed himself up. "Are you done prattling on about your precious little brat?"
The vein in my head throbbed as I resisted the urge to hurl a curse at the drunkard idiot sitting on my couch. "You have done nothing but drink and pass out on my couch for the past month and a half Raury. We'd been so happy, what went wrong?"
He shrugged and looked up at me, "You really what I think the problem is Melinda?"
"Go ahead and enlighten me, please."
He smirked, and it had a bit of maliciousness to it that made me nervous. "You are the problem. You've become nothing more than a frigid bitch. Treating me like a babysitter for your precious little brat instead of like a boyfriend. You go work at that slut house and have no desire to give me a good romp. I can't even remember the last time we had a good long roll in the hay."
My eyes slid closed and for the fourth time I suppressed the urge to reach for my wand, counting to ten, not once but three times, before I trusted myself to speak to him. "You really want to know the reason why you haven't gotten any? It is because every time I've come home in the mood, you've been passed out on the couch pissing drunk and honestly the smell of booze just doesn't do it for me. So, unless you have anything else to say - get the bloody hell out of my house. We. Are. Done."
He got up and glared drunken daggers in my direction. "You know what Mel, I honestly, couldn't stand your spoiled little brat from the get go, and only stayed with you as long as I did so I could continually brag that I was banging a stripper." He didn't bother giving me a chance to respond, merely apparated from the house.
I wanted to cry, but found that I really couldn't. Not over him, and I was also very, very proud of myself for not cursing him. I sat down in my favorite chair and looked up at the clock on the mantle, two forty-five am. "Alright time to clean up and then get some sleep. I'll go over and thank Fallon and Etch for watching Cam in the morning..."
Unfortunately, sleep wouldn't come easy and I spent several hours tossing and turning beneath the blankets before finally getting out of bed at eight and padding downstairs to make breakfast for me and Cam, hopefully I'd get a chance to take a nap later.
At Lunch
Author: Josie
Date: 10-03-12 03:01
The restaurant was crowded and my father had to raise his hand and wave so I could find him. From time to time he would schedule these lunches (in a Muggle restaurant, of course) just to check how I was doing.
It was still hard for him after all these years to understand how the wizarding world worked and so he just told his close friends that I had a degree in Chemistry and my brother ran a grocery store somewhere in London. The truth however, was that I was still completing my studies in Alchemy ,which in my opinion was way more interesting than the chemistry the muggles studied, while my brother Henry had his own apothecary shop.
His wife Mary would give him a hand in the business and she would also take care of their three children, Derek, Jane and Annie. My father loved their grandchildren and his only regret was that my mother wasn't here to meet them. She had died many years ago, when Henry and I were still at Hogwarts. She had told him she was a witch since they have met, but my father only believed her the day she saw her turning the kitchen table into a big dog. He said he had loved her even more since then, if that was actually possible.
"So what have you been up to? New boyfriend?" my father asked in a teasing tone.
"I applied to a position as a teacher at Hogwarts."
"How did that go?"
"I am not sure. Most of the other candidates were older and more experienced than me, so I don't have much faith I will get it. However Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster, thought my curriculum was interesting."
"If you don't get the job I am sure you can find something else to do, once you conclude your last year of studies at…what is that university's name, the one that I had never heard of before you had decided to join it?"
"St. Emrys," I told him with a chuckle. My father had a bad memory when it came to memorizing names from our world.
"Yes, that's it. And you can always work in your brother's shop. I heard he was looking for an extra pair of hands. I suggested him to hire your cousin Terry, but your brother just sent me a horrifying look."
"That is because Terry does not know a thing about Magic, " I explained to him.
Terry was a muggle. He came from my father's side of the family. It was hard to picture him helping my brother's clients with bat blood, crocodile heart, dragon liver, frog brain, among other things he might find disgusting. Terry had studied economics at a muggle university. My brother's dusty shop would be the least place he would feel comfortable working at, with his fancy gray suit and impeccable tie he liked to wear all the time. "And I promise to give Henry's a hand whenever I can."
"I would offer myself but the last time I did so it was a chaos. I still have the feeling that old lady had a thing for me. She told me to stop pretending I did not know what a Beautification Potion was. She seemed to like when I told her she didn't need a potion like that, that she already looked beautiful. Your brother was mad she left the shop with empty hands. "
"Henry did mention she asks for you whenever she comes to the shop," I informed my father with a laugh. He blushed a bit embarrassed.
The food finally came and as we eat my father changed the topic to the government. He always felt more comfortable talking about muggle topics and unlike my brother who put most of his muggle life aside I still read the muggles' newspapers and watched some television from time to time.
Busy Day
Author: Hermione Granger
Date: 10-03-12 14:59
Whatever the reason, St. Mungo's seemed especially busy today. Since the start of her shift, Hermione had been occupied with patient after patient, all of whom had seemingly chosen the 28th of June to be the victim (and sometimes also the cause) of some sort of magical accident.
Her first patient had come in during the night and had been passed on to Hermione as soon as she'd arrived at work. The wizard's wand had somehow sustained a hairline fracture, which had produced dire consequences when he'd attempted a sort of power-washing spell on the front walk to his country home. The spell had backfired into his face, causing it to swell and turn so red it appeared nearly purple.
The next patient assigned to Hermione had levitated unceasingly, which had proven problematic since the victim was an especially tall and lanky wizard. He'd been forced to duck his head, which had nonetheless brushed against the ceiling. Hermione had made quick work of rectifying the levitation spell gone wrong before seeing her next patient.
The day had gone on and on in the same vein. Most of the patients had been discharged quickly, but others, like the very first one, remained in their hospital beds. Hermione periodically checked on him and some of the others in between working on her other cases.
Keeping busy made the day go faster, but it also made Hermione feel tired. She loved to work, and she loved to work hard, but even she had her limits sometimes. At last finding a brief respite, Hermione leaned against the wall in the corridor for a moment. She shut her eyes and placed a hand on her stomach. She'd felt an occasional fluttering all day long and thought the baby probably sensed its mother's fervent activity and therefore couldn't rest.
"We've got a problem here!" came a sudden shout.
Hermione opened her eyes to see a number of healers and nurses running into the room belonging to the wizard with the swollen face. She hastened to follow and found them trying to resuscitate him. His face had gone from purple to blue, and his eyes, which appeared small due to the swelling of the skin around them, were rolled back into his head.
Hermione wanted to help, but there were already too many healers around him. Instead, she stood out of the way and wondered how the wizard's health could have taken such a wrong turn. It had already been determined that he wasn't in any danger, that his brain hadn't been injured by the swelling. The spell simply hadn't been reversed yet because whatever he had done had been quite complex and required a bit more study before he could be effectively treated.
So why was he dying now?
Hermione furrowed her brow. Something wasn't right.
The wizard expelled his last breath, and the healers and nurses encircling him stepped back with fallen shoulders. Death came with the job, but it was never a pleasant thing, especially when it never should have happened.
Lost in Thought
Author: Bronwyn Dewhurst
Date: 10-03-12 16:38
"Bronwyn?"
She turned at the sound of her name and said, "Mmm? Oh, Toby. You're home." The dazed expression she'd been wearing morphed into one of happiness, and she went to embrace her husband.
He gave her an especially long squeeze and then looked at her fully. "Are you all right? I called your name a few times before you even realized I was there."
"Really?" Bronwyn frowned. "Hmm. I guess I was just deep in thought. I'm okay, really," she added to reassure Toby. "I'm not sick, and I'm not worried about something. I was just thinking."
Toby sat down in a chair. They were in the dining room, where Bronwyn had been setting the table. Toby looked up at Bronwyn and asked, "What were you thinking about?"
"Oh, just stuff," she answered vaguely, turning around to straighten the silverware she'd laid down earlier.
"What kind of stuff?" Toby asked, keeping his tone light. He pushed a fork with his fingertips so that it no longer lined up with the other implements Bronwyn had carefully straightened.
She didn't seem to notice and said, "Oh, you know. Stuff."
When Toby didn't reply, she glanced his way. He was gazing at her with what seemed like a carefree expression, but Bronwyn could tell he was losing patience with her. It was all in the depths of his eyes.
She expelled a deep sigh and exclaimed, "Fine. I was thinking about the Summer Solstice." She paused, but when he started to open his mouth she hurried on, "but I was also thinking about work. The interview with Xavier went great, but stupid Milla kept butting in despite the face that I was the one who was supposed to be asking the questions. Xavier wanted it that way, you know. And then there's Emrys Fest. We finally have the full line-up, but we're not going to reveal it until Friday's show. It's going to be great."
Xavier's two bands, Cleaver and the Wicked Wizards of the West were making their big return to Emrys Fest. They had missed the previous year because of what Bronwyn had termed "the incident". Now "the incident" was in the past, which was great for the music community and its fans, not to mention Desi.
Speaking of Desi… "And then I was thinking about Desi and her love life, or lack thereof."
"Bronwyn," Toby said. "Are you sure you're okay?"
She opened and closed her mouth a few times and then moved to sit in his lap. "I'm okay. I promise. I was just thinking about last year… and the less recent past. I know it's over now. Theodore and the others are in prison and they're going to stay there a long time. It's just hard to forget about what I saw, what almost happened to me… what did happen to me. But I'm okay, I really am." She smiled at him.
Toby nodded. He believed her. "I just wanted to make sure."
Bronwyn smiled at him again and then asked, "Are you ready for supper? You've been practicing hard, so I'm sure you're starving."
"I am, but can I have dessert before dinner?" he said with the most angelic of faces.
Bronwyn climbed from his lap and asked, "I don't know, can you?", before sashaying from the room.
Toby grinned to himself and then got up to follow his wife.
Finals: Day 4: Herbology Final
Author: Cai Pembroke Carter
Date: 10-04-12 01:26
After crawling into bed after my Astronomy final that had gone until midnight I'd slept until eight thirty and gotten up for breakfast before returning to my room to finish studying for my Herbology final with Professor Ravenscroft. Currently I was curled in a chair at one of the tables in the common room, legs curled beneath me, and school robes draped over my lap like a blanket.
I went through my flash cards, and worked my way through things trying to make sure that I knew everything that I needed to know before I headed to the greenhouse at eleven. Tomorrow I seriously got to sleep in and I would love every minute of it because my final exam was Transfiguration and that wasn't until one. Though, I did have to spend most of the day packing, but that was easily done with a few spells.
"How many you got left brat?" Broderick said as he plopped down across from me, having been free of exams for a week, but he'd had a lot more stressful time because he'd been taking OWLs, something I'd have to deal with next year.
Coral curled on my lap and purred lightly before glaring at Broderick for disturbing my studying. "I've got one today and one tomorrow and I'm done. What about Angharad? She's gotta be almost done too."
"She's got herbology with you today, and then her final one is just before dinner tomorrow, Care of Magical Creatures."
"Knowing her, she's probably already packed and just has to toss in her stuff from the next few days before they take the luggage away to load it on the train."
Broderick laughed. "Actually, I think she said she wasn't going to be packing until tomorrow morning or even not until Saturday morning before the End of Term Feast considering we aren't hopping on the train until Sunday."
"True. Though, I've got everything for the most part packed save for what you see here, and what I need to study for Transfiguration with Professor Black tomorrow afternoon."
"Right, well, I'm heading to the commons to listen to the WWN and just hang out because I'm packed and I've got nothing to do!" He bragged. "Good luck on your last two finals! Later!"
With that he headed out and left me to finish studying. I waited until about ten-forty before I headed down to the greenhouse with little more than my notes to study on the way.
Death of a Servant
Author: Tiberius Nott
Date: 10-04-12 10:07
"Osky," the master called from the massive bed. The room was dark, but bits of sunlight entered from the curtains. He could use his wand to close them, but he thought his house elf could do so. Then he would send the creature to fetch him some food.
"Osky," he called again. Where was he?
"Osky!" Tiberius Nott's voice echoed around the house, making some of the paintings to protest with the noise. Just like the owner of the house, they were used to sleeping mostly during the day. "If you don't come here in five seconds, I swear to Merlin, I will push you off the cliffs."
It was probably the first time he had ever made a threat to his elf, who tended to come promptly whenever his name was called. Tiberius pulled the covers away and left the bed. Just like his chambers, the rest of the house was dark, and he walked barefoot towards the kitchen, a division he rarely entered, in search of his incompetent elf. Osky was lying on the black linoleum floor, lifeless; dead. Tiberius did not show surprise at the discovery, or sadness. His mouth closed in a thin line of irritation: now he had no servant to attend his needs.
Ignoring Osky's corpse, he sat by the kitchen table and ate the dry, cold toast that the dead elf had prepared for him. He had to write to his father about the demise of the family servant, but he had the feeling he would only feel amused with the house elf's death. Tiberius knew his father had never enjoyed the idea of spending the rest his days in Azkaban while his son walked around his property and spent the family's fortune, proclaiming himself the lord of the house.
Tiberius just considered that luck had smiled on him: he had inherited the Abbey and the fortune faster, without waiting for his father's death.
A constant tapping on the window awoke him from his thoughts. It was an owl. Intrigued, Tiberius let the bird enter, cursing the vivid rays of sunlight that invaded the kitchen. It was rare for him to receive correspondence, except for the occasional Daily Prophet. He picked up the elegant envelope and opened it carefully while the owl nibbled the crusts of his toast.
"How interesting…" he said to himself once he finished reading the invitation from the Mockridge family. His first impulse was to throw the invitation in the litter box, but to write to his father about it. The old man would be jealous. He had always liked to go to these events and he considered the Mockridge family one of the best positioned in the wizarding hierarchy. He would be furious if Tiberius did not attend it. But then it occurred to him that he would feel even worse if he actually went.
"Osky, go fetch me some parchment and a quill," Tiberius ordered. No one replied and he looked down to the corpse. "Oh right. You're dead."
Lazily, he went to his study and wrote a quick reply to Cloris Mockridge, in his elaborate handwriting. He thanked her for the invitation and he assured her that he would attend. He returned to the kitchen, and tied his reply to the owl's leg and watched her leaving by the window.
Tiberius considered going back to bed again, but it seemed that the tiredness he felt earlier had vanished. He had a minor headache, which, even without being too painful, was enough to annoy him. He couldn't do any of his research with this headache, he thought. Tiberius looked at the clock on the wall: almost midday. Too bad Petals wasn't opened yet. Well, he would have to think about some other distractions then to kill time. His dark eyes feel on Osky's dead body. Disposing of the house elf's corpse would do for now.
(Azaelia) Counting the Days Till Summer
Author: Isolde
Date: 10-04-12 19:03
With each passing day, the library grew quieter and emptier. The fifth and seventh year students had already finished with their exams and spent this week either in deep recovery or basking in the remaining, carefree days of term. The rest of the student body had final exams this week, but with only a day and a half remaining, there weren't many exams left for which to study. Azaelia didn't mind the drop off in library patrons. The last few weeks had pushed her to her limits.
Normally Azaelia liked the busyness the last few weeks of term commanded. She enjoyed helping the students find books, and seeing the library filled to capacity pleased her very much. But the tampering of the library bookshelves, closely followed by the prank that involved turning a part of the collection upside-down, had been somewhat distressing. And not only for the students trying to study for what amounted to some of the most important exams of their lives. Azaelia had prided herself on keeping the library a pleasant and helpful place, which was difficult to do when the books were all out of order and in heaps on the floor.
At least that wasn't the case anymore. The library looked as it had before the unfortunate incidents, if not a little better. The books appeared neater and better organized, even though Azaelia hadn't done anything differently in terms of arrangement. Some books hadn't been returned to the shelves, being in need of repair or replacement. Perhaps it was the lack of the more worn out books that made the shelves appear tidier than normal. Or maybe it was all in Azaelia's imagination. She, like the students, longed for summer vacation. She felt overworked and in need of a break.
She sighed and walked to the front of the library, where she was met by one of the house-elves bearing a sheaf of parchment Azaelia had sent to Dumbledore's office earlier in the week. It was for book orders she wanted to make, pending his approval. She had a regular budget she used for ordering books throughout the school year, but the orders she wished to make now were a result of the recent chaos in the library.
A quick glance at the parchments showed that Dumbledore had approved her request. Azaelia felt immense relief and immediately went to her office to stow the parchments for later. When she emerged from her office, she found Mark at the counter, emptying library books from a bookbag.
He looked up at her approach and nodded in acknowledgement. "Hey," he said.
"Hey," she replied. She eyed the books he was stacking on the desk. "Done with those?"
Mark nodded again. "I would have turned them in earlier, but for some reason I didn't feel like stepping foot in this place after my last exam."
Azaelia laughed. "I guess I don't blame you there, but I'm glad you managed to drop in after all. Imagine what your fines would be if you kept those books all summer."
"Hogwarts doesn't have library fines," Mark playfully retorted. He removed the last book from his bag and set it on top of the stack on the counter.
"Yes, but there are house points to consider. You wouldn't want Slytherin to start out the school year with negative points, would you?" Azaelia was totally joking, and while she knew Mark knew it, she could also see him working out the scenario in his mind.
She slid the books towards her and started to check them in.
"Thanks," Mark said. "See you around."
"Yeah, see you," Azaelia replied. They smiled at each other, before Mark headed for the exit. Azaelia, meanwhile, finished with his books and then set them on a cart to be shelved.