Aidan Avery

The idea of making the event more memorable than it already was appalled Walden, the firm disagreement clear on his expression as he looked, unimpressed, at Aidan. Even when celebrating his niece, the man would rather have been at his own home than among the others in their community that night. He thought it would have been quite nice to perhaps take Emma out to dinner and congratulate her personally, albeit the honor of being asked to present a speech that night instilled a strong sense of obligation within him not only to attend, but to truly be at the party. For him, it was accompanied by a consequential obligation to assure that the evening was one Emma would remember fondly. “I think everything is exactly how Emma intended it to be,” He contradicted. “That’s the problem with your generation. You think everything has to be set on fire to be memorable.” 

A Ravenclaw by nature and sorting, Walden was by no means dull, and he wasn’t concerned enough to hide his confidence that his offer would immediately catch Aidan’s interest. Nonchalantly, he lifted a shoulder and dropped it, and took a sip of his drink purely to keep the wix on his toes. “If you’re quick with it, she won’t even notice you’re gone,” He reasoned. In his mind, Emma was like himself in the sense that she cared too much about the well being of herself to ever have true friends. It was the safest way to live, but he didn’t bother attempting to explain that to Aidan that night. “I wouldn’t say it holds very much importance at all tonight. You said you wanted fun. It’s fun.” Lowering his voice, he explained, “There’s a Mudblood who used to work on the fifth floor of the Ministry, suspected Order supporter. I have his address, along with all the other information that the Ministry had on file for him. If Rodolphus isn’t going to use that information to follow through with his own policies, somebody else should. It’s yours, if you want it.”

Walden Macnair was, Aidan decided pointedly, a very dull man. What was a party without a little fun? There was an open bar sure, but that was the only decent form of entertainment and really that grew boring quickly. It was a pureblood engagement party and frankly it seemed as dull as something a muggle could manage. It was disappointing to say the least. One day Emma would look back and see that herself. If Walden didn’t see that and wanted to put a kibosh on even innocent fun to be had, then Aidan really had very little use of him. It was rather disappointing giving how enjoyable the man’s niece was and how good his breeding was supposed to be. “Well fire is memorable. No need to insult a whole generation because we’re more fun. And do remember, Emma is a part of my generation, so who’s to say she wouldn’t enjoy it. Besides, fire doesn’t always have to be destructive, does it? We are wizards after all.” To make their point, Aidan leaned back and pulled out their wand, setting the rim of their glass a blaze with a small flick and whispered incantation. “See?”

The scene would replay a million times over if Cygnus allowed himself to close his eyes long enough to let it. Thick, billowing clouds of smoke, the pain as it tore through his lungs, the fear as the flames lapped at his trousers with little regard to who he was. He could remember grasping at Augustus with trembling fingers, his brain screaming ‘just get the fuck out of here’. His mouth trying to form words but every time he inhaled, the wracking cough would come instead. So they crawled, and they tore at each other, and they escaped. But now he couldn’t get away from the memory, or the burning on the skin around his eyes, and for that he was lost. He was lost and unable to play the games he had come to love. 

The interruption came as a blessing and a curse. 

For one relieving moment Cygnus remembered how he used to be, and thought he could maybe fall into it again with Aidan by his side. Together they were fearless and ambitious, they could conquer the world if only they could become the leaders they were destined to be. But Cygnus feared that letting his guard down in front of the other would only lead to a diminishing respect. And he wasn’t sure he would be able to handle that as easily as he handled other disappointments in his life. Because, truthfully, he enjoyed the time he spent with Aidan. They were so similar, he found it easy to fall into a rhythm of almost silent communication. 

So he turned around reluctantly, allowing his lips to turn upwards in a false smirk. “Yes, well, the wall started it.” Cygnus didn’t like joking, but somehow he thought maybe that could clear the air. Maybe they could pretend he hadn’t lost his fucking mind. His scraped up hand dug deeply into the pocket of his coat, an effort to hide the damage he had done in his little outrage, while his other tucked his wand neatly into the rung on his belt. “You’re right.” He admitted, nodding. “I really need to focus on someone else for a bit. A distraction, y’know?” Though, honestly, he wasn’t sure if he could even lose himself in pain and suffering. He just wanted to drink himself into nothingness. 

But the vibrancy that Aidan brought to the table often filled Cygnus with life and youth - so he didn’t want to scurry away. Maybe this would help. “Any ideas on what I should do?” Or who we should torture?

“Well then I certainly hope the wall got what was coming to it,” Aidan replied without missing a beat. Perhaps if any other person had found Cygnus, they would have asked if he were alright, asked what had upset him or what exactly the wall had done to supposedly start things. But that wasn’t who Aidan was. Even with the extreme few Aidan actually considered themselves close to, they didn’t really care exactly. Perhaps they should. Perhaps they should have thought to teach out to Augustus or Cygnus after the fire, but it wasn’t how they were raised and it wasn’t the person they’d become. And checking in on one another Asking if the other was okay? Taking the time to care about anything but the devil inside? Cygnus and Aidan’s relationship was many things, but it wasn’t that.

To some extent, Aidan knew their relationship with Cygnus was atypical. Most twenty-three year olds didn’t have deep connections (friendships? mentorships? -- finding the right word for it had never been easy) with those nearly twice their age who weren’t family. But that was yet another thing Aidan was apathetic toward. It had started young, the Blacks and the Averys were influential families and often rubbed elbows. From the start Cygnus commanded the kind of power and respect Aidan wanted and idolized. Aidan saw their own future potential. A living, breathing, well attainable goal. And when Cygnus paid attention to the young wizard, trained him, drew him even further into the world of the Death Eaters, that was really all it had taken for Aidan. Cygnus had always paid attention (and frankly more importantly, praised them) more than either of their own parents. Why shouldn’t they spend time with the kind of wizard they wanted to be? Why shouldn’t they have assumed they would wind up married to one of his daughters? Cygnus made them stronger. He was a beneficial gain on all accounts. And one of the few (along with Augustus and Cassius) who got to see how ruthless Aidan could really be under all the layers of sugar-coated lies.

Still, Aidan all but rolled their eyes when they saw Cygnus trying to tuck their hand away. Clearly he hadn’t been listening at all. Blood all over his coat--especially when it was his own--wouldn’t exactly be a help to the Death Eater’s current image. “Did you not just hear what I said about ruining your coat with your own blood? It’s a damn waste and I won’t have it.” Aidan gestured to the older man’s hand, motioning for Cygnus to take it out so they could work a quick healing spell on it. It wasn’t the kind of magic Aidan preferred but it was often necessary to keep up with appearances.

Aidan looked up at the older wizard, mischief glimmering in their eyes. “Well I do like the idea of someone else’s blood on your coat if you’re insistent on ruining it. There was a group of mudbloods in that tavern back there. Certainly they would be an easy go. Or if you have yet to right things with the wall, we could take our grievances against it. One little building shouldn’t be able to stand against us.”

Personally Pandora wasn’t a fan of being anywhere near the party much less near the man she was talking to. He was every bit of the type of guy she tried to stay away from. Charming, but in a way that left her stomach feeling sour. For someone that saw the good in almost everyone, Bellatrix herself included, the fact that he didn’t win her over had to speak volumes about himself. Victoria though wouldn’t have just ran and what was the point in the entire evening if she didn’t learn anything.

“What kind of lady am I suppose to be if I just gave away all of my secrets?” She asked curiously hoping that the words came off as smoothly she could manage. It all felt weird to her, but she was hoping she would get something quickly so she could go back home and never do this again.

Aidan didn’t much like playing games when it came to getting someone in bed. They had done it a few times, just for the sake of bedding someone truly off limits or someone who seemed too sweet and innocent and was someone Aidan could single-handedly corrupt. It would be a fun way to waste some time tonight, he supposed. A little good of no-good fun for the evening just they way Emma would truly approve of for it all they believed.

“Well you wouldn’t be a lady at all,” Aidan said smiling up at her, “but is that really such a sin? I think it sounds absolutely wonderful, Why not just...feed off of all the romantic feeling in the air am I right? Or-” Aidan cut off , sweetly playing with a strand of her hair, “Do you have anything a little darker in mind my dear?”

OPEN STARTER

Among the shadows of London lurked creatures made of flesh and blood, desperate to taste something copper and foul. They whispered and dealt beneath the fullness of a silver moon, and clawed out at the innocent passersby with hideous intentions. And until a week ago, Cygnus Black had crept within their circles, content to find pain, fire, and mayhem after hours. Those sorts were his family, silent as they were, his drinking buddies and fighting partners and everything between. He lived for their distrust and distaste. His own cold face was no different than their own so they asked no questions, they just traded and drank and stumbled around. Like old friends, he often thought, or brothers. 

But now, now that he did not sleep and could not think, he didn’t return to that brotherhood of darkness. They would sniff out the weakness pouring from his clammy skin. The simple tremor of his fingertips was more than enough of a sign that he had grown old, too old, and that he was not to be feared. Bullshit. Cygnus wanted to scream into the warm night air presently. Fuck that, I’m going to burn the entirety of England to the fucking ground. And then we’ll see who is scared.

They had been wandering the streets of London for hours trying to drum up action. Honestly, there had been too much peace for too long. They were tired of it. Aidan had been sitting back too long. Maybe the Death Eaters had held power for a short while, but at the very least Aidan themselves hadn’t been able to enterprise on it themselves. Maybe this was the time, when everyone was down and the group was losing power. They would make themselves known and present, place themselves forward as a leader within the group to get more power.

It was wandering the streets to find more loyalists that they found a figure in a dark ally alone. Maybe it was time one of the Death Eaters take action again. Maybe they would just rob the poor bloke (they didn’t need the money, it would be just because they could). Or maybe they’d string them up with the Dark Mark emblazoned on them. They smirked, an idea crossing their mind. It had been far too long since they had practiced an Unforgiveable. It was about time to use Imperius, cast doubt on someone from the Order or Aversio, pull power away from them and towards the DE ranks. 

Just when they had their wand raised, the figure before them started pounding against a wall and screaming. Interestingly enough it was a voice Aidan noticed almost immediately. Unfortunately, all their plans went out the window, but they had little doubt they were about to find much more interesting ones. With a flick of their wand and a spoken spell, light poured out of the end of their wand. They tsked their tongue four times, shaking their head in mock disappointment. “Now Cygnus, certainly those bricks haven’t done anything to you, now have they? Is there really any need for that?” A smirk crossed Aidan’s lips. “And really, I’ve always liked that coat, no need to ruin it with your own blood. If you’re going to ruin it with blood stains, at least make it someone else’s.”

The longer that Florence spent in this crowd, the more that she understood just how rare Emilia’s view on the world was within Pureblooded society. Emilia was the kind of woman who believed in romance as the fairytales talked about it. She believed in princesses being stuck in tall, far away towers and she believed in the princes that rushed to save them. She knew the importance of marriages of convenience, but it was apparent, at least in the dossier that Aversio provided on the woman, that she also believed that a true, strong bond could develop between two people, even if they didn’t experience love at first sight. Florence gave a naïve smile to Aiden as they responded to her commentary on the evening, deciding not to push it any further. “She does seem to care for him quite a bit, though,” she noted. Leaving it there would be enough. It would have to be. “It is good to see so many of our people here tonight. I’m glad to see that some things have not been compromised since I last left for France.” Her smile turned into a more genuine one, a spark behind the otherwise innocent look that Emilia tended to give off. She watched as Aiden took a flute of champagne, quickly turning it into some kind of liquor with nothing more than a spell. “At least I know that someone understands me,” she noted, giving them a quick wink. It was good to know that, if anything, Florence would get at least one good drink out of the evening. She’d just have to stay on her toes, that was all. “I’ll follow your lead. You seem to know what you want, and I’m happy to follow along until you get just that. Just tell me what we’re doing – I’m all yours for the evening.”

Aidan vaguely remembered the girl in front of them from their years in school. She was pretty, sure, but her head was always horribly in the clouds, so painfully naive and innocent that it absolutely sickened them. The sweetness was something that would have only ever been palatable to them under one circumstance. And that was corruption. Good girls were only fun once you left them not good any more. There was potential, that was certain, not to mention she was Pureblood, which made it even better. Showing one of their own the right path of things. The naive smile only made it more tempting to take her under their ring.

A smirk spread across their lips as they leaned closer to her. “I think you’ll be rather pleased to see what’s been going since you left. Rodolphus Lestrange has managed to take the Minister’s seat. Perhaps he’s not the best of options, but given the circumstances, we could be doing far worse. At least it’s one of our own.”  They smiled, raising their brows back at her they finished off the rest of their flask. The moment it was empty, it refilled itself tough, a useful charm they’d found in their teenage years that had served then very well for so long. They chuckled lightly under their breath, moving closer to her. “Well darling, what if what I want for the evening is just you? Seems like a good place to start causing trouble. We can start there and see if anything else sparks our interest. Or....” they trailed off and let their eyes drift over to a few of the Pureblood families who aligned with The Order, “We could start elsewhere...”

Watching from the sidelines was productive, at the very least, although it could be boring. There was only so much information that Florence could take in before she had to peel her eyes from the happy, mingling couples and actually talk to someone. She was feeling antsy. Anxious. There weren’t enough words in the languages that she knew to describe just how on edge she felt. All that she could do was hold her emotions inward and keep them to herself – after all, even the slightest sign of discomfort could give away the fact that she was not, in fact, Emilia Bullstrode, and that she had no real business being at the engagement party after all. For all of the suspicion that she had about the attendees of the Lestrange and Vanity engagement party, the event was moving pretty slowly. Out of the gate she’d managed to speak to both Walden Macnair and Rodolphus Lestrange themselves, leaving her an exhausted, panic-ridden mess of emotions. She held her champagne flute of water delicately, taking slow and steady sips as she attempted to calm her nerves. There was plenty of alcohol to go around here. Florence knew that the Lestrange family would only have the most expensive liquors and impressive wines. But after just one drink, she felt like she wanted to throw up. And if Florence’s self-proclaimed iron stomach couldn’t handle a single drink in a place like this, the last thing that she wanted was to test herself. The man a foot or so over from her spoke, grabbing Florence’s attention and getting her out of her own head. “It is beautiful, isn’t it? Having everyone here to celebrate love – it’s the most romantic thing there is.” Surely there were political motives behind the couple’s engagement, too. But staying true to Emilia’s hopelessly romantic nature, she tried her best to feign blissful ignorance of such other things. “I’ve been enjoying watching everyone here together. It’s nice to have people come together in times like this.” Though, to be fair, indulging in Aiden Avery’s idea of ‘fun’ might be a decent way to gain information as well. “That would depend on what you have in mind.”

Aidan turned their head toward their new companion and raised a brow carefully. Everyone here to celebrate love--it’s the most romantic thing. Merlin, words like that churned Aidan’s stomach. They were pathetic and weak and far too foolishly feminine. Aidan had never seen any appeal in romance or love--other than feigning it in order to fulfill certain other desires they held--and the utter idolatry so many people had for love was just absurd. Love didn’t serve a purpose, love didn’t get anyone anywhere. If anything, people only gave things up in the name of love. It wasn’t anything that held any interest for Aidan Avery. They weren’t going to be giving up their power for the sake of some stupid infatuation. Any match they made would have to be beneficial to them.

“I suppose so,” they replied dryly, “Emma should be rather pleased with how things look if nothing else. And at least the right kind of crowd made the guest list.” It was rare to be in such a Pureblood crowd--and so many of them Death Eaters too. That was something nice at least. It was the way things should always be in Aidan’s opinion. They leaned back and took in the girl in front of them. “Well I have a few ideas, but I certainly know where to start. With an actual drink.” Aidan pulled out their wand, flicking it at her glass and murmuring a spell under the breath transforming the girl’s champagne into liquor. “You’ll not have any fun with just bubble darling. Now we can really start looking at some good fun. Something to make this more memorable. More exciting. People just need a little livening up don’t they?”

Pandora couldn’t help but feel nervous about the fact that she had snuck into the party under the radar. She wasn’t new to the idea of using a polyjuice potion, but before this evening it was purely used for fun and to get away with something. Now though she had to use it to see if she could learn anything that was useful, but she had to work on having the same confidence that Victoria Fawley exuded. Sure the other woman was technically neutral in this war, but considering the fact that she was a pureblood it seemed to even out to her at the very least. Her eyes shifted around the room as she took it all in. It was far more lavish than anything else she had attended before, but it was why she had spent her latest check from the prophet on a gown for the evening.

Pandora had been carefully sipping on a glass that she had taken as a tray floated by. Even she had to admit that things were surprisingly quiet compared to what she had been prepared to deal with. She knew that the evening was young still and that the real excitement was just around the corner she just needed to be careful to avoid getting herself involved. She knew that it didn’t matter what it came down to she couldn’t do anything that she wouldn’t normally do.

She heard his voice causing her to turn her head to make eye contact with him. “I think I could be convinced depending on exactly what you have in mind.”

Aidan turned to look at the girl. She looked vaguely familiar, they had probably gone to school together. If they weren’t in the serpentine house, then most people didn’t really matter. There were rare exceptions of course, Augustus was the most notable, but for the most part, only Slytherins really mattered. And even then, those who weren’t purebloods were questionable at most. Sure sometimes people out garner attention occasionally but it rarely lasted long.

But she was pretty at least, quite attractive really. They looked her up and down in the gown, smiling to themselves. It wasn’t the kind of entertainment they had had in mind. But they supposed it would do. “Well I have plenty of ideas,” they slid closer to her with a smirk, “but I’d love to hear what you have in mind darling.”