✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

Panic and embarrassment rushed through Benjy almost immediately as he saw the way Emmeline’s expression changed to one of shock. It might be the late 1970s, but it still wasn’t proper to open the door to a woman in your boxers - never mind a woman that he was very interested in romantically. What the fuck Benjy. He should’ve known it was unlikely to be Alex at this time of day - thank Merlin he had at least changed into his boxers as opposed to opening the door in just his towel because he may well have dropped it in shock (and then he’d never be able to see Emmeline ever again out of shame).

Setting his wand down on the side as he hurried to his bedroom without a second glance Emmeline’s way, Benjy cursed himself as soon as the door was shut. He pulled on a form fitting t-shirt and some joggers, aiming for comfort now since his dignity was dead in the water. 

He was such an idiot. All she wanted to be was friends, and here he was opening the door in his boxers and terrifying the poor woman. If there was ever a hope she might want to kiss him, he’d surely ruined it just now. “Fuck’s sake Benj,” he muttered as he headed back out towards Emmeline, painting a sheepish smile on his lips. 

Definitely not Alex. “I should’ve known really. It’s lunch time, he’s definitely still at work. I’m sorry for brandishing my wand at you as well,” Benjy said, before a small groan fell from his lips at the double entendre considering his state of undress just minutes before. “I’m a bit touchy about security at the minute, understandably,” Benjy rambled as he tried to explain away the innuendo, glancing at his new wand. 

“No, no! Don’t apologise, please don’t apologise. You’re not interrupting anything, I had just got out of the shower. I really, really do want to do something,” he’d only been out of the flat once before Emmeline had arrived, and he trusted her to keep him safe if anything happened. “No intrusion, I promise. Let’s go do something….could we take Peter for a walk maybe? My poor little guy has only been walked by Alex at the minute, but I know he’s desperate to go out with me. I just….I just hadn’t been feeling up to it. Let’s go out….I could make us a picnic?”

It takes Emmeline an embarrassingly long time to tear her eyes away from Benjy’s bare chest, the heat spreading up from the back of her neck and into her cheeks. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see the bandaged scarring from his recent trip to St. Mungo’s, but as she is remarkably ashamed to admit, it was not the first thing that had caught her attention. Unfortunately satisfied that she had truly humiliated herself with her staring, Emmeline hides her face, unsure of whether or not she was about to be kicked out of his flat for making an utter fool of herself.

Friends did not stare at friend’s chests the way she just had, no matter how bloody sculpted they were.

Glad at least that Peter was there to distract her, Emme gathers the small dog into her lap, gleefully accepting the way he licks at her face in greeting. She scratches at the back of his neck softly with her nails, hoping that this at least could distract her from what had just happened. 

He was going to think she was a blathering virginal idiot, she thinks in anguish, one who had never seen a shirtless boy before.

Keeping her eyes averted for a moment, Emmeline takes a deep breath before she looks up at Benjy, smiling at him almost automatically. Part of her is somewhat disappointed that he was now clothed, but she cannot deny that his clothing fits him well.

Mentally bemoaning her apparent one-track mind, Emme can’t help the small yelp that slips out of her at Benjy’s unintentional innuendo, her face blooming with embarrassment once again. “I’m sorry! For the wand-brandishing...shit, uh, sorry,” she pauses frowning at her inability to put words together, before trying once more. “I should have owled. I just assumed you would be home, which was pretty impolite of me. I just got used to us dropping in on one another all the time, and didn’t think.”

Smiling and nodding her head before Benjy has even finished his sentence, Emmeline peels herself off the floor slowly, giving Peter one last pet on the head as she does so. “I’d love that,” she says, before glancing at him sheepishly, “Eggy might be tied up outside at the moment...I was hoping you would be up for a walk,” she says, brushing some of her hair back over her shoulder. “And a picnic would make it even more perfect. What do you want me to do to help?” 

“No kidding” he chuckled Christoper couldn’t imagine a dog this large, and growing larger, being comfortable in an apartment. That being said Egg is rather well behaved so it shouldn’t be that much of a stretch to imagine him liking an apartment “your neighbors must love him.” Chris looked down at Vivi watching his small girl soak up the attention. “She’s around three years old, acts like a queen because she’s spoiled” he said warmly normally Chris would be embarassed letting someone hear him speak so fondly, but this was different.

“Who needs people when animals love you unconditionally, all they want is your attention and to be fed, my two ladies” Chris wasn’t a big romance person in fact the last relationships he had didn’t go anywhere. Mainly because he didn’t have time for them, always consumed with work. He should feel bad about it, but he doesn’t. “Careful next thing you know she’ll be needing playdates with you and Egg. It happens whenever people come visit, she starts missing them once they leave.” Chris has no idea where she got that from.

Her hand still stroking the top of Vivi’s head gently, Emmeline moves her other hand to pet Egg at the same time, not wanting him to feel left out. He was so large that she often forgot he was still a baby, until he threw some sort of puppy tantrum at being ignored. No matter if it was another dog, or a human, Merlin forbid Emmeline turn away for him longer than a second. “My neighbours are truly darling about it. Minus one old grump, but I tend to avoid him,” Emme admits with a shrug. She was so rarely home that it never really mattered anyway. “She deserves to be treated like a queen, that’s all it is.” 

Nodding along, Emmeline can’t help but smile. She knew deep down that she would much rather spend the rest of her days in the simple company of her dog than anyone else, but perhaps that was not the most healthy of options. If anything, she at least had to choose someone who was comfortable with Egg, as she knew she would always pick her favourite boy if it came down to it. “I will admit, I’m not ever about to say no to playdates. I like for him to socialise, particularly with a variety of dogs.” 

“I know,” Frank sighed aloud, head tilting back to stare up at the ceiling with what he had hoped to be a wry smile that somehow melted into something goofy in the process of glancing sidelong at Emmeline, “We are an inspiration to future generations of aurors and people alike. Alice tells me daily to sod off and make my own coffee.” He hummed happily, glancing down at the stolen coffee mug in his hands and taking another obliging sip, leaning heavily over to knock his shoulder against hers. “It’s like poetry.”

 And even if Frank hadn’t been a particularly astute man, he thought he could have followed that trail of breadcrumbs, but he was generous when it came to his friends and Emmeline seemed to be in greater need of denial than most people he met. Frank knew the pitfalls of the young and ambitious workaholic intimately. People like her, like him, needed to be coaxed gently from their steadfast routines. “That’s not a bad thing,” he offered around another sip of coffee, considering his words carefully, “We’re still people, Vance, we can’t just turn off our feelings about the people we care for because our job demands objectivity. Of course you want the best for him as a friend, I promise you Moody and I do too.”

“You don’t have to prop up my ego, Emme,” he offered lightly with a snort, tilting his head in consideration as he tried to siphon out the real reasoning behind her nerves, “It’s sweet of you, but I’ve seen my caseload too. You being there might help him, it might be comforting, or maybe he might want to be brave or not embarrass himself in front of his new friend and leave something important out. Or maybe knowing too much might just end up hurting you instead. Are you sure you want that?” Frank wasn’t sure that he wanted that, the healer’s reports had painted an ugly enough story of what Benjy had suffered and the prospect of yet another story of horror and pain to string around his neck and hope, perhaps, he might find some justice for it had required a little fortification.

And maybe there was a hint of protectiveness at play here, he and Alice had shepherded Emmeline firmly under their wings long ago, but he didn’t want to see her burdened unnecessarily with uglier truths than she’d prepared herself for. 

“It’s too much for any mere mortal,” Frank agreed glumly, “Thankfully, all signs point to my having evolved to a higher plane of existence due to a diet almost exclusively crafted from coffee beans and experimental ice cream flavours. Dawlish has nothing on my newfound powers of zen.”

Her own mouth crinkling into a smile at the sight of Frank’s, Emmeline can’t help the happy little sigh that bursts from her. It was difficult to remain cynical about the existence of true love whilst working in the same office as Frank and Alice, whose entire lives seemed to have been made for one another. “You’re both just an inspiration to us all, full stop,” she says fondly. If she could be half the Auror either Frank or Alice was, Emmeline was certain that she could retire happy.

Bumping her shoulder back against Frank’s, Emmeline smiles wryly at him, although it doesn’t quite meet her eyes. She had not felt quite this out of sorts for some time, and she wasn’t sure what it would take to fix it, aside from continuing to visit Benjy, who, despite his injuries, still managed to settle some of the churning stress inside her gut. Taking her mug back from Frank, she takes a long sip, using the moment to think carefully over his words. “I know you both do,” she says, “I knew that joining you-know-what would give me more of a chance to fight, but I didn’t quite think that it would give me so many more people to worry about.” 

 Shaking her head, Emmeline stares intently down at her feet, noting the tiny little bunny ears that adorned her socks. She had worn them in an attempt to cheer herself up that morning, but she was unsure if they were doing their job as they should. “I just want to do whatever everyone thinks is best for him, that’s all,” she says at last, her voice still soft. “He’s told me some, and I’d like to be there, but I guess...I’d rather he told me because he thought I should know, rather than my being told simply because I’m in the room when he tells you.” The small details she already knew about what had happened to Benjy were enough to prickle goosebumps down her spine and to curdle her stomach; Emmeline wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear the full thing, not when it was still so fresh, not when she was so close to having almost lost her newest, closest friend.

“Dawlish can only dream of one day being at your level,” Emme remarks, “As can I. But at present, I am but a lowly trainee, and therefore he can still get away with bossing me about as he wishes.”

“I’ll hold you to that. Especially the part about the cocktails.” Amelia answered. She would. Even thinking about taking a few days off was enough to make her fingers twitch in excitement. London was quite dreary this time of year and when she reflected on it, cold weather always made her feel a little sad. Amelia spied the wine on the counter, getting to her feet and quickly filling her mug back up. Leaning on the counter as she looked back over at Emmeline.

“You haven’t done anything yet.” she laughed, “Besides leave your long time school friend, best friend, in the cold.” Amelia was only teasing. She didn’t expect Emmeline to tell her everything going on in her life, though the appearance of a new love interest was news to her. Something she wished Emmeline would have been confided in her. She didn’t like having to pry things from her. Benjy was not a new face though, she had known him throughout her school years. He was always kind and forthright, Amelia could see what Emmeline liked about him.

Emmeline’s face was a shade of red Amelia wasn’t sure she had ever seen before. Her own smirk grew wider. Emmeline and Benjy, they would make a good match. She momentarily thought about their hypothetical children and how adorable they would be ( though aunt Amelia would love all of Emmeline’s children - if she chose to have them ). Amelia returned to the table, taking a seat as she sipped wine out of her mug. “So you are interested?” she said, “Sorry to tease you but I was just curious.”

“Wouldn’t a cocktail be delightful right now?” Emmeline muses for a moment. It had been so long since she had properly taken some time off, at least not the kind that didn’t involve her sitting around her own flat in pajama pants and not emerging from a book for several hours. Sure, a mug full of wine was pleasant, but it was certainly not something fun and fruity in a pretty glass.

If only Amelia knew, Emmeline muses silently, what an utter fool she had made of herself the last time she had done something. She could still scarcely think about the way she had run from the room without her face burning with embarrassment, and in front of Benjy’s brother of all people, the one person she had only moments early said she wanted to meet and be friends with. “There isn’t anything to tell,” Emmeline says, her words only a small lie. There really wasn’t, not really. Yes, she might have the tiniest smidgeon of a crush on Benjy, but she knew that it couldn’t go anywhere.

Was she interested? Emmeline wasn’t sure she could even lie to herself about that one anymore. There was no denying that she was attracted to both Benjy’s face and his personality. He was one of the sweetest people she had ever met, and he had an uncanny knack for making her laugh and also feel as though she had no troubles in the world. And then there was her reaction to his being hurt. The guttural feeling that perhaps she was about to lose someone she hadn’t realised was so important to her. Her friend, for that she was certain, was all he wanted to be. “I-I...I suppose I could be interested. But it’s...it’s a non-starter, Am. We’re just friends. That’s all he wants, and I won’t ruin that by acting like a thirteen-year-old with her first crush.” 

The days since leaving the hospital had simultaneously been a whirlwind of activity though the days seemed to drag on infinitely. A level of panic and anxiety had settled over Benjy that he couldn’t seem to shake. Places that Benjy believed were untouchable were now tainted by the actions of the Death Eater, who knew the approximate locations to the homes of the most important people in his life. It was tearing Benjy apart knowing that he had led the man straight to them - and he didn’t even know who it was. 

His days were spent pacing and trying to process what had happened, his evenings were spent trying to calm down and relax with Alex. Nights were spent waking in terror, casting glamours over himself in the morning to pretend that everything was okay. The only time he had been out of the safety of the walls of his flat was with Andromeda to get a new wand, which now rested safely in his hand - never again would Benjy be without his wand, he had vowed it to himself. 

Alex had headed out to work earlier in the day, but Benjy had spotted the glint of his key by the door. He’d always been forgetful. Benjy had decided to use the morning to be productive and clean the flat before showering (a cold shower, he was still too afraid to use hot water). A towel was wrapped around his waist, leaving him shirtless and mostly damp. It was almost midday, and as someone knocked at the door, Benjy could only assume it was Alex. Anyone else that might want to visit had their own key, everyone else had been keeping their distance - perhaps not really knowing what state he might be in. “One minute,” he called, shimmying into a pair of boxers instead of the towel. 

Just in case it wasn’t Alex, Benjy gripped his wand firmly - ever ready for a fight now. As he opened the door, his expression flashed from confusion to embarrassment in the space of about a second. “Oh! Emmeline!” Benjy declared, glancing down at his state of undress. “Shit. Uh, come in…I’ll go get dressed,” Benjy groaned. Nobody except Alex had seen the fresh scars on his legs, his side - and now he’d opened the door to Emmeline in just his boxers. 

Hurrying back to his bedroom, Benjy threw some clothes on quickly before heading back out - letting Peter Barker out of the bedroom to run at Emmeline while he did so. “Sorry about that, I thought you might be Alex,” he said sheepishly. “What brings you here today?”

Shifting nervously from foot to foot as she knocks on the door, Emmeline already begins to brace herself for what she was going to say. She was popping in without calling or owling first, which was a bit of an etiquette no-no, she knew that. But she also knew that Benjy wasn’t going back to work for a while yet and that perhaps he would be feeling up to visitors.

If she was being honest, which she supposed she needed to be, the fact was that Emmeline missed him. She had gotten used to spending time with Benjy, to owling him during the week when they were both busy, and while she knew that he needed space after being discharged, she couldn’t pretend that she didn’t really want to see him.

She just had to hope that it wasn’t his brother who answered the door.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to meet Alex properly, she did. She would just like to be a little more prepared, although at least she wouldn’t be caught holding Benjy’s hand this time.

They were just friends. That was what Benjy wanted.

Pasting a smile on her face, although she knows it is genuine, Emmeline tries to restrain her eagerness as the door swings open, ducking her head slightly sheepishly.

In almost an instant, her expression changes, mouth dropping slightly as she realises just how little Benjy was actually wearing. Within moments she has slapped her hand over her eyes, turning her head so not to be looking, but it was a moment too late. She had already gotten a look, and...if she was continuing with the whole ‘being honest’ business, she wasn’t exactly complaining about what she saw. The wound on his side was still healing and looked incredibly painful as a result, but everything else...well, it was enough to make her face burn with embarrassment and maybe a little bit of something else.

So much for pretending her stupid crush didn’t exist.

Face still overwhelmingly red, Emmeline takes a few steps into the flat, immediately dropping to the ground to greet Peter as he emerges, letting the small dog crawl into her lap. She buries her face into his fur, cheeks alight, and she cannot stop herself from muttering quietly. “What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck. Why is he...what...so unfair.” 

Keeping her face still buried against Peter, scratching the dog’s head gently, Emmeline mumbles her response. “Nope, definitely not Alex. Definitely just me,” she says, lifting her head to catch Benjy’s eye briefly, “I’m so so sorry. I didn’t mean to barge in or interrupt. I just wanted to see you. See if you wanted to do something. I have the day off, but now I feel as though I’ve intruded…” And I certainly got more than I bargained for.

location: benjy’s flat

Wrapping Egg’s leash firmly around the closest pole she could, Emmeline scratches his head gently, placing down a small bowl of water beside him. She wouldn’t be long, she imagined, but she worried about him regardless.

Turning to face the building behind her, Emmeline steels herself for a moment. It was just a building, she thought to herself, just a building. Her nerves, of course, had nothing at all to do with the person who resided within said building. 

She had seen Benjy since they were ‘interrupted’, although she despised the use of that word to describe what had happened. It had far too many connotations that were nothing like what was actually happening. And of course she had seen him since, had continued to visit him in the hospital when she could, bringing comics and crosswords and more slightly burnt muffins, anything to put between them, to try and stop what had happened before from happening again. 

It wasn’t that she regretted holding Benjy’s hand or kissing his forehead, those small actions of comfort, but she was remarkably uncertain about what those actions had done to her instead. There were particularly feelings churning up inside her, feelings she knew that she should not have for a friend, feelings that were made all the worse by just how bloody, goddamn stupidly attractive she thought he was.

As she raises her hand to knock firmly on the door, Emmeline has a brief flash of regret about how long it had taken her to come to see him since he was discharged. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to see him; she had just wanted to offer him some space, some time to spend with his brother, with the Tonks’, and she herself had gotten caught up at work, or so she told herself. And perhaps, just perhaps, there was a part of her that was slightly concerned about what might happen, about what she might do, now that there was no longer a hospital bed between them.

Her knuckles rap against the door firmly, her heart thudding in her chest. There was no turning back now.

“That is one of our better selling points as a couple,” Frank conceded with a wry nod, glancing sideward as he added, “And what would Florean do with all his test flavours? Clearly we’ll have to rethink the whole elevator renovation. Perhaps take over a spare office upstairs instead.”

And perhaps it surprised him, just a little, that Emmeline had so firmly asserted herself in Moody’s presence, as if the old curmudgeon didn’t thoroughly enjoy terrifying the living daylights out of their trainees on a semi-weekly basis, but Emmeline was tougher than the image she presented of herself to the world, especially when it came to things she believed in. “I’m sure that Moody appreciated that you cared enough to ask him, that you thought about what was best for the individual. This job can make people hard and — bitter, I guess, they find it easier to deal with the cases that cross their desks that way. It’s hard to remember to be compassionate when you’re faced with the things we are day in and out.”

Accepting the mug back he absently, automatically, took a sip, rolling the words worried and important over in his mind with far too much curiosity. He’d have to mention it to Alice. Fingers drumming against the ceramic he continued, “I can tell. I promise you that every single case that comes across my desk is important to me — and for the record, I’m sure if Alastor had been able to make time in his schedule, he would have in a heartbeat.”

Frank sighed, rolling his shoulders back and listening to the soft hum of the elevator as he trundled along its regimented path, “Well that makes one of us at least. For the record, you are welcome to confiscate my paperwork at any time. Every time I blink it seems like I’ve grown a new folder. I’m starting to suspect Dawlish has been slipping them onto my desk when he thinks I’m not looking.”

“One of many,” Emmeline reiterates. Watching Frank and Alice interact, as one was apt to do in a Department as integrated as theirs, had always fascinated Emmeline, at getting to see a couple who were so truly made for one another. “I’ve said it to you before if I ever marry someone who is half as perfect for me as you and Alice are, I think I could be happy for the rest of my life.” she says wistfully, “You could just start an inter-office ice-cream delivery service for Florean.”

Frank’s words do little to soothe the churning feeling in Emmeline’s stomach. She hadn’t felt as though Moody disapproved of her request; he hadn’t raised his voice or reprimanded her for wasting his time, and yet the way his eye had roamed her face had made her feel as though she had laid everything bare, that Moody had recognised something in her that she had yet to recognise in herself. “I know...I know it’s always best to think of the individual...but I have to admit...I was more thinking in terms of Benjy as a person...as my friend, rather than someone we are required to interview. It’s just...difficult.” It had been as such for days, ever since she had heard the news, and Emmeline was not ready to admit to what that might mean.

Resting her head against the wall of the elevator, Emmeline laces one foot over the other, stretched out across the floor. “I know...I wasn’t doubting you, Merlin, I know you care about all your cases...” Emmeline says with a start, struggling to think how best to put her muddled thoughts into words, “I’m glad it’s you. That you’re the one speaking to him. He just...he looked so small, and it’s stupid, we’ve only really started hanging out together recently, but I just...I...” I could have lost him. 

Emmeline breaks off before she lets the words escape her lips, her heart pounding at what exactly they could mean, choosing to focus her attention on Frank’s next words instead. “I wouldn’t put it past Dawlish, which you didn’t hear me say at all, or he’ll put me on desk duty for the rest of the year. I like paperwork more than the average person, but that’s too much.”

“I know…” Amelia groaned, reaching up and undoing the bun in her hair. It was starting to get uncomfortable, wrapping her hair tie around her right hand. “That’s the saddest part about the auror thing. They keep you so tied up. It’s no wonder Moody is so keyed up all the time. Man needs a long vacation..” Amelia felt a surge of excitement. She deadly serious about this vacation and there was no person Amelia would rather spend a week with. “French Riviera, Hawaii…somewhere with a beach. Where we can lie and not move…though we could probably do that here as well. At least there it would be warm.”

The topics of key sharing and tropical vacations was suddenly dropped as Amelia nearly shouted, “Ha!” She smacked her right hand on the table in excitement as if she had just accomplished something, she was right. It took a moment for her tor realize she had accidently startled Egg as well. It seemed the wine was already working its way through her system and Amelia wasn’t used to having a little furry friend around who might not appreciate her dramatics.

Amelia frowned for a moment, leaning lower over the table so she could directly speak with her favorite good boy. “I’m sorry Egg, my love.” she cooed once more, like he was a baby, “It’s just I’ve just caught your mum red-handed.” Amelia looked up at Emmeline, the biggest smirk stretched across her face as she righted herself in her chair. “Emm, it’s okay. Fenwick is a sweetheart…good looking…I don’t blame you…”

“I have a feeling that Moody won’t be taking a single vacation until he’s dead,” Emmeline says matter-of-factly. There was no denying that Moody was almost the entire backbone of the Auror Department, and Emmeline herself couldn’t imagine the place without his stern and gruff nature lurking in corners. “I should be able to get some time off soon, and then we can go,” she says firmly, already happily committed to such an idea. She was a workaholic, that was true, but even Emmeline could admit when she needed a break. “Somewhere warm with a beach. And preferably with cocktails.” 

Jumping at the sound of Amelia’s hand clapping against the tabletop, Emmeline shoots her a concerned glance, her own hand resting steadily on Egg’s head, the poor dog having lept out of his fur at the sound. Carding her fingers through the soft fur atop his head, Emmeline leans down to hum soothingly at him for a moment, waiting for his hackles to go down. 

“Red-handed!” Emmeline splutters, feeling her cheeks begin to burn with embarrassment. “You didn’t catch me doing anything!” Unlike Benjy’s brother apparently had. She can’t bring herself to look at Amelia, mildly frightened by the sheer joy on the other girl’s face, choosing to speak to the top of Egg’s head instead, “Of course he’s good-looking,” she mutters quietly, “He’s managed to be both attractive and the sweetest person I’ve met which is bloody unfair.”

“I can’t imagine what you’ll do when he gets bigger, he’s still a baby and already larger than you,” he joked looking down at the puppy. He couldn’t blame the woman for picking him up. Christopher would have done the same thing. “Yeah she’s cute, but don’t let this face fool you she’s got a bratty streak,” he said with a chuckle. Vivi simply soaked up the attention the young lady gave her. She even playfully nipped her fingers. She seemingly seemed to have understood what he said because she gave him her patented ‘feel bad for me’ look. “Ah, ah, no pity for you miss attention seeker.” After realizing that the course of action wasn’t working she went back to hang out with Egg.

He could only respond with a wistful smile thinking back on it. It was one of the first spontaneous decisions he ever made. “I think it’s the animal lover’s version of love at first sight or soul mates” he replied adjusting DD so he could shake her hand. Of course, while he’s trying to interact with humans Vivi had to do something, so attempting to climb Emmeline’s leg was her choice of action. “It’s nice to meet you too and I believe Vivi likes you and you’re large baby,” he said with a smile.

“For one, I will likely need a bigger apartment,” Emmeline says with a wry smile, knowing that as much as she adored her tiny little flat, it really was too small for such a large dog, no matter how often she took him out to run. But she had fallen so deeply for her precious dog from the moment she first saw him, and she had known that she wanted no other dog. “How old is she?” Emmeline asks, fingers still scratching gently under the other dog’s chin, laughing at both the friendly way Vivi nips at her, and how quickly she resigns herself to her father’s words.

“Exactly. I personally know that I’ve never felt the same about a human being the way I have about my precious Egg. He’s almost the only man I need,” Emmeline says, deliberately trying not to let her thoughts wander to the one person she thought might, in fact, be the exception. Shaking Chris’ hand firmly, Emmeline laughs once more at his dog, choosing to drop to sit down, letting the little thing crawl into her lap. “She’s a darling. I’m very glad to have met her.” 

Benjy’s eyes lit up as he imagined Peter majestically riding atop Egg, and Bruce atop Peter - it’d be the laziest walk Peter ever had, and Benjy was sure he’d love it. “I love that Egg is so big but so gentle….a gentle giant. People can be easily scared of big dogs, but I don’t think he’d hurt a fly from what I’ve seen. Even if he is jealous over someone else stealing his mum’s attention,” Benjy chuckled. “I promise you I’ll remain in the lead, but you can’t tell Alex,” he pressed a finger to his lips, eyes twinkling with amusement. “I don’t doubt that you’re always on your best behaviour, Emmeline Vance. I’m sure they’ll let you back in, they let me visit James Potter with a bag of sweets so big I’m sure he must’ve been on a sugar high for days.”

Benjy should have anticipated that Emmeline would be startled by the sudden appearance of his brother, especially considering that he’d apparently been there for five minutes watching them, but he wasn’t expecting the way her hand so quickly disappeared from his, nor the way her cheeks blushed so deeply. Another thing he didn’t anticipate was that Bruce would leap up to his chest, her paws landing just inches from where a dark bruise lay. Benjy’s gasp was automatic, and he closed his eyes for a moment trying to gather himself. “Fuck,” he groaned, brows furrowed in pain. 

“You don’t have to,” Benjy protested feebly, opening his eyes as Emmeline stood. Benjy fell silent as Emmeline kisses his forehead, mind running at a thousand miles an hour about what it could possibly mean. Was it just a girl thing? Maybe he’d have to ask Andromeda. “Of course, see you later,” Benjy’s voice was tinged with sadness about the fact she was headed out, and he groaned running a hand through his hair as she disappeared.

Alex was staring at him wide-eyed, his gaze darting between his brother and the door that Emmeline had just vanished through. “It seems you have a lot to explain, brother.”

Peter nodded at her advice, even if he couldn’t take it to heart, he was forever in a state of worry and the chaotic situation around them was doing nothing to help that. “I-I will.” he told her, “P-Please be c-careful Ms Vance.” He added, worried that she might get hurt a great deal more than him. Seeing her go, Peter turned back to the civilians and worked to try and get more of them out. He only ended up with a large head wound from a piece of wood smacking against it; better the confringo jinx hit that than him directly, and it wasn’t until the day after the attack that he got around to sending that owl from St. Mungo’s after Lily had saw to his injury.

“It is a good selection. Alex picked them out with the help of Daisy, it seems they both have good taste,” Benjy said with a warm smile. Daisy was a good friend, and he appreciated that she’d come to visit with books in hand. “I even think Narnia is amongst them, which is pure escapism at it’s best. C.S Lewis is masterful in world-building. They’re hardly children’s stories, really,” Benjy said, though his words were tinged with sadness as he remembered his parents….his parents - what did his parents used to do? There was something there, but he couldn’t quite grasp it. Choosing to let it go, deciding now was not the time to be sad while his hand was still clasped within Emmeline’s, Benjy’s smile grew again naturally as he thought about Egg. “It’s probably a good job you did….poor Peter would have no chance against Egg. I bet Peter could ride Egg, y’know…if he gets lazy,” Benjy snorted at the image of his dog lazing atop Egg. “Alex is a lot like me. We like similar things, although Alex is an accountant and he drones on and on about accountanty-things that just drives me mad. I’m the better looking, and funniest brother, of course,” Benjy grinned cheekily. “He’s definitely a better cook, he’s nowhere near as hopeless as me.” 

Benjy’s heart practically leapt in his chest at Emmeline’s promise, and he nodded with a grin. “I’d love that…I definitely wouldn’t owl you to ask you to stop. The healers might though.” If Emmeline never left his side, Benjy didn’t think he’d mind. “I’d be honoured, really.”

“I’m sure he’ll learn eventually,” Benjy said, although he worried that might be a bit presumptuous. It was, of course, up to Emmeline whether or not she invited him back to her house. He sighed slightly as he thought more on Nymphadora, worried that he’d never rid himself of that guilt. “She did help….more than she knows, I hope. I hope she never figures out exactly what state I was in,” Benjy gulped. “It really doesn’t, they’re brilliant,” Benjy had been grumbling about them keeping him under, but he knew he needed it recently. Benjy squeezed Emmeline’s hand a little, looking up to meet her gaze with a warm, goofy smile. There was a comfortable silence for a moment until Benjy heard someone clear their throat that definitely wasn’t Emmeline. 

Eyes darting to the door, Benjy saw his brother stood there and blinked for a moment. “How long have you been there?” He asked, mildly confused - surely he hadn’t been there too long, or he would have interjected when Benjy described himself as the better looking brother. “About five minutes,” Alex said with a smug grin as his eyes flickered between Emmeline and Benjy. Benjy hesitated for a moment, his gaze falling back to Emme. “Alex this is my new best friend Emme….she’s the comic girl.”

“You really are a man after my own heart, Benjy Fenwick. Narnia? Was and still is one of my most cherished series. They’re my go-to books to read in the bath, I won’t lie,” Emmeline says with a wide grin, once again delighting in how similar she and Benjy really were. It seemed so strange that someone so sweet and well-read had been so close to her all this time and yet it had taken a chance encounter for them to work that out. She frowns slightly at the pained look on his forehead, squeezing their fingers together once again before she mimics his smile with her own. “He probably could. I often settle Bruce on his back if we’re all going places, and he’s awfully gentle with her. Won’t rough-house or run away. I think he thinks she’s just a much smaller dog than him, really.” she says with a fond grin, “Oh, that certainly makes sense. Clearly, I’ll have to wait to judge on the better-looking and funnier aspects, but you are in the lead so far.” 

A stupid smile spread across Emmeline’s face at Benjy’s words and she fights back the blush she knows wants to fill her cheeks. “I’ll try to be on my best behaviour so they let me come back.” 

The concerned look on Benjy’s face sends Emmeline’s heart thudding, and she unintentionally shifts closer, reaching her free hand to brush against his cheek. “Don’t stress, you’re under enough strain,” she says softly, “I’m sure she’s okay. She’s still little, and they’re more resilient than you think. And you’ve told me what amazing parents she has. She’ll be okay.” Meeting Benjy’s eyes heavily with her own, Emmeline can’t help but match his smile with one of her own. She isn’t sure how long they sit like that, a cough breaking the almost hypnotic trance she had fallen into. 

After that, several things happen at once.

Emmeline pulls her hand from Benjy’s, a heated blush flooding her cheeks as she does so. She can’t bring herself to meet Alex’s eyes, feeling not unlike an amorous couple who had just been interrupted by a disapproving parent. The blush only gets deeper at Benjy’s words, at the nickname and the knowledge he had spoken about her to his brother, the only family he had left, and unconsciously her hand falls loudly onto the bedsheets. The sound, although muffled, startles Bruce, who bounds to Benjy’s chest with a leap, drawing a sharp gasp of pain from the boy and Emmeline burns with embarrassment. 

This was not how any of this was supposed to go.

Scooping her rabbit up with one hand, and placing her back into the basket, Emmeline pushes a strand of hair behind her ear nervously, unsure where to look. “I should...I should go,” she stammers, refusing to even look at Alex at this point in time. “I’ll come back. See you later?” she propositions to Benjy, leaning forward to press a kiss to his forehead, before pulling back, lips and cheeks on fire. What the fuck, Emmeline, she thinks to herself, before heading toward the door, waving shortly at Alex with a slight nod, finally meeting his eyes. 

“Nice to meet you,” she practically whispers, hurrying past him as fast as she can without actually running. Benjy was right, she thinks, Alex isn’t the better-looking brother.

“A little remodelling,” he replied with an airy wave of his hand and a lazy grin, taking a long sip of his stolen coffee with a happy hum, “Of course we’d likely have to get rid of the ice cream freezer and while marriage is about compromise I’m not sure that’s one either of us are willing to make to cut down on the commute.”

Craning his neck to look down at the top of Emmeline’s head (a frequent and unfortunate side-effect of the vertical challenges of their friendship) he puffed out a laugh, sliding down the wall of the elevator to sit with legs crossed upon the floor and patting the floor next to him. Some conversations were better had sitting anyway. “That was you, huh?” His head tilted back against the elevator wall, eyes drifting sideward to decipher the shift in her features and the hesitation there. He took another sip of his coffee before, in a rare show of solidarity (at least when it came to Frank and coffee) offering the mug back to her. “I think it might have been a little .. close to home, for Alastor. He has a lot on his plate.”

They all did, but Frank had always been good at bearing heavy loads. “I think sometimes it’s .. kinder not to know, Vance. It .. helps, sometimes, for your friends,” he put just a little too much emphasis onto the word as if to gauge her reaction, “To only see you in your best light.”

His head rolled towards her, lips twisting at the corner wryly, “How are you doing? I’m not going to have to confiscate the paperwork off you anytime soon am I?”

“A few Extendable Charms here and there, who would even notice?” Emmeline says lightly, unable to stop herself from smiling. “Not sure the ice-cream freezer is the right thing to cut, though. I mean, how many couples have a designated ice-cream freezer after all? Feels pointless to get rid of that.” 

Shaking her head, knowing that it was unlikely she would ever live down the extreme height difference between herself and Frank, Emmeline slides to the floor of the elevator beside him, fixing her robes carefully across her knees, and resting her head heavily against the wall, somewhat appreciating the gentle hum of the elevator itself. “It was me,” she says quietly. She hadn’t been sure how Moody would take such a request, and had in fact been slightly terrified to make it in the first place, but she had told Benjy she would, and the look of thanks in his eyes had been enough to fill her with at least enough adrenaline to blurt the request out. Taking the coffee back from Frank, Emmeline takes a long sip, smiling wryly as she does, “I know. I just...I’d spoken to Benjy, the first time. And he mentioned how much Moody helped when his parents...so I just...” she pauses, taking another sip, “Do you think it was too much? I haven’t even graduated yet...I don’t want Moody to hate me.” 

She holds the coffee mug out to Frank once more, already feeling as if she had met her capacity for caffeine, the energy thrumming through her veins despite the fact she had never felt so exhausted. “He told me a fair bit already. Not enough to...not detailed. But some,” she says, voice still low, “I’m just worried about him. He’s...he’s important to me.” 

Rolling her head toward Frank, Emmeline shakes it with a small laugh, her eyes shining at the thought, “I’m alright. Just...working my way through. You can confiscate the paperwork, just know that it’s already completed, signed and properly filed.” 

You caught her!

Amycus’s head turned and the rest of him followed, ignoring the increasingly bewildered expression on Belby’s face as he was rendered to things (people) whose presence was better forgotten to address the woman that was sprinting down the hallway towards him before skidding to an abrupt halt. The bunny, wiggling madly seemed to still just a little as she approached.

“I have a bunny,” he offered abruptly, entirely unsure what else he was supposed to say in the face of nice catch. “Too,” he added hastily, as he realised how ambiguous that statement might have been in retrospect. Bunnies, he’d found, seemed to attract odd people and he didn’t want to get mistaken for one. “I too have a bunny.”

His fingers coiled in the dangling leash as the bunny’s ears flattened backwards, her owner soothing fingers through the silky fur. Anything, he decided, was preferable to another round of Belby trying to share his feelings about Puddletown again and he could practically feel imploring eyes piercing the back of his sweater, waiting for him to finish with this bunny talk so they could pick up where they left off. 

“His name is Luciu—” he started, almost desperately as he edged away from the hand Belby had started to extend to nudge at his shoulder, resiliently holding onto the perturbed bunny like it was a lifeline. “—Lucy. A stranger gave him to me on the street. Where did you get your bunny?”

Her fingers brushing softly against the fur on top of Bruce’s head, Emmeline blinks blankly at the tall man in front of her, before glancing at the second man behind him, vaguely recognising him as someone whose name started with a ‘B’ or maybe a ‘V’. 

She turns her attention back to the rabbit rescuer with a small smile, still petting Bruce but making no motion to take her from his hands. “You have a bunny too?” she repeats, before her smile grows just a little more. How unusual, she thinks, to not only have met two people as of late who also owned pet rabbits but for them to have been quite unlikely rabbit owners at that. 

It wasn’t unusual for Emmeline, whose face and height made her look far more like a twelve-year-old than a 21-year-old, and who was still regularly IDed at the liquor store, to have a pet rabbit, as many people said it fit her quiet personality. This man, however, was a mystery.

Spotting the way ‘B’ or ‘V’ was edging closer to them both, as well as feeling the almost downpour of uncomfortable vibes streaming from the man next to her, Emmeline nudges him along the corridor with a small touch to his elbow, guessing that perhaps they, much like Bruce in the first place, needed to make quite a fast getaway.

“Lucy is a sweet name,” she says fondly, “This is Bruce, but she’s a girl, so we both have mismatched names for our bunnies. I adopted her from a shelter. They had a stall when I was on a run, and I fell in love with her sweet little face. Mind carrying her back to my desk for me?”

Waiting until they were away from the elevator and away from the overly-eager elevator chatter, Emmeline shoots the man another smile. “Sorry, I introduced my bunny and not myself. Emmeline Vance,” she said, “Can I ask who the Chatty Cathy was?”