"Frivolous"

When Ari sat beside her on the ground, Claudia took her hand and placed it in her lap, giving it a gentle kiss in greeting. Being around her sister always had a way with brightening up her day. Ari was human sunshine personified and it was hard to feel down in presence. Not that she felt down now, but she had felt neutral before finding her sister. “I don’t know. You could have wanted to be left alone,” she said, rubbing her thumb on the back of her sister’s hand.

Enjoying the humming going through her sister’s head, she went silent for a moment and admired the corridor and its emptiness. “Have you been here all day? I didn’t see you during lunch.” She gave her sister a worried look even though she couldn’t see her face. “You have to eat lunch, you know? It’s important.” She placed her sister’s hand on the corner of her mouth so that she can feel her frown. She wanted to get the point across that she cared for her well-being.

Ari shushed her sister. She waved her hands around dramatically like a magician, and she finally put them in her pockets to produce an assortment of snacks. She felt an entire mince pie at her finger tips as she dug around. She grabbed it hungrily and took a bite out of it. “I put an extension charm in all of my robe pockets, so I can put food in them. I’d do it at home too if it was allowed.” She shrugged as she found Claudia’s hand with her free hand.

She sighed happily as she ate. “And for your information, I went to music and care of magical creatures.” She didn’t mention missing charms or defense against the dark arts. “Did you miss me? Is that what you’re really saying?”

Elisa giggles when she’s placed on the counter. The idea of Amy taking a shower because she was sexually frustrated is funny to her. While she had a busy day, she could have at least tried to make it home for her break to satisfy her girlfriend. “Your ass is great, but I prefer to touch it instead of using my overactive imagination,” Elisa teases, her hand cupping Amy’s face before she leans forward to give her a chaste kiss.

“Nothing happened, really - just had to deal with this annoying puto who kept talking shit to me about how politics isn’t meant for women,” Elisa replies, rolling her eyes. She shrugs her shoulders, then caresses Amy’s cheek with the hand that’s cupping her face. “How was your day, mi cortazon?”

Amy grins at Elisa’s compliment. “Touch it all you want, baby. That’s what it’s there for,” she kisses Elisa again.

She nods as she listens to her day. “Another one, huh? You always prove them wrong though, and that’s really the biggest ‘fuck you’ of them all.” She leans into Elisa’s hand and turns her head to kiss the palm of her hand. “Are you hungry? I could eat.”

Having a plan had lifted her spirits a little. She no longer felt powerless, she felt powerful. But at the mention of sleep, Claudia began to realize how exhausted she was. She was about to say something about it, but then he kissed her cheek and she felt her shoulders ease down, making her feel the need to say nothing at all. And while the gesture was comforting, it also worried her a little. But before she could think too much on it, Alex was getting out the car and talking down the press. She immediately followed after him when he gestured for her, grabbing his hand and burying her face against his shoulder, overselling the upset wife card. 

Once in the house, she turned on the light and gave him a frown. There was glass from broken plates and cups all over the floor and it made her fluster a little bit. “I made a mess, but we can call someone to clean it up tomorrow. We’ve both had a really long night and I just don’t have the energy to clean up. I’m sorry.” The words ‘I’m sorry’ were not words she used often, but she was still a little shaken and just couldn’t help but say those words. While she was talking about the mess, in a way, she also felt sorry for the way the night played out.

“Did you want to immediately go to bed? Or did you want to have some camomile tea before bed?” she asked, keeping a few steps away from him, just in case human contact made him feel worse. She knew he wasn’t feeling his best, so she wasn’t entirely sure if he needed her close or needed space. He would have to give her a clue for her to figure what he needed, otherwise she’d keep her distance.  

@ravenpuff-writes @toptotoe

Normally, Alex would have took the time to clean up the mess himself, especially in a high stress situation like today, but he only looked down at the broken plates and cups to avoid stepping on them and made his way to the bedroom. “Okay, let’s do that,” he replied simply.

He sat down on the bed as he undid the buttons on his shirt. He aimed his shirt at the chair near the door, but the damn thing slid down and settled to the wooden floor. He took off his overly-wrinkled pants off next and didn’t bother to throw it this time. He left it on the floor and pushed aside the covers. “No,” he answered, “No tea. Just come to bed.”

Alex reached his hand out like he did back in the car. He wondered if the press had really left, but he forced himself to stop thinking about it. “I just want to sleep with you in my arms.” These were words he never thought he’d say, but the circumstances seemed appropriate. He was shaken by his own violent actions, and he wanted to be comforted. He also wanted to be sure that Claudia and their son were safe.

Again, Amelia’s brash personality surprised her. It was not a bad thing, in Elisa’s mind, but it was not something she expected from a secretary. She thought it was a good business though, especially with the various types of clients that walked in and out of the firm. If Amelia was shy and quiet, Elisa assumed that she wouldn’t stand a chance and probably would’ve quit ages ago. But since she was strong and confident, she seemed to do excellent work.

“I’m surprised. You are extremely confident and that’s very appealing to some people,” Elisa replied, treading a line that she probably shouldn’t cross as Amelia’s boss. “But I understand. At the moment, I’m single and just sort of… done with the dating world. People are so hard headed nowadays that I just can’t deal with them.” While Amelia probably couldn’t see her, Elisa rolled her eyes. She really was done. Dating was difficult.

Amy gave her boss a look. Elisa was definitely flirting with her a little bit right now. “I know, and I’ve gotten a few proposals even with a kid. But...” she shrugged, “I don’t see why I have to get married to be happy. I don’t think married life would agree with me anyway.”

She pointed her pen at Elisa. “Dating is hard, so I just stick to sleeping around. Although everybody tends to think it’s something more than that...” Amy mouthed a ‘yikes’ as she smiled. “I think you just need time to be on your own, and you’ll find better people later,” Amy nodded to herself as she jotted down something on her table calendar. “You wanna grab a drink after work today?”

“Now I’m imagining you wearing her clothes. You’d look really cute as an evil witch,” Samantha teased before the food came. Her eyes went wide at the sight of it and her mouth began to water. She was much hungrier than she thought she was. Much, much hungrier. She was sure if she didn’t feel the heat radiating off the hot dog when Robbie passed it that she would’ve eaten it and burned her tongue.

Holding the hot dog in her hand, she let out a laugh at Robbie’s burp and rolled her eyes. “Quite the gentleman. I’d return the favor with one of my own, but you couldn’t handle it. But yeah, it’s really hot. I’m surprised you didn’t burn you tongue right off.” Sam perched a brow as she looked at Robbie, challenging him to egg her on. While she was a lady, she had no problem with being a little gross.

Samantha finally took a bite of her corndog. She let out a satisfied moan and smiled, chewing her food with her mouth open. “And this is why I come here often. The food is to die for,” Sam admitted after she swallowed her food. “And, like, I’m going to kill it on stage with my mans. What else could a girl ask for?”

@minsulang / @ravenpuff-writes

Rob winked at Sam. “That ugly mole thing that’s on her nose and everything,” he agreed. “Always looking out for me. It’s like you know that I’ll have a heart attack if you pass the current ‘hot’ threshold.” He kissed her on the cheek, clearly failing to keep his affections to a minimum tonight, and he couldn’t help laughing at the way Sam delighted in a simple corndog.

Once they sang their hearts out and he also flawlessly delivered “Ice Ice Baby” on stage, the couple left the bar. They strolled along the sidewalk while they practically cuddled upright. “Did you have fun?” Rob kissed the top of Sam’s head while they still walked. “I think I’m slightly drunk, but I’m gonna walk you to your place. I’ll catch an uber or something back to my place.”

The fact that he didn’t take her hand bummed her out a little. She felt like it was the perfect first move for the perfect ‘not’ date. Beth didn’t beat herself up about it, however. She could try another time - hopefully with different results.

“No, I don’t hate it - I love it,” she told him as she followed him to the counter.  “But I’m the opposite of you.” Beth gave him a vibrant smile, suddenly much more comfortable than she was feeling a little earlier. From just their small conversation alone, she knew he was a good man and not some conceited fucker. “I like trying different coffees all the time. I also think it’s also fun to add that I like both bitter and sweet things, because I feel like they balance each other out. I do like the sound of caramel macchiato at the moment, so I think I’ll get that.” Her hands were clasped behind her back as she looked over at him. He was a little shorter than she was, but she didn’t mind it one bit. “And what do you mean ‘that’s all’ you had a lot to say.”

 Playfully, she bumped his hip with the side of her own. They both needed to loosen up and get out of the awkward part of their not-date-date, and in Beth’s mind, waiting in line seemed the best place to do it. “But back to jobs - what exactly do you do again? I know we talked about it before, but I’ve forgotten.” The Irish woman, perched her eyebrow and waited for his response. He was cute and she loved looking at him.

@ravenpuff-writes·

“I’m a speech therapist. I work mainly with kids. They’re great. I just help them be more... well... them, and it’s really satisfying when they light up -- open up, y’know?” Dan smiled. He was starting to feel a lot less self-conscious, and the little bump from Beth seemed to help. It had surprised him, but it made him laugh shortly after.

He cleared his throat as they returned to their seats after ordering their drinks. “I--uh--” He had no idea why it was so weird for him to bring it up, but he knew that he was making it way more awkward than it had to be. “I actually have 2 kids of my own, boys. The oldest is on the cusp of teenage rebellion, and the other kid likes to imitate his brother. Needless to say they’re starting to keep me out of the loop on things.” He tried not to make it sound so sad, but he couldn’t help it. They meant the world to him, and he only got to see them on weekends already. He wished they could be closer. “Do you have any kids?”

tw: mentions of violence and domestic abuse.

On several occasions, Claudia considered killing Jack: placing a pillow over his face when he was sleeping, covering his mouth and nose with her hands, and even stabbing him to death in an abandoned home. The idea relaxed her a little and usually settled her nerves since she knew her life would be so much easier and much less stressful without him in the picture. However, she knew that if anything were to happen to the bastard she’d be the first person the police went to. And quite honestly, she wasn’t going to let him ruin her life yet again by spending the rest of her life in a prison cell. 

So when Alex brought up more logical and less violent ways of defeating Jack, both of her eyebrows raised as she thought his words over, her eyes focused on his with thoughtfulness and eventually a little fight and determination. Jack wasn’t worth the angry tears or fear. He was a piece of shit just like any other abuser and he needed to go down. There was no more running away from him anymore, she had to steel herself and fight head-on with the devil. 

“I do have a restraining order against him now. I honestly don’t know why you have to pay his medical bills when he breached it,” Claudia told him, her jaw clenching as anger jolted through her body. She wanted to hit something, but retorted to touching Alex again, her finger trailing down his face where she swore she saw tears in the dark. She was aware that he probably wouldn’t like that, but it was much better than her taking it out of the limo and breaking her hand. 

Once she moved her hand, she continued to speak, the wounded look on her face gone and her cracked voice a ghost of the past. “I say we do a bit of both. We have the tools we need and the money, so it shouldn’t be too hard to take the fucker down.” She nodded her head firmly as she silently wondered about how she hadn’t thought about this before. “Obviously, as you said, we need to take him to court. But the trial could take ages, so we’ll have to rely on publicity for the time being. And, as much as I hate my mother, I’m sure she’ll let either you or me on her show to talk about our fight against domestic violence. Then, from there we can run a campaign against it.” She gave him a devious smile. “A campaign that’ll help you, but will also give me something to do to make a difference.” She thought it was about time she did something, or rather tried to. She spent most of her time at home researching and writing books on famous criminals, and that wasn’t always exciting. 

@minsuhltang / @ravenpuff-writes·

With the right spin on a tale, there was always a way to redeem himself. It was just convenient that Claudia was pregnant, which would stir cries of empathy from the public.They would both get what they wanted, more power and control. He felt a familiar excitement in the pit of his stomach as he imagined Jack’s dumbfounded face across the courtroom. The devious ideas in his head were unraveling and falling into their rightful place, but he was far too tired to take action right at that moment.

“I think we both need to sleep for a couple of hours at least, and then we can make the calls.” He sat up with his back touching the seat but situated himself so that he was still close to Claudia. He swept her hair to the side and kissed her cheek. “Thank you,” he whispered so quietly that Claudia would’ve had to read his lips. He leaned down to kiss her pregnant belly too. “Everything is going to be okay buddy. It’s going to be okay...”

The driver pulled into their driveway as the frenzy of cameras flashing and reporters chattering outside of the safety of their car swallowed them whole. He eyed Claudia, before opening the door on his side. The driver fended off a few of the persistent reporters, so there was space for Alex to stand. He stepped outside and held his hand up to say, “I am respectfully asking you all to leave us alone for at least one day. My wife is very shaken and tired. We’ve had a long night. I can assure you all, we’ll have a proper press conference within the next few days, thank you.” He turned back towards the car and leaned a bit inside to hold his hand out for Claudia to take. “Lean on me,” he mouthed at her.

Claudia walked through the halls of Hogwarts, her favorite muggle book, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” under her arm. Her intention was to go straight to the library to read in silence, but then she saw her younger sister dancing in the hallway, the sound of her humming growing louder the closer she got to her. Just by seeing her dance, Claudia was convinced she was having a better day than she was.

“Hey, Bells,” she called out, once she was closer to her. There was a smile on her face as she greeted her sister, since she was always happy to be in her presence and preferred her presence to her fellow Gryffindors, or the annoying Slytherins who would bug her due to her blood status.(Arabella also always had nice thoughts, so she wasn’t bombarded with negativity or insults.)

“Do you mind if I stay here with you for a little while? I’ve had a long day, and being around you usually makes me feel better.” Claudia shrugged,  and before Arabella could tell her yes or no, she plopped down onto the ground to sit. From the ground, Arabella looked like a giant. A gentle giant, but a giant, nonetheless. Claudia found that a little amusing, so her smile grew wider.

@minsuhltang / @ravenpuff-writes

There was no music playing, but Arabella could hear it in her head anyway. She hummed as she swayed left and right, forward and backward. She occasionally ran into unsuspecting students, some who muttered some not so nice things at her, and she occasionally ran into the walls of the corridors too. Almost all of the breath in her lungs escaped her when she unexpectedly collided with the stone walls, but it made her laugh each time.

Nearly Headless Nick danced with her briefly before saying goodbye, and Ari was left with only the melodies in her head, until Claudia came to keep her company. “Nimbus!” she exclaimed between rapid breaths. “Why would I mind?” She laughed and smiled in the direction of Claudia’s voice as she spun closer and closer towards it. “Watch out!” she warned as she plopped down onto the floor, not at all minding that her uniform was going to be dirty.

Claudia was finally going home after a busy day of Auroring. She could already feel the comfort of her bed beneath her and the taste the pumpkin pie on her tongue, and those thoughts alone made her speed through the Ministry building. She wasn’t paying attention, nor did she care to. She was walking fast. So fast, that she collided into someone - a man - and fell onto her ass. And as soon as she fell, she stood up to get ahold of herself. If it were anyone else, they would’ve apologized for their actions. But since it was her, she did not.

“You should pay more attention,” she said in a huffy tone, arms crossed over her chest. As soon as she finished speaking, she studied the man and noticed that he looked familiar. She couldn’t place from where, but she had seen him before. And since she didn’t know, she attempted to use her legilimency to see if he recognized her, too. The thought that she received when she pried into his thoughts, however, startled her and gave her an intense feeling of anxiety that made her body tremble. She went pale and her huffy demeanor was that of someone who was incredibly uncomfortable.

@minsuhltang / @ravenpuff-writes

The empty halls echoed his footsteps and the clatter of his favorite quill falling to the ground. Alex cursed quietly to himself as he stooped down to pick it up. His entire body ached from a day’s work, and the simple task of picking something up annoyed him more than it should have. Just as he righted himself and began to walk on without fully looking in front of him yet, his body collided with another person.

The woman’s tone was unpleasant, entitled even. He normally did a better job at controlling his expressions, but he knew he looked just as stupefied as he felt. “Excuse me?” he inquired rhetorically. He hadn’t fallen, but he straightened his vest and stood taller. He watched the woman stand up again...

But then, he felt her intruding into the private corners of his mental space. It was sudden, and he didn’t have enough time to block her out or get a sense of what she saw. She retreated quickly from his mind, and he refocused on her physical appearance. She looked disturbed, but he didn’t care.

A quiet rage brooded below the surface. “Do you know who I am?” He didn’t give her a chance answer. “I hold a seat in the International Confederation of Wizards from the Magical Congress of the United States of America.” He looked at her in disdain. “Whoever you are or whoever you think you are. I don’t think this is how you treat someone who is a guest in your country,” he spat.

Edan’s joke made her snort despite herself, and she managed to crack a smile as well. “My mom doesn’t make me feel bad about myself,” she pointed out, well aware how fortunate she was to have a good relationship with her mother. “She’s probably the only one who thinks I’m cool.” 

“DJ Khaled? Really?” Whatever Edan’s goal, he was having the effect of calming Tabitha’s nerves, loosening her up enough to look at home in her own home. She let out a quiet laugh and straightened her shoulders, feeling more confident about her ability to convince her parents that, if it wasn’t love with Edan, it was at least companionship. Which, really … what more could they want from her? 

She motioned for Edan to follow behind her and opened the door, leading him through and into the main room where her brother and father were watching a game on the television. Tabitha cleared her throat and made her greetings.

“Hey, we’re here.”

Well, she was never known for being eloquent. 

“Hel-lo,” Edan waved at their backs. He felt stupid waving while they were engrossed on the TV, so he pocketed his hand quickly before they turned around. He looked down at Tabitha with widened eyes before straining his mouth into somewhat of a genuine smile. “I’m Edan, and no it’s not a girl’s name. It’s spelled E-D-A-N.” He nodded, satisfied with his childish introduction.

He couldn’t help but add, “Please feel free to call me by nicknames that come from ancient memes. Pepe the frog is off limits because of his affiliation to Jew-haters.”

Amelia’s bravery made Elisa smirk. It was wonderful that the woman had a little bite in her and wasn’t willing to take any shit from her. Usually, Elisa’s secretaries were either quiet little mice who were at her every beck and call or directionless women and men with Ratatouille controlled brains. Amy was different, making her a much-needed employee of Elisa’s.

When Amy walked away, Elisa made no effort to follow her. Instead, she typed away at her computer, beginning the introduction of an email. She was going to continue typing, but she heard the phone ring and prepared herself for Amy’s voice. When she did hear her, Elisa raised her eyebrows, her index finger gliding over her desk in a ‘V’ shape in order to make a metaphorical salt circle to keep her Satanic husband away.  

“Keep him waiting a little bit. I want him to know he’s not an urgent matter to me” she replied to Amy, coolly, before pushing her black cat-eyed glasses up the bridge of her long nose. “He’s the whole reason I’m in this mess. I want him to suffer a little.” Elisa gave her secretary an innocent smile from across the room, hoping she could see her from her desk. Since the woman had a little fire in it her, Elisa felt no need to follow proper work etiquette with her. Their conversations could be their private secret… unless Amy decided to squeal on her.

A question popped then popped into her mind – an intrusive one - as she waited for Amy mess with her ex-husband a little. “Do you have a boyfriend or a husband?” she asked on their line,  wondering whether this beautiful woman had to deal with the baggage that came with having a crappy boyfriend or husband.

@ravenpuff-writes

Amy stared blankly and nodded in response to Elisa’s wish. She quickly made up a believable lie and returned to the ex-husband. When he asked when he should expect Elisa’s returned call, Amelia retorted, “I said, ‘When she’s free” and decisively pressed down the receiver button with the tip of her pen.

She clicked on her comm with Elisa. “Husband?” she laughed. “No, I’m not married.” Amy swiveled her chair so that her back was to Elisa now. She bit her lip. It wasn’t part of her code to tell her boss personal details, but this code was originally created for pervy, male bosses. She was willing to make an exception. “No boyfriend either,” she confirmed. “Just a few fuckboys here and there.” She smiled at her unprofessional choice of words. If she was going to get fired today for sassing Elisa, she might as well say what she wanted to say, however she wanted to say it.

All Tabitha could muster by way of response to Edan was an eyeroll. “My mom’s food is perfectly edible, I promise,” she said, motioning for him to step forward and walk with her. “Even you would find something to like about her food.” She eyed the gummy worms and took one that he offered and popped it in her mouth. “Candy’s always a good bonus though, so … I can’t blame you for thinking of it.” One deep breath, and then another, and Tabitha turned to face Edan. “Are you ready for this?”

Edan pocketed the candy, before offering his arm. He took drama classes as a kid. He could play a straight boyfriend for one night. ( Probably . ) 

“You can have more of it when your mom makes you feel bad about yourself. It’ll be just between us, sort of like you having a drinking problem but instead it’s candy,” he chattered. Apparently, Tabitha’s nervousness was contagious, but then again, he also liked hearing himself talk.

“Yeah, but you’re definitely not,” he finally answered. “Relax, they’re gonna think I don’t go down on you or something. God, what a horrible first impression -- I mean look at DJ Khaled!” He raised his eyebrows for emphasis, which was followed by a strangely affectionate kiss on Tabitha’s forehead. “You look beautiful. We’re going to be fine,” he reassured her. “C’mon.”