catch that angel

Zahi turned around, a hint of question in his eyes as he assessed Lisbet and her bold comment. “I suppose that’s understandable,” he said, although Zahi’s own personal experience didn’t lend itself to understanding her situation. Zahi had been given a lot and shifted away from the rest whenever he could. He couldn’t imagine feeling so indebted to the people who raised you that you didn’t want to either acknowledge them as parents or belong with them, yet still couldn’t get away. It was an odd balance that he was sure wasn’t fun for her to reconcile.

He rolled his eyes with a smirk. “If you’d like empty fluff comments, I’m afraid you’re in the wrong spot. I only compliment what I can acknowledge for myself. Yes, that means I could call you beautiful all day, but I don’t see the point in becoming repetitive. As for your plant skills, I suppose those could receive compliments some day, depending on how well you show competency.” 

Zahi wondered what her job entailed. The coy way she’d asked made him wonder if she was fishing for him to inquire, but he supposed he could indulge. “And what is it you do that requires so many languages? I can think of many useful skills for it.” 

He paused, not actually checking what was on the shelf next to him as he turned just enough to end up in her space. Zahi considered himself of average height, but she was downright tiny in comparison, and Zahi angled his head to make the difference less severe as he watched her. “No better way at all? I can think of a place or two more exciting than a bookstore. I think it’s the promise that truly makes this so enticing.”

With that said, Zahi stepped back, giving her more space again. He gestured around. “Your turn to lead,” he said with a smile. “I’m curious about the kind of texts you gravitate to when given a chance.”

Lisbet blinked back at Z/ahi and he gave her a questioning look. She didn’t feel the need to explain her situation to him, and she most certainly wasn’t about to go airing her family’s di*rty laundry to anyone that would listen. It was bad enough that Lucius knew as much as he did. Lisbet was never sure who she could trust with her personal information, and though Zahi seemed worthy of it, she thought it was best not to test her luck. 

"I could drown myself in the empty compliments most people make towards me, darling.” Lisbet smirked back as she wrinkled her nose. A louder-than-necessary bought of laughter over came Lisbet, and she silenced herself by placing her tiny hand over her lips. “I’m sorry. That’s a lot of pressure not to disappoint you.”

A radiant glow his Lisbet’s emerald eyes. “I sing opera. It’s most often in Italian or French, but once you know one, the others are fairly easy to catch onto.” It was a huge part of her identity, and she loved to preform. Even though it was tiresome and she occasionally wished she was just a regular witch, Lisbet wasn’t quite sure she would trade her life for anything.

“Well.” Lisbet pressed her lips together. “A bookstore always has one of my top five spots.” Along with her favorite muggle club and the dressing room at the Mariinsky Theater, any place that she could just sit and read on her own was someplace she’d rather be. Sure, the photo shoots were great and all, but there were many evenings where she wished she could just stay in and finish a good book. 

“Sometimes the anticipation is better than the act.” Lisbet eyed Zahi as he moved aside, and she squeezed her was gracefully past him towards a section labeled Dark Arts. “I like informational books, and I’ve always been inclined towards the Dark Arts. Something about the power really suits me, personally. I’ve been meaning to get back into it, but my life has been a whirlwind and there hasn’t been much time for new tricks.”

Peter couldn’t help but smile slightly at the idea that he’d made a good point. He usually didn’t know. Still at the other’s statement he couldn’t help but nod slightly. 

“True, Humans tend not to be easily categorical,”He said simply. He sort of wished they could be, but then again he wasn’t sure what life would be like that. He already felt trapped in a situation he couldn’t get out of, to know it was written in the stars might comfort him but it could also drive him mad. 

At the question he nodded. Happy to be talking about books really. “Not much, but I’ve read a few of his stories. I really liked a short one -  I think it was called Hills of something Elephants. They didn’t have names in it, so I’m not sure how else to talk about it. He’s got a good writing style.” 

He gave her a smile at the thank you, and for some reason it wasn’t off putting not to get a name. He was sure it would bother him later, but if he was being honest he’d rather that bother him then anything else. She might be a mystery but she seemed like a beautiful one. He chuckled slightly at her comment and nodded. 

“Well now I regret giving you my name, if that’s the case but I doubt for long.” At her admission he smiled slightly. He doubted he’d go looking for her there thinking that might be a little much. Still, he didn’t think he’d ever mind talking about things just outside his tiny existence.  He smiled, almost fully this time and said, “Well, if you ever need a recommendation. Please let me know, you seem to have great taste in books and I love talking about them.” 

Lisbet gave a nod along to his comment, her lips pressed together into a grin that radiated like sunshine over her warmed face. Maybe it was the difference in external temperature, the rainy outside to the toasty warmth of the bookstore that made her palms heat like cast iron pans. Usually talkative and overly so, she found herself unable to respond intelligently to Peter’s commentary and so she kept her mouth shut and gave a tiny laugh. 

“I might make it an exception in your case then.” Lisbet bit at her lower lip and held the book a little closer to her core.”You look like someone worth getting to know.” 

 “I’ll be sure to ask again, especially if you’ll be here again soon. Thank you again, Peter.” Lis raised her shoulder and blinked slowly as she made her way to the door.

Lucius went stiff at the sudden touch, too shocked to do anything other than let her manhandle him, eyes widening at the ferocity of her gaze. He couldn’t help a flinch when she hissed, the venom in her tone cutting straight through any attempt he might have made to maintain his disguise of pureblood disaffection, especially since he was out among plebeians, where he normally wouldn’t be caught dead. 

“Undercover?” he said quickly, softly. “I don’t understand, why are you here in the first place?”

She was scaring him, honestly. He’d thought they were friends. They’d managed to work through the strange, awkward chemistry that simmered between them, and he always looked forward to their meetings in the botanical gardens, or their letters. But Lisbet had gone dark and he’d been afraid for her, he’d been afraid of losing his only true friend, and now she was angry at him and he didn’t know what to do. He was entirely out of his depth. 

“Stay here? What do you mean?” he frowned. “You’re living in a bakery? You’re working here? I don’t understand,” he repeated dumbly. 

Lisbet threw her head to the side when she heard the bakery door pry itself open slowly as Alex popped his head out to see if things were alright. She gave him a very small nod and moved Lucius to the back, which was hotter than sin in the summertime heat with all the ovens burning. After finally letting go of his forearm, the only touch she’d had since Alex’s hug on her first day, Lisbet wrapped one arm around her own waist and rubbed her temples between her fingers. 

“You must not read the papers.” Lisbet muttered to herself before looking up to Lucius with an exasperated grimace. “There as a scandal and I was thrown unceremoniously from my pedestal. I-I was disowned. I got kicked out of my own home. people have sent me death threats, Lucius. I had to-I had to get out of that area.”

Lisbet lkicked her lips and looked around before speaking again. “You can’t call me Lisbet anymore. I’m just Lis now. I work here, and I live here now, with muggleborns and the likes. I didn’t have a choice, darling. I’m working with what I’ve got.” Lisbet played with the strings of her apron to keep herself busy and her eyes from Lucius’ probably judgmental face as she waited for the guillotine to fall. “I’m sorry.”

Sirius made sure to pull his hair back into a low pony as he walked into work. Alex told him that if he was only doing drinks, he didn’t necessarily have to, but Sirius figured it was a good idea for him anyway. Alex waved him through, and Sirius headed over to begin methodically checking drink quantities for the night make sure everything at the bar was in an order that made sense to him. 

When he looked up back to put a bottle back on the shelf, he was surprised to see someone standing there. “What?” Sirius stood up. “I can’t just- Wait, are you the new person? I mean technically I guess the rest of us are all the new person, but I think Zhenya and I have like a week on you?” He picked up the bottle and poured a little in, pausing after the first splash to see if she’d really meant it or if she wanted more.

“Rough first day?” he asked. “You don’t look too worse for wear.” Sirius had gone straight from interview to work without actually expecting to get started on his first day, and it had been both enlightening and confusing. Once he’d gotten everything to make sense in his head and learned the trick of rearranging things under the bar to work with his instincts, Sirius had gotten a lot better at it.

Alex had even showed him how to make the alcoholic whip cream, despite Sirius admitting that he might replicate it outside work under the promise that he wouldn’t show anyone else how to do it. “Planning to stick around so far?”

Lisbet watched as the man stumbled around with his words, though his hands seemed to be steady enough. The smallest splash hit her coffee and the half-Veela took a moment and furrowed her eyebrows. If she was going to start drinking again, she wasn’t going to half-ass it with a splash. Had this happened a few weeks ago, before the incident, she would have caused a scene, but something in her heart tied into her tongue and it made her afraid to ask for more. So Lisbet pouted her lower lip and blinked at the man and parted her lips just the tiniest bit. “Please?” She requested in a voice that was hardly her own. 

“It’s been great. I’m learning a lot.” Lisbet admitted, being more excited and driven to get her bread to turn out than anything. “It’s been a long one, though, and I can’t get my Gods-forsaken bread to rise.” Lisbet brushed another bit of hair behind her ear as it started to tickle the side of her neck. Though she appreciated his comment, it didn’t make her glow like it used to. Everything about her was so different and she felt foreign in her own body. 

“I have to.” Lisbet sighed a little as she took a sip of her coffee, letting the alcohol burn the sorrows from her taste buds. “It seems like this isn’t the worst place to work, though.” Not that she had any experience working. “Do you just serve alcohol, then?”

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lisbet-sofia‌:

The Cake Walk

6am

After Lisbet’s concerning letter, Lucius hired a PI to track her down. His anxiety had begun to spiral when it turned out that she had indeed vacated her flat, that she hadn’t been seen in public in days. When the PI finally came back to him with a confirmed sighting he’d barely waited for the man to spit out an address before he’d headed out to find her. 

And here she was. Standing outside a bakery covered in charity signs, her hair a far cry from its normal silvery-gold, her clothing the costume of a peasant, her whole aspect looking- ordinary? Lucius stared. Hoped against all hope that this common woman was not Lisbet, his Lisbet. But then she was looking at him, talking to him, and those were her eyes, that was her voice, which made his spine shiver. 

“I-” he stammered, confusion and worry and hurt flashing across his features. “I was looking for you. Your letter- Lisbet, you scared me half to death. What are you doing here?”

Lucius was looking for her. Gods, the words he spoke should have brought her nothing but joy; one of the only honest-to-Gods friends she had was looking for her and had found her. Lisbet’s shrunken hear should have been aching with love for him but instead her joy turned to ash on her tongue. He’d said her name. something that she was trying to forget and shove down like the rest of her emotions. In a panic, Lisbet ran over to Lucius and grabbed his forearm sternly, yanking the taller man to her eye level. 

“Shh!” Lisbet warned, nearly hissing with her eyes full of fright as she pulled him into the back, finally letting go of him with the tiniest spin of her wrist. “They don’t know my whole name here. I-Isn’t it pretty clear that I’m undercover?” She was spitting with frustration. There was nothing more that she want to do than to hug him and cry into his arms, but that wasn’t in the cards anymore. 

“I didn’t have a choice.” Lisbet shook her head. “I had to get a job. The owner, Alex, he’s letting me stay here. I-I had to do it to survive, Lucius. Things are different now.”

lisbet-sofia‌:

Lucius,

I hope this letter finds you well, for I am not in the best condition. It appears as though I have lost my job, the only thing that I am good at. The public does not wish to see me anymore, so I am going into hiding. I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself. I am trying not to make any rash decisions, but as you know impulse controls my life entirely.

The last letter I received did not please me as yours does. It seems as though my parents have disowned me. I am no longer Lisbet Almstedt. I do not know who I am anymore.

I do not live in my townhouse anymore. It never felt like home anyways. I have enough savings to tide me over, but it seems my bank account is frozen. I can only assume it is my parents attempting to reap whatever they can from my existence.

I am far too desolate for company, though I appreciate your concern.

Lisbet.

Lisbet, 

If you meant to soothe my nerves, you haven’t. This is dreadful news- something must be done immediately. You cannot let the unwashed mob rule you. I admit it is a blow to learn you have lost your name- even when one does not love one’s parents, a name is a powerful thing, and bitter when taken- but it doesn’t change how I feel about you, and it doesn’t change who you are.

I don’t think I’ve ever demanded anything in my life, but you simply must come tomorrow for tea. I will see you at three o’clock exactly, and if you’re late I shall have no choice but to visit you at home, though my wish is not to violate your privacy, but to show concern for a friend. 

If not for yourself, then come for me. 

Lucius

No.

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“We can have one while we wait,” he suggested, “or we could get a bottle of something nice to take back to mind.” Zahi smirked as he considered their options. “Or we could always do both. I will admit I wouldn’t mind you raiding my cabinet that horridly, but I don’t know if I’d have anything quite to your satisfaction.”

At her idea of cultural choice, Zahi chuckled. “I don’t know if culture has anything to do with it. Theoretically the Shafiq name has been a proud one with strong lineage and heritage, but my father was never particularly interested in family bonds. I learned at a young age that ambition could be worth much more than family given the right motivation. Knowing that, I didn’t put much weight on the family side.” He shrugged. Perhaps it was more honest than he might have normally said, but she didn’t seem like someone who would use it. “I liked my brother well enough. And darling, cardinal desire seems like more than enough motivation for many things.”

Clucking his touch about herbology, Zahi reached over for a book he knew would be on the shelf. “There,” he said, handing it to her. “Not the title necessarily, but practically a how-to guide for dummies. Not that I’m calling you one, of course, but if the education level is lacking, best start small.” He knew not everyone was blessed with a green thumb, to use the quaint muggle phrase, but Zahi had yet to meet anyone truly hopeless who was willing to put in the effort to learn.

Zahi chuckled at her response. He answered in Russian, “I am not, though I went to school there.” He switched to French, “I spent more time in Lebanon growing up actually.” He switched once more to Pashtu, “But my father’s job had us moving around quite a bit.” He cleared his throat, returning to English as he said, “I know a few languages, all of which I’m sure would sound lovely on your beautiful tongue.”

“Both.” Lisbet nodded, never turning down any moderation of alcohol. “I’m sure what you have is perfectly alright; I’m just really in the mood for a a smokey red-blend. Or maybe a sangria. And I’d hate to be more picky than usual at your expense.” Lisbet gave a cute little shrug with a grin as she walked gracefully at his side. 

“The Almstedt name is not really mine. I was adopted so that my parents could continue their name, though not their blood, and then they had my brother. None of us were particularly close, however they did afford me all the luxuries that I have today.” It was always so odd telling people that she was adopted, but she had no more reason to fear Zahi’s disapproval. He didn’t make her feel comfortable by any mean, with his insanely intense eyes and wicked grin, but he didn’t make her uncomfortable anymore. “Well, you’re just in luck then. It seems I am made completely of carnal desires.”

He handed her a book and Lisbet felt something spark in her heart. There were very few men in her life that had given her books, each one of them she treasured like the sapphires and rubies that sat in her jewelry box at home. “I will read it cover-to-cover, and then prepare yourself for a plethora of questions.” 

Her sliver-haired head tilted to the side as he switched easily from one language to the next. Lisbet never had one type; sometimes she preferred her men to be meek, sometimes she wanted to defy the strong ones. Sometimes she wanted to talk with them for hours, though most of the time she would just send them on their way when she was satisfied. Zahi was getting to her more than she had calculated and that could potentially be a problem. “It seems you’ve lived so many places, so many lives.” Lisbet’s tongue crept back in Italian, one that she was familiar with for most operas were written in the romance languages. “Why are you here then?”

Weddings normally made Gilderoy cheerful; all that joy and exuberance all in one place. It was the sort of event he had always thrived in. Malcolm and Diana’s just made him feel… strange. Laure so clearly adored Diana in a way that felt more like hero worship than the way she adored Slyvanie (and if either woman thought Gilderoy hadn’t noticed they were daft) but Malcolm Greengrass proved entirely unpleasant. Not that he’d done anything but beam like a loon, but on principle Gil didn’t like people who insulted his baby cousin.

Now he sat at a bar that Regulus had never been to (he’d checked) and made an active sport of trying to forget all the ways this city made him miss the man he loved most.

So far it amounted to mostly sipping on whiskey and humming under his breath. There was someone in the corner talking about Banshees in a way that had him interested, the part of him that yearned for stories and infamy and his name in lights. Only he couldn’t quite hear and he didn’t much fancy moving. As a result he was leaning at a strange angle, whiskey balanced precariously in one hand.

“Oope,” he said, wavering as he struggled to refocus. “Just, err, just listening! Say, mind a hand?”

Lisbet looked down at the man listening into other people’s conversations. Had she been in the mindset that she was usually, vodka in hand or otherwise, she’d have scolded him for eavesdropping. But she was not who she used to be, and she did not know how to handle situations like this. Lisbet was terrified to use her Charm to get her way and wasn’t sure if she could do...well, anything on her own. The paper certainly didn’t think so. 

After squinting at him for another second, Lisbet extended her hand to im slowly and raised her eyebrows. “Sure.” Gods, even her voice was different. Had she really been using Charm all this time? As she helped him up, the scent of whiskey caught her attention and she felt her stomach churn. She hadn’t had a drink since that night. And she wanted to drink so bad. But Lisbet couldn’t trust anyone anymore, or anything, and didn’t want to risk it. She thought that being in a bar would give her some ease, but it didn’t. 

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Alex’s expression softened when she revealed that she was a creature. He was a bit confused, because he’d never heard of a brunette veela, but he wasn’t about to call her a liar, and there was something ethereal about her that looked familiar. One of the young people he’d seen at Order meetings- Henry, he thought the name was?- had a similar look, although his hair was gold and fair as starlight. 

Alex raised a hand and pointed to one of the signs, which showed both inside and outside the store, loudly announcing the charities he worked with. “Part of the mission here is to help people who society has abandoned,” he explained. “A portion of our proceeds go to helping creature rights advocates, to fight against workplace discrimination. I don’t have a problem with your blood, and if anyone does just tell me, because I don’t tolerate bigotry on my premises, alright?”

Hopefully that would put her at ease. The last thing Alex wanted was for her to feel on edge or unsafe here. When she curtsied though, he gave her a look of absolute confusion. “Um… I don’t know what that was? But you don’t have to do it. It’s nice to meet you Lis. You can call me Alex.”

He beamed at her, and then waved for her to follow him to the back. “Lucky for you I’ve got patience to spare. Do you have a preferred start date? I know you said you’re good with mornings, and I’ve already got two people doing mostly nights so you’ll be a big help. How would you feel about learning to bake?”

Lisbet followed his hands as he pointed around the store, towards the posters and framed certificates declaring things that Lisbet never thought to take notice of. She’d never had to even imagine a nightmare in which she couldn’t show her face, or reveal her true identity without receiving backlash, and here she was, prostrating herself in front of an employer. Lisbet never thought she would ever have to work a day in her life either, and so the whole ordeal was just so overwhelming that when the man said that not only would he help her, but that he would fight for her, Lisbet gasped, and her chest curled up.

Immediately, the half-Veela woman began to sob. What started out as graceful tears rolling down her cheeks, with her hand over her mouth became gasps between each heavy cry, though she tried to keep herself quiet. When he’d argued against her curtsy, Lisbet tried to compose herself, taking in a deep breath and nodding, keeping her hand over her quivering mouth.

“T-thank you, Alex.” Lisbet was still shaken, unable to look him in the eyes, and though she felt her heart lift itself from the ground, a smile would not cross her gracious lips. So she bit her lower lip and took another tremor-filled breath as she gave another nod. “I have open availability. I-if you don’t mind my crying, I’d like to start as soon as possible.”