marlene

@mvrleymk​

if there was one person vincent hadn’t hoped to run into after the attack, it was marlene. she already knew far too much. the control he’d found himself under was paramount, and unwavering. he was choking on air so badly a cigarette felt like relief. “if you wish to say something. just get it over with.”

            “  fae  now ,  ”  she  smirks ,  not  really  believing  marlene  would  ever  let  whoever  her  current  beau  was  at  any  minute  influence  her  hair  choices  but  knowing  the  implication  would  get  to  her .  “  say  what  ye  like  about  my  history ,  but  at  least  as  far  as  ties  go  he  was  sound ,  nae  ma  fault  he  wis  yer  brother ,  ”  mary  laughs .  and  it  feels  odd  but  she  smiles  through  it  all .  she’d  never  really  spoke  about  all  this  before ,  and  now  she  was  laughing  about  it .  “  now  tha’s  just  cruel  marlene ,  ye  have  ta  do  it ,  ”

of course. what luck had vincent been blessed with? a curse, is perhaps a better word. “what’s there to be sad about?” he quips, the harsh chill of the concrete soothing his aching bones. “you’ve got everything you wanted, right?” he’s unsure if his words have bite, or if he’s genuine. reading himself was only becoming harder. they seemed to like the same thing for different reasons. wasn’t that always the way with them? marlene feeling an almost suffocating comfort, and vincent finding solitude in the least comfortable place he could think of. writing her up was pointless, so for now he’d simply look her over. the usual sickness he felt dissipating as his heart begs for her friendship.  

marlene hummed to herself, mulling over a few different responses in her head before settling on one. “there’s an entire war brewing and they expect us to be the ones to solve it,” marlene says matter-of-factly, as if he should know that. “my brother and my best friends hate my boyfriend, i’m pretty sure i ruined rabastan’s take on love, fell off my broom a few weeks ago.. lots to be sad about, actually.” she delivered her issues with a shrug, brushing them off the table of conversation. the space between them narrows as she continues her pacing down the hall, the same slow speed as before. when she was close enough, marlene patted the side of vince’s cheek. the air between them was only thick with the humidity the lake provided, the tension that usually sat between them feeling like it was almost completely lifted. “how does one even know their true desires, vincent?” she asks, her voice inquisitive, teasing. “do the walls speak to you?”

“  ever  ever ?  ”  she  asks  with  a  laugh .  “  what  if  a  special  someone  asked ?  ”  she  teased .  “  we  have  all  noticed  ye  take  yer  boys  wearing  green  ties ,  ”  as  though  she  had  any  place  to  joke  about  marlene’s  taste  in  boys ,  mary’s  own  was  questionable  enough .  she’d  dated   (  and  broke  the  heart  of  )   marlene’s  brother  for  crying  out  loud !  “  i’m  no  so  sure ,  i  mean  they  both  won  their  last  matches ,  but  ye  could  pull  off  blue ,  ”

            “  it’s  just  curiosity ,  ”  she  shrugs ,  not  wanting  to  make  an  issue  of  it ,  no  one  had  been  too  rude  today .  “  they  hear  these  rumours  and  they  want  to  know  if  there’s  truth  to  them ,  ”  it  got  old  fast  but  marlene  already  knew  that ,  she  didn’t  need  to  dwell  on  it  to  get  her  cousin  to  understand .  she  could  gush  for  hours  about  just  how  magical  her  day  had  been  but  there  was  something  in  marlene’s  words  that  gave  her  pause ,  that  made  her  think  her  rambles  would  come  off  as  boasting .  “  you  had  a  good  holiday  too ,  right  marley ?  ”

marcus scratched the back of his head, wondering how to delicately go about this. marlene was his sister and he’d always defend her, especially in front of others, but right now he found it hard not to see the guy’s point of view – especially when marcus has been in a somewhat similar situation as rabastan before. not to mention his obvious distaste for evan rosier. “ well, marls.. if people like rabastan more it’s their own opinion, y’know? we can’t all magically start liking evan now just cos you’re dating him. if he wants to be in the good graces of your inner circle he should make some damn effort. “ the mckinnon explained, this time unable to hold back. his mind drifted back to the scene he’d previously witnessed, suddenly concerned and visibly irritated at the possibility of what he’d heard being true. “ probably more than i should’ve, honestly. “ marcus responded. “ rabastan most likely needs a break right now – trust me, i’ve been there. but don’t become practically strangers because that’s the worst. you both can fix this later, yeah? “ he knew how much it hurt having to see mary all the time and act like nothing had happened, like they meant nothing to each other. possibly one of the worst feelings. “ anyway.. “ marcus began again, wondering how to approach the subject. “ i heard something about a dark mark. it’s no surprise to me that some would have it, really. but what about evan? “ 

a protest grew and died at the back of her throat when marcus brought up his point. “i— yeah,” marlene sighed, she knew evan couldn’t care less about what people thought about him, but that was an evan emotion marlene didn’t have the privilege of having. truthfully, the one person’s opinion that was every going to matter was marcus, but explaining everything and having it make sense was going to be a challenge. “but i can’t and won’t force him to do anything. i’m pretty sure the only person’s opinion he cares about is rabastan’s.” at least that’s what she had to go off of. marlene really hoped that she was getting the brunt of any of his upset, not wanting to have damaged something that she had a gut feeling was important to him. she looked up at him, confusion crossing her face when she saw him react out of the corner of his eye. “what’s wrong? what all did you hear?” she asked softly. nodding at his words, marlene knew that he had to have experience with it considering how often he had to see mary. 

marlene shifted so she wasn’t fully leaning against his side, turning and looking at him with concern washed over her features. she knew that some students had taken the dark mark already, submitting their fate to the hands of you-know-who. the thought had occurred to her once that maybe evan had taken it, but she brushed off the idea, settling that he’d tell her if he was when he wanted to. “if he does, then he does. there’s not much i can do about that. i think if he would be, it’s not because he believes in all those ideals, evan doesn’t care enough about other people for that.” she explained with a shake of her head.

he patted her back, soothing her as best as he could, waiting for the tears to subside and for marlene to find the right words. eventually she did and marcus remained quiet for a few more moments, considering what to say next. who wouldn’t be upset that you’re dating evan, honestly? he sucks– no. he shooed away the intrusive thought – while marcus obviously wasn’t the biggest fan of evan rosier, it’s not what marlene needed to hear now. she didn’t need his critique or scolding and distate for her current boyfriend. marcus had to consider his words, be careful and responsible; a side of him which most wouldn’t even believe existed but was there for marlene. he tried not to think of having overheard something about the dark mark. that was a conversation for another time or perhaps later, since the mckinnon wasn’t quite so sure he could be patient enough as to not bring it up. “ alright.. “ marcus finally responded, taking in her response. “ marlene, your friends know you. they wouldn’t believe any lie on your behalf or think poorly of you. and what did rabastan say to them exactly? was he trying to turn them against you or anything like that.. or just talk? “ the last part, marcus could honestly understand. it’s exactly what he’d needed back then, though he just happened to be lucky that mary’s best friend was his sister. 

marlene knew that marcus wasn’t fan of evan, but she greatly appreciated that he didn’t express that right now. she sighed, frustrated at her own explanation. it wasn’t that he needed to talk to someone that angered her, that much she understood, she was doing the same thing now. the faint smile she gave him before speaking was a quick thank you for not dragging him in this moment. “i don’t know, that’s not my business who he or lily talks to.” marlene quoted rab during their argument before giving her explanation. “it’s just.. it feels like he’s managed to convince everyone that he’s so much better than evan. i was saying bye to evan one time outside of the common room and some fifth year scoffed and rolled her eyes at me.” the words came out in disbelief, marlene not seeing what was so drastically different about the two of them. a silence falls over them while she works to try and remember more of the argument. “that wasn’t the first time we’ve argued like that... but i think it was the last.” having someone else hear her thoughts helped clear her head, it brought a kind of clarity. “how much did you hear?”

          HE KNEW THAT he could always count on Marlene, and Sirius was incredibly grateful for that. Making himself a bit more comfortable, the wizard began to speak with his hands. “Well, we have the whole weekend, so I was thinking that we either just start doing whatever comes to mind until we run out of time, or we actually spend tonight planning the best prank of our lives,” he rambled happily. 

Marlene reached forward and took his hands into her own for just a moment, bringing them close to her chest. “My dear Mr. Black, you have to realize that we aren’t seventh years yet. There’s no way that you can give your best now when we must give McGonagall a reason to be happy we’re gone.” She beamed at him with a wide smile. Surprisingly enough, Marlene spearheaded a few of the ‘Marauders’, as they liked to call themselves, pranking ideas. She mostly became involved after Snape decided to show his true colors to Lily. “But I do believe if we just do whatever comes to mind it’ll be just as fun.”

@mvrleymk​

marcus had decided to enjoy the unusually nice weather and chill out on the premises, however soon enough his plans quickly changed. a third year ( one marcus liked to believe was mentoring in quidditch ) rushed to inform him that he’d seen marlene was ‘in trouble’ at the quidditch pitch. it didn’t take long for the older mckinnon to get over there, as he couldn’t help but worry at the vague description of the situation – he was caught by surprise when he saw marlene fighting with rabastan lestrange of all people. after all, marcus thought they’d ended up on good terms.. and why wouldn’t they? their voices were loud enough for the gryffindor to overheard what was said; though soon after, rabastan turned to walk away and marlene slid to the ground, her head resting between her knees. marcus was appaled at some of the things he’d heard, however the most important thing right now was to make sure that his sister was alright, so he rushed to her side. “ marlene? marlene, hey, are you alright? “ he asked, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. “ what was.. all that for? “ 

after the fight, it was like her mind went blank. she couldn’t really remember anything she said clearly and only bits and pieces of the things he said to her. as soon as marcus was by her side, marlene leaned into him, letting a few tears fall down her face. it took her a couple seconds to regain her composure, taking in deep breaths to try and calm her shaky breathing, but having her brother helped. he had to have heard at least some of their argument, he couldn’t have been here that quickly if he didn’t. she hated that he had heard it though and the things they could so easily say to each other, they weren’t exactly the best things either. if she were to answer his first question now it would either be a lie, or a string of words that made no sense. all she could give him at first was a shake of her head, waiting only for a minute before she could even begin to find words. “rabastan’s upset that i’m dating evan.” marlene explained. it was the broadest cover sentence for anything she could think of saying. “he’s upset and that’s fine. he can be upset. but he’s decided to talk to all of my friends about it and now i seem like a bitch.”

* open starter. location: dungeons.

“you’re not as sneaky as you may think. i could hear you at the end of the corridor. can i help you?” vincent was cold as always, mind swirling with eerie, snake-like thoughts. his choice had been revoked. and for the first time. the war feels real. 

the sound of his voice made her stop and sigh, the pause brief before she continued walking slowly. side effect of wearing heavy boots? you were never quiet. what was different about this time though, was that hearing vince’s voice didn’t make her feel dread or frustration. this time, she felt like she was facing a storm cloud that was nearly ready to unleash it’s contents, only without an umbrella and no fear of rain. her hand trailed against the side of the wall, leading her around the corner as she mused softly but loud enough for him to hear, “i’ve been coming down these halls to the slytherin common room for the last two years. i think best here, it’s like the lake’s a weighted blanket.” marlene’s eyes landed on vince, only waiting for his quip. “it’s quiet, usually. and it’s like the walls tell you it’s okay to be a little bit sad.”

letting out a half hearted laugh, she nods. “definitely get ya there.” she sighs, leaning back in her seat to take the weight off her spine. “nothin’ permanent though, right?” she hoped marlene would be granted a better fate than her.

marlene shook her head, thankful that she was in a better situation than most. “nah, she’s already given me a couple potions for my arm and pain.” she answered, watching the other girl shift uncomfortably. “i managed to hold on to my broom the entire way down, which slowed me a  bit when i managed to pull back on it. i’m sure marcus and james are relieved.” her explanation was brief, her voice lighter in tone at the end. “thanks for paying me a visit, you’re the second on my list.” 

━☆ﾟ.*·。ﾟHIS CHEST MOVED up and down in panic mode, no matter what she said. If only he’d been keeping a better eye on her, she wouldn’t have fallen and he would’ve been able to catch her. But James felt like the worst captain in the world, just absolutely awful. Why hadn’t he flown down faster to catch her? Wasn’t he supposed to be this great flier? He couldn’t even catch his teammate as she fell from her broom. As he carried her into the hospital wing, he tried his best to show her that he wasn’t really freaking out. “You really better be, I swear,” James responded as they finally laid her down on one of the beds. Madame Pomfrey did what she had to do and James stood there, trying his best not to panic and hyperventilate. It just really wasn’t working very well at all. 

Shaking his head, he sat down on the edge of her bed and took her hand in his, squeezing it. “Don’t you worry about the game right now. You just need to get better. I need you to be okay. You’re one of my favorite people, Marlene,” James explained, sighing softly. He would quite honestly do anything for her, that much he knew. Shifting, he tilted his head to the side, he looked at her and only sighed. James was notorious for not sleeping properly, especially on nights he’d scheduled Quidditch practice. “Why? Is everything okay? Do we need to have a serious heart to heart or something?”

Marlene had spent sixteen years by James’ side. All she had to do was glance at him to be able to tell he was less than calm, even if he wasn’t outwardly showing it. At one point when Pomfrey was away getting things, she reached back and tapped his knee, getting his attention to give him a smile in an attempt to get him to think about something else, literally anything other than this. After Madame Pomfrey had finished and let her stay, Marlene adjusted her focus back to James. She moved over a little bit so he had more room, the bed feeling surprisingly nice for being in the infirmary, that or a pillow was just tempting. “And you’re one of my favorites too. I’m good Jamie, I promise.” She said softly, squeezing his hand back. As much as she didn’t want to ignore the game, she knew she was going to have to, he’d get mad if she didn’t.

Was everything okay? Yes, kind of. She was happy with Evan, she was doing well in school, nothing had happened with the girls, and she was doing well in quidditch. But things still bothered her, her fight with Rab definitely bothered her. Then she started thinking about Evan and Rabastan and if she had come in between their friendship. Then her friends disliking Evan, then her parents, then her brother. Marlene was most worried about her brother’s opinion, not ready in the slightest to hear him express his distaste. “Loaded question.” She laughed shortly, her eyes feeling misty. She didn’t want to unload on James, not without him saying it would be okay. Marlene looked at him, a weak smile pulling at her lips, “Or something, yeah.”

marlene knew it was stupid, it was childish, it was petty, and she was fully aware. but that didn’t stop her from finding bella and dragging her into the room of requirement, thankful it had shown up. it was all timing really, she was starting to feel like she couldn’t talk to anyone about much and she knew that evan wouldn’t understand. but bella, like the saving grace she was, was a neutral third party. she knew rabastan and she knew marlene, but she wasn’t directly in the line of fire. there was a lack of explanation as marlene pulled her away, the shorter girl still fuming as she held onto the slytherin’s hand. 

once the door was shut behind them, she turned to face the older girl, huffing slightly. “i’m sorry, but i just needed someone who wasn’t directly involved to just let me rant.” marlene’s explanation was vague, but if anyone had been around the quidditch pitch that day, she’s sure they would’ve heard. 

            mary  could  feel  marlene’s  eyes  on  her  fringe ,  feeling  self  conscious  about  it  for  the  first  time  in  weeks .  she’d  just  began  to  play  with  it ,  face  screwing  up  so  she  could  blow  it  out  of  her  eyes  but  stopping  as  soon  as  marlene  mentioned  hair ,  a  mischievous  grin  soon  taking  over .  “  what  colour ?  ”  mary  asks ,  immediately  on  board .  “  i  do  have  to  say  you  could  really  pull  of  green ,  ”  a  laugh  lights  up  her  face .

—— all we have is now

lily evans, mary macdonald, dorcas meadowes, and marlene mckinnon

we are friends for life hold that deep inside let this be a drive to survive

“ i doubt i need another defence against the dark arts class, ” he quips. wilted in the uncomfortable chair in the hospital wing, the change of scenery suits their relationship. at once, evan feels a sense of unease –– not so much wishing but wondering what it would be like if he could just be evan and marlene mckinnon. without the rosier, without the silver and green tie that sorts him into his allotted category. but then there’s the matter of the dark mark, the skull and snake permanently emblazoned on his forearm that calls him to his duty as a follower of the dark lord. the dark mark that marlene is still unaware of. he drags himself out of his introspection with a sigh, taking his hand back from her so he can twist each of his rings around their respective fingers once. 

“ you remind me of my father, right now. ” he looks at her, eyes glinting. “ imprisoned for an unknown amount of time. ” he can’t help the smile that slips onto his face. most of evan’s jokes were told to himself inside his mind, not even half of them making it past his lips into the outside world. in all the time he’d spent with her, he’d noted that marlene would laugh at almost anything –– as long as he framed it as something that was meant to be funny. since that realization, he’d been pushing it further and further, experimenting on what would or wouldn’t make her smile. in this instance, the joke is half a question –– wondering how long they would keep her, and subsequently him, here. 

“why would you when you’re the embodiment of dark arts yourself? It’s essentially a class on fighting your inner demons,” she retaliates lightly, trying to see if that can evict any kind of reaction from him, maybe a smile. she almost frowns when he takes his hand away, but lets him without any argument. she’s watching him, waiting to see if she needs to give him the chance to leave, see if she could notice that sitting by her side was too much for him too soon, or if he was just thinking about something. they were figuring this out piece by piece, finding themselves involved in more of the other persons day more frequently than before. this moment was almost nice; it didn’t feel like they needed to be anyone other than themselves, who they were when alone together. that was an entirely different version of them, the one that met in the library, not like that when eyes were on them. marlene was truly close to a version of her best self when around him.