—a falling star

━━   hey, isn’t that LIANA BURKE? i read a daily prophet article on them, once ; the THIRTY NINE year old pureblood WIX is a DURMSTRANG alumnus who has gone on to be a THERAPIST AND FORMER AUROR. i’ve heard they can be quite VALIANT & RESILIENT, but i don’t know… they came off very HEADSTRONG & CANDID in that interview. it really is hard to know what to believe these days though, isn’t it?

dependent Harry Potter rp blog penned by Caro!!

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The healer and nursing staff has hardly allowed Molly to leave her bed since she woke up, she was beginning to lose her sanity being cooped up. It went against all she was, even in all the pain she was in ( though she’d never let her family know about how bad the pain got ). It was to her surprise when she finally strong-armed the staff enough that they finally allowed her to sit in a wheelchair and sit by a window in the hallway. Not exactly going home just yet, but it was a start. 

“A beautiful day,” She looks out, a wistful gaze in her eyes. “And I can’t even enjoy it.”

It’s hardly shocking to find Liana among the halls of St. Mungo’s. They’d spent a good bit of time here in the beginning of their practice, meeting clients that other therapists wouldn’t treat, that doctors called them specifically in for. Trauma work had been in high demand those days. Still is, to be fair. It’s as they’re meandering the halls after meeting with a client injured in the attack on the Derby that they happen upon Mrs. Weasley, and the red hair is really all they need for identification. 

“They won’t let you out?” The question is posed lightly, a sorry smile on full lips. “What if someone went with you?” 

𝙼𝙴𝙼𝙴  :     ‘     this  is  gonna  help  both  of  us!     ’ 𝙵𝚁𝙾𝙼  :     liana burke  (  @valiantiisms​  )

‘     I  would  fucking  love  to  know  how  you  came  to  that  conclusion,  ursuleț.     ’           Childhood  pet  name  somehow  softens  the  potential  blow  that  comes  from  cursing  at  his  younger  sibling.   Not  that  there’s  any  real  bite  in  the  word.   Voice  finds  a  rare  softness  during  conversations  with  Liana,   one  that  very  few  others  ever  get  to  hear.           ‘     ‘Cause  from  where  I’m  sittin’?   This  ain’t  gonna  do  shit  for  me.     ’           That’s  not  an  outright  no,  of  course.  Whatever  they  want,  they  usually  get    :    that  younger  version  of  Zeke  who  swore  to  spoil  them  in  a  way  they  knew  their  parents  never  would  still  alive  inside.   Putting  up  a  fight  seems  futile  when  both  know  he’ll cave  in  the  end,   but  still,   he  tries.  He  has  a  reputation  to  uphold  after  all. 

Little sibling doe eyes fully employed and even more fully unnecessary, Liana leans forward across the table with her chin braced on her palms. It goes without saying that, more likely than not, this situation pans out in their favor. It almost always does. For all his faults, and this could certainly be considered one, Zeke is nothing if not attentive to their requests. Often times cooperating even when it goes against every intention he otherwise has. She appreciates it, really and truly, as she continues the unnecessary steps of pouting up at him. “Please, Motănel.” Lower lip pokes out in an unmistakably young expression on their face. “Just let me try it?”

𝙻𝙾𝙲𝙰𝚃𝙸𝙾𝙽          :          cadbury     faire     . 𝙵𝙾𝚁          :          liana     burke          (          @valiantiisms​          )          . 𝚂𝚃𝙰𝚃𝚄𝚂          :          closed     .

time     can’t     heal     all     ,     but     the     years     have     melded     into     an     interchangeable     blur          /          far     from     the     sullen     ,     personified     indent     in     liana’s     couch     that     she     once     was          ;          rather     ,     when     hermione     catches     sight     of     familiar     whirl     of     burnished     locks     it’s     without     so     much     as     a     strangled     lump     in     her     throat     that     she     raises     a     languorous     wave     .          “          nice     to     see     you     𝐎𝐔𝐓     of     the     office     ,     doc     .          ”

They know the voice before they turn to look for its source, as familiar with it as they are Hermione’s potent silence. It’s fair to say that Liana has a fondness for most, if not all, of her patients, but it would also be safe to say that she has a stronger fondness for some than others. And Hermione falls high on the list. Her wave is returned, a small turn of the wrist as the therapist changes course, drifting now in the young woman’s direction. “I think I can safely say the same for you, Hermione. Enjoying yourself, I hope?”

“that’s not exactly reassuring,” benedict remarked, his eyebrows knit together as he looked at liana. it was as much his fault for not paying more attention, but he decided against saying that part. he trusted liana, enough that he was willing to go along with whatever she had in mind, no matter how uneasy it made him feel. “i’m fine,” he responded, biting down on his lip, “how are you?”

Far be it from Liana’s intentions to further his discomfort, and so her expression shifts to something softer, intentionally reassuring. The precise word he offered is one she works hard to replicate, the edges of her countenance, previously frazzled with pain, smooth over in an instant like hairs pushed back from her face. “Sorry, Ben. Really, it’s nothing.” Another squeeze of his arm is offered before she pulls her hand away, settling it neatly beside the other in her lap. “Oh, I don’t know. This weekend is never easy, is it? So much loss...” She trails off, eyes caught on a figure in the distance, shoulders shaking with grief. “But I’ll be fine. Always am.” 

5. What kind of first impression does your muse give off to people just meeting them? How does this change as people get to know them better?

Liana comes across in almost all fronts as someone bubbly, joyful, a light in the darkness. It comes at such a sharp contrast with what people anticipate from people with her surname that she almost takes pride in it. Coming across as someone hopeful and compassionate is one of her strongest moments. As people get to know her, though, she mellows out a bit. The cheeriness and light remain, but become slightly more subdued with time. There’s less brilliant bursts of sunshine and more of an easy light poking through tree-cover. 

17. What is your muse’s least favorite part of their job or their everyday life?

This part is easy: Liana hates seeing people in pain. A large part of what she does is helping people process the worst things that happened to them in their lives and that comes with its fair share of pain and crying. Trauma work isn’t easy, and sometimes all she wants is to reach out and comfort them, but that’s not part of her job. The best she can do is make them feel secure in working through their emotions and memories in a healthy environment. 

What  if’s  and  what  might’ve  been  aren’t  two  things  Ezekiel  takes  into  consideration  often.   He’s  comfortable  with  who  he  is.      —      The  man  he  became.   That  rough  around  the  edges,   willing  to  do  what  it  takes  to  secure  self - survival,  prick  everybody  has  come  to  know  him  as.   It  would  be  reassuring  to  say  there’s  certain  things  he’s  done  that  keep  him  awake  at  night      :      to  humour  the  possibility  that  there  might  just  be  a  conscience  stemmed  away  behind  all  those  scowls,   all  those  scars.   Some  semblance  of  a  man  who  could  one  day  seek  REDEMPTION,   but  it  wouldn’t  be  the  truth.   He  doesn’t  pretend  to  be  any  better  than  he  is  nor  does  he  have  the  inclination  to  try.  Life  sets  people  on  a  path  from  birth  and  he  followed  his  with  complete  confidence  in  every  action  he  took.   Liana  isn’t  like  him.   Liana  considers  possibilities.   Zeke  remembers  them  as  a  child,  curious  and  innocent,  two  words  no  one  will  use  in  his  eulogy.   They’re  older  now.   Wiser,  but  that  same  sense  of  wonder  is  there  sometimes.   He  sees  it  in  moments  like  these  and  Ezekiel  wishes  he  had  the  answers  to  give  them,   but  he’s  never  been  a  man  of  many  words.   The  most  he  can  offer  is  an  opinion.   One  he  believes  with  EVERY  fibre  of  his  being,   because  while  Zeke  hasn’t  ever  longed  for  better  for  himself,   it  is  something  he  always  wanted  for  them.   For  the  sibling  that  gave  him  some  understanding  of  what  it  meant  to  actually  have  family.             ‘      There’s  enough  those  Burkes  in  the  world.      ’            The  hand  on  her  shoulder  slips  further  around,   arm  embracing  them,   hanging  loose  even  as  they  attempt  to  look  away.             ‘      It  was  about  time  one  of  us  did  something  different.  Else  we  would’a  come  too  predictable.      ’            Merlin  knows  he  has.          ‘      The  fuck  you  apologisin’  for?   Can  talk  to  me.   Y’know  that.      ’

It would be safe to say that Liana learned almost everything they know from Zeke in some way: for better or worse he was the north star of their life for so many years, testament to a bond unbroken by time, by change, by progress. Some things they learned simply from watching the way he lived his life and deciding that it wasn’t what they wanted for themselves. Some, from attentively guided lessons. And some, too, from conversations like this. The speculative and existential nature of their thoughts came from somewhere else, somewhere that felt--and simply had to be--more nature than nurture. It wasn’t something they found anywhere else in the Burke family, least of all in Zeke, though it was never a point of contention. Still, he humored them when they got this way and it was something they’d always appreciated. Despite the lack of eye contact, when his arm wraps around their shoulders to pull in a bit closer, Liana leans in against him. Her head falls against his chest, evidence of their familiarity, and she lets out a long, heavy sigh. Eyes flutter closed for a moment as she imagines that other Liana--the one who was Burke through and through. Self-assured and a fraction malicious, smile darker at the edges, sharper in low light. Still an auror, no doubt, or perhaps a hit-wix like their brother. Vindictive, perhaps, and closer aligned with the dark underbelly of the still-brightening world forming around them. It’s not a thought she wants to hold onto long, eyes fluttering back open as her hand lifts to rest gratefully against Zeke’s relaxed one. A small, brief touch. A silent thank you. “Not sure Mother Dearest would agree,” the words slip past her lips before she can stop them and if there’s a hint of bitterness to them, she won’t look it in the eye. “I know, I know.” This is more comfortable for them both, Liana thinks. The sibling roles holding prominence over the existential undercurrents. “I just think... I don’t know. I think maybe life would’ve been easier that way? Less... alienating.” Odd words to put to it, she’s sure, considering she held the golden child role uncontested from the moment she’d been born. But there was something about being so different from the rest of her family that had always been so painfully obvious. “On bad days, it feels like easier would’ve been better. Does that make any sense at all?” 

“not at all!” it’s mostly polite instinct that shoots these words from her mouth, but penelope doesn’t feel disturbed despite the interruption - she’s glad, almost, for an excuse to engage in small talk. while she wouldn’t be counted as its biggest fan, it was welcome in the stilted atmosphere where she doesn’t quite feel as if she belongs. “that’s lovely, thank you.” the smile on her face grows, warmth growing from her chest like vines. “good to meet you. i’m penelope. do you know the couple well?” 

Perhaps she’s just being polite--that is Liana’s assumption, at least--but the gesture is appreciated all the same. The wix nods, leaning her weight forward on her hand for a moment just to feel the bones of her wrist protest, before slowly pulling the chair before her out and settling into it. Hopefully not an unwelcome intrusion, she relishes in the opportunity to at least engage with a new face. Especially when the room is so full of perhaps uncomfortably familiar ones. “It’s my pleasure, really.” And it is. Giving flowers had, somewhere along the line, become an act of self-soothing just as much as genuine hope for others. “Not in the slightest,” she admits it like it’s a secret, laughing through the words. “And you?” 

benedict was by nature a nervous person, but he’d always made a conscious effort to not let his nerves get in the way of living his life. and of course there were the times where he couldn’t help but worry. oddly enough, most of those times seemed to involve liana. which if he thought about it, was somewhat concerning, but he always seemed to shrug it off, she was his friend after all, she wouldn’t knowingly lead him into danger. “right,” he responded, his eyebrows furrowed together, “what are we doing again?”

The question finally truly jarring them from their daze, Liana lets out a soft laugh, reaching a fond hand out and squeezing Benedict’s arm. Their eyes brighten once again, face charging up with something resembling amusement, hope, possibility. It’s not quite genuine, not all the way there, but an excellent forgery and really one of their better attempts, considering the events of the weekend. “I don’t quite know anymore. Think I got lost there for a moment.” A shrug moves through their slight frame, shifting something loose. “How are you holding up? Such a heavy time to be.... present.” 

hande was always a safe topic of conversation. her entire life she’d never had much interest in children. they were odd creatures, easy to break and easy to contort. (she, after all, was proof of that even if the young dionisia crabbe had been left behind in that st. mungo’s room, scars dotted skin hidden away under her clothes and feeling of abandonment swelled up still even after decades.) there was a time, when she was younger and more idealistic and in love, when she decided she would shove down her reservations if liana asked. but, well, they hadn’t lasted. but hande was the closest she’d ever get, someone she’d chosen and welcomed in. “nothing she cannot handle. miss abaci is a brilliant young woman. more talented and competent than i was at her age.”

Nothing about this moment feels safe. There’s something alarming about realizing how many emotions Dionisia really stirs up within Liana, about how much may have been left unresolved and unfinished. They know better than anyone how dangerous those emotions can be, when left unattended to, but this is a stark reminder. Still, the pretty, sociable smile remains in place. Still, Liana plays their role as best as they can manage. It all feels incredibly far from home, like they’re in a boat tossed out to sea. Though, they suppose, their ex’s protégé is hardly the worst topic of conversation that could come up. “That’s high praise, coming from you. I always thought you quite competent.” It sounds more fond than it should on their tongue and the wix fights the urge to tack on something else just to dull the ache. 

there was a part of kasper that thought it wasn’t exactly fair for him to behave this way towards liana, not when she had no clue who he was. he made the executive decision to ignore that part, at least for the time being. he wasn’t quite ready to rule out being nice to her. “noted,” he replied, remarkably calm considering the longer the conversation went on, the more annoyed he became. “i definitely won’t be following it.”

“Sure, that’s you prerogative.” the words leave their lips with little effort, nodding as their gaze falls upon his face again. There’s the faintest ping of familiarity when they do, though it’s hard to place. Safest to assume they’ve seen him on the street somewhere, or out and about. Nothing special. Still, there’s a small voice in their mind that says differently, that begs to lean into the hint. “What did you say your name was?” 

“I still wake up sometimes expecting him to be there when I turn my head.” 

“just don’t ever give them an opening.” @valiantiisms​

“i’d say thank you for the advice,” kasper paused, briefly, running is tongue across his lips as he looked at the woman in front of him, “but i don’t recall asking for it.” he knew he wasn’t being fair, but he quite frankly didn’t give a rats ass to whether or not he was being fair. she was a burke, as far as he was concerned, she didn’t deserve politeness. and he wanted to make that known. he didn’t stop to consider she might not know who he was. 

They’ve been on the receiving end of worse. Family, criminals, and clients are all much more difficult to deal with than twenty-something with an attitude problem. Two thirds of which, they got paid to deal with, and the final third of which they had absolutely no alternatives. That number has been dwindling for years, anyway. It’s for this exact reason that Liana offers little more than a shrug in response. “You can play tough guy all you want, it doesn’t really change my day.” The words, though direct, have a compassionate lean to them somehow. Something trademarked to Liana. “You don’t have to listen to me if you don’t want to, that’s completely your choice. Was just a suggestion.” 

𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐍𝐀 𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐊𝐄 𝐒𝐀𝐈𝐃:    ‘      do  you  wish  i  was  different?    ’​

‘     Not  even  for  one  damn  second.     ’           Answer  comes  almost  immediately.   It’s  not  a  question  he  needs  time  to  consider.   Ezekiel  has  always  known  exactly  what  kinda  person  his  youngest  sibling  is  and  despite  their  glaringly  obvious  differences,   there’s  never  been  a  moment  when  he  hasn’t  felt  proud.   On  paper,   their  partnership  shouldn’t  work.   They  live  in  two  different  worlds.   One  striving  to  do  good  and  make  the  world  a  better  place,   the  other  fully  content  to  remain  lurking  in  the  shadows,   accepting  what  he  believes  can’t  be  changed.   If  they  weren’t  related,   it’s  likely  they  wouldn’t  even  exchange  polite  greetings,   but  blood  binds  them  together  and  somehow,   despite  Ezekiel’s  fractured  relationship  with  every  other  Burke,   that’s  always  been  enough  to  keep  this  particular  pair  close.   He  knows  the  memorial  isn’t  easy  for  them.   He’s  seen  it  before  and  while  comfort  isn’t  something  that  comes  naturally  to  him,   he  still  tries,   hand  lifting  to  settle  ‘pon  his  sibling’s  shoulder.           ‘     You’re  the  best  of  us  all,  kiddo.     ’             And  they  are,   their  light  consistently  challenging  the  darkness  that’s  been  passed  down  through  Burke  generations,   threatening  to  CONSUME  them  all.   There’s  no  hope  for  most  of  them,   Zeke  included,  but  Liana?     —     Liana  was  the  very  epitome  of  the  word  and  he  likes  that.   They  deserve  to  follow  a  good  path,  regardless  of  how  far  from  his  own  it  is.   He  can’t  begrudge  them  that.           ‘     I  wouldn’t  change  shit.     ’

𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍:   hogwarts,  the  memorial 𝐅𝐓.:    @valiantiisms​ ​

When their gaze turns up to look at Zeke--and up it does have to go, the height difference between them borderline comical--there’s a trace of the child they used to be. It’s difficult to say whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, only that in this moment, Liana is smaller. They didn’t really expect him to say yes. Maybe others, but not Ezekiel. He’s always been a safe place, a sturdy pillar to lean on, literally for as long as they can remember. The hilarious truth of it all is that without his help, Liana likely would’ve ended up the same as him, the same as most Burkes: morally grey, defiant, conniving, out only for self-interested gain. One could even say that the thing allowing them to be so incredibly different is the thing keeping them together. In this moment, they are more the child who picked wild flowers to bring to their father than the auror who took part in the very battle they’re here to remember. It’s not a place they go often, for a thousand reasons. As his hand settles on their shoulder, some of the best Zeke has to offer by way of comfort, a small smile makes its way across their lips. Far from the beam of brilliant sunshine that often lights up the whole room, it’s an offering nonetheless, and they lean the smallest fraction closer to him. A sturdy pillar to lean on, indeed. “I think about it sometimes.” A truth they’ve never spoken. To anyone. “How much easier it would be if I had been more Burke. I know it’s a pointless line of thought--and a dismal one at that--but I really... sometimes I wonder. Who is that person? The other Liana. The one who fit the mold and didn’t upset the balance.” Soft eyes drop down to their hands, less looking at them and more looking away from Zeke. “Sorry. I shouldn’t say shit like that. There’s more important shit going on than my projecting.”