Jordyn tip-toed around the kitchens, obscenely late for scheduled dinner. Reaching up to rub her sleepy eyes, she could still feel the marks from her book creasing her cheek.

  She couldn’t believe she had fallen asleep face first in her book.  Well, she could, but she couldn’t believe people let her – and to sleep through dinner?  That was embarrassing... and problematic, as the rumble in her stomach indicated she was quite hungry. 

It wasn’t as though she’d been sleeping much recently anyway, given her complete avoidance of all post and her preparation for NEWTs with the zealous fervor of a flagellant.  Thankfully, she could go back to crying about those things instead of worrying about having to put all of her dreams on hold[1].  Neely had talked her through that and when she’d woken up to cramping… well, she’d never been so happy for that in her entire life! 

So with everything else out of the way, apparently in the middle of her renewed vigor for studying charms, she’d fallen asleep – and none of the other girls woke her up!  When she did finally wake up, she had glanced over to her watch and balked: it was nearly nine – patrol would start soon!  Her hands flew over her blouse, trying to tuck in and smooth out before she could begin the tedious work of untangling her earring from a lock of hair.  Cursing under her breath, Jordyn stumbled out of the dormitory with earring free and stomach still growling.

Her only choice was now the kitchens… taking a quick turn toward the Hufflepuff cellar, Jordyn took a quick glance to make sure no one was watching and approached the painting she knew would reveal the kitchen door.  It was a still life, rather unremarkable… and as she looked around the bowl of painted fruit, she frowned.

Which one was it? 

Shoot!  She hadn’t done this in ages, maybe ever – at least not by herself, and now she was starving and was it the apple?  Or the orange?  Wrinkling her nose, she reached forward and poked at the unmoving apple… nothing. 

She traced her gloved fingers over the curve and toward the orange.  Still nothing. She cursed the painting under her breath again and scowled.  “How on bloody Earth do I get in?” she growled at the painting, perhaps using a little too much nail to scratch over the banana nestled in the fruit bowl, still to no avail. 

1.	Reference to this post

And then – despite Jordyn's failure – the painting finally swung open. On the other side of the threshold, with her uniform long exchanged for something more comfortable, Gracie stood, rolling her eyes at something – someone – behind her.

“Nazarova for Markov?” The scorn in her tone was heavy, though it lacked the heat of real offense.  “Please. I mean, he’s a canny bastard, sure, but–”

Finally green eyes darted to the front; they widened.  “Oh, you’re awake!”  The pleased grin Jordyn got for her newfound state of consciousness was toothy, brilliant, and utterly free of guilt. The Head Girl, in Gracie’s opinion, did not get enough rest. She shuffled to the side, leaving the other witch enough room to pass through—then stuck her head out, looking this way and that.  “Anyone else with you?”

Farther into the kitchen, seated at one of the great tables the elves used to set up their meals, were Ji-Hyun[1] and Theo, couple-y close with a half-demolished plate of cheese toasties between them.

The cheese toasties had not been his idea; until he and Ji-Hyun had begun spending more time together, Theo – raised on a diet of expensive dishes, occasionally of obscure origin – had only a vague idea of what they even were. But his witch had been adamant about their appeal, and pleasing her had ceased to be an endeavor borne of ulterior motives. With only a bit of finicky disdain, his first toastie had been picked up and carefully savored. Aftertaste of oil and dairy byproduct aside, it wasn’t entirely without merit, he conceded (and was thusly rewarded with a pleased smile); simplicity aside, he supposed a certain comfort could be derived from it.

But Theo was less sure about the barehanded aspect of it (he did not approve of the mess), and even less so about the nose wrinkles any toastie-flavored kisses garnered. After the first one – and an apology – he was feeling… cheated.

(He was not sulking.)

Slant’s appearance marked an end to the intimacy, but provided a welcome distraction. With Ji-Hyun as a buffer, the two Slytherins engaged in idle conversation until the topic of sports was broached. Slant, oblivious to the recent change in ownership over her favorite ice quidditch team, proved herself easily incensed over fantasy swaps she didn’t agree with.

At Jordyn’s arrival, the Head Boy lifted his mug in lazy salute.

“Good evening, Dimbleby,” he greeted her. The mug was lowered to his lips; above it, that blue-eyed stare focused on her, placid and innocent as a newborn babe.  “Did you have a nice nap?”

1.	With Hazel’s permission!

Virgil was cold because the castle, as a rule, could be cold - and he wasn't dressed for Scottish spring. But he only had to tolerate it until he reached the Kitchens, where one might sunbathe before the great fire and pretend that the distance between Heaven and Hell is a painting of ticklish fruit.

Clearly he wasn't the only one from his house with cravings, though he had no excuse. He had eaten well at dinner and was still, inexplicably, nibblish.

It was peculiar. He felt like he could not eat enough since the panel talks.

      “Anyone else with you?” heard the prefect as Gracie's lovely head stuck out from the entrance, and he came from round an adjacent corridor to spot the two witches.

"Only us vagrants and dreamers." Virgil nodded an indifferent hello at their Head Girl, pausing only to let her slip in before he followed through in long and light-footed strides. "Ah," he noted Theo and Ji-Hyun at the far end. "We're a company."

Too incidental to be coincidence, perhaps? He liked to believe in signs and omens and anything that could pass for a reason to celebrate excess. Virgil chose a spot on the bench not far along from Ji-Hyun, leaning back against the table with legs outstretched. He smiled at Theo's question, looking from Jordyn to him.

"Dimbledy always sleeps well," his tone was softly disparaging. "Her dreams are all boring. Are your stomachs too sated for dessert? I was thinking about strawberry pavlova."

And thinking was only a step or two away from doing.

Ji-Hyun had been subdued during the discussion of ice quidditch, steadily making her way through the remaining cheese toasties instead. She only had a vague understanding of the game, and definitely didn’t know enough to understand the importance of the player swapping that Theo and Gracie were talking about. She didn’t even recognise most of the names – and when she did, it was mostly because they’d been mentioned earlier in the conversation.

Besides, Theo had been… weird, even after she’d apologised (which had possibly not been the sincerest apology she’d ever made). With Gracie headed towards the door, she had been preparing to say something, although she didn’t know what, but apparently it was just to add to their numbers.

Ji-Hyun bit back a sigh. There would be time to reassure Theo later.

She smiled a little wider when Virgil followed Jordyn. He was… non-threatening, as far as Slytherins went. Ji-Hyun tried not to typecast, but… all of the seventh year Slytherins were kind of intimidating, in different ways. Even... Gracie, sometimes.

It was weird that they were all talking about Jordyn sleeping. Maybe something had happened that she didn’t know about? Or Jordyn was having problems with sleeping? It seemed like the kind of thing that her housemates might know about, even if it wasn’t common knowledge. Not that Ji-Hyun would know if it was, she didn’t really keep up with gossip.

Ji-Hyun smiled at the newcomers, waving a little. “Would either of you like a cheese toastie?” she asked, cheeks heating a little. It wasn’t as though she would be the one who would cook the cheese toastie. Not that she couldn’t, because she made awesome cheese toasties, but the house elves were very protective of the kitchen, and they’d protested vehemently whenever she’d tried to help.

 Jordyn was susprised when the painting swung open and it wasn’t a house elf fretting that she was there.  Instead, Gracie, Theo, and Ji-Hyun were all inside.  Raising her gloved hand, she gave a little wave of recognition.  She might have paid attention to Gracie, if not for the fact that she could scarcely recall an instance where Theo had ever willingly been sitting that close to another human being. Her memory came up short. 

Pursing her lips, she blinked herself back into the moment, Gracie and Theo’s questions just registering Virgil’s entrance.  Fantastic.  She repressed the urge to roll her eyes – he wasn’t writing the next great sonnet, vagrants and dreamers.  Ridiculous.  The relationship between the two Slytherins had deteriorated pretty quickly[1] and that wasn’t to say there had been any real relationship there to begin with.  Jordyn tended to contrast deeply with her less straight-laced peer.  I

She found it within herself to give him a tight-lipped greeting before returning her attention to her other housemates and Ji-Hyun.  She tried not to turn red and sighed.  “It was fine,” she answered vaguely, shooting another scathing look at Virgil as he cut in, insulting yet again.  The sad part was, she couldn’t even argue: he wasn’t wrong.  He was just annoying. 

Letting a slow, calming breath out from her nose, Jordyn finally regarded the Hufflepuff who had made an offer of food.  Her stomach rumbled and she instantly felt self-conscious.   She hoped no one heard that.  She also didn’t know how to decline, even though the plate was very close to both of them and it felt somewhat like impeding on their personal space to approach, but she was starving.  “Thank you, Ji-Hyun,” she smiled and reached to the plate for a toastie. 

Lifting it to her mouth, she nibbled gently, again self-conscious. She had wanted a snack, not an audience.  “We know what brings Virgil here,” she glanced over to her sandy-haired classmate before letting her eyes wander to the others.  “What is the special occasion that we’ve all gathered?  Not a secret yearbook meeting, I hope?”

1.	Reference to this thread.

Eating had become a task akin to performing well in Defense Against the Dark Arts. Most of the time Cadance had no appetite what so ever and it felt like the other half of the time, when she managed to get anything down it came right back up. Whoever coined the phrase 'Morning Sickness' needed to be hexed in the face. Likewise for those that said eating for two. At 6 weeks in Cadance felt as if she'd never eat properly again. Thankfully her peers had yet to catch her with her head in the toilets, with only the paler shade of her porcelain skin any indication that something was wrong. She had even managed to sneak out to the kitchens at night, taking in bites of crackers and bananas (the only things she could successfully stomach) without anyone noticing.

The door had closed behind Virgil leaving the lower corridor empty of any trace of the late night snackers. She tickled the pear and sighed as the door swung aside for her. Her stomach was in knots and she was desperate to make the feeling go away. What she hadn't been expecting was a gaggle of students right inside the entrance way. She swore softly under her breath a momentary lapse in her perfect facade. Her practiced smile was quickly in place, her hands folded over her lap. Her ice blue eyes darted from Head boy to Head Girl to Slytherin Prefect. Had it not been for Gracie and Ji-Hyun's presence she would have worried she had walked in on a secret Prefects meeting.

"Good Evening. Nothing like NEWT studies to work up an appetite."

Virgil slipped off the bench as cheese toasties were offered, smiling thanks at Ji-Hyun but declining the snack - he wanted something sweet. No. Something indulgent, rather. Cheese could be decadent but toasties felt homely. Dimbleby wondered out loud at the coincidence of their makeshift gathering in the kitchens while he popped into the pantry to look for something less complicated than meringue.

"No special occasions. Blame all their talk of sex on Sunday..." he called back at her questions, glancing over his shoulder with a wink. "Makes everyone nibblish."

It was only a second to fetch the snack but by the time he returned to the table, carrying a large bar of dark baking chocolate, Cadence had made an appearance. Did anyone in the dorms realise they were missing so many seventh years? He raised an eyebrow at the blonde witch.

"Is that what's working up your appetite?" Virgil peeled the foil off his bar before breaking off a corner piece of the chocolate, which he stuck into his mouth. "I wash jush shaying it mifght be the shex," his words came out muffled and sticky.

If Jordyn was feeling self-conscious about accepting Ji-Hyun’s offer, then Theo definitely wasn’t helping; mid-sip, that very gaze locked on her hand, attentive to its intrusion. It transferred to the Head Girl’s face when she took her first bite, intent and unblinking.


     “Not a secret yearbook meeting, I hope?”


Virgil spoke up before Theo could, and then Cadance appeared, garnering a quip that had the Head Boy quietly coughing into his drink. To a casual observer it was an innocent remark, but if one knew of the other lad’s unusual sensitivity to unguarded thoughts…

Theo wiped at his chin with a firm swipe of his thumb, carefully not looking at Ji-Hyun. He could count on one hand the number of times they had been together since the panel and it was not a number that could rightfully warrant such an claim. Still, it would be a lie to say that the Hufflepuff’s contentment did nothing for him. A happy Ji-Hyun was a lovely one.

It might be the sex indeed.

“For some? Perhaps,” he allowed, thinking of Nicholas, and grinned at Ji-Hyun. His grin only widened when she punched him.  “Kidding.”

Brightening at the sight of Virgil, Gracie stepped even further back into the painting, holding it ajar. With Cadance arriving in short succession, the animagus darted out a hand, offering a friendly quirk of a grin and propping the painting open before it could shut on the other witch.

Then it was just her. Shooting her surroundings a quick look, she stepped on a tile—causing another to jut out out of the wall. A tiny grin curled her lips; tugging the brick out, she stuck her hand inside and pulled out… a bottle of Beetle Berry whiskey. Yey.

The painting swung open again. Gracie stepped over the threshold, already working on the cork. Just in time to catch Theo rubbing at his bicep, trying to look contrite, she decided she didn’t want to know.  “Anyone in the mood for a drink? Virgil? Jordyn?”  She looked at Cadance, oblivious to her classmate’s state.  “Cadance?”

 Jordyn elected to not respond to Virgil’s comment (at least not verbally, an eye roll did more than enough in communicating her disapproval) – he was obviously trying to ruffle feathers and she wasn’t going to get caught up in a hexing match again, not with him anyhow.  He was notorious for starting things (at least in Jordyn’s humble opinion) and though it took a great deal of self-restraint, she managed to focus on the fact that Whitman was trying to drill holes through her with his eyes as she took a toastie. 

Ah well, she needed something to eat and if she could focus on nibbling she could ignore Virgil and Theo.  She nodded placidly at Cadance’s assessment: NEWTs was a good enough reason as any to eat, though most of the time, Jordyn found that it made her stomach turn… Adding, of course, to the fact that there was a new development: sleeping through dinner.  She resolved to set an alarm on her bedside clock for dinnertime from now on. 

But, while the sandwich piece had distracted her, Gracie had apparently disappeared and reappeared with… oh no.  What on Earth was she trying to do outside of get into trouble?  It was obviously not allowed in the castle and she and Theo and Virgil were there (though she did not assume Virgil upheld the rules with any sort of zeal).  She supposed maybe Theo did not do so either… and would she be expected not to?  Darting her eyes around the group, Jordyn just shoved the last of her piece of toast into her mouth and shook her head, not wanting to take any of whatever she had in her hands.  Jordyn knew Gracie… it was probably strong and disgusting.   

Virgil's mention of sex building up an appetite made Cadance blush. She decided not to attempt hiding it. Allowing her classmates see her blush at the mere mention of sex played right into her image. She was supposed to be proper, to be perfect, to be the unsullied Bride-to-be. The blush should be a sign of her perceived innocence not her actual indiscretions. Besides no one knew, Charlie wouldn't have told, she trusted him that far. There was no way that the other Slytherin had intentionally directed his remarks at her in that way. There was just no way that Virgil Carstairs was to be the first to know about her . . . delicate condition.

She decided playing up the innocent card was her best course of action. With a small giggle she added, "Can't imagine any of us would be, I mean, that is to say no one would be having - it's just the NEWTS are just so much more important."

Averting her eyes but keeping her head at such a height as to accentuate her blush, Cadance moved further into the kitchen and retrieved some fresh fruit. She started to slice them up when she heard Gracie say her name, having not seen her dorm mate leave and return with the bottle in hand.

Cadance smiled sweetly, "I simply couldn't. Can't stomach the stuff. Xavier and I spent all last summer drinking it. Worst headaches afterwards." She had practised this sort of response. Being a teenager it would be very likely she'd be offered and she obviously wasn't about to give the real reason she couldn't. Sometimes it helped having a borderline alcoholic cousin for a best friend.

Theo was the only one amenable to his suggestion that the sex talks were to blame, which would have been worrying if not softened by Ji-Hyun's presence. Virgil lazily pulled himself up to sit on to the table so that his feet rested on the bench. He broke off another piece of chocolate and ate it as if though he were chewing through popcorn instead.

       "Anyone in the mood for a drink? Virgil? Jordyn? Cadance?"

"Beetle berry?" he reached out, wiggling his long fingers in Gracie's direction as she returned bearing wonderful wonderful hard liquor. They could always count on her to bring the party. Chocolate in one hand and the long neck of the bottle in another, Virgil tilted his head back to take a swig.

He screwed his eyes shut and lowered it a moment later. Sweet, a harvest gone putrid. "Mm. Thanks," the prefect blinked sullenly before passing the bottle back. His mind bobbed around a bit from the shock of taste and he heard crackly faint voices the way one might hear distant Wireless sounds.

Virgil was about to block out the thoughts he was hearing when something in Cadance's mindscape caused his gaze to dart right at her, sharp. It stood out from Jordyn's typical worries. Delicate condition. Practised this response? He had to stop himself from looking at her stomach. No wonder she wasn't drinking.

"I'm sure you'll be ready to try again this summer," he started in on his chocolate once more - this time offering blocks to the others, though Virgil didn't look away from Cadance. "Or after. Give or take ..... say, eight or so months."

It was a shot in the dark, to confirm, but he affected nonchalance and passed Ji-Hyun a large chunk of chocolate.

Even the mention of the sex education panel was enough for Ji-Hyun to duck her head, cheeks flushing. They had been the most painfully embarrassing experience of her life, and while some of the information had been useful, a lot of it had just been traumatic. And then she’d had to talk to Theo, which had been awful in a different way, because she should just have talked to him in the first place and he’d seemed… disappointed in her. She understood why, of course, and he hadn’t been angry, but that was somehow worse.

But the guilt associated with that recollection wasn’t enough to stop her from punching Theo’s bicep. She knew that he had been joking, but it was still too close to the truth for her to be comfortable with it. She slipped her hand into Theo’s anyway, conscious that she was the only Hufflepuff in a group of Slytherins and unable to help feeling a little outnumbered.

When Gracie produced the bottle, Ji-Hyun looked at Theo, and then, considerably more uncertainly, at Jordyn. Theo didn’t always follow the rules to the letter, but Jordyn had always seemed a little stricter. Not that following the rules was bad, but some of the rules could be inconvenient.

She smiled in relief when they didn’t say anything as Virgil drank from the bottle - but, after all, he was a prefect. “If you’re worried about hangovers, you could always drink vodka,” she suggested, “or drink lots of water.” She smiled awkwardly, worried that her advice might seem presumptuous. It wasn’t like she drank much, and Gracie was definitely the expert on avoiding hangovers.

"I'm sure you'll be ready to try again this summer, or after. Give or take ..... say, eight or so months."

Ji-Hyun frowned, wondering what Virgil meant. Was Cadance trying a fad diet? But the comment about eight months seemed more specific. She reached for the chocolate slowly, the gesture second nature. Maybe it was some kind of fast? Or - oh. No wonder Gracie had spat her drink out. When she spoke, it was hesitant, “Cadance, are you,” she paused, searching for a gentle way to say it before giving up, “are you pregnant?” Ji-Hyun thought Cadance was engaged, so that at least explained how she was pregnant, but surely they would have used protection. She was so young, Ji-Hyun didn’t understand how she could possibly be prepared to have a baby. She certainly wouldn't be able to, at the moment. Maybe Cadance didn't want to, either. She bit her lip, wishing that she hadn't asked. Cadance probably didn't want to talk about it, much less with the people gathered.

Cadance stiffened at Virgil's comment. Any earlier remark was easily shrugged off but this one, this one was a little too on the nose. There was no more denying that he knew. Now the question became how did he know? No one else knew, not even Charlie. Sure, her fiance knew of the night they had spent together on Valentine's but that didn't automatically mean she'd be pregnant even if they had forgone any protection. She also doubted that Charlie would have even talked about it, she didn't think the two Slytherins were friends. Which meant he somehow figured it out on his own. Had she said something wrong? She had been so careful. Perhaps he had caught her being sick and connected the dots? It was still such a stretch.

Unfortunately Cadance would have to worry about all that later. It wasn't hard to put together the pieces Virgil had laid out. Before she could stop it the question came out. The one she feared, the one she expected, the one she had hoped she wouldn't be asked for a few more months.

Cadance put down the knife she had been using to slice her fruit, removed her wand and spun on her heel in one fluid motion, "Muffliato!" Cadance covered the kitchen with the protective charm so as not to let anyone else from hearing their conversation. She kept her wand up, though not pointed at any of them directly.

She looked to the single Hufflepuff. She knew very little of the girl given that she rarely socialised outside her house. Though she had nothing bad to say about her, nor did she think anyone else did. She had always seemed like a quiet unassuming sort and more than once Cadance wondered how she and Theo had ended up together.

A million responses ran through her head, some non chalant, some angry, dozens of denials and just as many affirmations. She knew it was only a matter of time before any of it had gotten out. She had only hoped she had been even more prepared. She sighed softly and placed her non wand hand on her lower abdomen, more than a little uncomfortable no longer wearing a corset. Finally settling on a response, she practically whispered four little words, "Yes. Charlie doesn't know."